by Lundy, W. J.
“Fair enough. Well, let’s settle in here. I’m fairly certain these things can’t scale cliffs, so let’s wait for direction from the colonel,” Sean said.
14.
They arranged the gear in front of them and took stock of what they had. They evenly divided the ammo, food, and water between the four of them. They built a campsite under the rock overhang but elected not to build a fire; no sense in risking detection with so many primals below them. They leaned back against their packs. Not wanting to waste water on the chemical heaters, they silently ate cold MREs while waiting for the phone call.
Four hours came and went with no word from the colonel. It was approaching evening and the temperature was dropping. Sean took the phone from his pack and checked it to verify he had a good signal and that the battery was charged. Brad looked out over the valley with his binos, and saw that the cloud had diminished. Most of the mass had passed, but they could easily still make out several groups of a hundred or more moving through the valley.
Just as Brad was sitting the binos down, the phone buzzed. Sean reached for it and pushed the speaker button.
“Hello, this is Chief Rogers,” he said.
“Good, good, I take it that by answering the phone you are still alive. I can triangulate your phone’s location and you seem to be in a fairly decent spot. Unfortunately, the satellite window has closed and I cannot provide you with real-time imagery data until tomorrow morning,” Colonel Cloud said.
“Okay Colonel, let’s cut the bullshit, what’s the plan?” Sean barked.
“First things first, Chief. What is your status?”
“We are four strong, ammo is green, food and water is green,” Sean said.
“How much water, Chief?” asked Cloud.
“We have three days; five, if we ration it,” answered Sean.
“Very good. By our estimates, the main body of the mass should have passed you. You will see remnants of the mass over the next ten to twelve hours. There is a high probability that large percentages of the mass will linger in the area for weeks; not everything about these things can be plotted to certainty,” Cloud said. “You should stay in your current location for at least another ten hours.”
“No problem there,” Sean said.
“Colonel, this is Staff Sergeant Brad Thompson, can you answer some questions for us?” asked Brad.
“Sergeant, I’m sure you have a lot of questions, but I only have limited time available to you; you’re not the only assets I am working right now. I need you and your team to get some rest. Tomorrow I want you to scout to your vehicle, verify it is operational, and wait for my call,” Cloud responded.
“Hold on, not so fast, Colonel. I appreciate you helping us out today, but if you don’t answer some of our questions, I’m going to end this call and we can go back to surviving. We have done pretty well so far on our own,” Sean said.
“Okay, I understand your concerns; go quickly, what do you want to know?” Cloud asked.
“First, there are other survivors, Colonel, close to a dozen soldiers and two hundred civilians are held up at the customs compound in Hairatan. Can you help them?” Brad asked.
“Son, we are aware of the people at the customs compound. At the moment, we do not have resources to assist them, but we are always looking for a way,” Cloud answered.
“Colonel, this is Petty Officer Brooks. What’s the situation in the States?” Brooks questioned.
“Short answer? We are in a fight for our lives. We were given some prior warning about the attacks and we took it more seriously than most of our allies. After the first strikes, all civilian air travel was stopped and borders were closed. That helped. We still had a few people fall into the coma phase on the longer international flights before we could turn them back. Most of those stories didn’t end well. Mexico and Canada both fell quickly. We are not sure why. We did well in the first few days of the outbreak. The fences along the southern borders and the Rio Grande River did a lot to slow the migration. Also the southern border was well monitored and defended; we were able to rally troops from Fort Bliss and Fort Hood to slow most of them. Eventually, there were too many and we had to pull back into hardened areas. Most of the population is living behind walls in safe areas now,” the colonel said.
“And what are those?” Brad asked.
“Hmm … well, currently the Midwest is considered a fortress. Michigan is naturally fortified by the Great Lakes, and we have moved many of our resources there. We are confronting the hordes on the passes in the Appalachians. Everything west of the Mississippi, between the river and the Rockies, is holding well. New York and most of the East Coast fell, as did every other state with a high population and stringent gun laws. Most military installations are well defended and we are pushing back as the primal virus extends in duration. We are in a fight for survival, guys, but all is not lost,” Cloud explained.
