human
I found out tonight why Colonel Ibrahim is attacking, instead of pulling in his horns as reason would dictate. Dave paused for emphasis.
gpt
The Soviet Complex has thrown its weight, in this matter at least, on the side of the Arab Union. They have insisted that Sven Zetterberg be dismissed as head of the Sahara Division of the African Development Project and that his threat to use Reunited Nations aircraft if the local fighting spreads to the air, be repudiated.
human
Good grief ... that means--
gpt
It means, he said,
human
Holy Mackerel, Cliff groaned.
gpt
We've had it. Another regiment of crack troops in Tamanrasset and we'll _never_ take the town.
human
That's not the big thing. The paratroopers aren't going to drop in Tamanrasset. They're going to hit every oasis, every water hole, in a circumference of two hundred miles.
gpt
In the expectation that every follower of El Hassan in the Sahara will either surrender or die of thirst, eh? He didn't seem sufficiently impressed by the threatening disaster. He looked at Dave questioningly.
human
Why do you bother to tell us, Dave, if you're on the other side?
gpt
Because I've just become a full member of the team. I resigned from the Party tonight.
human
Brother, Bey said,
gpt
All right, he said.
human
A new complication. Let's face up to it. There's always an answer. We're in the clutch, let's fight our way out.
gpt
We need some ideas. Let's kick it around. Isobel, Cliff, Jack, Kenny--?
human
Ideas! We've had it, Homer!
gpt
A month ago we were half a dozen fugitives. Now we're an army besieging a city. And you say we've had it? Listen, Kenny, if we have to we'll go back to being half a dozen fugitives again--those of us that are left. But the dream goes on! However, we're not going to have to. We're too near victory in this stage of the operation to sit down on the job because of a threatened reverse. Now then, let's kick it around. Jimmy! Dave! Kenny! Ostrander!
human
And I'd just worked out a bang-up scheme for infiltrating into town, joining up with our adherents there, and seizing it while most of Ibrahim's men were out in the desert, trying to capture our nearer water holes.
gpt
It sounds like it still might have possibilities.
human
How long would it take?
gpt
What?
human
How long do you figure it would take to infiltrate Tamanrasset and capture it? Behind Ibrahim's back, so to speak.
gpt
A couple of hours in the early morning. I had a beautiful picture of the colonel's armor out in the desert, cut off from its petroleum supplies and ammunition dump while we held the town. Some of our men, the former veterans of the French West African forces, could have even operated the antitank guns he has mounted at Fort Laperrine.
human
See if you can raise Colonel Ibrahim for me.
gpt
Why?
human
Do it.
gpt
O.K. Do it.