37 Days In A Strange World

by Dave Hazel

  “Hey Myk, come here,” Jake waved him away as he approached their group. “Just Myk. C’mere, I need to ask you something.”

  “Wait a minute, Myk,” Larry tried to stop him from leaving. “You never told us what happened to your cousin and his friends. Don’t leave us hanging like this.”

  “I’ll tell ya later. Better yet, read the book. It’s called Street Shock, by Dave Hazel,” he chuckled and left them hanging.

  “Myk, you know those gut feelings you always get, that are usually right?” Jake asked. “Do you have one now?”

  “No, not really, why?”

  “I’m ready to get out of here. I don’t know if I’m just being paranoid, but I have this bad feeling that we need to get moving and get moving now,” Jake said and they both looked in all directions around the camp position to ensure no danger loomed. They could see for miles, only grass swayed in the wind. “Myk, I really feel like something is gonna go wrong.”

  6.

  After an hour of quiet boredom, the car jerked to a sliding halt on the grass. “Damn! Look at that,” Kurt said, jolting the others from their sleep and near sleep comfort.

  The rise in the land had prevented seeing the enormous quantities of acreage that lay before them. From the peak of the elevation the other side sloped down into a long, lush, green valley. Multiple thousands of Sosos stretched to the left and to the right. Sosos seemed to stretch miles in both directions. The vast size of the army was breathtaking with the nearest Sosos approximately two miles away. The Sosos traveled south and seemed to be roaming at a casual pace. They were spread out, but they didn’t seem to be as numerous as those they just fled from.

  “Damn, that group we ran through the other day was tiny compared to this,” Boris gawked.

  All the other vehicles stopped alongside the Ford LTD. Kurt waved all the vehicles back with him until they were out of sight should any Soso turn around. A couple guards were posted at the top of the slope so the group could come up with a plan.

  Mykal and those with him stood behind the car waiting for the leadership to take charge. The first few people gravitated to them. “What I don’t understand, Towbar,” Mykal said. “How did an army this large go by Light and the convoy and not see them?”

  “I believe this army advanced from the west. They would never have been close to Light and his people.”

  Soon everyone gathered around them. Mykal feared the leaders would accuse him of trying to take control, but Lt Light brought his people to them as well. He realized he must stop worrying what others might think or it could be dangerous. He had to do what’s best for him, because Edwards and Mansfield wouldn’t have his best interest at heart. Mykal noticed Edwards and Mansfield didn’t join the group.

  “Do we have any suggestions?” MSgt Flemour asked for Light.

  Jake answered first. “I say drive right through them. We can get through them before they really know what’s happening.”

  Mykal nodded as if thinking the idea over. He didn’t want to reveal that he had planned the same thing. He hated walking a tight rope because of others’ perception of him grabbing power.

  “Why don’t we try to drive around them?” SSgt Fisher asked.

  “Time and fuel,” Larry replied. “Did you see how much land they covered? We don’t need to waste the gas, cuz as it stands now we’re not sure all the vehicles are gonna make it to the Pass.”

  “Driving through them would be easy,” Jake said. “We could creep up on them and then just rush through before they have time to react. They’re really spread out.”

  “The surprise and the speed of your crafts will terrify them and allow us to move through them quickly,” Towbar said. “For the most part they will flee before fighting.”

  “Mrs. Holen is making use of our Peacekeepers,” Light said and pointed to one of the four armor plated vehicles. “If any of you civilians feel the need for the added protection you are more than welcome to ride with us. The primitive weapons of the Sosos will not harm the Peacekeepers.”

  “Where are Lt Edwards and Mansfield?” Mykal asked as he scanned the crowd.

  “They won’t get outta their vehicle,” someone answered.

  “Those chicken shit bastards,” Boris scoffed.

  Mykal saw Light give Boris a reprimanding glare, but Boris shrugged it off as if he didn’t care. Mykal diverted the focus away from Boris. “Okay, this is what we’ll do, everyone just rush through, and don’t shoot unless you absolutely have to. My vehicle will stay behind just in case something goes wrong. If something should go wrong we’ll draw the Sosos to us while everyone else gets through and then we’ll catch up.”

  “We will?” Kurt asked. “It’s nice to know I’m volunteering to be the suicidal bait.”

