by JT Sawyer
Chapter 11
In the BSL-4 lab on the third level of the Lachesis, Selene was sifting through another file of scientific papers on parasitology from the University of Toronto’s database, while Victor Tso had just finished talking on the radio with Ivins.
“Echo team is an hour out from Biloxi. They secured the pharmaceutical compounds we need to continue manufacturing the aerosol and will be back on the Lachesis tomorrow morning,” said Victor. “They are headed to MacDill first to drop off some children at the quarantine facility. Sounds like they had a heck of a battle on the streets getting those kids out.”
Selene looked up from her laptop. “Children? How many?”
“Six of them, one of whom was a little girl who was found connected to an IV filled with what looked to be blood from one of the paras.”
She pushed her chair back from the desk and swung around towards him, her stomach feeling queasy. “My God—they’re using children now. Is she OK? Did she survive?”
“It would seem so. The medic administered a dose of the vaccine that each operator carries. I don’t know much more than that. They should be arriving at MacDill within the hour, so I would contact Ivins then.”
Selene looked at the digital clock on the wall then darted her eyes around the room. “I’d like to get over to MacDill this afternoon and talk with Ivins and the medical staff about this new development.” Her words blurred together like she was sprinting up a rocky hill. She clutched her pen so hard it snapped in half, dripping black ink onto the floor. Tso grabbed a white towel off the desk and knelt down to clean it up as she leaned forward to help, her hand trembling. Selene felt a sense of disgust and betrayal on a level she’d never felt before. The very science that gave her the skills to help others during her career had been used to create these abominations that were now using innocent children in their fiendish undertakings.
When she and Tso had finished cleaning up the mess, she stood up and looked through the large windows to her right at the empty lab where her staff had been working non-stop on the bioweapon production during and after the battle at MacDill. While they had managed to produce enough of the bioweapon for strike teams heading into the field during the past week, their efforts had ground to a standstill in the past few days due to depletion of several chemical constituents necessary to aerosolize the compound.
If only we could formulate enough to envelop the planet and destroy these monsters. She envisioned an image of the world on fire as the creatures shrieked in agony at their ending. An extinction-level event on an unprecedented scale is what we need—and fast, before they evolve any further. She felt Tso holding her wrist and looked down to see she was digging her nails into her sweaty palm.
“Selene, it’s going to be OK. Ease up.”
She tried to look him in the eye but only averted her gaze to the left. “When will this be over? We have to move faster than we are.”
“Ivins will be back soon enough with the supplies, and we can resume production. Our teams that are deployed right now have enough to handle any small-scale concerns.”
“The drones aren’t the problem—it’s the ones holding their reins.” She peered at a handful of flash drives resting on the stainless-steel desk beside her laptop. “We have plenty of data on drone behavior and morphology, along with resting and feeding patterns. What we’re sorely lacking is data on the alphas, other than a handful of after-action reports from our guys on the ground.”
He moved up alongside her. “There just hasn’t been time, Selene—for anyone. It’s a miracle we’ve gotten as far as we have—especially you, given how many times we’ve had to relocate labs.”
She knew her longtime colleague was sensing her frustration. Selene admired his resiliency and wondered if it was cultural from his upbringing in Taipei or just who he was. When she was riddled with stress and anxiety, it seemed to blanket her rational mind so completely that she felt like she was plunging into an artic abyss. Selene nodded at him with a faint smile as she stood, walking to the lab window and peering at the dormant assembly line of components in the next room. “Thanks, Victor.”
Selene stared into the vacant room ahead, trying to focus on something she could control.
“I’ve talked with Dorr and Runa about this already. This painstaking process to manufacture the aerosol on this ship is bogging all of us down, pulling everyone away from other work we can be focusing on. In the beginning it was necessary, but now,” she waved her hand in the air, “this can be done by a team of nurses or medical staff under the supervision of one of our researchers.” She glanced back at him as she emphasized the last word.
He tugged on the collar of his shirt while rolling his eyes. “So, you’ve noted my claustrophobia here on this ship?”
“A larger lab, staffed with a few dozen medical personnel whose sole focus is just the aerosol, would enable us to not only mass produce the bioagent on a much greater scale but also to have enough to share with other countries.”
“Agreed, but where? This ship is the only type of its kind—specifically designed by the CIA for bioweapons research.”
“My suggestion was one of the islands in the Bahamas—say, Nassau. That’s only four hundred miles away from this fleet and even closer to Vaccaro’s. There is a medium-sized hospital there, and the island shows little activity from drones, according to what Will told me based on a satellite search. The tac-teams could do a flyover and disperse the aerosol to further eradicate any threats. It’s a very contained setting that could work.”
Tso returned to his laptop, pulling up a map of that region. “I’m afraid my trips to the U.S. were limited to conferences at Cornell University or Stanford.” He scanned the cluster of islands a hundred miles southeast of Miami, homing in on Nassau. “That island and medical facility would be ideal for setting up a large-scale production lab, and we could have our teams scour the hospitals in Miami and elsewhere to obtain more supplies.”
