by Lee Stephen
It was exactly what good behavior wasn’t. It was reckless, dishonest, and completely out of line for an EDEN operative.
Lilan loved every part of it.
* * *
When Scott, Becan, and Donner stepped into the Richmond hangar, the rest of Falcon Platoon awaited.
David slammed into Scott as soon as Scott emerged from the transport. Backslaps pounded against the young soldier. “That’s how you do it!”
Scott laughed as he fought to maintain balance. “I guess it is!”
“Do you have any idea what you guys just did?”
“Just what the other team couldn’t, it’s no big deal.”
“It hasn’t dawned on you yet…has it?”
Scott gave him a quizzical stare.
Becan’s eyes searched for someone else, though she found him first. It was Natasha. She approached him from the side and captured him in a full-bodied embrace.
Becan’s hands wrapped around her as he stumbled. “Grand to see yeh too!”
Natasha beamed. “Becan, you’re a hero!”
“I am in me wick.”
She leaned back as a serious expression washed over her face. “Becan, everyone is talking about this. That’s all the comm chatter was about during the ride home. None of the commanding officers can believe you pulled this off.”
“Really?”
She widened her smile. “Really.”
Tacker cut through the crowd toward Scott. “Remington!”
Scott spun away from David to face the voice. He immediately snapped to attention. “Sir.”
Tacker laughed and shook his head. “Remington, that was unbelievable. How in God’s name you pulled that off is beyond me.”
“Thank you, sir!”
“I’ve got to get the colonel up to par with our side of the fight, but I had to tell you that. Pull some more stuff like that and you’ll have my job.”
“Thank you, sir.” Salutes were exchanged, and Tacker filed away.
Becan was there a moment later. “Can yeh bloody believe this?”
Scott barely stifled a grin. “I guess we did something right.”
“We’re goin’ to be on the telly national news!”
Scott’s jaw flapped. “You’re joking!”
“I’m not! Remmy, do yeh realize tha’ the battle tonigh’ was the third-largest land battle fought on American soil since the Alien War began?”
“How do you—”
“Natasha. She told me a lot just now, mostly wha’ they heard from the cos on their way back to base. The battle is goin’ to be aired all over the world…I know tha’s nothin’ unusual, most fights are, but they might mention us!”
“Us as in us?” Scott’s eyes widened.
“They’re goin’ to talk about how a five-man team took ou’ an entire Bakma Carrier withou’ takin’ a hit!”
Scott blinked. “…wow.”
Becan laughed. “Yeah, wow. Wow.”
The two men stared at each other for a moment before they turned their attention to the hangar. Activity bustled in every direction, as the full capacity of Vultures returned to base.
The next hour was spent in recollection as Scott, Becan, and Donner retold the story of the Carrier to officer after officer. As time passed, excitement gave way to exhaustion, and exhaustion reminded them that before Chicago, they had been asleep in their beds. They took advantage of their first opportunity to slip away and return to the living quarters, where they showered and retired to their rooms.
It didn’t take any Falcon Platoon operatives long to fall asleep. The clock neared seven in the morning when the last operative turned in, and rest became a well-deserved ally.
Their comms never beeped.
7
Wednesday, April 6th, 0011 NE
1302 hours
It was 1300 hours when Lilan knocked on General Hutchin’s door. The weather outside was a meteorological nightmare—the whole of the Virginias were in the midst of a liquid bombardment. Humid smells festered in the base. It was more than apparent in Hutchin’s office, despite the portable fan that whirred in the corner.
“Sir,” Lilan said as he stepped inside. Hutchin was poring over a stack of memos.
“Hi Brent, have a seat. Sleep all right?”
“Didn’t sleep. Would’ve been pointless to try.”
Hutchin’s eyes left the papers as he leaned back in his chair. Rain pounded on the roof above. “I read over the reports from last night, yours several times. Very interesting stuff. There are a few things that caught my eye though, mostly your requests…you want to make Remington a delta?”
“I’d like it to be considered, sir.”
“You realize that that’s a three-rank promotion? That’s borderline absurd.”
Lilan heaved his chest, saying, “Sir, with all due respect, the line of absurdity was crossed when I was given a platoon full of rookies.”
The room fell quiet. The fan continued to whir. “Is that why this recommends McCrae and Jurgen for gamma, and Timmons, Bell, Rhodes, and Donner for beta?”
“I believe that’s reasonable.”
Hutchin exhaled and propped on his elbows. “Brent…you’ve been a colonel since EDEN began. You know these requests are ridiculous.”
“I don’t do anything without a reason, you know that,” Lilan said, clearing his throat. “I’d never promote someone unless I knew they could handle it. Do you have any idea what Remington did? Any idea what he accomplished?” Hutchin was silent. “Do you know how many Bakma were on that ship, sir?”
“No…”
“Forty-four. Eighteen were killed, twenty-six were captured. Do you understand the odds five men have against forty-four Bakma?”
“I’ll admit, that is fairly impressive.”
