DISCLAIMER: This story is based on the television series Tour of Duty which aired from 1987 through 1990, distributed by New World Entertainment. All characters belong to the creators and/or producers of the show and were brought to life by Stephen Caffrey (Lt. Goldman), Terence Knox (Sgt. Anderson) and Tony Becker (Cpl. Percell). No money is being made with this story and it may not be posted, published or archived without permission. Although care has been taken in the attention to military protocol, certain artistic licenses have been made for the sake of readability.

This story is rated: PG Story idea suggested by: Doc, Erin, Kit Kat & Percy

Written by: Erin & Percy

TOUR OF DUTY: S.O.S Part II

Anderson and Percell moved quickly along the river returning from their patrol duty to the waiting platoon. There were only a few precious minutes of daylight left and they were still more than twenty minutes from where Lt. Goldman and the men were waiting for them.

Suddenly Anderson raised his fist into the air and he and Percell crouched low searching the tree line for any sign of danger. Percell pointed out the NVA moving in their direction confirming what the Sergeant had suspected.

Both men’s hearts began to race as they searched for a means of escape or coverage. In seconds the two men realized the river’s edge and the incoming enemy had trapped them in. Percell grabbed Anderson’s left arm and pointed to a heavy area of brush. Without a word the Sergeant and the Specialist moved underneath the jungle coverage and positioned themselves with their weapons ready.

Anderson and Percell lay absolutely still in the mud and rain. Every inch of their bodies soaked while the mud oozed into their boots.

Within moments the few NVA soldiers grew from six to fifteen to thirty. As the enemy soldiers began to spread out around the area the American men lost count as the numbers continued to escalate. The enemy began to mull around attempting to smoke their cigarettes, kicking off their sandals to search for fish in the raging water or relieving themselves. Many of the Vietnamese men sat comfortably in the mud to converse with each other munching on their rice, which came from the tiny satchels in their shoulder bags. Others started to set up a small camp for the night.

The enemy had trapped the two men and didn't even know it. Zeke and Danny held still as the conversations amongst the NVA soldiers began.

“What the hell are we doing out here? No GI’s are going to be out in this rain!”

“No, they spend most of their time drinking and having sex with the women in Saigon”

“Hell, I wouldn’t even sleep with those whores in Saigon”

The Americans heard the trio of men laugh and then dig into their rice rations. Danny looked over to Sarge as if to say How are we gonna get out of here? Zeke noticed the young man’s concern, but had no answers. As the darkness of night took hold, Sarge knew there was nothing he or Percell could do other than wait for the enemy troops to move out in the morning.

*********************************************************************

Lieutenant Myron Goldman looked about at his men clustered under trees with their ponchos protecting them from the uncontrollable rain. Hours had passed and there had been no sign of Zeke or Danny. He was again faced with a handful of gut wrenching decisions with two men missing and one man facing death. Myron knew he had to move forward, attempt to cross the river and save Private Luke Crumley’s life.

“Sergeant” Myron whispered firmly to Taylor, who was resting beside him. “Be sure the men know to be ready in the morning, we’re moving out at first light.”

Taylor became concerned with the order. “LT, we are going to search for Danny and Sarge, right?”

“Sergeant Taylor.” Myron Goldman knew it was necessary to remind the man of his chain of command before repeating his earlier decision. “We are moving to the secondary PZ. Sergeant Anderson and Percell will need to make it on their own.”

Being a veteran of escape and evasion, Taylor was not happy with the decision and didn’t want to have to be the one to inform the men they were leaving the lost patrol behind. Even though it left a sick spot in his gut he understood the responsibility he assumed with his new stripe. “Yes sir. I’ll tell the men.”

As Taylor rose to convey the order, Myron braced himself for the inevitable argument that was sure to follow. He knew the men would be bitterly opposed to the idea of moving to the secondary PZ and leaving their fellow comrades to fend for themselves.

A few of the newer soldiers approached the Lieutenant. “We don’t want to make a scene LT, but we ain’t going in the morning without Sarge and Danny,” Private Thomas quietly declared.

“We’re not leaving them behind out here! We should go out after them!” Private Jensen supported the brewing argument.

Lieutenant Goldman lashed out. “What about Crumley, huh? Did you think about him? He’s not going to last another day! We have been stuck in this fucking rain for half a day and command has no idea where we are!” Myron shot back. “Hell, we might not even survive crossing the river in the morning. Anderson and Percell are on their own now, and we are going to the top of that ridge for the safety of the platoon!”

