Brady returned from surveying the supplies in the well-stocked medical facility. He had a mental list of what they should take when they left. Unfortunately, there was nothing to quicken the healing of his neck. He'd heal four times faster than a normal human, but it wasn't fast enough. He returned to the main medical bay, where he'd taken up a bed near Dan's. Their gear was strung across three other beds, much to the doctor's irritation.
"They're all dead," the doc said in a tight voice as he entered through the other door. "Antidepressants?" He held up the med-gun.
"What?" Brady asked, wondering if the doctor was already high. "Who's dead?"
"Everyone. The VP … everyone." The doc was slumped on one of the hospital beds. He prepped a med-gun for himself.
"What're you talking about?" Dan rose and joined Brady.
"Gassed. Everyone hiding inside the mountain. It was supposed to be the safest place on the planet."
Brady felt both surprise and some relief as the doc qualified his statement about everyone being dead. He looked at Dan, and the two shared a thought without speaking. They both reached for their combat suits and weapons.
"Doc, you got a real gun?" Dan asked.
The doc waved his med-gun.
"Something's not right here," Brady whispered.
"Yeah, it's creepy," Dan agreed.
His thoughts went to the injured woman he was charged with protecting. Whatever was going on, he hoped he had time to prepare his own men to evacuate before worrying about her. The majority of the Appalachia militia was at the base of the mountain.
"Doc, we're taking supplies," he said.
The doc was grinning and glassy-eyed after his med-gun shot.
Brady looked at Dan, who rolled his eyes. He strapped on his weapons and strode into the storage area, looking with admiration at the boxes of medical supplies.
"Jem," he said into his communicator. "Y'all get ready to go and meet us here at the med center."
"Roger."
"Think we're safer at our base camp?" Dan asked quietly, joining him in the storage room.
"I do."
"When you wanna move?"
"Before dawn."
Dan nodded and limped away, speaking into his communicator. Brady began to sort what supplies they needed and handed off a list to another soldier.
An hour before dawn, the alarms wailed. Brady froze and straightened from packing supplies, striding into the med center. The doc was asleep on one bed, his med-gun beside him. The rest of his men were awakened by the alarms.