Moosehill Militia (Book 1): INFECTED (17 page)

"That sounds good Mac let me know as soon as we have any contact with the Feds or state level government, military or FEMA or anyone for that matter. I have to get going the choppers are waiting for me to head up to Walmart." Mike said as he stood up and left.

At the airport Mike boarded and within a minute six Huey helicopters and the Chinook helicopters were airborne and over Walmart parking lot within five minutes. The pilots observed quite a few cars in the parking lot most of them closer to the building. He directed the choppers to land in the parking lot further out. First Platoon Delta Company which had a sprinkling of experienced soldiers from Alpha and Bravo Company fanned out across the parking lot and advanced towards the three main doors. There were several Infected sitting in cars gnashing their teeth on the windows. The Troopers approached and dispatched ten Infected with head shots easily enough.

Mike who was co-piloting today decided to get out to go with the soldiers into Walmart and see what kind of shape the interior was in. Mike followed the first squad of soldiers into the middle door. There are three entrances, one squad was assigned to each door, and they would stay online and clear from the front to the back.

They passed through the cash registers, Mike was with a private going down the center aisle, about halfway down three Infected lurched out of the art supplies aisle right into the private. Mike, while pulling the private back by his Molly pack with his left hand and raising his M4 with his right hand triggering a three round burst into the front of the first Infected. The bullet rounds stitched up the front stomach, chest and head, blowing blood and brain onto the two stiffs behind the first. The first one dropping provided a temporary pause in the others before they continued to advance over there fallen Infected.

Private Joe Robles got his act together by then and double tapped the last two. Mike and Joe continued toward the back of the Store several other shots rang out in the twilight lit store from the overhead skylights. They had one injury, a badly sprained ankle on one soldier, otherwise the mission was successful. Mike left the platoon leader with orders to clean up the dead. Keep the building in lock down check on the generator and if in working conditions get it going to keep the freezers cold. They would be back in the morning to pick them up. Mike left with the injured soldier who was pretty embarrassed. They boarded Mike’s Huey and took off. Before heading back to Moosehill he had the pilot do a flyover of the Big Discount and the Big Y grocery stores also Klem’s was near the Big Y. All three seemed to be in decent order no looting that he could see. Then again how are the looters going to get to the stores? Hardly any modern vehicles were in working order after the Solar Flare EMP event.

***

Martha’s Vineyard, was a semi-Battleground. Only the permanent residence were on the island, around 17,000. The island was in a state of emergency and only designated peoples were supposed to be out, such as Police, fire, ambulance. At 8 a.m. the residence of Oak Bluffs were startled out of there nervous anxiety by the roar of two LCAC Navy landing Craft. Jeff Pullman Sergeant on the Oak Bluffs Police force was in his cruiser near the ferry docks. He had shot one Infected already this morning when Old Lady Stewart called and said someone was scratching at her back door. Sure enough Jeff had walked around the side of the house with his Remington 870 pump action shotgun. When the man turned and started walked towards him in an unnatural way dragging his left foot and moaning reaching for him. Jeff admits to himself, but no one else he was scared to shit and shot the man point blank in the chest, knocking him down and again in the head like he was supposed to do. The island now had a crew designated for cleanup. So far in four days the six towns of Martha’s Vineyard have a combined total of 188 confirmed Infected that have been killed.

Jeff watched, as two LCAC blasted ashore on Oak Bluffs Beach well above the high tide mark. Each landing craft disgorged a few hundred soldiers each he estimated. Jeff went forward to greet them.

Gil Isaac was the first off the ramp onto the beach when it came down. He got the word that Nantucket was a cakewalk. No Infected, from Colonel O’Neil a short time ago. O’Neil told him that after they consolidate he would be leading most of his Marines over here. The word from local sources was that Infected had made it onto Martha’s Vineyard and hundreds have died. As he was thinking this and advancing up the beach toward the ferry dock and the town of Oak Bluff a lone figure was approaching. As he got closer, he could tell it was a police officer carrying a shotgun.

