The Park City Militia had chosen the city government office building as their headquarters and the large open soccer field just a couple blocks away as their motor pool and landing pad. Jenkins set the chopper down next to a Huey transport ship in stand-by mode. The pilot and co-pilot stood in front of the cockpit smoking cigarettes and looking anxious to get into battle. As Jenkins exited the chopper he saw there was a chubby Pvt. waiting for him. The Pvt. led him to a red civilian jeep and drove him the two blocks to Command HQ. The Pvt. led Jenkins through the lobby, which was abuzz with scrambling aides going about their numerous tasks, into an elevator and up to the second floor. The entire floor was one large Situation Room, filled with military personnel twice as frantic as the ones he’d seen below.
At the far end of the room, near a large table stood Capt. Sheen and General Parker. Sheen he knew but General Parker he had never met. The General was a tall man, nearly 6’6”, with broad shoulders and a barrel chest. His head was shaved to the scalp, his blue eyes large and his jaw square. As Jenkins approached he could feel the General sizing him up.
“I’m glad you could join us Sergeant.” The General did not smile and he did not shake hands. Jenkins cut through the pleasantries.
“Those Abrams and troop transports coming up the canyon were taken from Ft. Douglas.”
“We’d assumed as much.” Capt. Sheen said. Jenkins hadn’t liked this bastard at the hospital yesterday and he liked him even less right now. “I just re-read the initial Alpha contact report from Ft. Douglas. Several Alphas attempted to commandeer the heavy support vehicles on the northwestern perimeter and—”
“I was there.” Jenkins cut him off.
“Easy there Sgt. We’re all on the same side.” General Parker said in a monotone.
Jenkins took a deep breath and took his gaze from Capt. Sheen. “Of course we are General. Have you heard anything from Ft. Douglas survivors?”
“You and your companions were the only survivors that have come to Park City.”
“We had just left through the back gate.” Jenkins said, recalling the flight from Ft. Douglas.
““Reports from the front were coming over the radio. Several of the reports indicate some kind of aircraft aiding the zombies. We tried to confirm this with the Air Force but nothing had showed up on their radar.
“If the deadfucks commandeered an Apache they may have been flying below radar.” Jenkins said.
“Hill AFB sent in two F-16’s armed with napalm missiles. They reported both were destroyed. No Apache helicopter is going to take out two F-16 fighters. Besides, none of the eyewitness reports say anything about a helicopter. Just a small black craft, extremely fast and highly maneuverable.”
“Sometimes under the pressure of a firefight soldiers see things.” Jenkins said. “I know I’ve hallucinated while in battle… However there are other possibilities.”
“Such as?” Sheen asked with an edge of annoyance to his voice.
“Come on General? You can’t tell me that you and your people haven’t even considered the other possibilities.” Jenkins ignored Sheen and locked eyes with the General.
“Are you suggesting that the eyewitness reports are accurate?” The General cocked an eyebrow as he asked the question otherwise his face remained a blank mask.
“You’re damn right I am.” Jenkins said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. “Do you mind if I smoke?” he didn’t wait for an answer before he stuck one in his mouth and sparked the lighter.
“General, how much longer must we suffer this bastard?” Sheen could take no more. He had tried to get along but Jenkins arrogance was more than he could stand.
“You asked me up here, remember?” Jenkins exhaled a cloud of smoke in Sheens direction.
“YOU SON OF A-“Sheen lunged for him.
“CAPTAIN SHEEN!” The Generals monotone voice suddenly boomed with anger and impatience. It had an immediate effect on Capt. Sheen, stopping him in his tracks. It also had the same effect on the entire room. Everyone had stopped what he or she was doing for a few seconds, focusing his or her attention on the General.
“You will control yourself Captain.” His voice had resumed is monotone and the people in the room continued along their frantic pace. He turned his attention to Jenkins. “Mr. Jenkins, if you would please follow me we can resume this conversation in my office. Captain Sheen, see to things here.” Jenkins nodded at him and the General led him an office door at the back of the war room.
