Virus-72 Hours to Live

by Ray Jay Perreault

  His role in Thurmont was typical of his modus operandi; lead from the rear and make sure he was available to pick up the benefits. The plans, for attacking Camp David, were progressing and the troops were doing what they were told. He had convinced them the government was gone and he and Dmitry were alone. The troops had to worry about the authorities behind the fence or the ones standing behind them with guns. They chose the latter.

  He was familiar with mobile units. His family had one of the basic units that cleaned the house and did most of the cooking. Some of his friends had more sophisticated units that went shopping and could drive the car. He never envied those with better units, he just recognized their usefulness. Since the virus, the mobile units had dropped out of his thoughts. He was only mildly aware of them before the attack so now they were like furniture. Like furniture except when they started doing something unexpected.

  Sitting in front of the Mayor's house was supposed to be a quiet time except when he saw some mobile units walking in the same direction. It wasn't unusual for them to wander around, but when they walk as if they're going somewhere, it got his attention. "Where are they going?" he said to himself. Those are personal units and shouldn't be doing anything together. Something is up.

  Date – 2051.56574 (3:52 PM)

  “SIMPOC; Fin. Our engagement ratios are improving. We are now using different tactics and losing .87 units for every invading unit destroyed. It appears that they weren’t all enhanced units. Now that the enhanced units are removed, the remainders have slower response times, likely due to less efficient communications. Our units are beginning to prevail.”

  “Fin; SIMPOC. Can you retrieve some of the enhanced units, so we can examine their capabilities?”

  “Yes, I will find the best specimens.”

  >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

  President Patterson and Vice President Gonzales were walking down the hall to the status room when a door exploded open and four secret service guards with their guns drawn ran down the hall towards them. They grabbed the two men by their arms and began moving further into the building.

  "What the hell is going on?" asked Roberto.

  The president suddenly stopped and looked at the guards and said, "I won't take another step until you talk to us."

  "Sir, please come quickly. I'm sorry to rush you, but we've detected a number of people by the perimeter fence. We don't know what their intentions are or if they are part of a larger force. For your safety, we're moving you to the underground bunker until we can figure out what's going on."

  "Ok," said the president, "but we're going to walk."

  The guards reluctantly backed off but were still trying to move the two men along. After a moment, they reached the elevator, which would take them to the lower level and protective bunker. As they entered, they could hear other key people being herded in their direction, but the guards pressed the override button to begin the descent. The first priority was to get the president to a safe area; the other leaders could wait for the elevator to return.

  The ride to the lower level was quiet until the doors opened then other guards helped to escort the president into the bunker. The term bunker was hardly an adequate description of the lower facility. It was designed for the president to be safe, and it had communication capabilities, which were the same as the comm center in the main facility. It could take control of communications if needed. There was also a briefing room, kitchen, eating area and bedrooms for 10 people aside from the president. It was a fully functioning command and control center, to be used in case of emergency.

  The president was getting a little irritated after everything the country and he had gone through, this was the last straw. He charged into the briefing room and yelled, "What the fuck is going on?"

  "Sir I'm bringing up the status boards right now," said the poor staff person who wasn't prepared for that either.

  As the president and vice president slid into their respective chairs the secretary of state Nancy Bartlett slid to one on the side. The briefer was a staff member from the National Security Agency, he was frantic while the DID brought up the image of Catoctin Mountain Park and the view quickly expanded to show the outline of Camp David. The almost 2-mile perimeter fence stood out clearly against the dense forest within and outside the fence. The patrol road around the fence line defined the boundaries very clearly. The briefer had fumbled for a moment before the infrared images appeared over the outline. Just as a dozen red dots appeared on the northeast corner of the map between towers 4 and 5, the chief of secret security, Louis walked in and the briefer eagerly gave up the podium.

  "Mr. President I'm sorry for whisking you and the Vice President down here, but as you can see, we have 12 unidentified people just outside the perimeter fence. It appears they are reconnoitering the area. We've decided not to engage them at this time we want to see what they will do. They have been motionless for about 10 minutes."

  "Why do you think they are just looking us over?" President Patterson asked.

  "Because we picked them up on our long distance sensors and they moved quickly to our fence then they stopped and they've moved along the fence in both directions. They aren't moving like tourists, they're moving like a unit trying to check out our perimeter. As you can see, they're in a defensive line with two people in the rear. A group, of people moving through the forest, would be bunched up talking about what they saw. Remember sir, we have almost 2 miles of fencing and it's pretty obvious they're not welcomed."

  "What are you going to do?" asked the Vice President.

  "We'll give them some time to move on and if they don't then I'll send out a team to check them out."

  President Patterson asked, "How will they be approached?"

  "We don't want conflict so we'll send a truck with a loudspeaker along the perimeter road and we'll tell them they are approaching a classified area and they will not be allowed entry. We'll ask them to announce themselves and identify who they are. Then we'll base our actions on their response."

  "...and we're stuck down here till when?" the president asked.

