Protocol 1337
Page 12
The ride to the missile site was very quiet. Every attempt I made at small talk was met with a stern finger pointing forward to our supposed destination. Every agonizing mile passed, until I could finally see signs that directed me to this missile site. I did my best to shake the thoughts inside my head. At any instant, this lunatic is going to put a bullet in my head and I am completely helpless to stop him. It really didn’t help that he kept turning the radio off and insisted on perfect silence. A few miles turned into over one hundred fright filled miles, loaded with images of my own death along the way.
I thought of every possible scenario to escape, including jumping out of the driver's door into oncoming traffic. Nothing I could think of resulted in a better scenario. Then Amos pointed at our exit ramp. I took the ramp off the interstate; about a third of a mile from the exit was the minute man missile site. “We are here. Exit the vehicle, and follow me.” Amos instructs.
Amos walks into the empty parking lot of a forgotten relic of the cold war. He motions me to follow, and I reluctantly walk over to him. “It's safe here, and we can cut the bullshit.” Amos says.
“What are you talking about?” I ask.
Amos reaches into his inner pocket, and produces an envelope. He hands it to me. The envelope is much heavier than I anticipated. I open the document and empty the contents into my hands. There is a cell phone and a set of keys.
“The investigation is being wrapped up as we speak. The official report will be ruled as a drug fueled robbery. We have both meth heads in custody with full confessions. Our officers will be gone by the time you make it back to town. I am told that you will find that cell phone useful to you. I am leaving you with keys to Cox's car and apartment. The cellphone was confiscated from one of the meth heads. I hope you find what you are looking for.” Amos explains.
A black SUV enters the parking lot at full speed. It slides into position next to Amos. He gets ready to enter the SUV but hesitates a bit. “I got a message for you, Haus. Reese says make this one count!” He yells. Amos removes the leather glove from his right hand and raises it in the air. The bar code tattoo on the back of his hand catches my eye. The door shuts, and I am pelted by gravel as it speeds away.
I stand in the parking lot with a head full of questions. Amos is a member of Omega Phi, but what is his specialty? I am over one hundred miles from Cox's apartment so I had better get back on the road soon. I get into the car and begin driving back to Spearfish. The drive is long but it's for the best. I have plenty of things to sort out in my head.
The interstate is almost empty as I make my way back to town. I grab the cell phone from my pocket and begin my investigation. A quick browse of the contacts list doesn’t yield anything out of the ordinary. The only thing that sticks out to me is the ridiculous names of the contacts like dabitch, milenko, trudog, and liltiger. Call it a pet peeve of mine, but if you're going to give someone a nickname at least use some originality to it. Instead, the idiots just rip-off names from famous people.
A check of text messages sent yields about the same results. A lot of garbage written in text lingo, mixed with some porn forwards. Then, something does catch my eye. A text message from someone not in their contacts list. Lester Lane and old 14, storage unit 31. That is the only text from that number. I take note of the number and compare the time stamps from other messages. I notice a time gap in the messages by about two hours. What was the owner doing for two hours that they couldn’t reply for so long?
People often try to cover up their tracks by deleting something. I know that if you delete something, it is still retained in case you want to reverse the action. I need to retrieve the deleted information on this SD card. Finally, my exit ramp comes into view and I drive into Spearfish. It doesn’t take me long to get to the apartment. I open the door and I can't believe the mess left behind. The once meticulously organized dwelling is a debris field of destruction.
I walk back into Cox's bedroom and inspect the closet. The Styrofoam cooler is still sitting there with the lid still on it. Well, that’s at least a good sign. All things considered, had the meth addicts opened the virus, they could have easily doomed us all. I wander around the apartment and aside from some broken glass, there isn’t anything of interest here. I should head back to the base but I want to check out that address in the text message.
I find an old gas station down the road and ask the clerk about the address. “Excuse me, I am looking for the intersection of Lester Lane and Old 14. Is that close to here?” I ask.
“Yeah, not too far from here; take a right at the stop light down there. It's about eight blocks north after that. Big place, can't miss it, Pine Hills Storage is there.” The clerk replies.
“Thanks, I really appreciate it.” I say as I exit the store. I get back into the car and follow the clerks directions. Sure enough, it literally is impossible to miss; there has to be at least 250 units down there. I circle around the complex looking for unit 31 and finally come across it. There is no lock on the unit and the door is partially open. I lift the door up cautiously and view the contents inside. A whole bunch of empty space, an opened lock, and an empty duffel bag lay on the floor. Disappointed, I get back in the car and drive back to the base.
I open the door to my bunk, place the Styrofoam container under my bed, and fire up my laptop. I carefully remove the SD card from the cell phone and connect it to my reader. I extract all the recently deleted files and open them up for a look. The first one is a picture of Cox followed by his complete address, along with details about what they are to be looking for. The final few messages are the most disturbing.
