As Nathan and Amy ran towards the RV the biker who had been hiding behind the bar stood up and began taking aim at their backs through the large open door. At the same time the biker who had been hiding behind the pool table across the room stood and charged towards Tak. Tak fired a few quick shots from a crouched position at the one behind the bar just to force him to miss, but he couldn’t aim in properly due to the full auto gunfire tearing the pool table up in front of him. The man behind the bar ducked and began shifting over to his left to get a clear shot at Tak from where he hid from the machine gunner on the other side of the room. He would have Tak caught in a crossfire in a few moments, and it should be an easy kill.
The man charging Tak was armed with a small machete and was coming at him with a vicious overhead chop. The machine gunner saw one of his fellow bikers about to charge into his line of fire and stopped firing for a few moments so as not to cut him down in friendly fire. Tak smoothly sidestepped and swung the barrel of his small pistol around as he pulled the trigger, blasting a gruesome crater into the man’s left temple from less than six inches away. A spray of blood misted back on Tak as the man fell face-first to the ground where Tak had just been standing. The machine gunner saw Tak quickly dispose of the machete-wielding biker and jerked the trigger back again, causing lead to continue spewing from his hip-fired machine gun, and forcing Tak to drop back down behind the pool table.
The slide of Tak’s XDS locked open as smoke wafted up from it; he had run empty. The pool table in front of him began to get torn apart and splinters of wood flew up around him. The biker behind the bar had shifted over into a good crossfire position and rose, aiming in at Tak. For the moment Tak only hunkered down low, and the biker now had a clear shot at him. He stood with his feet shoulder width apart and quickly lined his front sight up with Tak’s head. He began to grin as he pulled the trigger… he had him and he knew it… until a flying ball of fur and teeth lept through the air and latched onto his left forearm, followed by the pistol going off an instant later. Ringo shook violently as he fell on top of the man, and the pistol went skittering off behind the bar. Tak looked up just in time to see Ringo fall on the man and he soon heard the man screaming.
The machinegun fire continued to impact all around him; only the pool table behind him saved him; and it was about to be rendered useless any moment. He knew a round could take him out at any instant. He had recently called upon his Hoshoku ability, but he hadn’t maintained it for long and knew he had more in him. He focused his internal energy to call upon his gift as he rolled out from behind the table and began to charge the gunman across the room. Suddenly he was moving at full speed; surrounded by a slow motion world. Several bullets were leaving lines of vapor trail from the machine gun as they sped towards his direction. The gunman was a good 30 feet away from him. He saw that some of the rounds heading his way could possibly hit him, which would likely interrupt his concentration, at the least. He knew that he’d survive an initial shot as long as he didn’t get hit in the head, due to his nano-Kevlar suit. He needed to stop the stream of bullets heading his way right now, but he was out of ammo. As he ran by the pool table he’d hid behind he grabbed a pool ball and stepped into a strong throw, taking careful aim at the gunman’s head. He instantly and subconsciously calculated that one of the rounds heading towards his stomach would hit him if he didn’t twist out of the way, but he could get a throw off just before it hit him. He knew the round’s impact would break his concentration, and if he didn’t take out the machine gunner with the pool ball then the man would likely kill him with the stream of lead heading his way. He’d have no way to dodge the bullets without being able to tap into his ability. He focused as hard as he could and went for it. He hurled the ball like a major league pitcher throwing a fastball. Just as he released it a round hit him in the lower abdomen, which flooded that area with sharp pain and interrupted his ability to maintain his heightened senses. He’d thrown the ball far faster than any normal man ever could. The round to his stomach dropped him to the floor… but his aim had been true. He heard the pool ball shatter the machine gunner’s teeth and jaw bones as the man topped over backwards, dropping the gun as he went.
Tak heard men yelling and running from the back rear corridor where the Death Keepers obviously slept. A half dozen of them emerged from the back hallway and began running into the room and trying to figure out what was going on. Tak looked over to the bar where Ringo was tearing up the biker that would have shot him without his intervention. The man’s screams had stopped and there was only the sound of the man’s throat being mangled. He gave a quick yell in German, “Ringo, HEIR!”, as he turned and bolted for the door. Ringo came trotting around the bar, blood dripping from his mouth as he ran after Tak.
Amy had The Beast running and lined up with the gravel road that circled around behind the pole barn. As Tak and Ringo ran out, Amy opened her door and yelled, “Come on Ringo, get in boy!” The dog smartly ran to her and smoothly jumped up and over her lap. She was waiting for Tak to run around and get in the passenger side, but he was running and motioning with his hands for her to drive off while yelling, “GO GO GO!!” She floored it, sending gravel flying as The Beast took off while Tak sprinted towards the back of RV. More Death Keepers emerged from the clubhouse chasing after Tak and firing pistols in his direction. A round thudded into his nano-Kevlar suit on his back near his left shoulder blade, but he ignored the pain and ran on. He could only hope none would hit his head before he could jump onto the RV’s rear ladder. With so many chasing and firing at him it was very possible one of them would land a kill shot.
