The Last Days_Conclude [Book 3 of 3]

by Chris Ayala

  Victor cackled so loud, it echoed back and forth in the empty street. His eyes never blinked. Royal read once that psychopaths didn't blink as much.

  Once the fuel ran out, the fire died down. Left behind were the ashes of vans and six Union Keepers. But more were coming. Vans sped up and blocked the street. Without saying a word, Adam charged the crowd charged with him. This was it. This was the end. They were about to commit mass murder.

  Climbing over the vans, smashing the windows with bare hands, and yanking the Union Keepers out - the war began. Royal watched as bats, axes, and guns battered the Union Keepers. One of them had a wet spot around his groin. Another one's head got crushed by a frying pan. Royal eyed a piece of skull fly into the air. It was so wrong…but felt so right.

  Adam lurched forward and fought three of the skilled Union Keepers with ease. A policeman leapt in, carrying a baton, and broke one of the Union Keeper's kneecap with a strong swing. It was the only noise in the street. Besides the occasional whimper from a Union Keeper or splash of blood hitting the concrete ground, it surprisingly quiet for such a brutal scene. Royal shot her slingshot through every neck she could, the Union Keepers' helmets were useless when the jugular vein was exposed. And she never missed.

  A hard butt to the back of her head sent her falling backwards. Dizzying, but still conscious, she looked up to see a Union Keeper holding the butt of a semi-automatic rifle. She almost crawled backwards, but remembered Zharkova's words. Silly girl, crawling away like some crab. Royal looked around quickly and saw a blade on the ground. Before the Union Keeper could pull the trigger, she grabbed the blade and swiped it across the assailant's throat. Blood spilled out like an over-shaken Coke can.

  Another wave of vans rushed in, possible twelve or maybe more. Royal sat up quickly. To her surprise, most of the Union Keepers were already dead. But this new amount of armed gunmen would be more difficult. Not only did they carry a rifles, grenades, and shields - but the Gatling gun in the back of their van created quite a challenge.

  "He's here!" Adam bellowed.

  Above them, high in the sky, a jet ascended. Before Royal could blink, the night turned into day. Missiles and bullets reigned down igniting the Union Keepers. One of the men screamed into a walkie-talkie for help, but a vehicle flipped over in flames and landed on him. Nelson's jet slowed and stopped in mid-air. More bullets came down. The Union Keepers tried to run to cover but ammunition penetrated their thick steel suits killing them instantly. Some of the attackers ran toward the People of Bliss. This must've been what Nelson called a Kamikaze syndrome; knowing they were about to die but taking down whoever they could. The crowd welcomed another fight. Fists came down, bats swung, and shots were fired.

  Royal saw Adam fall to the ground. Behind him, a Union Keeper pointed a shotgun at the back of Adam's head. The first time she met this young nerdy man, she would've raced for the opportunity to kill him first. But now, she wanted to race to save his life. Royal dashed through the crowd, screaming, "Adam!"

  Then the most shocking thing this evening occurred. From behind the Union Keeper, another suited Union Keeper approached. He reached around and snapped the neck of Adam's attacker. Before Royal could ask why one of the opposing forces just turned against his colleague, the friendly Union Keeper ripped off his helmet. He said behind glazed eyes, "I don't want to fight for them anymore."

  The friendly reached out his hand to help Adam up. Without a moment of hesitation, Adam reached out his arm and was hoisted up. No one was turned away from the People of Bliss. No one. Even the enemy.

  In only a few moments, the fight was over. For now. Royal could see several peoples' chest heaving up and down. Out of breath, but yet hungry for more. Their clothes soaked in blood and guts, most didn't bother to wipe it away.

  Adam stared past the bridge at the Union Castle. "March!" He commanded. And the People of Bliss continued their walk. Royal noticed no news choppers hovered anywhere.