  "Until we understand their intentions...Sir."

  After about 10 minutes watching 12 little red dots just sit there, Louis announced in a loud voice, "We've waited long enough." He spoke into his communicator ordering, "Team Charlie move to the perimeter and make the announcement."

  No one in the room heard the response, but they could see a green vehicle shape come into view and slowly approach the area of the fence near the other dots. The vehicle approached the fence nearest the intruders and stopped.

  "Louis spoke under his breath, "They're making the announcement now."

  Everyone in the room was fixated on the displayed image. None of the red dots moved until suddenly the entire front line began to move back. They took up flanking positions with regard to the two dots that had lagged behind the line. They moved out to the north in a formation.

  "Well, that answers our question," Louis said in a clear voice.

  "They're either military or they have good leaders. That is a tactical withdrawal.

  "Louis, you mean we have a military unit checking out our perimeter?" asked the President.

  "Yes, sir. I'm afraid so."

  "How would our defenses hold up against an attack?" asked the Vice President, who was a retired Army Colonel.

  "Sir, we have 20 secret service along with the full-time Navy guards with all of the heavy firepower we need. We inherited that small guard unit, but they are only a squad. Total we have only about 50 fighters. If they attack with larger forces, we might have a fight on our hands."

  Just as the room quieted for a moment thinking about what that meant, Admiral Hagerly entered the room.

  "Sir what is happening?" He asked the president.

  "Nial, it looks like we've been checked out by a military unit. They approached the outer fence then when Louis' people confronted them, they withdrew. Are there any military units in the vicinity, you trust, that could
come and help out if we need them?"

  "Sir, we've spoken with a couple small groups, but I'm not sure how effective they will be. I'll try to contact them again and see if we can get some reinforcements."

  "Thanks, Admiral," said the president. "Louis, please brief the Admiral on what happened, and I presume we've can leave?"

  "Yes sir, I'll have the secret service detail escort you back upstairs. If you don't mind, I'd like them to stay pretty close to you for a while."

  "Agreed," the president said and he and the Vice President got up and left the briefing room.

  >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

  Willard Pearson appeared to know what he was doing. He had trained the new recruits as well as he could and told them how to act as they checked out Camp David. Artur kept his eyes on him, he didn't seem very dedicated to what he and Dmitry were trying to accomplish. He did lead the men well and they were just outside the Camp David fence. Artur wasn't sure what he expected to see or find out, but it was clear there was someone important in the camp.

  There was clearly a dual fence secure perimeter and a road just inside the fences that circled the camp. They had decided to approach from the side and avoid a frontal contact if they had approached the front gate. If they caught someone, they would find out a lot. By approaching from the side, Artur and his men could approach, observe then withdraw if necessary without the risk of capture.

  They sat in the forest for a while, Artur wasn't exactly sure what they thought they would see or hear but observation was always a good idea. Artur felt Willard's hand touch his arm and point to the south. There was a truck moving along the perimeter road with its lights out. It slowed as it reached a point between them and the interior of the camp. Once it stopped and after a few moments, a loudspeaker transmitted a message, "Attention, Attention. You are approaching a classified military facility. You will not be allowed entry. Please stand, approach the fence and identify yourself."

  Willard touched Artur's arm once again and pointed behind them, clearly indicating they should withdraw. The plan was to observe and not engage so Artur nodded and they made a clicking sound with their tongue and the remainder of the team began moving back and withdrew from the area.

  Once they were clear of the area, they grouped together and moved quicker to their vehicles on Route 550. As they got into the truck, Artur was smiling, they had found the president and they could fit only so many people in that camp. They were running out of food, so maybe he could just starve them out. He would talk with Dmitry and decide how aggressive they would be.

  >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

  In the last couple of hours, the eastern alliance had made some passes at the fleet boundaries and their aggressive posture forced Admiral Monson to keep his pilot's and drones airborne. If he showed force, he hoped they would respect the fleet boundary and stay within their airspace.

  The 5th fleet was still afloat. The routines had settled out as much as possible and Admiral Monson was considering his options. He had received little information from command so he felt obligated to make decisions for his men and women. They couldn't stay on station forever and they all needed to deal with the loss in some manner.

  The Easter Alliance fleet was continuing an aggressive posture. They were constantly pulsing the fleet with radar trying to maintain a good picture of the fleet alignment. They also had stayed within striking range of either the 5th or Perth Australia. With the uncertainty in the world, they could strike out in either direction.

  Suddenly the CIC came alive with an alarm. Admiral Monson stood and walked to the CIC Commander. "What do you have?"

  "Sir, we have a high-speed boggy approaching the fleet from a relative bearing of 085. Its trajectory will take it over the outer ships in our northeast quadrant. Right now, its radar is passive and it's not tracking the fleet. It appears to a visual fly-over."

  "Bring up our alert status and if it turns on the targeting radar; bring it down."

  "Yes, sir."

  Everyone in the CIC was on high alert and even though everyone was doing their jobs and talking when necessary, the focus in the room was overbearing.

