MAJ Raven climbed the ladder to the squat tower, clicking the safety off the Greasegun while he purposefully scuffed his foot loudly on the ladder. One of the two men above on the platform snickered, but the other helped Raven up. The three were cosy, but not cramped on the platform.

Raven surveyed the surroundings objectively, playing his part to the teeth. Both of the other men settled into their duties, the M60 gunner scanning the wire cage, then the rock- walled compound 300 meters away, then the road, and the minehead. Raven noticed a seperate pintle on each of the 4 rails for the MG. The rifleman, armed with a scoped boltgun, followed the same pattern, only in reverse, more or less, focusing on those areas that were furthest from the attention of the MG gunner and his Hog.

The momentary look of sheer horror on the MG man's face was almost pleading, as Raven burned half a mag into the man, barely 1/3 of a meter away. His midsection was simply a mess, and he crumpled to the platform, dead. The other man stared on in shock as Raven turned the antique SMG on him. The man's rifle went up, as if to parry, but it was no use -- Raven sprayed the remainder of the mag into him and he toppled over the rail to the hard ground below. Raven immediately put on his NVG. Night was now on the side of the MAJ and his raiders.

That was Berger's cue. He too donned the NVG hidden in his baggy jacket, and cut down 2 of the closest soldiers near the minehead with a 10 rnd burst from the M2HB. Anderson gunned the engine of the HUMVEE, ready to move at a moment's notice. Thomas was quite close to one of the guards walking the perimeter of the wire cage, and turned his M16 on the man. He drilled him with a rapid series of 3 rnd bursts.

The camp came alive with an old church bell being hammered on, sounding the alert. Lights were put out across the camp, save for a searchlight far away near the east gate of the walled compound. The bonfire inside the wire cage still burned, however, as did a few of the 55 gallon drums near the minehead. A group of 5 mercs, stationed in the eastenmost tunnel of the bunker, were the first to react. They grabbed their stuff, and headed for the concealed exit roughly between the wirecage, and GP#2. Raven would have a nasty suprise in perhaps 50-60 seconds...

The rest of the garrison was in a state of shock and/or panic. Raiders!?! Who? A band of marauders? Bikers? Or was Stryfe really pissed off about recent events?...

A man emerged from beneath the 2 1/2 ton truck, and started shouting and waving a shotgun. He aimed at the HUMVEE, fired several times, but only hit the cargo area. Apparently he hadn't seen Wilkes nearby. Wilkes engaged the man with his UZI, but his luck wasn't great. He ended up spraying several bursts harmlessly into the night....

The 5 remaining soldiers in the depression around the minehead went prone, and began returning fire at Berger. Again, they managed to hit the HUMVEE, but not any person. They were firing at something 100 meters away in the dark, which was only momentarily lit up when Berger opened fire.

The guard returned fire at Wilkes with an shotgun, missing him. Thomas tried to take out the second guard near the cage, but the prisoners were in his line of fire. They were causing a major ruckus inside the wire cage, throwing burning firewood at the guard duelling with Wilkes. The irritated guard popped a couple of bursts into the cage, wounding 3, and killing 2. Sean and Scrolly hugged the earth, then bellycrawled for the gate, hoping for a way out. Sean was sure he had heard Berger's voice earlier, but even if it wasn't, this seemed like a good enough diversion to make a shot at escaping. "Thank you, whoever!..."

Berger spat several more tight, controlled bursts into the guards surrounding the minehead, taking out 2 more, then yelled, "MOVE!" to Anderson, when some shotgun pellets peppered the back of his flak jacket and helmet. Anderson complied, positioning the HUMVEE closer to the wire cage. By now, several prisoners were trying rather unsuccessfully to climb the barbed wire enclosure. Several were cut down from fire from the compound. It would seem they had another M60 over there, and it was taking it's toll on those in and around the cage...

[ooc] Friendly fire! took out 2 guards near the SW corner of cage...

