The Sixth Extinction America Omnibus [Books 1-12]

by Johnson, Glen

  A strange humming started to mix with the sound of the thrashing animals, sounding like a vast swarm of bees.

  Emma was disturbed to notice it was rising from the cattle.

  Her eyes caught a glimpse of a milking machine that was still attached to the cow’s udders as it laid thrashing on its side. However, instead of pumping milk, clotted blood was running up the clear tubes, mixed with thick black ooze.

  A large tentacle, from the creature Emma stared at in disgust, hit Bachman’s leg, sending him crashing to the concrete floor and skidding along to slam into a metal bar. The instant his back hit more tentacles lashed around him, pinning him in place.

  196

  Smokie, and the others

  On the beach

  Somewhere in New York State

  The creatures were thinning out.

  Somehow, once again, most of them survived another attack. But at the rate they had to keep fighting for their lives, they would soon all be wiped out. They couldn’t fight forever. Eventually their strength, and luck, would run out.

  Smokie sunk an axe into another creature’s head, while using the other axe to slice its throat. She rested a foot on its chest to pull the blade from the sutures of the skull.

  The returning people made a big difference.

  A few creatures were still being hacked down.

  Smokie turned to see a red-faced Naomi trying to push the heavy boat back into the surf by herself.

  After a quick glance around Smokie counted four of her group was dead. Two floating on the water and two on the pebbled beach. Four others were in the process of swimming to the cargo ship.

  “Sue, get that boat back out to the ship, and pick the others up on the way. That means four of you will have to wait for the next trip.”

  A few nodded their agreement. They were exhausted and covered in gore.

  Naomi was already sat back in her original place.

  “You need to help us push the boat back out,” Sue shouted at Naomi. “There’s no way we will be able to move it with your fat arse sat there!”

  Naomi muttered something in reply and climbed out. She was aware that Sue still gripped the large gun in her right hand. The small dog, Tia was at Sue’s side, giving Naomi a long stare, and a low growl, as if picking up on her owners dislike for the woman.

  The last creature on the beach was hacked down, leaving just a couple near the tree line that were on all fours feeding on other infected.

  Smokie saw it as a bad sign if they were turning on each other that meant there wasn’t many surviving people left in the area.

  She watched as Donna, Terrance and Lindell moved up the beach to finish the creatures off.

  I’m getting too old for this shit! She mused, as she clipped her axes back on her belt, after wiping them on her jeans, and hung her headphones back around her neck. Her elbows were aching from whacking the creatures.

  She used to be a zombie fan, watching The Walking Dead, and any apocalyptic movies she could get her hands on, and stupidly; she used to dream of what it would be like in a post-apocalyptic world. She couldn’t imagine how she used to daydream how this would have been exciting. It was incomprehensible, after living it, that anyone would wish for a life like this.

  This world is hard; she reasoned. She gave a grunt. Of course it is, that’s why it’s called survival.

  As she was looking around, and saw the boat head off for the second time, she noticed Stu had dropped both his weapons and was now running towards a naked child who was knelt while eating the intestines of a dead creature.

  What’s he doing?

  Then realization fell into place.

  Oh, my God, that isn’t his daughter, is it?

  197

  Frank, and the others

  On the beach

  Somewhere in New York State

  Frank stood motionless. Blood dribbled down the Billy club. He never intended to kill any of the creatures, only injure them. Obviously, someone else would finish them off, but they wouldn’t be on his conscience.

  However, as the creatures charged towards him, his swinging became harder and harder, to the point where he wasn’t knocking them down, or out, he was killing them. And yet, even though he knew what he was doing he continued to slam the heavy wooden club into the infected people’s heads.

  He stared down at his hands and watched the thick blood drip from them. Next to his feet was a body of a middle-aged woman who had the side of her head caved in. Matted blonde hair sprayed out like a golden halo.

  Next to him, Troy walked around with a thick tree branch in his hand, and was crushing the skulls of any creatures that showed any signs of life.

  Frank looked off to the side, past the dark-brown rocks and pebbled beach, and past the fighting, and he could see a skyline of tall buildings. From the distance, everything looked normal.

  He closed his eyes.

  What have I become? I am returning to my old way of life – my army days. I used to enjoy the killing, the pain I caused. Am I returning to that now? Have I slipped backwards?

  What must God think of me now?

  His eyes flashed open, taking everything in.

  God! Where is my God – the God?

  He looked around at the naked flesh covered in blood, guts, and gore. The pebbles were awash in it all – the bright red colour a stark contrast to the dull grey of the stones.

  Is this part of Your plan, Lord?

  How could a loving God allow this? He shuffled his feet away from the blood.

  He reclosed his eyes. 1 Corinthians 10:13 states: ‘No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.’

  His eyes slowly reopened, and he scanned the carnage.

  How can this be within my limits? How can I endure this? How can the world of man endure all of this? And where is our way out?

  His hand tightened around the club.

  A hand gripped his shoulder.

