Against the Storm: A Fortress Farm Novel

by G. R. Carter

  “Founder Hamilton, the Senior Elector is on the line for you,” a Deputy said, a little louder this time than he had the first. Alex finally broke out of his zone and nodded to the young man.

  “Bill?” Alex spoke into the box.

  “I’m here, Alex. Thanks for getting on the line at such a late hour,” the voice called out. “I’m sorry to disturb you with such news.”

  “Clearly not your fault, Bill. I’m going to be staying here in Philippi for a while anyway. We’re all on high alert here after everything that’s happened,” Alex replied.

  “I’m thankful you and Bek are safe. And I’m thankful you were so vigilant, even if your own tragedy caused it. If you hadn’t warned us ARK was on the move…” The voice tailed off and left the obvious unsaid.

  “We’re only sorry we didn’t have anything there to help you with, Bill. If I had so much as a sword there, it would be yours.”

  “You’ve been a good friend to us, Alex.” Huffman’s voice had a disturbing tone of finality to it, striking Alex as a goodbye.

  “Bill, you can make it through this. You’ve been through worse situations.”

  “Right now, I’ll just be happy to hear you say you’ll take care of the Elect for me. Do you promise that, God as your witness?”

  Alex hesitated for a moment, not out of doubt for the commitment, but more that doing so would give Huffman an excuse not to make it out himself. “You know I will. The Tamms facility is ready for you. Provisions and shelter for every one of you. By the time you get there, we’ll have a dozen Razorbacks surrounding the place. Sam’s got a squadron of Raptors and Talons ready to take off at first light. You just have to make it through the night,” Alex assured him. Only static replied. “Okay? Bill, are you listening? Make it through tonight, and the daylight is going to bring a whole new world. You’re under my protection now, no more playing games. Someone attacks the Elect, the Red Hawks attack them.”

  Alex was leaning into the speaker. Bek sat right across from him wiping away a tear, matched by the one on his own cheek. Both contained as much rage as sorrow in their emotions. If they could, they’d have crawled through the wire in front of them and joined the fight, but distance left them frustrated and helpless.

  “Thank you Alex. That means the world,” Huffman finally replied. “We’ve got a good plan. And the defenses you helped us put together will buy precious time to get most of our folks across the river.”

  “Bill, I’m telling you right now it’s hard to conquer a city. Bloody ARK’s nose and they might just declare victory and go home. The Peacekeepers are used to pushing people around, they’ve never taken heavy losses in a stand up fight. You can do this. Bishop Hart has the entire Domicile up and praying right now, don’t you give up. We’ve both witnessed more miracles than we deserve…there might just be one more left for us old goats,” Alex said.

  A brief silence preceded the reply. “You’ve already been a miracle to us, Brother Hamilton. Just take care of my people. That will be enough for me.”

  Alex said nothing more. They were powerless to help and Huffman didn’t have any more time to waste on pep talks. He leaned back in his chair, fury now building up inside. His sister was there, probably trying to get in the fight. The Diamantes would know she’d be there, they had to know what it would mean if she got hurt…

  The assassination attempt, tonight’s attack on Mt. Horab; his friends, his people were dying and he couldn’t seem to stop any of it.

  “We’re going to put an end to all this,” he said to Bek through gritted teeth. “No more playing peace maker. From now on, it’s our way…or else.”

  *****

  Elector’s Table

  Mt. Horab Assembly Building

  45 Minutes after ARK Naval Vessels Spotted

  “We’re not as crazy as people make us out to be, Elector Bolin. We’re not going to turn Mt. Horab into some modern-day Masada,” Senior Elector Huffman said.

  “I agree. But what else would you have us do?”

  “The Republic will give our people sanctuary.”

  “I would say it’s too late for that, sir! If ARK is already near Grand Tower, there’s no time to organize an evacuation,” Bolin pleaded.

  “So we hold them off as long as we can, get the young ones out. They’ll have to be our legacy.”