Raven slung the M3, worked the bolt on the M60, and lended Berger a hand against the two remaining people near the minehead. He peppered the area, and satisfied there was no longer a threat from there, he turned the gun westward to the rock walled compound. Even closer, however, Thomas was running into problems in his duel with the guard. The guard fired several bursts at Thomas, knocking the man down. If it weren't for his Kevlar vest, Thomas's chest would be hamburger. Before he could celebrate too much, another round caught him in the Left arm, spinning him further. Thomas tried to get the man who got him, but to no avail. He was loosing awareness...

Wilkes had finally drilled the guard who had sprayed the HUMVEE with a shotgun, hitting him with a 5 round burst to the back and head. He made his way for the truck...

Several guards appeared out of nowhere (almost). A group of 4 emerged from the minehead, and fired on Berger in the HUMVEE and Raven atop the tower. Raven took a fragment to the head, momentarily blinding him with a trickle of blood that spouted from somewhere beneath his helmet. Raven was stunned momentarily, almost at the same time he saw Thomas crumple to the ground, but he was determined to press the attack home... Again, a few rounds struck the HUMVEE, but the occupants seemed to escape damage.

Berger sprayed the compound wall with several long bursts from the .50. He took out the searchlight which had so rudely disturbed the business of Raven's Roughnecks that night, in addition to several soldiers who were milling around the gate of the compound, waiting to be told what to do... The ping! of a few rounds against the HUMVEE sent him scanning the entire facility, and once again he barked "MOVE!" to SPC Anderson at the wheel...

The group of hired mercs emerged from the concealed tunnel exit one by one, observing the situation. They all added brief comments as they made their way east to GP # 2. "Must have NVG's. They're tearing things up with that .50. They have the 60 on the tower too. This is bullshit..." The merc leader reminded them. "Shut up! You weren't paid just to sit on your asses and drink beer. Keep it quiet, and head for GP #2...."

Sean and Scolly had upended a water barrel, and were trying to use it, along with some burning logs from the bonfire, to bash through the gate, but it just wouldn't give. The enclosure was getting pretty rough -- while some POWs were concerned with getting over or through the wire, others were partaking in a particularly nasty brawl. Several even produced shivs, homemade knives that many of the prisoners carried. Sean looked around. It seemed no one was having any luck getting though the wire. Finally, as the HUMVEE revved closer, he saw a familiar form, albeit much cleaner since last they spoke. "Berger! BERGER!...."

Raven drilled the remaining guards near the minehead, and knew he had to get to Thomas, and soon. He snapped a fresh mag into the greasgun, and "firemaned it" down the ladder to the ground below. He sprinted to Thomas, spraying a few rounds in the direction of several men emerging from the bunker. He grabbed Thomas, and pulled him near the gate of the cage. Only a few more meters, now...

Berger started hefting the "mayhem bags" over the wire to the prisoners. One was hung up on the wire, but the other 5 went right over. Eventually, the 6th found it's way into the prisoners hands too. The mayhem bags contained the inexpensive pistols, rifles, and knives which Berger had put together to give the POWs a fighting chance. Most of the weapons were old or cheap, and none, save one or two choice examples, had much ammo. But it was something. The prisoners distributed the contents of the bags, and lay down some additional cover (and confusion) for the defenders to deal with. Berger smiled a grim but satisfied smile.

A few clods of earth kicked up around Raven, and he took Thomas's M16, and returned fire in the direction of GP #2. Thomas and Wilkes said they had cleared both guardposts out, and Raven had no reason to doubt either of them. Assume nothing, but be prepared for everything. Raven dropped one man to his northeast, and the automatic weapon spouted fire into the sky even tho the owner was dead...

Wilkes, on the 9th or 10th try, finally got the old deuce and a half's engine to turn over. He slammed it into reverse, and backed to within a few meters of Raven and Thomas, near the gate to the wire cage.

More automatic fire erupted from the walled compound, as well as from GP #2.

Berger raked the walls, some 350 meters away, with the .50, sending the shooters there to ground. The gates of the cage were proving to be the foothold for Mr.Murphey in this operation. Raven was busy applying first aid to Thomas, and could only shout "BERGER!" , and nod toward the POWs. Berger, in turn, had no idea how best to breach the enclosure. So rather than do anything fancy, he tapped Anderson on the helmet, and told him to line up with the wire, and smash thru it.