The Generals office was sparse. A wooden desk and chair, computer, telephone and a small table and four steel chairs the only furnishings. On the walls hung a large map of the city with colored pins in several locations. A window behind the desk looked out onto the forested mountain rising above. The General took his seat behind the desk and Jenkins took one of the chairs. The General opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out an ashtray.
“Thank you.” Jenkins said.
“Please forgive Captain Sheen. He has been under considerable stress since your friend was allowed to leave the hospital contaminated.”
“I don’t give a shit about Captain Sheen. I care about the army of deadfucks trying to overrun your town.”
“We were discussing possibilities.” The General said.
“I think the reports on the aircraft are correct.”
“Where would such a craft come from?” Jenkins got the feeling the General already had his own ideas but wanted to hear someone else’s.
“Who knows what kind of secret shit the Air Force has been working on since WW2? Maybe the deadfucks raided a base and got an experimental new stealth fighter? We both know the Army has been doing secret research on genetically engineered super soldiers. Maybe that’s what the Alphas are.”
“Perhaps.” The General said. “We have considered that a possibility. But there have been some recent discoveries made at the Hospital. Real breakthroughs that have the scientists speculating on a whole new theory.”
“What new theory?”
“Before I tell you that I must tell you something else. One of your companions was infected and instead of turning himself over to us he chose to commit suicide.”
“I know about Ron.” Jenkins said bitterly.
“Well there’s more. He didn’t die.”
“What?” Jenkins was shocked. “Ron became a superzombie?” Jenkins didn’t want to believe it.
“Not exactly. It appeared he was infected with a new, unknown strain of the virus. Brain death meant he would not reanimate, but the contagion continued to spread over the remainder of his body.”
“You mean that rash?” Rick and David had told everyone about the rash spreading over Ron’s body.
“Yes. The rash was the contagion. Only the Beta strain of the virus has been observed spreading through the human body, and this was done through the blood stream. What is happening to your friends body was something completely new. The doctors on hand assumed it was the Alpha strain until they got him back to the hospital and a tissue sample under the microscope.”
“What did they find?”
“This was a new strain of the virus altogether. It spread through his entire body inside and out, transforming him into…something different.”
“What?”
“The scientists at the hospital are unsure. They tell me he is still in metamorphosis.”
“Metamorphosis?” Jenkins asked incredulously.
“Yes. They tell me his appearance is no longer…human.”
“Ron.” Jenkins whispered to himself. “What about him? Is he conscious? Is he aware?”
“The doctors tell me no. When he shot himself in the head it did kill him, so to speak, but his flesh kept living.”
“Are you sure?” Jenkins asked. He and Ron had made a pact. They would kill the other before letting them become one of the deadfucks.
“The doctors were quite specific about the matter.”
“About this new theory of yours?”
Jenkins wanted to get off the subject of Ron.
“It’s not my theory. In fact I find the whole thing rather ridiculous.” The General chuckled, a dry monotone rumble. He could see Jenkins staring at him in anticipation.
“Those eggheads at the hospital think this whole thing might be extraterrestrial.”
“Fucking Aliens.” Jenkins said with a snarl.
“You don’t believe it do you?”
“Take a look around General. The dead walk! Certain deadfucks can shoot guns and commandeer vehicles! The prospect of aliens doesn’t hold a candle to that.”
“Perhaps it is an Army Super Soldier experiment gone awry?” There was no conviction in the Generals words.
“That don’t account for the strange black aircraft.” Jenkins said. “Fucking aliens!” he barked again.
“We don’t know that for sure.” General Parker said.
