Victory. 

That was what went across everyone’s mind when, during the evening, the expedition forces under Colonel Caity Hunter returned to Fortress Alpha. 

They were first discovered by a platoon of the 5th Motorized Company acting as the perimeter patrol, who quickly reported the good news back to their commander. By the time Caity reached the fortress, those who stayed behind, aside from those on guard duties, were crowding to greet the heroes. 

They were led by Major Fox of the 5th Company, who was in charge of Fortress Alpha in Caity’s absence. 

“Colonel.” He greeted as the armored vehicle carrying Caity deviated from the convoy and stopped at the side. “I assume the mission was a success.” 

On the side, the convoy slowly moved toward the parking lot, but Major Fox didn't even need to wait until they stopped to know they returned with prizes. Many of the Lav-25s and M1A2s were dragging behind them wheeled cargo boxes. Since the Phasewalkers didn't come here with too much transport, and they couldn’t figure out how the UEC APCs, tanks, and planes worked, they had to improvise. 

“Depends on how you define success,” Caity answered quietly. “Eric, tell the officers to…” She suddenly paused, realizing things weren’t exactly the same now as they departed, but she didn't let her feelings show. “Ryan, tell the officers to have their battle reports on my desk by tomorrow morning.” 

“Yes sir.” Ryan nodded as he moved slowly. The medics suggested that he take a few days off, but he refused. 

The convoy finally came to a stop, and exhausted Phasewalkers jumped down and started dissipating, most of them either to their barracks or the food court. Another good thing about foot soldiers was that they didn't have to bother with paperwork. The officers weren’t so lucky. They had to finish writing their reports before they could go to bed. 

As Alex jumped off the Lav-25 she was in, she took off her helmet and gave freedom to her long, dark hair. She has been wanting to do this for a long time. The temperature was warm enough to fry people alive, literally, but she and the others were ordered to keep their helmets on to be safe. For countless times, she wondered why she didn't just follow Colonel Hunter’s example and cut her hair short.

Suddenly, she saw a familiar figure looking around among the troopers that had returned. Normally, Alex would be way too tired to do anything but eat or sleep, but something made her change her mind. She sneaked up to the figure from behind and suddenly yelled. 

“Boo!” 

In the end, no matter how many battles she fought or how many enemies she killed, Alex was still a teenage girl. 

“Waaa!” Chelsea turned around, spooked. She took a breath of relief as she recognized Alex. “Jeez, Lieutenant. I was looking for you!” 

Chelsea was a medic in Alex’s platoon in the 4th Motorized Company. She was a Generation II Phasewalker, so she didn't get to go on this mission, and she damn sure wasn’t happy about it. Last night, when Caity’s decision was delivered, Chelsea spent half the night complaining to Alex until Alex basically screamed at her to be quiet. In return, Alex promised to tell Chelsea what happened on the expedition to satisfy her eagerness. 

Somehow, seeing the adorable face of the woman made her forget how tired or how hungry she was.

“I am so glad you’re ok.” The medic suddenly leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Alex. “I heard there were some casualties.” 

“Yeah, 4 Phasewalkers didn't make it back.” Alex lowered her head and sighed. “Well, battles have their costs, and honestly, for what we accomplished, this isn’t too bad at all. Some would even call it a miracle, given what we accomplished.” 

She turned around and glanced at one of the Lav-25s, where several Phasewalkers were putting something into caskets. They were the ashes, body camera footage, and everything the Phasewalkers killed in action left behind. They would be returned to Earth and put into the Hall of Martyrs as the forever tribute of the fallen. 

“They went down for the cause. That’s what every Phasewalker should wish for.” Chelsea whispered darkly before changing to a lighter tone. 

“By the way, Major Fox has ordered the staff to get some food ready for you champions. I’ve got to say, it’s gonna be quite a feast.” Chelsea reminded Alex as she helped the veteran Phasewalker carry her helmet. 

This notion made Alex smile, and for the right reason. After a brief trip back to the barracks to set down her gear and weapons, Alex and Chelsea headed straight for the food court. There, across dozens of rows of long desks, Phasewalker staff members were already getting plates and plates of food ready. 

The benefit of having an interdimensional doorway right behind them was that the supply of resources was not really a problem. To Section X, bringing food and other assets to the deserts of Nebraska was a piece of cake, and all the Phasewalkers had to do to get what they needed was send a few drivers across the Portal and bring the fully loaded trucks across. After that, it was a matter of moving the resources to the warehouses. 

