by Phil Maxey
For days he had felt detached from his surroundings. The dream that started days earlier never went away. It was a weight on him that grew heavier by the day. It was also growing harder to hide he true state from the others.
They passed through a small town, and the road widened to four lanes. Tilted electricity pylons joined splinted trees, over a white-beige landscape. Along one stretch of road, with small nearby trees, creatures two story’s high walked slowly across a field in the distance. Neither the convoy nor the creatures slowed as they passed each other. Eventually they arrived at a junction, with a snow covered green sign indicating ‘Mt. Hood,’ they turned off to the right and headed in that direction. As they progressed along the highway, a RV seller appeared on their left. A number of vehicles were damaged and lying on their sides, but some appeared intact.
Zach ruefully looked across to Abbey who was trying to ignore the motorhomes. “I know it’s tempting, but we are better with a smaller convoy.”
“I know,” she said.
Abbey looked out at the snow covered pine trees and distant hills covered in winter mist. “It’s funny.”
“What is?”
“How it can be the end of the world, but the world is still so beautiful.”
“Maybe it was people that made it ugly.”
“Depressive, much,” Michael exclaimed behind them. Zach laughed, followed by Abbey. “Man, you two would be the life of a party, I just know it,” they all continued laughing.
CHAPTER 7
A frost covered green road sign passed by. Zach clicked on his radio. “Bass, come in. Over,”
Bass replied. “Here, Zach. Over.”
“Did you see the sign? We’re going to be entering the area around Mt. Hood within the next few minutes, have your people ready for anything.” Bass acknowledged. Zach knew the volcano was an area of natural beauty and with that came wildlife, meaning E.L.F’s.
He picked up his helmet and put it on, telling the others to do the same. “If we’re lucky we’ll be past the mountain and onto the plains on the other side within the hour.”
Michael fondled with his helmets strap trying to tighten it. “Lucky is not something I would say we have been.”
“There’s a first time for everything.”
Wooden lodges passed by, as the wall of trees grew thicker, some of which were leaning against others.
In the bus Jacob watched the children and some of the adults singing a song. He knew the song, it was one his mother used to sing to him when he was a child. As he watched the forest pass by he found himself humming along. Occasionally he would see them. The things which looked wrong, and were finding their own way in this new world. There was no point telling the rest on the bus, they would only make a fuss.
As the convoy progressed, the highway became an incline and the peppering of frost and snow on the road became a blanket they had to plough through. The bits of green and brown that were visible amongst the trees were now gone, and they kept having to slow so not to slide into abandoned cars. Eventually after coming around a long bend, Zach stopped the convoy. In front of them a large mound of snow and rocks had slipped onto the road, forming a slope. It measured roughly thirty-feet in length to the other side and had a cliff to its left and a hundreds of feet drop off to its right.
He clicked on his radio. “Everyone seeing this? Over.”
Bass replied. “Doesn’t look too steep, but it depends how loose it is. Over.”
“I’ll take a look. Over.” Zach jumped out of the Humvee, and immediately pulled his collar up on his jacket. He winced as he felt the chilled air on his still heavily bruised eye. Icy flakes fluttered down around him as he trekked over the snow on the ground, his boots sinking a good few inches with each step. After twenty feet he stepped onto the slope and touched the ground with his left arm to stop himself from slipping. Once he was sure of his footing he planted the other foot and took a few steps forward. Fifteen-feet to his right, the barrier that used to be there to stop certain death was buried under snow and rocks. He looked up at the greying sky, and the whitened forests around him and almost nodded in agreement with Abbey at the bleak beauty of where they were. His radio crackled, and he flinched making him lose his footing again. Quickly he regained his balanced and held up his radio.
He looked back at the vehicles. “You’re breaking up, say again. Over.”
More crackling, then Rob’s voice. “I’m taking a look.”
A small group of soldiers, with Bass jumped down from the Bus, and took up positions around the vehicles. Rob and Bass then walked over as best they could, to the icy obstruction.
