by Phil Maxey
There was a long pause before the Colonel replied. “Safe journey, Captain.”
“Like he gives a shit,” said Fiona.
“At least now we don’t have to be looking over our shoulders for his people, just the creatures,” said Michael.
“And we got this Humvee,” said Fiona.
As they traveled further along the main road, homes partially constructed sat waiting with building materials.
“This place is a whole lot different to the other camp,” said Michael to Mary. She looked at him questioningly. “Bravo, is like this mega city heading for the skies.”
“That was the same plan for here, but we never got the chance, almost every day the wall was attacked. Most days some kind of thing got over it, and killed people. The defense force didn’t have the manpower to protect everyone. When Halsted was killed it got worse. Tinley stabilized the situation by giving up on the rest of the camp and just trying to protect the few of us that were left.”
Zach listened to Mary’s description of Tinley and felt a distant rage, which he needed all his strength to suppress. There was one thing though he was sure of, Tinley couldn’t be allowed to reach Bravo.
CHAPTER 5
Raj sat in the back of the Humvee. Next to him was the man that he had come to dislike, despite only having spent a matter of hours with him. Earlier after Colonel Tinley had talked to Zach, his knuckles became so white as he gripped his radio that Raj thought it was going to break.
Tinley turned to Raj. “I’ll be right back, doctor,” and opened the rear door of the vehicle. The cold December air fought its way in, and Raj braced himself, watching the Colonel leave and walk away.
This was one of the few times Tinley had let him out of his sight, and he took this opportunity to try and retrace the steps that had led him to be in this situation.
He arrived in the ‘Factory’ as everyone else did the night before, but shortly after finding a bunk, a soldier approached him. The request seemed polite enough. “The Colonel is impressed by your gadget’s. He understands you must be very tired, but time is of the essence and can you accompany me back to headquarters for a debriefing,” the soldier went to assure Raj that the whole procedure wouldn’t take long. So Raj grabbed his backpack, and left with the soldier. He hadn’t thought to tell any of the others who were already falling asleep because he would be back soon enough.
After a few minutes driving through the backstreets and checkpoints, they arrived at an impressive art deco building that he was later told was the Oregon state capital building. The soldier hurried Raj inside, up numerous flights of stairs and into a large hall. A cacophony of sound hit Raj on entering. Multiple desks were manned by people with stressed expressions, most of whom were frantically talking to the people next to them or running from one end of the hall to the other. At the end of the hall was a large desk, with five people sitting at it. In the center was a man in uniform, in his late fifties with short cropped greying hair. What struck Raj as strange was that he was the only one of the five that wasn’t talking, or moving or seemingly doing anything. Instead he just sat there, in the middle of the hive, but equally removed from it. He instantly saw the soldier and Raj and beckoned them both over.
“Dr. Joshi. Sir,” the soldier said, then saluted and walked away.
It was then that Raj noticed his sonic devices sitting on the desk in front of the Colonel.
Tinley picked up one. “Most impressive these devices of yours, doctor, most impressive.”
Raj wasn’t sure how to respond. “Umm thank you, I didn’t actually…”
“I’m going to hand them over to some of my top people, let them figure out how they tick,” Tinley dwelt on the final word while examining the black plastic casing.
“Actually I’m going to need them back, well, at least most of them, you’re welcome…”
Tinley continued as if Raj had not started to talk. “I’m also going to need you to come with me tomorrow. Your Captain, will be taking a different route.”
“Sorry, what?”
“The private here will, take you to your quarters, I’m sure you will find them comfortable.”
It was then Raj realized the soldier that had brought him from the school hall hadn’t walked away that far and was now standing just a few feet behind him.
“No, I would prefer to return to the hall. Although I’m happy to advise you tomorrow on how best to deal with any E.L.F’s you may encounter.”
Tinley grinned. “That will be all doctor.”
Raj went to say something, but felt an arm lock around his, which pivoted him around to face away from the Colonel.
“Please come with me, sir,” said the soldier.
The stress of the past few hours was weighing on Raj, and he hadn’t the energy to argue or even understand what had just happened. He just wanted a bed and sleep, he will deal with whatever Tinley wants tomorrow.
The sleep he did have was so deep and enveloping that when the powerful knock came on the door of his room he woke not truly believing he had slept. After being only allowed a few minutes to wash and get ready he was taken in a Humvee, towards the south gate. It was there he saw the convoy, waiting with the wall ahead of them in the distance.
Looking more like a traffic jam, buses, coaches, motorhomes and an assortment of other vehicles all stuffed with people stretched for mile after mile. What made no sense to Raj was how it looked as if all these vehicles were part of one large convoy and not smaller more manageable ones like he, Zach and Fiona had discussed.
Raj leaned forward in the Humvee to get closer to the soldier driving. “Excuse me, sir? I need to talk to Captain Felton, can you take me to the school where my group arrived, last night, I think you call it the factory?”
“Don’t know any Captain Felton, my orders are to bring you to the Colonel.”