  Bolin’s eyes sparkled with rage. Huffman cut him off before he spoke. “Brother, I want to fight as much as you do. Remember, I’ve been through this once before. Sticks and stones can be rebuilt, our only real asset is our people. The Elect must live for our message to be heard. John, please understand, there just wasn’t enough time.”

  The fire subsided a bit in Bolin. He respected Huffman, knew the man was no coward. If the Senior Elector didn’t think there was a way to hold off the ARK attack from a city he had rebuilt through force of will, the Table would have to consider the inevitable.

  A door burst open, revealing Essie Hamilton looking disheveled and out of breath. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but a messenger just got through from Old Appleton. ARK has seized the Route 61 Bridge. Apparently they got in some kind of commandos behind our defenses with the airships.” She stopped and shook her head. “I should have killed them all when I had the chance.”

  “No, Essie. Do not regret sparing lives. There is always a consequence to every action,” Huffman counseled. He rubbed his eyes doing some quick math in his head. “That means they’ll be at the walls in less than two hours…probably sooner. So it’s a combined attack, from river and land. Maybe air also if they’ve gotten good at inserting airborne troops.”

  As if to emphasize his point, a loud siren wailed, rattling the windowpanes. “Okay, everyone, looks like we’re going to have a long night. We need to make some quick decisions before we head to the bridge. John, what do you suggest?”

  “We may have an opportunity here. ARK’s got their timing off. The river force is going to be behind the rest by at least an hour. So we use the 88s to engage anything trying to force our northern walls. They don’t know we have those, so it should be a rude surprise. Maybe even enough to get them to call off the raid.”

  Huffman smiled. “That’s good, John. A nasty shock could cause some real confusion in the dark. Will they land their river force on the north side of the wall to support whoever’s coming across the bridge?”

  “No. They’ll use something to blow the floodwall, then come right in the downtown. That’s where we’re weakest. We’ll sortie our own boats, but we don’t have night fighting capability. I’m assuming they do somehow, otherwise they wouldn’t be trying this,” Bolin said with apparent concern.

  “They’ll use the airships,” Essie broke in. “All of them have Gatling guns on the belly. They fired a few rounds at me over Grand Tower. Once they dropped their bombs on the city, they’ll circle every airship they have over the river and chew our boats up.”

  “How do you know that?” Huffman asked.

  “Because it’s what I would do. I was trained in the same academy, remember? Old Main teaches a certain philosophy, and ARK follows the book,” Essie replied.

  The room was quiet. Nervous tension built as everyone’s internal clocks were telling them it was time to move. Muffled booms began to fill the room making otherwise brave people reflexively stare at the ceiling. Well-lit and perched on top of a hill, this building would be a prime target for the bombers.

  “All right, everyone, let’s move to the housing units. We’ll hope ARK just bombs the downtown and misses our homes. Remember, people need to see us calm. Get everyone who isn’t old enough to carry a weapon moving toward the bridge, then see to your assigned areas of defense. John, I’m granting you full command authority until the morning. We will all comply with your orders,” Huffman said. “Now let’s walk, we can finish our discussion on the way.”

  Without haste or panic, the Electors all filed out of the room, leaving John and Essie last to depart. Essie grabbed John’s arm before he could leave.


  “John, I’m going to the airfield.”

  He stopped and dropped his head. With a sigh, he said, “I figured as much. I don’t suppose I can talk you out of it.”

  “I wish you could. I’ve never flown at night without Sam on my wing.”

  “How will you navigate?”

  “Well, for once I’m glad there’s some solar storm activity. Plus the river will be well lit with the navigation fires. So I’ll just use that as a reference point.”

  He turned and took her hands in his. “I guess we’ve all got a pretty low probability of getting out of this. You’ve got just as good of chance up there as down here.”

  Essie gave him a fake pout and a punch on the arm. “Wow. You really know how to give a great pep talk. They teach you that in the Marine Corps?”

