Emergence (Book 4): Eradication

by Sawyer, JT

  ***

  There was a strange stillness blanketing the base as Katherine rolled out from underneath a cargo trailer that had been brought in from a resupply mission to what was left of Tampa. It was the first time she had been in the presence of so many of the Others, and she wanted nothing more than to cut through their ranks. She felt her blood boil in her veins when she smelled their enticing aroma, but she refrained from giving in to the urges she let run rampant back at the estate in Savannah. She melted back into the shadows as a jeep drove past, then she moved forward, inserting herself between two large stacks of pallets containing bottled water. Katherine knelt down and scanned the buildings beside the airfield, then gazed at the tallest building to the northeast, which had a constant stream of Others coming in and out of the well-guarded facility.

  Several helicopters had arrived and then refueled only to leave again with large numbers of men in uniforms with weapons. Thirty-three men, to be exact. She marveled at her ability to recall that figure, seeing the numeric image in her mind as if it was drawn in the dirt. Oftentimes, she had difficulty understanding the full extent of her brother’s spoken words, there being some kind of blockage between perception and comprehension. She felt like a part of her mind had been burned out and was incapable of being used properly. Yet, when he refrained from talking and conveyed the words directly between them, the images in her mind were clear in translation. She felt as useful at such times as she had once been to him in her former life.

  Katherine swept her head slowly from right to left, scanning the grounds and buildings in the distance. She felt Roland’s mind reaching out through hers, her vision becoming his as he probed the base’s security checkpoints, hardened defenses, troop numbers, and entrances. She knew he had little knowledge of tactics, but he had learned from others like her around the world what combat strategies had been effective against the Others, and he would tie in the information gleaned from this trip to formulate his assault. When his consciousness had left hers, she felt a sudden rush of lightheadedness, then remembered she was completely alone. Though she had only been at this location for an hour, Katherine was eager to leave and rejoin the brood. She felt an inkling of fear—something deep inside the primal brain of her former self made her feel so isolated from the colony of drones back at the estate. Before Roland was transformed, that brood was hers, and she felt an undeniable pull to protect them, guide them, and be in their presence. Now, she wanted to reach across the miles and merge with them.

  She heard the faint compression of gravel behind her and turned to see a man in greasy pants exiting the mechanic’s bay next to the pallets. Before she could duck out of sight, he caught a glimpse of her, his eyes widening as his mouth hung open. The bald man spun around to shout but she leapt upon him, her arms clinching his waist as the force of her weight drove him to the ground. As he thrashed, she straddled his chest, sliding both of her bony hands up to his throat and clamping down on the trachea. He tried to shimmy away, his own massive hands scrabbling to pry her fingers away as he gasped. Katherine looked into his pale face, smiling as she prolonged his ending so she could see the terror in his eyes grow as his world slipped away. This is real power—to control the life before you or to choose when its time is over. She curled her fingers deeper into the side of his windpipe, crushing the cartilage and watching the man choke out his last breath.

  Katherine leaned forward, her nostrils flaring as she drew in his final exhale, the moist air of his pungent breath revealing that he was the correct blood type for her to feast upon. She felt a tingling sensation at the base of her cervical region and knew it was time to feed. Perhaps it was from the struggle or from the enticing aroma of the dead creature before her—she didn’t know, but the uncontrollable urge had to be satiated. She remembered the small vial of clear fluid in her waistpack. Katherine slid her slender legs off the man’s body and sat back, removing the vial and unscrewing the lid. She let the odor linger in the air beneath her lips but felt no compulsion to dip into it—not while the still-warm body of an Other lay before her. Her hand trembled as she looked past the vial to the man’s exposed backside where his shirt had slid up. Her lips fluttered open as the large parasite sprung forth from her throat and her mind was overcome by the lusty desire to tear into his warm, soft flesh. She shook her head, trying to control herself and to follow her brother’s admonitions, but the urge was too strong. She cast aside the vial then dove towards the still carcass, her long nails quickly slicing through the epidermis above the kidneys as the ropey parasite darted out from her mouth in a wild frenzy.

