CHAPTER 16
UNIT: The Team Reliant and Olaedoen
SITUATION: Mission Discussion
LOCATION: Ready Room/Team Reliant
TIME: 0900 hours Local Time, Current Date
The team left the building and walked out to the large driveway in front of their office building. Using chalk, they drew the approximate lines of how the tunnel was laid out under the meat shop. They practiced their mission concept.
They practiced their tunnel entrance on their scooters with Pearly in the lead, his instruments mounted on his vehicle. The team approached their destination slowly, halted, and upon a signal from Harvey, advanced to their positions and acted out taking down the guards. After five practice runs, Harvey called a halt, held a breathing, and they put their scooters into the back of an army deuce and half truck. They loaded themselves and their equipment into the truck, and Cruz drove them to Camp Bowie.
Harvey briefed them, questioned them on their parts in the mission, and prepared to execute the mission.
That night, as they prepared to enter the tunnel, Dude asked, "Do we know if there is another way into the tunnel there on Yalu Street." He shrugged, "I mean, if they have an entrance at the meat shop, why wouldn't they have another for emergencies? I don't know how long it takes them to make another entrance from another location, but it seems to me that another entrance or exit would be the thing to have. Wouldn't it? I would have one."
Slover complained, "Why didn't you ask this question sooner? For instance, why didn’t you ask it before we started our first attempt to capture Jagwi in the tunnel?"
"Sorry, I just started thinking if my hideout had been compromised once, why wouldn't I find or have made another way out of the tunnel created?"
Harvey agreed, "Yeah, I specifically asked for suggestions and questions."
"Hey, don't beat me up over this. Why didn't one of you guys think of it? I mean you are intelligence analysts."
Mungo intervened, "Come on guys. Please. After all, it is a good question to ask. What are we going to do about it?"
Harvey sighed, "That would be the question of the day, and we need to give it full consideration. Let's talk about it."
Harvey waved the for group to come and stand before him. "Okay, the concept of having one or more entrances and exits out of the tunnel makes sense. I don't know why we didn't consider that at first. But we didn't, so, let me rephrase the issue. First, how many other entrances might there be? Anybody have an answer?"
Slover offered, "That probably would depend on how long he's been here. If he has been here, say a month, and if he is in with the local Communist Party, he may have been able to convince them to make five or more. Who knows how many more? We don't, because we don't know what he has planned for the Communist Party in Seoul. He's a General. He's knows how to fight battles. He knows what planning means."
Harvey admitted, "We've been stupid. He is way ahead of us on this issue. So, the second question should where typically would these entrances be?"
Slover volunteered, "Beneath every brothel on Yalu Street."
Dude shook his head, "You wish. Why not every beer joint on Yalu Street?"
Mungo stepped between the two, "Come on guys, let's not deal in personalities. Let's get serious with some logic here." he paused, "Look guys, here's my thought on that issue: first, we have assembled in front of us, all of the equipment we need to find out how many entrances and exits have been added to the tunnel system. At the same time, we have the equipment and devices we would need if we are able to capture Jagwi. So, we conduct the mission knowing that if we can find him, maybe we can catch him. Secondly, if we do not see him at all during this mission, at least we will become familiar with the tunnel system under Yalu Street. That knowledge will take away from General Jagwi one advantage he has now. That knowledge will also tell us how many people we need to cover the exits if we are forced to go after General Jagwi at a later date. So, why not go ahead and conduct the mission with the knowledge that we may not get him this time, but we will be armed with the knowledge of how to prevent his escape."
Harvey nodded, "Well said. Does everyone understand their assignments for this mission in light of this new information about general Jagwi?"
Their silence spoke for them.
Harvey ordered the team, "Let's mount up. Sergeant Pearly, you and I will lead off."
The eight soldiers turned their electric scooters down the earthen ramp ar Camp Bowie. They rode into the darkness of the tunnel determined to gain the advantage over the General. They had to find all the possible entry points, and they had to block all possible exit points. If they could catch him before he could get to an exit point, they could take him down.
