by Eric Vall
The crowd agreed.
“We need to split up to get everything done,” I continued. “Jeff, Ben, gather up some people to help you. Your group will be in charge of setting up the howitzer.”
“Where are we setting it up?” Ben asked quickly.
“There’s a place nearby,” I said. “It’s called the Navy Supply Center.”
“Here,” Paige said, and she pulled out a map from her bag and rushed over to the man so she could point out where they were headed.
“Alright,” Ben said after he glanced down to where Paige pointed.
“You’ll need to set it up so it’s not visible from the road,” I added. “And so that you can take out the first bridge after the NK troops have gone over it.”
“This one right here,” Paige said with another point at the map.
“Got it.” Ben nodded. “We’ll get it done as quickly as humanly possible.”
“I appreciate that,” I told him. “Hammer and the SEALs are going to be blowing I64 northbound, as well as the smaller roads around there while the girls and I go to the Air Force Base. Once we get back, we’ll take out the other bridge at the attack point, and we’ll go over to I64 southbound. If our plan works, the NK troops should arrive just before sundown.”
“What should the rest of us do?” Joe, one of the civilians I’d brought with me, asked.
“We’ll need to set up hideouts by the point of attack,” I said. “You all can work on that.”
“We have some sandbags and supplies for that,” Hammer said.
“Yes, everybody make sure to gather what you need from the supply room,” I agreed. “And make sure you all have a good weapon on you, along with plenty of ammo. I don’t expect you should have to use much with the larger weapons we have, but you might, and you need to be ready.”
The group was quiet as they looked at me and nodded.
“We can do this,” I said, and I lifted my chin into the air slightly. “Every one of you is here for a reason. You can do this. We will win this battle.”
The group was quiet for another second, but then Jeff’s lips broke into a huge smile.
“Fuckin’ A, right!” he yelled, and he threw his hand up in the air. “Let’s take these fuckers down!”
The crowd cheered, and I couldn’t help but laugh at his enthusiasm.
“Alright,” I said. “Everybody get what you need and get going. All group leaders report to Hammer before you leave to get a walkie talkie.”
I turned to head to my jeep then, but Hammer came right up beside me and leaned in slightly.
“You’re going to the Air Force Base?” he asked. “For what?”
“The Captain said there are some M51s on display,” I explained.
“Skysweepers?” Hammer asked with a confused look.
“One and the same.” I nodded.
“Shit,” he breathed. “Those probably would be our best bet. They’re old as dirt, of course, they’ll still work after the EMP.”
“My thoughts exactly,” I told him, and I stopped walking for a second and turned to look at him. “We’re going to try and get this done as quickly as possible, but I don’t know how long it’s going to take.”
“I understand.” Hammer nodded. “We’ll be on standby to get the interstate blown if necessary.”
“Or call someone else to do it,” I said. “Your group already has a lot to do. I don’t want to stretch you all too thin. We’ll try and be back in time to help.”
“Just get those anti aircraft guns,” Hammer told me. “If we can’t take out those MiGs, we’re fucked.”
“Ain’t that the fuckin’ truth,” I said with a shake of my head, then I looked back up at Hammer and clapped him on the shoulder. “Thank you.”
“Go get ‘er done,” he told me with a grin. “I’ll get everybody on the road.”
“I appreciate you,” I told him, and I headed toward where the jeeps were parked.
I quickly grabbed the spare tow hitch supplies we had with us and tossed them in the back of the jeep. It’d been a while since I’d seen an M51, so I didn’t quite remember how big they were, but we’d have to make something work, even if we could only take one.
As much as I’d like to make sure everyone got to their designated positions, I couldn’t wait to do that before we headed to the Air Force Base. We didn’t have a lot of time already, and there was a lot to do. Even more now that we had to go find these damn Skysweepers. Luckily, the base wasn’t too far away.
