by Colley, Ryan
Next you want some sort of walkway or tower, accessible by ladder. Even raising the ground behind the wall will work. It will give you an overview of everything beyond your walls. You will see anything before it sees you. It means you will be completely surrounded and protected.
Renovations inside the house will be pricey but worth it. Try to get big metal shutters over the windows and doors. Having them both inside and outside the house would be best, if you can. The same kind you see on shops. If not, get iron bars installed. Remove the stairs and replace them with a ladder. I’m pretty sure the undead won’t be able to climb. All the footage shows how uncoordinated they are, but we shall see.
Move everything you can upstairs. Avoid the downstairs as much as possible. The higher you are the better.
You aren’t trying to be comfortable, you are trying to be safe.
Things you will need are:
A generator of some kind; it will power everything when the electricity stops.
A camping stove; it will come into use instead of the big oven.
A water purification system; enough said.
Remember, any security system is only as strong as the weakest point
CHAPTER 27
As I have made clear several times throughout my life, I didn’t believe in God. Not in the same way most other people did anyway. Mainstream religion never made any sense to me, especially when the politics of religion appeared more important than the spiritual part of it. It made me reject religion. It didn’t mean I was a bad person. I could be a good person even without the “love of God” to guide me. If I was a good person then surely whatever God existed would accept me? I couldn’t accept an all loving God would punish those who simply didn’t believe in him. Similarly, there were thousands of people who probably never heard of Christianity or Islam or many other religions. Did that mean they would be punished for simply not being born in the right part of the world at the right time?
As for my lack of belief in religion, I did believe in the soul. Not in the religious sense. I believed that whatever made people tick as their unique selves was their soul. Even if it wasn’t a spiritual soul but more a sense of self. Equally so, I believed a soul could be stained by certain acts, like murder. With certain people you meet, you can tell they are evil or have done bad things. I think that is a sort of staining of a soul. An act so bad it scars who you are. I knew certain things I had done over the previous few days had stained me ever so slightly. Perhaps it was like a drop of ink in a glass of water. It was only a little bit, but it would never be the same again. I was certain my soul would be marred a lot more before my journey’s end. How it would affect me was yet to be seen fully. It was a bridge I would cross when I needed to. For now, everything would be buried deep and I would pray, and I mean truly pray, that my journey finished before I reached the point of no return.
CHAPTER 28
I don’t remember falling asleep but I must have drifted off at some point because the next thing I remembered was being nudged awake. I opened my eyes slowly and avoided jerking awake. I wanted to give the impressions that I had been awake the whole time and had just closed my eyes. I looked at James. He was the one who woke me.
“We’re almost there,” he whispered. I didn’t know why he was whispering. We all knew where we were heading, so why the need to be secretive? I didn’t ask him. I thought it was best to do that later. I looked at the surrounding area, rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I did so. We moved slowly along the road. There were cars every twenty metres or so, placed horizontally along the road. The Jeep weaved between them. I had seen that before. The cars looked as though they had been purposely positioned like it. I was certain that I saw a person sitting in one, gun pointing the way we had come from. It was a smart idea. It was essentially a lookout point to keep an eye on the area. If he saw anything, he could radio back to base to let them know, and then he could hide in the car. Who would question an abandoned car? The positioning of it also meant that any oncoming vehicles would have to slow a sufficient amount. I could only assume why it would be needed, and I thought that may be to question survivors. I didn’t want to think of a potentially worst scenario. Sudden realisation hit me when I remembered cars I had seen outside of London earlier. How long had those people known of our approach? Had they planned to cut us off and waited there for that reason? It wouldn’t have taken long for the first guy to radio back about an approaching vehicle, and for Peters to drive out and meet us. Very smart indeed …
I was staring into the distance when the base came into view. It was set off from the road and looked formidable. It was what I imagined a medieval castle to look like had it been built by modern technology. I was one hundred percent certain it had not been there the previous times I had passed that way. A huge metal wall separated the base from the outside. It looked to be taller than most normal people and was topped with razor wire. Slightly further out from that was a chain-link fence topped with barbed wire. It looked like the initial line of defence before anyone could come into contact with the wall. The fence wouldn’t keep people out forever, but it would certainly slow them down enough to be dealt with before they were a real threat. Within the compound, in each of the four corners, stood four tall watchtowers. A man was in each one and they all carried what appeared to be high-powered rifles. The towers were mounted with large spotlights which could probably illuminate the fields around it for miles. There were a few armed men moving dead bodies away from the outside fence and into the back of a flatbed truck. There was no doubt it was the base we were heading for. Almost as if to confirm it, Peters spoke into the radio.
“Come in Zulu-Twelve, this is Foxtrot-Niner,” he said with humour in his voice. There were a few moments of static before the reply came back.
“Very funny, Peters, just spam the radio, why don’t you,” the stern voice came back.
“Don’t mind if I do,” Peters replied with warmth. “We have two additional mouths with us.”
“Roger that. Bed and breakfast?” the voice replied, like they were mocking us. Although it could just be soldier banter for all I knew.
