Matthew S. Williams's Blog, page 166

Pappa Zulu – Chapter 3

“The ultimate aim in this war, the only aim when all is said and done, is to hit the enemy where he lives. Destroy the Whiskeys means of propagation, and you destroy them.”

-Major General Michael Thur

“How soon?”

Doctor Ross stood stock still in front of his desk, his hands behind his back and his lab whites arranged impeccably. His hair was also immaculately styled, every follicle flattened and slicked back. It was how he chose to present himself every time they had a meeting now, nothing left to chance.

Combined with the small frown he always seemed to wear, Thur couldn’t help but feel that it was an expression of contempt. The ensemble seemed to be a giant, sarcastic statement, a disdainful representation of what he thought of military discipline. And he wasn’t too afraid to convey those specific emotions whenever he spoke either.

“Eight weeks, maybe more.”

“Eight weeks?” said Vasquez with dismay. “After all this, we’re still looking at another two months?”

Ross directed his scowl to the Mage’s second. “It takes time to isolate antibodies, sir, let alone to reproduce them in vast quantities.”

“Time is of the essence, Doctor. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re not exactly making good on our losses around here.”

Ross lowered his head to conceal the smirk that formed on his lips. “Then might I recommend a change in tactics?”

“Might I recommend -”

Thur raised his hand to prevent the onslaught of profanity he knew must be coming. “Doctor, what the Lt. General is trying to say is that we need the inoculate sooner. Resettlement has already begun and we can’t expect to guarantee the residents long term safety so long as the chance for infection remains.”

“Yes, sir,” he said with a breath. “But since we are on the subject, I might ask why no official timetables have been produced. It might help to motivate my staff if we had a hard date to work with.”

Vasquez jumped in before Thur could stop him. “Perhaps if your lab had given us some hard numbers on how long they can last without food. The last estimates were quite… inconsistent.”

“Precisely because the results were… inconsistent,” Ross replied, parroting his tone. “As I said in my report, the subjects tested ranged anywhere from sixty eight days to a one hundred and two. All depending on variations in their metabolism and level of activity. Hardly the stuff of hard numbers, yes?”

“Doctor!” Thur yelled. Ross flinched ever so slightly from the outburst. He turned to Vasquez, said in a quieter, even tone. “General… Let’s not waste time with petty bickering or finger pointing.” He waited for them to both give him a nod of understanding before continuing. “Now… the order of the day, Doctor, is for you and your staff to synthesize that inoculate as soon as possible. If you need additional resources and staff, then say so now. Otherwise, we expect a first batch in six weeks.”

Ross seemed about ready to object, to say that wasn’t enough time. Instead, he took a deep breath and seemed to consider the offer for additional help. “I could use another lab tech to pick up the slack,” he said. “We’re also hard pressed within our existing facilities. If we could expand…”

“Where were you thinking?” Thur asked. Ross immediately smiled.

“My labs in Albuquerque. If the troopers have cleared the city, we might consider investigating to see if they are still intact. If so, I could set up a satellite lab there, coordinate it with out efforts here. If not, we could at least strip it for available tools and resources. That ought to help us speed things up.”

Thur looked to Vasquez, who seemed surprisingly on board with the idea.

“Albuqurque remains contested ground, still. But I can certainly communicate your request to the BCT. Assuming they find the lab more or less intact, what kinds of equipment should they requisition?”

“Incubators,” Ross said quickly. “We’d also need the centrifuges, the lab’s compliment of microscopes and DNA scanners. Just about everything in there would be of use…” He paused and raised a finger for emphasis. “I must mention that the lab is a sensitive place and will not respond well to grenades or bombs.”

Thur smiled. “Yes, you said as much when we first went in. I can assure you, the APD building remains intact, as per my orders.”

Ross nodded but looked less than confident. Vasquez had returned to a similarly bitter state as well. That left Thur in the middle, trying to arbitrate between the two mutually hostile colleagues. He suppressed a small chuckle as he considered what Vasquez had recommended the night before.

“I don’t like his attitude,” he said. “And I’m almost positive he’s stalling, maybe even going back to his old ways. I say, throw him back in the stockade. And this time, make sure he’s sharing one with a monster.”

How many times had he been forced to say that they still needed a lead researcher, and no one accessible was as qualified as Ross? And at the same time, Ross had complained bitterly that he couldn’t conduct these briefing sessions with the Lt. General’s constant “negativity” and “arrogant demeanor”.

He wondered if it might be a better use of his time and energy to simply put Vasquez and him in a cage and let them settle their differences that way. But he knew how that would end. He’d be short one researcher and Vasquez would have acquired a taste for researcher blood. No one in the labs would be safe…

150,000 Views! Thank You!

Just a quick post to say, my site has just reached 150,000 views today! Yaaaaaay! These milestones do get less exciting, the more there are, but it’s likely to be awhile before I reach 200,000. I figure, now’s as good a time and milestone to celebrate as any. And I could use some picking up, considering the week I’ve had!