Greer joined the conversation. “I’m with the Lieutenant, we need to get out of here!”

Private Thomas’ anger began to boil as he lashed out at Private Greer. “That’s our Sergeant out there! We all go down together that’s the motto right? Leave no man behind; obey the creed and all that shit! Come on LT we need to go and find them, Crumley can wait!” Thomas slammed his hands onto his hips and waited for Goldman to overturn his earlier decision.

Myron Goldman breathed deep to confirm his orders just as Marcus Taylor appeared and stepped into the conversation. “Private Thomas, you will do as you are ordered and not question the LT, is that clear?”

Private Thomas stared at Taylor in his disbelief and trudged away from the conversation ending the conflict.

Myron agreed with the angry private and didn’t like the idea either, but what choice did he have? With the radio broken and one wounded soldier, being lost was just plain stupid. At the new PZ he could send his platoon back to base and have choppers search for Anderson and Percell from the air, as well as continue the ground search with his S.O.G. unit, Team Viking.

****************

Zeke looked desperately into early morning rain at the enemy and then back to Danny Percell who he had ordered to get some sleep a few hours earlier. Anderson eyed the boy and noticed him trembling. Moving ever so quietly closer to Danny to give some body heat, Zeke hoped Danny was trembling because of the weather and not because of a nightmare. The two men could not afford for Percell to yell out.

Zeke's mind started to think about the situation. Since he and Percell hadn’t returned in the designated time they were given he knew that Goldman would take the platoon to the secondary pickup zone. Zeke closed his eyes for a moment hoping Myron would go by the book and leave the two stranded soldiers to fend for themselves.

“Sarge?” Danny’s whisper was barely audible but it still caused the older man’s body to jump at the sound. Anderson turned to look at the young man. “Sarge you rest, I’ll stay awake.” Danny looked at his Sergeant; both of their faces were splattered with mud from the heavy raindrops bouncing off the ground.

Zeke shook his head no, as Danny knew he would. The Sergeant checked his watch, 04:30. The NVA had left two sentries to patrol the area. The sentry nearest to Anderson and Percell startled the Americans by yelling abruptly in Vietnamese. Zeke and Danny felt the rush of adrenaline as they froze in fear that they had been spotted.

**********************************************

“LT.” Taylor shook the leader‘s shoulder to rouse him from sleep. “Its 04:30. The river is still raging, what do you want us to do?”

Lt. Goldman paused a moment to clear his foggy mind and acclimate himself to where he was. It had rained throughout the entire night; he wondered how he had ever found a way to sleep.

The seasoned Lieutenant knew that Zeke was operating on his own plan now and there would be no sense in waiting for him or sending out a search party. He knew the correct decision was the one he ordered at nightfall. The platoon needed to move to the secondary PZ for extraction.

“How is Crumley?” LT questioned.

“Not good, Doc says he has lost too much blood and he’s gonna be hard to move.” Taylor informed the lieutenant.

The Lieutenant continued. “Since there is no good place to cross the river we will ford it right here. Get Scarlet, Griner and Thomas to help you rig up some ropes through the split in that tree branch there. Find out who our strongest swimmer is so he can tie the rope on to himself and be the first to cross the river. Each man will tie on to the rope and swim across the river on their own. When that man has crossed, the rope will come back and the next man will follow. Oh yeah, about the weapons, we will tie them in bunches and swing them across. The Doc will have to cross with Crumley then we will stretcher him to the PZ.”

The American soldiers prepared to cross the raging river. One brave solider who boasted about being a strong swimmer tied the rope securely around his waist and dove into the water swimming as hard as he could to the other side. A group of men held the end of the rope feeding the slack as the man swam to the other side 30 feet away.

The others watched in amazement as Private Simpson made it to the other side of the bank without being swept away down river. The young soldier quickly climbed the bank of the river and tied the rope to a large tree.

*******************************************

Zeke listened to the yelling North Vietnamese sentry. Within a few seconds the once sleeping enemy began to rise and fall in for orders. The Sergeant was relieved to discover the yelling was a wake up call for the troops. Methodically the small men scurried around the campsite to hide their tracks and ready to move out. Zeke noticed the NVA Lieutenant moving toward the river’s edge searching for something on the ground. Within a minute he summoned two other soldiers to clear the ground uncovering a tunnel into the earth.

“We will cross under the river and stake out the LZ area at the top of the ridge. If there are U.S. troops in the area they will go there for extraction.” The NVA Lieutenant gave the orders to the men. Like ants they disappeared into the ground, sealing the hole behind them.