  “We’ll stay back with you, Myk,” Roy Dosch said and both his sons agreed with him.

  “We’ll fall back too,” Denny said. “I want all my men to stay together.”

  Mykal nodded. “Good, all we’re going to do is make sure everyone gets through and then we’re going to follow behind all of you. Just get through and don’t stop until we’re a few miles ahead of them.”

  “Once again, would any of you civilians like to ride in the Peacekeepers?” Light offered again. They all declined.

  “Everyone, listen up,” Jake said. “This is a simple plan, but I want to make sure we’re all on the same page so there are no mistakes. We’re going to proceed at a steady pace to sneak up on the Sosos. When we get close enough to sound the alarm via the radio or horn, or if they detect us, then we’ll haul ass. So don’t stop. Follow orders and we’ll get through them quickly.”

  “Don’t take off until you hear the signal,” Mykal said. “We don’t wanna put anyone at risk.”

  “Somebody better go let the LT know what’s going on,” Larry said angrily. “I don’t understand why he wouldn’t be here to know what we’re planning. This is bullshit.”

  “He’s a chicken shit,” Kurt replied.

  “That’s enough!” Lt Light stopped him from saying another word. “I don’t want to hear any more of that talk. I’ll make sure they’re informed as to the plan. Mykal, come here,” Light said while everyone dispersed to their vehicles.

  “Yes Sir,” Mykal said and started to laugh because Kurt quietly clucked like a chicken as he walked away.

  “I just wanted to tell you personally, I’m very impressed that you took it upon yourself to be the rear guard.”

  “Well thank you Sir, I appreciate that.” Mykal fought hard not to laugh. Kurt stood behind Lt Light flapping his arms and bobbing his head to simulate a chicken flapping its wings. “I just wanna make sure everyone gets through, that’s all.”

  “Well, good job, Sergeant.” Light returned to his vehicle.

  “I’m gonna kill you, you dumb ass,” Mykal laughed at Kurt when he joined them at the car. “You looked like a goof trying to make me laugh in front of Lt Light.” He was glad his friends tried to be humorous and light hearted in the midst of the dangerous situation before them. It helped ease the tension.

  The vehicles moved forward, spread out in a line, side by side. The civilian vehicles were in the middle and the larger Peacekeepers on the ends. Mykal’s vehicle lagged behind the line. The Dosch station wagon and Denny’s Suburban joined them. Light directed the speed of the vehicles over the radio.

  “Slow and easy, keep the pace,” Light spoke softly into the radio. “Be patient. . .” he said as they closed to within a mile of the Sosos. The Sosos were oblivious to their presence.

  “Look at that,” Boris said. Scattered throughout the massive army were many large wooden carts and wagons. Some being drawn by oxen and some carts could be seen being pulled by teams of eight, ten and twelve humans. Oxen were tied to the back of the human drawn wooden rigs. “Look how skinny those people are and the animal is just coasting along all fat, dumb and happy.”

  “Those are slaves, my friends,” Towbar said. “Prisoners from Soso lands who are not killed
immediately are worked to death. When those people are dead they will use the beasts to pull their supplies.”

  “Damn, that’s screwed up,” Kurt said.

  “The slaves will never arrive at the Pass,” Towbar said. “They will be killed before the Sosos go into battle. Sosos will not give the slaves an opportunity to turn on them during battle.”

  “…Keep the formation,” Light continued to instruct through the radio speaker. “Be patient, hold steady.”

  “I wouldn’t allow that to happen to me,” Kurt said. “They’d have to kill me before I’d let that happen to me. --What the hell?” Kurt yelled. Without warning, one of the Ford Broncos made a mad dash from the rest of the pack. “They’re gonna alert the Sosos!”

  Only Jake and Edwards had Ford Broncos. Mykal knew it wasn’t Jake. “It’s Edwards! Gimme the radio.”

  “Halt! Halt! Stop your advancement,” Light ordered. All the military vehicles stopped which in turned made the civilian automobiles put on the breaks, to follow their example. Confusion ensued.

  Mykal grabbed the microphone from Boris and yelled into the radio. “Get back or I’ll shoot your friggin tires out,” he lied in hopes of slowing them. They seemed to increase their speed.

