The Chameleon Soldier: NOW AS AN ALIEN BLUE HE CANNOT DIE. Read Online Free

Station, and the Battle of Beverly Ford. During their mounted charges the 1st Cavalry lost over a hundred men, most to saber wounds. Then they were sent to Camp Buford, in Maryland, for rest and re-equipping.
    Before rejoining the Army of the Potomac, Killian Muldoon was promoted to sergeant. After returning to battle, the regiment’s first engagements against the Confederate cavalry and infantry were at Manassas Junction and Catlett’s Station. After those successful battles they were employed, during the winter months, to do picket duty along the Rapidan River.
    In the spring, the 1st Cavalry accompanied General Sheridan’s regiment on his daring raid around Richmond, Virginia, fighting at the Beaver Dam Station, the Battle of Cold Harbor and the Battle of Trevilian Station. The fighting was severe; the count of men and officers of the 1st Cavalry who were killed was high. The regiment was then sent to patrol the Chickahominy River, where they set up camp on the north side of the river, a few miles south of Richmond. During the rainy season the river would flood, causing much of the land to be swampy; this, however, was the dry season. Their camp was by a docile, narrow part of the river, which was easily crossed. The enemy was not far away, as their camp was on the south side of the river. This accounted for the regiment’s daily skirmishing encounters with the Confederate Rebels.
    One evening, Sergeant Muldoon was resting in his tent when he was summoned to Colonel Crosset’s tent. He knew what the colonel wanted. It was what he always wanted. Killian and the men under his command were the lead reconnaissance team. In addition, Sergeant Muldoon had volunteered for night patrols. He had done this for two reasons. First, he knew that with his new, weird, unasked for ability to transform, he’d be able to protect his men from danger. Secondly, by doing night reconnaissance, he would be better able to keep his unusual chameleon-like transformations a secret. Killian hated his situation, but he couldn’t do anything about it. He had become resigned to the fact that his encounter with the Navajo Indian, who had spilled bluish fluid on him, and then turned into an odd grey-looking thing, and disappeared in a fiery flash, had fundamentally altered his body chemistry. Over the past three years he had hoped and prayed he’d become normal again. His prayers, however, hadn’t been answered.
    That night, after his briefing with the colonel, Sergeant Muldoon and four of his men crossed the dry ground and approached the narrowest part of the Chickahominy River. Killian felt it was a good night for reconnoitering, as there was good cloud cover. There wouldn’t be any moonlight, and less chance of being seen. However, unbeknown to him, they were not the only ones out that night.
    Lieutenant Liddle, who had been listening outside the colonel’s tent, had heard the colonel’s instructions to Sergeant Muldoon. The lieutenant, who was dubious of Killian’s uncanny ability to be successful on all of his intelligence-gathering missions, secretly followed the party down to the river. He did not trust the sergeant. He watched as Killian directed two of his men to check the river to the north and the other two to probe the river to the south. Sergeant Muldoon stood and watched as his men did as ordered. Lieutenant Liddle, standing in the shadows, wondered what Killian was doing. He anticipated that Killian would move up or down the river, but he didn’t. Instead the sergeant waded into the river and disappeared from the lieutenant’s view. Lieutenant Liddle waited about ten minutes, but didn’t catch sight of the sergeant again, so he returned to the camp.
    After Killian had crossed the river, and was about fifty yards inland he saw a Confederate patrol, and ducked down. As they passed by, Sergeant Muldoon’s uniform changed into one of a Confederate sergeant. He stood up and walked into the enemy camp, strolling over to a large