“Just a good start?” Gus asked incredulously. “This is unbelievable, Carl. We’ve already loaded up at least a hundred guns. Pistols, rifles, shotguns! We’ve got tents, cots, cook stoves, backpacks, air mattresses, crossbows - man, we got it all now. And we wiped out all those zombies, thanks to your ideas about modifying these vehicles. I knew you’d be useful.”
“Thanks,” said Carl absently. “I’m just glad that it’s working as planned. Still can’t believe that the water cannon is holding them off. And I’m really glad we were able to save that family trapped in the store.” He was referring to a couple and their three young girls who had gone to the sporting goods store for supplies and been attacked. The father had been able to get his family into a bathroom and lock the door. But they had been trapped in there for five days with nothing but tap water to drink and the constant pounding of zombies against the door. It almost drove them crazy. However, their presence in the store must have been what drew all of the zombies inside and explained why they all boiled out of the store when the refinery convoy arrived.
The store had been a shambles when Carl first entered it. Racks of clothes and gear were overturned and there were numerous bloodstains on the floor. Many of the early shoppers, or looters, must have been transformed into zombies because there were no bodies in evidence, aside from what appeared to have been a zombie lying near the gun department with a hole in her head. Carl and Gus, along with several other men, had made a quick sweep of the store, calling out to attract the attention of zombies and survivors alike. One lone zombie had emerged from a hallway, running towards Gus with murderous intent, but Gus had swung his axe with near perfect timing and split its head open at the last second.
A few minutes later, Carl was collecting guns from the hunting section, and the father of the trapped family emerged from the bathroom to see if it was safe to bring out his family. Carl had almost shot him in the head when he peeked around the corner, but the man gave a joyful shout, unlike anything a zombie would do, and quickly explained his family’s dire situation. They were all safely aboard the shuttle bus now, after offering profuse thanks to their rescuers.
Carl and the others were almost finished loading the big rig with what they considered vital supplies. It was time to head back to the refinery, before too many more zombies arrived. Carl suggested that they block the doors to the store to keep the zombies out. Frank, the operator of the Caterpillar, offered to dump a van in front of the doors. That seemed like a good idea, so as soon as everything was packed up he used the front end loader to pick up a minivan near the entrance and place it to block the entrance to the store.
Before leaving the parking lot they decided it would be best to dispatch the new mob that was moaning and milling about just outside the range of the water cannon. Carl was happy to lead the way and made use of the continued blast of water from the Panther to wash the blood off of the Suburban as he sliced through the crowd of agitated undead. The Caterpillar followed him with a repeat performance of its zombie crushing prowess. When most of the crowd had been put down Carl drove back through the jet of water to wash off more infected blood. Then the Panther’s crew disconnected the hose from the hydrant and the convoy drove back to the refinery without further incident.
Mission Accomplished.
Chapter 10: A Few Good Men
“A ship without Marines is like a garment without buttons” Admiral David Porter, USN, to Commandant of the USMC John Harris (1863)
When the Dolphins reached the Sovereign Spirit and Stratton off the coast of Oceanside, the escort chopper landed on the Stratton first. There was not enough room for both Dolphins to land on the Stratton at the same time and Scott didn’t want to waste any time getting back to his own ship. He had radioed ahead and asked Mick Williams to take the Super Huey for a little scouting flight. That cleared the helicopter pad on the Sovereign Spirit, allowing the other Dolphin to land and drop off Scott and his friends.
They climbed down from the helicopter pad, and Scott decided to modify his earlier promise of taking the Fords to a normal stateroom for a shower. Instead, since they were right there, he ushered them into his own master suite. Making sure that Michelle was not in the master bath at the moment, Scott told Blain and Mindy to help themselves and their son to the steam shower, sauna, and Jacuzzi tub, which he recommended in that order. He would have bath robes and clothes brought to them and see about finding them the best available stateroom while they washed off the fear of the past week. They were more than grateful for the offer.
After the Fords withdrew to the bathroom Mark and Clint exchanged glances and Mark said, “What about us? Don’t we rate the deluxe treatment after getting zombie blood all over us?”
“Sure guys,” Scott replied with a grin. “Strip down and jump in the hot tub on my private deck out back. It’s hot. Use soap and I’ll bring some disinfectant too. I’ll flush the tub overboard when you’re done. Then you should shower again in your own rooms.”
“Well,” replied Clint grudgingly. “That sounds a lot better than we would have gotten from the Navy on Coronado.” Mark nodded agreement and they turned to walk outside.
“Wait a second,” Scott told them. “I’ll come with you. I’ve got some fear and tension sweat to wash off myself. And I want you both to know how proud and grateful I am to be able to count on you in a situation like this.” He paused to get a grip on his emotions. “First in Cabo, now San Diego, and you know that we’ll be going into even more hostile territory soon. It’s rare to have friends willing to trust you enough to put their lives on the line like that, not to mention ones as capable of doing so. I just want to say thank you.”
“Get over it,” said Mark. “Bring some beer and turn on some tunes.”
