PRIMAL Vengeance

Chapter 11



PETROCON Refinery, Kordofan District, Sudan



The Janjaweed raid at Kaljak had shattered the morale of the newly formed SFF. The warriors felt shamed, forced to flee in the face of their mortal enemy and abandon innocent villagers to a fate worse than death. They wanted blood and Garang knew exactly where to extract it. He would raid the Chinese oil refinery across the border in Sudan. Not only would it bolster the men's morale, it would also draw more fighters to their ranks.

The SFF leader had waited until runners brought reports of Janjaweed attacks further to the east. Now that the raiders were more than a day's drive from the refinery, there was no chance they could interfere with his plans. Garang was not deluded enough to think his rag-tag band could defeat the well-equipped and battle-hardened Janjaweed. Contracted Chinese guards, on the other hand, were another matter.

They waited in their firing positions for dawn to come. Garang and his thirty fighters were tense in anticipation, ready to unleash hell. Overnight Jonjo had led them from the vehicle hide to the refinery where the young warrior had guided each group to their firing positions. Garang had given them strict instructions, "Hold your fire until I shoot. Total radio silence." He would initiate the attack with his own RPG.

The newly formed militia had only managed to scrounge a small number of RPGs and PKM machine guns. The majority of the Dinka tribe's heavy weapons had been cached in the mountains. The more experienced tribesmen were apprehensive of the young American. Less than half the original force the deceased Dinka chief had commanded were ready to follow Garang. This attack would prove his mettle as a commander. Success would bring with it the respect and service of the entire tribe.

Dawn had finally broken, the first fingers of light creeping over the horizon to cast a faint glow across the bush. Despite the lighting inside the refinery it had been difficult to make out any of the base's defenses. As the front gate became visible in the grey hues of dawn Garang could see how accurate Jonjo's sketch map was. The militia had placed a lot of faith in the young soldier and it had paid dividends; using the map, all three of their firing positions were sighted perfectly. They covered the gate as well as the machine gun towers at the entrance and each corner of the refinery. Together they could suppress all of the refinery's defenses on its western flank.

Garang pulled his RPG in closer. According to Jonjo a tanker departed the facility most mornings just after dawn. It would be escorted by two jeeps armed with machine guns, more than enough security to deal with potential thieves. This morning they would get a lot more than they bargained for.

From inside the refinery Garang heard the rumbling of a large diesel engine. A cloud of soot rose up above the fence as the truck warmed up.

"This is it," Garang whispered to the man next to him. He shouldered the RPG, tucking it in against his cheek. Firers on each side of him did the same.

They watched as the guards slid back the gate and waved the first of the convoy through. A Chinese jeep drove out, weaved between the barriers and stopped twenty meters up the road.

The tanker itself revved hard as it came through the gate, struggling with a full load of oil. The driver was experienced; he deftly threaded the truck through the concrete barriers.

Garang flicked the safety lever off his RPG and sighted the truck through the iron sights. The words of his weapons instructor from basic training raced through his mind: squeeze the trigger; let the weapon surprise you.

The explosion that launched the rocket was deafening, the back blast of the weapon throwing up a plume of dust. The projectile screamed across the 400 meter gap and slammed into the tanker with a crump.

The tanker detonated in an instant, a jet of flame leaping from the rupture as thousands of liters of freshly refined oil ignited spewing flame into the entry point. Moments later a second and third rocket streaked from the position. Put off by the blast of Garang's initial rocket, they missed the tanker, slamming into the concrete blast walls.

Immediately following the rockets came the small arms, PKM and AK fire lashing the guard towers and blasting the sandbagged defenses. There was no chance for return fire. The guards hunkered down in an attempt to escape the overwhelming firepower.

The single jeep that had ventured out of the refinery was destroyed by 7.62mm rounds. Its occupants died instantly, their bodies riddled with bullets.

As the dust cleared from Garang's position, he surveyed the damage. The burning tanker blocked the entry point, black smoke billowing from the wreck. One jeep was destroyed and at least half a dozen guards had been trapped outside the fence by the blaze. They either burned or were shot down by the SFF fighters eager to exact vengeance for the recent Janjaweed atrocities. Garang grinned. The attack was a success.

"Garang, my team is ineffective. We cannot see the enemy," Jonjo transmitted over the radio.

Thick clouds of smoke from the destroyed tanker had completely obscured half the refinery. Jonjo's team could no longer see the guard tower or the fence.

"Wait, I am coming to you," Garang transmitted before turning to the man next to him. "Hand me all the grenades."

The Dinka warrior gave Garang a cloth satchel. The men in the group passed along their grenades and Garang gathered them up, placing them in the bag. His fighters provided cover, taking turns firing at the towers as he slid back into the creek line that ran parallel to the refinery fence. It was slick with oil and he struggled the seventy meters along the creek to where Jonjo's team was located.

Black smoke stung his eyes and lungs as he called out to the team. Jonjo's voice penetrated the haze and within seconds the young soldier appeared. Garang handed him the satchel of grenades. "Use the smoke for cover. Take two men forward and throw grenades into the compound."

"A good plan, Garang."

Jonjo threw the satchel over his shoulder and disappeared into the smoke. He ran blindly, using his memory of the ground to find his team of ten men. They were crouched behind a rocky outcrop, searching for targets in the thick smoke. Leaving seven of them to provide security, he took his best two men forward.

They moved around the outcrop, Jonjo leading through the smoke. He slung his AK and pulled the pin from his first grenade, ensuring he held the lever tightly. Sprinting forward, he ran over a berm and barrelled out of the smoke.

One of the guards in the tower spotted him and attempted to bring his weapon to bear. Jonjo let the handle fly off the grenade, cooking it off before he pitched it at the tower. It sailed through the air and detonated as it hit the wire mesh that screened the tower. The blast peppered the occupants with shrapnel wounding one and killing the rest.

The other two SFF fired shots at the towers with their AKs, suppressing the guard posts. Jonjo emptied his satchel onto the ground and stood over the heap of grenades, yanking out the pins before lobbing them over the fence into the refinery.

Back in his position Garang directed the fire of his PKM machine guns. They were eating through ammunition quickly but he needed to buy enough time for Jonjo to finish grenading the compound and then escape. He couldn't help but grin as the steady crump of grenades added to the roar of the inferno at the front gate and snap of small arms fire. Things were going very well indeed.