For one, I got sick this week, which is sucky enough. However, that was coupled with the worst day of work I’ve ever had. It started got called in to fill in for an EA in my school’s kindergarten room the night before. I thought I might be well enough to work, but found that after a night of restless tossing and turning, I was exhausted and had a wicked headache!

But wouldn’t you know it, no one was available, so I decided to suck it up. And of course, the children chose that day to be especially rambunctious! I tell ya, sugar is like crack to kids, a terrible epidemic! And I don’t want to go into details, but suffice it to say, helping kids with special needs can be quite demanding, especially when they’re little guys! And today,s till sick and headachy, I’m trying to get better so the wife and I can go help her brother move tomorrow. I love moving…

So in the midst of the blahs, it’s nice to be reminded of something positive. I got nothing in the world to complain about, and hope people everywhere are having as stress-free a week as they possibly can! I also promise to be getting back on my writing and editing duties, so those who are waiting on notes from me, trust that they will be coming shortly. Thank you all for making this site an enduring possibility, and good night!

The Walking Dead, Season 3 Episode 5

Hello all and welcome back to my ongoing review of AMC’s The Walking Dead. Season three has now reached the halfway mark, and the two-prongedstory is beginning to really drop some bombs on us, the viewing public! After last weeks’ hefty dose of trauma – i.e. Lori dying and Rick finally snapping – I was curious to see how this week’s episode was going to lighten things up again. What’s more, I had to know if they had really killed Lori off, or that was just a screw to the audience to get them to tune back in for this week’s episode. Needless to say, they were messing around…

In short, the midway mark in this season saw the resolution of the prisoner situation inside the jail. After killing Andre, the escapee who vowed revenge, Axel and Oscar seem to be merging in with the rest. At the same time, the loss of Lori, Carol and T-Dog was mitigated somewhat by the arrival of a new member – Rick and Lori’s baby girl.

Meanwhile, over the in the town of Woodbury, the divide between Andrea and Michonne finally results in a break, with Michonne leaving and Andrea staying behind. However, after witnessing an evening of special festivities put on the Governor, Andrea begins to question her decision to stay. And it’s also abundantly clear from what the Governor has going on behind closed doors that he has not accepted the loss of his family and that that is what drove him to madness in the first place.

Say the Word:

The episode opens on Rick, who is virtually catatonic after receiving the news that Lori is dead. His grief quickly turns to rage and he grabs an axe, proceeding inside to kill whatever remains of the Walkers who entered the prison. Meanwhile, Hershel tells them that the new baby needs formula or she can expect to die within a few days. Maggie and Daryl hop on his motorbike and make for a nursery which they observed in the nearest town. There, they find some diapers, formula, and a possum hiding in one of the closets. Daryl shoots the possum and declares they now have some fresh meat for dinner!

Meanwhile, Rick busies himself with cutting through all the Walkers that are still down below. Glenn tries to talk him down but fails, as Rick seems borderline psychotic and unreachable. After throwing him aside and going off to kill more, he finally finds his way to the room where Lori had her C-section and died. He finds a bullet in the floor and a blood trail leading into a passageway nearby, realizes that Carl couldn’t bring himself to shoot her and that she turned. After putting a bullet through the head of her bloated Walker corpse, he begins stabbing her swollen belly over and over…

Over in Woodbury, we find the Governor combing the hair of a small Walker, who apparently used to be his daughter. Her name was Penny, and it seems that he is keeping her secured in his office where no one can find her. Meanwhile, Michonne continues to investigate, hoping to find some evidence that the Governor is not who he appears to be. After retrieving her sword and reading some disturbing entries in his diary (which seem to involve the name Penny) she overhears the Governor and his men talking about holding some festivities. His lead researcher seems opposed to the idea, but eventually concedes.

Michonne then finds her way to where some Walkers are being kept in a cage and kills them all. When the Governor’s men catch up to her, he once again extends an offer to join him, but Michonne pointedly refuses (i.e. she points her sword into his chin)! At the mention of the name Penny, the Governor becomes quite concerned, as he thinks Michonne found her in his office, instead of simply reading her name from his diary. She makes one final attempt to convince Andrea to come with her, but fails. To her surprise though, they open the gates and let her go, leaving a saddened Andrea behind.

The Governor tells her to cheer up, as they are going to be having a special event that evening to cap off the celebrations that have been going on for days. However, she is horrified to find that the festivities are a bare knuckle fight between Merle and one of the other sentries, and the fight takes place in a ring surrounded by chained Walkers. The Governor explains its all staged and designed to make the people unafraid of the Walkers, but she is still incensed by it and leaves in a huff.

