| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| SgtMunro |
Posted - March 06 2004 : 08:58:51 AM
“Men Of Action” (Part 1) By Sgt. Munro
Kelley’s Island, Lake Erie
04 January 1764 / 0705 Hours
Rifleman Morris knew that something has gone terribly wrong. From his hide on the south side of the island he could hear the faint sounds of gunfire. His training helped him locate the firefight as emanating from the mainland; his instinct told him that it was involving his fellow rangers. Ranger Hicks arrived with the grenade mortar, and had taken up his position next to Morris. If the lieutenant and the detail were attempting to exfiltrate the area of operations, both men could cover their retreat across the ice.
“Paul, is that thing ready?” Morris asked.
“Yes William” Ranger Hicks said as he finished adjusting the elevation of the small brass tube. “I will be able to start covering them with accurate indirect fire within 300 yards.”
Listening to the great number of shots being fired, Rifleman Morris then said, “God, it sounds like quite a brawl. I wish I wasn’t stranded here.”
“We have our orders, rifleman.” Ranger Hicks then lit his port fire and secured it in the ground, “Lieutenant Patarcity stated that if they did not return by midnight of the of the 5th, then we were to secure this post and meet the schooner as planned.”
“Dammit all, Hicks!” Rifleman Morris exclaimed, “Those are our brothers over there, and we…”
Ranger Hicks interrupted with, “We have orders to ensure the security of this post for future operations. That includes taking steps to avoid detection by the enemy.”
…Meanwhile on the mainland:
“My God, they just keep coming!” Ranger Prescott shouted as he fired his musket.
“Number One Team, fall back! Number Two Team, cover fire!” Ranger Sergeant Thacher ordered, as he fired and brought down another warrior.
The rangers were engaged in an orderly fighting retreat against a party of forty or so Miami Warriors. It had been a running gun battle for the last ten miles, and the exertion was starting to take its toll on the intrepid rangers. The only upside was that the skill and discipline of the rangers was paying off, with the enemy force whittled down to just under twenty. The cost for the engagement was proportionately high, with six rangers dead and another three wounded.
Lieutenant Patarcity was covering Ranger Sergeant Metz, who was carrying the most severly-wounded ranger over his shoulder. Ranger James Ballard was loosing blood, and time, but Sergeant Metz was not going to give up on him. James’ older brother Samuel was also a ranger, and he had saved Metz’s life at Ticonderoga in 1758. Samuel was later killed during the St. Francis Raid of 1759, and Sergeant Metz ‘adopted’ James as the younger brother he never had.
As the three of them advanced, Lieutenant Patarcity noticed five Miamis closing on their left flank. He leveled his fusil and fired, bringing one man down, in response the lieutenant received an arrow through his left calf and a bullet chipped part of his ear. Drawing his Sea Service Pistol, he shouted to Sergeant Thacher, “Thomas, get the rest of the men out of here quickly! Make haste, ranger!”
“Not without all of us!” Sergeant Thacher then advanced his two fire teams back toward the stragglers.
“Damm you, sergeant, that is an order!” Lieutenant Patarcity paused long enough to steady his aim on the closest warrior and fire. The Miami clutched his own throat as blood erupted from his mouth.
The other three Miamis were closing on Sergeant Metz and Ranger Ballard. Sergeant Metz turned to meet his antagonists, and firing his musket with one hand, he brought down the largest of the three. Pausing a moment to lay James down and ground his firelock, he then drew his tomahawk and knife. The two Miamis failed to realize that they were about to make the last mistake of their young lives. Ranger Sergeant Metz was arguably the most deadly hand-to-hand combat expert in the |
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