Where had all this damage come from? The nearest ground zero was in California, too far to have caused this and even his sharp, military mind couldn't come up with another reason. This had to be the edge of a bomb zone, one that had come after communications fell, and he would add it to the map he was keeping.
Lightning flashed in the distance and the vivid reds and golds had his eye, but his mind was on his people and their broken country. How much of his beloved homeland now looked and felt this way? Most? Would they really be forced into the caves to survive, blown back hundreds of years in evolution?
"What new life can there be if we have to live it inside the rotting shell of the old one?" He muttered.
Adrian tensed again, this time at the soft crunch of a boot step, hand dropping to his hip even though he knew no one had gotten past the guards. There were three full shifts of men on the perimeter right now, and he could feel them watching, looking out for him too, even though he wasn't specifically training them to do that yet. They were following Kenn's lead.
"Adrian?"
He pushed his dreary thoughts to a back file. They would do what they had to. Maybe the mountains wouldn't be as bad as he was expecting. They hadn't voted on a final settling place yet, but he already knew that's what they'd pick and he had his doubts about being able to make such a place safe for even a month, let alone for the nuclear winter he still feared was coming. The first would be the hardest.
Following the guards' eyes, Kenn eased down the small, muddy hill and sat down, handing over a mug of hot coffee. Like Adrian, he didn't notice or care that mud was seeping into his clothes. It didn't matter anymore, only survival did.
"How are they?" The tone was that of a commander asking about his troops after a hard day.
Kenn's answer was simple, honest. "Tired and down, same as you."
Adrian nodded, but didn't offer any excuses that would only be obvious lies. It was impossible to pretend everything was fine when you were rolling over the unburied bones of your fellow Americans.
"We'll be better when we're away from here," Kenn stated as he took a sheet of paper from his pocket. He'd been thrilled to see Man on Point on his schedule this morning, and when the birds had hit them (coincidence or Fate?) he'd come through with full marks. Before the sick flyers, though, there had been surprise from the Eagles. Now, Kenn had more pals than he needed and had chosen to keep these current favorites at arm's length for the moment. Adrian was the only one he really gave a damn about.