“Give me a fucking break General!” Jenkins snapped. A shocked look came over the Generals face. He was not used to being spoken to like that. “I’ve been face to face with those deadfucks. I was so close to an Alpha that I could see the back of his skull through his empty eye sockets. Those things are pure evil General. There isn’t an ounce of good or humanity in them. Their only purpose here on earth is to destroy humanity. They are either aliens from another planet or demons from the pits of hell. Either way, they must be destroyed.” Jenkins realized that he was leaning forward in his chair, his white knuckled hands gripping the edge of the desk.
“I agree with you one hundred percent.”
“Then where the hell were you when we needed you at Douglas?” Jenkins asked savagely. The General was taken aback by Jenkins sudden attack. “I know the call for back-up went out. I heard it myself. Why didn’t you come?”
“And leave ourselves defenseless?”
“That is a bullshit excuse General and you know it. You could have supplied air support with the Apaches. You could have sent a couple hundred men.”
“I’ll not explain myself to you Sergeant!” The Generals voice was edged with anger. “I have my own problems to deal with. Do you think I wanted to do nothing? I was preparing to send Apaches in when the report of the F-16’s being destroyed came. I wasn’t about to send those birds out to join them. You yourself said the Fort and hospital were well defended but they fell anyway. If I would have sent men it would have been to certain death.” Jenkins knew the Generals words were true. With a shake of his head he sat back in his chair, finishing his cigarette.
“Look at us.” The General said with a smile. “At each others throat over things we cannot change.” The General reached into another desk drawer and pulled out two shot glasses and a bottle of Jack Daniels. He poured them both a shot and passed one to Jenkins. Jenkins put his cigarette out in the ashtray and took the glass of whiskey. He drained it in silence and sat it back on the table.
“Regardless of what our enemy is, they must be destroyed.” The General said.
“The wave coming up I-80 toward Kimball Junction is an advance scout. They are coming up to test your defenses. What is the range of the missiles on the Apaches?”
“Approximately two miles.”
“Twice the range of their RPG’s.” A wide smile spread across Jenkins face. “Have your choppers hold a position at the maximum range. As soon as they come out of the winding canyon let them have it with everything those Apaches have. Once they’re finished have the ground forces go in and clean up.” The General picked up the telephone on his desk and relayed the instructions to whoever was on the other end.
“It’s done.” He said, setting the phone back down on its cradle.
“Tell me about the perimeter fighting?” Jenkins asked.
“The zombies keep pouring out of the forest from the southern & western perimeters.”
“Right out of the forest?”
“Exactly. But those are easy to handle. It’s the Alpha’s out there that are acting as snipers and using grenades and RPG’s to try and blow gaps in our defenses so the zombies can get in. The Apaches are having a hard time locating the Alpha’s in the forest, and when they do spot them they are often times looking down the barrel of an RPG.”
“They got in through the sewers down at Douglas.” Jenkins said.
“Capt. Sheen passed along your information and we’ve got men guarding the main entrances.” Jenkins could see that General Parker still wasn’t giving the cunning and intelligence of the Alpha’s the respect it deserved.
“Guarding the entrances? You need to send men down into the sewers, sweep them clean and fortify all entrances into the city. If there is a way in those bastards will find it. It may already be too late.”
“Perhaps we should return to the war room? It will be much easier to issue commands. But before we do I have something for you.” The General reached into another drawer of his desk and pulled out a small bit of cloth. He slid it across the desk to Jenkins. It was a pair of Colonel’s wings. “It will keep Captain Sheen off your back and see to it everyone else obeys your orders.”
Jenkins grabbed up the pair of golden wings. “I told you I was through with all of this.”
“I know you did, Colonel. Don’t worry, it’s temporary.”
“Why do you need me General? You’ve got plenty of officers and fighting men. What makes me so special?”
“Besides your experience in combating the Alphas, you’re also an Army Ranger. Most of my officers and many of my troops are national Guardsmen, very few combat veterans. Your skills and expertise in city and guerilla tactics will be put to good use.”
“I want to see whatever it is Ron has…mutated into.”
“I’ll arrange it for first thing tomorrow morning.”
