Where The Dead Men Lie (The Secret Apocalypse)

by Harden, James

  "Yep, that’s a lot of bullets," Jack said.

  "Can you turn it on from here, Tariq?" Kenji asked.

  He searched through the computer, typed a few commands. "It would appear not. It must be controlled from the military facility."

  "OK, we do that first," Daniel said. "Maria, you’re staying here with Tariq."

  "No way. I’m coming with you guys. I want to help."

  "We’ve been over this. You’re too valuable. We can’t risk you."

  Tariq cocked his head to the side. "Risk her?"

  "No," Kenji said. "Maria is right. We need her for this one. We need all hands on deck."

  Daniel was about to protest but just then I noticed a clock on the top right hand side of the computer monitor.

  A clock that was counting down.

  "Hey, what the hell is that?" I asked.

  "What?"

  I pointed at the screen. "Top right hand corner. Numbers. A clock."

  It continued counting down.

  It read:

  Twenty-three minutes and forty-five seconds.

  Forty-four.

  Forty-three.

  "What the hell?" Jack said.

  "It’s a timer," Kenji pointed out.

  "A timer for what?"

  "I don’t know."

  Daniel moved in front of the screen and typed in a few commands.

  "What do you think?" Kenji asked.

  Daniel’s face turned pale. He shook his head and kept saying ‘no’ over and over. "It’s rigged to blow," he said. "Self destruct. A fail safe. In case there was a containment failure."

  We all crowded around the monitor and stared at the countdown in disbelief.

  "So we can’t stay here?" Maria asked.

  "We should be able to turn it off," Daniel said. "There’s got to be a password, an override system. Something."

  Daniel punched in a few more commands but nothing happened. The only thing he could access was the security cameras.

  "Let me try," Tariq said.

  He sat back in front of the computer. His fingers moved with expert dexterity and blinding quickness over the keyboard. But nothing happened.

  "I’ll have to check the system over in the military compound," Daniel said.

  "What if we can’t turn it off?" I asked.

  "If we can’t turn it off then we’ll have to get the hell out of here. Gather up as much food, water and ammo as we can carry and get as far away as possible. We don’t know what kind of explosives they’ve rigged."

  "Are you saying this thing could be nuclear?" I asked.

  "It’s possible," Kenji said. "Most likely thermobaric."

  "What’s that?"

  Kenji shook his head. "Bad news."

  "Whoa, whoa, whoa." Jack said. "If there’s a possibility that this thing is nuclear or thermo-whatever, let’s go. Right now. It’s not worth the risk."

  "You cannot leave," Tariq said.

  "Why not?"

  "The nano-swarm. We need to take care of it."

  "He’s right," I said as I remembered what Ben had said about it earlier. "We can’t leave. If it knows we’re here, it will hunt us down."

  Jack lowered his head in defeat.

  "All right, let’s move like we got a purpose," Daniel said as he synchronized his watch with the self destruct clock. "We haul ass over to the military compound and turn on the security system. After the sentinels do their job, Kenji will move up to one of the gun towers to provide covering fire for us. Jack will use one of the Humvees to distract the remaining infected. Maria, Rebecca and myself will turn on the EMP generators. Any questions?"

  "Does everyone have their walkie-talkies from earlier?" Kenji asked.

  "Mine’s busted," I said.

  Maria shook her head. "I never got one."

  "Here, use these," Tariq said as he gave Maria and myself a radio each. "I’ll monitor the nano-swarm from here."

  "Tariq, you’re our eyes," Kenji said. "Let us know where the damn thing is at all times, all right?

  "Yes."

  Daniel waved us forward, urging us out the door. "Let’s go. We don’t have long."

  CHAPTER 42

  Sometimes, I don’t know why we even bother making plans.

  They never go as expected.