Lilan shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “That’s not all to take into consideration, sir. You’re right, it’s impressive. It’s impressive for anyone to take a forty-four-man Carrier. These men weren’t anyone. Three of them were rookies. Not only rookies, but rookies on their first mission. Remington was on his first mission. The last combat he saw was in a Philadelphia simulator.
“Consider that for a moment, general. A rookie led a team that shut down a Bakma Carrier with a crew of forty-four. And to make it that much better, they did it without a single casualty. This was originally assigned to a crew of twenty from Cougar Platoon.”
Hutchin folded his arms across his chest in contemplation.
“When I first heard that, I was astounded,” continued Lilan. “I knew that there were three possibilities. The Bakma could have been completely incompetent. They’ve never been that before.
“Or it could have been that this was a fluke of astronomical proportions. They happen. Flukes are inevitable.
“The third possibility, though…is that Remington out-led the original task force. Completely. I thought about it when I got back. Remington’s decision was voluntary. Nobody told him to do it. I listened over his audio transmissions, and he was adamant about it. Five times he asked permission to proceed, to both me and Major Tacker. We weren’t reassuring when we spoke to him. Remington knew what he was asking. He knew the odds, and he repeatedly asked for it. He knew he could do it.”
“Or he thought he knew,” Hutchin said.
“Which would make it a fluke,” Lilan answered. He pulled a small disk from his jersey and tossed it on the desk.
Hutchin reached for it. “What’s this?”
“That’s his audio log. I listened to it from start to finish. He doesn’t act like a rookie. Not once did his voice waver. When Henrick fell, he didn’t wait for someone to tell him to take over. He took over immediately. He wanted it.
“His command style is better than some captains I’ve worked with. He’s decisive, and his decisions work. If I were listening to this for the first time without knowing who it was, I’d swear this was a commanding officer.”
Hutchin turned the disk over in his palm. “According to your report, som
e operatives did.”
“Nobody questioned his authority. When a delta confuses an alpha with a bona fide co, you know something’s going on. He had charisma. They wanted to follow him. That’s not something you can teach.”
Hutchin chuckled. “I did enjoy the part about the van. That’s as original an idea as I’ve ever heard. All right Brent, I’ll admit, you’ve got some valid arguments for this kid.”
“There’s one more request I have for him.”
Hutchin raised a brow.
“I’d like to nominate him for a Golden Lion.”
The room quieted. Hutchin stared at Lilan and then lowered his gaze again to the disk. “You realize that the Lion medals are meant for commanding officers?”
“He was the commanding officer, sir. The fact that he was an alpha is irrelevant. The Golden Lion calls for courage, wisdom, and fortitude in a position of leadership against overwhelming odds. Everything it asks for, he gave. His actions define what the Golden Lion is about, maybe better than anyone who’s ever earned it.”
“You realize that no rookie has ever received a Golden Lion? Or any Lion medal. Hell, Faerber didn’t get one until he was an epsilon, and his first was a bronze.”
“I’m aware of that, sir.”
“That would make Remington the first man in EDEN history to earn a Golden Lion on his first mission. Nobody else has even come close.”
“Nobody else could have led that operation.”
Hutchin sighed. “I’m not going to let you bump him to delta trooper. Not this fast. I’ll let you bump him to gamma, but that’s it for right now. I want to make sure this kid is what you say he is before he starts scaling the chain of command. I realize, though, that if you’re right…holding him back will only hurt us. Good leaders are hard to come by.”
Lilan nodded. “I want to lead him personally in our next assignment, to see how he behaves first-hand. I want to see if he can follow orders as well as he gives them.”
“That sounds acceptable.”
“And the others?”
“Why Jurgen? He wasn’t on the rescue team.”
“The other operatives already look up to him. He served with the NYPD for fourteen years, I think he could serve well as a role model.”
“I’ll let you move McCrae, Timmons, Donner, and Rhodes to beta. As for Jurgen…not yet. I realize his experience is valuable…but I still want to wait a bit longer. That’s my final decision.”
“And the Golden Lion?”
Hutchin leaned back. “I’ll think about it. I want to make sure I’m not putting someone in the history books without a good reason. I’ll give this disk a listen and talk it over with EDEN Command. I would say…that he has a fairly good chance. I’ll make his case as you did.”
“Understood, sir.”
“Is that all you have for me?”
“Yes sir.”
“All right then, you’re free to go, thank you for the report.”
Lilan rose, thanked the general, and stepped out of the room.
* * *
The phone rang at 1330. It took several seconds for the repetitive reverberation to register in Scott’s mind, at which point his eyes shot open in a dazed frenzy. He bolted upright as David started in the bunk above.
What’s going on? Scott’s mind panicked. Jerseys! Three minutes! Find Tacker! Then it clicked. The phone. It was only the phone.
“What the hell?” David asked from above as his legs swung over the side of the bunk.
“The phone,” Scott answered. “It’s only the flicking phone.” David flopped back down as Scott chuckled. His heart settled, and he fumbled for the receiver. “Hello?” His morning-deep voice rumbled from his stomach.
“Scott! Oh, thank God!” said Nicole.
