By the time Bannon was satisfied 66 was as ready as it would be, the other crews nearby were already beginning to break out their morning meal of dehydrated MREs. Folk, without needing to be told, pulled out an opened case and began to pass one out to each man. Normally there would be complaining and haggling to secure a better meal, but they were all tired. Even Bannon, who was not a big fan of MREs, was content to munch on his cold meal, popping bits of dehydrated peaches into his mouth, a practice that caused his lips to pucker as the peach drew every bit of moisture from his tongue.
In the stillness that followed, as he pondered what to do next, Bannon decided it might not be a bad idea to go up to Team Bravo’s position and do a visual recon of the area they were to cross, provided the attack did eventually come off as planned. From there Objective LOG, as well as all the terrain the Team would have to cross to reach it, would be visible. When he’d finished all the MRE he cared to bother with at the moment, he stuffed the pouches of food he wanted to save for later in a pocket of his trousers. What he didn’t want went into an empty sandbag tied to the side of the turret the crew of 66 was used for trash. In doing so, Bannon could not help but chuckle to himself. Policing up their litter was a habit that was pounded into every soldier that started on their Day One in the Army. Bannon found very idea that anyone would care whether he cleaned up after himself, given what his Team and the Soviets were doing to the German countryside to be beyond ludicrous. Still, tossing the empty MRE sack and unwanted food pouches over the side of the tank was something he could not bring himself to do. Some standards, he told himself, needed to maintained, even one as out of place as this one.
After setting that stray thought aside, he sent Kelp to fetch Lieutenant Harding with instructions that officer was to report to him with one of his platoon’s PCs. Once that message was delivered, Kelp was to head over to the XO’s tank and tell Uleski he would be in command while Bannon was away. Bannon himself went about on foot to collect the two tank platoon leaders and the artillery FIST.
Once everyone was gathered and mounted in the Harding’s PC, they went forward, taking great care as they did so. The last thing Bannon want was to expose the PC in the open or come storming up behind Team Bravo and get blown away by a nervous gunner belonging to that team.
This last concern almost became a reality, for when the PC carrying Bannon and his platoon leaders did reach Team Bravo’s position, they were greeted with the sight of several weapons of various calibers trained on the track and tracking them. Without having to be told, Harding, who was TC-ing the PC, stopped and identified himself. This task was made easier by the fact that even at a distance and through the woods, several of the people in Team Bravo were able to recognized Harding as well as his driver. Only when he was sure no one was going to light them up, Bannon had Harding pulling into a covered and concealed position where he, the platoon leaders, and FIST chief dismounted. From there they made their way on foot to the north edge of the tree line.
The last few yards of their trek was covered on their bellies to a spot that offered Bannon and his little gaggle cover while affording them a clear view of Objective Log and the terrain they would need to cross to reach it. From there, Bannon took to pointing out the key terrain features to them. The village of Lemm was to the right front, the hill that was Objective LOG was directly to their front, and the village of Vogalburg was to the left front in the distance.
Bannon was in the process of explaining how the Team would deploy and maneuver once they’d cross the LD when an infantryman from Team Bravo crawled up behind him and slapped the side of his boot. When he turned to find out what he wanted, the infantryman whispered that the colonel wanted to see him. Leaving Harding in charge of the other platoon leaders, Bannon crawled back until he felt it was safe stand upright and followed the soldier who had been sent to fetch him.
When he found Reynolds, Bannon could tell Blue Six was in rare form. Without waiting for Bannon to report, Reynolds ripped into him. “What in the hell is your company doing sitting on the fucking hill behind us and not on Hill 214?”
Dumbfounded, all Bannon could do was stare at the colonel. “I don’t understand, sir. My Team is in the assembly area we were directed to occupy. I was waiting for the order to attack.”
“Waiting! Waiting! Who the hell told you to wait? I’ve been up here for the last hour and a half waiting for you.”
“Sir, the S-3 told me to put the Team into an assembly area behind Bravo and wait until the rest of the battalion closed up.”
“I never gave such an order. What I want you to do is to get your people moving and get up on Hill 214 ASAP. IS THAT CLEAR?”
With the colonel beside himself with rage and his own anger threatening to override his ability to keep it in check, Bannon stood before Reynolds, glaring at him in silence as he struggled to calm down enough to respond. This, he realized as he was doing so, was neither the time nor place to be engaging in a pissing contest with a superior whose yelling had caused everyone in Team Bravo within ear shot to stop what they had been doing and watch.
Drawing himself up, Bannon took in a deep breath and locked eyes with Reynolds. “Am I to understand that my Team is to attack without Charlie Company in support, sir?”
“You let me worry about Charlie Company, captain. You just get those people of yours moving. Now.” With that, Reynolds pivoted about on his heels and stalked off, leaving Bannon standing there, unsure what to do next.
It was clear things were going to hell in a hand basket at an ever accelerating pace. The idea of starting the attack with only half of the battalion on hand was, in Bannon’s mind, nothing short of insane. Yet he had been given a direct order, one that conjured up the specter of the Charge of the Light Brigade and Pickett’s Charge. There had to be a way to carry out his orders without putting the lives of his people at risk in an ill-advised attack, he told himself as he turned to head back to where his platoon leaders were awaiting him. The last thing he want to do was to become the subject of a lesson on “How not to conduct an attack” at the Armor School.
As Harding’s PC made its way back to the Team’s assembly area, Bannon’s mind was racing a mile a minute in an effort to find a way out or around the dilemma he was facing. An order had been given. In his heart and mind, he knew that it was wrong for the Team to go all the way to Hill 214 on its own. Yet he couldn’t get around the order. Not immediately. A partial solution slowly began to take shape. The Team could at least attack and seize LOG. Conditions for that part of the operation were still favorable. Team Bravo was in overwatch and the Team would have the full support of dedicated artillery throughout their advance. If the Team did manage to LOG unopposed, they could then maneuver against Hill 214 in a slow and deliberate manner. Reynolds had told him to move, but didn’t say how fast. If the Team hit resistance on LOG, as the commanding officer in contact Bannon would be able to use his discretion and hold on LOG until C Company appeared or Team Bravo moved up to support. It was decided, then. Team Yankee would comply, but with extreme caution. He was going to take this one step at a time, hoping for the best as he went.