Babel's Surprise Exercise

“What’s the plan for this weekend then?” The question was asked by the man in old overalls as he leaned against the fence to the school playground.

“Just a trip out to the Hut so they can practise shooting.”

“Really?”

The uniformed man beside him smiled. “A full kit hike into the mountains won’t hurt, I’m thinking they’ll be back Thursday or Friday.”

“I’m sure they’ll love it.”

“Not as much as their parents.”

That got a laugh from the man in overalls. “Everyone knows how well you look after the kids, they love cadets and they idolise you. You’re the man who can tell Generals where to go.”

That got a look. “So can you.”

“Not any more.” The quiet response was serious.

An electronic bleeping made both men reach for their pockets.

Each pulled out a small datapad, hand sized devices that kept them up to date and in contact. They unlocked the screens and read the brief messages before looking up and locking eyes.

“We’ll go straight into the mountains,” the uniformed man broke the silence. “We’ll take some extra supplies and extend the trip if we need to.”

“You head out as planned, I’ll bring the boys with the extra supplies. That way we can be the ones messing up your carefully worked out plans.”

“Alright, Joe, that’s a deal.”

“If Se-se comes out, I’m on the phone.” Joe moved away from the fence as the datapad went to his ear. “Hi Tammy, did Matt send you a message too?”

“He did. Have you seen Castleman?” Joe’s wife Tam was quick to answer.

“He was next to me when the message arrived. He’ll take all the cadets off as planned and we’ll catch up once the boys have arrived. It’s not a biggy so we’re just going to get out of the way for now.”

“Sounds good. What are we telling Se-se?”

“Nothing. It’s going to be a surprise.”

“Check. I’ll have everything ready for when you arrive.”

As Joe put the datapad back in his pocket he realised a lot of the other parents had arrived to pick up their children, or in the case of the cadets bring their things for the long weekend away they were about to take. There were people to talk to, the usual platitudes to observe and general farming discussions to have. There was a nasty case of blight attacking the crops this year and each farm was trying a different method to treat it, they used the time at the school gates to compare notes and see what was the most effective method. So far the worst option was the one put forward by the Agriculture Agency, something the farmers were highly scathing of.

It was such a small school and settlement that the teachers did not have the security concerns of the big city schools, they opened the main door and the children flooded out. Most went to their parents, but some simply ran off down the street to their homes and no one worried for them, everyone knew each other and there were no concerns among the families for their youngsters.

Only after the main rush of children did another group appear, a few minutes later and all wearing the green shirts and trousers of soldiers with sturdy boots and showing every sign of excitement. When they saw Castleman they ran over to him, charging as if to throw themselves enmass into his arms, but at the last moment they stopped, leaping to attention and throwing perfect salutes.

Castleman allowed himself the slightest of smiles as he returned the salute. “Is everyone accounted for?”

“Yes, sir.” one of the boys with the stripes of a Sergeant on his arm was quick to answer.

“Good. Get your things and say goodbye to your parents.”

Joe had a large backpack ready when Se-se ran over to him. “Have a good time now and do as you’re told.”

“I thought you were coming too.” Se-se frowned.

“I’ve got a few things to finish up at home, we’ll meet you at the training hut. I’m not sure if it’ll be tonight or tomorrow, it depends how quickly we can square everything away. Come on, give me a kiss now.”

“Uncle.” Se-se whined. “How old am I?”

“Not too old for a bye bye kiss. Come here, Little Princess.”

Se-se gave her Uncle a look. It was the classic look of angst given by all teenagers to their embarrassing relatives. “I’m fourteen not four.”

“You’re still my little girl. One day you’ll understand.”

Se-se grumbled but moved forward to give her Uncle a kiss on the cheek and a brief hug before he held the backpack for her to put on.

“Look after yourself, okay. We’ll catch up with you soon.”

“Don’t fuss, we’re only hiking.” Se-se dismissed Joe’s concern and returned to her friends.

“Don’t worry, we’ll be fine until you arrive.” Castleman was soon beside his friend again.

Joe sighed. “It’s times like this I remember why we moved here. I’d almost forgotten what it feels like to jump at every alert.”

“It’s certainly peaceful here,” Castleman agreed. “It makes a nice change after a career full of constant action.”

“We can’t take our eye off the ball though, it’s only peaceful on the surface.”

“And that’s why we’re doing what we are. I’ve got the cadets, you get yourself prepared.”

