Chapter 1 – Treason

“…they killed to earn their living and help out the Congolese.”

– Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner – Warren Zevon.

To all outward appearances Peter Blood was an ordinary man, a little taller than some, a little thinner than others, but in most ways average.  A narrow, rather sharp nose separated his rather startling gray eyes.  His eyes were the first feature most people noticed, sometimes warm and compassionate, other times stark and unrelenting, but always keen and discerning.  His tanned, rather narrow face was dominated by those remarkable eyes.

However, his eyes weren’t responsible for his present circumstances, it was his choices and, perhaps, his mouth.  Well, not his mouth so much as the words that came out of it.  Peter was not a man to suffer fools gladly and his willingness to tell them so made him something of a loner with but a few friends.  Because of this Peter came to be known as self-reliant.  His friends would describe him as courageous, ingenious, quick-witted and loyal.  His detractors described him as stubborn, arrogant and a fool.  But no one ever described him as a coward.  If only he’d known when to keep his mouth shut.

Peter Blood, being self-reliant, could have done no less than to save an unknown man’s life.  The fact the man was an enemy soldier did not impact his decision or lessen his desire to help.  He provided help then and would do so again.   He would expect no less than to face the consequences of his actions and he would face them without remorse or regret.  And what were the consequences?  Beyond anything he could have imagined.

It began with a slap on the back.  When Peter looked up to see who had done the slapping he saw his friend, Jeremy Pitt.  “Peter,” Jeremy exclaimed “I need you now; a man’s life is at stake!”.   Jeremy’s exclamation was one Peter had heard on more than one occasion.  “Slow down, Jeremy” said Peter.  “If he’s lasted this long he’ll make it a few more minutes.  It will do him no good if I arrive only to find that I’ve left half my med kit behind, so give me a minute to get organized.”

Peter Blood was not a doctor, at least not in this army, he was only a medic, but Jeremy had seen enough of his friend in action to know that a wounded man had a better chance under his care than any of the so-called doctors on this base.

While Jeremy waited for Peter to get organized he reflected upon the odd circumstances that had brought him and Peter together.

The Earth had changed rapidly during the 21st century.  Following the collapse of the Euro, the Eastern European governments also collapsed, re-grouped and then collapsed again as countries warred over whom was to blame.  The United States, riven with internal disputes caused by the gap between rich states and poor states, slowly disintegrated into separate regions.   These regional disputes led first to threats of succession and then finally to actual attempts.  So once again, the United States was at war with itself.

During the time between the beginning and end of the Second Civil War and the collapse of the European Union the United Nations, to the surprise of many, evolved into a true World Government.  To the surprise of no one it was thoroughly corrupt.

While the United Nations grew stronger as the United States fought, a second occurrence took place to seal its ascendancy.  As if there wasn’t enough to fight about, global warming became a reality.  Here the surprise was not that it got warmer, that had been predicted for years, the surprise was the cause.

While everyone worried about carbon dioxide emissions they forgot there was a ball of gas that could, from a distance of 93 million miles, fry an egg on a New Jersey sidewalk.   While carbon dioxide had its role to play in global warming it was a mere understudy to the role played by the sun.  As the sun got hotter, the Earth grew warmer, and the resulting climate changes resulted in floods, hurricanes, drought and famine which was yet another reason for the chronic warfare.

The continual fighting had one major impact and several minor ones.  The major impact was that it provided a political vacuum for the United Nations to fill.  But it was the minor impacts that concerned Jeremy and Peter.  The chronic warfare  provided a “target rich” environment for mercenaries, the so-called soldiers of fortune of a new age, and also a vast increase in the number of prisoners (mostly political) and the need for a place to put them.  A few of these new age mercenaries were indeed fortunate, riding the tide of violence to wealth and power, but the majority were conscripts like Pitt and Blood.  It was this state of affairs that resulted in a young Scottish medical student becoming friends with a former United States Air Force pilot.

While Jeremy didn’t understand the global forces that had brought him and Peter together, he did understand that Peter was a friend he could count on, one not governed by the principles or opinions of others.  Peter Blood was a man who kept a cool head, one you could trust to cover your back in any situation.  Jeremy Pitt, while unfailingly loyal, might be said to have the headstrong nature that Peter lacked.  Jeremy was not one given to introspection.  He was impatient with obstacles.  It would not be stretching the truth to say that his world was one where obstacles were either gone around, pushed aside or blown up.  While some might believe his impatience was a result of his small stature, the so-called “short man’s syndrome”, those who knew him well realized that his size had nothing to do with it.

