FORTRESS: A Post Apocalyptic-Dystopian EMP Attack Thriller (Reckoning Book 3)

by Lee West

  A cool breeze moved through the stale tunnel. The air only circulated when someone opened one of the tunnel doors, which led to one of the main buildings. She jumped up out of her seat and began pacing.

  “Did you feel that? Someone must be coming!”

  “Yes. Or leaving. It could be anyone. Please, Nancy, just relax.”

  A few minutes later, a couple walked into the small community area of the tunnel. She looked in their direction as they approached. The dim light in the tunnel prevented identification of those who approached until the person came close to them. The lighting reminded her of a Rembrandt portrait. Just like the tunnels, his work showcased shadows and darkness, with only the individuals in the forefront of the work illuminated by soft light. Nancy did not recognize the couple. Hope quickly turned to frustration at the sight of them.

  During the emergency, Ed had ordered all of the lights in the tunnels to be extinguished. He did not want to give the soldiers any reason to look further into the dark maze. They sat plunged in complete darkness, unable to see their hands in front of their faces. No flickers of light or ambient lighting reached them deep inside the bowels of the school. The darkness increased her anxiety tenfold. Sitting helplessly in the blackness, waiting for an unseen assailant to barge into the tunnels, felt excruciating.

  Another cool movement of air flowed past her sweaty face. The fresh air felt tremendous.

  “This has to be them!” she said for no reason.

  “Maybe,” said Brett, sounding slightly annoyed.

  Loud footfalls echoed through the tunnel, getting louder. Finally, as they moved within range of the dim light, their identities became apparent.

  “Meg! Joe! You’re safe!”

  Nancy jumped up from the couch and ran to Meg. She hugged the young woman tightly. A surge of maternal love and protectiveness enshrouded them as they hugged one another.

  As Nancy hugged her, Meg started to tremble and then cry. The crying started as just a low sniffle but quickly became loud, uncontrollable heaving sobs.

  “Shhh…It’s okay. You’re safe,” said Nancy softly.

  Nancy held Meg tightly, allowing her to release all of the pressure she’d felt during the raid. Little by little, the wailing gave way to gentle quiet sobs as Meg’s tight grip on Nancy slowly eased.

  “It was so scary! You can’t even imagine! They were everywhere and they took that poor woman Sun!” shouted Meg shakily.

  “Oh my god. We knew something happened but didn’t realize they took anyone. Are you sure?” said Brett.

  “Oh yeah. I heard most of it. I had to run downstairs to make sure we locked the door to the tower, when the whole thing occurred. It was scary as shit,” said Joe.

  The two couples moved to the collection of couches and chairs. Meg settled down, taking her place next to Joe.

  “We need to get out of here! This can’t last!” said Brett.

  “What can’t last?” asked Mike as he joined the group.

  “Where’s Frank?” asked Nancy.

  “He should be down in a minute. He’s in the head. What about Marvin? Has anyone seen him?” asked Mike.

  “Not for a while. Last time we saw him, he seemed pretty well entrenched in his office,” said Brett. “I’m thinking none of this can last. Eventually, the soldiers will find all of us.”

  “We need to find my brother and the camp. Maybe it’ll be safer where they are,” said Joe.

  “Or maybe we need to find the resisters. I’ll bet they’re hiding in a safe location. In any case, I can’t live like this! I feel like we’re sitting ducks,” said Nancy.

  Someone cracked open a water bottle behind Nancy, prompting her to turn around. She peeked over the top of the sofa to a couch located right behind her. A man sat halfway up from a reclined position, guzzling water thirstily from a plastic bottle.

  “Marvin? Is that you?” said Nancy, straining to see through the dark.

  “None other,” said Marvin with a loud yawn.

  “For crying out loud, Marvin. Don’t tell me you’ve been there all along!”

  “What? I needed a nap! What’s the big deal? Did I miss something?”

  Marvin came around the sofa to join the others. His face looked well rested and relaxed.

  “I guess it’s true. Ignorance is bliss!” said Nancy.