  “Are you okay Father?” Sherry asked as she wiped the gore off her Katana sword.

  Frank simply nodded. He had too much internal torment to seek a conversation.

  Both Frank and Sherry turned as Smokie shouted, “Someone stop Stu!”

  198

  Bachman and Emma

  Zone 4

  The underground bunker

  Quirauk Mountain, Pennsylvania

  The sound of the large creature slamming its shoulders against the doorposts echoed throughout the large barn, mixing in with the strange humming of all the infected cattle.

  At present, none of that mattered to Bachman, because he was being crushed to death by the encompassing tentacles.

  “Hellllp…m-m-me…” Bachman managed to squeeze out of his blue lips, as the thick tentacles compressed his chest, as spittle dribbled down his chin. The capillaries in his eyes started to pop and turn red. His face was like a red balloon.

  He was wedged up against the metal railing, with the remains of the cow behind that had tentacles reaching through the bars and slowly pulling Bachman in, as they pinned his arms to his sides, leaving only his legs free, which were kicking out uselessly.

  Emma was fully aware that if she did nothing, then Bachman would be pulled through the bars, snapping him in half; that’s if he didn’t suffocate first.

  The sound of the cow’s hooves scraping on the concrete was the only sound the infected animal was making.

  Around them, the other tentacles were waving like things possessed, as if cheering their comrade on. The sound of the thick rubbery flesh slapping onto the wet, blood covered concrete momentarily smothered the sound of the large creature as it was slowly battering its way into the large barn.

  Emma was on her knees, trying with all her might to loosen the tentacles and pull them off Bachman’s chest. She tried to force her fingers around them to get a grip, but they were too tight –
they were simply way too strong. There was no way she could remove them.

  Her only saving grace was the creature ignoring Emma and concentration of Bachman.

  His eyes were bright red, as veins bulged around his neck and face.

  She heard a snap as a couple of his ribs gave way under the pressure.

  She wished they still had the axe on them; she could easily remove the tentacles with a few strong swings.

  Bachman screamed in pain, but it was cut short due to having no air left in his lungs. Like an enormous boa constrictor, he was having the life slowly crushed from him. He knew he had about a minute left to live.

  Emma fell back on her rump, crying from the knowledge that there was nothing she could do. He was going to die a painful death right in front of her eyes, and then she would be alone.

  199

  Alex, and the others

  On the beach

  Somewhere in New York State

  Alex heard Smokie’s shout to stop Stu. For a split second, he couldn’t comprehend what she was on about – he was still recovering from the rush of creatures. Then he understood when he noticed Stu had no weapons, and he was racing towards an infected child who was feasting on the remains of another creature.

  Stu was about to pass Alex.

  Alex lowered the long boat pole he was holding and used it to trip Stu over. Due to his momentum, Stu went down hard. Even so, in an instant, as if he hadn’t noticed, he was scrambling back to his feet and continued.

  “Hanna, daddies here, baby!” he was shouting, as tears poured down his face.

  The infected child never wavered from her meal, as it used its small hands to scoop intestines into the mall of its mouth, and jolt its head back, tipping the offal and blood down its wide throat.

  “Daddies here baby!” His loud sobs drew everyone’s attention.

  Alex raced forward and tried to trip Stu up again, but he tripped on the pebbles himself, as Stu surged on.

  Alex watched as Lindell moved away from the creatures he had just killed, along with his brother and Donna, and he used a thick arm to stop Stu’s momentum.

  “No!” Stu screamed as he elbowed Lindell in the face.

  Lindell staggered back. He wasn’t expecting violence from the man. By the time he shook off the blow, Stu was out of reach.

  Terrance turned in time to see Lindell raise a hand to his bleeding nose.

  “Daddies here, Hanna, baby. I will never lose you again!”

  Donna twisted, after witnessing everything. It was obvious Stu was out of his mind with grief. He was shouting at the infected child as if he knew her. Without hesitating, Donna swung the rifle around, and as Stu raced past, she slammed the butt into the back of his head.

  Stu went down hard, sliding along, through the pebbles and up onto the embankment.

  200

  Bachman and Emma

  Zone 4

  The underground bunker

  Quirauk Mountain, Pennsylvania

  Not like this, Bachman reasoned. Not this way, he thought, as the pain across his chest felt like an elephant was crushing him.

  Suddenly, he felt strange; everything seemed to slow down, as if his body was savoring its last few seconds of life.

  His mind had never been so clear. The pain faded, and his body started to relax. He couldn’t even feel the broken ribs anymore.

  He knew his brain was starving of oxygen. He had read many papers about the subject, and it was strange to experience it firsthand.

  Bachman vaguely registered Emma frantically jumping to her feet and climbing over the metal bar and stumbling over the remains of the cow, and out of sight.

  It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered anymore. Soon it would all be over.

  He couldn’t feel a thing. He no longer heard the buzzing of the cattle, or the pounding against the concrete by the towering creature. Everything was blurring together.