  Anyway, when we had moved out and away from the communications room, Kenji told us he didn’t want to leave Maria there by herself. I guess he didn’t fully trust Tariq, even though he was proving to be quite useful with the computer. And his knowledge of the nano-swarm was a big help. If he hadn’t taken control of the surveillance cameras, we might never have known it was coming for us until it was too late.

  Still, Kenji wasn’t comfortable leaving Maria by herself. So Maria came with us.

  Unfortunately, this would prove to be just as dangerous.

  Before we left though, Daniel untied Tariq. He said he needed to have his hands free if he was going to help us. And it was obvious we needed his help. He was manning the surveillance cameras. Daniel and Kenji both agreed that without him, we’d be flying blind.

  We left the mess hall of the research room and came to the enclosed walkway that connected the research building to the military building. The walkway was suspended about two stories above the ground.

  Each end had a pressurized, automatic door that required a password to open. Just as before, with the door in the rabbit hole, we didn’t know the password. But again, we didn’t need to. Both sets of doors, the ones on the research side and the ones on the military side had been blown apart.

  "Looks like someone used C4 on the doors," Daniel said.

  "And the actual walkway doesn’t look too good either," Maria pointed out.

  She was right. The whole thing was tilted to one side. There’s no way it was stable. To make matters worse, the floor of the walkway was basically a metal grate. And we could see the infected walking around directly below.

  They didn’t know we were standing above them yet. But we were bound to make noise as we walked across the metal walkway.

  "Why would someone blow these doors up?"

  "Don’t know," Daniel answered. "Doesn’t make any sense."

  "Maybe they malfunctioned," Kenji offered.

  "Great," Jack said. "There’s no way we’re crossing this thing. It’s busted."

  "There’s gotta be another way." I said. "Maybe underground?"

  Daniel shook his head. "There’s no time. We have to cross. If we do it quickly, it should hold."

  "Should?" Jack said. "I don’t know, man."

  "Look, the infected are inside the perimeter," Daniel replied. "The nano-swarm thing is on its way. We need to get the security system back on line or we’re all dead."

  Jack swallowed hard. He looked at the walkway.

  "I’ll go first," Kenji said.

  He took a tentative first step out on to the grated floor. He put some weight on it, and then some more.

  The metal structure groaned and complained. But it held.

  "Seems OK," Kenji said.

  He then jumped up and down on it.

  "Whoa, settle down!" I said.

  "It’s fine," he replied. "It’s perfectly safe. Let’s go."

  Unfortunately, the few infected, milling around below us, were now looking up, and trying to figure out the noise they had just heard. Some of them had moved underneath us, reaching up with their arms and their black fingernails. I had to remind myself that we were at least two stories high. They couldn’t get to us.

  "They can’t get to us." I whispered to myself.

  We followed Kenji out on to the walkway when suddenly we could hear the proximity alarm again.

  Daniel spoke into his walkie-talkie. "Tariq, speak to me."

  "Ah. It is coming. Something big."

  "The nano-swarm?"

  "No."

  I looked out the blackened windows of the walkway, through the small, scratched out peep holes. Nothing.

  The only sign of danger were the infected. Thr
ough the grated floor we could see them mindlessly reaching up for us. But most of them were still clawing at the walls of the compound.

  "I don’t see anything." Daniel said to Tariq.

  "It’s on the far-side of the research building."

  "What the hell is it?"

  "I do not know. Something big." he said, pausing, hesitating. "It is moving around the facility. It is coming for you. Hide."

  We were all looking now. Out both sides. Still nothing. But then we felt the walkway shake. It was only a small vibration at first, but it was noticeable. The vibration was followed by another. And another.

  Slow and methodical.

  We heard a snorting sound. Something growled.

  Maria let out a little, tiny yelp. "Guys, I see it." She then put her hands over her mouth so she wouldn’t make any more noise.

  "Hit the deck," Kenji whispered.

  We dived for the floor of the walkway, flattening ourselves as much as we could.

  "Did it see us?"

  "No. There’s no way. The windows are completely blacked out."