Me: Hes dead, but we no find crap
6059890294: Your sure hes dead?
Me: Yeah cut him bad
6059890294: You didn’t find the treasure?
ME: Nope :( just a little money
6059890294: Your not looking hard enough
ME: We lookd all over, found a thermos in the closet
6059890294: Your out of time, leave right now
ME: What about our money?
6059890294: Leave right now, and make sure nobody sees you
ME: OK, we are gone, wheres the money?
6059890294: I will go look for myself, then you might get your money
ME: You better not screw us!
ME: Hey!
ME: Still waiting, its been over an hour
ME: Answer me, I want my money
6059890294: Settle down, I found it
ME: OK so where do we go?
6059890294: Lester Lane and old 14, storage unit 31
I wonder what treasure they are talking about? Why would anyone want Cox dead? Well, that explains the empty duffel bag in the storage unit. One thing is for certain, I am going to track this number down and kill the person behind this. It doesn’t take me long to find out which carrier has the phone. I load up my tracking program and download the most recent 911 GPS triangulation for the phone. Once I have the coordinates I plug them into my GPS. “It's someone here on the base!” I scream as I jump to my feet.
Sirens start to blare around the base and I can hear the sound of truck engines coming close. I can hear the sound of the men rushing from their beds to get dressed. The barking of guard dogs sets my senses on high alert. Is this some kind of drill? I ask myself as I peak out the window. I see people running in every direction and huge spotlights turn on illuminating the whole area. I slide the Styrofoam cooler out from under my bed and slowly open it. “Where in the hell is the virus?” I exclaim as I stare into the empty cooler.
I panic, frantically packing my few possessions into my bag. I don’t know where I am going to go but anywhere but here. I hit my Dlink and wait for Reese to answer. I pace back and forth in my bunk. The door bursts open hitting me in the face and flashlights blind my eyes. “Get on your feet NOW!” I hear armed soldiers yelling at me. Two of them pick me up as I try to stop the blood hemorrhaging from my nose. They drag me outside and instruct me to get in line.
I continue toward the main hangar but I can't help watching the crowds at the gate. The crowd continues to close in on the soldiers and I can see men become uneasy. Dogs are barking wildly at the civilians, but they continue to draw closer. The soldiers raise their weapons to their shoulders but the crowd won't back down. I stop in my tracks and focus on the eyes of one soldier. He is freckled young man, and I can see his mouth move. He whispers... Please God Forgive Me.
The eruption of gun fire screams through the cold mountain air. The quick bursts of controlled gunfire repeat methodically as the people begin to fall. Years of training have taken over and the guards fire in systematic fashion. People fall as the bullets tear through their flesh, blood spattering in every direction. Spent brass form in small piles at the soldier's boots, as each target is taken down. The man on the loud speaker screams “CEASE FIRE!” repeatedly.
It's too late, stress has overtaken the soldier's brains and they drown out everything around them. The only thought is to eliminate any threat, and they continue to fire upon the crowd. In 27 seconds, it is all over and the soldiers are still pulling the trigger. They ran out of ammo but don’t even notice. It takes some more time for their brains to react and they lower their weapons. Some stand in shock, while others drop to their knees and begin sobbing.
The man with the loud speaker has since thrown it to the ground and grabs the nearest soldier to him by the collar. “I SAID CEASE FIRE GOD DAMMIT!” He shakes the soldier, but it's no good, he doesn’t comprehend anything being said. In shock, I turn my head away from the slaughter and continue towards the hangar. The door opens and I am greeted by a set of guards shouting. “Civilians to the left and soldiers to the right.” They yell.
I shuffle to the right hand line and stand waiting. The line isn’t moving forward but the civilian one is. I can see the main elevator in the distance with a long line of soldiers waiting their turn to descend underground. I can see several containment chambers already filled with civilians. The glass door is open on one chamber as civilians are loaded in. Each one is screened, photographed, and ID taken. They strap themselves into their seats, and await the transport to take them away.
“Is everyone accounted for?” Asks one guard.
“Yes sir, every building has been evacuated.” The other replies.
“Good work soldier, now get in line with the rest.” The soldier takes his place behind me in line, and I realize that it's Bucky.
“Hey, Bucky!” I say.
“Good to be seeing you, Haus. I thought I wasn’t gonna be on the list, but since you're here, I am OK.” Bucky replies.
“Don’t be so sure... I tried to escape, but I got caught. Guess we are going to have to wing it from here.” I reply.
“Well, I would rather wing it with you, than someone I don’t know. Let's make a new deal?” Bucky says.
“What you got in mind Bucky?” I say
“We just call this like a reality show, we are out on the island, and people get removed. You team up with me, and we work together to win.” He says.
“Makes perfect sense to me, but what happens if it's just us?” I ask.
