The long and short of it was, if the survivors wanted nothing to do with the team or Harmony Base or the government’s plan to resurrect the nation, that would be their choice. While it would be disappointing, Andrews had no intention on forcing his way in. If Benchley and the rest of the command group at Harmony wanted to play that differently, that was up to them. Andrews wasn’t a policymaker, he was merely a tool of whatever policy was being applied. He rather suspected that Benchley wouldn’t press the issue, but would likely have the rigs drop by from time to time to make temperature checks of the settlement in the area. Over time, the survivors might change their minds.
Finally, it was time for his watch. Leona briefed him on the particulars that had occurred during his rest cycle. There were some discoveries, in that the forest and fields around the area were practically teeming with fauna. Birds, rodents, and even a small herd of deer had been observed through both the infrared and the millimeter wave radar. It was expected, but still exciting, and Andrews felt himself grinning when Leona showed him the IR footage of the deer bounding through the area, no doubt mystified and fearful of the big vehicle that sat before the barricade across the road. Other aspects of her report were unremarkable. The weather was clearing and the outside temperature was in the low forties on the Fahrenheit scale, and the barometric pressure was increasing. A warm front was moving in. Switching one of the MMR’s planar arrays to air search mode indicated the cloud ceiling was increasing, and there was a chance the following day might be only partly cloudy with breaks of sunshine.
Andrews thanked her and dismissed her go catch some rack time. Just as she reached the closed pressure door that led to the third compartment, he called her back.
“Hey, Lee, hold on for a second?”
She turned back to him, her hand hovering right over the door control. “What’s up?”
“Um.” Andrews rubbed the back of his neck. “Um, listen. You and Mulligan, you guys have been great and all. But if you guys happened to, you know, have a hug or a quick kiss or something, I wouldn’t lose my mind.”
Leona looked at him for a moment, then smiled and shook her head. “What?” She almost chuckled when she spoke.
Andrews shrugged. “I’m not saying you guys break out the rubber novelties and start going at it or anything, now. But what happens on a rig stays on a rig, you know what I mean?”
“Not really,” Leona said. “Look, what do you think we do together, anyway?”
Andrews held up his hands. “Um ... I haven’t really thought about it. I would guess whatever guys and gals do when they’re, ah, romantically involved?”
She did chuckle then. “Well, that much is true. But I’m not the touchy-feely type, and he’s not really into PDA. So we’re doing fine. Thanks for your interest, though.”
“Have I embarrassed you? It wasn’t my intention ...”
Leona waved the notion aside. “A year ago, I would have stroked out over it. But we get along great, and we’re continuing to get along. So it’s cool.” She looked at him and smiled again. “But you seem to be a bit embarrassed, Captain.”
“Yeah, well. Not exactly a conversation I’d ever thought we’d be having.”
She shrugged. “You don’t need to worry about me, if you’re concerned. Or him. He’s come a long way, and I think he’s finally putting the past behind him after burying his family. If any man can get over something like that.”
Andrews nodded. “He’s a tough hombre, that’s for sure.”
“In a lot of ways. Not so much in others.”
Andrews raised a brow. “Oh?”
Leona shook her head. “Some things need to stay private, Mike.”
“Gotcha on that. Well then, sorry to have kept you, Lee. Get some sleep.”
Leona looked at him for a moment, then walked over and put both hands on his shoulders. “I really like serving with you, Mike. You’re a hell of a guy, and a great commander. And thanks so much for caring about us. Really.”
Andrews was surprised at both the contact and the admission. Leona Eklund, long known as the ice queen of the field teams, had apparently thawed out completely. He touched her arm, warmed by the sudden kinship.
“Dude, you know you’re a hundred percent welcome. Aside from Rachel and my dad, you guys are my world. Anything for you, you know?”
“Good night, Captain.” With that, Leona turned and entered the sleeping compartment. The door slid closed behind her. Andrews shook his head and made himself some coffee.
“So ends another episode of The Love Rig,” he said to himself.
***
The SCEV remained in active defense mode, its radar cataloging every contact that registered. It was configured to respond only when human silhouettes were detected, but the software was smart enough to know the difference between a deer and a person who was trying to disguise themselves as one. Just the same, the system presented Andrews with imagery every time a potential target presented itself. If the return was definably human, the rig’s miniguns would automatically slew and engage. Andrews could override the system any time he chose, but he left it as it was.
He studied the terrain through the FLIR, familiarizing himself further with the lay of the land. There were dozens if not hundreds of terrain features a human being could utilize to mask himself from the rig, but they were far apart and most were transparent to the millimeter wave radar. And the infrared gear was sensitive enough to display a person’s full outline even if they were hiding behind thick brush. The night was cool, and the human body burned away at over ninety-five degrees on average. The infrared turrets would have no trouble detecting body heat in that range.
But aside from animal life, the field team had the area to themselves.
Andrews carried his tablet with him when he moved from the cockpit to the second compartment and back again. With that, he was always plugged into the rig’s systems so he would know if something was up outside, even if he was sitting on the toilet. He kept the interior lights dialed down, so he could sit in the cockpit and not be easily seen from the outside ... not that there was much risk to that. It would take something pretty high power to get through the anti-missile defenses and the rig’s armored hide.
