by A. P. Texan
I’m not sure how long I’ve been out, but when I come to, I’m lying on a gurney, in what appears to be an emergency room. I also realize how badly I stink. I smell like blood, vomit, bile, and I don’t know what else; oh God, this is horrible. I reach for my PTT button to see where everyone is, but it is gone. In fact, my whole kit is gone. I look around slightly panicked that my gear has been stolen, but I realize my chest rig and battle belt are on a chair beside the gurney and my pack is sitting next to it.
I try to sit up, but that is not happening. The pain that flares from my lower back is unbearable, my head spins and I nearly lose consciousness again. I do however, scream to all of Heaven and curse the many demons of Hell. That mountain of a man must have really worked me over. Actually, now that my mind has realized the pain in my back, I begin to feel the pain in my entire body. My arms, my legs, everything feels like a pulled muscle. It’s like my entire body is on fire.
“Oh, Good you’re awake,” I hear my sisters voice behind a flashlight that comes into the room.
“Yeah, I wish I weren’t though. I think I pulled every muscle in my body, my back feels like a piece of tenderized beef and I smell God awful.”
“Here take these, drink this water, and lay back down.” She hands me a couple of little white pills and my canteen. I lean as much as I can on an elbow, take the pills and drink the water.
“How long was I out?”
“Couple hours. After the fight, Nick brought you here. I’ve been watching over you while they checked the rest of the hospital. I have your radio and have stayed in contact with Nick. They should be back here in another fifteen minutes or so.”
“Did we find out where those goons came from? I can’t believe I dropped my guard like that. I could have gotten us all killed,” I say.
“Looks like they came in behind us. Probably saw us pull into the parking lot. Looks like we got all nine of them; as that’s who all the bikes we saw out back, belonged to. As far as you could have gotten us killed, that’s on all three of us, nobody was watching the door. We were so busy looking at all the meds and supplies, we lost focus. If anything, you saved us, scared the crap out of us, but definitely saved us. I’ve seen you angry before when we were younger but that was different, and Charles was terrified. After we got you in here, he pulled me to the side and said he had never seen anything like that before and was truly terrified you were going to turn on us. You were calm and methodical just walking through the bullets shooting people. Everywhere your gun pointed, it went off and someone died.”
“That wasn’t me sis. Well, it was me, but I wasn’t in control. I don’t know if I can explain it, but it was like I was just looking through my eyes, I was a passenger along for the ride. You remember the Terminator movies; when the camera would switch to the Terminator view and you saw what everything looked like through Arnolds eyes. Everything was red and black, and it was just methodical killing. That’s how it felt. Trust me when I tell you it scared me too.”
“Well, you probably feel like your tore every muscle in your body because you most likely did. How you did a push up with that brute on your back, is beyond me. But the growl that came out of your mouth might have been the scariest part of the whole ordeal. That or what you did to the man with your knife. Which is one reason you stink so bad. You opened his abdomen, and his entire G.I. tract came out. I’m pretty sure you cut into his stomach and intestine; the contents are all over you.”
“I’ve got a change of clothes in my bag. Do you mind getting them for me? I’ll change as soon as the pills you gave me start kicking in.” I say as I flop my head back down on the gurney.
Fifteen minutes later Charles, Nick, and Barbara walk into the ER Department, just as I’m pulling up my clean pants and buttoning them while my sister helps hold me up. They are pushing a gurney covered in overstuffed laundry bags of what I’m guessing are medical supplies.
“Glad to see you awake wild man. You had us worried for a minute.” Nick says, as he comes towards me.
Charles, however, beats him to it and embraces me in a hug. Tears forming in his eyes. “Thank God you’re okay, you had so much blood and gore on you; we couldn’t tell if you were hurt or not.”
“I’ll be fine buddy, but right now I need you to help me lay back down. My whole body feels like one giant bruise.”
“Let me go find you a wheelchair so we can get out of here.” Cynthia says, as she is walking away.
“From what Charles and your sister tell me, that was some crazy shit. I'm kind of glad I didn’t see it, but at the same time it is hard to comprehend without seeing it.” Nick says as he comes to grab my gear and place it on the gurney with the other supplies.
That’s when I notice Barbara standing towards the back of the room. She appears shaken and is standing away from me; she has a large rolling basket / cart thing between us. She is wide eyed and not taking her eyes off me.
“I was there but I wasn’t in control of my own body. It was like I was just a passenger along for the ride. I could see what was going on, but everything was in shades of red and black. On top of that, I could hear absolutely nothing. I’ll be honest it scared the crap out of me. I have never had that happen before. My internal monster has gotten loose before, but I always black out and don’t remember anything except the aftermath. However, the aftermath has never been like that. Just some broken bones, swollen eyes, and bloody lips.”
Cynthia returns with the wheelchair and we all start navigating the halls towards the loading dock. As we are walking, I fill them all in on the details of my ride along with my demon. As I do, I can see Barbara steadily moving further away from me; at one point she physically grabs Nick and moves him between us.
