by Vic Sandel
“One more thing. If we are going to conduct air operations,we are going to need fuel. As there are no refineries currently in operation, we are going to need to obtain fuel from the many airports in the surrounding area. We will need to land, clear the area, and fuel up. In addition, I suggest we obtain some tanker trucks so that we can keep our tanks here full from the same sources. Fortunately, there are over twenty airports in Ohio, ten of which are nearby.”
Chapter 23
The Mouse that Roared
Robyn returned to her lab knowing exactly what she needed to do. If the serum worked, she would need massive amounts of doses within the next two weeks.
“Hey girls, she said on entering the lab. How are the mouse tests going?”
“Yesterday, we dosed six mice with our trial vaccine, and six got a placebo,” one of the techs volunteered.
“Now we're going to dose all twelve with a mix of zombie blood and saliva, and then we wait.”
“No, we don't wait..! she insisted. “We are going to assume it will work and begin manufacture. I want you to get every spare Petri dish you can and load it with growth media. We are going to culture them with two-thirds of the colonies we have growing now, and then place them in the cabinets to grow. Then we will take the remaining third off the media and put it in more growth media.”
“We just don't have that much.”
“Tell you what, two of you grab a couple of guards,and go to every commissary, PX, and supermarket... whatever. Grab every container of cold vanilla yogurt you can find and get it here.The natural cultures in the yogurt can only help. We'll mix our cultures with some yogurt and distilled water, spin it down and away we go! “Whoa! “
She pauses to think a moment. “On second thought, pick up some containers of all natural vanilla yogurt that wasn't refrigerated. I've got a feeling we will have naturally colonized flora already packaged for us. If I'm right, that may just give us a big head start on the vaccine we need to produce.”
“Ms. Winters, it looks like we are already losing our first mouse,”a voice interrupts.
They all walked over and stared into the tank where a mouse was already in it's death throes. Within a couple of minutes, the breathing arrested and it was gone, Five minutes later it began to re-animate. Over the next hour, five more also expired.
A couple of the mice that had received lighter doses of the bacteria began to show signs of labored breathing. The mice that received heavy doses were playing, eating, and generally doing their typical mousy things.
Another hour passed and still, none of the dosed mice expired. In fact, those with the lighter doses seemed to be feeling better. Within another hour, all the mice were active and healthy looking.
There were only six ladies in Robyn's group, but from the sound of their cheers it reverberated like a stadium after a home team touchdown.
Now, if the yogurt worked, they would win the “SUPER BOWL”!
Chapter24
Saving the Coast Guard
At 08:30a.m. , The little Piper Cherokee taxied right up to the tunnel exit where Tina was patiently waiting for Jessie's arrival. He was right on time, but she had a habit of always being early.
As she climbed in, He handed her a map of USCG District 9 that covered roughly 6700 miles of shoreline, including the five Great Lakes, and part of the Saint Lawrence River. At one time, they had a cadre of over 6000 active and reserve members. It was their hope that they would still be able to locate a fair number of them and their aircraft.
They would begin their quest at Cleveland, on the southern shore of Lake Erie, and fly the map, post-by-post, stopping where they saw signs of habitation. Having marked Cleveland as bordering the infected area on the last run, they were not hopeful there. There were however, many other possibilities. Marblehead Guard Station, Fairport, and Lorraine, were all possible. There were also stations along the Ohio River.
They had called themselves “Guardian of the Great Lakes”. Tina and Jessie could only hope some were still on duty.
They carried with them a letter of introduction from Lieutenant Colonel Dickerson, that bore a legend “Regional Commander Under Express Authority of the President”.
Jessie wondered if it didn't say, from the President of the USA because they were not sure if there still was a USA! Then what was he the President of?
“He pushed the throttle. With a throaty little growl, his Cherokee ran down the runway and takes off into the air.
Both Jessie and Tina realized that their mission was a stretch. There was very little left of an organized military anywhere in the world. Here and there, pockets of men and women fought to retain some semblance of a military operation. This was mainly a means of common survival.
They approached the USCG Cleveland station from the West, to avoid the dead they had seen near the eastern side when they were here last.
A quick flyover assured them that the fences and gates were still intact. Even better, there were a couple of cars in the lot and a small, part inflatable rescue boat was tied up to the dock. The helipad was empty, but what they had seen made it worth taking a closer look.
He set the plane down on the roadway and taxied to the front gate. Not taking any undue risks, they geared up as if they were going into combat and stepped down from the plane.
Before they even try the gate, a man came out of the building and met them. He was, at least, partially in uniform. “Can I help you?”
“Yes, you can actually, I'm Jessie Porter and this young lady is Tina Pearson. We have been sent here by command at Wright Patterson to assess the readiness and remaining resources of the Coast Guard units of District 9.”
“Not really much left, as you can see.”
“ It would be of great help to us if we could come in and talk about what's left. Also, as this was the command post for the area, a roster and chain of command list would also be greatly appreciated.”
