“Enough of this shit!” I shouted as I rose up and pointed the RPG launcher at the enemy chopper.
I fired and watched as the rocket flew up and hit the side of the chopper causing a medium sized explosion that looked to have damaged it badly—it however was coming back around obviously intending to finish us off; Jennifer quickly handed me another rocket round and I reloaded my RPG launcher and pointed it at the oncoming helicopter again—I fired and we all watched as the rocket flew up and punched a hole through the glass of the cockpit and exploded causing it to start to fall.
“Shit—run!” I shouted as I grabbed my family members and fled toward the ruins of the station with the others close beside of me.
The remains of the destroyed helicopter came down landing on our lab truck exploding and seconds later our lab truck exploded as well as the armored car that Simone and the others had been following us in—we ran as fast as we could away from the area as the entire station went up in a powerful explosion; I led the way into what appeared to be an apartment complex as the sounds of the undead were getting louder and closer—we finally arrived at a solid door and with Noah and Billy’s help I broke it open and we all dashed into the dark room shutting and bolting the door behind us shut. We flipped on our flashlights and gazed around the room—it was a moderate sized apartment that looked like it had belonged to a small family back in the day and as we searched the entire layout of the area we found several skeletons sprawled out on the floors and a few even in the beds; I led the way back into the main room and everyone gathered around me.
“We’ve lost the entire McBride family now as well as Colin and Billy Kennedy…that’s a heavy toll for us but we can’t give up—we have to keep going and get the hell away from here.” I stated as I folded my arms and glanced around at the others.
“I can’t believe the shit that just happened…who the hell was in that helicopter anyway?” Billy asked with a look of anger and disbelief.
“I don’t know—it could have been roving vigilantes…predators who have been on the loose ever since the beginning; there’s no way that they could have done what they done thinking that we were dead-heads because they saw us refueling our vehicles—zombies don’t do that.” I answered with a distant stare as I brought Jennifer and Sheila into my arms.
“It reminds me of what happened back at the Wal-Mart with Josh Randall…he was no better than those fuckers outside either and those people who attacked us in that chopper were the same.” Jennifer stated as she snuggled close to me.
“We’ve also lost the lab truck…how in the hell are we going to make it out of this hellhole alive much less continue our trip to the west coast?” Noah said with an aggravated expression on his face.
“There should be something that we can use around here—that’s one good thing about being around formally populated areas; there’s always going to be alternative vehicles that are waiting to be found.” Hugo answered as he walked over to the nearby window looking out on the dark town.
“Question is—what can we possibly find that will be as safe and secure as the lab truck was?” Christina asked as she glanced at Noah and then at the rest of us.
“I don’t know…all I know is that we not only lost our vehicles but all of our food, weapon and ammo supplies as well—we’re fucked if we run out of ammo anytime soon.” I answered with a distant stare as I checked my pockets and gear for what I knew was there.
My ammunition was moderate for the time being but I knew that there were hordes of those dead-heads outside and there had seemed to be even more than we had anticipated before—I knew that what ammo we had right now wouldn’t last us more than a few minutes tops if we were to be swarmed by those things.
“We’re not only going to have to find more vehicles but we’re also going to have to restock our food supply as well as our weapons and ammo—we won’t last more than a couple of minutes in a firefight if those things surround us.” I stated with a grim expression as everyone got into a circle.
“So…what’s the plan then?” Richard asked raising his right eyebrow.
“We’re currently on the first floor of this place—we need to head out into this town and see what we can find but not all of us need go out; we’ll attract way too much attention if we go out in a large group.” I answered as I walked to the nearby window looking out.
“Recon and scouting…this sort of thing is what we’re good at—would you like us to handle this?” Hugo asked as he and the few other Covenant One members stepped up before me.
“Yeah, but be careful out there—we’ve not only got those dead-heads and other mutations to worry about but also more of those vigilantes and we cannot afford to lose anyone else.” I answered turning to face him.
