"See anything?" " Nope." "Keep looking." "We're only supposed to be patrolling two klicks from the perimeter." "Don't worry." "I know my way back to camp." "See that?" " Got him!" " Nice shot." " Oh, that's nasty." " Twelve gauge will do that." "I thought it was dead." "It is now." "He insisted on sleeping with it." "Don't worry." "I made sure it's unloaded." " Where's Ben?" " He's on patrol." " Two nights in a row." " He and Jimmy are a good team." "They got each other's backs." "There's nothing to worry about." "Get some sleep." "You're on perimeter at 0600." "Don't remind me." "When's Weaver putting you back on the line?" " I'm gonna go talk to him about it now." " Good." "Night." "If he's still feverish in the morning, come find me." " Hey." " Hey." " Give me a hand?" " Sure." "This hangar is a perfect storm for infection transmission." "Close quarters and a cold, drafty environment." "It's a wonder I don't have a line of pneumonia cases outside my door." "We've been here over a week." "Besides being sick, people are getting restless." "I know." "It's not a good situation." "I'm going a little stir crazy myself." "That's why I'm gonna talk to Weaver." "Try to convince him that we need to move out of here sooner than later." " Good." " No, save it for somebody else." "Rather give you a blanket now than antibiotics later." " I have plenty of blankets." " Thanks." "Just doing my job." " You should get some sleep, Anne." " Sleep?" "What's that?" "Seriously." "You look beat." "Might say the same thing about you." "In fact, you look terrible." " What?" " Heh." "Sorry." "You look great." " Really?" " No." "It's nice to hear you laugh." "Yeah, it's been a while since I've wanted to." "Midnight." " Excuse me." " Sorry." "It's good that you keep track of the days." "Somebody's got to." "The way I see it is every day I mark off is another day we're still here, still alive." " That's a lot of X's." " Yes." " It's a good thing." " It is." "Really good." "I'm gonna go see Captain Weaver." " Let me know what he says, okay?" " Of course, of course." "Recon spotted massive alien formations in the Hudson Valley combing the countryside." "Gotta be looking for us." " There's nobody else here." " Yeah." "Seen twice the number of Beamer patrols since we crossed the Housatonic." "So it's only a matter of time before they find us, then." " Agreed." " We gotta move." "The question is where." " We push north into the Catskills." " I rode through those hills from Michigan." " There's nothing up there." " Which is why it's a good place to bed down for the winter." "Captain, with all due respect, if we're resting, we're not resisting." "Look out there, Tom." "Our people have given everything to this fight." "Half our fighters are gone." "And once the mercury drops I can't see us fighting skitters and the weather at the same time." "They'll think we've surrendered." "You of all people should know there's a difference between retreat and surrender." "To us, but not to them." "If we disappear up into the hills crammed together like matchsticks, freezing our asses off instead of pressing the fight, we're doing exactly what they want." "Your concern is noted." "Jamil needs a few days to repair the vehicles and then we head north to the Catskills." "Yes, sir." " Pope?" " Professor." "Ain't it a lovely night?" " What are you doing out here?" " Waiting for you." "Hey, you sure about this, boss?" " Yeah, I'm sure." "Let's get this alien stooge out of here before he causes any real damage." "Sorry for all the dramatics, professor." "What's this all about?" "I think you know." "I don't know what your alien friends did to you but I for one do not wanna find out." "But since you and I go way back I'm gonna give you the chance to do the honorable thing and walk away." "Just like that?" "You expect me to walk away from the 2nd Mass?" "Just like that." "And what, leave my boys in your care?" "Your boys will be looked after as if they were my own." "That's a promise." "Even the spiky one." "Unless, of course, he goes full skitter, and then all bets are off." " You're not gonna get away with this." " Oh, I think I will." "You'd be surprised how many people back at camp are creeped out over your triumphant return." "Not so many people will miss you as you might think." "So do us all a favor." "Start walking." "I said, move!" " What the...?" " Oh!" " Drop your weapons!" " Ben." "I said, drop them." "He won't miss next time." "Hey, Professor Mason." " Jimmy." "What are you doing out here?" " On our way back from patrol." "You are a long