Towards the end of the room there were several doors. They had small windows and access was restricted. He noticed there were small grey panels and required an access card to get in. This must be where they keep the more fatal viruses and probably the zombie virus. He heard the creek of a door behind him which startled him. When he noticed it was one of the scientists he let out the breath. “What are you doing here?” “I was … couldn’t sleep and I was just looking around.” The scientist hesitated before he spoke. “Well this is no place to be wandering around. Now go back to where you came from,” said the scientist, as he gave Hobbs a stern look. Hobbs took the small hint that he was not welcomed here. So he turned around and headed for the exit and went to his cot. He sat down on the cot and ran his hands through his hair. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. He laid back down and tried to go to sleep.
Chapter 4 The Unnatural
Travis could make out a ping sound. His head hurt and it was hard to move without it feeling like it was going to split open. Ping, Ping, Ping came the sound again. Travis had difficulty opening his eyes. Ping, Ping, Ping the sound continued on methodically. Then everything went black again.
He woke again to the same sound. His throat was rough and dry. His head was still hurting but it was manageable. His whole body ached and each movement was laborious. Ping, Ping, Ping came the sound again. “What the fuck is that shit!” Travis tried to twist his upper torso to see what was making the noise but he was not able to turn enough to see. Travis decided it could wait. He needed to assess himself to see how badly he was injured. He started by looking at his right arm. It was just badly bruised and he was able to make a fist with little amount of pain. Then he proceeded to wipe his head with his hand to see if there was any bleeding. There was no blood. Thank God he thought to himself. Then he swiped his body all was well except for the splitting headache.
Leaning towards the passenger seat he reach to the side and pulled himself over as his knee hit the middle console. “Fuck!” He adjusted and pulled himself completely over. Then he turned to see what was making the sound. He saw a figure that had a black jacket with the hood still on. He could not make out the face. The person kept striking the window but the ping came from the wedding ring they were wearing. “Sir are you ok? Do you need some help?” The only response he received was the moan that was almost identical to the one he heard on the television. “Fuck me! Travis looked around through the other windows to determine if there were more of these things running around. He could see nothing else except this one. Think Travis he thought to himself. First deal with the threat then get to Ken’s work and from there depending on the situation head back home as soon as possible.
Travis grabbed the rifle and opened one of the small green pouches on the ruck sack. The button popped with a small click as it was opened. He reached in with his fingers and pulled the magazine out. He placed the magazine in the well of the rifle and pulled the charging handle back and released it chambering the first round. Travis noticed the person was walking around now to the passenger side of the car. Moaning as it went along. He quickly pulled back the black lever to open the door. The person was advancing as it rounded the right headlight and reached its hands out. Travis held up the rifle and didn’t ask any questions and immediately thumbed off the safety and squeezed the trigger. The person fell to the ground momentarily stunned before it tried to get back up.
“Fuck what the hell?” Travis shot a second round through the chest and the person kept reaching up for him. Two in the chest one in the head he thought to himself as he fired the third round straight through the eye. He looked around and everything seemed normal for the most part except this fucker that he finally was able to kill. The car that hit him was still there. He wondered why no one had called the police or maybe they just did not show up yet. He could not be sure. He went to the other car and all he saw was blood that smeared the driver’s door and pieces of glass on the ground.
Travis looked down at his watch to see what time it was. The watch read 6:00 PM. “Shit what the fuck happened and where is everyone? Travis felt the outside of his left and right pocket looking for his flip phone. He felt the bulge on the right side. He then reached in and pulled the cell phone out. The top screen was cracked but it seemed functional as he opened it. He tried calling the house first because he didn’t want to worry his wife Lori since it was way past due for him to be home. There were two rings and the phone went dead. Of all the times to forget to charge his phone this was probably the worst. Fucking stupid he thought.