“We’ll be careful and we’ll find some vehicles for us to use to leave this place—we’ll also locate the nearest gun and ammo supply store and a grocery store so we can restock our provisions.” Hugo stated as he readied his assault rifle and other weapons before turning to Beau, Amy and Desiree.
They each nodded and then headed toward the door that we had come in through—Richard and Billy unblocked the barricade that they had made only minutes before and we watched as the Covenant One members departed; I couldn’t help but worry that something would happen to them as well due to the massive blow that we as a team had just taken when the enemy helicopter and the undead had attacked.
“I have to admit that maybe I was wrong about them being too slack back in the day…hell, they’ve survived this long through all sorts of adversity.” Simone stated as she glanced at the door as it was closed and blockaded.
“They’ve helped us out a lot since we first met them—they definitely know how to handle themselves.” I answered as I glanced at her.
We waited for several long minutes and gradually the time started to really pass us by, before I had hardly even really recovered from the previous events—hints of dawn could be seen through the window nearby as the morning approached; Jennifer and Sheila had fallen asleep beside of me with our kids in their arms and I looked on them with worry—how was I going to protect them now that we had lost not only our means of travel but also our weapon and food stocks? I had to shake the thoughts as there was suddenly a knock at the door that immediately woke everyone up who had fallen asleep, I got up and strolled forward meeting the glances of Richard and Billy as they quickly moved the barricade and opened the door allowing Hugo and the others inside of the apartment.
“Chaz—guys—we found some vehicles that will serve to get us out of here and get us to the west coast; we were also able to gather up an adequate supply of ammo and food provisions for the trip ahead.” Hugo stated as everyone gathered around them.
“Good—let’s not waste any more time here if we can help it; we’ve still got a long-ass haul ahead of us.” I answered as I gathered my weapons and gear and led everyone out of the room following Hugo and the others.
We followed them out of the apartment complex through a series of dark allies that were blocked off by rubble and wrecked vehicles and after several minutes of ducking in and out of the shadows we arrived at a secluded area of town where a large warehouse was standing before us; we followed Hugo and the others inside of the building and soon after we seen that several vehicles were parked and ready nearby—one of them was an RV, a very large and luxurious one at that—it was a Jayco Embark Class C RV that looked to have once belonged to a wealthy owner; it was as long as the lab truck had been and a small trailer bed with a set of double wheels on each side was hooked to the rear bumper. On this trailer was a 500 gallon fuel tank that was painted the same color as the rest of the RV and Hugo and the others had welded pieces of armor around it to protect it, the rest of the RV looked like Hugo and the others had welded pieces of metal and steel onto the side windows as well as mounting a .50 caliber machine gun on the roof of the vehicle around where luggage and such was meant t
o be strapped down and the side area of the vehicle that extended out to give room for the inside features had been permanently welded into the out position—extra armor plating had been added around the areas to keep them from being damaged; the RV looked as though it would hold a majority of our group. I noticed that they had found an SUV as well as a military transport truck and both of those vehicles had been modified as well—steel spikes and razor wire was stretched across the sides, front and tops of the new vehicles and all three of them had heavy, steel bulldozer blades welded to the front bumpers.
“Wow…how did you manage to find the materials for these modifications?” Noah asked with a shocked expression as he and Christina looked over the military transport truck.
“We were able to salvage a few parts and such from the ruins of the lab truck back at that now destroyed gas station—there wasn’t much left but we gathered what we could use and brought it back here; there’s an abandoned body shop nearby where we were able to make the modifications to these vehicles without being detected by the undead.” Beau answered with a grin.
“These vehicles look well-fortified and they should protect us as we head west—good job guys.” I stated patting Hugo and Beau on their shoulders.
“Thanks—as you seen already, we attached the trailer with the 500 gallon fuel tank to the back of the RV, the fuel line goes straight into the regular tank and will act as an auxiliary fuel supply upon simply opening the valve.” Beau stated as he led the way around the side and then to the rear of the RV and pointed at the trailer that held the armored fuel tank.