The other four get all the supplies they looted, stored in the trucks as I look out. Pissed off that I’m stuck in a freaking wheelchair like an invalid and can’t help.
“How are we going to get me off this freaking dock and into the truck?” I ask rhetorically.
Charles answers anyways, “Nick and I are going to carry you down those stairs and then I will help you up into the truck. We will throw the chair in the back, so we have it for later.”
“Yay, I get to be helpless some more. Sis, how long am I going to be out of action, this is really irritating me?” I say angrily.
“Stop your whining, you big baby! You will be up and around when your body heals, and that will depend on you letting it heal. Until then, stop feeling sorry for yourself.” Cynthia says back to me, rather heatedly.
I just look away; I know she is right there is nothing I can do now but let myself heal. In order to do that, I need to take it easy for a few days. That is going to be hard to do, there is still so much going on. We are only a week and a half into the apocalypse and things are already falling apart. We need all hands on deck every day to make sure we can make it through this and who knows how long I’ll actually be down.
Charles and Nick get me down the stairs and I manage to get into the passenger side of the truck with only a few moans and gritted teeth. Christ this hurts.
We are back on the road towards the farm and everything is going smooth. We should be able to make it back in an hour or so and then I can lay down and rest because that is what my body really needs.
Before we get too far down the road, I tell Charles we need to call a halt. He communicates with Nick and soon both trucks are pulling to the side of the road.
“Here is what I want to do.” I say as Nick walks back to our truck. “Get a laundry bag and fill it with a bunch of medical supplies, some antibiotics and some pain killers.”
“Oh, I see where you’re going with this.” Nick chimes in “We stop in town and give it to the PD as a peace offering.”
“Exactly,” I respond, “Can’t hurt to have some allies, and even if they don’t become allies hopefully, they won’t be enemies.”
We spend the next ten minutes or so with me sitting helpless in the cab of the truck; while they get a little care pac
kage put together for our friends, then it is back on the road.
As we enter the small town with the overzealous police force, we slow down expecting them to be ready for us. Again, we see the soup kitchen going with a line of people waiting to get their ration of food. And again, the town police step out into the street. Nick stops the truck and gets out with his hands stretched out to his side. Holding the laundry bag of supplies in his right hand.
“Okay guys we brought you a peace offering. I’m going to walk out, set this down then step back to the truck. Then we ask that you either offer to talk with us or just let us drive on through, we are fine either way.” Nick yells to them. Then drops his hands and starts his walk towards the cops. When he cuts the distance in half, he sets the bag on the ground then turns and walks back to where the trucks are parked.
The leader of the group nods his head to one of the other guys who walks out to get the bag. Once he is back to the others, with the bag in hand, he sets it down and begins looking through it.
“Okay, so what do you want to talk about?” the leader yells back.
Nick, again, begins his walk, hands out in a palm up orientation showing he has no weapon or the desire to draw one. Seeing this, the spokesman for the PD guys also begins to walk out.
From where I am at in the truck, I can’t hear what they are saying but I see Nick get something out of his pocket and hand it over to the other guy. I’m guessing this is probably his badge showing they are in the same brotherhood. After a minute or two he puts whatever it was away, and they shake hands. Fifteen minutes later, Nick is back at the trucks.
“Okay here is the deal, they had a group of bikers come through a day or so ago. Before you ask yes, the descriptions match. Anyways they shot the place up, killed a few of the towns people and took a few of the women with them. They said there were at least fifteen of them. When we were coming through this morning, they thought we might be a follow on from the previous group. We are all good now and they know if they need anything where we are.”
“Did you tell them about our run in at the hospital?” Charles asks.
“I did, they understand that we did what we had to do but now they are afraid that the missing six might come back here looking for retaliation.” Nick responds.
“I agree with their worry.”, I say “The missing six would assume that the town’s people hunted them down looking for payback, so naturally they would come back here for the same reason. Sounds like the beginning of a war.”
“Unfortunately, we have no idea where they are camped, or I would go take them out and get the town’s women back.” Nick says.
“Let’s get back to the farm. If you Charles and Bob are up to it, I have a plan. Unfortunately, in my current condition I can’t help, or you know I would.” I say as the others climb back in the trucks and we head out of town.
In no time we are back at the farm. Everyone comes out to meet us when they hear the trucks coming up the gravel road. Charles and Cynthia get out and then help me out of the truck. Because of the rough ground, the wheelchair is not an option and honestly, I think I need to start walking to try to help work out the stiffness.
“Oh Mi Amor, what happened to you? Are you alright?”
Leaning against the truck; I fill everyone in on the events that unfolded during our foray into town.
“We need to help out the town. As Nick said, we have no idea where the bikers are, but we do know we need to find their camp, take them out, and get the ladies back to the town. Here is what I propose, Nick, Charles, and Robert take the hummer and head back to the hospital as soon as possible. The other bikers should show up there to find their friends. If they have the ladies with them, you take them right then and there. Use the hospital and take them out with ranged shots from elevation. Less risk to yourselves, as well as the hostages. If the women aren't there, you're going to have to take one of two approaches. Take them out there and interrogate the ones living at the end or follow them and hope they take you to the ladies.”
