Homefront: A Story of the Future Collapse

by Matthew Gilman

  “Who here wants to volunteer for going back to the city?” Dallas looked at the group surrounding the campfire. One woman raised her hand. Dallas was surprised then continued. “This will involve sneaking back into Seattle. You will have to steal food and water. Once you start the Chinese will be after you, but there will also be massive chaos.”

  The woman kept her hand raised. Her name was Sophie. She was part of the group that had been found after escaping from the prison camp. She kept to herself and the group assumed that she had experienced some horrible things while being held captive by the Chinese. The short blonde stood up, keeping her hand raised, and said “I want to go.”

  “Alright,” Dallas said. “Let’s get started.”

  The mission sounded simple but the training would be intense. He made it clear to her that essentially it was a suicide mission. She didn’t care. Handing Sophie one of the prized M14 rifles he recited the rifleman’s creed.

  “This is my rifle, there are many like it, but this one is mine.”

  Sophie recited after him and looked at the painted, moss covered tool. The scope was sighted in at a hundred yards.

  “Is this comfortable?” he asked.

  Sophie pressed the butt stock against her shoulder and placed her cheek on it to look through the scope.

  “We’ll have a week to train you. All day, every day.”

  Sophie lowered the rifle.

  “Promise I get to kill chinks?” she asked. Budd’s slang had been infectious in the camp. It was common for short nicknames to spread in war. Skinnies in Somalia. Chinks and gooks in Asia. It was only a matter of time before it happened here. If the name helped make the Chinese appear less than human and aided in killing them, Dallas wasn’t going to fault anybody for using it.

  “Over a billion chinks. I think we can find some for you.”

  Dallas and Sophie had gone to one of the bald spots on the mountain where he showed her how to sight the rifle in. He showed her how to measure and estimate the wind speed for long distance shots.

  “Notice the tree tops,” he pointed out. “How fast do you think the wind is going?”

  Then he found a rock that stood out in the landscape and had her focus on it.

  “How far do you think that rock is, with the yellow patch on it?”

  “I don’t know,” she started. “Half a mile maybe.”

  She was not very confident in her answer.

  “Did you ever watch football?” Dallas asked. “In high school?”

  “No,” she responded. “But I remember the field.”

  “How many fields is that?”

  Sophie looked with her eyes then looked through the scope.

  “Look with your eyes,” he explained. “That will tell you how to adjust the scope.”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “Two. Maybe three football fields.”

  “Okay,” Dallas said. “That determines the height of the shot. Let’s estimate two and a half fields. The scope is sighted in for one. So let’s adjust the scope for three fields. We are aiming high here. The wind is slow today. Maybe five miles per hour to the right so we adjust the scope against the wind for drag.” The whole time he explained the function of the scope he was turning dials on top.

  Looking through the scope nothing appeared different, but Sophie understood how the scope was moving on top of the rifle. Dallas handed Sophie a magazine loaded with one round and she slid it into the receiver.

  “Safety off,” Dallas ordered. “Center on the rock and fire. Remember to breathe”

  Sophie moved her finger on the trigger. She relaxed and fired.

  The small cloud of dust from where the bullet struck was a little to the left of the mark, but it would have hit a person if she was aiming at one.

  Dallas looked through a pair of binoculars and smiled.

  “Good shot,” he said then lowered the binoculars. “Next lesson, one shot, then move.”

  While they trained on shooting they also worked on concealment. Dallas showed her how to use the local fauna to blend in. In the city it would be different. She would have to find clothing that blended in with the surroundings. Brick and concrete would be her colors for moving in the environment.

  When they returned to the camp the rest of the woman had decided that they too wanted to go back and wage their war against the Chinese. Sophie speaking up had inspired them to go back; she was not the only person who had a score to settle.

  The Rangers worked together in training the group. Scott and John, two of the men who had arrived with the women decided to go back as well. Now the group was at seven and Dallas had to figure out how to divide them for creating havoc.

  Sophie continued her training and Dallas picked Jenny to be her spotter. The two would work as a pair. Another M14 was given to Amber and Scott who were also paired up as a sniper team. John, Hanna, and Rachael made up a sabotage team that already had training with the logging sites. For the next six days the group worked day and night learning how to move around, formulate plans, adapt to situations, and kill with their bare hands if needed. At the end of the week Dallas still felt like they weren’t ready. He doubted his choices and heard Clive talking to him.

  “They will never be ready in your opinion,” Clive’s voice said.

  Dallas nodded knowing that his friend would have been correct. They could spend years training these people for what they were about to do and he still would not want to send them out into the city. Laying on his sleeping bag Dallas drifted in and out of sleep. The next day they would hike the group north to infiltrate the city. They had routes planned and three separate spots of entry.

  A hand pressed against his chest and the feeling of a soft body pressed against his caused him to open his eyes. Looking up he saw Sophie looking down at him. She pressed her finger against her lips telling him to be quiet. She kissed him and he went with it. He couldn’t remember the last time he was with a woman. The two of them snuck out of the camp and made love where he first taught her to shoot. Afterwards they laid on the ground watching the sunrise.

