by Maxey, Phil
The pickup careered down the drive and onto the country road.
*****
A sequence of booms pierced the air. Each ear popping sound shaking the apartment block Bass and his team were on top of. The tanks were firing towards the coast, but he couldn’t see what the targets were despite the sun peeking over the mountains behind him.
They had spent the last few hours laying down covering fire for the civilians fleeing Zone E, and now it was down to just a trickle but the monsters kept on coming, no doubt wanting to be where the food was. The sounds of vehicles and people in Zone F probably didn’t help as well, the din replacing the siren which was now quiet.
“Two o’clock!” shouted Rogers.
Bass turned his head to the right, holding his binoculars up to his eyes. “Yeah I see it. Don’t know what the hell it is, but I see it.”
A creature that consisted of mostly two spindly legs and a birdlike beak tore across a lawn a few hundred feet away.
“Hawthorn, Reynolds, be ready to lay down fire to the right of that green house down there.”
“Umm, sir…” said Colthard to Bass.
“What is it private?”
“You need to look at the sky.”
Bass frowned, lowering the binoculars. “Why do I—” His mouth stayed open. “Fuck.”
The other soldiers slowly looked upwards, each uttering their own expletive. The tanks fired again at targets only they could see, but the dark blue sky above was filled with darker shadows. E.L.F’s were silently gliding and circling over the camp and especially Zone F.
“They’re like vultures,” said a soldier. “How high are they?” asked another.
“Few thousand feet…” said Bass.
“Then they must be…”
“Big.”
Even though they probably already knew, he went to hold his radio to his mouth to inform his CO when the clatter of gunfire rang out in the street below. He looked down. A herd of what looked like giant millipedes, but with brightly colored shells, each one the length of two SUVs were flooding across the lawns and sidewalks about two hundred feet to their right. “Mortar fire just in front of them, now!” he shouted to the nearby fire team.
The tank closest to the oncoming creatures turned its turret, its machine gun opening up, but the creatures were quick, slipping left and right behind abandoned cars and trucks. The platoon below were firing as well, but their smaller caliber weapons were having no effect.
“They’re almost on the soldiers below us!” shouted Rogers.
Bass looked to the farthest corner where one of the .50 cals was located. “Target those damn insect things!” he shouted to the soldiers.
Hollow thuds accompanied mortars flying skyward, and a few seconds later the far side of the street lit up in bright flashes and fire as the shells exploded shredding the cars and monsters alike. The E.L.F’s left alive squealed and thrashed around.
“Sir, twelve O’clock!” shouted Colthard.
“What the hell—”
A creature twice the height of the single story homes opposite, stormed up the bank at the back of the buildings. It walked mostly on two huge legs, but its torso was a mass of tentacles, each one containing what looked like gaping mouths and thousands of white teeth glistening orange-white in the sunrise. It crashed into the tank directly below them, instantly crumpling the turret. The teeth latched onto the outer armor, eating into the metal like it was butter. Gunfire converged on it but the bullets seemed to be absorbed rather than doing any damage.
Bass went to issue an order, any order to stop the thing from tearing the tank apart more than it already had, when he stopped. E.L.F’s, a sea of them, tumbling over each other, snapping and scraping, two legs, four, twenty, creatures the size of cars others as big as houses, all were now visible in the early morning light in the streets beyond, and scrambling towards them. There was no way they could stop what was about to befall the men and women below.
He noticed the soldiers around him had seen the same as he had, and were equally awestruck. He shook Rogers then Colthard. “Everything we got, unleash it all. Hold those things back!”
The Hydra like creature below crashed to the ground, but not before it had dismantled the tank including its inhabitants. Bass held his radio to his mouth, while ducking down behind the wall of sand to try and hear whoever was on the other end.
“This is Sergeant Daniel Bass at location Echo-Three-One. We’re at the western edge of Zone F. We are about to be overrun. I repeat we cannot hold this position. The E.L.F’s are too many. Please advise! Over.”
A roar in the sky made Bass look up. It wasn’t creatures that had made the sound, but rockets being fired by Apaches. The scene looked like something out of a world war two film, with the birds or whatever they were igniting in a ball of flames, and falling. Actually, one looked like it was falling…
The burning E.L.F slammed into the far corner of the rooftop, taking Hawthorn and Reynolds and that section of the building with it to the ground.
The nearby soldiers scrambled away from the nearly created hole.
Muffled voices came from Bass’s radio, but he couldn’t hear them in the cacophony around him. He pressed the speaker so tight to his ear it hurt. “Please say again. I did not catch that. Over!”
“Huey’s are inbound to your location Sergeant! Just hold out. They are almost on you. Over.”
“Message received. Over!” The world around him was constant cracks and booms. “They’re going to evacuate us!” he shouted into the bedlam. He looked over the wall at tanks and soldiers, being buried under hundreds of creatures. Claws, beaks, fangs, all thrashing at any humans that were still alive and each other. Some of the monsters, no doubt were capable of climbing.
“There’s… too… many!” shouted Rogers, now down to firing his sidearm.
