Day Soldiers

by Brandon Hale

  “I… I don’t…”

  “You want this, Karen,” the vampire said. “You know you do. Look at the alternative! Just open the window and invite me in. I’ll make it so none of us ever feels pain again.”

  Karen opened the window.

  Air Force One, somewhere above Louisiana.

  “Baghdad just fell,” the communications officer said.

  “I’m not interested in Baghdad,” the president said. He looked out the plane’s window at the land far below. “How much is left of America?”

  “The entire east coast is lost,” the officer said. “And every state west of Texas. The last report said that Texas is putting up a hell of a fight, but…”

  “But what?”

  “It’s only a matter of time, Mr. President,” the officer said. “Arkansas, Louisiana, and Alabama are pretty much the only clean states left.”

  Congressman Dan Hillman sat beside the president. “Historically,” he said, “troops are diminished by battle. Soldiers die. But these bastards gain numbers after every battle. By sunrise, humanity will no longer be the dominant species on this planet.”

  “If we ever were,” the president said. “We should’ve nuked them ten years ago.”

  “Wouldn’t have helped,” Hillman said. “A nuclear attack would just kill more humans.”

  “Damn!” The president punched the wall of the plane.

  “Mr. President,” Hillman said, “I think we need to get underground while we still can. Are there any facilities in Louisiana?”

  “Hell, I don’t know, Dan,” the president said dismissively.

  “What?” Hillman said, his voice a mixture of surprise and worry. “You’re the president of the whole damn country. How could you possibly not know where the facilities are?”

  The president smiled humorlessly. “Regretting your decision to hitch a ride with me, congressman?”

  “No, sir,” Hillman said. “I consider it an honor to be by your side at the end. I’m just… surprised.”

  “It was for security,” the president explained. “I can’t have that information in my head. If the Legion ever captured me… or worse, if they ever turned me into a bloodsucker, it would be disastrous. Dan, since this war started, you’d be amazed at the stuff I’m not allowed to know.”

  “I’m assuming,” Hillman said, “there’s a way to get this information?”

  The president pulled a small thumb drive from his jacket pocket. “It’s all here,” he said. “If I were to be captured, I just press this button and it’s instantly erased. Very few people actually know the locations of the facilities. The rest carry one of these.”

  “I’m a little upset I wasn’t given one,” Hillman said.

  “I’m sure you have advisors who have one,” the president said as he opened his laptop and slid the device into the appropriate slot. “Besides, it doesn’t matter now. You’re with me.”

  A map booted up on his monitor. “Looks like we have seven facilities in Louisiana. Apparently, my designated facility was in northern Virginia, but that’s out. So I guess we just pick one.”

  “Or not,” Hillman said.

  “As usual, Dan,” the president said, “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”

  Dan answered with a low, guttural growl.

  The president turned to see a large, hair-covered monstrosity sitting beside him.

  In that instant, a dozen thoughts shot through the president’s mind, but three overshadowed the rest.

  He’s a poser.

  He knows where the facilities are.

  I’m going to die.

  Five minutes later, every human on the plane – including the pilot – was dead.

  The werewolf scooped up the president’s laptop, ripped the plane’s door open, and dove into the night sky.

  Chapter 20

  New York City

  The early morning sun gave everything in New Castle a subtle orange glow. Abbie stood over the body of Leo Rosenberg. She looked at the wound over his heart and said, “Baxter has now officially killed every person she ever loved. That poor girl.”

  “Looks like they took out a werewolf as well.” Wallace was looking at Tina.

  Abbie looked at Tina’s body. “Did you know her?”

  “No.” Wallace looked around the town. “Maybe they went back.”

  “If we found Dennis lying here dead,” Abbie said, “I’d agree with you. But I doubt she’s turned back now. I’m sure they got the order to go underground, which means they know what happened last night. Hope is lost to them. Leo is dead. The war is lost. That just leaves one thing.”

  “Revenge,” Wallace said.

  Abbie nodded. “If I had to guess, I’d say they’re heading to the Legion’s capital.”

  “Jackson’s Folly,” Wallace agreed.

  Abbie looked at him with annoyed eyes. “New York City,” she corrected.

  “Right,” Wallace said. “So are we headed to New York?”

  “What do you think?”

  “The werewolves,” Wallace said, “are probably heading back to their home cities as we speak. The vampires will join them after nightfall. It’ll be like New Year’s Eve in the Big Apple tonight. I think going there is suicide, for us and for Lily’s team.”

  “So we’re going then,” Abbie said.

  “I reckon so,” Wallace answered.

  They walked back to their vehicle and climbed inside, Wallace taking the driver’s seat. As soon as she sat in the passenger’s seat, Abbie saw the red flashing light on the dashboard. She pressed the touch screen above the light and said, “There’s a standing order to maintain radio silence.”

  A young man’s face appeared on the screen. “I know, ma’am, but this is… important.”

  “It had better be extremely important,” Abbie said, “for you to risk sending a signal from a safe zone.”

  “We found the president’s plane, ma’am. It crashed in Louisiana.”

  “Okay,” Wallace said, “that’s bad.”