“And all the trimmings,” Peters replied. “Just make sure Harrington knows before we get back.”
“Which is when?” he replied again.
“ETA one minute,” Peters said, clearly teasing the radio operator. They were definitely friends. It reminded me of the way a couple of my friends and I could spend hours just teasing each other up and talking rubbish. I missed them.
“Done and done,” the voice came back, interrupting my downwards spiral. “Over and out.”
“All the trimmings?” James said after a few moments, repeating what Peters had said. It had been phrased as a question.
“Yeah,” Peters replied, “It basically means food, water, and bed. You’re not the first survivors we’ve found, you know.”
“We’re not?” I asked, surprised, although it did make sense that we weren’t the only ones. Some people must have made a similar journey over the previous few weeks.
“Course not,” Peters said with a smile. “We’ve had plenty come and go. Plenty have stayed as well.”
“People stay?” James asked, now just as surprised as me.
“Of course.” Peters laughed, as if he spoke to small children. “Not everyone wants to leave, you know. People don’t like leaving safety once they have it. We have spaces if people are willing to put in the work, but Harrington has the final say on that.”
“Harrington?” I repeated, questioning him once more.
“You either are a curious bunch or just like repeating me,” he said, resulting in a bark of laughter from the vending machine soldier. He waited for the soldier to stop before adding, “Harrington is the general running this outfit. You’ll meet him very soon.”
“Brilliant,” I said with a smile. I started to feel more relaxed about the whole situation. I still felt naked without any weapons, but the base would probably ease that feeling.
&
nbsp; The Jeep took the turning off the road and onto the gravel path leading to the base. The gravel looked out of place and I suspected it was put there when the base was built, to give vehicles traction. The soldier at the chain-link gate checked inside both vehicles and under each with a mirror on a pole before signalling for the gate to be opened. The gate opened and we went in, only to have similar checks by a second man. The same happened again and the two huge metal doors, much more secure than the gate we had just passed through, rolled open sideways. We then drove inside. The Jeeps were driven off to the left and parked up. Men came out of nowhere and took everything out of both vehicles. The vehicles were then driven into a small compound-styled parking lot. There was a metal fence around it which required a key for entry. It was probably to stop any deserters making a clean getaway.
“Where are they going with our stuff?” James asked, panic in his voice.
“You’re not military men, are you?” Peters asked, although he already knew the answer to the question. We shook our heads. He smiled and continued, “Exactly! You don’t know how to maintain the equipment you’ve been using. We do. We’ll have your guns cleaned and readjusted in no time and then we can talk about it.”
“Cheers,” I replied, although he was wrong. I knew how to maintain every weapon in those Jeeps. James didn’t say anything but just stared at Peters, who just smiled. For a moment his smile faltered before he waved for us to follow him. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but something wasn’t quite right. Regardless, we followed him to a washroom.
“Give yourselves a clean, a shave, a crap or whatever else you need to do and then you can meet with Harrington,” Peters said, acting like the perfect host. “We will have fresh clothes waiting for you on your return. What sizes do you both need?”
We told him our sizes and he disappeared. He shook hands and spoke to people as he passed.
I examined the showers. It was a very simple design. It was a communal shower, so there was no privacy in the white-tiled room. Several pipes ran overhead with sprinklers set into them. It wasn’t the most amazing system but it was the best I had seen in a long time. There was a metal cabinet in the corner, which I looked in. It was filled with soaps, shower gels, shaving creams, razors, and everything you could ever want to feel and smell clean. I grabbed a handful of stuff, feeling very gleeful at the hoard I had found.
“Hey James,” I called to him. He turned and I smiled. “Catch!”
I tossed a bottle of shower gel to him, which he caught with lightning quick reflexes. He examined it.
“Pretty and Pink?” he said, reading the name of the bottle aloud. “Isn’t this for women?”
“Yeah, and you’re going to smell like a princess,” I laughed. I heard James chuckle too. The first sign of genuine and open emotion he had shown for a while. James began to undress.
“Whoa!” I said, covering my eyes. “At least let me leave. You can shower first. I can wait!”
“This again?” James laughed, still removing clothes. “We’re potentially at the end of days and you’re worried about seeing male genitalia? You’re one of a kind, you know.”
We both laughed. It was a good, and heterosexual, male bonding moment.
“So, I got something to ask,” I said, preparing to broach a subject I wasn’t too sure of the boundaries of. I turned to face away so James could undress.
“What is it?” James said. I heard him turn the valve, switching the water on above him.
“What’s been up?” I said quickly, almost forcing it out. The same way young boys do when asking a girl out for the first time in school. “You’ve been acting pretty freaking weird to be honest.”
“I’ve been acting weird!” James snorted. “You realise you talk to yourself and looked like you were going to stab anyone you see.”
“Wait! I talk to myself?!” I said, shocked. I wasn’t aware of it. I turned to face James, seeing full frontal nudity as I did so. I quickly scrunched my eyes shut. I felt ridiculous.