  Darkness consumed far more than his soul. The mirror showed Marcel a different man with even deeper circles under his eyes. His skin paled in comparison to just a year ago, even when he suffered a disease that kept him out of the sun. No concerns or regrets crossed his mind as he calmly placed his frock coat on. Staring in the mirror, he couldn't help but notice the difference his bond with darkness did to his eyes. Years ago, they shined bright blue and his stare melted the hearts of women. Now he could control anyone with that stare; make them do whatever he wanted. He buttoned his frock coat and inspected his outfit. Brown slacks, silver waistcoat, and comfortable dress shoes. He looked professional, yet agile. Like ready to fight and give a triumphant speech afterwards. Which he planned to do. He hoped Gerard came for him. He hoped.

  General Vanderbilt's conversation had become so dull and repetitious that Marcel nearly forgot he was in the room too. "I warned everyone this was going to happen. Dozens of our men are dead and the invasion is still approaching."

  "How soon can we get pilots in the air?"

  Confused and dumbfounded, Vanderbilt asked, "Sir?"

  Marcel repeated, "How soon can we pilots in the air?" In the mirror's reflection, he could see Vanderbilt's eyes dart around. So he clarified. "Blow them up."

  "Some of our Union Keepers have left service because they think our violent behavior lately has been dangerous. I don't know if I can convince them to –"

  Holding up his hand to interrupt, Marcel shook his head slowly. "You know what politics and business have in common? Someone is always telling someone what to do. There's always someone higher up. You think a store manager doesn't have a higher up to answer to? He does. You don't think a congressman has someone to answer to? He does. Always someone to be afraid of. But here's the thing, in the Union, there is no one higher up than me. What I say is the final decision. Understand?"

  "I wasn't trying to be disrespectful," Vanderbilt answered with his head down.

  Instead of his hand up, now it was his finger. Marcel stressed, "If they get in, past the gates and into the courtyard, there will be dead bodies all over the Union's property. It's messy. Kill them all before they get to the courtyard." He turned to put on his cufflinks, given to him by his father. "Except my dad. He stays alive. I don't care how you do it, but capture him again. I want to salvage what is left of my family."

  Vanderbilt wiped sweat off his head. He had hired the general because of his uncanny lack of emotion. Yet found himself regretting his decision. Vanderbilt seemed overwhelmed. "Marcel, I –"

  "Never call me by my first name!" Marcel shouted. "It's disrespectful! I've told you that." Usually guilty after screaming at an employee, Marcel felt nothing this time.

  General Vanderbilt's breath stuttered. "I apologize, Supreme Leader. It's just that…you never got angry when Gerard called you by your first name…and…" he trailed off.

  Mentioning Gerard's name made his teeth grind. Marcel wrinkled his nose. "Kill them all. By hand if you have to."

  "Sir, there's tens of thousands of people and –"

  He turned away from the mirror with wide eyes. Fury spat out of his mouth. "Don't let them in the courtyard! Kill them all!"

  Vanderbilt tumbled backwards as the invisible gust of wind shoved him out of the room. He got up. Instead of running like a coward, which any general would never admit to being, he stood up and put his head down shamefully. "Yes, Supreme Leader."

  A dangerous road led to the underground level of the Union Castle. Willie read once that Disney World had a massive operation below ground. But he doubt the entrance was through steep and windy turns. Gerard, whom he regretted agreeing to let drive, barely slowed down during their trek. Out the narrow opening from the trailer to the front of the truck, Willie could sometimes see the edge of a cliff or sometimes a large cloud of dust he left behind. After asking three times if Gerard was okay to drive, he did just lose a wife, the former Marcel ally stopped answering Willie. Best it be left alone.

  Willie had prepared to die today. One sacrifice after ano
ther lately, why would he be any different? His fate had been to activate this machine and eliminate this world's addiction to electronics. As they descended a steep hill, he thought how tragic it would be if this truck flipped over onto the sharp rocks in the waters below. To throw away such an epic epilogue to his life story over Gerard's poor driving skills.

