"Don't worry, he'll be there. Where else would he go? He'll wait for us. I'm sure."
"Yeah, of course. He'll be there. In the meantime, I need to make up for lost time. I need you to do a few things. See that case behind my seat? Put it on your seat and sit on it. And put on that rain gear, and roll up the sleeves till it fits."
"That's pretty big; I don't think rolling up the sleeves is going to help."
"I know it won't be perfect, but do the best you can. We want to make you look a little older."
Christa got the case, put it on the seat, and placed a blanket over it. The jacket didn't look that bad once she rolled the sleeves up.
"That looks good. Now, I have a job for you, and it's important."
"OK, what do you need me to do?"
"We're driving past the depository and the army base. We need to look for anything that might be helpful. We want to get into the depository later, and we need a plan. You're going to help us figure out that plan. Get a good look around. Count how many soldiers, zombies, and anybody else are there. Guards, patrols, whatever. Don't try and understand what you see, just keep track of everything. Use your binoculars for distance, and I'll try and take notice of the closer stuff. This is the most secure building in the world, and they don't like people snooping around, so I'll have to drive fast."
"Got it, I can do that. I'll be like a little human camera. Everything stored in my brain."
"Good, that's excellent. Same goes for the army base as we drive by. Take notice of everything. The depository will be on our left, then the base will be on our right further on. Take note of everything."
They were both quiet as Alex raced towards the base. Their headlights illuminated highway signs that said Bullion Blvd was two miles ahead. Alex kept shaking his head and mumbling about screwing up.
"Hey, don't get so down on yourself, Alex. It was a rough day, you needed that sleep. Everything will be fine. Chaz won't be mad at you, don't worry. He'll be glad to see us, I'm sure. Well, at least he'll be glad to see you. I'm not exactly the teacher’s pet."
Alex took a deep breath, then managed a smile as he let it out.
"You're right. You're a pretty smart kid. I think he may be a little mad at me still. Not that there's much he can do about it. What's he gonna do? Fire us? Who else would work for him?"
Christa giggled. "Yeah, we're the best friends he's got."
"Exactly!"
"Hey, I can see some lights up ahead. Is that the depository?"
"Yep, and here's the exit. Alright, time to act normal. We're just a couple of paramedics returning back to the base. Nothing unusual whatsoever."
They took the exit right, merged onto Bullion Blvd, and caught their first glimpse of the Fort Knox Depository. It wasn't exactly great news.
Fort Under Siege
The depository sat in the middle of an open field cleared of all vegetation. Normally, the area would be a forest, but today even the grass had a hard time growing. There was nowhere to hide for potential attackers. Highways and restricted roads surround the perimeter. The northeast side backed onto a golf course open to civilians and military personnel. Climbing the fence for stray balls was not recommended. Inside the depository perimeter existed four progressively smaller rings of security fences. Originally, there was only one fence, but over the years, security improved. Concrete barricades were visible at points around the base to thwart suicide-bomb drivers. The latest in electronic video and audio surveillance existed within and without the facility. Little was known about the security measures apart from the cameras, guard boxes, and security lights. That secrecy was another security feature.
Rumors and theories abounded regarding what those secret measures could be. One unverified theory was that all internal corridors could flood with water, the intention being to drown everyone in those corridors. Another theory was that poisonous gas could pump through the ventilation systems.
There was speculation about the unseen external security protocols. Some believed that the field surrounding the depository walls were laced with land mines. Automated pop-up machine guns in the turrets surrounding the walls was another popular guess. The nearby army base provided 30,000 soldiers, attack helicopters, and hundreds of tanks. It was easy to understand why no one had even attempted to break into the depository. That was, until now.
Nothing could have quite prepared Alex and Christa for what they saw. The normally barren grounds surrounding the depository looked like an epic battlefield. Corpses surrounded the inner perimeters of the depository’s fenced-in areas. The main road was the most telling. There were several layers of bodies covering the road leading from the highway to the main gate. On top of those bodies, there were two zombies making their way towards the gate. They could barely make their way through the bodies. They stumbled, tripped, and fell over corpses on their way. Multiple times they got back up and carried on. The main gates were wide open, and there were too many bodies across the road to close them. As the first zombie got close, a shot rang out. Alex couldn't tell from where, but likely one of the guard towers atop the depository. The zombie fell, adding to the pile. A few seconds later, a second shot rang out. The second zombie added his remains to the growing pile.
The most external perimeter had dozens of zombies shuffling towards the main building. There were soldiers as well, armed with bats, steel bars and knives, clubbing and stabbing the freaks to death. The zombies were so focused on getting to the building, they didn't even notice the soldiers. It was like an assembly-line slaughterhouse. The corpses were dragged off to piles, covered in gasoline, and set ablaze. Alex counted twenty-three piles in varying stages of burn. Some still smoldered, while other piles were only bones. This had been going on for a while. The outermost electrified fence had fried zombies still squirming. Zombies climbed over those being electrocuted to get over. The barb wire up top contained arms, legs, and chunks of flesh. More were coming.
