Portal Wars 1: Gehenna Dawn Read Online Free Page B

at or below your rank by his handle, even in
combat. In camp you could usually call an enlisted superior by his
nickname, though generally not in the field. It all depended on the
non-com. Things tended to be much more relaxed among the real
veterans, guys who’d been onplanet two years or more. With first
year casualties averaging over 80%, that was a small group.
    Taylor reached the end of the rough tunnel
leading from the barracks area to the infirmary. The field hospital
was several levels lower than the main base, in the most secure
section of the facility. The 213th was lucky…they shared their HQ
with the battalion hospital. The other strike forces had only rough
aid stations. They had to get their serious casualties evac’d to
Base Delta, which was anywhere from 20 to 50 klicks from the other
strike force HQs.
    There was a rough metal ladder built into the
stone wall, leading down through an opening. UN Forces Erastus
didn’t waste time on anything fancy. Everything needed for the war
effort had to come through the Portal, and it took a dozen nuclear
reactors on Earth to power the thing. Casualties brought in from
the field came through a larger tunnel that ramped down from the
surface, but lightly wounded grunts making their own way from the
barracks had to climb.
    Taylor reached out and grabbed the first
rung, wincing as he felt the predictable pain shoot through his
chest. There were 36 rungs leading to the infirmary level, and
every one of them was going to hurt.
     
    “I told you to stay off-duty, didn’t I?” Doc
Evans had what was generally considered to be the least original
handle on Erastus. He’d been there for a long time, so long that no
one Jake had ever met could remember a time when Doc wasn’t the
battalion surgeon. His handle was so ubiquitous, Jake wasn’t even
sure he’d ever known Evans’ first name. If he had, he’d forgotten
it.
    Jake made a face. “It’s a damned good thing I
went, Doc.” Evans was a captain, an exalted rank that should have
precluded a sergeant like Jake from using a nickname. But everybody
called Evans “Doc.” Everybody. “Somebody really screwed the pooch
on that one. We’re lucky anybody made it back.”
    Taylor sat on an examination table, gritting
his teeth while Doc slid the bone fuser across his back. The fuser
didn’t hurt, not exactly. But it was an unpleasant feeling, sort of
a cross between electric shocks and bugs crawling across your skin.
It was worth it, though. One short session was as good as a month’s
normal healing.
    Jake had been in a lot of pain since the
battle, but he’d stayed away from the infirmary for over a day.
He’d always believed the first day was for the seriously wounded.
He couldn’t stand the idea of sitting around the hospital whining
about his sore ribs, while his boys where having their guts sewn
back together.
    “Yes, I know you’re indispensable, Jake.”
Evans smiled. He had a pleasant disposition; even his sarcasm was
gentle. He was condemned to spend the rest of his life on Erastus,
just like all the grunts he put back together, but it never seemed
to bother him. Doc was the most liked guy Jake Taylor had ever
known. In five years, he’d never heard a negative word uttered
about the battalion’s surgeon. “But still, you should listen to
your doctor once in a while.” He paused, his smile broadening.
“Just to be polite.”
    “OK, Doc.” Taylor didn’t mention he was
dragging his section out for unscheduled maneuvers in a little over
14 hours. “I’ll try to take it easy.”
    Evans nodded, but he looked unconvinced. He’d
known Jake Taylor for a long time, and he didn’t expect his
suggestion would accomplish much. Still, he figured, at least I
tried. Doc had dealt with a lot of the old timers on Erastus, and
they were all pretty much the same. He wasn’t sure if they thought
they were invincible, or they just didn’t care. But not one of them
listened when he told them to take it