by Hatchett
“Ok guys, better go. Good luck.”
With that, Daniel used the toilet before returning to his office to try to get some sleep. He took a long look out of the open window and felt a sense of dread at what he could see, or what he couldn’t. London was bathed in darkness, save for the reflection of a Full Moon coming off some buildings and the river. It was eerie to see no lights anywhere, especially along the embankment which was usually lit up like a fairground. There were no boats on the river, no cars or buses moving along the roads and none of the usual sounds of a busy capital city which never slept. All he could hear, apart from the snoring coming from Mamba and the others behind him, was the constant and jarring undertone of the zombies moving about below him in the dark, the grunts and the chattering or teeth. At that point he felt very lonely and wondered if there was anything to look forward to.
17
Day 4 – 7:00
Tower of London, Outer Ward
Mamba had awoken in a foul mood, mainly due to a hangover, which he would never admit having to anyone. It seemed that it was going to be yet another mainly dull day, with plenty of cloud and wind, but the odd break in the cloud to allow a flash of sunlight now and again.
Mamba had been barking orders all morning and they’d only been awake an hour or so; Ahmed and Skelly were to move all civilians from the buildings in the Outer Ward to the Inner Ward so that they were all in one place and could be controlled more easily. Mamba would take the armoured truck to fetch the Judge, with Isaac, Grace, Dodge and Bird. Daniel would also go along with him. Ahmed, Skelly, and the rest would keep guard while he was away.
“So, where’s this fuckin’ truck? Mamba asked Daniel. “Good to see you’re not wearin’ a dress anymore.”
“In a garage in the Outer Ward,” Daniel replied. He had decided it would not be a good idea to wear his uniform anymore as it would be a constant reminder of who he was. Instead, he had put on a pair of jeans, a work shirt, hoody, and a pair of combat-style boots.
“Can you drive it?”
“Yes.”
“Then go and brin’ it to the main gate. Pinky, you go with him.”
Daniel and Isaac set off walking along the corridor of the Outer Ward.
“Why does he call you Pinky?” Daniel asked.
“No idea. He calls me Pinky and my brother Perky. I doubt he even knows why.”
“Pinky and Perky were a pair of puppet pigs for children’s TV many years ago. It was probably before I was born so there’s no way Mamba could’ve seen it either,” Daniel advised.
“He’s just heard it somewhere and thinks he’s funny. He can’t brin’ himself to call me by my proper name. He has to take the piss all the time.”
“You don’t like him, do you?”
“There’s not much to like, but there’s not much I can do about it anyway.”
“What’s going to happen when the Judge gets here?”
“Dunno. He’ll be the boss and Mamba will do whatever he’s told.”
“No, I mean, once the Judge is here, whether it is later today, tomorrow or next week or next month, what does he intend to do?”
“Dunno. So long as we do as we’re told, we get to live.”
“I guess we’ll have to wait and see.” They walked along the Eastern Corridor in silence, past the houses, both each lost in their own thoughts, wondering what the coming days would bring. They reached the Northern Corridor and turned East. A few yards to their left were two large arches, both blocked off by two huge wooden doors.
“Here we are,” Daniel advised, coming out of his reverie. He walked over to the first door, took a set of keys out of his pocket, and undid the large padlock. “Give me a hand,” he advised as he started to pull the door open. Isaac helped with the second door and they soon had the two doors fully open. Without thinking, Daniel reached an arm inside and flicked a switch. Row after row of lights came on. ‘I must remember to keep the emergency generator going’ Daniel thought to himself. In front of them were several vehicles in what looked like showroom condition. Isaac stared in awe at the gleaming metal. He could see a couple of black limousines, a couple of dark green Land Rovers, a black Range Rover and two large white Ford F-650 armoured trucks which had been specially converted to protect sovereign artefacts when they were transported outside the Tower. There were other vehicles the other side of the trucks, but Isaac was transfixed on them.