  He chuckled and smiled at her, his warrior eyes finding peace in hers. “Somehow, someway, Essie girl, you’ll find a way to get through. Without a doubt, there’ll be a trail of pissed-off mobsters along that path.”

  “See, that’s a much better speech! I knew you had it in you,” she said as she reached up to hug his muscular neck. “Now let’s get out of this giant bull’s-eye before some ARK gasbag drops a lucky one on top of our heads.”

  *****

  Big Muddy River

  Just off Mississippi River’s Main Channel

  45 Minutes after ARK Vessels Spotted

  “You sure you want to do this, Bisso? It’s probably a suicide mission. Those are ARK Citizens you’ll be killing if you go with me.”

  Bisso didn’t hesitate. “I’m sure, Captain Oliver. I don’t think I was cut out for Citizenship anyway. I’m just a river rat. Always have been, always will be.”

  “Okay, then. You’re now officially a Captain in the soon-to-be defunct Mt. Horab Navy’s Northern Fleet,” Oliver said with a sarcastic laugh. “Senior Elector Huffman put me in charge of recruiting and outfitting. Let’s see if we can get these two old boats into action. I’ll let you take Wasp and I’ll take Firefly.”

  “With respect, Captain, I don’t think that’s a good idea. Wasp is your boat and she’s in the best shape of the two. The best captain should be with the boat capable of doing the most damage.”

  Oliver started to argue and then stopped. Bisso was right, of course. It was the only logical choice. They had a handful of experienced men to go with their otherwise green volunteers. Firefly had been patched together after taking the direct hit that killed her previous captain. Depending on what ARK had steaming towards them, that boat’s chances of making it through the night were slim. Wasp on the other hand was in good shape, patched up and even enhanced by Levi Marshall and his crew at Grand Tower.

  Both boats were fueled and armed, sitting and waiting a mile up the Big Muddy for the signal to head downstream and join the fight brewing for their new homeland. Oliver held little hope for success—ARK just had too many weapons and men. Even if by some miracle Mt. Horab was still standing in the morning, the victory would weaken them to the point they’d have to agree to some terms with their tormentors.

  Still, Oliver was at peace with his decision. He had requested, and been granted, amnesty by the Elector’s Table. Even now ARK was still expecting him to be in Mt. Vernon, waiting to be handed over with his crew. Even the Red Hawks didn’t know he was leaving. Long talks with Huffman had led Oliver to believe in something bigger. He didn’t count himself a believer in everything spiritually the way the Buckles were; at least, not yet. But he had come to believe in what the little city was trying to accomplish. For once in his life he felt like he was actually from somewhere, even though he had yet to even find a permanent place to live. In fact, if he lived through the night, he would probably stay out on the river the rest of his days. But he’d be doing that for a cause greater than himself, even if he was still learning what that cause was all about.

  “Captain Oliver!” he heard a shout. “I see two green flares to the north!”

  Oliver looked up and confirmed the sight. Both ships’ crews gathered around him, nervous and anxious for orders.

  “All right, my motley crew,” he said with a hearty smile. Laughs and mild jeers came as a reply from the twenty men gathered in front of him. “We’ve got a big job ahead of us tonight. The work will be tough. If anyone is having second thoughts about what we’re about to try, step off now. You had better believe this fight is worth dying for, because we all stand a solid chance of doing just that. So go ahead, I won’t think less of you for it.”

  “We’re with you, Captain,” a voice shouted from the dark. Oliver couldn’t see most of the detail of most of their faces, just an outline in the pale light of the moon and storms but the feeling was there. A string of hurrahs and sailor cheers followed confirming his hopes.

  “And I’m with you. I’m not a big one for speeches, so let me just say this. Tonight we fight tooth and nail. We fight like not only our lives depends on it, but the life of every man, woman and child back in Mt. Horab. Some of you new guys are from there, so you got a little extra oomph in you for the fight. Well, let me tell you something, those folks gave me the first real chance at a home this river rat’s ever had. I’ll fight for that. Now let’s hit those folks floating south a good hard punch in the nose and send them back home so’s we can get some sleep! Aye?”

