Bubble

Chapter 3: "Sentry"

Will

I couldn't help the yawn that escaped my lips as I stared out at the dark treetops of the jungle. It had been a long day. But then again, it had also been my brilliant idea to take a double shift; I had been sitting in the same watchtower since seven o'clock that morning. Nothing had even happened other than a false alarm around noon, when a supposed 'threat' turned out to be a large bird that had accidentally gotten caught in a bush. Oh, the joys of sentry duty.

The crackle of static brought my attention to the comms unit on my belt.

"Reynolds?" a familiar voice came through.

I brought the receiver up to my lips. "Yes, sir?"

"We've just received a transmission from HQ, meet me at the Comms Centre in ten. I'm sending Ryans up to cover your post."

"Yes, sir." I swung my gun over my shoulder and began heading down the ladder of the small tower, happy to be rid of it. Hopefully HQ had called to say that they were sending more stock for the arsenal; we were running low and hadn't received a shipment since the sixteenth expedition. But with how cautious HQ was being lately, they had probably just called to check on the weather.

I made my way up the gravel path that led to the main square, which was easily lit due to the full moon that loomed overhead. Most people marvelled at the moon, but I preferred nights when it wasn't out- you could see the stars better. Night shifts weren't so bad when you had something like that to look at.

I heard another pair of footstep crunching on the gravel, and turned the corner to find Ryans trudging the opposite way. We nodded hellos to each other, and continued on our separate ways. The lights of the main square came into view, and I headed up the stairs to the second story of the Command Centre after crossing the deserted marketplace; most civilians had long since turned in for the night.

Inside the communications room, I found a frantic buzz of activity. The man to whom the voice on the radio belonged to was pacing back and forth and staring intensely at the screens that lined the walls. A dozen people wearing headsets were bustling around with tablets in their hands and typing frantically.

Perhaps it was a bit more than a weather check.

"Captain Deller," I addressed the pacing man, catching his attention.

"Reynolds," he waved me over. "We've just been notified the eighteenth expedition will be coming through this Sunday."

I coughed in surprise. "Excuse me, when, sir?" The expeditions were never so close together; it had barely been a month since the seventeenth arrived.

"HQ is sending 'em through this Sunday." Deller shook his head, showing mutual disbelief.

"Um, wow," I breathed out, not sure what to say. "Can the housing crews keep up with the demand, sir?" I asked. If the number of colonists continued to increase this rapidly, we would have quite a few homeless civilians on our hands.

"We're increasing the housing crew by thirty percent and doubling the hours. Hopefully we can get the sector seven homes finished by next week. HQ wants to up the population as much as possible just in case things get choppy back there." The tone in the Captain's voice suggested that he didn't exactly agree with the idea. I didn't blame him.

"But just stick with the normal protocol for now," he continued, "Assemble the transport team; I want that clearing under 24 hour watch."

"Yes, sir," I said, turning to leave.

"Oh, and Reynolds?" Deller called and I turned around in the doorway to face him. "That's your third double shift this week. Lay off the hours and take tomorrow off." He smiled and shook his head.

I rolled my eyes and waved my hand dismissively as if to say, "Yea, yea." I heard the older man's chuckles as I made my way down the stairs.

On the first floor, the Command Centre was almost as deserted as the square outside, and all of the lights except one were off in the main hall. The rectangle of light extended from the office across from mine, and I poked my head in the doorway.

"Working late?" I asked the man behind the desk, who had his head in his hands and looked as if he was about to pull his hair out.

"Will? What the hell are you still doing here?" He rubbed his head as if trying to relieve a headache

"Hello to you too, Theo. I'm working late, same as you." Theo ran a hand down his face, and I noticed the dark circles under his eyes. "Hmm, looks like someone needs some beauty sleep."

He chuckled tiredly. "Go home, smartass."

I pushed myself off the doorway and crossed the hall to my office. "Whatever you say, mum," I called out, and he flipped me off in return.

I flicked the light on in the small room and sat down at the desk. I powered on my tablet, and started compiling the security team for the weekend. It took me about twenty minutes to send out all the scheduling notices, then I signed out for the night and headed toward my place.

The single person homes were the closest to the main square, so my house was only about a four-minute walk away. It was nice for early morning shifts because I could sleep longer than the guys who lived at the south end of the colony; their walk was over fifteen minutes.

As I turned onto my court, I passed another soldier heading the opposite way, probably heading in for the midnight guard change. I continued walking, glad that I had been promoted high enough so I no longer had to work the graveyard shifts.

I walked up the steps to the front porch of my unit--the plainest one on the street. I saw no reason to decorate it; I was hardly ever home, and I never had anyone over. Everything was standard issue, from the furniture to the landscaping. But it was always clean; I had practically grown up in the military, and the habits were hard to shake.

I opened the door and tossed my key on the kitchen counter before heading into the bedroom. I quickly stripped out of my bulky armour and fatigues and crashed onto the bed. My lead eyelids snapped shut before my head had a chance to hit the pillow, and I sighed, content. I may have had another boring, routine weekend ahead of me, but at least I could sleep in.