Intervention | NaNoWriMo 2018

Chapter 10 - Colonel Hastings

Disclaimer: The following chapter is the non-edited draft of what was written during NaNoWriMo 2018. My apologies in advance for plot holes and other inconsistencies. I know they're there.

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Colonel Hastings flipped a few switches on the terminal and waited. The storm was interfering with the signal into space and despite the storm-proof technology the facility had, it wasn't working.

"Is this thing going to work?" he yelled to a tech behind him.

"I'm calibrating it right now, sir. Just a few more minutes."

Hastings slammed his hand into the surface of the terminal and muttered a string of curses under his breath. This mission was not going according to plan. Not only had the unexpected appearance of the storm interfered with normal transportation procedures, he had lost a vehicle in the storm, broken down somewhere out there. There was no way of telling whether the driver had survived, much less the cargo of supplies his soldiers relied on.

Then, arriving at the station he had expected to be met by Captain Graber. Instead, he was greeted by an open garage door, drifts of sand occupying every nook of the garage. After a complete search of the facility, his search teams confirmed his worst fears. Captain Graber and the subject they had been sent to retrieve were nowhere to be found. They were gone.

The absence of one of the facility trucks told Hastings that they had likely made their escape on wheels. But why? Had the prisoner somehow managed to overpower Graber and turn the tables on a highly trained officer? Worse, had Graber willingly escaped with the prisoner? Hastings squeezed his fists together tightly as he considered the possibility that he might have to search for a traitor instead of merely transporting a prisoner.

"It's all set, sir. Give it a try," the tech called out from somewhere behind Hastings. He touch a couple of buttons and a status on-screen indicated that the system was trying to connect to the orbital communications network. Suddenly, the image of Commander Hamil filled the screen, interference interrupting the image every few seconds.

"Commander," Hastings said and saluted his superior.

"Colonel," Hamil said and leaned back in the chair in his office. "What is our current status? How is the prisoner and Captain Graber?"

"Sir, Captain Graber and the prisoner are not here."

Hamil sat straight up and leaned in towards the camera. "Not there? I just talked to him, not long ago, Hastings. He must be there."

"We arrived to an open garage door and a missing facility vehicle. We've checked everywhere. They're not here."

Hamil leaned back in his chair and sighed audibly. "Do we know why?"

"No sir. We have no evidence one way or another. Although, if you ask me, I find it unlikely that the prisoner would have turned the tables on Graber and taken him against his will."

"I share that assessement, although I wouldn't discount her influence. She already escaped our security in orbit and made it down to the surface. She is resourceful."

"Yes, sir."

"You must find her, at all costs, Colonel."

"We will, sir, but at the moment, we're stuck."

"Yes, yes, I heard about the storm. Most unfortunate about your support vehicle. As soon as the storm dies down, I need you to set out immediately. Track them down, bring them in."

"Of course."

"Keep me informed of any new developments. I need to know as soon as you find out where they are. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"All right, get to it. Out."

Hamil reached forward and disconnected the call. Hastings sighed and leaned back. He didn't know all the details around the prisoner and her relationship with Graber, if there was any, but the Commander and, by extension, the council felt her capture was important. If it was important to them, it was important to him. He would carry out the mission to the best of his ability and he would not fail.

Hastings waved one of his men over to the terminal. "What's the ETA on this storm blowing over?"

"My estimation is about twelve hours, sir."

"Twelve hours? That's an eternity."

"Yes, sir. I'll let you know if anything changes." The soldier saluted and returned to his station.

Hastings pulled up the map of the area. If they had left the facility, were they going somewhere specific or just running? There was no way he could tell for sure. The job logs on the network showed that the young captain had printed area maps not long before Hastings and his team arrived. The simple fact that he had bothered printing map suggested that there was something they were looking for. The question was what?

Frustrated, Hastings closed the map and leaned back. Besides their home base, the only thing in the vicinity were ruins of old cities and towns. There was nothing there that could help them. Sure, shelter but nothing along the lines of supplies. He knew they couldn't stay out there for long before the elements themselves forced them to come back to the fold. Of course, once the storm cleared, none of that even mattered. Hasting chuckled to himself. Technology would find them as sure as he was breathing. Captain Graber and the prisoner would be in his hands within hours of the storm subsiding, that much he was certain of.

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Well, here's Colonel Hastings. What's your thoughts so far about this character?