Anderson happily complied, revving the engine as Berger cautioned the POWs away. Anderson tromped it, and at the last minute, jammed the wheel hard left. This slid the HUMVEE in a perfect bootleggers turn on the gravelly surface, slamming the rear bumper right into the corner post supporting the wire. It snapped like a toothpick, falling inward, but the wire became entangled around the rear of the HUMVEE.

Berger shouted "ANDERSON..." and a few things that are not printable, to which Anderson replied "I'm not done, man!", reversed the HUMVEE, crunching the wire inward, and then putting it in gear, spinning tires, careening forward. The net effect was that the wire, entangled around the back of the vehicle, was dragged a good 50 or 75 meters until Anderson stopped. Berger couldn't help but contain his laughter. "I'll never doubt you again, Spec. Now wheel this thing around and let's pick up Sean and the MAJ."

Wilkes was waving POWs for the truck, but some just headed off to the east, down the mountain, or across RT 940. All told, maybe 25 made it to the truck, and roughly half were armed with weapons from Berger's mayhem bags. There were some attitudes in the group, but by and large those showing up at the truck were happy for a ride out of Freeland.

Raven saw the seriouness of Thomas's wound. Granted it was in the arm, but the man had lost alot of blood, and in 2003, far from any Doctor, any wound ran the risk of being life threatening. Thomas was in and out, and in great pain...

Sean was glad to see Berger and this unit of raiders appear, so glad, that he nearly forgot how injured his own ankle and foot were. He tried running, and came to a crashing heap in the gravel just inside the wire. Scrolly laughed at him, reciting a bastardized version of the famous Joyce Kilmer poem as he scooped beneath Sean's arm to help his buddy hobble toward the HUMVEE:

I think that I shall never see
Someone as clumsy as Sean C.

A tree-like man whose ass is pressed
against the ground once more to rest

Poems are made by Fools like Scrolly
But comedy is made when large men Fall-y

Ah - ha ha haha ha!

Sean laughed with each step as hot pain shot up his foot, ankle, and shin....

Thomas's wound would have to wait for safer circmstances. Raven snapped a pointing finger toward the road, and everyone knew it was time to leave. The captured MAJ Wynn was still knocked out beside Berger's position, and Berger checked the man's seatbelt for the 7th time. Sean got in the HUMVEE, saying, "Berger, ya SOB, what in the name of St. George was keepin' ya?" Scrolly helped Raven load Thomas in the HUMVEE, muttering some limerick about a woman from Venus, who's nose was shaped like a ... Berger chanted the "Welcome Back" theme from the old TV show, and then his mood darkened when he saw how seriously Thomas was wounded. Raven shouted to the group, "HUMVEE first, avoid firefights unless impossible, I'll ride with Wilkes and the POWs in the truck. And see you at RB Winter... Damn good job everyone! Let's ROLL!!!"

Almost with those words, a missile streaked across the depression, followed quickly by a second. Someone had manned GP #1 again!. Automatic fire erupted from there, and from the lip of the depression around the minehead. Berger went topside, manning the M2HB. He buzzed 25 or 30 rounds into the crude bunker, kicking dirt, gravel, and flesh into the air. A man rose in the depression. Berger buzzed a few more rounds at him, and the man turned tail and ran like a deer in the opposite direction.

"Sean! There's some stuff there on the floor for you -- grab it." Sean kicked the duffle bag, opened it, found a .45, a scoped hunting rifle, ammmo belt, and a flak jacket. "Sweet Jeezus, Marrry, an Joooseph! I think I'll be waiting for a bath ta put on the uniform, but thanks, Jack." "Just put it on, we're not outta this latrine yet... This is Anderson, and the Native American is MAJ Raven, our new CO. Who's yer friend?"