Glenn digs some graves for the dead, which accounts for one-third of their group. The deaths of Carol, T-Dog, and Lori are felt all around, but Glenn gets some unexpected help from Axel and Oscar who offer to help him dig graves. The baby also appears to be doing well, and Carl suggests naming her after those they’ve lost, eventually settling on his mother’s name. Daryl lays a flower on Carol’s grave, the same one he showed to her when they were looking for Sophie which commemorates the Trail of Tears and all the children that went missing there. And down in his cell, next to Lori’s corps, Rick is surprised to hear (amongst other voices in his head) the phone ringing, and picks it up…

Summary:

This episode excelled for a few reasons. For starters, we finally see the break between Andrea and Michonne occur, the timing of which couldn’t be better (or worse, in Andrea’s case). After finally telling Michonne she thinks her fears are groundless and she intends to stay, she gets a firsthand preview of the Governor’s madness. In time, she’s likely to get more, and her relationship with the Governor is likely to become strained, as Michonne’s was. This in turn is likely to lead to an escape attempt or a rescue attempt by Michonne. Needless to say, it won’t be pretty!

Second, this episode, picking up where the last left off with the prison debacle, showed that no one in the cast is safe. The loss of Carol and T-Dog was not too devastating since neither were main characters, but the death of Lori was nothing if not surprising. Rick is now experiencing a psychotic break, Carl is without a mother, and the group is reeling from the loss of a third of its members. This is in keeping with the spirit, if not the letter, of the graphic novel where no one in the cast is safe!

And I also liked what they did with the gladiator fight. It was an effective way of showing the Governor’s dark side, without being too over the top. Had she found the room full of heads, or simply been thrown into a dank cell full of corpses, that would have been too much. It’s much more entertaining and suspenseful to see the Governor turn bad as a result of an escalating situation between him, Andrea and Michonne. It also fits with his motivation, which is to keep his own safe from any and all threats, as he sees them.

Based on the previews which also came at the tail end, it has been hinted that Michonne will meet up with Maggie and Glenn while they are out searching for supplies, and that Andrea will attempt to flee Woodbury. I’m also looking forward to seeing just what the phone call was about, as it’s not entirely clear if Rick’s being contacted by the other members of the group, or if he’s experiencing a psychotic episode. Could go either way…

Pappa Zulu – Chapter 2

“Rest is the sweet sauce of labor.”

-Plutarch

Welcome to TAOS, the sign said, the borders done up with ridged lines. Beyond it, the outer gates of the township rolled up to meet them, the sentries waving to them as they approached. Whitman naturally slowed them down as they came to within a few meters of the gates.

“Oh, I can smell the barbeque from here. Do you think they do Tex-Mex?”

Saunders frowned at Whitman. Their geographic position made that statement seem entirely stupid to her. “What else would they do here, you fucking redneck?”

“How the fuck should I know? Do I look like Dezba?”

That sent a silent chill through the cabin, and Whitman immediately felt like an idiot. More so than usual. No one like to be reminded of the absentee Sergeant, least of all Saunders. For most, it was a reminder of the hardened Whiskey killer they were now without. But for Saunders, it was a reminder of the shoes she had to fill. In either case, it was a matter of unknowns and wild speculation.

Everybody knew he had lost a hand during the special op to LA, but the whispers had it that he had lost a hell of a lot more than all that. And since the LT – the only one who had any business knowing anything about the Sergeant – wasn’t talking, the speculation was pretty much growing like wildfire. The smart money said he had PTSD, but others were suggesting shit that was truly farfetched, like he he had been infected and was being kept for “special” research.

Stupid shit. She wished she had something more factual to go on. But Braun and the brass were keeping that one close to their chests.

The sentries jumped from their posts and began to unbar the gates. They opened inward, and out walked a third. Saunders immediately felt a chill as she caught sight of him. A leather vest and an ammo belt was all he wore up top, no body armor or even long sleeves. Down low, he had on a pair of slacks and work boots that looked about as old as he was. And of course, a hat that looked like something out of a Steve McQueen role.

Over one shoulder, he carried a 12 gauge that looked to be store bought, and the strap hung down about his chest. In another life, Saunders might have admitted that it was somewhat attractive, if her mind wasn’t focused on all the safety regs he was violating.

He walked up to their cab and looked in the window. Whitman pulled his hands from the wheel, as if he were having flashbacks to being pulled over. The man appeared to be chewing something and stopped briefly to talk.

“First Platoon… Snakes?”

“Rattlesnakes, yes, sir,” Saunders replied. “CO’s in the third vehicle back if you wanna talk to him.”

He was staring at Saunders now, chewing consistently. Eventually, he shrugged and slapped the hood.

“Go on ahead. Council’s waiting for you…”

Saunders smile and  slapped Whitman on the arm. “You heard the man, Private. Move it.”

Whitman put his hands back to the wheel warily and drove past the gate. The convoy followed, each one waving to the sentry man as they passed. Once they were through the townships’ defensive barrier, they began to enter the outermost streets, all of which still looked abandoned.

