“Hell yeah, I want that!” Danny cried out. “I had a platoon get lost yesterday and had to call Prometheus to do a radio triangulation to find them.”
Bruce laughed and stepped back as Danny’s driver walked past. “Louis, what happened to your lip?” he asked and Louis stopped.
“He busted mine, so I busted his,” Buffy yelled from inside the rig. Hanging his head low, Louis walked around the rig.
Letting out a sigh, Bruce looked up at Danny. “Hey, he was driving like an ass and Buffy handled it,” she shrugged. “He’s a very good driver now.”
“Did you help?”
“Nope, Buffy clocked his ass and he charged her. Buffy kicked him in the knee, making him drop down and she monkey-stomped his ass,” Danny said, trying not to smile. “I have to say, I love having her with me. She’s a big help.”
“Then let me drive and show dummy how it’s done!” Buffy shouted then stuck her head out, looking at Danny.
“Dummy?” Bruce asked, raising his eyebrows.
“Oh, that’s Buffy’s name for Louis,” Danny grinned then turned to Buffy. “I let you drive us here.”
“Yeah, and dummy wouldn’t take his damn foot off the brake!” Buffy shouted, throwing up her hands.
“Buffy,” Danny sighed. “You played chicken with Matt’s driver.”
“It’s not my fault the pussy drove off the road into that creek,” Buffy huffed and Matt stood up out of the hatch, looking at Buffy.
“Well, what about the other six rigs you ran off the road?” he asked.
“They didn’t have to turn,” Buffy chortled, trying not to smile. “They didn’t run into the creek.”
“Matt, be glad dum-, Louis slammed on the brakes or she would’ve run all of Alpha off the road,” Danny said smiling. “She said she wasn’t turning and was going to win this game of chicken.”
“Do I need to replace your driver?” Bruce asked, feeling a headache coming.
“No way,” Buffy snapped. “Dummy is finally learning how to drive.”
“Buffy, having a teenaged girl call you dummy is very humiliating,” Bruce said.
“Not to mention getting your ass kicked by one,” Danny snorted.
Buffy groaned rolling her eyes. “Louis!” she called out.
“Yes,” Louis answered from the other side of the rig.
“I will only call you dummy when you act stupid, so don’t,” she said then turned to Bruce, smiling.
“Thank you and I won’t,” Louis answered, sounding much happier.
Standing up, Danny stretched. “Dad, since you’re here, will you help me?” she groaned out with the stretch.
“Sure,” Bruce said and Danny walked across the roof to the cupola and stopped, looking at it. Seeing her standing there, Bruce climbed up and saw chalk marks on the shield the minigun was pointing through.
“I want a dual gun mount,” Danny said, turning to Bruce and pointed to the hood. “I want that mounted with my new minigun.”
Looking down on the hood, Bruce laughed. “You want to mount a Mk-19 with a minigun?”
“Yes, you’ve done it on your vehicles,” Danny said.
Buffy walked over, putting her arm around Bruce’s waist. “I want the automatic grenade launcher, in case I see blues running up buildings again,” she said. “That way, I can knock them down.”
Looking at both of them, Bruce nodded. “Find me a cutting torch,” he said about to turn and stopped. “Wait, new minigun?”
“Yes, this one is going on the mount I just welded on,” Danny said, walking across the roof and pointing down on the other side of the rig. Bruce walked over, looking down. “We talked and decided to mount the GAU-19 as the companion to the Mk-19.”
Impressed, Bruce nodded, “You do realize if you mount both, Buffy won’t be able to turn the cupola right. You will be able to, but it’s going to be hard. A fifty-caliber minigun is heavy, as is the Mk-19.”
“I’m fixing that,” Matt said, holding up small electric motor.
“Well, let’s get to work,” Bruce said, taking his top off.
Angela and Stephanie walked out of Prometheus and saw Bruce working while only wearing a black tank top. “No hanky-panky in the field,” Stephanie said, grinning at the look Angela had on her face.
“Hey, I can look,” Angela said. “It’s about all I can do with a bladder the size of a dime.”
They walked over, watching the kids mount a GAU beside a Mk-19. Stephanie smiled. “Buffy is my star pupil,” she said as Buffy jumped up and down cheering.