  Chapter 17

  “All teams, commence with Operation Overlord—now!” came Dorr’s firm voice through Reisner’s earpiece. He and his team were spread out in a half-circle around the exits of the building housing the array of recirculation pumps that sat on top of the cooling rods. He could hear Ivins’ men releasing the aerosol canisters, and soon saw a fine haze of yellow smoke wafting through the air to the north beyond the administration building by the entrance. The desert was filled with the sound of shrieking drones, their garbled cries soon growing silent as thousands of them collapsed to their deaths from the deadly gas.

  The front entrance door swung open and three alphas raced through the opening. Their heads shattered apart from 5.56 rounds within the first second, before they had even cleared the sidewalk, as shots rang out from the scoped rifles of Connelly, Nash, and Reisner. All of the shooters waited for the remaining alphas to emerge, but the entrance was still, with the only sound made by the humming of the nearby recirculation pumps to the east of the building.

  They all heard Nash’s voice jitter in their earpieces. “Two more tangos at the south exit.” They heard gunfire as Nash dropped one of the alphas and announced the confirmed kill. Reisner swept his rifle to the left, focusing on the bobbing head of the other alpha as it wove through a row of cars in the parking lot. He held his breath, focusing the red dot, then sent a round into the back of the cranium, punching a hole out the front end and dropping the creature near a guard shack.

  Reisner clicked on his earpiece, readjusting his rifle back to the building. “Can you confirm the remaining alphas?”

  “Negative,” said Nash.

  Reisner could hear Pacelle’s voice coming through his earpiece; the seasoned analyst was assisting with Dorr’s intel team at MacDill. “The remaining three alphas have retreated to the lower recess of the building.”

  Reisner knew they wouldn’t be waiting the creatures out, hoping they would exit the building. They were going to have to go inside and hunt them down one by one. He felt another blast of adrenaline filtering through his veins as it dawned on him how costly this could be.

  “Copy that. Ivins just informed me that the drones are eliminated. We will link up with him and his team and proceed inside.” He rolled slightly to his right, eyeballing Porter, who was positioned next to a green transformer box. “Nash will provide cover support for any squirters while the rest of us meet at the rally point next to the building.”

  He got up from his perch and slotted a fresh magazine into his rifle, then trotted over to meet the rest of his team along with Ivins’ group that had just arrived. “And, one more thing—no weapons can be discharged on that level due to the risk of striking the cooling rods or western Arizona will go the route of Pompeii,” said the somber voice of Pacelle.

  Everyone gave each other sideways glances then reluctantly began slinging their rifles across their backs while removing their collapsible batons, which they had agreed earlier would be less risky for spreading parasites than a blade. Reisner remembered the past two encounters with alphas using only his blade and hoped he would never again have to venture down the path where he went into extreme close-range battle with one of the unholy creatures, let alone three of them. We need to take them down fast before they pick us apart. He was glad they didn’t have more time to debate this approach before common sense presided, and knew they had to just rely on sheer determi
nation and savagery at this point to finish the job. He pulled out his high-powered flashlight from his pants pocket and held it in his other hand.

  Reisner glanced at Ivins and the rest of the group. “Blind ’em and club ’em is our best tactic, given the restrictions.”

  “Looks like we’re all back to being fuckin’ cavemen again,” said Porter as he swung open his baton.

  “That doesn’t change up anything for you,” said Connelly.

  The group shared a nervous laugh as they each took hopeful glances at the bludgeoning weapons in their hands. Ivins thrust his chin up towards the building then moved to the main entrance and swung open the door, heading in as Pacelle guided them through the maze of rooms on the first level.

  The grind of machinery and the hiss of cooling pumps emanated throughout the structure, making it impossible to hear anything moving below. They followed Ivins in a single-file line through the narrow passageway that led to the stairwell below. Murphy was at the rear while Reisner and his team were spread out between the four other SEALs. Emerging at the bottom of the second level, the group of nine operators broke off into three units, each taking a separate route as indicated by Pacelle’s directions to the location of each alpha. After that, each team had their own intel operative back at MacDill that guided them to their destination to avoid confusion and excessive chatter.

