by R. K. Sidler
It was estimated that the exterior frame would be finished within two months, adding another two for completing the more permanent living quarters. When the facility was capable of accommodating a full staff, other specialists would arrive. A radio and weather station was to be setup as soon as possible. Word had circulated that other people may have survived in underground bunkers around the world, so an external radio station was deemed appropriate. Scientists of varying specialties were necessary to study their new environment.
Those who were now ‘outside,’ were able to maintain contact through their closed circuit network with the ‘inside.’ Natural gas, water, and electrical lines were directly connected to their inside sources. It was almost as if they were just in another part of the mountain itself, but with fewer luxuries.
Jim Forrest was very motivated by his opportunity. He was in complete control of everything that went on outside the mountain. Not only was it his command alone, every step they made would be accredited to him in some way. He was in a position to influence the future of everyone who survived. He was looking forward to the challenge.
* * *
It was his ninth trip outside the mountain. The tunnel he exited was not as large as the main entrance where the others had begun construction. This one was only meant to handle foot traffic. On this trip, his mission was to cover as much ground as possible, so the supplies he carried were few. He decided to take a handgun with a few spare clips. He had yet to see animal or human, so he was not overly concerned. He also had his two knives, one in his boot, and one on his side. He never went anywhere without them. One thing that remained with him from survival school, and Special Forces training, was that a sharp knife enabled a person to carry out many other tasks, such as turning other implements into tools or weapons. It was more of a habit, than a necessity, but they remained with him ever since his first day here.
Aside from his wife being added to the list, no one else in the complex knew of his excursions. The process was the same each time, and Keith was enjoying himself. He only wished he could share the experience with Terri, but he knew that was impossible for now. He even thought about returning with a collection of flowers for her until he realized that it was an impractical idea. He was told that if he found what Dr. Maddow was searching for, others would be treated and be capable of leaving as well.
The doorway opened on the east side of the mountain, just as the main entrance did, the difference was that it opened into a hidden area, not visible from afar, and it was almost one mile north of the other entrance. He started to jog as he welcomed the air into his lungs. His stamina was virtually unlimited, as he never seemed to tire. He could run non-stop. He only chose to walk when there was something to investigate or when he was just bored with running.
He headed north this day, along the rolling foothills. As the miles passed, he encountered more and more low growing scrub pines. He packed a popup shelter as he intended to go as far as he could on his rations. He was determined to find something new, a sign of life, a viable resource, anything. The clouds remained overhead, dark gray, and moving as if they were boiling in the sky, just out of reach, but his spirit was undiminished. He ran along old game trails, where he could find them, as these were often the most efficient routes to travel. The landscape along the foothills was bathed in muted colors from the lack of direct sunlight.
His first day was uneventful, but pleasant. As the skies grew darker, and the ambient light from the sun subsided, he built a small fire and made his camp. He was not sure if it was the time of year, or if the environment was starting to change, because he did notice that the cloud cover was lessening in intensity making the days seem longer, and the skies seem brighter in comparison to his first journey outside of the mountain. He stared into the fire and watched as the sparks rose into the night, and the kindling crackled as it was reduced to bright colored embers. It was not normally a smart thing to do, as his vision was impaired, but he had not come across anything yet, which posed a threat to his presence. He thought back to the camping trips they had when he was young. His mother, father, Frankie and he went camping at least once every year until his mother became too ill. That was when their family life changed. While she was alive, they were a family. She was not only the central figure; she was the glue that joined each individual to the other. When she was gone, they became separate, remaining a family only in name. Keith reflected on those memories. They were two distinct chapters in his life; the life with Mom and the life after Mom. Once the fire died down enough to not pose any danger of spreading, he crawled into his tent. He slept soundly for the few hours that were now normal for him. When he awoke, he ate, drank some water from a nearby stream, and secured his shelter. He made an early start.
―
He crested a small hill and saw a forested valley below. The fir trees were thick and tall. As he walked down the slope to enter the trees, he thought he saw a movement. He stopped. He did not notice it again, and he heard no sound, so he continued on. When he had gone several hundred yards into the forest, he detected movement once again. This time he was sure. He started on a parallel course to try to intercept whatever it was. He drew his handgun and walked as quietly as possible taking care where he placed his steps. He stopped at a small break in the trees that opened into a clearing, and saw the form of a person lying on the ground drinking from a puddle of water.
He decided to wait a moment to think on how to approach this. He did not want to scare the person away, but he did want to make contact. He replaced the pistol in its holster, and walked out into the open. Even though he was a few hundred yards away, he could see the individual was not in very good shape. He was raggedly dressed, and had an unhealthy look about him, which was only enhanced by his lack of any significant body weight. Keith’s eyes were as enhanced as were his other senses, which aided in his perception. This was something that took some time to get used to, but he could see where this ability would benefit him in circumstances such as this one.