At 5’ 6” inches and 145 pounds Jeremy was more than content with his height and weight and wouldn’t change them any more than he would his red hair.  He’d found his calling at a young age (he was 5 when he rode in a helicopter for the first time with his father) and after that never again worried about his size.  Jeremy felt that being a helicopter pilot was the best job in the world; once he was in a copter his size didn’t matter.  He had better reflexes than most, sharper eyesight and a quicker, keener mind.  Jeremy was a great pilot.  Be it plane, helicopter or space shuttle, if it moved through the air, Jeremy could fly it.

In the few moments it took Jeremy to consider his relationship with Peter, Peter was ready to leave.  Jeremy hustled him towards his chopper and they flew about 20 klicks towards the front line.  It was obvious a brief, yet intense firefight had just ended.  After a fearsome landing Peter found, to his surprise, that the man Jeremy had brought him to save was an enemy soldier.  He couldn’t help thinking that this was typical Jeremy Pitt behavior, all heart… but maybe somewhat lacking in foresight.  So Peter’s surprise didn’t last long.  He knew Jeremy was, above all else, a man of honor.  He would shoot an aircraft out of the sky without hesitation, but would risk his life to save the pilot and crew.

As Peter surveyed his new patient it was apparent the man was in rough shape; in addition to a wound in the abdomen the man’s left leg had been broken and he possessed the various cuts and lacerations one would expect from a crash landing.  Still it was the abdominal wound Peter was most concerned with.  Abdominal wounds were tricky at best and without knowing the extent of the injury the man could simply bleed out, or, especially in this climate, an infection could take hold quickly.  Peter realized his patient’s chances for survival rested on a knife’s edge.   His best hope was to get him stable and back to the base fast.  It was during this critical time that a small squadron of soldiers led by lieutenant Young arrived.

Now some men might take a moment and assess the situation before giving orders, but sadly Lieutenant Young was not one of those men.  He was the sort of officer that enlisted men knew all too well.  In a different part of the world they might say he was “all hat and no cattle”.  In this part of the world what his squadron said about him usually referenced his parentage in a variety of unflattering ways.

Young immediately asked Peter what he was doing.  Peter, was quick with his reply “I am busy saving this man’s life and have no time to play 20 questions with idiots.”

His reply had an immediate impact on the lieutenant.   The lieutenant recognized he was dealing with a man of intelligence, bravery and skill, who had an enormous disdain for the military and most especially for the authority represented by the lieutenant.  Because Dr. Blood displayed in abundance so many qualities Young himself lacked, his dislike for Blood was deep and immediate.

“I asked, what are ya doing” repeated the lieutenant.  “Surely anyone with eyes can see I am attempting to save this man’s life”.  “Well, surely your eyes tell ya’ this man is the enemy” was the lieutenant’s outraged reply.   “Friend or foe his blood runs as freely as the next man’s, I didn’t take time to ask him his politics nor, in his present condition, did he offer them.”

Now Lieutenant Young considered himself not a man to be trifled with (which, as is often the case with such men, meant he was trifled with on an almost continual basis).  “I order you to stop treating that man.”  Blood answered with more than a little contempt “If its orders you’re giving, buy a dog, as it is more likely to obey them than me.”

Although nearly apoplectic the lieutenant realized that unless he was willing to shoot Blood on the spot, in front of witnesses, his choices were limited.  Before he could arrive at a decision regarding what to do with Blood, he had the injured man stabilized and with Jeremy’s help, loaded into the helicopter for the short flight back to the base.

While considering this situation it is important to note that this was not the sort of military where officers were considered “gentleman” and so it was a rarity for a wounded enemy to receive any humane consideration let alone medical treatment.  This was a backwater war where soldiers gave no quarter and expected none in return.  In that regard, Peter Blood was a throwback to a different place and time.  It was a credit to Peter’s will that the patient made it to Jeremy’s helicopter still breathing.  However, as often happens, Peter won his battle, but lost the war.