"Scrolly... scrolly scrolly scolly"

"OK?...." Berger wrinkled his nose, and thought to himself, "I can't really say anything about your company, Sean. Look who hung out with you before that guy. Probably some poor mental patient who's missed his Haldol for like the last 5 years..."

"Yep I have.... yep I have... yep I have..." Scrolly replied, as if he had heard...

As the two vehicle convoy raced out of Freeland, Raven watched the rearview nervously. They headed SE. Anderson was a real speed demon, but he also realized a duece wasn't a HUMVEE, and he took it easy so as not to loose the slower vehicle with poorer crosscountry performance. He tended to take it easy, 35-45 mph cross country. That was still pretty fast for the rolling hills and forest of this area. Again, the people in the truck heard engines behind them. Raven looked back, but saw nothing. It sounded like at least 3-4 vehicles, thankfully not the same noise as tracks, maybe a cycle or 2 in the pack. One of the POW in back was watching out behind, and saw nothing yet.

Raven carefully made his way to the back of the truck. It was tough, and smacked his head on back of cab. There was no blood but a good gooner. Raven's head throbbed between this and the earlier wound to the head.

Raven was in the back, ass-bow to el-butt with 20 gamey POWs. He breathed through his mouth, trying not to be too obviously repulsed. Wilkes yelled back that Berger's leading you up a bit of a hill, and that there'll be a bumpy stretch, and then you'll be on a little road which goes W to E. Raven yelled, "Hang on everybody!", all the while searching for pursuers. But the engine noises behind were getting louder...

Finally Raven spotted 1, no 2 cycles. They were about a 1/2 a klick back. It was easier to see them now, since the truck was going up the incline. The rain was still drizzling, and the tarp on the duece wasn't entirely waterproof. Raven took a quick look around truck, looking for what weapons the POW's had. They came up with 2- .38s 3- 9mm pistols.. a 30-06, an M1 Garand, a 12 gauge pump and an AK47. Someone also produced 2 frag HGs. Raven asked to borrow the AK47. The guy took one look at Raven, smiled, and handed it over... Raven silently thanked Berger for the idea of the mayhem bags -- the AK had 2 mags jungle clipped together, and all the other weapons had spare ammo attached to them in some way. Raven handed the man his M3 for the moment.

The bikers were at 300 meters, and were certainly armed, but Raven couldn't see with what. He aimed. The truck bounced him all over. The previous owner of the AK grabbed Raven's belt and steadied him. "Thanks again"

Raven couldn't see anything on them at 300 m, but he knelt and aimed again. They were closer now, maybe 200 meters, when Raven gently squeezed the trigger. A burst of 12 rounds slammed into the driver as if it were a brick wall. He dumped the bike, and his passenger slid nearly 100 meters along the road...

The other bike closed in on the truck, maybe at 100 meters. The bike passenger opened up on the truck with an M16. Several rounds whacked into the back of the deuce, striking several of the ex-POWs. One took a round to the belly, and bled profusely over the floor. Another was struck in the head, and died instantly. Two others took wounds to arms or legs. Raven thought about the grenades, but figured he should use them on the trucks or bigger pursuers that were bound to appear. But there were the smoke grenades... Raven pulled one from his harness, and wedged in on the gate of the truck using some tape from one of the medical kits that Berger aquired. Raven was truly beginning to appreciate the resourcefulness of that man. Satisfied, Raven pulled the pin, and smoke issued from the grenade, forming an effective screen behind the truck. Who knows how long it would last, but it might buy a few critical seconds.

As the truck reached the summit of the hill, it turned hard to the left, and was on a road. Wilkes pulled the truck behind the HUMVEE, and at that moment, Berger opened up on the pursuers with the .50 BMG. Again the biker opened up with an M16 -- Raven saw it all, or perhaps it was someone in one of the trucks behind them, but at once, Raven felt a round bite into his right shoulder. It knocked him back, and Raven saw that yet another man had been hit in the back of the truck. He motioned to the first aid packs at his belt, and one of the man bandaged him up, and then Raven, feeling a bit better, helped patch up another of the men. Raven was alive, thank God, but shooting a rifle most definitely would hurt. Damn...

