by Phil Maxey
“They seem to be settling down,” said Irene sitting next to Mary.
Mary gave a thankful smile, glancing over her shoulder at the children. “For most of them this is the first time outside of the walls since the Cascade happened.”
Sitting directly behind Mary and Irene, Sam leaned forward in his seat, placing his head slightly between both of theirs. “How did you two meet?”
Irene smiled. “Oh, I don’t know if we want to go into that.”
“Hell, now I really want to know. I’m Sam, by the way, this here is Isaiah.”
Isaiah, his head back on the window with his eyes closed, lifted one finger heavily and then dropped it.
Mary laughed. “I was stealing her produce.”
“I almost shot her!”
Sam’s eyes widened, eagerly waiting for the rest of the story.
Irene looked irked but continued. “If you really have to know… when the evacuation started to happen I made the decision to stay in my place. I had been living alone for a number of years and well I knew my place, knew every inch of it and I felt if I was going to survive anywhere it would be there. I hid in my basement when the soldiers came, they either didn’t see the door or didn’t care to look, either way, they came and went.”
“Where was this?” said Isaiah who was now sitting up.
“Outskirts of Portland. It was a nice little place, with an acre of land that I grew some crops in, had it’s own water system and power came from a diesel generator. I have always been self-sufficient.” as she described her former home she smiled. “Anyway, I was listening to one of the few remaining radio stations one night when I heard a noise outside, so I grab my twelve-gauge, which I always kept loaded, and open the screen door to listen. Remember, I can hear pretty good, and because of the Cascade there were no night sounds anymore. So first I heard nothing, than I hear someone pulling something out in the field.”
“I was trying to pull this damn cabbage out of the ground, it wouldn’t budge!”
“I ran forward and fired in the general direction of the noise.”
“Luckily I saw her brandishing the gun and I dived to the ground, she only just missed.”
“I’m glad I did! So I walk towards where the sound came from and I’m just about to fire again, thinking it’s some kind of monster stealing my crops, when this woman starts talking.”
Sam laughed. “That’s some story.”
“Oh we’re not done yet,” said Mary.
“No, not yet, so Mary’s talking and talking, saying who she is, when behind the sound of her voice I hear another noise.”
Mary was laughing. “All I could hear was my heartbeat in my ears.”
“It wasn’t much, but it sounded like a drumming. Distant at first.”
“And then you told me shut up.”
“Ha, yeah, I think you told me your entire life story in about sixty seconds. So Mary stops talking, and unbeknown to me gets to her feet. And this drumming is getting louder and louder.”
“I still couldn’t hear a thing, I kind of thought she was going to shoot me still.”
“Suddenly I feel it, the change of pressure on my face. You know what it feels like when you walk into a spider web? It was kind of like that, and it was coming from above. So I pointed the gun up into the air, roughly twenty feet above Mary’s head and pulled the trigger.”
“And it fell on me.”
Irene laughed. “It sure did, to this day I have no idea what it was. But I hear this muffled yelling and then Mary crawls out from underneath it, and runs into the house.”
“You saved our lives.”
Irene blushed. “I’m just glad it only took one shot, as that was the last one in the gun!” Irene realized that a silence had developed around them and that Sam and Isaiah were not the only ones listening. “What about you and your friend?”
“Nothing as dramatic as your tale. We knew each other from the same rehabilitation center. After that we stayed in touch, and became friends.”
Isaiah smiled, as he laid his head back against the window again. “Well you became my friend, I’m still debating whether I want to be your friend.”
As the others were talking, Mary’s attention was drawn to the road. The towering pine tree’s were now framing their route ahead, and provided a dense cover for whatever might be in the forests around them. Her stomach tightened. The wall might not have been a complete defense against the creatures, but it was something. What chance would they have, if they were attacked out here? As if answering her thoughts, the bus stopped, and she heard Zach’s voice on Bass’s radio.
“There are E.L.F’s up ahead, crossing the road. Over.”
“They making any moves towards us? Over,” replied Bass.
“Not yet. Over.”
Zach looked through the scope of his M4 rifle at a herd of creatures, which looked like large armored, spikey hippopotamuses but with longer legs. They lumbered down the slopes, some slipping on the light covering of snow and walked across the road. A few of them then stopped and looked in the convoy’s direction. “Everyone kill your engines. Over.”
Almost in unison the vehicles’ engines cut out. The creatures looked at them and small puffs of mist formed in front of their snouts. After what seemed like minutes, but was actually a few seconds, they looked away and continued their journey across the road and down the slope. Zach told everyone to start back up.
Abbey rummaged through her backpack and pulled out Raj’s E.L.F finder book. “Is it just me or are these things not as aggressive as they used to be?”
Zach put his rifle back down the side of his driving seat. “Who knows, maybe the ones that came in contact with people were the ones that hunted, and these don’t. Or maybe you’re right, Raj would probably have an opinion.”
The convoy passed over a high bridge. The ornate stonework that used to keep people from falling to the rushing water below was smashed and broken, with some of it lying across the road.
Fiona looked down to the river. “Look at them down there.”
