The Dying of the Light: Interval by Jason Kristopher

uh… thank you, young man,” said the president. “Who might you be?”
    “Malcolm Dagger, sir. Bunker Four.”
    “Ah, yes, our neighbor! Glad to have you aboard, son. Always good to meet a new governor.”
    I looked over at Kim, rolled my eyes, and mimed raising my feet off the floor, eliciting a chuckle she quickly turned into a cough as Gates glanced her way. It’s getting deep in here , I thought.
    “Not a new governor, sir,” said Gates, trying to take control of the call back from the two. “Governor Yarborough is indisposed. And we have a pressing matter regarding Bunker Nine, sir.”
    “Yes, yes, I’m sure that’s all very important. I have some bigger news, though. Effective immediately, control of operations of the AEGIS bunkers will pass to my staff here in Bunker Five, under an executive order.”
    The noise was deafening, to the point that Gates dialed down the volume from her control at the end of the table. The only bunkers not adding to the noise were our own and Bunkers Seven and Eight. Eventually, someone at one of the other bunkers got tired of the yelling and started slamming something hard down onto the table, over and over like a gavel, until the noise finally died down.
    Naturally, it was the president who took the initiative to continue. “As I said, the bunkers are now under the authority of my staff here at Bunker Five. You will each be contacted regarding new procedures—”
    “Begging your pardon, Mr. President,” said a familiar voice, interrupting what were clearly carefully prepared remarks. Kim and I sat up straight and looked at each other, grinning like fools.
    This is going to be good , I thought.
    “Begging your pardon, sir, but that’s got to be the worst idea I think I’ve ever heard come out of your mouth. Or the mouth of any president, for that matter. And that’s saying something.”
    The president was clearly flustered. “Who the hell is this?”
    “Brigadier General George Maxwell, sir.”
    Not even the newly-appointed president could forget that name. “Well, General, I assume you have something to say, so say it. Although I’ll be having a chat with Governor Ridgely as soon as I can.”
    “Governor Ridgely right here, sir. I’d listen to him, Mr. President.”
    When there was no answer from the president, Maxwell continued, “Putting all operations from the AEGIS Bunkers under the control and planning of one man is insane, sir. Not only do your people not have the faintest clue about what we’re dealing with here in our bunker, or they’re dealing with in Bunker One, or any other bunker, for that matter, but you’ve also left out the simple fact that you can’t run a facility as large as these by remote. Things happen, decisions need to be made on a daily basis that can’t wait for approval from someone thousands of miles away, especially when a good strong storm can knock out communications for days.
    “Have you ever seen what a haboob does to a communications tower, Mr. President? Do you even know what it is? It’s a sandstorm. It etches glass like acid, and we have to replace all manner of parts on our tower. Fortunately, we prepared for that and have the extras, but if we had to come to you to get approval to use them… well, that’s just stupid, Mr. President.”
    “Are you quite through, General?”
    “No, sir. Not by a long shot. But that’s OK. Speak your piece.”
    It was all I could do to keep from laughing out loud. God, I miss that man. I noticed that Kim was more than a little red-faced with internal laughter, too. Hell, even Gates was cracking a smile.
    “Very well, then. My orders stand. Any bunker refusing to comply will face reprisals—”
    The laughter was clear, and this time Maxwell didn’t wait for the go-ahead. “Reprisals? How? Are you really that much of a fool, sir? What will you do from thousands of miles away? Do you see now how ridiculous this whole thing is?” He laughed once more, then calmed. “Anyway, the