Avalon: The Retreat

by Rusin, L. Michael

  Later, he bought a case of “old style” Fragmentation Grenades from the guy, referred to as “Pineapples” because of the deep serrations where they would come apart upon exploding. They were loaded with TNT and if exploded in a house, there would be nothing in the place that would still be functional.

  To be safe, Mike followed the man around a few days and discovered he worked at an Army Ammo Depot. He was stealing the stuff and selling it; apparently, he had been doing it for months. Mike felt better about the man then, but he still preserved the tape recordings he had made of the transactions in case he needed them later to prove he had not stolen the stuff, himself. He read in an article about six months later that Army Intelligence had busted the man and he had dropped dead from the stress shortly thereafter.

  Mike was curious as to how the others had managed to get by the slide areas that had happened weeks before and found out they had done the same thing Mike and his group had done… they removed debris and then put it all back. He admitted that he was impressed, since it didn’t appear to him as if anything had been touched.

  He looked around and saw that there were actually others here, as well, and there were still some yet to arrive. They would wait a few more hours, overnight at most, before making a search for the missing members by backtracking to the cave and farther out, if necessary.

  They all knew that if there was a problem and any of them were out there trying to make it to the cave or here, someone would be along shortly. Right now, they had to rest up and stow their gear. Mike wanted a shower in the worst way.

  Long ago, each of them had selected the cabins they wanted to make into their little homes. Mike excused himself and headed for number seven but instead of wheeling his bike over to the shop, he simply took it with him to his cabin. Caroline walked toward cabin number eight.

  The others also began to make way to their cabins, but when Susan came out on the big porch with more orange juice, some of them stayed and had more. Mike was more interested in getting comfortable and taking a shower.

  It had taken a bit of doing to discover and repair the water system, but Avalon now had hot and cold running water. The hot water was provided by the large boiler, which was fired by coal. It worked wonderfully and was monitored twenty-four hours a day.

  Years ago, one of the priorities for Mike and Dan was to put that boiler in excellent working order to provide Avalon members all the comforts of home. Each cabin was plumbed with hot water radiators as well as hot tap water to bathe; it had been part of the big remodel Slim had undertaken. Mike was grateful because he wanted to shower and change clothes as soon as possible. The hot water would charge up his batteries.

  Wheeling his bike through the door, he parked it over in a corner and out of the way, making sure there was a piece of plastic under it to catch any dripping fluids that might fall. He stowed his backpack and other items from the caches in another corner and it was then that he remembered the venison. With a resigned sigh, he hauled the meat out of the cabin and went back to the main lodge.

  There were a number of people still talking and Mike rolled his eyes at them and said, “I have to get this in the walk-in and hang it. I was so glad to get here that I almost forgot.” Several of them also had pieces, so they retrieved theirs and followed him to hang their pieces of deer.

  Mike went back to his cabin.

  “Now for that shower,” he muttered to himself as he closed the door.

  His clothes came off in a series of rapid movements, and he opened the shower door and stepped in. The water came on ice cold, but not for long. As he was adjusting the handles, the shower door opened and Mike immediately brought his left arm up with a clenched fist to his upper chest and the right hand, clenched as well, drew back to his side; it was his standard fighting stance.

  Caroline, who was standing there with a towel wrapped around her cooed, “Want me to wash your back, Sailor?”

  He instantly relaxed his stance as her towel dropped to the floor and she stepped in.

  Later, Mike contemplated the incident and decided if he had to rate it, it was up there as just about the best shower he ever had.

  Chapter 9 Societal Decay

  Mike owned a Grundig Satellite 6001 Transistor radio that he inherited. His uncle had used it years past to get time checks from the Greenwich Mean Time Observatory while he was sailing his Ketch in the South Pacific. An old school sailor, he used the HO 214 Navigation System, which required “to the second” accuracy of time when taking a series of noon sights. He always reset his watches at Greenwich Noon, wherever he was sailing.

  Mike liked it because, with the copper wire connected to the antenna jacks and having strung it to a tall pole he had planted for the antenna wire, the reception was fantastic up here in the mountains. He was able to listen to stations all over the world with it.

  Dan, on the other hand, boasted a Zenith Transoceanic and the two of them tried at times to brag the other into admitting theirs was the best. It was late evening but the solar panels were charged, so he listened to music as Caroline snuggled close. Her long blond hair kept tickling his nose and he found himself blowing it away from his face only to have it return and tickle again.

  The sentimental melody was abruptly interrupted with an urgent news report…

  The President just announced that Iran was bombed a few hours ago with several Nuclear Warheads launched by an OHIO class, ballistic missile submarine patrolling south of the Persian Gulf. Satellite imagery tells an alarming story of mass destruction all over that country. Other reports say that another U.S. nuclear submarine launched a separate strike on North Korea. Little more is known at this time. We do know, however, that fires are burning all over the country and can even be seen from space… one moment please.

