Luis struggled to find a way out of this mess as the Humvee left the highway and started to bounce and sway violently over rough ground forcing everyone to hang onto the straps over the doors. When the vehicle settled, Luis looked down at his comtablet for an alternate route around the highway junction. Fortunately, the highway system was built on fairly level ground with small hills dotting the landscape. The terrain was similar most of the way to Jaipur. The Humvees and MRAPs could maintain high speeds as they tried to outrun the PLA armored vehicles trying to cut them off.
The convoy sped a few kilometers north of NH48 when they were forced to turn to avoid a large hilly section ahead of them.
“This is Alpha One! We need to head west now!”
The lead vehicles made the turn travelling roughly at 40 kilometers per hour. The dust from their tires made visibility near zero. If anyone slowed down too fast in front of the others, those behind would surely crash into them.
The GPS on the Humvee’s navigation screen showed they were about to cross Western Peripheral Expressway. Luis had no way to know if the Chinese were using that highway to try and cut them off. He called Captain Hood over the radio. “Alpha Two, what are the drones showing?”
“This is Alpha Two. Sending drone feeds now to everyone! Over.”
Luis waited impatiently for the video feeds from the drones that were tracking the Chinese vehicles trying to stop them. It was not good. Some of the Chinese AAVs had reached the spot where Luis’s convoy was about to cross the expressway. They were too late. The Chinese opened fire on the lead Humvees and MRAP. Two were hit and forced to stop and begin firing back at the Chinese.
“Alpha One, this is Alpha Two. We’re taking fire and can’t go any further! Orders sir? Over.”
Luis had to make a decision, fight or surrender. He decided to fight and hoped his soldiers could hold out until the military at Jaipur could reach them. He ordered over his headset, “Stop and take up defensive positions behind the MRAPs. Deploy troops! We fight!”
The ten MRAPs set up in a semicircle facing the advancing PLA forces and let out their soldiers with every weapon they had on them. They were battle hardened, well trained troops that had fought in numerous battles all over the hemisphere, most recently in India as part of the WF Peacekeeper forces trying to stop the senseless fighting in what was called The Plague Wars. The wars never seemed to end and Luis’s troops thought they were through when they were told they were headed home to Fort Leonard Wood after one more mission. Now, they faced one of the most feared armies in the world—the Chinese PLA!
Luis knew what his soldiers were thinking. He also knew they would not give up in a fight. He just had to give them hope. He opened a common channel all could hear. “Listen up everyone. The WF base at Jaipur knows we’re here. They’re on their way. Let’s show these Chinese bastards what they’re dealing with—Hooah!
Even with all the battle noise around him, Luis could hear the soldiers shout—Hooah—up and down the line behind the MRAPs. They were ready for a fight!
Luis heard his comphone ring on his belt. He looked at the caller ID and did not recognize the caller. It was in Chinese. He answered it. “Who is this?”
The caller spoke in understandable English with a Chinese accent. “Captain Luis Martin, this is Colonel Guo Jiguang of the Chinese PLA forces. You are trapped and cannot escape. You must surrender the UAC Ambassador and the WF Director-General or we will be forced to attack and eliminate your troops. What is your answer?”
Luis was surprised the Chinese commander knew who he was. He suddenly recalled what Brigadier General Anthony C. McAuliffe said in World War II to the Commander of German Army forces that had surrounded the American Army forces at the Battle of the Bulge near the town of Bastogne. He almost smiled as he answered with “NUTS” and ended the call.
General Boqin Zhu looked at his wristcom. It was time to contact Premier Tung Wing and update him on the situation in India. General Zhu placed the video call from his mobile field headquarters vehicle. He was a few miles south of New Delhi. The temperature outside was just over 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) and climbing, but inside was cool and dry. He removed his dusty helmet and pushed the number he needed on his comphone. It only took a moment for Wing’s face to appear on the small LCD screen.
“General Zhu, have you captured New Delhi yet?” Wing stated it more as a demand than a question.
“We are close to victory, Premier Wing. My forces in the north are within two kilometers of the capital gates. I am with the troops in the south within a kilometer of the megacity. Our troops will have the capital surrounded by nightfall.”
“Very good, General. What of the President? Is he still in the megacity?”
“My sources have confirmed the President, Prime Minister and most of his parliament and other government officials have not left the capital buildings. As soon as I have defeated what’s left of the Indian Armed Forces in the area, I will request their immediate surrender. Perhaps you will wish to contact President Khatri now and demand he stop the fighting.”
“I will do so after this call. What about the UAC Ambassador and WF Director-General. Have you located them?”
“I have, Premier. My commander in charge of finding and stopping them just confirmed the diplomats are with the UAC Peacekeeping force headed for Jaipur. His troops have intercepted them on the Western Peripheral Expressway thirty kilometers from here near the villages of Pachgaon. The commander has them trapped. He asked the commanding UAC officer in charge, Colonel Luis Martin, to surrender.”
“What was his answer?”
General Zhu hesitated for a moment. “The UAC Colonel replied “Nuts”!
Wing was momentarily confused. “Nuts? What does that mean?”
General Zhu knew his military history. “It was a term used in World War II by an American General to the German Army General that demanded the Americans surrender in a major battle. It means “No”. They have refused to surrender peacefully.”
Wing became angry. “General Zhu, under no circumstances are you to let them reach Jaipur, do you understand?”
“I understand completely, Premier, but I cannot guarantee the safety of the two diplomats if the UAC forces do not surrender.”
Wing paused a moment thinking about his options and ramifications. He made his decision. “If you cannot capture them alive, then they must all be eliminated, General Zhu. That is an order. Is that clear?”
“Very clear, Premier Wing. I will follow your orders.”
Wing ended the call. General Zhu would carry his orders out without delay. He did not like the idea of killing diplomats from other countries. It never ended well, especially if they were from the UAC or WF. The repercussions would be severe under normal circumstances. However, these were not normal times, more like end-of-times and only the strongest would survive. He made his second call to Colonel Guo Jiguang facing the UAC convoy stopped on its way to Jaipur to give him his final orders. It appeared the diplomats would have to be eliminated. So be it.