The U.S. team members looked silently at each other, their expressions bleak.
“I’m sorry, gentlemen, but we really are out of time. I will contact you again in twelve hours. Good luck,” the colonel said as he ended the phone call.
“Shit, I don’t know about you guys, but I still feel like I’m in the dark here,” said Sean.
“So the plan is to just sit here until morning and wait for another call? This trip isn’t going so well, is it,” Brad replied.
15.
They slept lightly that night. It was the first time they had slept in the open since they’d left the safety of the compound. Even though they were well above the primals, they felt very little security in their perch high on the ledge. Brad nodded off several times, but bad dreams made it difficult to stay asleep so he soon gave up and sat staring at the moon in the distance. He heard a grumble from Brooks and watched him sit straight up, gripping his rifle, sharply looking in every direction before lying back down and instantly drifting back to sleep.
“Night terrors,” Sean said, “one of the many benefits of this job.”
Brad turned, and seeing that Sean was also awake, said “What happened in Teremez, Chief? How did you lose your team?”
“Not really a highlight in my career, Brad, it’s not something I enjoy thinking about.”
“Brooks has never spoken about it either; not since the night we first met.”
“Getting out of Teremez wasn’t easy; we both left a lot back there. Did you know Brooks was getting out of the Navy? Teremez would have been his last mission. Funny how things work out,” Sean said.
“No shit! No, Brooks didn’t tell me that. I figured he was a lifer just like you,” Brad said.
“Ha. Nope, Brooks is a scholar. Don’t get me wrong, he is the best at what he does, but he had plans to leave the Navy and go back to school. Guess that won’t be happening now.”
“What about you, Chief? What will you do when you grow up?”
“I don’t know, man, at one time I thought I’d get me some land and a cabin out in Wyoming … raise dogs. You know, something simple, maybe find me a wife. I’ve never been good with women, but who knows?”
“Well Chief, I think your plans for hiding out in a cabin in the middle of nowhere are still possible in this brave new world,” Brad said, laughing.
“Yeah maybe you’re right,” Sean smiled. “Try and get some sleep, Brad, going to be a long day tomorrow,” he said, rolling back into his pack and pulling his watch cap over his eyes.
Brad was wide awake as he watched the sun come up. He opened his pack and grabbed a protein bar for breakfast. He had very few of them left, but felt today he would need it.
“We have just under an hour before the next phone call,” Sean said.
“What’s the plan, Chief?” Brooks asked.
“I’ve been scanning the trail. I haven’t seen any sign of them up here, looks like the valley is mostly cleared too. Let’s make our way back to the rock face and see if we can get a better look,” Sean said as he hoisted his heavy pack to his shoulders. The rest of t
hem strapped on their battle rattle and heavy packs as they joined him for the trek back down the mountain.
When they reached the rock they had scaled the day before, they cautiously looked over and saw nothing. Slowly, they lowered their bags over the side. Sean quickly rigged a rappelling seat and helped Brooks over the edge and down the face of the rock. When Brooks signaled it was clear, Sean told Brad he was next. Then he helped Hasan down. Finally, by setting the rope over a large boulder, Sean was able to lower himself over the wall and recover the rope behind him.
Back on the ground they packed and stowed their climbing gear. The team sat silently, listening to ensure they were alone. The trail was very quiet; there were no signs of primals other than the battered tracks in the sand. When they were confident in their security, Sean gave the order to move out. Brooks as usual took point, and they cautiously made their way back to the Defender. Brooks paused them on the trail several times to listen, but they failed to see or hear anything. When they found the vehicle, it had been shifted hard and was sitting pressed against the rock face at an odd angle.