“Shit, man, I thought that guy was going to eat us alive.”

Saunders would have argued, but she couldn’t say with any truth that she wasn’t nervous herself. The northern townships were renowned for standing their ground during the First Wave; but judging from the man they just saw, she would think the Whiskeys took one look at this town and ran screaming away. She wondered if the LT would try to talk recruiting while they had their little sojourn here. It was a touchy issue, but one which needed to be done from time to time. Not enough volunteers were coming forward lately, and they still had a job to do.

Past the outermost streets, they reached a chain link fence, what could only be described as the inner wall to the township. More sentries stood there, these ones armed similar to the ones they had passed already. Dressed in their best leathers and slacks, and carrying hunting rifles and shotguns. These ones gave off more of a Marlboro feel, and judging from their smells, that’s precisely what they had been smoking before they pulled up.

“You know where the town hall is?” the one asked.

“Yep, yep,” said Whitman, slapping the wheel. “You guys got any liqour and whores?”

The sentry darkened. Whitman smiled nervously, hoping they might succumb to his unique brand of charm. Eventually, he cracked a slight smile and waved them on. When they began moving again, Whitman caught Saunders looking at him sideways.

“What?”

“Nothing,” she said, and went back to looking at the street ahead. People were out and about now, men, women and children going about their daily business. Most stopped and waved, pleased, if not entirely overjoyed to see them. Down south, the welcomes they got were arguably more festive. But then again, she realized, that probably had something to do with the more urbane nature of those folks. They depended more heavily on the Rattlesnakes to keep them safe, whereas towns like this one only asked that they do housekeeping in the countryside from time to time.

If recruiting did come up, no doubt the town Elders might raise the fact that they were planning on conducting their own patrols soon enough. They had the men and the guns, all they needed was some vehicles and enough fuel to make it a regular occurrence. A dangerous prospect, but she knew they were up to the challenge. Most of the people, women and youth included, looked like they had seen enough action to make a go of it themselves.

We appreciate your presence, but we don’t depend on it too much…

That seemed to be what they were saying with those greetings.

At least they were still hospitable to visitors; and as such, they could look forward to some food and a little R and R.

Revengers Mission Report #1

My thanks to all Revengers who reported in to take part in our first round of missions. My favorite response was the following report, as filed by Atrum Auditor (aka. v1rgilmdm of the 8bitbeerblog). The following is his account of the Harlan/Keithly surveillance. The following transcript has been edited for content, but appears here otherwise unabridged:

After hearing about the meeting between Councilman Jeff Harlan and Syndicate Boss Joe “The Stare” Keithly, Atrum Auditor put together his team to expose the truth. After first recruiting Erotica Girl a kick-ass heroine with enhanced strength and the ability to go invisible, Justyka was also recruited for this sensitive mission. As a fellow telepath that can fly and also render herself invisible, she would prove to be indispensable.

This team is optimized for covert, undetectable operations. The team meets at the docks as the sun sets, to survey the area and set up camera and bugs before the illicit meeting starts. Erotica Girl goes invisible to keep watch as Atrum Auditor teleports from shadow to shadow, planting listening devices and video cameras. Meanwhile Justyka plants cameras with night vision and infrared up high on burnt-out lamp posts, a building corner and a crane.

“Ok, this is eyes and ears only. We stay for the meet, record everything and then waylay Keithly until the police can pick up Councilman Harlan,” Atrum reminded the group.

“I still don’t understand why we don’t just take out Keithly and his scumbags out now,” Erotica Girl complained.

“It’s not our place to act as judge and jury,” Justyka replied.

“A win for the police will look good for all of us,” added Atrum. “Just think of it as community block watch or whatever. We set ‘em up, the police knock ‘em down, we all look good”.

“Fine. Whatever,” Erotica Girl rolled her eyes. “What time did your guy say this meet was happening?”

“Twenty-three hundred hours sharp. Keithly can’t abide people who aren’t punctual,” Atrum supplied.

“Great. Just three more hours to kill. What’s the plan to distract Keithly until Harlan get’s arrested?” asked Justyka.

“Well, I -uh… I was thinking Keithly owns this warehouse by the dock here, we could start a small fire and that should cause a distraction. Keithly will probably send his goons to save anything important, leaving him free to have an intimate talk with us. But I’m open to suggestions,” Atrum said, revealing the limit of his ability to organize.

“I say we knock the mob meatheads out and take Keithly on a cruise out in the bay. Maybe with a free pair of cement shoes,” Erotica said with a wicked grin.

“Why don’t we call that plan B?” Justyka mediated.

After testing the video recorders’ night vision and infrared feeds and the audio recording levels, the heroes settled in for their stake-out. Erotica Girl posted herself at a neighboring warehouse, invisible, so that she could be close at hand in case any surprises popped up. Atrum found a spot underneath the dock amidst some ropes and old lumber where he could watch the feeds on his hand-held, but still be within easy teleportation range. Justyka flew up to the crow’s nest of a nearby boat so she could see any traffic by land or sea for miles.