Raj sat back in his seat. Reaching inside his backpack he searched for his radio, but couldn’t find it. This bothered him more than the idea of seeing the Colonel again as he was sure he had put the radio in his backpack before he had fallen asleep.
Vehicle after vehicle flashed by, some looking like they wouldn’t make it to the gate let alone beyond it. About two-thirds of the way along the convoy the Humvee stopped with a jolt, and the soldier got out, opening the rear door.
“Follow me.”
Raj gripped his backpack and climbed out into the late morning, winter sun. The air was brisk, and the sky a brilliant blue. The soldier led him to another Humvee. The Colonel was in the back, with the door open talking to another officer. This time the soldier didn’t announce who Raj was, he just walked him close to the Colonels Humvee, turned and left.
“Ah, doctor. I hope you got a good nights rest, today we make history. On Christmas day no less.”
Tinley’s words were warm and welcoming and it was at this point that Raj realized the Colonel could switch between two states, one which you felt you had to watch your back with and another which made you feel he actually liked you.
“It was fine, so where is Captain Felton? General Trow said he would be in charge of the evacuation, that was part of the reason we risked our lives coming up here.” The final words came out more emotional than Raj had planned.
All the time Raj was talking, Tinley watched with fading blue eyes and smiled, nodding his head with perfect timing.
“It’s been decided that the Captain will be in charge of a smaller group of vehicles. I don’t feel this larger mission is really right for him, especially considering his past.”
Raj nodded, but his eyes looked around him for an escape. Something about this situation felt off to him, and he didn’t want to be around, when that became obvious to everyone else.
Tinley then got out and started to walk along the edge of the Humvee, towards the vehicles ahead. “Walk with me.” It sounded like a friendly request but Raj also felt he had no choice.
“We have rigged the devices you brought with you, to a number of our military vehi
cles, and boosted their output with amplifiers. You can probably already hear the creatures beyond the wall just waiting for us to open the gate.”
Raj hadn’t noticed until Tinley had mentioned it, but when he stood still and strained his ears, he could hear scratching and tearing. Nothing he could pin down to a particular direction, but a sound that mixed into the winter breeze.
“It’s all the meat, just waiting on this side of the wall, they can sense it, smell it.”
Raj noticed when Tinley talked about the creatures he did so in a fashion that was closer to a parent talking about an errant child.
“You sound like you admire them?” the words dripped from Raj’s mouth before he realized he said them.
Tinley stopped and looked at him with surprise. “You have a keen eye, perhaps you know people as well as these things. But, yes, I do in a way, they are what nature is at its best, unbridled ferocity. These creatures live to conquer, as a military man I can respect that,” for a moment Tinley seemed somewhere else. “Anyway, I just wanted to show you the equipment we have at our dispersal, I’m sure we can handle most that comes our way.”
Ahead of them were the two battle tanks, that Bass had mentioned before, as well as an assortment of Humvee’s. This was the head of the spear, and it was impressive. Raj then remembered the creature they had come across on the road near the lake, the creature that was actually just a small part of a bigger whole. All the tanks in the world would be useless against that thing. He thought about telling the Colonel, but what use would it serve? Hopefully the Colonel will listen to his advice to avoid large bodies of water.
Raj saw Tinley walking back to the Humvee, and his attention snapped back from an hour before.
He climbed in alongside Raj, and slammed the door closed. A helicopter roared overhead.
“Today will be written about in history books, doctor,” he then clicked on his radio. “Open the gate.”
CHAPTER 6
A far away shriek echoed around the landscape, just loud enough to be heard over the supply trucks engine. Fiona, who was now driving it, stretched her neck to see into the sky. Dark crucifix like shadows drifting across their path.
She then focused her view back on the frost-covered road in front of her. “They seem to be traveling back towards the camp.”
“It belongs to them now,” Cal said solemnly sitting alongside.
“I thought you were the upbeat one between us.”
Cal looked at Fiona. “Have you ever wondered why it happened?”
“I did for a while after we left New Mexico but events changed so fast, and by time I did have time to think about it, I didn’t care. It’s done.”
Cal rubbed his forehead. “I just have this feeling we are missing something important.”
Fiona glanced across, and didn’t like what she saw. Dark circles hung below his eyes. He looked like a man that was visibly aging. “You get any sleep last night?”
For a few seconds, Cal’s lips quivered as if he was answering somebody else. “Yes, I think so, not sure.”
“Why don’t you put your head back now? I’m sure you will hear, if things go bad.”
He turned and smiled. “I’ll be fine.”
The journey to and from the northeast gate had passed off without incident, and the small convoy of four vehicles was now heading into more forested areas, even though they were actually moving closer to the city of Portland. Just after passing the gate, Fiona and Cal had moved to the supply truck and Mary had switched places with Abbey in the bus.
“They seem to be settling down,” said Irene sitting next to Mary.
Mary gave a thankful smile, glancing over her shoulder at the children. “For most of them this is the first time outside of the walls since the Cascade happened.”
