Time Machine - 1 The Year 1423

It was the year 1423 when I stepped off the C-17 onto a metal grate runway at a bombed out base built by the Soviets.   Many things were running through my mind, not least of which was that I wished had more ammo.  The trip had been different from most, similiar to many.  There were only 6 of us, not including the air crew, on the bird. 

There was no in flight movie.  There were no flight attendants with blankets and pillows.  I had caught a few winks of sleep on the cold metal floor between two pieces of construction equipment tied down with chains and weighing several tons more than is allowed for stowed luggage of most airlines. 

Only a few hours before, we had been in Germany, blessed with flight delays that allowed me to play tour guide to Soldiers on their first stop to 21st Century Europe, grateful for the stubborn NCO and a Senior Officer who wanted the Troops to enjoy the history and culture on the part of the latter and beer and women on the part of the former, while they had a chance and ready to discard the propaganda of a troublesome Master Sergeant telling them it was nothing but a slum.

We had finally arrived and there was a lot of work to be done before we could go do a lot more.  My missions were many more than the one I had volunteered for.  The Colonel had asked if I would go early and promised we'd return in the order sent.  He had bragged to his wife of talents beyond my skills, convincing her it'd all be alright.  I didn't argue.  It got me the ticket to the place where I needed to be.

The Mission?

Build a structure that would keep the REMF's warm during their tour in the rear.  No super-spook stuff there.  Nothing snazzy.  No adventure.  But it meant I would be the first in from the unit.  It meant I could snoop and poop.  I could find out who was who, what was what, where was hot and where was not. 

As importantly, it meant the REMF's owed me.  For months to come, I'd remind them of this.  "Hey SGT X, how warm was it in the office today?  Yeah, I need you to get some XXX delivered on the next bird."

There were many wonders in those early days.  I fancied it the perfect place to shoot a Biblical movie.  The locals still used the same tools and built the same kind of structures.  It was 1423 according to their calender and they lived like they were in 423 of ours.  I could think of no more appropriate place to be on the First Anniversary.

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