  Reisner, Porter, and a SEAL named Blevins peeled off to the right, moving past a small administration office until they were in the east tunnel that led past a series of immense pressure-release valves jutting out from the wall. Their muffled breathing was evident now as they gained distance from the noise of the turbines. Every clanking noise from the steam pipes above them caused Reisner’s nerves to flare as they continued creeping along the passageway while the voice of the operator in their earpieces counted down the meters to their target.

  “Thirty…twenty…ten…” said the tense woman’s voice. Reisner clutched his baton firmly, holding his flashlight up and preparing to depress the button. “Five meters,” said the voice again. He paused at an intersection, scanning the route ahead then to either side. He only saw endless rows of green cooling shafts running from the ceiling to the floor, interspersed with narrow walkways between them. Shit—this thing could be anywhere.

  “I’ve got movement at your…” The woman’s voice cut out as Reisner heard Blevins scream behind him. He pivoted around, seeing the large SEAL being yanked down by the ankles and dragged under a twenty-four-inch service pipe as he struggled to strike at his attacker with the baton.

  Reisner and Porter ran around the other side, coming up on the backside of the alpha as it sent a vicious blow into the side of Blevins’ head, caving in the skull.

  “No!” shouted Reisner as he rushed in, bringing his baton down on the back of the creature’s smooth head but missing as it spun to the right. The blow glanced off the right shoulder, barely leaving a mark. Porter dropped low and struck the alpha in the left knee, shattering the patella and sending the creature down on one leg as a shrill sound filled the air. Reisner sent another overhand strike, this time connecting with the right temple of the enraged beast. The blow created a spiderweb fracture that seeped gray fluid and worms as the creature struggled to stand. Porter swung hard into the lower back, causing the alpha to arch up while Reisner lunged, swinging his baton like a bat into the cervical region, which took the full force of the blow. The alpha collapsed in a heap beside Blevins’ still figure. Reisner straddled the creature, sending one last downward blow into the top of the skull, which buckled under the pressure.

  Reisner stepped to the side, panting as he moved towards Blevins. The man’s glassy eyes were staring up at the ceiling as most of the contents of his shattered head leaked out onto the ground. Reisner let his baton fall and knelt down beside the fallen warrior. “No—goddammit!” He held the man’s hand, squeezing it hard while lowering his eyes. Reisner had enjoyed conversing with the young operator when they were on missions during the past two weeks and had always appreciated his humble, low-key attitude. He remembered the man’s Tennessee drawl and his stories about growing up in the Smokey Mountains. Now all of those precious memories would only remain in the people he left behind.

  Reisner heard the voices of the other team leaders indicating they were successful in eliminating the remaining alphas. He struggled to stand, his stomach queasy as he relayed the tragic news to Ivins in a monotone voice. The other operators regrouped at Reisner’s location and stood in silence, staring at their fallen comrade amidst the bloody carnage on the ground. Then they wrapped Blevins in a tarp and carried him up top, taking his body outside the entrance to the facility and burying it in the sand near a cluster of palo verde trees.

  When they had finished, they secured the mainframe computers inside the combustion venting building, routing over control of the facility to the personnel at MacDill. The sun was nearly setting over the mountains when the Blackhawk arrived, and Reisner wondered how the other strike teams around the country had fared and if they were looking at the same horizon. He hoped their souls weren’t as heavy.

  Chapter 18

  Selene felt like her heart was boring through her chest as she watched the two alphas breaking through the steel barrier in the lobby. She glanced at the other hallway security monitors on the first floor, studying the thinner barricades that were in place before the stairwell.

  “At the rate they’re going, the alphas will be inside in fifteen minutes, tops,” she said. “Those other barriers aren’t going to last long.”

  “The helicopter is still twenty minutes out,” Tso muttered, his eyes widening as he watched the lead alpha bust through the barrier at the main entrance. Within seconds, the two creatures slipped past the jagged metal, followed by hundreds of drones, moving like a ravenous school of piranhas. “This is like Taiwan all over again.”

