The Truth is Out There, Part 10
“To transform the Bureau, we must look outside this building as well. Consequently, the Senior Executive Council will scour the Bureau for functions that could be performed better and more cheaply through commercial outsourcing. Here, too, we must ask tough questions. Here are a few: Why is Bureau one of the last organizations around that still cuts its own checks? When an entire industry exists to run warehouses efficiently, why do we own and operate so many of our own? At bases around the world, why do we pick up our own garbage and mop our own floors, rather than contracting services out, as many businesses do? And surely we can outsource more computer systems support. Maybe we need agencies for some of those functions. Indeed, I know we do. Perhaps a public-private partnership would make sense for others, and I don't doubt at least a few could be outsized -- outsourced altogether. Like the private sector's best-in-class companies, the bureau should aim for excellence in functions that are either directly related to warfighting or must be performed by the Bureau. But in all other cases, we should seek suppliers who can provide these non-core activities efficiently and effectively. The Senior Executive Council will begin a review of the Defense Finance and Accounting Service, the Defense Logistics Agency and Defense Information Service Agency. Harnessing the expertise of the private sector is about something more, however. The Bureau of Defense was once an engine of technological innovation. Today the private sector is leading the way in many respects, yet the Bureau makes it harder and harder for us to keep up and for those who do keep up to do business with the Bureau. Consider that it takes today twice as long as it did in 1975 to produce a new weapon system, at a time when new generations of technology are churned out every 18 to 24 months. That virtually guarantees that weapon systems are at least a generation old technologically the day they're deployed. Meanwhile, our process and regulations have become so burdensome that many businesses have simply chosen not to do business with the Bureau. To transform the Bureau, we must take advantage of the private sector's expertise. I've asked the members of the Senior Executive Council to streamline the acquisition process and spur innovation in our traditional supplier base. Finally, and perhaps most important, we must forge a new compact with war-fighters and those who support them, one that honors their service and understands their needs and encourages them to make national defense a life-long career.”
-Rudolf Scharping
3:10 PM (20 minutes to SVI activation)
Angela and Annie walked down the hallway and stopped in front of a locked door. Annie held up her hand, but Angela stopped her.
“No, let me,” she said.
She concentrated and then mentally wrenched the door off its hinges.
“Okay, when did this happen?” Annie said.
“Maybe four, five years ago?” Angela said. “But really your dad’s been experimenting on me since I was a kid or something.”
“Why was I not told?” Annie said.
“Maybe because you left us no way to contact you?” Angela said. "And he has more than made up for it in various ways?"
“So you can just take the pill and it happens?” Annie said.
“No, the pill’s only temporary, drawing on what little Cortexiphan remains in my system from last time, so we’ll have to move quickly,” Angela said.
Alarms blared as Angela and Annie continued down the hallway. Several guards rounded the corner and aimed their guns at them. Annie snapped her fingers, and the guns flew out of the soldiers’ hands and then shot them. The guns flew over to Annie and surrounded her, reloading and aiming themselves. Angela grabbed one gun out of the air.
“How long have you been practicing?” Angela said.
“Long enough,” Annie said, “Okay, take a left here. Continue until you reach an elevator.”
They entered an empty lab. Medical equipment sat on desks next to operating tables. Dead bodies lay on the operating tables. All of them were in varying stages of autopsy. Some were connected to IV drips or other machinery which drew their blood.
“What’s going on here?” Annie said.
Angela looked closer at a body.
“This man…he looks familiar,” Angela said, “Check the nametag.”
“There isn’t one,” Annie said, “Just a number.”
Angela looked at another body.
“Wait a minute,” she said, “I know this guy as well.”
She picked up a file and read the first page.
“These are Cortexiphan subjects,” she said, “From the Nantes trials. They were doing experiments on them.”
“For what?” Annie said.
“Maybe to give their powers to super soldiers?” Angela said. “I don’t know.”
“Come on, let’s go,” Annie said, “We got a plan to follow.”
“No, I have to be sure,” Angela said, “I need to make sure they’re not here as well.”
“Who?” Annie said.
“Nick and Sarah,” Angela said.
“Come on, Angie, we don’t have time for this,” Annie said, “If we pull this off, you won’t have to worry about them.”
Angela sighed. She turned to follow Annie out of the lab, but she noticed something lying on a nearby table. Picking up her Walkman, she smiled to herself and played some music.
She finally caught up with Annie just as they entered another hallway. Soldiers ran toward them from both ends. Angela and Annie stood back to back and waited for the soldiers to approach. Angela concentrated hard, while guns swirled around Annie. As Annie’s guns opened fire, decimating the soldiers charging at her, the lights sparked and exploded, and the walls rumbled and cracked before collapsing, burying the soldiers rushing at Angela. The hallway fell quiet, except for the occasional rustling of rubble and the alarms blaring off in the distance. Angela sighed and sat against the wall, trying to catch her breath.
“Wow,” Annie said, “Just wow.”
“I feel like I could eat a horse,” Angela said.
Annie helped her back to her feet.
“We’ll eat later,” Annie said, “For now, we need to meet up with the others.”
“Of course,” Angela said.
She took a gun and followed Annie down the hallway. As they approached a door, it opened, and several super soldiers walked in, led by Billy.
“I’ll cover you,” Annie said, firing her guns.
Angela reached the pile of rubble blocking the other side and concentrated hard. She flung pieces of rubble at the super soldiers, pinning them against the wall.
“Alright, let’s go,” Angela said.
3:15 PM (15 minutes to SVI activation)
“…utterly failed…”
“…left crippled in the wake of…”
“…the support of her own CMU…”
“…of no confidence was held…”
“…against all odds, it appears the chancellor has held on to her…”
In the command center, Olga sat in Pavel’s comfy chair, casually watching the news. Anders impatiently paced around the room, while Diana continued typing on the console, which beeped negatively.
