by Maxey, Phil
Zach moved unsteadily to the middle of the aisle, handgun in one hand, radio in the other. “Whereabouts, we can’t hear them up there. Over.”
“They’re on the left side, about half way down!” Fiona then turned to Cal. “Cal, can you get some light on them?” Just as Cal went to lift his light one of the creatures on the bus turned towards them, then ran and sprang from the buses roof, landing with a heavy clump on the hood of the truck.
“Get that thing off us I can’t see the road!” shouted Fiona, trying to remember which direction she last saw the bus drive.
Cal thrust his light towards the windshield, the beam catching the creature full in it’s eyes, causing it to fall off the side of the hood. Looking at the bus the other creature that was on top of it had gone as well.
“Fiona? Come in. Over.” shouted Zach into his radio.
“They’ve gone, can’t see any up there. Over.”
Zach sat on the nearest empty seat and took in a deep breath, “How’s things looking ahead?” He shouted towards the front of the bus.
“They seem to be falling away, looks pretty clear ahead.” shouted Bass, who was along side Rob.
Zach’s radio came alive again with Fiona’s voice. “Zach, the two soldiers who were in the back, they are not there anymore. Over.”
Everyone on the bus heard Fiona’s words as the bus and truck plunged deeper into the snow-covered roads of the national forest.
CHAPTER 29
“This is Captain Felton, from camp Bravo. Calling out to the Portland camp, come in. Over.” Zach sat next to Abbey waiting for a response. “Still nothing.”
“The mountains are probably blocking the signal”
“Can you keep trying them on your radio, every twenty minutes should do it.” Abbey nodded and Zach got up, joining Rob and Bass at the front. “How’s it looking out there?”
“Haven’t seen anymore of those things, man they were creepy,” said Rob.
“How long until we are out of the national forest?” said Zach.
“Maybe another hour, and then another hour to get onto the main highway north to the camp. Once we are on that maybe thirty minutes to the camp,” replied Bass.
Zach removed his helmet, slid his hand through his hair then put it back on. “Keep watching out, and drive steady, not too fast, we can’t afford to slide off the road.”
The beams of the vehicles waved and juddered through the mountain roads, shining light onto a world previously untouched since the Cascade began.
“Sometimes I see them,” said Rob, keeping his voice low, to Bass.
“See what?”
“At the side of the road, things.”
“As before?”
“No, all kinds of eyes, large, small, multiple, the headlights catch them, and then they are gone, so far they seem to be scared of us.”
“Let’s hope that continues.”
Towards the back of the bus, Raj and Dr. Tanner sat silent.
“Did you put those things in your notebook?” said Dr. Tanner.
“What?” Replied Raj seemingly coming out of a dream.
“Those dark E.L.F’s, did you note them down in your notebook?”
“Oh, umm yes, briefly, I didn’t really get a good look at them.”
“Have you heard previous reports of them?”
“No, nobody who lived near here, or who came through here has…well, no that’s the first time they have been recorded.”
“It’s good that you are recording everything, someone needs to.”
Raj gave a brief smile. “Were you ordered to come on this journey?”
“No, I volunteered.”
Raj raised his eyebrows.
“No, it’s not about being brave, my sister is in Portland.”
“I would say that’s still brave,” Raj smiled. “What’s her name?”
“Mary, she used to be an attorney before all of this started, now she works for the Portland authority, looking after orphans.”
“She sounds like a good person.”
Dr. Tanner smiled. “She is.”
The bus jumped up and down slightly, making everyone do the same. A number of soldiers tightened their grips on their guns. After a few seconds it happened again.
Zach leaned forward and shouted down the aisle towards the front. “What’s causing the bumping?”
“Not sure, but something don’t feel right, we might have a flat.”
“Can we keep going with it?” said Bass, next to Rob.
“We can, but I’ll have to slow right down, and if we hit any rough roads, we might damage the wheel. With a few extra hands, I can change the tire, will take about thirty minutes.”
Zach got up and knelt near Bass “Are there any stops on this road that we can use as shelter? Houses, motels anything?”
