Insurrection (The Kurgan War Book 6) Read online

  INSURRECTION

  The Kurgan War - Book 6

  By Richard Turner

  ©2016 by Richard Turner

  Published 2016 by Richard Turner

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission, except for brief quotations to books and critical reviews. This story is a work of fiction. Characters and events are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 1

  Hundreds of burning embers caught in an updraft floated like a swarm of fireflies dancing in the night sky.

  Michael Sheridan made sure his assault rifle was on safe as he walked into the destroyed Kurgan military outpost. The wooden buildings cracked and hissed as they went up in flames. He raised a hand to block the heat from his face. Sheridan carefully stepped over the dead body of a Chosen soldier who had been killed during the fighting. He had to watch where he placed his feet as the man’s blood flowed like a river from a wound in his back.

  “Do you think he bothered to take any prisoners this time?” Alan Cole asked his friend.

  “Knowing him, no,” replied Sheridan. “Yet, you never know with Komada; he may surprise us yet.”

  They walked in silence past the bodies of the fallen. Up ahead, four Chosen soldiers knelt on the ground with their hands tied behind their backs. Two insurgents watched over them with rifles aimed at the captured men’s backs.

  Cole pointed. “There he is.”

  Sheridan looked past a burnt-out armored personnel carrier and saw Komada walking among his followers. He was wearing a long robe embroidered with the religious symbols of a Kurdofan, a holy man. Komada smiled as he gently placed his hands on the shoulders of the men and women he passed. He thanked them for their bravery in helping to put an end to the heretic’s control of the planet.

  “Man, does he ever love the bloody attention,” said Cole under his breath.

  “You’re not wrong there,” replied Sheridan. “He should have been an actor. He loves to play the crowd. Come on, let’s see what he intends to do with the prisoners.”

  They walked to Komada’s side.

  “I see your men took four prisoners,” said Sheridan. “I’d like to know what your intentions are regarding them.”

  Komada smiled. “Their fate is out of my hands. The Lord will decide if they live or die.”

  “No. You actually have the power to spare their lives. Your people will do anything you tell them to.”

  “That may be true, Major, but I will trust in the Lord to guide my followers’ hands.”

  “That’s a load of bull, and you know it,” said Cole. “Order your men to set them free and they’ll go back to their unit and tell them of your mercy. Maybe more of them will defect to your side rather than fight you.”

  Two shots, quickly followed by two more, ended the discussion. Sheridan clenched his jaw so tightly at the sight of the four murdered Chosen soldiers lying face down on the ground that it hurt.

  “They didn’t have to die, and you know it,” said Cole, raising his voice.

  Several rebels turned and looked at Komada. They took a step forward and aimed their weapons at Cole.

  “Please, my children, there is no need to be alarmed,” said Komada, raising his hands in the air. “We are just talking . . . nothing more. Please get back to your duties and strip this camp clean of all its weapons and ammunition. We will surely need them when the heretics come to seek their revenge on us for what we have done in the Lord’s name.”

  On the outskirts of the camp, two ground-to-air missiles streaked up into the night and destroyed a Kurgan Army drone sent from the garrison in the capital to see what had happened to the soldiers at the outpost. The burning debris from the UAV plummeted to the ground and exploded in a bright fireball.

  “We must go,” said Komada to his followers. “We have a long march ahead of us if we are to reach the next camp by first light.”

  Sheridan and Cole stood to one side while the insurgents formed up into a column of twos and began to march toward the darkened hills silhouetted against the night sky.

  “Time to wake up,” said Cole, nudging his friend awake.

  Sheridan rolled over and pulled his blanket off his body. A wet film of condensation covered the ground. On a nearby tree, a bird sang out. Sheridan had been asleep for less than two hours. His body ached from where he had been lying on a rock. He lifted his head and saw a thick fog blanketing the valley floor.

  “Here, have some of this,” Cole said, handing Sheridan a cup of hot coffee.

  “Thanks,” replied Sheridan holding the cup in both hands to warm them.

  “While you were sleeping, a couple of Komada’s men scouted out the platoon outpost.”

  “What did they report?”

  “The soldiers there seem unaware of our attack on the other camp late last night. According to the scouts, there were only a handful of troops on sentry. The rest were sleeping.”

  “I wonder if Komada wants to wait until dark to hit it or go in under the cover of the fog.”

  A rebel fighter walked over to the two Marines. “Good morning, sirs. Komada has asked to speak with you right away.”

  Sheridan nodded. “Tell him we’ll be there in a minute.”

  The rebel turned and walked back into the mist.

  “I guess we’ve been summoned,” said Cole.

  “Yeah, he probably wants to know what we think.”

  “Okay, what do we think?”

  “We’re in no rush. I say wait until dark and take it like we did the last post.”