He walked back around to his car and reached in to grab his keys and the ruck sack. As he picked up the sack he reached around with his left arm and navigated it through the strap. He adjusted the straps on the front to sit the sack as high as possible on his back. Then he bent back over and grabbed his axe. The axe was something special to him. It was given to him by a friend of his. They served together in Nam and it was a gift for saving his friend’s life. His friend later was shipped home due to his injuries. Later when he got back home he tried to locate his friend only to find out he committed suicide. Travis had the wooden handle engraved with both their names, Henry and Travis.
He put the axe in its special holster that was on the right side of his leg. He looked around and chose to go to the house on the right. The lawn was taken care of and the bushes were neatly trimmed. There were even flowers that were planted on either side of the sidewalk. When he got to the door he noticed it was slightly cracked open. Odd he thought to himself. He proceeded cautiously as he opened the door. “Anyone home? I was in an accident and I need to use the phone.” There was no answer and the house gave off an eerie feeling. Something just didn’t seem right and Travis knew it. He slowly backed out the door and tripped over something that was behind him. It was another person. Travis quickly rolled over onto his side and stood up as quickly as possible. He reached around for his rifle but it caught on the ruck. The person got up and gave out a moan. Its hands were missing showing its bloody stubs outstretched.
Travis pulled out his axe he shifted his weight to the right as he swung the axe that cut halfway through the neck causing the head to tilt to the side. Zombies he thought or some form of it. “Fucking pieces of shit,” he said, as he spat down at the thing. The eyes blinked looking straight at him piercing his soul. He bent over grabbed the thing by its hair and brought down the axe separating the head from its body. Dark coagulated blood dripped down collecting in puddles on the flesh below. He looked at it for a moment as the head’s mouth opened and closed. Reverting back to his old days during the war he kept the head as a war trophy as he surmised a new war was coming. He took his rifle and shot the head from the bottom up splattering bone and brain matter all over. He went back into the house for a second time.
He went through the cabinets looking for a pot to boil the head. He found what he was looking for. The pot was in the cabinet to the right of the stove. He pulled out the big black pot and placed the head inside. Then he put the pot under the faucet until the water covered the shattered head. Then he turned around facing the stove. He turned the knob to release the natural gas and pressed the knob inward hearing the click, click of the sparker that lit the gas. He placed the pot on the burner and went to look for some bleach to kill whatever virus the thing contained.
He went to the laundry room and found the small bottle of bleach sitting up on the shelf. He pressed down and turned the blue cap to open it. The he poured the liquid into the pot. He let the head boil as he tried the phone that was hanging on the side wall. There was no dial tone. He slammed the phone against the receiver. He approached the door shutting it. He then pushed a green cloth love seat against it. It was getting late and if there were more of those zombies out there he would not have a chance. He didn’t know what abilities these things had except they did not feel any pain and were slow moving. He went to the glass sliding door that opened up to the back yard. He pressed the small lever up as the door locked
with a click. Then to the left was a safety bar that he pushed down to prevent anyone from trying to enter. The only option they had was to crack the glass which would surely wake him up.
He sat down on the recliner in front of the TV. He picked up the remote that was in the cup holder. The TV was a large flat screen which he guessed was sixty inches. It was hooked up to a receiver box at the bottom and an entertainment system. He pressed a button with black lettering on top that read ALL. The television came to life and the channel was already set to the news. The coverage did not mention anything about what was going on. They were reporting on some story about little puppies that needed to find a home and if someone wanted to adopt one all they had to do was go to their local humane society. The cost would be only ninety dollars which includes the spay or neuter procedure.
“Fucking bullshit! Figures something as important as what is going on outside and they are covering some bullshit tear jerking fucking story about dogs and cats.” Then the broadcast was interrupted. The same news anchors he saw before. The man on the right said, “There has been an update to what is going on. There is some sort of virus, bacteria, or fungus that is bringing the dead back to life. Yes you heard right they are coming back to life. Stay indoors and barricade yourselves in. If you have plastic sheeting place them over your doors and windows and seal them with duct tape. Ration your food and water. We are told that help will be on the way.”
