CHAPTER 11

When Phil had decided that he would take a more sub-servant role in his career, he knew there would be bad days. He never really thought that it was who he was, Phil had just felt like there was no choice in the matter. Phil stuck to his guns though. He vowed that if the Army gave him a mop and told him to buff floors for the rest of his career, he would do it, as long as they kept paying him. On days like today, he wondered about his resolve on the matter. This was definitely one of those days that went against his better nature.

Phil had been fully prepared to hop a MAC flight out of Coven Hill and be back home in a matter of hours. He had stopped by the US delegation to transmit his final reports and, unfortunately, his boss was waiting to talk with him live. As Phil listened to Bob Isaacs, he realized that there was one good thing about being in Feyland. When your boss had the communication facilities of the White House, Feyland was the only place in two known universes that you could actually duck the guy!

Before Bob had even finished explaining the mission, the orders were being decoded and printed out for Phil. He had them in his hand before Bob could even say goodbye. Then Phil told the sergeant, who had handed him the papers, to wait one. He quickly flipped through his travel orders and handed that page back to the Sergeant, “some work for you too. I need to draw another car from the lot.” The guy did not look all that happy about his new assignment. Fuck him, Phil wasn’t either. Payback was a bitch even if the poor sergeant was the only one he could currently get his mitts on.

Phil got one call off to his wife while he waited on his car, “honey I can’t help it. Orders.”

Paulette was not a happy camper, “really? On the day you were supposed to be home? Even Bob Isaacs isn’t that big of a jack ass.”

“Sure he is,” Phil replied in a matter of fact tone. “He’s a general, they get to be.”

“I don’t care Phil,” Paulette bitched on the phone. Then she paused and right before Phil was about to remind her that she was eating up his international minutes. Finally she just blurted out, “did you see Katie while you were over there?”

Still in the matter of fact tone, “yes honey. We had dinner a couple of times.”

“I’m running up your minutes Phil,” Paulette said out of the blue. “Try to call before you come home.” She hung up before Phil could get out another word.

Yes it was definitely one of those days and that thought kept running through Phil’s mind as he drove back towards Building Thirteen. The delegation had already faxed over his orders and permit so, they should have a spot for him on the runway, in the next convoy. All Phil had to do was show up on time and that seemed simple enough. Then he hit something he had never seen at Coven Hill, a traffic jam. It was no ordinary traffic either. Both lanes on his side of the highway were packed with British armor that were mostly light weight scout vehicles from the looks of them. Of course, when you’re in a four door sedan, even ‘light weight’ armored vehicles look like Godzilla.

Phil checked the time and mumbled, “shit.” He was going to literally miss his window if these vehicles did not move. That did not appear as if it would be all that soon either. Most of the soldiers were all dismounted and loitering around, trading smokes, talking, and looking generally bored and uncomfortable in full field gear. Phil could at least sympathize with them on that last note.

Phil decided to get out of his car and stretch his legs for a moment. He realized he would probably have to call the delegation again and have them reschedule his departure till the next convoy. It wasn’t that big of a problem. With the war going on, there was almost constant movement through the Dell right now. It was while Phil was on hold that he noticed something. He could see the motor pools for the British army, that held the vehicles for their security detachment here. Those fenced in lots were completely filled with armored vehicles, all parked in nice neat rows. That led to a relevant question, “who the hell are these guys?”

Phil hung up the phone and would call the delegation later. He walked up past the armored cars, everything looked pretty normal for a stalled out military movement, something Phil was intimately familiar with. Phil silently counted the vehicles as he passed and he realized he was looking at, probably, two companies of scouts, or the equivalent of whatever the British called their scout formations. When he reached the front of the convoy he found a collection of officers standing in front of a couple of cars that had formed an impromptu blockade. They were the cars for the internal security guys. The ones that acted as the civil police for Coven Hill. The idea that they’d try and stop these armored vehicles was ludicrous at best. Good thing the guys in those cars caught the armor drivers on a better day than Phil was having.

Phil not only recognized the black uniforms, of the internal security force but, he also recognized a face amongst them. Major David Cross did not look like a happy camper right now. He and some Russian Colonel were arguing with a British colonel and a couple of Captains. Cross just kept thumping the clipboard in his hand and saying, “no, no, no.”