Sitting directly behind Mary and Irene, Sam leaned forward in his seat, placing his head slightly between both of theirs. “How did you two meet?”
Irene smiled. “Oh, I don’t know if we want to go into that.”
“Hell, now I really want to know. I’m Sam, by the way, this here is Isaiah.”
Isaiah, his head back on the window with his eyes closed, lifted one finger heavily and then dropped it.
Mary laughed. “I was stealing her produce.”
“I almost shot her!”
Sam’s eyes widened, eagerly waiting for the rest of the story.
Irene looked irked but continued. “If you really have to know…when the evacuation started to happen I made the decision to stay in my place. I had been living alone for a number of years and well I knew my place, knew every inch of it and I felt if I was going to survive anywhere it would be there. I hid in my basement when the soldiers came, they either didn’t see the door or didn’t care to look, either way, they came and went.”
“Where was this?” said Isaiah who was now sitting up.
“Outskirts of Portland. It was a nice little place, with an acre of land that I grew some crops in, had it’s own water system and power came from a diesel generator. I have always been self-sufficient.” as she described her former home she smiled. “Anyway, I was listening to one of the few remaining radio stations one night when I heard a noise outside, so I grab my twelve-gauge, which I always kept loaded, and open the screen door to listen. Remember, I can hear pretty good, and because of the Cascade there were no night sounds anymore. So first I heard nothing, than I hear someone pulling something out in the field.”
“I was trying to pull this damn cabbage out of the ground, it wouldn’t budge!”
“I ran forward and fired in the general direction of the noise.”
“Luckily I saw her brandishing the gun and I dived to the ground, she only just missed.”
“I’m glad I did! So I walk towards where the sound came from and I’m just about to fire again, thinking it’s some kind of monster stealing my crops, when this woman starts talking.”
Sam laughed. “That’s some story.”
“Oh we’re not done yet,” said Mary.
“No, not yet, so Mary’s talking and talking, saying who she is, when behind the sound of her voice I hear another noise.”
Mary was laughing. “All I could hear was my heartbeat in my ears.”
“It wasn’t much, but it sounded like a drumming. Distant at first.”
“And then you told me shut up.”
“Ha, yeah, I think you told me your entire life story in about sixty seconds. So Mary stops talking, and unbeknown to me get’s to her feet. And this drumming is getting louder and louder.”
“I still couldn’t hear a thing, I kind of thought she was going to shoot me still.”
“Suddenly I feel it, the change of pressure on my face. You know what it feels like when you walk into a spider web? It was kind of like that, and it was coming from above. So I pointed the gun up into the air, roughly twenty feet above Mary’s head and pulled the trigger.”
“And it fell on me.”
Irene laughed. “It sure did, to this day I have no idea what it was. But I hear this muffled yelling and then Mary crawls out from underneath it, and runs into the house.”
“You saved our lives.”
Irene blushed. “I’m just glad it only took one shot, as that was the last one in the gun!” Irene realized that a silence had developed around them and that Sam and Isaiah were not the only ones listening. “What about you and your friend?”
“Nothing as dramatic as your tale. We knew each other from the same rehabilitation center. After that we stayed in touch, and became friends.”
Isaiah smiled, as he laid his head back against the window again. “Well you became my friend, I’m still debating whether I want to be your friend.”
As the others were talking, Mary’s attention was drawn to the road. The towering pine tree’s were now framing their route ahead, and provided a dense cover for whatever might be in the forests around them. Her stomach tightened. The wall might not have been a complete defense against the creatures, but it was som
ething. What chance would they have, if they were attacked out here? As if answering her thoughts, the bus stopped, and she heard Zach’s voice on Bass’s radio.
“There are E.L.F’s up ahead, crossing the road. Over.”
“They making any moves towards us? Over,” replied Bass.
“Not yet. Over.”
Zach looked through the scope of his M4 rifle at a herd of creatures, which looked like large armored, spikey hippopotamuses but with longer legs. They lumbered down the slopes, some slipping on the light covering of snow and walked across the road. A few of them then stopped and looked in the convoy’s direction. “Everyone kill your engines. Over.”
Almost in unison the vehicles engines cut out. The creatures looked at them and small puffs of mist formed in front of their snouts. After what seemed like minutes, but was actually a few seconds, they looked away and continued their journey across the road and down the slope. Zach told everyone to start back up.
Abbey rummaged through her backpack and pulled out Raj’s E.L.F finder book. “Is it just me or are these things not as aggressive as they used to be?”
Zach put his rifle back down the side of his driving seat. “Who knows, maybe the ones that came in contact with people were the ones that hunted, and these don’t. Or maybe you’re right, Raj would probably have an opinion.”
The convoy passed over a high bridge. The ornate stonework that used to keep people from falling to the rushing water below was smashed and broken, with some of it lying across the road.
Fiona looked down to the river. “Look at them down there.”
Cal didn’t want too, but he leaned over and looked for himself. Forms and shapes were thrashing around in the water, and other creatures were drinking at the waters edge. He sat back in his seat. “Lots of them.”
