Casserine

by Bernard Lee DeLeo

  “All the more reason for them to be agreeable to a compromise,” Jake replied.

  “He’s so cute when he’s like this,” Mercer said sarcastically, as he tried to tickle Jake under the chin to everyone’s amusement. “How do you walk into a command situation like this and perform so brilliantly, and then make a statement so naïve it would make a nine year old blush.”

  Jake laughed with the rest good naturedly, having been zapped verbally by Mercer from all the way back to when he was a boot camp in Deke Larsen’s squad.

  “The Intrepid is due back out here in a week,” Jake said finally. “We’ll see what comes up by then. In the meantime, let’s just enjoy this one calm moment. Hell, by tomorrow, we’ll probably be under attack by an alien death squad.”

  “I believe they would be in trouble,” Tokoru put in. “We finished the Plasma Weapon emplacements today. They incorporate an anti-matter base like the one Major Peters blew the shit out of the alien ship with, and utilizes a Plasma beam as the propellant.”

  “Yea, but we don’t have a tried and true shielding in place,” Jake observed.

  “But we do have Command Wing Fighters on rotating patrol, Jake,” Peters reminded him proudly.

  “Would you have enough room for a passenger if Nick comes up with the new weaponry?” Jake asked him.

  “General, the Command Wing is not some one seat land rover,” Peters answered. “You can’t stay out on patrol for as long as we do without some room, and some of the amenities. Thinking about coming along?”

  “If you don’t mind the company.”

  “It would be a pleasure, Sir. We have room for another, Charlie. What about you?” Peters asked.

  Mercer shook his head firmly. “Not on your life. I’m game for anything on the ground, but I draw the line at Jump Gate forays into certain death. I’ll stick around with the Colonel here to take up the slack when you disappear without a trace.”

  “I’d like to go, Sir,” Dougherty said. “If you have new weaponry, I could check it out, and I’ll get together with Major Richardson so I know the workings of it inside out.”

  “Tim, I’d take you and leave the General in that case,” Peters said, enthusiastically.

  “If you leave Jake, Colonel,” Mercer said calmly, “what will you do when you need someone to dive into a foul smelling vat of vile, putrid liquid?”

  The laughter went on for a long time.

  Chapter 23

  Hostage Situation

  “Come in,” Jake called out, in answer to the knock at his cabin door.

  The door opened and a grim Charlie Mercer walked in. He saluted formally, and Jake stood up to return the salute after turning off the monitor on his desk.

  “Hey, what’s all this,” Jake asked smiling. “I was just going overthe.”

  “Jake, the Intrepid’s back, and your wife’s not on it. We just received word you are to report on board to Colonel Taskoroff for an update from Earth Command.”

  “Who told you my wife was not on the ship?” Jake asked, hurriedly putting on his uniform top.

  “You have friends on the Intrepid,” Mercer explained. “As soon as we received word the Intrepid was in orbit, and retrieved their formal request, Yuri received a message from somewhere else on the ship about your wife. It also said you should not report on board.”

  “A trap?” Jake asked in confusion. “Do they want to execute me on the Intrepid or something? This is crazy.”

  “Colonel Peters would like to fly you on board with Tim at the deck gun, accompanied by me and our company of nest Marines, fully loaded. They all volunteered when they heard.”

  “I appreciate that, Charlie, but I am going alone. I imagine they wish to send a ship to get me, don’t they?”

  “Yea, that chickenshit Taskoroff wants you to come alone, on one of their Drop Ships. I told everyone you wouldn’t do it,” Charlie sighed.

  “You feel same as me. We don’t want Marines getting killed by other Marines. It’s insane. You wouldn’t mind if I went along though, wouldyou?”

  “No, but they would. Let me see what this is all about before we start a civil war,” Jake said reasonably. “Come with me to the Command Center, and let’s cool the ‘Dogs of War’ off before someone does something rash.”

  “Jake, I don’t see anything good coming of all this, do you?” Mercer asked seriously.

  “No, Charlie, I don’t,” Jake admitted. “Maybe they’ll allow me to go back to Casserine with Adrian. I’d settle for that.”

