Read Online Gray Panthers: Dixie by David Guenther - Free Book Online

their gear and attachments that allowed them to connect small patrol packs to the back of the vest. One of the women pulled the end of a straw from her vest, bent her head slightly, and took a sip while still appearing fully alert.
    “My compliments, Lieutenant. You and your team are about as stealthy as any hunters I ever hunted with,” Scotty said.
    “Sir, if you and your companion—”
    “This ‘companion,’ Lieutenant, can be referred to as ma’am or captain. I am Captain Samantha Culpepper, a fleet pilot. Do we understand each other, Lieutenant?” Sam was so close to the younger officer she could see up his nostrils.
    “Yes, ma’am. Now, if you please, we have a long walk to get to our transport. Do y’all need help breaking camp and preparing to trek out of here?”
    “We can take care of that, Lieutenant,” Scotty replied. “How did you know where to find us? I thought we had done a good job of covering our trail.”
    “Ambassador—”
    “Please, call me Scotty. And that goes for the rest of you, too,” Scotty interrupted.
    “Well, Scotty, we were heading for Culpepper Plantation, using our scout vehicles off-road to avoid the Red Coats. We knew we were getting near when we saw the Red Coats torch a barn. The transport in the barn had markings on it for Culpepper Plantation—”
    “Excuse me, Lieutenant. What condition was the transport in?” Sam interrupted.
    “Ma’am, the transport was a loss. Don’t worry. We have space—”
    “Arggghhh!” Sam slammed her backpack onto the ground and stomped off into the woods swearing.
    “Transport wasn’t paid off,” Scotty said softly to the lieutenant.
    “Hell, that’s what insurance is for,” Semmes whispered back nervously, eyeing where Sam had disappeared into the woods. Using his regular voice, he continued, “We need to get you back to New Mississippi, sir. The Red Coats have only done a few probes on the city. That gave us time to build up fortifications. The only way they can take the city is to destroy it. The civilians are safe underground, just like at the capital, New Richmond.”
    “Raphael, what do you know about New Richmond?” Scotty asked apprehensively.
    “Sir, I mean, Scotty, they are cut off. The first attack was against the capital. The military barely was able to close the entrances to the underground shelters. They’re ready to defend the tunnel system in depth, but the Red Coats have made no effort to breech the defenses. Security cameras from stores in the city show them looting New Richmond. They have taken an unknown number of captives. Estimates are from five thousand to twenty thousand. We just don’t know how many are in hiding.”
    “Damn. I was hoping we could get to the city. That’s where the original mining equipment was that built the underground city, I assume?”
    “I don’t know, sir. I do know that we have a tunneler unit in New Mississippi.”
    “How far is that from the capital?”
    “It’s an even three hundred miles.”
    “Do you know how long it would take to tunnel the entire distance?” Scotty asked, fearing the answer.
    “My engineer friend told me once that they can do up to three miles a day. The speed depends on what they do with the pilings. Usually, for best speed, they vaporize them.”
    “Damn. That kills that idea. I had a part that could have been used to bring Dixie’s AI back online. I thought if we could get that back online, they could use it to figure out how to free the fleet from underground, then deploy the fleet to destroy the enemy fleet,” Scotty said dejectedly.
    “Sir, let’s get you back to New Mississippi and see what they can come up with. I’m sure they’ll be excited to see the AI put back into service when this is all over,” Raphael suggested, full of optimism.
    Scotty noticed for the first time that Sam had returned and had been listening silently by his side. “Okay, Raphael. It’s your game from here. How far away are the