This is the End of “Rebel Station.” I hope you enjoyed listening to and reading. I have another book coming up very soon that I hope you enjoy.

The captain, looking over the area, seemed to go off into wonderland.
“Captain,” Jake said, “we have got to get out of here.”
“Yes, well, that goes without saying,” Howard said solemnly.
As he stood there, a sudden wave of uncertainty washed over him, and his continence changed. When he asked the next question, Jake noticed he wasn’t his usual steady, no reaction flat line self. He had a kind of doom and gloom to his voice. “What … about the dead?”

Jake looked back at him, then he slowly looked back at the captain. “First of all, I need to get a weapon and ammo. Then, we get out of here. We’ll have to worry about the dead later.”

“Then, Captain,” Jake said urgently, “I suggest we gather what we can of the dead men’s effects, ammo, food, water, and equipment. We can put what we can in the Duck. All the weapons, we will remove the firing pins and do the best we can to destroy the rest. Is that what you think, Sir?”
“Yes, that’s a good idea. Once we get to Osan, I’ll have graves registration come back and retrieve the dead, along with who we left up on the hill.”
“Very good, Sir. Griffin, I need you on that radio. Howard, get everyone else here. I need to talk to them.”
“On my way,” Howard said and stepped off.
“Pete, check out the jeep. See if it’s operational.”
“Okay,” he said.

A few minutes later, Jake briefed the men. “As you know and have heard in the distance, the North Korean Army is advancing and will most probably be across the bridge and into Chuncheon very soon. If that happens before we get off this hill, we will face being surrounded and completely cut off. So, it goes without saying, we must get out of here, and now. It’s not going to be easy because we still have in our way the terrain, the distance, and most probably, the same ones that ambushed us here. Are there any questions?” He waited and looked at each face. No one said anything. “Okay, I want a two-man recon patrol to find us a clear path around that tunnel of trees. It has to be wide enough to get the Duck through. The jeep will follow it. Sledge, you and the Kidd have that job, so get started.”

Captain Beckman stood there for another second or two and then walked over to the Duck. “Howard, I hate to do this, but we need to police the bodies as best we can. Gather everything that you think we can use.”
“Hathaway,” Howard said, “let’s go and get the others.”
After the men departed, Jake walked over to the jeep. Pete had just removed the body of Cannon. “All we have now is the Duck,” Pete said, laying Cannon’s body down on the ground.

“And it looks like the only way out is —”
“Is blocked,” Pete said, finishing the statement. “I looked at that as I came up to the jeep.”

Jake looked at the tunnel where the destroyed deuce was, then turned and looked at the underbrush and trees that went further down the mountain. “It might be possible to work our way around through those trees.” Jake looked back at the Duck and had a thought. He went over to it and looked through the side door. “Griffin,” he said, “reckon this Duck can push its way through the underbrush and maybe plow the way.

“I’m glad you asked,” Griffin said as he turned a knob on the radio. “If the ground isn’t too wet and we don’t have too much of an angle to negotiate, I think we can.”
“How about the radio, is it still working in this valley?”
“It is, but only weak signals. We need a higher elevation and a better line of sight for reception.”
Jake noticed the captain sitting in the driver’s seat, and it looked as if he was in deep thought.
“Wait a minute,” Griffin said, as if an incredible idea struck him. “Before we left the hill, I grabbed some things out of Rebel Base, and I had one of the guys retrieve the antenna that com had put up. That stuff was in the trailer the third deuce was hauling. If it’s all okay, I think I can rig something to give us more range.”
“Well, let’s go see if we can find it,” Jake said, and began running over to where the trailer was. In about five minutes of looking through all the stuff that was scattered around, Jake found something that looked like it might be what Griffin needed. He picked it up and brought it back.
“Is this it?” Jake asked as he showed it to Griffin.
“Yep, that’s it. Kind of bent, but if we can get it rigged up, we might be in business.”
“Well, do whatever you need to do to get a signal. We have got to know what’s happening.”
“You got it.” Griffin jumped out, took the material from Jake, and began working.
“Sergeant Griffin,” the captain said as he turned around.
“Yes, Sir.”
“It just so happens I know something about electronics.”
“Sir, any help would be greatly appreciated.”
It was late in the afternoon when the men finished their unwelcome task of policing the bodies of their dead, including, as unpleasant as it was, the tunnel. No one wanted that one, but it had to be done. The men could still hear the sounds of battle and knew it was just a matter of time before they were surrounded and cut off.

Jake watched them and saw the somber looks on each face, and he was impressed with how well they contained their emotions. But as they brought the ammo and equipment in, he could not find any words of consolation. He just looked at them, nodded, and smiled a sad smile. “Griffin,” he shouted, “any luck on that radio?”

Griffin stuck his head out the door, “Oh, yeah. And you’re not going to like what we’ve been hearing.”
“You mean you got it to pick up something?”
“Yeah, and the captain is the one who did it.”
“Well, sit rep, please.”
“If we don’t get down this hill in the next hour or so, we won’t be getting down it at all.”