“Yeah, guy!” James replied matter-of-factly. “You mutter under your breath and stuff. You laugh too.”
I thought back to the past few days. I couldn’t remember anything clearly. It was a massive blur of chaos. How long had passed since I left home? It felt like months. I suspected it was closer to a week.
“I have been pretty tired,” I replied uncertainly, still trying to think back. I opened my eyes again, making sure I only made eye contact that time, and said, “You should have said something sooner if I was freaking you out.”
“I was sure you’d poison my next meal, or slit my throat while I slept,” James said with a smile. I smiled too. He didn’t need to know the thought had crossed my mind at one point.
“So we’re cool?” I said, trying to see where I now stood with him.
“Of course. I’m just glad we got this sorted now. Cleared the air and such,” James said and washed his hair. I started to undress also. With the water travelling over to my feet, I felt it was probably time to wash myself and go and meet the mysterious General Harrington. I almost dumped my clothes in the corner before I remembered to check the pockets. It was something I had always been forgetful about and I had lost a fair bit of money that way. I found my phone and a single bullet. I stared at the cold and hard potential piece of death, confused; where had it come from? It was then I recalled David and his advice. In case you need it. His suggestion was a mere after-thought at the time, but the reality of needing it was growing ever closer. I placed the bullet on the side, the deadly end pointing into the air. I gave it one more glance before proceeding to wash.
CHAPTER 29
I spent a lot longer in the shower than necessary, and it felt amazing. It was poorly constructed and lukewarm, but it felt great. I didn’t realise I would miss showering so much. Dirt and dried gore washed off of me. I even picked what appeared to be a bone fragment out of my hair. Not too sure how, or when, it got there. When I was done, I shaved and showered. I considered leaving my hair as it was but remembered my own advice and shaved it off. As I ran the shaver over my head, blonde locks of hair fell to the floor; water carried them away and they disappeared down a drain. Halfway through, a man dropped off two crisp military uniforms for us. The patches of the British Army had been removed from those in the same way Peters and the others’ uniforms had. I put on the new uniform and undergarments they had left, finding both a surprisingly good fit. James and I left the shower together, both in better spirits and both a little bit closer from the experience … in a heterosexual way. Peters was waiting for us outside.
“Ready to meet General Harrington?” he asked, clapping his hands together as he did so.
“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I replied with a shrug. Without anyone noticing, I slipped the single bullet and phone into my pocket. I wasn’t letting them go easily.
“Well, let’s get going then,” Peters said and guided us away.
While walking through the compound, the one thing I noticed was how much they had squeezed into the limited space. The base was quite big as it was, but every bit of space had a use. They had a reasonably sized area for vehicles where repairs and maintenance also took place, a wash room that I had already seen, and a bunk house which was the sleeping quarters for approximately sixty men and women. There was also a munitions shed, where guns were stored and maintained, an exercise yard, and a mess hall. It was almost like a small military-themed holiday resort mixed with a workshop.
With nightfall, unnatural light in the base was kept to a minimum; probably to avoid detection at night from outsiders. Everything was made out of a greenish metal and seemed to follow the same design as snap-together furniture bought from Ikea, but military grade and not cheap wood. It made me wonder how fast they had it set up. It looked as if it could have just appeared overnight, and I had no doubt that it did.
Peters led us to the far side of the base to where Harrington resided. The general had his own small house on-site, separate from the rest of the men an
d women. He was clearly as important as his rank suggested. It was a simple design, just like everything else, and that is where we were headed.
Peters knocked on the door. Without any indication of whether General Harrington had heard, Peters opened the door and ushered us in.
The interior of the room we first entered surprised me. From the outside, it looked minimalist, but this simple house had been decorated like a fulltime home. There were carpets and rugs, wooden drawer sets and paintings on the walls. Harrington was a man of luxury.
“Bring them to the office,” a gruff voice, of the man whom I assumed to be General Harrington, called from somewhere further in the house. Peters led us to his office. I noticed there wasn’t a single door in any of the door frames. The office was as decorated as the rest of the house: carpet, an ornate desk, and walls lined with books. The desk was set to face the entrance of the room, with a large leather swivel chair behind it. The man in the chair faced away from us, looking at something else apparently. Peters snapped off a crisp salute once we were in the room.
“You can leave us now Peters, thank you,” the man said.
“Yes sir,” Peters said and then left in an equally crisp march. When the front door slammed, announcing Peters’ exit, the chair turned around. In the chair sat one of the darkest-skinned men I had ever seen. Perhaps it was because of the contrast of the white walls, but I was genuinely surprised at just how dark he was. He wore what I think was his parade uniform; it was just as ornate as his desk. His uniform was covered in medals and ribbons. He was a highly decorated individual. He was bald, not shaved bald, but bald-bald. He looked to be about forty or fifty years old. His skin clung tightly to his face, pronouncing his cheek bones. All in all, he was a very attractive man. I noticed he had a tumbler of whiskey in one hand; the man noticed me looking and smiled.