ROAD TRIP THROUGH THE APOCALYPSE (The Hoshoku Chronicles Book 2)

by Vincent Fields

  CHAPTER 12: POWDER KEG

  T ak’s nano-Kevlar bodysuit had stopped the soldier’s bullet but the 5.56 millimeter projectile that had been moving at over 2,500 feet per second had still dropped him in pain as it thumped into his leg. He thought about tapping into his gift, but the immediate threat of the first trigger happy soldier had already been neutralized by Ringo; at least for the moment. He knew if he waited too long he could be shot by the other soldiers before he could react, but then again he didn’t want to reveal his gift to them if things soon came under control. He decided to play it according to the moment to moment reality that developed as the other soldiers entered. If they came in firing he’d have to take them out. He started getting back up to his feet.

  As the soldier behind the first young one rushed in, Nathan and Amy drew their pistols to the low ready position and began yelling, “Hey, we’re police! Don’t shoot! We’re police!” Three more soldiers pushed into the RV behind the second one. The first two peeled off to their right towards Nathan and Amy with their rifles leading the way. The third peeled off to the left and aimed in at Tak, who had just stood back up. These men, luckily a bit more reserved than the first man who had ran in and fired, looked before they decided to fire any rounds. They saw the police badges hanging from the necks of the people in the RV and they began yelling, “Drop your weapons, drop your weapons!” Nathan and Amy held their pistols aimed down towards the floor just in front of the nearest soldier as Nathan yelled again, “Damnit men; we’re cops! Lower YOUR weapons!” Ringo continued to shake on the first soldier’s arm who screamed in pain. The inside of the RV was a powder keg about to explode.

  Tak yelled to Ringo as he grabbed his collar, “AUS AUS!” which was the German command to let loose. After another violent shakes Ringo did as he was instructed and backed off, tail wagging slowly as he was ready to jump right back into the fray. Just then trooper Hardin, still outside the driver’s window yelled, “Stop! Everyone lower your weapons! Don’t you idiots see these are cops?!” His words seemed to silence the yelling from both sides as they just stood motionless. The trooper shouted again, “Soldiers; lower your fucking guns! You’re pointing them at cops!” His words seemed to finally break through whatever spell held the soldiers in place, and they began lowering their guns. Nathan and Amy holstered theirs and much of the tension left the room as everyone’s ears continued to ring from the initial three-round burst.

  The trooper ran around from the driver’s side to the passenger side middle entrance door. He entered and walked up in front of the soldiers. He spoke to Tak and his friends, “Sorry about that folks. These men have been under a lot of stress today. They’ve already been shot at and tried to be run over.” Tak nodded as he rubbed his sore inner thigh. “No problem officer. I’ve been in combat myself… the fog of war has a real effect on people in times like these.” Trooper Hardin nodded. “May I see each of your police ID’s and licenses?” Tak, Nathan and Amy each presented their cards for him to inspect. The trooper did so and seemed satisfied. “Were checking all vehicles for looted goods. Martial law has been enacted, as you probably know. You’ll likely run into a few more roadblocks, especially at night. Folks are free to travel the highways, but almost every city that can has started blocking off their exits at night; no one in or out. Looters are running wild, especially in the bigger cities. Where are you folks headed anyway? You don’t seem to be on duty, and you’re a long way from Illinois.” We are headed down to Florida, Officer. Officer Braxton here has a bit of a family emergency and we’re going down to get her people who are stranded there.” Officer Hardin nodded his understanding.

  Now that things had calmed down and a bit of a repor had been established, the young soldier seemed to realize the error he’d made and he stood up, holding his bloodied hand. “Oh, um, sorry about that, I uh… I just saw your gun and thought you were gonna go for it.” Tak spoke calmly to him, “Your mistake almost cost several people their lives, but I do understand the stress you’re under. Often it’s better to slow down and think things through before you rush into anything. You’d better go get that stitched up. Tango here has the tag around his neck to prove that he’s had his shots, so you’ll be fine.” The young man seemed to be embarrassed and appreciated Tak’s attitude. “Yes sir… uhh… thanks.” Trooper Hardin turned to exit, “OK, Sorry again about the trouble, ya’ll be safe out there.” Tak nodded, “Same to ya’ll.”

