Invasion

5

The transport arrived back at the National Guard checkpoint to a chorus of cheers and smiling soldiers—a different scene from the one they’d left only a few hours before.

When the transport stopped, other soldiers rushed up to it. Reno had had a few minutes on the drive to catch his breath and get himself together. His hands had been shaking and his face numb after watching the obelisk collapse to the ground. He could still see the belly of the mothership as it rose into the sky and out of sight, and that made him shiver. He felt a pat on his shoulder and looked over.

“That’s all you,” Rodriguez said. “Go get ‘em, rockstar.”

Reno looked around and noticed everyone else staring at him, grins spread across their faces. Rodriguez was the first to start clapping, and the others quickly joined in, standing and pumping their fists into the air.

Reno smiled and stood up. The soldiers patted him on the back and ushered him out of the back of the transport, where he was greeted by more National Guard troops. They smothered him with high-fives, slaps on the back, and even a couple of bro hugs.

Then a tall soldier came over and, without asking Reno, lifted him up. The soldiers crowd surfed him like he was a teenager at a rock concert. He couldn’t help but laugh, trying to relish the moment.

They’d done it.

They’d destroyed the obelisk. Destroyed the dome’s power source, freeing Nashville. They’d defeated the aliens.

In that moment, Reno thought about Jack as his hand wrapped around the token still in his pocket. He should have been here to bask in all the glory. All Reno had done was follow his instructions.

He would find a way to honor Jack. It was the right thing to do.

He also thought of Maya. He hoped she had found her kids. Hoped she was safe. Reno wanted to see her again, and with this victory, he hoped it would be possible.

When his feet hit the ground, Reno stood face to face with Rupp. The Master Sergeant glared at him, the same disgruntled look from before plastering his face. Reno wasn’t going to kid himself. This man intimidated him. And he didn’t seem to give a shit about what Reno had done.

Reno looked down at his feet and, when he looked up, he was greeted with a wide smile and an extended hand.

“Good job, soldier.”

Reno looked around, then smiled at Rupp. He accepted the man’s firm handshake.

Rupp then raised Reno’s hand in the air and pointed at him. The other soldiers erupted in applause, hooting and hollering as they continued to celebrate.

Car horns sounded, and Reno turned to see three transport vehicles pulling up to the checkpoint. They parked at the edge of the growing crowd, several of the soldiers carrying boxes of wine and champagne.

“Looks like Army,” Rodriguez said.

“I’m going to go talk to them.” Rupp turned to Reno once more. “Really, you did good. Your bravery is admirable.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Rupp walked over to meet with the newly-arriving infantrymen.

Reno scanned the crowd again, making eye contact with John. The cop extended his arms and laughed. Reno went to him, and the two men embraced.

“You weren’t lying, you son of a bitch. You’re a goddamn hero.”

“You trusted me and got me over here. You’re just as much of a hero as I am. Besides, Jack is the real hero. And I’m going to make sure people know that.”

“They will.” John stepped back and looked over Reno’s shoulder. “Just enjoy the moment. We don’t have to worry about those bastards anymore.”

Reno heard a pop then, and turned to see where it had come from. Beckett stood nearby with a bottle of champagne, the contents flowing down the side of the bottle. He raised both arms in the air and then, looking to the sky, pressed the bottle against his lips and guzzled.

As he watched everyone celebrate, Reno’s eyes drifted to where Rupp was talking with one of the Army soldiers. His hands sat on his hips and he was looking at the ground, shaking his head. Reno’s own smile disappeared.

Rupp kicked at the ground as he turned and made his way over to where Reno and all of the other soldiers were still celebrating.

This isn’t good.

Pressing his fingers into the corners of his mouth, Rupp whistled. Most of the soldiers turned to him. His somber expression caught everyone’s attention, and many of them quit smiling and stopped cheering.

Rupp cleared his throat. “Put down the fucking champagne, Beckett.”

Beckett turned more slowly than the others had, foam still sticking to his chin. He glanced at the soldiers on both sides of him, shrugging in confusion as to why he’d been singled out.

“What’s the matter, sir?” a female National Guard soldier asked.

“Corporal Robertson has just informed me of some very grave news.” Rupp turned to the man. “Corporal?”

The corporal stepped forward to address the crowd.

“I want to first applaud the efforts of everyone here for taking down the dome. You did one hell of a job.”

The soldiers erupted into another round of applause. Then Rupp stepped forward, his eyes narrowed. “Everyone, shut the hell up and listen to the rest of what the corporal has to say. Do not interrupt him again. That’s an order.”

The crowd went quiet other than for a couple of throat clearings.

Robertson continued.

“You’ve given us very valuable information on how to take these domes down.”

“Domes, sir?” Rodriguez asked.

“Nashville wasn’t the only city domed and attacked.”

Someone dropped an empty bottle, which rolled away and clanked to a stop. Nobody spoke.

“We have confirmation of attacks on Chicago, San Francisco, New Orleans—hell, most major American cities are under domes right now.”

Reno’s mouth fell open as if he’d been left in shock, but something in his mind had felt it all along.

“I know this news comes as a shock to you.” Robertson paused, and he seemed to be reassuring himself as he spoke to the troops. “But I don’t want us to forget how important the victory today, here in Nashville, was. Now we know how to take down the domes—and what happens when we do. Those alien bastards run with their tails between their legs.”

“Permission to speak, sir?” Rodriguez asked.

Corporal Robertson nodded.

“We’ve had no contact with anyone outside the dome until you all came rolling up in here just now, no way of communicating once the thing turned black. It’s great that we know how to drop a dome, but how are we supposed to get that information to the people trapped in those other cities?”

“That’s a fair question, and I’d be lying if I told you we had a solution for that right now. But we’re working on it.”

Several of the other soldiers tried asking more questions, all at the same time. Rupp came forward and silenced them all with a steely glare.

“Thank you, Master Sergeant Rupp,” Robertson said. “Now, I know you all have a lot of questions. But what’s important now is that we work on evacuating the city and getting all of you to a place where we can be ready with our next move. My men will have further instructions for you, so please get with them right over there.”

Everyone grumbled as they lined up to get their orders. Various men kicked at half-empty champagne bottles and stubbed out celebratory cigars.

“Harvey,” Rupp said. “Come over here.”

Reno looked to John, signaling for him to join him. The two men walked over to Rupp and Robertson.

“This is him,” Rupp said.

“We’ve got to get you somewhere safe where we can debrief.” Robertson turned and started to walk away before turning his head and waving Reno along. “Come with me.”