by Reed, N. C.
FIRE FROM
THE SKY: EMBERS
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FIRE FROM THE SKY: BOOK 12: EMBERS
by N.C. REED
Published by Creative Texts Publishers
PO Box 50
Barto, PA 19504
www.creativetexts.com
Copyright 2021 by N.C. REED
All rights reserved
Cover photos used by license.
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This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law.
The following is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual names, persons, businesses, and incidents is strictly coincidental. Locations are used only in the general sense and do not represent the real place in actuality.
ISBN: 978-1-64738-045-8
FIRE FROM
THE SKY:
embers
N.C. Reed
For those who were here before,
For those who have gone ahead,
And for those who remain.
FIRE FROM THE SKY
Dramatis personae
The Sanders Family and Farm
Gordon Sanders – current patriarch of the Sanders family
Angela Sanders- wife of Gordon Sanders, mother of their three children
Robert Sanders – oldest son of Gordon and Angela
Patricia Sanders- wife of Robert Sanders, mother of their two children
Abigail Sanders – oldest child of Robert and Patricia
Samantha Walters – Abigail’s best friend, currently living with the Sanders
Gordy Sanders – youngest child of Robert and Patricia
Alicia Tillman – only daughter of Gordon and Angela, second child
Ronny Tillman – husband of Alicia Tillman, father of their three children
Leanne Tillman – oldest of twins by two minutes
Leon Tillman – youngest of twins by two minutes
Clayton ‘Fussy’ Tillman – newborn addition to the Tillman family
Clayton Sanders – youngest son and child of Gordon and Angela
Lainie Harper – Clayton’s girlfriend
Greg Holloway – childhood best friend of Clayton and Jake Sidell. Deputy Sheriff of Calhoun County, now lives with Gordon and Angela
Jake Sidell – childhood best friend of Clayton and Greg Holloway. Mechanic and business owner, now lives on the Sanders’ farm with his seven-year-old daughter Jacqueline (Jac)
Jacqueline Sidell – daughter of Jake Sidell with his late wife, Kaitlin
Members of Clay’s old unit
Jose Juarez – current second in command of Clayton’s security duties for the farm
Martina Sanchez – Jose’s fiancé
Roberto Sanchez – Son of Martina Sanchez, 8
Rae Sanchez – daughter of Martina Sanchez, 6
Shane Golden – considered third in command, normal go-between for the group and new people
Jody Thompson – sniper for the group
Nathaniel ‘Nate’ Caudell – scout for the group
Cristina Caudell – Nate’s wife
Baby John Caudell – Nate and Cristina’s newborn son, less than a year old
Kaitlin Caudell – Nate’s older sister, and Registered Nurse
Nathan Caudell – Kaitlin’s son, 16
Stacy Pryor
Kevin Bodee
Tandi Maseo – medic
Ellen Kargay – Tandi’s girlfriend
Mitchell Nolan
Beverly Jackson – Mitchell’s girlfriend
Jonathon ‘JJ’ Jackson, Beverly’s son, 14
Xavier Adair
Friends of Gordy’s worked into the unit
Zach Willis
Titus Terry
Heath Kelly
Corey Reynard
Kurtis Montana (newly arrived with Shane’s group, but normally fitted with the other teens)
Amazon Squad (but don’t call them that)
Talia Gray
Kim Powers
Amanda Lowery
Danica Bennet
Freda Fletcher
Devon Knowles
Petra Shannon
Heather Patton
Eve Albert
Jena Waller
Mikki Reeves
Gail Knight
Savannah Hale
Carrie Jarrett
Eunice Maynard
Carol Kennard
Janessa Haynes
ORIGINAL HILLTOP COMMUNITY and other newcomers
Gary Meecham – gunsmith, sharpshooter, one of the group leaders
Dixie Jerrolds – schoolteacher
Ashton Jerrolds – Dixie Jerrold’s son, 7
Marcy George – ‘emancipated teenager’ 17
Samuel Webb – current ‘patriarch’ of the surviving Webb family members
Luke Webb – brother to Samuel
Seth Webb – Brother to Samuel – 16
Lila Webb – Sister to Samuel – 15
Daisy Webb – Widow of Micah Webb
Jasmine Webb – Widow of Matt Webb
Darrell Goodrum – blacksmith
Carlene Goodrum – wife of Darrell and mother of their three children
Anthony Goodrum – son, 16
Jamey Goodrum – son, 10
Cara Goodrum - daughter, 8
Victoria Tully – former National Guard member, EOD specialist
Byron ‘Brick’ House – friend of Leon the Elder with murky past
Terri Hartwell – veterinarian student caught by the Storm, now part of the Sanders’ Farm
Olivia Haley – 17, classmate of Gordy’s, orphaned by Storm, now living with Gordon and Angela
Caroline – sister, 7
Libby – sister, 5
Amy Mitchell – rescued from attack soon after Storm
Lisa – daughter,9
Janice Hardy – 18, came with Lainie Harper, has an eidetic memory
Callie Weston – rescued from attack on the farm
Carl – son, 4
Tammy Denmark – rescued from attack on the farm
Diane – daughter, 3
New Members of Hilltop Community