Bass, got out the map of the area, and examined the route ahead. “Looks like there might be a lodge about ten klicks along this road, it’s just before a bridge.”
“Can we make it there?” said Zach to Rob.
“Look’s like we’re going to have too,” said Rob, slowing slightly making the bumpiness less.
After a few minutes the lodge appeared in the distant glow of the headlights. The two story classic looking lodge with two wrap round decks, one upper and one lower looked in good condition considering where it was. Snow smothered it, laying a few feet thick and icicles hung from its window frames like gaping teeth. Rob pulled the bus up in front of the entrance, with Fiona pulling in close behind.
“The lodge will be a good defensive position, if we get attacked,” said Zach to Bass, who agreed and stood up facing everyone on the bus.
“I need three on that upper deck of the lodge, two behind the truck, two in front of the bus, and Jenkins help Rob get that tire changed. Everyone else stay on the bus. Let’s move out people.” Bass opened the door and jumped down, the other soldiers filed out. Tyler went to follow but Rob waved him back.
“Cal, can you cover the bus. Over,” said Zach stepping off the bus.
Bass disappeared into the lodge, while Rob pulled out a large jack from the storage compartment, followed by a wrench.
“First thing we need to do is find the flat,” said Rob to Jenkins, inspecting the tires with his torch.
Jacks jumped off the bus, walking past Zach. “I’m joining the others in the lodge.” Zach nodded. Abbey, Michael and Raj then appeared from the bus.
“It’s probably best you all stay on the bus.” said Zach.
“I need to stretch my legs,” Said Michael ignoring Zach’s request. “Damn, it’s quiet out there.” They all stood and looked into the pitch black of the void around the lodge, expecting the sound of creatures, but none came back to them.
“Yes, it’s quite odd,” said Raj. “Either there’s none out there, or…”
“They’re out there, I’ve seen them as we were driving,” said Rob from the other side of the bus, straining to turn some wheel nuts with the wrench.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” said Zach.
“I just saw eyes, and each time they disappeared so there was no reason to tell anyone.”
“Still doesn’t make sense why it’s so quiet, if they are out there,” said Abbey.
“It’s so dark out here, even with my eyes adjusted I still can’t see more than twenty feet,” said Michael lifting his pocket flashlight upwards slightly.
A window opened on the upper deck and three soldiers climbed out, spreading out around it, and then kneeling looking through their night scopes. Bass came back out and with a hushed voice, asked the soldiers if they could see anything, they all answered in the negative.
Abbey walked into the lodge. Growing up in Boston, her family had one similar to this, which they visited every summer, the difference being this was a bed and breakfast. She swept her light over the deep red patterned rugs, wooden furniture and stone fireplace and memories that had long been forgotten came flooding back. Happy memories, before the bullies at school
started to make her doubt her place in the world.
The temperature was a few degrees higher in the space she stood in, but her breath still formed in front of her as she walked up to the light wooden counter. A small metal bell sat on top, with a sign “Ring and wait,” next to it. On the right was a small rack of pamphlets advertising the local tourist attractions. She picked one up with a happy looking family in hiking equipment on the front. Looking at it made her happy and sad at the same time, she went to drop it, but the other pamphlets were so neatly arranged that it felt wrong to disturb the display, so she put it back where she found it, carefully.
Zach appeared standing in the doorway. “Everything alright?”
Abbey went to talk, but had to swallow before doing so. “Yes,” she then turned and smiled.
“Good, Rob should be done in another twenty minutes,” as Zach said that Rob swore and the sound of a wrench falling to the ground, echoed out. “I better go check.” Abbey nodded.
Jacob sat on the bus and watched all the hive of activity around him, through misted up windows. He wondered just how many eyes must be watching them right now, watching the humans dance in the abyss that was always a stronghold for the wild. He wasn’t particularly interested in saving the people in Portland, their fate was beyond him or Zach or anyone else, but he needed to see what was out here. How much had the world really changed? Was there any chance for people outside the camps? Or was the camp the last bastion of civilization left? He was quickly coming to the conclusion that the camps were the only game in town.
