The Last Bastion of the Living (The Last Bastion #1)(106)

“Cruz, hold your fire!” Maria’s voice was harsh against the din.

Though there were only five Anomalies still on their feet, the narrow space between the barricades they had erected in the corridor gave them the advantage. Maria stumbled as she crawled over the debris the creatures had packed into the narrow space as cover. Cruz’s cries rang in her ears. McKinney’s huge form loomed ahead as he shoved the Anomalies off of Cruz and fired at them.

Maria kicked over the body of an Anomaly tucked behind some old terminals. Its wild eyes glared as it gnashed its bloody, broken teeth. She swore she heard it utter “hungry” just before she killed it.

The gunfire ceased at last.

The blood and viscera were black in the night vision. Her helmet was reading multiple causalities, but she was waiting for Denman to update the stats. The Boon could take some serious wounds and remain on their feet. Denman moved swiftly through the carnage, scanning the Boon as McKinney dragged the bodies of the Anomalies to one side, stacking them.

“Are you getting the dog tags?” Maria asked.

“Yes, sir,” McKinney answered, dangling them from one hand.

“Holm, watch our rear,” Maria said.

The mute soldier nodded her head, taking up position.

Cormier’s stats read as KIA on her screen. Maria doubted that stat would change. There were Anomalies still in the building above, that much was certain. Some of the KIA’s began to change to WIA/BR and she sighed with relief.

Cruz staggered out of the gloom to her side. The smaller soldier’s helmet was dented on one side and her armor had some tears. Black blood ran down over the plates in the gray/blue murk of the night vision.

“Wounded in action and battle ready, huh, Cruz?” Maria said, slightly smiling.

“Those bastards suck,” Cruz grumbled.

“I don’t remember being trained in the fine art of being pitched like a football,” Maria said wryly.

“It seemed like a good idea at the time,” Cruz whispered, her dark eyes settling on the broken body of Mikado. Several of the other squad members had pulled his pieces to one side.

Maria laid her hand on Cruz’s shoulder gently for a second, then moved forward to where McKinney stood ready to advance.

“Straight shot to where they’re holed up,” McKinney said in a somber voice.

“We go slow,” Maria said. “We need to be cautious. They’ve been here a lot longer than we have.”

More of the KIA’s altered to WIA/BR. Maria glanced back toward Denman as he continued his scans and sealed wounds. Holm and several other soldiers lingered near the first barricade, watching the stairs. Maria didn’t like being in this area. It was a killing zone.

Her screen flashed as Denman finished his task. Three KIA’s remained: Cormier, Mikado, and a big burly soldier named Klosk. She sighed, composing herself.

“What’s the delay?” Mr. Petersen’s voice said, interrupting her moment of silence. His voice sounded distant, the connection wobbly and fading.

“Securing the area before advancing,” Maria said briskly.

“We need you to-”

Maria cut off the feed. Dwayne would have to calm down Petersen. She didn’t have time to deal with him. Besides, she was about to lose all communication as they moved down the corridor.

“McKinney, lead the way.”





Chapter 31


“Back off and let them do their job,” Dwayne uttered.

“She cut my feed!” Mr. Petersen said, his usually placid expression flushed with anger.

“They’re trying to survive right now. They’re in the middle of a battle. They don’t need you interfering with what they’re doing,” Commandant Pierce added.

Dwayne stood with his feet apart, arms folded, glaring at the smaller man. “We lost three people in that action. We don’t need to lose any more. There are obviously more Anomalies than you projected, aren’t there?”

Mr. Petersen’s gaze darted toward Dr. Curran. She was standing nearby clutching her pad against her chest. It was difficult to read her expression, but Dwayne suspected she was just as surprised by the numbers of Anomalies the Boon were encountering.

“What haven’t you told us?” Commandant Pierce demanded. “What are you keeping from us?”

“This was unexpected,” Mr. Petersen said, his usual blandness ruffled. “We were not expecting this many. We thought that maybe there were half a dozen at the most.”

“They’re not equipped to deal with the resistance they’re encountering. If you had even the slightest idea-”

“Commandant, I believe they’re some of the soldiers from the last push.” Dr. Curran cleared her throat before speaking again. “The Inferi Anomalies infected them.”

“So how many are there?” Commandant Pierce’s dark eyes were hard as stone.

“I don’t know. I couldn’t even begin to speculate.” Dr. Curran lowered her eyes, her uneasiness clear.

“I need to speak to the president.” Mr. Petersen glowered at Dr. Curran, then spun about on his heel. He motioned to two dark garbed SWD security officers to follow and walked briskly from the command center.

“He will not keep the Constabulary out of this! Castellan, you’re in charge!” Commandant Pierce strode out after Mr. Petersen.