  “Yes, sir,” the soldier said, “and it gets worse. The bodies in the crash appeared to have been mutilated.”

  “A plane crash will do that,” Abbie said.

  “By a werewolf, ma’am.”

  Abbie and Wallace looked at each other with worried eyes. “If a werewolf caused that crash…” Wallace said.

  “They know where the facilities are,” Abbie finished.

  “That was our thinking, too,” the soldier said. “Suggestions?”

  Wallace and Abbie looked at each other again. Neither had an answer.

  Abbie finally asked, “Is it really over, Geoff?”

  “I can’t speak for the other facilities,” the soldier said, “but down here, we plan to dig in and take out as many of those bastards as we can. We’ve got several channelers here. If this really is the end, we’re gonna make it epic.”

  “What’s your name, son?” Wallace asked.

  “Burke, sir.”

  “Well, Mr. Burke,” Wallace said, “if your people are willing to fight to the very end, can I suggest a final stand that would be a little more… what was the word you used? Epic?”

  Burke smiled. “I’m listening, sir.”

  ***

 

  Grung laughed.

  Scott looked at him and cocked an eyebrow.

  “I just got it,” Grung said. “When you said, ‘Let’s go kill that son of a bitch,’ it had a double meaning. He’s a canine. His mom was literally a bitch.”

  “I just meant I hate him,” Scott said.

  “Well,” Grung said, “I thought it was pretty funny.”

  Scott just shook his head and looked at the clock in the truck.

  5:07pm.

  “You probably should wake up the ladies,” he said. “I think we should walk the rest of the way.”

  “
We’re there?” Grung said.

  “Pretty much,” Scott said. “We’re coming up on the Holland tunnel. I doubt we’ll be able to get the truck through. From what I’ve read, all the cars from the original New York Massacre are still there. We’ll have to walk through.”

  Grung slid the back window open and yelled, “Rise and shine, soldiers! We’re there.”

  “Already?” Lily asked as she wiped the sleep from her eyes. “How long was I asleep?”

  “A good five and a half hours,” Scott said as he slowed the vehicle to a stop in the center of the road. “The one benefit of this being a fourteen hour trip is that we all got some much needed rest.”

  Lily looked ahead of them at the tunnel entrance, which was cluttered with old cars. “I hope we don’t run into company in there.”

  “Not likely,” Ellie said. “We didn’t come across a single werewolf or vampire during the entire drive. I’d say the majority are still down south.”

  “No,” Scott said. “We can’t make that assumption. This is their capital. They’ll be coming here to celebrate.”

  “Alright,” Grung said. “Here’s the important question. Pirates or ninjas?”

  “We do pirates way too much,” Ellie said. “It makes sense most of the time, but not here. We need to show them why we’re called sneakers.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Scott said.

  Grung smiled, “I’m down for some ninja action.”

  “Make sure your silencers are secure,” Lily said, “and after we cross the bridge, take another scent inhibitor.”

  “I have two things to add,” Scott said. “Two important things.”

  “Go ahead,” Lily said.

  Scott took a moment to apparently gather his thoughts, then said, “First, there’s a good chance there’s a vampire on their ruling council.”

  “Why the hell would you think that?” Lily asked. “Vampires are pawns. Mindless, soulless pawns.”

  “Obviously, not all of them.” Scott didn’t say his name, but they all understood he meant Leo. “There’s always been speculation in the upper ranks of the Day Soldiers that a vampire was on their council. I think our experience in New Castle supports that idea.”

  “How do you know what the upper ranks of the Day Soldiers think?” Lily asked.

  “I’m an information specialist,” Scott said with a smile. “Perk of the job.”

  Why do I find that smile so damn charming? Lily thought, then immediately chastised herself for thinking like a damn teenager on what could very possibly be the last day of her life. She decided right then that if they survived the night, she would tell him. There was no denying he was handsome. Everything about him was attractive, from his smooth skin to that perfect, charming smile. If they’d met under different circumstances—

  Lily suddenly understood something very important.

  “You okay, chief?” Scott asked.

  Lily flushed slightly, then said, “Yeah. What’s the second thing?”

  “We decided to do this as a team,” Scott said. “All of us.”

  “Right…”

  “We can’t be picky about who gets to be the avenger here,” he explained. “We’re here to kill Dennis. That’s the team’s goal. If any of us gets a shot, we take it. Right then.”

  “I see,” Lily said. “You’re worried that I’ll pull some he’s mine nonsense.”

  “A little,” Scott admitted. “Yeah.”

  “Don’t worry,” Lily said. “We all want him dead. If any of us gets the shot, we all win.”

  “Okay then,” Scott said.

  “If nobody has anything else,” Lily said, “let’s get moving. If we’re lucky, we can be in and out of here before dark.”

  The team climbed over the first cars in the tunnel and began their final walk to New York City.

  ***

  “If she comes to Jackson’s Folly,” Dennis spat, “she’s dead!”

  “No,” Arcas said calmly. “We had a deal.”

  Dennis paced around the small office, clenching and unclenching his fists. “You can take our deal and shove it straight up your undead ass. If she comes here, she dies.”

