Published: 1 Jun 2020

Company Eagle and Company Leopard (11,235)

Calvin

The day was already hot, at just 8:00 AM. It was Saturday. Casey and his boyfriend, Aiden had popped in from Chicago for the weekend. They were at the lake with half-a-hundred other boys. Not our “private lake”; that was too far away and still a secret shared among only our closest friends. That circle was growing every day, though.

Gary and Nemesis, as well as Richard and Zhang, would arrive later. We were going to do a “grand opening” for the Dave and Busters that had just been completed at Refuge Ranch. My daddy, who was Uncle George to all the others and Death when he was working, had stayed at home today to be ranch foreman. He would slip in time, tomorrow, to make up for it. I used to worry about that, until I understood the mundane job of running the ranch was actually good for him. Nemesis and I had talked a lot about not letting our daddies burn out, and we both kept a close eye on them.

Daddy was riding Impala. The horse was coal-black except for a tiny star over his right eye. I was on Silver, a registered gray. We were about a mile from the cantonment area, just looking around, making sure everything was going smoothly. Daddy abruptly pulled on the reins; Impala stopped and snorted. I think I saw fire come from his nostrils. Not sure … it could have been, of course: Impala was a god-horse, with his own powers, just like Silver.

“Something … something wicked?” Daddy looked puzzled.

“Mars?” I asked. It hadn’t been that long ago Mars had come to deliver the first of several semi-trailers full of weapons and military supplies. He’d surprised us, especially since Mars and Daddy were old adversaries isn’t quite the right word, but they certainly weren’t friends.

“Not Mars,” Daddy said. “At least, I don’t think.” He tapped Impala in the flanks with his heels. “Come on, let’s…”

Before he could finish the sentence, and before either Impala or Silver could take a step, a boy in a tunic and sandals popped in front of us. That didn’t surprise us. All the gods and spirits could translocate. What surprised us was we didn’t recognize this one.

USA Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Home, Anacostia, DC

There was more joy in Mudville than in the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Home when the results of the election were announced. The president had broken his promises to veterans within weeks of taking office the first time. Given the worsened fiscal situation, and the depths of depression into which his failed policies had driven the country in the past few years, none of us were hoping for anything better in his second term. Staff at the home had been cut. Months would pass before anyone could see a doctor; people died. Prescriptions went unfilled; people died. The guard force had been cut. No one had died, yet, but I knew it was going to happen when the thugs and druggies who surrounded us in the slums of DC discovered the lack of security.

Those of us residents who were ambulatory pitched in to help those who were bedridden. We all tried to get old friends and family to help, to lobby Congress and the Veterans Administration, but there weren’t many friends and family left. Most of us were here because we no longer had living relatives. The average age was 88.

I had been a corporal in World War II, a sergeant during the Korean conflict, and a Chief Master Sergeant during the Indochina war. Nothing I had seen in any of those wars prepared me for what was waiting for me that Monday morning.

I pushed my walker in front of me on the way to the cafeteria. I would take trays, one at a time, to seven bedridden soldiers before getting a meal for myself … if there were anything left by then. I nudged open the doors to the cafeteria with the walker, and walked into chaos. Patients, many of them in pajamas and robes, were milling around; voices were raised. I looked toward the steam tables where breakfast was laid out, to find that it wasn’t, and that the cafeteria workers weren’t there, either.

Looking around, I spotted Harvey. He’d been a military policeman and had served in Afghanistan, guarding prisoners. He still wore the whistle that had been part of his uniform. I rolled toward him. “Harvey! Your whistle! Get them quiet,” I said.

His grin told me he understood. The whistle pierced the hubbub. “At ease, everybody!” Harvey shouted in the silence. “Sit down and listen up!”

The mob that had once been soldiers seemed to come to their senses. Men and the few women took seats at the tables. I stood against a wall so it would help me project my voice. “Okay, people, one at a time. What’s the problem?”

“Breakfast isn’t ready, and there’s no one in the kitchen,” Sheila said. Her voice was strong and a little husky from years of smoking, but level. She was a nurse, and had been on the second wave to reach the beaches at Normandy.

“Well, hell,” I said, drawling out the words, “Ain’t one of us not been on KP at one time or another.” I looked around. “Red? You take charge of the kitchen. Pick whoever you need and put them to work. The rest of you, just sit tight until Red and his crew have things organized. Sheila, you’re with me.”

She nodded, and followed me out of the cafeteria and toward the administrator’s office. It was as empty as had been the kitchen. I flipped on the TV; Sheila and I watched with growing horror: much of Anacostia was in flames; the bridges that linked it with the rest of DC were barricaded by mobs on the Anacostia side and soldiers on the city side. The staff of the Home must have known: the ones that lived elsewhere couldn’t get here; the ones that lived in Anacostia were probably part of the mobs. We had just looked up from the screen when that mob attacked the Home.

Although we were all soldiers except for Sheila and a few other nurses, but we weren’t allowed to have weapons. Another broken promises. No time to worry about that, now.

When it was over, I was the only one left alive, and I knew I wouldn’t be for long. The mob had looked for drugs and were outraged when they hadn’t found any. Then, they’d looted the food and turned to the few possessions that we had. There wasn’t much for them. They’d taken out their frustration on the residents – slaughtering the bedridden, overpowering and killing the ambulatory. Then they had vanished almost as fast as they’d arrived. I lay in the administrator’s office. I’d been shot. Once in the leg and once in the abdomen. I prayed to Mithras for an easy death, and nearly shit my pants when he appeared.

As it turned out, it wasn’t Mithras.

“Mithras is no longer in this place,” the man said. “However, he left his Authorities with me. You know me, do you not?”

“Mars,” I gasped. My stomach was bleeding, my sight was blurring, and I knew I didn’t have much more time.”

“Yes,” the man said. I studied him: dark camo; a circle of five, matte-black stars on each collar. Combat Infantry Badge and jump wings, also matte black. I wondered where he’d earned those. He wore several badges and insignia I didn’t recognize. And a pair of pistols that looked to be nine-millimeter. I couldn’t be sure since my vision was fading.

He touched me briefly, and I felt a lot better.

“I have not done the job I should have done,” he said. “My role as god of war changed, but I was unable to change with it. It is mete that someone else have a chance to do a better job. Find Death, and tell him. He will lead you to others who will help you. Do you understand? Find Death.”

An arc of light moved from him to me. Then, he was no more, and I was no longer a ninety-year-old man in pajamas with two bullet wounds, but a healthy twelve-year-old boy in a tunic … a tunic that barely covered me. And, I didn’t know who “me” was.

