by Phil Maxey
“Oh, yeah, sure… we understand, sir, but it’s just there are rumors.”
“Rumors?”
The young soldier’s eyes widened, like a child that just realized they had said too much.
“Look, All you need to know, is that he’s saved my ass more times than I can remember.”
Both the soldiers, nodded and smiled.
“Anyway, you’ll both be relieved by privates Reyes and Scott at zero four hundred hours.”
“Thank you, sir.”
As Zach walked away down one of the many aisles with empty floor to ceiling shelves, he heard the soldiers quietly arguing.
Soon he was alone, lost somewhere amongst the featureless rows of the warehouse. Throwing down the bag on the floor, alongside some cardboard boxes, he placed his flashlight close by, pushed his boots off, and crept inside the bright red soft interior. Even with the sleep he had in the Humvee, he still felt drained. Since Abbey was taken, he felt like a piece of him was missing. A piece tomorrow, he was determined to get back.
*****
Running. At least that’s what Abbey was trying to do, but instead it was a mild stagger at best in the intense blackness around her. She kept to the far right on the sidewalk and allowed her good hand to drag along any wall or window she could find there to help guide her. Every now and again her hand would flounder into emptiness and she would push forward into it, using it as a momentary shelter so she could look back at the way she had just come from. Not following.
After fifteen minutes, her eyes had adjusted enough to allow the weak light that must have come from the moon beyond the cloud cover, to show her the difference between road, walls, trees, buildings and other large objects. Anything smaller though was lost to her and she kept running into things which were sometimes soft. She avoided the temptation to prod them with her good hand, instead walking around and moving onwards.
Soon she could see the ground fell away in front of her. Using her hand out in front, she found herself on the start of what looked like a bridge covered in what felt to her touch to be vehicles. Some were smashed into others, crumpled and rusting. Carefully picking her way through them and trying to keep to the bridge’s walls she moved across and into what she hoped was the heart of the city. More buildings, more cover.
She crept along the sidewalk and came to a junction. The taller black shapes seemed to be to her left, but something didn’t feel right about that direction. A tingling sensation started to accumulate at the base of her neck and creep up into her skull. The more she looked into the dark uniformity to her left, the greater the sensation became. Forward.
Moving around what she presumed were more cars she staggered forward across the street and rejoined the sidewalk once again. She had been running for thirty minutes now and the fatigue was beginning to slow her down. It was also starting to rain.
More junctions, more sensations led her away from the left or right. Finally the buildings on both sides grew large and closer together. Their windows reflected more of the light. Stores.
Moving into the door-well of one, she tried its door. Locked. She tried a few others but got the same result. She thought about smashing the windows but the noise would alert anyone or thing within a mile of her. It was then she noticed the dark gray parking garage behind her from its reflection in a nearby store.
Quickly moving across the street, she slowed as she looked into the void that was the entrance. No tingles. Walking forward slowly, she moved into the parking garage, her hand immediately finding the smooth concrete walls allowing her some semblance of navigation.
She bumped into the back of what felt like a truck, and moved around to try its door. Locked.
After trying all the vehicles she could find in the dark, she felt around to find a slope, knowing that would be the way up to the second floor. It wasn’t long before she did and was repeating the same procedure, sliding from the back of the car to the front, trying the door handles as she went.
Finally she found what she was looking for. Parked in a corner was a large modern sedan and its driver’s door was partially already open.
She half expected to find the remains of a corpse hanging out, which would be more than she could cope with, but instead, there was only a suitcase on the ground which she accidentally trod on.
Quickly moving inside, she sat in the driver’s seat and closed the door as quietly as she could. She shivered, but as soon as the door was closed, in her mind at least it felt warmer.
Feeling for the door lock, she slid it over and a clunk sound came from the door. She took in a deep breath. She then turned and noticed the dark humanoid shape lying in the backseat.
“Fuck!” she yelped, and hit her head on the roof, trying to move away from whatever had taken up residence there.
Her heart beat more than it did when she was running through the streets, and she was just about to jump out of the vehicle, when she realized the two arms and torso actually belonged to some clothes that had been left in the backseat.
Quickly moving into the back, she started to put the clothes on. It didn’t matter what they were, or what size they were, they were going to help keep her warm.
Taking one final look out of the car’s windows, she lay down, and tried to control her shivering. She didn’t understand why she had seen no one come after her, but tomorrow she would find water and food.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Corporal Greggs walked slowly along the snacks aisle, not knowing what to choose for breakfast.
“It’s a good selection,” said Bass appearing at the end of the row.
Gregg’s smiled and then looked confused. “I don’t understand how any of this is still here. A lot of the shops I’ve come across outside the camp were looted to within an inch of their lives, but this place… it’s like I’ve walked in during my Saturday shopping trip.”
Bass picked up some honey roasted cashew nuts. “Sophia loves these. Doubt I’ll be able to get them back to Bravo in one piece though.”
Greggs smiled. “What’s the worse that could happen? You end up eating them and she doesn’t know anyway!”
Bass laughed. “Well when you put it like that. The Captain wants us all done and dusted within thirty, so grab what you can.”
