by M. Lorrox
First thing on Thursday morning, Press Secretary William Russel takes to the podium at the Pentagon with dozens of microphones and cameras trained on him. He sets his water bottle down, pulls notecards from his jacket, and puts on his most optimistic smile. “Good morning. Thank you all for joining me. Today we have some encouraging news: we’ve made a breakthrough. Our scientists have developed a vaccine that temporarily blocks infection by the virus. This is the first step toward creating a permanent solution, and our scientists are working around the clock to achieve its development.
“Although tests have shown the effectiveness of the vaccine, it is currently very difficult and expensive to transport, store, and administer to individual recipients. Specialists are working on improving these mechanisms as well.
“This temporary measure is being adapted to work with the Pentagon’s defensive technologies, and an emergency system should be ready within twenty-four hours. We hope to have similar systems ready to ship to The Line and to key defensive buildings within a week.
“Again, although this is a huge first step, it is only that, the first step. The brave men and women fighting to protect innocent Americans are receiving the best resources and information we can offer. We know that the road back will be challenging, but we can now see an end in sight. Thank you.”
The room erupts with activity. Many reporters have their hands raised and shout out “Mr. Secretary!” to try and get his attention. He calls on someone in the front row.
A woman in a red pantsuit stands. “Rebecca Jones, ANN. Mr. Secretary, are there plans to share this technology with our neighbors in Canada and Mexico?”
He nods. “Definitely. We’ve alerted our ambassadors and have requested that they send teams immediately to collect samples and to also work with us in improving the vaccine.” He points to a tall man with perfectly styled blond hair. “Jim, go ahead.”
“James Purcell, Channel 5 News. Who discovered the vaccine?”
William glances down to the podium, flips a card over, and skims it. “Dr. Lars Melgaard and his team are creating the vaccines. His research assistant, Dr. Candace Baker, made the initial discovery.” He sets the card down and looks up. “One more; you, on the right.”
A woman with short hair and a military presence stands. “Wren Riggs, National Daily News. The Pentagon is adding additional and expensive defenses to this building while American soldiers are running out of boots and bullets out on The Line. What do you have to say to the people living in the cities on The Line, and what do you have to say to the protesters outside this building right now, who will surely become more enraged by this new allocation of resources?”
The press secretary clears his throat. “I think that was more than one question, but I’ll respond as best I can. We will win this war, and we will win it by taking advantage of developments and by giving our armed services the best tools in the world so they can do their job better. No one, I repeat, no one is running out of bullets. We are taking care of our brave soldiers on The Line while they are doing their very best to protect this country. When we have a tool worthy of their dedication and determination, we will provide it to them. Thank you.”
He walks away from the podium and takes a sip from his water bottle. That went well enough.
A special meeting is called by the High Council, requiring the War and Defense Cabinet and the senior officers of the Council Guard to attend. Sadie Costanza was also asked to attend, but only as an observer.
Thankfully, whatever cruelty that prevents vampires from enjoying a buzz from modest amounts of alcohol doesn’t apply itself to caffeine. Charlie slams back a cup of coffee before leaving the suite with Sadie. When they are halfway down the hall toward the elevator, she asks him, “Was that Skip coming back this morning while I was in the shower?”
“Yeah, I think it’s safe to say that he hit it off with Katlyn.”
She nods. “What do you know about her?”
“Nothing, but she seems nice enough.”
When they arrive at the conference room, Charlie takes a seat near the Council Guard’s senior officers, and Sadie sits at a table in the back with some aides.
Korina sips from a cardboard to-go coffee cup. “Good morning sir, know what this is all about?” She motions with her hand around the room.
Charlie lays his hands flat on the table in front of him. “We’ll all find out soon enough.”
The High Council sits along one edge of the room, where one empty seat awaits the prime minister. It’s still a couple minutes before the start of the meeting, and people chat with one another.
When the prime minister does enter, he enters with General Riley. Riley takes a seat near Charlie, then Hamid starts the meeting.
“Allow me to get right to the point. The United States military is going to use their newly developed temporary vaccine to carry out missions inside infected territory. Experts will be escorted under guard to retrieve important assets. We have the opportunity to assist in this operation, and the benefit would be that if the Order decides to go public, our involvement with this operation could be used in public relations campaigns.”
Charlie furrows his brow. That’s the best you could pitch it?
“We’ve asked these members of the Council Guard to attend this meeting because we feel that some of them would be ideal candidates for this operation.” Hamid looks at each guardsman as he talks, finally pausing at Charlie. “It will be voluntary, unless we cannot find suitable knights for this mission.” He looks away and moves to take his seat. “General Riley, the floor is yours.”
He stands and straightens his uniform. “Thank you, Mr. Prime Minister. We’ve tagged this one Operation Sidewinder. The Pentagon has identified certain high-priority assets, and we’re going to go recover them. The duration of protection the vaccine provides is a limiting factor, and the lack of active infrastructure past The Line are real problems, so we need your help.”