Travis got up and headed into the kitchen. He opened the cupboards looking for something he could eat without having to heat up. He found some spaghetti and meatballs in a can. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his P-38, a metal can opener. He placed the blade on top of the can piercing the metal lid. He turned the handle back and forth until the lid popped. He pulled off the top and threw the metal lid on the floor. There was no need to keep the place clean and tidy with the shit storm happening. He reached in with his hand and pulled out the noodles and proceeded to eat while he leaned backwards against the counter. He peeked over to the pot sighed. It was going to take a bit longer than what he had originally thought. The foam from the boiling water began to rise. He pulled out a wooden spoon from one of the containers that held cooking utensils. He placed it over the pot keeping the water from boiling over. Then he returned to his chair.
He kept the news on for a short period of time but since there was still no update except repeating what he had heard earlier. He flipped through the channels until he found a movie that he liked. It was a pay per view movie. He had to click on the ok button on the remote to purchase the movie. It is not like it mattered right now the ones who probably owned the house were already dead. Besides it kept his mind off of things for a while. When the movie was over he went to the kitchen and checked on the process of his war trophy. The meat from the head was rising up to the top and he could tell it separated itself from the skull. He picked up the pot and put it under the faucet running cold water too cool the contents.
Once it was cool enough he pulled out the white skull. He turned it from side to side until he decided that it was worth the trouble. He opened a drawer fished around until he found a serrated knife. Then he proceeded to saw off the top portion leaving half a skull. He gave it a quick kiss and placed it into his bag for safe keeping. He sat back down on the recliner. He pulled the plastic handle on the left propping his feet up and he fell asleep. He woke to the sound of pounding and scratching at the door and window. “Fuck me,” he said as he heard the glass patio door crack.
Chapter 5 The Mission
The next morning Hobbs went to Rojas’s office. He stopped and knocked on the door jamb out of habit. Then he went to parade rest and waited for the answer to allow him to enter. Rojas’s voice raspy said, “Come on in.” When Hobbs walked through the door he noticed that Cowan was sitting there in the chair. Cowan immediately rose to his feet and put out his hand. Hobbs grabbed the hand and pulled him closer as each other patted each other on the back embracing each other. Rojas instructed for them to sit. “Well gentlemen we have a mission for you two. Bottom line up front the scientists need another sample.” Rojas pulled open the drawer to the right of his desk and took out a map. He unfolded the map and laid it down on his desk. He continued to make a circle with his finger outlying an area. “You two can draw your weapons and supplies that you will need from the second floor. The mission is to bring back a live sample for the scientists. I don’t care how you do it but just get it done.” Hobbs and Cowan nodded to indicate they understood. “Well gentlemen get to it!” Both men stood up and headed for the door. Hobbs paused for a moment and turned back around. “First sergeant?” “Yes,” came the reply sounding a little annoyed. “What about the search and rescue missions?” Rojas sighed, “We are leaving that up to another bunker that is better equipped to handle that sort of mission. Our main mission is to get a cure or vaccine for this new virus. There are those that believe some of these victims can be cured. They believe these things are still alive and we can still save their humanity.” Hobbs felt concerned because at first it was supposed to be a recon and rescue mission but now they were given a different mission. Sure things change at the last minute with the military but this felt different. It was not like Rojas to mix up missions or reassign them without a better explanation. He must be under a lot of stress thought Hobbs and pushed the thought outside his mind.