The truth of the matter was, there just wasn’t a lot to do. The rig continued to collect relevant environmental metrics while it stood guard, peering out into the darkness with its collection of sensors. Andrews finally settled in the cockpit and regarded the multifunction displays before him and watched them studiously. He thought of the woman with the pale eyes and low voice, and the people whom she represented. As time wore on, he found he was getting more used to Leona’s idea of sending up the UAV.
Time enough for that, he thought. In the meantime, he would have to settle for the softly glowing screens before him.
***
The rest of the crew was up and active by 0600, even Leona. Though she’d had the least amount of contiguous rest, she seemed no worse for wear. Andrews was already a bit tired, more from the boredom of sitting and watching than from actually doing anything of note. The remainder of the night had been tragically uneventful, not that he expected anyone to contact the rig at four a.m. He felt that they were out there, though. Watching the parked rig from a safe distance, lying low enough to the terrain that even the MMR couldn’t separate them from the clutter. As the rest of the team set about making breakfast, Andrews remained in the cockpit. It was still dark outside, but the sky was showing some hint of brightening in the east.
KC ducked into the cockpit. “Good morning! Want to take a break for a bit?”
“No, no. I’m good here,” Andrews told her. “You guys get yourselves squared away.”
“Anything interesting happen last night?”
“Oh yeah, fifty people attacked the rig—you didn’t notice?”
KC smirked and looked out the viewports. “Yeah, what happened to the bodies?” She pointed at the central MFD, which displayed the weapon status along with the radar ret
urns. “And how is it that we’ve still got full magazines for the minis?”
“You know, you’re not as gullible as you come across, Kace. That’s going to be a good survival trait. Keep it up.”
KC winked at him. “I will. You want some coffee or anything?”
Andrews tapped the insulated mug in the cup holder along the left side of the cockpit, right below the side viewport. “Good to go, young lady. Go ahead and have some breakfast.”
KC nodded and retreated to the second compartment. Andrews remained in the cockpit, watching the displays. He checked the APU’s status, and found everything was nominal. It continued to power the rig’s systems and keep the backup batteries charged. No problems there.
The radar tracked birds and squirrels and the like moving in the trees. Overhead, a hawk or an owl had taken flight. It orbited over the SCEV, as Andrews leaned forward in his seat to look for it. The raptor was hidden from view by the still-pervasive gloom of the early morning, so he leaned back and returned to watching the displays. Behind him, he heard the sounds of the crew rustling up their chow, and soon he smelled the scents of cooking food.
“Mike, you want anything?” Leona asked.
“Negative. Good to go up here,” he replied. “I’ll grab some chow before you guys head out.”
“Suit yourself,” she replied. “Mulligan, put that down!”
“It’s just a breakfast burrito, not a hand grenade,” Mulligan said.
“We’ve already had this discussion. You and burritos don’t pair up in enclosed spaces. Down. Now!”
Andrews laughed. Poor bastard.
***
He had KC spell him in the cockpit while he grabbed something to eat and assisted Leona and Mulligan in preparation for their sojourn outside the vehicle. Both would be fully equipped with tactical gear, the same loadout Andrews and Mulligan had worn the day before. Leona also wore an environmental suit, as she would be digging in the soil. There was a chance, albeit a small one, that she might kick up particulate matter that might be harmful, so the suit was for added protection. A bit of overkill perhaps, but both Andrews and Mulligan thought it was a good idea. Mulligan would stand overwatch while Andrews returned to the cockpit and kept guard with the minis. He would designate both team members as no-fire targets, so they wouldn’t be accidentally cut down by friendly fire in case things got suddenly hot. Leona also carried a few sample kits with her. She would load them up and place them in the lab bay along the rig’s right side and run the analyses remotely. The lab had its own AI that would execute the majority of the tests that would provide the crew with a general environmental baseline with regards to soil quality and the genetic composition of the plant matter it would analyze, along with an examination of whatever microbial life was present in the samples. Leona would determine more specific tests after reviewing the initial passes. The data she would accumulate would help determine how badly the biosphere had been affected by not just the war itself, but the related environmental effects caused by such things as industrial sites and cities decaying away over the years. There was a good chance such things had contributed additional biohazards, and since they were only several miles away from Bend, the results might show up here.
It was still a cloudy day, but the ceiling was substantially higher than it had been before. The winds were relatively light, clocking in at eight miles per hour with gusts up to twelve. The ambient temperature was fifty-six degrees, so while it would be cool outside, it couldn’t be considered inhospitable. Both Leona and Mulligan would be warm enough. Andrews bade them farewell and good hunting as they entered the airlock, then returned to the cockpit. KC opted to remain in the copilot’s seat and keep an eye on the systems from there, which suited Andrews fine. Andrews designated Leona and Mulligan as safe targets, and the rig’s targeting computer ignored them as they emerged from the airlock.
