The squad spent the rest of the afternoon planning an excursion into the nearest zone. They only had to get there, hopefully, spend no more than a couple of minutes there, and then get back. They just had to pack a lot of ammunition, some water and food, and maybe some extra surprises for anything that they encountered there.

Speed over stealth meant that this time they could bring some vehicles. Two flivvers, or hover trucks, would be enough; as they used a hover system for propulsion they had a much wider range of environments than wheeled vehicles as could cross small chasms. Rodriguez and his dogs had their own vehicle, with just enough room for Douglas, and everyone piled into the other vehicle.

Douglas had to stick his head out of the window. To avoid throwing up, honest.

The zone was just half an hour away. The ride was bumpy but far faster than walking. They arrived in the zone just as the sun was going down. The zone had been invisible during the day but appeared as a light blue tint as the light melted. They parked just a few yards away from the zone, right where they could see the difference between the zone and non-zone.

Douglas jumped out when they arrived. “Yo, Rodriguez, ready to time me?”

Rodriguez loved the enthusiasm. “Sure, kid.”

Everyone else piled out of the other car as Douglas walked purposefully into the zone. Rodriguez blinked just as the kid hit the zone, activating the stopwatch function of his eye display. Just as the display hit one minute, a blue glow surrounded Douglas. A flex of his hand sent a bolt of energy into a nearby boulder, crumbling it.

"Okay, the power is back.” He looked at Rodriguez. “How was the time?”

“One minute. It looks like the theory holds.”

Douglas smiled. “Cool.” Everyone looked at the other person of interest. “Send Kev in.”

Kev followed Douglas into the zone. As with Douglas, approximately a minute later there were changes in him, albeit more subtle: He just looked healthier, more solid, than he had a minute before. “All right. I feel much better.” Kev faced Samuels. “Samuels, my understanding is that you can hit any target.” Samuels nodded. “Now would be a good time to shoot me.”

Samuels grabbed his rifle and shot at the teenager. There was a loud report and a bullet hit Kev just below the shoulder.

Kev didn't even flinch.

Samuels looked at Lieutenant Sawyer. “Guess the kid is better.”

Lieutenant Sawyer smiled. “Guess so. Rodriguez, get ready to time.” He gave her a thumbs up. “Douglas, leave the zone, please.”

Again, Rodriguez blinked and everyone waited the minute out. When the time was reached, Douglas' glow faded almost immediately. Again he flexed, but nothing came of it. “Okay, it looks like I'm just a normal sod now.”

Rodriguez gave Kev a thumbs up and blinked at the right moment. At the minute mark, Kev seemed to lose something important and undefined, becoming a little more faded. Walker punched him, but Kev just glared and Walker backed off. Samuel punched him and Kev went flying. Kev signaled that he wasn't going to punch him Samuels relaxed. Kev got up and dusted himself off.

Rodriguez sidled up to Lieutenant Sawyer and they talked for a few moments. They returned to the rest of the group. “Okay, I'm happy with the results. We were even able to slip in one or two bonus tests.” She looked at Douglas. “Your choice: Stay here or come with. If you do come with, then it's not a bad idea to grab any cached gear.”

“Nothing cached out here,” Douglas smiled. “I'm all yours, Lieutenant.”

She smiled. “You stay over any more nights and we may have to adopt you.” She looked him up and down. “I'm just questioning if you're worth it.”

The rest of the guys smiled at that. “I could work with that, Lieutenant. Let me know where I sign up.” He walked towards the flivvers.

"Okay, then. Everyone mount up.” She held Kev back. “Not you, Kev. I appreciate that you didn't bring any real weapons today; that made life a lot easier. However, tomorrow, we're going hunting: If you have any big guns, tomorrow would be nice to see them.”

“I understand.”

"See you later. Exite.” Kev was gone before she even turned around.

* * * * *

When they reached the base, Lieutenant Prowse was waiting for them. She had a cooler ready for them. “You guys missed chow time. Luckily, I was able to talk the cafeteria guys into putting some stuff aside for you.” She handed the cooler over to the guys. There was much cheering from the guys as the contents were quickly shared and disposed of. As the food was disappearing, she sidled up to Lieutenant Sawyer. “I've also prepared a bed in the office for our guest, as per request.”

"Thanks. That gives me the time I needed to talk to the guys.” She moved an inch closer. “You do know you're one of my two loose ends, right?”

"That's where I like to be. Douglas is the other loose end?”

“Yep. General Martins hates it when things are loose for too long. Douglas will be resolved by morning. You are still a variable that needs to be dealt with. I need an XO; if I don't fill the position it will be filled for me. If you want it, it's yours.”

She smiled. “Do those guys come with it?”

She smiled back. “Pretty much. I know you're one of the base's troubleshooters; you fill any empty spots as needed. This would kill that freedom but provide you with a permanent base, so to speak.”

"Thanks for the information, Mel. I'll let you know if I'm ready to settle down.”

“No problem, Jule.” She smiled. “Now, would you mind you gathering the lost sheep and settling him in? I need to talk to the others in the flock.”

Jule smiled back. “Sure.” She walked over to the guys and grabbed Douglas. “You're in the office tonight, kid; they need to discuss official army things.” Douglas perked up and followed her. “Don't get your hopes up, junior. I'm just making sure you're good before I head to my own place.” Douglas slowed down a little. She grabbed the empty cooler to be returned in the morning.

As soon as the two were out of sight, Her smile disappeared and she took a knee. “Alright, guys: Here's the deal: General Martins wants up to bring Douglas into the fold, but that would make us responsible for bringing him up to speed. As such, she wants your input into whether or not I extend an invitation to our good adjutant Douglas to become a permanent addition. If you do give the okay, then it looks like three people may be joining our little squad, with Kev and Lieutenant Prowse being the other two. You get to make the choice regarding the wizard.”

Rodriguez cleared his throat. “How long do we have to make that decision? Even though I'm pretty sure where we are.”

“You have three days. After tonight he'll billet with you soldiers in the barracks. If you're where I think you all are, then Rodriguez, you teach him all of the military etiquette you can. Walker and Samuels, you two teach him the rest. I'd like to see him join us, but that means he needs to be one of us. Got it?”

All three spoke at once. “Yes, ma'am!”

"Good.” She stood up. “Tomorrow we go hunting. It's our scavenging rotation and we may need to deal with some demons. This gives us the chance to test out what we learned today and try some new tactics. It's going to be a busy day, boys, so be ready to go just after breakfast. Rodriguez, make sure you grab us lunch. Plan for seven.”

“Yes, ma'am.”

"Get some sleep. Dismissed!” She walked away. The guys started walking off to their barracks.