As a result, to ensure the morale of the Phasewalkers, Section X provided them with anything they could need in their daily lives. Phasewalkers showered with shampoos, wore clean uniforms, and ate fresh food. 

Aside from, you know, all the fighting and killing and dying, things were actually quite nice here. 

“Ooohhh...a buffet.” Alex felt herself grinning in satisfaction. She snapped the opportunity and jumped into a line that was relatively short. As the others filled up behind her, her grin widened. 

She turned back and found Chelsea picking up a plate as well. “Wait, I thought you ate!”

“Yeah...but I am here, so…” Chelsea shrugged. “With all the patrol duties here, it’s not like I’m lacking the workout.” 

“Fair enough. I really shouldn’t teach a medic how to take care of herself.” 

The line moved quickly, and when it was Alex’s term, she helped herself to two pieces of pizza, a large piece of fried chicken breast, and a stack of broccoli. Chelsea added some salmon to her dish. When they got what they needed, the two jumped out of the line, accepted the gratitude of those behind them, and found their way to a table. 

“So,” As soon as they sat down, Chelsea couldn’t wait to ask her questions. “Lieutenant, what happened on the trip? I can’t wait!” She rubbed her hands in anticipation. 

Alex licked her lips. 

“I would tell you everything, except...well, my lips are a bit dry.” 

Chelsea’s expression was priceless as she turned and pointed at a table with several plastic bottles of drinks on it. “You know, I understand using this trick if you’re in a bar or something, but we literally have free drinks! All you have to do is reach out!”

“Yeah but it’s kinda far and I’m tired.”

“We literally chose the table right next to the drinks!” Chelsea reached out and effortlessly retrieved a glass cup and a bottle of Sprite without even having to stand up. “You know what, never mind.” She poured out a glass of Sprite and handed it over to Alex, who emptied it in one whole drink and tossed the cup back. 

Chelsea did a refill, returned the cup again, and stared at her Lieutenant with a death glare. 

Now Alex was really smiling. To be honest, when Chelsea first arrived, Alex felt what a lot of veterans felt. Annoyance and a sense of pride. But within a few days, the Lieutenant got to know Chelsea better, and the two slowly became friends. She really adored Chelsea’s sense of determination and courage in doing things, and Chelsea viewed Alex as a veteran heroine fighting for the cause more than she herself ever could. 

If there was anything Alex didn't like, it was how zealous Chelsea seemed. If anyone in the platoon said anything bad about the Phasewalker leadership, she would be the first to jump up and defend. A few guys in the platoon joked Chelsea would make a good Commissar. 

That didn't stop Alex from finding some joy in toying with the medic. 

Finally, under Chelsea’s intimidating stare, Alex finally gave in. Not before she started munching down on a slice of pizza, of course. It was when Chelsea was about to erupt that Alex started talking. 

“So, we were driving when someone from the 2nd Company at a scanner just started shouting in the radio, and the Colonel said something like ‘calm down you dumbass!’, and guess what that guy found?”

“What?”

“A giant, big ass Centipede.” Alex waved her hands as if she wanted to show how big the Mutant was, but all she did was place Chelsea deeper in the land of the confused. “It just leaped into the air and literally bit off half of a Lav-25!” 

“Wow...so that’s how the Phasewalkers died.” Chelsea whispered as she did her best to imagine what that must be like. 

“Well, three of them. That’s how three of them died.” Patricia’s eyes suddenly darkened slightly as she stuck another slice of pizza into her mouth. “Can I keep going with my story?” She mumbled. 

“Yeah!”  

“And then, Colonel Hunter was like ‘Oh no you don’t!’, and she had everyone open fire on that Centipede. The choppers. The tanks. The transports.” She smirked. “You know, if it wasn’t a man-eating bug, I would feel sorry for what happened, but as of now, I’m perfectly content.” 

“It killed our people.” Chelsea shrugged. “It deserves to die. In fact, it deserves way worse.”

“Yeah...and then, we finally arrived at Fort Sentinel. We had to wait outside for a while so a small squad of vanguard could scout ahead in case of an ambush or something.” Alex saw the thrill in Chelsea’s eyes and immediately added. “Nope. I wasn’t among the scouts. That’s way out of my league. Commissar Carlson led some of the boys from the Battalion Security Platoon and did the job.” 

