His Name Was Zach | Book 3 | Their Names Were Many

by Martuneac, Peter

  “Go on, Artemis,” Jax said to the horse, giving his strong neck a pat and pointing to the west. “Head on home, boy.”

  Artemis neighed quietly, clearly not happy with either this assignment or his new rider. But he obeyed the command and walked forward, beginning its journey away from the rising sun.

  Abby stood next to Reese and watched from a distance, not wanting to be very close to the man who’d gotten one of their horses killed. It hadn’t done anything wrong but it still paid the price for some human’s poor choices.

  Something you’re familiar with, old Abby whispered to her. Abby glanced around and saw a dark apparition that bore a strong resemblance to herself over to her right, leaning against the wall of rough-hewn logs. Far away, and yet her voice seemed to tickle Abby’s ear like a whisper.

  What was your final body count, huh? the voice continued. Twenty killed by your own hand, but the ones you got killed…shit, must be hundreds. Right, Abby?

  “Eighteen,” Abby whispered. She knew the exact number of people she’d killed, everyone from Henry to David.

  Eighteen, twenty, what’s the difference? the old Abby asked. And you’re forgetting the people you killed with your weakness, your sheer stupidity. Shall we run through the list? There was your mom, of course, those two brothers, that blonde woman…

  Abby clamped her eyes shut and readied her mental defenses, the wisdoms she’d learned from her own life, from others, and from old books. “I made my choices,” she whispered to herself, “other people made theirs.”

  That’s bullshit! old Abby screamed. A weak-ass excuse from a weak-ass bitch. Henry deserved to die, you knew that. You could have let daddy kill him, and it all would have been over right then and there. But you’re weak, Abby. You’re fucking weak, and you got all your friends killed!

  “I did what was right. I offered mercy to a man who was defenseless at the moment. I couldn’t have foreseen the chain of events that ended in Zach’s death. No one could have. All we can do is what we know to be right, and hope others do the same.”

  Abby glanced back at the dark shadow of her former self. It stood straight now, no longer leaning against the walls. Its fists were clenched and it looked ready to tear Abby apart with its bare hands, but it didn’t move.

  You knew he wouldn’t do what is right, it whispered.

  “I can only control what is within myself,” Abby whispered. “Everyone is external to me, placing them beyond my control and beyond my responsibility. I knew he was wicked, but I didn’t know he would reappear as many times as he did. I couldn’t have known.”

  And you think that redeems you? You think your little code of honor makes you a good person?

  Abby stared into the empty eyes of her ghost. “Yes,” she whispered, “it does. I would want everyone to show mercy to others, to do what was right even if it may not benefit them, so that is what I do. Now leave me alone.”

  The malevolent creature stared back at Abby, wearing a dark scowl on its face. The image wavered then, and began to dissipate into the air, like soot and ashes blown by a gentle breeze. But just before it vanished completely, the creature’s lips twisted into an unnerving grin.

  Abby released the breath she’d been holding since commanding whatever that thing was to leave and licked her lips. She rubbed her sweaty palms against her pants then walked over to stand next to Hiamovi, bringing Reese with her.

  “What was that guy even thinking?” Abby asked, pointing towards the man seated on Artemis, receding into the horizon.

  “Who knows?” Hiamovi answered with a shrug. “The Crisis drove a lot of people nuts because it upheaved everything they knew. Their world changed in a single day. Maybe the whole thing coming to such a similarly sudden end fractured his mind, left him not thinking clearly.”

  “Maybe. Sucks about the horse, though.”

  “Yeah, Todd is pretty pissed. He was just starting to like her.”

  “I’d be pissed too if I lost Reese. He’s such a good boy,” Abby replied as she rubbed Reese’s neck. The horse, still excited from the thrill of the chase, stamped the ground and snorted with satisfaction.

  “You know he’s a horse, not a dog,” Hiamovi said with a chuckle.

  Abby pressed her face against Reese’s, cheek to cheek, and said, “But he’s still a good boy, aren’t you, Reese? Who’s the good boy?”