Suddenly, echoing throughout the hills was the sound of a single round being fired. Jake instinctively ducked. He looked off in the direction it came from.
“That was no AK-47,” Pete said, as he looked at Jake.
“You better believe it wasn’t.”
“It could have been a hunter,” Griffin said.
“Oh, no, that was no hunter. That, my friend, was a warning shot.”
“A warning shot?” The captain said, with doubt in his voice, now joining the conversation.
“Jennings and Rebhouser were killed by who I believe to be the last two men of the same group who attacked us on the hill. That shot says they want us to know they are still out there.” Jake paused.

It wasn’t long, and the recon team returned. They reported that the slope down the hill was not too steep for the Duck to go down. There was a path down the side of the hill, about twenty meters wide, that went all the way down to a road.

“It looks safe, and we don’t think there will be any problem going down.”
“Okay, Griff, get the men ready. We’re moving outta here, with your permission, of course, Captain.”
“Let’s go,” Captain Beckman said.
“Alright,” Jake shouted, “Hammer. You and the Kidd scout about 100 meters out in front. Pierce, on the 60. The captain has the copilot seat. I’ll take up a position at the rear hatch. Hammer, your call sign is ‘bird dog’, so make sure you monitor that radio. Alright, let’s move.”
Hammer and the Kidd were already moving out in front and got ready to go down the hill. When they heard the engine of the Duck start up, they moved out. Griffin pressed lightly on the gas and turned toward the downslope.
“Alright, here we go,” Griffin shouted back.
The ride down the 100-meter slope to the road was slow, bumpy, and tight, but finally they came out onto the road and turned right. Griffin pulled up to a stop and allowed the two-man scout team to proceed on.
“Why did you stop?” the captain asked.
“I figured we’d give the scouts some room and wait until Hammer calls back,” Griffin said.
“Very good,” the captain said.
Hammer and the Kidd walked slowly down the mountain road. Both were searching for and anticipating contact from the enemy. When their pace count reached 100 meters, Hammer stopped. He pulled out the handset.
“Reaper Main, this is Bird Dog, over.”
“Bird Dog, this is Reaper Main. We read you Lima-Charlie, over.”
“Main, we are one hundred meters down. You can start your descent. How copy?”
“We copy, on our way.” Griffin released the brake and slowly started down the road.

At the same time, Hammer could hear the sounds of gunfire coming from where he thought was the city. Everyone in the back heard the same thing.
“That sounds like the enemy has reached the outskirts of the city and is beginning to fight their way in,” Pete said as he listened.
Hammer and the Kidd started once again walking slowly, Hammer on the left of the road and the Kidd on the right. It was slow going, and every time they came to a turn, they halted and called back, informing the Duck where they were and to stand by while they cleared the area. Once they cleared, they called back, and Griffin proceeded. There was one place where the road forked off to the left. They made note of it and informed the others.
Hammer and the Kidd scanned forward and watched the tree line. As they came to where the road emptied onto the rise overlooking the highway, Hammer began to hear a grumbling sound. He stopped. The Kidd stopped, and both got down on a knee. They could still hear some gunfire, but it was now just sporadic. They both looked at each other.
“Move up and take a look,” Hammer said softly.
The Kidd inched forward until he could see around and beyond the trees. He couldn’t see anything right away, so he moved out a little more. Their position was high enough, so they had a good, clear view of the highway running north and south. As they listened, the grumbling sound started getting louder. Kidd looked in the direction the sound was coming from and waited. It got nearer. Then he saw it, the first tank in the column. Kidd turned around and motioned for Hammer to move up to him. Hammer got up and went over to where he could see what the Kidd was looking at.
“Right there,” the Kidd pointed.
Hammer looked, and sure enough, a column of tanks, accompanied by infantry. But what surprised him was how little opposition there was. There was no one anywhere to defend the place. These guys were rolling in essentially unopposed. Hammer pulled the radio from its pouch and called back to the others.
“Reaper, this is Bird Dog, over.”
Griffin answered. “Go, Bird Dog.”
“Reaper Main, this is Bird Dog. We’ve got an armored column coming out of the city, and they are traveling south down the main highway, and they are supported by infantry. It looks like it could be a point column. So far, they are unopposed,” Hammer said quietly.
“Copy that, Bird Dog. Hold your position and give updates as they happen.”
“Roger that, Bird Dog, out. Okay, let’s stay out of sight.”
Jake listened to the conversation. “So, Captain, what do you want to do?” Jake asked, as he looked down at him.
Without hesitating, the captain said, “First thing, Griffin, Pierce and George will secure the Duck here. The rest of us will go down and have a look. From there, we’ll decide what our options are.”
Jake looked at him. “Okay, gentlemen, let’s get this Duck under cover. Griffin, you, Pierce, and George will secure it. Keep your ears to that radio. If we need you, come running.”
“Copy that, Reb.”

Griffin found a good spot to back the Duck into, then he, Pierce, and George went to work camouflaging it.