Death? He said to find Death. I thought real hard about how I would go about that, and wasn’t in the Home, any longer, but in bright sunshine looking at a couple of dudes on horseback. Dudes? Where did I learn that word?

Death

“Mars?”

The boy’s brow furrowed and his lips compressed for a moment before he spoke. “Not the one you knew, I don’t think.” He paused again as if thinking. “A lot of people, soldiers, were killed. I was the only one left alive. He appeared. Told me he’d not done a good job, and I should try to do better. And, that I should find Death. Are you he? I’ve seen a lot of death. You don’t look like Death.”

“And you don’t look much like Mars. Do you mind?”

The boy squinted like he was thinking. “Mind what?” he said.

I didn’t answer, just dressed him the way Mars usually dressed: starched, dark cammies; 9-mm pistols; and Mars’ trademark circles of five stars on his collar. I didn’t add other insignia. He said he’d been a soldier. He’d know what he was entitled to wear.

“Way cool!” the boy said. “Um, I don’t think I usually talk that way.”

At this point, Calvin giggled. He jumped down from Silver.

Calvin

Daddy wasn’t handling this well. He and Mars had been unfriendly for so long he didn’t know what to do. He was trying too hard, I think, to understand and accept this kid. So far, it was working but I figured I had better do something before Daddy messed up. I hugged the kid.

“My name’s Calvin. Do you have a name besides Mars?”

The kid stiffened for a second, and then relaxed. He didn’t try to break out of the hug, which I took to be a good sign.

“Yeah, I used to be Allen.”

He paused, and his brow furrowed. “Funny, I don’t remember my last name.”

I squeezed a little. “Don’t worry, please? You know you’re different, now, right? I mean, you just translocated to Refuge Ranch in Texas from wherever you were. Please don’t worry about last names just yet!”

The boy squeezed me, then, he stepped back. “Texas?” he asked.

“Yep, Texas,” I said. “What happened?”

The new Mars sketched a story. It was obvious that he had few memories of his past life, including the events that had brought him here. Impressions, vignettes, mobs attacking old people. He remembered clearly seeing Mars.

“He had the powers of Mithras, too. I remember praying to Mithras. I must have been wounded.”

Mars

Calvin helped me understand a lot. His daddy – who really was Death – helped, too. That afternoon, I met Gary and Nemesis, and a bunch of others, who all made me feel part of them. For now, Calvin said I should just relax, let my new knowledge settle in and memories to resurface, and join everyone for pizza at some restaurant I’d never heard of.

It wasn’t until after that, and I’d gone to bed in a spare room of Calvin’s house that the next critical event happened.

“Allen?” It was Calvin’s voice. He was standing at the door to the bedroom I’d been given. “Daddy’s at work – his other job. Um, I don’t like to sleep by myself. May I sleep with you? Can we cuddle?”

I remember when Calvin had jumped from his horse and hugged me. At first, I didn’t want it. Then, I realized? felt? understood? he was just trying to comfort me, and I was okay with it. Now, though? My mind roiled.

“Oh, you wouldn’t like that.” Calvin said. I felt him turn away.

“Wait!” I called. “Please, wait.” Calvin’s form, barely visible in the darkness, stayed still. “I think I would like that, if you would?”

Calvin slid under the sheet and hugged me. I returned the hug and realized that he was naked. His bare skin was hot to my touch. His face was only inches from mine. I saw his eyes, even in the darkness. They held a question. Then they closed. He wrapped his arms around my pajama-clad body. “Cuddles,” he whispered. And fell asleep.

I woke the next morning with an erection like I hadn’t had in – how many years? A flicker of memory, myself as an old man straining to piss through a flaccid penis, despite a full bladder. Then it went away, and I saw Calvin staring at me.

“You’re really cute,” he said. “I’m gay. But I don’t think you’re sure. It’s okay, you know.” He squeezed me and jumped out of bed. I stared at his butt as he walked out the door. It was a cute, strong butt, and my erection throbbed. Maybe I am gay, I thought, and delved for memories that just wouldn’t surface.

An hour or so later, I was dressed in clean fatigues and had strapped on the pistols Death had given me. Don’t know where they came from, but I field-stripped and reassembled them like I knew what I was doing. They were functional, and loaded. I found Calvin in the kitchen, at breakfast with four other boys. I remembered Casey and Aiden from last night at the pizza place, but I didn’t recognize the others.

“Daddy’s gone to his regular job, today,” Calvin said. “This is Bobby and Kevin. They’re my boyfriends. They were working, last night.” He gestured me to the table. A woman brought me a plate with bacon, sausage, and blueberry pancakes.

“It’s a tradition,” Bobby said, pointing to my plate. “After Gary rescued me, he promised I’d never again have just dry cereal to eat. He made blueberry pancakes for breakfast. We do it for all our new friends.”

Friends, I thought. I saw Death and Calvin glow, yesterday. Last night, almost all of the men and boys had the same glow. Now, Bobby and Kevin. Are they all gods?

Calvin must have heard my thoughts. “Yes, Allen, everyone with that glow – including you – is a god or spirit or avatar. Casey is god of the hunt; Aiden, the patron of lawyers. Bobby and Kevin and I are the Norns. Do you know about them … us, I mean?”

While we ate, Calvin and the others gave me a rundown on who-was-who, and promised I’d meet the others, in time.

“First, however,” Calvin said, “there’s something that falls into your area of responsibility. A busload of Junior ROTC cadets from Erewhon will arrive in about an hour. They’ll be – perhaps in shock to find that they’re in Texas, and got here from Chicago in only a couple of hours. They’re orphans or kids who were thrown away by their parents, and like hundreds of others, are being relocated here, to Refuge Ranch. Will you help?”

He told me enough that when they arrived, I was ready. A long, yellow school bus pulled into the parking lot. The door opened and boys jumped off and ran into formation. The last four off the bus were obviously the officers. They stepped, rather than jumped, from the bus, and lined up in front of the ranks of boys. When they were ready, I walked toward them.

They were wearing dark camo like mine, but spotlighted by bright belt buckles: gold, with a silver eagle raised from the surface. I made minor adjustments to my Aspect and stepped in front of the leading cadet.

“Sir! Company Eagle ready for inspection, sir!” the boy said. He was perhaps fourteen; his staff looked about that age or a little younger; the ranks were filled with kids from perhaps ten to fourteen.

“Lead the way,” I said in a formula as old as soldiery.

