Chapter 2

We had planned to stay in the camp all day and then leave at 21.00 hours when it would nice and dark, then we would yomp to one of the rendezvous points. Things changed at around 15.00 hours, I was resting up, I was half asleep but a crackle in my ear brought me back to battle mode. I grabbed my rifle and slid from under the cammo netting.

“It looks like we might have a bit of company,” Guns said in my ear.

Seconds later Curly and I joined him and Doc on the edge of our camp. We could see trucks over to our right, they were around half a mile away and driving along a road that could only be heading toward the Taliban camp. They were kicking up a lot of dust, as they were moving at speed.

They would round the hill soon and see the devastation we have left. There were a dozen land cruisers as well as a dozen trucks. They could be full of men, or they could be full of supplies it was hard to know. If they were full of men, there could be a hundred more Taliban fighters in them.

“Rosie, get your sniper rifle ready please mate” Guns ordered.

I soon had the sniper rifle out of its protective case and slotted together, I had over a hundred rounds for the rifle, and I could cause a lot of trouble with that tidy tool. If we could keep the enemy at bay, it gave us more time to get our shit sorted. No one likes to be shot at and a sniper can keep heads of the enemy down and keep them hunkered down for quite a while if he knew his trade.

I was soon back in my place with the rifle and six spare magazines. Each magazine held six rounds plus I had some loose rounds to reload with, reloading would slow me down, but I could get one of the lads to do it for me.

“Doc can you share the intel out into all of the bergens mate” Guns ordered, “Curly can you pack up the camp”

Doc and Curly shuffled back into the camp whilst Guns and I kept watch. The convoy did not slow down or change direction. Guns had his weapon trained on the trucks as did I, any deviation and we would have to open fire.

The convoy slipped behind the hill, and we knew that within seconds they would see the camp we had demolished. We waited and we waited some more. Then the land cruisers came flying from behind the hill. They started to circle the camp and it was obvious they were looking for tracks or perhaps for clues.

“Looks like we have a problem, “Guns said into our earpieces., “Doc, Curly are you guys ready to move out?”

“Yes mate,” I heard curly say.

“Yes boss” Doc said

I heard movement behind me and saw the other lad’s belly-crawling into position, our bergens were in the middle of what had been our camp.

The land cruisers were still circling, and I estimated we had thirty minutes tops before they saw us. We could no risk moving yet as they might see us.

Guns turned to us.

“Right lads, it’s imperative that get this intel back to the head shed at base”, he looked around at us, “So I think we pair up, Rosie and I will hit these guys with a few rounds and head toward the RVP that is due east of here, doc and curly you head west and call in the pickup,” Guns told us.

“We should be able to slow them down a bit mate, “I said and patted my sniper rifle.

“But what if...” Doc started to say but Guns interrupted him

We all knew what the what if was and none of us was going to talk about it.

“Rosie are you happy to take the fight to them?” Guns asked me.

To me it was a no brainer, I had joined the army to fight, and I had joined the SAS for days like this. All the lads in the SAS lived for days like this when they could take on the enemy and prove to themselves that they are the best of the best. I knew that I could do some considerable damage at distance with the H&K. it was the right tool for the job.

“Yes mate, no question, “I said and Curly fist bumped me.

“Right boys we move out in ten minutes, “Said Guns, “Go and get your shit together Rosie”

I belly crawled over to my bergen and took stock. I had the sniper rifle and one hundred rounds; I had the AK47 with ten spare magazines so that was three hundred rounds plus my L119A1/A2 with two hundred rounds plus five grenades, then there was my Glock with twenty or so rounds. Even if we were overrun, we would be taking out a lot of the enemy and that’s a soldier’s job at the end of the day.

I knew Guns had an AK47 plus his M16 and a Glock. He was a great soldier, a born warrior and with a gun in his hand, he was a killing machine.

Between us, we would put up a good fight that was for sure and we would leave the ragheads with a bloody nose.

I got my gear and my bergen and headed back to where the lads were watching the land cruisers. They had stopped and seemed to be having a meeting of sorts. Even from where we were we could see lots of pointing and gesticulating. There must have been forty plus men, and they were all well-armed.

Guns headed back to sort out his gear and I used the sniper rifle with its scope to have a closer look. They were all typical Taliban, long beards AK47s and AK74s.

At this distance, I could start to take them out, but I knew we had let the others make a move first.

Guns crawled back to where we were lay down.

“Right Doc, you and curly get your arses out of here and we will see you for tea and Biscuits in a day or two”

They did not say anything, we all knew the dangers we might face, we fist bumped each other and then the two lads grabbed their kit and headed out of the camp. They used the old riverbed for cover. I watched as they scrambled down and started to move at pace away from the camp and away from the Taliban.

“Right mate it’s just you and me” Guns Whispered, “How about we show these fuckers what the SAS are made off”

He looked over the ridge and then smiled at me.

