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Praetorium Honoris

Saturday, October 9, 2021

Upon a Winter's Morn

US Army Photo

The air was bitter cold, Corporal Bill Winston figured it had to be ten below zero, but it was quiet, another ten inches of snow had dropped during the night before the temperature plummeted as the storm had moved on.

"Hey, Heather, we clear?" Winston hissed at the soldier to his front.

Sergeant Heather Jefferson turned around and hissed back, "Shut the f**k up Bill, can't ya see I'm hunting commies up here? Be vewy, vewy quiet."

Winston grinned then signaled the rest of the fire team to move up and out to the flank. With a low whistle, he let his squad leader know that her team was in position.


Junior Sergeant Feng Yaozhu was crossing the compound, it was time to relieve the sentries in the watch towers. He was frozen. The heat in the barracks was just enough to keep the water from freezing. There was nothing in the pipes, the plumbing had broken down weeks ago.

They had water in buckets around the sole wood-burning stove in each barracks. The stoves had been "liberated" from some of the homes in town. The homes had been empty, many of the occupants had been arrested and sent to a re-education camp near Albany. Some had been executed as terrorists, especially those caught in the act of sabotage. They had lost a number of vehicles to simple things like sugar in the fuel tanks.

Feng had never experienced cold and snow like this region experienced, his home in southern China was nothing like this. He couldn't wait to leave this place. He was starting to doubt the reasons he had been given for being sent here. He had been told that the UN had requested their presence, "voting irregularities" had been the reason he had been given.

From what Feng had heard, most of those irregularities had been perpetrated by the current ruling party.


Staff Sergeant Willis Jenkins was nearly invisible in his snow suit. He was positioned on a small hill some three hundred yards from the Chinese compound. He had watched the one Chinese soldier cross the compound and go into one of the barracks. The man had emerged a few minutes later with what Jenkins had to assume were the men meant to replace the sentries in the watch towers situated around the perimeter. Those men were more focused on being relieved than watching their assigned sectors.

He had watched the man through his scope, guy kinda looked like Jackie Chan, Jenkins had thought. He was a big fan of Jackie's movies, too bad that he was too old to do his own stunts anymore. Oh well, better concentrate on the job at hand, otherwise his lieutenant would chew him a new one.

He heard the whistling sound at that moment, right about on time Jenkins thought. He could see that the Chinese heard it too, they were rushing to take cover. At that moment he fired, "Sorry Jackie," he thought to himself, "dude ain't you, just looks like you."


Feng felt like he had been punched in the chest. He fell heavily to the ground, desperately trying to catch his breath, for the moment he had no idea that he'd been shot. Two of his men rushed over to him to drag him to cover. He wanted to wave them off, "Take cover you fools," he thought to himself as the first mortar rounds began to impact in and around the compound. He couldn't speak, he could only gasp.

A nearby explosion deafened him and killed or wounded the two men who had been trying to help him. He tried to roll over onto his belly, he was helpless on his back. Though he managed it, the pain was intense, it was only then did he realize that he'd been shot. "Probably a sniper out on that small hill across that field," he thought. Then he thought no more.


Jenkins was waiting, waiting for an officer to show himself. The mortar rounds had stopped but the men who had taken cover were still keeping their heads down. It appeared that no one suspected that he was out here. He figured he had one more shot, then he'd make himself scarce.

"There you are," he whispered under his breath as a man came out of the office block. He was carrying a rifle, looked like a QBZ-95, from the greatcoat and the boots, Jenkins pegged him as an officer. Putting the crosshairs on him, he squeezed the trigger.


Captain Jiang Guo gasped as the frigid air hit his lungs. The weather here reminded him of his time on the lines facing the Russians in the north of China. He thought that it was a lot colder along the Amur River, but this was still uncomfortably cold. He looked around the compound, the incoming mortar rounds had ceased, he could see a few men down in the open. No doubt they had been unable to take cover in time.

"Lieutenant Wei Bao! Get our personnel carriers started up, I need men to come with me on a patrol. We need to get out there and run these criminals down! Let's go, move i..."

Jiang dropped to his knees as the sniper round took the top of his head off, his sergeant, coming out of the door behind him, also went down. The round which had killed Jiang, had hit him in the throat.


Sergeant Heather Jefferson led her squad into the ruins of the compound. There were dead and dying men everywhere. Two of the buildings were enveloped in flames.