I stopped in front of each boy, read his nametag, memorized his face, and moved on to the next. I don’t think the commander expected a real inspection; but he was prepared to accept it, and his troops were prepared to undergo it. It was impossible to make cammies look as sharp as a Class A uniform, but these kids came awfully close. I saw some were wearing marksman badges. Normally, one didn’t wear such on cammies. I figured I was going to have to learn some new rules.

I felt like I’d been punched in the gut when I stepped in front of the seventh kid. Alberto! It was he, but it could not be! Alberto and I had been friends when I was a young teen. This boy was the perfect image of Alberto. Yet, I knew more than seventy years had passed. Seventy-six, to be exact. He and I had been twelve. It could not be; yet, it was. I knew he could not know me; yet, it seemed as if he did. His eyes got wider, in any case.

After I walked through the ranks, the cadet leader took his position in front of his troops. I stood facing him. “Captain Anders, you can be proud of your men. Now, please put them at ease, and allow me to address them.”

The boy executed a perfect about-face, and called, “Parade rest! Stand easy.”

He turned back to face me, but before he could salute, I interrupted. “Thank you, Jon. Please stand beside me.” The boy shot me a look that said how did you know my name? But I didn’t have time for that, yet.

“Company Eagle! Welcome to Texas. Yes, you left Chicago about two hours ago. You encountered a fog bank. When the fog cleared, you were on a two-lane road rather than Interstate-55. That road led you here – here as in Texas. This is Refuge Ranch. It is a place of safety. At least, we are going to make it one. You are going to be important in ensuring that. I know that you are soldiers and some of you have received weapon training. We will arm you. We will expand your training and extend it to those who have not yet received it, but only with volunteers.”

I paused for a minute for them to catch up with what I was saying. “Most of the people at the ranch are youngsters. The average age is thirteen. There are some adults who will be part of our militia; however, there are not enough of them to do it by themselves.”

I continued the speech on the same lines; in fact, I cribbed some lines from Henry V’s St. Crispin’s Day speech, and Lee’s farewell to his troops. At the end, I asked, “Are you with me?”

As one, the boys snapped to attention and yelled, “Sir, yes sir.”

I don’t think I’d ever been as proud of a unit as I was of them. Of course, I didn’t really remember, either.

There were forty members of Company Eagle. Most of the group homes were built for thirty-six people plus house parents. I don’t know how he knew, but Tom Clancy had built one with twenty-two bedrooms. And, it was still empty. Rather than assume coincidence, I put it down to Casey and Kevin’s planning. It had been Kevin who had told me about it at breakfast.

“Captain Anders? Will you walk with me and have your troops march behind us to your new home? The bus will deliver luggage but after their ride, I suspect they’d like to stretch their legs. Besides, they’ll see more from ground level.”

The boy nodded. “Yes, sir.” After giving instructions to his deputy, he gestured. “Please, sir, lead the way.”

There was a smile on his face and a laugh in his voice. I caught that, and chuckled. He was going to be a good person to work with.

I led the boys through town where we stopped traffic. People lined the sidewalk to watch them march down Main Street. Some folks waved and applauded. Good. I wanted to make an impression. Besides, I was going to work those boys’ tails off, and I wanted them to know they were something special. Next time, I vowed, we’d have a color guard with… “Captain? Do you have a unit flag?”

“No sir. Never needed one.”

“Well, you do, now. Need one, that is. Please get a design to me by 0800 Friday.”

Jon was surprised, but seemed happy. “Yes, sir.”

As we approached the house, I lowered my voice. “Jon, this house has twenty-two bedrooms. Each room is equipped for two people. Please assign your people, including yourself and your staff, to twenty of the rooms. Reserve two for potential house parents. I don’t know who that might be. For now, you’re on your own. Cooks will come in to prepare meals until things settle down. You should talk to them about some KP duties for your people.

“Your soldiers will be expected to keep their own spaces clean, including cleaning latrines, doing laundry, and so on. It will be up to you to see this is done. Also—”

“But sir,” the boy interrupted. “Aren’t you in charge?”

“No, Captain, I am not. In the next few days, I will talk to you, privately, about that; however, I am not your commander. When you go into combat – and you will go into combat – I will be with you. I will not be the one giving orders. That may be someone else or it may be you.”

I felt the boy’s pulse quicken in surprise and fear. “Do not let that bother you,” I said. “We would never send you to a place for which you were not prepared.”

Jon Anders

Gary briefed me that morning. What he said had prepared me, but not well enough. Gary said we’d be moving to a place of safety. I figured maybe Canada or Montana. There were enough survivalists in Montana to give cover to our outfit, maybe even let us join them. He said we’d be met when we arrived. But not much else. So, I was surprised as hell when the bus came out of the fog bank into 98-degree heat, and drove through desert for a couple of hours before unloading us in what looked like an old west town. I was even more surprised when a kid met us. The kid looked about eighteen, but wore the five stars of a General of the Army. That was originally a war-time-only rank until the Pentagon brass got so bloated they decided the members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff should have five stars. And, they were about to make the chairman a six-star “general of the armies.” I wasn’t sure what to do, but military customs and courtesies, tradition, and formality filled in. Until he addressed me by my first name. And confirmed what I knew: we weren’t anywhere close to Chicago, Canada, or Montana.

Something in the way he said things: we were in Texas, we were safe, my boys were going to be soldiers, and the tears of pride I saw in his eyes when the boys responded so enthusiastically to his speech, all made me feel okay. He must have figured out how I felt, because he seemed happy and pleased with me as we walked down the street toward our new home.

Then, he threw in a monkey wrench by telling me I was still in charge, even though I was a captain and he was a five-star general. And I might be in charge when we went into battle. I knew he must have figured I was scared, because he reassured me, not like I was a kid, though. I liked that, too. I couldn’t wait for the private talk that he promised.

Mars

The Scions of Hermes would always have a role in the defense of Refuge; however, they had other responsibilities, including teaching a few thousand kids how to be farmers and ranchers. Their job was made easier when Demeter arrived. She was one of the old gods, but she’d not been active in a long time.

She wasn’t going to live here. There were other refuges. The gods – including I – knew where they were. Demeter and others would spend time in more than one refuge. I knew I, too, would have to visit the others.

First, however, I had to solve the problem of Alberto. He took the first step.

The boys had eaten supper, and it was growing dark. The dry, desert air cooled quickly when the sun went down. I was standing at the edge of a broad expanse of grass about fifty yards from Company Eagle’s home. While trees surrounded the house, this broad park was treeless, and absolutely level. A parade ground, I thought. It’s a parade ground. Who was responsible for planning this? And, are we going to have more boy-soldiers to fill it?