way from the outer perimeter there, lizard." "I'm just glad you're here." "Jimmy, grab that rifle." "We'll take it back to camp." " What are we gonna do about them?" " That's for Captain Weaver to decide." "You didn't know anything about this, Anthony?" "No, sir." "Look, Pope was smart enough to keep me out of the loop." "He knew I wouldn't let it happen." "Cap, come on." "Pope and his Berserkers outlived their usefulness." "They're out of control." "When we move out for the Catskills, we leave them behind." "Lyle, Tector, Crazy Lee, they're following orders." "They're not the problem." "Pope is." "I'm not defending what Pope did." "But the man does have a point." "Tom, no offense, but no one knows what the aliens might have done to you." "No, no, no." "Dr. Glass removed whatever it was." "Or we just found what they wanted us to." "I'm just saying, Pope isn't the only one wondering if Tom is a walking time bomb." "He's right." "Anthony's right." "We can't be 100-percent certain what they did to me." "I could still pose a threat to the group." "No way you're a threat." " We lost a lot of fighters." "The 2nd Mass isn't exactly in a position to be picky." "The benefit of giving me a weapon outweighs the risk of me being a liability." " Wouldn't you say?" " That's how I see it, yes." "Then the same has to hold true for Pope." " You lost me there, Tom." " We need him." "For better or worse, they listen to him." "The Berserkers do things that the rest of us can't or won't." "We've given Pope too many chances already." " Something has got to change." " Agreed." "Assign me to the Berserkers." "If I know where he is, I can keep my eye on him." "So?" "Permission to join the Berserkers, captain?" "Fine." "Permission granted." "Fresh air!" "Listen up." "I'd like nothing better than to leave you stewing in your own filth." "But after speaking with Tom, I have a proposition for you." "Tom Mason, savior of the 2nd Mass." "I'm assigning Tom to the Berserkers." " Are you insane?" " I don't know." "If I am, I guess we'll have that in common." "The fatal mistake here, cap, is assuming that I am the enemy." "How quickly you forget it was me and my crew that pulled the 2nd Mass' ass out of hell in Fitchburg." "No, I haven't forgotten, but you have a tendency to forget that I am the commander of this regiment, not you." "Mason here turns us all over to the alien overlords, what then, sir?" "You'll have to get used to kissing skitter butt." "In the meantime, I'm assigning Tom to the Berserkers." "And if I refuse?" "In that case, get used to that farm-boy aroma." " I'll shut this door and lose the key." " Whoa, whoa, just..." "Welcome to the Berserkers." " What are they doing?" " I don't know." "There's no mechs with them." "That's weird." "The one with the red eye creeps me out." "Is that one of the Berserkers' dragon breath rounds?" "Yeah, one of Pope's pyrotechnic rounds." "Bye-bye, buckshot." "Hello, flamethrower." " I've got two of them." " Let's toast some cockroaches." " Yeah." " Okay." "Wait for it." "Hey." "Wait for it." "Wait for it." "Now!" "Jimmy!" "Jimmy." "Jimmy!" " You're gonna be okay." "Okay." " I can't..." "I can't..." "Good thing you left the branch in place." "He would've lost more blood otherwise." "Give me the tray and a lot more gauze." "Okay, got it." " Scissors." "Let's get out of here, give them room to work." " I'm not leaving him." " Hey." " I'm not leaving him." " We need to talk, son." "What in the hell were you two doing out there, Ben?" " Hunting skitters." " Is that what you were doing when..." " ...you found Dad last night?" " All right." "What were you and Jimmy doing hunting skitters, Ben?" "They put spikes on my back." "They killed Mom." "They killed everybody." "I need a reason?" "Like we don't see enough combat?" "You have to go looking for it?" "Till every last one of those things is dead, yes." "Take your brother to the tent, get him cleaned up." "I'm going back to the med bus." "You can't walk around camp looking like that." "Go change first." " I shouldn't have let them on patrol." " I'm his father." " I didn't even know he was on patrol." " I should've been paying better attention." "I can't protect them anymore." "We can't protect them." "We can only prepare them for the world in front of them." "And it's a world where kids have to grow up too fast." "And there's gonna be consequences and there's gonna be casualties." "I wish that that gave me some comfort, Tom." "But it doesn't." "No, me either." "We need to make sure our location is still secure." " Yeah." " Wake