  "Do you think it’s the same one from the town?" Jack asked. "Did it follow us here?"

  No one answered Jack. I for one was too scared to speak. And I think Kenji and Daniel were trying to think of a way out of this situation.

  "What do we do now?" Jack continued.

  "I don’t know. Just be calm," Kenji said. "Calm and quiet."

  Daniel’s radio squawked to life with Tariq’s voice mixed in with some static. "Do you see it yet?" he asked.

  "Turn that thing off," Kenji whispered.

  Daniel switched off his radio.

  But it was too late. The monster had heard. It let out a deafening roar as it continued to walk slowly towards us, each footstep caused the walkway to vibrate and shake.

  I got to my knees so I could see through a small gap in the paint, right near the window sill.

  And that’s when I saw it. If what Jack had suggested earlier was true, it meant that this thing was once a human being. A person who had been transformed into something huge and grotesque. Something from a crazy person’s nightmare. It definitely looked like the one we had seen the other day, the one that had taken those two women. Maybe it had tracked us down because it was mad at us for taking away its food source?

  Maybe it wanted revenge?

  It kept moving around the research building, sniffing the walls and the windows. It moved on all fours. Hunched over. Heavy footsteps shook the footbridge, the metal structure groaned.

  "We’re two stories up," Daniel said. "We should be fine."

  And as soon as he said it, the monster stood up on its hind legs. And just like that, it towered over the walkway.

  We scuttled underneath the windows, making sure it couldn’t see us. And we were trying to be as quiet as possible so it couldn’t hear us.

  "Now what?" I whispered.

  Kenji shook his head.

  "If we stay down, keep quiet we should be able to make it into the military compound," Daniel answered.

  "And then?"

  "I don’t know. But it beats being stuck on this footbridge."

  He had a good point.

  We were about to make a move, but just then the monster ducked underneath the walkway. It must’ve brushed its back against the structure because the whole thing rose up about a foot in the air, rocking back and forth. Once the monster was clear of the footbridge, the whole structure abruptly and violently shifted back into its original place. The monster stood up on the other side, looking out and away from us.

  As the structure moved, Maria let out another yelp.

  Again, this noise caught the attention of the monster. We couldn’t see it clearly through the spray-painted windows; it was just a shadow, silhouetted against the harsh desert sun. And we were pretty confident it couldn’t see us but just to be sure we quickly scrambled to the other side and hid under the windows as it turned around to inspect the walkway.

  The monster moved in closer. The shadow of its giant head scanned up and down the entire length of the walkway. Its mouth was slightly open, exposing foot long, razor sharp, samurai sword teeth.

  I closed my eyes at that point, hoping it would just keep walking and leave us alone. Praying that the damn walkway would hold.

  My prayers went unanswered.

  The monster brushed up against the walkway again, gently at first but then more forcefully. The whole structure shook. The floor tilted further and further with each blow. Suddenly, it began to break away from the research side of the facility. The windows began to shatter.

  "We need to go," Kenji said.

  But before we could move, a giant, powerful arm and a hand full of claws punched through the window, breaking the reinforced glass like it was rice-paper.

  I covered my head and held my breath so I didn’t scream.

  The monster was feeling around, searching.

  Kenji then stood up from his position to get a look at the monster; he knelt back down and dived out of the way as the monster’s other hand came crashing through the window. Kenji stood up again and took aim with the shotgun. He unloaded two shells at point blank range, right at the monsters eyes.

  The monster roared in pain. It was a frightening, earsplitting, earth shattering noise. Fortunately the shotgun blast had stunned the monster momentarily.

  "Everybody out!" Kenji shouted. "Let’s go!"

  Daniel was already on the other side and Jack got to his feet in a flash.

  We were almost out. We were so close. I had grabbed on to Maria who had been lying down next to me.

  But we were too slow.

  Maybe we were worried about the broken glass on the floor. Maybe I tripped. Maybe Maria tripped. For the life of me, I can’t remember. All I remember is seeing the giant shadow of the monster through the black windows. It was charging at us.