The guy was visibly reluctant to admit them, but turning them away would look even worse. He unlocked the gate and led them into the still well-kept, brick building.
“Are you alone here?” Tina asked.
His hesitation showed that he was struggling to find an answer that would not give anything away.
Jessie decided to push it. “It's a simple yes or no answer. I mean, it's not like she asked you to recite the Gettysburg Address.”
“Yes, I'm the only one here.”
Jessie walked toward an office with an open door and a desk sign that read T.C. Walker Commandant. This man was obviously not Walker. “Where would I find Commander Walker?”
“He's been gone a few months.”
“Gone where?”
“You know... gone... dead.”
He continued toward the desk, allegedly looking for the files he was seeking. His attention had been drawn to some flashy, gold metal poking out from between some papers strewn upon the desk. “Is this where I find the reports I'm looking for?”
As he bent over the desk, the man came up behind him, picked up a heavy trophy and swung it at Jessie's head. Tina was too fast. She stopped his thrust by grabbing the speeding arm with one hand.
Her strength surprises the former soldier. As she held him in a vice like grip he looked into her face. For the first time in years, she dropped her fangs and hissed at him. The would be assailant promptly lost control of his bodily functions.
Pushing him into a chair, Jessie held up a bunch of gold jewelry he had picked up off the desk. “Now you want to tell us where this came from and why?”
The man, who said his name was Eric, needed no further coaxing. He told them all about the little business they were running. There were three, all together, who considered themselves former members of the United States Coast Guard. All of the others, officers and enlisted alike, left to join their families and none had ever returned. He even told them about a rumor he heard about a group of officers that had loaded their families onto a cutter and were living aboard it out in the ocean somewhe
re.
His scheme was simpler. There were hundreds of small islands in the lakes, and in the St. Lawrence area. People could live there, easily, as fresh water and fish were still plentiful. For a fee, their cars, or gold, they would fly them and supplies to one of these “safe” islands.
Tina jumped all over that. “You said FLY!”
“Yeah, we have a Sikorsky MH60T Jayhawk.”
They could not have heard better news. That was one of the best craft in the sky, with a speed of one-hundred-eighty knots and a range of seven-hundred miles.
“Where is this helicopter now?”
Eric looked at his watch. “Actually, it should be landing here in about twenty minutes.”
“Tina, tie this gentleman up. I'm going to hide the plane.”
By the time the Jayhawk was within visual range, the Cherokee was hidden in what used to be an underground parking garage.
The pilots were quite the pair, both still wearing dirty uniform parts, t-shirts, a couple of weeks' facial growth, and one with a cheap cigar stuck in his mouth. They never suspected a thing, as nothing was out of place. They plopped themselves right down on the helipad and strutted, laughing and joking, right into the office.
What they found when they entered the room, however, was something else altogether.
Eric was still tied to his chair in the center of the room. This is the first thing they saw when they came inside. One turned to leave, but was met with the muzzle of Tina's M-16. The other one, reached for a sidearm, but before it cleared his holster, someone else was holding it.
Jessie was in great spirits. “Tell me, are you three the best that the USCG has to offer these days?”
“Who the f#%k are you?”
“Believe me, you don't want to know.” Eric expressed from his chair.
“Well put, Jessie said, but I want these clowns to know just how much trouble they are in. We represent the military commanding from Wright Patterson Air Force Base, and indirectly The President, under who's command District 9 now falls. In any wartime situation, you three could and would, be executed for too many violations to list. Make no mistake about it, we are at war!”
Jessie had Tina read the letter from Colonel Dickerson for additional effect. Then Jessie continued.
“ We are duly authorized to carry out that sentence, here and now. As for who we are and whether or not we will do it, I'm sure you have heard of CAG Teams. Well, Tina and I are both from CAG-1.”
“Does that mean that you both are...?”
“Damn right, they are!” Shouted Eric from his place again. “You should see her teeth.”
Jessie continued, “ It so happens that you caught me in a charitable mood. As it happens, we are in need of both pilots and helicopters. If you want to rejoin the world of men, instead of stinking and profiteering crooks, we can make that happen.”
All three responded with an enthusiastic yes.
“I know you are all repentant now, and will say anything to live. Make no mistake gentlemen, if you violate orders or protocol in any way from here on, I or one of my colleagues will hunt you down and kill you in a most unpleasant manner, or maybe just feed you to the zombies.”
He paused for emphasis. “Now, I want one of you to go fill that chopper to the brim with fuel. Tina will go with you to make sure you are a good boy. You other two will show me the maps and roster I requested earlier, and tell me everything you know about the other nearby stations, such as which ones still have choppers.”
In about fifteen minutes, they had gotten everything they requested.
“ What's going to happen next is that you three are going to board that helicopter and fly it to Wright Patterson. Just in case you think I'm stupid or too trusting, I've arranged a little escort to keep you from getting lost. It should be arriving momentarily.”
He had used the Cherokee's radio while he was taxiing it to a hiding spot, and requested that Bob, or one of the Huey pilots, rush here as an escort. What he heard next, surprised even him!
