Chimera

The intra-team comms squawked with Ravi’s voice as Pathanya walked down the stone steps behind the large palace. He was escorted by a group of Bhutanese officials a few steps behind him. Pathanya had an intimidating appearance with his six foot height and build. It didn’t help for them to see the rifle slung on his chest and the sunglasses he was wearing over the white and brown boonie hat. He had finally washed the war-paint off his face but his uniform was still stained with blood. To the locals he was something just short of a demon, symbolizing everything that was currently happening with their small mountainous kingdom. But he didn’t care.

He walked up to another team member standing at the base of the steps. He was similarly dressed and equipped as Pathanya.

“Give me your optics,” Pathanya ordered silently.

The soldier handed Pathanya his binoculars without uttering a word and went back to scanning the peaks around for suspicious activity. Pathanya continued walking down to the north end of the concrete pad where Ravi was waiting with his binoculars to his eyes.

The first whipping noises of the helicopters were now reverberating in the valley. As Pathanya brought up his own binoculars to confirm the inbounds, Ravi lowered his and glanced at the officials.

“God. How much did you scare them?” he chuckled.

“Just enough,” Pathanya replied without looking away from his binoculars, “to get them to sign off on using this place as a jump-off point for the incoming reinforcements.”

Once he was satisfied that the inbounds were helicopters from Paru, he lowered his scopes. They were still thirty seconds out.

“Just remember that once the Colonel is on the ground, he is in command of Thimpu. And we act like it. So lose the informality. No more ‘boss’ shit? I am now ‘sir’ to all you bozos until we are back out in the bushes. Get it?” Pathanya ordered.

The inbound Mi-17 and one of the two Dhruv helicopters slowed to a hover, allowing the third Dhruv to flare for landing on to the pad.

“Yes sir, I got it,” Ravi retorted. Pathanya smiled.

“Good. Then pass the word along.”

Ravi walked away to check on the rest of the team. The Dhruv landed amidst a flurry of snow raised by its main rotors. The side-doors of the helicopter slid open and a small group of Paras in full combat gear jumped out, their weapons in their hands. As their Lieutenant began shouting orders, they began spreading out from the pad, joining Spear team members on the perimeter of the palace.

The last man in the helicopter stepped out wearing the red-beret of the Paras and two red-collar tabs of a Colonel. Pathanya ran over as the snow flurry intensified and the Dhruv leapt off the pad, clearing it for the next hovering helicopter in line. Pathanya shook hands with Colonel Misra as both men held on to their headgear until they sprinted off the pad and onto the stone steps leading into the palace.

“Let me guess. You are Pathanya. Spear team-leader?” Misra asked.

“Sir.”

Misra stopped at the head of the stairs and looked around Thimpu from there as the second Dhruv lifted off the pads and cleared the way for the Mi-17. Each helicopter rotated back to Paru airport to pick up the next load of soldiers. Pathanya saw the spreading mass of paratroopers and nodded in approval.

Finally!

“Give me a layout of your unit positions here,” Misra ordered.

“Yes sir,” Pathanya said, looking away from the incoming soldiers and pointed to the north with his left arm. “I have a three-man O-P over there in the outskirts about three-quarter kilometer from here. They have been spotting for the friendly arty as we held off the assault on Thimpu. I have five men here providing security for this L-Z and I have about three dozen RBA soldiers that I have absorbed into my command. Their own commander fell during the shelling at Wang-Chu about six kilometers north from here, two days ago. So they fell back here. I have deployed them in dominant positions on the perimeter around this L-Z. The O-P team is ordered to fall back here in case the Chinese break through into the city.”

Misra nodded his approval. Pathanya had done well given the circumstances. He looked at the group of Bhutanese officials who had followed them up the stairs…

“Who the hell are these guys?”

Before Pathanya could speak, the senior Bhutanese official stepped forward and spoke in clear English:

“These guys, as you say put it, are the officials of the government whom we hope you are here to protect. We are here to offer the services of the Royal-Guards unit to the defense of our capital. They are our most loyal and well-trained soldiers.”