“If only south Florida hadn’t been decimated in the recent battle, we could consider some of the cities there for this new lab, but the infrastructure damage to the water mains and power grid was substantial, according to Dorr.”
“That and there are mountains of rotting corpses from all the dead drones. That place is vulture central—and all thanks to you, Selene.” Tso grimaced then raised his hands in the air. “Sorry, that totally came out wrong, my friend.”
She let out a nervous laugh, pressing her fingers to the sides of her temples. Tso chuckled at his faux pas, causing her to emit a real laugh and soften her shoulders.
Selene leaned over, patting him on the back. “Yeah, Florida is a real mess, but the good news is that it’s been cleared out of paras, and in a year or so, once the smell is gone, there will be plenty of amazing beachfront properties available.”
Chapter 12
MacDill AFB
Three Hours Later
Selene was reviewing the medical notes from the head physician at MacDill along with Ivins’ comments on the macabre scene in Biloxi as the SeaHawk helicopter set down on the landing field. Five of the children had been cleared, while the small girl who had been receiving the IV infected with alpha blood was in intensive care but showed signs of improvement. Thank God! Now they will all have to find a way to survive the nightmares that will haunt their sleep—that is the real plague, isn’t it?
Selene wanted to visit with the survivors firsthand as well as the medical staff to see if she could glean any further insights into the bizarre new undertakings of the alphas. She also needed to see the staff in action again to see who stood out as potential candidates for the proposed medical lab she was planning on further pitching to General Dorr and President Hemmings.
Stepping out of the helicopter, she saw Ivins trotting out from the medical infirmary to meet her. He gave her a brief hug, both of them glad that he and his team were back safely from the mission, then they moved into the shade next to the building.
“Looks like you read my c
omments,” he said, nodding towards the tablet in her hands. “What the hell do you think that was all about in that hotel?” Ivins’ face was still as taut as when he arrived at the base with the kids. “I mean, they couldn’t have been trying to infect the kids and turn them into drones. A simple bite would have done that in no time.”
“Alphas—they are trying to figure out a way to increase their numbers. There are many more drones than alphas in the world, at least until we increase our production of the bioweapon. This creature, Roland, must know that their ranks will keep getting depleted with each air-drop of our canisters. Inevitably, then, the alphas will have their foot soldiers reduced over time, so he must be working on creating more alphas, maybe even others like him.”
“But I thought they were limited to only people who formerly had that rare blood cancer?”
“That’s what I believe to be the case, but Roland would know that, right?” She stood with her hands on her hips, squinting into the sun as she spoke to him. “So, why then would he be trying to give transfusions of his blood and that of other alphas to these kids? My guess is that his attempts at using women as carriers failed, since there haven’t been any more discoveries like those in Phoenix or Savannah. The next candidate on his checklist must be kids. Maybe he thinks their bodies will be easier to convert—or subvert, rather.”
Ivins pointed with his chin towards the quarantine center. “But this was also a failed attempt at producing more alphas—that girl nearly died, and who knows how many others around the world have fallen prey to this disgusting experiment.”
She shook her head. “As disturbing as this might sound, he’s using a very scientific approach to seeing what works and what doesn’t: process of elimination. He’s got a pool of alphas to carry out his bidding and no shortage of survivors around the globe to use as guinea pigs.” She waved a hand in the air. “He may be trying to see if any of his victims have the blood cancer and can be transformed like he was, or he’s just running down some checklist to see if an alpha’s unique blood is sufficient to turn someone.”
Ivins let out a deep sigh. “Hard to believe this fucking guy used to be one of us—a human being. His sense of moral duty and humanity must have been wiped clean when he got bit and turned into the bloodthirsty demon he is.”
Selene brushed her fingers against her lips, mulling over his words. “I wonder if he was bit by a drone. As I recall from Captain Jarvis’ briefing on Whitmore, she said that his twin sister, Katherine, had returned from a trip to Hong Kong at the same time as the outbreak. If she was infected with the virus and succumbed—”
“There was no mention of her being infected and no evidence of her being admitted to the hospital.”
“Someone as powerful as Roland Whitmore would have had the means to keep that quiet or even provide her with his own physician. And since they were twins, she also suffered from the same blood cancer as Roland. If she died shortly after returning, she could have infected him before he succumbed to kidney failure. His medical report implied he was almost towards the end of his life, and that was around the same time the pandemic began.” She rolled her eyes. “Of course, this is all speculation and doesn’t help us much.”
“I remember Reisner talking about a freakishly strong female alpha who took out a few of the other pilots at MacDill shortly before he and Runa lifted off with the bioweapon. Will thought he ended up frying that bitch with a hand grenade, but he wasn’t entirely sure, as there weren’t any traces of her found afterwards.”
“I heard him talk about that incident. He and I have wondered ever since if that was the same creature he and Porter saw in the river by the arboretum outside of Charleston. But it could have been another female alpha altogether, given how many conflicts our teams have been in since the battle at MacDill.”
They stood in silence, gazing out at the horizon towards where the Lachesis was located. For the first time in weeks, Selene realized how clear the sky was. Instead of the cobalt canvas relaxing her as it usually did, she felt uneasy with the emptiness. She searched the heavens for a single cloud, as if it would help tether her to something tangible, but she only felt the void in her mind growing as she probed the expanse for answers she knew they had to figure out—and soon.