I see a black town car approaching the docks from the East, Justyka broadcasted over the trio’s telepathic link.

Copy that. I have lights, Erotica Girl confirmed mentally.

Stay sharp, and give me descriptions of any unknown parties, Atrum Auditor responded.

Another vehicle approaching. A yellow taxi looks like, Justyka reported.

Yeah, what’s the Councilman thinking? Bringing a civilian? asked Erotica.

They are exiting the car now. I have 5 thermal signatures on camera. Atrum broadcasted visually.

Looks like Keithly brought a couple of heavies. I recognize them from files that have come across my desk. Ex-military enhancement project: codenames Hammer and Spike. Enhanced strength, with Psychokinetic powers and Black Ops trained, Atrum added, as the information flashed on his hand-held.

I feel… A mind above us… Searching. Crap! Erotica! What’s your position? Justyka asked, panicked.

Uh..guys? We might want to call the Captain for back-up. Erotica Girl suggested.

Indeed. Came an amused unfamiliar thought-voice.

*                     *                     *

Not bad, huh? As you can plainly see, tension is mounting and it seems the mission has taken on a sinister edge. Well, more sinister, since it already involved mob bosses and corrupt councilmen. And it seems some additional forces are being called for. As such, I, Captain Smackdown, am pledging to arrive on scene with backup! Panacea, Dark Angel, are you with me?  Looks like our take down of Billy Bob will have to wait another night! Inferno, rendezvous with us there! And dammit, answer your phone!

The Future is Here: Invisibility Cloaks (Cont’d)

An update on the ongoing efforts to create invisibility technology has been bearing some pretty interesting fruit. Earlier this year, scientists at Berkeley announced that they were working on a suit that would be capable of bending light around it. Unlike adaptive camouflage, this technology would not merely broadcast a background image to conceal a soldier, but would render them virtually invisible to the naked eye.

Well guess what? Scientists at Duke University have finally created a cloak that works. Granted, it is only capable of concealing objects on the centimeter-scale, it is the only cloak of its kind that is capable of channeling incident light around itself, creating perfect invisibility. In all previous cases, the devices created reflected a certain degree of incident light, leaving the concealed object disguised but discernible.

In addition to the small scale on which it functions, the cloak has a few additional drawbacks. For now, the Duke invisibility cloak only works with microwave radiation; and perhaps more importantly, the cloak is unidirectional, meaning it only provides invisibility from one very specific direction. But that should hardly matter, seeing as how such a device even exists. With a little time, development, and a big fat DARPA contract, soon we may be seeing cloaking devices that are capable of concealing something as large as a person, a vehicle or even a building.

The Duke cloaking device, pictured at left, is composed of metamaterials – an artificial, man-made material that almost always have a negative refractive index. A negative refractive index allows for the creation of some interesting things, such as superlenses that go beyond the diffraction limit; or in this case, invisibility cloaks. Due to their unusual index, they are capable of refracting light around an object so a viewer does not see the object, but what is behind the object.

But in addition to metamaterials, the compositional materials also need a to be arranged in such a way that the illusion is perfect. After all, a 3D object has multiple sides, and the wearer has to be expected to turn a corner and change direction at some point. All previous designers in this case have struggled to fashion metamaterials that bend waves around corners without causing reflections. In this case, it was researcher Nathan Landy, a Duke University student, who arranged the metamaterials into the shape of a diamond to acheive the desired effect, since diamonds are apparently the best shape for minimizing reflections.

According to the Duke team, the next step is to expand on their design and make their cloak omnidirectional, meaning that it can bend light around the object from all directions. Don’t worry, I’m thinking some rather interested parties (i.e. every high-tech developer and military on the planet) is likely to be knocking on their door real soon!

Source: Extreme Tech

Curiosity’s Best Image Yet!

In case you were worried that Curiosity had fallen into a ditch, more news has just come from the Red Planet featuring everybody’s favorite rover! It seems the robot has been taking pictures again, and word around the campfire is that it is Curiosity’s best yet! Having taken a break from its usual round of performing scientific research on soil samples and surface terrain, Curiosity took a pause to snap a self-portrait

Well, in truth, it was fifty-five photos, all of which were taken by the Rover’s hi-resolution Mars Hand Lens Imager. These photos were then combined back at Mission Control by NASA personnel to form a panoramic image that shows Curiosity at work digging holes in the sand and with Mount Sharp in the background. The area of the shoot is appropriately known as the “Rocknest” since this is where Curiosity has been for the past few months, gathering scoops of Martian soil for analysis.

In addition to its aesthetic appeal, the images serve an important function. According to NASA’s website, “Self-portraits like this one document the state of the rover and allow mission engineers to track changes over time, such as dust accumulation and wheel wear.” Apparently, they also ensure that Curiosity continues to function within established parameters while personnel are not at the helm.