Though the Chinese had managed to get two of their APCs started, they had both been taken out by two of the Guard unit's remaining Javelins. One APC was still burning in a ditch near the compound's main gate, two of its occupants draped out of partially open hatches.

"Hey, you folks need to wait until we clear the area!" Jefferson yelled over at a group of people from town who had entered the compound, they were stripping dead soldiers of their weapons and ammunition. They were also finishing off those Chinese who were wounded but still alive.

"Hey!" she shouted again.

"Let 'em be Sarge. They've been living with these assholes' boots on their throats for months now. They deserve some payback." Private Hakim McDonald said.

"Yup, and payback's a bitch." His buddy Denton Adams chimed in.


Bob Woodson rode into town in Major Morrison's Humvee. It saddened him to see how run down the place was. As the vehicle rolled to a stop, the Major turned to Woodson and said, "You sure you want to stay here? The Chinese might send in reinforcements in the spring."

"I'll be okay Sir." As he said that he nodded to a couple of men nearby. "Not sure if we'll stick around until spring."

Morrison noticed that both men carried what looked like M-16s, probably the civilian version of that venerable weapon. "Friends of yours?"

"Yes Sir, First New York Volunteers."

As Woodson dismounted, Morrison said, "Thanks for the intel on these clowns."

Woodson grinned and said, "Thanks for killin' 'em for us."




58 comments:

  1. While it a pity that they had to be eliminated, dead people are never a good thing. Once again, by inviting the Chicoms in, the Democratic Party has left death and misery in it's wake.

    I suppose you have heard, Pelosi and Schumer want ALL semi automatic firearms to become Class 3 weapons. That way they can finally ban the AR.

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    1. Since when has the Constitution ever limited what the Dems want to do?

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    2. The Constitution is looking to be pretty well ignored by the uniparty when it's convenient these days.

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    3. Since about the time the Dems were created. I seem to remember something somewhere in our founding documents about phasing out of slavery and somehow that got nixed by the Dems. I think that was their first real power-play.

      As to making semi-auto illegal, yeah, right. They can try. Pry. Cold dead hands. After a death-guard is piled at my feet.

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    4. You really are pissed at current events to even semi-swear on your own blog. Dammit, that's yet another thing they'll have to or should answer for!

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    5. They may be pushing the OAFS too far!

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    6. Speaking of ARs, I read that the Taliban are well armed with them now, courtesy of the ANA which was previously well armed with them.

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    7. The bang sticks are one thing, having ammo is quite another. Though I'm sure their new Chicom friends will supply them.

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    8. Rob - The Uniparty, so true, there's no telling the difference these days.

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  2. I would say that is a good START!!!

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  3. Jenkins got a 'twofer'! Way to go Sarge! (Both of ya.)

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    1. He might complain that he was aiming for the chest and jerked the trigger.

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  4. Pink teams... Like in the Air Cav during the 60's. Hunters and Killers. Civvies find them, Army takes them. Very good.... Is it true if you put a bit of snow in your mouth, your breath isn't as noticeable? I've seen coffee make a dragon out of you in winter... At least it looked like a dragon when dad would breath outside.... May have been cigarette smoke...

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    1. Snow...depends how cold, and how dry it is out. You have to exhale rapidly. Too slow and the melting snow just makes more visible vapor, again, depending on conditions. Also makes a big difference how cool or warm your core is, how much you've been exerting yourself, and yeah, hot beverages are a bad idea if stealth is important.

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    2. STxAR - Don't know about the snow thing. Never tried that.

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    3. Patrick - Now I need to try that this coming winter.

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    4. It also requires an observant enemy or prey. Freezing in a guard position more concerned about the loss of feeling in your feet and hands does tend to take the will to stay observant away.

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  5. USMC, Antitank Assault. As an element of Weapons Platoon, when not playing with rocketry and demolitions, I spent a lot of time with the M60 and Mortar squads. Never heard a mortar whistle. A "Thump" when they go up, and a "Whoomp" when they hit. Nothing in between. Of course, I was never on the receiving end. Point of info; when you drop the mortar down the tube, duck! You do not want to be above the break of the muzzle when that round comes out. Ask me how I know. WTF is that ringing in my ears, decades later?

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  6. The Democrats are rushing faster and faster to Communism. Take everything of use from the dead and burn what you can't take/use.

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    1. Just make sure you don't take anything with LoJack on it! In this day and age, that could be almost anything, and it will let them track you. And don't turn anybody over, or unclench any appendages. Zealous deceased will want to take you with them, in the worst sort of way! Mortally wounded and being overrun, yes, I will pull the pin and clutch a frag, in the hopes of delivering one last blow.

