Anatomy of a Rebellion

Chapter 6

General Ellis

Percy and his men spent until sunrise digging through what remained of Corpus Christi. The hundreds of thousands of civilians had for the most part evacuated long ago; thanks to the increased risk of a Mexican invasion, it was a safety precaution that paid off. The ones that remained had avoided the majority of the attack, as they had wisely stayed at home. The military, however, wasn't so lucky. For so many men to die in such a manner to such few invaders disturbed Percy.

Many lay dead with weapons in their hands. Some still had a strong grip on their tools, as if they had charged the enemy with only a wrench as their defense. Many had suffered burn wounds and smoke inhalation. Others had been buried under debris. For Conroy and his fellow pilots, it was a depressing rescue effort. The bodies of their missing pilots were never found and many of their team had turned up dead.

"I can't believe this many Americans died like this. I bet it was an inside job," Conroy said.

"Don't start conspiracy theories. We don't want to turn Americans against each other," Rawlings warned.

By the time the sun was high in the sky, Percy had called his men to retreat. They had eliminated all threats, found close to eighty percent of the possible survivors, and picked through all of Corpus Christi. The fires still raged and threatened to spread its destruction outward, but there was nothing they could do about it. Structural damage was secondary to getting the survivors proper medical treatment.

He made the decision to leave the dead. Instead, they focused on transporting the injured out of Corpus Christi and to Dallas. They commandeered any workable vehicles left and assigned duties to those who were not severely injured. With only one medic available to them, it created a bit of a problem. The drive to Dallas was not a quick trip. As a result, Percy had to swallow his pride and request assistance from the Dallas based Army.

To his surprise, they didn't hesitate to offer help. Within moments of asking, they had promised helicopters would be in route immediately. It lifted a heavy burden off of Percy and allowed him to focus on his men only. So after instructing the Sea Dogs about how the evacuation plan would go, he informed them he would head back to Laredo.

Conroy told him before he left, "Remember, if you ever need anything, just have your cute Lieutenant look us up."

Percy and his men were then on their way back to Laredo, entrusting the rescue operation to the remaining sailors and pilots. This time they didn't hurry like they had to Corpus Christi; it was a steady, relaxing drive that allowed everyone to wind down. To see such devastation was tough on them. One even muttered, "You just never get used to it." Of course, no one responded. For the most part, the ride back was silent, with only a few comments mentions of weather or scenery breaking the silence.

When they arrived back in Laredo, they found it more populated then when they had left. The Army had wasted zero time sending in a replacement for Percy. All of his soldiers lined the streets outside, having been kicked out of their own headquarters in the middle of the night. The sudden appearance of soldiers after having been told they were left to on their own gave Percy's men mixed feelings of relief and paranoia.

Conversation picked up in Percy's Humvee once everyone noticed their friends loitering on the streets with their bags at their sides. For the Major himself, he remained absolutely silent; the opinions that seeped through his men's words were all that he needed.

They pulled up to the hotel and Percy was the first to step out. A Lieutenant met him with a sharp salute and said, "Major Raymond, Lieutenant General Ellis would like a word with you." He realized he didn't have a choice; several armed men had flanked him and waited patiently for him to step forward and follow the Lieutenant. He didn't protest.

The armed men disappeared once they arrived inside the General's office. Despite hearing the door close, Percy could pick up the whispers of his squad leaders outside. They were certainly listening in. The Lieutenant introduced Percy and then left promptly. This left Percy alone with Ellis, who seemed more interested in his coffee machine than the Major.

Finally, the General turned to face him. He offered a smile to the Major, who tried his best to return the gesture but was so tired from the mission he couldn't lift his lips. Still, he was courteous enough to salute.

"Please, sit down Major," the strong voice of Ellis commanded. He motioned to a chair, which Percy took without a word. Ellis situated himself behind his desk, took a sip of his coffee through his wrinkled lips and asked, "How did it go?"

"Not good," was Percy's answer.

"Why is that?"

"Because not everyone came back alive," Percy said. "A good mission is one in which all allies are successfully removed from the battle zone without casualties."

"I'd agree with that," Ellis nodded. He took another drink of his coffee before finally setting it down. Ellis was a respected man. He had worked hard for his rank and his reputation pegged him as a fair and caring man. Percy admired him and would not allow himself to disrespect the General, even if he was frustrated over the events that took place the last week.

Still, he had to ask, "General, with all due respect, why are you here?"

"Because I'm replacing you," was the immediate response. Ellis leaned back and made himself comfortable, even going so far as to put his shoes on his desk. It was a signal to Percy to relax, too. "As you can imagine, the higher ups have had enough of your attitude and want you and your men gone. Not for good, though, just until I finish investigating. Personally – and this is just between you and me, Major – I think what you did was stupid but heroic in a sense. But either way, your men deserve a bit of R&R."

"I appreciate that, General," Percy said.

