The Survival Chronicles | Book 8 | Final Mercy

by Nally, Fergal F.

  “The base it is then,” Mercy turned away from the window, her eyes hard.

  They left the visitor centre thirty minutes later. The early morning sun cast long shadows across the desert landscape. Dew glistened like tiny diamonds on the ground. Travis and Barnes took point. Tawny, Flynn, Jade, and Annalise came next. Mercy and Rose brought up the rear. They walked the horses north, up Utah Trail, their guns on show. Mercy’s eyes darted left and right.

  “They’re out there, on our flanks,” Rose hissed. She pointed at a column of riders parallel to them, on the right.

  “Yeah, they’re shadowing us on the other side too,” Mercy answered.

  Bastards. Are you escorting us out of town or are you planning to attack?

  “Wonder what they’ll do when we cross Route 62 and continue north instead of west.” Rose said.

  “We’ll find out soon enough,” Mercy replied.

  Four minutes later they crossed Route 62 and continued north, along Utah Trail. Their shadow escort faltered on the left and a single rider bolted west.

  Rose snorted and spat on the ground, “Looks like you might have been right.”

  Looks can be deceptive but yes, on this occasion that’s what it feels like—

  They passed a park, a sign read: LUCKIE PARK.

  I’m not sure how I feel at the moment, but I sure don’t feel lucky—

  “I’ll bet that was all green grass once,” Rose said. “But now it’s just desert… like everywhere else.”

  “They’re still there, a hundred yards out on either side, keeping pace with us,” Mercy said.

  “Trying to intimidate us,” Rose replied. “Maybe I should take a shot?”

  Mercy gave Rose a look, “No, conserve your ammo. That’s what they want us to do.”

  How far did Travis say the base was? Six klicks? This is taking forever—

  Travis turned left onto Amboy Road. They passed an RV resort and a golf course. The shadow escort continued to follow them, keeping their distance.

  Not giving up yet are you Tin Man? What have you got to prove? You’ve got your oasis back, we’re leaving by the back door with minimal fuss. Why don’t you call off your men and just allow us to fade away?

  “I’m going to name them the Voyeurs cos that’s what they are… they keep watching us,” Rose said, five minutes later.

  “Yeah, but they’re not doing anything else. It almost feels like they’re herding us… like sheep,” Mercy replied.

  “Yeah, well, these sheep have guns… and frags, so I’m OK with that,” Rose said.

  Travis turned right, up Adobe Road. They continued north for another four kilometres and arrived at the Marine Corps base. A large sign declared: THE MARINE CORPS, AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER, TWENTYNINE PALMS.

  OK, so here we are, lead on Travis—

  Travis and Barnes stopped outside a small building just within the entrance to the base.

  “Gatehouse,” Rose said. “Let’s hope there’s a map of this place, we’re gonna need one, it looks like a small town.”

  Barnes dismounted his horse and entered the building.

  “Barnes knows what he’s doing,” Mercy said, watching the Voyeurs on their flanks.

  They’ve stopped, they’re not letting us out of their sight. This is getting tedious guys—

  Barnes appeared a few minutes later, clutching a map. He spoke to Travis and pointed north west. They set off through the base, keeping to the same pace. Mercy’s eyes strayed left and right, watching the buildings as they passed.

  The place looks pristine, deserted but pristine. Barnes will be taking us to the supply depot for food or maybe the armory for weapons. I bet he’ll go for weapons first, but a place like this would’ve have been ransacked ages ago—

  They rode another two kilometres and came to a large, formidable looking building set behind two, high chain link fences. Deep, concrete-lined ditches surrounded the outer perimeter fence. Mercy’s eyes widened.

  Wow—

  “OK, well, I figured all the tropes had just gone walkabout in the desert. Guess I was wrong,” Rose said, her voice deadpan.

  Hundreds of trope eyes turned towards Travis and Barnes. Trope feet scraped across the compound behind the fences. A low moan rose from the mass of shuffling undead.

  “How the fuck did they all get trapped in there?” Mercy asked, turning to Rose.

  A roar ripped through the air behind them. Mercy swung her mare around, her eyes darted to the nearby buildings.

  What next—?

  “Over there… the warehouse building on our right,” Rose shouted.