“Looks like the mass pushed the truck pretty hard,” Brooks said.
The team moved to the vehicle and, working together, were able to get it back on all four wheels.
“Check the engine,” Sean said to Brooks. Brooks got in the vehicle and it cranked hard, with poor results, but once the fuel had settled back to its normal spots the engine finally turned over and purred back to life. Sean slid his finger across his throat, giving the signal for Brooks to shut off the engine.
“So what do you think, Brooks?” Sean asked.
“Hmm … I think we’ll have to back out of here for a ways, but we should be able to turn around where the trail opens up. If you guys ground guide me we can get back to 76,” Brooks answered.
“Sounds good. OK guys, let’s get hidden in these rocks until we get the call. Brooks, take Hasan to that ledge; I’ll be with Brad over there,” Sean said, pointing to a large overlook near them. The men split into two parties, moved to their hide positions, and sat silently waiting for the call. Right at the twelve hour mark the phone buzzed. Sean lifted the phone and hit the speaker button.
“Chief speaking,” Sean said.
“Good to hear from you, Chief. What is your status?” Cloud asked.
“Four souls; beans, bullets, and hydro are green; transportation has been secured,” Sean rattled off.
“Very well, Chief. Imagery satellite is up; if you move quickly you should be able to get through the mountain pass moving south with only light resistance. We are tracking half a dozen masses near the city at the mouth of the valley. We suggest you stick to the west side of the river when the road forks. The larger masses are all congregated to the east. I need you to understand the eastern side is completely overrun, and there are more of them flooding in from up the valley on that side. The Air Force destroyed the bridge across the river in the first days of the withdrawal. So the most dangerous masses will be trapped on the far side of the river, but there will still be resistance on the western side. From the satellite images, most of the primal populations converged on you yesterday, but be on alert as some may have stayed. You will see primals today, Chief, there is no avoiding it.”
“Where are you leading us, Colonel? Why don’t we just find another route? No disrespect, sir, but this sounds like a great deal of bullshit,” Sean said.
“HQ wants to get you through the mountain range as quickly as possible. Travel will be more difficult in the range, but for the time being the primals tend to walk downhill and do not seem interested in moving into the higher elevations. I know you have more questions, but we need you to get moving, Chief. We will talk again in four hours,” Cloud said, disconnecting the call.
“I’m really starting to not like this guy,” Brad said.
The men moved back to the vehicle and, being cautious, were able to reverse it out of the trail and back into open ground. The sides of the Defender were now heavily dented from its night with the primals, but for the most part it seemed to be holding up well. Hasan boarded the truck with Brooks, while Sean and Brad walked ahead, guiding it over the rough terrain and back to the road.
When they pulled the truck back onto A76, Sean and Brad boarded the Defender. Brooks picked up speed as he raced down the road to the south.
“If we make good time, we can be in the heart of the mountains in three hours,” Hasan said.
“Then that is the plan,” Sean replied.
It didn’t take long before they saw the first pack of primals. It was only a group of about fifteen, but they were immediately alerted to the presence of the team. They all suddenly stopped in their tracks, made a quick change of direction, and sprinted for the Defender. Brooks intentionally steered the vehicle into them, trying to lure them away from the paved surface of the road. When they were within a hundred feet he cut the wheel hard, raced around them, and back to the highway. They had to do this several times before they got to the higher mountain pass.
“This pass continues for fifty kilometers before it opens in the river valley,” Hasan said.
The road had narrowed to no more than twenty-five feet wide with high cliffs on both sides. Brooks drove as quickly and safely as possible. He saw primals just as he passed a curve in the road; they stood blocking the narrow canyon. The primals paused momentarily before they moaned and started their charge. Instead of driving through the primals and destroying the Defender, Brooks cut the wheel hard so the vehicle sat across the road with the passenger side windows facing the mob. Quickly Sean and Brad took aim with their rifles pointed out of the windows.