  When the lone Bronco closed in on the rear of the Sosos a number of them turned to the strange noise. They seemed to be startled by the strange thing charging toward them. War cries and shouts spread through the army. The alarm of terror triggered a domino effect which quickly consumed others to the potential danger.

  “Stupid ass,” Mykal growled and punched the head rest of the front seat. “I knew it. If anyone would screw this up it would be that friggin Edwards and Mansfield.”

  “Go! Go! Go!” Kurt said while pounding his horn.

  Mykal yelled into the microphone. “Haul ass! Go. Just go as fast as you can.” The civilian vehicles didn’t have radios. They had to rely on the actions of the military vehicles.

  Vehicles picked up speed and honked their horns. Those equipped with sirens used them. Sosos wisely fled from the weird beasts. The noise seemed to have a bigger impact than just the sheer size of the vehicles bearing down on them.

  From everything they learned from Towbar, Mykal knew Sosos weren’t afraid to die. It had to be the unknown that terrified them and forced them to flee in a panic. Denny and Roy pulled their cars closer to Mykal’s.

  “I hope that coward gets killed,” Kurt said while rolling his hands tightly over the steering wheel.

  “Why? You’ll rob us of the fun of taking care of that stupid moron,” Boris said with a humorless evil glare.

  Per Mykal’s orders they opened the doors and began shooting Sosos to get the attention drawn to them and away from those fleeing. With every round fired a Soso would fall, but the impact was like trying to empty a swimming pool with a drinking cup.

  When the Sosos saw that humans had been birthed from within the three stationary beasts, a large number of Sosos re-focused and counter-attacked. For every Soso that hit the ground several others instantly replaced them. The rifle shots sounded like little pops drowned by the roar of yells and war cries.

  Mykal watched Carl Olsen’s metallic green Fleetwood veer off course and chase down some of the fleeing Sosos. He couldn’t believe his eyes when the Fleetwood plowed into the passenger rear side of Doris Holen’s white Civic. The little 1980 Honda Civic was no match for the brutish 1982 Cadillac Fleetwood.

  The crunching sound of metal crashing into metal slipped through the roar of Sosos. The Honda Civic began to spin and suddenly flipped. Glass shattered and the little car reminded Mykal of a child’s toy being flicked into the air. Grateful Doris and her two little children were not inside the car, Mykal feared for the two volunteers driving her Civic.

  The Civic rolled a couple of times, throwing one of the occupants through the small opening where the windshield had been. The manner in which the body twisted on the ground looked more like a lifeless dummy rather than a real human being. After the Civic stopped moving, a muffled explosion jerked the car and it burst into flames. The nearest Sosos fled. Mykal guessed they feared it was some sort of fire breathing creature.

  The Cadillac jolted and bounced to a stop upon impact. The front of the car crumpled inward slightly and immediately two holes appeared in the windshield where the driver and front passenger’s heads slammed forward. From a distance Sosos stared and marveled at the odd sight of creature attacking creature.

  “Kurt, get us over there,” Mykal ordered and they all got back into the car. “Hurry before it’s too late.”

  The three vehicles raced through the angry mob of Sosos, forcing them to react in panic. They fled from the sight and sounds of the metal beasts charging. All the other vehicles made it safely from harm’s way.

  “What are we doing, Myk?” Kurt asked while Boris and Mykal continued shooting at the closest Sosos. Kurt pointed his newly acquired GAU out the window and squeezed off rounds at the moving wall of Sosos. “These guys are all dead. Let’s get the hell outta here before we get killed,” he shouted over the siren.

  “Shut up and get as close as you can,” Mykal demanded while shooting a Soso in the chest. “I don’t want anyone left behind to be tortured,” he said while squeezing off another shot and hitting a Soso in the side of his head.

  “Don’t risk your life trying to save these ungrateful bastards,” Boris said. “How can we take care of them if they’re severely injured?”

  “I want their ammo!” Mykal yelled to reveal his true motive.

  The front passenger door of the Fleetwood opened. Sr. Airman John Carris stumbled out from the front seat, but fell to his knees. He held his body against the open door and seemed dazed as he struggled to hold steady. Blood streaked down his face from the injury to his head. John looked around, stunned and unsure.