I heard footsteps on the porch of the house, and knew who it was. I turned, slowly, and watched him approach. He stopped six paces away, came to attention, and saluted.

“At ease, Alberto,” I said.

“Sir, how did you know my name? My last name is on my nametag, so you might have known that.”

“What is my name, Alberto?” I asked.

The boy scrunched up his face. His voice was a whisper when he said, “Allen, sir. Your name is Allen. I can’t see the rest of it.” Our hug was spontaneous; I could not tell who initiated it or the kiss that was its logical successor.

Jon

All of the boys were settled in their rooms, polishing shoes and brass, ironing uniforms, or just shooting the bull. All except Alberto. Private ________. I hadn’t told them not to wander. I went looking for him, and found him in a serious hug with the general. Holy shit, I thought. It wasn’t they were kissing: all of my boys and I were gay, but I had read a lot about relationships between officers and enlisted – they were prohibited in most cases – and I really didn’t need this. I stood on the porch until the kiss was over. The general swatted Alberto on the butt. I heard what he said. “Your captain is on the porch. He and I need to talk, and you have shoes to polish. We’ll talk, perhaps tomorrow.”

Alberto scampered back to the house, slowing to a walk to salute me as he passed, and then skipping into the house. I walked toward the general.

“Sir? I don’t know your name,” I said.

Mars

“Actually, Captain, I don’t know my last name,” I said. “Alberto might, but even he isn’t sure. When you and I talk informally, please call me Allen. Formally, you may say general. Neither is who I am.”

Then, I hit him between the eyes. “Jon? Is there room in your heart for magic?”

The boy recovered quickly. Rather than answer my question, he questioned me. “Is that how we got here from Chicago? Is that how you know my name?”

“Yes,” I said. “It was magic. The magic of translocation brought you here from a fog bank south of Chicago. Magic allows me to hear some of your thoughts, to know your name.”

“Then, sir, there is room in my heart for magic,” the boy said.

I nodded. “You are still uncertain, but that is enough, for now. Please, come sit with me.” I pointed to a bench under one of the trees near the house. When we were settled, I began.

“Jon, yesterday morning, I was made successor to the god of War, a fellow you may have heard of. He is known as Ares in the Greek tradition, as Mars to the Romans. He’s been going by Mars for the past couple of millennia. The nature of war, however, changed, and he was unable or unwilling to change with it. He gave me his Authorities as well as those of one of his deputies, and moved to another place, another plane of existence, I think.

“Before this happened, I had been a soldier. I remember that, but little else about myself.” I looked at the expression on Jon’s face. It was one I’d seen myriad times before on the faces of soldiers an instant before their death.

“You do believe me, don’t you?” I asked.

The boy’s breath drew in as if through dense reeds. The air whistled in his tight throat.

“I guess I have to,” he said. But he was thinking, how can I get my boys away from this place?

“Jon, please believe me: you and your boys are safe. I could make you believe that – the gods have power – but I won’t do that. But I will show you.”

I grabbed his hand, pulled him to his feet, and translocated us to the Middle East where it was nine hours later and the dawn of a new day. We were in the middle of a battle between two rival religious factions. I felt Jon tense, and squeezed his hand. “We are inviolate. They cannot see us or harm us.”

Ten yards in front of us a bullet found its target and a boy, no older than Jon, crumpled. The wound was fatal, but not immediately so. The boy was in great pain. I pulled Jon toward him. We knelt. The boy’s lips moved. I let Jon hear and understand his words. I summoned the power of Mithras, and touched the boy’s forehead. His face relaxed as all his pain left him. He was still dying – I had no power over that – but it would be a painless death.

Speaking of Death, I felt his presence. Jon gasped. He pulled himself tightly against me as if for protection. Death stood next to the dying boy.

“Mars,” he said. “And Captain Jon Anders. I will not say well met or any pleasantry, for you both know why we are here.” He touched the dying boy and took his soul to speed it on its way. I felt Jon’s reaction as he saw the peace that accompanied that.

“You are Death,” Jon said. “And you,” he looked at me, “You really are Mars, and Mithras?”

“You know the old gods?” Death asked.

“Yes, sir,” Jon said. “I know the gods of soldiers and of battle. I know Mars, Mithras, Death. I know Hephaestus—”

“He goes by Vulcan, now,” Death interrupted. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

Jon giggled. It would have been disconcerting, hearing the commander of combat troops giggling, except I had heard Death giggle. I giggled too, sometimes. I think it was our way of releasing tension, and we were always under enough of that.

I exchanged looks with Death, and we popped to another place. It was noon, it was quiet, and a spring bubbled from the ground. After drinking, we sat on the grass, facing one another. I let Death begin. He’d been at this a lot longer than I had.

“Jon, we are truly the old gods or, if you prefer, their avatars. You have met some of the others. Most of us work for a lady named Dike, she’s the god of Justice and pretty much acts for Zeus, who’s the real boss. Dike has charged us with creating this place of refuge. We’re back in Texas, only it’s noon. You and your boys are about ten miles, that way, moving into your house.”

He chuckled. “We’ll go back to tonight when we’ve finished talking. You may be a little extra tired, tonight. You and your boys – yes, they’re soldiers and they’re going to be called upon to be fighters and perhaps to die, but they’re still boys – are going to be the cadre of the forces that will defend Refuge. You’ll receive the best training possible from the best soldiers in history.”

“But only if you agree,” I added. “Remember, I said volunteers.”

Jon nodded. “I understand, and I believe you. Uh, I don’t know anything about worship? What must—”

“Worship?” Death interrupted. “Mars, you’d better take this one.” He chuckled.

“Jon, I do not demand—”

“No,” I interrupted myself. “No, I forbid you and your boys to worship me. Your belief in who I am, and your loyalty are all I ask.” Something I’d learned years ago came to mind. “You command your boys’ loyalty, but you must earn their respect. Do you understand the difference?”

Jon nodded.

“That is all I ask of you.”

Bryan

I watched the boys in uniform march down the street. Who are they? Will they take new recruits? I wondered. I looked closely at them: most seemed to be between twelve and fifteen years old. I was probably older than they were, but I looked a lot younger than I was. If anybody would be doing SCUBA, it would be they. I had brought my SCUBA gear from Chicago, and there was a lake just behind our town house, but Paul was uncomfortable with the idea of me diving alone. He wouldn’t refuse me if I asked, but I knew he would be hurt if I did. So, I didn’t. Ask, that is. Such was my love for him and his for me.

