Page 3

The crew of the lead vehicle began to bail out on the left hand side, using the SUV as cover from the enemy fire. All three of them began to hammer the numerous firing points with their rifles and machine gun.

The turret gunner, a tall skinny American named Jim, was naked from the waist down. The rocket, as it had passed through, had created a vacuum inside the vehicle, taking Jim’s trousers with it as it punched through the other side. If it were not for the desperation of the situation, it would have been almost amusing to Marcus watching him running about with his balls on show, firing a machine gun.

Marcus made a quick appraisal of the situation; moving forward was out of the question, and their retreat was blocked. The tyres were shot to pieces and they had no way of crossing over the central reservation. Civilian vehicles were left and right, with their drivers either dead or wounded, or having run for cover as soon as the shooting started. They were stuck in the killing area.

"Okay boys, abandon ship. We need to get out of this rocket magnet and get out on foot."

Eddie and Sini did not need to be told twice. They grabbed their weapons and ammunition and bailed out to the left, taking up firing positions to the front and rear of the vehicle.

Marcus thumbed his radio, "Ian, we are gonna have to bug out on foot. How’s Nicky? Have you got eyes on with the rear vehicle, any survivors?"

Ian’s booming voice came back, "Nick is in shit state. He took one through the jaw, but he’s still conscious and able to move. The rear vehicle is fucked mate. I haven’t seen anyone crawl out and I think they're all dead, Marcus."

He could not afford to lose his head over it just yet. He needed to get what was left of the team out of the immediate area. "Roger that. Ian, you, Yan, and Nick, keep the clients close together and push to the far side of the road. The more vehicles we have between us the better. All acknowledge."

A chorus of "roger" and double clicks came through his earpiece, as everyone understood what needed to be done. Marcus remained crouched behind his damaged and smouldering vehicle as the crack of rounds continued to fill the air around them.

He pulled a smoke grenade from his tactical vest, "Stu, you got smoke?" he shouted to the lead vehicle. Stu did not hear him due to the noise of the guns around him, including his own as he continued to suppress the enemy positions.

Marcus keyed his radio and asked again, "Stu, any of you lot got smoke?" He had to shout to be heard in his own head. By now, the whole team was throwing a hideous amount of firepower down on the insurgents, as they covered the retreat of the men from the third vehicle. The loud growl of the machine guns and the rhythmic crack of the rifles filled the air.

Stu looked in his direction and gave the thumbs up then, pulling a smoke grenade from his own belt kit, placed his finger into the ring attached to the pin. At the same time, Stu and Marcus stepped back and threw their smoke grenades over the vehicles as far as they could. A few seconds later, and plumes of orange and purple were billowing in the waste ground, creating a smoke screen for them to retreat.

They had to act fast. Marcus knew that once they began to move and their suppressive fire stopped, the insurgents would release a hailstorm into the smoke, knowing that the team was covering their retreat.

"Move, move back to the others!"

A final long burst from the two machine guns and both Stu and Marcus’ crews were sprinting across the road, running in between vehicles and jumping high curbs as they headed to the rally point with Ian.

Rounds were zipping all over as the insurgents recovered and began firing into the smoke in the hope of hitting something. Some rounds smashed into vehicles as the men ran past them, others streaked and ricocheted off the road, while others flew overhead. The very air seemed alive with deadly flying pieces of metal.

Sini and Jim stopped ahead and, using a civilian car as cover, fired long shuddering bursts from their machine guns into the smoke, covering the rest of the team as they moved back. Marcus was bringing up the rear, screaming for his men to move faster, to get to cover. Once they were in position with Ian, Marcus and Stu returned fire in order to give Sini and Jim support as they then moved to safety. Sini and Jim stopped firing as Marcus and Stu released a hail of rounds in the enemy direction and sprinted, bent double towards the rest of the team.

[ Continue to page 4 ]