Nods were exchanged before Joe moved away to leap on his horse and head back to the farm.

While the cadets formed up with Colonel Castleman and began their march out of town and into the forest, Joe returned home.

True to her word, his wife had prepared supplies for them, on the veranda already were full saddle bags and two large hiking packs.

“How was Se-se?” Tam asked the question as she walked back out from the kitchen, having seen Joe’s arrival from the window.

“She’s fine, she just wanted to ditch me as soon as possible to run off with her friends.”

“No change from normal then.” Tam laughed.

“True. Have you had any more information come through?”

Tam shook her head. “Only that Matt’ll have the details when he arrives. It can’t be too serious or they would have called a full alert.”

“It still might get serious.” Joe held out a hand to Tam, pulling her in when she accepted it. “And it might be a while before I can curl up in bed with you again.”

Tam did not object to the kiss. They had been married for eighteen years and together for years before that, but she was still so happy to have found a man who could be her best friend as much as a good husband and a wonderful Uncle. “I do love you, Johan.”

“You shouldn’t call me that.” Joe’s reminder was soft.

“There’s no one here but us.”

“I love you too, Tabitha.”

Knowing smiles were exchanged by the couple. They had not been known by their real names since arriving to take over the farm with their baby niece many years ago and only one other person on the planet knew who they really were and he was bound by oath to never say a word.

“How long have we got until they arrive?” As much as he wanted time to hold his wife, Joe’s mind was on business.

“Five hours.” Tam responded, knowing exactly how he felt. “Time to get the farm in order and get some recon done.”

“Rani knows we’re heading out, he promised to feed and secure the animals tonight so we only need to do a quick walk around.”

“Good. You do that then and I’ll fix us something to eat on the go.”

“Don’t forget a change of clothes for me.” Joe said as he jumped off the veranda and headed to the first barn.

“Already waiting inside.”

It looked like a normal riding jacket, in camouflage colours but otherwise much like the ones worn by the rest of the colony, but the padding meant to protect the rider if they fell was far more than just the absorbent foam normally used. Joe’s jacket was armoured against weapon’s fire, as was Tam’s and, although she was not aware of it, Se-se’s. They had been custom made and were a huge expense but it was worth it, even if Se-se insisted on growing out of hers on such a regular basis. In fact, Joe was hoping that Matt had been able to bring Se-se’s new jacket with him before she started to complain again.

One way that Se-se’s jacket differed from her Uncle and Aunt’s was the careful tailoring that allowed them both to carry a concealed weapon, compact pistols which were illegal for all but a very few to own and no one had any idea how rarely Joe or Tam were without them. Even Se-se was unaware of the full extent of the fire power available to the people who cared for her.

There was little discussion as the couple rode into the forest, they knew where they were heading and they would be travelling into the night. While the cadets would set up camp and take their rest before completing the journey to their training hut in the morning, Joe and Tam would not stop and would push the horses as fast as they could safely go.

When it got too dark to see with the naked eye they put on light glasses, making the forbidding forest glow and every detail shine. They were still wearing the glasses when they reached the edge of a clearing.

This was where the cadet hut had been built only months earlier using surrounding trees for the construction near to a handy spring. The long weekend trip was to be the first time after construction that the cadets were getting the chance to spend a little time in it, but had someone else beaten them to it?

Joe and Tam left the horses in the forest and separated to make a full circuit of the clearing, checking for signs of intruders while carrying their rifles ready to fire. When they met at the far side of the glade it took only seconds for them to silently agree through hand signals that no one appeared to have walked in and how to approach the hut.

Joe took up position at a good vantage point while Tam carefully entered the clearing. She was the better of the two at stealth and Joe was the finer marksman. He watched like a hawk, scanning for any movement other than Tam’s but all the way to her entry into the hut there was nothing.

Tam was no less wary of movement, her steps slow and deliberate as she listened to the input from every sense. It was a long time since she had been called upon to make entry to a potentially hostile location but she had not forgotten the fear or the tension, all tightly wound together like a bow string keeping her focused on nothing but the objective. She was acutely aware that the small hut could be trapped or occupied, there was nothing she could take for granted.

Finding the building empty and untouched was a great relief. Still, Tam called Joe in and they spent long time checking thoroughly just to be certain.

Then they looked at the board up on the wall and Tam smiled as she pulled a pen out of box beneath it.

“Kidnapping scenario? Something to make it more exciting for them?” she suggested.