I’d come to grips with the notion that it would be years, decades maybe, before things outside settled down enough that I could do any serious undersea exploration. On the other hand, with the power of all these gods behind me, I figured I could start my own expedition, especially since the sea might be the only place to find the raw materials to rebuild civilization. Yes, rebuild. The news we were getting from the outside made it pretty clear civilization was collapsing. I realized then these boys who were marching down the street were here to protect the ranch. And I wondered again if Paul would let me join them – and if they would accept me.

It wasn’t just my age. I knew I was getting powers even though I didn’t know what all they were, and I wondered what these boys in uniform would think of someone with powers being a member. On the other hand – the most important hand – I wasn’t sure how Paul would react to me getting powers. I think the word “conflicted” was made up just for me.

Mars

The first afternoon after I died – was reborn? Arrived? I sat on a rock in a field as far away as I could get from the town while still keeping it in sight. The rock had been in the sunshine, and was warm. I felt it through the cammies the guy who said he was Death had dressed me in. Whatever had happened to bring me here no longer mattered. I was here; I was confused. Shut up and soldier, I thought. Nemesis must have heard me, even though I hadn’t spoken. Something else to get accustomed to – and to learn how to do, I guessed.

“The same thing happened to me,” Nemesis said. He wasn’t beside me, and then he was. That’s how I figured he’d heard me thinking.

“I was forty-six or so when this kid woke me up, told me I was going to be his replacement as god of Retribution, popped me with what felt like static electricity, turned me into a twelve-year-old, and then disappeared. It took me a while to learn just who and what I was, and what I was supposed to do. I had a lot of help. You will, too.

“Come on,” he added. “It’s nearly suppertime, and you need a change of clothes. He grabbed my hand, pulled me to my feet, and we weren’t in the field, any more.

Nemesis offered me shorts, an open-collared pullover shirt, belt, socks, and trainers. They all fit, and made me look even more like a twelve-year-old. Then he took me to a restaurant that was more a kids’ playground than a mess hall. It had pool tables, something called “video games,” and skee-ball. I knew what pool tables were, and I think I remembered skee-ball. The restaurant’s grand opening was a private party for the gods and a few close friends.

The adult gods Nemesis pointed out were Gary Walters (Protector of Children), Richard (Asclepius, God of Healing), Uncle George (Avatar of Death), and an older guy named Caden (Apollo). Mortal adults included Tom Clancy who was the construction foreman, and his family; Cyrus, a friend of Gary’s and one of the house parents with a couple of his boys; and an earnest young man named Bob who seemed to be the boyfriend of Tisiphone, a young woman who was a god but who seemed to keep a little apart from the other “child-gods.”

I had to include myself in the “child-god” category. Although I knew a lot of what the old Mars knew, I didn’t know much about myself except that I had been a ninety-year-old soldier and was now twelve years old. (At least, I was twelve some of the time; sometimes I was eighteen. It was something I needed to learn how to control.) The knowledge Mars poured into my mind had pushed aside, perhaps wiped away, many of my own memories. That didn’t bother me as much as I thought it would. Mostly because I figured I would need Mars’ memories and knowledge more than my own. Partly because what I remembered of my own life wasn’t all that great: war, battlefields, illness, and then abandonment by the government and society that had recruited me and others like me and then thrown us away.

Besides me, the child-gods were Calvin and his two boyfriends, Bobby and Kevin; and Aiden and his boyfriend Casey, who was Calvin’s younger brother. Aiden was some kind of lawyer, I think. I hadn’t figured that out, yet. There were two girls, sisters of Tisiphone. They and their dates – I thought the boys were mortal – pretty much stayed to themselves. There were a couple of mortal boys, including Ahan and his boyfriend, Benji; and Captain Anders of Company Eagle. That’s about it. I was a little tired and a lot overwhelmed, so I may have missed some folks. It was fun, though. A lot more fun than I’d had in a long time. At least, I remembered that much.

Nemesis turned me over to Calvin, who challenged me to skee-ball. I cheered with the others when Gary kicked Uncle George’s butt at the next machine, and then accepted the sympathy of the other kids when Uncle George kicked my butt at eight-ball. I got a hug from him – and most of the child gods, too, so it wasn’t all bad.

That night, Calvin came to my bed. I was surprised, and almost frightened him away. Before he could leave, I called him back. We cuddled. And I felt as if, maybe, I would be able to cope with what was happening, because I knew Nemesis, Calvin, and the others were truly my friends.

Nemesis took charge of me the next morning, and showed me around the ranch. He also helped me learn to translocate. I’d done that unconsciously when I had gone from Anacostia to the ranch looking for Death. After a couple of short-range tests, I thought about going back to Anacostia, to see what had happened there, but Nemesis seemed frightened by that notion, so I didn’t. I knew there would be no one left alive in the hospital, and there was no practical way to take revenge on the mob that had killed my friends.

I spent that afternoon with Captain Anders and his staff planning the training for Company Eagle and inventorying the armory. We talked a lot, and bounced ideas off one another. At first, the boys were pretty stiff. As the afternoon passed, they became relaxed. So did I. It was good to be a kid, and it was good to have other kids with similar passions and knowledge to work with. After we determined what we needed, we called Calvin, who sent for Casey and Kevin, who showed up armed with iPads – something else I needed to learn about.

Captain Anders led off. “We’re going to need a firing range, at least 2,000 yards long with a hill behind it, with nothing behind the hill. We will need targets, and forms to hold the targets. The stuff the old Mars sent includes weapons, cleaning equipment, and supplies as well as a ton of ammunition; however, I want to start the younger kids on .22 rifles, and would like to have some of those, and ammunition and cleaning rods for them.

“We need a Tae Kwon Do instructor, and appropriate clothing for the students.”

I saw Casey and Kevin’s eyes begin to glaze, so I added, “You don’t have to get everything. The old Mars left me some memories. I know where to get the weapons and ammunition, targets, and spotter scopes for the snipers. Once you have the complete list, we’ll cross-check, okay?”

The two boy-gods nodded, and Captain Anders continued. “Scuba gear, Kevlar vests, night-vision equipment…”

I stopped listening at that point. I knew what he was going to say and there was something else I needed to think about. Alberto.

Seventy-six years had passed since we were together. We’d both been young teens. I could not remember why we separated. When I saw him in the ranks of Company Eagle, I had known him. He had known me. We had met that evening, briefly. We had remembered. We had remembered that we had known one another, but I was the only one who I knew seventy-six years had passed.

Gary

Company Eagle was the first of the Junior ROTC units that would be coming from Erewhon to Refuge. I gave Mars two days to get them settled and to start their training before telling him another group would arrive early the next morning.

