by Phil Maxey
“We eat a lot of soup here!” said Robert smiling.
“Easy to make.” Grumbled a straggly longhaired bearded man sitting next to him.
Robert took a few sips of soup before continuing. “So you’re going to try and rescue the people in the Portland camp? We’ve heard it’s pretty bad up there.”
“We sure are,” said Zach trying the soup. “How you get started up here?” Zach could feel the bearded man’s eyes on him as he spoke.
“I was the warden here. When it all went to hell out there in the world, the order came down from high to release all the prisoners,” said Robert.
“Not because they gave a shit about us,” said the bearded man as he was eating. “They just figured if there’s more of us to be eaten by those things out there, more of the other folk wouldn’t be.”
Robert frowned. “Anyway, most of the inmates up and left, and as Dex says most were taken by the creatures within days of leaving here. My home was in town, when it became obvious there was no government anymore, me and some others thought the prison here would be a safer place to be. Some of the inmates thought the same.”
“And now we’ll all one big happy family,” said Dex smiling through brown stained teeth.
“Well we won’t be in your way for long, just the night then we’ll be off in the morning.”
“I noticed you got yourself a big old army supply truck out there, you got guns in that?” said Dex.
“Dex,” said Robert trying to disguise his anger.
“It’s just we could do with some that’s all.”
“What do you have?” said Abbey.
“A few AK-47’s, bit of ammo and a few handguns,” said Robert.
“We could spare a few M4’s and ammo, if you could spare some of your food,” said Zach. The air became tense around the table.
Dex banged his fist on the table, making some of people sitting at it jump, others had their hands on their guns. He then smiled. “Damn, why couldn’t we have always just bartered like this! No more greenbacks, or plastic doodies. Just good old fashioned you give me what I want, and I give you want I don’t want.” Dex laughed and everyone started eating again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
After a few hours, most had found a cell and a bed to sleep on. Zach had told Bass to make sure that there were some of his men keeping watch on the supply truck throughout the night, and that everyone else should sleep with their guns close by. Zach approached the cell that had been offered to him by Robert with some caution. The door was a different style to the ones in New Mexico and peering into the cell, the space seemed smaller even though it must have been bigger.
“We can find a place out here to sleep if you would prefer,” said Abbey standing close behind him.
Zach glanced behind, taking a deep breath then moved over the threshold. He waited for a wave of emotion to hit him but none came. He was just a guy standing in a small room, nothing else. Abbey came past and threw her backpack at the bottom of the bed then sat down heavily on it.
“Sit, let me look at your eye,” she said.
Zach sat, and while she looked at the blue and purple of the skin around his right eye he realized he wasn’t the same guy that left New Mexico a few weeks earlier. He also wasn’t the guy that had gone into prison a decade before either. He wasn’t sure who he was anymore. At least I’m sure of my purpose he thought as he laid back on the bed, kicking his boots off. Abbey closed the cell door and climbed into the small bed next to him. She went to say something, but realized he was already asleep. The night passed off uneventfully and the sleep did both of them good.
The sound of cell doors opening made Zach sit up with a start, Abbey was already awake and re-platting her hair standing in front of a grimy wall mirror. He blinked and turned, letting his feet fall out of the bed onto the cold floor. Last night he hadn’t fully taken in the room around him, but now its light blue gray dimpled walls were in full focus due to the morning sun streaming through the slither of a window. He also noticed he didn’t have any pants on.
“I took them off, don’t panic they’re just over the bottom of the bed, thought you would be more comfortable,” said Abbey.
Zach smiled “Well I slept half decently for once so I guess I was. He stood up and put his pants on.
“Water come out of that?” he said pointing at the rusty looking single tap hovering over a stained enamel basin in the corner.
“Yeah seems to, it’s bitterly cold though.”
After a few minutes Zach had washed and clothed and was pulling the cell door open. The main hall was a hive of activity with people, eating and talking. Most of his group were already out of their cells, including Fiona and Cal who were talking with a few people at their table. Bass looked up and seeing Zach came up the metal stairs.
“You’re looking a whole lot better,” said Bass.
“Feeling it too. I take it there were no problems,” said Zach looking around.
“None.”
“Sleep well?” shouted Robert from a table down below.
“I did,” shouted Zach back, and then turned to Abbey. “I’m going to get some food, I can bring you some up if you want.”
“I’ll be down.”
Zach, Bass and Robert organized the exchange of guns for food, while Fiona and Cal sat and watched.
“How you sleep? I admit it was strange being back in a cell, I think half the night I spent just looking at the wall,” said Fiona.
“I slept fine.” Cal wasn’t lying. Once he closed the cell door, he felt like he had returned home, like the previous few weeks had never happened and the dreams that had plagued him decided to leave him alone.
“That’s good then,” said Fiona.
Soldiers placed two M4’s and a box of cartridges in one of the cells and returned with a medium sized box of canned food, which they loaded into the back of the truck. Zach and Robert stood in the snow which the morning sun was doing its best to turn to slush.
“Those guns are going to come in real handy,” said Robert.
