Without law 17, p.3
Without Law 17, page 3
Sometimes I forgot that even though the girls were trained in combat and military maneuvers, they still didn’t know a lot about the military in general. They didn’t really have a need to understand the ranking system or anything like that until now. With the way the world was at the moment, it wasn’t something that we saw every day.
The girls had dealt with the National Guard guys, but not many other military men aside from that. This would be one of their first interactions with the American military. At least this time I didn’t think it was full of assholes treating civilians like slaves.
“So, if an Admiral showed up, then he’d automatically be in charge?” Tara asked.
“Technically, yes.” I nodded.
“Or anybody who outranked a captain and has orders to be there,” Paige added. “It doesn’t have to be an admiral.”
“Do you outrank the captain?” Tara asked, and her head cocked to the side slightly.
“Not exactly.” I shook my head.
“What do you mean?” Paige asked. “Isn’t it cut and dry?”
“It is,” I said. “But Rangers are a little different. I was a Sergeant Major in the Army before I became a Ranger. Once you’re a Ranger, though, your other rank doesn’t really matter as much. Rangers get a lot of respect because we’re considered special forces.”
“Yeah, you are,” Tara said, and she wiggled her eyebrows at me in the rearview mirror.
“Anyway,” I chuckled and rolled my eyes. “The Captain here is a commissioned officer, so he’s technically a higher rank than I was, but I’ll still have some extra respect because of my Ranger status.”
“Aren’t we technically Vermont militia now?” Paige said and referenced our Green Mountain Boys flag. “Can’t you give yourself whatever rank you want within the militia?”
“Sure, but now that we’re talking about militia, the grey area gets even more… grey,” I laughed. “Technically speaking, we’re not really allowed to operate outside of Vermont without orders. We’re going to tread carefully.”
“Ugh, we get it, you’re gonna be nice to this captain guy and not take his title away,” Tara said, and she leaned back in her seat and smiled.
“Not yet, anyway,” I laughed and winked at the platinum-blonde.
It’s true, I would have preferred to have had a higher-ranking officer to speak to, but the Captain would have to do. Besides, if he was running the area he must be doing something right. I wasn’t sure what, but at least there were still men alive in the face of overwhelming opposition. That was a start.
I hadn’t seen their base yet, though, so I’d wait to make my judgement until after I saw what he had going on. I doubted this guy had signed up for this position, either. Nobody ever thought they’d end up being the one in charge in an emergency situation. I certainly hadn’t, but here I was, and while my team was small, they were mine. I knew my group would only listen to me, and since we had such a large number of men, this Captain would have no choice but to listen to me. He needed our help, that much I could tell already, and my team would listen to me, not him. The two of us would have to get along for this work.
Our main priority needed to be blocking the NK troops’ attack, nothing else. At this point, I didn’t care if the guy was a Captain, Admiral, or the damn General of the Army. As long as he was capable and intelligent, we’d be able to make it work.
I’d made sure to bring all the plasma weapons we had, which was a couple dozen extra, so his men could at least get some practice with them if they didn’t have any of their own. I’d make sure we got them some once we took out a few NK soldiers, though.
I’d always loved my pistols and rifles, but these plasma guns were fun and deadly, and my handheld plasma gun had become my go-to pistol. The NK troops had such powerful weapons that we needed to be on their level or there was no hope for us.
The plasma tankers we’d brought would most likely be our greatest asset. None of the men who’d stormed the jeeps had plasma weapons, so I doubted they’d been able to collect any other type of plasma weapons, either. The tankers would give us the ability to take out entire troops in one go if we used it right, we just had to come up with a plan first.
I followed Hammer across the bridge and into Hampton. The city was just as destroyed as Norfolk was, all the shops and houses had been completely ransacked. There was garbage and bodies on the road, and the area was clearly abandoned. With our troops hanging around, I doubted there were any civilians left in the area.
We were all quiet as we sped through the city and finally neared the beach where Yorktown was. The closer we got to Yorktown, the less of a city it seemed we were in. Forest surrounded us on one side, and the terrible views of the city were behind us. There were less bodies around, and the area seemed far cleaner than the surrounding cities.
Hammer led us past what Paige informed us was a National Park and into the actual city of Yorktown. He pulled up to a building that looked to be an old factory of some sort.
“This isn’t a very large building,” Paige said, and she bit her lip.
“No, it’s not,” I agreed as I pulled up behind Hammer and turned the jeep off.
Even in the twilight I could tell the building wasn’t large. It was a brick building, and while it was a good size for what it was, it was far too small for a substantial fighting force to fit in. I wasn’t feeling too hopeful about what the American troops looked like right then. There might be even less of them than I thought.
I glanced around but didn’t see any other vehicles around. Either they didn’t have any others, or they were hidden somewhere. I hoped it was the latter, but I worried it was actually the former.
“This way,” Hammer said as he stepped out of the truck and waved us toward the door.
“You all stay here for the moment,” I told Jeff and Ben as they came up next to me. “The girls and I will check out inside and be right back.”