  “With a Galactic War on the horizon, we need you. You can’t just fade off into the sunset. They’d want you to admit to treason, and sedition, just so they could tear you down in a public forum back on Earth. There must be some way to sort this shit out short of blowing each other up.”

  “If I come up with it, you’ll be the first to know, my friend,” Jake said, putting his arm around Mercer’s shoulder, as he guided him out. “I had better call General Risling before I go up there to the Intrepid.”

  “Yuri tried to get hold of Risling as soon as he received the second message. They’re blocking all signals from the surface of Bougainville.”

  “Gee, too bad that prick wasn’t so inventive when he had a couple thousand Marines trapped down here,” Jake replied angrily.

  ‘Tea, well it’s his ass on the line now, so he doesn’t want anyone intercepting him on his way back to Earth. Makes me wonder what he has planned for all of us after he leaves. We could still get a message to Risling in time for the General to intercept the Intrepid from Genoa.”

  “Maybe I’ve underestimated Taskoroff,” Jake mused. “He might be stupid enough to do to us what he could not do to the Bugs.”

  Colonel Tokoru saw Jake and Mercer coming towards him as he waited just outside their Command Center. He saluted formally as they walked up, and Jake returned it.

  “The Intrepid has targeted our surface scanners and amplifiers, including the habitat,” Tokoru told them. “Colonel Peters took off in the Command Wing Fighter before they found out he was on planet. He told me to tell you he will target the bridge if they charge weapons. He will wait to hear from you on the Intepid otherwise. Just contact me. I have the code, and I will relay your orders.”

  “God, that was quick thinking,” Jake marveled. “Are they sending a shuttle?”

  “It’ll be on the ground any moment,” Tokoru replied. “What are you going to do, Jake?”

  “Go back with them,” Jake answered. “I’ll try and make a deal, which will not include watching all of you get blown up, or Jas having to fire on their bridge.”

  “Damn,” Mercer exclaimed. “Without Colonel Peters, we wouldn’t even have a hole card in this deal. I’m beginning to get pissed. I’m going to go wake the boys up.”

  “No need,” Tokoru said with a smile.

  They all turned as they heard a Drop Ship land outside. As they walked towards the entrance, the entrance hatch burst open, and a company of fully armored Marines hustled through. They stopped just inside the hatch, weapons at the ready, as a Colonel followed them. He saw Jake, Mercer and Tokoru, and signaled for a squad to accompany him.

  “Captain Matthews,” the Colonel began. “I am Colonel Clinton Wheeler. You will go with Lieutenant Dresden here to the Intrepid while I assume command of Bougainville.”

  “Just in case you’re blind, Colonel,” Mercer retorted, ignoring Jake’s cautioning hand, “those are General’s stars on Jake’s uniform.”

  “Earth Command has stripped his rank back to Captain,” Wheeler stated with a wave of his hand.

  The Marines in his deployment approached Jake, and the entire detachment of Marines in the Bougainville habitat came out from where they had been hiding. They were all armored, and carrying particle beam rifles. Before the Marines with Wheeler could react, Lieutenant Mendoza came out from behind them. The Marines at the entrance were looking down the muzzles of a hundred and seventy-five particle beam rifles, held by the company of Nest Marines, with thousands
backing them up. Jake looked over at Tokoru quizzically. Tokoru simply shrugged.

  Wheeler looked around in dismay at the display of force. He looked at Jake. Wheeler radiated fury like heat from a blast furnace. “You will submit Matthews or by God you will be executed right here.”

  Jake smiled at him, and gestured to the Marines behind Wheeler. “Take off your helmets boys. No one’s dying here today.”

  Wheeler’s Marines slung their weapons, and tore off their helmets. They saluted Jake, and he returned it. Lieutenant Dresden stepped forward. “It is an honor to meet you, Sir.”

  “Shut up Lieutenant, and get back in place!” Wheeler shouted.

  Mercer lunged forward and dropped him with one punch. Wheeler hit the floor as if shot, and lay still.

  Jake held out his hand to the young Lieutenant. “I’m glad to meet all of you too. Colonel Wheeler will, of course, not be assuming command, but I will be going back to the Intrepid with you, Lieutenant.”