Brooks and Hasan exited the truck. Brooks aimed across the hood, while Hasan climbed on the roof and took up a prone position. They started firing together, and the mob quickly fell apart and separated. Hasan’s loud AK echoed off the canyon walls and could easily be heard above the roar of the primals. Brad put the red dot on his targets’ necks and pulled the trigger, watching them fall. He didn’t know how many there were; he just focused on finding the target, squeezing the trigger, and locating the next target.
Brad was counting the trigger pulls in his head. Nineteen, twenty, twenty-one—he knew it would be time to reload soon. But before his bolt locked to the rear on an empty chamber, he ran out of targets. He opened his door and stepped out into the road. The strong cordite scent of expended rounds hung over the primals’ stench. He could see a hundred-foot path of dead bodies, and had started to walk forward to examine one when he heard Brooks yell.
“We have another wave approaching! Reload and make ready.” Brad dropped his near-empty magazine and loaded a fresh one before leaping back in the vehicle. He looked up, put the dot on the face of the lead runner, and waited for it to get into range. The primal fell to Sean’s rifle before Brad could pull the trigger. He pivoted to the right, finding another runner. One, two, he said to himself as he pulled the trigger and watched the primal drop. Three, four, five. And another fell.
This group was larger, and they had gotten to within fifty feet of the Defender when Brooks threw a grenade as hard as he could into the mob.
“Frag out,” Brooks yelled.
Brad watched Sean pause in his shooting to duck his head just before the grenade exploded, then he rose back up to continue working his rifle on the mob. The frag grenade hadn’t killed many of them, but it did manage to knock several of them off their feet and tripped up several more. Knocking them down was just the leverage the team needed to gain an edge and finish them off.
This time when the firing stopped, they rapidly loaded back into the truck and sped down the road around the primals’ corpses. They didn’t see any more in the pass as they made their way onto the road leading to the river valley. When they reached the end of the pass, Brooks pulled the vehicle to the shoulder and Sean stepped out with his binoculars to scout the valley.
The terrain ahead of them was very green and miles wide. They could see the river and how it flowed
through the center of the city. Sean traced the river south with his binoculars through the valley and spotted the fork in the road. Just as the colonel had said, several large masses were on the eastern side, trapped there by destroyed bridges. Scanning further, there appeared to be one main road along the western bank of the river. For the moment the approach looked clear, with only small packs of stragglers in the streets. Sean walked back to the Defender and approached the team.
“Okay guys, we’re going to roll through town weapons hot. I can see bad things on both sides of the river, but the eastern bank looks the worst. With the condition of the road, we can get through this valley in about ten minutes,” he said.
“Cloud said to stay away from the eastern side?” Brooks asked.
“That’s correct, we’re going to hit this fork in the road and stay on the approach running along the west bank until we get out of the city. Brooks, you drive hard, man; no stopping. If we have to hit them, slow down to under thirty so you don’t crush the fenders,” Sean said. “Keep your windows down and armor and gloves on. I don’t want glass getting broken. Remember, controlled shots. Priority targets are those in front or to the sides, we can outrun the rest. Do you have any questions?” he finished.
“What if they mob the road? Are we going to shoot at them?” Hasan asked.
“If the road is blocked, then Brooks will hit a side street until he is free to break south again. I’m hoping the weapons fire will draw the crazies to where we have been, instead of where we are going. I realize it’s a risk, but those things will be moaning anyhow, so going silent won’t help us,” Sean said. “If there are no more questions, top off all of your magazines and let’s mount up.”
Brad didn’t say a word during the brief. He didn’t have a good feeling about this op. It was clear that the colonel wanted them to move through the city, and the intel did appear to be solid. Brad just didn’t get the urgency. Why it was so important for them to get through the valley today? Why couldn’t they wait until things cooled off more? He moved back to his spot in the rear passenger side of the Defender, topped off his M4 magazines, and pulled the spares he kept in his rucksack.