Voshchanka and his colonel could see that the first helicopter was Palcikas' Mil-8 transport helicopter, with door gunners standing in each side door and out the back of the rear cargo ramp, aiming huge Degtyarev 12.7-millimeter machine guns at the vehicles and soldiers below. The other two helicopters were small, almost toylike American-made McDonnell-Douglas Model 500 Defender attack models, but each one carried a rocket and gun pods on fuselage-mounted pylons. They may have looked like toys, but there was nothing childlike about the threat. At the same time, Palcikas' aide had raised his AKSU

assault rifle, ready to open fire.

"Tell your aide to lower his rifle or there will be bloodshed," the Byelorussian colonel said.

He had aimed his sidearm at Palcikas' aide when he had raised his own. The two men eyed each other, neither daring to move; then Kolginov turned the muzzle of his weapon away.

The Colonel smiled, as though he had just won a major victory, then holstered his sidearm.

"This is how you want to conduct business with the Commonwealth, General Palcikas?"

Voshchanka asked, taking only a momentary glance at the attack choppers before turning back to the Lithuanian general.

"Aim a gun pod at a fellow officer-in peacetime? Threaten us with violence while in the midst of negotiations? You should re-evaluate your actions, I think."

"I am no threat to you or your Byelorussian soldiers, General Voshchanka," Palcikas said. "I am sure six antiaircraft guns are targeted against each one of my helicopters. They, or I, would not survive a firefight. But neither would you, and I assure you, I would be satisfied with that outcome.~~

"You Lithuanian pig," Voshchanka's colonel spat.

"I have asked you twice to depart this area. I shall ask a third time. After that I will consider this detachment an invasion force and deal with it with all the power in my command-right here, right now. You will pack up your troops and your vehicles and return to your CIS base in Siauliai or to Kaliningrad immediately. Will you comply?"

Voshchanka's confident smile had vanished with the appearance of those attack helicopters. True, he had more than enough counterbattery units to destroy this pathetic force, especially hovering as they were in plain view, but one rocket from one helicopter could kill all of them instantly. No, this was not the time nor place for a showdown.

"Colonel Gurlo, order your units to assemble and return to base immediately," Voshchanka said, keeping his gaze affixed on Palcikas. "Tell the gunners to lower their antiaircraft guns right now.~~

The Colonel looked mad enough to spit bullets, but he relayed the order.

Palcikas remained as he was, staring at Voshchanka as the big BMP-1 and BMV-3

armored personnel carriers scattered around the farm fired up their big diesels and started to move toward the main road, their 30-millimeter machine guns lowered and pointing far away from the helicopters. As the armored vehicles moved, the two Defender helicopters moved along with them, leaving Palcikas' Mil-8 nearby ready to pick up the Lithuanian general.