Blue Plague: Hope: Book Seven

by Watson, Thomas A

  “If those fuckers are becoming immune to magic bullets, I give the fuck up,” Bruce said and climbed out. He stood on the roof as Buffy climbed out and saw a blue running at a cage. The blue suddenly pitched forward doing a face plant on the asphalt, skidding several yards.

  Bruce grimaced as the blue stood up, hobbling on one leg for a step and then fall back down as its good leg was blown off. “Somebody is pissed,” he said as the blue pulled up on its arms and one was blown off.

  “Very pissed,” Buffy said as a matrix kid tried to jump over the blue and was hit by an invisible fist. The kid’s forward momentum sent it into a tumbling roll. It stood up shaking its head, only to have its leg blown off. “Somebody needs some holy pills,” Buffy mumbled.

  Bruce turned to trace the shots and saw two figures lying on the roof of Matt’s command rig. “Wonder what the boys did to piss them off?” he said, knowing he was looking at Danny and Mary.

  Grabbing Buffy, he stepped off his roof onto the north wall of MRAPs and walked along, talking to the troops.

  Ted and Carl jumped off their rig, having seen everything Bruce had. “Would I be a pussy if I wanted to wait here?” Ted asked.

  “It wouldn’t do any good and you know it,” Carl said, following Bruce.

  “Hey, they could run out of ammo before they get to me,” Ted said following.

  When Bruce reached Danny and Mary, he saw four blue females slowly limping toward the cage as the man inside it screamed hysterically. “That’s some cold shit,” he mumbled.

  “Well, in the next life, that bitch will know not to fuck with us,” Mary snapped as the four dove on the man, cutting the scream off.

  “Door,” Danny said and the radio operator pressed the button, slamming the door on the cage.

  Rolling over on her back, Danny smiled up at Bruce, “Hey, Daddy.”

  “Hey, pumpkin,” he smiled. “So, I take it, ah, Mary,” Bruce said carefully. “That you are a bit distraught.”

  “Ooohh, yeah,” Mary said, changing magazines and Bruce sighed, seeing they weren’t magic bullets.

  “Are we working out the agitation?” Bruce asked.

  “Yes, thank you,” Mary said, pulling her stock back to her shoulder.

  “May I ask, is my son the reason for this agitation?”

  “Oh, fuck yeah,” Mary said, squeezing the trigger and Bruce looked up to see the blue lose its last appendage.

  “Is my son in danger at this time?”

  “Nope, I’m just going to punch his face inside out,” Mary said, pulling the trigger. “I don’t want to shoot him anymore.”

  “Good girl,” Bruce said because that was the only response he could come up with. “I’m going to go chastise my son now.”

  “Thank you, Daddy Bruce,” Mary said cheerfully, then squeezed the trigger.

  “Dad,” Danny said, rolling on her side and looking up at him. “Mary and I are taking over our own companies. We will rotate with the boys on command, but we think we need to learn how to lead on our own, and not with them.”

  “An excellent idea,” Bruce smiled.

  Finally, Mary turned and looked at Bruce over her shoulder. “We are in charge first.”

  “Of course,” Bruce chuckled nervously. Turning back around, Mary got back on her scope.

  “Danny,” Buffy said, moving over. “What did Jake do?”

  “Went shopping,” Danny huffed, “and almost got Mary shot.”

  “I shall beat him unmercifully,” Bruce said and climbed off the roof. Dropping to the ground, he saw Ted and Carl just jump off the roof.

  “Mary is always so sweet and nice,” Ted cried out in shock. “What the hell happened to turn her into, psycho teen killer?”

  “Don’t know, but I’ve never seen her shoot that well,” Bruce said, heading for the other command rig that was pulled inside the perimeter. He stopped, seeing the boys putting a mesh dish antenna up.

  “Boys,” he said.

  They looked over and grinned. “Hey, Dad,” Jake said and jumped down. “Look wh-,” Jake stopped as Bruce grabbed him by his vest, pulling him over and lifting him off the ground.

  “What the fuck did you do to piss Mary off?!” Bruce whispered harshly. “She’s taking shots at running blues, hitting them in the legs and then systematically dismembering them.”

