Ortega was flying on board the helicopter, feeling a little nervous.
He’d been urgently summoned to MacV's central office in Saigon, and even if he didn’t know what for yet, he thought that it was probably already about a mission. There was no doubting it.
They were about to brief him on their first 'over the fence' mission.
Ortega looked at the hilly landscape moving below him covered with paddy fields and shepherd huts randomly scattered around where the water buffalos used to graze.
He wondered if they would be sent to Cambodia, Laos or even North Vietnam.
There was a mix of emotions building inside of him.
He was electrified by the idea that maybe – finally – he would get to put those things they’d learnt in training to the test. They’d been two excruciatingly hard and long years of training.
A mission on enemy territory was finally upon them, and, unlike Black Spot, would be more than solely a defensive mission.
Over the fence aka beyond the border means we’ll be on our own over there.
He was a little scared, somewhat worried and a bit anxious too.
He looked forward to putting himself to the test, but he was afraid too, all at the same time.
His team members had no idea how lucky they were not having to make the kinds of decisions that could cost your friends their lives.
Ortega started tapping his foot on the metallic helicopter floor as though he could music but it was only in his head.
If it proved necessary to sacrifice one of his friends in order to accomplish the mission, would he be up to giving that kind of order?
He was fortunate that since the SOG teams were so small one rarely had to give that kind of order.
It hardly happened at all actually.
If the need arose however, would he be capable of giving it?
Ortega looked once more at the landscape below him.
It's only the first 'over the fence' mission so calm down.
Once this first one is finally out of the way, it’ll all be easier.
As they continued towards their destination however, a part of him couldn’t help but hope there wouldn’t be any mission at all. Or, at the very least, if the mission could be in due time rather that straight away.
He just wasn’t ready yet.