The General was silent for just a beat before he said, "There's a lot of changes happening in Washington right now. Some of them are for the worse, as usual. But we are making steady advancements towards better treatment for soldiers. If we succeeded at some legislation that's stalled in the Senate, long tenures of service like what you've endured won't be necessary anymore. In fact, I can promise you that you'll be treated like a king."

Percy had nothing to say. Silent, he kept his lips from betraying any inner thoughts he might have had.

Ellis waited for a response. When he received none, he asked, "Major, have you heard of the situation on the home front? About… the anarchist movement? They want to overthrow the government. But there are men like myself that won't let that happen. We need a stronger government. One like our military. I have a proposal, Major, that I want you to consider seriously. I'll give you time to relax first, of course, before I explain. Effective immediately you are temporarily relieved of duty. You and your men are on unofficial leave. You'll be shipped out tonight."

Ellis stood, so the Major followed suit. Percy braved to ask, "Can you be sure to extend that leave through Christmas?"

Ellis smiled and said, "I'll see what I can do." He extended his hand to shake; Percy accepted strongly. Once his hand was released, Ellis straightened up and asked, "You are a fine example of what the American youth is capable of. Honor and unshakable integrity. We need more like you, Major. Is there anything I can do for you before you leave?"

Percy thought for a moment before he said, "Just another request. Mr. Attaway of the Times believes he saw the Mexican Secretary of Foreign Affairs with the enemy commander. Perhaps you can look into it."

Ellis had to work to keep his smile. He said, "Major, let me make one thing clear to you. The United States and Mexico are committed to keeping the two nations at peace. I can assure you that no Mexican official was ever with an enemy commander."

"So you won't even look into it?" Percy asked, unable to hide his surprise.

Ellis finally lost his smile and stressed, "You are dismissed."

Percy left in a huff; he didn't bother with keeping form or offering a salute. Outside, he swung the door open so hard and so suddenly it smacked a guard in the arm. No apology was offered. Instead, Percy was focused on his squad leaders, all of whom had gathered outside in anticipation.

"So what's going on?" one asked. "Are we in trouble?"

"Do we need to go in there and kick his ass?" another offered.

"No," Percy answered. He somehow mustered a smile over that comment. "I want everyone to pack their bags if they haven't already. We're going home."

It didn't take long for the words to sink in. Immediately he was grabbed by an eccentric Sergeant who crushed the Major into a bear hug. Soon, Percy was being mobbed by all of his squad leaders. They all spoke at the same time, saying things like, "Will we work together again?" and "I hope we have until Thanksgiving, at least."

Percy had to throw his hands up and calm them down. "Whoa, whoa, alright guys! We'll probably still have to go through debrief at HQ. And who knows what will happen after that, we've been shafted before." The last sentence hit everyone like a ton of bricks; nothing was ever for certain with them, so they had to make sure they didn't get too excited. Percy sensed the change and said, "Listen, everyone. I'm very proud of you guys. It's been a long time since we've had leave – what, thirty months now? But we got s**t done."

"Hell yeah, sir!" one yelled. "And we'd do it again!"

"Thanks for interrupting me, asshole," Percy joked. Everyone laughed; it wasn't everyday their Major cracked even a smile, much less a joke. "Alright guys, get out of here."

Percy watched as the hallway cleared of everyone as they scrambled to move. Left was the guard outside Ellis's door, Wallace and Mackenzie. The Lieutenant and NCO both stared at Percy, awaiting him to approach. He realized they wanted to speak with him, preferably a distance from the guard. After passing a glance over his shoulder to see if there was anyone else, Percy made his way to them.

"So what are your plans?" Wallace asked.

"I'll return to Union," Percy said, referencing their town in Nebraska. "What of you two?"

"Same," Wallace answered.

"I'll be going to Washington," Mackenzie said.

"To visit Senator Hughes?" Percy asked. She responded with only a nod. Again, he passed a glance over his shoulder. The guard seemed to be uninterested in them; just to be sure, Percy got a bit closer to his friends before he whispered, "I'll be in touch with you. Keep an ear out for me."

"Of course, Major," she said.

"What do you think they're going to do, Percy?" Wallace asked. "Court martial? Break up the Company?"

Percy sighed, "It's hard to say at this point. I suppose they won't prosecute national heroes."

"A few medals won't make a difference," Wallace said.

"The Medal of Honor would," a voice chimed in. They jumped, ready to punch whoever it was, only to realize it was Jordan. "You know, you guys looks pretty shady over here in a dark hallway all huddled together. I'd suggest looking less suspicious. Public perception decides power. To get people on your side could prevent any chance of prosecution, regardless of rules or regulations. Hell, it could give you the edge politically as well. By any chance do you have plans to run for office?"

Percy rolled his eyes at Jordan's ramblings and then snorted, "No. All I want is for my men to get proper recognition for all they have done. And, if possible, to get the ignorant public to realize the dangers of not being proactive in the defense of their nation. If Texas isn't proof of our nation's sloth then I suppose nothing is. Why don't you write a damned article about it, Attaway?"

"You really think a news article can change that?" Wallace asked.

"If it doesn't," Percy said, "then I will."