  “She killed your mate,” Arcas said, “so I’m going to forgive your current attitude. I know how passionate werewolves can be. But you have to get over this, Dennis. The girl is broken. I’m confident we can turn her.”

  “Turn someone else,” Dennis said. “We have hundreds of thousands of human prisoners. Pick one of them, because I’m killing this girl.”

  “No,” Arcas said calmly. “I need her.”

  “Why!”

  Arcas walked to the window and looked at the city outside. “We just won the world.” He turned and looked at Dennis. “Do you even fathom what that means? You shall have your forests, Dennis. And we shall have the cities.” He again looked out the window. “And I will not fill those cities with the vampires who currently own the night. I need something… better.”

  “I’m pretty damn sure you’ll find others,” Dennis said.

  “I’m not so sure,” Arcas said. “I suspect there are many more out there, but it’s incredibly difficult to find them, primarily because most vampires who meet them die.”

  “I don’t care,” Dennis said. “This isn’t my problem.”

  Arcas moved faster than even Dennis could see, instantly appearing two inches from his face. “Listen to me, wolf. This is not the time to fracture our relationship. I will have this girl.”

  Dennis saw Daciana and Cassius in the doorway, watching the exchange.

  “You want to feel better?” Arcas continued. “Drown her in despair. Make her feel so horrible that she’ll accept any offer to make the pain go away… even from the devil himself.”

  With Daciana and Cassius watching, Dennis understood that now wasn’t the time to fight. His kind was about to get everything they ever wanted, and he recognized that, despite his personal anguish, he couldn’t be the one to ruin everything they’d worked for. “That sounds like a reasonable compromise,” he said through gritted teeth.

  “I’m very sorry,” Arcas said. “I promise I’ll make it up to you, my friend.”

  “There’s a crowd forming in Times Square,” Daciana said. “I think they’re waiting on someone to officially start the celebration.”

  Dennis looked at Arcas. “I’m not a politician.”

  “Don’t look at me,” Arcas said. “It’s still daylight out. My people aren’t even there yet.”

  “No,” Daciana said when Dennis looked at her.

  Dennis sighed. “This day just keeps getting better.”

  ***

  Thousands of werewolves were gathered in Times Square. Some were in human form, but most were giant bipedal wolves. When Jackson’s Folly was New York, all the screens in the square were filled with various advertisements. This day, however, they displayed video images of different cities across the globe. Some of these cities were completely destroyed while others seemed untouched by war, but they all had one thing in common.

  They were no longer human cities.

  Dennis stood on top of the large sign in the center of the square, watching the celebration below. He had climbed onto the sign from the window behind it and was so far unnoticed by the celebrators below. The small camera on top of the sign swiveled away from the crowd and pointed up at him, splashing his image across the giant screen beneath his feet.

  Dennis waited quietly until more and more of the werewolves noticed the screen and eventually quieted. Dennis cleared his throat and switched on the microphone attached to his shirt. He took a deep breath, thought again about how badly he hated being in front of large crowds, then began to speak.

  “The world,” he said calmly, “belongs to us now.”

  The crowd literally howled in celebration.

  “The surviving humans,” Dennis continued, “will be placed in facilit
ies where they won’t be mistreated. Each facility will be near water, and they will be given supplies to grow their own food. Hell, some of them will have improved lives. They’ll have to supply our undead friends with blood, but other than that, they’ll be left alone. Finally, humanity will be in its proper place.”

  Someone in the crowd yelled, “As cattle!” Several others laughed at the comment.

  Dennis lifted his hand to quiet them. “Of course, human/vampire relations aren’t really our concern. The vampires can have these ugly human cities. I don’t give a damn. We fought this war for the world beyond city walls.”

  The crowd howled again.

  “The forests,” Dennis said, his voice louder and more excited, “belong to us! The mountains belong to us! The jungles belong to us! No more deforestation! No more parking lots where nature once stood! The vampires don’t need fast food. They don’t need car factories. They will have the cities, but the rest… is ours! The planet will once again… finally… find balance!”

  He took a calming breath. “Friends, the plague that is humanity has ended. Enjoy your celebration.”

  ***

 

  Lily and her team watched the speech through the window of a darkened apartment several stories above the celebration. The body of a werewolf lay dead on the floor behind them.

  “I hate to say it,” Scott began.

  “Then don’t,” Lily interrupted.

  Scott shrugged. “He makes a good point.”

  “I’m sure,” Grung added, “that many Germans in the nineteen-forties thought the same thing about the speeches they were hearing.”

  “Point taken,” Scott conceded.

  Ellie looked at the dead werewolf and said, “I think we should get moving. It won’t take them long to notice our friend isn’t answering his calls.”

  “Not yet,” Lily said, not taking her eyes off Dennis.

  “Oh yeah,” Ellie said with a nod.

  Dennis stood on the sign, watching the celebration for several more minutes. Eventually, he turned around and crawled into the window behind him.

  “Bingo,” Scott said.

  ***

  Cassius sat with his feet propped up on the office desk. Arcas stood by the window, watching the celebration. “You know,” Cassius said, “we’re eventually going to have to do something about all the baby vampires. There are too many.”