Alex slowed the ambulance and stopped at the road to the main gates. "I don't think it matters if they see us. The guards have their hands full. I've never seen so many zombies in one place. My God, what are they doing? They just keep marching towards the building and dying."
Christa covered her mouth with one hand. "They're trying to get to the building."
"Well, yeah, I can see that, but why? There have to be thousands of corpses out there. What would be drawing them to the building?"
"They must smell food, or the people. Maybe these are the only people left around here."
As Christa and Alex fixated on the carnage in front of them, more zombies marched through the field towards the ambulance. They couldn't take their eyes from the riveting scene as the freaks got closer.
Christa's startled cry came too late, but alerted Alex to the immediate danger. The pack was moving past them, around the ambulance. The doors were already locked, but Alex hit the automatic locks anyways. One of the freaks climbed over the hood on all fours, then slid off and hit the ground with a clumsy thud. It picked itself up, and kept pace with the others, marching towards the main gate.
"I can't be food. They don't seem interested in us. Not even you, Alex. I'm getting used to being ignored, but they didn't even look at you."
"It was like we weren't even here."
"It's something bigger in that building drawing them."
"What about you, Christa? Is there anything that makes you want to go there?"
"No, nothing. Nothing at all. I just want to get out of here."
"We've seen enough. Let's find Chaz."
Zombies & Tanks
Alex dropped the ambulance into gear, and stepped on the accelerator. To most people, Fort Knox brought to mind gleaming gold bars locked behind impenetrable vault doors. But long before there was gold in Fort Knox, there was the Fort Knox Military Base. The first armored tanks were developed there by General Patton.
Soon, they passed the welcome sign to the military base, next to an old decommissioned army tank on display. A fe
w hundred yards further, and the road diverged into three gate-controlled lanes leading to the base proper. Each side of the road was flanked with another decommissioned tank, with its massive main gun aimed at the passing cars. Even though these tanks were just museum pieces, the message was obvious. You don't want to mess with us.
"What's with all the tanks, Alex?"
"Fort Knox used to be the place where soldiers learned to drive and shoot tanks. These ones are just for decoration."
Alex stopped at the gated checkpoints. They appeared to be deserted.
"That's not good; there should be soldiers manning these posts. I wonder where they went."
"Maybe they're all out practicing in their tanks?"
"I don't think so. They stopped tank training here years ago. It's more of a museum for tanks these days. It does make things easier for us, not having anyone here."
The gates were down, so Alex got out and found the switch inside the guard house to raise the gates. A few minutes past the gates, he followed the signs to the center of the base.
"What are you doing? Shouldn't we be heading towards the cemetery looking for Chaz?"
"The mission was to scout both the depository and the base."
"We saw enough back there to know we’re in all kinds of trouble. Shouldn't we just go find Chaz and tell him what we saw?"
"He saw everything we did driving by. What he couldn't see is what we're about to see. It won't take long. This could be helpful for getting us into the depository."
"If you say so."
"You saw what we're up against. Anything we can find to tip the scales in our favor is important."
Soon, they could see the base central roundabout. The circle road featured four museum tanks in the middle with muzzles pointing out.
Christa scrunched her nose. "Geez, they really did have a thing for tanks here, didn't they?"
"It's what they were good at."
Alex stopped the ambulance a few blocks from the circle.
"Hand me your binoculars, will you?"
Christa passed the binoculars over.
Alex stared through them towards the center of town. "I see movement on those tanks. Two people are climbing up on the big tank in the circle, and they're hauling some kind of equipment. They're not zombies. Looks like they're just checking out the tanks."
Then a bright yellow flare and sparks began to fly from the top of the big tank.
"What the hell. That's an acetylene torch they're carrying, and it looks like they're trying to open the tank. Those things are welded shut, and totally disabled. What are they up to?"
"Maybe we should just go and ask them."
Alex hesitated. "I don't know. There's something about this that doesn't seem right. I'm not sure they're supposed to be doing that. What would be inside an old tank that they would want? It makes no sense."
"Maybe they just want a place to hide. No way zombies could get in there."
"I suppose, but that's such a confined space. I wouldn't want to be inside a tank surrounded by zombies."
"Alex, look. There's a bunch of zombies coming from behind those buildings. Those guys on the tank can't see them."
"They should see them now. What are they waiting for?"
"Alex, we have to help them, they're not moving."
The two men never moved. They just kept working on top of the tank. Alex looked to the right, and counted eighteen zombies walking towards the tanks. But they were pushing carts loaded up with tools, fuel cans, and what looked like old tank shells. As they approached the tanks, one of the men climbed down and gestured at the zombies. He said something to them. The zombies unloaded the carts around the base of the tank. The torch went out, and the man up top flung open a hatch and disappeared into the tank.