He walks around to the front of the table, leans back against it, and sighs. “I wish that General Campbell—who’s overseeing this operation—and our soldiers could handle this without needing your help, but this operation will work best as a joint effort. We’ll go after assets at two previously abandoned military bases concurrently, and depending on what we learn from the process, expand from there. Each squad will be flown out in modified C-130s, one per target location. The air strips at the bases are covered with debris and wreckage, but there are viable options for landing the C-130s off-strip on nearby sand and dirt, respectively.”
Charlie glances at Sadie. She’s taking notes. He returns his attention to the general.
“Each plane will be carrying three specially modified, Aluminum-Armor-Only, Joint-Light-Tactical-Vehicles, or JLTVs, in Zombie-Combat Weapons Carrier configuration. The acronym for these specialty JLTVs is absurd, so we’re dubbing them Armadillos, or Dillos for short.
“After landing, one of the three Dillos will patrol and deploy experimental anti-zombie devices around the perimeter of the target location, while the other two will infiltrate the base, delivering the specialists and their tools to the assets. We’ve worked out a mission timeline with the scientists who developed the vaccine, and it turns out to be straightforward. Both teams will depart at o-six-hundred hours, be on the ground by about twelve-hundred hours for six hours total, and be back in the air by eighteen or nineteen-hundred. The planes will land back in DC early the next morning, with debriefing and medical analysis to follow.”
Tiger glances at Tatsu and shrugs. Simple enough, aye?
“Five airmen will operate each C-130. The patrol Armadillo will require four…non-vampire soldiers. The infiltration Dillos will each carry a specialist, a vampire knight, and two other soldiers—a driver and a gunner.” He looks around the room. “Any questions?”
Charlie raises his hand, and Sadie holds her breath.
“Go ahead.”
Charlie clears his throat. “Is there a strategic advantage to having the vampire knights along? Is there a specific reason that the military needs our help?”
He nods. “Indeed. At the target locations, we have satellite imagery of the exterior, but no intel on the conditions inside. From the amount of debris we see outside these targets—caused by many different things, like car and plane crashes and other explosions—we can only assume that the interior of these locations are heavily damaged as well. With such a tight timeline and the limited resources we’re working with, we need to ensure that no obstacle can prevent the technicians from accessing the assets.”
Charlie blinks. “So, in case there’s something big that needs lifting, we could pick it up and put it down somewhere else.”
Riley grins. Smartass. “That would be helpful yes, but the knights would also be exceptional at close quarter zombie combat because of your strengths and your immunity to the virus. In addition, your immunity is an insurance that the mission will succeed—in case there is an unforeseen delay and the soldiers’ medicine wears off, knights and the vampire specialist will be able to complete the mission.”
“Vampire specialist?”
“Yes. There will be one vampire specialist and one civilian specialist traveling to each target location. Three vampires total, per plane.”
Charlie nods. Alright.
Korina raises her hand and is addressed by the general. “Sir, what are the assets this operation is meant to recover?”
“That information is classified, but you can be sure we wouldn’t be risking the lives of soldiers if it wasn’t a priority.”
“Well, what about the specialists you mentioned? Any information on who they are?”
He shakes his head. “They’re the top minds in their fields, and their involvement in the mission is top secret. Also, none of the specialists are to be considered active combatants—that is not their mission.”
Charlie smiles to himself. I doubt the zombies will care less if they’re designated as active combatants or not.
“Any other questions?”
Tiger raises his hand, and the general motions to him. “What’s this perimeter zombie defense weapon thing you mentioned?”
Riley frowns. “Prototypes of Remote Solar Laser Offensive Beacons. We think we’ll need to rely on automated weapon systems when we begin reclaiming swaths of abandoned territory.”
Tiger smiles and looks around. “Aye, Remote SLOBs, they’ll sure make a mess out of things!”
Charlie slaps the table and snaps at Tiger, “In official meetings, you will show your professionalism at all times. Understood?”
“Aye, understood, sir.”
Charlie turns to the general. “I apologize, sir, but you do need to come up with a better name for those devices.”
After the general fields additional questions, he is excused from the meeting, and he leaves. When he’s gone, High Councilor and War and Defense Cabinet Chairman Vincent de Villablino takes the floor and addresses Charlie and the senior officers of the Guard. “This operation requires four vampire knights, and you five hold the highest positions within the Order. We believe it is in the Order’s best interest that the volunteer knights be of significant achievement and stature. This will help us build a strong and successful alliance with the United States government, and it will aid us in public relations activities.”
Vincent scans the guards, one by one. “You five are all highly qualified for this mission. Sadly, we only have four openings—”
Charlie raises his hand.
“Yes, Colonel Costanza?”
“I volunteer to let the others take this honor, sir.”
Vincent closes his eyes and sighs. “I was saying, that one of you will not be able to take part in this mission. That person will oversee the junior guardsmen and will assume the duties of the volunteers until they return.” He glances at Charlie and then away. “The High Council hopes that Colonel Costanza will volunteer for this operation, because his skillset will be most ideal for the mission.”
