"Good to see you again, Colonel," he said in greeting.
Taylor lowered his weapon and took a seat once again. He looked to Morris and Rains.
"Kelly reckons we have no hope but to run, to flee from Earth, what do you think?"
Rains could not help but laugh.
"I'm not sure what's so funny," stated Kelly.
"I'm sorry, but how else can I take it? It's all a joke. We leave this world, then we might as well have given up years ago when this all began."
"No," replied Kelly, "none of your time and efforts was wasted. This war can still be won. The Battle for Earth can still be won. But not now."
"And if we leave, how will we ever be able to come back strong enough?" Taylor asked.
"I don't have all the answers, but I know if we stay, it's over."
Taylor looked back to Rains.
"What do you think?"
"It sucks, but it may be the only option we have out of a whole list of sucky options."
"Either way, it's not our decision to make," Morris joined in.
"No, if we leave, we have to leave en masse or not at all," replied Kelly.
"How do we do it?"
"First thing is we’ve got to get back to our own lines. If you're thinking this way, then I bet a good many others are, too. They may just need a final push."
"So we're really doing it?"
"We're gonna try."
"We can't go with you, not yet. No way we'd get across the border. Captain Morris will go with you as my representative. If you get this plan off the ground, we'll join you."
"You'll need a ship, probably several for all your people."
"Don't you worry about us, we can handle ourselves. Just remember, what matters more than anything else is this. People. If we're going to survive this, and stand a chance of winning in the long run, we need people. Not a few hundred or a few thousand. Not even tens of thousands. But millions."
"You're talking a mass exodus?" Rains asked.
"That's exactly what I'm talking about. It's that, or it'll never work."
Taylor took a deep breath and tried to take it all in. He could feel some weight lifting from his shoulders at the prospect of leaving the war behind, the war he now knew they could not win.
"You know if we could just have gotten to Erdogan."
"Then he would have killed you, and you know it. There will be a time to confront him, but it is not now."
Taylor wondered if he had subconsciously gone to Kelly knowing he would be the voice of reason. He was glad he did, but it was still hard to stomach."
"Then that's it. We get back to Dupont, and try and get this through to him."
"You have to. The survival of the human race depends on it."
"When?"
"Now, Rains. We cannot afford to waste any time. Much longer, and we won't have any options left. Kelly, replace the UEN soldiers with your own people and continue on as if nothing happened. Be sure to keep the survivors under lock and key. I wish you every luck."
"And you, too."
With that, he got up and left with Rains and Morris at his side. Doyle turned to leave with them, but Taylor shook his head.
"Your place is here with Kelly. Do your duty," ordered Taylor.
"So that's really the plan?" asked Rains, "Round up the population of the World and head out into space?"
"Those that will come, and something like that, yeah."
"And do what? Head out into the unknown and hope for the best?"
"The unknown is a whole lot better than what we got right now."
"But it's crazy."
"Yep," he simply replied.
Taylor knew he needed a better plan than that. He wished he had Jones at his side to talk to and plan out their course of action. It wasn't long before they were at the landing bays once more and could see some of Kelly’s people manning the guard station. Lewis and Robinson were waiting inside with them. They came out to greet Taylor when they saw him coming.
"You get the Commander?"
Taylor nodded.
"And he's gonna help us?"
"He already has. It's a long story. I'll tell you on the way."
"On the way where? Munich?"
Taylor shook his head and led them to the copter.
"This is Captain Morris, previously of the Moon Defence Force. Captain, this is Private Lewis and Corporal Robinson."
"Nice to meet you, Gentlemen," Morris said as they climbed aboard.
They were quickly off the ground, and Taylor had explained the plan in under a minute.
"Back we go again," muttered Lewis.
"Really think we can do this, Sir?" asked Robinson.
"I don't know," he replied with a sigh.
The whole idea seemed impossible to him. The logistics were beyond comprehension, but the alternative was to lose and probably die.
"Border's up ahead," Rains said shortly after.
Not again, thought Taylor.
"Get your gear on. If we gotta jump, I want to be ready for it," he said to the others.
"Captain Morris, you can use Rains’ stuff."
"You sure?"
"Hey, I'm here to fly, not fight!"
They quickly strapped into the Reitech suits and sat back down with rifles in hand. Taylor instantly felt his confidence double as he settled into the equipment that had carried him through so many death-defying encounters.
"We're coming up on 'em now!"
"Where the hell did you find this thing, a scrap yard?" Morris asked.
"Pretty much," he replied.
"So what, you're just hoping we can pass through without issue?"
Taylor nodded.
"Great plan."
"Worked the first time."
"They're checking us out!" Rains said.
A moment later, the comms indicator flashed, and a voice came over the speaker.
"Unidentified craft, you are approaching the UEN border. Identify yourself, or you will be considered hostile."
"What? Robinson asked. "They let us in, but won't let us out?"
"They probably logged our entry into UEN territory. Leaving it again to go into a warzone is going to raise suspicions for a civilian craft."
"Might have been an idea to mention that earlier, Eddie," Taylor said quietly.
"Hey, I thought it was obvious."
"What do we do?" Robinson asked.
"Can't turn back, can't run, can't hide," stated Taylor.
"Then answer them, and give them what they want," replied Morris.
Taylor looked to him for clarification. He had no idea what he meant.
"If we're to get across that border, they need to know it is UEN forces aboard."
"But there aren't."
Captain Morris strode up to the cockpit. "Well, that's not entirely true."
"He reached for the intercom button to open a channel, but Rains stopped his hand.
"Let him try," said Taylor.
Rains looked back in surprise.
"Look, we're in deep shit, and none of us have any answers. He can't make this any worse."
Rains pulled his hand away and waited with scepticism to see what words of wonder Morris could use to pull them out of such a sticky situation. The Captain opened a channel, and they all held their breath for a few seconds, waiting for him to speak.
"This is Captain Morris, UEN. Identification, alpha, whiskey, tango, foxtrot, eight, five, three, two, two, one."
"Please await verification."
None of them expected it to work, but they hoped. The response finally came back.
"You're clear to pass, Captain."
The fighter broke off and left them be.
"No way," said Rains, "How in the hell did that work?"
"We're still officially UEN members. The MDF may have been disbanded, but my commission still stands."