Jenkins looked down at the wings in his hand and asked himself what the hell he was doing? He didn’t need these complications. But if Park City fell, Rainbow Lake was not that far away. With a heavy sigh Jenkins pinned the wings to his lapels. When he was finished General Parker was already heading for the war room. Jenkins stood up and followed…
Chapter 40
Monday, June 25, 2001
Rainbow Lake, UT
8:45 PM
All of them had gathered out back on the deck to enjoy the evening; Matt was just popping the top on his second beer when the radio beeped and Jenkins voice came over.
“Jenkins to home do you got a copy?”
“Copy.” Matt answered. “How is everything going down there?”
“It could be better. I thought the city militia was better organized but it turns out there’s a bunch of dipshits running things around here.” Matt could hear the frustration in Jenkins voice.
“Have the zombies have broken through into the city?”
“One superzombie managed to slip through and raise a little hell but we shut it down. An advance force from the city came up Parley’s Canyon this morning.”
“How big?” Matt asked.
“Five Alphas and a couple hundred deadfucks. They were trying for Kimball Junction but the Apaches tore them apart.”
“No more since then?”
“Just the regular perimeter fighting. But even that has died down to almost nothing. The boys on the line must have killed at least a thousand deadfucks. I’m sure more are on their way up. How are things going up there?”
“Good. We got the bus and rig unloaded and most of the stuff put away.”
“Any sign of Zack?”
“None at all.”
“What about our neighbors?”
“Nothing from them either.”
“I learned a few things up here today.” Jenkins told him all about the strange aircraft that had attacked Ft. Douglas as well as the various theories the army was tossing around. He finished with what had become of Ron’s body.
Rick did not take that well at all. “THOSE FUCKING BASTARDS!” He screamed aloud. “LET HIM DIE WITH A LITTLE DIGNITY!” He threw his beer can aside and stormed away into the house.
“Can’t you
get them to burn his body?” Matt asked.
“There’s no body to burn.” Jenkins answered. “They told me it has undergone a complete transformation into…something. I’m going to see it tomorrow but there is no way I can convince them to destroy it. This is something new. They are acting like a bunch of kids who just got a new toy.” They all fell silent, each of them pondering for themselves what that truly meant.
“I’m going to sign off for the night.” Jenkins said somberly. “I’ve got some things to take care of before I hit the sack. Jenkins out.”
“Copy Jenkins. Home out.” Matt turned off the radio. A silent, sad mood had fallen over the group. The sounds of Rick and Jennifer’s sobs were carried down on the wind.
“Where the hell has my dog gotten off to?” Scotty said to break the air of depression that hung about them. He slowly climbed to his feet and grabbed his rifle.
“ZEKE? HERE BOY?” Scotty whistled and walked off toward the house.
“I guess we had better turn in ourselves.” Matt said. “We have a lot of work to do come morning.” He stood up and took Susan’s hand.
“I’ll relieve Jennifer and take watch until 3 am.” Mac said.
“I’ll relieve you.” Matt said then he and Susan walked arm in arm into the house. Mac drained the remainder of his beer, crushed the can and tossed it aside. He stood up and clapped David and Samantha on the shoulder.
“I’ll see both of you in the morning.” He picked up the remainder of the beer and went inside. Samantha stood up to go in but David stayed in his chair.
“Are you coming in?” she asked.
“In awhile.” David said. “I just want to look at the stars for awhile.”
“If you want to talk about things, my offer still stands.” Earlier, when she had taken him his dinner, she had been shocked at how lost and confused his eyes looked. He hadn’t seemed that shell-shocked when they first met at Ft. Douglas; it had been his mother who was in bad shape. Now she was finally coming out of her daze while David seemed to grow more distant. Seeing his pain she had sat and talked with him. Actually she had done most of the talking. David mostly sat there and stared off into the surrounding forest, barely acknowledging her presence. When Scotty had relieved him from guard duty she told him that if he ever needed someone to talk to she would be there.
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