  Nathan got back in the driver’s seat and they pulled through and past the checkpoint. As he drove Tak inspected the couch and floor where the bullets had gone in. The holes in the floor went clean through. Under the couch an ammo can full of grenades had been hit. The round had apparently gone through it and punched a small hole in the RV’s side wall behind it. Amy’s eyes opened up widely… as she considered that a grenade might have been hit. She gave a shrill whistle, “Wow that was close. We’re lucky to be alive.” Tak shook his head, “Those grenades are surprisingly tough. I doubt a round would hit it just right to set it off. However we need to check the damage from beneath. Pull over, will ya?” Nathan turned on his signal, “Sure thing.” He eased the RV over to the shoulder of the road, grabbed a flashlight and they all got out. They first checked the driver’s side and then Tak crawled underneath and checked the fresh holes there. There was a small hole near the bottom wall on the driver’s side of the RV and another underneath. “They don’t seem to have hit anything vital. We can patch these up.” Amy grabbed Tak by the arm, “I’m more worried about you than the RV. Let’s see where you got hit.” Tak looked down at the fresh hole in his pants where the round had entered, “Oh I’m fine, my armor suit saved me again.” She grabbed his arm and locked eyes with him as she spoke firmly, “Let Nathan work on fixing these holes; you just got shot and we’re gonna check it out.” Tak looked to Nathan helplessly as he smiled and took the toolkit, “She’s right man; I got this.” Nathan went about making the temporary repairs for the next few minutes as other vehicles passed them by on the highway before they hit the road again. Inside Amy pushed Tak over towards the couch as she issued an order, “OK, drop those pants; let’s see this bad boy. Tak looked up at her with a bit of uncertainty as she grinned, “I’m talking about your wound, silly. Come on, don’t be shy.” Tak unbuckled his belt, undid his pants and lowered them. He then gingerly lowered the bottoms of his black nano-Kevlar suit, revealing a painful-looking developing bruise on his right inner thigh. “See, it’s nothing.” Amy got a small ice pack from the freezer and put it on the bruise. “That could have been a lot worse Tak. You’re lucky.” Tak nodded as he held the ice pack in place, “Ya, you’re right… although if I hadn’t been wearing this suit I’d have played the entire situation differently. The last thing I need is for the military or the government to catch wind of my abilities and study me like a lab rat.” Amy nodded her head, reluctantly conceding to his point.

  A few minutes later Nathan came back inside the Beast and started her up. “She’s all good. Nothin’ a little duct tape couldn’t fix.” Tak patted his buddy on the back, “Good deal.” Soon they merged back into traffic; eager to get back on the road.

  The red sedan that had pulled over about 50 yards behind them didn’t stand out at all amongst the several vehicles pushed off the side of the road just past the checkpoint. Sarah watched, followed and waited for her opportunity.

  CHAPTER 13: WELCOME TO THE UNITED STATES

  T adashi stepped onto a short set of telescoping stairs attached to the Order’s private jet shortly after they arrived at St Louis International Airport. Not caring that he and his servants would stand out due to the way they were dressed, he wore his black kimono and had a three-foot long sheathed wakizashi sword in a silver metal scabbard on his left side. His servants followed behind, each wearing their matching brown kimonos and large leather packs. The color of their kimono’s signified their roles as master and servant; to people familiar with modern Japanese customs anyway.

  They were greeted by a pretty an
d petite mid 30’s Japanese airline stewardess as they reached the ground. Her black silky hair was up in a bun and she wore a creased dark blue suit jacket with gold buttons and a knee length matching skirt over dark panty hose. A sky-blue silk scarf puffed out between her pointed white tips of her collared shirt and she wore a gold and diamond wedding ring set on her left ring finger. She looked very professional and classy; she could be on a poster for how a Japanese airline stewardess was supposed to look. A large luxury transportation cart was parked behind her. She bowed deeply to them, her head going to the level of her waist and her eyes looking down at the ground as she uttered their culture’s traditional professional greeting. “Honjitsu mo yoroshiku onegaishimasu, Takamura-sama! ... Thank you for your business this day, Mr Takamura!” Her smile was radiant. She continued in Japanese, “Welcome to the United States! I am Aiko; your assistant as long as you remain in St Louis.” She leaned in closer toward Tadashi and spoke quietly, “The Order has tasked me with assisting you in acquiring whatever you may need here to start your journey off. We have many resources at your disposal Sir.”

