The Last Bastion of the Living: A Futuristic Zombie Novel (39 page)

Caitlyn
’
s eyes widened, but Dwayne couldn
’
t worry about his daughter at this moment. It was a cheap shot by the president to knock him off his game, and he was not about to relent.
Millions of lives were on the line.

Commandant Pierce barely acknowledged the comment. Her eyes briefly shifted toward Dwayne, then she
riveted
her gaze directly on the president.
“
We
’
ve been studying the SWD plans for the elimination of the
Inferi Scourge
around the walls. The Maelstrom Platforms will not kill all the
Inferi Scourge
. Some will be missed. They might scatter. The
Inferi Boon
will have to track them down and eradicate them.
The trained soldiers of the Constabulary can assist them in clearing the valley now that the number of
Inferi Scourge
are significantly reduced. If you allow us to plan the mission, we can assure that there will not be an
evacuation
to Section A.
”

“
The SWD is in charge. It
’
s staying that way. You two should be more concerned about the potential of initiating Section A and preparing for possible riots if food production over the next few months does not reach expected levels. This isn
’
t over yet. We
’
re just trying to make sure we all have a chance at surviving. You have your orders.
”

“
You can
’
t keep playing the SWD and Constabulary against each other,
”
Commandant Pierce protested.

“
Why not? It
’
s keeping you both on your toes and finally getting results,
”
President Cabot answered before pivoting away and striding up the corridor.

Dwayne watched as the vice president, his daughter, and the entourage of council members and security hurried after the president.
Caitlyn
glanced over her shoulder one last time, anger and pride mixed in her eyes. Dwayne had a feeling he
’
d be getting an irate call from her later. In some ways she was very much her mother
’
s daughter.

Commandant Pierce waited until they turned a corner before swinging around toward Dwayne.
Her dark eyes were livid.

“
That could have gone better,
”
Dwayne dared to say.

“
Vanguard Martinez, huh?
”
The lightness of her tone in contrast to the angry set of her jaw and tense body surprised him.

“
We were trying to be discreet.
”

A slight smile crept onto her full, dark lips as she nodded.
“
Good for you.
”

“
I keep my personal life out of my work,
”
Dwayne said in a hushed tone.

“
Of course, you do. That is why I have always trusted you to do what is right.
”
Standing with her hands behind her back, she sighed.
“
I should have spoken up long before this point.
”

“
President Cabot does hold grudges, doesn
’
t he?
”

“
He
’
s nefarious
about
it.
”
Commandant Pierce shook her head.
“
This is ridiculous. We shouldn
’
t be squabbling. We should be united in this effort.
”

“
My thoughts exactly,
”
Mr. Petersen said, stepping around her and flashing his pearly white teeth.
“
Certainly you must understand the need for there to be a chain of command?
The SWD is firmly in control of the situation despite the changes that have been...requested in today
’
s meetings.
I understand that you may feel the Constabulary will not receive the proper amount of credit once we have destroyed the
Inferi Scourge
, and
you
’
re
most likely correct. But at least we can all take heart that you will handle the possible upcoming food shortages with a deft hand.
”

“
You
’
re
an
insidious little shit,
”
Commandant Pierce said in a low voice.
“
And my question is are you the man at the top or are you sucking someone
’
s dick to remain their lap dog?
”

Mr.
Petersen simply smiled.

“
SWD Black Ops may try to keep a low profil
e behind the ruse of Admiral Kirkpatrick
and you as his adjutant, but if you blow this mission, I
’
m sure the president would be more than happy to drag you all out into the light and expose you for your failures.
”

“
Strange how the political
maneuvering
has become more cumbersome the closer we come to success,
”
Mr. Petersen said in a
light
voice.
“
And how clumsily
i
t
’
s
handled by s
ome while others manage to get everything they desire.
”

“
We teeter at the edge of extinction and all the SWD is concerned about is usurping the Constabulary and moving into a position of power.
”

Dwayne stood next to his commanding officer feeling more proud of her than he ever had before.
She was pure steel.

“
Ah,
you
’
re
mistaken,
”
Mr. Petersen said with his fake little smile.
“
Commandant
Pierce,
w
e
a
re
in power.
”

With that chilling comment, Mr. Petersen strode away.

“
Who is he really?
”
Dwayne wondered under his breath.

