“I am not sure the General will see it that way.”
“Then to hell with him. We’ll do it on our own!”
“It’s worth us at least putting it past him before we go it alone. If we do this without authorisation, there will be hell to pay even if it is a total success.”
“Whatever the price, it’s worth paying over letting our people be at their mercy.”
Chandra smiled.
“You know, I remember a time when Jones told me that you were a man to never break the rules. A marine who obeyed every command to the letter.”
“We were not at war then. It gives a new perspective.”
“And if you had heard about troops being taken captive, and they weren’t friends of yours?” she asked.
“We’ll never know. So what, if my personal friendship is affecting my judgement? We fight for each other, otherwise what is the point of it all?”
Chandra turned away and looked around the base at the hundreds of troops coming and going. She knew that General Schulz and Brigadier Dupont would likely not authorise it, but she had to ask.
The room was silent. The Major had outlined the information she had to the Generals, and they all sat awaiting Schulz’s answer. He was in charge of all operations in the area, and they all looked to him. They didn’t seem surprised that prisoners were being held, nor show much compassion for the soldiers’ fate. They already knew and they do nothing, she thought. She panned around the room, looking for support from any of the officers, but they did their best to look away.
“No, I will not risk our people in a suicidal mission based on sketchy information. Your request is denied. I understand your desire to save your men, but this is not the time. You have done a fine job in this war, Major, and we need you to keep up the good work. With officers like you on the front line, we are bound to win the war. Your efforts will be greatly rewarded.”
Fucking medals. My people are out there fighting and dying, for this? She was disgusted by the General’s attitude, but she knew she was foolish for expecting anything else. He only cared about figures, not soldiers. She turned and strode out of the room without a salute. It was an insult to her superiors that she knew they could do little about. In a time when they needed every capable soldier they had, she could get away with a lot.
The Major stormed out of the Headquarters to find Taylor awaiting her. He could already see she had failed in her attempt to get the General’s approval.
“Bastards,” he muttered.
“I shouldn’t have wasted my breath,” she snapped.
“What now?”
“I won’t leave our people there to rot. Find Phillips, he’s the only one who can get us what we need.”
“You think he’ll help?”
“He’s our only chance.”
Chandra squinted as she peered over Taylor’s shoulder.
“There he is.”
She brushed past Mitch to confront the Commander. He could already see that she wanting something from him and wasn’t in the mood to accept anything less.
“What can I do for you, Major?”
“Glad you asked, we need to talk, now!”
She led the Commander back to their bunkhouse where she knew they would get some privacy. The Company was busy getting chow, and nobody would dare invade their space. Phillips was already restless by the time they reached the room, and he didn’t like being led around. When they were finally shut inside the dorm room, the Commander opened his mouth to talk but was cut short my Chandra.
“The enemy are taking prisoners, and we think we know where. Captain Jones is almost certainly among them.”
Phillips shook his head. It was clearly something he had heard before and had been the subject of much pressure from those around him.
“I have already heard this from the mouths of other officers who want to rush headlong into enemy territory to get them back.”
“You knew and have done nothing?” shouted Taylor.
“What can I do? We have been losing ground since the day this war began, and we are lucky to ever hold on to anything for long. We have endless lists of dead, wounded and MIAs. General Schulz will not risk any more troops to pursue this. I am guessing you already know this, as you would only be coming to me if you had already failed with him.”
“Damn straight!” snapped Taylor.
“What do you expect me to do?”
“I don’t give a damn who’s in charge of this base. Your responsibility is to us. We have people out there left to the mercy of the enemy, and that includes at least two of your own. I expect you to do whatever you must to get them back!” shouted Taylor.
Phillips looked insulted and put out by Taylor’s sudden lashing out.
“Must I remind you of the chain of command, Major?”
Chandra stepped forward. She could not take anymore.
“Don’t give us that shit. We’ve been getting our arses blown off since this war began while you sat comfortably at command. We don’t expect you to pick up a weapon and join us, but we do expect you to give us the support we deserve.”
Phillips gasped as he lowered his head in shame. He knew it was wrong to leave troops behind, but he had treated the losses as pure statistics. He looked back up and spoke softly.
“If I help you, the General will have my balls.”
“And if you don’t, soldiers will die. We are going to find Jones, and any other prisoners, with or without your help. Without you, we go in blind and will likely pay a high price for it. With your assistance, we may just pull it off.”
The Commander knew he was between a rock and hard place, but they had made a solid case. As much as he stuck to the rules, he despised both Schulz and Dupont.
“Alright, to hell with it. With the way things are going, there’s probably little they can do to me anyway.”
Taylor smiled as he patted the Commander on the shoulder.
“You’re doing the right thing, Sir.”
“I hope so.”
“What intel do you have on this?” asked Chandra.
“We know prisoners are being kept in a facility in Metz in small numbers. What we don’t know is why.”
“What have we been doing since they arrived here?” asked Chandra.
Phillips looked up to the Major dumbfounded.
“We have studied them. We have tried to understand our enemy,” mused Taylor.
Phillips nodded in agreement.
“You really think that’s what they are doing? Studying our soldiers?”
“I’d be amazed if they weren’t,” replied Chandra. “Something tells me that this invasion has not resulted in the blitz success which they had hoped for. We are starting to slow their advance and adapt to better fight them. They may now be looking for every avenue to exploit.”
“That would explain it. From what we can tell, they have only taken military personnel from the front lines.”
“How many prisoners do you figure they have?”
“Maybe a dozen or more.”
Taylor nodded. “Alright, few enough that we should be able to make this quick and quiet.”
“Do you really believe you can get them out?” asked Phillips.
“If we were able to take out the Poitiers weapon, we can do anything. With accurate information of their location, it is more than doable.”
