by James Harden
Ben does not flinch. He doesn’t even blink.
Scott doubles over, clutching his hand, dropping the gun.
Ben springs into action and picks up the weapon. He grabs Scott around his neck, standing behind him, taking him as a kind of hostage, using him as a human shield.
The rest of us take cover behind the military vehicle.
I can’t be certain but I think the arrow came from behind the wooden barricade.
Jack grabs Maria, holds her close. “What the hell was that?” he asks.
Kenji finally springs into action. He takes out the handgun. He flicks the safety off.
“I don’t know,” I answer. “I think it was an arrow. I think it was shot from behind the barricade.”
Kenji is peering over the hood of the Humvee, trying to get a look. But it’s too dark.
Ben moves back slightly. He has the gun pressed into the side of Scott’s head. He is definitely using Scott as a shield. Ben’s eyes are locked on to the barricade.
I take a look. I see movement. A shadow. A shape.
“Divided we fall,” a voice says from the darkness. “How quickly things can change.”
Parker has dropped to one knee, he now turns towards the voice, turning towards the barricade of wooden pallets, aiming his rifle at the voice, at the shadow.
A man slowly and casually walks out from behind the barricade, using the built in pathway. We can now see more men walking and moving through the barricade, through the gaps in the wooden pallets. It appears that the path cuts through the barricade in a zig-zagging fashion.
It’s hard to tell how many men there are. And we can’t see this guy clearly. He then appears to step over something, an invisible rope, as he steps out into the open.
“You gotta watch out for the booby traps,” he says.
He finally reveals himself. He is shirtless. Covered in camouflage paint. He has a gas mask but he is not wearing it.
He is heavily armed.
He is the leader of the Death Squad.
Chapter 12
The Death Squad is back.
And I’m thinking to myself that we can't keep running into each other like this.
Because people die.
People die before they hit the ground.
And I’m not a mind reader, but I’m guessing the Death Squad is angry and mad. Beyond mad. Because when they found us in the prison, there were twelve men in total. Now they’re down to six.
I think the man in the gas mask killed some.
Maybe the Evo Agents killed some.
The Death Squad tried to take Kim and Doctor Hunter as prisoners, tried to use them as leverage, as bargaining chips. This planned had backfired. It had gotten some of them killed.
I guess the company does not negotiate with Death Squads.
These men, these soldiers had to learn this the hard way. So I can’t be certain, but I’m guessing the Death Squad will no longer want bargaining chips. They will no longer be taking prisoners.
No prisoners.
What’s the alternative?
“Smart,” the leader says, pointing with his thumb over his shoulder. “Whoever built this thing, very smart. You see, it enables them, the person, to come and go. But if someone, or something chases, tries to follow them. Boom! They are deader than dead. And this whole thing, this wall of wooden pallets comes crashing down.”
He said the word ‘boom’ really goddamn loud. I jumped. Maria jumped. My heart is racing.
I am nervous and terrified and completely unsure of how this is going to play out.
We are basically unarmed. We are at the Death Squad’s mercy.
But will they show mercy?
“This is why humans were once at the top of the food chain,” he says, still pointing at the wall of wooden pallets. “It’s not because we’re bigger or stronger than all the other living things. It’s not even because we’re smarter. Blowing ourselves up for the better part of two centuries ain’t smart. No, the reason we held the top spot for so long is because we adapt. Better than anyone. Better than anything. We adapt.”
“Lieutenant Anderson, is it?” Parker says. “I need you to stand down. I need you to drop to your knees. Put your hands behind your head.”
“Now, why would I do that?”
“Cooperate with us and we will offer you refuge.”
“I’m not buying that. Not for a second. You were sent here to kill us. Not to bring us back.”
“If you don’t cooperate, I will shoot you. I will put a bullet in your brain. But no one needs to die.”
The Death Squad leader holds up his hand. He is holding a controller of some kind. “You just so happened to have parked that there Humvee over a strategically placed landmine. This is the trigger.”
“I can put the bullet in the base of your skull,” Parker says. “You’ll be dead before you hit the ground. You won’t get a chance to press that button.”
“I’m sure you can put the bullet wherever you want. The company trains you well. And it is the best training that money can buy. Plus a little bit of help from the NVX. You know, we were scared of the company, scared of the Evo Agents when the company started sending assassins down here to kill the General. No one said it out loud. No one admitted their fear. But we were scared. There were so many rumors floating around these tunnels and around the catacombs. Rumors about super soldiers. Super strong. Super fast. Soldiers that had endless energy and endurance. The General briefed us. He showed us the power of NVX. How could we not be afraid? But by the time you got here, by the time the assassins arrived here, we knew our enemy. We knew all about you. And your brothers. They never stood a chance. The hunters became the hunted. We invited your brothers into this place. Into the lion’s den. The spider’s web. We stalked you. We hunted you. The General made us swear an oath. We weren’t allowed to kill any of you. He did all the killing. All of it.”
Laser sights appear from the darkness of the tunnel and from behind the wall of pallets. A red dot appears on Parker’s head. On Ben’s head. On Scott’s.
