by John O'Brien
He hangs up the mic knowing that it will be difficult for a lot of them. Most of the crew are young and will have wives, kids, and parents that will weigh on their minds. Some will want to jump ship when they put into ports. He’ll have to post lookouts to prevent that and talk with the chaplain. He can’t have the crew leaving. If too many in critical positions leave, it will leave him and the others stranded. We have to prevent that at all costs, he thinks, climbing back to the bridge. He gives a momentary thought to his own mom and sister so far away in Kansas. He silently sends a prayer aloft for their safety.
The captain’s announcement fades away. Vance Krandle sits with his team in the enlisted mess. They crowd around one table staring at the speaker before glancing at each other. Silence accompanies the end of the speech as each is lost in their own thoughts pondering the implications of what they just heard. CPO Krandle’s thoughts go back to that fateful evening seemingly years ago when he watched Gold Team get taken down. He replays the events and remembers the hordes that easily overwhelmed his teammates.
His memory jumps to seeing the dozens of creatures that Captain Walker and his teams call night runners lying in the warehouse. Knowing what they were facing, the sergeant still went into the warehouse to save the sailors inside. That took a lot of guts and he’s not sure he could have done the same. Well, he knows he would have but he wouldn’t have been comfortable with it. He still has nightmares of that night in the Philippines when he and Gold Team were taken by surprise. He also knows that the captain and his people they met only a short while ago have their act together and know what they are doing. He wonders briefly if he made the right choice in staying. There is a very thin line between loyalty and survival. It’s only the camaraderie of fellow soldiers and the desire to help those in need that keeps the fear at bay. It’s a desire that lies deep within the core of a person. That very thing is why he and his team are sitting where they are. He knows that the submariners will need them.
“Do you think we should have stayed with that Captain Walker and his crew?” His point man says, breaking the silence.
“You know why we’re here and why we’re needed. We’ll join up with them soon enough,” Krandle answers and proceeds to tell the deal he made with Captain Leonard.
“What about our families? Do you think we’ll be able to call them or given time to go see about them?” The point man continues.
“I don’t know. I’m sure the Captain will let us make the attempt if there’s time. And, from what I gather, there isn’t any electricity so that means no calls. But right now, our place is here and we’ll continue to look after each other as we always have,” he answers. They’ve always been tight and all nod at the reply.
“So any clue as to what we’ll be doing?” Krandle’s XO asks.
“My guess is we’ll be reconning ashore wherever the captain decides to investigate,” he responds.
“And the ROE (Rules of engagement)?”
“We’ll define that as we proceed. It’s pretty apparent we don’t want to be ashore at night and there may be civilians to think about. And we are not going into darkened buildings if we can at all help it. You saw the warehouse. If we’re fired upon, that’s an obvious one, but we’ll try to make contact first. However, under no circumstances will we endanger the team. If possible, we pull out if engaged,” Krandle answers.
“So, we’re playing it by ear then?” The XO states.
“Pretty much.”
“That sounds super fun,” the point man says sarcastically. “I hope we brought plenty of ammo.”
“Stow it, Speer. And I’ll be talking with the captain to put in a request for ammo and spare parts.”
Krandle looks around the table at his team. Speer, his point man and their resident joker, grew up hunting in the Ozarks. He can track with the best of them but his attitude and seemingly constant sarcasm grate on Vance at times. However, when on a mission, he keeps that at bay and there isn’t a better point man in the business. He is at home in the outdoors.
Ortiz runs slack (second position) and the little Puerto Rican is the picture of fury incarnate under fire. Perhaps it has something to do with his growing up in the east LA area. It has taken Krandle a while to bring that aspect of him under control but he has been able to tame that to an extent. Krandle walks third in line and likes to carry his own radio.
Blanchard, the designated medic is a skinny, quiet, unassuming kid from south Chicago. That quietness is belied by an internal fortitude. He will, without hesitation, venture into the thickest of combat to help a fellow team mate. Blanchard is also the one mostly on the end of Speer’s barbs to which he will look up and merely shrug. Speer will sometimes go at great lengths to invoke a reaction from Blanchard but has been unsuccessful to date. Of course, their tightness makes these attempts good-natured without causing a fracture within the group.
His XO, Franklin, walks fifth in line and carries the spare radio. The black petty officer from Atlanta is one sharp tack and will make a fine team leader someday. Well, would have. His actions and speech seem slow and he is often thought of that way. That is until he spins circles around those who think this with his logic and thinking.
Bringing up the rear is Miller. A full-blooded Sioux who grew up in South Dakota. He rarely speaks and even then, his replies are only a few words. Krandle is sure there are weeks when Miller’s word count never exceeds double digits. But he is a master at covering their back trail. There were times when they had to backtrack and were unable to do so via any signs of their passage. He is that good.
