Paths of Righteousness

by Ryan King

  "This is for the best," Corbin said and smiled. "Go ahead men, make history."

  David was just in the act of rushing forward when the head of the man on the right exploded with the echo of a loud gunshot. Immediately David and his men dropped to the ground and started firing at the men in front of them. Corbin simply stood there is disbelief until David shot him in the chest at close range. He saw the other man holding the joystick scrambling over to the snow to grab the detonator out of his dead comrade's hand. Before he could reach it, David shot him in the leg and then again in the side. The man lay still, bright blood pooling out of his body onto the snow.

  The men in the woods had them surrounded and David could feed the bullets passing over his head and see them striking the ground nearby. Several of his men were already dead or grievously wounded. Looking around he tried to see a way out of the trap they were in, but knew it was no use.

  David spotted a wild and dirty looking woman dash from one tree to another, firing each time she stopped. She was carefully working her way around the edge of the perimeter and taking out the men who had them surrounded.

  "Come on," he urged to his men as he crawled forward, but didn't hear any response. Looking around him, David saw that the rest of his men were dead. Crawling forward with his head lowered, he finally made it to a hollow depression in the ground beside a tree. Pulling his rifle up to his shoulder he scanned the area in front of him.

  Alexandra was about thirty yards from him concentrating her fire on two men she had managed to pin down. Unfortunately, she hadn't seen another man creeping carefully around to her flank. David waited for the man to stop moving and then shot him through the neck.

  This caused the woman to turn in David's direction and he realized with a shock that it was Alexandra. Incredibly, she smiled at him and began shooting again. David worked his way carefully over to her side, sprinting from the cover of one tree to another. On the way there he came across one of the enemy soldiers' bodies. He was about to pass it by when he spotted the grenades attached to the outside of the man's tactical vest. David took two of them and then raced the last few yards to flop down in the snow beside her.

  "What the hell are you doing?" he asked.

  She didn't look at him, only fired the rifle again. "I think it's called 'saving your ass.' No need to thank me."

  David looked around at the bodies in the clearing and saw no movement. "I think these are the last two."

  "They are," she said. "There were a couple more, but I saw them take off going south."

  He put his hand on her shoulder. "Get ready to rush forward."

  "Why?" she asked.

  "So we can finish them off," he said as he pulled the pin on a grenade and threw it to the right of the men. He quickly pulled the pin on another and threw it to the left. He then pulled Alexandra to the ground and tried to shield her as best he could.

  David heard panicked voices from where he had thrown the grenades and then two muffled thumps. He jumped up and ran forward to shoot what he hoped were wounded men, but it was not necessary. Both were obviously already dead. He then walked over to the nuke and pulling out his knife cut the cord leading to the right joystick, still clutched in the dead man's hand. When he turned back to Alexandra, he found her still lying in the snow, looking at him with dazed and impossibly vacant eyes.

  David strode forward and gently picked Alexandra up off the ground, gently cradling her head. "What the hell," said David looking at Alexandra. She was covered in bruises, old scratches, and dirt. Her face showed protruding bones and he could feel the heat radiating off her.

  "I tracked them," she said with a smile.

  "And nearly got yourself killed," he answered angrily.

  "Like you would care," she said and looked at him.

  David swallowed a lump in his throat. "I would care."

  Her face softened and she started to say something, but he scooped his arms under her body and lifted her into the air.

  "We'll get you out of the cold and into some dry clothes," he said walking toward the boat to the north. "The doctor will take a look at you. You need food, probably water too. You're certainly dehydrated. What the hell were you thinking?"

  "What about the bomb?" she asked.

  David didn't pause walking. "I'll come back and get it. Besides, I think I at least disabled it."

  Alexandra allowed herself to relax. She tucked her hands into David's jacket, buried her face in his neck, and finally went to wonderful sleep.

  Chapter 6 - The Migration

  Nathan panted and rested his head against the cool metal rungs. Nearly three quarters of the way to the top, his healing leg trembled and shook with exhaustion.

  "I told you it was too soon," said Jack, leaning out over the railing above him. "But now that you've started, you damn well better finish."

  "I intend to," said Nathan, starting again. He had ridden to the bottom of the tower in the central lift and his manual climb to the top was his yardstick to determine if he was healthy enough to continue on their journey home.

  "You got it, Dad," said Joshua below him on the ladder. "You're almost there." He followed more slowly, moving the safety lines attached to him and Nathan up a little at a time so that if either of them fell, it wouldn't be far.

  "We need to hurry this up," said Caleb. "It's almost dawn and I don't like being out here exposed where people can see us."

  Nathan focused on the rungs in front of him and tried to ignore his screaming muscles. He forced one limb to move and then another as if they were all independent organisms in no way related to the whole.

  Something made Nathan look to the north and he froze.

  "Come on now," urged Jack. "You're too close to stop now."

  "Look," Nathan said once he could breathe again.

  They followed his gaze toward the four-lane highway visible over the fields and woods between them. Although the highway was normally clear except for several random abandoned vehicles, now it had filled. Dozens of horse-drawn carts used the road surface while hundreds of cattle, sheep, and goats idly made their way in the median and on the sides. Dogs and riders with rifles roamed the edges.