And Kenji. And Daniel.
Kenji slowly places the handgun back in the waist of his pants, hiding it as best as he can.
The Death Squad know who the threats are.
They are not messing around.
No prisoners.
“Where is the rest of your group?” the leader asks. “Where are your primary objectives?”
No answer.
I look at Daniel. At Parker. At Scott.
Who’s in charge now? Who wants to deal with the Death Squad?
“They’ve been extracted,” Daniel finally answers.
“And they left you behind?” the leader says.
“No. They are coming back.”
“So they rescued them, the doctors, before they rescued you? My word. How curious? Is there trouble in paradise? Trouble at the company? Are they cutting back on expenses, trying to please the shareholders? Maybe they’ve had a tough quarter.”
“A recon team picked them up,” Parker says. “And we’re next. We can come to some sort of arrangement. We can get you out. But only if you lower your weapons. Only if you do exactly what we say.”
“Get us out? Why would I want to leave this place? I’m just starting to like it. And besides, we heard what happened above ground. We’ve seen what’s happening around the world. We’ve seen what’s happening right now. As we speak. You know it. I know it. Everyone knows it.”
“Knows what?” Parker asks.
“It’s over. The Oz virus has spread beyond the borders of Australia, beyond New Zealand. It has made its way out of this isolated part of the world. It has spread into Asia. Europe. America. Africa. First worlds. Third worlds. It makes no difference. It has gone worldwide. There’s no point in leaving. At least, not yet.”
“This place is not safe,” Daniel says, sensing that maybe he could convince the Death Squad to play nice, if they offered asylum. If they offered a way out. “We can get you to safety.”
“We? The company? YoshidaCorp? The biggest private security firm in the world? The biggest arms dealer in the world? The biggest, most secretive, most expansive paramilitary to ever exist? You have sent assassins to kill us. To eliminate us. And now you want to offer us refuge?”
“We didn’t send people to kill you. Our target was General Spears. You know this.”
“We served the General. An attack on him was an attack on us.”
“He was out of control. He was acting on his own. He was disobeying the command, the leadership.”
“He was trying to save this country. He was trying to save us all.”
I picture General Spears in cryostasis. Doctor Hunter says he was in a vegetative state. A death like state. But his presence was still enough to frighten me.
“You were killing innocent people,” Daniel says. “You were killing employees. Research scientists. Engineers. Refugees. Innocent goddamn people.”
The leader is shaking his head. “I don’t think you understand this situation. I don’t think you understand at all. You’ve been lied to. You’ve been brainwashed.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“The company would’ve done the exact same thing. If it wasn’t us doing the killing, it would’ve been you and your brothers. Either way, these people down here were doomed.”
“There’s no way the order to kill all those people would’ve been given,” Daniel says. “Research scientists? Engineers? No way.”
“You don’t believe it, because you were spared the horror. But we were not spared. We had no choice. And now we are called the Death Squad. We earned the name. We earned the name after the General ordered us to contain the virus. But we had no other choice. The people were dead, they were dead and they didn’t know it. So we killed them. We put them out of their misery. We showed them mercy. But you guys, the company, you guys profit from death. From war. From conflict. You seek it out. You want it. We never wanted this. I never wanted this. To be part of a Death Squad? No. We followed orders. We obeyed the chain of command. But it was more than that. Like I said, it was mercy for those people. It was painless.”
“We’re soldiers,” Daniel says. “Just like you. We understand. And we can help you.”
“No. You are not like me. Not like us.”
Kenji stands up as he makes double sure the handgun is hidden down the waist of his pants. He moves towards the hood of the Humvee. He has his hands raised to show the Death Squad he is not a threat. “My name is Kenji Yoshida. And I can assure you my father’s company is not a private security firm. It’s not a weapons manufacturer.”
The leader shakes his head. “Kid, you need to have a talk with your father. Look at the stuff these boys are decked out with,” he points at Parker and Daniel. “State of the art. Top of the line. Bought and sold for a profit. For a big profit. All over the world. Wherever weapons are needed. Wherever weapons are wanted. And right now? Now the whole world has gone to hell. And weapons are needed everywhere. There is war everywhere. A new kind of war. A war of the living against the dead. And who stands to profit? Assuming we actually survive this, and by we, I mean us. The human race. If we survive, YoshidaCorp will profit.”
Kenji has no response. He can’t answer. He is in denial. He doesn’t want to believe the reality. After a while he says, “Whether it’s true or not, my father’s company has a lot of resources. I know it’s a long shot, but if we can contact him, he might be able to send help.”
“You don’t get it, do you kid? There is no help coming. We are cut off. And we tried bargaining with the company. I paid with blood. I don’t care if it’s your father’s company. He is not coming for you. No one is coming for you.”
There is no escape.
“So what now?” I ask, forcing myself to speak up, to at least pretend that I have a say in my own destiny, to pretend that I have a say in what happens next. “What are you going to do? You can’t stay down here. As bad as it is everywhere else, the Fortress is far worse.”
I ask him what they’re going to do. I ask him where they’re going to go. I ask about them, because I can’t bring myself to ask him what he’s going to do with us.
