Trevor realized that he did not like being out on the vacant, decaying streets. They reminded him of the challenge he faced and the scope of failure that had befallen these people.
My people.
Yes, they were becoming his people.
Only a handful knew of his presence; Nina said most officers in the Third Legion received a briefing as to who and what he was. As for the others in Thebes, well, Nina heard that the rumor of his 'return' spread through the city.
Would they believe him a reincarnation of their Emperor? If they knew the whole story, would they accept this man from another universe as their leader?
The only thing he knew with certainty was that any leader who could bring victory to these people, who could wake this city from its defeat-induced coma, would find willing followers. After all, what choice did they have?
In reality, he had seen very little of the city but he had seen enough to know this was a leaderless flock wandering without direction.
That angered him; angered him enough to stay and fight a battle against the Geryons, a battle his head told him he should avoid. Yet he had sensed he could win. More importantly, he sensed that these people needed him to win.
And now what? And now The Committee called him on the carpet to tell him he had done wrong? That made him angrier still.
The driver delivered them to the Ops Center.
Trevor’s time whipping the Third Legion into shape had not spread to the heart of Thebes. The guards, the techs, and couriers, they still looked as lazy, as disinterested, and as unconcerned as they had the first time he had walked through those doors.
Someone needs to knock sense into these people.
Trevor and Nina marched the hallway to the main control room. Along the way, he saw a man flirting with a woman and a sentry leaning lazily against a wall.
He was about ready to explode by the time they came upon a group of technicians and junior officers laughing in a corner.
"You should have seen him! He was so drunk he puked right there in the office!"
"Oh, man, we were wasted."
"Didn’t you have guard duty after?"
"Yeah, I think I slept through half of it."
Trevor stopped. Nina actually took three steps before realizing she walked alone.
Stone approached the group of three male techs and both a female and male officer.
"What is going on here? You, soldier, you on duty?"
The female officer staggered, "Um, yes, I’m here to-"
"Any one here off duty? Any one here on break?"
Nina hovered in the distance and watched.
The male officer responded, "What’s it to you?"
Apparently their lack of attention kept them from recognizing his face but they did notice a lack of rank on his collar.
"What? What…is…it…to…me?"
Stone shot over, grabbed the guy with one hand on his chest, another on his throat, and slammed him against the wall. The thud echoed along the hall grabbing the attention of dozens.
"Listen here you worthless fuck. I just got back from two days of fighting. I watched people die on the battlefield to keep you useless sacks of shit alive back here. You will NOT dishonor them by acting like a bunch of god damn teenyboppers bullshitting in the hall between classes. Are you hearing me?"
The stunned junior officer reacted only with coughs. The blow to his head had sent him into a daze.
Trevor turned his attention to the others in the group. He spoke first to the female officer.
"What is it you are supposed to be doing?"
"I…I’m here from Second Legion to file readiness reports…ah…um…"
"Then what the fuck are you waiting for? Go file the reports then get back to your unit!"
She scurried away.
"And you?"
Trevor addressed the remaining three technicians. The first two answered in a miss-mash of stuttering sentences.
"Serv-servicing electrical junctions."
"Supplies. I mean-inventory. I mean, inventorying supplies at the-"
Stone shouted, "Then get in gear before I tear you new assholes."
They hurried off.
"And you?" Trevor addressed the third.
"Um. Actually, I, um, just went off duty."
Trevor let go of the officer who fell to the ground and tried to catch his breath.
"Well don’t hang around here. Go get some rest." Trevor considered then pointed at the guy on the floor. "Take him to the infirmary first."
The technician nodded nervously. Trevor joined Nina and they continued on.
– While Trevor Stone went to meet with The Committee, Reverend Johnny decided on a walk around the city to study their defenses and to learn more about their hosts.
He exited the main entrance of the dormitory skyscraper out into an overcast day.
A supply truck with six big wheels drove by spewing noxious exhaust and a Skipper whirred overhead. Otherwise, the neighborhood felt deserted.
To his left, the street continued toward a series of smaller buildings that looked commercial in nature, perhaps shops. He also saw a small park with a cluster of trees and benches. At some point it must have been an area for recreation. If those trees were in bloom-if it were the summer months-then the little park might have looked cozy. Instead, it looked sad.
To his right, far in the distance, the start of the industrial district including some kind of power sub-station and a big garage. He spied streams of smoke drifting into the sky.
He walked to his left.
The sound of his footsteps clicked off the concrete walkway and echoed among the buildings. The occasional beep or bell joined the sound of those footsteps, but otherwise the day felt heavy with silence.
That silence broke as he passed the small, sad park. "They say your name is Johnny."
A person stood next to one of the thin, barren trees wearing a gray jacket with a dark hood over technician’s garb.
"Why yes. You may call me Reverend Johnny."
"You are a friend of Trevor Stone’s? You came here with him?"
"That is correct. Now may I ask who are you?"
She removed the hood revealing a lovely face marred by a scarred cheek and hair cut short to match her military appearance. Nonetheless, he recognized the woman.
"My name is Ashley Trump."
– Trevor took one step closer toward The Committee, purposely setting himself apart from Nina. Director Snowe stood off to the side, waiting for the confrontation to unfold. However, as usual, the three Committeemen whispered amongst themselves as they sat at their elevated table, not yet acknowledging Trevor or Major Forest's presence.
Trevor fidgeted, clenching and unclenching his fists with growing impatience.
Finally, he blurted, "Did you want to see me or can I get back to trying to save all your asses?"
That drew their attention, but only long enough to shoot him down.
"You will be addressed."
"We are still formulating our position."
"Despite your unique situation, interruptions will not be tolerated."
Trevor grunted. The men returned to their whispers for a bit longer, no doubt a punishment for his brashness.
At long last, The Committee spoke.
"We have analyzed the after-action reports from special mission number forty-two seventy-six. After reviewing these reports we realized we had made an error."
"Yes. A procedural error. You should know that we do not hold you responsible for this error. It was our mistake."
Trevor cocked his head, "Error? What error?"
"We received reports from all involved including Corporal Brewer and Major Forest."
"This is, of course, standard procedure."
"Then we realized that we had not requested a written report from you."
"You hold an honorary position with the Third Legion therefore we did not feel that a written report from you would hold enough legitimacy to be a part of our official findings."