Together, they make one hell of a fine team. They are fortunate to have been able to work together and be a team for some time. They have fused into a single organism, each knowing the others thoughts and actions; knowing each other’s strengths and weaknesses. If anyone can make it through what they are facing, it’s them, and Krandle feels fortunate to be a part of them.
Downing the last of the sludge the bubbleheads call coffee, Krandle says, “Okay ladies, let’s see if we can go topside and take a look.”
Feeling tired and drained from the busy morning, there’s nothing I want more than to drop down and take a nap. However, I pull the command group together in order catch everyone up on today’s events. Those who went with on our excursion slump wearily into their chairs. There is a clatter of noise as Sam’s group arrives inside and arrangements are made for them. With the new arrivals, it becomes increasingly cramped. Bannerman and Frank arrive and both sit with heavy sighs. I proceed to give an overview of the morning and ask Bannerman to include weapons and ammo in the supplies being readied to deliver to Captain Leonard and his crew.
“We can do that. What would you like sent?” Bannerman asks.
“Radio Leonard and see what he needs. Talk with Krandle and the SEAL Team and see what they’d like,” I answer.
“I’ll see to it. Now, with the new arrivals…” Bannerman starts.
“Let me guess. We’re going to talk quarters,” I say, interrupting.
“Well, it’s way past time. There’s no way we’re going to be able to house everyone in here for the long run,” he replies.
“Okay, I agree. We need to develop a secure, permanent place for us all. I think the base housing is still out of the equation with the night runner adaptations so we need to build something here. Are we going to be able start on those with all that is going on?” I ask.
“That depends. We’ll have the inner wall up in about a week or so. We can focus on the guard towers and have them up shortly or we can disperse our activities between the towers and quarters. I think it’s important to have the quarters up quick or we’re going to start seeing problems crop up,” Bannerman says.
“I agree. We’re going to want them finished before winter. At least in my opinion,” Drescoll adds.
“It seems it’s pretty important to have towers up fairly soon. If what you say is true about the night runners changing, and the fact that they’re going to have more hours of ni
ght during the winter, we’ll want our defenses in place,” Robert adds.
“How long until the wall is finished?” Lynn asks.
“About a week or so depending on the weather,” Bannerman answers.
“And how long to get the towers in place if we focus on them?” Lynn further asks.
“That may take another week or two. We’ll have to let the concrete in the upended storage containers set before we can start on the upper levels,” Bannerman replies.
“And the quarters?” Lynn asks.
“Now that will probably take a while. It depends on the design we come up with. I’m thinking we could build them like apartments. Some can support families and others individuals, couples, or roommates,” Bannerman responds.
“So, let’s talk about the design then,” I say.
We spend the next hour discussing a secure design. We come up with building apartment style complexes on top of concrete filled storage containers to have them off the ground. The buildings will have retractable stairs and ramps for entrance. A hoist and pulley system will be incorporated with a garage-like facility for bringing supplies and heavy objects into each building. Retractable ramps will run between the buildings in case we need to pull back into another building with ramps eventually running to the Cabelas roof. This will be our final redoubt in case the apartments become overrun. Overhangs will surround the bottom of the quarters so the night runners can’t scale them from underneath. Steel shutters with firing ports are to be hinged on each of the windows and doors.
“That’s going to take some time to put up,” Bannerman says after we complete the design phase.
“Like, how long?” I ask.
“I couldn’t even hazard a guess. A lot of our projects are nearing completion so we should be able to put a lot of hands to work on it, but as far as how long it will take to complete enough buildings to house everyone, I have no idea,” Bannerman replies.
“If you want my opinion, I think the towers have to do with the safety of the group and the quarters are, while not really a nicety, they don’t match up with providing for our security,” Greg says.
“I couldn’t agree more,” I say. “Anyone else have different ideas?”
The opinions are mixed among us as we ponder different ramifications of each. We eventually arrive at completing the towers and have some people assigned to begin filling the containers with concrete and laying them in place. I also mention Roger, the pilot who was with Sam and his group, and my thoughts of rigging up loudspeakers to a light engine aircraft to help out with the search for additional survivors in the area. Frank comments that he’ll talk with him and incorporate him into the search.
“You know, I have to say that standing at the narrows today gave me an idea about putting a moat around the compound,” Frank adds as the conversation subsides.
“A moat? Really? I’m not sure having stagnant water like that is a good idea. That will breed all sorts of bacteria,” Lynn says.
“True, we don’t have to fill it, but if we dig a ditch, say twenty feet wide and twenty feet deep, it could trap any night runners who try to get close to the walls. We could put a drawbridge at the front entrance and that would seal us away,” Frank replies.
“Wouldn’t that fill up with water during the winter months?” Drescoll asks.
“We could line it with concrete and put sump pumps to drain it,” Robert adds.