  This time Reese let out a loud whinny and shook his head. “That’s right, you are!” Abby said, running her hand through the horse’s mane.

  “Why don’t you just marry it then? You two seem very happy together.”

  “Well, he hasn’t given me a ring yet.”

  “And what if I got you a ring?”

  Abby paused for just a second. “Let me know when you’ve got one and we’ll see,” she said. She laughed, suspecting this was more playful banter, except Hiamovi wasn’t laughing.

  “But if I did get one…” he asked, leaving the rest of the question unspoken.

  A nervous smile clung to Abby’s face as she glanced left and right. “Well…um,” she stuttered, “I thought we were just going to try dating again once this was all done.”

  Hiamovi waved his hand dismissively. “We already dated, Abby. We know each other. We love each other. And when I watched you ride ahead of all of us and stop both of those horses, all I could think was…God, that’s an amazing woman. So I don’t want to waste time going through the motions. I want to marry you.”

  “Oh,” was all Abby could muster, and she felt a little bad about it. Her mind raced for something meaningful to say in response, but her hesitation allowed Hiamovi to continue.

  “And I know I’m ambushing you with this, so don’t worry. This isn’t an official proposal. I just needed to get that off my chest and to tell you how I really feel.”

  “Okay,” Abby replied. “Well, thanks for letting me know where we stand. And I’m sorry for being a little…flustered. It’s been a crazy morning.”

  “Yeah, no kidding.”

  Jax returned at that moment with April and Stephen, interrupting Abby and Hiamovi’s conversation.

  “Again, I am just so sorry about that,” April said. “Those two never did things like that.”

  “It’s alright,” Jax replied. “You can’t always help what other people do.”

  He gave the signal then to mount up, and Abby and the others did so. They were about to merge into a single file when an older man, Pastor Bill, pushed his way through the crowd.

  “Just a minute more, if you please!” he insisted. “I must also apologize for my carelessness. I was the one who inadvertently gave Matthew and Elena the chance to flee. I failed you all and God above these last twenty-four hours, and I do apologize. Will you at least allow me to pray for you before you depart?”

  A couple of the Marines rolled their eyes, but Jax nodded his head. “Go ahead, Father.”

  Bill smiled as he lowered his head and closed his eyes, an act mimicked by the rest of the settlement (and the Marines, after a withering glare from Jax).

  “Holy Father,” Bill began, “I first must beg Your forgiveness. In my selfish desires to see this world return to one of comfort and ease, I forsook the souls of these young travelers. If any of them have not accepted Jesus Christ into their hearts, I pray for them to do so soon. I pray also that You grant wisdom to their leader, that he may guide them through the wilderness.”

  “Lay Your hand of protection on them, Lord. Be their Pillar of Cloud by day and their Column of Fire by night, that they be not overcome by evil. Confound and confuse their enemies, and disturb the designs of the wicked. This I pray in Your Son Jesus’ name. Amen.”

  “Amen,” came the reply from the townsfolk, the Marines, and Abby.

  “Thank you, Father,” said Jax.

  “Don’t thank me, thank God,” Bill replied with a smile. “He is the One who will see you all to safety.”

  Bill stepped back into the crowd as Jax clicked his tongue, urging his horse forward. Abby and th
e others did the same, following in line behind Jax as they departed the tiny community, resuming their north-easterly course.

  Chapter Eighteen

  The next destination for Abby and her comrades was actually one known to all of them: the Air Force base where Abby was once held prisoner with Zach and their friends. This was a planned stop, having been decided all the way back in the capital. This airbase was one of a few military installations throughout the Wild that had remained garrisoned throughout The Crisis, playing an unwitting role in Cyrus Arthur’s madness.

  It was here that the government had flown all kinds of materials and manpower as part of a cruel deception. The airbase would receive equipment, materials, and people like engineers, transfer it all to helicopters, and fly it to a nearby settlement that became known as Little America. Beginning as a large gathering of survivors, the community was soon built into an impressive and well-defended town with the help of the government and the airbase, complete with electricity and running water. They’d been told the government would soon be retaking the Wild, and that they needed to stay there to serve as a resupply point.