Shaking that thought out of his mind, Danny looked at his comrade. “Now what, Sarge?”

“Well son, we have to get across the river and warn the platoon. Hopefully I know LT well enough that he would have crossed when we hadn’t come back.” Zeke responded.

“Not to question your judgment Sarge, but what if LT didn’t cross the river last night and he is still at the NDP?” Danny questioned. “It will be easier to take Crumley through the spider hole rather than across the river,”

Zeke considered the young man’s idea, he definitely had a point. It would be a lot easier for the whole platoon to use the underground bridge. “Let’s head back, check out the camp. If they aren’t there, we will come back and use the tunnel.”

Danny and Zeke moved quickly to the area of the platoon’s NDP. *******************************************************************

”Keep your intervals,” Sergeant Taylor ordered to the men. His frustration continued within him as they humped through the rain and slick mud towards the PZ.

Lt. Goldman observed his men, taking special notice towards Crumley who was being stretchered by Armstrong and Greer. Myron called quietly to Taylor. “Alright, lets break for five. The men need it.”

“Platoon hold up and take five!” The word was up and down the line and the young GI’s took their break. Sergeant Taylor made his way around to all the squads

Being a strong believer in God, Crumley weakly continued to quote scriptures to keep himself calm.

Hearing this aggravated Marcus. “Crumley, will you shut the fuck up? I can’t take it anymore.”

The entire platoon stopped what they were doing and looked up at their Sergeant.

Goldman briskly walked up to Taylor, took him aside and looked him straight in the face. “I don’t care how annoyed you are with one of the soldiers, you never say that to them. You hold it back; remember you are a Sergeant. These men look up to you and respect you. Now do you understand what I am saying?”

“Yes sir,” said the embarrassed solider.

“Good. Now get the men ready to move out!”

Nodding in agreement Taylor moved away from his commander.

***************************************************************

Sarge and Percell arrived at the now deserted NDP. “They are gone,” the young solider said looking around the area where the platoon had set up camp less than eight hours ago.

“Alright,” Sergeant Anderson re-conned the area. “Lets move back to the tunnel. Our men are out there and they have a load of trouble moving their way.”

Sarge pushed Percell lightly on the shoulder triggering the Spec 4 to begin a cautious jog back to the assumed safety of the underground tunnel.

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The NVA company moved slowly through the woods searching the ground for any trace of American GI’s.

“Be sure to check for boot prints, they will be easy to find in the soft ground.” The NVA Lieutenant hadn’t had successful combat with any American platoon in three weeks. With a fresh set of men he planned to bring better news back to his commanders. “I want results from you! We can not allow the Americans to rule our land and ruin our families!”

The Vietnamese soldiers yelled out in agreement with their commanding officer. They hoped to be victorious as well, but many doubted they would find any GIs in the pouring rain.

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Myron Goldman noticed the gradual increase in the terrain and pulled the map out to pinpoint their location. He was sure they were at the base of the hill and in the home stretch. As he unfolded the map Sergeant Taylor approached. Myron turned to look over his shoulder and was surprised to see Marcus. Lieutenant gave a little grin. “ I was expecting you to be Anderson.”

“Yeah, and I was expecting you to be Tina Turner, imagine my surprise!” Taylor still felt awkward working alongside of Lt. Goldman.

“We should be at the base of the hill right here.” Goldman pointed to an area on the map. Marcus Taylor was an excellent map-reader and confirmed the Lieutenant’s position. “We are going to take 15 minutes here and then begin the climb. When we reach the top we will wait for the rain to let up and………….” Just then the rain stopped and the blue sky appeared.

“LT, you should have said that twelve hours ago.” Marcus grinned at his own wit and wiped the leftover raindrops from his face.

Myron grabbed a much-desired cigarette from his pocket and opened his lighter. Before he could strike a flame the rain began to pound down on them as if it had never stopped. Myron rolled his eyes and mumbled. “You have got to be kidding. Sergeant, give the men 15 minutes and then we climb.” LT sat in the soaking mud and stowed his cigarette. Taylor shook his head in disqust with the rain and left to prep the men.

***********************************************

Anderson and Percell had safely made it through the underground river passage and were gaining ground on their missing platoon.

Danny stopped abruptly when he noticed a warning sign in the mud. “Sarge! I’ve got sandal tracks.”

