ROAD TRIP THROUGH THE APOCALYPSE
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ROAD TRIP THROUGH THE APOCALYPSE
Book 2 of the Hoshoku Chronicles
Vincent Fields
FOR MORE WORKS BY VINCE CHECK OUT:
www.vincentfields.com
NOVELS:
HOSHOKU - IN THE APOCALYPSE A HERO RISES
Book 1 of the Hoshoku Chronicles
ROAD TRIP THROUGH THE APOCALYPSE
Book 2 of the Hoshoku Chronicles
5 YEARS AFTER THE APOCALYPSE
Book 3 of the Hoshoku Chronicles
SHORT STORY:
THE CARPENTER
MARTIAL ARTS DVDS:
LEGLOCK DVD INSTRUCTIONAL SET
Dedicated to my boys; Charles and Justice. You make me strive to be the best man I can.
Copyright © 2017 by Vincent Fields. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used, reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations in critical articles and reviews.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1: THE JOURNEY BEGINS
CHAPTER 2: DISAPPOINTMENT
CHAPTER 3: RINGO
CHAPTER 4: SARAH VADE
CHAPTER 5: CHARRO
CHAPTER 6: THE ORDER
CHAPTER 7: TADASHI TAKAMURA
CHAPTER 8: EXPLANATION
Chapter 9: the test
CHAPTER 10: CHECKPOINT
CHAPTER 11: WE FOUND HER!
CHAPTER 12: POWDER KEG
CHAPTER 13: WELCOME TO THE UNITED STATES
CHAPTER 14: CHARRO’S TEXT
CHAPTER 15: THE RITZ
CHAPTER 16: Flea Market
CHAPTER 17: Disrespect
CHAPTER 18: The Major’s Misdirection
CHAPTER 19: TAKEN
CHAPTER 20: I’m not crazy, am i?
CHAPTER 21: the cell
CHAPTER 22: Rampage
CHAPTER 23: the clubhouse
Chapter 24: a deal with the devils
Chapter 25: all or none
CHAPTER 26: MANIPULATION
CHAPTER 27: be my slave
chapter 28: escape
Chapter 29: boom
Chapter 30: reunion
Chapter 31: future security
Chapter 32: a new alliance
Chapter 33: plans for a new home
COMING SOON
CHAPTER 1: THE JOURNEY BEGINS
Day three of the new world
T he friends rode in the old Coachman class C motorhome as it lumbered down the busy highway in the early morning, just a couple hours into their trip on Highway 24 South. A relaxing tune played on their radio, “Peaceful Easy Feeling” by The Eagles. While summer hadn’t officially begun yet, it was warming up. 15 full five-gallon containers of gas were secured to the roof, covered with a large gray tarp and bungee corded to the top side rails. They discussed plans for the trip. By their calculations the round trip journey would require a minimum of 184 gallons of gas. To make it all the way to their destination in Florida and back home to Illinois they would use all they had with them and have to fill their tank once and possibly need a little more than that. Tak brought more than just cash to trade for gas, as the value of paper currency was dropping quickly since the collapse had begun.
Nathan currently drove while Amy sat back in the comfortable recliner on the right side of the RV, just in front of two stairs that led down to the large central side-door. Snacks and a map sat on the dinette table in front of her. Tak sat next to the left side window with his feet up on the jackknife couch, just across from Amy but facing forward so he could look out his large side-window. It was slid open about a foot and the mid-70 degree air felt great. They had packed more food and supplies than they thought they’d need for the trip, just in case they were delayed. Food and supplies were stowed in every cabinet and stacked in the sleeping area above the cab, making the RV more crowded than usual; but they were still comfortable inside the spacious rig. Even though they were all were police officers, none of them were in uniform. They instead choose to blend in with civilian attire for the trip.
Amy Braxton’s short red hair tickled the light freckled skin of her neck in the crossbreeze blowing through the RV. She looked over at Tak and admired his rippling muscles; he was not a big man, but he was truly a specimen of elite fitness. He seemed to sense her gaze and he looked over at her, which made her smile beautifully; revealing her perfect pearly whites. Her smile was contagious as he grinned back at her and tried to hide his blushing; her smile often seemed to elicit that effect from him.
