I moved slowly, only one step every two or three minutes, feeling carefully with my toes to ensure that there were no loose rocks or twigs to make noise.

It was just after midnight on a new moon night, with only a little bit of starlight illuminating the night. My eyes were well adapted and it had always seemed to me that my night vision was a bit better than average.

I kept my head turned slightly to the side, looking ahead with my peripheral vision. The sandbagged position was three meters ahead of me. The head and shoulders of the sentry were just the hint of a shadow against the lighter terrain in front of the position. I avoided looking at him and kept my thoughts empty to avoid giving him any warning or reason to suspect that I was there.

I slowly drew my knife, careful to do it silently. Holding my knife in my right hand and my rifle in my left, I continued my slow stalk. Reaching the sandbags, I gently laid my rifle down where it could not fall and make any noise.

Pulling off my boonie hat, I held it in my left and slowly reached out toward the sentry.

My moment arrived. I slapped my hat over the sentry’s mouth and yanked him back to me, driving my knee into the back of his and bending him backward. I slid my knife around the side of his neck and cut outward, severing the cord of the headphones he was wearing to listen to music with.