“Oh my gosh. Can you get any more paranoid? Seriously, if the government didn’t want us knowing about this, then they wouldn’t leave files out in the open where you could hack into them, would they?” John tossed an unopened can of soda at my head.
“Uh, he’s right. If we’re going to be prepared against a possible infection, we need to have a plan. I’ll go by Bones McCoy,” pre-med piped up. “Can we get our hands on the vaccine the military is using?”
“Only if one of us applies to the military and takes a few of the vaccines, insuring we won’t get infected no matter what happens. We’re going to need a volunteer. I can’t for another four or five years due to being underage. Joining the army really isn’t my thing, but I’ll continue to set up our network and make sure it can’t be hacked. We’re going to live our lives, but use the resources around us to make sure we survive in the likely event this does happen. I’ll send out the bat-signal, and we’ll assemble where we’re needed the most.”
“If someone joins the military and makes it through alive, how are they going to get the vaccines to us when we live so many miles apart?” the shy girl’s twin, Swan, asked, not even bothering to raise his hand.
“We’ll mail them to you. Hopefully, there’ll be enough for you and your family to survive.”
-----
2016
Using all of my genius and strategic powers, I came up with a game plan. Games were my superpower, and I knew in my gut that we were going to need a strategy and soon, if what I’d read in the files was any indication.
College life had been the beginning of the end for most of us. No one had expected us to be friends or stay involved with each other for such a length of time. My friend, John, had been the one to join the military, and dutifully sent me enough doses for only the original group of us. Our group of ten had gone down to six, but then again, we had always counted the twins as one person.
I’d tried for years to find a way to get more vaccines, but John had barely made it through basic before they stopped using them on the soldiers going out into the fields.
PREFIT’s compact—Prepared Readiness Evacuation from Invasion Tribe—had been signed by all the founding members, and we’d stuck to those ideals for many years. Even when it seemed that our futures might really fine, we’d kept up with the code, just in case. I even sent out a newsletter every month with new thoughts and theories for us to discuss on our personal gamer forums.
I looked at the documents we’d so carefully crafted as if our very lives depended on them. We were all children when I’d come up with that almost ten years ago.
When we’d finally met that week after playing online together back then, it had seemed like a match made in heaven. I’d been so certain that the zombies were coming, and spent every waking moment training and drawing up plans for the inevitable.
Any time a threat to the country seemed imminent, I was certain that was it. When the danger would pass, and nothing of significance happening, I grew depressed for days, even weeks.
I wasn’t giving up on our pact or the people in my group, but I wasn’t going to obsess over it anymore.
With a toss, I threw our signed papers into a tub to be stored while I went away to college to acquire yet another degree. It was time to give up on childish dreams and pursue my future.
-----
Cooper
After 9/11 happened, so many things changed in the way we set up the protocols in case of emergency. Homeland Security became the leading organization against terror, and my days were filled with working through every situation that could possibly happen. ZURT’s action plans became the new methods through which all other scenarios were put to the test.
For a while there, I’d been certain that a terrorist cell was going to suddenly bring my worst fears to life, but no one attempted it. Maybe it was because even the terrorists didn’t want to take a chance of bringing the world to the edge of extinction.
Then I met a girl, and my world changed once again. Trish had no idea who I really was, and I could never let her know of the dangers that were out there or where I had come from.
I’d only made two phone calls home over the years to the same cousin that had let me stay with him.
Frank had congratulated me on my wedding to Trish, and promised to pass on the information to my mama.
It was my fault my wife and kids had no idea about where I’d come from, and even though I was what people would consider a “sleeper spy” on our own shores, I knew I could still go back home to the swamps if it ever came to that.
When Ross had planted me inside lower management of a small data research company, he had no idea what the future would hold for us all.
Those first few years after 9/11, I’d started to let my guard down, becoming more removed from the day-to-day operations of ZURT. Whenever a meeting was called, I always told Trish that I had a conference or some sort of training, but never the real story.
Even though I’d made preparations as our family grew, and joked about having things ready in case the shit hit the fan, there was always the subtle reminder that we could die at any moment, regardless of the situation. But that’s how life worked.
Three weeks ago, I’d made a call to Frank to warn him.
“Yo, Coop. What’s happening? It’s been like, ten, almost fifteen years since we last heard from you.” Frank’s chuckle was a welcome sound.
“Yeah, sorry about that. Wife, kids, and life kind of got in the way. You know how it is when you can’t have something, you try not to think about it so much. After a while, it becomes easier and you don’t forget, but it’s not right there bugging you all the time, either,” I apologized in a backhanded manner.
“Surprised you remembered the number after all these years.”
“It’s in my wallet as a life or death emergency number. How’s the family doing?” I was torn between wanting to know and staying out of their business.