“Eagle Company are ground-pounders,” I told him. “The next group, Company Leopard, are a little less tied to the earth.” I grinned, but wouldn’t tell him anything else.

Mars

I couldn’t get anything else out of Gary, so I decided to see if Nemesis would help. His official uniform seemed to be chiton and sandals. I wasn’t comfortable with my butt (much less my penis) showing whenever the wind blew, but I put on the Aspect Death had created for me when we first met, before looking for Nemesis.

What I hadn’t counted on was his enthusiastic hug and kiss. I liked it, a lot, until my penis called attention to itself, even under the cammies. Nemesis caught my thought, giggled, and changed to shorts and a polo shirt with white socks and trainers, which seemed to be the “kid uniform” around here.

“If you’re like me, you’ll never get used to it,” Nemesis said. “And you’re lucky. Your duty clothes are what you’ve got on, now. Mine is that chiton you saw me in. On the other hand, I know I have a cute butt. You do, too, by the way.”

I blushed, which Nemesis seemed to think was funny. He giggled. “What do you need to know?” he asked. “ ’Cause, I know you need to know something.”

“Actually, I’ve got two questions,” I said. “The first one is about this Company Leopard that’s supposed to show up, tomorrow. What did Gary mean about them not being ground-pounders?”

Nemesis giggled again. “Daddy’s a ground-pounder, himself. He appreciates artillery and close-air-support, but his eyes are almost always down and out, seldom up. The Company Leopard kids are pilots.”

“Pilots? There are no planes, here, and—” I started to say soon there wouldn’t be fuel for planes, but knew the gods’ word shaped reality, and I didn’t want to do that. Especially since I found out I was one of the most powerful of the gods. At least, I had inherited the powers of one of the most powerful. I still wasn’t quite sure what I could – or should – be doing with them, but I sure didn’t want to be doing the wrong thing.

“Gliders and hang-gliders,” Nemesis said. “Including some modified with propellers and electric motors powered from solar cells built into the wings. These kids are ingenious. And they know it.”

“Are they going to be as surprised as Company Eagle when they find themselves in Texas?” I asked.

Nemesis’ voice was quiet and level when he answered. I knew I was seeing an Aspect I’d not seen before.

“Yes. The roads between Chicago and here have become too dangerous for kids. Calvin and his boyfriends plus Tisiphone and her sisters will work together to translocate the entire busload to the ranch.

“We still ship a lot of stuff into Refuge by train and truck, but only stuff that we could do without if we lost it. So far, none of our shipments has been successfully hijacked. The Scions have a lot to do with that. They’ve had to fight off people who tried to steal our stuff. But we don’t want a busload of kids in the middle of a gun battle. The Company Leopard bus will leave Erewhon at 3:00 AM, but will be translocated here before they leave the campus.”

“They’ll arrive here shortly after 0200? I mean, 2:00 AM?” I asked.

“Yes, the cooks at the chow hall know and they’ll feed the boys breakfast.”

I thought about what he was saying, and integrated it into my “new” memories. My old ones were still mostly beyond reach.

“There is one more question,” I asked. “It’s kind of personal and a little embarrassing.”

Nemesis nodded and took my hand. The sun dimmed for an instant, and we were somewhere else, and alone. My head spun for a minute, like it was the needle of a compass seeking north. When it settled, I knew exactly where we were. Northwest corner of the canyon, about 100 yards from the wall. Nemesis pulled me onto the grass beside him. “Shoot,” he said.

“One of the boys in Company Eagle – I recognized him. But it was from seventy-six years ago, when we both were teens. He still is, but I’m pretty sure I was more like ninety before I changed. How can that be?”

“That’s not the real question, is it?” Nemesis asked.

“No,” I admitted. “The real question is I know we were boyfriends, and I’m pretty sure both of us remember and we want it to happen again, but he’s a mortal kid, and I’m a god and suddenly, a hell of a lot older – and younger.”

I got really angry when Nemesis laughed, until I realized that he wasn’t laughing at me, but at something inside himself.

“Mars … Allen,” he gasped, and then caught his breath. “You have come to the one person who can best answer your question. Like I said, I’m twelve and also forty-eight, no, more like fifty-four by now; you’re twelve and ninety. Not much difference between fifty-four and ninety – compared to twelve, that is.

“My boyfriend is an adult, and it took a long time and a lot of agony and questioning before that could happen. You want to know if you can be boyfriends with a teen, when you remember being ninety? And, you tell me this teen was a teen when you were a teen? Do you know that Death is both eighteen and more than two hundred years old, and his boyfriend is barely an adult? His oldest boyfriend, that is. He has two who are younger.”

I must have looked dumbstruck, because Nemesis hugged me, briefly, before continuing. “The world you came from created laws to protect children. Some of those laws prohibited sex between children and adults. Who was a child and who was an adult was not only different from state to state and nation to nation, but also from era to era. Often, it was different for boys than for girls. Still, the laws existed and some actually protected some children from some sexual predators.”

“I am not a sexual predator!” I said. “If Alberto is to be my boyfriend, it will be because we are in love—” I had to stop. I could not finish.

Nemesis touched my cheek. I felt his concern. “If you love him, and he loves you, you will find that, again, and it will be right. That’s what it took Gary and me so long to discover and understand.”

Dike

Mars.

I wish I knew what he was thinking when he decided to give his powers to Allen and just vanish from this plane of existence. Damn him, anyway. The planet hadn’t been without war somewhere since the late 1700s, maybe before that, and he’d managed to completely mess everything up. Then, just when things got critical, he gave his powers to a ninety-year-old Army sergeant, pushing the man’s own memories out of his head, leaving him as a teenager, and disappeared. Coward! I wanted to scream, but I don’t think he would have heard me.

The new Mars seemed to believe that his job revolved around Refuge Ranch and the Junior ROTC units that Gary was sending there. Fine. That was part of it, but there were also battlefields all over the world that needed his attention: Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, and don’t even ask me about Africa, the Middle East, and South America – or many of the inner cities of the USA. On the other hand, perhaps it wasn’t all bad. The old Mars, who was one of the original gods, had seen his job as promoting warfare. Maybe it would be better if this new one stayed out of the fray. Maybe, without his constant pushing, humanity would slow down the pace of war. Maybe.

Calvin

An unscheduled semi arrived in mid-afternoon. It had been cleared by the Scion at the front gate and was met by Casey, who had a bill of lading that identified the tractor, trailer, and driver. I’d not been briefed, and was stunned when the ranch hands began unpacking the truck. Unpacking rather than unloading. The truck was stuffed full of rods and wire and fabric that seemed to take on a life of its own as it was removed from the truck: wings and fuselages took shape as the material expanded to its original dimensions. After the first two, I called a halt. “We’ve got to find a place for these things before we unpack any more of them.”