Phil decided not to bother the guy. Instead, he drifted towards one of the British Captains who had wisely chose to sit this argument out. Phil used his military experience here and, he figured, it meant that the guy had some common sense. A lot of younger officers would hard charge right into the middle of it, butting into a fight where they were usually not wanted. Phil asked this Captain, “what’s going on here?”

The British Captain looked Phil over from head to toe and, only then, did Phil remember he was wearing a suit and not his uniform. He had to introduce himself and only then did this Captain Carter James, suddenly light up like a Christmas tree and reply, “you’re the bloke that was at that Nottakay battle, right?” Then he caught himself and backpedaled, “I mean colonel, sir.”

“Relax Captain,” Phil told the guy. He then blew off the question, “yeah that was me but, that was a long time ago. I’m on to better things.” Phil almost said, “like playing water boy,” only he still had some pride.

“I read all about that battle, consumed everything I could get on it,” James told him. “They left you in quite a spot and still, you managed to get out of that trap. Sir, it is an honor and I do seriously hope that, one day, we may work together as friends and allies.”

Why did this guy sound like a fan? Didn’t he realize, as Phil did, that the Rangers lost that battle against the Orcs? Phil decided he did not wish to debate his lesser qualities with a perfect stranger. Instead, he had work to do which was, “so what’s the hold up?” At first the Captain had an inquisitive look about him so, Phil added, “I have a rip in the space-time continuum to catch.”

“Ah,” apparently James got the sarcasm, if that was truly what it was. He then said, “not really sure. We showed up here like we were told and these fellows don’t seem to have the paperwork. The Russian,” James pointed to the guy in the blue helmet, “he’s with the UN and I’m not sure about the bloke in black.”

“Coven Hill security,” Phil told him, “he’s one of your guys. He came out of the SAS, or, maybe, he’s still in it. Not sure which.”

“Funny,” James replied. “It has dawned on me that the Russian is being far more cooperative than this lanky man in black. I would have thought it might be the other way around.”

Phil tossed the guy some bait, “that’s every army for you. Somebody is always sending the wrong orders somewhere.”

“If I were a betting man Colonel,” James told him, “I would wager my money on the orders they sent us, last night, being the wrong ones.” When Phil casually asked why the Captain had no problem talking about it at all. Apparently he was frustrated, just like Phil, “we’d just come in out of the field. In fact, we’d been out there on that damn range for almost three months. I didn’t spend that much time in the field when I was stationed in Germany. I have nearly a third of my blokes scheduled to go home on leave and then Brigade calls and the whole plan goes tits up.”

Phil winced in pain, “I know the feeling. Did they even bother to say why you couldn’t go home?”

James crossed his arms and said, “you’re guess is as good as mine, Colonel. We were based only a few hours down the road so, it didn’t really take long for us to get here. Only, if somebody said why we we’re coming, they didn’t bother to inform me. From what I’m hearing, they don’t even have any space for us here.”

“Know that feeling too,” Phil replied. He really did sympathize with the guy but, on the other hand, his little conversation was going to mean another hours worth of paper work if he ever got home. After Phil finally made it to the runway, he sat in his position in the line, and thought about his encounter with the rouge British column. He decided he had best not wait to write that one up. He’d have to send it back by classified courier but, it might be something that Bob would want to know.

Passing through the Dell went by without a hitch. The way his luck had been running, lately, that part had actually worried him. They literally sucked all the air out of the big room just before the Dell appeared. The car he was driving was one of those that had been specially made to take the vacuum inside both the chambers at Coven Hill and the Temple on the other side. It had an extra system that supplied air to the engine and yet another to take care of the exhaust. The cars interior also had what amounted to the life support system for a spaceship, only smaller. Theoretically you could get through both buildings with just the air in your vehicle but, nobody liked chancing that. Who wanted to suffocate because there was a traffic jam outside the door?

Phil changed cars on the Feyland side. The specials were expensive to operate and, these days, all of them were needed for round the clock transfers. He drew a conventional vehicle, at the temple, to use for his drive up to NIKA. Unfortunately, all they had was a vehicle of elf make, and, Phil hated those things! The army had naturally painted it green and stuck all the decals on it but, now it looked like a Tijuana Taxi that was owned by the US Army. Given the day Phil was having, he figured he could live with it and did not argue.