Cal didn’t want too, but he leaned over and looked for himself. Forms and shapes were thrashing around in the water, and other creatures were drinking at the waters edge. He sat back in his seat. “Lots of them.”
For days he had felt detached from his surroundings. The dream that started days earlier never went away. It was a weight on him that grew heavier by the day. It was also growing harder to hide he true state from the others.
They passed through a small town, and the road widened to four lanes. Tilted electricity pylons joined splinted trees, over a white-beige landscape. Along one stretch of road, with small nearby trees, creatures two story’s high walked slowly across a field in the distance. Neither the convoy nor the creatures slowed as they passed each other. Eventually they arrived at a junction, with a snow covered green sign indicating ‘Mt. Hood,’ they turned off to the right and headed in that direction. As they progressed along the highway, an RV seller appeared on their left. A number of vehicles were damaged and lying on their sides, but some appeared intact.
Zach ruefully looked across to Abbey who was trying to ignore the motorhomes. “I know it’s tempting, but we are better with a smaller convoy.”
“I know,” she said.
Abbey looked out at the snow covered pine trees and distant hills covered in winter mist. “It’s funny.”
“What is?”
“How it can be the end of the world, but the world is still so beautiful.”
“Maybe it was people that made it ugly.”
“Depressive, much,” Michael exclaimed behind them. Zach laughed, followed by Abbey. “Man, you two would be the life of a party, I just know it,” they all continued laughing.
CHAPTER SEVEN
A frost covered green road sign passed by. Zach clicked on his radio. “Bass, come in. Over,”
Bass replied. “Here, Zach. Over.”
“Did you see the sign? We’re going to be entering the area aroun
d Mt. Hood within the next few minutes, have your people ready for anything.” Bass acknowledged. Zach knew the volcano was an area of natural beauty and with that came wildlife, meaning E.L.F’s.
He picked up his helmet and put it on, telling the others to do the same. “If we’re lucky we’ll be past the mountain and onto the plains on the other side within the hour.”
Michael fondled with his helmet’s strap trying to tighten it. “Lucky is not something I would say we have been.”
“There’s a first time for everything.”
Wooden lodges passed by, as the wall of trees grew thicker, some of which were leaning against others.
In the bus Jacob watched the children and some of the adults singing a song. He knew the song, it was one his mother used to sing to him when he was a child. As he watched the forest pass by he found himself humming along. Occasionally he would see them. The things which looked wrong, and were finding their own way in this new world. There was no point telling the rest on the bus, they would only make a fuss.
As the convoy progressed, the highway became an incline and the peppering of frost and snow on the road became a blanket they had to plow through. The bits of green and brown that were visible amongst the trees were now gone, and they kept having to slow so not to slide into abandoned cars. Eventually after coming around a long bend, Zach stopped the convoy. In front of them a large mound of snow and rocks had slipped onto the road, forming a slope. It measured roughly thirty-feet in length to the other side and had a cliff to its left and a hundreds of feet drop off to its right.
He clicked on his radio. “Everyone seeing this? Over.”
Bass replied. “Doesn’t look too steep, but it depends how loose it is. Over.”
“I’ll take a look. Over.” Zach jumped out of the Humvee, and immediately pulled his collar up on his jacket. He winced as he felt the chilled air on his still heavily bruised eye. Icy flakes fluttered down around him as he trekked over the snow on the ground, his boots sinking a good few inches with each step. After twenty feet he stepped onto the slope and touched the ground with his left arm to stop himself from slipping. Once he was sure of his footing he planted the other foot and took a few steps forward. Fifteen-feet to his right, the barrier that used to be there to stop certain death was buried under snow and rocks. He looked up at the graying sky, and the whitened forests around him and almost nodded in agreement with Abbey at the bleak beauty of where they were. His radio crackled, and he flinched making him lose his footing again. Quickly he regained his balanced and held up his radio.
He looked back at the vehicles. “You’re breaking up, say again. Over.”
More crackling, then Rob’s voice. “I’m taking a look.”
A small group of soldiers, with Bass jumped down from the Bus, and took up positions around the vehicles. Rob and Bass then walked over as best they could, to the icy obstruction.
“Watch as you step on it, it takes a while to get used to how loose it is,” said Zach watching with some trepidation.
They both stepped onto the slope using both hands to balance before standing upright.
Rob rubbed his chin. “Yeah, I’m not sure.”
“Other routes will add hours to get to the other side,” said Zach.
Bass looking doubtful “There’s not much room for error, and we have a bus full of children back there. If things go wrong, there won’t be much chance of pulling it back.”
“Look around you, do you want to be out here when the sun goes down? Which is about four hours from now.”
Bass and Rob both looked up at the rocky cliffs, and dense white forest all around. Plumes of white mist drifted away from each of their faces.
Zach looked back at the vehicles. “How about we try to move the vehicles across first without the people in them?” Rob and Bass nodded.
Bass got on his radio, and more soldiers appeared from the bus, and back of the supply truck. A few ran over to Bass, who he directed to move across the slope to the road on the other side. Zach approached the Humvee. Abbey and Michael were already standing outside it.
“We going across?” questioned Michael.
“We’re going to try and get the vehicles across without people first, just in case,” said Zach.
