Im telling you, Stone, Martinez said.
I heard you the first time, Martinez.
Good luck dont last forever, man. One fine day it runs out.
I dont worry because it aint luck in my case, Wayne said. Its skill.
Martinez sneered at that.
A big fat bastard like you? Youre lucky every time a bullet doesnt hit you. Youre the biggest, slowest thing out here.
Luke suppressed a laugh and went back to his gear. His weapons included an HK416 assault rifle and an MP5 for close quarter fighting. The guns were loaded and he had extra magazines stuffed in his pockets. He had a SIG P226 sidearm, four grenades, a cutting and breaching tool, and night vision goggles. This particular night vision device was the GPNVG-18, far more advanced and with a much better field of view than the standard night vision goggles offered to typical servicemen.
He was ready to rock.
Luke felt the chopper taking off. He glanced up. They were on the move. To their left, he saw the second helicopter, also leaving its pad.
You guys are the luckiest men alive, as far as Im concerned, he said.
Oh yeah? Martinez said. Whys that?
Luke shrugged and smiled. Youre riding with me.
* * *The chopper flew low and fast.
The rocky hills buzzed by below them, maybe two hundred feet down, almost close enough to touch. Luke watched the inky darkness through the window. He guessed they were moving at over a hundred miles per hour.
The night was black, and they were flying without lights. He couldnt even see the second helicopter out there.
He blinked and saw Rebecca instead. She was something to behold. It wasnt so much the physical details of her face and body, which were indeed beautiful. It was the essence of her. In the years theyd been together, he had come to see past the physical. But time was passing so fast. The last time he had seen herwhen was that, two months ago?her pregnancy had just been beginning to show.
I need to get back there.
Luke glanced downhis MP5 was across his lap. For a split second, it almost seemed alive, like it might suddenly decide to start firing on its own. What was he doing with this thing? He had a child on the way.
Gentlemen! a voice shouted. Luke nearly jumped out of his skin. He looked up, and Heath stood in front of the group. We are approaching target, ETA approximately ten minutes. I just got a report from base. The high winds have kicked up a bunch of dust. Were going to hit some weather between here and the target.
Terrific, Martinez said. He looked at Luke, all the meaning in his eyes.
Whats that supposed to mean, Martinez? Heath said.
I love weather, sir! Martinez shouted.
Oh yeah? Heath said. Whys that?
It ramps the pucker factor up to twelve. Makes life more exciting.
Heath nodded. Good man. You want excitement? It looks like we might be landing in zero-zero conditions.
Luke didnt like the sound of that. Zero-zero meant zero ceiling, zero visibility. The pilots would be forced to let the choppers navigation system do the sighting for them. That was okay. What was worse was the dust. Here in Afghanistan it was so fine that it flowed almost like water. It could come through the tiniest cracks. It could get into gearboxes, and into weapons. Clouds of dust could cause brownouts, completely obscuring any unfriendly obstacles that might be waiting in the landing zone.
Dust storms stalked the nightmares of every airborne soldier in Afghanistan.
As if on cue, the chopper shuddered and got hit with a blast of sideways wind. And just like that, they were inside the dust storm. The sound outside the chopper changeda moment ago the loud whirr of the rotors and the roar of the wind was all you could hear. Now the sound of the spitting dust hitting the outside of the chopper competed with the other two sounds. It sounded almost like rain.
Call the dust! Heath shouted.
Men were at the windows, peering outside at the boiling cloud.
Dust at the tailwheel! someone shouted.
Dust at the cargo door! Martinez said.
Dust at the landing gear!
Dust at the cockpit door!
Within seconds, the chopper was engulfed. Heath repeated each call out into his headset. They were flying blind now, the chopper pushing through a thick, dark sky.
Luke stared out at the sand hitting the windows. It was hard to believe they were still airborne.
Heath touched a hand to his helmet.
Pirate 2, Pirate 2 yes, copy. Go ahead, Pirate 2.
Heath had radio contact with all aspects of the mission inside his helmet. Apparently, the second helicopter was calling him about the storm.
He listened.
Negative on return to base, Pirate 2. Continue as planned.
Martinezs eyes met Lukes again. He shook his head. The chopper bucked and swayed. Luke looked down the line of men. These were hardened fighters, but not one of them looked eager to continue this mission.
Negative on set-down, Pirate 2. We need you on this
Heath stopped and listened again.
Mayday? Already?
He waited. Now he looked at Luke. His eyes were narrow and hard. He didnt seem frightened. He seemed frustrated.
I lost them. Thats our support. Can any of you guys see them out there?
Martinez looked out the window. He grunted. It wasnt even night anymore. There was nothing to see out there but brown dust.
Pirate 2, Pirate 2, can you read me? Heath said.
He waited a beat.
Come in, Pirate 2. Pirate 2, Pirate 2.
Heath paused. Now he listened.
Pirate 2, status report. Status
He shook his head and looked at Luke again.
They crashed.
He listened again. Minor injuries only. Helicopter disabled. Engines dead.
Suddenly, Heath punched the wall near his head.
Dammit!
He glared at Luke. Son of a bitch. The cowards. They ditched. I know they did. It just so happens their instrumentation failed, they got lost in the storm, and they crashed seven miles from a Tenth Mountain Division bivouac. How convenient. Theyre going to walk there.
He paused. A breath of air escaped him. Doesnt that beat all? I never thought Id see a Delta Force unit DD a mission.
Luke watched him. DD meant done deal. It meant disappearing, laying low, bowing out. Heath suspected that Pirate 2 had pulled the plug on the operation themselves. Maybe they had, maybe they hadnt. But it might be the right thing to do.
Sir, I think we should turn around, Luke said. Or maybe we should set this thing down. We have no support unit, and I dont think Ive ever seen a storm
Heath shook his head. Negative, Stone. We continue with minor edits. Six-man team raids the house. Six-man team holds the village approaches.
Sir, with all due respect, how is this chopper going to land and take off again?
No landing, Heath said. Well fast rope down. Then the chopper can go vertical and find the top of this storm, wherever it is. They can come back when we have the target secured.
Morgan Luke began, addressing his superior officer by his first name, a convention he could only get away with in a few places, one of them being Delta Force.
Heath shook his head. No, Stone. I want al-Jihadi, and Im going to have him. This storm doubles our element of surprisetheyll never expect us to come out of the sky on a night like this. Mark my words. Were going to be legends after this.