A couple of hours later, and since he was back on Feyland time, that was only an estimate, Phil arrived at NIKA and, specifically, the headquarters for the hundred and first airborne. Not long after that, Phil was standing in front of the CG, Major General Archer Hammond. The man was as big an ass as Phil remembered and, in fact, Phil thought he had gotten worse. The man sat behind his desk and made it clear he was not happy to see Phil back on his base.

“Colonel Conner,” Hammond said, “I currently have two brigades in the field conducting operations. I have my hands tied behind my back because, in all of Washington’s wisdom, they will not let me pursue the enemy as far north as I need too. I have less than half the air support I asked for and my JDAM’s are worthless here. My drones drop out of the sky at random and for no reason. To top all of that off, one of my brigades, half my line units, are wasting their time guarding the damn yellow brick road and it isn’t even under threat. Yet those are my orders so I do it.”

This was exactly why Phil had avoided the man when he had initially came over. Hammond knew where Phil worked, the White House, and he was hoping that his bitching would reach the Oval Office. It was a problem that, to Phil’s horror, came with working for the National Security Advisor. Of course, none of that was something he could say to a Major General. Everything the man had just told Phil was essentially true but, what could Phil do about it? He didn’t make policy and, as Phil had been told, half that crap was due to their agreement with the elves. The President couldn’t even change some of that stuff.

That was why Phil nodded in agreement with Hammond and let him know, “I will forward your concerns as far up the chain as it will go, sir.” That meant it would wind up in Bob Isaacs trash can, probably.

“The point to all this colonel,” Hammond said, “I’m a busy man.” That made Phil want to ask him why he gave so many speeches, if that were the case. Still, Phil just kept his mouth shut and his face as neutral and non-offensive as the General went on, “and no matter what your boss might think.”

This time Phil could not resist, “you mean the President sir?”

That caught Hammond off guard and he obviously changed what he was going to say. Phil was pretty sure he knew what Hammond had almost uttered. It probably went along the lines of something like, “I don’t vote for people who associate with that party. Why do I care what he thinks.” Hammond might have even wanted to toss in something like, “pansy ass liberals.” Only it was illegal for a military officer to insult the commander-n-chief so Hammond moved to safer grounds.

“I meant Bob Isaacs,” Hammond said as he poked at Phil’s orders which, were currently sitting on the general’s desk. As he did that he continued, “Isaacs might be Devon’s yes man but, he still only has one star and I have two. He is also not in my chain of command. I get my orders from eighteenth airborne.”

“General Isaacs might have relayed the orders to me, sir,” Phil said with a pleasant demeanor, “however if you will note the signatures on those orders, they come directly from the National Command Authority and, I do believe, we all get our orders from the President, sir.”

“Damn it Conner,” Hammond said, “that little girl has family that is waiting on her. She’s been through hell and she deserves to go home a hero.”

“And she will sir,” Phil replied, “just not right now.” Phil also knew that the family waiting on her included one US Congressman, One state supreme court justice for Colorado, and even several very influential army officers, along with a Marine. Phil wasn’t so sure about the Marine but, those other guys, had pull. It was the kind that someone like Hammond paid attention to.

Hammond knew he was playing a loosing hand but, a guy like him had to go through the motions and, unfortunately, someone in Phil’s position didn’t have much choice but to let him. Of course, Hammond’s next move was to dismiss the colonel and, as Phil had suspected, the man did it in a manner that made him feel like he was throwing Phil out on his ear. That gave Phil some satisfaction because he got to stand there after the growling and puzzle the General as to why a lowly colonel would question his ass chewing.

Phil smiled and pointed to the papers, “according to my orders sir, I need access to Lieutenant Sayers. She’s in the iso-ward at the base hospital. Per your orders general, I require your authorization to get that access.” Hammond looked at Phil like he thought this uppity colonel had some nerve. Phil simply kept his smile and said, “I’ll need it in triplicate as well.”

What could Hammond say? They were his orders, after all, and Phil was just following them. Ultimately, what the two star general did do was yell out his office door, “Rogers! Get Patterson over here from Eighteenth Airborne, ASAP!”

That was satisfactory to Phil. He knew Sharon Patterson from the Operation Golden Straw. She had worked for Jim Garret back then and, by all accounts, had impressed some people. That was why Phil was kind of surprised to see that she was still a Captain. He was also wondering why she was still here and not working at the Pentagon. He didn’t bother to ask though. He was just thankful to have someone he considered competent, acting as his guide.

