PRIMAL Vengeance

Chapter 20



SFF Village, Abyei District



Word of the arrival of new weapons and equipment spread rapidly and Garang's meager force grew as Dinka warriors returned to the village. With over thirty SFF fighters, there were now enough men for the PRIMAL team to train and conduct defensive preparations.

Over the next few days Mirza took a small group through the deployment of the unmanned ground sensors. It was a simple process of driving the camouflaged camera stem into the ground and burying the seismic sensors. The men were fast learners and soon they were deploying across the countryside to install the devices.

Next he ran Jonjo and one of the other fighters through the SA-18. They stood on the soccer pitch going through the firing drills as the former Indian Special Forces operative coached them on how to engage aircraft. Once Mitch returned with the tilt-rotor, he would get them to practice tracking a live target. If they were going to go up against an attack helicopter they needed to have their drills squared away.

As Mirza prepared the men, Bishop and Garang reviewed the village's defences. The SFF had already constructed the basics; machine gun pits sited on the high ground covered the main approaches. Eventually Bishop would get them to dig alternate locations. More important was improving their early warning capability. They deployed a number of the more sophisticated acoustic and optical sensors capable of detecting movement out to the horizon. The high ground around the village provided a perfect vantage point for the solar-powered devices.

"Will this thing be able to detect a helicopter?" Garang asked as he helped clear an area amongst the rocks for a UGSs.

"Definitely. The acoustic sensor will pick up any vehicle sounds and slew the hi-res camera to get visual," Bishop explained as he snapped the pole-mounted sensors into the briefcase-sized base station.

"Impressive, but I think I will still rely on eye balls."

"That's smart. Nothing is as reliable as well trained men."

They finished installing the device and started the short trek that would take them down the ridgeline and back into the village.

"So what brought you to Africa?" asked Bishop as they walked.

"My father was born here. He moved to America when I was a little boy."

"Whereabouts?"

"I grew up in Detroit but never really fitted in. After school I joined the Army. Did a tour in Iraq then got home and didn't know what to do next."

"Yeah, I know what that's like."

"I saw a show on Discovery Channel about what was happening here. My father always wanted to come back but he died when I was in Iraq. He told me stories about this land, the people, the wealth. It was only a matter of time until I left the US and returned to help my people claim what is rightfully theirs."

"So now you've got a cause—and a beautiful woman."

"Ha! Jess, she's a dreamer and that's all. Women like her are easy come and easy go."

"Fair enough. You're committed to the cause and that's what counts in my book."

"Yes I am." He paused as they reached the bottom of the hill. "One thing I haven't asked you, Aden. Once this is over and we have won, will the CIA be able to facilitate meetings with the oil companies?"

"When we have defeated the Janjaweed we will have set the conditions. It will be up to your government to negotiate but rest assured you will not have to look for the oil companies; they will come, hat in hand."

Garang contemplated Bishop's words in silence as they followed a goat track through the grassland at the edge of the village.

"More fighters have joined us." Garang nodded towards two old four-wheel drives parked at the edge of the village. "Word of our CIA friends has spread!" He strode ahead to meet the new arrivals.

Bishop's brow furrowed. In the last day another ten men had arrived, swelling the SFF ranks to nearly forty warriors and six vehicles. His primary concern was how easy it would be for an enemy spy to slip in with these new men and report to the Janjaweed before they were ready.

His iPRIMAL buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out activating the alert on the screen. It was one of the sensors located ten kilometers to the north! The 'plant' had detected vehicles and gunfire. He scrolled through the images; they showed two white UN vehicles crossing a creek. Windows on both vehicles were shattered.

Another alert buzzed in! More gunfire. The image showed two heavily armed Janjaweed jeeps.

He checked the digital map; the UN vehicles were heading south. Whoever was chasing them was not far behind. Within the next twenty minutes they would be forced to cross a river only five kilometers from the SFF camp. Perfect opportunity for a snap ambush.

He sprinted into the village. "Mirza, mount up! Garang, we've got Janjaweed to the north."

The SFF leader snapped out a few commands and men clad in their new chest rigs and carrying their new weapons sprinted towards their vehicles. A PKM machine gun mount had already been welded to the roll bar of the Hilux the PRIMAL men had delivered.

Bishop briefed them using a stick to draw a diagram in the dust. He and Mirza would lead in the Wildcat with Jonjo riding shotgun and Mirza manning the .50 cal machine gun. Garang and a team of his best fighters would bring up the rear in the Hilux. Jess would be with them; the UN patrol looked like it was shot up pretty bad.

Once the quick briefing was complete Bishop gave a nod to the SFF leader.

"Mount up!" Garang ordered and his men ran for the Hilux throwing tins of ammunition into the tray. Jess and her medical kit were bundled into the back.

As Bishop made to climb up into the Wildcat, Garang grabbed him by the arm. "Is it him?" he said with a crazed look.

"I couldn't tell. I doubt it. More likely to be one of his patrols."

Bishop swung into the seat of the supercharged Land Rover and turned the ignition. Glancing in the mirror to make sure the Hilux was behind him he gunned the engine and dropped the clutch sending the vehicle racing down the track.