“Here’s our ride,” Daniel said pointing to one of the trucks. “She’s a beauty, isn’t she? Six-point seven litre Diesel V8 engine, four-wheel drive, over three hundred horsepower, weighs about four tons, six metres long and will just about plough through anything.”
Isaac was still staring.
“Let’s go,” Daniel ordered as he selected a set of keys off a hook from a board fixed to the wall. He clicked the fob and the truck’s lights flicked on and off in time to a couple of beeps. Daniel walked around to the driver’s side, opened the door, and climbed up into the seat. Isaac quickly got in on the passenger side.
Daniel turned the keys and the engine came to life with a roar, made even louder in the confined space. It was a six-speed automatic gearbox, so Daniel only had to touch the accelerator to get the truck moving and he slowly drove out into the corridor before getting out to close the garage doors behind him. He then drove the truck down towards the Byward Tower, shut down the engine and got out.
Mamba had come across to Byward Tower to watch the truck’s approach. He was impressed, and it lightened his dark mood. He could feel the excitement building; it looked like a white tank without a turret. He could see that the front bumper was reinforced and would protect the engine and lights from breaking under an impact.
Once the truck had stopped, he walked around it and noticed a heavy side door sitting behind the passenger door and just one door at the back. He wandered back, opened the passenger door to have a quick look in the cabin and saw that it could seat three across, or four at a push. He then opened the side door to see what was inside and found a couple more seats and plenty of standing room. It also had access to both the Cabin at the front and the secure box at the back.
“What do you think?” Daniel asked.
“Cool, but I need to check the roof.” With that, Mamba used the reinforced bumper to get onto the bonnet and then checked the top of the vehicle. “This is great. Danny Boy, you’re drivin’. Grace and Bird in the cab. Me, Dodge and Pinky on the roof; there are some rails we can clip ourselves onto so get your harnesses on. I’ll also secure a coupla automatics in case we drop our own; I think we’re goin’ to have to smash some things out of the way, so it may be a bumpy ride.” He handed Grace a walkie-talkie. “You sit next to Danny Boy and follow instructions. Bird, you make sure everythin’ is hunky-dory in the cab.”
“Where are we going and what’s the plan?” Daniel asked. “We can only get a handful of people in this truck.”
“We’re goin’ to the Green Park Estate in Aylward Street to pick up the Judge and Jury. If we can, we’ll get some other transport on the way. Do you know where you’re goin’?”
“We’ve got satnav, so we’ll find it,” Daniel replied.
“Ahmed, Skelly,” Mamba shouted as he turned in their direction. “You’re in charge of gettin’ the portcullis up and down. I’ll tell you when. Get some shooters onto the ramparts to take out anythin’ close on the other side.”
“The zombies are attracted by noise,” Daniel interrupted so if you start shooting here you’ll only attract more.”
“What do you suggest smartarse?” Mamba asked.
“If you have any hand grenades then I would get someone to go to the North-East corner and lob a few over the wall. That should attract those near the gate. If you don’t have any, then just start shooting or making a noise.”
Mamba pondered that for a moment. “Good idea.” He turned to Nelson and handed him a walkie-talkie. “Get another coupla guys, some hand grenades and guns and get to the rampart in the North-East corner.
Start lobbin’ grenades at intervals to attract the zombies when I say so.”
“It’s Legge’s Mount,” Daniel advised.
“What is?”
“The tower in the North-East corner of the outer wall.”
“Whoopie-do!” Mamba replied sarcastically, before climbing onto the roof of the truck.
With that, everyone else set off to carry out their assigned roles. Ahmed took a sub-group to deal with the portcullis and Skelly took a sub-group up onto the ramparts in case he needed to start taking out any remaining zombies on the drawbridge. Daniel, Grace, and Bird got in the cab and Isaac and Dodge followed Mamba onto the roof of the truck where they secured themselves and the additional weapons to the rails. Daniel started the truck and moved so it was facing the portcullis.
“You ready Nelson?” Mamba asked.
“Nearly there,” came the out of breath response from Nelson, “coupla minutes.”