“Watch as you step on it, it takes a while to get used to how loose it is,” said Zach watching with some trepidation.
They both stepped onto the slope using both hands to balance before standing upright.
Rob rubbed his chin. “Yeah, I’m not sure.”
“Other routes will add hours to get to the other side,” said Zach.
Bass looking doubtful “There’s not much room for error, and we have a bus full of children back there. If things go wrong, there won’t be much chance of pulling it back.”
“Look around you, do you want to be out here when the sun goes down? Which is about four hours from now.”
Bass and Rob both looked up at the rocky cliffs, and dense white forest all around. Plumes of white mist drifted away from each of their faces.
Zach looked back at the vehicles. “How about we try to move the vehicles across first without the people in them?” Rob and Bass nodded.
Bass got on his radio, and more soldiers appeared from the bus, and back of the supply truck. A few ran over to Bass, who he directed to move across the slope to the road on the other side. Zach approached the Humvee. Abbey and Michael were already standing outside it.
“We going across?” questioned Michael.
“We’re going to try and get the vehicles across without people first, just incase,” said Zach.
Morgan appeared from the back of the white truck, and Zach approached her.
“How are your patients?”
She leaned in to him. “We’ve lost two of the critical. The last one just an hour ago. I don’t think the third has long. There’s no way he can be moved from the truck.”
Zach pulled away and returned back to the Humvee. Michael had gone to look at the slope, but Abbey was still standing there.
Zach looked pensive. She put her hand on his arm. He relaxed a little and flashed a resigned smile in return. “I’ll be driving the Humvee over first, if we can’t get at least one vehicle across there’s no point anyone walking over there.” She gave an accepting smile, hiding her true level of fear of what he was about to attempt. Zach took a last look at the mountains around him and jumped into the drivers seat.
Pulling forward slowly, he crept towards the edge of the slope that was furthest from the drop off on the right, but still small enough for the Humvee to easily climb up on. About five feet from the edge of the slope, he increased his speed slightly to make sure he could get up onto it without losing traction. Everyone watched as the front wheels bumped up onto the first few rocks and ice. Zach revved the engine and the front wheels spun a little before the vehicle tilted upwards and pulled up onto the slope. As it did, the back started to slide out to the right, down the slope. Zach turned to the right slightly to try to compensate, but the back slowly kept moving outwards. He then increased his speed and the front gripped better and pulled the rear back in. Keeping a constant speed, he was soon driving off the slope on the other side and onto the snow-covered road.
A sigh of relief rippled around the watchers. Zach stepped out of the Humvee, and looked around him. There was no sound from the forest, not even the wind, just icy stillness and mist that had started to creep up from the valley below. The two soldiers that Bass had sent across looked nervously into the nearby trees. Zach clicked on his radio. “Get everyone off the bus, and start bringing them across. Over.”
Mary hear
d Zach’s request from one of the nearby radio’s and quickly checked she had all her belongings. She then stood, looking towards the children behind her. “We are going to get off the bus, and walk across. Stay hand-linked like we always do, oh, and make sure you have all your backpacks with you.” she then leaned over the back of the nearby seat to be able to talk quietly to Irene. “You’re going to need someone to hang onto going over the ice, that okay?”
Irene gave a quick nod.
One by one the kids got up and got off the bus. Most did so quietly, but a few pushed and argued with each other. Mary gave them a stern look and order was quickly reestablished. Behind the kids, came everyone else, including Sam and Isaiah. Mary went to the head of the group of children, and they all linked hands behind her. Abby saw Irene wasn’t sure what step to take forward and ran forward, taking her arm. They all then walked over to the slope, and started walking across. Bass walked alongside on the right, incase anyone fell and started sliding. Mary walked gingerly forward, as the shuffling kids behind her did the same. A yelp rang out, and a young girl fell on one knee, but quickly got back up again, looking embarrassed.
