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For the most part, this isn’t really your decision to make. You have no knowledge about the area south of the town beyond that the highway you came on continues south towards the city of Lesrenadi – and that the front is somewhere north of that city. You don’t know what Abel will encounter on his reconnaissance in force and, without that precious on-the-ground knowledge, you can’t tell him the best decision. However, seeing how he has not seen combat before, you can give him a least a little general advice.
“The purpose of this operation, Lieutenant, is to conduct a reconnaissance of the territory south of Gordon City and determine the cause of the ongoing power outage. This operation is conducted in force precisely to prevent limited armed resistance from impeding successful completion of the mission; your men should be able to defend themselves and complete the assigned task. This is not, however, a combat mission and you have permission to retreat if you feel enemy resistance is too strong or unit cohesion is disintegrating.”
“And sir,” A confused and apprehensive expression remains on the lieutenant’s face, “if I make this judgment, do I radio for permission? Can Captain Hasanaliev grant permission?”
Ah, so it is this kind of unit. Not the first you have been it, so you see where he is coming from. It is surprising it took you this long to notice, Gennady, he is scared of being punished. Shifting blame is a crucial part of any military operation and Lieutenant Bakriev is fearful of having it weigh solely upon him. He doesn’t realize it yet, Genya, not like you do, how alone you are out here – the chain of command, at least for now, stops with you. So long as you do not find fault with the man, he will not be punished.
“Lieutenant, you have my full permission to retreat if you feel the situation requires that action. You do not need to radio for permission beforehand. I entrust the decision entirely to you, and” You attempt to allay his fear of post-combat retribution, “I will take personal responsibility for having given you that power. Does that make sense, lieutenant?”
“Yes sir.” The tension in the lieutenant’s face has been replaced by a faint shock, you can’t imagine that he has heard many commanders promise to take responsibility before. With that question answered, you dismiss Abel Bakriev, who jogs back to the high school to finish assembling his platoon.