Bruce looked down, wiping sweat off his face. “Hey, guys,” he smiled.
“When are we pulling out?” Angela asked.
“Morning,” Bruce said, grabbing his top. “Think you guys got it from here?”
“Good, because everyone needs a hot meal,” Angela said.
“I want to shoot it now,” Buffy said, jumping in the cupola.
“No, now help us mount the minigun,” Danny said, walking across the roof to the back.
Bruce jumped down and put his arms around the two and walked around, talking to the troops. As they were walking back, Stephanie looked up at Bruce. “Bruce, we talked and want you to put monitors like they have in your RG. With six, you can keep up with what’s going on,” she said.
“Why, I’m delegated to Prometheus. It has monitors I don’t know how to work,” he laughed, but had a sorrowful expression.
They both stopped, holding his arms on their shoulders and making Bruce stop. “It’s about what you said, ‘A good commander has to be where the metal meets the meat’.” Angela said.
Letting them go, Bruce took a step and spun around, facing them. “Yes, that’s how you gauge your troops, knowing where to send what.”
Stephanie looked at him, “It’s more than that, Bruce. You inspire. When we rode with you, checking on troops around Atlanta, we could see it on their faces. Now don’t get us wrong, if we had our way, you would be locked in the closet.”
“We would bring you food,” Angela snorted.
“But that isn’t being you. Now if it called for it, I know you would run the battle from here,” Stephanie said waving her hand at Prometheus. “But you can tell them how you want the battle directed.”
In total shock, Bruce took a step back. “Who are you and what have you done with my wives?”
“We are right here,” Angela smiled.
“You really don’t mind?”
“Not in the sense that you are talking about,” Stephanie said. “We will worry more but doing it this way, is taking away part of what you are.”
“And what part is that?” he asked, cocking his head.
A grin split their faces as Angela stepped up to him. “The warrior part,” she whispered.
Bruce stood staring over Angela’s head in shock. Reaching up, Angela waved her hand in front of his face. “Great, we broke him,” she huffed.
Stephanie stepped beside Angela and snapped her fingers in Bruce’s face. He blinked and looked down at them. “There is one catch,” Stephanie said and Bruce nodded.
“If we see you losing your humanity, we want you to stop and get back in Prometheus until this war is over. Then, leave it all and stay with us,” Stephanie said.
Bruce looked at both and smiled. “On that, you won’t have to worry,” he said. “If I ride the wave, it’s not for very long and believe me, I will follow the rules.”
“Being there for the birth doesn’t change,” Stephanie added quickly.
“I would stop the war,” Bruce said, hugging both. “Tell you what, since you will back me in this, I’ll keep Ted and Carl up my ass, along with that army they call my ‘protection detail’.”
Angela and Stephanie looked at each other and turned to Bruce. “It’s a deal,” they said, hugging him.
“Aw, that’s so cute,” Danny said, walking up with all the kids and saw they were all grinning. “What’s going on? They are already pregnant,” she said.
Bruce looked
at the kids and his grin broadened out. “Daddy’s back.”
Chapter 28
Looking around at the trees of Georgia, Bruce swayed back in forth in his RG’s cupola, holding on to the minigun. After helping Danny, Bruce went and found a GAU and mounted it beside the minigun. Then on the back, he mounted a minigun on each side of his rig which Ted and Carl now manned.
“Bonnie, anyone reporting problems?” Bruce called out over the intercom.
A few seconds passed before Bonnie answered. “No, sir. All positions are reporting and showing they are advancing.”
In the back of the rig looking out the right side, Ted ducked down, looking at the new monitors that had been installed. On one was a satellite map of Georgia with dots showing every vehicle in Omega. “I never liked the idea my ride was sending out information of where I was,” he said, then stood back up.
“If blues can figure out how to hack Jake and Matt’s network, we are screwed,” Carl chuckled.
“Hey, there are people we are fighting out here as well,” Ted said and saw a blue charging out of the trees. Pressing the minigun, Ted sent out a small burst, watching the blue nearly get cut in half.
“A burst with a minigun is like a hundred rounds,” he huffed and lifted his SCAR.