  This, of course, was a lie, though the good folks of that town did not live long enough to learn of it. They were overrun by marauders and massacred, and the town itself burned to the ground. It was in this attack that Abby lost her few remaining friends: Ross and Diane, and Amber and Al. Hours later, Zach would get bit, leaving Abby all alone.

  Since that tragedy, the airbase performed only a role of reconnaissance, scouting the land all around and trying to track the movement of zombies. This task had been given to them by President Arthur to keep them busy. Eventually, as The Crisis dragged on for several years, he was forced to rotate Airmen in and out of the base, to keep up appearances. But his real desire was to keep the base commander, Major General Savage, as far away as he could. He didn’t like the general, and feared he would not go along with the way things were out west.

  Unfortunately for Savage, unflinching loyalty was a primary character attribute of his, and he never for a moment questioned his role in the Wild. On occasion his children were flown out to see him, but beyond this he had absolutely no contact with the west. Imagine his surprise then when General John Sloan and the newly elected President Heammawihio filled him in after Arthur was overthrown.

  Once again, the newly-minted Lieutenant General Savage had been tasked with holding the airbase as a resupply point, though this time in earnest. And now, just three years later, Abby and her contingent were within sight of the main gate through which Abby had once been driven as a prisoner.

  “You really didn’t make many friends out here, did you?” Hiamovi said to Abby as they rode side by side.

  Abby chuckled. “No, can’t say that I did.”

  “Do you think anyone here will recognize you?”

  “Even if they do, so what? I’m with you guys now. I’m legit.”

  “Legit amazing.”

  Abby grinned and shook her head. Such comments from Hiamovi had become more and more common since his quasi-proposal. And she liked it. It had caught her off guard at first, and she had to admit to being a little weirded out. But as the days wore on, that mental image of a ring on her finger became quite pleasing. She wasn’t sure yet if she’d actually go through with a marriage if Hiamovi proposed, but she certainly wasn’t opposed to the idea.

  “Hm, well it takes one to know one,” Abby replied with a wink, and Hiamovi smiled back.

  “Nah, not the same at all. There’s no way I could have done what you did out here. I’m not nearly that strong.”

  “You are that strong. Stronger, really. I may have survived out here, but it changed me into something awful.”

  “Something awful, yes. But something you overcame, just like you’ve overcome everything thrown at you. You’re amazing, Abigail Davidson, and I love you.”

  Abby smiled again, her cheeks turning a shade of pink. “You’re such a dork. And I love you too.”

  A pop sounded, and Abby looked up to see a flash of green light ascend up into the sky. Someone on post at the airbase about a hundred yards in front of them had fired a green pen flare to get the approaching party’s attention.

  “Hit it, Chris,” said Jax.

  Chris produced a silver tube about a foot long from his pack, pulled the cap off of one end, and twisted it back onto the other end. He dismounted from his horse, took a few steps away, then aimed the tube upwards and gave the cap a hard smack. A white light flashed out of the tube and rocketed upward, followed a moment later by a tiny boom. The flare hung up in the sky for several seconds, descending slowly as it burned.

  This ‘white star parachute’, as this particular flare was called, was the prearranged answer to the green pen flare from the base. Both groups now knew they weren’t being set up for an ambush.

  Abby and the others closed the remaining distance to the base and rode their horses through the open gate. The gate then slid shut behind them with a metallic ‘clank’, sending a sense of relief over the group. Whenever they had a locked door between themselves and the Wild, Abby and the Raiders could let their guard down a little bit.

  “So you boys are with the advance party?” one of the Airmen asked, the shiny, silver bars on his collar indicating that he was a 1st Lieutenant.

  “Yes sir,” Jax replied as he and the others hopped to the ground.

