"Let's give them a hand Eugene!" and he barreled down through the center of the horde then whipped the truck into a 180 turn taking them on again, making zombie paste.
"Gonna be a hellofa cleanup job TJ. Hope we don't get stuck with that," remarked Eugene as he leaned out the side window surveying the damage they were causing. But he was grinning because it didn't matter. This was the first fun they'd had in a week since their parents were killed and they were rescued off their roof by the Governor. "Hey TJ! There's a soldier fella over their waving at us. Hell, it's the Gov. Head over there!" he pointed and TJ following his hand nodded and turned again while making sure they crushed as many more as they could before sliding to a stop before their Governor.
*****
I was firing fast and steady as we approached the gate. The zombies seemed to be concentrating on the colony complex and ignoring the nearby homes and businesses. I saw large groups of them converging on its gates from three directions, the east, west and south. But a lot of small groups seemed to be milling around and heading in all directions. Fuckers were everywhere. All my crews were blasting away at the undead creatures as we closed the last few hundred yards before swarming out of our vehicles, our weapons rapid firing. I hand signaled half the troops to support the hundreds already at the main gate and concrete barriers who were firing on the zombies, and the other half to follow me as I ran to the main granary complex where I had seen flashes illuminating some of the upper windows as we pulled up but they were dark now. I was scared shitless for my kids were up there.
Inside was total chaos. Women were screaming, kids were screaming, people were running everywhere or hiding behind adults but still screaming. Thank God for earplugs. There were hundreds of fallen bodies in every conceivable position both zombie and human. I snap fired a short burst as I saw one obvious zombie sit up between two military medical personnel who were checking on others. The remains of his skull peeled back over his shoulders and he slumped forward. That's one that won't rise again, I thought as I looked for more. I didn't see any but that didn't mean they weren't there pretending to be really dead.
I saw the Lieutenant over by the far corner directing men in checking bodies out. I shouted and waved and he signaled the all clear. I shook my head pointing at the one I had just shot. He instantly got the message and started issuing new commands. I heard a few shots ring out as I headed for the hallway leading the upper level stairs.
"Check each body and make damn sure they all have good headshots before you get close to one." I directed at the SP4 Ranger who had followed me in. He nodded and started issuing orders to those around him. I slapped the shoulders of two troopers indicating they were to follow and headed down the hallway checking each body carefully. All safely dead so far as we proceeded further inward. I was desperately worried about my family but it wouldn't do them or me any good if I stepped over a 'body' only to have it rise up and eat my ass. Besides, they were three floors up and the hallways were so narrow one or two people with guns could have held them off for days as long as the ammo held out and I had protocols in place ensuring that.
The stairway was choked with bodies and pulling my leather gloves out of my vest pocket, I proceeded to roll the truly dead undead out of my way as I climbed upward. I must have passed forty or fifty of them before I finally reached the top. There, mixed in with the undead I saw two of my soldiers mauled to pieces and no longer bleeding. Fuck! Where were the other four? I had specifically told them a half dozen. The doorway to the kids’ bedroom was wide open with several of the undead lying across the threshold blocking the opening, and my heart and lungs froze right up. In a panic I jumped over the remaining few and swung into the room in a crouch M4 ready.
"Crack!" A round tore off a chuck of the doorframe just above my head and suddenly my lungs worked again because I was hollering.
"Cease Fire! Cease Fire Damn it!"
Then my kids were in my arms and my women were clustered around me hugging and kissing me, hugging and kissing all of us including the two soldiers with me as I smothered them all in hugs and kisses of my own. Jesus Christ, I had been so damn scared. The Rott's were jumping up and down trying to lick me but couldn't get close enough through the living wave of bodies that had slammed into me. Eventually, I was able to ruffle their ears and saw both had some serious wounds but you couldn't tell by their antics. They were just glad to see me and I made a mental note to have them checked by the breeder who gave them to us as she was also a veterinarian, then turned back to the task at hand.
I got on the tac-net after turning my damn radio back on, which I had somehow inadvertently turned off and asked for a report. Few were answering as the channels seemed to be all mixed up. I got a hold of Sgt. Trask and ordered him to send up four more soldiers to protect my family. I had to get down there and now because the fighting was still intense and possibly getting worse while too many were unaccounted for.
"I have to leave. I have to go back down, this isn't over by a long shot. LSS you’re on me. Net's all messed up and we need communications now!" Everyone resisted letting go of me especially my kids but I had to. First though I turned, kneeling before them after they quieted.
"Look, you all did fantastic. Cara, Jean, LSS. I love you girls with all my heart. Thank you for keeping my family safe. Our family safe." Then I kissed them all passionately which, they returned fervently then LSS and I headed down.
We went through the sorting common area at a run. As we went by, I saw our own dead were being laid out neatly to one side. There were way too many sheet-covered bodies. Shit! I looked for Sgt. Trask or the Lieutenant or even the Major and didn't see a single one. Sandy was over near the line of our dead crying over a male figure and I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. No time for that, no time for grieving yet. LSS I dropped off at the CAPC just outside the sorting room main entrance, Sgt. Trask and the Lieutenant I found outside the front gate, and Top immediately reported in.