  Tadashi looked over at Shinji, his short and well-muscled servant, and motioned with his head towards him. Shinji produced a piece of paper from a fold in his clothing and handed it to Aiko. She looked at it for several moments, nodding in what seemed to be appreciation. “Ah yes, this is a very nice vehicle. I will work on getting it, the food, gas and water for you as soon as possible. Will you be needing anything else Sir? Weapons or equipment perhaps?” Tadashi scowled, “You already know what I require of you. Just go get it all quickly, woman.” Aiko bowed in submission before speaking again. “Yes sir. We have secured a nearby luxury suite for you to wait in while I gather these things, if you so desire.” Tadashi nodded his affirmation with his usual air of arrogance. He was growing impatient with the conversation. “Just report back to me immediately when the vehicle is ready. I am anxious to get on with my business here.” Aiko bowed, “Yes sir.” Nobu and Shinji began loading their packs and gear on the cart as Aiko assisted them. Tadashi sat in the front passenger seat, holding only the silver sword in his lap. Aiko sensed not to even offer to take it from him to put it with the back with the rest of the gear. Once they were all loaded up she drove them towards their nearby hotel.

  As she drove Tadashi spoke to his men, never bothering to turn back to look at them. “I want you two to make sure that the tracker is on at all times until this mission is over. If it beeps and I’m not around let me know immediately. Make sure you keep plenty of extra batteries for it. Fail at this simple task and you will pay dearly.” They bowed their heads and replied in unison, “Yes sir.” Shinji reached over and removed the tracker from the black hard case it was in and switched it on.

  CHAPTER 14: CHARRO’S TEXT

  A fter Charro had been brought inside the gas station to get first aid for his destroyed right hand, he’d gotten lucky to have met Tanisha; a thick early 50’s black woman who was an experienced emergency room nurse. She applied a tourniquet a couple inches above his left wrist where the horrible tear had stopped. He grimaced through the pain as he laid back and pulled his smart phone out to compose a text message using the voice-to-text feature. He tried his best to compose himself as he sent the following text out to over 200 of his fellow gang members, who in turn forwarded it on to over 2,000 more around the country.

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  TO ALL SOUTHERN DEVILS - FORWARD THIS MESSAGE TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW IMMEDIATELY!

  FROM CHARRO: - PRESIDENT OF THE NASHVILLE TENNESSEE CHAPTER OF THE SOUTHERN DEVILS

  ME AND 5 BROTHERS WERE JUST AMBUSHED BY A COP NEAR NASHVILLE. THEY ARE ALL DEAD AND I’M HURT. I WANT THE PIG WHO DID THIS! DO NOT KILL HIM, JUST HOLD HIM FOR ME. HE IS IN AN OLD WHITE MOTORHOME. HE IS AN AVERAGE SIZED WHITE GUY… HE MIGHT HAVE SOME ASIAN MIXED IN WITH HIM. HE IS ABOUT 30, SHAVED HEAD, BROWN CLOTHES. BRIGHT BLUE FUCKING EYES. IM TOLD HE HAS A COUPLE FRIENDS WITH HIM. BOTH OF THEM WHITE. I DON’T KNOW WHICH WAY HES GOING, BUT HE IS PROBABLY ON 24 EAST OR WEST RIGHT NOW. CALLS ARENT GOING THROUGH VERY WELL BUT TEXTS ARE WORKING FINE FOR NOW. TEXT ME IF YOU SEE THE PIG. ANYONE WHO HOLDS HIM FOR ME WILL HAVE MY UNDYING FUCKING GRATITUDE AND 100K CASH. IF YOU KILL HIM I WILL KILL YOU SO JUST HOLD HIM UNTIL I GET THERE!

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  He looked over the text he’d just composed. He knew he had to get it right while he was still conscious. His left hand pulsed with more pain than he’d ever known and it radiated up to his shoulder in sickening waves. Tanisha was speaking to him, but her words came across as if they were far away, “Do you understand what I’m saying sir. We have to amputate immediately, there’s no way to save your hand but if we don’t stop this bleeding now you will die.” He looked up at her and grabbed her hand with his good one. “Listen carefully lady. I may be an outlaw, but I’m a man of my word. Save my life and get me back to my boys at the clubhouse and I’ve got over five grand in my left saddlebag with your name on it… and I’ll throw in 10 grand more when I wake up back there. Take care of me till I’m better and I’ll make sure you get even more than that.” She seemed a bit taken back but the large number quickly registered in her head and she thought about how that money could help her grandchildren… “Why I couldn’t… well… where is this clubhouse of yours?” He grimaced as he unlocked his phone, opened the GPS app and typed in an address, “Here, this will take you right to it.” She nodded, “OK sir, I’ll do my best, but first we have to deal with this wrist. Are you ready?” He let go of her wrist and looked away, “Do it.”

