The new chapters have been sent to the Moderators for posting.
This week's chapters open with the unit and their vehicles arriving at Ban Chap Houma to find the villagers distraught by the appearance of five new buildings over night. Chanthra arrives to explain things.
Following inspecting the buildings, the Captain is anxious to begin recruiting men for the unit before Mike points out some of the major problems to be solved first. The weapons are finally stores, and Captain Vanh returns from his talks with the villagers about support.
Details are worked out and assignments are made. A cook appears for the headquarters detachment, and supplies are obtained before Mike, Thao, and Bounmy return to Sing for the night.
The next day, Chanthra consults with the Abbot about which Wats to visit. The officers decide what order the various villages in the District will be visited to recruit men. The next ten days are busy with recruiting and Wat visits.
The pick up of recruits begins two days later. Because of language differences the recruits are placed in Platoons by the language they speak. Additional cooks arrive.
After five days, the unit is nearly full, but there is a shortage in certain leadership positions. They are soon ready to begin training. At the first unit formation, new equipment and clothing appears, a gift from the Amulets. It needs to be sorted out and issued.
These two chapters were fairly easy to write. They drew on some things from previous stories in this series, plus my knowledge of how military units are organized and trained.
Enjoy these two chapters. More next week.
Keep Well,
uncle jim