"I knew there was something wrong here. It looks like those two people are ordering the zombies around. Zombies don't take orders. They're not bright enough to take orders. But they pushed those carts all the way there, and now they’re unloading them. And I think they've got ammunition. Where the hell would they get tank ammunition? Someone's been planning this for a while.
"Do those tanks really work? Can they move?"
"They've cut the welds on the main hatch. And with all that ammunition, they must plan on moving those tanks. That won't be easy. That engine hasn't run in years, and those treads must be seized up. And wait a sec, since when do zombies take orders from humans?"
"I didn't even know they could understand people."
"Hang on, unless they're like you. Maybe they used to be zombies too, like you."
"No, that's crazy, I'm nothing like them. I can't talk to zombies."
"How do you know? Have you ever tried?"
Christa crossed her arms. "No, no, no. Why would I want to? They're horrible, I can't even stand looking at them."
"Sorry, I know you don't like talking about it. I'm just trying to make sense of this."
"I know. It's just I don't know how to act sometimes. Things have changed so much. Sometimes life just sucks!"
"Yes, it does, but we're going to do something about that. We'll make it better, I promise. First thing is what to do with those guys and that tank? Zombies are bad enough, but zombies in tanks is not something I want to deal with. I sure as hell don't want to be facing them down the barrel of a tank gun."
"Do you really think they can get that tank working? It looks so old."
"I don't know. What I do know is that we've seen enough of this place. We need to find Chaz. The colonel will know what to do. He's better at planning out this kind of stuff than I am. Let's go."
Alex quietly backed up the ambulance. The torch lit up again on the lower section of the tank. Christa watched as one of the men filled the tank’s fuel tank with a gas can. Alex headed down a side street, back to the main road. As soon as he was out of sight, he punched the gas pedal.
Reunion Planning
After fifteen minutes of racing down side streets, Alex realized he was lost.
"It's just around this next corner, I'm sure of it. Why is there no GPS in this thing? We have to be close to the main road. The base is just not that big. It must be around the next corner."
"Relax, you'll find it soon."
"At this rate, I'm going to end up back where we started."
Alex took the next right turn, and found himself on the main road heading towards the cemetery. He took one glance out his rear-view window, and hit the gas hard.
"We'll be there soon now. It should be only a few minutes from here."
The radio, which had been on auto scan all this time, finally sparked to life. It sounded like three taps and some garble, but Alex couldn't make it out.
"Christa, turn that up. Was that the colonel?"
Christa turned up the volume, and the message was clearer this time. There were three distinct taps followed by a message. "Alex, Alex, this is Chaz. It's Chaz. Please respond. Over."
Alex grabbed the radio, pressing the talk button. "Colonel this is Alex; we’re on our way. Sorry we're late, but we've got important information. What's your situation? Over."
"I'm fine for now, I've found a hiding place. You need to get that girl here quick, I'm in a heap of trouble. Over."
"Yes, sir, we're on our way now, should only be a few minutes. Over."
"We never heard from you, what happened. Over."
"Ahh yeah, stupid damn idea to meet in a graveyard. Even an abandoned one. Who the hell meets in a graveyard during a zombie apocalypse? I've been fighting these bastards for hours. I'm out of ammo, and been killing the last few hand to hand. I'm in the small crypt with a big cross in a circle on the door. Over."
"OK, hang on, sir, we'll be there soon. Over."
"Is the girl still with you? Is she OK? Over."
Christa cracked a smile. "I'm starting to think he likes me more and more."
Alex glanced at her sideways and rolled his eyes. "Yes, sir, she's fine. We'll both be there in no time. Over."
"OK,
I should be OK here for a while. Going to radio silence. Over."
"One more thing though, sir, that you should know about. Over."
'Yes, what is it? Over."
"I think they're planning an assault. Over."
"An assault? Who's planning it, the soldiers at the depository? Over."
"No, sir, the zombies. I think the zombies are planning something. I saw them working with some humans at the military base. At least I think they were humans. They were trying to restore a tank. Over."
"Kid, sorry, I think you're breaking up. Did you say tank? Over."
"Yes, sir, tank. Over."
Silence. Chaz never responded. Alex looked at Christa, but she just shrugged her shoulders.
"I don't think he believes you. Or the zombies got him."
"That's not funny, Christa. This is too important to lose him now. We need him."
"Colonel. Colonel, are you still there. Over."
"Yes. Damn, boy, are you sure? A tank? There haven't been any real tanks there in years. Just a few museum pieces. Over."
"Yes, sir, I know, it's one of the old ones they're trying to fix. Over."
"Great, that's all we need, Goddam zombies driving tanks. I'm definitely getting too old for this shit. Signal me when you get here. Shepard out."
Silence.
Zombies & Helicopters
"Can't you make this thing go any faster?"
Revealed: Parables From The Apocalypse - Dystopian Fiction Page 5