Check out the full image below. As you can plainly see, it is high-resolution and extremely detailed.

Pappa Zulu – Chapter 1

“If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?”

-Albert Einstein

He had been sitting in a large, overstuffed leather chair. In his right hand was a glass of fine fifteen year old single malt. Three ice cubes, and a few drops of mineral water to activate the taste. In his left, a fine Cuban, pre-Castro, the slow burning kind. His mind was awash in pleasure, and his body drenched in the warm, wet graces of a beautiful woman.

She was moaning, and speaking words in Spanish. Her delicious cinnamon skin slipped over him, a soft, velvety texture. She held his head in her hands and lay a fine, wet kiss on his lips.

And then she pulled away and started calling to him. Her voice was distant, every trace of the sexy accent gone.

“Doctor? Doctor?”

Her voice grew louder and more instant, sharp and harsh. “Doctor!”

And then he was awoken to his current surroundings. The lab tech was standing in his doorway, the lights outlining their profile.

“Doctor? Are you awake?”

I am now, you idiot. He eyed the labtech and discerned her identity from her curve and the long ponytail that was clasped behind her head. Abigail, the biotech graduate he had selected as much for her outer appearance as her qualifications in lab research.

He rubbed his eyes and saw her more clearly now. He also became aware of the rather embarrassing bulge in his pants. Scooting his chair forward, he buried his lap beneath the desk and began looking for a clock.

“What time is it?”

“Eight o’clock, sir. When you told me to wake you.”

He found his wristwatch, on his left arm where he left it. He checked the hands and confirmed her story. He emitted a slight groan as he realized he had no legitimate reason to be upset. But when had that stopped him before?

“Fine! Fine! I’ll be there shortly.”

He wiped the sleep from his eyes, and was surprised to see her still standing there when he was done.

“Why are you still here?”

“There’s good news, sir. We think we’ve isolated the strain.”

Ross blinked a few times and waited for that to sink in. His tired mind was having a hard time processing verbal interactions. Many days in the lab and little sleep were taking a toll on his brain.

“I beg your pardon?”

“I said, I think we-”

“Get out the way!” he yelled, pushing his way past her and heading into the lab.

“Sir, wait! You can’t go in there without-.”

He ignored her, but obliged the instruction anyway. It was quite annoying when the help began to quote the safety regs to him, as if he hadn’t designed them himself. Snapping on a decon suit, he pushed his way to the sealed door and waited for it to admit him. Stepping through, he waited as the interior door slid open as well, and a whole slew of help looked up to see him. Their voices sounded thin and airy as they addressed him through the suit’s comm’s.

“Sir, you’re awake…”

“Of course I am. Didn’t I leave specific instructions not to make any major finds without me?”

“Sorry, sir. It wouldn’t wait.”

Ross grumbled. Such insubordination. Part of him hoped they were wrong, if only so he could have grounds to fire them for them incompetence as well. But right now, the vast majority of him needed them to be right. After months of research, knowing they were finally isolating the right cell would be a boon, and a tremendous relief.

Lord knew the Mage had been riding him hard enough, always talking of imminent necessity and hinting that he could be replaced. And he knew the zombie cage was still not off the table. The arrogant son of a bitch never mention ed it by name, but he knew the threat was still there, lingering in the background. As if that thing would work on him again, though the memory of it wasn’t exactly comfortable.

Adjusting the heavy rubber gloves, he slipped up to the microscope that sat on the central lab station. He leaned in close and waited for his eyes to resolve to the magnification. The site was grainy, grey, mottled specks on a white background, a number of oblong formations hovering the middle. He smiled, and then quickly put it away.

He looked at up at the two techs who were standing about and waiting expectantly. He was sure to keep his face even and brusque.

“The Mage is going to want to hear about this. Who should I say is responsible for isolating the antibody?”

They looked at each other, their anxious expressions obvious, even through the face plates. The one began to stutter over the comm.

“Uh, well, sir… it was a team effort after all. I… imagine -”

“Who-is-responsible?”

The other one chimed in. “You are, sir.”

He smiled. Perhaps he wouldn’t be firing anyone after all. It would be a shame to have to rotate staff again so soon, after the last ones had to be dismissed for informing on him to the Mage. After all that, it was good to have people who knew their place.

*                           *                          *

Their vehicles pulled up outside of the staging area. Third and Fourth Squad were on station, their crews standing by their wheels. In the middle, the LT was talking things over with his NCO’s. A map was spread on the roof of the nearest Humvee and they were poring over the various sectors it covered. As soon as they pulled up, he looked up to see them loading out. Braun quickly finished up with the other squads and came to join them.

“Welcome back, you two,” he said, sharing a salute with them. “Heard you had a successful run out there.”

“Yes, sir,” replied Saunders. “Twenty-six confirmed kills. Didn’t even know what hit them.”