Carl looked over as Ted rested the barrel of his rifle on the RG. “That’s why I keep my rifle up. I can drop it if they bring friends to play,” he chuckled.
Lifting his map, Bruce looked at the center of the line of advance, moving along I-75 toward Macon. Omega was spread forty miles to the left and right of the interstate, clearing an eighty-mile corridor.
The command company that was around Bruce was traveling a few miles behind the front with support, supply, and Prometheus ten miles further back. They were passing an exit to McDonough as Bruce heard Danny over the radio.
“Slow down, we are here to kill blues. All units slow to twenty MPH.”
“Louis, slow down to twenty and Ted call Prometheus and have the word spread out to all companies,” Bruce said. Feeling rather sorry for Louis, Bruce had swapped drivers with Danny.
“Boss, Angela says everyone has slowed,” Ted called out. “Danny’s moving through Covington and that little town has some blues.”
“Carl, keep an eye out,” Bruce said, dropping down. Moving beside Carl and looking at the monitors, Bruce saw Danny’s company spread out in a line, slowly moving southeast. Looking at the center monitors that had views of drone on them, Bruce saw blues running at the convoy.
“She’ll be done with them in a few minutes,” Bruce said. “Give me other views of the line.” Ted tapped the computer and all along the line Omega was engaged, but not in any real numbers. “I swear, it’s like stomping on ants.”
“If that were the case, I would find some ‘Raid’,” Ted laughed, standing back up.
Watching the line, Bruce saw several points in the line that were falling back. “This is Boss,” Bruce called out over the radio. “All units, stop and hold until cleared to move forward.”
Grabbing his backpack as he watched the monitors, Bruce dug out his tablet. Jake had assured him the new set up would do what he wanted. Knowing what he wanted it to do, but making the tablet do it were two different things. Tapping the screen of the tablet, wanting it to talk to the computer as he glanced at the monitors Bruce started cussing, “Show me the fucking monitors! I don’t care which one, you have six to choose from!”
“Bruce, it doesn’t help to cuss at electronics,” Ted chuckled.
“Shut it, ass slime,” Bruce shouted. “I know it can do it!”
“Yes and so do I, but it doesn’t understand speech.”
“The fuck it doesn’t,” Bruce said, stabbing the screen with his finger. ‘Unable to connect’ appeared on the screen again. “You, dick wipe!” Bruce shouted, raising his hand to throw the tablet.
“Mr. Bruce!” Bonnie shouted crawling back. “Can I try before you kill it?”
Handing it over, Bruce growled, “Communist-made, granny-wanker, piece of shit.”
“Glad to know I’m not the only one who wants to beat computers,” Carl mumbled as the rig behind them opened up on a group of blues.
“The tablet had the wrong RSA encryption settings,” Bonnie said, passing the tablet back to Bruce.
Taking the tablet, Bruce looked at the twelve-inch screen showing the map with all of Omega. “I changed the settings,” Bruce said, tapping the screen and moving through drone feeds.
“Yes, sir, but you put in the wrong numbers,” Bonnie said sheepishly.
Nodding at Bonnie, Bruce smiled as she crawled back to the front passenger seat. “We are stopping at the next Best Buy,” Bruce called over the intercom.
“Why, she got it working?” Ted asked, lifting his rifle and shooting a blue.
“I want spares because I think this one is possessed. I have a feeling it’s not long for this world,” Bruce said, climbing up into the cupola.
***
“Will you quit swerving, Randy?” Buffy screamed over the intercom at the new driver.
“I don’t want to hit trucks bigger than we are,” he called back. Unlike Louis, Randy had driven with Buffy many times and was the first person’s lap she’d jumped in to drive.
Lowering her rifle, Buffy looked ahead. A semi was on the right with its trailer in the ditch. “Okay, you needed to miss that one, but you’re messing up my aim,” Buffy said, aiming at a group of blues running at them.
Hearing a minigun spin up and fire, Danny glanced over her shoulder and saw Beth hosing down a building as blues streamed out. Looking back to her side, Danny swung her rifle, popping blues.