That was when Tom arrived, took a look at what was happening, and said, “I wondered what that building was for. Now I know.” The two aircraft that had been unpacked were light enough they could be carried by a couple of men. Tom instructed them and the semi to follow his pickup truck up the north road.

I whistled for Silver, and followed. By now, no one – not even I – was surprised when Silver just appeared.

The road straightened on the other side of the hill. It was wider there than elsewhere, too. About 300 yards from where the road straightened out, there was a long, low, building with huge, sliding doors. A hanger, I realized. And the road, here? It’s a runway. Whose idea was that?

Nemesis popped in. He had a big grin on his face. “Mine,” he said. “Tom said it was no big deal to widen the road, and the hanger is pre-fab, so it didn’t take any time at all to erect.”

“You knew about this?” I asked. “Why wasn’t I told?”

Nemesis stared at me. “But you were. It was in one of those reports.”

I groaned. I was glad we used iPads. Otherwise, I’d have been buried in paper. Still, something must have slipped through. Nemesis figured out the problem, and showed me where the original report was. He was right. I’d missed opening an email. Sigh. “Is there anything else I don’t know? Something that might get us in trouble?”

Nemesis sobered up right quickly. “I don’t know, but maybe Aiden could help. He’s a whiz at paperwork.”

“Good idea,” I said. “Would you ask Gary to ask Aiden—”

“Why don’t you ask me, yourself?” Aiden had popped in beside us.

Nemesis

I was surprised Aiden had come. He was supposed to be working with the Congress of the USA to try to—”

“It’s not working,” Aiden said. His thoughts let me know he knew what I’d been thinking.

Athena had convinced Zeus to cede his powers as Eleutherious – Guarantor of Political Freedoms – to Aiden. Dike’s hope was that Aiden could stir the electorate to take charge, once more, of the country. However, fewer than 20% of registered voters even bothered to show up at the polls and most of them didn’t know who or what they were voting for or against. “That’s not enough to make a difference,” Aiden said.

“And, the president has suspended the constitution. That’s not what he said, but that’s what it amounts to,” Aiden said.

“Do you remember the program in California where they compared gun purchase records with court records, and went around searching homes of people who’d legally bought a gun and then got convicted of a felony, or had a restraining order taken out against them, or – get this – pleaded guilty or nolo contundre to getting in a fight at a bar?

“After a couple of years, the federal government decided to fund a national program to do the same. The first thing they did was to build a database of all gun purchases for the past 40 years. Last week, they started confiscating guns unless the owner had a current ID card saying he or she was on active military duty or a member of the guard or reserve – their definition of an ‘organized militia.’ Nobody caught on until today, and by then, it was too late. They used every cop, marshal, soldier, and DEA, ICE, Acorn, and Homeland Security Agent they could find.

“The citizenry has been effectively disarmed. And, quite frankly, based on their past participation in elections, they deserve it.”

Mars

I thought about having Company Eagle in place to meet the new kids, perhaps give them a sense of normalcy. Jon and I talked about it, and when he found out that the first thing on the schedule was midnight chow, he was all in favor, “As long as the Eagles get fed, too!” A quick check with the cooks, and that was agreed.

Company Eagle rolled out in formation at 0200. The tarmac in front of Leopard’s hanger was brightly illuminated. The doors were open to reveal the two planes that had been unpacked. Everything that could be done to make a bunch of kids believe it was a normal thing to be translocated from Chicago to Texas in an instant had been done.

Gary and Nemesis were there. Casey put his iPhone to his ear, and announced, “That was Calvin. Translocation will occur in ten seconds.

“Eagle Company, Atten-hut!” Jon called. Loudspeakers mounted on the hanger blared National Fencibles, one of Sousa’s lesser-known marches. Fencibles is an old name for the National Guard, and had been adopted by the JROTC units at Erewhon. A yellow school bus that hadn’t been there before shimmered in the arc lights.

In a replay of the Eagles’ arrival, twenty kids scurried off the bus and into a formation beside Eagle. The commander stood in front, at attention, waiting.

When the last notes of the march sounded, I walked briskly to stand in front of the commander. “Captain Duarty? Welcome to Refuge. Captain Anders and his troops would like to join you for midnight chow, after which you will be assigned quarters. Will you follow Captain Anders’ lead to the mess hall?”

In those few seconds, Captain Duarty and I took one another’s measure. He saw a kid perhaps his age wearing the five stars of a General of the Army. I’d remembered earning a Combat Infantry Badge and Jump Wings, and wore those, as well. Captain Duarty knew what the CIB was, and his eyes narrowed. I knew what he was thinking: How did a sixteen-year-old get a CIB? And five stars. I saw a kid perhaps my age wearing three circles, the standard insignia for a cadet captain. He also had jump wings, as well as command pilot’s wings.

The boy made a quick decision, saluted, and replied, “Yes, sir.” I returned his salute, and walked away. Captain Anders commanded “Right face,” and “Forward march.” Captain Duarty’s commands echoed an instant later.

I figured it would be a lot easier on me if Captain Anders had a chance to talk to Captain Duarty, and that perhaps the Eagles could provide orientation and assurance to the Leopards, so I sat with Gary and Nemesis, Calvin and Casey. We watched as the boys went through the chow line and sat together at the tables. Someone had marked the places with stickers of Eagles and Leopards, alternating. It took a while, but the room was soon filled with the chatter of excited boys.

“Going to be a long night for them,” Gary said.

“It will be five o’clock in the morning by the time they get settled, even though their beds are already made,” Calvin said.

“Jon knows the schedule and will fill in Captain Duarty,” I assured him. “They’ll all nap until 1000, and then have time to shower and get into clean cammies for lunch. Afterwards, Leopard will go to the hanger to play with their toys. No flying, today. Eagle will have PT. No weapons, today. Both companies should get to bed early tonight. They’re young; they’ll recover.”

My next hurdle, after getting Leopard settled, was Captain Anders. I pulled him aside the next morning, and translocated us to a remote place on the ranch. “Jon, I need to talk to you about Alberto.”

“Yes, Allen” he said. “You do.” I looked at him, and saw that in spite of his fear, there was still loyalty behind his words. I also noted that he’d used my first name, setting the rule that what we would say was between us.

“Have you accepted the magic that you’ve seen? The powers of the gods?”

