Chris Kennedy - We Dare

A Fallen World Universe Short Story

I awoke with a start.

Damn this decrepit old bladder, I muttered as I dragged myself out of bed.

Be a little quieter, Ringold said from the other bed. Tryin to sleep here.

Shut up you old fart. I grunted as I pushed the walker toward the bathroom.

My whole body hurt these days, and I couldnt seem to nail down which part hurt the most. The burning in my groin was almost unbearable, but I made it to the bathroom in time.

Heh, heh, I laughed. I beat you this time you bastard.

Victory! Ringold yelled from the room.

I pushed the walker back out of the bathroom. Damn straight.

Celebrate the victories, Kade. He chuckled. Theyre a lot scarcer as you go. Maybe youll get lucky and kick the bucket before you have to call a nurse every time you need to go.

Nope. I shook my head. Theyll have to wipe my ass and sponge bathe me for decades before I get to die.

Thats no way to think, Kade.

Probably wont even send in that pretty redhead. Itll be Carl.

Carl was the size of a Packers linebacker and wore the face of a serial killer. He was one of my orderlies.

Damn, Kade.

Expect the worst, and youll never be disappointed, I said, then winced as my hip felt like a knife had been jammed into it.

Damn Dellik Unified and their damn booby traps, I said.

Hip gettin you again, old man?

Hed pried that from me one day while we waited for the nurses to come change the beds, and we got to sit outside for a couple of hours. We were just running a normal patrol in Atlanta when one of their IEDs had gotten my squad. I had been lucky enough to be on the other side of Corporal Jayden. He took the brunt of the shrapnel, but I still got a chunk right through my hip. More frag took me in the knee, effectively removing one Mathew Kade from service. I got shipped back up north to the Reach, part of Virginia.

I remembered when we had been a country of states. Many people still called it such but those of us who served knew better. A lot had changed in my ninety years. Now we were a land of Corporate Territories. Oh, the States were still there, but the dividing lines within this country had become more fluid with the nature of the Corporations, and the Corporations never had enough. They were always participating in a hostile takeover somewhere. Obsidian had become a juggernaut among the Corporate World, and when they settled into any semblance of peace, another would make a play for Obsidian Territory. Then the war would begin again. Dellik Unified had been a rough one, better than six years long.

I had been taken out of that conflict by that IED in the second year. Now Dellik was just a memory, a bad memory for many vets, but a memory, nonetheless. Years ago, I had seen the news vids about JalCom making advances from the Midwest Territories into Obsidian. I had known it wouldnt take long before another made a play for the East.

That conflict still hadnt reached a conclusion yet, but I figured Obsidian had a few tricks left.

Hey, Ring?

What?

Look out that window.

Oh, thats a thing of beauty.

We were looking at a pretty yellow convertible Corvette. Looked like it was from the twentieth.

Lets go steal it, I said.

Alright.

He climbed up from the bed, and we pushed our walkers out the door and down the hallway to the side exit. I ran a card across the scanner.

Whose card did you swipe?

Carls.

You lifted that big bastards card?

Whats he gonna do? Beat up a ninety-year-old geezer?

He might, Ringold chuckled.

Hell have to catch me first.

Damnit, Kade, he grumbled. Im outrunning you. Its not going to be a hard job for Carl to catch you.

Yeah, but when you passed me I slipped the card in your pocket, I laughed. Run you old fart!

Damnit!

We rounded the corner beside the Corvette only to see a pretty blonde slip into the drivers seat. The car started, and she pulled away from the curb in our direction. She smiled widely and waved as she passed.