Platoon Page #15

O'NEILL

DOC, UP HERE! Lerner's hit! ...

More machine gun fire.

FRANCIS:

DOC! Over here - we got ... one ... two down.

Warren's hit.

EXT. JUNGLE - CHURCH - DAY (RAIN)

Chris moving up with Rhah and the others out of the stream, they

hit the ground next to Sgt.O'Neill, who looks pretty scared,

obviously not about to move.

CHRIS:

What's going on?

O'NEILL

Sh*t they got RPG's on our ass. F***ing ambush -

they was waiting for us to break trail!

KING:

WATCH OUT! ROCKET!

Another rocket whistling in. A huge roar. Trees shredded, dirt,

dust rising.

CHRIS:

Who's on point?

O'NEILL

Lerner and Warren.

Chris uses his M-16 to lever himself up into a crouch and

suddenly dashes forward, passing Rhah.

RHAH:

Where you goin' man!

Chris tearing up. Past Flash - the hip black head with the

colored beads. He's dead, torn and shredded, his face and eyes

stuff with dirt. Next to him Doc is frantically tourniqueting

Tubbs, shot in the legs. He's screaming.

Chris keeps moving to the front as if compelled.

EXT. JUNGLE - BARNES' POSITION - DAY (RAIN)

Barnes is laying out fire.

BARNES:

Goddamit, you a**holes get f***ing' firepower out

there!

(to Hoyt on radio)

Get Two Bravo up here. Get me a gun.

(to others)

Spread it out! More to the flanks! Look for a

f***in' target!

Another explosion.

EXT. JUNGLE - FORWARD POINT - DAY (RAIN)

Chris comes alongside Francis near the point, throws himself

down. Banging his head against his helmet as he falls. The

incoming rounds are tearing up the front of the platoon.

CHRIS:

(to Francis)

Where's Lerner?

FRANCIS:

(terrified)

Out there man - behind the log.

Looking. A body - moaning, sort of moving, wriggling, as if

trying to escape the pain.

CHRIS:

Oh Jesus!

His eyes moving to Sgt.Warren lying alongside a tree - calmly

trying to stack his intestines back into his ruptured stomach.

Another RPG comes in.

Chris makes a conscious decision, moves up - bit by bit,

shielding himself with tree stumps, ant hills, laying out fire,

trying to get closer to Lerner.

Francis following his progress, bug-eyed.

Fu Sheng now comes up with his M-60 - Harold his loader, belts of

ammo flapping against their bodies. He fires from the hip,

providing cover fire for Chris, then pops down.

EXT. FORWARD POINT - JUNGLE - DAY (DRIZZLING RAIN)

Chris, firing out another magazine, crawls closer to Lerner,

trying to ascertain if he's still alive.

CHRIS:

Lerner! Lerner, can you hear me man?

Lerner groans. A fresh burst of AK fire rakes the area. Lerner

jerks spasmodically with the impact of the rounds.

Chris spots the sniper. In a hole in the ground. Twenty-five

meters off. Snapping the magazine out of his AK to reload. A

live gook.

Chris tears off a volley at him but the gook disappears in the

hole. This is the moement, Chris realizes it, it's now or never

if Chris intends to get the gook. He's got to make a move before

the man has reloaded his weapon.

He pulls his grenade, pops the pin. He lets the spoon fly off,

activating the grenade-timer, as he humps to his feet and runs

for the gook hole, concentrating, concentrating. That head is

going to pop up any second with a freshly-loaded weapon and tear

his head off.

Chris won't make it back to the hole. The throw has to be

perfect. He won't get another chance. He heaves the frag, drops

and rolls away. The throw is perfect, the golden arc of flight

from the outfield nailing the baserunner. It twists cleanly in

the hole. The explosion muffled but deadly.

Chris scrambles to his feet, a look of almost total surprise on

his face. He can't seem to believe he did it. Pointing his M-16

before him, he advances on the hole, looking over the muzzle to

see the badly-mangled NVA man twisted at the bottom.

Chris hurries over to Lerner. He's in bad shape, hit in several

places, vaguely conscious.

CHRIS (CONT'D)

Gator! Gator!

(Lerner groans)

I'm gonna get you out man. You're gonna be okay

Gator ... okay?

Fu Sheng laying out fire to protect them, Harold splitting off to

get more ammo.

Chris getting Lerner to his feet, hauling him back with all his

strength, past Francis ...

EXT. JUNGLE - WOLFE'S POSITION - DAY (RAIN)

Lt.Wolfe seems disorientated, struggling with the rain water

washing off his map, trying to read the coordinates for an arty

fire mission.

WOLFE:

(into the radio)

Redleg, Redleg ... Ripper Bravo Two Actual. Fire

mission. Grid six-four-niner ... four-zero-two.

Direction six-one-zero-zero. Dinks dug in bunkers.

Danger close. Adjust fire, over ...

RADIO VOICE:

Rog, Two Bravo. Solid copy, stand by for shot, out.

ACE:

Sir, Bravo Three is inbound from the Sierra Whiskey.

Should be here in two zero mikes if'n they don' hit

any sh*t.

WOLFE:

F***in' A!

Elias runs up to him. Fire all around, incoming and outgoing,

makes them yell to each other.

ELIAS:

Lootenant, they're kickin our ass, they know we're

gonna bring heavy sh*t on 'em pretty soon so they're

gonna get in tight under the arty. I spotted a cut

running around to the left. Lemme take some men and

roll up that flank ..

(pointing)

I can work right up on 'em ...

Wolfe unsure, looks up for the artillery.

WOLFE:

(to Ace)

Get me Barnes ... I don't know 'Lias, we got four

down up there, if I split you off, we ...

Elias grabs a stick, urgent, starts drawing their position in the

dirt for Wolfe.

ELIAS:

Look, Lootenant ...

Wolfe looks up, relieved as Barnes splashes into the CP group.

Thunder peals.

BARNES:

(yelling at Wolfe and Ace)

Where the f*** is red platoon! Tell 'em to get their

asses up here! What the f*** you doin' back here

Elias? Round up your a**holes and move 'em up front,

we're getting chopped to sh*t.

ELIAS:

(yelling back)

Barnes, listen to me ... there's 5-6 spiderholes back

there

(points)

next to the church.

(draws it into the ground as he talks)

Third Platoon's coming up the stream to reinforce us.

Flank's wide open, dinks get 3-4 snipers in these

holes, when Third Platoon comes up, they'll get us in

a crossfire with 'em. We'll shoot each other to

sh*t, then they'll hit us with everything they got.

It'll be a massacre!

Barnes looking at the drawing.

WOLFE:

Sounds pretty far out to me 'Lias.

ELIAS:

Maybe but I seen it happen at Ia Drang in '66, First

Cavalry and they cut us to f***in' pieces!

(back to Barnes)

Give me three men, if I'm wrong, I can still roll up

that flank.

BARNES:

(a look)

Take off, but keep your radio here.

Elias goes, stops, looks at Barnes ...

ELIAS:

... You keep pouring out that suppressing fire,

Barnes. I don't wanna be caught out there with my

ass hanging out you hear me?

BARNES:

Don't tell me how to fight this f***ing war, 'Lias,

you go crying to f***ing brigade on your time. Out

here you belong to me. Now move.

A look. Elias goes fast. More thunder peals. As the 155mm

howitzers - sounding like deep tom-toms some three miles distant

- beat out their shells. An ominous sound. Closer.

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