“You sure it’s a good idea to have lots of guns here?” said Zach looking past Robert into the main hall where people were eating.
“I know what you’re thinking, the inmates are running the asylum!”
“Well…”
“When I made it back here, I brought some others as well, good people, not inmates. Then we were attacked by those things and some of us were killed, Dex and his friends saved us. From that day on we made an agreement, that whatever went before stayed in the past, and now it’s about survival.”
“That sounds like a good policy… if it lasts.”
“It has so far,” said Robert smiling. “So you still got some way to go before getting to Portland.”
“Yeah two days maybe.” As Zach finished talking, Raj appeared from the entrance behind them.
“I’ve been thinking about that,” said Raj. “It’s 8 am now, if we left soon we could get to the Portland camp today, but it would mean driving through the forests near Mt Jefferson, which has seen a lot of E.L.F activity.”
Zach looked thoughtful. “Usually when we don’t stick to the plan it doesn’t go so well.”
“Is that how you got that?” said Robert pointing to Zach’s eye. Zach nodded. “We’re in radio contact here with Portland, and they are under attack daily, the sooner you can get them evacuated the better, having said that, all you got is this old bus and a handful of soldiers, I’m not sure how that’s really going to help them.”
“We have fought a lot of these creatures over the past few weeks, and survived, we also have Dr. Joshi here, who knows a thing or two about how to deal with them.”
“I’ve heard the name Joshi mentioned on the airwaves a few times, good to meet you.” Robert stepped forward and shook Raj’s hand. “Anyway looks like you both have a lot to talk over, if you need anything let me know.” Robert then walked back inside, passing Bass coming back out.
“I don’t know Raj, those
are dense forests in Oregon, from what we have heard it could be a hotbed of things we really don’t want to deal with,” said Zach. Bass joined both of them. “Raj, thinks it’s worth trying for Portland today, but it means going through some areas which are full of E.L.F’s.”
“I just got off the radio from Portland, last night they lost another fifty-seven people, most of the camp is now overrun and they have retreated back to a small area at the southern wall, which they are defending best they can,” said Bass.
“I need to talk to them. Who’s in charge?” said Zach starting to walk back inside.
“It was Brigadier General Halsted, but now it’s Colonel Tinley.”
Zach walked a few more feet into the gloomy corridor separating the hall from the outside world and stopped. “What name did you say?”
“Colonel Tinley Sir, why?”
“Eric Tinley?” It can’t be.
“I think that’s his first name, he’s been the one that’s held the Portland camp together, real hero from what people say.”
Images of the night that he came home and found his family started to play in Zach’s mind, images that he had long forgotten and he fell to the side and leaned on the doorframe. It can’t be. He could hear Bass’s voice behind him sounding concerned, and he could see Dex’s manic smile in front of him, but none of it made sense, maybe he really did go crazy in his cell, maybe this is all just an illusion to cope. But then why would he want this man to be a character in this fucked up play?
“Sir! Are you okay Sir?” Bass was shouting at Zach as he sat on the floor, his back up against the doorframe.
“How did I get here?” said Zach looking around him at the concerned faces.
“You seemed to pass out or something,” said Bass, as Dr. Tanner ran up and kneeled down to examine him. Zach pushed her hand away, grabbing Bass’s lapel, pulling him forward.
“Are you sure, Eric Tinley?”
“Yes. Why? Have you served with him?”
“Let’s get him up, his forehead is burning.” Dr. Tanner and Bass pulled Zach up and walked him over to a chair at a table. Abbey came running down the stairs and rushed up to him.
“What happened?” said Abbey to anyone who would have an answer.
“I’m fine, I just need some water and I’ll be fine. Bass get Portland back on the radio, tell them that we’re going to be there by nightfall, and find out if they have found enough vehicles…” He slid his hand over his forehead then continued. “Enough vehicles for the evacuation, and… get Fiona to coordinate multiple routes back to Bravo with them.” Bass went to run off. “And I need to know what their military status is, what troops, weapons they can rely on and what they know about E.L.F’s on our route to them.” Like a waiter trying to take a large order Bass noted everything then disappeared down a corridor with Fiona, at the back of the hall.
“Wow man, you don’t look so good,” said Dex. “I mean, like more than just the messed up eye.”
“He’s fine,” said Abbey dismissively.
Dex turned in his chair and put his feet up on the table. “Hey I know what it’s like, the way the world is now? Can turn a man upside down.”
After finishing a glass of water Zach was feeling better, on the outside. Inside he tried to push the name of Eric Tinley as far from his mind as he could, as far as he was concerned this was a different person, it had to be and he had to think that to be able to do his job. Bass and Fiona appeared from the corridor.
“They have enough vehicles for the evac. Sir,” said Bass.
“What’s their military strength?”
“One hundred and twenty-five men, five LPC’s, seven Humvees, two battle tanks, two Huey’s and supply trucks for all of that. Sir.”
“Find Raj, all of you plan routes, divide up the evacuees into three groups, with the majority of the very young and very old in a group that takes the safest route, that’s also the group which get’s the most protection, so in other words it get’s one of the tanks. The other tank goes with the group that takes the least safe route. You got twenty minutes to get that information to Portland before we move out, so they can be prepared.”