  “I wish I could sleep like that!” said Brett.

  “Don’t we all,” said Mike.

  The moment of levity broke Nancy’s tension, allowing her to relax ever so slightly.

  “I say we go and look for the camp tomorrow. First thing. Anything has to be better than sitting here waiting to be caught,” said Meg.

  “I agree. However, I don’t think all of us should go with you,” said Brett.

  Nancy wanted to handle the conversation delicately. She did not want the couple to feel abandoned. Yet she knew if the slower people in their group stayed behind, Meg and Joe would be safer in their trek to the camp.

  “I don’t want to split up,” said Meg.

  “We don’t either, but we’ll only slow you guys down. You need to be able to move quickly and be ready to hide at every turn,” said Nancy.

  “I’ll go. I need to get out of here. I hate sitting around. I need to be doing something. Maybe someone at the camp will have information about where my family is located. I have to at least try,” said Mike.

  Nancy considered Mike for a moment. She had been so concerned about Meg and Joe that she’d simply forgotten the man. Looking at his gentle face, full of anguish over his family, broke her heart.

  “I agree. You should go. But for heaven’s sake, Frank stays behind with the old people. The man is slower than Marvin,” said Nancy.

  “Me? Slow? I like to think of my movement as purposeful, not slow,” said Marvin.

  “Trust me. There’s a fine line between purposeful and slow. You passed into the slow category more times than I can count!” said Nancy.

  “You’re not kidding! Sorry, Marvin. I agree, Frank and Marvin stay behind,” said Joe.

  “We’d love to have you with us, Mike,” said Meg, turning to Mike.

  “How many people will go with you? Maybe a few from here would be able to help you?” asked Brett.

  “I think it should just be the three of us. Like Nancy said, we need to move fast and be able to hide quickly. The more people in the group, the harder that will become,” said Joe.

  “You’re right. I just don’t like to think of the three of you out there alone,” said Nancy.

  “We should be fine. First thing tomorrow, I’ll get with Ed about a map. I’m pretty sure he mentioned he has a map of the area,” said Joe.

  “We should grab bikes. That way we can cover more ground,” said Mike.

  “I agree. That’s what we planned. There are more bikes here than people. A few missing won’t raise any alarms,” said Joe.

  “I’m beat. All of the excitement drained me,” said Meg.

  “Let’s get some rest so we can get out of here as early as possible,” said Joe.

  He extended his hand to Meg, pulling her off the couch and to his side. The couple moved away from the couches and into the dark corner of the tunnel that they’d claimed for themselves. Nancy felt another pang of worry swell in her at the sight of them retreating. Brett took her hand, giving it a soft squeeze. He seemed to instinctively know when she needed comforting.

  — 8 —

  Joe ate his breakfast quickly and unenthusiastically. Leaving the relative safety of the campus worried him. Even if the campus could not provide a guarantee of safety, he assumed hiding in the tunnels would be better and safer than riding a bike in the open.

  “Penny for your thoughts?” he asked Meg.

  She appeared just as freaked out as he did. Her usual upbeat mood had been replaced by a somber, unrecognizable version of herself. “I’m worried about leaving the campus. It’s not great here, but has to be better than being out there.”

  “I’ve been thinking the
same thing. We could skip it if you feel it would be better to stay put,” he offered.

  “No. I’m freaked out but know we’re doing the right thing. Besides, we’ll go slow and hide when we need to. We should be fine.”

  “I hope so,” he said.

  They continued to eat the overnight-soaked oats the kitchen had prepared. The thick creaminess of the oats combined with dried fruit felt comforting to Joe.

  “Here comes Mike!” said Joe.

  Mike joined them with a large bowl of the oats and another bowl of canned fruit.

  “You sleep okay, Mike?” asked Meg.

  Joe admired Meg’s ability to unfailingly look toward the well-being of others. Her nearly unconditional kindness had drawn him to her when they first dated.

  “I slept as well as anyone can sleep in a pitch-dark tunnel surrounded by strangers. You?”

