Extinction

-4-

I walked back inside. Warm, humid air blew in the smashed-out window behind me. The air from outside met the cool, dry air-conditioned air inside and fought a battle around me. It felt like the tropical warmth was winning.

I eyed the generals, and they eyed me back. There was a new light in their expressions. I thought it was fear.

“Gentlemen,” I said loudly. “Things are going to be different around here. Very different. We have no fleet. That was the last ship to leave Earth, except for one other I saw come back with me. Any word on who that might be?”

They exchanged glances, then went back to staring at me as if I were a zoo exhibit that had gotten loose somehow. One of the men, the taller one, was named Robinson. He had his hand on the butt of his pistol. He didn’t bother to draw it, and he wasn’t gripping it exactly, just resting his hand there. The other guy’s name was Barrera. He was shorter, broader, and meaner-looking. He had both hands on that pool-table computer of his, leaning over it tensely.

Barrera spoke first, “How are things going to be different?” he asked.

“First off, I’m a colonel. Since a colonel can’t properly order generals around, I’m busting you two down to the rank of major. We’ll all have to earn our promotions after that.”

They stared, dumbfounded. Robinson was goaded into speaking. “Riggs, have you gone mad? Did you just assassinate General Sokolov?”

“Assassinate? That’s a very strong term. I watched an unfortunate casualty occur right before my eyes. It’s part of war.”

“We’re at peace now. I thought you negotiated that,” said Barrera.

His eyes were wary, but not exactly outraged. Of the two, I thought he would be the easier to work with. His mind was more flexible.

“Our new political realities require constant, realistic appraisals of events,” I said. “The Nano ships are no longer under my control. They are no longer part of Star Force. In fact, they should be considered neutral and possibly hostile.”

They stared at me. I think my words were finally beginning to sink into their minds. Without a fleet, we weren’t a real force at all.

“Now, the question is where this leaves us.”

“I think we are up the proverbial creek, sans paddle,” said Robinson.

I nodded. “You are finally catching on, Major. Let’s see what we have left in the way of assets—”

“Our good will with the world will be worth zilch,” said Barrera, talking almost to himself. “They will recall their troops. Our marines and funding will dry up. Why should they put up with us if the war is on hold and we have no fleet?”

“They never really accepted us anyway,” continued Robinson. “I’d say they are talking about how they will dismantle us up in Washington right now.”

I nodded to Robinson and crossed my arms. “Yes, they will try to pull the plug. But they still need us, and they will be cautious at first, unsure as to our strength. They’ll worry that the fleet will come back somehow.”

“What do you think we should do?” asked Barrera.

I was liking him more by the second. I could tell right off, he was going to make Lieutenant Colonel before Robinson. “We have to have a fleet. Without it, the established governments will fall on us like vultures.”

Robinson shrugged. “What fleet? You said there is one other ship. What are we going to do, parade it around and pretend the rest are on a deep-space mission?”

“We build new ships,” I said, “real fast. Major Barrera, would you be so good as to hold down the fort here? Shut down all extraneous communications. Order an alert, pulling men back into base and arm them all. Collect all cell phones and tablets. Let’s keep our men ready and keep others from giving them ideas. You talk to the Pentagon and our own staffers. Do your best to hint we are in fine shape, and have many surprises in store.”

Barrera nodded. “I’ll do what I can.”

“Robinson, I want you to come with me.”

“Where?” he asked.

Robinson was talking to my back. I’d already marched off, moving toward the door. I crashed it open and looked at the two marines who snapped their eyes toward me. I had a new purpose gripping my mind now, and I was through screwing around.

“You men, were either of you down in Argentina with me when we destroyed the Macro domes?”

One man nodded.

“Were you in my unit?”

“No sir, I was with the second battalion.”

I squinted up at the sun. “There’s liable to be some fireworks here soon. Can I count on you two to back me?”

They shifted their grips on their beamers. “Um, what kind of trouble are you expecting, Colonel?”

“The kind that Riggs’ Pigs are famous for.”

That statement didn’t make either of them any happier. Behind me, Robinson had finally decided to follow me as I’d ordered. Maybe he’d grown curious.

“Colonel?” he said, “what’s this all about?”

“I told you a minute ago.”

“About a new fleet? Are you serious?”

The two guards stared at us. I returned their stares. “Well, what about it, marines?” I asked them.

The man who’d been in Argentina nodded first. Then the second one did too. “We’ve got your back, Colonel.”