Morgan appeared from the back of the white truck, and Zach approached her.
“How are your patients?”
She leaned in to him. “We’ve lost two of the critical. The last one just an hour ago. I don’t think the third has long. There’s no way he can be moved from the truck.”
Zach pulled away and returned back to the Humvee. Michael had gone to look at the slope, but Abbey was still standing there.
Zach looked pensive. She put her hand on his arm. He relaxed a little and flashed a resigned smile in return. “I’ll be driving the Humvee over first, if we can’t get at least one vehicle across there’s no point anyone walking over there.” She gave an accepting smile, hiding her true level of fear of what he was about to attempt. Zach took a last look at the mountains around him and jumped into the driver’s seat.
Pulling forward slowly, he crept towards the edge of the slope that was furthest from the drop off on the right, but still small enough for the Humvee to easily climb up on. About five feet from the edge of the slope, he increased his speed slightly to make sure he could get up onto it without losing traction. Everyone watched as the front wheels bumped up onto the first few rocks and ice. Zach revved the engine and the front wheels spun a little before the vehicle tilted upwards and pulled up onto the slope. As it did, the back started to slide out to the right, down the slope. Zach turned to the right slightly to try to compensate, but the back slowly kept moving outwards. He then increased his speed and the front gripped better and pulled the rear back in. Keeping a constant speed, he was soon driving off the slope on the other side and onto the snow-covered road.
A sigh of relief rippled around the watchers. Zach stepped out of the Humvee, and looked around him. There was no sound from the forest, not even the wind, just icy stillness and mist that had started to creep up from the valley below. The two soldiers that Bass had sent across looked nervously into the nearby trees. Zach clicked on his radio. “Get everyone off the bus, and start bringing them across. Over.”
Mary heard Zach’s request from one of the nearby radios and quickly checked she had all her belongings. She then stood, looking towards the children behind her. “We are going to get off the bus, and walk across. Stay hand-linked like we always do, oh, and make sure you have all your backpacks with you.” she then leaned over the back of the nearby seat to be able to talk quietly to Irene. “You’re going to need someone to hang onto going over the ice, that okay?”
Irene gave a quick nod.
One by one the kids got up and got off the bus. Most did so quietly, but a few pushed and argued with each other. Mary gave them a stern look and order was quickly reestablished. Behind the kids, came everyone else, including Sam and Isaiah. Mary went to the head of the group of children, and they all linked hands behind her. Abby saw Irene wasn’t sure what step to take forward and ran forward, taking her arm. They all then walked over to the slope, and started walking across. Bass walked alongside on the right, in case anyone fell and started sliding. Mary walked gingerly forward, as the shuffling kids behind her did the same. A yelp rang out, and a young girl fell on one knee, but quickly got back up again, looking embarrassed.
As her sister led the troupe of youngsters across the slope, Morgan stood watching near the back of the white truck, almost not wanting to look. Every slightly unsure step that Mary took made her heart skip and she could feel the stress building inside her.
As Mary stepped off the slope, she looked back and started helping the children off as well. Abbey and Irene then stepped onto the ice. Irene’s walking stick flicked out and prodded the crisp ice and rock. They then started walking forward. Zach ran from his spot, jumping back onto the slope and walked to them as quickly as he dared too. It wasn’t long
before they were all back on the other side, with the kids and Mary. Zach then clicked on his radio, and told Rob to bring the bus across.
Rob took a deep breath and tried not to look to his right at the plunging tree line. He then revved the engine and drove forward. The front wheels skipped up onto the already compacted ice and rock and slid to the right slightly but then gripped and the bus moved onto the slope. “Slow and steady,” he repeated to himself, making sure to keep the speed constant.
Rocks and pieces of ice, dislodged by the bus’s weight, rolled down the slope and quickly disappeared off the edge. As he drove forward, he could feel lateral movement as the bus veered gradually to the right, like an invisible force pulling it towards the point of no return. He ignored the motion and pressed slightly harder on the gas pedal and the bus picked up speed. It bumped up and down, and the back started to swing right. He pressed the pedal harder and now the wheels started to lose traction but at least he was making quicker progress. Zach and the rest were now just twenty feet from him and he could see in their expressions that he must be close to the right edge, but he dared not look. “Almost there,” he said to himself. The back right of the bus dropped down a few inches, but at the same time the front of the bus came off the slope and onto the road. He quickly drove to the left and stopped. His heart was beating out of his chest and taking a deep breath he looked at the anguished faces around him, which then turned to relief and then smiles. He drove a bit further forward to be alongside the kids.
Zach exhaled, puffing out his cheeks and looked at Bass. “We should get all the supplies off the truck and bring them over on foot.” They then both walked carefully back over the slope and with some other soldiers ran back to the supply truck.
Fiona was waiting outside the cab and looked at Zach as he walked passed. “The bus only just made it over, I’m not sure this truck’s going to make it,” she then gestured to the white truck in front of her. “Neither is that thing going to.”
Zach moved in closer to her. “What should we of done? Turned around? There are things in these woods just waiting, we need to be out of here as quickly as possible, even if that means losing a vehicle.”
