The Unbreakables had only been my men for a month. But I knew they were good soldiers. When I was first introduced to them, Shelly and Sorensen assured me they weren’t picked just for their names. I think the doctor found something funny about it. I’m sure similar coincidences have happened in every branch of the service at one time or another.
Besides, I’ve taken enough good-natured ribbing about my name over the years. I can’t say anything about anyone else’s. According to my mother, I was named after her father and the sitting president when I was born. As my father tells it, I was named for his boyhood hero, a man of honor and the greatest soldier of two worlds. I’ve often sided with my father when the topic has come up.
“From what I’ve heard, sir,” I said, “the actual heroes are trying to pitch in and not having much luck. We’d hardly be overkill.”
“Really?” said Shelly. His voice was dry. “What exactly have you heard, captain?”
“Through official sources, sir, I’ve heard they’ve deployed the Cerberus exoskeleton in Washington D.C.”
“Official sources is Agent Smith shooting his mouth off again, correct?”
“Yes sir.”
“What else have you heard?”
The base was locked down, but rumors still made their way in. A few sources said the heroes were kicking zombie ass everywhere they went, but most of them told me the heroes were making no headway at all. They were slowing the spread of the infection at best. And there were a few stories that some of them had died. Even one or two claims they’d come back, and there were super-powered zombies overwhelming the police in some cities. It did occur to me that no one could name which heroes had died.
“Nothing else, sir,” I said.
He nodded. I was sure there was nothing I’d heard that he hadn’t. “Is that all, captain?”
“Sir,” I said, “permission to speak freely?”
“Granted.”
“As I understand it, sir, all of B company is being pulled out of Yuma and redeployed in civilian centers.”
“Yes,” he said, “they are. There’s still more than enough forces stateside to deal with this epidemic, especially with a few platoons of regular Army backing them up.”
“Regardless, sir, isn’t this just what the Unbreakables were created for? If our control group is gone, any testing has to be over. If the testing is over, there’s no reason for us not to be doing our jobs.”
Colonel Shelly considered my words and a red drop swelled up under his nose. In the desert climate, nosebleeds aren’t uncommon. First Sergeant Paine tells me two or three of the soldiers in A company get them. I opened my mouth to say something and the drop hit the bursting point, too big to support its own weight. It became a red line across the colonel’s lips. A few drops hit his paperwork.
“Damn it.” He pinched his nose and tilted his head back.
“Can I get you anything, sir?”
“Thank you, no,” he sighed. “Captain, for the time being you and your men are not needed in this action. You will remain assigned to the proving ground. Those are your orders. Is that clear?”
“Yes sir.”
That was that. He took his hand away from his nose and returned my salute. His attention went back to the paperwork on his desk. He yanked a kleenex from a drawer to dab at it. I’d reached the door when he called out to me.
“Captain Freedom.”
“Yes sir?”
He held out the blood-streaked warning order he’d been working on. “Take the Unbreakables toward Yuma tomorrow morning and see if you can find any civilians in need of assistance. Bring three transports with you in case you need to evacuate anyone. Deal with any infected you encounter.”
“Yes sir. Thank you, sir.”
I left his office and got a quick salute from his staff sergeant who was talking with First Sergeant Paine. Paine fell in next to me as we headed out into the hall. Walking side by side we filled the hallway. “Orders, sir?”
“Orders,” I said. “Finally.” I handed Paine the warning order. “Get first platoon prepared. We head out at oh-six-thirty. Any questions?”
He skimmed the paper. “None, sir.” He gave a sharp salute and reversed direction. I walked around the corner and almost flattened Doctor Sorensen. He glanced up at me.
“Captain,” he said.
“Doctor.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Fine, sir,” I said.
“What did you lift in the gym last night?”
“I’m up to twenty-two-fifty on the bench press, sir,” I told him. “I’m limited now by what can fit on the bar.”
He gave a nod. “I should’ve thought of that sooner,” he said. He reached out and pressed on my bicep with two fingers. His hand moved up and he tried to drive his thumb into the spot where my pecs ran into my shoulders. “Any muscle pain?”
“None at all, sir. Not even aches from exercising.”
“Excellent.” He peered over his glasses into my eyes. “How’s your appetite? Still good?”
“I’m on double servings, sir, but I think I’m burning most of it off.”