“Yeah—we were also able to attach a 250 gallon tank similar to that one into the back of the military transport truck.” Hugo added with a grin.
“Great job guys—it will save us from having to make dangerous stops along the way to refuel.” I stated folding my arms with a smile as Jennifer and Sheila wrapped their arms around me.
“Thanks—the only one that we’ll have to worry about making frequent stops to refuel is the SUV as there wasn’t anything that we could do to modify that; we’ll also have to find somewhere to fuel up the tanks and the auxiliary supplies once we get going—we have enough fuel for fifty miles tops.” Beau stated with a technical tone as he turned and headed toward the front of the RV.
“How much ammunition and food supplies were you guys able to gather?” Noah asked as he and Christina stepped up beside of us.
“Enough to hopefully last us until we get to wherever we’re going.” Amy answered as she and Desiree climbed out of the back of the military transport truck.
“Alright—I suggest that we get going now by the sounds that are coming from outside.” Noah stated as he along with the rest of the group came over to stand before us.
“I’ll drive the RV—Noah, you and Christina can take some of the group in the military transport truck and Billy and Kayla will take the remaining members in the SUV.” I instructed as I glanced around at the group.
“Each vehicle has been fortified with steel plating over the front and rear windshields as well as on the side windows—steel spikes long enough to impale jumper zombies have been welded to the front hoods as well as the roofs and rear bumpers; an adequate supply of food and ammo is inside of all three vehicles and we shouldn’t have to stop but once to refuel…at least that’s what I’m hoping.” Hugo stated as he walked around the three vehicles pointing out the things he was talking about.
I climbed into the RV followed by Jennifer and Sheila as well as our kids, then my parents got inside of it as well as my sister Melody and niece Ella—the few others that chose to ride in the RV with us were Richard, Morgana, Simone, Rain and Tina. Noah and Christina got into the cab of the military transport truck and the Covenant One members all climbed into the back which was covered with the dark colored canvas, Billy and Kayla got into the SUV and started it up as Kira—who was the last one of the group—got into the back with them. The inside of the RV was very spacious and luxurious—it reminded me of a ritzy hotel on wheels, there were sleeping areas for everyone and adequate storage space for weapons and ammo as well as food; I started the engine and pulled up to the steel shutter doors waiting as Hugo and Beau climbed out of the back of the transport truck and pressed the controls for them to open. Quickly climbing back inside of the back we waited as the doors went up and then I led the way out of the warehouse and out into the streets—I had no more gotten about five hundred feet from where we had started when the outside of our vehicles was suddenly surrounded by a horde of dead-heads; I wasted no time trying to combat them or avoid other obstructions around in the street—I simply gunned the motor and plowed straight through them until we were in the clear and once again headed west. After about two and a half hours had passed we finally made it to interstate 25 and I stopped near the entrance to the highway as the CB radio communicator on the dashboard came to life with Noah’s voice.
“Which way are we going?” He asked as I could see him briefly raise the steel barrier and poke his head out the driver’s side window of the transport truck behind us.
“We’re going to keep going west until this road meets highway 20 near Casper—we’re going to get off on the 20 and stay on it until we get to Shoshoni and then we’ll follow the 26 until we pass the town of Kinnear where we’ll come to highway 267, which we’ll follow southeast until we reconnect with interstate 80.” I instructed as I looked over the road atlas that Jennifer and Sheila held out before me.
“That sounds fine—we of course want to avoid the large cities and towns as much as possible.” Billy answered on his end.
“Baby, there’s a station right up the road on the right that looks like it’s intact—we should fuel up there while we have the chance.” Sheila stated pointing ahead out the windshield at a fuel station just ahead of us.
I nodded and turned right onto interstate 25 and led the way several blocks until we arrived at the station, things looked relatively intact around the pumps and there was only a few wrecked vehicles around that were littered with trash and debris as well as skeletons of long dead victims; I pulled the RV into the lot next to the diesel pumps—Noah did the same with the transport truck and Billy pulled the SUV up beside of a regular gasoline pump. I got out followed by Jennifer and Sheila as well as the others that were riding in the RV with us and they all stood guard around the area as I checked the pump—luckily it was still working and I glanced at Noah with surprise.