"Sir. No whereabouts on the Major. Last known was towards the river. We are holding them for now but it's tough. They appear to be endless." he finished grimly.
"Sir!" It was Hawk, shoving his way through to stand before me. He was covered in blood and that damn yellow puss the zombies exude and didn't bother with a salute as he started talking. "If we can get to our Stryker's and Bradley's they'll go a long way to cleaning this mess up. Hell we can crush the bastards flat without firing a shot and my Stryker's are loaded down with 240's and M2's and two of the Bradley's have the 242 mounted." I nodded at his words. Nothing like big chain guns and .50 cal's for clearing a path, especially with those tracked Bradley's leading the way. Damn things were almost as good as tanks and just as fast.
"Sounds good Hawk. Where are they?"
"There, Sir. About a half mile down the line of vehicles. There at the end." he pointed straight south and my heart sunk. Between us and the amour we needed must have been five-thousand or more zombies with more arriving every second. I saw no way to get to the vehicles quickly. The Humvees could drive over bodies like nothing but not active zombies holding on to everything their strong hands could clutch. Shit. Then I saw an approaching truck and my eyes widened as my brain did a flip and the idea was born. Coming towards us was one of those huge Monster Trucks, just driving over the zombies like they weren't there. Amazing really. I saw it start to get bogged down a few times then with spinning tires dig its way out again. I started waving my arms frantically as I climbed to the top of the nearest Humvee. From my vantage point I was almost door level with the huge vehicle as it slid to a halt next to us.
"What's up, Governor?" Shouted the man in the passenger side looking down at me.
"Having fun boys?" I hollered back grinning at the sight. I could see the truck might have been cherry red but it was really hard to tell, completely coated in blood and yellow puss as it was.
"You betcha, Sir. Having a blast!"
"Got a job for you fella's. See that long line of army vehicles?" I poin
ted straight south down the road and the one I was addressing nodded. "We need to get to the end of that line to the Armored Assault Vehicles and our snowplows. Think you can clear us a path?"
"Heck yeah, Governor. Wanna ride with us?" The fella was really happy now at having a job from the Boss.
"No, but we'll follow you in just a minute. Wait one." and he nodded as I got down inside the cleared area and started shouting.
"I need Bradley and Stryker drivers loaded up now! We bringing in the Armor boys." I kept shouting as more and more came running up until Hawk thumped me on the shoulder letting me know we had more than enough. The ten Humvees we had were already packed, and I mean packed with men. I signaled the boys in the Monster Truck and they headed out spinning left and right taking out as many as they could without taking chances on getting bogged down or worse flipping over. I knew if we got stuck in the middle of that mass of zombies none of us would make it out but sometimes you do what you have to do.
Needless to say we made it, and as we drove by each Stryker and Bradley we slowed dropping off crews as we cleared out the immediate undead around us. They were a lot thinner here, obviously concentrating around the Compound. Fuckers. I jumped onto the last Stryker manning the M2.50-caliber machine gun after shouting at the good ‘ol boys in their monster truck to head back. At that moment, my tac-net went live again and I heard LSS's voice loud and clear.
"Commander come in. Can you read me? Commander?"
"Five by five, LSS how's it look back there?"
"Not good, Sir. We have waves of hundreds if not thousands coming in from the riverside. I'm trying to get some of the remotes back online so we have a picture. I should have more information momentarily."
“Thank you LSS. Keep us informed we'll be there in a minute."
I commanded my troops to form up with the Bradley's leading the way, the Stryker's following with the one I was riding in lead position. We were up to about 35mph when the front gate came in sight again. I ordered a lock on ammunition expenditures for the moment indicating we would crush them as we drove. I keyed my microphone for an update.
"Talk to me LSS I need some Intel." She came back instantly and I could tell that was either panic in her voice or she was crying, or both.
"Oh my God, Commander they're going to be overrun any second. You've got to get over there."
"What? Where?"
"West side Sir. Middle granary. Looks like the Major with some soldiers and a whole lot of children about to be overrun by more zombies than I can count." It was definitely panic and crying I was hearing in her voice.
"On our way. We'll make it." I said this as we streamed through the front gate. Just taking it out by knocking it down. We could build another but there was no time to waste. My people on the ground scattered in every direction as we roared through.
"No, Sir. They're out of time."
I had no time to get around the end silo and make my way to the middle. That would take a minute or longer as each granary was two-hundred meters wide or more. Basically, a flattened metal cone turned upside down surrounded by a berm of earth and concrete to provide a wind barrier against its eight-foot walls. The berm was too steep for a man to climb but not a Stryker and the middle granary was directly ahead. There was only one thing to do. I switched frequencies lightening quick.