Bass ran along the roof, near the wall. “Keep them off the side of the building! Stop them climbing up!”
“They’re already coming!” shouted Colthard, seeing a starfish type thing that had latched onto the masonry and was slithering upwards.
“I’m out!” shouted a soldier. Another said the same.
Bass looked to the east. “Come on!”
“They’re here!” shouted someone. He knew the soldier didn’t mean the Huey. He spun around to face claws coming over the jagged hole where the roof used to be. It was quickly followed by a lizard like head and met a torrent of gunfire, each projectile knocking it back until it tumbled off the ledge.
Colthard smiled. “Yeah take—”
Something slashed across his face, spraying blood over those close, he spun around and fell headfirst to the concrete while a four-legged creature with black leathery skin landed on the roof scattering the soldiers in all directions.
Its eyes were buried within boney protrusions on its back, although it lacked any definable front. It skittered forward and leaped at Bass, but he swept his M4 across just in time for it to catch the barrel and knocked it off the side of the building.
A plume of smoke washed over him as the updraft of rotor blades swept bullets shells and debris to the edges of the roof and the Huey gently lowered to the floor.
They all ran for the chopper.
“Leave your shit here, or we’re not getting off this roof!” shouted the airmen as Bass approached him. He said the same to those behind and soon they were onboard and floating upwards, the battle still raging on the ground and in the air.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Grant stood in the shadow of the camp’s concrete wall, which towered over him and then looked back to the sandy dirt track they had driven up an hour before. In the distance a plume of dust told him a vehicle was approaching. He didn’t need to use the binoculars in his pocket, for he knew who owned the red pickup. “He’s here,” he said over his shoulder to the others.
“You think he’s going to try and stop us from leaving?” said Ethan.
“No idea. But everyone keep calm.” He looked back to
Ben sitting in the rear seat of his own pickup and smiled, but his son remained stony faced.
Mason’s vehicle pulled up ten or so yards away. He sat for a few seconds, then got out and walked up to Grant.
“Horton’s throwing a fit not knowing where you are,” said Mason.
Grant briefly held his radio up. “Yeah I heard. Did you tell him?”
Mason paused, looking at the others then back to Grant. “No… I didn’t. Where’s Rose?”
Grant did his best to hide his disappointment. “She’s not coming.”
“Oh… So what’s the plan?”
“We’re leaving,” said Carrie leaning on the door of Grant’s pickup.
“Yeah, I kinda got that from you not being in the middle of the shit back in town. You really think it’s going to be any better out there?” He nodded towards the wall.
“It’s over for the camp,” said Grant, “You know that. The E.L.F’s we saw…”
Mason nodded. “Yeah, it’s not a good situation. The army is just about stopping our zone from being overrun. But the creatures are on every street, picking off whoever they want. Plans are moving forward on an evacuation. If you wait around, you might get a golden ticket and be on one of those rides out.”
Grant smiled. “I think I’m done with camp’s for now.”
“So where are you heading?”
“East. The desert plains seemed to have less reports of the creatures.”
“Less food,” said Carrie.
“I have a friend in New Mexico. I might head out there,” said Grant.
“That’s some journey…”
“We can handle it,” said Ethan.
“Why don’t you come with us?” said Grant to Mason.
He smiled, rubbing his stubbly chin. “I can’t. Orders.”
“Horton?”
Mason shook his head. “Ah, no…”
Grant smiled again. “I had a feeling you were still on the job.”
“Yeah, the bureau is still a thing. Who would have thought. End of the world and the G-men are still trying to hold everything together.
“Never took you as a company man?”
“Well, I still think Lucia might be somewhere down here, or something, just a hunch. I dunno. Anyway, I need to stick with things down here, see how it plays out. How are you going to get out? The army has the gates locked down.”
“I know a guy,” said Ethan.
Mason briefly smiled. “Okay. Until we meet again.” He walked forward to Grant and held his hand out, which Grant shook. He gave a final nod to the others and placed his sunglasses back on his face, then backed away to the side of his pickup. “Good luck.” He got in and left.
Grant turned and nodded to Ethan, who walked away talking into his own radio. He then leaned on the open window of his pickup, looking inside to his son. “We’re be leaving soon.”
Ben was looking down. “To where the monsters are…”
“Ethan’s going to check with his guy, make sure the road we’ll be traveling on is clear, at least for a few miles. All of the E.L.F’s are concentrating on where most of the… people are. If we’re ever going to get out of the place, now is the time to do it. You just have to trust me.”
Ben looked up. “Then why isn’t Mason leaving?”
“He’s hoping to find someone before he leaves.”
“Luciana?”
“Yeah.”
Ethan finished his conversation. “The army figured no ones going to want out, so most of the exits are only lightly guarded. My guy say’s if we head south another few miles, we’ll come across a gate with only one guard and he will let us through.”
Grant patted Ethan on the shoulder. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
Soon they were driving through light beige hills covered by green bushes and small trees on a sandy single road. The desert to the side was mostly devoid of buildings, but was strewn with fallen telephone and power lines. Wooden poles were snapped, laying like matchsticks while the metal supports and beams of the power supply were bent and buckled.