Kandi Ledford – former 2nd Lt., U.S. Army
Sienna Newell – former 1st Lt., U.S. Army
Virgil Wilcox – former SSG, U.S. Army
Jaylyn Thatcher – surgeon, former Capt., U.S. Army
Roddy Thatcher – husband of Jaylyn, truck driver
Clifford Laramie – fuel truck driver
Moses Brown – butcher/meat cutter
Trudy Leighton – Shane Golden’s cousin
Gwen Paige – Trudy’s girlfriend
Millie Long – teen picked up by Shane’s group on the way east, now Leon Sanders girlfriend
Dottie Greer – husband James, truck driver, working when Storm hit, invited to live at farm
Helena – daughter, 9
Quentin – son,9
Evelyn Lacey – soap maker (Not actually a part of the Square but listed here for convenience
National Guard Contingent
Sergeant First Class Shaun Gleason
Staff Sergeant Lowell Martinson
PFC Truman Toller
PFC Elijah Brigham
CPL Zane Parris
PFC Beau Abramson
PVT Donovan Jordan
PFC Matthew Kenny
PFC Jared Samuels
Specialist Brannon Howard
PFC Richie Millard
PFC Jeffrey Herbert
PFC Vince Hathoway
CPL Carly Isaacson (medic)
Lieutenant Gillis’ Original Patrol
Staff Sergeant Lowell Martinson
CPL Raven Elliot (Medic)
CPL Thane Tanner
PFC Dezi Martin
CPL Lynden Witherspoon
PFC Keely Irwin
PVT Parnell Plank
CPL Ellis Gates
PFC Keir Welch
PFC Palmer Lovell
PFC Stanley Clarkson
Author’s Note: Those listed as part of the Hilltop Community may or may not actually be staying on the Hilltop at any given moment. All are listed with them as either those who arrived at the farm just before the disaster struck, or were invited to stay afterward, and are not part of the Sanders’ family group or extended family (or part of Clay’s old outfit at the Troy Farm). For instance, Brick and Janice live in Leon’s old house due to their connection to Leon but were not a part of the Sanders’ group beforehand. The Guard contingent may seem too NCO heavy, due to Gleason’s men having been there for training in equestrian skills and care. Gillis’ team was an actual fire team, on patrol, when the virus hit.
TABLE OF Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
AFTERWORD
CHAPTER ONE
Christmas and New Year’s had come to the Sanders’ farm with little fanfare and no celebrations. Small groups gathered for mealtime and to be thankful for what they had, but there was no celebration as there had been the year before. There was no laughing, playing children, romping in the newly fallen snow. No merry making.
There was in fact little enough to be merry about. The plague sweeping through the area had wreaked havoc on those who had survived so much since the disaster that was the Storm. Those who had made it through starvation, dysentery, violence and bloodshed had in the end fallen prey to a killer they couldn’t see, and ultimately couldn’t fight.
Clay’s last orders from the Area Commander of the National Guard, and they had been orders as Captain Adcock had stressed Clay’s former rank in addressing him, were to close the farm to all traffic in order to preserve the resources the Sanders’ farm represented to the future, assuming any of them had one. In the end, one of Adcock’s subordinates along with two seasoned NCOs and a short platoon of troopers that had not been exposed to the virus had been given shelter at the farm as well, with orders to answer to Clayton Sanders in all things until ordered otherwise by Adcock, or by his own superior, Major Whitten.
The manpower had eased some strain on the farm’s own security forces but was seasoned with the fact that no one had heard from Adcock or anyone else in over two weeks. The only information they had received from Jordan had been in the form of information passed on by a former constable who wanted food to try and make the trip south to safer conditions. If there was such a thing at this point.
So, there had been no merry making. Instead, there was hard work. Including the training of all the school age children in how to survive in the new world they found themselves living in.
-
The truck rattled along the back road, wind whipping around the cab and buffeting the teenagers in the back. All were huddled together for warmth, packs clutched tight as they waited to arrive at their destination.
Finally, with ears threatening to turn frostbitten in the windchill despite scarves and caps, the truck slowed and came to a stop.
“End of the line, plebes!” Mitchell Nolan declared as he stepped out of the warm truck cab. “On the ground! Let’s go! Hustle!”
Nathan Caudell, JJ Jackson, Seth Webb, Janice Hardy, Anthony Goodrum, Lila Webb and finally Millie Long all disembarked, slinging sparse packs onto their backs even as Mitchell continued to harangue them.