Braun nodded. “I know, I was listening in on the comm traffic. Sounded like you guys did alright.”

Saunders smiled. She couldn’t help but feel he was addressing her and not the both of them, or was that just wishful thinking? Amusingly enough, she was still at the point where compliments from the the platoon leader still meant something to her. But then again, the circumstances of her promotion probably had something to do with that. Of all the members of First Platoon, she was the only one to ever take over his position, however temporarily.

“How did the others do, sir?” asked Tate.

Braun shrugged at that one. The news did not appear good there. “We had only one other sighting, less than twelve there.”

Damn, she thought. Maybe Whitman was right. Maybe we are running out of Whiskeys to kill.

“Hm, sounds like good, sir.”

“I suppose it is, depends on how you look at it. In the meantime, we were just considering the next sector to reconnoiter. We still got two fifths of the county to cover. But the way things are going, we’re considering trolling closer to the treeline.”

“You think they might be falling back?”

“It’s what I’d do, if I were a semi-intelligent beast who liked to lurk at night and used the forest for cover. All this bombing must have shaken them up. And since we’re not cleared to do reconnaissance in a wooded area, and our air cover isn’t cleared to bomb it, we thought leaving a few canisters near the treeline might bring some of them out.”

“Makes sense,” said Tate.

“Will we be redeploying?”

Braun checked his chrono and looked up at the western sky to check on the status of the sun. “We’ve got a few hours of light left and thirty clicks to cover if we’re going to redeploy. Mage doesn’t want us engaging at night time if it can be helped. Plus Warthog needs to refuel and reload before they can be called back in. We might be packing it in for the day, take another crack at her first thing.”

One of the grunts came up from behind Braun. Saunders recognized him as Ramirez, Fourth squad’s driver. The squawk box’s receiver was trailing from his hand, extending back to the Humvee’s cab.

“Sir? HQ’s on the horn. They want an update.”

“Ah, just in time.” He turned back to Saunders and Tate, smiled and nodded. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to take this.”

They issued some quick salutes and let him leave. Tate addressed her as soon as he was out of earshot.

“So… was that offer from the town council was genuine?”

Saunders smiled. She knew exactly what he was referring to. During their last pass of the Tao township, they people had promised them a warm welcome upon their return. There had been talk of BBQ, cold beer, some warm beds, and a even warmer welcome upon their arrival. She rolled her eyes at the thought of how some of their more racious grunts would choose to behave. But she looked forward to a chance to sleep on a real matter instead of in a bag on hard ground, and eating real meat instead of K rations.

“I hope so,” she said. “Unless the Whiskeys experienced a population surge, we’re likely to not be seeing any in this sector for awhile.”

Revenger Homework Assignments

Thank you Revengers for getting back to me in a timely fashion. It seems the city has many problems that are just crying out to be dealt with. And as I said before, it’s hard to know where to start. But it seems our members and their sources have provided several possible suggestions, three to be exact. Ordinarily, I might be inclined to ask that we decide together which one merits the most immediate response.

However, since they are all worthy, and no single one would require the full weight of our numbers, we can afford to divide our resources this time and take them down simultaneously. And as it happens, the timetable on these missions appears to provide a little flexibility, since some need to be dealt with sooner than others.

Behold our first three missions, numbered based on their immediacy, but not order of importance. Within each, you will find a mission profile and assignments, which will be given out based on abilities but largely open to volunteers. Those who have brought the assignment to our attention will usually get first crack, but priority must be given to who can be most affective in any given situation. And if you’re not picked the first time around, don’t worry. We are all on the roster and shall be given the chance to show the world of crime and corruption what we got!

Mission 1: Corruption at City Hall

Source:  Atrum Auditor

Profile: It seems that a certain city councilman named Jeff Harlan has a reputation for corruption. However, after multiple investigations, nothing has ever stuck to him. Witnesses and evidence against him have a way of disappearing, and it’s widely believed their is a mob connection in that respect.

But we may have finally found a break. Tonight, a meeting with syndicate crime boss Joe “The Stare” Keithly is scheduled to go down at the docks, with the intent of discussing a new building project on the East Side. Atrum believes that Keithly is looking for more real estate to expand his methamphetine operations, since most of the hard drugs in the city come from the outside. If he can build his own network of labs, he will be in a position to control meth production and distribution, making him all the more powerful and the people of the city helpless in his hands!

Aims: The meeting needs to go down, and evidence collected on the Councilman. That evidence needs to finds its way into the hands of someone honest at the DA’s office. Then, we need to take down Joe Keithly and make sure he understands that his policy of intimidation and disappearances is at an end. I was thinking something dramatic, like his own methods which often involve feeding people to the fish. Let him dangle above a shark tank up to and until the point where Councilman Harlan is safely behind bars, and maybe, just maybe we’ll let him walk out on his own two feet. But of course, be creative, just know that no one dies…

Assignments: Atrum, since this is your show, you will be responsible for watching over the meeting and making sure we got audio/video on the whole thing. We’ll need at least two people to join him and make sure the take down goes smoothly. Keithly doesn’t travel alone and can be expected to have two or three armed men with him. Remember, we only need to scare the bejeezus out of him and make sure he’s sidelined until the Councilman is arrested. Volunteers?