“I must,” he said. “I accept the things have happened that I do not understand. I accept that you and Nemesis, Casey and Kevin, Aiden, and others can do things that regular people cannot do. I accept that my boys are safer here than in Chicago. I accept that Gary, Calvin, and you are in authority over me. I accept that my boys are going to become soldiers who will fight and perhaps die to protect this place. But.” He paused.

“I will not allow anyone to harm my boys. I will do whatever I have to do, whatever I can do, to make sure they are never thrown unprepared into harm’s way.”

“Jon, I will do whatever I have to do, whatever I can do, to make sure that neither you nor your boys nor the other boys who will arrive soon, are thrown unprepared into harm’s way. Again, all I ask of you is the loyalty any soldier owes a senior officer.

“And we need to clarify the chain-of-command. I am not your commander. Think of me, perhaps, as a military advisor. Your most senior commander is Gary, although he takes orders from Dike. It’s unlikely that she will ever interject herself, though. Still, she must be given great respect, as if she were, well, the commander in chief. Actually, her boss is Zeus, who is the real C-in-C, but he seldom comes around.

“Calvin is like your base commander,” I said. “He’s in charge of support, but has no military, tactical, or strategic control. He’s a good kid, though, and smart.”

Jon nodded. “Thank you for clarifying that, Allen. Now, what about Alberto?”

“Alberto and I were boyfriends more than seventy years ago,” I said. “We both want to have a chance to renew that.”

Jon sat quietly. I watched his face, and heard the loudest of his thoughts, although I did not try to pry.

“Seventy years ago. And Alberto is only fourteen? And you’re sixteen? Except when you’re twelve? I guess that’s okay. I mean, it’s no more weird than the part about you being a god. But I don’t know about officer and enlisted. That’s supposed to be against the rules. Of course, I’ve got a whole lot of new rules to learn. Can you at least keep it quiet?”

I agreed, and told him when he’d seen Alberto and me kiss, he was the only one who could have done so. “We were screened from others’ view. I will make sure that none of your boys has any reason to suspect, and certainly never sees.”

Alberto

Allen called to me. Not by phone or anything like that. He just called to me. I checked with my squad leader who said I might have some time off. He didn’t ask what for or where I would be. He trusted me. I had to make sure not to abuse or betray that trust. I went outside, where Allen was waiting.

“Allen? Is it really you? I’ve missed you so much!” I was mumbling around kisses while Allen said things like, “Alberto, it is you! I’ve missed you so much!”

“How much time do you have?” he asked.

“Squad leader said until taps, tonight. That’s at 2200 hours. Unless I wanted to eat with the company, in which case, 1800. I don’t want to eat with the company!”

Allen led me away from the barracks that looked like a house, and then took my hand. “Alberto, you know you were brought here from Chicago by magic, don’t you?”

I nodded. Captain Andrus had explained. Well, he hadn’t completely explained, but he told us something different was going on, something important, and we were part of it, and would we please trust him and the officers to take care of us and help us understand it. Of course, we all agreed. After all, he’d been our commander for a while, and he had earned our trust.

“Then please don’t be upset by what I’m about to do,” Allen said. And suddenly, we weren’t in front of the barracks but by a lake surrounded by trees. The sun hadn’t moved in the sky, so I knew we hadn’t gone far.

As if he knew what I thought, Allen said, “We’re just a few miles north of your barracks; however, this is a private place. I promised Captain Anders we’d not let the others know we were friends.”

I smothered what else he might have wanted to say with a kiss. I hugged him, and then ran my hands down his back and cupped his bottom, like I used to do. His tongue pressed through my lips, like it used to do. I sucked it into my mouth, like I used to do. We fell to our knees, like we used to do. The only thing different was that I don’t remember how our clothes came off, but we were naked, pressed together, holding one another closely, mouths open, tongues twining, breathing each other’s breath, gasping, and then spurting as if we’d not come in years.

Mars

“Uncle George? May we talk?”

Death, for it was he whom I addressed, nodded. “Yes, we need to talk. The Mars whose place you took and I were not friends. One of my predecessors had a battle with Mars and defeated him. There was a lot of bad blood between us. However, we cannot, we must not let that happen to us. There are too many things too important for us not to work together.

“I agree,” I said. “And, as I’ve told others, I am not he – the one who was not your friend. I am someone entirely different even though I have his powers. The biggest problem is that I have more of his memories than my own, although some of mine are starting to resurface. I remember the battle between my predecessor and yours, and I remember a lunch, at an oriental restaurant, when you made Mars angry. And I remember a scene – a terrorist bombing of a school, I think – when you called him out, and really pissed him off.”

I giggled.

“And that’s another problem,” I said. “I’m twelve years old, and I giggle!”

What Death said next nearly floored me. “Will you let your Uncle George give you a hug?” But I nodded, and stepped into his arms. It was a good hug, especially when he kissed the top of my head. In fact, I got an erection. Does he want to have sex with me?

“It’s okay to giggle,” he said. “Heck, Calvin’s eighteen, and he giggles. Don’t tell anyone, but sometimes I giggle, too. It wouldn’t do for people to know that Death giggles!”

He opened his arms, and I stepped back. My penis was still pushing at my cammies, and I figured he could see it. I wasn’t ready to ask that question, just yet, though.

“I promise to keep that secret,” I said. “And I promise not to allow the memories of the old Mars to affect our relationship. But there’s something else.”

“Alberto,” Death said.

“How did you know?” My voice was a whisper.

“I remember his death. It was in a naval battle in the Persian Gulf. He was assigned to the LPH New Orleans: Landing Platform Helicopter. It was host to Marine amphibious assault forces. The ship was struck by an Iranian cruise missile; Alberto died leading a team of firefighters.”

Death looked over the top of my head as if he were thinking. “I attend only significant deaths. I didn’t know at the time why Alberto’s death was significant, but I was called there. Then, fourteen years ago, Zeus summoned me, and said it was time for Alberto to return. That was unusual. Normally, Zeus gave such orders to Eileithyia. I escorted Alberto from the Realm of Pluto, and delivered him to Eileithyia.”

Apparently, Death saw my puzzlement. “She’s the goddess of Birth, and the Patron of Midwives and Obstetricians. She took Alberto from me; my job was done. I did not see him, again, until I felt his arrival here a few days ago.”

“Zeus had me do this so I could tell you that Alberto’s death, while heroic, was hard and painful. You don’t need to tell him that, though. He was a Lieutenant. I suspect that he and his mates in Company Eagle will be the cadre for more young soldiers, and that they’ll all likely become officers. In any case, you don’t need to worry – and you can tell Jon not to worry – about officer/enlisted relationships.”

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