Pope up from his beauty sleep." " Have the Berserkers sweep the area." " Yes, sir." "Well, there's a pretty sight." "Oh, they got these two real good." "Blackened skitter, yum." "That's our dragon's breath." "Little bastards used our ammo." " What do you got there?" " It's Jimmy's compass." "Well, there's no skitters for a hundred miles." "Look." "Take up defensive positions in those trees." "Go, go, go!" " What?" " Now." "Here." "What the hell is the matter with you, Mason?" "Let's light them up." "No, no." "Hold your fire." "Did you just give my guys an order?" "They're just collecting their dead." " Tector, Lyle, blow their heads off." " No, don't, don't, don't." " Do it!" " No, don't." "Well, crap." "Just let them get what they came for." " Well, that was damn close." " Good call, Tom." "Yeah." "Good call." "Why are you staring at me like that?" " I'm not staring." " Yeah, you are." " You got something to say?" " Yeah, I do." "Easy now, boys." "I'm gonna get some coffee." " You okay?" " Yeah." "Me?" "I'm fine." "It's Ben I don't get." "What was he thinking?" "He could put the whole 2nd Mass at risk." "If they followed him back to the airport, I'm sure we'd know by now." " Oh, are you making excuses for him?" " Don't be ridiculous." "I'm just saying..." "Ben's in a world of pain right now." "And you mad-dogging him like that's not gonna solve the problem." "Give him some slack." " Give yourself some slack." " Any news?" "He's still in surgery." "Hey, we ran into a skitter patrol." "But they were heading the other direction." "We're safe." " But for how long?" " I don't know." "Hey." "The compass." "Give it to Jimmy when he wakes up." " How is he?" " I've done everything I can." "It's up to Jimmy now." "Well, Jimmy's a fighter." "Always has been." "Hal, go after him." "Make sure he's okay." "Did you find him?" "He's not in the buildings on the west side of airport." "You ever think maybe it's time to quit chasing after him?" " What do you mean?" " Ever since we were kids Ben would leave his toys and books all around the house." "You'd come right behind him and you'd clean it up." " You can't clean this up." " That isn't what this is about." "No?" "Really?" "Because..." "Well, hello there." "Who do we have here?" "Second Massachusetts." "Captain Dan Weaver." "And who, may I ask, are you?" "The name's Avery Churchill." "I've been looking for you." "Been flying over a 50-square-mile search area for a week and a half trying to find you." " Where'd you come from?" "I'm one of four pilots who left Charleston in search of survivors." " We each took a compass point..." " On whose orders?" "On direct orders from the Continental Congress." "You saying there's a government in Charleston?" "Elected by almost 3000 civilians in the new capitol." "How can you fly with all the Beamers around?" "I fly low, just a few hundred feet above the ground." "The aircraft's made of spruce, plywood and a fiberglass cloth skin, so radar's not an issue." "The plane's a neat trick." "The important thing is to get to Charleston." "What's the state of the military in Charleston?" "We're assembling the disparate militias that popped up post-invasion." "But re-establishing a unified central command is key to taking back the planet." " You contacted other parts of the world?" " In Europe, yes, via shortwave radio." "My mission is to continue heading north contact as many survivors as possible until I hit Greenland." "Then hop over Iceland to the UK and ultimately the rest of Europe." "With all due respect, what proof do you have that anything you've said is true?" "I get you." "Is it a leap of faith?" "Hell, yeah." "But if it's nothing that interests you, I'll just be on my way." "I'm sorry, we can't risk you giving away our location intentionally or otherwise." "I have to ask that you stay with us until we move out." "You're detaining me?" "Think of it as a layover on your way to Greenland." "And my plane?" "You and your plane will be safe." "You have my word." "Well, don't get any fancy ideas about stealing her." "She's booby-trapped." "Noted." "In the meantime, I hope that you will accept our limited hospitality." "Hal, would you please accompany our honored guest to the mess tent?" "Yes, sir." "What do you think?" "Charleston sounds like a better option than the Catskills." "Warmer, anyway." "Charleston is a long way to go on a wing and a prayer." "What do you...?" "What?" "Continental Congress?" " Heh." "What do you say?" "You buy that?" " I don't know." "But if it's true, that would really be something." "We've been