  "Hurry up," hissed Joshua. "They may not have seen us yet."

  Nathan started moving again, will overcoming the pain in his leg. At the top, Jack grasped his outstretched hand and pulled him onto the platform. Joshua followed quickly and they all went inside, easing the outer hatch closed. Caleb led them to the north edge of the tower where there were several small openings. They stuck their faces to the holes and looked out. Caleb watched them in silence through binoculars before passing them down the line.

  "Looks like a bunch of herding nomads," said Caleb. "I see women and children. That's a good sign."

  "Just because they have women and children of their own," said Jack, "doesn't mean they won't kill or take yours. For all we know, that's where those came from."

  "They don't have that look about them," said Caleb softly.

  "What look?" asked Joshua.

  "Of enforced servitude," said Caleb. "Look at them. I mean some of them are smiling. They look happy. Like they are a community or a family."

  "The Viet Cong had communities and families too," said Jack. "That didn't mean they wouldn't kill you."

  "It doesn't matter," said Nathan. "I don't think they've seen us. Give them time and they'll be gone."

  The Ark Community held its collective breath the next few hours. People took turns watching the nomads and being quiet. When they were out of sight, everyone let out a sigh of relief.

  "We got a problem," Caleb told Nathan. "Come with me."

  Nathan followed the old man to the central stairs and down into the bottom level. There Caleb pointed at a hole in the base between the central span and the cistern wall. Nathan stuck his face to the hole and saw four riders at the base of the tower looking up.

  "Shit," said Nathan.

  "Language please," said Caleb absently.

  "T
hey know we're here," Nathan said.

  "They can't get up here though," said Caleb. "We'll fight them off if they try. Won't be the first time."

  "But they can keep us from foraging or going out."

  "For a time," answered Caleb, "we're pretty well supplied."

  "Looks like some of the group that passed by earlier."

  "I'm sure it is. God must have brought them here for a reason."

  Nathan thought for a moment. "If they know we're here, what does it hurt to go talk to them?"

  "Nothing," said Caleb, "except that they might blow your head off. It'll be a tough shot, but maybe one of them gets lucky."

  Nathan looked back down again. "Doesn't appear as if they're moving on. Maybe we should talk to them. Find out what they want."

  Caleb closed his eyes and Nathan knew he was in consultation with the Almighty. "Okay," Caleb said opening his eyes. "Let's see what has drawn them here."

  *******

  "Think they know we're here?" asked Susan looking up at the base of the tower.

  "They know," answered Billy Fox, walking his horse around the base slowly. "You don't hole up in something like that without a way to look out."

  "Probably watching us right now," Don shifted his rifle.

  "Best be careful," said Jasper, "they might decide to take a leak on us and then where will we be?"

  They heard a faint metal sound toward the edge of the railing and then a voice. "Hello, down there."

  Easing their horses out from under the bottom of the tower, they searched for the voice. A powerfully built stocky man leaned over the railing to look down at them. A tall elderly man with a long white beard and shaven head stood beside him.

  "Hello, yourself," said Don.

  "That was quite a group of people and animals you brought through here earlier," said the stocky man.

  "I prefer to travel with an entourage," said Jasper.

  The stocky man seemed uncertain what to say next and silence fell heavily between them.

  "Are you true believers in God," asked Caleb suddenly, "or of the Evil One."

  "We renounce evil and seek truth and light," answered Billy Fox immediately and almost ceremoniously.

  The old man smiled and nodded. "I thought as much. Have you come a long way?"

  "Yes," answered Billy. "We have left our homes in Iowa to settle in our ancestral lands. It is the fulfillment of prophecy."

  The old man nodded even more enthusiastically. "I understand prophecy and commend you."

  The stocky man looked back and forth between the two in exasperation. "Iowa is a long way away. Where you headed?"

  "Our ancestral lands are in Tennessee," Billy answered.

  "That's not really a safe place right now," the stocky man answered. "The people living there aren't likely to welcome you with open arms."

  Susan cut in. "My name is Susan Rivera. These are my friends Billy, Don, and Jasper."

  The stocky man nodded. "I'm Nathan Taylor and this is our host Caleb."

  "Host?" asked Jasper. "You visiting or something."

  "He took us in when we were in trouble," Nathan answered. "We'll be moving on soon."

  "And where are you headed?" asked Don.

  "Southeast," Nathan answered. "My son and I are trying to get back to our family in western Kentucky."

  Susan and Billy's eyes met. "We'll be heading through there on our way," said Billy loudly to Nathan.

  Nathan was silent for nearly a minute and the words hung in the air heavily. Finally, he said, "If you take us with you, we can make sure you get through Kentucky. Show you the way. We have friends there. You don't want to continue down this road it will take you to Paducah. Recommend you cross further east."

  "What's wrong with Paducah?" asked Don.

  "Was it hit?" asked Susan. "With a nuke because of the uranium enrichment plant there?"

  "No," answered Nathan slightly confused. "Let's just say there are people there who might not welcome either one of us."

  "Sounds like there's a lot you're not telling us," said Billy.