  “AYE!” came the enthusiastic reply.

  “Then get to your stations. Anyone not working the ship stay below decks until we call you. When I give the order, get up top and unleash the inferno.”

  *****

  “Jackson Outpost is burning Elector Bolin!”

  John Bolin, commander of Mt. Horab’s defenses kept his field glasses up to his face, doing his best to hide his concern. It was dark up here in the lookout tower, one of many standing fifty feet in the air along earthen berms built on what had once been Lexington Avenue. The only light came from the occasional solar storm burst, and the faint glow of burning buildings.

  “Our men are out of there, Austin. ARK’s wasting time burning stuff we don’t need,” John replied to the young militiaman. Jackson Outpost was Mt. Horab’s first line of defense; first besides the bridges over old Interstate 55 and Old Appleton – now bypassed and captured respectively by ARK commandos and armor.

  John Bolin hated to admit that part of him only felt alive in stressful situations like these. The metal of a man, or woman in these days, was only truly tested in combat. The stuffy polyester coat and button down shirt of an Elector was gone, replaced by a well-worn set of US Army BDU’s salvaged from the storage room of a local National Guard armory. His whole mindset changed when he put on a uniform…no longer responsible for rations or politics or even the spiritual wellbeing of his citizens – he was here tonight to fight.

  The plan was a solid one, looking back there wasn’t anything he would have done differently. His defense scheme came from time spent in the United States Marines, a brief stint ending with the stand down of the service itself. ARK just had too many men, too much equipment and Mt. Horab could muster only enough to defend themselves in one spot at one time. His job was to guess where the bulk of ARK forces would strike, and try to buy as much time as he could for the city’s citizens to evacuate across the river to the refuge set up for them by the Red Hawks.

  “Flood the canals,” Bolin said calmly to Austin, spurring the young man to turn and begin to climb down and execute his orders. “Hey Austin,” Bolin shouted again. The teenager turned to look at his commanding officer and second cousin. “Be careful. Trigger the charges and then get back here ASAP!”

  Something bothered Bolin about ARK’s actions so far tonight. The bridge at Old Appleton should have been blown at the first sign of trouble, but the outpost fell quickly due to a masterful airship insertion of Peacekeepers. Only a small handful of his men made it back to give him the bad news. Following that catastrophe Bolin expected ARK’s full force of armor and infantry to hit Horab’s walls right here, the most easily accessible entry point through the city’s outer def
ensive ring. Inexplicably, the lead ARK elements were taking their time, even stopping to burn and pillage.

  Doubt clouded Bolin’s thoughts. Maybe they’re waiting to let their river force catch up? ARK appeared to get their timing wrong, meaning any attack from the river would be behind the land force. He just prayed that Liam Oliver and his little fleet would bottle up ARK’s vastly superior force at Grand Tower Island. Can’t worry about that now. Have to worry about what I can control here.

  He heard muffled booms and crashes as ARK airships began to pound Mt. Horab’s downtown just south of his location. Another worry swirled around, this time directed at his fiancé, probably already in her little T-34 plane trying to at least harass the gasbags indiscriminately killing his countrymen. The sound of exploding bombs meant she hadn’t succeeded in scaring them off…or worse he thought.

  “Shake out of it Bolin, everyone does their duty tonight,” he murmured to himself.

  Two more booms, this time much closer told him that Austin had reached the detonators to blow walls holding back enough river water to flood canals dug in front of the berms. He waited a moment, then another set of booms echoed through the night air. Water would soon gush through a jagged series of channels between the outer defenses where he sat now and the much higher and stronger inner walls built around the heart of the city. He had already ordered most of his men to filter back there, to the relative safety of the inner defensive ring.