by Ken Lozito
Throughout the day he and Diaz had recorded the recruits’ strengths and weaknesses, both of which would be tested over the coming days and weeks.
He heard the sound of hushed conversation as Boone and Grizzly walked the perimeter. He hadn’t given them specific orders on how to stand watch and was curious to see what each pair of recruits would do. He had one of the drones following them, but doubted the recruits knew the drone was there.
Connor finished setting up the monitoring station and brought it up. Drone feeds began to upload their data, and Connor noticed that they had limited communications capability with the main compound. A chat window opened up.
::Couldn’t wait for me to get there to set up a monitoring station I see,:: N. Bates said.
“Noah,” Connor muttered.
::SR-Camp is up. Drones are on patrol and checking in,:: C. Gates said.
::Sweet! I’ll run diagnostics on them when I’m out there in a few days. How’s the training going?:: N. Bates asked.
::We’re missing our second tech specialist,:: C. Gates replied.
::Owens is good. I hope you’re being nice to her,:: N. Bates said.
The amber text window became outlined in green.
::I’ve encrypted this session,:: N. Bates said.
Connor frowned. ::Okay, why?::
::We’ve received a data burst from the space buoy network. If you recall, the data we received from Earth was sent sometime in the past two hundred years,:: N. Bates said.
::What did you receive?::
::Only the header of the data burst, which had a reference called EOD-Extinction Critical Alpha. What follows is a set of programming instructions for the Ark,:: N. Bates said.
::Are you trying to play a joke on me?::
::It’s tempting, but no. There’s also a mention of M. Wilkinson.::
Connor felt something sink into the pit of his stomach. ::Can you send me what you have?::
::No, it’s too much for this connection. I only have a partial dump because access to buoy transmissions is restricted until they’re reviewed by the Governor’s office,:: N. Bates said.
Connor leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin. ::Okay, show me what you’ve got when you get here in a few days. I would suggest not showing this around to anyone else.::
::You don’t have to tell me twice.::
::I need you to do something for me. Sean Quinn stored himself in one of our crates. He requested to join the Search and Rescue squad, which I initially refused. Since he’s here, I have him training with the rest. Can you send a message to Ashley?:: C. Gates asked.
::Oh boy, that’s not good. I’ll let her know.::
The chat session ended, and Connor thought about the partial data dump from the space buoy network. Tobias normally had a policy for transparency, so why would any information received from Earth be restricted? He recalled some of the conversations on the Ark and that Ashley and Tobias had explained how their mission had been overwritten to bring them here instead of their original destination. That override added over a hundred years to the mission.
Connor got up from his seat and stepped outside the tent, looking over at the tents nearby and thinking about Sean Quinn. Could Sean know something about why the mission had been changed? Did he know why Tobias was keeping information from the colony? Was that the reason Sean was determined to join Connor’s new team? Or was he just doing what normal teenage kids who are on the cusp of adulthood and carving out their own niche in the world do?
Connor looked up at the night sky. A blanket of stars shined along with the moon. His gaze was then drawn to the south, where the ring that surrounded the planet brightened the night sky. Connor doubted there was ever a pitch-black night on this planet. The surrounding area was alive with chirping insects, and when Connor closed his eyes, he could almost imagine he was back on Earth, but the rhythm of sounds from the nightly critters was of a different cadence, and his brain kept registering that fact.
Connor walked over to one of the armored storage crates and placed his hand on the palm reader. At the same time, he used his implants to engage the locking interface with his biometric information and the lock disengaged. Connor pulled the large doors open. Inside was a mobile armory that held a variety of weapons they’d be training with in the coming weeks. It had taken a fair amount of negotiating with Tobias, but Connor had been able to access the weapons manifest from the Ark. Tobias may have no intention of starting a formal military, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t arm one if it came down to it. Someone had the foresight to include military-grade assault rifles and other types of weapons.