Nathan was watching the scene unfold through the driver’s side window. He had retrieved the SAW Machine gun from the storage compartment under the couch and was just driving the charging handle on the right side of the weapon forward, which put a round into the chamber. A box full of 200 linked rounds was attached to its left side. He pushed the safety button in from right to left and opened up on the bikers who were chasing Tak. A stream of lead shot from the barrel, accompanied by a deafening roar. “BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM”. At such a short distance and with a firing at a rate over 800 rounds per minute, he began cutting them down like a sickle through tall grass; the SAW tearing them apart before they could return any effective fire.
As Tak came to the rear of the RV he jumped up on the ladder while Naff sprayed bullets at the chasing bikers and then back into the clubhouse. Just as they neared the side of the clubhouse and would be out of the line of site of any more men who might emerge from it, Amy noticed something unusual approaching from further down the road. A single line of flame was speeding towards the clubhouse. Not having time to give a proper explanation she yelled out the window, “Incoming!” Tak also saw it from where he hung on the rear ladder and instantly recognized what was about to happen. He held on tightly with both hands and turned his face in the opposite direction as he braced for impact. The flame shot up the gravel road and quickly hit the pool of gas in the clubhouse, turning it into a fiery lake and engulfing several bikers inside in flames. If that had been the extent of the damage some of them would have survived, but the ensuing explosion made the fire inside the clubhouse look like a boyscout’s campfire. The fire shot up the hose that was spewing gas from the tanker, and once it hit the several thousand gallons of gas inside, the explosion had nowhere to go but out; which effectively turned the tanker into a monstrous steel-shrapneled grenade. The explosion could be seen for miles and blasted the pole barn-clubhouse with such force that most of it was instantly blown away.
If The Beast had been a couple seconds slower getting the Beast around the corner of the pole barn it would have been exposed to the blast and likewise destroyed, but the corner of the building shielded them from direct exposure. Still, the shockwave rocked the RV, momentarily sending it up on only the passenger side wheels as the heat on the driver’s side melted some of the exterior and singed off a good portion of Tak’s buzzed hair while he turned hi
s face away and squeezed his eyes tightly shut. Several shards of metal passed through the barn and stuck into the left side and rear of the Beast, with a few of them shattering the side and rear windows and destroying the back left tire. The friends were hit with small metal pieces from the tanker that had blasted through the barn and the side of the RV.
As Amy circled around the burning clubhouse a car was just exiting the long gravel driveway onto the main country road about a hundred yards ahead of them. They stopped to bandage themselves and the Beast up before getting back on the road.
Chapter 30: reunion
9AM, day six of the new world
T he next day they arrived at the RV park where Amy’s parents and sister were staying down in St Petersburg Florida. It was a beautiful, palm tree filled park that sat on the water of Old Tampa Bay. The day was gorgeous with blue skies, mid-70’s temperature and a slight breeze. It seemed like the perfect place to spend a retirement, if it weren’t for that pesky little apocalypse ruining everything. Tak circled the crowded RV park as Amy looked for her parents’ long black class A luxury RV. She spotted and pointed it out with excitement, “There it is… there they are!” Her 12 year old, red-haired and freckle faced sister was fishing in the bay while her father sat nearby in the shade of their RV’s awning drinking tea. As Tak pulled up her sister spotted their old RV, got up and ran towards The Beast. She yelled back, “Mom, dad; they’re here! They’re here!” Amy exited the RV and her sister hit her with a huge hug. Amy exclaimed as she squeezed her, “Oh Becky, I’ve been so worried about you! How is everyone?” Her sister looked up from the hug, “Were ok. We were getting worried though! Some guys tried to rob us!” Her dad, a small and fit grey haired man in his early 60’s came up and gave his daughter a big hug as well. Amy smiled through tears of joy, “It’s so good to see you dad!” Her mother came running down the RV steps and bolted towards Amy. She was a pretty woman in her 60’s who’s fiery red hair was transitioning into a noble grey.