  “I could be court marshaled for this,” he joked.

  “I couldn’t go back without that being my last time,” she said.

  He wanted to ask her what had happened. He could tell whatever it was she needed something to rid herself of that memory. In her effort to cover up past nightmares she had made it harder for him to send her on her way. He would eventually, and she knew it. That was why she chose him. He would man up, keep things professional, focus on the mission, and allow her to go. Realizing why they were laying there together he rolled over and decided to give her something more to remember. Round two took longer and would be something neither of them would forget.

  Dallas and Sophie tried their best to blend in with the camp when they returned. Breakfast was being served and the glances from the rest of the group told them they knew what had transpired. This was their farewell meal and after this they would travel to the city and in all likelihood die.

  Sitting around the smoldering campfire the group was silent. The sound of spoons clanking against the aluminum cups was almost musical.

  Budd sat next to Dallas with a broad grin on his face.

  “Wet your willy?” Budd asked whispering, but loud enough for the rest to hear.

  Dallas dropped his cup, stood up and landed a punch straight to Budd’s nose. Budd fell back off the log he was sitting on and blew out the blood that was filling his sinuses.

  “You boke my focking dose,” Budd said, hands pressed against his face.

  Dallas had learned a long time ago that Budd was an asshole. The man didn’t have a filter and thought that any subject was fair game. This was the line that he never saw. Budd had the shit kicked out of him several times before in his life and never had a clue afterwards why. This time Dallas set him straight.

  “My dick is none of your business,” Dallas spoke in a language Budd would understand. “Are we understood?”

  “Ya, man.”
Budd stood to his feet and walked away. “Sheet.”

  Sophie gave a small smile to Dallas who picked up his dropped cup and threw it aside, seeing the dirt that covered the contents. Kelly walked over and offered another cup with fresh food in it.

  The hike to the city was long and boring. Two days in the same direction they were able to avoid patrols and snuck over the electrified fence using trees. In one spot, a limb had fallen crushing the fence that had never been repaired.

  There were no goodbyes. As the three groups rushed off disappearing into the trees in the distance, the Rangers wondered what would become of them.

  Dallas was with Sophie as she climbed the tree then dropped to her feet on the opposite side. She stood up looked at him. He wanted to say something. The look in her eyes said he didn’t have to and she ran off to start her own personal war.

  That night Jenny and Sophie found their first target and went through the motions as they were trained. From the roof of a former shopping center the two of them watched the city and found possible targets. A block away a guard stood in front of a building. The two of them had no idea what the guard was protecting. What they did noticed was that every five minutes after his last smoke he was lighting another cigarette.

  “Are you ready to do this?” Jenny asked Sophie.

  Knowing that the rifle was loaded she adjusted her posture and focused through the scope.

  “Distance?” Sophie asked already having her own guess.

  “200 yards,” Jenny replied.

  “Wind?” Sophie continued.

  Jenny paused. The flags on the buildings were still. She felt nothing against her skin or hair.

  “None,” Jenny watched the guard playing with his pack of cigarettes again. The man had become smarter during his time in the states and was using the older cigarette to light the new one. “When you’re ready.” Jenny said.

  “Give me a countdown,” Sophie requested.

  “1, 2, 3.”

  The thump of the air leaving the suppressor sounded louder than they anticipated. Through the scope Sophie watched the soldier fall to the ground. She pictured the Elk she shot years before. This felt different. She didn’t feel anything. The face of the General had come to mind a split second before she squeezed the trigger and the motion was involuntary. A voice called out in the distance and two men ran up to the fallen guard.

  One of the men crouched down to check the guard. Before grabbing the man, he picked up the newly lit cigarette and placed it in his mouth. Once that was accomplished, the two men grabbed each end of the guard and ran off his him, disappearing behind a building.

  “Are you okay,” Jenny asked after she watched the men disappear.

  “I’m fine,” Sophie answered flipping the safety on. “Let’s find a place to sleep. I’m tired.”

  Chapter 30

  Leaving the Palace of Heaven, Major Choi walked to a Humvee waiting for him. Ever since the attack on the parking ramp he had been waiting to hear something from the high command about his failure, but it looked like it would never come. During the week he made sure to stop at the Palace of Heaven every night, receiving his fill of the spoils of war while he could. He had a feeling that the high command would ask for his head eventually, not liking the embarrassing events that took place. A building was destroyed with dozens of military vehicles that should have been secured. How the Americans were able to infiltrate the complex he wasn’t sure. Were some of his own men working as spies? The men selected for serving in the United States were required not to speak English. This prevented any type of bond from being made between the locals and the soldiers.

  Adjusting his shirt, Choi could still smell the blonde on him that helped him forget his failures. At first he was hesitant of taking up with a westerner, but after the first time he was hooked. The Asian women that were found in the city were too western for him. He didn’t like how they moaned in English, throwing off the experience. He would see the face of home, but the foreign tongue ruined it for him. If he was going to experience the west in that way, why not go all out and dive into the tall blondes the other men enjoyed so much? There was something tantalizing about the golden hair on their mound and the fullness of their bodies that excited him.