  “Yeah, she is shooting really well today,” Jake nodded.

  “Jake, spit it out,” Bruce said.

  Letting out a sigh as Bruce put him down, Jake looked up at Bruce. “Well, I had an idea and needed some stuff, so I stopped at Lowes to get some of what I need,” Jake said, taking a breath. “Well, I could smell blues inside and these damn rigs make enough noise to wake the dead, so I knew the blues were hiding. I got two platoons and was going to do a dynamic entry, forming a scrimmage line and move down the building. Mary said that was stupid because there were too many rows and blues could hide above us, and we needed to do a sweeping clear.”

  “I said no, but either she didn’t hear or ignored me because when we entered, she moved off with second platoon in a sweep as first platoon did a scrimmage line, moving down the building,” Jake said, pausing to breathe.

  “Like I said, there were blues so first platoon fired, and second platoon was one aisle over,” Jake said.

  “So, you almost shot your wife?” Bruce asked.

  “No, they were on the next aisle,” Jake clarified.

  Carl stepped up, “Ah, Jake, were you leading first platoon?”

  Shrugging, “No, I was getting what I needed,” he said.

  “In an unsecured building?” Carl asked, raising his eyebrows.

  “I could see around me,” Jake said.

  “Uh, ha,” Carl nodded, having dealt with this before, just in a larger version. “So, how many blues were lying on the floor around you when Mary came over?”

  “I don’t know, maybe like a dozen or so,” Jake said.

  “Son, you go apologize to her,” Bruce said. “You scared her and she’s pissed.”

  “I wasn’t in any danger,” Jake snapped.

  Stepping back, Bruce grabbed his crotch. “Reach down and feel your balls, son,” he said. “When you get married, your wife will remove those fuckers at her whim. You go and tell her you’re sorry. Just wait till I leave, in case she starts shooting at you.”

  “She’s seen me fight off more than that,” Jake cried out, throwing his hands up.

  “Hey,” Bruce snapped. “Neither you, nor I, will ever be able to understand. I’m telling you this from experience. Apologize, unless you are willing to fight, and it’s going to be a big one if you do.”

  Letting out a sigh, Jake nodded. “Alright, I’ll apologize for killing the blues.”

  “Boy, she will pop a cap in your ass if you say that,” Bruce said with Ted and Carl nodding vigorously. “You just say you’re sorry you upset her. Never try to tell her why you think, and yes I said think, she’s mad. Most of the time you won’t know, and it only pisses them off more if you get it wrong. That’s why you say, ‘I’m sorry I made you upset’.”

  Jake nodded and Bruce turned to see Matt typing on his little phone pad. “Man, this is good stuff,” Matt mumbled.

  “But, Dad, I’m right,” Jake said.

  “Son,” Bruce said, putting his hands on his hips. “How many times did you see me and Mom argue and you knew I was right, but I gave in?”

  “A lot,” Jake shrugged.

  “That’s because it’s not worth it,” Bruce said. “I only took it to the next level with your Mom rarely because women can stay mad forr-eeevvv-errr. So, is this time worth it to you to dig in your heels and make a fight on the home front?”

  “Oh no,” Jake said, shaking his head. “I can think of other stuff I would take a stand on.”

  “Very good,” Bruce said, patting Jake’s shoulder. “So, what did you have to get?”

  “Come look,” Jake said, jerking his head and walking to the rear of the rig. “I put a satellite uplink on and
two more antennas for broadband. Then, I hooked up three more monitors and I had the ninjas send me a computer that I hooked in. Now, I can monitor my computers with my tablet when I’m in the cupola. I’m sorry, Dad, but I had too much shit going on to keep it on three monitors,” he said, stopping at the rear troop door.

  “Now, not only can I get feeds on what the drones are seeing, but also map readouts, vehicle locations, and I can send any to my tablet,” Jake said climbing in. “But this was the main reason I stopped.”

  Reaching down, Jake picked something up and put a ring on a hook welded to the right wall, then did it on the left and stepped back showing Bruce a hammock stretched across the back of the MRAP. “We can put five hammocks in the back, one in the cab, and the last man can sleep on the floor in all the troop carrier rigs,” Jake said with a smile.