I maneuvered the jeep back out onto the road, then I took off toward Norfolk as fast I felt comfortable. I didn’t bother looking at the speedometer, but I knew it probably said something over sixty.
“Just keep going until you get past the bridge,” Paige instructed from the back seat.
“So, you really think these super old guns are gonna work?” Tara asked as she looked out the window.
“I do.” I nodded.
“I wouldn’t exactly call them super old.” Paige frowned. “Tav said they were from the 50s.”
“That’s right,” I agreed.
“That’s definitely super old,” Tara laughed. “It’s like a hundred.”
“Not quite,” Paige chuckled.
“It’s okay,” Anna teased, and she flashed Tara a playful smile. “Math is hard.”
“Mah, mah, mah,” Tara mocked with a glare, then she sighed and looked back out the window. “I’m just glad this is all coming to an end.”
“What do you mean?” Bailey asked.
“We’re going to take out the Boston troops,” Tara explained. “Then we can head to Atlanta to take out the rest of them. Badda-boom-badda-bing. Easy. ”
“You make it sound so simple,” Paige laughed.
“I mean, it’s not exactly complicated.” Tara shrugged. “Difficult maybe, but not complicated.”
“I guess that’s a good point.” The brunette nodded.
“I hadn’t really thought about it,” Bailey said. “But Tara’s totally right. It could only be a few more months until we’re done with all this.”
“It could be longer, too,” Paige pointed out.
“That’s true,” Tara said, and she smiled. “But I don’t think it will take us too long to fuck up those Atlanta asssholes.”
“We are pretty good at our jobs,” Anna laughed.
“Right,” Tara agreed. “Then this stupid EMP will finally be over, and we can actually have TV and shit back.”
The jeep got quiet, and I glanced over at Anna. Her red eyebrows were pulled together with confusion.
Then, I looked in the rearview mirror and saw that Paige and Bailey looked the same way. Tara stared nonchalantly out the window, not seeming to notice how quiet everyone had gotten.
“Um, Tara,” Paige said, and her eyes narrowed in on the platinum-blonde.
“What?” Tara asked, and her eyebrows furrowed as she looked at everyone staring at her. “Why are you guys staring at me? You’re freakin’ me out, stop it.”
“I’m sorry, I just...” Paige said, and she shook her head. “What do you think an EMP is?”
“It’s the thing that took out all the electronics, duh,” Tara said, and she eyed Paige curiously. “You’re being really weird. What’s your deal?”
“Okay, yes, an EMP took out the electronics,” Anna said. “But what is it?”
“What does EMP stand for?” Paige pushed.
“How the hell am I supposed to know?” Tara asked.
“I think what they’re getting at is that the electronic stuff won’t come back on,” Bailey explained softly.
“What do you mean?” Tara asked. “We shut off the EMP, and then the electronics work again, right?”
“No, sweetie, no,” Paige said with a shake of her head.
“Don’t patronize me,” Tara scoffed. “Are you saying nothing will work, like, ever again?”
“Yeah,” Anna laughed. “Why did you think we were fixing up stuff around campus?”
“Kimmy
had to fix these walkies for us,” Paige said. “And we had to rig up generators and solar panels and stuff to get power.”
“Well, I didn’t know that meant nothing would work ever again unless we fixed it!” Tara groaned, and she pursed her lips. “What the fuck. Are you saying it’s going to be Little House on the Prairie times forever?”
“I don’t understand how you’re just now figuring this out,” Anna chuckled.
“I’m not in charge of fixing stuff.” Tara shrugged. “I knew that stuff before a certain time worked, and everything else had to be fixed, but I didn’t stop to ask questions.”
“Yeah, that checks out,” Paige laughed.
“Well, shit,” the platinum-blonde said. “I wanted to call my dad when this was all over.”
“And what, tell him you’re pregnant?” Anna asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Actually, yes,” Tara sniffed.
“Really?” Bailey asked with wide eyes.
“Why is that so weird?” Tara asked.
