Jeff watched, as two LCAC blasted ashore on Oak Bluffs Beach well above the high tide mark. Each landing craft disgorged a few hundred soldiers each he estimated. Jeff went forward to greet them.
Gil Isaac was the first off the ramp onto the beach when it came down. He got the word that Nantucket was a cakewalk. No Infected, from Colonel O’Neil a short time ago. O’Neil told him that after they consolidate he would be leading most of his Marines over here. The word from local sources was that Infected had made it onto Martha’s Vineyard and hundreds have died. As he was thinking this and advancing up the beach toward the ferry dock and the town of Oak Bluff a lone figure was approaching. As he got closer, he could tell it was a police officer carrying a shotgun.
Gil walked straight up to the man while other Marines advanced to the sides and covered him with their M4 rifles.
“Stand down.” Gil said to these Marines. “This man isn’t infected. “What’s your name son?” Gil asked.
“Sergeant Jeff Pullman of the Oak Bluffs Police Department Sir.” Pullman stated.
Gil held out his hand and they shook hands.
“I’m Lieutenant Colonel Gil Isaac of the United States Marines and we are here to secure you island. How fares it Sergeant Pullman?”
“Sir, it’s been rough, we put the island under Marshall Law two days ago after we started having infected people attacking others. I’m not sure how many have died. Maybe two hundred or so. We have everyone on lock down in their homes. We just don’t have enough people to deal with this.” Jeff said.
“That’s what we are her for Jeff. Could you get on your radio and inform your police department and the other departments on the island that there will be other landings by landing craft and air units around the island today and we will sweep the island helping you police your problem.” Colonel Isaac told Jeff Pullman.
Both turned and looked up past the Ferry dock at half dozen Infected walking toward the Marines. Their pace quickened as they detected fresh meat out in the open. The Infected were gunned down by the advanced Troops.
Lieutenant Colonel Isaac’s Marines swept up over the bluff and continued into town every house got a knock on the door, People answered and all was good. No answer and no sound, the house was marked and probably was empty belonging to summer residence. Noise and no answering people, the Marines would kick the door to gain entry and search, eliminating any Infected. Marines were being inserted by air at Martha’s Vineyard airport and at Edgartown, where the same procedures were being conducted. In total eighteen hundred Marines landed by beach or through the air onto Martha’s Vineyard and conducted operations in all six towns killing three hundred more Infected and losing two Marines in the process. In two days’ time Martha’s Vineyard was considered secure.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Day +3
The armored column of M113A2’s spaced about thirty yards apart, advanced into Main South section of Worcester through Webster Square, a prosperous neighborhood a long time ago. The Infected started coming out of building entry ways, alleys and side streets.
Mac was with Alpha Company under the command of Lieutenant Jack Majors in the 3rd vehicle in line. Bravo Company brought up the rear, totaling twenty nine APC’s and 25 school buses. The plan was to pull up to the front of the DCU Center, clear the immediate area of Infected, and load up the civilians taking refuge in the DCU concert arena and convention center. Mike was piloting a Huey leading a flight of six Huey helicopters armed with a M60 door gunner each with two thousand rounds per gun.
Things started out well, the armored column was able to move east a mile or so, and then the Infected started to increase.
“DCU task force Actual to all Company Alpha and Bravo Actuals, you are weapons free, I repeat you are weapons free.” Mac informed them. From that point on the armored column advanced at a steady 20 MPH. M60 gunners started to engage Infected coming out of doorways, alleys, at road intersections, the steady beat of the M60 in short burst and the sharper crack of the Troops M4 assault rifles riding on top of the APC’s grew louder. Going through Main South that way was a nightmare for most of these Troops, Mike thought as he watched from the air. He estimated the armored column easily killed fifteen hundred Infected as they advanced about three miles from Webster Square Plaza to City Hall area. Mike could see several groups of survivors on roof tops as they shadowed the APC’s on the ground. Mike contacted Moosehill Base and ordered up an additional eight Huey's and three Blackhawk for rescue duty, roof tops only.
The column turned onto Foster Street from Main Street and pulled up to the plaza in front of the main entrance of the DCU. Troops of Alpha and Bravo Companies disembarked and advanced across the plaza engaging any Infected, and with the heavy fire support of the M60’s quickly cleared the plaza within a hundred yards up and down the Boulevard and Foster Street killing at least a hundred Infected in that area.
“Alpha Company Actual to entry team you are a go.” Jack Majors radioed to 1st Platoon leader Sergeant Drew Daggs. “Copied that Alpha Company Actual.” Drew replied back. “Okay, let’s go.” he ordered his eighteen man platoon, they knew what to do discussing it earlier, most of the platoon new the interior layout of the DCU, having gone to concerts there throughout the years.
First Platoon Troops went in through the front doors which were glass and already smashed in. Rushing through the lobby to the metal inner doors that lead to the arena, they stacked up around those doors. Drew banged on the door and announced American soldiers open up. Soon Drew had 500 civilian or so and fifteen Worcester Police Officers streaming out the front doors across the plaza and loading up onto the school buses. The outer perimeter of Troops continued to engage Infected as they came within their area of responsibility. First Platoon did a quick run through the building to make sure no one is left behind then they loaded back up.