When the Duck was all secure, the captain said, “Alright, let’s move out.”
“I’ll take the point,” Steel said as he moved forward.
“Sergeant Steel has the point,” the captain confirmed.
Hammer watched as the infantry stayed with the armor, but for some reason, they didn’t look like they were interested in taking to the hills. Soon, the rest of the team came down the road, and Jake could see the two men on the right of the road as they crouched down behind the trees for concealment.
Steel had already gotten to Hammer and the Kidd. “I think that’s the tail end,” Hammer said as he saw Jake come up.

“It must be a point column,” Steel said, as he watched them.
“I think so,” Jake said. Then he swung his binoculars and looked toward the west. In the distance, he could see movement on the south side of the river, and it was headed in their direction. He focused in, and it was clear that it was another armored column.

“Pete, take a look,” Jake said, and gave the binoculars to Pete and pointed.
Pete put the binoculars up to his eyes and focused in on what Jake had pointed out. He saw it too and confirmed, “Yep, another armored column and they are headed this way. It looks like they intend to link up with this one.”
“That means they have broken through the lines, and the rest of the Army will not be far behind. It also means that if they’ve made it this far that Osan is out of the question.”
“I think so,” Hammer said.
“Well, let’s not hang around too long to find out,” Pete said, still looking through the binoculars.
The captain came up to them.
“Sir,” Jake said, as he continued to watch the road down below. “I think Osan is out of the question.”
“It looks that way,” the captain said with frustration.
“So, what do you want to do?” Pete asked, hoping he wouldn’t be stupid.
Captain Beckman pulled out his map and laid it out on the ground. He found the road they were on and traced it back as far as it would go.

“Sir, we still might have a chance, so if I might make a suggestion,” Pete said, looking over the captain’s shoulder.
The captain hesitated, then said, “What, Sergeant Steel, is your suggestion?”
“Well, seeing as how we are at the point of being cut off and thus becoming trapped in enemy-occupied territory, I think we should do this. On our way down from the ambush, we passed a fork, one leading south, and of course, this one we are on right now. I suggest we go back up to that road and follow it.”
“Is it on the map?” the captain asked.
Pete looked down at the map and found where they were currently, then traced back up to where he thought the road was. “Right here, Sir. And it looks like it follows this valley for about twenty miles, give or take. So, we might be able to outrun them and get to a place where we can contact friendly lines, but we have to do it now and do it quickly.”
Captain Beckman looked at where Pete was pointing. He wasn’t sure about what to do, but he did know he didn’t want to be killed.
“It looks like it’s the only chance we have,” Pete said seriously.
“Opinions,” the captain said.
“I think it’s a good idea,” Jake agreed.
“Sounds like a plan,” Howard said. “Any guesses as to where friendly lines might be?”
No one could answer that question.
“Well, wherever they are, we’ll never find them if we stay here,” Pete said.
No one knew what the captain was thinking or what he had decided, but when they found out, it would not be good. Jake was the first to learn about it.
“We are staying here for another day,” the captain said, asserting his authority.
“Sir,” Jake said, not at all happy and no longer able to contain his frustration, “Are you nuts? We need to get out of here and do it before we have no chance at all.”
“Anderson, I know what I’m doing. And I say we stay here for another day.”
“Sir,” Jake said, trying to contain his anger.
“That’s it, Sergeant,” Captain Beckman shouted. “No more to be said.”
Jake just stood there and looked at him with an icy stare. If he could get away with it, he would cause some sort of bodily harm. He took a deep breath and calmed down. Then he prayed for God to help him.
“Sir,” Jake said, still struggling. “I’ll go inform the men.”
“Is he out of his mind?” Howard said, showing some unexpected signs of frustration.

“Is he crazy?” Griffin joined in.
All Jake could do was practice some self-control, which, in this case, was not at all easy, especially hearing the sounds of battle that were not so distant anymore. But then a thought came to him, fear, the captain is afraid. That has got to be why he is acting the way he is. Jake knew that fear could cause a lot of irrational thinking, resulting in poor judgment. Why not? They had just gone through the devastating attack on the hill, resulting in the loss of half of the men, then the ambush taking out the rest, and now facing death at every step of the way back home with only 9 men. That was enough to cause anybody to panic. Jake himself was feeling fearful.

The Reapers could be heard more distinctly now, the North Korean Army as they pushed deeper into South Korea. From the radio transmissions, they knew that the bases at Suwan, Inchon, Seoul, and Osan had all been overrun. But still, the fighters, they suspected from Kunsan and other airbases further south, could be heard overhead as some engaged in air-to-air combat while others went after the troops on the ground. The Air Force was not going to allow this to be an easy victory for the North. However, the Reapers knew that if they didn’t get ahead of this advancing Army, they would be so deep in enemy-occupied territory that there wouldn’t be any chance of them ever finding friendly lines, that is, if there would be such a place.
All the men looked to Jake for the answers.

“All I know,” Jake said as he talked to the men, “is that we are now on the run and have got to quietly get out of here and now. If we can’t do it quietly and somehow are discovered,” Jake stopped as if contemplating his next words, “then we will have to fight our way out. If that is the case, then the Reaper will be coming out of the box. Griffin, Howard, tell your men to gear up, put their war faces on, because we are going into action.”
“Ready, Eagar, and Prepared Every Recall, WHOOO-AH!”