promised paradise before." "There's no way to know for sure." "Unless we go." "I gotta go find Ben." "Let me know if there's any change with Jimmy." "Yeah." "Where did you go?" "Nowhere, just walking around, staring at Jimmy's compass." "A few months back, he got separated from the 2nd Mass." "It took two days to find him again so Weaver gave him his compass so he could always find his way home." " Don't blame yourself over this." " Everyone else does." "That's not true." "I've seen the way everyone looks at me." "Hal, Matt." "Even you." " No." " Yes." " No." " Fine, whatever." "But you think I wouldn't rather be lying there instead of him?" "I'm sure that you would." "Just like there isn't a day that goes by that I don't wish and pray that your mother was still alive." "And then it, um, sucks." "It really sucks." "Sometimes you think that you can't even go on." "Except you don't have a choice but to go on." "Good news is that we've got each other to get through a lousy situation." "The bad news is it's a lousy situation." " It's a lousy situation." "Yeah, I'm not saying it's a paradise." "I mean, far from it." "But there are people all helping each other." "And there's electricity and hot water." "Hot water?" "How's that possible with all those people?" "All I know is that every day we get a little closer to normal." "I'm no engineer..." " How's Jimmy doing?" " No change." "But as soon as his condition improves, we need to be ready to move out." " Convoy status?" " Military vehicles are ready." "Some multipurpose vehicles need repair." "Shouldn't be much longer." " Good." " We still only have enough snow chains for half the convoy, though." "Maybe we don't need them now." "I mean, no need for snow chains in Charleston, right?" "Keep looking." "We'll need snow chains." "The mountain roads will be dangerous without chains." "So you're still thinking the Catskills?" "Hot showers and white weddings make for a good story." "But we're gonna need more than that if we're gonna survive the winter." "Yes, sir." "Let's go." "I've heard a lot about you, Professor Mason." "You got some story." "Oh?" "I've never met anyone who was taken aboard an alien mother ship and lived to talk about it." " It happened." "Doesn't make it a story." "We need people like you in Charleston, Tom, to help rebuild this country." "I'm just a history teacher." "And I was a manager at the Carpet Corral." "But now look at me now." "I'm Paul Revere in a prop plane." "Don't sell yourself short." "These people don't." "Anne, Jimmy's not breathing." "I can't find a pulse." "I need an amp of epinephrine." " What happened?" " I don't know." "Not today." "Come on, Jimmy." "I can't do this alone." "Come on, Jimmy." "Not today." "Why are you stopping?" " No, no, keep going." "Keep doing it!" " I'm sorry." "He's gone." "I'm very sorry for your loss, captain." "We break camp at dusk." "You're free to leave at any time, Ms. Churchill." " I'm released from your custody?" " It was never that." "Just being cautious." "I understand." "I've met a few people in your position since I started this mission." "And some call themselves lieutenant or captain, but more often than not their people refer to them as something less flattering." "Wanna know what your people call you?" "What is that?" "Their leader." "I know it's a lot to bear." "But know the 2nd Mass would follow you to the gates of hell." "Take your people to Charleston, captain." "They need you there." "And honestly, I think your people need Charleston." "Good luck, Ms. Churchill." " What happened to his field vest?" " Couldn't get the blood out and didn't think it was right." " Oh, it's okay." "He looks fine the way he is." " What's wrong?" " Jimmy's compass." "It's gone." "We should be packing up to leave like the others." " There you go barking orders again." " Not an order." "Just a statement of fact." "We'll start packing when we're ready." "Right now it's cocktail hour!" "Why don't you pull up a tire there and join us?" "Weaver's orders are clear." "We're moving out after Jimmy's funeral." "Yeah, well, I think we're all gonna pass on that incredibly empty gesture." "God, you're an asshole, Pope." "Well, I've been called worse, and far more eloquently, I might add." "But because I am your senior commanding officer I hereby give you permission to attend that poor boy's memorial." "And you can gently put your arms around that half-breed son of yours and tell him it was a good thing, what he did killing one for the skitter team." "Where did you get that?" "Finders keepers." " Take it