  The truck rumbled and bounced onto a more level road. He felt the smoothness of a solid concrete road. This must be the entrance. He peaked out the window to speak to Gerard. "Their guns and alarms will shut off the closer we got to the gate. All we have to do is play dumb -" That plan was tossed out the window as Willie watched Gerard slam the accelerator. He grasped the handlebar as the truck crashed through the wooden gates. Union Keepers screamed and hollered, but no bullets were fired; their guns useless around the box."Careful, boss. Careful. Careful!" Willie grasped the handle again as Gerard drove the truck like a battering ram. They ran over the metal gates; the truck rattling up and down. More people screamed. They were in the lower garage now. Besides narrowly missing the steel columns in the parking garages, Gerard had to dodge motorists as they drove cars out. An evacuation must've been in place for the building's employees. Cars honked while other cars got turned over by the mass of the truck's push. Willie wasn't sure if the device had been sensitive to harsh rocking, but it was too late now. They screeched to a grinding halt, not because Gerard used the brake but because enough cars had been smashed into to create a barrier. Out the window he could see the truck's crunched hood spewing out steam and liquids. Vehicles were piled up on top of each other in front of them. Willie peaked further out the trailer's window to see Gerard had ran a number of Union Keepers; their bodies still wiggling under the truck's tires. After taking a moment to catch his breath, Willie said sarcastically, "I think we're at a good spot to activate the device now."

  Gerard climbed out the driver seat and took a look around. "Well, that went better than I expected."

  Wide eyed, Willie snorted, "You were expecting worse?"

  "I mean, well yeah, do you see any of the bad guys around?"

  As if on queue, a dozen armed surrounded them with guns pointed. Commands to get down on the ground were ignored. Gerard whispered, "The guns won't work, right?"

  "Nope."

  Gerard gave a satisfied smirk, "I got this. Activate the device." He ran toward one of the officers. Guns clicked to fire, but produced no rounds. Gerard jumped and side kicked one of the men.

  It was like something out of Willie's favorite Kung Fu movies. But as much as he wanted to sit around and watch the men fight, time wasn't on his side. He climbed back into the trailer. Reviewing the online manual several times, Willie had been certain he knew how to activate the device. He popped open the top display. No touch screen or keypad, the machine operated manually by mixing liquids in internal chambers. He just had to turn the knobs in a certain sequence. It took time, but could be done in a few minutes. Checking his watch confirmed they were already behind schedule. The People of Bliss would be making their way up the hill by now. And armed gunmen would be waiting. Willie had to turn off their weaponry and every other electronic worldwide. He began the sequence, watching the meters for each liquid begin to recede.

  This was the feeling of adrenaline. When the body ached and the mind became overwhelmed, a chemical would boost morality and press forward. That's how Adam felt. Like nothing could halt this storm approaching the Union's castle.

  Up until now, the People of Bliss had kept their rebellion steady like a tank. Anything that got in the way should move or be crushed. As they crossed the bridge, Adam noticed the lack of offense. None of the Union Keepers attempted another advance; instead, they retreated to their safe place. But, little did they know, even a castle can't survive the strongest of storms.

  No doubt, their military forces were planning an attack. Any kind of retaliation beyond simple water hoses and fists would surely be a challenge to the People of Bliss. Especially air forces. Nelson watched the skies and shot down any chopper in sight, but even he would eventually be overwhelmed. The time for a steady pace was over.

  Past the bridge, the land went up a slope before reaching the outer perimeters of the castle. The climb could be rough for the injured among them. But with adrenaline, especially an angry determination, nothing could stop the People of Bliss. Adam began to quicken his pace. Besides the need to get this wave pumped up to rush over this hill, time was becoming a factor. Willie should be almost ready to obliterate the world's electronics including all the Union Keepers' guns. And guns would be their toughest challenge soon.

  Adam's walk turned from speed walking to jogging. The people behind him began to follow suit, even Royal kept silent instead of whining. Then his jog turned into a run. They were smart, figuring out why they needed this push. Thousands behind him broke into a loud sprint, footsteps clanking against the last of the bridge's steps. They all followed the windy road up the hill; Adam's legs were on fire. If he experienced this pain, no doubt the others might have been in more anguish. But nothing stopped them. Nothing would.

  At the top of the hill, Adam sprinted even faster. A surge of excitement built up in him. Just as he felt nothing could stop them…something did.