Joe nodded. As serious as the situation was he did not want any of the cadets to think there was anything untoward happening and when Matt was already on the way it seemed like a good game to use to lead them out of harms way. “What ransom are you going to demand?”

Tam considered the question seriously. “Your weight in chocolate and sweets.”

“Not your weight?”

“I don’t want to be stingy.”

Se-se had loved cadets since her first after school session as a seven year old. Colonel Castleman, the colony’s military liaison, decided to give the colony something in return for the patience they showed with all of the military exercises they put up with hosting and the disruption they caused and he could think of nothing better than to treat the colony children to a taste of the life had by the strangers they saw arriving in their home on regular basis.

The parents were happy to let their children go and learn from a man with an impressive reputation and the children loved the adventure of it all.

Se-se and her best friend Mike especially loved it, they listened to all of the Colonel’s stories and paid close attention to every lesson. They had already told him their ambitions to do exactly as he had, to get their commissions and join the Imperial Guards. It was the hardest Regiment to enter into, the one whose members personally defended the Emperor but knowing their cadet leader had done it gave them the drive make it.

Castleman said nothing, but he knew that as soon as his Sergeant finished school it would be Se-se who got the stripes. She was already the squad Corporal and it made sense to promote her, just as Mike would become the Corporal. They were not the only ones who could do it and there was a lot of competition within the group as to who was the best cadet, but they had the ambition and he wanted to push them to see exactly how much they could do. That was not to say that Fred did not make a good Sergeant, he had taken to the role easily and was sure to make a good soldier when he joined up the following year.

After a good night’s sleep in the forest, letting the children curl up in their sleeping bags under tarpaulins stretched between branches with heat blocks dotted around them for extra warmth, they quickly broke camp and got back to marching. They had been practising this for years now and were very good at their camping skills, Castleman barely had to prompt them any more with the tasks to be completed.

“Dosser.”

“Yes, sir.” the boy leapt as he heard his name.

Castleman opened his mouth and caught himself before reassuring the youngster. There was something about Dosser that made him seem as though he had a permanently guilty conscience, the way he jumped whenever he was called. Castleman did not like to speculate on his home life, but he knew the family were very strict. He took a breath and tried again. “Take the rear with Barbak. Fred, you and Jayne are on point. Se-se, you’re in the centre with me. Everyone else, flanking positions.” He pretended not to see the face Se-se pulled, Castleman knew she hated being in the centre but everyone had to take their turn.

Less than an hour after they started moving there was a radio call from Fred.

“We’ve got tracks, fresh ones.”

“Squad halt.” Castleman did not wanted to sound worried, but he was. “Description.”

“Someone’s ridden through here, two someones.” Jayne was the one to report. She was only fourteen but she could track better than most adults thanks to having been taken on expeditions with her parents since she was baby. “They weren’t going fast but they’re definitely heading towards the Hut. Joe and Tam?”

“Most likely.” Castleman agreed. Everyone knew they were supposed to join the children and to save them being too late it would not be a surprise for them to ride. “Let’s treat it as possible hostile action though, extend your lead, weapons drawn.”

“Sir?” Fred’s uncertainty could easily be heard. Weapons drawn was a highly aggressive move for the squad.

“It’s good training for you, you should be comfortable with the weapon in your hand.” Castleman wanted to snap but he remembered who he was talking to and that he was supposed to be teaching them.

“Yes, sir.”

There was no reason to be worried, they had received no more warning or alerts, there was nothing to say anyone hostile was on the planet. If Castleman had been so sure he would not have been nervous.

Time seemed to pass at half speed until there was a new report from Fred. “I’ve got eyes on two horses grazing in the clearing. It’s Charlie and Lincoln.”

Those were Joe and Tam’s horses. “Grazing?”

“No saddles or tack, they’re on long tethers. The water trough’s been filled.”

“Any movement from the Hut?”

“No, sir, nothing. Shall we go in?”

“Negative. I’ll go in.” Telling the cadets it was all just a training exercise was one thing, but risking them for real was another. Castleman would check the Hut personally before allowing them out of the forest.

The mutters from the squad were audible to Castleman and they almost made him smile. His little band of cadets were expecting him to spring a surprise on them. They were preparing themselves for an emergency drill, with Fred and Se-se assigning duties to the other cadets in readiness. Any other day they would have been right. Castleman wondered if he was getting too predictable and made a mental note to review his training regime when they got back. It made his next order easier, they were expecting it. “Sergeant, if anything happens to me, make for the emergency shelter and do not allow access to any strangers. Understood?”