  A pause ensued and with a crackling of static, the man spoke again,

  Ladies and gentleman, I am saddened to tell you that a fuel storage facility located in Long Beach, California has been ignited by an as-yet-to-be-determined powerful explosion. Deaths are incredibly high from the secondary blast of the natural gas tanks nearby.

  It is not known who set off this explosion or how its safety features were overridden, but the flames are remarkable. Firefighters are doing what they can to contain the fires, but the recent drought has limited the water available. Firefighting helicopters are being rushed to the scene, and it is hoped the same fire retardants used in forest fires will be useful in bringing this inferno under control.

  In other news, swarms of Texans wielding assault rifles have averted a hostage situation at a small University located in Fort Worth. All of the homegrown terrorists involved, apparently of Iranian descent, were cut down without mercy. Similarly, an attempt to detonate a highly explosive device in Miami was thwarted by a group of armed citizens who happened upon the scene. One eye witness who saw what happened said,

  “They all appeared to be from the Middle East, and, during the confrontation, several men and one woman tried to run from the scene but were mowed down with an incredible volley of gunfire. There were no survivors from the terrorist group.”

  Nancy Jones, the Democratic Senator from New York State, is deploring the violence and said at a Town Meeting of her constituents, “No matter what these people have done to us, they feel justified and once again, I will ask the Senate, when we are back in session, to back me in an all-out ban of all weapons of this kind. These guns should not be available to the American people and this violence must end forthwith.”

  After the comments, the Senator was booed and objects were thrown at her as she was rushed away from the conference room by armed guards who were concerned for her safety. In another…

  Caroline reached over, turned the knob, and selected a station playing music. The voice of Cher, silken and sultry, moaned her plight as she told about her mother dancing for the money the men threw. Caroline snuggled up closer and there was a knock at the door.

  Mike got up and put a towel over himself while Caroline scoo
ted under the covers. He opened the door to find Dan standing there.

  “Have you been listening to the news?” Dan asked in a calm, but somewhat incredulous tone.

  Mike nodded, and Dan continued,

  “There have been riots all over the place. A few Congressmen and several judges were at a luncheon when a mob stormed the house and lynched all of them. More bombs have gone off, and China’s apparently getting ready to make an invasion on the U.S. Get this… they’ve allied with Russia and several other countries are joining them as well.”

  “Mexico’s already declared their allegiance to the Chinese, but they’re evidently holding out for a monetary package before they allow the Chinese to use them as a staging ground to launch attacks on our southern border. Some are speculating that the U.S. will nuke Mexico the moment they agree to allow the Chinese to enter, declaring it to be an act of war. Mexico’s expressed doubt that it would actually happen, and the President neither confirms nor denies the allegations.

  “Canada is vacillating as to whether to allow Russia to come in through their territory to enter the U.S. northern borders. Nobody knows yet what will happen there.”

  He looked at Mike, who seemed to be immune to the news, and asked, “Are you hearing me?”

  Mike answered, “Look Dan, there isn’t much we can do about any of that right now. We just have to make sure all our people are here and safe. I’ll put a team together in the morning and we’ll go look for those who don’t show up by then. Now chill out, my friend. Have a drink or get laid, but stop worrying. We’re safe here for now; we just need to put into action all the things we agreed on a long time ago. Incidentally, are you posting and relieving the watches?”

  Dan acknowledged he was. Mike muttered in a low voice, “No offense my friend, but I’m sort of busy right now.”

  He swung the door a bit, and Dan could see Caroline lying in the bed. With recognition of understanding, he turned and walked away without saying another word.

  The sky was pink from the rising sun, which was still partially hidden, and dew covered everything. Mike stretched as he yawned. It would begin to heat up soon. He walked into the bathroom and emptied his bladder. When he broke wind, Caroline spoke up, sounding indignant,

  “I heard that!”

  “I heard it too,” Mike responded defensively. “Must’ve been one of those famous mountain barking spiders we hear about now and then.” He was smiling with his next comment, “Man, they sure have bad breath.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Caroline quipped back, “Can’t blame the spider or anything else on that one, Sailor.”

  “You mean, you don’t believe meeeeeeeeeeee?” his voice rising to a moderate squeal.

  They both laughed.

  Mike jumped in the shower and, after drying off, brought out a complete change of clothing. Most of what he owned was here in this cabin, having brought much of it up months ago. He went to the door after dressing and said,

  “I’m going for coffee. Want some?”

  “Go ahead. I’m gonna shower and change next door. I’ll meet you there.”

  By this time, the sun was beginning to show itself over the tips of the trees and the pinks and yellows were spectacular as they merged, one with the other. He walked to the main building while a multitude of birds chirped; it was breakfast time for them too. When he entered the reception area, several people were standing around chatting. Most of them had been up all night with Dan, listening to the National and International news.

  It was grim worldwide. Holland reported multiple attacks by their own Muslim residents, along with France, Germany, and Italy. Turkey had declared war on Iran at some point during the night and was hit, within an hour of the announcement, by a nuclear strike on Istanbul.