She bid Ivins farewell, and just as she began heading towards the medical facility, she heard someone call her name. Looking up, she saw Jody Reisner trotting towards her from the infirmary.
“Hey, Selene, how long are you going to be here? I just finished my work week and would love to head back with you.”
She hugged Jody, then motioned towards a nearby bench, where they took a seat. “Just got in—but I can arrange to get us back to the fleet together if you don’t mind sticking around for a few hours until I’m done.” Selene looked into Jody’s exhausted eyes, knowing she was probably only sleeping a few hours a night, given the work conditions at the clinic. “How’s your assignment going there?”
Jody shrugged her shoulders. “Well, I’m not sure I’m cut out for the medical field—I only had an EMT class a long time ago and decided then not to go into that line of work because of all the blood.” She tucked her hands under her legs. “So, they’ve got me helping out as a nurse’s assistant for now, which isn’t as rough as being in the ER.”
“And how’s life at sea?” said Selene.
“The frigate I’m on has a hundred and eighty other civilians like myself, so we each have our own little groups and clicks. It’s not bad—better than being on land, looking over my shoulder all the time.”
Jody glanced at the sky then back to Selene, her eyes softening. “Have you heard from Will lately? I only talk to him about once a week, when he’s in between missions, and that’s mostly on my laptop.”
Selene let out a sigh, putting her arm around Jody’s shoulders. “Sounds about right—Dorr has them on the move all the time. I’ve seen him twice in the past eighteen days, and that was at the two briefings we had with all of the strike teams.”
“‘Strike teams’—so he’s still on the front lines? He doesn’t ever tell me much about what goes on when he’s out there, other than that he’s doing ‘recon.’” Jody raised her fingers in air quotes.
“That’s what he excels at—and he’s surrounded by the best of the best, which makes knowing where he’s at a little less troubling some of the time.” Selene missed him dearly and wondered how much more of his soul would be chipped away after he returned from this current mission. The essential but never-ending missions were taxing all of the special operations units beyond their normal abilities, and she wasn’t sure how much longer they could maintain their current tempo.
In the distance, they heard a helicopter engine firing up and saw the other off-duty staff eagerly gathering near the hangar door. Selene stood up, offering Jody a hand. “I’ll tell the pilot you’ll be on the next flight with me, then we can sit together and talk some more on the flight back.”
Jody grinned then tapped her on the arm. “Little ole me sitting next to the legendary doctor Selene Munroe—you just boosted my street cred.”
Selene laughed. “You’re funny, but I think that having Will Reisner as your brother is far more prestigious.”
Jody grinned, tucking her hands into her pockets. “Well, yeah, you’re right—just don’t tell him that.”
Part II
Chapter 13
Three Weeks Later
A chilly northeast wind was barreling across the rear deck of the Lachesis as the helicopter carrying Reisner and his cadre set down. A winter storm was about to pound the Gulf and Atlantic Coasts, and all the strike teams were ordered to return to the ship to ride out the three-day event. For Reisner, the fury of the coming tempest seemed to keep pace with his own inner turmoil. For nearly a month they had gone on numerous reconnaissance missions from Atlanta to Tallahassee and up the southeastern seaboard as far as Asheville. While there had been several hopeful leads in northern Georgia, the small skirmishes that the strike teams had b
een engaged in were only with small clusters of drones and the occasional alpha. He was beginning to wonder if Roland had slipped out of the Southeastern U.S. and whether there was any merit in pursuing these endless recon missions.
How the hell can those creatures be eluding us for so long? How can Roland be eluding us? Reisner shook his head at the seemingly absurd thought that the cunning beast had a name.
Various attacks by concentrations of alpha-led drones had continued unabated around the rest of the U.S. but were more orchestrated and resembled hit-and-run strategies akin to guerilla warfare units rather than the large throngs of creatures seen during the early weeks of the pandemic. It’s as if we’re fighting a group of shrewd militants and not some mindless fucking horde of creatures now.
Reisner and his team of five operators had largely been serving in a reconnaissance capacity, inserting into a region for two to three days to observe enemy movement and search for clusters of alphas. The dispersal of the bioagent was used on several occasions once large groups of drones were pinpointed, but little gain had been made in the hunt for the mysterious Roland.
Right now, Selene was all he thought about as he walked across the elephant-gray deck to the door of the cargo hold. Stepping inside, he felt the immediate cessation of cold sea-spray against his face as a rush of warm air swept in around him.
He stopped at the entrance to the next passageway, looking back over his shoulder at the rest of his team as they poured in through the rear hatch.
“Rack out for the morning and let’s plan on meeting up in the galley at 1800.” He knew he was relieving them for almost the entire day, but he didn’t want to sound like he was completely cutting them loose. Plus, he knew that telling them “Take some time off and enjoy this exciting ship after busting your asses for the past twenty-one days” would only further lower morale. The look of exhaustion in each of their eyes matched their weathered exteriors.