The sky was filled with a sound that nobody had heard for many months, the unmistakable roar of a high powered jet engine.
The building shook as Pete, the guy who flew the C-113 earlier, passed low over the building in an F-14 fighter, they had pulled from storage. It seems that he had flown one during the war in the 1960's, and was anxious to get into the fight. He wagged his wings, signaling that he was ready to see that this particular helicopter made it to Wright Patterson.
“Your escort has arrived gentlemen. I suggest you take off , before he becomes impatient. Bear in mind, that he is fully loaded and aware of your treason!”
As the Sikorsky took to the air, Jessie and Tina had no doubt as to its destination.
Tina and Jessie congratulated each other as they toasted with a couple of pulls from a bottle of Scotch, liberated from Commander Walker's desk. After a quick search for anything else they might be able to use, they headed out to their hidden aircraft.
They taxied over to the fuel pumps and topped off the little craft, before locking up and heading for their next stop.
Chapter25
Zombicle 1 the Maiden Voyage
For hours they had been testing the liquid Nitrogen spray nozzles mounted at the doors, and the newly installed gun ports of the giant Chinook. After a couple of bursts, they had to resolve an icing problem that quickly caused clogging and rendered the whole idea useless. Oddly enough, the problem was quickly resolved by Mr. Banks, who used a cutting torch to remove a filter that had been built into the converted water nozzles. They now had a high pressure range of over fifty feet and could turn it up to a maximum of over seventy-five feet.
The giant air separator functioned perfectly and they were able to install a second generator in case one failed.
Today would be the first field test, and a chance to slow the advance of the ever-moving horde. Bob Eller would lead the pack in his converted traffic chopper, heading for the coordinates he had recently marked. The Chinook would follow, trailed by a Huey full of volunteers from the base with sledgehammers and baseball bats and led by Bradley, Bob's second recruit.
Good to his word, Bob had managed to get a message to friends at CAG-23, out of Illinois who would be arriving within a couple of days. They, in turn, were going to put the word out to see what groups were not currently engaged and could offer help.
Despite how involved everyone was, the entire facility was abuzz about the Jayhawk coming in with two pilots, and of all things, escorted by old Pete in an F-14. Everyone was especially aware of how Jessie and Tina had pulled the whole thing off. Between that and seeing the Chinook ready to fly, the people at Wright Patterson were beginning to have real hope. If only they had known that Robyn's infected rats were still alive after three days, they would have been ecstatic!
The plan was to leave in approximately two hours. They should catch the zombies in the open, with the sun going down to cool things off, but still plenty of light.
Everyone's attention was distracted as a big, colorful helicopter began to descend right in the midst of the other craft, being readied to leave.
To add to that distraction was the rumble of the F-14 coming down on the runway, a short distance from where they all stood.
Chapter26
The Mouse Ran Up The Clock
The mice were still running, and playing, at least the ones that had been treated with the test vaccine. In addition, they had made a wonderful discovery. While the yogurt that had been refrigerated made a great media for culturing the bacterium they needed, it also provided an excellent base for the serum itself. It supported the specific cultures they wanted, as well as adding other positive flora.
That had been expected, but it was the unrefrigerated cups that provided the biggest and best surprise. While the natural bacterium had sat at room temperatures and above, they aggressively colonized. It was exactly what Robyn suspected when she asked for samples to be taken. Everything they would have cultured was already there along
with other beneficial organisms. It was like a “hospital in a cup”.
Simply spinning off the unneeded product and placing the live cells in a thinner medium to make them injectable, produced a workable vaccine.
She ordered high doses to be prepared immediately and placed in syringes. These would be administered to the men and women who were due to leave in just under two hours on the mission to test the freezing strategy. It was a good feeling. The vaccine might not be as effective on the volunteers as it was on the mice, but it certainly couldn't hurt.
They needed to find out how long the enhanced bacteria count would remain in the body, or if repeated doses would be needed.
Chapter27
Brian & Co.
As Jessie and Tina flew along the shore to the northwest, they fortunately saw no sign of the zombie hordes. Actually, they saw no signs of anything. There was no movement of any kind, for miles on end.
The first two listed Coast Guard facilities, unfortunately had been completely vacated. Following the shoreline, they banked slowly to the east to put them on a course to the next post shown on their map. They were about thirty miles out when suddenly their radio crackled to life.
“Piper Cherokee, this is USCG Rescue Helicopter R-3, do you copy?”
“Coast Guard R-3, this is the Cherokee, where are you?”
“Look back and up about five-hundred feet. We've been following you for the last ten miles or so.”
Thinking back to the pilots they just met, Jessie got right to the point. “We're not going to have any trouble with you too are we?”
“On the contrary, in fact we have been expecting you.”
“How could you have known we were coming?'
“We have been monitoring your plane-to-plane and plane-to- base radio transmissions for a couple of days. My flight engineer has rigged our base with some pretty beefed up equipment and we have the generators to power it. Unlike those other scumbags you met, we still consider ourselves part of the U.S. Military!”