“I don’t know,” Bailey said, and she grimaced slightly like she just smelled something gross. “I just always felt like announcing you were pregnant was weird. It’s basically just telling everyone you had sex.”
“Oh.” Paige looked at Bailey seriously. “I never thought of it like that.”
“Yeah.” Bailey nodded. “That was my first thought when my mom told me she was pregnant with my little sister, and it just kind of stuck with me, I guess.”
“Gross.” Tara said.
“She’s not wrong, though,” Anna pointed out. “You’ll basically just be telling your dad you’ve been having unprotected sex.”
“I’m not worried about it,” Tara said with a shrug. “My dad will super love Tav.”
“I would hope so,” I laughed.
As much as I loved Tara, I wasn’t sure the first thing I wanted to say when I met her father was ‘Hi, sir, how ya doin, my name’s Tav, and I knocked up your daughter’. Somehow, it didn’t feel like we’d get off on the best foot.
Still, the girls talking was a nice distraction from the stress we were under, and since we were in the car, there was nothing else to do but talk. Paige gave me instructions on where I was going every now and then, but aside from that there was nothing we could do about our current situation until we made it to the Air Force Base.
“He’ll totally love you,” Tara said confidently. “He’s always liked military guys.”
“Your dad knows military guys?” Anna asked, and she narrowed her eyes on Tara through the rearview mirror.
“Yeah,” the platinum-blonde answered. “They used to come over to the house sometimes for dinner and stuff.”
“And your dad fixes phone lines?” Paige asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I think so.” Tara shrugged.
“We gotta figure out what he does,” Anna laughed. “Because I know Tara isn’t right.”
“Guys, he’s really not that big of a deal,” Tara chuckled. “He’s not, like, the leader of the military or anything. He just has a few military friends. Chill.”
“After the EMP thing, I don’t know if I can trust a single thing you say anymore,” Anna said with a shake of her head.
“I’m with Anna,” Paige laughed. “You can’t be trusted anymore.”
“Oh, my god.” Tara rolled her eyes. “I didn’t know one thing, sue me.”
“I mean, it was a pretty big thing,” I said.
“Tav!” Tara laughed.
“I’m just teasing,” I chuckled. “I wouldn’t expect you to know about EMPs. Most people don’t know about them.”
“That’s true,” Anna said. “I didn’t know what happened until Paige speculated, and even then I wasn’t sure I could trust her. It was when you told me that I really believed it.”
“Hey!” Paige exclaimed. “You didn’t trust me?”
“Oh, come on, we barely knew each other at that point,” Anna said with a wave of her hand.
“We had two classes together!” Paige squeaked. “And not to mention, we were living together trying to survive the frickin’ apocalypse.”
“I mean, yeah, but you kind of seemed like a know-it-all, and I wasn’t really sure if you were as smart as you said you were,” the redhead replied.
“She’s right.” Tara nodded. “You did seem like a know-it-all.”
“Bails?” Paige asked, and she looked at the blonde hippie hopefully.
“I mean…” Bailey said, and she bit her lip.
“Oh, my god!” the brunette cried. “You all hated me before Tav came along.”
“We didn’t hate you,” Anna laughed.
“Yeah, don’t be dramatic.” Tara rolled her eyes.
“You didn’t trust anything I had to say,” Paige countered. “Not until Tav came along to confirm it. What would you call that?”
“Well, yeah,” Anna said with a shrug. “But only because we weren’t smart enough to know whether or not you were right.”
“I--” Paige started, but she took pause at Anna’s words, and she pursed her lips. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”
“Thanks so much,” Tara laughed.
“What?” Paige shrugged. “Anna said it, not me.”
“She’s not wrong, though,” the platinum-blonde chuckled. “I didn’t know if you were right or not.”
“You guys know we have a fully-stocked library on campus, right?” Paige asked.
“Oh, is that what that building is that you’re always in?” Tara teased.