Mamba looked around and noticed a few zombies trying to reach them through the portcullis. He looked down and saw a couple of gang members hanging around.
“Oi, arseholes! Take those fuckers out,” Mamba ordered, pointing towards the zombies. The two gang members raised their automatics and were about to shoot the zombies before Mamba shouted, “No! You fuckin’ morons. We need to be quiet so use your fuckin’ knifes!”
The two gang members put their guns across their backs and took out their knifes before walking carefully forward and stabbing the zombies in the head. As the zombies fell, they were replaced by other zombies and there didn’t seem to be any end to the line. They turned towards Mamba, not sure what to do. Mamba just rolled his eyes and gestured a stabbing motion, so the two men turned back to the portcullis to continue stabbing.
As they did so, Nelson came though on the walkie-talkie. “Ready Mamba.”
“Do it boy!” Mamba ordered.
Up on Legge’s Mount, Nelson looked at his colleagues and smiled before pulling the pin on his grenade and sending it out into the sea of zombies in the dry moat below. All three looked over the wall and a few seconds later there was a massive explosion followed by bits of bodies, blood and shrapnel being sent in all directions. The explosion also created a large gap in the zombie sea and Nelson commented that he ‘felt a bit like Moses’ to much confusion from his two colleagues. The noise attracted all the other zombies around the area and they started heading in the general direction of the noise. Nelson and his colleagues smiled at one another; this was fun! It didn’t take long for the gap to be closed and Nelson nodded to one of his colleagues. The gang member pulled the pin on his own grenade and launched it over the top.
There was another massive explosion followed by a rain of zombie debris before the third gang member did likewise.
The intermittent explosions were having the desired effect; zombies all along the Eastern and Northern walls were shuffling towards the North-East corner of the Tower and yet more were falling into the dry moat from the pavements above the moat. The zombies on the drawbridge were also drawn towards the noise, taking the direct route, and tumbling off the drawbridge into the dry moat.
By the time the sixth grenade had exploded, and Nelson and his buddies had started shooting, the drawbridge was almost clear and there wouldn’t be a better time to move. Mamba gave the order and the portcullis started rising. The two gang members at the gate stepped out of the way and were joined by half a dozen more of their colleagues.
“What are you lot fuckin’ doin’?” Mamba screamed from the top of the vehicle as Daniel revved the engine, ready to depart.
“We’re goin’ to secure the tower at the end of the drawbridge,” replied one of the gang members. Mamba shrugged his acceptance as the truck lurched forwards.
“Mind your fuckin’ head,” Dodge shouted as he ducked down onto the roof of the vehicle. Isaac had already seen the portcullis was still low enough to take your head off and was already down. He was a bit disappointed Dodge had had the nous to shout because Mamba had been distracted and could’ve been taken out. Mamba soon flattened himself on the truck’s roof before it made it to the portcullis. The truck easily ploughed through the dead zombies at the gate, although there was the odd jolt and crunching as the truck rolled over the harder bits.
The truck picked up some speed and smashed into a couple of zombies who had been a bit slow to react to the sounds of the explosions. The eight gang members at the gate were running behind the truck ready to secure Middle Tower and drop the portcullis in that building. As they did so, the portcullis in Byward Tower was already being lowered.
Daniel drove through Middle Tower and turned left, heading for the path along the embankment.
“Where the fuck is he goin’?” Mamba asked no one in particular. He was now sitting on the truck’s roof and had expected the truck to turn right and steam up the road past the various gift shops and restaurants. He picked up his walkie-talkie and asked the question. A few seconds later Bird advised that Daniel couldn’t go the other way because there were bollards and metal gates everywhere, so it was easier to go the other way.
“That’s fuckin’ terrorists for you!” Mamba shouted above the noise of the wind and the vehicle. “Have to block off all the bloody access roads to stop some fuckin’ nutter tryin’ to ram pedestrians or set off a bomb. Tell Danny Boy to keep it smooth.”
‘Pot calling the kettle black’, Isaac thought to himself.