  “Thank you, Sir,” Dresden replied. “The Marine detachment and ship’s crew of the Intrepid are yours to command, Sir. I do not know if you are aware of a country on Earth called the United States, but we are United States Marines. Wheeler here is an Earth Command Marine. Major Jack Johnson is second in command on the Intrepid. He and all the men on board under his command are United States Marines. I was to wait until I contacted you in person, to let you know if you will return to Earth with us, there will be changes made, not to the liking of Earth Command.”

  “What about Taskoroff?” Jake asked.

  “Major Johnson said he’d leave him to you, but he suggested you probably should relieve Taskoroff of a command he does not wield in reality.”

  “We’ve all heard of the United States, Lieutenant,” Jake acknowledged. “We know the Colonies were made possible through exploration and ships which originated in the United States. Some tried to rewrite history, but there were too many former citizens to allow it to happen. I never could figure out how it all was handed to a bunch of incompetent hacks from third rate dictatorships.”

  “That’s a long story, Sir,” the Lieutenant sighed. “With this latest Alien development, and the botched campaign, done in secret by Earth Command, using our men, the United States has had enough. Major Kitchner briefed our Congress and the President on what happened in regards to the screw-ups by Earth Command. Everyone had already witnessed your rescue of his troops. When Earth Command began a smear campaign against you, our citizens went nuts. You are very popular in the US, Sir.”

  “Well, if we can work all this out, Lieutenant, General Risling and I will get back to the Alien business,” Jake said. He turned to his friends and shook hands with Mercer and Tokoru. “You’ll take care of my buddy Wheeler here, won’t you?”

  “You bet, Jake,” Yuri replied. “He’ll have our best accommodations until your return.”

  “I sure feel better about you going now,” Mercer added. “We’ll stay alert. Count on it.”

  “I will, Charlie.” Jake looked up, and the Marines in the habitat snapped to attention as one, and saluted. Jake returned their salute, and gave them a little wave. “Thanks boys, I’ll be seeing you.”

  Tokoru and Mercer watched the group walk out to the Drop Ship from the Intepid, at the viewing port. Lieutenant Mendoza joined them there.

  “Will he be alright?”

  Mercer looked back at Mendoza. “Hell, if he can fall into Queen Chamber juice, and come back smelling like a rose, I guess he can handle Earth Command.”

  “He didn’t smell like a rose, Charlie,” Tokoru reminded him.

  “In a manner of speaking, Colonel Picky, in a manner of speaking,” Mercer retorted.

  “By the way,” Tokoru laughed. “You hit a superior officer in the performance of his duties.”

  Mercer pulled back his uniform jacket, revealing his hand blaster. “He’s lucky that’s all I did.”

  Jake exited the Drop Ship hatch first, walking out into the hanger bay of the Intrepid. Everyone within sight of him stopped what they were doing, and a call of Command Officer on deck rang out. Jake saluted the Intrepid’s duty officer, who met him.

  “Request permission to come aboard, Sir,” Jake said briskly, echoing a tradition many centuries old.

  “Request granted, Sir,” the OD said smiling. “Glad to see you again, General.”

  “I take it you have a meeting with Colonel Taskoroff to take metoo.”

  “He’s waiting on the Bridge for you, Sir, with Major Johnson, and a contingent of Marines. Lieutenant Dresden is to take you to him,” the OD explained.

  “That works for me,” Jake said, glancing around at Dresden. “Would you lead the way, Lieutenant?”

  “Aye, aye, Sir,” Dresden said. He led Jake, while the men in his squad trailed behind them.

  The ship’s crew snapped to attention all along the route to the Bridge. Jake stopped and shook hands with each one, thanking them for their support. When they finally reached the Bridge, a red faced Colonel Taskoroff was waiting for them in a rage.

  “Where in hell have you been, Dresden? I left orders for you to haul this man up here the second you arrived.”

  A tall, lean black man stood at ease behind Taskoroff, in full dress uniform, as were the rest of the contingent of Marines on the Bridge. At Jake’s appearance on the Bridge, all the Marines and ship’s crew came to attention, with the Major calling out loudly, “Attention on deck.”