“Hmmm...Commissar Carlson.” For a moment, Patricia swore she saw stars in Chelsea’s eyes. “I’d love to talk to him some day. I’ve heard all the legends about him!” 

“Legends?”

“Yeah! Did you know he was one of the first Phasewalkers to cross the Portal? He was one of the four to come home alive!” Chelsea exclaimed. “How exciting is that? And now, he is the Battalion Commissar to root out traitors and cowards among us! I don’t think there will be a Phasewalker Corps without him!”

“That’s...possible.” Alex shrugged. “Well, turned out a building in the base was infected by some sort of parasite. They literally slaughtered an entire division of locals! Apparently, Commissar Carlson got injured in the leg, so he stayed behind and sacrificed himself so the others could report back alive.”

“As expected.” Chelsea stated proudly. “He should be the model for all of us. I would do the same if I need to.” 

Alex glanced at Chelsea and was once again slightly concerned by what she just said. “Luckily, he was saved. Rumors have it that Colonel Hunter abandoned Commissar Carlson, but Lieutenant Hemingway faked an order and ultimately saved Commissar Carlson and killed all those parasites.” 

Chelsea shrugged, putting a piece of salmon into her mouth to cover her surprise. “Well, that’s good...I guess. Lieutenant Hemingway shouldn’t have lied about the order.” 

“Yeah. I just wonder how he’ll be punished.” Alex started working on the chicken meat. “Well, that’s pretty much it. We retrieved a lot of UEC weapons and gears, but I doubt the scientists back home can go through them soon.” 

As the story concluded, she expected to be able to enjoy her food in peace, but Chelsea pushed on. “I thought you said four Phasewalkers died. How did the fourth pass away?” 

“Yeah...about that…” Alex suddenly shrugged. “I’m not actually quite sure how he died. He was part of the vanguard.” 

“He was executed by Battalion Commissar Carlson for betraying his contract and abandoning his duty.” 

Suddenly, a figure sat down beside the two. Both women turned and found it to be one of the two Lieutenant Commissars in the 4th Company. 

“Despicable,” Chelsea said quietly, disgust clear in her voice. 

“Actually,” In contrast, the commissar simply shrugged. He didn't seem as determined as Alex and Chelsea expected from a Commissar. “I guess he did turn against his promises, but...there are better ways than shooting him in the head. I don’t know...” He trailed off. 

On the trip back, Ryan told all the commissars and officers what he did to the fourth Phasewalker trooper. He wanted them to know the true purpose of commissars. No matter how they were in normal times, as soon as dangers arose, they wouldn’t, and shouldn’t, hesitate to use the most direct and absolute methods to purge the threats. What happened was a message to the soldiers as well as the commissars. 

But Chelsea couldn’t agree with the commissar. For a moment, their roles seemed to have been reversed. She was the commissar and the man she was talking to became the ordinary trooper. 

“Sir, by betraying his peers, he became a coward and a traitor. The only thing traitors deserve is a bullet to the head.” She was fully serious right now. “I just hope Section X won’t waste resources on compensating his families. It will be a damn shame to everyone else who has held the line and fought until the very end.”

The man froze for a moment before nodding slowly. “Yeah...I guess.” He stood back up. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have something else to attend to.” 

For once, the Shieldbearer had to admit he was concerned. What Ryan did was against a lot of laws, as well as common ethics, but there were more than a lot of Phasewalkers in support of his decision. Really? Supporting the decision to shoot a defenseless comrade in the head when a court-martial could serve a similar purpose? 

Even more frightening was that the man found himself dragged to the idea as well. After all, all the fault was in the coward! He was a coward and a deserter and a loser and he deserved death! Go on! Hate him! Despise him! Unleash all your anger and fear and frustration on the dead! 

But...all he wanted was to live. 

Was that really so wrong about that? 

What was going on with this world?

As the Lieutenant Commissar walked away, the two finished the rest of their meals in silence. Finally, the day was getting dark and they returned to their barracks. As the Lieutenant, Alex had her own room. As the two walked inside, Chelsea suddenly grabbed onto Alex and pushed her onto her bed. She shut and locked the door before climbing onto the bed and sitting over Alex’s legs.

“Now, let me reward our champion…”

She bent over and kissed Alex in the lips. 

Alex resisted a whole two seconds before closing her eyes and giving in to the most basic instinct of human beings.