He cleaned his mouth on his sleeve and let out a belch loud enough to vibrate the walls. “That went down good.” He looked over to Vic and smiled. “No problem I got this. Can I borrow the Corporal over there? I need an assistant.”
“By all means, Brian. Just be nice to the nice girl.” I answered.
“Excellent. I will be back in a couple of hours with some info and hopefully the plan will be implemented right away.” He smiled warmly and swiveled on his heel. As he walked past the couch, he snapped his fingers and motioned for the corporal to follow him. He started snapping orders as they disappeared through the door.
Vic and I had nailed a couple of more details down, when Apache sauntered in. She grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down with us. She took a sip from her cup and put it back down on the table. Vic and I sat there quietly staring at her, waiting for her to speak. She knew it and enjoyed making us squirm.
We watched her for five minutes in silence, waiting for her to speak her piece. Finally, she put her cup down and smiled. “Boys, I just came from the guard’s room and got a message from General Richards for you.”
She reached into her breast pocket and took out a note. She held out her hand, with the note in the middle of the table, and waited to see who wanted it most. I motioned for Vic to take it. He did and read through the message, his brows rising and falling as he did. He looked over at me and handed it over. I read through it and felt conflicting emotions roll over me.
“Wait, this can’t be. Apache, did you confirm this was the General? Did you actually talk to him?” I stammered.
“I asked for the code of the day and he knew it. I then asked him how we first met. He answered both correctly, so I feel confident that he was who he said he was. I did feel the same about the message as you do.”
The message reported that two Northern California bases that had been under our control had fallen. One by a massive horde of zombies, and the other by an air attack from Ridder. The first base had had time to evacuate most of the citizens and as many supplies and equipment as they could. They lost ten percent of each; supplies and human life. The other base had been totally surprised and razed to the ground. The only good news about that one was that there were no refugees there or equipment that couldn’t be replaced, except for a skeleton crew of soldiers. It was a punch to the gut and it took some of the wind out of my sails.
The next part of the message though concerned a special aircraft tasked to support our efforts in the coming battle. The aircraft stated was an AC-130J Ghostrider gunship, which had been hurriedly put together after being found at a secret airbase as a prototype. It was equipped with a Bushmaster 30mm cannon, precision bombs and missiles, along with the granddaddy of them all, a massive 105mm cannon. In regards to power we had just been handed the most powerful air to ground gorilla available. Also included in the package, would be a flight of four fighter jets, in order to protect it. I dropped the message to the table.
“So it says it is tasked to us, but it does not say how long it would take to get here once we called. I have a feeling we would have been hit pretty hard by the time that thing rolls in to help.”
Apache frowned. “The General would not say where the planes would be coming from. But he did say once we called, it would be in the air in minutes and could be over our AO.” Apache looked at me for a second and realized I had no idea what AO meant. “Sorry, Dan. That means ‘area of operations’. So, he said it would be over our AO in three hours. But the worst part would be, that it could only loiter for one hour before it had to leave, due to fuel limitations.”
Vic and I shared a glance and I sighed. “So when we need it, we better be damn sure it will arrive at the exact moment we need it, or we could be in bigger trouble just as it leaves. So, no pressure then.” I drained the rest of my coffee and groaned. It was cold, and just in case I haven’t told you before, I hate cold coffee. I kicked my chair back in frustration as I stood and stalked to the kitchen to either find more brewed coffee or brew some more.
Apache was slightly stunned over my outburst, but let it go. I saw her frown and look toward Vic. “I’m fine, Apache, just a little wired and a little stressed. Sorry for being an ass.”
She gave me a thumbs up as I rummaged through the kitchen getting the coffee maker ready. I listened as much as my temper would let me, to the conversation Vic and Apache were having in the dining room. I leaned against the counter, watching the coffee brew and tried to relax. I tried deep breathing, I tried to think of better times, and I tried to think of my Julie. But honestly, nothing was working. I looked at my watch and moaned at finding that we had been working on our plans for the last seven hours.
When the coffee was done I poured myself a cup, then retrieved the carafe from the table and topped it off. I took my cup and waved at the two as I stalked out of the room. I needed a break and figured a walk might help. I made my way around the circled hallway twice, thinking of Angel’s words and over the unknown factors of our plan, when I found myself in front of Joseph’s lab. I opened the door and strolled in.
I found him alone in the lab, typing away at a work-station. He glanced up when he heard the door open and smiled when he saw me pop in. He waved me over and went back to what he was doing. I took some sips of my coffee and wandered over, trying to stay away from the tables. No way did I want to spill my coffee on their work and ruin it, or get some bacteria into my coffee and infect myself with some new exotic virus.
I took a seat and rolled over to Joseph’s desk. He stopped what he was doing and turned in his seat to address me. “You look like shit, Dan.”
“Yeah, well, you don’t look too hot either, Joseph,” I jabbed back.
“Yes, we both do not look to be in the best of shape, I agree. I do have some news for you.”
“I could use good news, doc. Just a warning, not sure if I can handle anymore shit right now,” I warned him.
