Generation of Vipers (First Contact) by Peter Cawdron

Author:Peter Cawdron [Cawdron, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-02-10T16:00:00+00:00

The Nuclear Option

“I want a goddamn update on that munitions depot,” Nolan yells at a sergeant sitting at a table with a laptop open in front of him. Nolan’s barely a foot from the man’s ear. He leans down beside him, but he could be screaming at him from the other end of a football field and still be heard with utter clarity. “I want every thermobaric bomb on the east coast—in Texas—before sunset! Is—that—under—stood?”

“Yes, sir,” the soldier replies, sitting bolt upright.

Nolan’s rage subsides, but the passion in his voice is still there. “No excuses. No delays. Feed me armament!”

“Yes, sir. Understood, sir,” another soldier says, keeping his head down as he taps on a keyboard.

“People are dying out there. Minutes cost lives. Make it happen!”

“Understood.”

Nolan’s frustrated. War is about avoiding chaos. Command and control are necessities, not buzzwords. At the moment, everything is arrayed against him. He can’t get the support he needs. The US is used to building up to engagements. It’s the weekend. Recalling troops and aircrew on a Sunday is a nightmare. It only takes one person to be late and a C130 already laden with supplies is grounded, awaiting a pilot. Then there’s the unfolding civilian disaster. People are getting angry. People with guns—lots of guns. Nolan’s had to divert soldiers to support state troopers in quelling fights. It’s the only way to keep vehicles moving north.

To his shock, while he was on the south side of the mall, a bunch of medics set up a field hospital to the north. They’ve pulled in doctors, nurses and medical supplies from a convoy fleeing the Lyndon B. Johnson Memorial Hospital to the south. With the roads clogged, they were stuck. Here, at least, they can tend to their patients and provide support for those on the road. Nolan can’t fault them for using their initiative and doubling up with the military. It makes sense. He also can’t ignore their requests for aid. They’ve busted open several mall stores to gain access to practical supplies like running water and electricity, but diverting troops to help them establish a field hospital further dilutes his resources.

The President has put him in an impossible situation. He can’t turn his back on civilian needs and yet he’s been instructed to prosecute a war. With what? Against what? Hell, the only descriptions he’s heard are nonsensical. Creatures that can blend into the background. One survivor says they’re the size of an elephant. Another says they’re like wild hogs. Most of his recon units are either dead or have lost contact with the advancing horde.

Jacinta rushes up to him.

“General Cooper’s exercising Title 49 provisions. He’s commandeered a bunch of civilian aircraft from United and American Airlines. He’s setting up an airbridge between here and Oklahoma City. Fly in with troops and supplies. Fly out with civilians.”

“Finally,” Nolan says. “Some good news.”

“At the moment, it’s fifteen aircraft, but he’s working with the airlines to increase that to over a hundred within the next few hours.

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