“All done,” said Rob out of breath. “I’ll leave you to put the tools away.” The jack and wrench lay on the ground next to Jenkins.
Abbey, Michael and Raj were back on the bus. Abbey had been trying to contact the Portland camp, still without any luck.
“We’re done here. Over.” Radioed Zach to Bass and the troops quickly returned to the bus.
“I filled her up with some more gas as well,” said Rob.
Zach put his hand on Rob’s shoulder. “Let’s go.”
Abbey watched as the light of the convoy moved away from the lodge, returning it to its forgotten state.
The tree’s and shear rock faces seemed even closer to the road as they progressed, like a dark tunnel they had no choice but to follow. Occasionally their headlights would sweep past a shape that did not fit it’s surroundings and the heart of anybody who was paying attention would miss a beat, but the miles to the edge of the national park continued to decrease.
After some more miles Bass crouched in the aisle of the bus. “I know it doesn’t look like it, but we are now officially outside the national forest,” Everyone on the bus either punched the air, or physically sunk bank in their seats with relief. “That’s the good news, the bad news is we are about ten klicks away from a large lake. The road runs along side it.”
“Is there no way to avoid it?” said Dr. Tanner.
Bass went to reply when Abbey’s radio started crackling. She quickly raised it and clicked it on. “Hello? We are the Austin group. Over.”
More crackling followed, then a voice. “This is Portland, we are under a sustained attacked, we can’t guarantee your safety at the south entrance, please stand by for further directions. Over.”
“Stand by? Where the hell does he think we should ‘stand by,’” said Rob.
Zach clicked on his radio. “This is Captain Felton from the Bravo group, we are an hour out, approaching from the south. We are currently near…” Zach looked at Bass. “What’s the name of the lake?” Bass gave him the answer, and Zach continued on the radio “Near Skyland Lake. Please advise on how to approach camp. Over.”
The crackling dissipated into silence. Zach tried again, but there was no response.
“The road we are on runs along side the large lake and there’s no way of knowing what’s going to be there or the condition of the road,” said Bass.
“No other roads that take us away from it?” said Zach.
“There are some half way along the lake but they take us back into the hills again, before heading off in a different direction.”
“How long is the stretch by the lake?”
“Not long, maybe four miles.”
Zach clicked on the radio. “ Fiona, we’re about to go through a tricky patch of road, it runs along side a lake for about four miles, be ready for anything, especially from the lake’s direction. Over.”
The landscape fell away on the convoy’s right side, but the trees were still too thick to see beyond.
“The rivers on our right, that runs into the lake,” said Bass.
Most eyes in the bus tried to see out the right side, but nothing could be seen.
“Look at the metal barrier,” said Rob peering out the front. What used to be a safety barrier to stop cars from skidding off down into the river was now either gone, or tangled between trees. Rob slowed to make sure that didn’t happen to them.
After a short distance the road widened again, and the misty white of the frozen lake started to appear between dark spikey shapes of pine-trees. In the distance the buses headlights reflected off something large. At first Rob thought the road would take a turn at that point and the lights were just hitting up against the rock face or tree slope, but his eyes followed the white of the snow line they were on and it disappeared straight into this new part of the landscape. Rob slowed and stopped the bus.
“We have a problem.”
“What is it?” said Zach moving to the front.
Rob pointed. “That.”
Zach, Bass and the others near the front, leaned forward trying to ascertain what the large black shape was.
“Landslide.” said Zach, pulling open the map, and turning on his flashlight. A wave of anxiety went around the bus.
“Wait…what?” said Bass, straining his eyes best he could. He then grabbed his rifle, turning on the night scope and looking at the black mass through the windscreen. “I can’t see, can you open the doors.” Rob pulled the lever and the bus doors flew open, sending a shock of cold air into the bus. Bass leaned out, with one foot on the snow, and looked again. In the scope the landslide looked a lighter green than it’s surroundings and more importantly was moving, slowly up and down. Bass dropped the gun to his side, and backed up almost slipping in the snow. “I don’t think that’s a landslide. It’s giving off some heat and it’s moving, like it’s…breathing.”