When her side was clear, she glanced back at the rig behind her as their guns fell silent. All of Omega was broken down into squads of two vehicles moving along the corridor. Resting her rifle, Danny called out on the radio, checking on the rest of the company.
Getting an all clear, Danny pressed the switch on her CVC. “Okay Randy, pull out and move to our turn off,” she called over the intercom.
Not responding, Randy pulled out and Danny smiled as Buffy leaned back in the cupola. “Heath, what are the other companies reporting?” Danny asked.
“Minimal contact and Boss wants all units to hold till the line is straight,” he told her.
“Yeah, I heard. We will stop at our turn because there is open ground around it. I don’t like stopping in choke points.”
“Daddy would kick your ass if we stayed here,” Buffy snapped, looking around.
Giving a sigh, “That’s why we are moving, sis,” Danny said.
“I know, I was saying that for Heath,” Buffy said.
Not in the mood for Buffy logic, Danny kept quiet as the rig moved through the small town of Covington. Reaching a fork in the road, Randy stopped on the road heading south as a Blackhawk flew overhead. A few minutes later, they could hear the door gunners open up.
“Hey, those ball sniffing, ass jockeys better go and shoot blues somewhere else,” Buffy said, standing up in the cupola. “Those ahead are ours.”
“They are stirring them up ahead,” Heath said.
“All units, move two miles further into corridor,” Stephanie called over the radio.
“Aw, come on!” Buffy cried out as Randy slowly pulled to the right, heading south. “Two miles? That puts us in the middle of nothing.”
Spotting movement, Danny swung her rifle and fired three shots, dropping a blue. “Buffy, why is Dad making us stop now every few miles?” Danny asked and saw a matrix kid bounding toward them.
As Danny started shooting, Buffy sighed, looking around. “Most of the squads are on back dirt roads and we could get spread out and not be close to help them if they need help,” Buffy moaned. Suddenly, she let out a squeal of delight and spun the turret to the right, firing the minigun.
Watching the matrix kid roll across the ground, Danny checked her area and then looked up at Buffy firing at a large group coming out of the woods. “I have to tell Daddy
I’m sorry for acting like an ass. It’s hard enough leading, without bloodthirsty kids,” she mumbled as Buffy finished cutting the blues down.
***
It was 1430 when Bruce stood in the cupola, looking at the tablet and stabbing it with his finger, wanting a view he had just seen. “Bonnie, tell first regiment, Echo Company, they need to move up four miles,” Bruce said as Carl opened up on his minigun.
Glancing back, Bruce saw blues charging across a field at them as Carl hosed them down. Pressing his radio, “This is Boss. Prometheus, I’m having trouble getting feeds from drones ahead, what do you see?” Bruce asked.
Several seconds later, Angela came over the radio. “Drones and helicopters are telling us small pockets of blues. No large numbers that we can see. Even in Macon, we aren’t seeing large numbers.”
“Fine with me,” Bruce called back. “Tell all companies to move tonight rally points and form defensive positions for the night.”
“This early?” Angela called back in shock.
Still fighting with his tablet, Bruce pressed his radio. “Yes, it will take them a few hours and I’m sure we’ll have to send people out to lead some in that will get lost. Sixty miles was my goal for today and I’m happy.”
“Telling the troops to bed down,” Angela called back as Bruce let out a cry of joy, getting the view he’d been looking for.
Glancing around, Bruce didn’t see any threats he had to deal with and looked back down at his tablet. “Boss, this is Bravo One,” Danny called over the radio.
Setting his tablet down, Bruce sighed and pressed his radio. “Bravo One, this is Boss.”
“Can’t we move to the next line and bed down?” Danny asked.
“Negative, that’s another ten miles and would put some of the squads reaching their rally points after sundown. When the troops get more comfortable moving we will move around at night, but I’m having enough trouble keeping them moving in the right direction during the day.”
A long groan droned over the radio, then Danny spoke. “Copy, Bravo is bedding down for the night and I’ll tuck in all the little kiddies.”
Ted busted out laughing in the back. “Oh man, is Danny hardcore. If you say she’s calmed down since she was twelve, I bet she could give Buffy a run.”
Blue Plague: Hope: Book Seven Page 37