She had packed an assortment of plain tank tops for the trip, which made it easy to change the bandage on her left shoulder from where she had been shot a few days earlier. On this day she wore a loose gray tank top, jeans, and comfortable running shoes. She wore her small Glock 26 subcompact nine millimeter semi-automatic pistol concealed in an inside-the-waistband holster on the front right side of her jeans. Even though it was a small weapon it still held 10 rounds due to its well-engineered double-stacked magazine. She kept an extra mag in a hard plastic holster on the left side of her belt, giving her a total of 21 rounds of jacketed hollow-point ammo.
Nathan Naff was a strong, stocky, barrel chested bear of a man at a couple inches shy of six feet tall and almost 250 pounds. He kept his dark hair short and wore a neatly trimmed black goatee. His always friendly and joking demeanor seemed to naturally disarm people, and he was often looked at more like a teddy bear than as a threat. He had used that to his advantage many times when he’d been underestimated, as he had trained in the martial arts right along with Tak since he had been five years old. He had legit fighting skills in every range of hand to hand combat, and had used them for many years on the force. He was a fan of loud Hawaiian button up shirts and never seemed to be without one. Tak had joked with him on numerous occasions that he must not own any other type. Over today’s white one with bright red flowers he wore a brown leather shoulder holster with his bright chrome 1911 style 45-caliber pistol under his left arm. Under his right arm the shoulder holster held two leather pouches that contained additional magazines. Anytime his pistol was exposed he was sure to display his police badge from his neck on a chain. He wore comfortable blue jeans and clean white running shoes. Like Tak, Nathan was a believer in being prepared. In various pockets he carried a small bright flashlight, a razor sharp pocket knife and a lighter; which he usually used except for lighting up the occasional cigar. In addition to his suitcase he’d brought his police sniper rifle onboard for the trip… just in case.
Tak’s bruised face displayed a few taped over cuts and a butterfly strip covering a large gash above his right eye. It had been a rough few days for him back in Southern Illinois after the collapse; but the other guys looked worse… much worse. Under his brown tactical pants and plain brown t-shirt he wore a special protective undergarment that he had acquired during his Marine Corps days; a set of Military Advanced Nano-Kevlar Armor. The black, breathable material was only slightly thicker than a t-shirt and fit snugly like spandex. The military had made great gains in their lightweight armor technology back in the late 2020’s, improving the molecular structure of Kevlar to produce a compressed nano-weave that would stop up to a 7.62 caliber bullet; which was still the most common round fired by soldiers worldwide in AK-47 Kalashnikov rifles. Each set was custom made for its wearer and had cost Uncle Sam a bit over 100 grand, so they were only issued to elite Special Forces personnel. The unique armor had to fit snugly; otherwise a bullet could push the material into the user’s body. Tak had been issued his set during his Force Recon days. The long s
leeve top went down to his wrists and tucked into the bottoms, and the bottoms covered from his waste to just above his feet. Only a slight sheen on the unique weave pattern hinted that they could be something more than just a yoga type shirt and pants. Just because it would stop a round didn’t mean you’d want to be hit by one, as the force of the impact would still leave a nasty bruise and could break ribs. The armor would stop almost any slash or stab, but offered little protection against blunt force trauma. It had saved many soldiers’ lives on the battlefield. After they were damaged they were supposed to be destroyed by fire as per military regulations; just like Tak’s supposedly had been. His set had actually taken rounds in combat, but like the few surviving Marines from his old unit, he figured there was no need to waste a good thing that might come in handy later. He wore a pair of old comfortable combat boots; preferring to have his feet protected in leather on the occasions that he ran into trouble. This was the same pair he'd worn in his Marine Corps days, having replaced the soles of the well-worn boots several times now. Tak kept his small but powerful 45 caliber, six-shot Springfield Armory XDS pistol concealed inside the front waistband of his pants. Instead of using a holster he had a metal clip on its right side, which secured the pistol to his belt until he pulled it out. Only the clip would be seen from the outside. He kept an extra five-round magazine in his front left pants pocket, giving him a total of 11 rounds. While he didn’t carry as many rounds as Nathan or Amy had for their concealed pistols, he still satisfied the most important rule in a gunfight; have a gun.