“I hear that.” Greggs started filling her backpack.
Raj, Michael, Zach, Cal and Fiona looked over a map showing Georgia. Michael was chewing on strips of beef.
“We stay on the road outside, heading east for a few miles, then we go south and that should put us back on highway twenty. Then it’s roughly five hours to Atlanta, passing through a national forest and some decent sized cities along the way,” said Fiona.
Zach took a sip from a soda can. “Presuming we don’t hit any problems on the way there, we should get to Atlanta midafternoon, with a few hours of daylight left. They will be waiting for us.”
“Might be better to wait outside Atlanta and enter when it’s dark,” said Cal.
“I was thinking the same,” said Zach. He then opened another map, this one solely devoted to Atlanta.
“How we going to find her in all of that?” said Michael innocently.
“Wherever they are, they will be giving off noise, heat and light. As far as we know there are no survivors there, so it’s just going to be us, them and any E.L.F’s. If we can get to a high point we might be able to spot them. And there are some pretty tall buildings in that city, so the plan is once it’s dark we make our way to one of those and see what we can see. When we get close,” Zach looked at Cal. “I was hoping you would be able to lead us to her?”
Cal nodded. “I’ll try.”
Michael looked confused. “How could Cal be able to find Abbey?”
“Because she was affected by the Cascade like he was,” said Zach still looking at the map. He then looked at Raj. “Maybe you can help him with doing that.” Raj smiled and nodded.
“They probably know about the tank by now, or soon will do, so that’s going to be
there main target, which is why we need to keep it hidden until we want them to know about it,” Everyone nodded. “Okay it’s 9 am now. We thought about taking a supply run in the local area, but there’s so many supplies sitting in this place, I don’t think we need too. So pack up on anything you think you need and let’s be back on the road by twenty past.”
Everyone went to walk away, but Zach tapped Cal on the arm keeping him back.
“Did you get that strange sensation again? The one you felt a few times yesterday?”
“No, once we came in here it went.”
“Any idea what it was?”
“No idea.”
“If you feel it again, let me know.”
Cal nodded and left to join the others getting ready to leave.
Bass then appeared. “Got the General on the radio in the tank.”
Zach followed him back, and sat inside the cramped space, the radio operator handed him the mike. “This is Captain Felton. Over.”
“How’s progress? Over.”
“So far steady since we had the run-in with the gang members. We have a five hour run today to get to Atlanta, but we will hold off entering the city until it gets dark. Over.”
“That sounds a good plan. Reason I’m checking in, is that we have had an increase in attacks on the walls from E.L.F’s, and reports from our stations around the country talk of increased E.L.F activity, they seem to be accumulating into groups, the kind of which we haven’t seen before. The science guys don’t understand what’s going on. Anyway thought I’d pass that on to you and Raj. Have you noticed any strange activity? Over.”
“Cal, sensed something strange yesterday. He thought an E.L.F had been tracking us from Monroe, but we never saw anything. Over.”
“He still sensing that? Over.”
“Doesn’t seem to be. Over.”
“Okay, I’ll keep you updated if I learn anything more. Stay safe Zach and good luck. Over.”
Soon the convoy was back on the road moving east.
“Finally sunshine! Those gray clouds were getting me down,” said Fiona while driving. Large blue patches intermingled with fluffy clouds above them, and sun glistened off puddles they were moving through.
A wall of spidery frosted trees created a solid obstacle to see through as they progressed.
“This is the national forest, we shouldn’t be in it long,” said Fiona half looking over her shoulder to Cal. “Anything?”
Cal paused. “Nothing… actually, maybe.”
“Which direction?” said Zach looking to see where a possible threat could come from.
Raj leaned in closer to Cal. “Like we practiced.”
Cal closed his eyes and slowly the world around him fell away until he was inside a void. A darkness with pins of light moving at different distances, most too far away to get a clear view of. He looked to the south. A group of these particles of light were grouping and growing rapidly in size. As he tried to focus, he started to make out movement, and form, not as he saw them in the real world, but as ethereal beings against a uniform background. They’re coming towards us. His thoughts were meant to be spoken words, meant to be a warning but he was still inside this other realm. He could now clearly see the creatures that were on a collision course with him and his friends. Large beasts, like Rhino’s but more agile in design and with multiple horns not just on their heads but also their limbs. They’re moving so fast. They’re going to hit us! Again thoughts not words. He grabbed his head. Wake up. Wake up!
He was back in the Humvee, with Raj’s hand on his shoulder looking concerned. He looked out the side window into a blanket of trees. “Stop the convoy, they are just bey…”
Suddenly trunks and branches split and flew through the air, and the same creatures that Cal had just seen in his mind, burst onto the side of the highway and kept moving towards the side of the vehicles. Fiona and the other drivers swerved to the other side, but there was no way to avoid the creatures that were seconds away from crashing into them.
“They’re going to hit us!” shouted Fiona, not being sure to slow down or speed up. The gunner on the Humvee behind them opened up, but the bullets weren’t slowing them.