After he took a few more steps, the person stopped drinking, and looked his way. It was as though he could not see him, although he was close enough, but was rather sniffing the air. He was quite emaciated. His hair was long, but thin and straggly. His eyes were sunken, and his skin was pale. There was no muscle tone, and only a minimum amount of clothing still hanging from his body. Keith decided to speak. “Hello. Who are you?”
He did not speak, or even acknowledge that he had heard him, he simply returned to drinking. Keith walked a little closer. “Hi there,” he said hoping to solicit a response; nothing. When he got off the ground, Keith stood still. It looked more like a creature than a man. Maybe they were right in calling them MuTerra, Keith thought. They would hardly pass for human. “Do you have a name? Do you live near here,” Keith tried once more.
The creature looked his way again, sniffed the air in his direction then walked off as if he did not exist. Keith decided to follow him, but at a safe distance. When he walked past the waterhole, he noticed it was quite brackish, something only a desperate creature would drink. He was easy to follow, as the smell was unmistakable. At no time did he ever look back or give any indication of concern that he was being followed.
After a mile or so, the creature walked into a cave. Keith decided to go in as well. It was a large cave just on the edge of the forest found amongst the large rocks aligning a hillside. He waited until his eyes became adjusted, then he moved on. The stench was increasing as he made his way. Soon, he came to an open cavern. It was as wide as it was long. He stopped and noticed even more of the creatures. There were about twenty of them. They did not talk, they did not even move around much. They were just there, some sitting, some standing. He stepped cautiously along the wall, but not one of them seemed to take notice or care that he was among them. When he came to a side passage, the smell became almost unbearable.
He looked inside the passage and saw a large pile of rotting bones; very little remained other than the bones the
mselves. He could tell some were human, and others were from a variety of animals. He decided these creatures were indeed not human, but had become something else altogether. He removed his pistol once again, and retraced his steps. They did not try to follow him as he left the cave.
He was not afraid of them, but he still decided to put some distance between himself and the cave. They did not look very healthy, but he was not interested in any unnecessary confrontation. He continued north at a healthy jog. As he went, a few things became clear, there were people alive out here, those in the cave, and those who they may have preyed upon. There was also evidence of wild animals. The bones were too new to be of long dead carcasses. He only hoped that what he found next was not as wretched and revolting as what he witnessed in the cave.
―
Two days removed from his experience in the forest, Keith found himself in a valley full of wild grass. It was yellow in color and tall. He collected some for study. He also noticed the ground was marshy. From this, he went to several standing pools and collected samples of water in the hopes that he would find what Dr. Maddow was so interested in. He marked them and placed the vials into a pocket on the inside of his jacket.
He heard the noise before he saw them. There was a pack of dog like creatures walking along the rim of the basin. They spotted him and they were acting as if they were trying to avoid him. He did not think they were planning to attack, as they appeared to be rather small to approach something his size. They were smaller than a coyote, but larger than a red fox. Their coats were yellowish brown, similar to the grass, and they had a dark brown patch riding down the middle of their back.
They were not calling out to one another, and this was another reason he did not think they would try to molest him. He was wrong. As soon as the four dogs were within twenty yards of him, they started to growl and run straight for him. He had little time to draw his gun and fire as they did so. He took aim at the closest one and fired. The gun bucked in his hands as he acquired his next target. The first two went down in cries of pain, while the other two continued their assault. A third one absorbed two quick rounds in mid-air as it jumped at him. The last animal was now too close to fire at. Keith swung his free arm as the dog was in the air.
He struck the dog in his ribs with the side of his forearm. It was not a solid blow but Keith knew it caused damage. In fact, the dog had landed, turned around and growled at him. He did not seem as enthusiastic as he was a few seconds ago, and it was obvious he was hurting. Probably from broken ribs, Keith thought in the moment it took to consider it. He raised the pistol ready to fire once again, but the animal never came. He saw he was now alone, turned, and walked away in search of an easier meal.
Keith decided to return with one of the creatures. He sealed it whole in a plastic bag. It would surely be ripe by the time he made it back, but that would not be his concern. He knew they would want to examine every detail down to what it had been eating. He marked the bag the same way he did all samples he gathered, with the direction and distance from the mountain. This one was labeled 60 Mi. North.
* * *
Construction had been moving at a fast pace. Those on the inside could see images through their computer links. They were also able to keep in contact with their colleagues in this same fashion. Once a week, they even shared in parties via this link, both inside and out, as a way to keep up morale. Those on the inside wanted to get out. Those on the outside, wanted to finish their work, and be safe. After the newness of the adventure had subsided, the realities became heavier. They trusted in the measures they were taking in relation to protecting their health, but it was a regimented system. It also became a realization that they were not going to be entering the mountain facility again anytime soon. They would only see others when it was safe enough for them to come out too. This emerged as the new motivation to finish their work.