Phil started not to wonder so much about her rank though. As they walked over to the hospital he quickly discovered that she was all business and had about zero personality. Being good at your job was a must for career advancement but, pissing everybody off, while doing it, was not so much. Apparently, Sharon had that problem even if it was a breath of fresh air after dealing with Hammond.

They met up with a nurse in the Iso ward. Phil was not so surprised that the nurse was a man but, he looked like a linebacker for an NFL team! It just didn’t seem right to call Lieutenant Gonzalez, “nurse.” Phil addressed him by his rank instead. The guy seemed fairly laid back and he took his two guests to the observation window. There was not much to see.

“She’s asleep,” Phil noted.

Gonzalez said, “yeah that’s what we called it in pre-med, too.”

Phil was more inclined to argue with Major Generals than with guys who looked like they could rip his head off with their pinky. He ignored the smart ass remark and asked, “when do you think she’ll wake up? I’d like to talk with her.” Phil caught the glances exchanged between Patterson and Gonzalez. It left Phil having to ask the obvious question, “did I say something wrong? I’ve never been to pre-med.”

They showed him. Sharon had to unseal a classified storage container to do it. That was a days worth of paper work for her tomorrow. It was probably a good thing for her that nobody in Feyland actually knew when tomorrow was. She was not so happy about it but, she pulled out the video disks anyway, and they played them on a monitor at the nurses station. After watching a few minutes of it, Phil asked, “is she always this bad?”

Gonzalez replied, “pretty much. We got her heavily sedated right now.” The nurse pointed to the video and added, “right there, she’s moderately sedated.”

Phil’s mind was already racing ahead of that, “is that gibberish, mumbo jumbo? I… There’s almost a rhythm to it.”
Patterson was hesitant to comment until Phil urged her too. Then she didn’t hold back, “my opinion Colonel, she’s speaking a langue that we don’t know. I watched these tapes for hours and there is a definite pattern there. Course I’m no expert. I was told that they’re going to send a copy of this to some linguistic guys at Monterrey.”

Phil nodded in response, “obviously someone agrees with you Captain.” Phil crossed his arms and scratched his chin as he watched the young girl get violent with the nurses. No wonder they had Gonzalez over here. Phil remembered Sayers from Nottakay. She was spunky, a know it all, eager to prove herself, and a constant pain in the ass. In other words, she was a typical Lieutenant. Phil just had a hard time seeing the same kid as the violent animal in front of him now. He also felt the guilt coming back.

Sharon proved her lack of social skills when she asked, “you knew her, didn’t you colonel?”

Phil didn’t answer. He asked, “do you have to keep her sedated and strapped down like that?”

Gonzalez was not apologetic in the slightest, “every time she would wake up, she’d wait till we weren’t looking to show it. Then she’d jump out of that bed, rip her gown off, and shit all over the walls. Guess who had to clean it up.”

And Hammond wanted to send this girl back to her family? Phil was starting to get the impression that Lieutenant Sayers travel orders had less to do with her influential relatives and more to do with the fact that Hammond just wanted her off is base as fast as he could arrange it. If something happened to her, while she was here, it was his ass and he knew it. The way Sayers was now, made her a serious liability. It also explained why Hammond had the girl under a metaphorical lock and key.

That led Phil to another question, “Captain Patterson, how many people have seen these video’s? Have seen her, for that matter?”

“The doctors mostly,” Sharon replied. She nodded to Gonzalez, “the Lieutenant and two orderlies have her under a twenty-four hour suicide watch. We’ve had a few intelligence people like me, studying her, even one guy from the Navy. Past that? Well I have a list in the crate over there.”

“Navy?” Phil asked out of curiosity.

Sharon shrugged, “some DIA guy wanted to see her. I wasn’t here that day. That’s all I know.”

“Whatever,” Phil figured it wasn’t important. He had pressing concerns and that started with the hardest part of a very bad day. He had to tell Lieutenant Gonzalez, “guess what? You get to keep watching her for a while longer. Isn’t that great?” Gonzalez growled and walked off. Phil was just still happy to have his head in place and his ribs unbroken. One small victory for today!