Raj shot forward to the front of the bus. “An E.L.F that size? I need to see.” Bass handed him the rifle. Raj looked for himself then handed the gun back. “It’s incredible, must be at least two story’s high.”
“What is it?” said Zach, joining them near the door.
“There were reports from this area of huge marine animals, similar to a walrus, they laid waste of a number of towns.”
“Like the centipede E.L.F’s?” said Zach.
“No, these seem to be evolved from mammals. They are warm blooded.”
“That’s great, so we have to find a different route,” said Fiona, walking down from the truck.
“Can’t we kill it?” said Jacks.
“Do you not see how big it is?” Responded Michael.
“You never heard the saying, the bigger they are…”
“Yeah, I have, I repeat, do you not see how big it is?”
“We don’t have to try to kill it, we just need it to move,” said Zach rubbing his chin. “Maybe a few flash bangs, will wake it up and send it back into the lake. Do we have them in the truck?” Looking at Bass.
“We do, whole crate of them.”
“I’m going to run up to it, throw the grenades, if it starts to move in the direction of the lake, we let it do it’s thing, if it doesn’t we open up with the rocket launcher. If it get’s to within a hundred yards of us, we turn around as quickly as we can and get the hell out of here.”
“Sir, Zach, you can just about see out of your right eye and in this darkness…” Said Bass. “I’ll do it.” Zach begrudgingl
y nodded.
Bass returned after a few moments with two flash bang grenades, and the rocket launcher, which he passed to Jacks. He then ordered some soldiers to create a defensive line some yards in front of the bus.
“Okay, here goes.” He walked forward into the darkness, holding the rifle up to his face so to have at least some idea of where the road ended and the drop off to the river started. Soon the cold started to bite into his face and he had to keep wiggling his fingers to feel anything in them. About half way to the creature, he looked back at the light from the bus and everyone watching him, it was then that he heard the sound. It was hardly audible but the dark mass in front of him was producing a low rumbling. He raised the scope to his eye again and knelt down to steady his view better. The scope gave him a clearer view that the mound in front of him was not part of the surrounding landscape but no details behind that. He lowered the gun to try to see more, but that was futile, so he decided to walk forward with the scope to his eye and hope he wouldn’t walk into anything else. At about two hundred yards from the bus and under fifty yards from the creature he looked back once again. At this distance he couldn’t make out who was who outside of the bus and even the soldiers he had ordered to take up the defensive position were silhouettes against the glow of the headlights behind them. Looking forward once again, the sound of the creature could not be ignored. Whatever it was seemed to be sleeping or hibernating, or whatever it was that caused it to lie across the highway. He was now close enough to it that it seemed more like an organic building, or a special effect you might see at a film theme park. For a moment he had a feeling that he was too part of a film that what was in front of him was not real. He also knew that if it moved in his direction he wouldn’t stand much chance to get out of it’s way, but the idea of going back to the woods, into that cauldron of broken trees seemed infinitely worse than taking a chance on what was in front of him.
At about thirty yards he stopped. He reckoned that his arm was good enough to throw both the grenades from this distance and have them land on or near the creature. He threw his gun over his back, and looked down at his feet which he could just about make out in the gloom. Steadying himself he pulled the pin from the first grenade, reached back and threw it high and fast, he then quickly repeated the same for the second. Just as it was leaving his hand the first flash bang landed about five yards from the creature and went off, shattering the silence. Even at this distance the bang was loud enough to make Bass’s ears ring. The creature snorted, and immediately reared up, growing even higher against the night sky. Bass momentarily frozen by the sheer size in front of him then turned and ran, his feet slipping outwards as he tried to get as much grip as possible. He had no idea what was happening behind him but the ground shook as the creature slammed back down to earth, knocking him temporarily off balance. He kept running, not daring to look back. His ears were still ringing but he could hear the muffled shouts ahead of him urging him onwards towards the light. At about twenty yards from the soldiers he could see their faces not looking at him, but instead looking over his shoulder, faces frozen with fear and confusion. He ran up to them, grabbing the first soldier and half dragged him from his kneeling position to his feet. It was at this point that Bass turned around.