by Phil Maxey
Zach ran up to her. “What is a spider? I don’t see anything,” he said looking around him.
Abbey smiled. “No spiders. It was something else, almost plant like, but alive like an animal. We can safely pass now.”
Zach clicked on the radio and the convoy drove up. They both returned to their vehicles and passed through, as soon as they did, the threads flew across the road and the view to the highway they had just driven up from was gone. The other E.L.F’s avoided the area, climbing and jumping the highway walls to keep up.
Soon they were approaching a large body of water. All the Cascaders felt the presence of a lot of E.L.F’s ahead of them.
Zach clicked on his radio. “We can’t do anything with water based E.L.F’s, so just make sure they don’t attack us. Over.”
The Cascaders acknowledged and soon everyone in the truck, Cal and Abbey had their eyes closed, focusing on trying to communicate with whatever was in the water around them.
As the vehicles passed over the slim bridge, a multitude of creatures on the shore and between the cracked ice were silently watching them.
“Well this isn’t creepy at all,” said Fiona trying to keep her eyes on the road but being distracted by the scene just a short distance below. When they were beyond the bridge, the Cascaders opened their eyes and everyone else let out a sigh of relief.
When they were close to the city Zach clicked on his radio. “Atlanta is just up ahead. We’re getting off the highway, to avoid being spotted from any patrols. We’re try to find a good location for Tango as close to central as we can, but be prepared for contact with the enemy at any moment. Abbey if you recognise anything, let me know. Over.”
Soon they were passing down pleasant tree lined roads with single story homes that were set back some distance. To the right of the convoy an entrance flashed past of a school.
“Bass, let’s check this school out, pull into it in the next entrance. Over,” said Zach.
The large red-brown brick school building, looked deserted as they drove up to the impressive glass entrance.
Zach looked around. “Let’s just sit here for a moment, see what happens, Over.”
A light wind blew in the early afternoon sun. The feline E.L.F’s sat in the front yards of a nearby homes, while the Simivem’s circled over head, but apart from that there were no other noises.
“Okay, it looks clear. Me, Cal, and Fiona will look inside. Michael, I’ll need you in this Humvee on the big gun. Everyone else hang back out here until we give you the all clear. Over.”
The three of them got out, and approached the forty foot high glass panels and doors. One of which was already pulled open. The lobby they walked into was clean, with only a few text books scattered across the floor. The space opened up into a large hallway, with signs pointing to different parts of the school. A door in the hallway, had “Teachers breakroom” above it. Zach pushed the door open. There was one chair lying on its side on the floor and some shelves with books had fallen over, but the rest of the room was untouched. A row of windows, looked into a central plaza in the middle of the school.
Zach went and started closing the blinds. “This will do. Fiona, get everyone into this room, me and Cal will check out the other rooms.”
They slowly went through the glossy floored corridors trying the handles to doors of the many rooms. Eventually they came to the Gym. The door was already open, and the large open space inside was filled with bedding and empty plastic bags and bottles. Printed pieces of paper lay scattered across the floor and empty tables were pushed against the outer walls. They both walked in and stood in silence.
“Must have been used as some kind of refuge for people,” said Cal.
“Yeah,” Zach couldn’t help but imagine the games that must have been played on the court, and the crowds that cheered.
By time they got back to the break room, everyone was inside, and people were finding places to rest.
Michael was going through cupboards against the far wall. “Ah ha,” he said opening the last one and pulling out a bag of coffee. Somebody else had set up a small stove, and was boiling water with a pan of beans ready to be heated next.
Zach approached Fiona. “Set up a two person patrol to keep an eye on things around the school. Shift change every hour and try and move the vehicles out of sight. We’re also going to need the defensive positions set up in and around the school, coordinate with Bass,” Fiona nodded. Then Zach checked in with Echo on the radio. Everything was fine back at the pharmacy.
Dr. Chapman approached Zach. “I’ll need some of my supplies in here. I want to be ready to patch people up if things don’t go well,” Zach nodded, and got two of the soldiers to bring in what she needed.
He then turned to the rest in the break-room. “Everyone get some rest, and get ready. In three hours the attack team is going to move out. We will search the downtown part of the city, and find targets for the Cascaders to send the E.L.F’s to attack, and hopefully find the location of Geneva. Nobody leaves this location, unless we say so. Everyone understand?”
Everyone agreed.
CHAPTER 42
The Humvee drove down a pockmarked road in the darkness, its beams catching glimpses of factories and buildings that were long forgotten before the Cascade even started.
“Doesn’t look like there’s any sign of people living around here,” said Fiona straining to see if any of the dilapidated homes were still lived in.
“Hopefully all of Geneva’s people are living in downtown,” said Zach, as they turned into another road with homes on both sides.
“After this road, it opens out, and we’ll be a lot more exposed,” said Fiona.
“Agreed, let’s leave the Humvee here, and we’ll go the rest of the way on foot.”
Parking the Humvee in a drive behind some bushes and trees, they had a last look at the map of the area.