  They found Komada sitting next to a fire. He was roasting a piece of freshly killed game over the fire. He looked up and said, “Gentlemen, please join me. Would you like some gerrin?”

  Sheridan knew that was the Kurgan word for rabbit. He held up a hand. “No thanks. Alan and I aren’t much for breakfast. Coffee is usually all we need.”

  “Suit yourselves. Before we talk about today’s mission, I think we need to talk about what happened last night.”

  “And that would be what?”

  “I think it is unwise for you to raise your voices to me around my followers,” said Komada. “You saw their reaction last night. They thought you were threatening me. To many of my people, I am more than a man. I am their Kurdofan, their sacred holy man.”

  “The killing of prisoners of war is considered to be a heinous war crime in our armed forces,” said Sheridan. “You have to understand we are duty-bound to object when we see your followers murdering unarmed prisoners.”

  Komada smile
d. “But of course you are. Still, you must respect my disciples’ feelings and have these discussions where my people cannot hear what is being said.”

  “Really?” said Cole. “That’s a load of bull. If we went for a walk to chat about the legality of killing disarmed men every time your people took prisoners, they’d all be dead long before we ever got back, and you know it.”

  “If the Lord wants them to live, he will give us the time.”

  Sheridan reached over and squeezed Cole’s arm tightly. “I see this discussion has been run into the ground. What are your intentions regarding the platoon outpost at the other end of the valley?”

  “Before I sent for you, I spoke with some of my fighters, and they want to destroy it right away. They’re tired and want to head home to our sanctuary in the mountains to see their families and loved ones. I have agreed to their request.”

  “So what is your plan?”

  “We will draw them out into the open and destroy them before they can react.”

  “Do your men know this ground?” asked Cole.

  “Yes, they do.”

  “Komada, we are here strictly as advisors. You’ve never tried a daylight fight before; are you sure this is the right move?”

  “The Lord told me in a vision that it is, so we will strike the heretics after we have eaten our breakfast.”

  “Very well, it’s your call. Alan and I will find a piece of high ground and watch how your people do from up there.”

  Komada nodded. “I think my followers will surprise you with their fighting prowess today, Major.”

  “If you say so. Please excuse us, as there are people waiting to speak to you and we haven’t had our second cup of coffee yet.”

  Komada stood, bowed, and went to embrace one of his disciples.

  Out of earshot range, Cole whispered, “That guy is getting creepier by the day.”

  “I hear you,” said Sheridan. “I think it’s high time we reevaluate this training and advisory mission.”

  Sheridan lay on his stomach on the crest of a small hill overlooking the combat outpost and brought his binoculars up to his eyes. The sun was beginning to climb high in the sky, burning off the last wisps of fog which still lingered on the valley floor. He looked over at the Kurgan Army post and saw it was built in a circle with a wall of sandbags and concrete barriers protecting the perimeter of the camp. There were a couple of collapsible metal towers with cameras and thermal sensors on them looking over the open ground. He was surprised to see there wasn’t a surveillance drone or blimp in the air, providing greater visibility and security for the camp.

  “Anything happening?” asked Cole.

  “Nah, it’s really quiet down there,” replied Sheridan. “Take a look for yourself.”

  Cole examined the outpost. “I count less than a squad on sentry duty. It’s like they’re not even trying anymore.”

  “Looks like Komada’s people are on the move,” said Sheridan, pointing at a group of fighters trying to approach the post using a dry riverbed for cover. When they were within three hundred meters of the camp, the rebels popped up and opened fire. An alarm sounded, and the Kurgan Army camp sprang to life. Soldiers rushed to man their weapons ringing the post. In seconds, mortar and heavy machine gun fire fell on the rebel position. Rather than stick around and fight it out, the insurgents popped a couple of smoke grenades and ran back the way they came.

  “What’s he up to?” said Cole to himself as the rebel soldiers ran out of the riverbed and fled across an open field. Panic gripped the men running for their lives. Cole shook his head. “Damn, they’re tossing their weapons aside to get away.”

  At the combat outpost, the front gate was pulled aside and six ATVs packed with soldiers sped after the fleeing insurgents.

  Sheridan adjusted his position and watched as the ATVs spread apart. Like hounds chasing a fox, the vehicles closed in on the rebels. Aside from the panicked insurgents, Sheridan couldn’t see any of Komada’s other men. His gut began to tingle. Something was up.

  The second the ATVs crossed a road running east-west, the field seemed to come alive. Men popped up from camouflaged holes in the ground and launched a volley of grenades at the back of the ATVs. Several more men on the far side of the field appeared out of the ground and opened fire on the soldiers packed on the vehicles. It was a massacre. In seconds, almost thirty soldiers lay dead on the ground.

  “Clever bastard,” said Cole, tapping his friend on the arm.