“All doing good. Your mama and Daddy still live out in their house, but have retired and help look after the passel of kids that your brothers had. You know, it’s been a long time, and you’ve settled down with a family. I’m sure your mama and Daddy would be willing to let your old profession slide if you let them meet your kids.” Frank then added with hope in his voice, “It’d be good to have one of those crawfish boils as a homecoming party.”
“Frank, I’d love to do that, but things haven’t changed. In fact, that’s part of the reason I’m calling you.”
“Coop, you’ve been out of the Marines for years. You work a desk job now,” he pointed out. “What do you mean that things haven’t changed?”
“I’m still affiliated with the government, Frank, and in such a way that most of what Mama’s feared is true. I’m not allowed to say, as it’s classified, but I couldn’t not warn my family.”
“I get ya, my man. You can’t say how you know, but you know. All right, what is it that’s coming?”
“Don’t laugh at me, but…zombies.”
“Nah. You can’t be serious.” Frank let out a laugh, but it faded off when I didn’t laugh with him. “Really? How can we get ready against that?”
“Same way you and all the others back home do when a hurricane’s about to blow in—you get ready. Board up the windows, stock up on food and water. Be prepared. It might not happen for a few weeks, or it could happen tomorrow. If things change, I’ll let you know. You have to be ready, though, because it’s coming.”
“But you’re sure it’s coming, then?”
“Frank, I’ve worked with Homeland, the FBI, and many other branches to determine how to not have something like this happen. If there’s a miracle, then I’m going to come down there and tell everyone myself so they can get mad at me all over again.” I ran a frustrated hand through my hair. I had to make him see that this was urgent.
“Look, I’ve sent a package with instructions to be delivered to you and only you at the post office. There’s enough there for everyone to
get a shot, which should protect them from the first phase. Just follow the directions and it’ll keep most of you safe. I’m not supposed to tell people, because then there would be a panic. You know how we talked about stuff back in the day if war came to us?”
“Yeah, I remember. It’s that bad, huh?” Frank’s voice became worried.
“It is. I’m doing all I can to make sure we save the world, but just in case, will you do what’s necessary to keep them all alive?” I hoped he was the same man on the inside that I remembered from back in the day. Almost twenty years had passed, but I was certain he would help protect our family.
“I promise, cousin. Will we hear from you again?”
“Only if I can get everything worked out. We’re going to lose a lot of people, but we need a chance to come back from this if we can.” I had faith in what was in place to help protect people, but only if they took advantage of our resources.
“Well, I’m not going to say goodbye. Don’t forget us down here on the bayou. We’ll do the best we can.” He hung up without letting me say anything in return. It was just as well, because there wasn’t any way to tell him more than I already had.
The NSA monitored all calls, and I couldn’t take a chance that someone would hear what I’d said over the phone. I could only pray that my parents and extended family would listen to what Frank told them and allow him to give the vaccines out to our family. It wouldn’t keep them from dying, but it would stop them from getting infected in the first place.
In a world with uncertainty just around the corner, I could only hope that we would have a chance to survive.
------
Present Day—Sean
When things started to pop up on the dark web about an event that was supposed to happen soon, I’d decided that I had to act. While I’d thrown most of our things in storage, I had everything I needed digitally to start working from where I’d left off only a few years before.
We needed to know the location of where the vaccine was kept, but as I quickly discovered, we weren’t the only ones after it. While I wanted to give the world a chance at survival, someone else was trying to beat me to it and destroy the only thing that could do just that.
I had a group out, trying to lock down the location so we could get it distributed out before it could be destroyed.
Ideals were all well and good, but now that we were actually in the fight, none of the other members of PREFIT were calling me paranoid anymore.
I needed to get with as many members of the group as I could and have a conversation with them. We needed to have a planning session. Things were starting to get out of control, and it was going to be even harder to get things back in order. Well, if order could even be restored when someone was planning to unleash the most horrible virus known to man.
Then again, I might just be paranoid, and this was just a false alarm, like so many of the others had been. Being prepared really sucked sometimes.
-----
Utah—Underground Mountain Labs
Martin
“Hey, we weren’t supposed to have a briefing for another week on those rumors,” I huffed, accepting the call when I saw who it was on my personal cell.
“No, we’re not. It’s time to implement this year’s flu shots. This is going to be the only way to save people from what’s about to happen.”
“Cooper, we can’t do that without an executive order, can we?” I didn’t think we had that kind of power, but after all these years, we were the only two left in charge of Operation Protection, which had started about the same time as the Gulf War.
“We’re not implementing it yet. What I need is for you to start with a massive production of the vaccines. We can’t use them if they’re not ready. How long will it take to get enough for the entire country to get injected?”
“Coop, that’ll take months and you know it,” I protested.
“Then start with mandatory overtime. By the time it comes out on the time sheets, anyone who would protest will be glad that we took the initiative, and we can worry about any blowback when it’s all over. Have you taken the precautions we talked about? Are all of your employees vaccinated against it?”