“I’m in.” Nick says.
“Same” from Charles.
“I’m driving.” Robert speaks up.
“Charles, take my SOCOM. Robert, get yourself a .308 from the armory. You guys need to hit them hard and quick.”
“Don’t worry Chase, we got this. Be back in a few days.” Nick tells me.
I grab Charles in a hug, “Be safe dude, I love you.”
After Charles and Bob get their rifles and ammo, I shake hands with everyone and give Charles another big hug and with that, the Humvee is headed back into town.
We watch the big green truck as it disappears down the gravel road and then everyone turns and heads back to work. Sandy and Cynthia help me get in the cabin and laid down. Cynthia gives me some more pills to take and I drift off into a drug induced sleep.
1315 21 September 2021
Alliance Hospital, North Fort Worth
As Nick and the guys pull into the hospital, they noticed the motorcycles are still near the loading dock and everything appears to be as it was when we left earlier.
“OK guys, here's what I want to do”, says Nick. “Charles and Bob, you guys go up to the third floor, each of you take a room on opposite ends of the hallway overlooking the loading dock; when the bikers pull up, we will communicate by radio and I will coordinate the fire. We will try to take out whoever is holding the ladies first, when you hear me call a shift fire, I need you guys to take over coordination of fire between the two of you. I’m going to break cover and get to the ladies. I’ll need you to give me good cover fire. Once I have the ladies clear; I will call weapons free and that will be your cue to rain all forms of Hell down on whoever is left.”
Nick drives to a corner of the parking lot and parks the Hummer. Bob and Charles sprint towards the back of the hospital to use the same door that we used earlier. Nick splits off in a different direction and takes up a position behind the large generators.
“Gentlemen, let me introduce you to the worst part of any operation, the long wait. Once you get your positions make yourselves comfortable as we may be here a while. Whatever you do don’t leave your radio.” Nick tells the other two.
As Nick settles into his hide on the pea gravel behind the dead generators, his mind drifted back to the last time, he remembered being in the sandbox known as the middle east. He was on his final tour in Afghanistan, he and his spotter, a young specialist named Arturo Rodriguez. They were stationed in Kandahar Province and had just received orders to set up on the side of a mountain; overlooking a goat trail that was the only way into or out of a village known to house several Taliban VIPs. The intel guys had received word that a number of village elders and Taliban leaders would be leaving in the next few days, to have a meeting in another village about ongoing insurgent operations in the region. Nick had received pictures of his targets to a small tablet; he now had stowed in his ruck sack that sat between his legs. This would be a simple mission the same as the last twenty or thirty he had done. The Blackhawk they were now riding in, would drop them off ten klicks from the target. There “Rod” and himself would hump it in find a good hide, overlooking the target area set up their camo netting and settle in for the long wait. Once the targets arrived, they would take them out then exfil over the ridge to where another Blackhawk would pick them up. Easy peasy.
The gunner / crew chief tapped Nick on the shoulder to get his attention when Nick looked over at him, he held up two fingers and yelled out above the noise, “two minutes”. Nick keyed his radio and said to Rod, “Two minutes. Kit up and be ready at the door.”
Both men stood Rod hoisted his pack on his shoulders, slung his SCAR-H LB and waited by the door. Nick checked his M-24 Sniper system, a custom Remington 700 chambered in .338 Lapua, to make sure it was secured to his pack and then hoisted it onto his back. He then slung his M4 and headed over to the doors.
Knowing that this area was hot with enemy activity, the Blackhawk would be doing a flare maneuver. The chopper come
s in fast then at the last minute the pilot will lift the nose and bring the chopper to a stop just feet from the ground. The warriors inside jump out and the chopper leaves, the whole process taking only seconds.
This never happened. Just as the chopper was about to flare the door gunner yelled contact and opened up with his minigun. The opposing force was hidden in a wash fifty meters from them and began pouring lead their direction. The chopper was still ten feet from the ground when a rocket propelled grenade was launched at them. The pilot immediately turned the craft to make a smaller target and pulled the collective, to get some altitude. This sudden unexpected movement caught both Nick and Rod totally by surprise and both went out the door from the change of momentum. The fall was only fifteen or sixteen feet and should have been survivable. Unfortunately, Rod landed awkwardly a large rock impacting his helmet and the resulting force twisting his neck in an impossible direction. Fortunately, it happened so fast he never felt the pain. Nick landed flatfooted and the impact destroyed his right knee, however this wasn’t the worst part. They were now immobilized in the middle of a hot LZ and the chopper couldn’t get them out. Just then another RPG arced across the expanse and caught the big helicopter broad side, just below the engine cowling. The resulting explosion removed the rotors from the chopper, and it came down like a rock.
His knee flaring with pain; Nick managed to slip out of his ruck and start sending 5.56 rounds towards the enemy with the M4. “Rod get in the fight, pain comes later.” He yelled out at his young spotter. As he turned to look that direction to see why Rod wasn’t returning fire, he saw the dead eyes staring back at him blood oozing from his nostrils.