“You’ve got a map, you’ve got a compass,” Mitchell told them. “You’ve got a sleeping bag, food and water for two days, and the ability and means to get more if you need it, providing you can manage it. You know your starting point, and there are eleven fixed navigation points along your way. You must identify them all and return to Building Two in forty-eight hours. Note that I say, ‘Building Two’, and not ‘the Farm’,” he stressed. “The farm is a huge area and Building Two is not near the edge.”
“Once we leave, you are on your own,” he warned. “You better learn to depend on one another and to work together, and I suggest you do it in a hurry before you freeze to death, or starve to death, or the wolves get you. Any of the above happens, you will of course be given a failing grade for this excursion. Any questions? Excellent!” he clapped his hands without giving anyone a chance to ask. “Get moving! Clock starts now.”
With that he slapped the tailgate, got back into the nicely warmed cab, and rode away, returning to the farm.
Leaving seven teenagers behind to cope with the winter and everything else around them.
-
“There ain’t a wolf within a thousand miles of this place, man,” Kevin Bodee chuckled as he drove them back to the farm. “At least not one that wasn’t in a zoo.”
“And how do you know that some eco-nut didn’t release said wolves into the wild to keep them from starving?” Mitchell asked. “Now did you think about that, Kev? No, you didn’t, did you? But I did,” Mitchell jabbed his own chest with a thumb with that proud proclamation. “Besides, they need to be a little bit afraid. Though that Webb kid almost certainly knows there’s no wolves around here,” he admitted. He paused, reaching for his radio.
“Chip, this is Thug. Hand-off complete. Repeat, hand-off complete.”
“Roger that,” came the short reply. “Hand-off received. Out.”
The teens weren’t quite as alone as they had been led to believe.
-
“Did he say wolves?” Anthony Goodrum asked, looking wildly around them.
“There ain’t no wolves ‘round here,” Seth Webb told him flatly, already studying the map they had been provided. “Ain’t been in over a hun’erd years.”
“How do you know that?” Nathan Caudell asked, though curious rather than challenging.
“Made my way trapping before all this,” Seth replied calmly. “Whole family did. Ain’t no wolves. Plenty of other stuff, though,” he allowed.
“He’s correct,” Janice Hardy shivered beneath her jacket and pulled it tighter around her. “The Red Wolf, or Canis lupus rufus, was a common inhabitant of this area in previous centuries but was hunted to near extinction due to predation on livestock and the value of the fur. Reintroduction attempts have been made, most notably in the mountains of North Carolina, but attempts in this state have been unsuccessful. The likelihood that we will encounter one is all but nil.”
“’All but’?” Millie Long asked with a raised eyebrow.
“How do you know all that?” Nathan asked, incredulous.
“Oh, I just read it once,” Janice replied, once again the stereotypical blonde. “I’m sure lots of people know that sort of thing,” she waved away the irrelevancy.
“There were a great many predators being held in zoos throughout the south, including both Tennessee and Alabama. It is possible that an animal friendly group might have sought to release them from captivity to prevent them from starving,” Janice replied. “Similar incidents are recorded throughout the twentieth century in far less trying circumstances.”
“Perfect,” Millie drew the word out, looking out at the snow-covered landscape. Even as she did, a large snowflake came drifting by her, heading sedately toward the ground.
“Absolutely perfect.”
-
“Anything yet?” Gordy asked.
“Nah,” Corey Reynard replied softly. “Still just standing around. Seth Webb is studying the map, though. He at least should know what to do.”
Gordy Sanders, Corey Reynard, Heath Kelly and Kurtis Montana were arrayed around the teens in a diamond, there to protect them in the event of any sort of threat. Otherwise, they were to let the teens sink or swim on their own merits.
-
“I don’t suppose we’ve heard from Adcock or Whitten today?” Clay asked as he stepped into Operations. Leon Tillman shook his head slowly.
“Sorry, Uncle Clay. Not a peep.”
“How many days is that now?” Clay asked, frowning.
“Nineteen, I think,” his nephew replied, looking at a small record book, then at a homemade calendar.
“No, it’s twenty-two days,” the teen corrected himself. “Three weeks yesterday.”
“And we’re monitoring everything, right?” Clay checked.
“We are,” Leon assured him. “Scanning several frequencies in fact. If he talks to us, we’ll hear it.”
“I wish he’d do that,” Clay muttered, more to himself than Leon.
“We all do,” Leon replied. “I’d even settle for hearing from Jordan, to be honest. It’s creepy, it’s so quiet.”
-
“It’s quiet,” Zach said softly, scanning the area before him with binoculars. “Nothing moving anywhere that I can see.”
“It’s snowing again, too,” Stacey Pryor sighed. “And cold. This wind would cut through butter, man.”
“Sure enough,” Zach nodded, lowering the glasses. “This is a week today, I think, since we’ve had anyone try to get onto the farm. Right?”