“Yes. I’ve kept that as part of the hiring requirement. I can call in the backup forces, and we can get about 500,000 done. It won’t be nearly enough, though.” I shook my head, thinking about the amount of work he was asking to be done.
“Is there some already on hand and in the disaster centers?”
“Some. The military has always had some on their bases just in case, so that will help. How do we get the needed vaccines to the right people?” I was starting to panic now that the event we’d all been preparing for was finally here, or was about to be.
“Can you send me an updated list to my secure email with the numbers we have on hand so I can start working from my end?” he inquired, sensing that I was overwhelmed.
“What about our families?” I couldn’t bear the thought that they might not be safe after all our years of planning. “Do we tell them?”
“We’re not supposed to, but I’m not about to tell you what to do when it comes to your loved ones. It might be a good idea for them to take that vacation you all have been planning for a while now,” he suggested meaningfully.
“All right. I’ll get things started here. I just hope it’s enough,” I muttered doubtfully.
----
It had taken two days for us to get enough of the serum ready to start producing vaccines. Everyone was checked to make sure they had the mark that came from getting the vaccination before they were allowed to start working.
We always had a lot of students from the nearby college that were willing to pick up extra work, and while I hated to sound desperate, it was the only thing we had going for us.
Cooper had gone to plead with the president to start with our troops and first responders, but I hadn’t heard back from him, and it was time to get things moving with or without the official approval from the top.
Trucks full of the vaccines were dispatched to the largest hospitals nearby, and I sent a few of our specially trained technicians to start giving out the shots.
These traveling buses, or vans, were just the same as those used during blood drives. Most of the hospitals were used to sending their staff out for the yearly flu shot, and we just used that to get our foot in the door.
Only those who were retired military were allowed to train for this type of situation. And while we didn’t tell them the entire story, they knew to be ready for anything.
It wasn’t enough, but it was a start. If we could get even a few of the major cities vaccinated, then when the shit did hit the fan, it wouldn’t be quite as disastrous.
Volunteers with terminal diagnosis had donated their last days and weeks to helping us find a way to protect and cure people. It wasn’t the fastest method, and many people’s genes were resistant to the vaccination. Hopefully, that meant they would have a better chance of not getting sick when the time came.
Small trucks continued to go out as others returned empty. We weren’t stopping people from getting the injections, but we were making sure that first responders and hospital staff went to the front of the line.
It was getting harder to continue without having heard anything from Cooper, but I knew that we’d need to keep going, because there would come a point when we wouldn’t be able to get it out to the areas that would need it the most.
I waved a group of drivers over that were about to make another trip out.
Since we’d upped our production, I was sending a specialized group of trainees out on a special mission that Cooper didn’t know anything about.
“Do you have everything you need for this mission?” I spoke quietly, not wanting anyone to overhear what I was about to tell them.
“Yes, sir. We have the injections and everything that we need to make sure this goes off the way it’s supposed to. We’ll contact you on the proper channels to ensure that no one e
lse is listening in to us.”
“Wonderful.” I just hoped we were doing the right thing.
------
When Cooper finally contacted me, it wasn’t with information I had been expecting.
Cooper: Code Red at work. Zombies are not real. Project Protection has been copied and stolen. Still at site. Please advise.
Martin: Are you certain?
Cooper: Judith has a bullet through her head as proof, and Jack had the password for the project under his keyboard.
Martin: Arm yourself. Go to the security room and copy the cameras. Will meet you at the prearranged spot in one hour?
Cooper: Better make it two because of the Zombie scare. Take care.
Martin: Two, then. Stay safe.
I didn’t have to be at the meeting spot, but he could call me from there.
Two hours was enough time for me to cover my tracks and be ready to leave if I absolutely had to. It would all depend on what Cooper told me when he called.
------
My personal cell phone rang, and I breathed in a sigh of relief.
“Cooper, are you alive? That’s a stupid question. Of course you’re alive if you’re calling me.”
He let out a laugh. “You don’t know how glad I am to hear your voice. It’s been a hell of day.”
“As long as you’re alive, that’s what counts.” I sank into my desk chair. “So the zombies were a false alarm?”
“Uh, that’s what I thought. When the ninja guys came into the building, I simply hid to see what they were doing. After I heard the gunshot, I’m ashamed to say that I stayed under the desk,” he confessed.
“No harm in staying alive. So the only thing they were after was the protocol?” I questioned.
“It appears that way. I thought they had created a zombie scare to get into our building. Martin, it’s real. The dead have become infected and are walking the streets. I’m not sure how widespread it is yet, or if it’s just here in this city, but I alerted the ZURT board, and they’re getting the word out. Hopefully, we’ll get a few lives saved in the process.”
“We haven’t heard anything here. Are you sure?”
Against Zombies Series | Book 6 | Governments Against Zombies Page 3