“The parking garage Abbey stayed in is about a mile north from here. Night-scopes on…Everyone ready?” Fiona and Cal nodded. Letting the others at Tango know they were proceeding on foot, they quickly made their way across yards and lawns, until they were in the park area Fiona mentioned.
In the distance, just visible as dark monoliths against the last remaining light of the day, stood the buildings of the downtown area.
Moving as fast as they could along the sidewalks and across parking lots with smashed and broken cars, they came to an area of multiple highways crossing from the east to west.
“Beyond the highway, we are close to the downtown area. Safety’s off and stay close together.”
They soon moved beyond the highways, past apartments, parking lots and then they were alongside office buildings. Zach waved for all of them to crouch together.
“Anyone see anything?” he whispered.
“Nothing, looks completely dead around here. We need to go further in,” said Fiona.
The further north they ran, the more impressive the buildings grew that towered into the night sky around them. Eventually a flickering light was visible to their west.
Fiona pointed. “I see it,” responded Zach.
Running, but keeping low and to the edge, they moved along a wide walkway lined with small shops. Each of them slid their night-scopes to the top of the heads. The light grew stronger and they could see there was not one but multiple sources sending smoke upwards. Cautiously they inched forward, using stand alone pillars as shields, which they ran between. Eventually they could see the source of the light was two fires burning brightly and another which was just embers smouldering. Within each was the remains of a person tied to a stake. Painted on the concrete slabs in front, were large letters. “Devils will burn”.
They all crouched together in a doorway.
“Do you think that message is for us?” said Fiona.
“Yeah, I think it is. We need to check out the underground area, right below us,” replied Zach.
“We can be easily ambushed down there,” said Cal, looking around him
.
“We need to find the gang. Let’s move.”
Keeping low they moved into a stairwell, and were soon on the underground level with the fires burning just thirty yards away. Pulling down their night-scopes to their eyes once again they moved into the darkness of the large shopping parade under the streets of Atlanta.
* * * * *
Bass looked out into the formless night outside the third floor school room window. He heard a noise behind him, it was Dr. Chapman.
“Hard to get used to knowing that they are out there,” said Bass.
“The E.L.F’s or the Hell Fire gang?”
“Well both, but mostly the creatures. A lot of the camp were behind throwing the Cascaders in a dark hole somewhere and forgetting about them, but now they’re the reason we are all safe.”
“It’s like I say, everything…”
Bass smiled. “Happens for a reason.”
“We haven’t known each other for very long, and you already know all my phrases!” she said smiling in reply.
“Yeah it sure does seem that way, but…sometimes it’s the wrong reasons.”
“Heard anything back from Zach?”
“Only that they have left the Humvee behind and are going into the city on foot. If the gang is there, we will know soon enough.”
“Wouldn’t it be great, if they kill this Geneva madman, rescue your friend Brad and we can all go home?”
Bass smirked. “When is the road ever straight. How’s things looking on the medical front?”
“I get three beds setup, I heard that some of you have had medical training, I might be calling on that,” she looked down and back at him. “But hopefully not.”
A loud roar rang out from the grounds around the school, and Abbey’s voice came from Bass’s radio. “Bass, the creatures sense something, I think there’s people approaching us. Over.”
“Kill the lights. Everyone to their…” before he could finish, the repeating thunder of helicopter blades echoed from the distance. And points of light bobbed and swayed a few miles off. “Everyone to their places. We don’t know if they know we are here, or if this is a routine patrol.”
Dr. Chapman ran downstairs, while Bass positioned his rifle in a comfortable position to see the road which ran alongside the school. The creatures continued growling.
“Abbey, can you and your friends do anything to keep those creatures quiet. Over.”
“We can make them more passive, but then they won’t be much use in a fight. Over.”
“Okay, leave them and we’re hope the gang just pass us by,” Abbey’s words were becoming harder to hear as the helicopter rose up from the nearby hills, it’s search light sweeping from house to house. The small points of light, were now cones which were in the back yards of the homes opposite the school.
Multiple roars rang out a few hundred yards from the school, followed by screaming and gun fire. A number of the points of light retreated back into the trees. Neon red streaks of gunfire flew between the houses and the trees.
“Bass, the feline E.L.F’s are attacking the gang, but one of them is already down, we’re trying to get them to retreat, but we can’t get through to them. Over.”
Bass shook his head, and looked down the sight of his rifle, but it was too dark to make anything out in the battle that was happening outside.
The helicopter appeared again, and rockets flew from it’s sides hitting the ground, sending sparks and fire upwards.
“Bass, can’t we attack? The creatures are being killed! Over.”
“Stay in your positions! And don’t fire unless fired upon. We have to hold this location, otherwise Zach, Cal and Fiona won’t have anywhere to fall back to! They still don’t know we’re here. Over.”
Abbey could feel the pain of the creatures outside. Each bullet feeling like it was tearing into her own flesh. She turned to Wyatt and some of the other Cascaders next to her.