  The back door of the Humvee was pulled open for him as a soldier walked up and handed him an envelope. This was the messenger that he had been dreading for so long. Choi opened the sealed envelope and read the note. He was being called to a meeting with General Sun to discuss the progress of his mission. A lump grew in his throat and he knew his time on this earth was almost over.

  The address of the location surprised him. The general had moved into the former house of Microsoft founder Bill Gates. The house sat on the side of a hill overlooking the harbor. Choi wasn’t surprised that the brass was taking up in luxury. After all, wasn’t Choi engaging in his own spoils with the sexual exploits he enjoyed?

  Handing the note to the driver, Choi closed the door to the Humvee.

  “Take me here,” he ordered. The smell of the blonde lingered and Choi wondered if that would be the last thing he would smell.

  The house was a wall of glass facing the harbor. Box-shaped with a flat roof, the complex was several thousand square feet of architectural nightmare. A silver/ gray color formed the frame and the inside was a monochromatic design of metallic vomit. Choi hated it immediately. He did not want to die here. Even in the city where he grew up the natural colors of the world were desired. Earth tones and the colors of the season were how his mother tried to decorate. Here the modern age had turned human living into a robotic nightmare Choi did not want to experience.

  “Choi,” the General said greeting him.

  “Sir,” Choi saluted. Choi wondered with the positive attitude the General was showing if the man even knew what was happening in the city, with his distraction of the spoils of war.

  “Have a seat.”

  Choi sat on a white couch. A glass coffee table sat in front of him and a cup of tea was poured for him.

  “I understand that you have been spending a lot of time in the Palace of Heaven,” the General said, making it clear he has been watching Choi. “Blondes have been your flavor as of lately. I wonder if this is affecting your efforts on solving our rebellion problem?”

  “No sir,” Choi answered.

  “No.” The General stood by the window looking out at the view. “Is it possible to fight against an enemy that you love so much?”

  “I don’t love them,” Choi argued. “They are a tool. Nothing more.”

  The General sipped his tea.

  “Choi. As of lately it has been brought to my attention that the American problem cannot be solved by your methods.”

  “But I’m doing something,” Choi protested. “More than the Colonel ever did.”

  “That is true,” the General stated. “But we need somebody who is better equipped for the situation.”

  Choi’s heart raced as the General turned around and set his cup of tea down. Was this the moment he knew was going to happen? The scent of the blonde filled his mind, glimpses of the recent past flashed in his memory. If he was going to die at least he could remember what it was like to live.

  The General moved back to the window and looked out.

  “You see this? All of this? This is the new China. Our destiny is taking place. The Americans talk about something called Manifest Destiny. It’s a stupid term really. They thought it pertained to them. Like an infant nation could take over the world. We have a five-thousand-year old culture and they think they can rule over us. The tide has changed and the sleeping dragon has awoken. We need leaders that can take us to the future, the destiny we are meant to have. That is why I am relieving you of your duty.”

  A servant walked into the room and placed a pistol on the coffee table. Choi looked down at the weapon knowing it would be his end. Two men in the room, one bullet.

  “Don’t think about trying to kill me or the servant,” the General stated. “I
still have my piece.”

  The General turned around and looked at the dead man on the couch, desperate eyes looking back.

  At least the blonde had fulfilled all of his desires an hour before. Choi wondered what would become of her after this. Would the General take her as his own personal courtesan?

  Choi picked up the pistol and flicked the safety off.

  At that moment the glass shattered in front of the General, showering him with shards and glitter sized pieces. A splatter of blood escaped his chest in a mist as the man fell to the floor. Choi was on the floor looking up at the servant who glanced down at him in shock. Choi looked up, realizing the man might think this was his doing. Choi fired the one bullet at the servant killing him instantly. The glass coffee table exploded above Choi as another bullet ripped through the room. Now the sniper was shooting at him.

  Choi crawled over to the General and pulled his pistol from the holster. Glancing at the General’s face he noticed the man was still alive. Eyes looked back at him. Shock expressed the mood of the man who was dying on the floor. This was not how his day was supposed to end. Choi crawled on top of the General smothering him. He waited until the General stopped breathing and crawled over to the door. It was at that moment guards moved in. AK-47s were pointing into the room, two feet above Choi’s head while he was still on the floor. Choi shot both men and ran out to the Humvee where his driver still waited for him.

  “Drive,” Choi said as the back window of the Humvee exploded. The door closed as Choi slid down in the seat. The driver put the truck into reverse and moved down the one lane driveway. Reaching the street, the driver shifted into gear and sped down the road.

  “What happened sir?” The driver was afraid he was now an accomplish to the murder of a military official.

  “The General was killed. Assassinated.” Choi explained. “A sniper killed him. Take me back to the office, I need to contact the mainland.”

  “What about me?” the driver said, thinking he would face a firing squad if the story wasn’t believed.