“Whatever,” Paige chuckled, and she elbowed Tara lightly.
“Hey!” Tara scoffed, and she elbowed Paige back. “No hitting, I’m pregnant, remember? I’m a fragile turtledove.”
“You’re the least fragile person I’ve ever known in my life,” Anna laughed.
“I’ll take that as a compliment.” Tara grinned.
“Oh, turn here,” Paige said with a point. “The Base isn’t too far.”
“Good.” I nodded.
I drove as fast as I could, but it had still taken at least twenty minutes for us to arrive, and while that wasn’t a long time in the grand scheme of things, every second mattered right now.
I took the turn as Paige had instructed, and I listened to the girls continue to chat as I drove, but just as we approached the base, I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
The area was a disaster. There were random cars parked along the side of the road, and even a city bus on one side of the street. Like the rest of Norfolk, there was debris everywhere, and a few dead bodies as well.
I wasn’t sure why, but I felt like something was wrong.
I slowed down and scanned the area, and that was when I saw them.
There were two NK soldiers posted right outside the entrance of the Air Force Base.
“What is it?” Anna asked when she realized the jeep had slowed, and she looked around quickly. “Shit.”
“Yup,” I said. “We’ve got company.”
Chapter 9
The two soldiers were dressed in the same dark green and brown attire the others always were, and they each carried a plasma gun on their hip. They stood near the front gate of the Air Force Base and faced each other casually. They obviously hadn’t spotted us yet, since we were still a little ways back from the entrance, and they didn’t seem to even be on the lookout for anybody.
I wouldn’t be surprised if these men had been posted here before we’d even arrived. They were probably stationed in this area in case any American soldiers tried to get onto the Base for any reason.
It made sense to keep a watch on areas like this, but these soldiers seemed too casual at the moment. It wasn’t uncommon for soldiers with consistent posts like this to not have a lot of communication with the main unit. If that was the case, they probably weren’t even aware that there was anything wrong.
I doubted they had any idea that their entire squadron had been annihilated.
“What’s going on?” Tara asked from the back se
at, and she pushed herself between the two front seats to get a better look.
One of the soldiers spotted us just then. He yelled something to his buddy, and they both reached for their plasma weapons.
“Shit,” I breathed, and I pressed hard on the gas and jerked the wheel to the right. “Hold on!”
The city bus parked on the other side of the road was the closest thing to us that was large enough to conceal the jeep, so I quickly pulled behind it and shut the vehicle off.
I couldn’t hear the NK soldiers shooting, but I could see the bus move slightly from the impact of their shots, and the air quickly filled with the scent of burning metal.
The girls and I hopped out of the jeep and crouched down behind the bus.
“How many are there?” Tara asked. “I didn’t see.”
“Only two that I saw,” Anna replied.
“Me, too.” I nodded. “But they got the jump on us since they were posted there already.”
“Right,” the platinum-blonde said, and she narrowed her eyes on me. “What’s our plan?”
The bus continued to move slightly from the NK soldiers’ plasma blasts, and now I could see some smoke coming from the other side. The bus was thick, but it wouldn’t last forever. We needed to figure out a plan, and fast.
“They can shoot forever with the plasma weapons,” Paige said. “They don’t even have to reload.”
“We need to get the jump on them,” Anna said with a hard nod, and she glanced around.
We were behind the bus, and there were some cars parked nearby, but not close enough to get to, especially since there was no other cover around. There weren’t even any trees in the area, just parking lots and roads.
The bus started to shake even more as the NK troops yelled in their native tongue and pummeled the vehicle with blasts.
“The bus isn’t going to hold up much longer,” I said. “That plasma will go right through it in no time.”
“I have an idea,” Bailey said.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Lift me up,” the blonde hippie said, and she gestured up to the windows of the bus. “I can shoot through the windows and get them. They won’t expect shots to come from above.”
“Good idea,” I told her with a nod.