Chimera

“Uh, roger,” he replied, his voice reflecting the uncertainty over what was happening amongst the enemy positions. “I confirm enemy armor retreating in full to the northeast, abandoning prepared positions along the M-S-R! Over!”

Kulkarni checked around and saw on his battlefield-management-system that there were seven other Arjun MBTs still reporting active from the regiment. They had been fighting here for days. And had taken heavy losses while doing so. But there had been few, if any, reinforcements. More to the point, the arrival of the 43RD Armored Regiment had stabilized the front opposite numerous Chinese armor units. And so both sides had been slugging it out over here for days with ever dwindling resources on either side.

The 43RD AR was down to a force of just three effective platoons, but they still occupied positions two kilometers east of the original LAC…

“Rhino-Command,” Kulkarni said as he looked away from the BMS and peered through the optics again, “Rhino is ready to charge and pursue! I have two platoons with me here and I am good to go! Over!”

“Negative, Rhino-One,” the regiment commander replied. “Do not pursue enemy armor. Rhino will hold positions and terminate all further combat operations until further orders! Do you copy?”

The gunner and the loader turned around from their stations to face Kulkarni who looked just as surprised. But he wasn’t about to question his orders…

“Wilco! Rhino is holding!”

What the hell… He thought as he backed away from the optics just as the radio chimed off.

“Sir, did the war just get over?” his loader asked softly.

Kulkarni shook his head in silence, opened the hatch above and pulled himself out into the freezing cold winds. He heard the sounds of artillery fire stopping on the horizon and so did the infantry gunfire noises.

He pulled out his binoculars and noticed that all other seven Arjun tanks around him had also ceased fire. He put the binoculars to his eyes and observed northeast to see the departing dust clouds as Chinese armor pulled away. All surviving Arjun MBTs on the frontline also jerked to a halt and switched off their engines.

Kulkarni heard the whipping rotor blade noise of helicopters and turned back to see the two LCHs under Wing-Commander Dutt and 199HU banking away, departing the warzone as they disappeared into the darkness to the south. There were still random bursts of distant gunfire over the horizon, but they were more erratic and random now.

An eerie silence fell over the valley that soldiers in Ladakh from both sides had not heard for more than two weeks…

“Rhino-One, this is — Two. Did the war just end?” the radio squawked.

“Looks like it, — Two,” Kulkarni replied, removed his headset and rubbed his eyes as the moment finally hit him.

It’s over!

EPILOGUE

CHUMBI VALLEY

DAY 16 + 1030 HRS

Colonel Thomas saw the column of PLA soldiers trudging through the valley to the south under watchful eyes of his paratroopers, now wearing their red berets instead of the combat helmets. Their Tavor rifles were slung on their chests and their heavy backpacks were on their shoulders as they carefully escorted the last few columns of the survivors from the PLA 11TH Division who had surrendered. His radioman was standing behind him as Thomas watched the column of men pass by him. Each of them gave Thomas a silent, grim glance but said nothing. When the last of those soldiers had walked away, he sighed and began walking as well, leaving the exposed positions they had occupied a few days before.

The encirclement was over.

And their job was done.

The valley would remain unoccupied by both sides for now. As with the rest of Tibet, Bhutan and Ladakh, there were plans in place for the valley as well in the coming weeks.

THIMPU

BHUTAN

DAY 16 + 1230 HRS

The Dechencholing palace grounds were a hotbed of activity as the King of Bhutan stepped out of the interior buildings wearing the traditional Bhutanese formal dress along with General Potgam in his camo-uniform and beret. The vast number of journalists that had arrived in Thimpu immediately following the ceasefire began throwing questions in a flurry as the King and Potgam walked up to them.

Potgam winced from the camera flashes as the King stared to the south and remained silent. The journalists caught his glare and turned back as well to see the massive light-brown dust cloud rising into the blue afternoon sky above the white-capped peaks south of Thimpu.

The King then turned to see a similar cloud drifting east from the northern hills as well. It took him every ounce of self-restrain he had to prevent tears in his eyes, but even so, a single tear ran down his cheek which was instantly grabbed on camera flashes by the media.