As her sister led the troupe of youngsters across the slope, Morgan stood watching near the back of the white truck, almost not wanting to look. Every slightly unsure step that Mary took made her heart skip and she could feel the stress building inside her.
As Mary stepped off the slope, she looked back and started helping the children off as well. Abbey and Irene then stepped onto the ice. Irene’s walking stick flicked out and prodded the crisp ice and rock. They then started walking forward. Zach ran from his spot, jumping back onto the slope and walked to them as quickly as he dared too. It wasn’t long before they were all back on the other side, with the kids and Mary. Zach then clicked on his radio, and told Rob to bring the bus across.
Rob took a deep breath and tried not to look to his right at the plunging tree line. He then revved the engine and drove forward. The front wheels skipped up onto the already compacted ice and rock and slid to the right slightly but then gripped and the bus moved onto the slope. “Slow and steady,” he repeated to himself, making sure to keep the speed constant.
Rocks and pieces of ice, dislodged by the buses weight, rolled down the slope and quickly disappeared off the edge. As he drove forward, he could feel lateral movement as the bus veered gradually to the right, like an invisible force pulling it towards the point of no return. He ignored the motion and pressed slightly harder on the gas pedal and the bus picked up speed. It bumped up and down, and the back started to swing right. He pressed the pedal harder and now the wheels started to lose traction but at least he was making quicker progress. Zach and the rest were now just twenty feet from him and he could see in their expressions that he must be close to the right edge, but he dared not look. “Almost there,” he said to himself. The back right of the bus dropped down a few inches, but at the same time the front of the bus came off the slope and onto the road. He quickly drove to the left and stopped. His heart was beating out of his chest and taking a deep breath he looked at the anguished faces around him, which then turned to relief and then smiles. He drove a bit further forward to be alongside the kids.
Zach exhaled, puffing out his cheeks and looked at Bass. “We should get all the supplies off the truck and bring them over on foot.” They then both walked carefully back over the slope and with some other soldiers ran back to the supply truck.
Fiona was waiting outside the cab and looked at Zach as he walked passed. “The bus only just made it over, I’m not sure this truck’s going to make it,” she then gestured to the white truck in front of her. “Neither is that thing going to.”
Zach moved in closer to her. “What should we of done? Turned around? There are things in these woods just waiting, we need to be out of here as quickly as possible, even if that means losing a vehicle.”
Fiona went to say something else, but Zach moved off to the back of the truck, where two soldiers were already carrying a large crate between them. Zach then turned to Bass who was directing things. “We need as many on this as possible, get all the stuff over there quickly.” He then walked back to the moving truck and knocked on the closed rear shutter. It opened a few feet and the smell of vomit and faeces spilled out. Morgan was attending to some of the patients. Her hands were colored red and yellow. She looked across to Zach, and then back at her patient.
Zach looked across the faces of the sick and dying, realizing that most he was looking at could not climb down from the back of this truck let alone walk across that ice covered slope. He closed the shutter. His forehead began to feel hot even though the temperature around him was dropping in unison with the sun. A stream of soldiers ferried boxes and crates across the slope. One of them carried a box, with some rope hanging out of the top. Suddenly he had an idea. He ran back to the rear of the truck, where Bass was still working.
“Bass, this truck, does it have chains onboard?”
Bass looked around. “Yup.”
“In that case, I have an idea as to how to secure the white truck. But we need this truck to make it across.”
“Removing the supplies, has made it lighter, but it’s still a heavy SOB.”
“Well if it makes it across, we use the chains and attach them to the moving truck, if it starts to go side wards, we just use the winch to pull the moving truck in the right direction.”
“And if the white truck, keeps going in the wrong direction, then we lose both vehicles?”
Zach jumped up inside the back of the supply truck, so he could talk quieter. “The sick people in that truck can’t be moved out of the back of it, we lost two just a few hours ago. This way maybe they have a chance.”
Bass nodded.
Soon all the supplies were across to the road on the other side. Even though it was still two in the afternoon, the overcast sky grew darker with each passing minute.
