trek.
.
THE VILLAGE OF NOVIDA
1330 HOURS LOCAL
CAPITAN Platas and his patrol entered the village to find Joao Cabecinho waiting to greet them. Some of the vaqueiros out with the communal cattle herd had spotted the Falangists and sent a boy riding in to tell the headman about the visitors moving across the savannah toward the community.
Suboficial Punzarron went up with Platas to speak to Cabecinho while the men in the patrol sank to the ground to rest. Several women, noting the men's discomfort, brought them some rum to refresh themselves. As the exhausted men shared the liquor, Cabecinho enthusiastically shook hands with the senior patrol members, speaking through Punzarron's translation since Platas spoke no Portuguese.
"We are surprised to see you so soon," Cabecinho said. "Your other friends were here only a couple of days before."
Platas was puzzled. "What other friends?"
"They were soldiers like you," Cabecinho explained, "but their uniforms were different. I also noticed they had rifles that were not exactly like the ones you carry were sujeitos agraveles--nice guys. One of them spoke Portuguese in a strange way. Not like us and not like Suboficial Punzarrao. I thought it a little strange that none of them spoke Spanish."
"What did the men look like?" Platas asked. He was alarmed by the lack of Spanish speakers in the group and wanted to know more. "What were their -nationalities? What race?"
"One of them looked like an Indio from American western cinema," Cabecinho replied. "And one was a negm. All the others were europeus. A couple were very light-skinned:'
Punzarron looked at Platas and shrugged. "I am confused, mi capitan. The men of whom he speaks are obviously not Bolivian or even Chilean or Argentine if they did not speak Spanish?'
"I think an unexpected situation has arisen here," Platas said. "Tell Senor Cabecinho to keep a lookout for these strangers and any others that may show up. Tell him to notice how many of them there are, and to do his best to find out their nationality. Also instruct him to say nothing of us Falangistas. Impress upon him that there is a possibility of treachery in this situation."
Punzarron turned to the village headman and passed on the message in Portuguese. Cabecinho asked, "Is there some sort of problem?"
"We don't know," Punzarron replied. "Just be careful." "I shall do as requested," the village headman promised. "Com todo o gusto."
Platas ordered the suboficial to get the patrol back on their feet. "We're going straight back to headquarters," he said. "We must report this situation to Comandante Toledo immediately."
Punzarron barked the necessary orders, and the men struggled to their feet. The Portuguese noted the machine gunner would slow down the patrol, and he ordered one of the other members of the crew to take the heavy weapon from him. "You may now take turns with it." Sometimes discipline must come in second to expediency. To even things out, he would give the machine gun crew extra PT that evening.
Cabecinho waved as the Falangists left the village.
.
SEAL BASE CAMP
THE detachment worked rapidly to prepare the bivouac to be temporarily abandoned during a long patrol out into the OA. Caches were closed while a minute inspection of the camp was made. All signs of the area having been occupied had to be obliterated, even though the SEALs eventually planned to return to the site. The slightest bit of carelessness could result in passing strangers inadvertently discovering something as small as a burnt match, a piece of an MRE packet or even a slight imprint of a boot in the soft soil. These seemingly insignificant objects would be like a neon light to a clever, vigilant enemy.
When the work was done, Brannigan led them a couple of hundred meters away, then sat everyone down for an oral OPORD of the coming operation. The men instinctively maintained team and section integrity as they settled into a semicircle to listen to the skipper's discourse.
"All
.
THE VILLAGE OF NOVIDA
1330 HOURS LOCAL
CAPITAN Platas and his patrol entered the village to find Joao Cabecinho waiting to greet them. Some of the vaqueiros out with the communal cattle herd had spotted the Falangists and sent a boy riding in to tell the headman about the visitors moving across the savannah toward the community.
Suboficial Punzarron went up with Platas to speak to Cabecinho while the men in the patrol sank to the ground to rest. Several women, noting the men's discomfort, brought them some rum to refresh themselves. As the exhausted men shared the liquor, Cabecinho enthusiastically shook hands with the senior patrol members, speaking through Punzarron's translation since Platas spoke no Portuguese.
"We are surprised to see you so soon," Cabecinho said. "Your other friends were here only a couple of days before."
Platas was puzzled. "What other friends?"
"They were soldiers like you," Cabecinho explained, "but their uniforms were different. I also noticed they had rifles that were not exactly like the ones you carry were sujeitos agraveles--nice guys. One of them spoke Portuguese in a strange way. Not like us and not like Suboficial Punzarrao. I thought it a little strange that none of them spoke Spanish."
"What did the men look like?" Platas asked. He was alarmed by the lack of Spanish speakers in the group and wanted to know more. "What were their -nationalities? What race?"
"One of them looked like an Indio from American western cinema," Cabecinho replied. "And one was a negm. All the others were europeus. A couple were very light-skinned:'
Punzarron looked at Platas and shrugged. "I am confused, mi capitan. The men of whom he speaks are obviously not Bolivian or even Chilean or Argentine if they did not speak Spanish?'
"I think an unexpected situation has arisen here," Platas said. "Tell Senor Cabecinho to keep a lookout for these strangers and any others that may show up. Tell him to notice how many of them there are, and to do his best to find out their nationality. Also instruct him to say nothing of us Falangistas. Impress upon him that there is a possibility of treachery in this situation."
Punzarron turned to the village headman and passed on the message in Portuguese. Cabecinho asked, "Is there some sort of problem?"
"We don't know," Punzarron replied. "Just be careful." "I shall do as requested," the village headman promised. "Com todo o gusto."
Platas ordered the suboficial to get the patrol back on their feet. "We're going straight back to headquarters," he said. "We must report this situation to Comandante Toledo immediately."
Punzarron barked the necessary orders, and the men struggled to their feet. The Portuguese noted the machine gunner would slow down the patrol, and he ordered one of the other members of the crew to take the heavy weapon from him. "You may now take turns with it." Sometimes discipline must come in second to expediency. To even things out, he would give the machine gun crew extra PT that evening.
Cabecinho waved as the Falangists left the village.
.
SEAL BASE CAMP
THE detachment worked rapidly to prepare the bivouac to be temporarily abandoned during a long patrol out into the OA. Caches were closed while a minute inspection of the camp was made. All signs of the area having been occupied had to be obliterated, even though the SEALs eventually planned to return to the site. The slightest bit of carelessness could result in passing strangers inadvertently discovering something as small as a burnt match, a piece of an MRE packet or even a slight imprint of a boot in the soft soil. These seemingly insignificant objects would be like a neon light to a clever, vigilant enemy.
When the work was done, Brannigan led them a couple of hundred meters away, then sat everyone down for an oral OPORD of the coming operation. The men instinctively maintained team and section integrity as they settled into a semicircle to listen to the skipper's discourse.
"All
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