  Israel, in the meantime, was seemingly busy bombing everyone around them with nuclear devices. Every country in the Middle East was petitioning the United Nations to make them stop, and the Israelis sent this message to the U.N.,

  “Kiss our asses!”

  Taiwan rebelled in an attempt to re-emerge as its own republic and immediately declared war on China. Shortly thereafter, Taiwan was bombed with several high-altitude burst electromagnetic pulse nukes, or EMPs, instantly pummeling the entire island into a blackout. The Chinese flag now flew over what was left of Taiwan and Chinese troops were on the island as occupation forces.

  France, along with several other European Union countries, pleaded with the United Nations, and in particular, the United States, for help. America’s response was, “You’re on your own, so deal with it. We will offer you nothing in terms of aid or support or anything else, not today or any other day in the foreseeable future.”

  A high ranking Naval Officer was overheard at a gathering of diplomats in Paris saying, “France can kiss our asses.” In an official announcement, the U.S. denied making the comment. In the meantime an attaché in Paris, Admiral Stewart Davis, was reassigned to the Naval Staff in Holland.

  France offered to ally itself with Russia and China but was rebuffed. Apparently, no one wanted to help France with anything and the French were wringing their hands, begging anyone and everyone for help. Their pleas were met with silence, thus far.

  Mike walked over to a table to wait for Caroline, but, before sitting down, he continued over to the coffee urns sitting on a corner near the coal fired stove and helped himself. He then walked back to the table and sat in one of the chairs. He liked his coffee strong, black, and hot and considered anything else “fru fru.”

  The events of what had occurred seemed surreal in as much he and the others had always talked about what these times would be like, should they ever happen. Most of the group, although realizing they needed to have a place to escape for safety, probably couldn’t believe the brutality of people against people when it was predicated by desperation. The very worst came out and displayed itself, and sometimes in the ugliest of ways.

  The farmer and his wife, if that was what they really had been, were the classic example. Sadly, they were somebody at one time. They appeared to have put up a tremendous fight, but in the end they died because they were outnumbered by a superior force and were not ready. Preparation was the key to preserving people and things most important in life. His thoughts carried him away and he found himself thinking about Caroline.

  She was thirty one, about five feet six inches, and 36-24-36; but that was a guess since he had never asked. The clarity and blueness of her beautiful eyes made him feel that she could see into his soul. Those eyes were unlike any he’d ever seen before. She was a serious person, he knew, and she was also someone with empathy, which is why she became a nurse.

  What he liked best about her features was her hair, which was nearly white in places. The mixture of so many different colors of yellow, white, and shaded streaks scattered throughout her head were unusual and extremely attractive. She always wore it straight down her back or in a ponytail. Mike found there were times when he couldn’t take his eyes off her, and she always smiled at him as if she knew that.

  She was more beautiful than any woman he had ever known!

  She once told him that some time back she’d nearly married, but she caught the guy cheating and dropped him like a hot rock.

  Between going to school and taking extra courses to be an effective and competent Emergency Room and Operating Room Nurse, her schedule didn’t leave much time for anything else. They met during the preliminary “getting acquainted time” that all group members went through.

  And as years passed, they had grown much closer than either intended.

  His thoughts were interrupted when Caroline sat down next to him. He immediately got her a cup of coffee without being asked. He came back with it and sat down beside her.

  She leaned over and said in a husky voice, low and inquisitive, “Are you going after the others today?”

  Mike answered while staring absentmindedly into his cup. “I haven’t heard yet. Maybe.” He hesitated. “Probably will.”

&nbs
p; Dan came over and by the look on his face, Mike had his answer.

  “How you two feeling this morning?”

  “Great Dan, how about you?”

  He shrugged his shoulders and seemed to be thinking, so Mike waited. Caroline watched both of them, always intrigued at their relationship and how they seemed to simply understand each other without either speaking.

  “We haven’t heard a word from the others,” Dan finally said in a way that made them feel as if he was thinking about something else. “And we expected to see them within a few hours after you arrived yesterday. Truth be told, I’m worried sick and I think we need to at least see what’s happened. Maybe it’s nothing, but there’s only one way to be sure. How would you feel about taking a party of three or four with you to find out?”

  “That’s my job, so that’s what I’ll do.” Mike said matter-of-factly. “I’ll take Roger, Danny, and Sam with me; we all have radios and we’ll take plenty of ammo. We should be back in no more than two days. I’ll let them know in a bit, and we’ll start filling our water supply and getting some food to take with us. I think we should take a couple of empty gas cans to see if we can score a little gas while we’re out, but we’ll take one full five-gallon can just in case we don’t find anything.”

  Crystal came out of the office from behind the registration desk and said, “China and Russia have just nuked LA, San Francisco, Seattle, and Portland!”

  It was a miserable piece of news that made them almost want to cry for their country and their people.

  Chapter 10 Rescue Party

  Mike stood in front of Roger, Sam, and Danny. When he spoke, it was loud enough for everyone who had gathered to see them off to hear.