“It’s kind of weird how these pumps are operational…usually we have to go into the building and turn them on or even siphon gas out of other vehicles.” I stated as I raised my right eyebrow.
That was when there were a series of clattering noises from an area of the station that looked to be blocked off by a large steel shutter door and we all grabbed our weapons and looked at the building with dread, that was when a voice got our attention from somewhere up above—I glanced up toward the roof of the station and locked eyes with a stranger, he and a young woman stood there with weapons pointed at us; we of course all pointed ours up at them with every intension to defend ourselves if necessary—that was when the two strangers lowered their weapons and the man looked back toward something or someone that was out of our view and he spoke loudly.
“It’s okay…it’s just other survivors.”
The large steel shutter door opened and three more strangers came out and stood before us—there were two women and three men altogether and it looked like they had actually been living in the fuel station and probably been the reason why the pumps were still operational; the two who had been on the roof of the station climbed down and met with the ones inside.
“I don’t know who you folks are but you’re the first living, breathing people that we’ve seen in over a year—the rest have all been those damned zombies; what’s worse is that here lately we’ve been seeing creatures stalking around that are worse than regular zombies—ones that have nearly sniffed us out of o
ur hiding place.” The man who seemed to be the leader of the group stated with a distant stare.
“The undead have started to mutate beyond their original mutations and have developed abilities that were previously unseen before; we pulled off an operation in Winterset, Iowa in an attempt to douse the hordes of those things with an antitoxin sample base but it was unsuccessful.” I answered folding my arms as Jennifer and Sheila clung to me.
“Antitoxin sample base?” One of the other men asked with a confused look.
“Just who are you folks?” The first man asked eying me closely.
“We’re survivors just like you…my name is Chaz Watkins and these are my girlfriends Jennifer and Sheila, daughters Remy, Mace and Ember and son Xavier.” I introduced as I motioned to my immediate family.
I then introduced my parents, my sister and niece and then the rest of my group who gathered around us—the man who seemed to be the leader shook my hand and then shook the rest of the groups’ as well before he introduced himself and his friends.
“My name is Bruce Dawson—these are friends of mine—there’s Harold Olsen and Wade Conner and then the two ladies are Lori Jo Drake and Jessica LaRouge.” The man introduced as he motioned to the others with him.
Wade Conner was a young guy with long blonde hair past his shoulders, he was dressed in combat gear that looked like it had once belonged to some sort of special forces team member and he held a .12 gauge combat shotgun in his hands, Harold Olsen was a slightly older looking guy with short dark hair and a dark colored beard that hung down slightly from his chin—he looked like an everyday guy who had somehow managed to survive and he had a pair of .9mm handguns tucked into his pants; the young woman identified as Lori Jo Drake had longish black hair and blue eyes—she held a M4 assault rifle in her arms. The other female identified as Jessica LaRouge was a young woman with red and black dyed hair that hung down her shoulders and back—she was slender and looked to be around the 5’8 range; she wore black cargo pants that were tight around her ass, a black tank top that covered her small bust and she wore combat boots. The most interesting thing about the girl was the fact that she had a medieval battle axe strapped to her back that looked like it was stained with old dried blood, her other weapons were a couple of Uzi semi-automatic SMG weapons that she had strapped to her waist—lastly, Bruce Dawson was what looked like a rocker dude; his ear lobes were over-gauged and he wore a black beanie cap over longish brown hair—multiple piercings lined his face and he was wearing what looked like an old band hoodie and black pants that were topped off by black sneakers and he carried a M32 Hammer Grenade Launcher as well as several different smaller side arms including a .9mm Auto-Pistol.
[HGB] Humanity Gone Bad: The Dead Chronicles Page 33
