Giving the engine all she had, I shot into the open front of the PX just as the mini-gun unleashed its full fury on the parking lot behind us. Cars exploded, asphalt cracked and shrapnel filled the air, but it was too late to stop me. We shot into the darkened store and my headlight illuminated scores of the dead. I didn’t have time to change course or slow down. We were going through.
Bouncing dead off of the handlebars and knocking others aside, we shot through the store in seconds. Emerging from the back, I launched off of the loading dock and into the grass beyond. Locking up the brakes, I slid sideways and cut deep furrows into the soft soil. Grass and dirt flew into the air as I came to a stop fifty yards behind the PX.
The chopper was circling around the parking lot, expecting me to come back out the front and I was more than happy to disappoint them. This time I wasn’t going to waste my time with the M-4. Reaching for the makeshift holster that I had attached to the forks of the bike, I grabbed my other rifle. This time, I was going to use the Beowulf.
“Let’s see how they like this one,” I said, raising the rifle to my shoulder.
I fired off the entire magazine as fast as I could pull the trigger. The first two rounds struck the chopper just below the rotors and instantly black smoke began to pour out of the engine compartment. Two more rounds smashed the canopy and sent the chopper into a spin. The next three rounds destroyed the tail rotor, causing it to spin even faster.
To my surprise, Vigdis managed to keep it from crashing immediately. Trailing smoke, it continued to spin. When it spun around, my next three rounds hit Grimnir. Two rounds blasted his chest apart and the third blew the side of his face off. He fell forward and dangled out of the door by his harness. I could see Vigdis soundlessly screaming his name.
I could see where the chopper was leaking fuel. I wanted to reload and finish the job when Bridgett jumped off of the bike. I could see that she had attached one of my flares to an arrow and ignited it. When she drew the arrow back, I knew what she was trying to do.
“Burn you son-of-a-bitch,” she said, releasing the arrow.
The arrow streaked the fifty yards to its target and stuck fast in the side of the fuselage. I could see the wide-eyed look of panic on Vigdis’ face just before the chopper exploded in a massive fireball. The burning wreckage bucked in the air and fell like a fiery comet plummeting to earth.
“Goodbye Vigdis,” I muttered.
Slinging her bow across her back, Bridgett jumped back onto the bike and wrapped her arms around my waist.
“Get us out of here!” she screamed.
“Gladly,” I said, punching the accelerator and heading after the convoy.
We rocketed up the road as fast as I could safely travel, swerving around both the dead and abandoned cars. I could see the convoy had just cleared the main gate and was heading into town, when I glanced into my rearview mirror.
Behind me in the road, dozens of monstrous gorillas were thundering after me. They were a quarter mile behind me and getting farther away by the second. For just a moment, I was afraid that they would keep coming, when the unthinkable happened. The ground began to buckle and split apart like an earthquake was ripping through it, before vanishing in a flash of fire and debris.
In the blink of an eye, Fort Leonard Wood was gone. I rode out the shockwave at seventy miles an hour, catching up with the convoy just as it reached the intersection where I had first met Lieutenant McBride. Behind us, Rome was burning. The secondary explosions as the fuel depots exploded were an impressive sight to see. The fireball rolled into the clouds.
I slowed to a stop beside the lead Humvee and watched the carnage. Smiling grimly, I mimed playing the fiddle.
“What’s next, Nero?” asked Captain Parkes.
“Let’s go home,” I replied, and put the bike back into gear.
Author’s Bio: D.A. Roberts
D.A. Roberts was born in the small town of Lebanon, Missouri. Growing up on the farm gave him plenty of opportunities to cultivate a fertile imagination. Encouraged by his mother, he dreamed of one day becoming a famous writer. An avid reader, D.A. enjoys reading more than watching television.
A diverse career path has given him a unique view of the world. From soldier to factory worker, from bouncer to lab technician, and from Security Officer to Corrections Officer. Having worn many different hats evolves a very different perspective. He draws on all of these experiences to bring his writing to life on a very human level.
He married Annette in the summer of 1993 and has been happily married, ever since. Three teenage sons keep them both busy. Nathan, Nic and Noah are his pride and joy. They have an English Mastiff named Xander, who is a big part of their lives.
D.A. loves to camp, hunt, fish, hike and Geocache. He also enjoys old-school pen and paper role-playing games. When not writing or on duty as a Corrections Officer, he enjoys spending time with his family. A good cup of coffee, a warm fire and a good book are his guilty pleasures.
Find D.A. on Facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/DARobertsAuthor
Or on Twitter at:
https://twitter.com/DARobertsAuthor
Also By D.A. Roberts
Ragnarok Rising: The Awakening
Book One of the Ragnarok Rising Saga
Everyone you know is dead.
Reports of mob violence begin to appear in the news as more and more major cities go silent. Rumors fly about the nature of the “rioters”, claiming that the dead have risen to prey on the living. In the Midwest City of Springfield Missouri, all Law Enforcement Officers are called out for field duty. Nothing in their training could possibly prepare them for what they faced.
Corrections Officer Wylie Grant is sent into the field to help set-up a checkpoint in a remote section of the county. When they confront the rioters, they discover for themselves that they are facing the living dead. Wylie and National Guard Corporal Chrissy Wilder are the only ones to survive the encounter. Alone and cut off, they must fight their way back to the Nathanael County Jail where the few remaining officers are attempting to regroup.