They didn’t ask for any more details. They both knew what I was really asking. Would they back me up if things went bad. If there was a coup, or an invasion by the NATO people, I felt I could count on these two at least.

“That’s what I need to hear. Spread the word,” I told them.

Next, I headed over to the motor pool and grabbed a Hummer without filling out any forms. The duty Sergeant glared at me, but his frown vanished when he saw who I was and what kind of mood I was in. No one else even considered starting up an argument with me. Sometimes having a rep works in a man’s favor.

“Where the hell are we going?” asked Robinson as I pulled up to him and climbed out.

I hopped over the vehicle in a single smooth leap. That always freaked out normal people. Robinson had seen such tricks before, but he still had his mouth open when I climbed into the passenger seat. “You’re driving,” I told him.

Robinson huffed, but he got into the Hummer, started it up and drove. I directed him into the jungle interior. I’d never been on this fresh-cut road before. As the nanotized pilot of the Alamo, I’d always either flown, or jogged through the trees.

“We’re going out to the base, aren’t we? The one with your secret factories. They aren’t so secret, you know,” said Robinson.

“Right now, I’m just hoping they are still there when we arrive.”

He shot me an alarmed look. “Look Riggs,” Robinson said, “I don’t mean to be an asshole, but this isn’t going as planned. In fact, nothing that involves you ever seems to go according to plan.”

“Major—” I began, but he cut me off.

“Yeah, right there. That’s the sort of crap I’m talking about. What gives you the right to decide I’m a major all of a sudden? I’ve been in charge of a full division for years before all this alien nonsense hit the fan.”

It was my turn to cut him off. I grabbed the wheel. I didn’t want to crash, because I didn’t think he would survive it. With my other hand, I grabbed his chin and turned his face toward me, treating him like he was a little kid.

Robinson stared at me in shock, rage, and pain. My fingers weren’t in ‘gentle mode’. There would be serious bruises on his face when I let go of him.

“I invented this organization. You’re a Major now because I say you are.”

He drew his sidearm then. If I’d had a couple more free hands, I might have applauded. At least he had guts. Instead, the hand I had on the wheel flicked up and knocked the gun out the window. There was an explosion of glass, mostly outward onto the road. The window had been closed, but the gun hit it with such force it didn’t matter.

I let him go after that and he had to turn his attention back to the wheel and the road. The tires made thumping sounds as we ran over reflectors. A few palm fronds slapped the windshield. He cursed a bit, but he had taken his foot off the gas when I grabbed him, so we had been losing speed. He got control of the car and lived. He stopped the Hummer and glared at me with crossed arms, daring me to force him to drive further.

“I bet that’s the closest you’ve come to death since the war began,” I remarked.

“You’re crazy. Absolutely crazy. You could have killed us.”

“No, not us,” I said, “just you.”

Robinson looked at me, and now his anger had been erased. I’d replaced it with exasperation. Good, I thought.

“You’re probably wondering what the hell my problem is, Robinson,” I said.

“Damn straight I am.”

“I can tell you’re listening now, so I’ll tell you what’s bothering me. Major, I’ve decided I’m not going to lose Star Force, or the nanites that course through my blood—not my girlfriend, either. If I let the Earth governments take over this operation, they will screw it up somehow. They will squabble over everything we have, trying to steal samples of our technology. They will still be arguing in some court somewhere about who owns the patent for portable fusion reactors when the bill comes due at the end of the year.”

“The bill?”

“Our tribute. Our blood-payment. We are supposed to march thousands of troops aboard a Macro ship in a year’s time. Even if the governments manage to pull it together enough to do that, I’m sure they can’t simultaneously produce a strong fleet to defend Earth by then.”

“A new fleet? Why do we need a new fleet?”

“Did you like getting your face grabbed? That’s what happens to weak worlds in this brave new universe we live in.”

“You think the Macros might go back on their deal?”

I shrugged. “Maybe. Remember, when I made the deal, I had the strength of hundreds of Nano ships behind me. We couldn’t have won a fight to the finish, but the enemy believed we were strong enough to do them some damage. We’d proven it time and again on the battlefield and in space.”

Major Robinson sat back, looking out the windshield at the road. He frowned fiercely. I supposed it was his first deep-thinking experience in a long time. “So, you think the Macros might just see how weak we are and change their minds?”