  "Sir, the boggy has turned and is paralleling the fleet boundary. It did not try to penetrate and it didn't turn on its TR."

  Admiral Monson had a funny feeling that something was up. They wouldn't chance an overreaction unless they were planning to take another step. "Commander, let's stay on alert for a while."

  "Yes, sir."

  >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

  Louis and Admiral Hagerly approached the president as he was leaving the status room. "Sir, can we speak in private for a minute?"

  The president nodded then as the last of the people exited the briefing room, he closed the door, "What do you need?"

  "Sir, we're worried about the group that approached our perimeter. They were too organized, I suggest we send out a team to figure out what is happening," said the Admiral.

  President Patterson looked at Louis, who nodded in agreement, "Sir the Admiral and I have a team made up of Marines and secret service. We'll send them out after dark to see what we're dealing with. Do you agree?"

  "Absolutely, let me know what they find out."

  >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

  As Michael and Ruth walked into the training room, Sergeant Lenmore and his team were just sitting down.

  "Sarge, here we are, what's the plan?" Michael asked as he grabbed some coffee.

  "Sir, we've been directed to reconnoiter the area and find out who those people were outside the perimeter."

  "Sarge, first off, please call me Mike and this is Ruth. Now that this is our second mission I think we can be on a first name basis."

  Sergeant Lenmore hesitated for a moment then said, "My team calls me 'LL,' pointing to his men he said, "Great, now let me introduce my men with their real names. Sergeant Maccabee is 'Mack', he is my second in command. Sergeant Mark Sherly who we call 'Shirley,' regardless of his objections, and Sergeant Kevin O'Neal is just plain 'O' he can make just about anything explode."

  "Our orders tonight are simple, we're supposed to go into the community and find out who our visitors were. We're not to engage unless, in self-defense, we're not to disclose who we are or where we're from. We'll drive to the same area on Redhaven then we'll move on foot to the vicinity of the Police Department. There is only one main street so, so we can't drive over the 15 Freeway or we'll increase our chances of encountering civilians. Our previous location on Redhaven Road, to the point of interest, is about a mile and we'll cross one stream using Moser Road, which you can see on this map. We could maneuver on surface streets to a closer location, but then we'd be backed up to the freeway with only a few ways to withdraw. I don't want to be trapped and on foot, we have more options in an urban setting. Any questions?"

  Everyone agreed the plan looked good and nodded in agreement.

  "Ok let's suit up!" LL said as he rose and moved to the weapons room. Tonight they selected heavier weapons including a rocket-propelled grenade launcher and each had automatic rifles with four hand grenades each. This trip might take a little longer so they each packed 5 days of MRE packs. Ruth carried 'her' rifle case along with four grenades and a pistol.

  They took the same route as the previous excursion and once again, they drove with their lights out and with about 50 yards of separation between vehicles. There was no traffic, obviously, and they slowed as they entered the neighborhood.

  "I hope the dogs are asleep again and we don't run into any 'guard maids,', " LL said with a smile.

  Once they reached their previous location on Redhaven, they unloaded the weapons and parked the cars in two different driveways, making them look like normal civilian vehicles. The location they used before was adequate. Checking out another residence would have put them at more risk and that wasn't necessary.

  The house would be a base of operations. If they had problems and needed to split up, that is where they would reunite. They left some extra rations and the magazines
they couldn't carry. If they returned to the residence and were under fire, they wanted the extra munitions to be handy.

  They took 10 minutes to monitor the area and make sure there was no activity then they formed up and moved out, skirting the parking lot entrance to the Food Lion Market and continuing under the 15 Freeway. Once through the underpass they took an easterly direction following a power line clearing the woods. That provided good cover with little chance of encountering civilians.

  Once they emerged from the cleared area under the power lines, they entered their most vulnerable point. They had to cross an open area of about 300 meters before they could regain sufficient cover. They grouped under a tree and after five minutes of observing the area, LL directed Michael, Shirley and O to move to the cover on the other side of the bridge. The remaining team would remain in a position to provide cover. He signaled them and they broke into a sprint. It took a long time for them to make it across the bridge and settle into some trees. LL waited another five minutes then gave the signal to Mack, Ruth and himself to make the same run. When they settled on the other side of the bridge and under the tree, they took a minute to gain their bearings and then they exited in single file east-northeast into the local neighborhood.

  They were heading to one of the houses at the end of Mill Forge Court. They could set-up their observation point there and it would give them a line of houses between them and the Police Station. Once settled they could move forward to observe and fall back to rest, eat and sleep. They knew it would take a couple of days so they needed to use the observation site wisely.

  It was 2:34 AM when they finally broke into one of the houses. To their dismay, there were three dead people. They had anticipated that and they wrapped them in blankets and moved them to the house next door. They placed them so it would look like they had died in that residence and there wasn't any clue left they had been there. O and Mack set up the listening cone in one of the front houses then took the first watch and the remainder of Echo team rested.