“There’s a few hiding places left. If you know where to look. So that’s what we’re going to do. We hide. We wait. Just for a little bit longer. That moron in the prison, the guy who wouldn’t put his weapon down. He actually had it figured out. Waiting and hiding. Maybe not in the prison, that place was messed up. But hiding. Waiting. This is a good plan. But to be able to hide and wait, we need food. We need water. We need supplies. So hand it over…”
“We don’t have much food,” Daniel says. “We have almost no water. But you can have it all. If you help us.”
“And your weapons,” the leader says, ignoring Daniel’s offer.
Daniel hesitates. He doesn’t want to make that deal. Because it is not much of a deal. If we’re unarmed, we’re as good as dead.
“You take our weapons, we’re as good as dead,” Parker says, echoing my thoughts.
“People, civilians with no survival training whatsoever have managed to survive down her without the help of guns,” the leader says. “In fact you might be better off without them. A gunshot might kill one. Might. But it will definitely bring more. A hundred more. A thousand more.”
Daniel thinks it over. “I want your word that you won’t hurt us.”
“You have my word,” he says. “From one soldier to another.”
“You can’t do this,” Parker says to Daniel. “You can’t.”
“We don’t have a choice. We need to stand down. We’re completely covered. We parked on a land mine for crying out loud.”
The other members of the Death Squad move forward, taking our weapons. All of them. They take the Evo Agent’s rifles. Their hand guns.
I could’ve sworn we had a shotgun.
They take the food and water we had piled into the back of the Humvee. They take the Evo Agent’s NBC suits, their helmets and gas masks and air filters.
They even take the arrow out of Scott’s hand. He screams as they slide it out.
He is now hunched over, clutching his hand.
Daniel tells the Death Squad that his rifle is in the Humvee. He retrieves it. And at the same time he removes the belt of EMP grenades, and throws it under the Humvee, hiding them from sight.
Kenji doesn’t respond to the advancing Death Squad, he doesn’t move. He is still in shock. He doesn’t want to accept what his father’s company is.
He doesn’t want to believe it.
He can’t believe it.
And weirdly, the look of absolute despair on his face actually works in his favor. The Death Squad don’t bother searching him. They don’t find the gun tucked into the waist of his pants.
“So what about us?” Kim asks.
“You’re not taking hostages again,” Jack says. “We’re not doing this.”
“No, we’re not taking any prisoners,” the leader answers. “The time for negotiation has past. We can see that now. Negotiation has no place in this world. This world is for the strong. The smart. Adapt or die.”
He sounds like the man in the gas mask.
We can never go back.
And I think maybe the psychopath, the one with a gas mask stitched into his scalp, maybe he was right.
“And we’re not going to kill you, if that’s what you’re wondering,” he continues. “I mean, I can kill you. If you want me to. And honestly, maybe it’s the kinder, more merciful option. The way I see it, you guys are dead anyway. And I’m sorry, but no one will mourn for you. Because there is no one left to mourn for you.”
The leader of the Death Squad has learnt from his mistakes. He has learnt the hard way. Trying to bargain with the company. Trying to use Doctor Hunter and Kim as leverage. This plan had backfired. It had gotten most of his men killed.
So he was done with negotiating.
He was done with leverage.
It
was time to hide.
Time to wait.
He is adapting.
Because this war is a war of attrition. And only the strong, the smart, the ruthless, and the patient will survive.
“Leaving us unarmed is as good as killing us,” I say, unable to hold my tongue.
“So you want a bullet to the head right now?” the leader asks. “Is that what you want?”
I shake my head.
The Death Squad soldiers finish checking the Humvee. They don’t find the EMP grenades.
They don’t find Kenji’s sidearm.
And I could’ve sworn we had a shotgun.
“All right, I need everyone to line up,” the leader says. “In front of the Humvee. On your knees.”
“What are you doing?” Daniel asks. “You said…”
The leader points his rifle at Daniel. “I said, on your knees! Now!”
No one moves a muscle.
The leader points at Jack.
One of the soldiers steps forward with a crossbow. There is no warning.
He aims, fires.
“No!” I try and push Jack out of the way. But I am too slow.
Jack is shot in the lower leg, in his calf muscle, with an arrow. He falls to the ground immediately, he does his best not to scream in pain. But he can’t help it. He screams as he holds his leg.
Maria and Kim run over to him.
“Do not move,” the leader says. “Stay where you are. Get back in line.”
One of the soldiers turns the Humvee’s headlights on.
“On your knees,” the leader repeats. “Or will we make you.”
All of us get in line, we drop to our knees. We put our hands on our heads.
Jack slowly and painfully gets to his knees. The man with the crossbow takes his arrow back, sliding it out of the muscle with relative ease. Jack muffles a scream, he ignores the blood pouring out of his wound.
The rest of us follow Jack’s example. We do as the leader says. Everyone except Ben.
“Face the Humvee,” the leader says.
We turn and face the Humvee.
“What are you doing?” Daniel asks. “Please. You said you weren’t going to kill us.”