  A huge military JCB digger emerged from an open warehouse, its bladed bucket raised in the air. Black diesel fumes belched from the duel vertical exhausts behind the driver’s cab.

  “What the fuck are they playing at?” Rose shouted. She opened fire on the JCB with her AR-15. Her bullets ricocheted harmlessly off the JCB’s massive bucket and armoured shell.

  Mercy raised her rifle and aimed at the driver. She squeezed her trigger and watched in dismay as her round hit the cab window with no effect.

  Bullet proof, shit—

  She shot at the JCB’s tyres, again with no effect.

  Bullet proof tyres—

  Tawny’s voice rang out from behind, “The flanks… watch out—”

  Mercy turned to the right.

  Christ, we’re fucked—

  Chapter 29

  The Armory

  Two men appeared from camouflaged foxholes fifty yards away on the right. They were stripped to the waist and carried red fuel tanks on their backs. They held long gun nozzles in their hands. The nozzles dripped liquid onto the ground, the smell of gasoline carried on the breeze.

  Flamethrowers… again, I can’t believe this shit—

  “Two more of the bastards on our left,” Rose said. “If we shoot, we risk hitting their fuel tanks.”

  They’ve done this before. It was a setup all along. They want the horses… and us. Think… think—

  The JCB’s engine roared, it surged along the road towards the armory.

  They don’t know about our… biotech. Hope there’s no alphas in there—

  Mercy swung around and looked at the chain link gate. “Bust open the gate, let the tropes out. Get into the armory. Tawny, Annalise, and Flynn you’ve got the biotech… you can shield Barnes, Travis, and Jade from the tropes. Me and Rose will hold these guys off. Rose, single warning shots on those flamethrower bastards, just delay them—”

  Travis reached down to one of his gun holsters and pulled out his shotgun. He aimed at the gate’s lock and fired two slug rounds. The lock disintegrated with the second round and the gate swung open. Tropes swarmed towards the opening.

  “Ride fast, push through them, it’s our only chance. Don’t stop for anything,” Tawny yelled.

  Tawny, Flynn, and Annalise rode through the gate, forming a spearhead. Jade, Travis, and Barnes rode close behind, their weapons at the ready.

  The JCB’s roar and the gunfire at the gates attracted most of the tropes and they staggered towards the noise. Tawny rode forwards, forcing a channel through the dead. Flailing trope hands reached up, scrabbling at her horse. A space opened up in the pressing horde and Tawny pushed through. The others followed in her wake.

  The JCB mounted the kerb thirty yards away and moved towards Mercy and Rose. Rose’s bullets bounced off its bullet proof tyres.

  “Rose, get yourself through the gates,” Mercy yelled, wheeling her horse around to face the nearest flamethrower.

  Gonna need something extreme to make these bastards think again—

  “Eat this, motherfucker,” Mercy shouted, aiming her rifle at the gasoline tanks on the man’s back.

  The man’s eyes widened as Mercy called his bluff. He brought his flamethrower nozzle up and squeezed the trigger. A tongue of flame erupted from the nozzle, searing the ground twenty yards in front of him. Mercy’s first bullet missed but the second hit one of his gasoline tanks
. A ball of flame engulfed him and his companion on the left.

  A wall of searing heat blasted Mercy, making her close her eyes and turn away. Her horse reared, throwing her off. She fell to the ground and dropped her rifle. Her bay mare pranced around in abject fear, its eyes bulging and nostrils flaring. Its hooves narrowly missed Mercy’s head. Mercy curled into a ball and lay still. Tropes spilled out of the gate and surged towards the horse and the burning men. The JCB continued on its collision course.

  Get away, get away. Use the biotech—

  Mercy started to crawl through the forest of trope legs milling around her. Trope feet kicked and trampled her. She broke free from the centre and kept crawling. A blinding pain filled her head and her vision blurred.

  Move, move, move, keep going—

  An engine roar tore through the air behind Mercy as the JCB crashed into the massed tropes and the terrified horse.

  Oh my god—

  Mercy kept pushing. The crowd surged and engulfed her once more, blocking her way. A flash of daylight appeared on Mercy’s left, she threw herself towards it and seconds later burst free from the throng. Shouts and screams filled her ears as she stood up and pushed through the trope stragglers towards the gate.