  "Hold!" Adam screamed, but it was too late. Everyone smashed into a tall metal fence. Thankfully, Royal's voice was louder than his as she instructed the People of Bliss to stop, or else the front line of this crowd, including Adam, would've been crushed by the force.

  "What the hell, Adam? Why is there a fence?" Royal demanded.

  He'd sent dozens of scouts to this area and none of them came back with a report of a metal fence before the outer perimeter. It reached nearly fifty feet high, the chance of climbing over it was moot since barbed wired circled the edges. Adam rattled the fence, but it barely budged. It wasn't some typical chain link used around a house or prison yard; something else blocked them from their next goal. He rubbed the material with his palm, while Royal, once again, demanded to know why no one was aware of this obstruction beforehand. It could possibly have something to do with Gerard's recent stunt; the Union was higher guard now. Whatever the case, this metal mesh added an unnecessary delay. And Royal hated being late.

  "Adam! We can't be messing around here! Just cut it with some pliers!"

  He couldn't think with all this constant nagging. Adam retorted sarcastically, "What do you want me to cut this with? It's pure steel and titanium."

  "Than just push it down?"

  What a stupid idea. Adam bit his lip and shouted, "Are you thinking? We don't have the equipment to just break through this! What do you want me to do?" He spat out the silliest answer to his own question he could think of. "What? Chew through this with my teeth?"

  Royal's mouth dropped at what Adam just said. Chew through it? His mouth dropped too. Realization smacked them both in the face at the same time. And at the same time, they both turned their heads to the corner Bruno had been standing in. From wherever he'd been stashing it, the monstrous man bit into a tiny bulb and ate it like cotton candy. His stomach was strong, but so were his teeth. Bruno, grinding the pieces of bulb in his teeth, looked back. "What?"

  The way Vanderbilt saw it was: let them come. He'd fought in worse wars than this. In fact, he had led wars worse than this. The North Korean War had similar circumstances, the opposition seriously thought they could defeat a highly-technical armada and had been gullible enough to believe they were winning. General Vanderbilt liked playing the game this way. He once read that veal tasted better when the baby calf had given up on fighting and just accepted fate. The People of Bliss were falling into a trap and would soon have to accept their fate, as well. About 28 of his men had been slaughtered by the rebellion within that last hour, which had been chump change during the Syrian conflict. 36 years of serving the American military and he'd never felt so confident as now.

  He slumped onto a comfy chair behind a group of senior staff. They overlooked the island not only through the window, but on
surveillance cameras surrounding the perimeter. Computers zoomed in and out of their faces.

  "We can't get an accurate count. There must be at least 25,000 of them." One of the senior officers mentioned, typing into a computer.

  Before they asked again, Vanderbilt answered, "No. Hold off the choppers."

  "We can get jets in the air –"

  "I'm well aware our pilots are standing by. I ordered it, remember?" Vanderbilt sipped a cup of coffee, straight black because cream and sugar was for pussies.

  Another staff member fought the urge to ask why. But already, six Union Keepers had joined the rebellion. Who knew how many of these could be on the inside? Especially after Gerard played the part so well; even Vanderbilt felt slightly betrayed he'd been fooled for over a year by that bastard. For now, the strategy remained in his head. Simply put, whoever was flying that high-powered jet was skilled. So skilled, that sending one or two jets at a time would surely be a kamikaze mission. Better to just regroup several fighter jets and overpower the People of Bliss.

  For now, they were stuck at the fence. An impenetrable fence. Once they all crowded into a single spot, Vanderbilt would order hellfire from above. As long at they didn't get through the fence.

  "Sir, they are penetrating the fence."

  Vanderbilt spilled the coffee on his lap and didn't have a chance to yelp. He stood up, rushing to the surveillance camera. "What the…" Pausing to make sure what he was about to say made sense, to even him. "Is that a man…is he…chewing through our fence?"

  "What do we do, General?"

  Enough was enough. "Use the lasers. They're potent enough to seer skin. Let's see if they can eat that shit."

  Minutes seemed like hours when time was running out. Activating the device took longer than Willie had anticipated. Four more liquids had to mix in order to expel an invisible shockwave that would shutdown all electricity.