The Revolution Begins (Molon Labe) (13 page)

Before leaving Queenwood to return to base, I gave instructions to the sniper teams that would remain behind to provide security and train a few of the willing locals to engage targets at moderate distances. We hoped to be able to leave the town to defend itself someday. No time better than now to start that training.

As we left the town in the Hummer, a
ll four of us were on a high from the patriotic display we had witnessed.  As far as we were concerned, it was proof that our nation could and would rise up out of this revolution. Kyle was all smiles even though he had left Linda in town. We couldn’t risk bringing her to base and Kyle knew it.  He had given her directions to where the boys were and was confident that Captain John would give him leave to take her there soon.

Chapter 47

Whiteman Air Force Base

Airman
Amy had just watched as four men had taken out most of the UN troops left behind at Camp Dawkins, in West Virginia.  She kept her thoughts to herself and checked that no one else was viewing the feed.  Before she re-aligned the satellite to view a new mission, she watched and silently cheered as the same four men took down the concentration camp guards and loaded the prisoners onto busses.”

Chapter 48

Executive Order 11310 Grants authority to the Department of Justice to enforce the plans set out in Executive Orders, to institute industrial support, to establish judicial and legislative liaison, to control all aliens, to operate penal and correctional institutions, and to advise and assist the President.

“Chad, you take charge pretty well!” I said.

“Sorry about that Chris.  I know you are in charge of the mission. I just saw what needed to be done and what needed to be said.  It happens sometimes.  I guess that’s some of the bad habits I picked up from the Army.”

“Why the hell are you apologizing?  It gave me time to figure out how to get those people to safety.  That’s the kind of teamwork we need.  I meant it as a compliment!”
I said. “I know you green beanies like to stay together, but I think you and Kyle make a good team, and I’d like to see you work together on a more permanent basis.  If you don’t have any objections, I’ll be suggesting that to Captain John.”

“Do I get a say in this, or do I just get sandbagged?”
Kyle asked.

We all laughed and joked away until we made it to the dismount point.

We were two miles from the base and we were walking slowly.  Each of us had extra ammunition, as many grenades as we could carry, and we each were carrying an AT-4. Needless to say, we were loaded down.  We were taking a quick break when we heard and felt an explosion.

Chapter 49

Executive Order 11049 Assigns emergency preparedness function to federal departments and agencies, consolidating 21 operative Executive Orders issued over a fifteen year period.

At the base, all was normal. Captain John was looking over troop projections and consider
ing details for future missions.  He was hanging around the TOC waiting for a message from the leader of the West Virginia Militia.  He was drinking a cup of hot coffee and going through his normal routine. 

Matthew was up walking around with his oldest son Conner.  Conner was showing him around the mine shafts and they were doing their best to act normal.  Matthew was having a hard time ge
tting used to not using his arm.  It would be in a sling for a few more weeks, but at least he would have some use of the arm as limited as it may be.  He was happy to be able to use all of his fingers and rotate his hand.  He was confident that he would be back at one hundred percent. For now, playing with his son was a welcome treat.

Marcie
had taken Tanner to the hospital to get his morning insulin shot. Tanner was happy to go there and was hoping to see Neil.  He had grown attached to the gruff soldier.  He liked Allison, but Neil took a real interest in him and he liked that Neil was a real soldier.  He had told Neil that he wanted to be a soldier too.  Neil hadn’t laughed or treated him like a kid.  He told him he believed he could, and he even said with his parent’s permission he’d teach Tanner to shoot.

Allison stopped in the hospital
quickly and chatted with Marcie for a few minutes.  Marcie had told Allison before that she had enough insulin for a month, but was getting worried about where she would get more.  Allison was confident that Neil would be back soon with more insulin and needles.  He had taken a liking to Tanner and would make sure he had his medicine.  Allison was excited at the thoughts of seeing Neil, and she chatted away about him until she noticed Marcie smiling and remembered why Marcie had come.  Allison excused herself quickly and bumped into Doc Mack as she was walking out the door. “Sorry Mack.  I’m just on my way to grab some coffee and breakfast.  Do you want to join me, or can I bring you something from the mess hall?” She asked.

“Nope, I just had a cup of coffee.
Thanks for asking.  I’m just going to check on a few supplies and see what we need to scavenge from town the next trip out”, Mack said and then walked into the hospital.

Doc Martin and Nancy were
just getting ready for the day.  Nancy was brushing her hair and talking to Martin. He was shaking out the cobwebs from the morning and getting ready to head to the shower to blast himself with some cold water and soap.  He tried to wake up every morning with cold water.  He believed it shocked the system and truly brought one out of their slumber.

Vincent
was busy participating in a morning physical training regimen with a newly formed platoon. He was on the floor doing flutter kicks and remembering how much he hated PT and loved it all the same when his whole world was rattled. Every mine shaft filled with dust and grit. The lights that had been hung on the makeshift walls began to flicker, and more than half of them were knocked out by the blast.  The concussion from the blast could be felt everywhere in the mine, killing many who were close to it, and knocking the breath out of nearly everyone else.  The dust and grit in the air started to be replaced by smoke. To top it off, pieces of the ceiling started dropping in and crashing to the floor of the shafts.