“Yes, sir.”

Castleman drew his trusty military issue standard pistol and held it low as he circled the clearing, much as Joe and Tam had done hours earlier. He also made his entry slow and careful, as wary as Tam of traps, but there was nothing except a message on the board. He had to acknowledge it was a good plan, a ruse the cadets would fall for and a way to make the trip a little more exciting for them.

He gave the all clear and waited for the cadets to swarm inside and notice the ransom demand scrawled on the board for them.

“We have Joe and Tam. You will not see them again unless you pay. Give us Joe’s weight in unmarked and sealed sweets or chocolate – no empty wrappers or the deal’s off. Go to the first mountain supply stop for further instructions.”

“Awesome.” Mike could not help but raise a fist in celebration. He loved it when they got surprise exercises, there was always a good prize at the end and it usually meant they were away for longer than they had been told; it was so much better than sitting in lessons at school.

“And we’ve got Charlie and Lincoln to carry our gear.” Fred added, more than happy to off load some of their heavy supplies.

Se-se sighed. That was so like her Aunt and Uncle. Everyone else thought they were cool, they were ex-military and got on really well with the Colonel so she often had to put up with at least one of them tagging along on their trips away. At least the kidnapping scenario meant they were not going to be breathing down her neck the whole week.

“Okay, we’ll have a quick break here while we organise what’s going on the horses and then we’ll head to the supply point.” Castleman knew they had to get moving but he could not rush the cadets too much. They were fit and strong, able to travel further and faster than most children their age, but they still needed regular rest stops to stop it becoming too much of a route march. “Corporal, make sure the horses don’t get over loaded. You and Mike will be leading them.”

“Yes, sir.” Se-se responded promptly, she had been expecting that. The horses were from her farm after all so they were hers to look after. It was nice that she would be able to stay near Mike though, they always told everyone that they were just friends but that was just to hide what happened when they were alone together.

“I bet you he keeps us in the middle of the squad to protect the supplies.” Mike said in a hushed voice when they were lashing packs carefully onto the saddles for the trip. They had discovered all sorts of useful supplies already packed in the saddle bags but they still had plenty of other things to carry.

“Of course he will.” Se-se knew it was the most sensible course of action, they Colonel had spent a long time teaching them how to think tactically and drilling them in the importance of protecting supplies and equipment.

“Pity.”

Se-se stuck her tongue out at Mike, she knew exactly what he was thinking about. “You’re not getting anything this week.” she hissed. “If we get caught getting up to anything Castleman will kill us and then he’ll tell my Aunt and Uncle, and Joe will kill you.”

“I’m willing to take the risk.” Mike grinned. He had just turned fifteen and everyone agreed he was physically very mature for his age, already standing as tall as his Father and broader than anyone else in school; every inch of it muscle from hard farm labour and enthusiastic cadet training. He was more than ready to take things a step further with Se-se but she was not sure and as much as he did not want to force the issue he was doing what he could to gently persuade her.

“I’m not.” Se-se countered. “I’ve already had to have ‘the talk’ with Tam, so embarrassing. First she goes on about how I’m too young and then in the next breath she’s all ‘take precautions, be careful’, like we haven’t studied reproduction at school already. They’re not buying us just being friends, we have to be really careful not to get caught.”

“Yeah,” Mike conceded. “Dad had that talk with me a couple of weeks ago. Look, it’s none of their business, okay? We’re old enough to make our own minds up and as soon as you’re ready for it, well, we’ll figure something out.”

“I know, I just,” Se-se shrugged. “It’s a big deal.”

“And I’m not pushing.” Mike knew exactly where he stood and how strongly he felt about Se-se. “I’m not that dumb.”

Se-se laughed. “Not quite.”

“Thanks.”

Just out of sight around the corner of the Hut, Castleman listened to the conversation. He had been going to see how they were getting on but he could not help eavesdropping. Joe had already asked him if he knew what was going on between his niece and Mike, of course he was protective of the girl he had raised from a baby, Joe was more Se-se’s Father than her Uncle. It had been obvious for some time that the pair were more than just friends, but that conversation told him just how far their relationship had progressed. At least they were being careful and Mike was being sensible. They were too young, but Castleman vaguely remembered how it felt to be that age and how young he had been when he lost his virginity. He would say nothing to them, it was unnecessary. It would also mean admitting to them that he understood Teutonic, the native language of Mike’s family and the language they spoke in when they were trying to hide things from him.