off." " No." "I said, take it off." "I'm getting really tired of you telling me what to do." "It's not like our Jimmy's gonna need it, you know." "Oh!" "Get him now!" "Go get him!" "Take it off!" "You want it?" "Come and get it." "Tom." "Tom." "Tom!" "Okay, okay." "That's enough." "That's enough!" "He's had it." "That's enough, man." "Mason!" "You son of a bitch!" "Mason, this isn't over!" "This is crap." "Mason disobeyed a direct order and then attacked me." "The way I hear it, Tom made the right call last night with those skitters." "As far as the fight, if it had been me I'm not sure I'd have left you standing, so let's call it even." "Have you forgotten?" "The man had a chip in his head!" "That and his freak-show son had Jimmy killed." " Enough." "You said your piece." " You know what?" "Me and my crew, we've carried your water long enough." "You want out, there's the door." "Let's get out of here." "You should've killed me when you had the chance." "Let's go." "Screw you all." "Hold up." "I'll go with you, Pope." "I owe you." "Finally, someone with some brains." "See you at the bikes." "You don't have to do that." " I think I do." "As crazy as it sounds, the man did save my life." "Besides, someone has to make sure that he doesn't double back and give the 2nd Mass more grief." "The man's a danger to himself and to everyone around him." "Are you sure that's where you wanna be?" "No, but that's where I'm going." " You'll be missed, Anthony." " Thank you, sir." " Take care of your boys." " Yeah." " Keep your eye on Pope." " Yeah, I will." " Take a shower." " Yeah, with your mama." "Man, I thought I was the crazy one." "My brother." "Are you okay?" "Aside from the fact that I almost killed Pope, I'm fine." " What?" " I lost it." "He took Jimmy's compass and I snapped." "Let me take a look at you." "Sorry." "You did a pretty good job." "I had a good teacher." "You've patched me up enough times." " I'm sorry." "I shouldn't..." " No." "It's okay." "It's just that it's Sammy's birthday today." "All I wanted was for no one to die on his birthday." "How do you measure somebody?" "How do you define their worth?" "A year ago, Jimmy was just a boy." "Just a little boy." "And then it all changed." "His world fell apart." "He had to step up." "He had to leave that little boy behind." "He had to become a soldier." "He had to learn how to fight." "And he did." "And he is now defined by those of us who owe him our lives." "He is measured by his bravery." "This day came too soon." "He died too young." "But he died a hero to me." "And I am proud to have served with him." "Jimmy we'll remember." "May the next world be kinder to Jimmy than this one ever was." "Hey, we'll make it through this." "All right, bro?" "Sorry to bother you, captain." "It's no bother, son." "I'm sure Jimmy would appreciate the company." "I just, uh, wanted to, um..." "I know Jimmy would have wanted you to have this back." "Right." "My father gave me this when I was an Eagle Scout." "I always meant to give it to my daughter, Jeanne, but never got the chance." " Thanks." " Yeah, well it sure came in handy for Jimmy." "That it did." "He was a good soldier, that boy, but he had no sense of direction." "He had no sense of direction at all." "No, sir." "He did not." "I wouldn't have wanted anyone else by my side fighting." "I'm sorry." "Hey, there's nothing to be sorry about, son." "Hey, you're gonna be fine." " Ben." "Ben." " I'm sorry." " You're gonna be fine." " I'm sorry." " We're gonna be fine." " Yes, sir." "I'm sorry." "Happy birthday, Sammy." "Charleston's a long ways away, people." "Make sure we don't leave anything behind." " Are we ready?" " Last van's loaded." "All present and accounted for." " A hundred and seventy six souls." " A hundred and seventy six it is." "All right, watch your back." "Captain, you mind if I ask you a question?" " What made me change my mind?" " Yeah." "When I first took command of the 2nd Mass, we were 300." "Three hundred strong, Tom." "Now 176." "We owe it to Jimmy and everybody that we've lost to stay in the fight." "We're just pissing in the wind here." "We need to get back in the war." "Seems like Charleston might be a good place to do that." "Besides, a hot shower doesn't sound too bad." " Highways are clear, and the back roads." " All right." "Where's Ben?" " I'll find him." " Let's move out." "Let's go!" "Get those engines fired up!" "Get ready to move!" "Go." "Go!" "Move!" "Let's go!" "Come on!" "Let's go!" "Let's go!" "Ben, you out here?" " Over here!" " You all right?" " I'm fine." "Let's go."