VIETNAM UNCENSORED — 365 DAYS IN A NIGHTMARE — A PORTRAIT OF HERCULES

Hercules was a tall, dark Mexican-American. He was the strongest of my team, with an M-60 on his back and ammo strung across his chest. He had the looks for Hollywood, but his humor made him a legend. He was always joking, even when everything seemed to be falling apart.

One time stands out. We remained hunkered down in a Landing Zone (LZ) just before the 1968 TET Offensive. General Brothers sent us to extract a wounded officer deep in enemy territory. Intelligence was murky at best, and the Pentagon dismissed the warnings of a significant enemy buildup. They couldn’t fathom the North Vietnamese having enough strength to attack in full force. But the enemy was massing, and the storm was coming.

Brothers forcefully repeated: “Follow my directives. I don’t care if Jesus himself tells you to do otherwise. Are we clear?”

“Yes, Sir,” I said. He was smart, knew the game, played it to win.

When we arrived at the LZ, Captain Standing, the officer in charge, made it clear he ruled the place. “Don’t do anything without my say-so,” he shouted. “Understood?”

“Yes, Sir,” I replied — no point in arguing with a man who commanded an outpost in the middle of nowhere.