Aaron Pearly Led the team with his motion detector sensors. He intended to defeat the motion sensors that were active with his newly developed motion sensor sonic baffles. They rode the 24 miles in silence with their senses alert for fallen rocks and other tunnel debris. They wore their night vision goggles with the attached infrared sensors. Each soldier was hyper alert for any advanced enemy parties or individual soldiers who would try to prevent their capture of General Jagwi.
As the team neared the location where the armed Jagwi supporters were first contacted, they slowed their approach and let Pearly negate the active sensors with his sonic baffles.
Pearly Raised his hand in the signal for “Stop.” The cycles all stopped in a straight line behind him. Harvey knew the soldiers in back of him would see him with their infrared sensors. He gave the hand and arm signals for ‘dismount.’ With careful precision in their steps, the team surrounded him. He sent three to the left side of the tunnel and three to the right side. They knew their responsibilities. Each one stayed close to the side of the tunnel. As they moved with stealth and precision, their aim was to approach unseen by any enemy. The team members on both sides of the tunnel arrived at the point of contact simultaneously. They stopped, and they flipped their NVGs upon their helmets to avoid being blinded by the light bulbs still burning. Harvey called a halt through the radio earbuds
He feared that Jagwi’s protectors had been able to activate the laser detection beams. He ordered the leader on each side to, toss some smoke canisters. Their intent was to locate any laser beams by the refraction of the beam caused by the smoke.
Dawn said, “I have a beam on my side.”
Mungo echoed, “I have one on my side.”
Harvey activated the radio boom at his cheek,
“You know the drill. Proceed with caution.”
The soldiers on each side advanced carefully, maneuvering their legs and bodies to avoid disrupting the laser beams. The beams were visible for 20 or 30 feet into the tunnel. Finally, they disappeared.
Harvey ordered, “Search the chambers, and be very careful.” He continued, “Alpha and Bravo team leaders, see if you can track the power supply lines for the sensors back up the stairs. If they do not lead upstairs, let me know where they do go.”
They both replied, “Copy that,” and they began their search.
Harvey and Pearly stood waiting to hear back about the power supply, Harvey asked Pearly, “Is there any way for you to defeat the laser sensors?”
“Negative, sir. That would require equipment and abilities that I do not have.”
“Then there is no way that we can ride our scooters farther into the tunnel. Right?”
“That is correct, sir. We can do as the others have done and maneuver our way past the laser beams, but we have no way to defeat the beams.”
“What if we can to turn off the laser beams?”
“The problem with that approach, sir, is if the beams are being monitored somewhere, and if the power goes down all at once, they are likely to suspect that we are here.”
Harvey grunted, “Damn. For all we know, the lasers could be just for show and not really connected to anything, and we could be trying to defeat something that is not monitored.”
“Maybe. Sir, following this tunnel under Yalu Street, on foot, shouldn’t be that much of a problem since this part of Yalu Street is only a quarter of a mile long.”
“Yeah, but how many locations have Jagwi’s cronies dug for him that we will have to be careful about? Like, how many of them will be equipped with lasers?”
Pearly tisked his cheek, “Only one way to find out, sir. My sonic baffle does work, but we would have to toss some smoke to see if lasers were active.”
“True that.” Harvey shouldered his weapon and whispered, “Come on Pearly, let’s see if we can avoid the beams while we follow the Team.”
“Roger that, sir.”
By passing Pearly’s sonic baffle back-and-forth between the two of them, they carefully maneuvered and passed the laser beams.
Once they passed the lasers, Harvey orered the team, “Alpha and Bravo team leaders, give me a SITREP.”
Dawn reported, “Alpha team has found a power cable running up the stairwell. Bravo is moving up the stairwell to learn where he goes.”
Mungo agreed, “Bravo can see where the power cable goes up and through a hole in the wall. If I follow it any farther, I may wind up confronting one or more of the OPFORCE.”
Harvey replied, “Do not go farther. I say again do not go farther. Return to the tunnel, and we will discuss our next move.”
Dawn asked, “Do you want team Alpha to return also?”
“Roger that, both teams return. It’s still early in the day, so, let’s return to base camp where can figure out what we should do with this information. We can use a night of rest and relaxation while we figure out what to do with this information.”