Gil walked straight up to the man while other Marines advanced to the sides and covered him with their M4 rifles.

“Stand down.” Gil said to these Marines. “This man isn’t infected. “What’s your name son?” Gil asked.

“Sergeant Jeff Pullman of the Oak Bluffs Police Department Sir.” Pullman stated.

Gil held out his hand and they shook hands.

“I’m Lieutenant Colonel Gil Isaac of the United States Marines and we are here to secure you island. How fares it Sergeant Pullman?”

“Sir, it’s been rough, we put the island under Marshall Law two days ago after we started having infected people attacking others. I’m not sure how many have died. Maybe two hundred or so. We have everyone on lock down in their homes. We just don’t have enough people to deal with this.” Jeff said.

“That’s what we are her for Jeff. Could you get on your radio and inform your police department and the other departments on the island that there will be other landings by landing craft and air units around the island today and we will sweep the island helping you police your problem.” Colonel Isaac told Jeff Pullman.

Both turned and looked up past the Ferry dock at half dozen Infected walking toward the Marines. Their pace quickened as they detected fresh meat out in the open. The Infected were gunned down by the advanced Troops.

Lieutenant Colonel Isaac’s Marines swept up over the bluff and continued into town every house got a knock on the door, People answered and all was good. No answer and no sound, the house was marked and probably was empty belonging to summer residence. Noise and no answering people, the Marines would kick the door to gain entry and search, eliminating any Infected. Marines were being inserted by air at Martha’s Vineyard airport and at Edgartown, where the same procedures were being conducted. In total eighteen hundred Marines landed by beach or through the air onto Martha’s Vineyard and conducted operations in all six towns killing three hundred more Infected and losing two Marines in the process. In two days’ time Martha’s Vineyard was considered secure.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Day +3

The armored column of M113A2’s spaced about thirty yards apart, advanced into Main South section of Worcester through Webster Square, a prosperous neighborhood a long time ago. The Infected started coming out of building entry ways, alleys and side streets.

Mac was with Alpha Company under the command of Lieutenant Jack Majors in the 3rd vehicle in line. Bravo Company brought up the rear, totaling twenty nine APC’s and 25 school buses. The plan was to pull up to the front of the DCU Center, clear the immediate area of Infected, and load up the civilians taking refuge in the DCU concert arena and convention center. Mike was piloting a Huey leading a flight of six Huey helicopters armed with a M60 door gunner each with two thousand rounds per gun.

Things started out well, the armored column was able to move east a mile or so, and then the Infected started to increase.

“DCU task force Actual to all Company Alpha and Bravo Actuals, you are weapons free, I repeat you are weapons free.” Mac informed them. From that point on the armored column advanced at a steady 20 MPH. M60 gunners started to engage Infected coming out of doorways, alleys, at road intersections, the steady beat of the M60 in short burst and the sharper crack of the Troops M4 assault rifles riding on top of the APC’s grew louder. Going through Main South that way was a nightmare for most of these Troops, Mike thought as he watched from the air. He estimated the armored column easily killed fifteen hundred Infected as they advanced about three miles from Webster Square Plaza to City Hall area. Mike could see several groups of survivors on roof tops as they shadowed the APC’s on the ground. Mike contacted Moosehill Base and ordered up an additional eight Huey's and three Blackhawk for rescue duty, roof tops only.

The column turned onto Foster Street from Main Street and pulled up to the plaza in front of the main entrance of the DCU. Troops of Alpha and Bravo Companies disembarked and advanced across the plaza engaging any Infected, and with the heavy fire support of the M60’s quickly cleared the plaza within a hundred yards up and down the Boulevard and Foster Street killing at least a hundred Infected in that area.

“Alpha Company Actual to entry team you are a go.” Jack Majors radioed to 1st Platoon leader Sergeant Drew Daggs. “Copied that Alpha Company Actual.” Drew replied back. “Okay, let’s go.” he ordered his eighteen man platoon, they knew what to do discussing it earlier, most of the platoon new the interior layout of the DCU, having gone to concerts there throughout the years.