  Mercy stared into the dead faces coming at her. The tropes pushed past her, heading towards the fresh kill yards from the gate.

  They’re after the horse. My biotech, they’re ignoring me. It’s going to be alright, get inside, get to the armory—

  Mercy pushed against the oncoming tide.

  Getting closer—

  Mercy’s arms and legs began to weaken. She stumbled but managed to keep upright then stumbled again and fell.

  Oh—

  Trope feet kicked and banged into her. Mercy’s vision went blurry.

  Oh—

  A voice. Hands. Space. Air.

  “It’s alright Mercy. We’ve got you. Lean on me. Your inside. You’re gonna be OK,” Rose said.

  Rose’s face flashed for a brief moment in Mercy’s consciousness.

  Rose? It’s you—

  Mercy collapsed into Rose’s arms. Darkness took her.

  “Mercy was right. This place is a fortress. They’ll never get us in here,” Jade’s words penetrated Mercy’s consciousness.

  Mercy’s eyelids flickered. Awareness returned on a wave of pain.

  “Oh god,” Mercy groaned.

  “Hey, babe, you’re back. Steady. It’s OK. We’re all here, it’s all good, thanks to you.”

  Flynn? Flynn—

  Mercy opened her eyes and looked into Flynn’s face.

  There you are—

  “Flynn—?” Mercy said, reaching up to touch Flynn’s face. “Am I—?”

  “You’re fine. Nothing broken that we can see. Bruising and concussion, yes… but you’ve been through worse. And your biotech should be helping too. You always heal up quicker than the rest of us… but yeah, you took a beating. You and Rose bought us enough time to bust into this place. We’re in the armory, the doors were unlocked. We got the horses in too. We had to clear a few tropes out, but it’s all done now. It’s safe—” Flynn said, holding Mercy’s hand. He leant forwards and kissed her on the cheek. “Got some water here, for you—”

  Mercy nodded and reached out, “Yeah, that’d be good.”

  Flynn pressed a water bottle into Mercy’s hand and helped her to drink. She took a few mouthfuls then lay back, closing her eyes. Her head swam and she was conscious of a strange warmth in her stomach.

  Oh yeah, that feeling again. Biotech city—

  “There’s food here too,” Flynn continued. “And water, looks as if people were using it as a redoubt of sorts. Locked themselves in behind the gates, probably after the Fall. But then the infection must’ve spread fast from inside and they stayed trapped inside the fence. No one dared try to bust into the armory with all these tropes… until we came along.”

  Mercy managed a half smile, “That’s good. Tin Man will be pissed. I’m glad he’s pissed. She frowned, “Wait, he had an armored JCB. He could bust into this place—”

  “No, there’s huge ditches surrounding the site and concrete ram barriers out front. It’s all good, just relax, give into it. I’ll go and get some painkillers for you. Tawny found some earlier on—”

  Mercy held out her hand, “No, don’t leave me Flynn. Don’t leave me—”

  The warmth surged in her stomach and her pain began to subside.

  “Stay—”

  Mercy closed her eyes and fell into darkness.

  The smell of cooking woke Mercy. Her stomach rumbled. She opened her eyes and allowed the details of the room to come into focus.

  “Hey there,” Jade’s voice, nearby.

  “Hey there,” Mercy croaked, turning to face Jade. “That smells good, what is it?”

  Jade smiled, “Just a load of MREs I’m heating up. There’s loads of food in here, and the armory’s got its own water supply.”

  “Can I get some of whatever you’re cooking up? I’m starving,” Mercy sat up and rubbed her face.

  “Sure, beef stew coming up,” Jade said. She walked over to the stove in the corner of the room.

  “How long have I been out?” Mercy said, her legs shaking as she stood up.

  Damn, my legs feel weak—

  “Two days,” Jade replied. “I was worried about you, but Flynn reminded us that you slept for ages after you rescued Barnes and Dimitri from Lake Monticello back near Charlottesville.”

  Dimitri—

  “Yeah, I remember,” Mercy said. She pointed at a jug of water on the table.

  “Go ahead,” Jade said, handing her a mug.

