A fire team sets up in support of battalion commander Lt. Col. Christopher Holden on Saturday. Rob Curtis / Military Times staff

Sgt. Brandon Swaggart, 25, of Monroe, La., loads and aims his catapult as he plays a game to pass the time with other soldiers from C Company, 3rd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) at the company command post in Mosul on Saturday. Rob Curtis / Military Times staff

Gas station patrons wait in lines as Pvt. Robert Wong, 19, of Denver, Colo., with the Widowmakers, 3rd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), guards the facility as hundreds of cars line up for fuel in Mosul on Saturday. Rob Curtis / Military Times staff

Staff Sgt. Clinton Miller, 25, of Sterling, Va., and Capt. Chris McKinney, 31, of Sylacauga, Ala., share some Cracker Jacks with their command post caretakers grandson in Mosul on Saturday. Rob Curtis / Military Times staff