  “Same. Being down there feels like a coffin to me,” said Meg.

  “Have you seen Ed?” asked Joe.

  “Not yet. He always seems to be on the move. I’m not sure where he goes,” said Mike.

  “We’ll need to find him soon. I want to get a good look at a map before we head out.”

  “What do you think we’ll find at the camp?” asked Mike.

  “I don’t know. Maybe nothing. Maybe we won’t even be able to find the camp.”

  “It’s worth a shot,” said Meg.

  “I agree,” mumbled Mike through a mouthful of food.

  The three friends continued to eat; then Frank walked into the room and said, “Hey, guys!”

  “Frank! I feel like we haven’t seen you in a while. Where have you been?” asked Meg.

  “I’m trying to see if I can take some spare parts from the science lab and mechanical engineering department to create energy.”

  “You mean like solar?” asked Joe.

  “Yes. They have some photovoltaic cell panels. I just need to hook those to a battery. My goal is to light up the tunnels.”

  “I’d like stadium floodlights down there! Although even if the tunnels are well lit, I still think they’d have a sinister feel. Something about being underground freaks me out,” said Meg.

  “I think we all would like bright lights down there. The place is creepy, that’s for sure. By the way, I’m sorry not to be going with you guys. I think I need to rest my ankle a little before heading out,” said Frank.

  Frank had twisted his ankle when they’d evaded capture during their initial run to the campus from Brett and Nancy’s house. Dr. Lordes had looked at it for him and determined the injury would heal quickly if he stayed off it. Joe suspected the man used his injured ankle as an excuse to avoid going with them—which was fine by him. The ankle excuse allowed Joe to avoid the uncomfortable reality of asking Frank to stay behind with the others. Frank could only slow them down and jeopardize their safety, as he had repeatedly done in the past.

  “There you guys are! I’ve been looking all over for you. I guess I should have started where the food is!” said Ed.

  Ed walked quickly as he approached them. He held a jumble of large rolled-up maps under his slim arm. “Earlier this morning, I went to the geology department to grab some maps. I think they might be useful to determine where the camp may be located.”

  He dropped the jumbled mass onto the table. To Joe, the pile looked like a lot of useless information. A simple road map would have sufficed, in his estimation.

  “These are topographical maps. They show the curvature of the terrain as well as a lot of other information. I thought we could pair these with the road map in order to try to figure out where the camp is located. There are areas in this region that are full of rocky cliffs, which would be unsuitable for building. By using this map, we can eliminate those areas from the search. The maps also show larger buildings. I’m not sure how many actual large structures are at the camp, but these maps will show what’s out there,” said Ed.

  Joe assessed Ed’s idea with renewed respect. He had clearly thought through their situation and had come up with a plan that might help to prevent the group from aimlessly cycling the mountainside.

  Ed moved the condiments and napkins out of the way before spreading one of the largest maps across the table. The map’s contour curves and various markings were foreign to Joe. He had never seen a topographical map except briefly in school.

  “Okay. This is the most current contour map. From this we can see the highest ridges. I would recommend avoiding those. Let me get the road map. I managed to find this one in the student union. Although the topographical map has road markings, sometimes a comparison to an updated road map is helpful when looking for something.”

  “I’m surprised you were able to find all these detailed road maps,” said Meg.

  “The campus has lots of student services, activities and clubs. One of those clubs is a mountain biking club. There’s also a road cycling club. Both are well attended, from what I understand,” said Ed.

  “Sounds more like a country club than a school. Must be nice to be a student here,” said Frank.

  Joe could tell from the twinge in his voice that Frank likely thought the same thing as him about the kids who attended the university. To Joe, they must all be privileged rich kids who could not even begin to appreciate the good fortune of their situation.

  “This is the area with the highest ridges and the rockiest terrain. I’d imagine the camp isn’t there,” said Ed, pointing to the map.

  Joe considered the map closer.

  “Do you recall any details about the location? Did your brother mention anything about it that we could use to find it?” asked Meg.