“We’re on it,” Ben said with a nod. The ex Air Force pilot knew I wasn’t posting him out here for nothing. As much as Hammer and his men didn’t trust us, we didn’t have a lot of reason to trust them at the moment, either. I wasn’t about to leave all of our supplies unguarded.
I nodded to the pilot again, then I waved to the girls to come with me as we walked toward the entrance of the brick building.
The entrance was covered with a brick awning of sorts, but once we got near the door I could see there were guards posted just outside.
“Lieutenant,” one of them said as they looked around him and made eye contact with me. “What’s going on?”
“This is Ranger Connor Tavish,” Hammer introduced me.
“Good to meet you,” I said with a nod.
The man was shorter than Hammer, but just barely, and what he lacked in height he made up for in muscle. The guy was huge, with thick arms and legs, and a boxy torso. He wore a dirty gray shirt and navy-blue camo pants, his blond hair was cut short, and he had blue eyes with large purple bags under them from lack of sleep. He had an M9 on his hip, as well as a large serrated hunting knife. I figured he was a SEAL as well, and Hammer was clearly his superior.
Hammer hadn’t introduced himself as a Lieutenant, which I admired. I always hated the ranking system. Actually, I didn’t mind that so much as I disliked when assholes would act as though they were better than everyone else because they were a rank or two above. Some people were incredible assholes, but it was like that everywhere, not just the military. There were always those guys who strived to get to the top only so they could look down on everyone below them. It was nice to see Hammer wasn’t one of them.
“Ranger,” the man said with a respectful nod, then he stepped to the side and opened the door for us.
“Thank you,” I told him as I stepped through the doorway after Hammer.
Once we were inside the building, I took a quick look around. It seemed it was an old soda factory, or something of the like. There was an assembly line that ran through the middle of the huge open room, but it obviously hadn’t been used even before the EMP hit. The thing was run down and practically falling apart.
On the wall to my right there was a large stack of boxes, and I could see they were full of food and water. They’d obviously been the ones who ransacked the towns nearby and took everything they could. It was a decent stockpile even if they had five-hundred or so men, which I doubted.
I looked around and saw some men here or there. There were a few in sleeping bags lined up against the wall to my left. They must have been the night crew.
There were also a few tables set up across the room from us, and several men sat over there playing cards.
None of the men looked too worse for wear upon first glance, but the closer I looked, the more I realized how bad it was. They had food and water, but under their eyes were large bags that showed me just how sleep deprived they were. If they were the only forces in the area then it was no wonder nobody was getting enough sleep. They were probably keeping tabs on all the bridges that led into this area, as well as the main roads in case there were NK soldiers already in the city. Not to mention they would have several men on guard around the base at all times.
They were sleep deprived alright, but they didn’t seem stupid. It appeared they had things somewhat under control, or at the very least they were organized enough to keep an eye on everything around them. It didn’t appear they were doing much aside from that, but I hadn’t spoken with the Captain yet, so I’d wait to make my judgements until after that.
“This way,” Hammer said, and he waved his hand for me to follow him.
There was an old black metal staircase in the top right corner of the room, and he led us over to it and climbed up. The thing was rickety, and it creaked under the stress of our weight. I wasn’t sure it would hold up, but I had to trust Hammer knew what he was doing. I doubted he’d bring us up here if he knew the stairs were about to collapse.
“Have you all had trouble with the MIGs?” I asked as we ascended the stairs.
“They took over the airfield at Virginia Beach,” Hammer answered. “But we ran an op to take them out. We lost a few good men, but at least they don’t have air superiority here anymore.”
“I’m sorry,” I told him.
“You know how it goes, Ranger,” he replied with a small smile, then he kept going up the stairs.
At the top of the staircase was a manager’s office, and a landing that stretched down the entire length of the factory. The walls of the officer were brick, and they’d clearly been part of the original building. The door was new, though. It was wooden with a large window on the top half, and the word ‘Manager’ etched in gold on the window.
“Captain,” Hammer said as he rapped on the door. “There’s someone here to see you.”
“To see me?” I heard a man say, and a second later the door opened. “What in the hell?”
In the doorway was a tall, but pudgy, man with wide set eyes and a balding head. He had on a pair of blue camo pants and a white T-shirt with a set of dog tags around his neck.
The man’s brow furrowed when he looked at me, and his eyes widened with surprise when he noticed the girls behind me.
“You must be the Captain,” I said. “Ranger Connor Tavish reporting.”
“How did you find us?” the Captain asked, and his eyes narrowed on me with suspicion.
“As I told your Lieutenant here,” I said with a gesture at Hammer. “We found NK orders detailing their intention to head to Norfolk from their landing zone in Boston. We knew there had to be American troops here somewhere, and we ran into your guards as we got to the bridge.”
“Oh,” he said with a nod. “Uh, good. That means the bridge detail is working.”
“It appears that way,” I said with a slow nod. I felt my eyebrows pull together as I looked the man in front of me up and down. He didn’t seem to be completely put together. Something about his demeanor told me he wasn’t exactly thrilled to be in charge.
“May my team and I step into your office?” I asked. “We’d like to trade information and start to formulate a counter attack against the NK troops.”
“Your team?” he asked, and his eyebrows flew up to his forehead as he gestured at the girls. “This is your team?”