Mission 2: Pimping Aint Easy…

Source: Panacea

Profile: It seems this mission presents the opportunity to not only avenge some deaths, but prevent many more. Panacea recently discovered two young girls left in an alley to die, strung out on drugs, and willing to provide some rather interesting information. It seems that Gus Darby, a respectable businessmen, just opened a new high-class restaurant on the waterfront. It’s the kind of place there the rich go to network in person. Deals are made over some of the best food and drink in town.

However, it is also rumored that Gus himself is doing some business in here, with notorious pimp Billy Bob! And it would seem that the two of them have a good racket going, using prostitutes to gain leverage over the powerful and influential. Unfortunately, Billy Bob’s competition seems to think that he’s got an unfair edge and needs to be taken down. A turf war could be in the winds…

Aims: Scum and villainy do not do our jobs for us! That’s why it’s up to us to take down Billy Bob and his crooked pimping empire. I suggest we find him in his den and enter full force, taking out his body guards and hired muscle in the process. Once we’re done that, we’ll make sure he understands that his days of doing business with Darby are over, but not before he hands over all the information he has on the city’s powerful elite. You never know, might come in handy…

Assignements: Panacea, I think you’ll definitely want to run point on this one, as we’re likely to find several girls in need of help once we bust up Bob’s operation. Call me crazy, but I also imagine you’re itching for a shot at him and his henchmen. I will back you up with Inferno, who’s skill will come in handy so we can set his place ablaze when we’re done clearing it. Perhaps we’ll stop by Gus’s restaurant and put a little show for him too after.  Two more volunteers for some added muscle and showmanship ought to do it. Any takers? Take down a vicious pimp people…?

Mission 3: Attorney’s Office For Sale?

Source: Judgement

Profile: It seems we have a wealthy business tycoon who’s been getting cozy with a certain woman in the DA’s office. Were not entirely sure what the nature of this relationship is, but odds are good they aren’t exactly dating!  Then again, perhaps they are, and this is said businessman’s way of finding out what’s going on within. Either way, it almost surely points towards manipulation, coercion, bribery, and/or blackmail.

Aims: This city and its justice system are not for sale! I want surveillance and some answers, so feel free to find this young woman and lean on her a little. We need to know what this corporate bigwig has been asking of her so we can know what to do with him. If there’s a relationship between his office and the DA’s, we need to sever it immediately.

Assignments: Judgement, I can think of no one better to head this one up. And since Veiled Tsunami shares your passion for justice and anti-corruption, I would like her to accompany you. Let these people know that we’re watching, and we won’t tolerate conspiracies of silence or

Alright! We’ve got our assignments, now let’s get it done. And remember people, be careful out there

The Future is Here: The Perpetual Motion Pacemaker!

According to the Laws of Thermal Dynamics, there is no such things as perpetual motion. However, engineers at the University of Michigan seemed to have created a device which defies that rule. Not only that, they seem to have overcome one of the pacemakers greatest drawbacks, i.e. the fact that it requires batteries to keep working. Utilizing a process known as piezoelectricity – electricity generated by pressure and/or external force – they have created the world’s first pacemaker which is powered by the beating of one’s heart.

This is an exciting development for obvious reasons: by creating a pacemaker which can utilize the vibrations in the chest cavity to power itself, this device can function indefinitely. As long as the user’s heart keeps beating, the pacemaker will continue to assist the heart in maintaining its rhythm. Hence the concept of perpetual motion, where feedback is used to keep things going for an infinite duration.

Currently, pacemakers are powered by batteries which have a duration of a few years. This requires that patients undergo surgery regularly in order to keep their pacemakers in working order. According to M. Amin Karami, the lead researcher, “Many of the patients are children who live with pacemakers for many years,” he said. “You can imagine how many operations they are spared if this new technology is implemented.”

The piezoelectric pacemaker is about the size of a regular battery, and has been tested extensively. According to Karami, it was able to generate create enough electricity from as few as 20 beats per minute, or as many as 600, to maintain a healthy heartbeat. However, there are still likely to be many years of testing before it is approved for medical use.

But most exciting is the implications this pacemaker has for other biomedical devices such as dispensers and sensors – all of which would live under our skin and be powered by our body heat and movements. Image if everyone was born with a defibrillator/pacemaker implanted in their chest. Surely, death from heart disease would drop substantially, and people would even be able to jack their heart rate up in emergency situations.

Check out this video of the piezoelectric pacemaker in action.

Source: Extreme Tech