“If that happens, we agree, no hard feelings, one of us has to live. We got a deal?” Bucky says.
“I am OK with that, but one last thing...” I ask.
“What's that, Haus?” Bucky says.
“When I win, you give me the colonel's secret recipe for that fried chicken.” I say.
“That’s some funny shit cracker, but you know damn good an well I’m gonna win.” Bucky replies. The lines of people continue to advance forward slowly. I can't help but feel like cattle being lead to the slaughter house. Yellow lights begin to flash and the lights go out for a few seconds. I can hear generators ramp up in the distance and soon the lights are back on. The intercom comes alive and begins a series of beeps. This is not a test. Protocol 1337 initiated. Ten minutes till quarantine.
“Edith?” I exclaim.
“What you talkin' bout, Haus?” Bucky says.
“That voice, it's Edith... I guess the military used her AI for more than one base.” I say.
“Oh, you mean the emergency warning thing. Why do you call it Edith? That your girlfriend, brotha?” Bucky says.
“No man... When I was in Thunderclap, I came across an advanced artificial intelligence that referred to herself as Edith. The voice is the same, just a coincidence I think.” I say.
“You can call it what you want, but I think you done lost your mind fool.” Bucky says.
We continue our advance to the elevator, and soon we are within a few yards of the entrance. Another load of soldiers has just descended down. I look over to my left and see another round of civilians loading into the containment area. The guard does a head count and presses a number sequence on the number pad. The glass doors close, and the last few entrants scramble to get their harnesses secure. I can see at the beginning of the containment zone an officer push a red button.
Soon, the first container is filled with yellow gas and the people start to choke. They claw at their restraints to no avail. Within a matter of minutes, they are all dead and the officer marches to the next one. He presses the button, and again the room is filled with yellow gas, the occupants are dead within minutes. The next container has no idea what is happening and I am helpless to do anything about it.
I see a small child being loaded into the final containment. Knowing what is going to happen is too much for me to handle. I burst from the line and run for the child. I am tackled by guards in no time and restrained. I kick at them as they try to subdue me. As I am being held to the ground, I look up at the child unsuspecting face.
“RUN!” I scream as I struggle to escape my captors. The child looks at me with innocent eyes as she is led into the chamber. Soon the door is closed, and her fate is sealed. The rage burns inside me and I escape the guards grip. I run as fast as I can to the containment cell. I bang my hands against the glass door and attempt to open it smashing random buttons.
I get tackled by oncoming soldiers but I still manage to slam my fist into the door. “YOU'RE ALL GOING TO BURN IN HELL FOR THIS!” I scream as they drag me away. The small child has her hand against the glass door, and she is looking directly at me. Our eyes meet and I see the gas enter the room. She is combing her dolls yellow hair as I am struck with a gun stock.
The world closes in around me and darkness surrounds me. I have vague memories of what happens next but I am taken down below. The elevator descends into the bowels of the Earth as I lay unconscious.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Voices In The Dark
“Haus, you best wake up brotha. We got to move like yesterday.” Bucky's voice echoes in my aching skull. I can smell the damp musky smell of the earth. I feel my wet forehead but the liquid is too thick to be water, must be blood. My vision is pretty blurry, but I manage to pick myself up off the cold floor. I look around at the blurry blobs in front of me. I can barely make out Bucky, and the others, well, there aren’t too many.
“Where is everyone?” I ask.
“They went down that way man, the rest of us stayed behind to look after you. These boys agreed with me that we leave no man behind.” Says Bucky.
“I guess without anyone in charge, it's every man for himself down here. Well, since we don’t know where we are, might as well start walking.” There isn’t much light in the shaft to see by. A light every 30 yards or so and the walls are roughly cut from stone, very different from
the finished hallways of the lab. I am guessing we are much deeper in the ground.
“What about the elevator, can we take it back up?” I ask.
“No, we already tried that. They cut the power to it once we got down here.” Bucky replies.
“OK, you said they went that way? Let's go the other way.” I say. We advance slowly down the corridor, inching our way along the dimly light walls. Had the General listened to me, none of this would have happened. Every one of us has a date with death now. The thought of punching out from this world, trapped thousands of feet below the Earth, makes my stomach churn. I suppose the General finally woke up to the uncomfortable truth that the virus has compromised the base. We are all quarantined down here to die like the rats Cox injected.
“What are they going to do with us, Haus?” Bucky asks.
“Well, they already killed off all the civilians and essentially sealed us down here. I would guess they are waiting to see if any more of us become infected. In our case, we are just expendable assets; while high ranking officials would be isolated from the general population in hopes they could avoid infection, and would ultimately be rescued.” I say.
“That makes me feel better, Haus. Next time I won't ask.” Says Bucky. We come to the end of the shaft and there is another service elevator going down. I smash my hand against the controls and it whirls to life.
“Going down anyone?” I ask.