Shadows of Shelly

Brit - The War That Offended Part 20a

TWENTY-a

Brit - The War That Offended

Four miles east of Huamereng mountain peak is a dirt trail near the Thai/Burma border. There is a small river called Rapid Stream by the local Hmong Tribe. A small recon pilot reported that the Hmong and a Thai village had been raided early in the morning, and the young men and women were shackled and led by a group of Chinese Gin Meow riflemen. Many huts were burning. Bodies were laying on the ground without motion.

A stream fed by a twelve-foot waterfall merged into the river. A Meow encampment was one hundred feet from the waterfall. There was no barricade around the bivouac area, but the jungle growth was taller than men. The photo revealed a fenced in area holding about forty hostages within the complex. The kidnappers probably numbered forty men. Items and money stolen from the communities were packed on mules.

We landed in four Marine stealth helicopters in a clearing about a half mile away from the camp. Two minutes later another four helicopters joined us to receive the hostages and any prisoners we might take. The quietness of our transportation and the sounds of the waterfall muffled the landing. Our men numbered eighty-three.

The abductors were housed in six large tents and one smaller shelter with a flag pole and red flag sporting three yellow stars on it. As evening approached four grisly lookouts were on guard duty. Two more were in makeshift towers.

One of our former AWOL soldiers brought his crossbow with him. He dispatched the sentries and tower men with ease and quietness. We neglected a walker in the compound who saw one of the sentries fall and sauntered over to check him out. When he heard groaning and saw the arrow protruding from the man's chest, he shot off a warning round a fraction of a second before he suffered the same fate as his buddies.

Chinese Meows pour from the tents disoriented but firing their rifles. Two of our men were hit but we slew the combatants in the complex. Suddenly we realized that our unit was surrounded by another group of enemy troops - maybe as many as a hundred-fifty shooting directly at us.

Thankfully. we heard clicks but no shots from many opponents weapons. Later it was discovered that they were carrying defective Chinese made AK47s. Nevertheless, twenty-two of our team were wounded. Chris was grazed on the back of his lower left leg. The spewing blood was worse than the wound.

Chris laughed about it, but Dak Akura blasted me at the hospital for letting her precious husband get wounded.

He said, "It is my own fault. Brit told us to hug the ground and I remained standing. If I would have dropped down when Brit told us to do it, the bullet would have passed over my head!"

Baxter said, "He saved many lives that day."

I intercepted, "Chris disposed of seven rival armed men while remaining upright. He is a hero and saved several in his squadron from being slaughtered! For his efforts he has earned the Purple Heart and the Air Force Cross. I am proud of him. He goes out because he wants to keep you and your friends safe."

Dak Akura stated, "I will make him get a safer job."

Shelly added, "You will not. He travels where there is danger. He, Baxter and Brit hate war. As long as bullies and profiteers cause war to exist, men like them are needed to defend those who cannot fight for themselves! It is their calling. They will not do otherwise. To try will make them feel less than men. If you attempt to change a man into what he is not, he will hate you and eventually leave you."

"How do you know what you just said?"

"Great Aunt Mae Sua taught us what I just said for times like these!"

"What then can we do?"

"She would tell us to love and support our husbands or leave and divorce them. There are other women that will have them in a minute because they are heroes with athletic builds.

Dak Akura looked at me and said, "I'm sorry."

"That's okay, because you are my sister. Sisters are always fussing at their little brothers."

She punched me on the shoulder and began chuckling, "You are the same age as me and two feet taller."

Levity filled the room and tension faded. It was like a birthday celebration or a wedding reception. A nurse came in the room and said we were bothering patients. We exaggerated our smiles and hugged Dak Akura and Chris.