The APC column then started up and headed a quarter of a mile away, to the train station near the beginning of Shrewsbury Street. Intelligence believed the train station had a group of civilians there also. Mac eyed the front of the train station which was an older building that was refurbished. It was an all stone building and the entrance ways were barricaded with vehicles and furniture. On the second floor the soldiers could see people looking out at them. In short order a few hundred more civilians, police, and National Guardsmen joined the column. Mac ordered the APC column to head up Shrewsbury Street, the quickest route to the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. The Infected were very thick on Shrewsbury Street, known as the east side restaurant district of Worcester.
Mac thought to himself he's going to miss not being able to go down to Shrewsbury Street for a great Italian dinner. Soldiers of the armored column engaged in another running battle with the Infected all along Shrewsbury Street. The bottoms of the M113A2’s were splashed red with blood and gore from treads of the thirteen ton machines running over the Infected and the Troops hacking at heads and arms of the Infected trying to get up the sides of the armored vehicles with their Spax survival Axe. This tool had a seven inch cutting head curved and a spike on the reverse side, great for sticking in the side of Zombie head’s. The column approached the front of the University of Massachusetts Medical Center which is a wide-open area that benefited the Troops. One of the gunners in the Huey spotted a sheet hanging from a fourth floor window displaying the number 124 on it. The armored force assaulted across the area in front of the main entrance. First and Second Platoon assaulted into the main lobby talking down a few dozen Infected. The interior was a house of horrors, the afflicted were eating the carcasses of several dead laying around the lobby.
Not knowing the layout of the hospital that well it was decided to go into the main lobby entrance, down the hall to the elevator banks, the stairs were right next to the elevators and the Troops would proceed up the stairs to the 4th floor barricading the other doors as they went up with wedges. Second Platoon from Alpha Company made it to the stairwell near the elevator without any casualties. The platoon
entered the stairwell and proceeded up to the fourth floor wedging all the door shut as they went. Several Infected were in the stairs and were quickly eliminated with axes to keep the noise down.
First Platoon advanced further down the main hallway to the Pharmacy entrance which was clear of Infected, they broke open any locked cases and filled up boxes and bags of supplies, as much as they could carry while leaving a few soldiers unencumbered for security.
The Second Platoon leader listened at the fourth floor door hallway entrance, hearing nothing he open the door moving out into the hallway followed by the First Squad Second Platoon. Second squad, Second Platoon stayed in the stairway and hall to hold their exit way open. First Squad moved down about one hundred feet to the nurse’s station, the hallway was blood smeared along its length.
Past the nurse’s station were double doors closed and locked, the windows were taped over. The Squad leader tapped on the door lightly and stood up so anyone looking out could see his face. He tapped again and someone lifted the corner of the paper covering the window. The door was opened and a doctor came out and spoke to the platoon leader informing him they had 125 survivors, patients and hospital staff plus some visitors.
The platoon leader explained the simple exit strategy of going down the stairs and out to the main entrance which was already cleared, but they had to move fast before the Infected filled in the areas that they had already cleared.
Mike was at the controls of a Huey helicopter leading a flight of six Huey's to provide scouting and fire support for the armored column moving into Worcester to effect a rescue at the DCU Center and hospital. Flying a thousand feet above the armored column he could get a really good idea how bad the situation was, every neighborhood had at least one fire burning. There were columns of smoke in the distance more were popping up as he watched. From this height you can look down and actually see Infected roaming the streets in packs of twenty to a hundred.
As the armored column moved on Main Street in Worcester and started to engage infected individuals Mike radioed for the Huey’s to take the side streets and intersections under fire. The Infected were starting to build up they had to engage them with their M60 to keep the number of Infected from overwhelming the armored column. Mike had the Huey’s leapfrogging up Main Street a few intersections ahead of the column engaging Infected on the side streets.
The Huey's kept this up all the way to the DCU Center, where survivors were found. They also supported the armored column on its way over to the train station and then up Shrewsbury Street to the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, survivors were found at both locations.
After Mac conducted the rescue operation at Medical Center, Mike and he discussed by radio other return options. Mike didn't want the rescue column running the same gauntlet back through Worcester. From the air Mike could see that the elevated portion of interstate 290 through the city wasn't that bad, they can probably run down Shrewsbury Street and get onto the highway and take that to the Hope Ave exit on the south side of Worcester and then from there they can make their way over to Stafford Street in Leicester. From that point it should be a cake walk back to Moosehill Base Mac thought.
***
Day +3
Pete was the pilot, Mike was acting copilot today in the Huey, which he flew in. The convoy they were watching made it off the highway onto Hope Ave on the Southwest side of Worcester, Mike told Pete to head back and follow the Massachusetts Turnpike East from around Auburn Exit 10. He informed Mac, who commanded the armored column that he was riding shotgun for, and had just rescued several hundred people from several locations in Worcester area, that he thought they won’t miss one helicopter from this point on. They wanted to scout east along the Massachusetts Turn Pike and see how bad things were in that direction. They had the legs to go all the way to Boston and back if they had too.