  Nathan shook his head. "I don't plan on keeping anything from you, but it's a long story and I can tell it to you on the way."

  "What's in it for you?" asked Jasper.

  "Protection," Nathan answered immediately. "We've been attacked more times than I care to remember. We'll be safer in a large group."

  Billy looked around at all of them and then gazed back up. "What about you, Caleb? Are you coming too?"

  The old man smiled sadly. "The time is not yet right for us to leave the Ark. The Lord will let us know when that is. Until then we will remain and endure."

  "How many you got with you?" Don asked.

  "Just three that you need to worry about," answered Nathan. "Myself, my son Joshua, and an old man traveling with us named Jack."

  "Can any of you ride horses?" asked Don.

  "Joshua and I can," answered Nathan. "I'm not sure I would trust Jack on a horse."

  "Why, he scared of them?" asked Jasper.

  "No, quite the contrary," Nathan said. "He's not scared enough of anything. Tends to get himself and those around him in trouble."

  "Sounds like our sort of people," said Jasper.

  "Okay, then," said Billy. "I guess it's settled. You can come with us, but it's our rules. We have any problems, we'll leave you by the side of the road. You understand?"

  "I wouldn't have it any other way," said Nathan with a large grin.

  Chapter 7 - Bloody Eagle

  Ernest Givens scanned the crowds. There was no way nearly fifteen thousand refugees would be able to see what was happening, still word would spread and they could see the results afterwards. There were hundreds crammed around the small platform and peering from windows in nearby buildings. Givens hadn't asked them to come. He was done asking. He had ordered them to assemble and even blocks away people stood and waited in the cold wind for what was to come.

  Behind him, Jacko was lashed to a wooden pole driven into the ground. His hands were tied high over his head and there were ropes around his legs and waist. Behind him the four members who had escaped the assault on their den hung dead with ropes around their necks.

  "Whatever you're planning," Jacko said. "I don't think you got the guts for it. Best make it easy on yourself and just shoot me. Lots of people watching. That's a ton of pressure."

  Givens had always been a history buff, reading everything he could, especially anything regarding the Vikings. He found them daring and in many ways inspiring, but one thing they did especially well, and with superhuman imagination, was executions. The bloody eagle had always stuck in his mind as a horrific death. As much as it had repulsed him when he first read it, and still repulsed him now, it would create the necessary impression.

  He realized that the people were on the very edge of chaos. They were ready to murder each other over a pea or rape their neighbor's eight-year-old daughter because they felt they could. Death and despair hovered all around them. Givens realized he had to shock them back to reality. Make them see there are some consequences that could frighten them. As much as he hated it, for these people's own good, he would have to rule them. With an iron fist and fear if necessary.

  He felt he should say something to the crowd. Explain what Jacko and his crew had done. Tell why he needed to do what he was doing, yet he knew that would make no difference. The dazed and starving faces in front of him would never remember his words. Only his actions. That theywould remember, he thought.

  Turning back to Jacko, he caught a face full of phlegm. Jacko laughed at him. "Got more where that came from."

  Givens felt his blood rise, but then saw Jacko's eyes. They contrasted with his smile. They were the eyes of a man nearly scared out of his wits.

  "This is not going to happen quickly," Givens told him. "No matter how much you try to make me angry, we're going to see this through. Together."

  Jacko started to say something else before Givens shoved a rag into the man's
mouth and tied it behind his head. He pulled open Jacko's shirt and picked up a surgical scalpel. He hesitated slightly, trying to remember what the books had said. Leaning in carefully, he selected a spot near the man's armpit, but just below and off from his nipple. Placing the scalpel between ribs, he pressed down and cut a thin line about six inches long.

  The man's screaming didn't surprise him, but the lack of blood did. He cut through the skin and then the surrounding tissue and finally the muscles between the ribs. Reaching in with fingers, he pulled the ribs apart slightly and then used a flathead screwdriver to wedge them apart further. He could see a lung inflating and deflating frantically as the man's heart raced.

  Laying the scalpel down, Givens picked up a long thin metal rod he had found in a clothing store. Watching the lung carefully, he waited until Jacko exhaled and then nodded at Booker behind Jacko.

  Booker clamped his hand down hard over the man's face and mouth, preventing him from taking another breath. Givens slipped the rod in between the ribs and behind the deflated lung. Jacko struggled and fought, but he was tied up tightly. Ever so carefully Givens began working the flat deflated lung forward until he got an edge of the grey rubbery material outside the body cavity. Once this was accomplished it was easy work to drop the rod and grasp the edge of the lung and pull it all the way out until it was laying flat against the side of his chest. Like a grey bloody wing.

  Booker let go of the man's face and he instantly began screaming. The lung ballooned up and deflated with the screams. Givens felt nearly sick, but knew that he had to finish the job he had started. Moving over to the other side he and Booker repeated the process.

  When it was done, Jacko stood there, his two lungs outside his body, inflating and deflating frantically, like wings. His eyes contained no sanity. Givens turned back to the people and looked out over them. Their dazed looks were gone. Now they were horrified and terribly aware.

  "This man preyed on the weak," Givens yelled. "He took from you and killed and raped innocents. That is not acceptable. I will not allow it."