  Carris wobbled and tried to rise. Mykal saw four Sosos charge at him. Mykal had to readjust his rifle and shoot fast to stop the four who closed in on Carris. The first round caught a Soso in the chest. The second round drilled into the neck of the next Soso which forced him to spin as he fell. Mykal shot at the third Soso, but the second spun and fell into the path of the bullet intended for the third Soso. The second had been struck twice and Mykal’s bolt locked to the rear signaling his thirty round clip had been depleted.

  Mykal nearly cried out in desperation as he raced to reload with a new magazine. He considered John Carris a close friend which put sudden, unbearable, pressure on him. Speed and accuracy was of utmost importance, as the two Sosos neared the delirious, bleeding, John Carris. The two Sosos seemed unfazed by the sudden, mysterious, deaths of their comrades.

  Magazine slapped, bolt released, rifle leveled to shoot, but too late. Mykal saw an axe slam into John’s head as if the Soso chopped wood. The Soso yelled a maniacal war cry as he yanked the axe which ripped the back of John’s head open. The raised axe pulled blood and brain matter away. John fell limp against the door and suddenly the axe struck again, knocking him face first into the grass.

  “You bastards!” Mykal howled and squeezed off several shots to kill the two Sosos who chopped on John’s body.

  After all three vehicles neared the wreckage, Mykal jumped out of the car and shot at anything that moved near the accident scene. Mykal had to act and react, not think. He forced a numbing detachment upon himself or he would have had a mental breakdown since he failed to rescue his friend.

  The others trained their fire at the Sosos who neared the vehicles or who moved toward Mykal. Recklessly, Mykal ran to the Cadillac. Though completely surrounded, most Sosos stayed back.

  Mykal had to check for survivors first. He glanced back to see some of his friends left the safety of the vehicles to provide him protective covering fire. He caught sight of some of the vehicles in the safe zone returning to help. He was grateful and impressed by their courage.

  Mykal didn’t worry about Sosos getting through to him. His trust lay in his friends keeping potential threats away. With the add
itional help it emboldened him to be more aggressive in his task. There were many rifles firing to keep the enemy back.

  He stepped over the near headless body of John Carris and the shock of what he saw almost made him vomit. In that split second of time, Mykal knew he would never get the vile image of John’s open and bloody cranium out of his mind. For the rest of his life it would haunt him that he ran out of ammo and couldn’t save his friend. He would never be able to face John’s wife without a sense of guilt that he couldn’t reload faster.

  Standing over John’s body he peered into the car. Carl Olsen appeared to be dead. He slumped over the steering wheel that pressed into his chest. His forehead seemed dented and bloody where it collided with the windshield. An open gash in his receding hair line allowed a track of blood to paint down over his nose and lips and off his chin onto his lap.

  In the back seat Airman ‘Stinky Feet’ Smith began to scream hysterically when Mykal looked into the door. Smith didn’t appear to be hurt, just terrified. He held his knees up to his chest and screamed as if Mykal intended to harm him.

  Beside Smith in the back seat, lay the unconscious form of A1C Gabriel Lopez. Mykal knew Lopez survived the crash. He saw small pink bubbles form around Lopez’s nose with every breath.

  “Smith, are you alright?” Mykal yelled to snap Smith’s screaming spasm. “Gabe’s alive, are you alright?”

  “Yeah, I think,” he said with trembling wide eyed terror.

  “Gimme a hand with Lopez.”

  “John’s dead,” Smith blurted, on the edge of crying. “We’re gonna die.” He started to panic again.

  “Stop it, right now!” Mykal commanded. “Gimme a hand. We don’t have time,” he yelled as gunshots rang out around them. “Get out and bring Lopez with you. I’ll be right back. Grab your damn rifle!”

  “What do I do if--”

  Mykal didn’t listen to the question. He made a mad dash to the burning Honda Civic. While running toward the orangey glow of the car he saw Towbar chasing Sosos with his sword that gave off a blue glow. The giant swung the big mighty blade with speed and ferocity. The peculiar glow of the blade distracted him. He couldn’t understand how all the weapons thrown at Towbar seemed to be hurled at the glowing blade. When the enemy weapons made contact with his sword they seem to explode with sparks and flames. Those weapons then fell to the ground as broken junk.