Raven's smoke screen had nearly dissapated, but it seemed to have worked. He stuck his head outside the back of the truck, and the POWs flipped the canvas up, and added to the fire. Berger was ripping up an SUV and 2 pickups that were following Raven's Roughnecks. Raven thought of an old quote by Napolean -- "God is on the side with the larger cannons"

Anderson backed up the HUMVEE and yelled at Raven, "Whaddaya got back there, MAJ?" Raven replied, "A lot of wounded, and a bike somewhere in the smoke, let's get the hell out of here!" Anderson slammed it into gear with an "Aye Aye, siir!" as he tromped it...

Raven knelt over the guy with the belly wound as he slowly expired...

All told, of the 25 POWs that began the ride from Freeland, 4 were KIA, 5 were WIA, and 11 were OK. And at least for the moment, apparently Raven and his group were in the clear. They headed west, picking along this RT 940. Like most roads in 2003 it hasn't been maintained in about 3 years. It was a state road, and it's abit worse off than the Interstates Raven was used to around Scranton -- lots of potholes, not to mention debris, burned out wrecks, etc...

The man with the gut wound must have taken then brunt of the last burst of fire. There were holes all around the cargo area of truck, perhaps 15-20. Alot were right where people's heads would have been if they weren't bumping around over rough terrain, or if Raven hadn't said get down when you did....

Raven review the procedures with Wilkes. "When we get close to The Dam, pull up to the Hummer, and tell Berger to radio Camp, give them vehicle description, and tell them not to fire, and to have medics standing by..." "Check, MAJ", said Wilkes.

Anderson in the HUMVEE flagged down Wilkes. Berger wanted to confer with Raven. Berger was not going to attempt I-80, which had been nicknamed "Hell's Highway", since the trouble after the war. Raven was fine with that. They didn't need anymore excitement at this rate. Berger said, "The main problem will be crossing the Susquehanna River. It's deeper and wider than than in years past, due to no floodcontrol in Scranton and parts North..." Raven asked about bridges?. Berger said there were few of them intact, and that Sunbury and Norry aren't the friendliest towns in PA right now. Raven remembered these towns were Stryfe's front porch...

"There was an old railroad bridge in Lewisburg, but that was where the old 3/103 camp was overrun a few days ago..." said Berger. "It's either that one or chancing it up in Danville. And there's nothing south until Harrisburg, and that city is a freakin' total mess..."

Raven asked where Sean and Berger crossed before they were captured. Berger replied that it was on the I 80 bridge near Mifflinville / Lime Ridge..." Raven began to see what kind of insane bastards those two were. "Problem is", Berger says, "we had to blow what few bridges there were after the mutiney in Dec. That and the mile wide Susquehanna River were all that kept the people in Sunbury and Danville off our backs. So that doesn't leave alot of choices. The ones mentioned previously were the only ones I know were intact, and that could've changed over the last few weeks, since things have been heating up."

... and Danville WAS right along the way -- 35 miles due west. But it would require two river crossings, to cross the inverted Y -shaped east and west branches of "The Mile Wide". Two crossings meant double the potential for something to go wrong, as far as anyone was concerned.

Raven realized the clock was ticking in consulting maps, and decided to go with the shortest route. "Actually the bridge links Riverside (on east) with Danville (on west)", corrected Berger. That would be their route, ordered Raven.

In slightly under an hour, Raven and company were 150 meters away from Riverside, staring down from a hill, vehicles concealed behind trees. Raven surveyed the bridge and town, and decided to have a closer look on his own. The others objected, but the facts were as follows: Anderson was at the wheel of the HUMVEE, Wilkes at that of the truck. Berger was covering with the M2HB, and everyone else was either wounded, (Sean, Thomas), or an unknown quantity, (the POWs). Raven grabbed the M21 from the HUMVEE. He would go it alone.

Raven scouted ahead, leaving the rides 100m behind him. He went north to the bridge which was actually OUTSIDE the town of Riverside (whew!). A few cook / camp fires were burning in town, to his west.