Commandant Pierce shook her head with irritation.
“
He
’
s a loathsome creature.
”

“
I better get back to
the SWD C
ommand
Center
and oversee the rescue mission.
”

“
Keep me abreast of the situation. I
’
ll join you shortly.
I
’
ll show that little runt how clumsy I am at political
maneuvering
. I still have a few trump cards.
”

“
Yes, sir.
”
Dwayne turned to depart and saw Dr. Curran staring at him from down the corridor.
Realizing he had spotted her, she looked away, busily scribbling on her pad.

Disconcerted, he departed.

Chapter 28

Tucked behind her work console as the carrier sped across the valley,
Maria
tracked the progress of the carrier while conversing with Dwayne. After months of monotonous killing, the squad was galvanized to be facing an enemy that had the capacity to respond with intelligent action. Their fear and excitement were tangible as they spoke in hushed voices.
Tucked on top of the carrier, Holm and McKinney were manning the rigged flamethrowers.

It was difficult for Maria to contain her composure every time she spoke to Dwayne.
His low, soothing voice was a balm to her exhausted mind. The warmth in his blue eyes stirred within her the desire to slip into his arms, press her face to his neck, relish his warmth, delight at the touch of his hands on her skin, and feel his heart beating against hers.

Outwardly, she managed to maintai
n her professional demeanor.

“
We
’
re keeping away from the remaining
Scrag
herds. A few are following, but shouldn
’
t be an issue,
”
Maria informed Dwayne.

“
There doesn
’
t seem to be any major shifts in the remaining herds,
”
Dwayne agreed.

“
We should be at the rendezvous point in fifteen minutes.
”

“
I wish we didn
’
t have to do the drop so close to the
hydro
electric station,
”
Dwayne said with a dour look on his face.

“
Time is of the essence.
”
Maria
’
s gaze darted to the front of the carrier
,
where Cormier deftly drove the
large vehicle
. Through the window she could see the distant shape of the station next to a large lake.
Tall pine trees dotted the foothills beyond the
glimmering dark waves
.
It was the exact location she dreamed of having a home with Dwayne. The thought warmed her.

“
Has there been any communication with Chief Defender
Omondi
?
”

“
Nothing.
We can
’
t reach him
since he took shelter in the basement
,
”
Dwayne answered.

Maria briefly touched his image on her console.
Despite the weariness about his eyes, his calm strength emanated outward
,
soothing her fears.
She had been surprised when he had personally
logged on to coordinate with her, but the sight of Commandant Pierce
and Mr. Petersen
lingering in the background had spoken volumes. The operation must be considered a high priority to have the Constabulary and SWD upper echelon working together.

The jostling of the carrier drew Maria
’
s attention to the front window.
She could see several thick masses of
Inferi Scourge
slowly rousing as they approached. Cormier was
fast
to redirect the carrier
path so they wouldn
’
t be cut off by the creatures.

“
It
’
s getting tricky out here, Castellan.
”
Maria did another scan of their position. Several of the stagnant
Inferi Scourge
masses were beginning to move in their direction.

“
The tilt
rotor is e
n route.
You
’
re right on schedule,
”
Dwayne assured her.

“
Any chance of air support?
”
Maria lifted an eyebrow at him.

“
I
’
ll see what I can do.
”

His feed cut off and Maria grumbled under her breath in Spanish.
She hated it when politics became entangled in the matters of the Constabulary. It was worse now that they were in the field and desperately needed some assistance.
They were so close to finally being done with this mission, but it was becoming even more harrowing the closer they got to completion.

“
We got some
Scrags
in pursuit.
May I fry them, sir?
”
Holms voice asked in Maria
’
s ear bud.

“
Transmit what you got. Let me look,
”
Maria answered.

Immediately the feed from Holm
’
s helmet began to play on her screen.
The ravaged faces of the
Inferi Scourge
gave her chills.
Their wide, distended mouths and crazed milky eyes would forever haunt her nightmares.
Even over the gentle roar of the carrier
’
s engines and the chatter behind her, she could hear their howls.

“
Fry
‘
em,
”
Maria answered.

Immediately the feed was filled with white hot flames.
With satisfaction, Maria watched the creatures enveloped in the inferno dropping away, setting others in their horde on fire.
The thrashing fiery bodies fell behind.

“
That was beast,
”
Mikado said from behind her.