Charlie raises his hand again.
Vincent looks at him, blinks, then motions for him to speak.
“I’ve been thinking about volunteering for this operation. I feel like my skillset might be ideal for it, but I was wondering: if I were to be involved in this partnership-building role and this public relations aspect becomes important, I could imagine that being in such a role would take up a lot of time. I wonder if the High Council would consider granting a leave from active duty for the volunteers? For a specified number of years, of course, while these new and crucial, no, vitally important public relations activities take place.”
Vincent rolls his eyes. “You’ve been back on duty for what, two days, and you want another reprieve?”
Charlie puts on a face of insult. “Perhaps I misunderstood the importance of having high-ranking vampire knights in this operation. Maybe you instead need some of the younger and ready-to-prove-themselves knights—the ones that no one has ever heard of. I’m sure they’d love to make a name for themselves.”
Vincent clears his throat, but Mary cuts him off. “Colonel Costanza, perhaps you are correct in that the volunteering knights might need to be reassigned to non-combat roles, for as long as those roles are necessary. Is that what you are suggesting?”
He nods. “Or for a certain number of years away from a combat role. Ten has a nice round-numberness to it.” Minnie would be into her later teens by then, and I could go back to active duty, if I had to.
Mary frowns. “That will require discussion and approval by the Council. I support this contingency, but only after the joint military operations are completed.”
He glances to Sadie, who looks wary, then over to Mary. “Did the military hint at how many joint operations they might want to carry out?”
“No, but we can make assumptions. They presented a map with twenty-four locations marked.”
Charlie sighs and looks at the vampire guards to his sides. Twelve missions for each team. That’s a lot to ask...
Schermer raises her hand, and Mary motions for her to speak.
“Councilor Wollstone, I can volunteer for one, or a few missions, but volunteering for twelve with such little information is unreasonable. Perhaps volunteers should just be considered for this mission, and then later when other operations are planned, they could be presented to us again.”
Mary glances around to other members of the High Council. She catches Councilman Robert Flaxman’s eye, and he clears his throat. “Major Schermer, we appreciate your willingness to aid us in this time of need, but you must remember your place; you will not place demands upon this Council!”
Charlie stands. “Permission to speak, sir.”
Robert allows a grin to creep onto his mouth. “Granted.”
“I will volunteer for Operation Sidewinder, and if more is asked of me later—” he smiles at Robert, “—then it will have to be asked of me, later. These senior officers and I have a duty as guardsmen to protect not only the Council, but all elders, and this military operation clearly falls outside the jurisdiction of that commission.” He looks to the prime minister. “With your permission sir, I’d like to personally assemble the teams for this operation and begin preparation.”
Hamid smiles. “Thank you for volunteering Colonel Costanza; this contribution will not be forgotten. Please do go ahead and prepare the teams, and do so with haste—Operation Sidewinder leaves tomorrow at o-six-hundred hours, and the teams will be briefed on mission specifics tonight at eighteen-hundred hours.”
Charlie groans on the inside, but he smiles. “Understood. Permission to be dismissed sir?”
“Granted. Knights—”
They all stand up beside Charlie and snap into attention.
“Dismissed.”
Sadie watches them leave, and she
watches the embers of disgust growing into a blaze of anger inside High Councilor Flaxman. She extends her hand and takes Charlie’s as he walks by, then hides her smile by returning to her notes. Robert’s going to blow a gasket… I wish I had popcorn!
Skip works with Minnie on her lessons and rubs his eyes. June is taking a shower to try and wake up or to get sleepy; either one would work for her. Eddy sits at the table near the kitchen and drafts a note on his laptop.
Mr. Bernardi,
My name is Eddy Costanza. I heard this old legend about the Cardinal’s Vengeance. I’d like to learn more about the legend and the jewelry. My family is in DC for the House of Elders meetings. Might you have a few minutes to chat over the next few days? I have a very flexible schedule.
Sincerely,
Eddy
He searches for Lorenzo’s username on the Infinite Vampire portal site, and when he finds it, he sends the note in a private message. Then, Eddy clicks back to the forums where conspiracy theorists and speculators discuss wild possibilities about the cursed artifacts.
June walks into the living room after her shower, dressed but still wet, and Eddy tries his hardest not to look.
She frowns as she walks over to her dad and Minnie. “Dad, I was thinking about going to this bookstore I saw in the mall. What do you think? Would you want to come?”
Skip shakes his head without looking up. “I can’t. I’ve got Minnie all day.”
“Mmm.” June spots Eddy and walks over. “What about you, Eddy, want to check out a bookstore?”
He glances up at her wet face. Her eyes are red and a bit sunken, and her cheeks look pale. “Are you feeling alright?”
She walks past him to the kitchen. “I’m tired; didn’t sleep. I guess yesterday’s adrenaline is finally wearing off. Bookstore?”
He turns toward her and smiles, but he notices the fabric of her shorts clinging to her legs, so he returns his attention to the laptop. “Maybe, yeah.”