“Okay, but I don’t think that’s a very viable option. I mean, building a ditch like that all of the way around the compound isn’t a very plausible solution. That’s four miles of ditch you’re talking about,” Greg comments.
“What about just around the inner walls? We could run the ditch under the existing walls and just encircle the inner compound,” Franks says.
“I suppose that might be viable and we could build a drain field and pump the water into it,” Bannerman states.
“We have the mine field we’ve put up. Do you really think that’s necessary?” Drescoll asks.
“My thinking is that they could push through and once they make a path through the mine field, then they could reach the walls. The night runners have shown themselves to be relentless regardless of the numbers they lose,” Franks says.
“The night runners could come up with a way to build a bridge across it,” I comment.
“Really?! Do you think they could do that?” Drescoll asks, incredulously.
“Who knows? They’ve been pretty innovative in the past. Just look at the hospital. Each of our innovations seems to spur their own. We are, in effect, sponsoring their adaptability by the very nature of trying to keep them out. It’s a cycle. We need to stay at least two steps ahead and think of their possible adaptations,” I answer.
“Are you saying we don’t build something because of what it may spur on the night runner side?” Drescoll asks.
“No. I’m not saying we stop coming up with and adopting solutions, we just need to think ahead to any possible night runner reaction, regardless of how far-fetched it might seem,” I reply. “I think our best solution lies with clearing them out.”
“Well, that’s true and I completely agree with that. So, what do we do about the ditch?” Drescoll says.
“I don’t think we have the resources right now to do that, the towers, and build the quarters,” Bannerman chimes in. “I think we need to concentrate on the towers and quarters.”
“I agree but I don’t want to completely drop Frank’s notion of a moat. I think it’s a great idea and not only because of the night runners. If Leonard is truly going to let others he encounters know about our location, we may experience trouble at some point from a large group of marauders. We need to prepare ourselves for that eventuality. And that’s regardless of who Leonard meets. I think someone, at some point, is going to find us and decide they’d like our little garden for themselves,” I say.
“That’s true. I’ve thought about that myself. We might want to bring more Strykers down,” Frank says.
“We’re close to being finished with the vehicle storage building and can bring them down and store them when it’s complete,” Bannerman replies.
We begin to wind down our meeting when Horace speaks up. “Sir, I’m just curious, how did you know there were night runners inside of the warehouse?”
And, there’s the bomb! It goes off with little sound but she may as well have tossed a grenade in our midst. I feel my heart beat increase more than it would if I was inside of a night runner-infested building. My initial thought is to scream shrilly and run from the building. My second thought is to suddenly go deaf but Lynn knows that one. I’ve tried that one in the past with little success. I was thinking of telling them anyway but the worry of their reaction has kept my lips sealed.
My cheeks puff out as I forcefully blow air through my pursed lips. “I suppose it’s time I tell you a story. Grab some popcorn and make yourselves comfortable as I have a bit of a story to tell,” I answer
I proceed to tell them the changes I seem to have undergone. I can’t tell them too much really as I really don’t understand it myself. Jaws hit the ground and disbelief crowds everyone’s eyes as I spin my tale. The silence within the group is complete as I finish. The sounds of people shuffling and arranging their belongings within the building rise in stark detail but are unheard in our little circle. Telling what happened and the changes that occurred makes it sound like quite the fabrication. I hear myself as the words come reluctantly from my mouth and I don’t believe it. I wait for the first burst of laughter or “that’s a good one, Jack” but am only met with stares as the thoughts churn inside each head. I worry about their reaction.
“So, wait a minute. First of all, you mean to tell us that the night runners communicate amongst themselves in some sort of telepathic manner? And that you can sense and ‘hear’ them?” Drescoll asks, breaking the tense silence.
“It appears so,” I say.
“Then we can use that,” Drescoll states.
; “To some degree, however, they can sense and ‘hear’ me when I open up like that. It’s not as great a tool as you might think,” I reply.
“But still. You know if night runners are in a building before we go in,” he comments.
“It’s not as accurate as that. I didn’t sense anything in the building when we picked up our chutes but they were in there. For whatever reason, it seems to be a hit or miss kind of thing and I don’t want to rely on it being definitive,” I respond.
“Fair enough but why didn’t you tell us this before?” Franks asks.
“Because I don’t really understand it myself and wanted to know more about it before bringing it up. Plus, in all honesty, I didn’t know what your reaction would be. And I still don’t,” I answer.
“You have to know we’re not going to think any ill of you, Jack. We’re a team and that goes no matter what. We may not agree on everything but we still need to operate as a single entity and, honestly, I don’t think we’d be here if it wasn’t for the experience you bring. That goes for the expertise we all bring. I think I speak for everyone here,” Frank states. I look at each to see them nod in agreement.
“Thanks, everyone. I appreciate that and apologize for keeping that from you. It’s just strange coming to terms with not only that, but everything around us as well,” I reply.