Finding himself leading the rescue efforts, Wylie must choose between his sworn duty as an officer and his own duty to his family. While coping with the loss of friends and family members, they learn that a government “containment protocol” will soon be in effect. Once established, no one will be allowed in or out of the city.
Facing the realization that no one is coming for them, they must face the harsh truth that the government they thought was their ally has become yet another enemy in a world gone mad.
Can Wylie reach his family in time?
Also By D.A. Roberts
Ragnarok Rising: The Reckoning
Book Two of the Ragnarok Rising Saga
Sometimes the living are worse than the dead.
Wylie didn’t expect to survive the final events of The Awakening. Finding himself alive and alone in zombie infested territory, he starts making his way back to the Nathanael County Jail. Through miles of dangerous ground, he returns to find that nothing is as it was. Betrayal rocks the survivors as they are forced to fight against some of their own in order to pick up the pieces.
New faces as well as familiar ones join in the struggle to survive. Struggling with the loss of friends and loved ones, they must make some harsh decisions that will take them back into the fray among the living dead. Danger looms from every direction as each step they take brings them closer to destruction.
Wylie discovers that other survivors may be a bigger threat to their survival than the zombies. Finding their lives in jeopardy, they must decide if they will find a new place away from the others or if they are willing to go to war with a group known only as the Freemen. In the darkest hour of the Zombie Apocalypse, there is a storm coming.
Who will survive the Reckoning?
Also By D.A. Roberts
Ragnarok Rising: The Crossing
Book Three of the Ragnarok Rising Saga
You will learn to fear the dark.
After surviving the Freemen, Wylie and the others discover that the damage they took during the fight might have been far more extensive than they knew. With structural problems looming and the lack of arable land, they reach a dreaded decision. They must abandon the Underground.
Looking for a place that is not only defensible but provides the opportunity for long-term survival, they must set out on a dangerous journey to scout a new location. Strange new dangers await them, as they find what they thought was the perfect location. A terrifying new type of zombie stalks the valley where they want to make their home. A zombie that owns the night.
The journey to make their new home safe will take them to the distant shores of Lake of the Ozarks and through the zombie infested streets of Lebanon, Missouri. Wylie soon learns that people he thought were enemies can become friends…and friends can become enemies. A lesson that will cost them dearly.
Uncovering the origin of the new undead will take them back to the lake and to a shocking conclusion. Lives will change forever as they must accomplish the impossible in order to secure their new home. The realization that not all of them will survive to see their new community grow will take its toll on them. The safety of their new home will be purchased with blood.
Who will make The Crossing?
Coming Soon!
Ragnarok Rising: damnation
* * *
[1] Yggdrasil - The world tree of Norse religion. It was the great Ash tree that connected all of the worlds.
[2] Dry-bags are waterproof bags that you carry on boats or canoes that hold your gear and keep it dry, even when submerged.
[3] Gigging Pole - A gigging pole is a long handled tool used to spear fish and frogs. It has a small, barbed fork on the end with three tines.
[4] Aesir and Vanir – the God of Asgard.
[5] Jotuns – Giants and enemies of the Gods.
[6] The Havamal – part of the Poetic Edda written by Snorri Sturlson in approximately 1200 AD. The Poetic Edda is a collection of wisdom handed down from ancient times, detailing the roles of the Gods and of the events of Ragnarok.
[7] Fimbul Winter – during Ragnarok, the Fimbul Winter was an extremely harsh winter that would last for three years without changing seasons.
[8] SERE - Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape. It's one of the toughest schools in the military, where pilots are trained in survival techniques and trained how to avoid capture in the event that they are shot down behind enemy lines.
[9] FOB – Military acronym for Forward Observation Base.
[10] PFC – Private First Class
[11] Fruit Salad - Army slang for ribbons and awards worn on a dress uniform.
[12] Full-Bird – Army slang. There are two ranks of colonel. Lieutenant Colonel whose rank emblem is a silver oak leaf and Colonel who’s rank insignia is an eagle. Thus, Full-Bird.
[13] NCO - Non-commissioned Officers. Enlisted ranks below the rank of officer.
[14] MP - Military Police
[15] POMCUS - Positioned Outside Military Control United States. Hidden supply bunkers hidden around the United States and our allies to provide equipment, arms and supplies for combat units in the event of an invasion.
[16] Skoll and Hati – in Norse belief, Skoll and Hati are the two wolves that will devour the moon and the sun during Ragnarok.
[17] Zoomies – slang for Air Force personnel. It references them “zooming” around in aircraft.
[18] Jormungandr is the Migard Serpent. According to legend, it is the offspring of Loki and the Giantess Angrboda. It grows so large that it encircles the world. During Ragnarok, it will come forth from the ocean and spew venom that will poison the sky. Thor will kill it, but only lives long enough to take nine paces before succumbing to the venom and dying.
[19] Jump School – Army Slang. How soldiers refer to Parachute Training at Ft. Benning, GA. Where you earn your jump wings to become an Airborne Trooper.
[20] MOS – Military Occupational Specialty or the job you have in the military.
[21] 31 Bravo is the MOS number for Military Police.
[22] USAMRIID – It stands for United States Army Medical Research Institution of Infectious Diseases, located in Fort Detrick Maryland. Specializing in Biodefense, it has similar goals as the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta Georgia.
[23] MRAPs – Mine Resistant Ambush Protected armored fighting vehicles.
[24] PX – Post Exchange. Like a Mega-Mart for soldiers.
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