Chapter 9 - The Broadcast
The cold wind hit us as we emerged at the base of the north communications tower. Above us, the massive satellite dishes were glowing under floodlights.
I sprinted into the transformer bunker, Miller right behind me. I brought the butt of the rifle down on the secondary jammer unit’s control panel, smashing the glass and ripping out the main fiber-optic circuit board.
Instantly, the high-pitched electronic whine echoing across the base ceased. The jammers were dead.
I jumped onto the primary communications terminal, flipping the heavy red toggle switches to bypass local base authorization. I slammed the emergency broadcast key.
“This is Colonel Elena Vance, Inspector General’s Corps, broadcast ID 9-9-4-Alpha!” I spoke loudly into the headset microphone, my voice transmitting simultaneously to Joint Base Lewis-McChord, the Pentagon Command Center, and every tactical radio across Camp Vora. “Code Red at Camp Vora. Major Thomas Sterling has engaged in active mutiny, black-market trafficking, and assault on federal officers. All units stand down and detain Major Sterling immediately.”
Across the base, in the locked barracks, in the guard towers, and in the motor pool, my voice echoed loudly over every speaker and radio unit.
The soldiers in Barracks 4—listening to the broadcast—realized the truth. Loud cheers broke out behind the locked doors. Heavy shoulders began slamming against the wooden barriers as nearly a hundred soldiers broke through the doors, flooding onto the parade grounds to reclaim their base.
Suddenly, the metal door to the bunker was kicked off its hinges.
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Major Sterling stood in the doorway, soaked in rain, holding an assault rifle, his face twisted in a mask of pure, murderous madness.
“I told you!” Sterling screamed over the storm, raising his rifle. “Your stars leave with you in a body bag!”
