The weather cleared up and General Hardesty attacked the rats from the west. Expecting a sneak attack, the rats fortified the south. But there was no sneak attack down south or anywhere else. Instead of dividing his forces, General Hardesty put all his forces in the west.
The rats were unprepared for this massive attack. Rat defenses collapsed. The Uprising stalled in the swamp fields south of the reservoir. The rats abandoned their outposts and retreated. Rat supplies fell to the roadside, and the Portal was left unguarded. Rat-claimed land overrun, retaken.
After dinner, General Hardesty mingled with the troops. Morale was high and he kept it high with a warm handshake and a happy-ending combat story. From tent to tent, bunk to bunk, he shook the hand of every soldier under his command.
He told combat stories that started out sad, but he had everybody smiling at the end.
One time when he was a lieutenant chased by renegade rats, he tripped on a jackroot and pulled a tendon. Unable to run, Lieutenant Hardesty quickly made a campfire and cooked a roadside stew from a favorite rat recipe. Then he hid in the dark. When the rats stopped at the campfire and ate the tasty stew, he jumped out of the dark and kicked the rats one by one into the fire. Then he ate the stew.
Another time his recon patrol was surrounded in rat territory.
“Lie down, lie down,” he radioed his men. “Sleep, go to sleep.”
Rat vision is based on movement. The rats didn’t notice the sleeping soldiers. When the soldiers woke up the next morning, the miserable rats were gone.
It was a long night of firm handshakes and unforgettable stories, but General Hardesty showed no signs of fatigue. Just after three in the morning he came to the bunk of an old friend. That old friend was my Uncle Brucker.
General Hardesty grabbed my Uncle’s hand and shook it with respect and admiration.
“It’s been a long time, Brucker.”
“It’s been just as long for me, sir.”
“I met this man the day I signed up. I wasn’t even a private then,” General Hardesty let the troops know.
The tired soldiers had stayed up all night, playing cards and waiting for the General.
“How’s every one of you boys?” he asked. “And I mean everyone. How are you? And you? And you?” The General made his way around the tent. “And you? And you? And how are you?” Not one hand was left unshaken.
He was a handsome clean-shaven General with sharp features, always cologned. He had a friendly manner, more like a dad than a General. Many soldiers sneaked around and shook his hand for a second time that night. Finally he was back at Uncle Brucker’s bunk.
“Hey, fella. You’re missing a boot!” General Hardesty noticed.
“The mud got it, sir,” said Uncle Brucker.
The General leaned closer and whispered, “Walk backwards and your boots don’t come off so easy. Follow me, old friend. You learn to backwalk like me, you’ll never lose the other one.”