He gave me a polite smile and nodded his agreement. I think we can put this one in a win category. “According to our work so far, although it has not brought on a cure yet, is showing some promise. I may be able to inoculate our people with a...” He paused while thinking out his words. “Well, I am not going to go deep into the science, since I am sure I would lose you. But I could in the future, and I mean relatively soon, be able to protect us from the bites, which turn people into zombies themselves. I mean you could still die by the bacteria the zombies carry, but you would not turn into one of the dead things.”
I sat there quietly, showing no emotion as I processed his words. I finally spoke. “That is damn good Joseph. I for one, do not want to turn into one of those things. And anyway to stop their ranks from growing is a good step, in my opinion.”
“It would not take long once I do nail down the process to make enough serum to inoculate the entire facility. But in order to produce enough to inoculate the rest of the country, it would take a lab like the one in my old company’s facilities near Las Vegas.”
“Is that place still in one piece? And if I was able to attain it, could you make it work?” A plan was starting to take shape in my head. Well, a general plan, I did not have all the data yet.
“My lab there is hidden in plain sight, and the best thing is that no one alive but me knows it exists. It has its own reliable power source and most of the chemicals I probably will need to synthesize it all. But the hard part, is it sits under the most guarded place in the city.”
“Don’t tell, me in the basement of the hotel I was a guest of recently?” I moaned.
“First, let me apologize for what I had done to you. I know that will never be enough to allow you and I to become friends, or for you to trust me. But I needed to say it,” he mumbled out.
“Joseph, really, it’s under the bridge. You were playing for the wrong team and you have now been shown the light and switched to ours now. I doubt we will ever be best friends and have beers together, but I can have a professional and civil relationship with you,” I explained.<
br />
“Thank you, Dan. You are a better man then I will ever become. And to answer your question, yes, the lab is in the very bottom basement of the hotel we held you in. The floor you were interviewed on was the second basement. My lab is another five more below. No one knows it is there, but the bad part is that the floors above are the command center for the Ridder forces of the region,” he informed me.
I put my face in my hands and sighed. “Okay, I will file that away for now. You do not have the serum yet so there is no reason to worry about that part. We need to first survive the Ridder forces on their way here, right now.”
Joseph didn’t look shocked at all over the news. “I figured they would come here eventually, once I found out what this place was. I will not allow myself to worry about that right now. I am going to go take a nap and get my team right back to work, ASAP.” He saved his work and logged off of his workstation. “I will take my leave now. Goodnight, Dan.”
He thrust his hand out and I took it and we shook. “Good night, Joseph. I wish you all the luck in the world on this endeavor.”
We walked out together as he secured the lab for the night. I walked him back to the dorm in silence. and then peeled off and headed to find Brian. It was now six am. my watch informed me. I knew today would be a bitch and I should find time to nap at some point. I wandered around and finally made my way up to the guard entrance that we had first entered when taking the base. I found Brian at the door to the outside, talking to a couple of men and Corporal Narron.
I waited till he looked up and found me standing against a wall. He motioned for me to hold on and finished his words with his team. He finished and sent them about their orders and broke away. He sauntered over and leaned against the wall and stared down at me.
“You look like shit. Want to go for a walk outside with me?”
“Why is it that everyone says I look like shit? Do I need to brush my hair or put on a different shade of lipstick?”
Brian reached out and rubbed my bald head. “Nope, your hair looks great. But yeah, you need some eye shadow and a new shade of lipstick. No, Boss, you just look burned out. Maybe you need to exercise or do yoga and learn to let the stress go. You would think by looking at you that we were in the Zombie Apocalypse or something.”
I punched him in the gut and hurt my wrist in the process. Someday, I swear, I will learn. Brian was so muscular that hitting him was like hitting a steel wall.
He looked down at me with a look that showed humor. “Did you hurt yourself again, Boss?”
I shook my head. “Let’s just go for that walk already. I think the fresh air will help.”
Brian led the way and we strolled outside into the dawning sun. We stood just outside the door and let our eyes adjust from the harsh fluorescent lights of the guard-house to the rapidly growing sunlight of the morning. We hiked behind the building and up the small hill abutting it. I struggled to keep up with Brian’s long strides and found myself breathing hard. I was out of shape, even though I had been using my body more than when I had been an office dwelling gnome. But I had to remind myself that I had been shot, tortured, and beaten. So there was no way that I could be in good shape after all that crap.
We summited the hill and I could see pretty far in all directions. It was a beauty that I could not really put into proper words. The sun coming up across the valley painted the hills in reds and yellows. I came close to forgetting about the walking corpses and army on its way to kill us. I closed my eyes and tried to let the peace and quiet wash over me. A voice broke through Brian’s radio.
“We got a problem, Brian. Is Dan with you? Over.”
Brian slid the radio out of his vest pocket and answered. “Yeah, he’s with me, what’s up? Over.”
He handed the radio over to me ruining my little moment that I had been enjoying. I took it and shook my head in defeat. “This is Dan. If you ruin my day, I am going to shave your head and eyebrows, and bury you up to your head in the desert. Over.” I said with as much sarcasm in my voice as possible.