  “Excellent. Lieutenant General Savage wants to speak with you right away. We’ll tend to your horses.”

  “Very well. Come on, boys.”

  The officer led Abby and the others away from the gate, heading towards the center of the base. Abby looked this way and that as she went, thinking that nothing here looked familiar. But then she remembered she had been blindfolded while entering the base, not granted the use of her eyes until they’d reached the main building.

  Finally she saw it. The building in which she, Zach, and their friends had been held captive for several hours until their escape. Abby allowed herself a sly grin as she imagined what ran through the head of the Airman who first discovered that their prisoners were gone. Her plan had been desperate, the last ditch effort of a nearly fifteen year old girl, but with Zach’s help they pulled it off and made good their escape.

  “So I’m sure you’ll understand if he’s a little excitable,” the 1st Lieutenant said with a glance over his shoulder.

  Abby perked up just then, realizing she had completely tuned out whatever the man had been saying. She nudged Hiamovi with her elbow and whispered, “Hey, I totally spaced out. What was he saying?”

  “The base commander’s kids are coming with the main element behind us, so I guess he’s a little happy-go-lucky right now,” Hiamovi replied.

  Abby almost burst out laughing. She couldn’t imagine the stern, rigid Savage acting giddy. This she had to see. The officer led them up the short set of concrete stairs that led up to the building, then held the front door open for them.

  Inside, two young Airmen sat behind a counter, and both jumped to their feet and saluted as the officer came in behind the Raiders.

  “Good morning, sir!” the young man on the left said. “Airman First Class Simpson and Airman—“

  “Yeah, yeah, at ease,” the officer replied, waving his hand in front of his face. “One of you go tell Lieutenant General Savage the Marines are here.”

  “Yes sir!”

  The young Airman went through a door and turned to head down a hallway, leaving the lobby in silence. Of course, silence was insufferable for a person like Chad. “So, where’s you guys’ bathroom? I’ve been holding in a major dump for hours,” he said to the officer.

  “I’m sure you can wait until after we meet the Lieutenant General,” Jax replied with an exasperated sigh.

  Chad just shrugged. “Aye, Gunny. But if I shit my britches in front of the Lieutenant General, it’s on you.”

  A moment later, the young airman returned. “He’s ready for you now.”

  ***

 
; “Marines! Welcome!”

  Lieutenant General Savage strode across the room to greet Abby and the others with an outstretched hand and a wide smile.

  “Can’t tell you fellas how happy I am to see you young men. And young lady,” Savage continued, shaking first Jax’s hand then working down the line. When he got to Abby, he hesitated for a moment, then greeted her anyway.

  “So it’s really true this time, huh? Gotta say I wasn’t one-hundred percent convinced it wasn’t another lie until you came through my door here,” Savage said.

  “Yes sir, it’s for real,” Jax replied. “The rest of the military is only a couple days behind us.”

  “Yes, that’s what I’ve been told. My kids are with them, and goddamn am I excited to see them.”

  “I didn’t know you had children. How many?” Abby asked. She hadn’t considered him a family man the last time she was here, though of course her first impression of Savage was expectedly negative.

  Savage nodded his head and said, “Two. A daughter and a son.”

  Abby nodded her head and looked away, her curiosity sated. But a moment later she returned her gaze to the Lieutenant General and found him still looking at her.

  “I’m sorry, but do I know you? Or your family? You just seem really familiar,” Savage said to Abby.

  Abby chuckled nervously and said, “Well, we have met once before. Years ago, me and my friends were kinda under arrest here but escaped in the night. My name is Abby.”

  “Abby?” said Savage, his dark brow furrowed as he thought. A moment of silence passed, then the Lieutenant General’s eyebrows arched up to the top of his bald head. “No, not that Abby? Objective Alpha?”

  Abby smiled sheepishly and said, “Surprise.”

  Another tense silence settled on the room, broken suddenly as Savage roared in laughter. “Well, I’ll be damned!” he said. “How the hell are ya after all these years? That trick with the note, that was ballsy!”