“It is.” I nodded.
“I thought I’d seen everything by now,” the guy muttered, then he sighed, stepped to the side, and gestured for us to come inside. Hammer nodded to the Captain and then headed back down the stairs.
The office was small, and it was obviously the Captain’s quarters as well. There was a small cot set up in the corner with a blanket thrown over top of it, and a notebook laid out next to it.
A large wooden desk took up a majority of the left wall, and there were a couple of chairs in front of it.
Tara immediately walked over and plopped down in the dingy green armchair. The platinum-blonde looked around, and her face reflected exactly how unimpressed she was with the Captain’s office.
“So, Captain…” I paused for a second. “I’m sorry, I didn’t get your name.”
“Captain Jim Dowerdy,” he said. “You’re Tav, but who are your friends?”
He looked at Tara as he said that, and I couldn’t help but smile a bit at his perplexed look. Tara had already made herself at home, and her nonchalant attitude was obviously something the Captain hadn’t seen for a while.
“That’s Tara,” I said, and the platinum-blonde gave a slight nod at the man.
“I’m Paige,” the brunette said, and she held her hand out for the Captain to shake.
“Right,” Captain Dowerdy said, but his brow furrowed as he reached out to shake Paige’s hand.
“Anna,” the redhead said, and she followed Paige’s lead and shoved her hand out.
“Anna,” the Captain repeated, and he seemed to get more confused with each girl who introduced herself.
“I’m Bailey,” the blonde hippie said with a small wave.
“Its… well, I’d say it’s great to meet all of you, but honestly, it’s strange to meet you all,” the Captain said, and he started to walk around the room absentmindedly looking for something. “We haven’t had any new troops show up in ages and now here you are. I’m just not sure what we’re going to do with you.”
“Do with us?” Tara asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I mean, where I’m going to post you,” he said, and he looked up for a brief second before he continued to walk around half muttering as he spoke. “We already have the SEALS on the bridges, and everyone else is keeping an eye on the cities and standing guard. Plus, now we’ll need more supplies.”
“We brought our own supplies, Captain,” I said.
“Oh, you did?” he asked, and he looked up and blinked at me.
The Captain had the largest bags of all under his eyes, and he was very clearly in over his head. He seemed frazzled just by our arrival, and I couldn’t imagine how he’d been throughout this entire process. Still, he was the man in charge, and I was going to have to treat him as such, at least for the time being. The men here obviously respected him, and I wasn’t about to cause problems when we’d only just arrived.
“We did.” I nodded. “We don’t need anything from you, we only came to volunteer to help. We want to take our country back.”
“Wouldn’t we all,” he half chuckled, half sighed.
“We brought plasma weapons,” I informed him. “We also have a couple of small tanks filled with the plasma liquid.”
“I’m sorry, what?” the Captain asked, though he seemed to have heard me just fine. “How did you manage to get those?”
“We took out a few of their vehicles with them attached to the top,” I explained. “We were able to remove the tanks. Have you not seen any soldiers around here?”
“There are some foot soldiers.” He nodded at me. “But no vehicles like that.”
“That’s probably a good thing,” Paige said, and the Captain looked at her with more confusion. “The soldiers around here may not have the same supplies as the ones in Boston.”
“You all were in Boston?” the captain asked.
“We were,” I agreed. “We came down here to warn you the NK troops are headed your way.”
“You said you found a note about this?” he asked.
“Some orders,” I explained.
“Yes,” Paige said, and she pulled the paper from her bag and handed it to the Captain. “Another one of my teammates and I deciphered it.”
“Another one?” the Captain asked, and he looked around at the five of us. “How many of you are there?”
“Fifty-three total,” Paige said.
“That’s everyone who came with us.” Bailey nodded.
“You left others behind?” he asked.
“Mostly older people, women, and children.” Paige shrugged.
“How many men you got?” Tara asked, leaned her head back, and eyed the Captain carefully.
“Less than two-hundred,” he said grimly.
As much as this guy was frustrating the hell out of me with all his questions and ridiculous looks of surprise, I felt bad for him. He was obviously in over his head. I wasn’t sure how he’d managed to get in charge, but he seemed to be trying his best with what little forces he had. Less than two-hundred men compared to the hundreds the NK soldiers had would be a tough fight for anyone.
“I’ll have my translator look over this,” he sighed.
“You have a translator?” Paige asked, and her eyes widened with surprise.
“A young woman.” The captain nodded.
“Captain,” I said gently. “If you don’t mind me asking, how did you end up in charge? You’re obviously the highest ranking man here, but you seem a bit… burned out. Don’t you have a second in command who can help you out here?”
I didn’t want to offend the man, but I could tell he was sleep deprived and on edge.
The man flopped down in the chair behind the desk and let out a long sigh, then he looked up and locked eyes with me.
“I was three weeks away from retirement when this shit happened,” he said with a shake of his head. “I’ve been trying my best here, but I’m not trained to deal with something like this. We have no communication with our other troops, the NK soldiers have us surrounded on all sides, and there’s ground soldiers running around taking out my men whenever they get the goddamn chance. This isn’t the kind of war I’ve fought before, son.”