  Mercy drank her fill then accepted a steaming bowl of beef stew from Jade. She took a mouthful and closed her eyes in appreciation.

  Oh. My. God—

  “That good, huh?” Jade said.

  You’ve no idea—

  Mercy ate quickly, her hunger insatiable. She finished and handed the empty bowl back to Jade.

  “I’ll have a refill, if there’s any left,” Mercy asked.

  “Sure,” Jade said. She spooned more stew into Mercy’s bowl.

  Mercy looked across the room at a wall map. “What’s that?”

  “It’s the base, there’s maps in the other rooms. We can take a look if you’re up to it,” Jade answered.

  Mercy nodded then started eating her second bowl of stew.

  “Barnes and Flynn are up on the roof, keeping an eye out. Tawny and Travis are looking after the horses and the others are taking an inventory in the armory. You should see some of the shit down there. There’s even plastic explosives, and some weird looking grenades. Barnes had a look at them, he says they’re HPM grenades: High Power Microwave grenades. They generate an electromagnetic pulse that fries electronic circuits…”

  Mercy looked up, “You mean an EMP grenade? A pulse bomb?”

  Jade shrugged, “I guess, sounds about right—”

  “Jesus, they would’ve been useful against those NSA mechs back in DC… and the ones in the missile silo,” Mercy said.

  “And those Vegas mechs back in Kingman,” Jade added.

  “Yeah, definitely. I need to see these grenades. Wonder what they were doing here, in the middle of Nowheresville?” Mercy said.

  “Two words: MARINE CORPS. They were always at the sharp end of everything all over the world. IEDs… all that shit. So it makes sense that they were training with EMP grenades out here. Apparently this is… or was, one of the biggest Marine Corps bases in the US, at least according to Barnes,” Jade answered.

  IEDs. Improvised Explosive Device—

  “Yeah, Semper Fi and all that good stuff. Makes sense. We should definitely take some of those grenades with us. Bullets and normal frags are useless against mechs,” Mercy continued.

  “Rose was on it as soon as she knew what they were. Trouble is there’s so much kit in here that whoever owns this place would become the next warlord. There’s already too many of those ass
holes around,” Jade said.

  “So, when we leave…” Mercy began.

  “Tin Man inherits the armory and becomes a premium asshole,” Jade said.

  Mercy shook her head, “Well, we’ll just have to deny him this resource. How much plastic explosive is there anyway? Is there enough to bury this place?”

  Jade nodded, “Well, put it this way, Barnes practically wet himself when he saw how much stuff there was down there. It’s all underground, concrete lined, like a bank vault—”

  “Barnes will know how to use the stuff. Sometimes it’s extremely useful to have a Navy SEAL on your side,” Mercy said. She put down her empty bowl. “You said there were maps in the other rooms?”

  “Yeah, you wanna see them?” Jade asked, standing up.

  “Lead on,” Mercy replied.

  Tying up loose ends is always a good idea and Tin Man is a loose end I’d rather not have at my back—

  “So, these are all offices, kind of like an admin area I guess,” Jade said, as they walked down a long corridor. “But there is a map room of sorts through here,” she swept through a set of double doors into a large, high ceilinged room.

  Mercy looked at the blazing lights, “I take it this place has its own generators.”

  “Sure does. Oh, I forgot to mention the showers. Hot water. Oh my god. It’s to die for. I’ll show you after this if you like,” Jade said.

  “Oh, I’d like,” Mercy replied. Her eyes were drawn to a huge terrain model map occupying the centre of the room, “This is good, this is very good. I guess they used it to wargame battle scenarios—”

  “This is us here,” Jade tapped the map.

  Mercy’s eyes flicked across the 3-D terrain, “So how far are we from LA? Where’s the scale?”

  “Barnes calculated it as, near enough, one hundred and forty five miles using Interstate 10 west. We’d join the I-10 at Palm Springs,” Jade replied, indicating the route on the map.

  Mercy frowned, “Except, we’re not really going to LA are we? We’re going to Point Mugu, Ventura County, for the Naval Base. So that’s more like…” Mercy walked over to a huge map of the Pacific West Coast on the wall. She traced her finger across the map and checked the scale, “Two hundred miles.”