NATO's: NATO would trade blow for blow.
To the north, the 25th Armored Division was making good progress. The Soviets were not able to stop the drive. Furthermore, there were signs that the Warsaw Pact was beginning to break up. Ken Damato gave Bannon a copy of the division's intelligence summary to read. It discussed the breakout of armed insurrection, no doubt aided by U.S. Army Special Forces A teams, in Poland and East Germany. Polish units were no longer attacking. Several Soviet units in Northern Germany had surrendered en masse. Others were on the verge of doing so. Deep strikes by the Air Force were hampering the flow of supplies and the movement of troops. In short, the war was going well for NATO.
Also mentioned in the Intel summary was an analysis of the effects of the strike against Minsk. While the loss of Birmingham was a major disaster, it would not interfere with the NATO war effort. The destruction of Minsk, however, was hampering the Soviets by severing a major communications center. The cold, analytical view of the nuclear exchange was haunting but, at the same time, welcome.
Buoyed by the news at battalion, Bannon went about the day's activities with renewed energy. Maybe things were not as bad as they seemed. As he went from platoon to platoon, he gathered the men around and passed on what news and information he had from the outside world. For the most part, the effect on the Team was about the same as it had been on him. In addition, the return to some type of routine served to keep the men busy and oriented on the job at hand.
In the early evening the battalion was ordered to move farther to the east and establish contact with Soviet forces. A battalion order was prepared and issued to the team commanders at 2100 hours. Team Yankee was to remain in reserve, following the rest of the battalion as it moved forward. Ken Damato expected to make contact about ten to fifteen kilometers to the east of their current front line trace. Time for the movement was 0300 hours. The news of the new mission was welcomed by just about everyone in the Team. The rest had been good and the reorganization and maintenance needed. But everyone wanted to get on with it. They knew the sooner they got moving, the sooner the issue would be decided. The Team was as Americans have always been, anxious to avoid a war but when forced to fight, anxious to get on with it and finish it rapidly.
Without an artillery preparation, the lead elements of the battalion moved out. The steady advance was hindered only by Soviet recon units that fired and fled. Dawn of the thirteenth day of war found the battalion still moving to the east. After an advance of fifteen kilometers they were ordered to halt. While they had not made contact with the Soviets' main forces yet, division did not want to go too far. The main effort was still aimed for Berlin. There were few forces available to protect the flanks of that drive and there was no need to spread them too thin.
The battalion was again dispersed over as wide an area as possible so as to reduce its vulnerability to a nuclear attack. Team Yankee stayed in reserve. Once the Team was in its position, it settled in and prepared for another day. Foxholes were dug, camouflage placed, fighting and hide positions improved, platoon fire plans prepared, and numerous other tasks accomplished. By noon, they were ready and went to half-manning.
When Bannon was satisfied that all was in order, he lay down in the first sergeant's PC and went to sleep.
At 1700 hours, First Sergeant Harrert woke him to tell him that he was wanted at the battalion CP immediately. As Bannon stumbled around, still half-asleep, he asked if the first sergeant knew what was up. The first sergeant replied negative. The S-3 wouldn't tell him.
The only message was to get up to the CP ASAP.
His feeling of dread dispersed as soon as he walked into the farmhouse where the CP was located. Everyone was going around the room shaking each other's hands as if it was an alumni reunion. Bannon went up to Frank Wilson and asked what was going on.
'Haven't you been told? The Soviets have declared a cease-fire effective midnight tonight.
They're throwing in the towel. It's over.' He stood there for a moment. Just like that, the war was over. It was too good to be true. Something had to be wrong. 'You mean they are surrendering? Now? Without our even touching the Soviet Union?' 'Something like that. We don't have all the details yet but from what we heard, the Soviet leadership has changed and they want an immediate end to the war.'
The colonel entered the room followed by the S-3 and the battalion XO. The XO called the meeting to order. Colonel Hill went over the information he had and what he thought. He tried hard to be cautious and keep from becoming carried away by commenting that the cease-fire wasn't in effect yet and that things could change rapidly. But he, like the commanders and staff assembled, was optimistic and overjoyed with the prospect of peace. He was followed by Ken Damato, the S-2, who gave a brief summary on the current enemy situation and pointed out some of the dangers they had to guard against once the cease-fire was in effect. The biggest one was from sabotage and espionage from line crossers and the local populace. They were, he reminded them, still in Communist East Germany. Major Shell followed and explained the rules of engagement that were to be placed into effect once the cease-fire became official. Warsaw Pact forces were not to come any closer to NATO positions than 1000 meters. If they continued to advance, they were to be engaged. All NATO soldiers had the right to protect themselves and return fire if fired upon. Effective at midnight, NATO forces were not to move any farther than the front line trace they had achieved as of that time. The NATO commander had ordered that all operations currently in progress were to continue until then. Communications with any Warsaw Pact forces were forbidden unless permission was obtained. The S-3 finished by saying that copies of the rules of engagement for distribution down to platoon level would be ready soon. The colonel finished the meeting by cautioning everyone against becoming too optimistic and especially against letting down their guard. They were still at war and the cease-fire could fail at any moment.
The sun was beginning to settle in the west as Bannon rolled back to the Team's area. At his back the sky was alive with brilliant reds and purples. The beauty of the lush green German landscape, unfolding before him, coupled with the spectacle of the setting sun and the quiet early night air lifted Bannonfs spirit to a height that he had not experienced in months. The driver knew the way back, leaving him free to reflect on the joy of the moment. It was over.
His worst nightmare was over and he had survived. There would be a tomorrow and he would see it. With nothing more weighty on his mind than such thoughts, he relaxed and enjoyed the beauty of the countryside he had not seen before.
The leadership of Team Yankee was waiting at the Team CP when he came rolling in. They had become accustomed to his returning from battalion with grim news or word of a new mission. They had become practiced at remaining calm while their commander explained how the Team was about to risk the lives of its men to execute its new orders. This time, like all the times before, they expected no less.
They were taken aback, therefore, when Bannon approached with a smile on his face. Bob Uleski, sensing that something was afoot, turned to the first sergeant. 'Well, Sergeant, either it's good news or the pressure has gotten to him and the Old Man has finally slipped the track.'
As hard as he tried, Bannon couldn't downplay his joy as the colonel had. After all they had been through, be couldn't hold back. 'Men, unless we receive information to the contrary, effective midnight tonight, a cease-fire will take effect along the entire front. Unless something terrible happens, the war is over.'
Epilogue
Nothing terrible did go wrong. The cease-fire held. Over the next few days the Team stayed in place, maintaining its vigilance and preparing for a possible continuation of hostilities.
While they were careful not to let their guard down, life began to improve. Regular hot meals became available, as did mail service. The men began to catch up on their personal needs, from bathing to clean laundry. Even the weather improved as they moved from the heat of summer into the cool days of early September.
It was during the first week of September that the division was replaced by a National Guard unit recently arrived from the States. The job of disarming the Soviets went to them and other units. Division was temporarily moved back into West Germany, where it received some replacements of equipment and personnel. By then the Soviet regime that had started the war was dismantled, and the chances of a new war were nonexistent.
With the crisis over, the Army bureaucrats began to reassert themselves. Those people who had lived in government quarters in Germany before the war were being sent back to conduct an inventory of their property, if it