“The Macros are machines, Robinson. They don’t know anything about honor or mercy. They think like accountants. I’m not even sure they think, exactly. What they understand is problem-solving and costs versus benefits. To them, my deal was the easiest solution to a problem. If we don’t have a fleet to threaten them when they come back, they might decide on a different course of action.”

Robinson nodded slowly. “And you don’t think the Earth governments will understand that part?”

“No. Human beings don’t normally learn anything without firsthand experience. They don’t understand these machines yet.”

He snorted. “And you do? You know it all, when it comes to machine aliens you’ve never even met?”

“Oh, I’ve met them all right. I’ve been in their faces and under their belly-turrets more than anyone I know of. Enough, I think, to have a good idea of how they will react.”

Robinson started up the Hummer again. He drove on through the jungle. I was glad about that. I needed to keep moving, and I didn’t want to kick his butt out onto the asphalt for disobeying orders.

“Okay, fine,” he said after another mile of greenery had gone by. “Why can’t we just cooperate with the NATO people?”

“We will, but on our terms. The Earth governments will want a strong defense, but they won’t quite be able to fully cooperate. They won’t be able to fully bring down all the barriers, to forget about all their old rivalries and politics.”

Robinson gave me a longer, strange look. “Why are you telling me all this? And why did you grab my face like, like—”

“Why did I humiliate you? Why did I treat you like a reform-school bully? Because I wanted you to listen—but it’s more than that. Do you realize that any marine under your command could have done the same? That you are like a child to your own troops? You have to undergo the nanite-injections. All of my officers have to be shot-up with nanites from now on. I won’t have men leading men who could kick their butts in a second.”

Robinson’s lips were a thin line. He looked pale. “No one knows the long term effects—”

“No. No we don’t. But your men have already done it. They’ve put their lives on the line. If you want to lead them, you will have to do the same. Crow should never have let you into the Force without the injections.”

We drove for a while, quietly. A green Bahaman Parrot with brilliant blue wingtips sailed by in front of us. The bird had time to squawk at us once, irritably, before we were gone, barreling down the forest road.

“Why do you think Crow did that?” asked Robinson thoughtfully. “Why did he let us in without undergoing the injections?”

“I haven’t talked to him about it,” I said, “but I know Crow fairly well. I’m sure it made it easier to convince officers to join. But I think he also did it because he was scared. Maybe not scared, but too paranoid about his own skin to take the injections himself. So, he made it a rule that upper management didn’t need to go through it. That way, he didn’t have to.”

Robinson thought quietly for a few miles, and I let him do it.

“So, what’s the deal, then?” he asked me finally.

“The deal?”

“Between us.”

I nodded. “You’re a Major. You take the injections. You follow my orders. That’s the deal.”

“And if I refuse?”

“Then you’re out.”

He threw up his hands. “Where’s the giant robot hand? I’m expecting to be ripped out of this Hummer and dumped into the ocean.”

I looked at him for a second. Apparently, my handling of General Sokolov had left a lasting impression. Good, I thought. “Nope. If you refuse my terms, you just ship out to the mainland with the next load of cargo.”

Robinson fell silent again. After another mile or so we reached the secret base. We were challenged at the gates by my marines. They recognized me and waved us in. These were my most loyal men. I’d hand-picked them for the duty. Most were American, but there was a number of Indian Ghataks mixed in. I’d left Staff Sergeant Kwon in command. I leaned out the window and waved over the guard. By the look of him, he was one of the Ghataks, a commando.

“Corporal,” I said, calling him over, “has there been anything strange going on?”

He stared at me for a second. “The ships all left, sir. They didn’t come back. Kwon put the base on high alert.”

“Good. The ships won’t be back. Let’s keep a sharp eye out for aircraft.”

“Aircraft?”

“If they are going to hit us right away, they will do it with choppers coming in from ships offshore, I would figure.”

“Hit us, sir? Who?”

“Maybe nobody,” I said, deciding I’d just started a rumor by talking too much. “Things are little odd right now, Corporal.”

“Yes sir.”

“Contact me if there are any sightings. I’ll be working inside with the—the units.”

“Yes sir.”

We drove away, and Robinson smirked at me. “Nervous?”

“About what?”

“You didn’t want to tell him what might be coming. You don’t want him to think about what side he’s on too closely, do you?”

I stared at him as we came to a halt in front of a steel building. It splashed silver light into our eyes.

“Just remember, Robinson,” I said, “my body can take a bullet much better than yours can. When the fireworks start… I suggest you duck.”