  Taskoroff whipped around in shock, glaring at the Marine officer still at attention behind him. “What’s the meaning of this, Major?”

  “As you were,” Jake said with a grin. He approached the Major with his hand out. “Major Johnson, I presume?”

  Johnson broke into a smile, and grasped Jake’s proffered hand strongly in his own. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Sir. Major Kitchner and I went to boot camp together. He and I are very good friends. He sends his best.”

  Taskoroff grabbed Jake’s extended arm to yank it, and him around. When he felt Jake’s corded muscle and tendons with the texture of metal cables, and nothing happened when he pulled, Taskoroff dropped his hand to his side. He repeated his first outburst to Major Johnson. Jake shook Johnson’s hand, and then turned back to Lieutenant Dresden, motioning to Taskoroff.

  “Lieutenant, would you and your men please escort this miscreant to the brig?”

  Dresden snapped to attention and saluted. He gestured to two of his squad, and they walked over to Taskoroff. “Please come along quietly, Sir.”

  As Taskoroff began to speak, Jake grabbed his arm in a bone-crushing grip, and whispered in his ear. “Do not speak. Go with the Lieutenant; because until all this gets sorted out, I don’t want anyone throwing you around but me. Don’t force me to give you an attitude adjustment right here on the Bridge.”

  Taskoroff nodded his understanding, and Jake released him. Taskoroff walked off the Bridge in the company of Dresden’s squad. Jake turned back to Johnson.

  “Major, can I have an open line to the surface please?”

  “Yes Sir,” Johnson replied, leading him over to their communications panel. He overrode the blocking signal, and stepped back. “It’s all yours, Sir.”

  Jake sat down and contacted the Command Center on Bougainville. Mercer, Tokoru, and Dougherty swam into view on the screen. They looked tense. When they saw who it was, Mercer looked over at Dougherty. “I told you he’d be running the damn show inside of an hour. How’s it hangin’ Jake?”

  Jake laughed with his friends on the surface. “Yuri, would you call in Colonel Peters to land the Command Wing Fighter on Bougainville, and take a shuttle up here to his new command?”

  “I’ll punch in the code he gave me, and take care of it right away,” Tokoru acknowledged. “I take it the change in command went smoothly?”

  “Yes it did. We will be leaving immediately after Jas gets here to assume command. I will be back as soon as I can. Take care of yourselves.”

  “Right back at you, Boss,” Dougherty s
aid for all of them, as Jake disconnected.

  Jake stood up, and walked over to where Major Johnson had discreetly moved out of hearing. “Colonel Jason Peters will be flying out to assume command of the Intrepid, Major. He’s a fine officer, and.”

  “We’ve heard about the Colonel,” Johnson cut in with enthusiasm. “Sorry, for interrupting, Sir, but Colonel Peters was the Command Wing pilot who obliterated the alien bastards who were seeding those things on the Colonies, wasn’t he?”

  Jake nodded. “He fired the first shot of what may be intergalactic war, and saved my sorry ass when he did it, along with a bunch of Marines with me. The Intrepid could not be in better hands. Whose side is your Executive Officer on?”

  “Major Wilcox was relieved of command, and sent back to the US just before we set course for Omaha,” Johnson explained. “We couldn’t let him in on our plans before we left. I could stay out of Taskoroff s way, but the XO would have been with him constantly. If Taskoroff had gotten wind of the reality here on the Intrepid, we would never have left port. Wilcox found out about the mission, and he had been an eyewitness to the blunders Taskoroff did at Bougainville. He went ballistic. Dresden and I hustled him off the Bridge when Taskoroff discharged him, before Wilcox did something rash.”

  “He sounds like a good man,” Jake said thoughtfully.

  “Yes Sir, he is,” Johnson replied. “He was immediately given command of the Yorktown, a new Gallant class ship, and told to take her to Genoa in preparation of an Alien attack.”

  “Can we stop over by Omaha, so I can let Colonel Stavros on the Gallant know what we’re doing, and pick up someone I would like to take over as XO here on the Intepid? There’s a certain weapons officer on the Gallant, I want to talk to about his work too.”

  “Certainly General,” Johnson said, nodding. “May I request a favor,