Castleman took a deep breath and stepped round the corner. “How are we getting on here?”

“Pretty much done, sir.” Se-se responded promptly.

“Good. Five minutes and we’re moving. You’ll be in the middle of the column.”

“Yes, sir.” Both teenagers chimed.

Castleman nodded and took his leave so he could wipe the ransom message from the board. If there was even a small chance that someone might come after them he would at least leave them having to practise their tracking rather than risk them figuring out where they had to go next. Tam had at least given them a destination that an outsider would not know, only they knew where their special stores were, having hidden them about the place for when they went on their long summer treks. If someone had beaten them to the Hut they would be none the wiser where they had to go.

Joe and Tam made the best time they could on foot. They had left as many supplies as they dared and they both hoped the cadets were taking care of the horses. All they could do was stick to the plan and hope things worked as they should.

“We’re being tracked.” Tam whispered a little after lunch time.

“I know.” Joe responded. His tracking skills had been hopeless before arriving at the colony, knowing he needed to learn he had been careful to spend a lot of time with the Ashtons, Jayne’s family, volunteering to help them hunt in return for learning the forest skills they were experts at. Joe reached into his jacket, casually as if going for his drink.

His fingers were curling around the pistol grip when a voice spoke from the trees. “Okay, what did I do wrong?”

Joe relaxed, his hand dropping back to his side. “You breathed.”

There was a sigh as the armed and armoured man stepped into sight. “I swear I used to be able to sneak up on you.”

Joe smiled. “Not for a long time. Are the rest of you coming out too?”

Three more soldiers appeared.

“Where are the others?”

“Shadowing the cadets.”

Joe nodded. “It’s good to see you, Matt.”

“Likewise.”

“We’ve set up a kidnapping scenario, I was hoping you’d catch up before the first waypoint. Have you brought any sweets with you?”

“Really?” Matt asked with a shake of the head. “Would we come here without sweets?”

It was a long running joke that whenever Joe’s best friend visited he arrived laden down with presents not just for Se-se but for all of her friends as well. There were very few sweet treats available on such a small colony so he was always well received.

“But have you got them on you?”

“Only enough to feed a platoon.” Matt knew what the cadets were like and had made sure they all packed accordingly.

“Good. I want them to have something to show for their efforts.”

“That we can manage.”

Joe nodded as they began to walk together. “What’s sent us into the forest then? We’ve had nothing but the alert.”

“Esterriads.”

“Again? We know they’re suspicious of this planet, it’s not new.” Joe was all for being careful but he did not like false alarms. Every time there was an alert it increased the chances of someone noticing them.

“But this time we’ve got intelligence that a Republican group have caught on. A known Republican stalker has managed to get into one of the Esterriad chatter groups. They realised and kicked him off but not before he’d been through their chat history and on it was a conversation about this planet.”

“That’s still not enough to call an alert, there are thousands of stalkers, it doesn’t make them militant.” Joe objected. The chatter groups were harmless enough, almost everyone was a member of at least half a dozen of them, they were on the computer cloud and considered a social past time covering every subject imaginable. It was inevitable that politics and religion would be there, with Imperialists and Republicans often verbally battling it out. Stalkers were the people who managed to infiltrate opposing chatter groups to get information or cause havoc, they were simply a fact of online life.

“Millions, but this one is militant and until he and his pals are safely located and questioned it’s better to keep you secure.”

“And how are you explaining your arrival all kitted out for battle?”

“Escape and evasion exercise.” Matt shrugged with a smile. “When we get caught we’ll have a spot of leave before heading back to work.”

“Really? That’s a thin excuse.”

“We’re hiding in plain sight. Anyone who comes into town asking about unknown soldiers isn’t going to be told about us, we’re familiar faces.”

“Smart arse.” Joe tutted.

“We’re nearly at the supply point.” Tam had been listening silently as the old friends talked, but it was time to consider more immediate issues. “Do you have any intelligence telling us we shouldn’t lead the kids into the mountains?”

“No, ma’am.” Matt shook his head.

“If you’re thinking about the waterfall it’s really not warm enough for that yet.”

Tam shook her head. “I was actually thinking the top of the Ranger’s Gorge. It’s easily defensible and the views are good. I know it’s bit further but it’s worth the effort.”