“We good to go out here, sir?” Mulligan asked before he and Leona stepped away from the vehicle’s side.
“Roger that, Sarmajor. You guys have been excluded, and we’re reading your locators just fine. No fratricide is going to happen today.” The radio headsets both Mulligan and Leona wore also contained additional RF modules that served as miniature transponders. The SCEV could use this to track their movements, and even if they broke radar contact and reemerged, the weapons systems wouldn’t fire on them.
“Roger that. We’ll get started, then.”
For the next hour or so, Andrews and KC watched the pair do their work through the viewports and via the FLIR. Mulligan didn’t do very much actually, aside from hold his rifle and look imposing as he scanned the immediate vicinity. Leona used a trowel to excavate some dirt and plants, and scraped bark from pine trees and pulled live needles off their branches. She combed through the grasses, looking for insects, and found sluggish worms and semi-dormant grubs wriggling about in the soil. She contained these as well, isolating them from each other in one of the sample cases.
Once she was finished, she loaded the plastic containers into the laboratory bay on the side of the rig. It was important work, to be sure, but not terribly exciting from Andrews’s perspective. His eyes were about to roll up in his head.
“Andrews. You out there?”
The woman’s voice came over the sideband frequency they had allocated for communication with the survivors, on the old GMRS network. KC looked startled to hear it, and she spun around in the copilot’s seat, eyes wide. Andrews switched over to the frequency.
“KC, you stay with Mulligan and the lieutenant,” he said.
“Yes, sir.”
He pressed the transmit button on the control column. “This is Andrews. Good morning.”
“My boss wants a face to face with you in twenty minutes. Is that good?”
“That’s fine. Just tell me your angle of approach, so we can keep an eye out for you.”
“We’re a bit away. We’ll come down the road to your position.” The woman paused. “I see you have two people outside. One looks like the guy Mulligan. Why is the other one digging in the ground while wearing a biohazard suit?”
“She’s collecting samples for analysis. The suit is for her protection, in case she stirs up any active particles,” Andrews said. “Listen, we’re still in a defensive posture, so please ... don’t get within three hundred meters of the vehicle without telling us first. If the system detects you, it’ll open fire on you once you’re inside that range.”
“Yeah, you told us that already. We’re not that close. We’ll see you in twenty minutes.”
“How big is your party?” Andrews asked.
“You’ll see two of us.” With that, the communication went dark. The woman had stopped transmitting. Andrews checked the RDF, and verified the signal had emanated from somewhere to the north of the rig’s position. He looked out the viewports. The Black Butte rose into the air a couple of miles away. If he needed to set up someplace and surveil the SCEV’s position, that’s where he’d do it.
He switched back to the ground frequency Mulligan and Leona were using. “Okay, guys. Company is coming in twenty minutes. Let’s wrap it up for the day and come on in.”
“Say again?” Mulligan asked.
“Just heard from our friends, Sarmajor. Leona, finish your work and come in for decon. You’ve been rooting around out there, and we should make sure you’re clean before you come in.”
“Roger that. I still have about ten minutes more work to do,” Leona said.
“Tell you what, cancel that and come in now. I want you in the cockpit before they get here. The lab results aren’t going to change, and we can gather more samples later for retests if needed.”
“Roger.” The tone of her voice indicated she wasn’t terribly happy at the prospect, but Andrews wasn’t giving her a chance to try to talk him out of it. Sometimes she could get fixated on the task at hand and lose sight of the bigger picture.
“Mulligan, stand security until she’s clear,” Andrews continued. “I’ll join you o
utside so we can receive our guests. Hooah?”
“Hooah. Do me a favor though, sir?”
“Name it,” Andrews said.
“Don’t bring anything really expensive outside, all right? You keep giving away all our good swag.”
Andrews laughed. “I’ll do my best, Sarmajor.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The woman called again to ensure they were safe to approach the SCEV. Andrews moved the rig out of automated defense mode and switched the weapons systems to manual, then assured the woman it was safe to approach the rig. Leona appeared in the cockpit doorway, her kinky hair still damp from the shower she’d just taken. She smelled of the strong soap the team used after EVA missions. She only wore her uniform trousers and T-shirt, and carried her boots, socks, and uniform blouse in her hands.
“Mike, you’d better get out there with Mulligan,” she said. “We can’t leave KC alone up here.” Procedure was for two pilots to be present in the cockpit at all times the rig was operational, and if there was trouble on the horizon, KC was too junior to face it by herself.
“I can run the guns if I need to,” KC said.
“We know you can, but we need two sets of eyes. Combat can be pretty dynamic, and the rigs aren’t exactly optimized for it. Trust me on this, you’ll want an extra pair of hands,” Andrews said. He looked up at Leona from the pilot’s seat. The truth of the matter was, he was a little annoyed she wasn’t ready, but he forced himself to be cool about it. It wouldn’t take him long to get ready to leave the rig. All he needed to do was pull on some battle rattle. “I can hold station long enough for you to finish dressing, Lee. Don’t sweat it.”
Earthfall (Book 2): Earthfall 2 [The Mission Continues] Page 17