Connor unloaded the weapons crates he wanted to use with the recruits and stacked them just outside the container. There was only so much time he’d allocated for training these recruits who’d ostensibly come with at least some experience in a field he needed for Search and Rescue.
Connor heard two recruits walking along the perimeter fence. When they noticed him, they jogged over.
“Do you need some help, sir?” Deacon asked.
It appeared that Connor had been working long enough for a shift change. “Grab a crate and follow me,” Connor said.
Deacon and Poe each took a crate, and Connor grabbed the last one. He led them over to the command tent, where he’d set up the monitoring station, and put his case down. The others put theirs down next to his.
Connor thanked them, and they returned to their patrol. Connor went to his tent just as Diaz was leaving.
“I was just coming to find you,” Diaz said.
“I set up a monitoring station and there are three crates of CAR-74s in the tent,” Connor said.
Diaz nodded. “Couldn’t you get the mess tent set up and get some eggs going?”
“We’ll see how they perform today. If they earn it, they’ll get a hot meal at the end. If not, then more rations,” Connor said and went inside the tent.
He sat down on his cot, removed his boots, lay down, and shut his eyes. The last time he’d trained recruits like this he’d had a staff of twelve instructors with rotations. Here, he and Diaz just had each other. He thought about the Ghosts. More than once, images of Kasey and Reisman came to mind, along with Samson and Oslo. Randle and Compton reminded him a lot of Samson and Oslo, who’d carried heavy weapons in his unit. Connor went to sleep dreaming about lost friends and family. The Ghosts had been both to him. Today he’d kept comparing the recruits to the professional level of the elite special forces that made up the Ghosts. Perhaps he was being too hard on them, but the more ruthless side of Connor dismissed such thoughts. They trained because they’d be called upon to deal with the most dangerous of situations. They’d be facing the unknown, and in order to do that, they’d all need to perform at their best. This meant Connor had to push the recruits past their limits to see what they were truly capable of.
Chapter Seventeen
Connor slept for two hours and woke up completely refreshed. He glanced outside the tent and saw that the sun was starting to rise, and he heard Diaz let out a hearty laugh. Connor put on his boots and didn’t have to smell his underarms to know he smelled just as bad as the recruits. It had never bothered him before and certainly wasn’t going to today. He put on a fresh shirt and went outside.
Diaz had the recruits lined up, and he turned around to face Connor.
“Good morning, Commander,” the entire team said.
“Good morning,” Connor replied.
Diaz’s eyes were gleaming.
“Report, Sergeant.”
“Quiet night. All is secure, Commander,” Diaz replied.
“Excellent. Let’s start our morning with some PT,” Connor said.
Blake went pale, and Owens swayed on her feet. For the next hour Connor led them through various exercises, and he and Diaz performed them right along with the recruits. Sean Quinn stood with the others. Despite all the extra physical activity, he kept up with them. Connor led them on a six-mile run inside the perimeter fence, which he
was already getting tired of. Running around in circles had never been his thing. Soon it would be time for their morning exercises to be performed outside the protective confines of the fence.
They ate breakfast in the form of field rations. He and Diaz divided the recruits into groups and assigned them tasks for setting up the rest of their camp. The first and foremost was setting up useable porta-toilets. While the latrine Sean had dug yesterday held a certain amusement factor, Connor didn’t relish the thought of dropping anchor over a trench again today. He assigned Elyse Winters the task of digging a well, which wasn’t as labor intensive as it once was. Connecting their water supply to their mess hall and showers with a flex-pipe wouldn’t take much time at all.
By midafternoon, sore muscles were beginning to stiffen up. Now that they had a fresh supply of water, Connor ended water rationing. They had more field rations as their midday meal, and he promised them that if they continued to perform there would be a hot meal for dinner.
They assembled in the yard away from the tents, and Diaz had them line up.
“We’re going to start weapons testing. Inside the crates behind me is the CAR-74 semiautomatic hunting rifle. It’s standard issue for Field Operations and is a good, basic firearm,” Connor said.