Cal looked at the herd of beasts bearing down on them, and pushed his hand up against the side glass of the Humvee in the creatures directions and concentrated. You need to stop. The tingling grew around his mind, until it fused and he felt their presence just yards away. Stop.
One by one the creatures, seemingly in a panic, swerved around the convoy as they moved to the opposite side of the highway, some even jumped clean over the top of it, causing the ground to shake as they landed. After a few seconds, they were gone, crashing through the trees and heading north. The convoy came to a halt.
“Are we still alive,” said Raj.
Fiona unbuckled herself, and leaned between the front seats, and hugged Cal. “You did it! You saved us!”
Cal felt drained but smiled.
Zach let out a breath. “That was close,” he then clicked on the radio. “Everyone in one piece? Over.”
Bass reported back that there were no injuries.
“Lets keep going.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The intense heat from the jungle around Abbey made her feel giddy, but she fought her way through it regardless. Pushing back strange colored leaves with small spikes and flowers that seemed to move as you neared them, she kept best she could to the path she felt beneath her feet. Up ahead there seemed to be a clearing, so she pushed through harder, and suddenly she was there, but it wasn’t a clearing, it was or used to be a park at the edges of a city.
She looked upwards mouth agape. Vines amassed over everything, making most things look like they were part of the landscape, but she could recognize cars and buildings under it all. She felt faint. The heat was too much. Something was telling her to wake up, but she didn’t understand as she wasn’t asleep. She fell to her knees, and started to strip off her clothes to get some air to her skin, it was then she realized she wasn’t wearing any, and her skin, was made of scales.
Abbey woke with a shudder. She couldn’t feel any of her limbs, but felt strangely warm, at least her neck and head did. Hypothermia? Don’t panic. Her breath was barely visible leaving her mouth as she looked around her. She then tried wiggling her toes, her fingers on her good hand, anything she could do to get sensation back. She also started moving her head from side to side. Gradually feeling returned to her thighs, then her calfs, then her feet inside her boots. She sat up, and wiped away the condensation from the closest window to her. The morning light was shining onto the concrete floor illuminating a patch of ice. She then quickly wiped the other windows to give her an all round view. Alone. She looked at her wrist on her left hand and tried moving some of her fingers. Some of them twitched. Guess I’ll learn to type with one hand. She giggled, and then a wave of emotion flooded over her which she let pass.
She awkwardly swallowed. Need water. Leaning forward, she unlocked the doors, and opened the back one. Instantly the chilled air flooded in, and she realized how much warmer it had been inside. She stood up outside and stretched, which was hard because of the amount of extra clothing she had on. She then walked over and picked up the ice that had formed. Placing chunks in her mouth she bit down on it, moving it around as it stung her tongue and gums, until it melted. Right, food.
Moving back to the car, she removed a few layers, which weren’t providing her much warmth and were just restricting her movement. She thought about using them to tie her left arm to her chest but thought she would rather have it free, even if the pain from it was so painful it made her feel sick if she hit something with it.
Taking one last look at the back seat, she went to move off then stopped. Opening the front door, she pulled open the glove box, and instantly smiled. She slowly pulled out a candy bar in a navy blue wrapper. It’s sell by date was six months ago, but she didn’t care. Tearing the packet gently, she sniffed at it, and absorbed the smell of
chocolate. She then pulled some out and started eating.
It was only a small bar and was devoured within a minute, but the boost it gave her went beyond just the calories she just injected. Standing outside the car, she closed the door quietly, and looked around. There were still car doors to try on this level, but before she did any of that, she wanted to see what was around her. Turning, she headed up the slope, round and around until she came out onto the wind swept roof.
The sky was large and blue above her, and for a moment she felt free from the situation she was in, but then she saw it. A collection of furniture, broken trees, various clothes and what looked like bones, were all gathered together in a ring formation. Nest? It had to be, and she instinctively crouched down, and looked all around her. Nothing. She also wasn’t getting any tingling in her neck, which she had learned to trust even if she had no idea why it was happening. Standing, she moved closer to the pile of forgotten objects and looked into its center. It was empty. She then rushed to the closest wall and looked over. The street she came in from was just about visible below, but any hope of seeing far was dashed due to the high buildings which surrounded her. Only on one side could she see more than a mile and that was further inwards towards even taller structures. Think Abbey, think. What would Zach be doing right now? How can I help?
She knew he would be coming to Atlanta to rescue her. She felt it. She also knew he would probably be coming into the city from the west. But then Tinley would know that too. Zach would also probably get to a high point so he could see where Tinley was, and he would probably enter the city at night. If I could only get him a message somehow.
Her thoughts were then interrupted by the sound of a vehicle. It was some streets away, but it was definitely an engine noise of some kind. She ducked down. The vehicle noise grew, and then it stopped somewhere in the street below. Zach? She had to know. Slowly rising, she looked over the top of the wall. It wasn’t Zach. Instead a light green pickup, with a hastily welded light machine gun on the back sat with its engine idling. There were two men inside the truck, neither Abbey recognized. One was talking on a radio. Keep going, keep going. The last time she prayed to a higher power she was in her teens, but she found herself instinctively doing so now. Unfortunately her prayers were not answered and the truck drove into the parking garage.