  “Get the others to the roof,” Selene said, bolting to the door with her small pack. She removed a red bioweapon canister and headed into the hallway.

  “Where are you going, Selene? The way up is the other direction.”

  “I’ll be there—just get everyone up top. We’re going to have a hastier evacuation than anyone expected.” She trotted down the hall, reaching the emergency stairwell. It was locked, per standard protocol, and she realized the keys were back in the security room. Selene knew the alphas would be through the other barricades in minutes. She withdrew the Beretta pistol that Connelly have given her from her belt. She tried to recall the brief lesson she’d had in gun handling and then depressed the safety with her thumb. She stood back from the door, squinting her eyes in anticipation of the shot. One round later and the lock was obliterated, causing the door to swing inward. The ringing in her ears was deafening, and she realized why she often had to raise her voice around Reisner and the others, given the hearing loss they must have suffered over many years of combat engagements.

  She shuffled forward, reaching the stairwell and glancing down at the movement below that she hoped wouldn’t be present yet. There were hundreds of drones climbing over each other in their frenzy to ascend the stairs. Selene had an acidic taste in her mouth from the constant adrenaline dump and the churning of her stomach. Her hand trembled as she clutched the canister, her fingers hovering over the pin as she waited for more drones to enter the stairwell. She glanced at her watch, knowing that Operation Overlord had commenced twenty minutes ago and that the other tactical teams around the country had already released the bioagent, freeing her to use the weapon against the approaching alphas.

  The throng of creatures was now eight levels below. She frantically scanned below for the alphas but they were not at the front of the group. Did they stay in the lobby to protect themselves?

  Seven levels below. The noise of bare feet and hungry mouths filled the narrow passage.

  Six levels. A faint shrill sound emanated off the walls, growing in intensity as the mob closed the distance.

  Five levels. The stench of rot
ting meat from their foul breath permeated the stagnant air. She held the canister over the railing, pulling the pin. One more floor.

  Four levels. The stairwell door suddenly opened below, and she saw Noveck darting out with his laptop. The fool, he must have gone back for something. She fumbled with the locking mechanism on the canister but it was too late. Yellow smoke was beginning to trickle out, and she could smell the sickly-sweet odor of the bioagent filling her nostrils. She released her grip on it, watching the canister plummet below into the hungry horde. Two creatures had already ascended beyond the fifth floor, missing the vapor cloud that was wafting through the stairwell. They leapt up onto the landing of the fourth floor, slamming into Noveck. The thin figure crumpled against the cement wall, emitting a sickening groan as his head impacted the cement. Selene darted down two levels and paused on the steps above him as the creatures tore at the muscles in his neck and face. He screamed out, his arms thrashing as he tried to shove the laptop out from under him. The stairwell rang out with gunfire as Selene began shooting wildly at the ravenous monsters. She shot one in the throat, causing it to clutch its shattered trachea as worms spilled onto Noveck’s back. It tumbled down the steps out of sight as she unleashed another volley of rounds into the next creature, striking it in the jaw and left ear. Its head resembled a leaky bucket as parasites gushed out from the wounds. It spun violently and rushed towards her. She thought the walls were contracting, her world growing dim as she jerked the trigger and fired the Beretta until the slide locked back. She kept pulling the trigger while thrusting the pistol forward until she realized the beast had collapsed from a headshot.

  Selene gave the pistol a quizzical look as if expecting it to reload itself, then shoved it back into her beltline and rushed down the steps to Noveck. She strained her already shocked ears for any noise from the stairwell, then paused for a second to look below. The massed drones were lying in heaps, their extremities clutching their throats as the gas doled out its violent ending upon the horde. There were so many creatures piled up that the lights from the lower level were blotted out. She swallowed hard then moved towards Noveck. The young scientist was covered in arterial blood, which was still pulsing out of his mangled carotid while a stream of flat-bodied parasites tried to swim up into the red current. She looked at Noveck’s glassy eyes and then saw his breath drain away. She wanted to scream, but something primal in her told her to run. Selene bent over and retrieved the laptop, tucking it under her arm after checking for any worms.