Nate Poe raised his hand, and Connor nodded for him to speak. “Sir, I thought we’d be using weapons with a bit more stopping power. Presumably, Search and Rescue will be going into some of the worst situations. Wouldn’t that mean we get to use more powerful firearms, sir?”
“Some of you haven’t fired anything but the SD-15 Sonic Hand Blaster, and others have used the CAR-74 and on up to the AR-71 assault rifle. We’ll get to the more powerful weapons. The purpose of using the CAR-74 is to teach basic marksmanship and to see if you can even fire a weapon accurately. And weapons testing will require that we leave the safety of the camp. We’ll only be going just outside the fence. Either myself or Sergeant Diaz will be keeping watch at all times while we’re outside. If you see something, do not fire your weapon at it unless your life is in danger. Instead, let us know,” Connor said.
“Yes, sir,” the recruits said.
Connor bent over and opened the crate full of the CAR-74 semiautomatic hunting rifles and picked one up. “The compact design should fit comfortably in your hands and uses smart rounds for ammunition. There’s a full automatic setting, but you will never go full automatic out in the field. The reason for this is that you would use up all your ammo inside a minute,” Connor said.
He proceeded to show them the different features of the rifle, along with safety instructions. Each of the recruits picked up a weapon.
“Sir, I’m not able to turn off the safety setting,” Deacon said.
“That’s because I don’t want you to shoot anyone yet. The only weapons cleared for use are the ones Sergeant Diaz and I are holding. When I authorize you to shoot, you’ll be able to disengage the safety on your weapon,” Connor said.
They marched to the gate and left the safety of the camp. Connor led them away from the gate and had six of them line up while Diaz kept an eye on the forest nearby. So far, the berwolfs hadn’t seen fit to pay them a visit. Connor took a small case from his pack and opened it. Inside were six target drones, which he set to fifty yards away. The drones raced to the configured distance and hovered a foot off the ground. Above the drones, six holographic targets appeared.
“Cute,” Poe said.
“Successfully hit the target and the drone will move farther away to a limit of five hundred yards. I will demonstrate,” Connor said.
Connor knelt down on one knee and aimed his rifle. He fired one round and hit his target dead center. The drone moved back to seventy-five yards and Connor repeated the feat. Based on the ease with which Connor hit the target, the drone doubled the distance to a hundred and fifty yards. Connor lay down on the ground and used the legs at the end of the barrel to rest the weapon on. He quickly aimed the rifle and hit the center again. The target was hit two more times—once at three hundred yards and then again at five hundred.
Connor stood up. “Now it’s your turn. First group, line up and fire from either a kneeling or ground position.”
Nate Poe went to the first position, followed by Donna Marten. Randle and Compton came next, with Elyse Winters and Jo Ramirez next.
Poe and Marten quickly completed the exercise without missing a single shot. Connor expected nothing less from his two hunters. Deacon and Owens took the two open positions. Randle got stuck at three hundred yards but eventually made it to five hundred. Compton also performed the exercise without missing the target.
Deacon got stuck at a hundred and fifty yards and slammed his fist into the ground. “Sir, I believe there’s something wrong with my rifle, sir,” Deacon said.
Diaz went over and checked the weapon. He took one shot and hit the target. “The only problem here is that you can’t shoot straight. Keep at it, Hot Rod.”
Allison Blake dropped her rifle, and Connor was on her in seconds. “I won’t have another member of this team get shot because you can’t hold on to a damn hunting rifle. Fifty burpees now, recruit,” Connor ordered.
Sean Quinn went over to her and began performing the burpees alongside her. Connor heard her whisper that she was sorry.
Connor turned his attention back to the others, and Amy Owens was trying to hit her target set at a hundred yards. She was joined by Jackson and Cooper. A few minutes later, Allison Blake returned to the line, and this time she held onto her weapon. She fired a shot at the target and completely missed. Connor lay down next to her and began giving her some guidance. After a few more tries she hit the target at fifty yards and let out a squeal of delight. The drone moved the target to seventy-five yards and Connor left her to it.