Maria grinned and kept an eye on the screen.
The carrier was barreling toward the rendezvous point and sweeping past stirring masses of
Scourge
.
She felt a trickle of sweat slid
e
down her brow and she wiped it away with annoyance.
A second later, her eyes widened as she looked down at her gloved hand.

“
Denman,
”
she whispered urgently.

He glanced over at her and she pointed to the beads of sweat on her brow.
With a gasp, he grabbed his med-pad and rushed to her side.
Maria forced herself to focus on the mission at hand and not the steady, slow thumps within her chest.
When they had started, she wasn
’
t sure, but she could feel her heart sluggishly pumping in her chest.

Dwayne
’
s feed came back to life.
“
We can give you limited air support and it looks like you
’
re going to need it.
You burned out the ones that were in pursuit, but there is a mass of several thousand heading to cut you off.
I
’
m redirecting you toward a new rendezvous spot.
”

“
Yes, sir,
”
Maria said and shared the information with Cormier.

“
It
’
s getting crazy ahead,
”
Cormier called out.

“
Just follow the route the Castellan sent us,
”
Maria answered. Out of the corner of her eye, Denman looked stoic, but she could see that his hand was trembling.
She pressed
a
palm to her neck and felt moist flesh and a slow, steady throb of a pulse.
On impulse, she positioned her own feed on her screen and studied her face.
Her eyes were vivid and dark again. The murkiness was gone.

“
This is incredible,
”
Denman whispered as he finished his scan and studied the readings.

“
I don
’
t have time for this right now,
”
Maria said in hushed tones.

Denman leaned toward her, his exhaled breath tickling her ear.
“
You
’
re alive, Vanguard.
”

Fear pierced her freshly
-
beating heart.
If she was alive again, then that meant she was
probably
in more danger than anyone else on the squad.
She swallowed hard and stared into Denman
’
s eyes.

“
Is there a problem?
”
Dwayne
’
s voice asked.

Maria returned her attention to the screen before her.
The commandant was hovering over Dwayne
’
s shoulder.
“
A minor problem that has been resolved, sir.
”
She gestured to Denman to return to his work station.

Reluctantly, the medic did as he was ordered.

There was no time to contemplate what was happening within the cells of her body.
She was on a mission to save Chief
Omondi
and his squad and that had to be her priority.
Lowering her hand out of view of the camera, she flipped on her armor
’
s cooling system. She was relieved when it activated.
The
Boon
armor was not standard issue. They had been stripped of some of the systems
unnecessary to the
Boon
.

“
That
Scrag
horde is moving in fast, sir,
”
Cormier said worriedly.

“
I
’
m watching them.
Maintain top speed and we should bypass them.
”

“
Aircraft is almost to the rendezvous spot,
”
Dwayne said in the corner of her screen.
“
It has pulled off a good chunk of
Scrags
from the wall.
”

Maria watched the fresh information fill her screen and then swore.
“
It
’
s going to make our loop around difficult with them coming in from that angle.
”

“
The tiltrotor will fire at the horde coming from the wall. You just concentrate on evading the one coming from behind.
”

She could see the concern in his eyes and the tightening around his mouth.
He was
apprehensive
and so was she.

The images on her screen were growing more and more worrisome as the surge of
Scourge
continued toward the carrier.
Omondi
and his people had cleared a lot of the area, but they had been concentrating
on clearing a way to the hydro
electric station, not eliminating all the pockets of the
Scourge
.
They had left quite a few
clusters
with high numbers for Maria
’
s squad to deal with.

“
I
’
m going to have to slow down slightly,
”
Cormier called out.
“
I have debris in the road and we don
’
t need to pop a tread.
”

“
Keep an eye on that horde,
”
Maria ordered.
“
We
’
ll have to risk our treads if we
’
re going to outrun them.
”

“
This parade is getting bigger,
”
Holm
’
s voice said.
“
We
’
re picking up a lot more now.
Should I blast them?
”

Dwayne and the commandant were deep in a muted conversation. Maria frowned then sighed.
“
Do it. Contained bursts. We want to get some distance on them, not set the whole area on fire.
”

The footage from Holm
’
s helmet was
perturbing
. The carrier
didn
’
t
exceed
fifty-five
kilometers per hour. The
Scourge
were terrifying
ly
-
quick on their feet. A human being could in theory run nearly as fast as the carrier, but would never be able to sustain the pace or the speed.
The
ISPV
eliminated the physical barriers.
The
Scourge
were closing in as Cormier slowed the carrier.