He grunted in realization and sat upright. He glanced at the clock. It was past one-thirty. “Hey, baby. What’s going on?” One-thirty. Unbelievable. He must have been out like a corpse.
She fluttered a breath. “What’s going on? I got back from class, turned on the television, and saw that Richmond got called into Chicago! They said the city was a war zone! Then I checked and saw that you never called…”
He winced. Of course. “No…baby, I’m fine.”
Her voice faltered. “…were you sleeping?”
“Yeah.” He laughed under his breath—he couldn’t help it. “I’m sorry, I should have called last night. I was caught up in everything.”
“Caught up in everything?”
“Yeah. The fight.” God, how was he going to explain this?
He heard her inhale sharply.
“No, no,” he said. “I’m fine, everything was fine.”
“That Nicole?” David croaked from the top bunk.
Scott covered the receiver. “Yeah man, hold on.”
David rolled over and chuckled. “Have fun with this one.”
“Scott?”
“I’m here, sorry.”
“You were there last night?”
Was he there? He was more there than anyone else in the city. “Yes, I was there.” He ran a hand back through his hair. “Don’t worry though, I’m fine. I didn’t get hurt, I didn’t get shot or anything.” I just led a random strike team into a Carrier.
She released another audible breath. “Thank God.” Scott leaned back against the wall of the bed. “So you were there? How bad was it?”
Here it came. “It was…pretty bad. I mean, not like…really bad, but…” He didn’t even know how to begin. “We got called in as backup. The first wave from EDEN got hammered.”
“Were there a lot of Bakma?”
“Yeah…there was a pretty fair amount.” That was an understatement. There were more Bakma than clips to drop them. But that wasn’t what she needed to hear. What was inevitable, however, was much more complicated. “Baby…there’s something I have to tell you.”
Total quiet. In the second that followed, Scott’s mind played over the typical words that followed that statement. I’m calling from prison. I gambled all our money. I’m having an affair. “Don’t worry, I’m not having an affair or anything.”
He could almost hear her shrink back. “What?”
“Huh?”
“An affair?”
Stupid. That was stupid. “No no, baby, I’m not having an affair.”
“Scott, why did you say that?”
Because I’m a moron. “I just said it, I’m sorry, I was just thinking of…you know, when people say they have something to tell someone, and like…” David lost it on the upper bunk. “Baby. I just woke up. My mind’s not even here yet. There’s no affair, that’s not what I have to tell you.”
She stayed quiet.
“Did you hear anything about…a Carrier?”
“What?”
“On the news. Did they say anything about a Bakma Carrier? Getting captured?”
There was a silence on the line. “Yes,” she answered. “I think I remember that…”
It was time. There were no more bushes to beat around. Drop back. “I was part of the team that captured it.”
She stifled a gasp. “You were inside an alien spaceship? Scott, how many of you were there?”
Pass. “…five.”
“Five! Scott, what were you doing?”
Touchdown. “I led it.” There were only two ways she could respond. The first was with total awe. He was her hero, a champion of the world. A knight. He bravely took up his sword and charged into the dragon’s lair, to come out the victor on the other side.
“Scott!”
That was the second way. “Baby, baby, calm down…”
“Scott! You expect me to calm down when I find out you’re assaulting alien spaceships? Oh my God, Scott!”
“Baby…”
“I can’t believe that! It’s your first mission, what were they thinking? Who in their right mind orders a soldier to lead an assault on his first mission? Are they really that crazy?”
“Baby…”
“Who ordered
you to do it? Scott, I want to know who this lunatic is.”
There was no way this would be good. The hammer had already fallen. The nail was in the coffin. “I volunteered.”
In the upper bunk, David mimicked a bomb drop.
“What!”
“Wow, I actually heard that,” said David.
“Baby, please,” Scott said.
“What!”
“Baby—”
“Have you lost your mind? Have you—Scott! Oh my God, I can’t believe I’m hearing this!”
Scott sat up. “Nikki, listen, just give me a second to—”
“Scott, do you have any idea how I feel right now? Do you know how many nights I’m wide awake in bed praying for you to be safe? And now you’re telling me…oh my God, I can’t believe this!”
It was about as bad as he figured it could get, if everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong in the worst possible way. “Baby, I was fine…”
Tears poured out as she sobbed at the other end of the line. “I’m supposed to be okay with this? Are you joking?”
“Baby, no…I mean…”
“Scott, do you know how I’ve felt since the first day you told me you were joining EDEN? Every day since, I’ve been holding in the back of my mind, what if you die? What if I wake up and find out that you’re dead?” His stomach knotted. “And now, you’re volunteering to die? Why? Why are you doing this?”
He rubbed his neck. “Nikki, you know why I’m doing this—”
“No! Please don’t tell me you thought it was God’s will, because that’s the same thing you said about us!” She choked out her words. “Nothing about this has worked in any way that is good for us! You leave school out of nowhere when everything is going for you, you tell me you’ll be stationed in Detroit, now you’re in Virginia, and now you expect me to hear that you’re just throwing your life around, and I’m supposed to be okay with that?”
Scott bent forward and rubbed his forehead. “Nikki…”