Tak emerged from The Beast with Ringo’s leash in hand, immediately followed by Nathan. They reverently watched the happy reunion in silence. Soon after Amy had hugged her family for several moments she grabbed her mom’s hand and brought him over to her friends. They had all met several times already over the years at various police department functions, but Tak and Nathan didn’t know her parents or little sister very well. Tak spoke first and shook Amy’s dad’s hand, “Nice to see you again, Mr. Braxton.” Then he did the same to Amy’s mother, who ignored his hand and embraced him in a warm hug. Tak returned the embrace, “Nice to see you again as well, Mrs. Braxton.” She brought him back to arm’s length, “Now Tak, you just call us Ellen and Tom.” She then looked at Nathan and then back to Tak. “Thank you both so much for coming with Amy down here!” Tak nodded, “It was no problem Ellen. We had a nice little road trip.” Mr. Braxton looked at the many bandages on all three friends, the singed left side of Tak’s head and the driver’s side of his old Class C RV, now partially melted and full of holes left from the tanker shrapnel. He spoke with a chuckle, “Somehow I’m doubtin’ that, fellas. You look like you’ve been through hell!” Amy was beaming and happier than Tak had seen her in quite a while. She leaned in and whispered to her mother, but not quietly enough that Tak couldn’t hear, “Tak’s my boyfriend now Mom!” Tak blushed as he tried to pretend he hadn’t overheard. Her mother smiled and spoke back to her, “Well it’s about time, Amy Ellen Braxton! I always thought he was a good one.”
Just then, with perfect timing to distract Tak from his embarrassment, Becky looked over at Ringo and then to Tak excitedly, “Can I pet him?!” Tak knelt down next to Ringo and held his collar for safety and he spoke quietly to the dog, “freund, freund”. Ringo seemed relaxed and Tak nodded his approval to the girl, “Sure, just go slow.” Becky reached for him and pet him a bit quicker than would be advisable, but Ringo seemed to enjoy it and licked her hand and face as soon as he had the chance, which caused the whole group to laugh. He was obviously a good dog and seemed to know the difference between the good and the bad guys.
They all went inside and caught up on news as they ate. Luckily nothing had been removed from the old RV while they had been taken prisoner at the Death Keeper’s clubhouse, since they were only looking for weapons or cash and hadn’t found the hidden storage space under the couch. They had packed more than enough food for the return trip home, even if they were to be delayed for an extra week or so. As they ate they discussed the possibility of taking their nicer, new RV back instead of the old class C, but that was quickly ruled out since the new one ran on diesel fuel and the old one ran on gasoline. Ellen asked if they should take off first thing the next morning, but Tak shook he head back and forth, “No mam, things are getting worse out there by the hour. These are desperate times and we don’t have a moment to waste. We need to get back home as quick as possible. Honestly things are so bad I don’t think we can even take the highways back.” Tom replied, “Hell son, I never take the highways anyway. I know the backroads from here back to Marion like the palm of my hand. They’re more scenic and less crowded.” Tak agreed, “Sounds good Sir.”
So they transferred Tom, Ellen and Becky’s essentials over to the old RV, which made it quite packed and crowded. Upon Tak’s request they removed a couple solar panels from the top of the big class A and stowed them in The Beast’s back bedroom for later use. They agreed to drive straight through until they got back home, which would be easy to do since they would take turns with Tak, Nathan and Tom driving in shift. Within two hours after arriving they hit the road again, now heading back towards Marion Illinois… back home.
Chapter 31: future security
S arah watched the explosion and fiery inferno that became of the Death Keeper’s clubhouse from the end of the long gravel drive. She cursed herself for getting too close to Tak in his cell and allowing him to take the keys from her, which had led to his escape. As she saw the RV escape the blast and circle around the burning clubhouse to make its exit she quickly sped away so they wouldn’t be able to catch her.
As she drove off, the reality of her mistake began to sink in. She’d been taken and provided the only escape this super-powered bastard had a chance of; as far as she could tell. Who was this holier-than-though mother fucker to have a damn supernatural ability while she didn’t have shit?! She’d had to fight for everything she’d ever had… it just wasn’t fair. She sat and thought about how she’d been bested… she wasn’t one for forgiveness. She’d decided long ago that she’d be the one to take from others, not the other way around. She was mad… She wouldn’t let go of a grudge… at least until she slit the throat of whoever she held it against. She’d take this righteous son of a bitch out. She again reminded herself that it was the end of the world and she didn’t have anything better to do anyway. But how? She’d have to survive in this world-gone-to-shit in the meantime. A plan began to form… she knew a man with some connections was on his way here with plans to pay a ransom for Tak and then to torture and kill him. The enemy of her enemy… She also knew about the armory in the basement of the clubhouse. It would likely be undamaged from the blast. A cache of weapons should go a long way with setting her up with some future security. She had a few days to remove and hide them somewhere nearby so she could use them as a bargaining chip. As soon as the fires died down she got to work.