  Sheridan looked back at the post. While the soldiers had been pre-occupied chasing the rebels, a second team had also used the riverbed and was now less than twenty meters from the outpost. A man stood up and yelled a defiant cry at the soldiers still in the post. A split second later, he and his men rushed the open gate and ran inside, firing at anything that moved.

  “That’s our cue to get moving,” said Sheridan. “Let’s see what intelligence we can find in their command post.”

  By the time they arrived all of the defenders lay dead, not that Sheridan and Cole expected to see any alive. Komada was a few steps ahead of them touching and praising his fighters.

  “A glorious victory,” announced Komada with his hand held up toward the sky.

  “Whichever of your men planned and executed that ambush is to be commended,” said Sheridan.

  “I will pass on your praise to Kollar. He was most adamant that we give it a try. He told me that he read how to do it on one of the discs your training people have back at our sanctuary.”

  “Sir, over here,” said Cole, pointing at the platoon headquarters building.

  Sheridan followed him inside. A Kurgan officer and his communications operator lay dead on the floor. He said, “Okay, let’s look for the usual: maps, computers, and codes.”

  It didn’t take them long to find what they were looking for. Cole picked up a small pack and jammed everything he could into it before settling it on his back. Outside, Komada’s people were setting everything alight.

  Sheridan looked at Komada. “Time to go.”

  The Holy Man nodded and passed the word. In minutes, the rebel force faded away into a forest which stretched all the way to the mountains and home.

  Chapter 2

  Huddled against the back of a tall boulder, Sheridan warmed up two cups of coffee over a liquid gel stove. In the gray light of dawn, he, like everyone else, waited for the inevitable Kurgan Army counterstrike.

  “I can see the gears whirling in your head,” said Cole. “What are you thinking?”

  “It’s the same old topic,” replied Sheridan. “I think I’ve made a huge mistake staying here to advise Komada on how to fight his war.”

  “It wasn’t just you. We were both pretty pissed after what the Kurgs did to those colonists on Ke-12. If I thought it was a bad idea to stay, I would have said so. I didn’t at the time because I wanted some payback too. With hindsight, I have to agree this may not have been our best decision to date.”

  “I know, but I’m the one who pushed it with my father to send us SF training teams to help improve the insurgents’ fighting abilities. Now, I’m positive that I shouldn’t have bothered. In fact, I think we should all leave as soon as we can arrange transport off this accursed rock.”

  Cole took a sip of coffee. “What made you change your mind on Komada and his cause? Besides the fact that he’s a raving lunatic.”

  “There have been a ton of small things over the past few months which have gotten under my skin, but if I were to choose one, it would be three weeks ago when his people walked into that village by the lake. There wasn’t a single government soldier to be seen, yet his followers rounded up the entire village and locked them up in the community’s temple of worship and lit it on fire.”

  Cole shook his head. “I’ve never seen you so angry. I thought you were going to shoot Komada dead that day.”

  “If you hadn’t been there, I swear to God I would have.”

  Sheridan shuddered. “When I close my eyes, I can sti
ll hear the people screaming and pleading with Komada to let them go. The man just stood there with that stupid smile on his face and watched as the temple burnt to the ground. The only reason those people died was because they wouldn’t renounce their faith and follow Komada.”

  “He’ll get what’s coming to him. If the Kurgs don’t end his life, perhaps I will,” said Cole, winking at Sheridan.

  “Don’t tell me this is another case of I can’t soil my hands, but you can.”

  “I swear the older you get, Major, the smarter you get.”

  Sheridan shook his head. “Whatever. When we get back to camp I want you to quietly spread the word that all non-essential personnel are to leave immediately and the SF training teams are to make their way back to the camp for extraction. I’ll chat with Tarina and get her to arrange everything with her old squadron.”

  “Sounds like a plan to me.”

  Sheridan stopped talking and lifted his head.

  “Do you hear something?” asked Cole.

  “Yeah, I think I hear the sound of vehicle engines coming our way.”

  Cole tossed out what was left of his coffee and picked up his rifle.

  Sheridan got to his feet and looked down the steep slope of the rocky hill the insurgents had selected as their ambush site. The road dropped off thirty meters on the other side of the path.

  “I’ll pass the word to stand to,” said Cole.

  Sheridan nodded and dug out his binoculars. He focused them on the bend in the road near the top of the hill where the rebels had buried an improvised explosive device. If the Kurgans followed their usual tactical drills, they would be spread out with fifty meters between vehicles. To prevent mines and bombs from being remotely detonated, each vehicle had on its turret an electronic countermeasures device which created an invisible bubble over the top of the armored personnel carrier. The spot the rebels had chosen for their ambush had taken that into consideration. If it went off as planned, the government soldiers didn’t stand a chance. Sheridan almost felt sorry for them.