  She yelled to the store manager, “Do you have a hacksaw and some towels somewhere in here that you can bring me?” The manager nodded and ran to go get them from the back. She spoke to another onlooker near the counter next to a rack of large butane torch cigar lighters. “Toss me one of those.” A few in the crowd gasped, knowing what was about to happen but yet unable look away. Tanisha removed Charro’s leather belt, folder it over once and put it in front of his mouth. “Here; bit down on this when the pain comes.” Charro put the leather in his mouth and positioned it between his teeth. He understood what was going on but he only focused on the cop who did this to him. He’d get his revenge on him if it was the last thing he ever did. With some prodding, Tanisha had several bystanders held him down and she began first sawing through the wrist and then torching the nub. Amazingly, he never passed out; instead he screamed through clenched teeth all the while.

  CHAPTER 15: THE RITZ

  T adashi and his henchmen’s suite was a ten thousand dollar a night luxury apartment that took up the entire top floor of the Ritz-Carlton hotel. Aiko escorted them there, where a hotel employee waited to greet them and provide any service they requested. She explained that most staff hadn’t reported to work since the collapse had begun, but service to the high end clients was always a high priority and they would still be well tended to.

  Fine food was served throughout the day as they waited. The men exercised, swam in the pool on their balcony and relaxed in the last piece of luxury they were likely to experience for some time. Looking out over the balcony Tadashi took in the splendor that was the St Louis Arch, sitting in front of the wide and brown Mississippi river. He’d never seen anything like it; a huge steel loop that shot up over 600 feet into the sky, seeming to defy the laws of physics just to remain upright. He pointed and spoke to his servants, who were swimming in the pool just behind him. “What is that thing?” Nobu looked out through the glass-like wall on the balcony and saw that he was asking about the Arch. “That is the Gateway Arch sir. It is a stainless steel monument that Americans put up to symbolize that it is a gateway to the west. It shows that they had expanded and taken over the land all the way from the eastern coast to the western one, no matter who they had to kill and run off to get it. They are like a spreading cancer that took over this land, Sir.” Tadashi didn’t turn as he contemplated Nobu’s words. “It sounds like they are a pretty driven people. I like that.” Then he spoke as if his words were a noble declar
ation. “I will take a closer look at this monument before we go home.” Shinji added in, “Sir, there is an elevator inside the arch that takes passengers to an observation deck inside of it at the top.” Tadashi nodded, “Well, I will stand there before we leave this land.” His well-trained servants replied in unison, “Yes sir.”

  Around 6PM Aiko reported back to the room with news. Tadashi’s servants were nowhere in sight when he opened the door and let her in. He was wearing one of the hotel’s plush white robes, which revealed his tan, muscular chest and upper stomach. She bowed and spoke as she handed him a set of keys, “The SUV you requested is in the parking garage below Sir. It is packed with several cases of food and 30 gallons of water. We could not get every option you requested in such a short time, but I think you’ll be happy with what I was able to acquire. Your Teradyne Gurkha is a used 2030 model with level 10 ballistic armor and a solar hybrid engine that gets right at 100 miles per gallon when running mainly on solar, and has just over 800 horsepower when you fully depress the throttle. However this one does not have the mounted mini guns or the smoke screen that you requested on it. If you would like to wait it will take a few days to get it upgraded.” Tadashi looked down as Aiko gave him the news. She could tell he was disappointed. “You should know that we have access to some excellent firearms and equipment that you might find useful on your journey, sir.” A smug grin came across his face as he looked back up at her. She smiled, hoping he was pleased, just before he backhand slapped her. It wasn’t a terribly hard strike, but it was enough to knock her down and cause a line of blood to drip from her mouth. He strode over to stand in front of her as she instinctively began to crawl back. “That is for failing to get the vehicle as I specified… and it is not your place to tell me what I should or shouldn’t know! Your place is not to advice or question, but to serve The Order… to serve me, woman.” He hovered over her for a few moments before turning and walking towards the bedroom. “Now, go to the bedroom and disrobe.” Aiko touched her bleeding lip as a look of shock came over her face upon hearing his order. She stuttered as her right hand went down instinctively to her wedding ring, “I… I’m sorry sir, but I’m not that type of assistant… I’m married. I can arrange an escort for you if you would…” She was cut off by the bone chilling look Tadashi gave her as he stopped and turned. A well of anger simmered in his ebony eyes, barely contained beneath the surface. He spat his next words slowly through gritted teeth, as if he were about to explode, “I… won’t… ask… again.” She considered running for the door, but she knew of this man’s amazing heritage. She had been a proud supporter of The Order for many years. She stood and bowed in resignation. A tear rolled down her cheek as she began to disrobe and walk towards the bedroom, only now realizing the folly of her devotion. She gave the quiet reply that Tadashi had grown so accustom to hearing upon issuing orders; “Yes sir.”