Zach stood alongside the driver’s door of the supply truck. “I’ll drive it, if you want,” he said looking up at Fiona.
“I got this,” she then turned on the engine, and looked across to Cal. “There’s no reason for you to be in here, you can just walk across.”
Cal smiled briefly. “I’m good.”
“Okay then.”
Fiona pulled off slowly, as she did a sound echoed around the forest. She stopped a few feet before the slope.
Zach ran alongside the driver’s side, looking into the grey-brown trees around him. “Keep going, I can’t see anything.”
Fiona pulled forward once again, looking at the loose rocks ahead of her. “Fuck.”
The heavy truck’s front wheels rose slightly, and then sunk back down as they moved onto the slope. As they did, another sound bounced of the cliff face.
“What the fuck is that?” said Abbey to herself, even though Irene was standing a few feet form her.
“It’s not natural I know that much,” said Irene, moving her head to try and get a better fix on the source of the sound.
“There is nothing natural anymore, only unnatural,” said Jacob walking up to them.
They all watched as the supply truck drove forward, fully on the slope, and was already slowly but surely sliding towards the right edge.
Mary and the children were watching from the bus, but she then realized what might happen and started talking to distract them.
Sam quickly chimed in. “Hey which of you wants to play a game?”
Despite the cool air, Fiona could already feel herself sweating. “We’re not going to make it. Get ready to jump.”
Cal casually leaned out of the right side window. “We’ll make it, don’t stop.”
Zach ran along behind the truck. Sounds echoed again, this time from multiple sources, all around them. The lateral movement of the truck started to pick up pace. It was now only ten feet from the edge, but still some way to safety.
Fiona gripped the large cold wheel with both hands. “Its sliding Cal, and we’re losing traction m
oving forward. Fuck,” with her left hand she quickly unlatched the driver’s door. She quickly glanced at Cal who was casually looking out of the passenger’s window. “How far?”
“Plenty of room.”
She knew it was a lie, but had no choice as to continue on. She quickly caught a glimpse of some of the waiting faces and their expressions only made things worse so she fixed her gaze on the icy cracked surface in front of her. As the truck rolled forward and to the side, the road grew closer and closer. We’re going to make it.
A high pitched roar bellowed out from all around the trees and rock faces and a creature looking like a multi-legged bear leapt from the overlooking cliff, landing squarely between the supply truck and the road. Fiona instinctively hit the break, before realizing that was a mistake as the lateral movement now grew even quicker. Glancing to her right, she saw the slope edge only feet away and approaching fast.
Her left hand pushed open the drivers door, as she looked over to Cal. “Climb out this side!” she shouted. He looked at her and smiled and for a moment she felt he wasn’t going to move, but he scrambled across the seat and they both leapt from the door, landing with a crunch on the slope as the truck, tilted and then toppled over. It was then she realized the screaming and clatter of gunfire all around her.
There were now three six legged bear thing’s, snarling and roaring at the people close to them. Each was hunched down, like spiders but still rose a good seven-feet off the ground. Cal was already lying prone on the slope, firing his rifle into the creature that was approaching the bus. Unlike some of the other creatures they had come across these things weren’t armored, but Cal had already put half a clip into the back of one of them and it was still moving unaffected.
Zach had ran back to the white truck, and jumped up into the drivers seat. One of the creatures swiped its claws at the front and tore off the wheel guard and left headlight. He leaned his gun out of the driver’s window and fired off his rifle. Multiple bullets hit the creature in its large fur lined skull, most seemed to bounce off, but a few hit home causing the creature to roar with pain and back off slightly. It then charged forward, smashing into the left front wheel, causing it to instantly deflate and the truck to sink down on that side. Zach looked across desperately to the other side of the slope and the other creatures. Even if he attempted to take the truck across the slope, one of the creatures could push it over. He looked in the bent side-mirror as the creature roared once again at him, and saw the clear road behind. Should I leave? He turned the key in the ignition, but no response came from the engine.