“Come on!” she said. “This is ridiculous!”
“Sequence cannot be terminated,” the computer intoned.
“Like hell!” Diana said.
“How much time do we have?” Olga said.
“Fifteen minutes?” Diana said.
“Can’t you see ahead to speed things up?” Olga said.
“It doesn’t work that way!” Diana said.
“Where’re Angie and Annie?” Anders said.
“On their way,” Olga said.
On cue, another explosion rippled through the facility, shaking the floor under their feet and loosening dust from cracks in the ceiling. Olga turned off all of the TVs and handed a flash drive to Anders.
“Why don’t you make yourself useful?” she said.
“I am!” Anders said, holding up his gun. “In case anybody comes in!”
“You’d be immediately pulverized by any super soldier,” Olga said, “I’ll handle them. I need you to check on the failsafe Irene told us about.”
The door swung open, and Angela and Annie ran in, both panting and wheezing.
“You’re finally here,” Anders said.
“No time to talk!” Annie said. “We’ve got a bunch of super soldiers right behind us!”
She looked back at the doorway and telekinetically shut the doors just as Billy and several other super soldiers reached it. They banged on the door, but they couldn’t get through the thick metal.
“By the way, where’s Pavel?” Angela said.
“He fled,” Olga said, “Coward. Di, how are we on SVI?”
“It’s still not working!” Diana said.
“LOOK AHEAD FOR THE ANSWER!” Olga said.
“IT DOESN’T WORK THAT WAY!” Diana said.
The door began denting. Annie pointed her guns at the door in preparation. Angela staggered over to Pavel's chair, and Olga made way just as she fell into it and let out a loud sigh.
“I’m drained,” she muttered.
The super soldiers continued pounding on the door. The metal bent and warped. Annie concentrated and warped the metal back into shape, but it was clear she was also running out of energy quickly.
“Anders, don’t just stand there, do what I told you to do!” Olga said.
She joined Annie at the door, while Anders wheeled Angela over to Diana and placed his gun in her hands. He then rushed into the side room and plugged the flash drive into the console. The computer beeped and flashed, slowly booting up. The machines around it also whirred as they powered up.
“What do I do?” Anders said.
“Just wait!” Olga said. "It should work, if the Lone Gunmen know what they're doing..."
Annie finally lost her concentration. The door burst open, and Billy and the super soldiers stormed in. Annie’s guns fired, temporarily slowing them down, but their wounds quickly healed and closed up. Billy pushed on through the hail of bullets, though. Olga charged at Billy, a knife in her hand ready to strike. Billy may have been bigger and stronger, but Olga was faster and had a lifetime of experience behind her. Billy couldn’t land a single hit. However, Billy continued advancing, and Olga kept stepping back, getting closer to Diana’s console.
“Break out of it!” Olga said. “This isn’t you, Billy!”
Billy momentarily paused, his fists stopping inches from Olga’s face. For a second, it looked like he was resisting. But then his face grew cold again, and the blows resumed. Olga gracefully swept under Billy's legs, kicking his ankles and knocking him off balance. As Billy slowly fell, Olga redirected her spinning momentum into a roll, which she used to stand up. Billy staggered away from her, but he soon recovered and charged again. Olga stepped aside, letting Billy's momentum carry him past her. Then she delivered a gut punch, followed by a strike in the back with her other free hand. This let her spin around Billy, which she used to slam him against a console, the computer crushed under his weight. He was knocked out cold. Diana spun around in her chair and shot at the other super soldiers, while Annie telekinetically clubbed them with her empty guns, although she was clearly getting tired.
"Is it ready yet?" Diana said. "We need it now!"
"Any time now!" Olga said.
Angela clutched her head and leaned back in her chair. The super soldiers battered away Annie's guns and continued advancing. The console beeped and displayed a welcome message. A red button on the keyboard lit up. Anders immediately pushed it. A second set of alarms went off, and the super soldiers suddenly stopped. They clutched their heads and collapsed. Annie also collapsed, her guns clattering to the floor. Before she lost consciousness, she tried controlling the guns again, but they didn't respond. Angela likewise lost consciousness in her chair. Olga winced a little. Anders immediately rushed over to Annie, cradling her in his arms.
"Annie!" he said. "No, please, no, please be okay..."
He checked for a pulse and found one. He sighed with relief.
"Oh, thank goodness," he said.
Olga staggered over to Diana, who was checking Angela.
"How is she?" she said.
"She seems fine," Diana said, “It seems the signal may have had a negative reaction on them. Annie because of whatever the Jotun did to her, and Angie because of the Cortexiphan.”
“They did incorporate some of Walter’s research into the super soldiers,” Anders said.
The computer beeped. A map of the Reich appeared on a screen, with several targets locked onto major cities and military bases. A countdown for five minutes appeared in the corner. Diana turned back to the computer and continued typing.
“Damnit!” she said. “It’s still not stopping!”
A live video feed appeared on a nearby computer, showing Pavel’s face.
“Oh come on!” Olga said. “I thought I got rid of that!”
“It’s no use,” Pavel said, “There’s absolutely no way to stop the countdown. I made sure of it! Soon the Kaiser himself will bend the knee!”
“Why don’t you shut up?!” Anders shot the computer, destroying the screen.
He looked at Annie, who remained motionless. He helped her into a chair and ran over to Diana and Olga, who uneasily watched the countdown.
“Is there anything you can do?” Anders said.
“I’m…not sure,” Diana said.
“Well, what do we do then?” Olga said.
“I don’t know,” Diana said, "I...really don't know..."
“Well, we have to try something!” Anders said.
One minute remained on the timer…