“Pete, let’s go low and slow a few hundred feet up and keep the speed down so we can see how things are. I’ll do the looking, along with the gunners. You keep a look out for wires and such.” Mike reminded Pete.
“Sure thing Boss.” Pete replied.
The Huey flew along the Pike eastbound checking out vehicles. Mike thought that there had to be some survivors down there hiding out in some of those vehicles. All they saw were Infected roaming the highway and bodies on the road every so often. A white van caught his eye in the Framingham area in the westbound lane where there’s two reservoirs on either side of the Highway.
“Pete bring us over to the west side lanes, I want to check out that white van with the dish on top.” He told Pete.
“No problem, I’ll circle around and come up behind it where there is a cleared piece of road. That van is the last vehicle in that pileup.” Pete reckoned. Observing the multi-vehicle accident.
The Huey circled around and came in from the east side. Coming in they couldn’t see any Infected in the immediate area so Pete brought the Huey in about fifty yards behind the white van with the dish antenna on the roof. He touched down and kept the power up just in case they had to leave quickly.
Mike and one of the door gunners jumped out. Mike had his Mollie gear on, a helmet and his M4 rifle along with his Glock 21 a .45 caliber with seven thirty round magazines for the rifle and four thirteen round magazines for the 45, what he considered his normal battle gear.
He ran up to the van covering one side while the door gunner similarly armed ran up the other side. He could see the logo and his stomach was up in his throat. God he thought, let it not be. The logo on the side of the van read Channel 3 News in black lettering.
He couldn't see anything through the front windows, there was a blackout curtain separating the front driver’s area from the back of the van.
Mike hand signed for the gunner to come over to his side and cover him while he opened the side sliding door. He took a deep breath and yanked the door open quick and jumped back raising his rifle and covering the interior.
Laying on the floor were two bodies one moved slowly pulling down the blanket covering itself.
“Oh my God, Charly it’s me Mike, are you hurt? What happened?” Never mind tell me later. “We have to get off the road.”
She asked in a hoarse voice, “Water.” Mike quickly helped her drink from his water bladder in his pack using the drinking tube on his vest. The other person was moving now and it was Chuck her cameraman. He had a good gash on his head and it looked like his nose was broken, probably from the accident Mike thought.
“Let’s get you two on the chopper and back to base.” Just then his helmet radio announced in his ear. “Company boss, coming around the side of that tractor trailer rig, looks like at least several dozen Infected, get back her now.” Pete’s voice in his ear urging them to hurry.
Mike didn’t bother replying, he told the gunner to grab Chuck and help him to the Huey, and he put Charly’s arm around his shoulder and started moving at the fastest walk they could manage back toward the helicopter. “There closing on you Mike, pick it up or you’re going to be lunch.” Pete announced.
The second door gunner couldn’t use his M60 without hitting Mike, the gunner and the two they were half carrying. So he hopped out and moved off on a tangent from them so he had a clear line of sight. Armed with his M4 rifle he took a knee and started servicing the Infected. One round to the head would take one down. Shot to the body and they still came on.
Mike could hear the gunner shooting from his front left as they struggled to carry these two to the Huey, the hair on his neck was standing up, and he could almost feel the cold hands on the back of his neck. He reached down and picked Charly up and threw her over his shoulder, he could move faster this way. Mike moved past the gunner carrying Chuck. He tossed Charly into the open bay of the helicopter turned and ran back, stopping at the two struggling to make it too the chopper and started shooting at the nearest Infected dropping ten or twelve, giving them a little breathing room. The other gunner moved into line with Mike and they continued to drop the
Infected.
“Mike, those two are in.” Pete informed him through the radio. Mike tapped the gunner and pointed to the Huey. He took off running back while Mike shot till his magazine went empty then he turned and sprinted for the Huey diving in just as Pete powered up and the skids left the ground. They had about fifteen feet to spare and were airborne heading west at one hundred knots.
“Pete take us straight to the Moosehill Base and radio in that we have two that need medical attention. There had to be a better way to make a living he theorized looking out on a partly cloudy day. He could see several locations that had large fires burning in the distance, probably from when the plans fell from the sky.
***
Colonel John Frost stepped out of the OV-22 better known as the Osprey, a tilt rotor or VTOL aircraft which has the functionality of a helicopter and the range and speed of a plane. John now an acting Brigadier General was not the first man on the ground, he came in the third wave, thirty one Marines stepped out the back ramp after him onto Bermuda’s International Airport on the east side of the island. This is actually the third wave of aircraft with four Osprey’s and four sea Stallions landing at the airport. The first and second wave landed at Admiralty Park and advanced on downtown Hamilton to secure the harbor with seven hundred Marines with orders to secure all the harbor waterfront area especially any ships at dock or in the harbor. This third wave of Marines with three hundred and twenty Marines landed at the airport to secure the east side of the Island. Another contingent of four hundred Marines was going in over the beach in twenty Amphibious Assault Vehicles AVA, off the USS Tortuga near the Royal Naval Dockyard on the western side of Bermuda across the Great Sound.
Moosehill Militia (Book 1): INFECTED Page 13