Sarge studied the tracks in the mud. “Yeah that’s what you’ve got, and they are headed in the direction of our men. We better get a move on, because as soon as they notice fifty sets of moving boot tracks they’ll be fixing to track them down, come on.”

The two men moved rapidly through the jungle, unsure of whom they would meet next but they were sure that they wanted to be at the top of the ridge when the choppers arrived to take them home.

********************************************************************

The terrain of the steep hill was becoming very difficult for the men to navigate. Taylor looked ahead just in time to see Private Andy Armstrong slip, dropping his end of the stretcher carrying the platoon’s only wounded man.

The Sergeant silently gasped as Crumley screamed out in pain and rolled a few feet down the ridge and collided with the base of a tree.

“OWWWWWW. Oh Lord what have you done to me?” Crumley’s leg was throbbing and he had no energy left to remove his body from its painful fallen position. Again Mother Nature teased the men by eliminating the rain from their troublesome dilemma.

Lt. Goldman moved up to the line to determine why the screaming had occurred. He witnessed Taylor and Armstrong tending to their fallen comrade.

“Oh my God Crumley. I am so sorry, I just slipped…it was wet… I’m sorry…” Andy worried that he had further injured the man he had been working so hard to save.

Doc Ryan soon arrived at the scene. “He’s O.K. Andy just go get the litter so we can keep going.”

Private Armstrong began climbing the hill to gather the stretcher and his carrying partner when he saw Private Greer smugly approaching the chaos. Andy cringed at the idea of Greer starting yet another argument among the men, or worse yet with him. Just go away Andy thought to himself.

Without notice Greer’s chest was ripped open by a bullet, his mouth flew open in pain as his body plummeted to the earth.

“AMBUSH!” Armstrong yelled and reached for his M16. Within seconds the wounded body of Private Thill struck him in the head. Andy untangled himself from Private Thill’s limbs and began firing in the direction of the oncoming enemy fire. The rest of the platoon had dug in to the area taking cover behind rocks and vegetation while Armstrong was trapped in the crossfire with only a wounded man for coverage. He began to panic not knowing what to do.

“Private!”

Andy recognized Taylor’s voice

“Private, help me grab this man and get out of here!” Like a savior Taylor had appeared through the gunfire to give the terrified man direction and assistance with the wounded man. Together they roughly transported the wounded to the area where Doc Ryan and Crumley were holed up.

Marcus Taylor moved further down the hill to exchange a few lively words with the Lt.

“Sergeant we can’t stay here any longer, we are going to be overrun and be killed! We need to get the men up the hill for better coverage and position.” The Lieutenant finished screaming his orders and looked once more in the direction of the enemy fire just in time to hear the wiz of a small round of mortar fire and an explosion resulting in the KIA of six NVA soldiers.

“Where the hell did that come from?” The Lieutenant was baffled by the stroke of good fortune.

“I don’t know LT, that was a M79 shell and Percell is the only one humping that weapon and ammo.” Taylor’s eyes grew wide in wonderment as a smile spread across Goldman’s face.

“I knew Sarge wouldn’t miss the boat!” This time the Lieutenant enjoyed the smile on Taylor’s face as they realized Zeke Anderson and Daniel Percell were in a flanking position giving the platoon the advantage in the battle to begin the short hike to the top of the ridge.

Taylor shouted to the troops. “Move! Move! Get to the top of the ridge! Let‘s go! Let‘s go!” Taylor noticed the Lieutenant lead the group up the hill. He ordered six of the men nearby to drag and carry the wounded while he and Ruiz took the rear and provided much needed cover fire. The M79 mortar rounds continued to distract and eliminate the NVA as more and more of the American men made it to the top of the ridge. Marcus worried that Anderson and Percell would soon be a sacrifice for the survival of the platoon.

***********************************************************

Pop and Griner were the first men to reach the clearing at the top of the ridge and set up cover fire for the incoming men.

“Reb, do you hear that?” Pop ceased firing and began to search the now sun drenched sky.

Griner looked at Pop from underneath his steel helmet then looked to the sky. “Pop! Choppers!” Willie pointed to his seven o’clock as the search choppers approached.

“We got to get these men into this clearing!” Pop ordered, “Come on lay down some cover fire!” The two men resumed firing as one by one the members of the soaked platoon clawed their way up the unstable muddy hillside.

Minutes later the last of the men arrived at the clearing and the thumping of the Huey’s rotors filled their ears. The men ceased firing as they rapidly filled three of the four Hueys. One by one the birds flew off for the safety of the clear blue sky till only one remained for the last few members of Team Viking.