"All Stryker's ‘V’ formation on me. We're going to hit the berm and hit it hard and go right over the top. Weapons free and hot. Repeat. Weapons free and hot! Kill the fuckers!" Then I held on because we were already there and the nose of my Stryker hit the dirt sending it cascading upwards and sideways but riding it upward. I heard the Caterpillar engine whine into overdrive as we surged forward at a thirty degree angle, the eight heavy treaded tires gripping the metal surface like glue propelling us forward. Beside me on either side, I saw my little fleet of fourteen cresting the ridge as we blazed up the granary dome at over thirty-mph. I was still shouting in my microphone.
"Bradley's form a diamond pattern and sweep to the south and west then north and clear them out along the river. Crush them bastards boys!" We swept over the crest and were headed down the far side at an even faster rate as our floodlights lit up the night. Shit. I instantly started firing flipping the selector to cyclic full auto and held on screaming as we flew down the side of the dome towards more zombies than I knew existed.
*****
Corporal Rider secured the hatch behind her and looked at the mess. Someone had left the hatch open and obviously, a zombie or two had gotten inside and messed things up before disappearing. Frantically she rebooted equipment and computers and started patching in peripherals. She soon had the net back up and reported into the Commander with what she knew, which wasn't a whole lot. She was still waiting on her sensor pods to reboot and transmit back to her. Any second now. The Commander was on his way and would need information.
Slowly six screens came to life before her and as she scanned through them, she keyed her microphone to all channels and requested a status report from any units able to respond. The Major was the first to respond and she quickly flipped to the correct remote to get a picture of his location and almost froze in horror. With lightening quick fingers, she keyed her touch screen raising the Commander and telling him of the Major’s situation while trying to keep the horror and tears out of her voice. It was completely hopeless. The Major only had seconds and she wanted to switch her screen so she didn't see their ending but couldn't force her fingers to move. Then she gasped as she saw from another screen the Commander’s Stryker elements, instead of going around the granary's to help the Major they took the shortest most direct route. Straight up and over. That had never occurred to her and instantly she was issuing commands to the Major, screaming into her microphone for him to back up against the side of the granary and get down. The Commander was there in seconds and just in time.
*****
The Major blinked then crouched even lower grabbing as many children as he could, trying to flatten them against the ground as fourteen Stryker's roared overhead, missing them by mere feet to slam into the ground ahead plowing into the line of zombies facing them. There was no doubt who was in the lead vehicle because his black outfit and ponytail gave him away. The Commander was here and the .50 cal he was firing nonstop was tearing up the zombies around them. Shredding them actually and the Major and his men hugged the sobbing children to them as the Stryker's raced back and forth crushing many and blowing even more away in a bullet and grenade massacre. He blinked as a Stryker pulled up next to them and the Commander jumped down holding out his hand to help.
*****
We had barely made it. As we practically flew over their heads, I briefly saw the Major crouched holding onto a very large group of children, the soldiers beside him doing the same. Then we were over them and into the hideous beasts. The M2 I was riding like a horse, blazing away at everything undead that moved and within seconds we had cleared out quite a large area around them. I keyed my microphone on local.
"Hawk! Can't the Stryker's cross the river?" He came back instantly.
"Yes, Sir!"
"Then do it. Send twelve across to clear them out. There are so many I can't see the far bank from here."
"Aye, aye, Sir!" then Warrant Hawkins was issuing his own commands and four platoons of three Stryker's each peeled off and headed straight across the river. Stryker's can cross small rivers such as ours. They actually do float for a little while and those spinning tires really can propel them through the water. In no time they hit the far bank and flashes of light and the lightening of chain guns, automatic grenade launchers and .50 cal's lit the sky as they wrecked havoc. From where I stood, I could see the zombies were already turning around and trying to escape. Bastards. I would kill them all, I swear. My vehicle and one other stayed close to the Major’s group of children and as the last few were blasted away. I jumped down beside the Major, just as the Bradley's were making a southern swing back through and around. Jesus, those tracked vehi
cles were causing some serious pain for the undead, if they could feel pain that is. I issued commands for them to keep tracking around and crushing any they found but to preserve the integrity of their vehicle first.
"Need a hand Dan?" I inquired as I held out my hand.
"What took you?!"
"Stopped for coffee." Sometimes I just can't resist and we both started laughing. "What the hell is going on around here, Major? Are most of these zombies coming from where I think their coming from?" I pointed at the river.
"Yes, Sir. Evidently, we were wrong on that one. River’s fifteen-feet deep around here. They somehow must have gotten an immunity to it."
"Shit!" This was all I needed. The reports out of Europe had indicated zombies being fully submerged in water would incapacitate them. This also showed planning. Oh Shit.
"Exactly, Sir!" MSgt Trask took that moment to run up. He had been searching the bodies looking for our dead and hopefully wounded. From the look on his face he came up dry on any wounded and was wiping his face. Damn it to hell!
"No wounded, Sir. Ours are all dead in those piles. I'm sorry."
"I'll head down there Top and get a look myself. We'll think of something to fix this river shit." I turned to leave but his hand shot out grasping my shoulder. I looked back perplexed. What now?"
"Sir. Please don't go down there."
"I'm sure it's secure Sergeant. If not I'll take a few more down myself." I hefted my M4. I still had a full load out in the ammo bandolier also.
Blood, Brains and Bullets Page 40