“Right, you head left and get to the higher ground,” he said, “Once I am in a good position, I will let you know, and you can let them have the L119A1/A2 grenades then use the sniper rifle to keep them busy.”

There was a low rise to our left and it was littered with boulders, they would offer me a good amount of protection. It was amazing what one guy with a decent sniper rifle and good aim could do. I knew I would be able to keep their heads down and take a few of them out of the game.

“Okay Boss,” I said.

“I will head right and when they turn toward you, I will attack from behind,” he said and slapped his rifle, “when you are short of ammo or its looks like they might be gaining ground make a run for it and use the GPs to get you to an RVP and get out of here”

“Good luck mate,” I said.

“Good luck Rosie” he replied, “I will radio you when I am in position”

We looked at each other and we both knew that neither of us might make it out alive, but we had to give it a go and a good go to make sure the other two lads got the intel back to the Rupert’s back at base. The intel might be a game-changer for all we knew, and it was our job to make sure it got back to base and could be used to take the fight to the Taliban.

“Right mate let’s make a move,” he said and with a wink, he turned away from me.

I headed down to the riverbed and jogged toward the low hill. All the time I was expecting to hear shouts or gunshots but there was nothing, I found a gully and headed along it, trying to keep out of sight for as long as possible. I came to the end of the gully, a quick look over the top showed me that the enemy was still having their meeting. What they were discussing was beyond me but as long as they kept up their chatter it gave me more time to get into a good position.

I belly crawled toward a big stand of boulders. I positioned my guns, the L119A1/A2 and some spare grenades and the sniper rifle and its spare magazines. The AK47 would only be of use once things got really hot; it was a close action weapon.

The Taliban were still standing by their trucks and would be for some time by the look of it, it would be easier to hit them with the grenades if they were not moving.

I took my water bottle off my webbing and got some rations from my bergen before placing it behind me, within easy reach if I needed anything.

I wolfed the food down and took a long drink. I wondered if Guns had found a tidy place to plan his attack from. I also pondered how long I should wait to attack if he didn’t get in touch. Then I thought there was no way that Guns would go quietly if he had been discovered.

I looked over the boulders, they had still not moved. At a guess, I would say they were awaiting orders. I was itching to get started, I was like a kid waiting for Christmas day.

I heard a crackle in my ear and then I heard Guns

“Rosie are you in Position?” I heard him say

“Yes, Boss and all ready to start the party,” I told him

“Right mate, take it to them and good hunting!”

I slotted a grenade into the launcher slung under the L119A1/A2 and peered over the top of a boulder. The trucks and the men were still not moving, and they were a fair distance away. I would have to use the grenade launcher almost like a mortar.

I gauged the distance and made allowances for the height and wind. Then I fired, the first grenade was still in the air as I loaded the second.

I watched as it exploded to the right of one of the trucks, blowing its windows out. The Taliban started to shout and wave their arms. The second grenade landed in the bed of a truck, and it made a mess of it, the fuel tank erupted, and the truck turned into shrapnel taking out some of the enemy soldiers. A cloud of back oily smoke rose up into the air and flames were licking out all around the truck. The Taliban could not tell where the rounds there coming from, but they were now running for cover...

I aimed for another truck with the third grenade and hit it dead on, again it blew up. The sound of the fuel tank exploding could be heard even at this distance. The truck was turned into a cloud of shrapnel, and I saw a few guys fall to the ground.

More black smoke and the sound of screaming as men were taken out by the blast.

The fourth grenade took out a group of gunmen that were hiding by a group of rocks but facing the wrong way. They had their backs to me and at least five went down.

The fifth and last grenade sideswiped a truck and hit a rock before exploding. The truck was out of action that was for sure. At least that would slow them down a little bit.

I placed the L119A1/A2 on the sand and picked up the H&K sniper’s rifle. I had a full magazine already slotted home. I put a towel on the rock and rested the gun on it. I found a target and took some slow deep breathes.

The trick when firing at such a long distance is to slow the breathing down and also squeeze the trigger slowly, Any jerky movement can affect the aim over such a long distance. There was no need to rush, the enemy was a long way away from me and they didn’t know where I was.

I breathed in and squeezed.

My first round hit the guy in the shoulder, my second hit him in the chest. One down but how many to go?

My third round took out a guy who had climbed onto the bed of one of the trucks, a truck armed with a GPMG.

My fourth shot hit a guy that was shouldering an RPG. The Rocket hit the sand around ten yards from him, he was dead before he hit the ground.

I could hear the crackle of rifles, most of the noise was the familiar sound of the AKS but in between, I could hear Guns and his M16. He would be firing and moving, firing, and moving. the idea was to keep them guessing.

I found some more good targets.