Eventually, the outside facility became functional to the point of having air-handling systems, recreational areas, and a hermetically sealed exit point. Just inside the exit point was a permanent decontamination unit, which allowed for both people and small recreational vehicles to pass through. The level of radiation was monitored daily. It was clear that it was decreasing, but it would be sometime before it would be safe enough to go outside without self-contained protective gear.
The recreational vehicles were battery powered, and only allowed travel for moderate distances without a reserve. There were solar cells on the top of the vehicles, but they only prolonged the battery life. They were not enough to power the vehicles alone. The facility staff grew to twice its original complement as scientists were kept busy examining whatever newly discovered items were brought in. They decided that they would not construct any other facilities, beyond the mountain, until the environment was safe enough to work in without protective gear. Many of those outside were comforted by that. They believed they had tempted fate enough already.
Frank Bishop was pragmatic enough to realize there were only two options for continued progress. One, was through medical enhancement, the other was time. One they could control once they found the means, the other they could not.
―
Keith had been in the apartment for little more than an hour when Terri arrived. “Hey, how’s my favorite girl,” he said as he walked toward her.
“Hi. I didn’t know when you were coming back,” she said in a sullen voice.
“What’s wrong,” he asked halting their customary embrace.
She looked in his eyes and knew she could not keep it from him. It was too big for her to keep to herself. “I have something to show you. In fact, it’s something that needs to be shown to everyone here.”
“Okay, so show me,” he said agreeably.
She removed a thumb drive from one of her pockets, and went to a laptop they kept in the room. Once it was turned on, she plugged in the memory stick, and entered the code necessary to open the file it contained. At first, he did not know what he was looking at. It was obviously medical data.
“What exactly am I looking for,” he asked her as he scanned through the pages.
“Here,” she said as she scrolled to what she wanted him to see.
He read it. At first glance, it did not register with him. He reread it. This time it dawned on him. They found a cure for cancer. “Hey, this is great. Is it true? I mean, does it really work?”
“Yes,” she said without much enthusiasm.
“Then what are you upset about. I agree, everyone should know about this.”
“Look,” she said as she scrolled back to the top of the report, “Look at the date.”
He did. The report was almost fifty years old. “That can’t be right,” he said.
“It is,” she replied as she replaced that thumb drive with another.
“What’s on that one,” he asked.
“Wait and see,” she said seriously. After she opened this file, she explained what it contained while he viewed its contents. “After I came across these records by accident, I noticed several references to what I later learned was a secret government project called ‘Artifice.’ I didn’t know what connection it had with the cancer studies, so I asked somebody to do some checking for me.”
While she was talking, Keith was putting things together as he read the reports.
“You know Lisa,” Terri said keeping his attention, “Her husband Greg works with those supercomputers in the archives and records department. I asked him if he could locate anything on some project called Artifice. He did, that’s what you’re looking at now.”
“This stuff has to be classified,” Keith interjected.
“It was. Even with his security clearance, he said he had to use a decryption program to access it. He only knows what he copied for me, he doesn‘t know the other part.”
As he continued to read, it became clear as the story unfolded. It started to display in his mind like a nightmare. The government found a cure for cancer. But instead of making it available
to the public, they chose to profit from it. For decades, they collected money from cancer research and programs. Universities, treatment centers, pharmaceutical companies, and other institutes paid large sums of untraceable funds to a government account. A portion of legal taxation was also funneled into this account. What he was looking at now was a detailed log of where that funding went. It was used to build facilities like the one they had been confined to for more than a decade. The government took advantage of one of the worst diseases known to man and used it as a source of revenue to fund projects that were not only ‘off the books,’ but also away from any oversight or scrutiny. Then he thought of his mother. She was one of the millions to die from this horrible disease. And yet, here he was not only alive because of her suffering, but working to further the effort. He looked her in the eyes, “Who else knows about this?”
“Nobody, only you. Greg knows about the money trail, where it came from and where it went to, but that’s it.”
He was trying to think, but his anger was growing and interfering with any rationality.
“What should we do,” she asked with a desperate note in her voice.
“I don’t know just yet. Don’t say anything to anyone. I’ll talk to my father and see if I can’t come up with more information or some better explanation. He might not know anything, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he did.”
“Keith, this is despicable. I’ve spent the last week going over this to see if it was all a misunderstanding. I haven’t been able to function at work, and I’ve only been able to sleep with help,” she said referring to sleeping pills. “I wanted to be a doctor all my life. Now that I find out what that means for some people, I no longer want anything to do with it. Martin knows something is bothering me, but I can’t say anything to him.”