  It was coming in fast.

  I realized in a heartbeat that we weren’t going to make it to the other side in time.

  I looked up and saw the guys standing there at the entrance to the military compound, waving us forward, urging us forward.

  I grabbed Maria in a bear hug, tackled her to the ground and braced for impact.

  CHAPTER 43

  As I dived for the floor, all I could think about was the damn self-destruct clock. In my mind’s eye it was a huge scoreboard inside a sports stadium with the clock rapidly approaching zero.

  We were wasting precious minutes and time would not wait for us.

  The impact of the monster smashing into the walkway was ridiculously loud. The force of the blow had knocked Maria and me clear to the opposite side. We hit the wall, and then hit the grated floor. We hit hard. I could feel the broken glass and the metal floor cut, graze and otherwise destroy any exposed section of my skin. Luckily, Maria was protected by the NBC suit.

  Every single one of the windows was now shattered. Next time the monster looked inside, it would find us. Find its dinner.

  The walkway continued to tilt and break away. The metal structure began to twist and warp out of shape. Suddenly, giant claws appeared through where the windows used to be. It took a firm grip on the walkway and began to pull. The footbridge broke away from the research compound.

  We tried getting to our feet, but it was no use. Each time we stood we were knocked back to the floor. It was like an earthquake. A big freakin earthquake.

  The walkway tilted again, the wall became the floor. I nearly fell out of the broken window.

  Down below I could see the infected. Mindless. Relentless.

  The monster roared and brushed them aside like they were ants, squashing them, flattening them and ripping them in half.

  It wanted us all for itself.

  I still had Maria gripped tightly in both arms and she had her legs braced against one of the window sills, making sure we didn’t fall out. We needed to get moving. In my mind’s eye the giant scoreboard with the self-destruct clock continued counting down to zero.
Faster and Faster.

  "Hold on," I said to Maria. "We can do this."

  As I spoke, I tasted blood. It was gushing out of a cut to my forehead, blurring my vision. The ground below turned dark and for a second I thought I was going to pass out and fall to my death. But just then I heard a hissing sound.

  The dark ground began to move. It looked like black quicksand.

  The monster paused, halting its attack on the walkway. The mutation moved away from us. Sniffing. Grunting. Growling.

  The hissing sound grew louder.

  "Quick! Take my hand!" It was Daniel.

  The guys had formed a human chain to get us. Jack was at the top, then Kenji, then Daniel.

  "Hurry!"

  I grabbed Daniel’s hand and grabbed Maria and the guys pulled us up and out of the walkway. Once we were clear we collapsed on the floor of the military facility.

  I was on my back, desperately trying to catch my breath, wiping blood out of my eyes.

  "Where did it go?" Kenji asked.

  We had lost sight of the monster; its footsteps were softer now.

  "Tariq, where is it?" Daniel asked.

  "It is backing away from your position."

  "What? Why?"

  "The nano-swarm."

  "It’s here already?"

  "Yes. It came in fast. It must have been attracted by all the noise."

  Daniel swore under his breath and checked his watch.

  "How long before this place blows?" I asked.

  "Fifteen minutes."

  "We need to go." Kenji said.

  "Yeah," I answered between deep breaths.

  We heard another roar from outside. Louder than anything we’d heard so far. Some of the windows cracked and shattered. Then we heard a huge crash, like something had either exploded or fallen from a great height.

  I ran up to one of the blackened windows and peeked outside. "Wait. It’s gone!"

  "What? Daniel asked.

  "The monster; it’s gone," I said in amazement.

  Daniel spoke into the walkie-talkie. "Tariq, can you see it?"

  "I do not believe it," Tariq said.

  "What? What’s going on out there?"

  "It’s gone. The monster, the swarm. They are gone. The nano-swarm, it rose up in front of the monster, engulfing it, tripping it over, taking its legs."