Chapter 32: a new alliance
S arah waited comfortably in the nearby farmhouse for almost a week before Charro finally arrived. Leading his arrival was a procession of 30 loud Harleys ridden by leather clad and heavily armed Southern Devils. Charro road in the backseat of a large black four-door truck. They rode right past the farmhouse and drove up to the remains of the clubhouse, which had stopped smoking days ago since most of the metal building hadn’t burned. The gas truck explosion outside the pole barn marked the ground and side of the now heavily damaged barn with black for a good 50 feet in all directions. Now it was time for Sarah to make her play, which she knew
to be a dangerous one. She’d cleaned up and had a fresh red tank top and skinny jean-shorts on, with her newly acquired Beretta stuck down the back of her beltline. A leather cowboy hat she’d taken off of a dead biker rested on her head, somehow adding to her country-girl sex appeal.
She got in her sedan and slowly drove the hundred yards up to the clubhouse. As she pulled up several of the bikers who had just arrived aimed in at her. She waved out the window to them, letting them get a good look at her as she approached. This was the second time in a week she’ pulled along this same path with the intention of manipulating the men inside. Several of the bikers were checking out the inside of the clubhouse, while a few milled about outside and looking quite seriously at her. More started to come out as word spread that someone had pulled up. They seemed to relax only the slightest bit as Sarah greeted them. She smiled like a friendly country girl and chewed a wad of bubble gun. “Howdy fellas. Would you mind fetchin’ Charro for me please?” The men looked at each other curiously before one barked at her, “Stay right here.” He spun and quickly went inside. Sarah noticed a middle aged busty black female stepped out of Charro’s truck and looked at her curiously, just like the bikers did. That woman was wearing a nurse’s outfit and didn’t seem to belong with the rough crowd she accompanied. She gave a friendly wave to the black woman, who forced a smile and a nod but was obviously curious about Sarah. A few moments later Charro walked out of the clubhouse and approached Sarah in her sedan. He wore black jeans over well-worn black cowboy boots with only his leather vest over his tan, muscular torso. His black hair was pulled back tightly into a pony tail. A white bandage covered the stump at the end of his left wrist where he was obviously missing a hand. He moved slowly as if he was recovering from a serious injury. His eyes were sunken in and he appeared as if he hadn’t slept in days. Sarah opened her door as he approached and stepped out, letting him get a good look at her. She knew she was beautiful and had been playing that to her advantage all of her life. She gave a big smile that showed off her perfect white teeth and stuck her right hand out as she approached the intimidating biker. She spoke in a friendly southern drawl, “Well howdy, you must be Charro! My name’s Sarah, nice to meet ya!” Charro looked to be in no mood for flirtation and seemed ready to attack her as he scowled. He looked at her outstretched hand and then back up to her eyes. “Where the fuck is everyone? What the hell happened here?” She pulled her hand back and rested it on her hip, “Hell is right honey, a week ago this place was roarin’ with gen-u-ine hellfire and brimstone! I’ve got the answers you’re lookin for, includin’ the information about that pesky Asian cop yer after. Now how about we go sit down somewhere and I’ll fill you in?” Charro spoke through gritted teeth, “Bitch just tell me what you know, now. I’m in a lot of pain and I’ve come a long way to get this mother fucker. I ain’t got time for no bullshit.” Sarah raised her eyebrows and cocked her head sideways, like a mother giving “the look” to her child who had just misbehaved. “Now honey, I’m gonna let your insult slide this one time because I understand that you’ve obviously had a rough day… or week from the looks of it.” Then she stepped in close. He couldn’t help but smell her lavender scented shampoo as he detected the strength behind her words. Her southern accent dropped for a moment as she whispered in his ear, “But if you ever call me a bitch again I’ll cut your fucking balls off.” Then she smiled again as her accent resumed. “OK sweetie?” Just then he felt what felt like the back side of a blade come up against his pants just outside of his groin. He looked down and realized that she was holding a straight razor just below the bottom of the zipper of his jeans. Half a dozen of his men raised their firearms towards her. She leaned back, her face a few inches in front of his and her hand still up against his crotch. Charro looked at her again, now really considering her and not just the whole situation. Damn she was beautiful. He didn’t know if he should punch or kiss her; he sort of wanted to do both. Irregardless, he could see this wasn’t a simple hang-around; she had spunk. Finally he nodded and the anger seemed to lessen in his face, “OK, OK lady, just take it easy. You’re damn right I’ve had a bad day. That fuckin’ chink cop killed several of my men and fucked my hand up… now all I’ve got is a god-damn stump! Let’s go sit down and tell me what you know.” Sarah nodded sweetly and flipped the razor blade back into its pearl handle with practiced easy before sliding it into her front pocket. Charro lifted his stump and his hand and motioned for his men to relax and lower their pistols.
ROAD TRIP THROUGH THE APOCALYPSE (The Hoshoku Chronicles Book 2) Page 14