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    2. Nylon12 - I wonder who's paying them.

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    3. Patrick - Yup, gotta be careful.

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    4. Correction. The Democrats are running faster and faster into Feudalism cloaked by the mantle of Communism. There is no 'everybody's equal' in what they want. They want, like at the Met Gala, Feudal Lords and Ladies and Whatevers with faceless replaceable body servants and fiefs and serfs and peasants and indentured servants and all the trappings of feudalism. They (those who are to be our new feudal masters) have just convinced a bunch of stupid idiots that 'socialism' and 'communism' are the way to go. They (those who are to be our new feudal masters) know that the end result of what they (TWARBONFW) are striving for is everything you see in the first Hunger Games minus the uppity dirt people.

      Trust me. I know feudalism. Studied it. Role-played it. Totally disgusted by it. And that is what they (TWARBONFW) want. Outright feudalism. With serfs, peasants, indentured servants all chained to local lands, with limited to no freedom of movement and no freedom of jobs and no freedom of protection and no freedom of religion or, well, no freedom at all.

      Just like the Met Gala. We'uns dirt people will put our pretty boys and girls in black with black masks and they will be the literal body slaves of Them's That Gots, who, of course, can dress anyway they want and not wear masks and can do and eat and drink and lord it over us'ns dirt people's childrens.

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    5. Communism is just feudalism with fancier buzz words.

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  7. I was really out of sorts when I read the first couple of installments, and had to step away. My PTSD got pretty bad for awhile there. Not exactly sure why. Maybe because your story seemed almost prophetic, what with the way things are going, and me being maybe way to attuned to the possibilities for the future. Anyhow, my curiosity, and my previous experiences with your stories being, on the whole, positive, I came back. I think I'm glad I did. Keep on keepin' on, Sarge!

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  8. "The stoves had been "liberated" from some of the homes in town. The homes had been empty, many of the occupants had been arrested and sent to a re-education camp near Albany. Some had been executed as terrorists, especially those caught in the act of sabotage."

    The fact that I find it not unbelievable the current Occupant and his party would enable such things disturbs me.

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    1. It should disturb us all. Treatment of the J 6th protesters should tell us everything we need to know.

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    2. TB - Believe me, that's exactly what they would do if they could find enough corrupt cops and military outside their little DC enclave.

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    3. I think what's been happening in Oz is telling us that there are enough corrupt LEOs - unfortunately

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    4. New York State has already passed a law whereby the unvaccinated and ill can be 'removed' from society for the protection of society. California is working on this also. Rumors are that Colorado is to follow, along with New Mexico and Washington and Oregon. So, well, we are already 'here' in several states regarding 're-education' camps.

      As to corrupt cops? Sadly, one big takeaway from 2020 and all the peaceful protests is that most cops are more concerned about their pensions than they are about the law, else they would have turned on those who issued illegal orders and arrested them, and then thrown the rioters into the same cells as those who illegally ordered the 'back the F off' stances.

      And to add to what boron said, we also see corrupt LEOs working for their feudal lords in Canada, England, New York City, Virginia (we saw that back in 2017 in Charlotteville when the police and the mayor's office conspired to make the Proud Boys (who had an assembly permit (something else that needs to go away since that impinges upon the freedom of assembly)) walk through actual protestors (who did not have permits but had the acceptance of the powers-that-be) and basically had to run the gauntlet. The car accident was because the driver was trying to get away, not because the driver was trying to attack. The 'sweet young thing' that died had a heart attack, fer God's sake, due to being out of shape and basically dying anyways.

      Trust me. I worked at a PD. And starting about 2010 the whole focus of policing, mandated by the FedGov, changed greatly what the focus of the rank and file was. No longer was it actually enforcing the laws, it was more enforcing the Dictats. And the 'old-school' guys and gals started bailing as quickly as they could. I see it here now in my neighborhood. The cops won't enforce domestic battery laws, won't protect citizens, won't even answer questions like "What are the SWAT guys doing on my roof? And if you have SWAT guys on my roof, why have you not evacuated me or told me to stay inside and not walk my dog or get the mail?" (Yes, actually happened, SWAT was on my roof without notifying me because they supposedly had a 'highly dangerous armed person' blockaded in an apartment behind me (across the street) yet no warnings and no evacuations, not even the suggestion that we stay on the farthest from the other apartment side of my own apartment. And, boy, did my landlady get pissed when she found out about it. And the 'highly dangerous armed person' was found 4 hours later wandering the streets about a mile away drunk on his arse with no weapons, and no weapons other than common utensils and tools were found in the apartment. And he was illegal, which the city cops didn't tell ICE or Homeland Sec about. Good going, guys!!!)(And all of that was a violation of the Department SWAT manual. How do I know? Because I transcribed, cleaned up, formatted, and retyped the manual as part of my job working for the PD as my bosses tended to be the SWAT commanders...)