Vincent
picked himself up off of the floor and began listening for familiar sounds.  He had been close to the initial blast and for a few moments his vision was blurry and he was certain he had lost his hearing.  He sat still and waited. He moved his fingers, then his hands, then his arms, and then checked the rest of his body for injury while he waited for his senses to return.  The muffled noises he heard at first sounded like distant voices from miles away. The images his eyes were seeing were slowly morphing from fuzzy colors to people.  When he could finally hear and see completely, he wished that his senses had not returned.  All around him lay wounded and dead soldiers.  The blast had caved in most of the room he had been in.  Lying next to him on the floor was a soldier he had just been talking to and exercising with.  He lay there now with his head crushed by a slab of rock larger than a television. Most of his body had been crushed as well.  Two other soldiers had been exercising next to him. Nothing could be seen of them.

Sure now that he was relatively unharmed,
Vincent grabbed his shirt and ripped away a piece big enough to make a bandana and wrapped it around his face to make a field expedient mask.  The dust in the air was thick, and if he guessed right, he smelled smoke too.  He did the only thing he could from there. He gathered up the living and began to move them from the room. 

Seconds before the blast
, Captain John was alerted that someone had set off the motion detectors in the main shaft of the mine.  The militia never used the main shaft because it was the most visible entrance point, and in the front of the mine.  The main road came right to the front.  It was necessary for anyone driving by to believe the mines were still abandoned. As a precaution, the engineers had set motion detectors inside the mouth of the mine.  This early warning system had given Captain John and those under his care only seconds notice before the explosion.

Captain Jo
hn had been thrown to the floor, the table he had been using collapsing on top of his legs. Two of his lieutenants had been knocked down by the blast and one had been knocked unconscious by falling debris from the ceiling. John realized immediately that everyone inside the base was in danger. After freeing himself from the debris, he wasted little time in sending two men to the exits to scout outside, and two men to assess the inside damage and return with a report. He then went to work personally helping anyone he saw injured from the blast.

Martin and Nancy had both been knocked down
and disoriented by the blast. Martin was the first to regain his composure and he went instantly to his wife’s side to check her for injuries.  He was sure she had a concussion, but otherwise she suffered only some scrapes from the falling debris.  His biggest worry was now with how to get out their room.  The falling debris had jammed their door from the outside, and unless he was wrong, he thought he smelled smoke.

Chapter 50

Executive Order 11921 Allows the FEMA to develop plans to establish control over mechanisms of production and distribution, of energy sources, wages, salaries, and credit flow in any UNDEFINED national emergency.  It also provides that when a state of emergency is declared by the President, Congress cannot review the action for six months.

It’s amazing how peaceful you can feel in the woods.  A walk through the woods, even while burdened with heavy weight can be very calming.  I was trying my best to tune out the joking between Chad and Kyle, and enjoying the serenity of the small patches of snow and a few scampering chipmunks.  I was reminiscing about my father taking me squirrel hunting as a young boy when the serenity came to a screeching halt. 
The blast came as a surprise, and each of us dropped low and started assessing our surroundings. We lightened our loads and started moving much stealthier towards the mines.  The normal atmosphere was one of peace and harmony in the woods with squirrels chattering and occasional dry and dead leaves rustling in the breeze.  It seemed now that everything had ceased.  The animals knew something was wrong, and we could feel it too.  I had a sinking feeling about the base and I hoped and prayed that we would find survivors. I could see the same fear I was feeling in Neil’s eyes.

Neil’s thought
s went directly to Allison as soon as he felt the blast. He started dropping the heaviest of his gear and preparing for battle as soon as he felt it.  In his head he began praying for Allison and those inside the base.  He had grown very fond of Tanner and now had a strong urge to protect and watch over him.  Tanner was close to his daughter in age and he enjoyed spending time with him.  He had picked up a couple of baseball mitts and a baseball from a store in town before he left. He had plans to surprise both boys with the gifts when he got back.  Now he was just hoping to see them again. 

We moved slowly but steadily until we could see our
hidden entrance to the mines.  We could also see a dozen troops searching in that area for where the hidden entrance was.  Kyle was moving forward and crawled onto a patch of ground that suddenly moved.  Drawing his sidearm as he rolled away from the movement that he recognized as a person, he looked down his sights at an American man who was pointing his own considerably larger pistol back. Before shots could be fired giving away our position I motioned to our newfound friend and he looked around realizing there were four pistols pointing at his head.  He spoke softly and slowly. ”I am not your enemy.  I am here as a friend to help, and you look like you could use it.”

“My friends don’t poi
nt hand cannons at me asshole!” Said Kyle.

“His reaction was as
natural as your own Kyle”, I said. “I’d venture to say you probably had the same training at one point. Who are you and what are you doing here?”

“My name is Justin.
I’ve been watching you guys for a while and I’ve been helping you from time to time”, he said.

“The soldier on the front porch in town, and the ATV?
Are those your work?” I asked.

“I saw you
heading towards town and followed you.  I had been there taking care of business my own way,” He motioned to his rifle, a Savage bolt action that looked to be chambered in a large magnum by the size of his ammo.  “I followed and covered you. The guy on the porch had the drop on you and I took the shot.”

“Thanks.  You saved our asses.  You also helped
us get that family out of town.” Holstering my sidearm, I extended my hand “Thank you. And yes, we can use the help.”

After making introductions and learning that Justin had been a Marine Scout Sniper, we got back to business.  Kyle who had warmed up to Justin after learni
ng he was a fellow Marine asked, “What can you tell us?”

“There is a l
arge force of troops and armor at the front entrance.  I know you guys don’t use that entrance but they don’t.  The guys looking for your back door just got there a few minutes before you did.  It looks like they are all Asian. They look like they are preparing to ambush anyone who comes out.  Doesn’t look like they know exactly where your door is though.”