Connor had set a hundred-round limit, and Blake didn’t make it past a hundred yards, but she was happy to make it that far. Connor knew she hadn’t fired any type of firearm before. Sean Quinn was last to go. He lay down on the ground and aimed the CAR-74 hunting rifle as if he’d used one many times before. In five shots he also achieved the five-hundred-yard mark.
Connor stood behind him. “Excellent job, Recruit Bling. Are there any other hidden talents I should know about?”
“No, sir,” Sean replied.
Connor had them line up again. “Not bad. For some of you, this was easy. Probably too easy. We’ll be practicing each day and all of you will improve. The CAR-74 is a good introductory weapon. We’ll only practice with it part of the time and only because it’s standard issue for Field Operations. The likelihood of you encountering this weapon again is high, so you will know all its capabilities. Several of you will start on the M-Viper Sniper Rifle,” Connor said.
This announcement brought several excited grins.
“When I call your name, I want you to line up next to me,” Connor said.
“Yes, sir,” the recruits said.
“Boone and Poe, obviously, and Grizzly,” Connor said and made a show of surveying the rest. “Bling,” he said.
Boone and Grizzly started clapping as the very surprised Sean Quinn joined the others.
“You’re now my sharpshooters. You will train with me using the M-Viper and we’ll focus on vantage points and other tactics unique to that kind of weapon. Rejoin the others,” Connor said. After his sharpshooters got back in line, Connor continued. “Now that you’re well rested, we’re going to go for a nice run. From here on out you’ll be armed everywhere you go. For today, it’s going to be the CAR-74, and tomorrow it will be something different. Before we start our run, I’ll open up the floor for a couple of questions,” Connor said.
“Sir,” Owens said. “What does CAR stand for in the CAR-74?”
“Good question. CAR stands for civilian assault rifle and the number is the series number,” Connor said.
Deacon smiled and raised his hand. “Sir, is dinner soon? I’m starting to get hungry.”
This brought more than a few laughs from the other
recruits.
“Thanks for volunteering, Hot Rod,” Connor said.
Deacon’s face became pale. “Sir?”
“You’ve just volunteered for cleanup duty in our mess hall for the next two days. It comes with the added benefit of eating last,” Connor said.
“Yes, sir,” Deacon said.
“Recruits, be sure the safety on your rifles is on. Our run is going to be a little more scenic this time,” Connor said.
He nodded to Diaz.
“Recruits, form two lines,” Diaz ordered.
Connor took point. He had the surveillance drones in patrol mode, but there hadn’t been enough time to allow the system to mature. Regardless, they were armed, and he and Diaz had already been to the area they were going to run to before they brought the recruits here. Connor set off at a slow pace down a rough trail that took them into the forest. As the forest thickened, shafts of sunlight poked through the canopy high above them. Connor glanced up and saw several creatures moving near the treetops. Their long arms were used to grasp thick vines and swing among the dizzying heights. Connor pulled up a drone feed on his internal heads-up display to get a closer look at them. The tree creatures looked to have thick skin that was a mix of grays to pale yellow stripes going to their elongated, three-fingered hands. Each finger looked as thick as his forearm. The lower half of the creatures’ bodies split into two thick tails. Their ears ended in a point on either side of their reptilian faces. One of the creatures carried a smaller version of itself. The creature swung its young onto its back, where it held on, and then the group followed Connor and the recruits from the lofty heights of the treetops.
“We’ve got company,” Randle said.
“Bull, put your gun down,” Marten hissed at him.
“Won’t they attack us?” Randle asked, clutching the weapon to his chest.
“No, they’re just watching us,” Marten said.
“Boone is right, you should listen to her,” Connor said.
Randle lowered his gun and kept running. “Yes, sir.”
“What are they called?” Deacon asked.