*****
After washing off and sending his buddies down to their own staterooms, Scott put on some clean clothes. He chose khaki Banana Republic cargo pants, a white linen shirt, and a safari vest with lots of pockets that he could stuff full of survival items. He had several sets of each garment in his wardrobe and decided that he might turn them into his commodore uniform, at least for casual duty. Just then, Blain and Mindy came out of his bath suite wearing bathrobes and carrying their son, who looked much healthier and happier, as did his parents.
“That was awesome,” said Blain. “Thank you so much. We must have really stunk after being trapped in that penthouse with no running water for almost a week.”
“Don’t mention it, buddy. And I mean, really, don’t mention it. I’m trying to forget any thought of smells since coming within arm’s reach of a dozen zombies!” said Scott with a smile. “Your new clothes haven’t arrived yet, but you can wear those robes down the elevator to your stateroom. It’s on the Promenade deck, cabin 112. You’ll have everything you need, including internet and satellite TV. It’s not the Ritz, or a penthouse, but it’s better than a refugee camp, huh?”
“It sounds divine, and best of all it sounds safe!” replied Mindy. “I’m sure we’ll love it.”
“Great,” said Scott. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go meet some Marines and see about getting a shit load of weapons aboard, not to mention organizing another flotilla of refugees. No rest for the weary, as they say. But I’m glad you guys will be able to relax for a while. Welcome aboard and make yourselves at home.”
*****
As the Sovereign Spirit came to rest on the gentle swells half a mile off the entrance to Oceanside Harbor, Scott ordered the Cigarette 38’ lowered into the water again. He would use it to go into the harbor and make contact with the ‘boat people’ and the Marines protecting them. He also radioed Captain McCloud, who was very pleased to have gotten his helicopters back intact and receive an endorsement from Admiral Winchester confirming his DHS authorization to assist the Sovereign Spirit and their refugee flotilla. Scott asked for McCloud to send along his Prosecutor patrol boat with a fire team of Coast Guardsmen as an escort for his initial meeting with the Marines and prospective new memb
ers of the flotilla. Captain McCloud agreed without hesitation. He also mentioned that a smaller Coast Guard cutter, the Sea Otter, was also in Oceanside Harbor and would be available as an escort for the civilian flotilla when they departed.
Scott piloted the Cigarette speedboat himself as they entered the harbor. He could see quite a few zombies milling around the breakwater and boardwalk along the docks. They seemed agitated at their inability to reach the boat docks. The reason soon became apparent as people appeared on the decks of those boats and waved in Scott’s direction. It was not the hungry reach of zombies, but the welcoming wave of friends.
Then Scott started to spot the Marines. They were much less animated and, thus, harder to identify. It wasn’t just their camouflaged BDUs. They were stationary, watchful, seemed very alert, but almost invisible, and therefore more ghostly than any zombie. He was reminded again of the line he had flippantly traded with Captain McCloud about becoming either best friends or worst enemies. These Marines didn’t need to say that. They were that. Scott felt a tiny trickle of sweat run down his clean back at the thought.
The Coast Guard Prosecutor followed Scott’s larger and more impressive craft towards the central fuel dock, where Scott had spotted a Marine who stood forward a little more obviously than the rest. Scott had the impression that he was in charge here and Scott had come to rely on his instincts in the past few days. Once again, he was right.
“Sergeant Major O’Hara at your service,” said the ageless Marine who was probably somewhere in his early fifties with a fire plug body that defied both gravity and common modes of description. Scott remembered the term “forty inches all around” from his days in boot camp. That fit the five-foot-eight inch O’Hara quite well. “Are you the commodore I’m to be expecting?” asked O’Hara. The accent and syntax had more than a hint of Irish to it.
Scott smiled. “Yes, Sergeant Major. I’m Scott Allen, owner of the Sovereign Spirit and leader of the new refugee flotilla. General Barstow told me that you would make sure I became a good officer.”
“Well,” said O’Hara slowly, stretching out the “e” into a long, hard vowel. “I can only make of a man what God himself has made possible. If He blessed you, then yes, you’ll be a good officer and a fine leader of men. If not, I can only make you act like one. Either way suits me just fine, as long as you don’t get me or too many of my boys killed.”
“What would be too many, Sergeant Major?” asked Scott in a level voice.
“Ah, a smart one,” responded O’Hara. “Any unnecessary deaths would be too many to suit me, sir. Necessary ones I can live with, unless it’s me own of course. That would not suit me too well, but I might not blame you for it. All depends on the circumstances, you know?”
“Yes, Sergeant Major O’Hara. I know exactly what you mean. Two of my friends and I went up against a couple dozen zombies in a stairway today. I wasted at least a dozen with buckshot rounds from an M-203, but I could have lost my buddies when they moved the bodies, if I hadn’t told them to wash off all that zombie blood and keep their hands away from their mouth and eyes.”
“Ah, not just smart, maybe wise too. I lost a few good men before we figured that one out. Nobody told you about that? And that was your first face to face with the Zs?”
“That’s right. I’ve flown over them at low altitude and evaluated their behavior. We were the ones who told the CDC that zombies like to walk down hill, are afraid of water and don’t swim. But this was the first time I came face to face with any of them. They stink.”