  “Son, that was worth stopping for,” Bruce said nodding. “A word of advice, Danny and Mary are taking over other companies and will switch off, so they can learn on their own as you will. But if I may suggest,” Bruce said, holding up a finger. “Find out what company they are taking over and put a hammock in the back for them. I don’t care if you don’t have one. You better make damn sure they do. If nothing else, you give her this rig and fix up another one.”

  “I only found twelve,” Jake said.

  “Then my advice is, find out what companies they are taking over and fix their command rig,” Bruce said.

  Jake looked at his Dad hard. “Just why the hell are we still here?”

  “Waiting on the second regiment,” Bruce said. “It can’t be done with one or I should say, it will take fucking forever using one regiment in the field.”

  “Dad,” Jake said sheepishly. “We have enough newbies out here as it is. How about train the regiments one at a time, then advance on?”

  “Son, I’m not out here for my health and neither is anyone else. Second regiment moved out yesterday under Willie. He’s made them maneuver in the corridor we made and they are picking it up fast. We will advance tonight when they reach us and set up, letting them get hit by blues.”

  “Just where are we advancing to?” Jake asked.

  “Atlanta,” Bruce smiled. “We have maintained a forty to fifty-mile front and that’s not wide enough. That’s why I need second regiment; I’m moving us along a hundred-mile front.”

  “So two regiments will be in the field at all times?” Matt asked.

  “Yep,” Bruce nodded. “With two on standby and two down for refit, but all of them are training now. Mainly training on how to read a map and compass while moving in a vehicle.”

  “Let me go see which company Mary is taking over,” Jake sighed and Bruce grabbed his arm.

  “You say you’re sorry first,” Bruce instructed and Jake nodded.

  They all headed to the perimeter and climbed up on a MRAP, walking along the roofs until they reached the girls. “You blew his arm off!” Buffy cheered.

  “Damn, that was a good shot,” Jake said, then noticed the field of dismembered blues. “Hey, baby?” Jake said, kneeling down beside Mary.

  When Mary rolled over, Ted and Carl jumped in front of Bruce. “Yes?” Mary said with narrowed eyes.

  “I’m sorry, you were right,” Jake said, holding his head down.

  Leaping up, Mary wrapped her arms around him. “You scared the shit out of me, Jake!” she yelled in a quivering voice.

  “Guys,” Bruce said quietly. “You see she’s a really good shot, but I do appreciate the gesture.” Ted and Carl nodded, slowly stepping back. “Girls, what companies are you taking over?” he asked.

  “We talked about it and we both are taking over the second companies,” Danny said.

  “Alright, I’ll leave you to get it straight and call you when we are ready to pull out,” Bruce said, looking over at Buffy. “Buffy,” he said and she let out a groan, putting the binoculars down. “You will stay with Danny until further notice.”

  Jumping in the air, holding her right knee up and bringing her right arm down to her side, Buffy softly breathed, “Yes.”

  Danny reached out, patting Buffy’s back. “We’ll kick some ass,” she said as Buffy put her leg down and looked up with a grin.

  As Bruce left them, Jake and Matt were leading the girls over to show them what they’d done. Climbing on his rig, Bruce jumped in the cupola. “Let’s head to the next company,” he called out.

  “Boss, David is nine kinds of pissed off about his new position, just warning you,” Ted called over the radio.

  “Seems to be the tune of the day,” Bruce said as his rig pulled out.

  Chapter 26

  Standing out of the troop hatch, Danny adjusted her CVC and pressed the microphone. “Buffy, you need more ammo?”

  “No, I’m good,” Buffy called back from the cupola, letting a burst go on the minigun and cutting down a group of charging blues. Every rig in her convoy was shooting and covering their assigned areas as they rolled down the highway.

  It had taken them two days to cover the hundred and thirty miles to Atlanta. It was more of a problem of working out movement of troops than blues. That changed this morning outside of Atlanta.

  Blues hit them in force twenty miles back, and Danny had ordered her convoy in side-by-side formation and that pushed the blues back. Now with the outline of Atlanta ahead, blues were almost coming at them like an ocean as the convoy slugged ahead at thirty miles an hour.