“Dan, its Cupcake, we have a situation. Over.”
I looked up at Brian. “Yes, I believe you said that. Do you want to be a little more descriptive? Over.” I called over the radio.
“Dan, Kuppers says he wants to talk to you in person. Over.”
“Okie dokie. Let him know I am outside on top of the hill behind the shed. Over.” I tossed the radio back to Brian and leaned back on my elbows. Closing my eyes, I let myself relax, knowing that this could be the last time I would have to enjoy the peace for a while. Brian chuckled then appeared next to me, dropping to the ground and leaning back, joining in on the peace and quiet.
The sun shined down on my body and warmed me, but then a shadow fell over me. “I swear if you are going to ruin my peace. I am going to kick you in whatever genitals God gave you,” I sighed audibly.
“Try it, and I will break you in half,” an authoritative voice boomed out.
“Oh, the big cheese has come to deliver the bad news himself,” I muttered.
“It’s time to become serious, Dan.” Kuppers voice dropped to a grave tone.
I opened one eye and stared at him for a bit. His lips were set in a grimace and his eyes bored into mine. “Fuck. There goes my peace, shattered and never to come again. Ok, Kuppers, lay it on me.”
Kuppers offered his hand and I took it. He flexed his muscles and pulled me to my feet. Brian looked up at us and tilted his head.
“Anyone going to help me up?” he grumbled.
“Yeah, we will call a tow truck for you,” Kuppers answered.
“No, I think we’ll need a crane,” I chimed in.
“Ok, enough screwing around. We received calls from the incoming convoy. I allowed Holly to answer them. She said she would lead them on and tell them everything was fine. But she turned out to be the true manager of the facility and working for Ridder. None of her team knew, she had bad mouthed Ridder so much that they believed she was a prisoner like them. So, to make a long story short, she alerted them to our presence, using a code word. Our secret is out of the bag and according to Hase, whoever called in the convoy has stopped.” Kuppers looked defeated and upset at the same time.
I stood there, arms crossed, thinking about our new situation. “Oh well, shit happens. Nothing we can do about it. We need to change our plans. I hope you had Holly confined to her quarters.”
“I did one better, I handed her over to Apache to get the full truth out of her. I know Apache will do everything to get us what we need. I do not envy Holly.” Kuppers informed us.
“I need to change my plans and shore up my defenses. I will find you later, Dan.” Brian got off the ground and took off down the hill, back to the guard-house.
Kuppers and I stared at each other for a while. “This is going to be a big shit storm Kuppers. We are going to lose men and women. This kind of battle is beyond my skill set at planning.”
“Yeah, I agree people are going to die. But I have something that the enemy doesn’t.”
I scrunched up my nose and furrowed my brow, thinking of what his secret could be. “What’s that?”
He put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed gently. “Dan, I have you.”
“You forget; I have no experience in this kind of planning.” I answered.
“That is my secret. They think along military doctrine. They plan using process from a manual. You on the other hand, use logic and think outside that metaphorical box,” he answered.
“Great, but I do not know anything about the kind of weapons they have and use.”
“You don’t, and that is just fine. Cause I have dedicated men and women who do. Now, let’s go inside and start figuring things out.”
We bumped fists and I let him lead us back to the facility. My mind already busy working through scenarios and going on our supply lists. Vic met us at the door to the facility and brought our files and maps. A table and chairs had been setup, along with white and cork-boards added to the w
alls. Doc and Cupcake were also present. We got to work immediately, I handed the supply files to Doc and he jumped right in. I assigned Cupcake to work through the vehicles and heavy weapons. Vic and I concentrated on our surrounding areas and worked out defensive positions, throwing back and forth ideas of ambushes.
Kuppers took over communicating with General Richards and explained our situation, requesting more ammo and other supplies. During our planning session, Apache appeared and stood at the front of the table with her arms folded. I snapped my fingers and got everyone’s attention. I pointed to Apache and we all got quiet, giving our attention to her.
“Hey guys, I just got done having a little conversation with our little double-agent super-scientist, Holly. Turns out this chick used to work for the Army in their biological weapons lab when everything was still ok. She’s been working with Ridder for ten years, and was transferred to Stanford a year before the Wildfire virus was released. Turns out, she was the scientist they recruited first to create the virus, but she couldn’t do it. So they went out and got Joseph, turns out she was pretty pissed about being shunted off to Stanford, and then to this facility. When she heard Joseph was captured, she figured she could use him to further her research and help Ridder re-capture the facility. Thus, help her become the chief scientist for the Initiative.”
Apache finished with her briefing and examined the tables surface.
“Good job, Apache.” Kuppers offered.
“Alright, let’s get back to planning. Apache, why don’t you play devil’s advocate. Anytime someone finishes their section, I want you to try and punch holes in it. We may be too close to our data to see what you might.” I suggested.
“I am a woman. I am used to telling men when they are wrong.” She smiled and let a little girl-like giggle out.
Zombie Theorem: The End Game Page 19