Hobbs and Cowan went to the supply room. The room was filled with cages that consisted of chained fences that reached from the bottom of the floor to the top. Each section was categorized by supply equipment. He noticed the usual door at the end of the hallway. It was red and had various signs warning that only authorized personnel were allowed in. The door was locked with a combination that was next to the handle. Hobbs could see the red alarm light bulb and the silver wire casing that ran from the top down to a panel on the side of the door. They immediately went to the small office on their right. The supply sergeant looked up. He stood up and pulled the keys that were hanging on his belt loop. “Well from what I hear you two are going to need some supplies and weapons.” The two men nodded. The supply sergeant walked to the first cage. He fumbled through his keys to find the right one and opened the lock. The cage was filled with uniforms, ruck sacks, assault packs, and other such equipment. He looked on a shelf that had various boxes on them. They each had different names written on them indicating who they belonged too. He looked first at Hobbs trying to read the name tag that was on the right side of his uniform. Then he proceeded looking at each box trying to find the right one. When he had found Hobbs’ box he pulled it down from the shelf. It was a rather large box. The supply sergeant put the box down on the floor. “Please go through it and make sure everything is there. When you are done please sign the packing slip that is in the box.” Hobbs gave out a heavy sigh. “Do we really need to do all of this?” The supply sergeant looked up and gave him a blank stare. “Ok,” said Hobbs, knowing what the answer already was before he said it. The supply sergeant looked at Cowan and proceeded to find his box and gave Cowan the same instructions.
Hobbs opened the box and pulled out the packing slip. As he took out each item in the box he made a check right next to the item. After being satisfied that everything was there he signed and dated the paper. Cowan followed suit. They handed the paper back to the supply sergeant. “Now follow me,” said the supply sergeant, as he walked down the corridor. He stopped at one of the red doors and typed in a code next to the door to turn off the alarm. He then proceeded to turn the dial on the combination lock and stopping at each correct number and unlocked the door. He opened the heavy door and walked in and flipped on the lights. “You guys are lucky. We were able to get your rifles.” The supply sergeant took a clip board off the wall. The clip board had papers on them which had the serial numbers of the weapon. Next to the serial numbers were two numbers which corresponded to the number on the buttstock that corresponded with the serial number. The supply sergeant ran his fingers down the page and stopped when he
reached Hobbs’ name. “Number 35,” he said out lout to no one but himself. The rifles were in racks that had bars to lock them in place. Each set of bars were linked together with a thick chain and lock. The supply sergeant went up and down the different bars looking for the correct weapon. Then he reached for his keys again and put the key in the lock and pulled opened the lock. He took the weapon out and walked over to Hobbs. The supply sergeant looked at the clip board and matched up the serial numbers and handed the weapon over to Hobbs. The supply sergeant signed next to the number on the clipboard indicating it was being checked out and did the same for Cowan’s weapon. Hobbs and Cowan pulled back the charging handle and looked into the chamber to make sure that it was not loaded and let the bolt go forward.
The supply sergeant closed the door and set the alarm. He then continued to move over to the next door and did the same. He turned off the alarm put in the correct combination and opened the door. There were green rectangular metal cases that had yellow writing on them. The cases sat on pallets. He located the ones that had 5.56 NATO Rounds written on the side. He opened up the cases and gave each man 7 boxes which came out to 210 rounds. He closed the door set the alarm and headed to another cage. This cage had the field supplies. He issued out 7 magazines to each man. Then issued them some MREs, Meals Ready to Eat.
Hobbs and Cowan went to the entrance of the bunker and headed out. Hobbs pulled out the map and made a small dot indicating their current location and a dot for their destination. Then he took out his protractor and drew a small thin light line from their new location to their destination and recorded the degree they needed to head. He pulled out the compass opened it up. He then placed his thumb in the little wire clasp as he held it up to this cheek to get an accurate azimuth and found the first marker. Then they moved out. Hobbs pace count was seventy steps per hundred meters. This gave him a rough estimate of how far they had to go. Each hundred meters he would make a small line on the little note pad that he carried to track their progress. After every sixteen marks he knew it was a mile and at every mile he would make another tally on another page. He figured they went about seven miles. That would leave twenty three more to go and the average person could walk anywhere from twenty to twenty three miles in a day with breaks. He did the calculations and figured they would need to stop here but they hustled they could make it to the farthest house and hold up there for the night. Then they would continue on the mission in the morning.
Alpha of the Omega Page 4