  “Fuck this,” Danny shouted, grabbing the radio. “Bravo company, we are speeding up to fifty MPH to Fulton airfield. If you break down, button up until we clear the blues and come back for you, how copy?”

  As the platoons reported in, Danny grabbed a SAW machine gun and stood up, shooting blues as Buffy hosed the right side of the convoy. “Yeah, bitches, I have a big gun!” she cheered as the blues’ line melted back. Suddenly, she stopped and lifted up another ammo can, kicking the empty one out.

  Glancing at Buffy wrestling an ammo can that weighed almost as much as she did, Danny couldn’t help but grin as she squeezed the trigger, firing bursts into the mass around them. She felt them speed up, but it seemed like it was taking forever.

  When her gun ran dry, she grabbed another belt and leaned her head out, looking at the front of the convoy. The road ahead was packed, and thanks to the plows on the lead rigs, blues were being flung away.

  She loaded her weapon and felt the rig bounce and knew it was bodies of blues under them. “Shit,” she yelled and grabbed the radio, resting her SAW on its side and squeezing the trigger.

  “This is Bat Two, Bravo, requesting air on I-20 to clear a path to Fulton airfield. If I don’t get it fast, I will have to stop and fight here!” she yelled into the radio, over the noise of gunfire, wind, blues, and diesel engines.

  “Air is coming, Danny, ten seconds out!” Angela called back.

  “Fuck, they are fast,” Danny said as Buffy let out a stream of lead. Feeling her bolt lock back, Danny grabbed another belt and glanced back up at the sky and froze. “Fuck me sideways and take away my credit card,” she said as the massive plane closed in.

  She didn’t know what kind of plane it was, only that it was big with four propeller engines and four miniguns in the nose. The troops called it, ‘God’s Mower’.

  Four streams of red shot from the nose and Danny turned her head, climbing up on the roof. The streams of red were raking the highway side to side as the plane flew over, firing down the road. Just like a mower, the blues fell down in a massive path. Unlike the other planes that had miniguns and could only fire for a few minutes at best, God’s Mower could fire for half an hour. With each minigun spitting out four thousand rounds a minute, that was a lot of hate going downrange.

  When the lead MRAPs reached the area where God’s Mower had started, they quickly picked up speed with their plows throwing bodies of blues off the road as if they were snow.

  Dropping the new belt in, Danny kept looking ahead as God’s Mower just continued down the interstate. “Mack can ha
ve those pussy jets, I want more of those,” Danny said as the plane stopped firing six miles ahead and banked away.

  “Danny, you shouldn’t have trouble getting to the airfield, but set up fast because the blues won’t give you long. I have two Warthogs on standby for you, and Apaches,” Angela called out.

  “Can you just keep God’s Mower close? I really like that one,” Danny said, looking at the bodies. From tree line to tree line on both sides of the interstate, bodies were everywhere and very few were moving.

  “Sorry, I have to send it to David and the other one is rearming, but I have help here,” Angela said. “Call if you need me.”

  “I’m a member of the command group,” Danny smiled. “We will have more of those bitches.”

  Buffy looked over at Danny with a pissed expression. “You see that, that fucker shot all of them and didn’t leave me any!” she shouted.

  “Don’t worry, BB. We are about to be in the shit,” Danny said, grabbing the radio. “When you pull off the interstate, lead rig, you drive through the service gate. I swear if you slow down, I’ll shoot you and leave your body.”

  “Copy,” came over the radio as they pulled off the interstate. “Semi, right lane.”

  Danny felt her driver yank the steering wheel hard and looked over the side, seeing a stalled semi in the right lane. “This isn’t a Ferrari, dumbass!” Buffy yelled down in the cab. “You don’t yank the wheel hard or we’ll flip.”

  “Man, I love her,” Danny chuckled as the first rigs blew through the fence and troops started firing again. Blues weren’t on the airfield, but they were all around the fence. Grabbing the radio, “Okay, set up like we always have, just a little faster, so calm down,” she said. “Bravo support, you will send three personnel to my rig and one to each platoon leader’s rig, do you copy?”

  “Copy, do you want extra ammo broken out now?” a young female asked.

  “After we set up, start breaking out the ammo, we are going to need it.”