  “I don’t know. I’m trying to come up with something,” said Joe, clearly frustrated.

  “If we go to the north, we’d be running parallel to the mountains. That’d be an easier ride, that’s for sure,” said Mike.

  “I wouldn’t go there. That’s heading back to our house, where the soldiers are quartered,” said Nancy, joining the group.

  “What’s this symbol for?” asked Joe, pointing to the map.

  Ed adjusted his glasses and leaned into the map for a close look at the symbol key. “Looks like a depression.”

  “Not that one. I meant the symbol next to it,” said Joe.

  “That’s an intermittent body of water,” said Ed.

  “What does that mean?” asked Meg.

  “It’s an area of water that dries up at certain times of the year. At other times it might be really wet or boggy. Looks like a small creek feeds into the area. I don’t see any markings for buildings up there,” said Ed.

  The map not only showed contours, it also indicated bodies of water, railroads, density of vegetation, and buildings.

  “That has to be it!” said Joe.

  “You sure?” asked Mike.

  “Yes. Mostly. I recall Jeff saying that the camp sat next to an area that would flood or be wet at certain times of the year. The founders of the camp liked that feature because they could harvest the water. I also remember him saying they had a well. That has to be it!”

  Ed looked concerned as he stared at the map.

  “You look troubled, Ed. What are you seeing that we’re not?” asked Nancy.

  “This is a fairly new map, so it should be pretty comprehensive. However, it doesn’t indicate there are any buildings out there. If the camp is there, I would think it would be marked on this map. There should be at least a few buildings listed.”

  “Maybe they hid the camp? These are survivalists who would seek a place off the grid,” said Meg.

  “That might be. But the U.S. Department of the Interior uses low-flying aircraft to update these maps. The maps are changed frequently. It’s part of the mission of the department, along with the U.S. Geological Survey. What about this area here? There’s a depression and water. From the looks of this symbol, there must be some small structures there too.” Ed pointed to an area due south of the location Joe found. The area had all of the things Ed mentioned.
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  “Let’s look at the cycling map too. Even though this map indicates roads, maybe there’s something in the area the kids found and labeled?” said Ed.

  They turned their attention to the road map. The cyclists merely indicated that the area would not be a good spot to rest. Ed had likely found the location of the camp and Joe knew it. The realization of being incorrect in front of the group caused Joe’s face to turn beet red. His stubbornness prevented him from acknowledging what everyone already knew.

  Finally Meg said, “I think we should look at both locations. They’re close enough to one another. If the camp isn’t where Joe thinks it is, then it must be at the second spot, due south.”

  With her suggestion, Meg threw Joe a lifeline out of his mental block. Despite himself, he just could not admit Ed had likely found the location of the camp.

  “I think that’s a great idea. Neither location is far from here,” said Mike.

  “That’s the good news. We should probably be able to get there in a few hours,” said Meg.

  “Alright. That’s a plan. I say we leave from the back side of the campus on this road here,” said Joe as he pointed.

  “Perfect. Whenever you guys are ready, we can meet outside the Sociology Department. Frank has a few bikes picked out for you. All of them have baskets for carrying supplies,” said Ed.

  “Give us fifteen minutes,” said Meg.

  Back in the tunnels, Joe and Meg stuffed their meager packs with the few articles of clothing they’d brought with them. Then they used several bags to load up on food and bottled water for their baskets.

  “You about ready?” asked Joe.

  “Yep. Quickest packing job I’ve ever done. Maybe there’s something to not having many possessions.”

  “It’ll feel great to get off campus for a while.”

  “I know. I just wish everyone was coming with us.”

  “No, you don’t,” said Joe with a wink.

  Meg smiled as she slung her small bag over her shoulder. “No, I don’t.”

  — 9 —

  Frank crouched down near one of the bikes he’d chosen and adjusted the brakes one last time. He wanted to be sure he picked the best possible bikes for the three who would be leaving campus. Yesterday, he had found the campus maintenance department. The varied tasks required of the department resulted in the largest toolshed Frank had ever seen. He was in heaven.