First Platoon Troops went in through the front doors which were glass and already smashed in. Rushing through the lobby to the metal inner doors that lead to the arena, they stacked up around those doors. Drew banged on the door and announced American soldiers open up. Soon Drew had 500 civilian or so and fifteen Worcester Police Officers streaming out the front doors across the plaza and loading up onto the school buses. The outer perimeter of Troops continued to engage Infected as they came within their area of responsibility. First Platoon did a quick run through the building to make sure no one is left behind then they loaded back up.

The APC column then started up and headed a quarter of a mile away, to the train station near the beginning of Shrewsbury Street. Intelligence believed the train station had a group of civilians there also. Mac eyed the front of the train station which was an older building that was refurbished. It was an all stone building and the entrance ways were barricaded with vehicles and furniture. On the second floor the soldiers could see people looking out at them. In short order a few hundred more civilians, police, and National Guardsmen joined the column. Mac ordered the APC column to head up Shrewsbury Street, the quickest route to the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. The Infected were very thick on Shrewsbury Street, known as the east side restaurant district of Worcester.

Mac thought to himself he's going to miss not being able to go down to Shrewsbury Street for a great Italian dinner. Soldiers of the armored column engaged in another running battle with the Infected all along Shrewsbury Street. The bottoms of the M113A2’s were splashed red with blood and gore from treads of the thirteen ton machines running over the Infected and the Troops hacking at heads and arms of the Infected trying to get up the sides of the armored vehicles with their Spax survival Axe. This tool had a seven inch cutting head curved and a spike on the reverse side, great for sticking in the side of Zombie head’s. The column approached the front of the University of Massachusetts Medical Center which is a wide-open area that benefited the Troops. One of the gunners in the Huey spotted a sheet hanging from a fourth floor window displaying the number 124 on it. The armored force assaulted across the area in front of the main entrance. First and Second Platoon assaulted into the main lobby talking down a few dozen Infected. The interior was a house of horrors, the afflicted were eating the carcasses of several dead laying around the lobby.

Not knowing the layout of the hospital that well it was decided to go into the main lobby entrance, down the hall to the elevator banks, the stairs were right next to the elevators and the Troops would proceed up the stairs to the 4th floor barricading the other doors as they went up with wedges. Second Platoon from Alpha Company made it to the stairwell near the elevator without any casualties. The platoon entered the stairwell and proceeded up to the fourth floor wedging all the door shut as they went. Several Infected were in the stairs and were quickly eliminated with axes to keep the noise down.

First Platoon advanced further down the main hallway to the Pharmacy entrance which was clear of Infected, they broke open any locked cases and filled up boxes and bags of supplies, as much as they could carry while leaving a few soldiers unencumbered for security.

The Second Platoon leader listened at the fourth floor door hallway entrance, hearing nothing he open the door moving out into the hallway followed by the First Squad Second Platoon. Second squad, Second Platoon stayed in the stairway and hall to hold their exit way open. First Squad moved down about one hundred feet to the nurse’s station, the hallway was blood smeared along its length.

Past the nurse’s station were double doors closed and locked, the windows were taped over. The Squad leader tapped on the door lightly and stood up so anyone looking out could see his face. He tapped again and someone lifted the corner of the paper covering the window. The door was opened and a doctor came out and spoke to the platoon leader informing him they had 125 survivors, patients and hospital staff plus some visitors.

The platoon leader explained the simple exit strategy of going down the stairs and out to the main entrance which was already cleared, but they had to move fast before the Infected filled in the areas that they had already cleared.

Mike was at the controls of a Huey helicopter leading a flight of six Huey's to provide scouting and fire support for the armored column moving into Worcester to effect a rescue at the DCU Center and hospital. Flying a thousand feet above the armored column he could get a really good idea how bad the situation was, every neighborhood had at least one fire burning. There were columns of smoke in the distance more were popping up as he watched. From this height you can look down and actually see Infected roaming the streets in packs of twenty to a hundred.