  Slowly, he started to close his eyes. A bright light was beckoning him. It was so beautiful, how could he not move towards it? It seemed like everything he had ever wanted, or needed was inside that glowing light.

  So peaceful. So beautiful. Please take me.

  Bachman felt as if he was slowly being carried off – taken away from the pain and suffering. Slowly, it felt like he was rising above everything – drifting on the light.

  Suddenly, the gentle drifting became a powerful shove as his body was tossed forward across the concrete floor.

  201

  Naomi and the others

  In the rigid-side boat

  Somewhere off the shore in New York State

  The rigid-side boat bounced across the waves, as the occupants jolted in their seats.

  Sue had to stop four times to collect the people who tried to swim toward the cargo ship. Three were hoisted in, with them crying with joy when they were rescued. They were also embarrassed, now the panic was over that they ran off, leaving the others to fend for themselves. One person was dead and was floating face down, obviously having drowned in the ice-cold water.

  Naomi sat as far away from Sue as possible, and refused to help pull the people onboard.

  She brooded over the fact that she could have died, just because Sue wanted to go back and help.

  Bitch!

  As soon as her foot touched the deck of the cargo ship that would be it, the only way they would get her off again would be by force. In her mind, it was the safest place in the world – a huge floating sanctuary.

  If it had all the food and water on it that Smokie bragged about, there would be no need to leave. She would collect enough food, and find a cabin and lock herself in.

  Fuck everyone.

  Bastards!

  A person who was dragged out of the cold water sat dripping next to Naomi. The woman started coughing.

  Naomi shuffled as far away as the seat would allow.

  She should have drowned; it would leave more food for me; she reasoned.

  The boat picked up speed again and started skimming the water.

  The vast cargo ship started to fill the whole horizon, as they got closer. Then they were right next to it, with the black metal side towering over them.

  There was a woman leaning over the rail above. Her hair fanned her face like a dark hood as she looked over the side.

  A large section of metal steps was slowly lowered as Sue tied the boat to a loop.

  Tia raced around people’s feet, barking and skipping in excitement.

  Naomi had an urge to kick the small happy dog. When she looked to see if Sue would notice, she realized Sue was staring right at her.

  Naomi gruffly turned away, and barged through the people reaching for the metal steps as they lowered into place. With a final push of her thick shoulder, Naomi was out of the rocking boat and scrambling up the metal steps.

  Heavy rain started to pour down, making the metal steps slippery. Salt crunched under her boots as she clambered up the steep steps, unconcerned with helping anyone else. When she reached the top, fourteen meters above, there was a woman stood holding a recurve barebow, with a quiver of arrows peeking over her shoulder.

  “Hi, I’m Emma Dudley, and I am pleased to meet you. I hope everyone survived that mess on the beach?” The woman sneezed twice. Rain ran down her face.

  Emma was just below average height, with long, curly, dark-brown hair that was quite messy. She snorted a loud, nervous laugh.

  Naomi swung a leg over and stood straight, and stretched her back. Her palms were sweating in anticipation of getting her hands on some pharmaceutical drugs. So long as they were strong, she didn’t care what they were.

  The rain hammered on the metal deck, causing a hum of white background noise that mixed with the sound of the ocean. A few sea gulls screeched as they flew overhead. The wind was stronger out on the ship. It tossed both their hair.

  “How do I get below deck?” Naomi asked.

  “Sorry?”

  “Are you deaf? I said, how do I get below deck? If you haven’
t noticed, it’s fucking raining!”

  “Umm,” Dudley was shocked at the woman’s rudeness.

  “Ignore the bitch, she’s a cunt!” a woman said who was climbing over the side. She was soaking wet from having been one of the people who tried to swim toward the cargo ship.

  “Yes she is,” Caroline said as she climbed aboard.

  Naomi looked from one person to another, and simply walked away, not bothering to even acknowledge their comments. She didn’t need their help; she could find her own way around the bloody boat. First things first, she was going to look for the sick bay and see what medication she could plunder.

  202

  Bachman and Emma

  Zone 4

  The underground bunker

  Quirauk Mountain, Pennsylvania

  Bachman felt soaking wet, as he slowly rolled over onto his back. Slime dripped from the wetsuit. His ribs hurt like hell, and his chest was sore, and his head was pounding, but he was alive. He slowly propped himself up on one elbow. A limp section of a tentacle slithered off his leg.

  Emma was climbing back over the metal bar. The remains of the cow were splattered everywhere. She was also covered in black slime.

  She jogged to Bachman’s side and knelt beside him.

  “Jesus, I’m glad that worked. I thought you were about to leave me on my own.”

  Bachman groaned.

  The sound of the creature trying to batter its way into the building echoed around them. Now Bachman was free, and wasn’t about to be squeezed to death; the crumbling doorposts was their new priority.

  Emma helped him to his unsteady feet.

  A hand flew to his ribcage.

  “God! That hurts like holy hell!”

  “We have to move.”