Two more shots two more confirmed kills, I wondered how long it would be before they got their act into gear and started to return fire. I was safe until they got a lot closer and by then I would have taken out a lot more and reduced their numbers.

Three more shots, three more confirmed kills.

They were now getting into cover, and I could see muzzle flashes aimed at me, but I was too far away for them to worry me. I kept up an excellent rate of fire, I was sure I got two more kills plus I know I wounded a dozen more.

They were well dug in now, so I started to use my rounds to take out the trucks, firing at the engine blocks to take out radiators and then firing at the tyres.

I saw one of the canvases covered trucks racing from behind the low hill and over twenty men got out and started to fire at a stand of bushes. I am guessing Guns was hidden there, I aimed a few shots their way, but it was at the extreme range of my rifle’s capabilities, and I was not sure if I had hit any of them.

I saw two guys drop to the ground, I returned to the main body of the enemy and kept picking my targets, two shots two more kills. I saw a guy run from behind the rocks an RPG cradled in his arms, my shot took him in the thigh, and he dropped to the ground, I fired again, and he was out of the game.

The earpiece crackled and I heard Guns breathing into the mic.

“Mate can you keep those guys by the truck busy, they are too close to me for comfort, so I need to move,” he said, his breathing was fast, and it sounded like he was on the move.

“Roger that” I replied and started to fire again. I was still not sure that the rounds would have much impact, but no one likes being shot at so as long as I kept their heads down for a bit, I was happy.

I must have put a dozen rounds their way when I realised was out of full magazines, I got the ammo pack from my bergen and started to reload. It was something I had practised over and over again, and it took me all of five minutes. Once all of the magazines were full, I had a glance over the top of the boulder, I could see that the Taliban fighters had made the most of the downtime and some of them were heading over of the sand and scrub toward me.

I aimed, I took a deep breath and fired, my first three rounds were all confirmed kills and they scattered and found cover. Then it became a game of cat and mouse, I took my time and found my targets. I aimed I fired, and I waited...

You have to be patient to be a sniper, you have to bide your time and choose your targets well. It is a waiting game sometimes; you need to wait for the target to make themselves visible and then take the shot.

I could still hear Guns firing his trusty M16 and I knew that he would be wreaking havoc, he was a born warrior, and he would make the most of the cover and the conditions.

I heard two grenades going off and the guys that were by the truck were covered in smoke and debris.

Then behind the guys that were trying to get to the hill, I was positioned on I saw a dust trail, it had to be another enemy convoy.

“Guns are you there, mate?” I said into my earpiece, at the same time firing my rifle and taking out an enemy combatant with a headshot.

“Roger that” I heard him say seconds later.

“Mate we have more enemy trucks coming in from the south, “I said, “I can’t see how many but it’s a huge dust cloud so there must be quite a few”

“Roger that,” he said, I could hear the chatter of AKs firing through his throat mic

“You make a run for it, and I will keep these fuckers busy for a bit longer, “I told him.

That made sense, the new convoy was behind him, there were Taliban on the ground to his right and in front of him, all the enemy were in front of me, and I had the H&K. I could take more of them out and them make a run for it once I had given Guns time to make some ground.

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Roger that boss,” I said into the mic and at the same time I slotted a black-robed warrior that had edged around the side of one of the trucks.

“Stay safe mate, “he said and then he was gone.

It made sense I thought as I slotted another Taliban that was stupid enough to run from one rock to another, the trucks that might be carrying more soldiers were on his rear end and I had the sniper’s rifle.

I used the scope of my rifle to get a better look, there were at least six-armed land cruisers and two trucks. The odds took a big jump and not in our favour. It is amazing how things can change so quickly on the battlefield. The training the SAS gives you means that you can adjust and adapt.

I kept firing until I was out of ammo, then I broke the H&K down and slid it into its bag. I picked up the L119A1/A2 and fired a few shots to keep their heads down. When I was sure I had given Guns as much time as I could to get away from the battlefield, I decided to make my own escape. I shouldered my Bergen and headed down the hill and away from the onrushing soldiers.

I ran for a hundred yards and then dropped to the floor and got into a firing position, getting my breath back and at the same time checking to see if it was being followed. I could see two black-robed men sneaking around the base of the low hill. They must have thought I was still above them.

My first shot went wide, my second took the first guy in the chest, my third shot took a guy in the leg. There were some rocks to my right, and I ran toward them as they would offer me good cover.

Three more Taliban fighters came into sight, and I fired three-round bursts. One man hit the deck, his hands over his chest. The second dropped to his knees and aimed his AK but a three-round burst hit him in the gut, and he was out of the fight.

More men came running around the low hill and I used the L119A1/A2 to take a few out.

I moved to my right and found a better firing position, I fired out over a hundred and fifty rounds, all in three-round bursts. I saw guys dropping as I worked the rifle. I had to make the odds more even.