Pop and Griner were the first to board the chopper with Ru and Taylor providing cover fire.

“We gonna leave them again LT?” Taylor’s stomach was turning at the idea of leaving Zeke and Danny behind yet again.

LT’s eyes scanned the hillside praying for a glimpse of the Sarge and Percell. Knowing the danger was getting nearer; he ordered Taylor and Ru onto the chopper. Once each man was loaded Lt. McKay pulled the chopper from the ground rapidly gaining speed and altitude.

“Myron, what do you want me to do?” McKay sensed something was amiss and noticed the absence of Sarge who was a common figure in the open door of the Huey.

“Anderson and Percell are still down there!” Goldman yelled to the pilot. “ They were cut off from the rest of the platoon. They may still be on the hillside, circle around and check it out.”

“Roger that!” McKay aggressively turned the chopper so the passengers and crew could scan the side of the hill from a distance.

“THERE!” Griner caught a glimpse of the well-camouflaged pair moving up steep terrain near the top of the ridge. They had a seventy-yard lead on the NVA predators.

The team kept their eyes on the two men who were struggling in the thick mud on the barren hillside. The two men grew closer as the chopper approached. Carefully Sarge climbed out of the mud on to a large boulder in the earth and reached for Percell’s hand to help him up.

“NO!” Ruiz was the first to yell as the men on the chopper watched Percell be swept down the rocky hillside by an unexpected mudslide. Danny’s body struggled for support as he bounced off rocks and his limbs collided with the trunks of trees.

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Sergeant Anderson watched helplessly as his “little brother” was tossed about by the cruelness of the earth. He laid on the rock with his empty hand extended, wishing he was holding on to the soldier for whom he was responsible for. Looking up he remembered the incoming chopper and he recognized the men watching from the doorway. He stood up on the rock flagging the chopper in his direction.

Methodically Lt. McKay maneuvered the Huey above the veteran sergeant and offered a skid for the forlorn man to cling to for safety.

Anderson wrapped his powerful body around the bar and used the assistance of the men to pull himself to safety.

No relief was spent on the return of one member to the family. One soldier still remained unaccounted for.

Without communicating to anyone the men lay on the floor of the Huey with their heads hanging out, searching for Danny. Much of the ground was exposed to their vision due to napalm burn covering the area of the hillside where the mudslide had taken place. Despite the openness all had seemed lost.

“I’m gonna take her in closer for a better look!” McKay warned his crew. “We’ll be within enemy firing range so be ready!” The pilot circled the chopper around and lowered the altitude of the bird as he scanned the hillside.

Immediately Pop noticed the explosion of M79 mortar. The passengers knew it had to be Percell and they knew he should be within 20 meters of the blast.

“I see him, I see him! He’s there!” Griner pointed to an open area on the hillside. “ How we gonna get him LT?”

“Rope extraction!” Sergeant Anderson beat the lieutenant to the answer.

The crew tied on the rope and threw it to the ground.

Percell slipped his body into the rope harness rope and clung to the dangling lifeline. I guess we are over the rainbow, huh Sarge? Percell thought as he soared through empty sky.

**********************************************************************

Laughter filled Team Viking‘s quarters as Anderson and Goldman entered the room.

“Well now, sounds like ya’ll went ahead and planned another party without inviting me again!”

“Nah, Sarge!” Taylor greeted the two men. “We just knew this party was going to end up in trouble and you are always there to pull us out, so you’d be showing up anyway!” Taylor took a long swig of his cold beer as he smiled with pride from his comment.

“Yeah Taylor, You all do seem to get me in trouble a lot!” Sarge pulled up a bunk and joined the men.

Feeling not as comfortable Lt. Goldman continued with his business for being there. “Percell, how is the arm?”

“Not bad LT. The Doctor says it’s just a sprain and I should be out in the field again in a week.” Danny presented his bandaged wrapped arm to his commanding officer and chuckled at his own bad fortune.

“Good to hear, Percell. Well, I will see everyone later.” Lt. Goldman turned to leave.

“LT!” Ruiz beckoned. “Why don’t you stay?”

“Nah, Ruiz.” The Lieutenant wanted to stay, but knew he shouldn’t. “ I have a lot of paper work and friendly fire letters to get done before our next mission, but you guys have fun!” With that Myron exited.

“S.O.S. baby!” Taylor’s voiced echoed through the silence. “Gotta love the Army!”