“Ha!” exclaimed O’Hara. “You’re the one from Cabo? We got that message on our Sat Com. You saved some lives here, sir. And you are right about the blood too. Even a drop in the mouth is sure death, or undeath, depending on your perspective.”
“Then I’m glad we avoided that,” Scott said. “But right now I need to see how many of the people on the boats in this harbor want to join our survival flotilla. Then I need your help getting a couple of LVTP sevens to somewhere they can roll onto my ship, along with a hundred M-16s and as much ammo and other weapons as you can round up. Are you with me Sergeant Major?”
“Damned right, I am, sir,” said O’Hara. “In fact, we’re way ahead of you. Most of the gear is already aboard the AAVs. We’ll just need your ship to back straight into the harbor and up to the breakwater on that empty lot. We should be able to drive them aboard your stern ramp from there.”
“Outstanding!” exclaimed Scott. “I’ll inform our captain and then address these ‘boat people’ about their options. I want to get underway as soon as possible. And, Sergeant Major, if you’re still loading up ammo, please bring as many 40mm grenade rounds as you can. The buckshot rounds worked well today. I bet the high explosive rounds would do okay too. We have a few M-203s, but not a lot of grenades for them.”
“Don’t worry about that, sir,” replied O’Hara. “You’ll have plenty now. The AAVs we’re bringing each carry a Mk 19 automatic grenade launcher with 850 rounds. We’re bringing a couple thousand extra rounds too. And I already added a dozen M-203s and some other hardware to the list the general sent me. If me and my men are going with you, I’m going to make sure that we are loaded for bear.”
“I like you already Sergeant Major.”
*****
Scott used the public address speakers on the Cigarette speedboat to address the people on the boats in the harbor. He saw many faces looking back at him. Some were fearful; some were hopeful; some were angry; some were sad. Many were just confused. Scott was getting used to interpreting those looks and beginning to learn how to guide them in the direction he needed them to evolve.
“Attention please. May I have your attention please?” he began. “I’m Commodore Scott Allen, owner of the Sovereign Spirit. That’s the ship you can see off the coast right now. I’m also the leader of a flotilla of survivors with their own boats, just like you. Some of them have followed me all the way from Cabo San Lucas this week. They will be arriving in a few hours with a Coast Guard escort. We won’t be staying for long.
“General Barstow, commanding officer of the Marines from Camp Pendleton, has suggested that I ask you to join our flotilla, if you want to. His Marines will not be able to provide you with food, water, or protection here for much longer. Some of the Marines will be coming with me on the Sovereign Spirit to help us; the rest might be pulled out to fight elsewhere soon. If you stay here, you might find yourself on your own.
“I’m inviting all of you to join us, if you are willing and able to do so. We will be sailing north in search of a safe haven and a source of supplies. We will have weapons and armored vehicles to use when we go ashore for provisions. We will share food, water and fuel with all the boats in the flotilla. If this option sounds better than staying here in this harbor, I encourage you to get ready to set sail.
“The Coast Guard patrol boat with us will be visiting you all over the next hour or two. Please make them aware of any problems with your vessel and we will try to find solutions, including finding another boat that will take you aboard if yours is not seaworthy, or finding extra hands to help you sail your boat if you need them. We are all in this together now. One thing I can promise if you join us, is that the flotilla will take care of its own. Thank you and I hope to get to meet you all personally once we drop anchor or tie up in a safe haven.”
Scott set down the microphone and turned to ask Sergeant Major O’Hara exactly where he should bring his ship to be loaded with the promised vehicles and weapons. O’Hara was smiling and gave Scott a nod.
“You have some leadership potential, sir,” said the Sergeant Major. “We’ll need to refine it a bit, but that’s not a bad start. I think most of those people will join you now. Is that what you really wanted?”
“Hell, Sergeant Major,” Scott replied gruffly, “I don’t know what I really want. Bringing all of these boats, and probably more from up the coast, will put quite a strain on our resources. And I can’t let them slow down my ship until after we comp
lete the mission we were given by the CDC and DHS. But after that, we’ll need to find a secure place to drop anchor. It may turn out that there is safety and strength in numbers, or we might find out that resources are too scarce to bunch up too much. We’ll find out, one way or the other. Now where are those guns and armored vehicles?”
“Just pull up to the drive-thru window, Commodore,” said O’Hara with a sly grin.
*****
The Amtrac amphibious assault vehicles were large and impressive. They were each twenty-seven feet long and weighed in at about twenty-nine tons. Their engines growled and their tractor treads ground the asphalt as they made the turn from the road onto the open area between the civilian harbor and Camp Pendleton’s own basin. The Sovereign Spirit had backed straight in through the mouth of the channel to within twenty feet of the piled rock breakwater. She was so big that her bow was still beyond the outer breakwater. They had found the deepest, closest spot to shore and were just able to get close enough to lower the ramp on top of the rock pile without grounding the ship in the sand. Scott knew that the ship would probably bottom out when he added another 60 tons of weight to her, but thought the problem would solve itself when the AAVs drove further forward into the vehicle deck. If not, the tide was still rising for another hour. He would float her free one way or another.
01 Voyage of the Dead Page 22
