Free Lion Resurgent by Stuart Slade Page A

villagers just stared at the armored vehicles. The faces of the men were stoic. Some of the women, especially those with the babies, cried quietly.
    “Captain, the militia we drove out, they must be watching. You know what will happen here when we leave.”
    “Of course, van Huis. But what can we do?”
    “Take them with us?”
    “That is forbidden. You know that. There will be hell to pay if we bring an entire village over.”
    “It will be worse than hell if we leave them here.”
    “Respectfully Sirs.” Staff Sergeant Randlehoff spoke quietly, “the men believe it is the right thing to do. The only thing to do. They saved our people, we should save them.”
    “On nine armored vehicles? How many are there?” No officer worth his salt ever ignored a warning from his sergeant that the men had strong feelings on something. Geldenhuys spoke quickly to the chieftain through de Wilzem. “He says there are about a hundred including the babies. There were more, but that was before the militia came.”
    “Tell him that all those who want to leave can come with us. We can put some inside your Ratels. More can ride on top and on my tanks. The rest can walk with us. We’ll put three of my tanks in front. The other two can bring up the rear. Your Ratels in the middle. That way the lead tanks will explode any mines buried out there. We can get out to the south of this place, there is good ground there to the border. And the border is open. We should know that it is for us to hold it closed.”
    Geldenhuys nodded slowly. “Very well. De Wilzem, tell the chief we will take the women who have babies inside the Ratels. Order the boys to squeeze up. If there is not enough room, they can walk. Our new jongmens could use the exercise. The old and the very young can ride on the tanks and Ratels. The rest walk between the vehicles. Tell them to step only in the tracks made by the tanks and Ratels.”
    De Wilzem spoke to the chief who relayed the words to his villagers. As the word that they were going to escape from this militia-plagued hell spread, there was first disbelief and then incredulity. The Afrikaaners were going to take them to something that approximated safety. The Ratels filled up and then overflowed with the crowd of people mounting up. The younger men and women started bringing out what was left of the village’s livestock, some pigs, a few scrawny, half-starved cows. The women held chickens under their arms. Geldenhuys looked at the display with something approaching awe. This was an exercise he’d never learned at staff college.
    “Sir, the headman asks, can we set the huts on fire? The way we did with the militia kraal. They don’t want to leave the thugs anything.”
    Geldenhuys could understand that feeling. He gave the order. The 23mm cannon on the Ratels snapped out bursts of incendiaries. The burning huts provided a weird, flickering orange backlight as the strange convoy of tanks, armored personnel carriers, civilians and livestock moved out. He shook his head sadly to himself. “If there is an ark waiting in the river when we get there, I will know this all just a bad dream.”
    “Not a bad dream Sir.” De Wilzem also spoke quietly. “We have done good work here tonight.”
    Six hours later, the sun was rising. The villagers had already started to build themselves a kraal close to the infantry company’s base. Geldenhuys had received an ominous message saying the brigade commander wanted ‘reasons in writing’ by 0900. And van Huis had re-read his wife’s letter, then settled down to send her a reply.
    “Things are pretty quiet here on the border,” he started.
     
     

CHAPTER THREE PLANS AND INTENTIONS
     
    Briefing Theater, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida
    “Settle down. A team from Hughes Electro-optics is here to introduce you to some new equipment we will be testing in the near future.” That caused the room to quiet quickly. “Doctor Kailie, if you would like to start?”
    “Thank