Raven scanned the bridge with his NVG's, looking for guards, or basically, anything. Raven saw no one. Neither did Berger or the drivers. The cookfires were maybe 300-400 m from the bridge, and much to Raven's delight the bridge appeared to be intact.

Raven went back to the vehicles, gave the group a sitrep, and that the plan was to gun it as fast as they could across the bridge. The one important tactical fact was that RT 11 skirted Danville on the other side of the river, and that meant anyone in Riverside would have a flank shot on both vehicles across the river, once they were on the Danville side. Raven didn't like it, but...

Again, the bridge in Lewisburg entered the plans, as did the old railroad bridge at Milton... Berger said that should still be there, but it dated to 1910 he thought, and it was badly damaged during the terrible Agnes Flood of 1972... He'd walked over it, ridden horses over it, but made no other claims...

Raven was frustrated. His shoulder and head hurt. He had lost several of the POWs, and perhaps more would die of their wounds. He would rather just cross once and be done with it. What of Williamsport?

Berger was certain that city would not be very friendly --the company of 3/103 that deserted went there...

Raven was done second guessing himself -- it would be here at Riverside, then the Railroad bridge at Milton, and do a lot of praying at both places.

After a brief pep talk, and after procedures and contingencies were reviewed, Anderson gunned the HUMVEE across the steel truss bridge at Riverside. They made it halfway across, when some more campfires could be seen being lit in the town... They reached the other side, and swung west... when the peeling of a church bell could be heard ringing in the town...

Raven thought, "oh shit, not good.... a good bridge left unguarded? What the F***, that just doesn't make sense, it's bound to be an AMBUSH!"

The first vehicle hit the Danville side and then all Hell broke loose...

A rocket streaked thruough the night, slamming into the road near the HUMMER. Anderson swerved, and if it were anyone else, they would've rolled it. He was actually up on his right hand side wheels for pete's sake, like some Jackie Chan or James Bond movie.

Raven said to anyone who could hear, "HAUL ASS OUT OF HERE, AND FIRE!" Gunfire erupted from several quaint old houses that are now merely shells, on the Danville bank of the river.... The HUMVEE took some fire... but it was hard for Raven to see just what happened. The truck, a big slow target, took alot of fire. The POWs shot from the right side of truck, after tearing and/or folding the canvas out of the way... Raven cautioned them to get down. Most did, but a few wouldn't, and kept firing.

Another guy in the truck was KIA outright, while 2 others were lightly wounded. Raven saw the shitload of holes right near his head. God looks out for fools and GI's. Berger opened up and literally plastered the 7-8 buildings on that side... He must've buzzed half a belt into them and they knock of ftheir firing pretty fast. It didn't sound like they had a MG or anything. Again Raven stared at the bulletholes, and wondered how the truck was still going, but he wasn't about to ask questions at this point, as long as the thing still moved.

Wilkes yelled back "How ya doing MAJ???" "Still alive, but we've got more wounded. You?" Wilkes replied, "OK for the moment, MAJ -- the HUMVEE's kicking ass... Get some, get some!!!"

"I'm sure this truck would pass for swiss cheese if you'd like to step out and look". Raven joked back, "As long as it drives, I don't care how awful it looks."

Between their speed and suppressive firepower, the group somehow managed to clear Danville, and headed west. The scenery turned to farm country real quick... but Raven couldn't enjoy the view, he was busy applying first aid to the POW's again... One pulled through, but another expired.

Fifteen more minutes and the convoy was at the east edge of Milton. Berger thought of the heavy industries in the town -- Chef Boyardee, Milton Steel Warshow Textiles -- and suggested skirting south, and entering on RT 405. Oddly, not a person could be seen in Milton either. The entire group feared a replay of the Riverside ambush, but Raven pressed them ahead. He dismounted, did a recon on foot, and located the bridge. There were muddy tire tracks on the River Road, which led up to the RR bridge, actually an elevated bridge near a burned out pizza joint. A timber ramp had been built up from the road to the level of the RR bridge, and it looked sturdy enough, if perhaps a bit steep for the truck...