The wall suddenly became visible in a gap between the hills, and the road they were on rose on a slight incline and became two lanes. A soldier stood outside a lone Humvee off the side of the road, and ahead of them were forty foot high steel gates.
The two pickup convoy pulled alongside the soldier.
“You Jones?” the soldier said to Grant.
“Pickup behind.”
The soldier walked past and exchanged a few words with Ethan, who handed him something. He then walked back to the wall, and a small metal box near the gate. After the soldier inserted a key, opening the box, flicked a few switches, the gates started to open inwards.
Grant wasn’t the only one in the pickups that took in a deep breath as the world outside started to become visible. All he had seen outside the camp for over a month were a few videos that were still being broadcast from military sources. They were of destroyed cities, overwhelmed by their new creature owners.
He leaned back and placed his hand on Ben’s shoulder. “We’ll be okay.” As he turned back to the front his eyes caught Carrie’s. They were wide but she nodded regardless. He hoped they were doing the right thing.
The landscape on the other side of the gate looked exactly the same as the areas they had just driven through. There wasn’t any sign of E.L.F’s, dead or alive. For that he was thankful.
They went to drive forward when a loud shriek came from above. The soldier looked up, pointing his rifle skyward. He then frantically started waving them forward. Grant nodded and drove through the open gates with Jay’s pickup behind. The steel fortress immediately began closing as soon as they were clear.
Carrie tried to see what had made the noise. “Can’t see anything above us.”
Grant pressed down on the gas pedal and they sped away.
*****
Bass fought his way along the hallway in the university. Around him was a sea of military personnel, and some civilians. Hundreds of faces of fear and confusion. He ran through a doorway, which was marked ‘Comms room 5’ above it, and into an equally busy room, full of computers and soldiers with headsets. He ran to the first person.
“Sofia? I was told there was a message from a Sofia Cuesta?”
The soldier moved the headphones away from his ears.
“Cuesta?” pleaded Bass again.
“Sergeant Bass?” said someone else nearby.
Bass looked to the row of desks along to a young female soldier with a similar headset. “Yes?” He walked around the end of the row to her.
The woman moved to her own desk, pulling her headset off. “I have a Sofia here now for you. Just talk into this.”
Daniel placed the headset on his head and sat. “Sofia? Over.”
“Daniel? Are you okay? Over.”
Relief flushed through his body and he wavered for a moment. “I’m here, I’m okay. Where are you? Are hurt? Over.”
“I’m fine for now. I’m in the hills to the east. How’s it there? Over.”
Bass looked around at the other frantic conversations.
“Not good. There’s going to be an evacuation to other camps. Why are you in the hills? Are you able to get to the university? Over.”
“I’ll explain when we meet up. I’m not sure. There’s E.L.F’s everywhere. Over.”
“Give me your exact location. Over.” He looked around the desk. Spotting a notepad and pen he recorded where she was. “Stay there. I’ll come to you. Over.”
“I’m not alone. There are three others with me. Over.”
“No problem.” He brought up a map of the area on the computer screen. “I see where you are. If I can get a vehicle, it shouldn’t take me more than thirty minutes to get to you. Over.”
“Daniel. You won’t get through alone. There are things everywhere. Over.”
“I know. Just stay where you are and stay on this channel. I’ll be in touch soon. Over.”
He made a quick sketc
h of the map then ripped the piece of paper from the pad and ran from the room, back into the bodies moving every which way in the hallway. He thought about going through command, but he knew at this point the chances of him being granted leave to go get his girlfriend was not high. He quickly made his way into the stairwell, to the ground floor and then across a number of forecourts until he arrived at his barracks, and then to his bunk, where he threw his helmet and body armor on, and collected his kit. It wasn’t long before he was in the the main lobby of the university. Civilians in their hundreds packed the large hall, most had luggage of some kind, but all looked lost. Outside was awash with military vehicles, Humvees, APC’s and beyond them helicopters. Some gunships but mostly troop carriers. He ran towards the large doors, when an arm caught his.
“Where are you going Sergeant?” said an officer.
“Orders to check on the refueling situation, sir.”
The captain nodded and Bass moved off, quickly moving through the revolving glass door and out into chaos. A number of heavy guns were intermittently firing heavenwards, while troops ran between tanks and columns of people were being ferried into large twin-engined helicopters. He looked around for what he needed, then spotted it about two hundred yards away parked near one of the gates to the university grounds. A turreted Humvee with a soldier already manning it. He ran through the mass of people.
“Where’s the driver private?” he said to the soldier standing at the gun.
“Err…”
A female soldier walked forward from a group of two others, all standing near the guard post. “I’m the driver, sergeant, what can I do for you?”
Bass saw the three chevrons and inside his mind swore to himself. He was hoping to find someone of lower rank. “I’ve got orders to leave the cordon to get to a small group of civilians that are trapped up in the hills to the east. I’ll need you to drive me.”