“We need the Simivem’s to attack as well. See if they can attack the helicopter.”
Abbey grabbed Wyatt’s hand, who grabbed Evan’s and so on, and they focused their thoughts on the bird like creatures high above, and then on their enemies in the chaos unfolding outside. She then thought of Mo.
She ran forward into the lobby area, and crept through the open glass door, feeling with her outstretched fingers as she went. The area around her felt cooler and Mo landed a few feet to the side of her, chirping.
“Mo, you need to leave, fly far away form here!”
The monkey-bird creature just hopped on the spot, flapping it’s wings and ducking it’s head. Even when she tried using her abilities to control him, he still stayed stuck to the spot next to her.
She grabbed her chest as she felt another of the feline creatures fall to the ground dead, there was only one of them left alive and it was wounded. She closed her eyes, concentrating on the single creature alone out there in the woods, blood trickling from it’s hide, and forced it to flee.
The flying creatures swooped repeatedly on the helicopter, some being caught in the blades, and immediately falling to the ground, while others smashed the windscreen. The helicopter wavered as the rotor blades slowed, and then fell sidewards into some high trees, bursting into flames, and setting the nearby forest ablaze.
Gunfire traced upwards from the ground into the dark shadows above, as a thunderous sound of heavy vehicles came from the end of the street.
“Mo, inside now!” she half screamed half whispered. The bird like E.L.F pulled it’s wings in, and slide through the open glass door and then fluttered around the high ceilinged lobby.
Abbey ran inside, and pulled the glass door shut. She then ran into the breakroom, with Mo closely behind her. Most of the Cascaders and Michael were inside.
“I’m sorry everyone, I had to bring him in with us, he wouldn’t of survived out there.”
“Yeah it’s cool,” said Michael, trying not to look anxious.
Bass, on the floors above watched a long column of vehicles, all brightly lit with their headlights, each carried at least six smaller points of light, which he assumed were people with flashlights. They were all heading towards the school.
CHAPTER 43
All around them was garbage. Bottles, cans, cardboard boxes, and everything else a community would discard, laid on the floor of the large underground shopping area.
At first Zach thought perhaps this was how it had been from the start of the Cascade, but some of the bottles still had liquid in them, he held one up. “Lots of people were hear recently.”
As they swept their scopes around, they moved from one steel pillar to the next, looking into the abandoned shops which were being used as accommodation, passing underneath an intricate network of pipes and tubes.
Eventually they moved to the end of the space, there was no sign of Geneva or any of his gang.
Fiona looked back from where they came, which was still well lit by the fires. “They were here. Maybe they knew we were coming.”
“Or they just cleared out after Abbey escaped,” said Cal.
Zach absorbed what both of them had just said and went to reply when he stopped, frozen in realisation. He clicked on his radio. “Bass, come in. Over,” there was no answer, only static.
“We’re too far in, there’s no signal,” said Fiona trying to control her response.
Zach started running towards the fires. “We need to get back!”
As they got close to the lit area, they flipped up their scopes, and tried to ignore the suffocating smell of burnt wood and flesh.
Zach tried the radio again. “Bass, you there. Over,” again no response.
“We should be getting a signal out here,” said Fiona solemnly.
They ran up the stairs to the ground floor. “No, stopping until we get back to the Humvee,” said Zach.
Within fifteen minutes they were almost back at the Humvee, but slowing.
Running best he could Zach ran up to the vehicle and pulled its drivers door open
. “No…”
The inside dashboard was stripped back, revealing wires which were ripped and snapped.
“Fuck,” he ran around to the front, and pulled the already open hood up. The engine was a mess with parts either smashed or missing. He dropped the hood, and looked into the intense black around him. Fiona and Cal stood close by.
“We have to keep moving…” said Fiona, as she noticed Cal and Zach looking at a glow in the sky a few few miles south. Zach tried contacting anyone at Tango again with the radio but with no success.
They set out once again, keeping as close as possible to the houses, and heading towards the glow. Soon their energy was leaving them, and their run became a stagger. Jogging up a hill, they could see flames tearing high into the sky, from the windows of the school. In the street out front, feline E.L.F’s lay dead, together with bodies of men and women. Zach ran to each, checking for any recognisable faces, but there were none. “These are all gang members, the E.L.F’s did their job.”
They quickly crossed the parking lot moving over the bodies of Simivem’s. Each time Zach saw a feathered wing, he breathed a little quicker, but none were Abbey’s pet. Soon they were at the large glass lobby area, which was now hundreds of shattered pieces laying on a blood stained floor. They then spotted the other bodies, all clumped up against the base of the blood splattered bullet ridden wall.
“Oh God…” said Fiona, running up to the bodies of the Cascaders. Evan, Sara, Gerik and the rest where laying dead. Zach and Cal joined her and checked on their pulses, but none were found. They then noticed in the half shadows the blood on the wall behind the bodies was a message. “Devils will be shot.”