While Zach was talking Raj appeared from his cell on hearing his name, and joined Bass and Fiona. They disappeared into his cell with maps, and appeared fifteen minutes later running to the radio room in the other cell. Zach took the time to check the supplies they already had with Abbey and Dr. Tanner.
“They’re probably going to have a number of wounded, liaise with the Portland medical team before we get there, so you are up to speed on how their wounded need to be transported.” Dr. Tanner acknowledged.
After a short while, everyone was loaded back onto the bus, with Fiona and Cal in the truck. Robert, Dex and Zach stood in the morning heat of the sun.
Zach held out his hand to Dex. “Good meeting you,” Dex was surprised but briefly shook it. Zach then turned to Robert. “Good luck with everything, there’s a chance one of the convoys will need to sweep back past on their way to Bravo. So we might be seeing each other again in a few days.”
“I’ll make sure there’s plenty soup ready!” said Robert smiling.
Zach jumped on the bus and closed the door. Slowly they drove through the white slush back out onto the highway.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Dusty snow created a cloud behind the bus and truck as they forged onwards along the highway. After an hour a small bridge appeared a mile ahead and it was obvious there were E.L.F’s congregating around it. Rob stopped the bus. Raj looked through his binoculars at the creatures that consisted of large thick reddish tentacles and not much else.
“What do you think?” said Zach, kneeling next to him in the bus’s aisle.
“I’ve not seen them before, but they look to be some kind of amphibious creature that looks like a giant octopus. The bridge looks pretty clear, if we move through at speed, we should be okay.”
“You’re sure of that?”
“No.”
Zach sighed, stood up, then walked to just behind Rob. “We’re going to drive right past them, keep up a…”
“Wait, I’ve an idea,” said Raj joining him. “Let’s cover the hoods of both vehicles with snow, might hide the heat we’re giving off just long enough for them to not notice us.” Zach nodded, and Bass ordered a few soldiers to throw snow and ice onto the hoods of both vehicles. A few short minutes later they were moving again towards the bridge and creatures.
As they approached the bridge the true size of the creatures became apparent. Each one was as large as the school bus and consisted of eight large tentacles, which they manipulated more akin to an elephant’s trunk. Most of the river to the east and west was frozen but around the bridge it had been broken up into hundreds of smaller pieces by the thrashing around of the creatures.
Rob increased their speed and they moved onto the bridge. Everyone was looking out the side windows at these other worldly things, including Raj who was still looking at them through his binoculars.
“Remarkable, quite remarkable,” said Raj, alternating between looking at them and trying to sketch them in his notebook.
Soon the bridge was growing small in their rear view, the creatures not changing their behavior at all by their passing.
Zach stood up at the front of the bus. “Everyone try to get as much rest as you can over the next seven hours, most of the possible danger will be at the end of our journey so I want you all to be fresh and ready. If all goes to plan, when we make it to the camp, there will be little time to get any rest there.” Some of the soldiers placed clothes or their backpacks behind their heads and closed their eyes, other flicked open books.
Zach went and kneeled close to Raj. “I’ll need you to let us know about high activity E.L.F areas before we move into them.” Raj nodded.
Hours passed, mostly driving alongside mountains. There were no direct signs of any E.L.F’s other than the occasional suspicious cloud of disturbed snow in the distance. After four hours B
ass whispered to Zach that they were roughly at the halfway point in the journey. The sun shone directly above them, but the roads were still covered in snow.
Raj moved to where Zach was sitting. “In about an hours time we will be running close to the national forests of Oregon, where there are many reports of E.L.F’s residing, an hour after that we will be moving into and through one of those forests,” He swallowed before continuing. “The light will be fading at that point as well.” Zach nodded and Raj returned to his seat. Zach put his head back.
“Are we ready?” said Abbey who was sitting next to him, near the steamed up windows.
“As we will ever be.”
After an hour, on cue Raj kneeled alongside Zach. “We need to start being ready from here on.” Zach nodded then clicked on his radio.
“Fiona, we need to be alert for E.L.F’s from here on. Over.” Fiona acknowledged.
Raj continued. “We’re soon going to be passing through the town of Pensal, from the reports it was one of the first towns to be completely destroyed so it’s hard to say what we will find there.”
“How long is soon?”
“Thirty minutes.”
Zach stood up. “Listen up everyone, we are now in E.L.F territory, there could be anything out here. In about thirty we’re moving through a town that was destroyed by E.L.F’s, and then thirty after that we’re be moving into the national forest which is not a place we want to be for too long, once we get through that it’s not long until we make it to the Portland camp.” He paused then continued. “This is it folks, this is what the last few days and the sacrifices have been about. We survive the next few hours and we can actually start to save the people in Portland. Be weapon ready at all times, and keep a close watch on our surroundings, if you see anything which shouldn’t be there sound off.”
Everyone put books and anything else that was keeping their attention for the previous few hours in their backpacks. The soldiers checked the condition of their guns, and put their helmets on.