The three friends had been through hell in the last few days, and they didn’t know it but they weren’t out of it yet. An economic crash had begun three days earlier and its effects were felt nation and worldwide. They’d just been through their own personal war back in their hometown of Marion. People had been looting most cities since it started and most stores were stripped bare. The price of goods were skyrocketing; doubling almost daily at the few stores that had the men and firepower to keep looters away. A gallon of gas was over five times its normal price already, and lines were constantly at the pumps that weren’t yet empty. Folks could see the domino’s falling and many wanted to travel while it was still possible; which wasn’t expected to last much longer.
Amy had last spoken with her parents and 12 year old sister on the phone the day after the collapse. They were fine and had more than a week’s worth of food and water in their luxury class-A RV down where they vacationed in St Petersburg Florida, but they didn’t think they would be able to return home. They had tried to get cash from the ATM’s, but by the time they’d gotten to one the machines had already run dry. Credit cards had stopped working and they simply had no way to purchase the fuel they would need to make it home. Amy had promised them that she would come get them as soon as she could, and for them to stay put. She’d called back several times but by day three calls had stopped going through.
Traffic was heavy for this time of the morning. The CB radio was full of near constant chatter, and Nathan had turned it way down to listen to music instead. Amy lamented, “It seems like everyone’s out on the highway.” Naff turned down the music and looked at his friends in the wide rearview mirror as he spoke, “With traffic so heavy we won’t make it half as far as I’d hoped today. Hell, it seems like there’s a stranded car or a group of hitchhikers every mile. Yo Tak; I’m thinking if we drive nonstop in shifts we could be there in a couple days, even with this traffic.” Tak didn’t turn his attention away from the view outside of his window as he replied, “I don’t mind doing that, as long as we get there safely. We need to stay fresh and ready for anything. Would you keep the CB turned up man? It and the radio are our connections to the outside world now.” Nathan nodded at the logic.
Just then as they slowly passed couple cars pulled off the right side of the road, they saw a fist fight going on between two men and two women. A few seconds later they heard gunshots from that direction. Naff instinctively ducked his head and kept their speed at about 35 miles per hour as they passed the melee. “It’s getting dangerous out there folks. It gives me anything but a “peaceful, easy feeling", that’s for sure.” Tak grinned, “Just keep your head down and the pedal to the metal brother. You know we’ve got your back if things go bad.” Amy nodded and sat her pistol out on the table in front of her… just in case. Naff kept the music low and turned up the CB as he drove on; now a bit more hunched over.
CHAPTER 2: DISAPPOINTMENT
12:04AM, day four of the new world
T raffic increased throughout the day, and now it was just after midnight. They had been forced to slow down and stop several times for accidents and cars stalled in the middle of the road. They passed several more incidents of road rage; some of them deadly. They had been monitoring the traffic over the radio and the CB throughout the day. Reports of accidents, riots and disasters were coming in from all over. A bad accident about 30 miles ahead had traffic almost stopped. They had intended to take turns and drive all night, but due to the accident ahead they agreed to pull off at the next rest stop to shower and catch a few Z’s before driving on; hoping the road would be cleared by then. Tak pulled into a rest area about 25 miles before they would hit Nashville Tennessee on Highway 24. They had been on the road almost 16 hours but had covered less than 200 miles; a distance that would have taken them under three hours in normal conditions. Tak pulled into the semi-truck and RV side of the parking lot. It was crowded with semis parked in the long central row in front of a rectangular brick building; many still running to keep their air conditioners and electronics on and their batteries charged. He drove down to the far end past them all and parked; three empty spaces separated their RV from the nearest semi. They ran their generator so they could each take a quick shower in the motorhome before getting a little rest and hitting the road again.