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    5. Sad news. Too many stupid people running things these days.

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  9. If you read the chapters carefully, you'll find that the party involved in this story isn't the one that you think it is.

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    1. In my book they're both culpable. Nearly all politicians are corrupt, regardless of their affiliation.

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    2. Hear Hear.....a truer statement on politics has never been spoken!

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  10. Heather is a bad ass. Bet she had a great, great great great great grandmother named Molly.
    Love them both!
    JB

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  11. Sorta reminiscent of what the Finns did to the Russians during the Winter War - go Häyhä - uh, Sgt. Jenkins, that is.
    Thank G-d you publish these tantalizing little episodes faster than one a week - I don't know that my heart could take the strain of waiting that long.

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    1. Ah, yes, the ancient Finnish game of 'Burn down the barracks at 3am on the coldest day of the year and see whether they choose to freeze or burn to death and no need to shoot them...'

      Good times, good times...

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  12. The sad thing is I see all of this as entirely too possible. From UN peacekeepers to reeducation camps to enemy forces killing people and taking our stuff and our own people destroying infrastructure (real infrastructure, not what the DNC considers infrastructure) to starvation to a modern(ish) military forced to steal wood stoves from citizens in order to keep warm.

    Can't wait to see the bodies of the politicians hanging from the roof of the Capital Building. Hopefully the heads will be saved and encased in resin so that future generations of politicians will have the traitors' heads staring at them as a reminder of what not to do in the future.

    Funny, pretty much said everything else I needed or wanted to say in my comments above.

    Except, man, your Muse is having a wicked bad time with PTSD flashbacks, isn't she? Wow.

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    1. If I don't write about this stuff, it sticks in my head and drives me crazy-ish. This is therapeutic for me in many ways.

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  13. As I said in a comment to an earlier installment, this scenario has been running through my head since 2016 or earlier. Therefore, I find reading this a little difficult. I wouldn't have been surprised if Democrats/Obama had used their "brown shirts" to riot after the 2016 election and then declared martial law, stopped the Electoral College from meeting and stayed in the White House or installed Hillary there. Then when the civil war started as they cracked down on Conservatives/Republicans and the populous in general, they would call the UN in to help them as a lot of the lower ranks of the military (enlisted and junior officers) would have walked off the job when told to go after Americans. That UN force would be largely made up of the Communist Chinese. Yes, I told a few people that and they scoffed at me. Now OAFS is writing the story.

    I really am in fear this is more future history than just a novel. I have yet to have any bad dreams from this but would not be surprised if I did. As the Boy Scouts say - "Be Prepared!" as things in this Nation of ours could go down the tubes quickly. I think over at Bayou Renaissance Man's blog, Peter used a saying about bankruptcy that is applicable, first you go slowly and then all of a sudden.

    Waiting for more!

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    1. Would be nice if you could set up a page of links to your stories. I'd like to pass them on without someone having to do a lot of digging.

      Great writing Sarge, just sad that what passes for our gov inspires such things :-(.

      With comments I have made about the current ongoing fiascos, I will not be in the least surprised when the tyrants hired woke guns break down the door and shoot me and the cat. Not the worst end as I have no desire to live in the world these fecalstains are building. Sigh...

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    2. Um, um, oops. I do have such a page but haven't updated it in a while. Looks like I need to get to work.

      That page is here.

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    3. Have you read read Gen. Washington's dream?
      Cpl Wojo

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    4. I have now. Mount Vernon is very lovely. I have spent some time there, to include thinking of the direction our country is taking while standing near the graves of the Father of our country and the very first First Lady.

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  14. How did they lose vehicles to sugar? Did they not have spare fuel filters?

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    1. They have barely enough equipment to keep things going. Do you think they would have an uninterrupted supply chain to their remote little outpost?

      Simple answer, no, they did not.

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Just be polite... that's all I ask. (For Buck)
Can't be nice, go somewhere else...

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