18
Day 4 – 8:00
Tower of London, Tower Wharf
Daniel took the truck along the embankment to the South of the Tower, known as Tower Wharf. The route took him under a canopy of trees with the Southern wall of the Tower to his left and the River Thames to his right. There were many more zombies along this section, but they were no match for the truck which cut through them like a hot knife through butter. The front of the truck had been white, but it had already turned red, with rivulets of blood vibrating on the bonnet and slowly making their way towards the windscreen.
Mamba, Dodge, and Isaac felt like they were in a wind tunnel with the air rushing past them and they found themselves continually blinking as their eyes dried out. They were also getting splattered by stray splashes of blood and sinew when the truck hit the zombies.
The truck soon approached Tower Bridge and passed through a short tunnel below the road leading to the Bridge, known as East Gate. The truck came out of the tunnel and turned left onto St Katharine’s Way which inclined up towards the main junction where the A100 became the A1210 and met Tower Hill from the East and East Smithfield to the West. This junction was notoriously busy and now it was no different. There were cars, vans, buses, lorries, motorbikes, and variations of each all across the road. All stationery and mainly unoccupied, except for the odd few which had zombies sitting in them. Luckily several vehicles had not stopped when they should have and had ploughed into various buildings and restaurants. It was not so lucky for them when they had crashed into each other in the middle of the road and caused a blockage.
Daniel had to slow the truck to manoeuvre as best he could around the blockages and find the clearer paths. He planned to stick with the main roads as far as possible as there was more chance there would be gaps; if he took side roads, they could be totally blocked and even the truck would not be able to get through. He headed down the A1203, East Smithfield, the noise of the truck attracting zombies as it went along. It wasn’t long before he came across the first pile up which he was not able to pass. He could see the first line of the blockage but couldn’t tell what was behind it.
“Dodge, see if Mamba can see over the wreckage and give us a clue which is the easiest route.”
Dodge relayed the message and a few seconds later Mamba’s voice crackled through the walkie-talkie, “blue car on the right. Nothin’ much behind it.”
Daniel looked across to where Mamba had indicated and saw a crumpled Honda Civic. He put the truck in gear and moved towards the Civic, slowed until his bumper met the car, then started to push
the Civic along. He could now see what Mamba had meant and thought that it had been a good choice. There was a small van and motorbike the other side of the Civic, but these were at an angle and when the Civic came into contact with them, they were easily swept aside. Daniel continued to push the Civic until it was past the blockage. He then reversed to give himself some room, crunching a couple of zombies that he had seen in the reversing camera on the dashboard, then moved forward again, skirting the Civic. He was beginning to enjoy himself, safe in the knowledge that nothing could get to him in the cab, and he had always fancied trying out some stock car racing.
On the roof, Isaac had been watching the world go by. It was a bit eerie sitting on the truck’s roof with nothing moving except for zombies and no sounds except for the sound of the truck and grunting noises coming from the zombies. Everything else around them was silent. It felt like the end of the World. It was quite tricky staying on the roof despite being tied to the rail with a harness. The slightest change in direction or bump could have you sliding precariously close to the edge and he didn’t want to think what might happen if he got thrown off. The three of them had quickly learnt the best way to keep still was to wedge your legs against the rail so that the rope from the harness to the rail was taut. He just hoped the fucking rail didn’t snap or they’d all be in the shit. He pondered if there was a way that Mamba could fall without him or Bird getting hurt, but he couldn’t come up with any solution. He thought of Grace, sitting in the cab. She was pretty, sexy, and obviously brave because she was willing to get involved in anything. She wasn’t a nutter like Mamba, thank God, and she actually had a nice personality. He smiled to himself and found that he couldn’t wait to get her all alone again. As his thoughts moved dangerously towards fantasising what he would get up to with Grace, he was brought out of his reverie by loud shouting. The three of them quickly scanned the area and spotted a person hanging out of a window above an Indian restaurant about twenty yards further along the road. Mamba ordered the truck to stop so he could hear what the person was saying and make sure they weren’t going to start shooting or anything.