A small toilet and sink area was on the driver’s side of the RV, about in the middle from front to rear. Directly across the small hallway from it on the right side was a shower where one person had just enough room to turn around as they washed up. When the shower door was opened it latched onto the outer bathroom wall on the left side of the RV, forming a privacy barrier between the living area in the front half of the RV and the bathroom, shower and rear bedroom in the back half. Nathan had quickly showered first and folded the couch out into a bed, which he had claimed as his own. Once the shower was open again Tak spoke to Amy, “Ladies first,” as he motioned towards the rear of the RV. She nodded with a “Thank you kind sir”, and went to the back and began her shower.
Tak sat on the recliner and closed his eyes to begin his daily meditation exercise. For him it was more about doing a mental exercise that strengthened and refreshed his mind than the side effect it had of being a great relaxation technique. It allowed him to realize truth's that most people just couldn't see through the filter of their own biases and emotions. He rested his hands on his legs and then remained motionless. He focused his attention at first on his right index finger. It took a few seconds and he could begin to feel it tingling with energy. Then he focused on his right middle finger. The tingling stopped in his index finger and he began feeling it in his middle finger. He went on to his ring finger, then his pinky, and then he slowly worked his way back to his thumb. After that he began the same process on the fingers of his left hand. While he focused enough that he could actually feel a tingling in his body just from the attention there, all other thoughts and distractions ceased to exist. Sometimes a thought would pop back up in his mind, but with practiced discipline he would refocus on a finger and allow the thought to simply pass on by. He used his mind’s eye to focus on his fingers, and he could feel real power flowing from the center of his forehead down to each area that he concentrated on.
The distractions were really flowing during this particular session... mainly the image of Amy showering just a few feet away from his current location kept trying to ruin his focus. Right about now she would be lathering up her tight body, rubbin
g the soapy bubbles over her stomach and up around... Tak refocused on his right pinky finger and the line of energy continued to flow throughout his body as the thought drifted away.
After about five minutes Tak heard the shower stop running, the curtain slide open and Amy move out of it. He gave her another five minutes before he finished his mental exercise and quietly walked to the rear of the RV so as not to wake up either of his friends. He opened the shower door that was swung open across the hallway and peeked in. LED lights were on in the bathroom and shower enclosure that served as night lights for the bedroom, casting light only on the foot of the bed. The lights over the bed had been turned off. He could see Amy’s form under the covers. He went in and re-shut the privacy door that effectively separated the RV into two halves, which now separated him and Amy from the front half of the RV where Nathan slept. He quietly laid a set of clean clothes out and undressed. If Amy was awake she’d be seeing his nude form just then. He brushed the thought away as he turned the water on in the shower and stepped in. He used the shampoo, conditioner and soap from the plastic dispensers on the wall; even though he kept his hair so short that just the soap would have been fine. A few minutes later he emerged and toweled off before donning a fresh set of underwear and another soft cotton brown t-shirt. He had grown fond of them in his military days and liked their comfort and simplicity. Then he entered the bathroom to brush his teeth and put on deodorant before turning that light off and heading towards the half of the bed that was closest to the driver’s side of the RV. As he moved towards the bed, now out of the throw of the shower’s light, Amy pulled his side of the covers down for him. His face turned red as he realized she must have been watching him instead of sleeping. He slipped under the sheet but tossed the cover over to her side; he was too hot to need it right now. As he got situated Amy took his right hand in her left. Tak’s heartbeat raced from her mere touch. He thought of his options and course of action. He wanted her badly; dammit did he ever. He so wanted to roll over and gently get on top of her. But, as had happened to him before in this situation, he knew that he couldn’t go through with it and let his body make a decision that his mind knew wasn’t right. He loved this woman… he knew that to make love to her would possibly hand her a death sentence. He rolled over towards her, and as he did Amy moved her lips towards his. However his aim had been higher than she had expected as he kissed her forehead and touched her cheek with his left hand. “Get some rest; we'll have a long day tomorrow”. He then rolled completely over to his left side, partially to send the message that they had to sleep and partially to hide the physical proof of his excitement.