The Last Bastion of the Living: A Futuristic Zombie Novel (49 page)

“
Immortality is in Maria
’
s veins and the SWD don
’
t
even
know it,
”
Lindsey said in awe.

“
No. They don
’
t. I didn
’
t even realize it until today. And now it
’
s too late,
”
Dr. Curran said with a heavy sigh.

“
We must have a few days until they clear the valley. If we compile all the information we have and release it to the news media, we can undermine the SWD,
”
Dwayne said. The passion in his voice revealed that his control had slipped and he struggled to regain it.

“
Maybe,
”
Dr. Curran said thoughtfully.

“
I
’
ll start right away.
”
Lindsey snatched her pad back from the still stunned Petra.

“
It
’
s already too late,
”
Caitlyn said softly.
“
They
’
re going to wipe out the
Inferi Boon
today. That was what I was going to tell you.
They may already be dead.
”

“
That
’
s why they sent us out of the command center!
”
Commandant Pierce
’
s fury was tangible.
“
Of course!
”

Dwayne felt his anger fade away into an almost paralyzing numbness.
All hope of saving Maria was fading fast.

“
Her wristlet!
”
Lindsey shouted at Dwayne!
“
Call her!
”

With trembling fingers, he activated the secret program, praying that he wasn
’
t too late.

Chapter 33

Maria
cleaned
the dagger on her armor, her eyes on the approaching tiltrotor.
Shoving the blade into the sheath on her armor, she stood with her feet apart to steady herself. She felt slightly lightheaded from the blows Stillson had administered, but the pain he had inflicted was quickly receding.

Denman stood
beside
her, his hand on her shoulder.
“
We
’
re almost out of here.
”

Tears pricked at her eyes. Thoughts of Dwayne filled her mind and she longed to feel his arms around her. She wondered how long it would take for the
Boon
to be returned to life.

“
I have to admit,
”
Omondi
said in a raspy voice,
“
that I felt they had abandoned us. But when you came to rescue us with the SWD
’
s blessing, I knew I was wrong.
”

The
Boon
drew together, some limping, others being carried. Out of the forty that had started together, Maria was horrified to see only ten remained.

McKinney held up both Holm and Cruz, his big boyish face in a grin.
“
I
’
m going to get shitfaced the second I
’
m alive,
”
he decided.

Cruz
’
s tiny frame sank to the ground. Sobs without tears rocked her as she clutched her hands prayerfully before her.
“
We can
’
t even bury our dead.
”

Maria knew she was speaking of Mikado and she reached out to touch the smaller woman
’
s head gently.

Cruz gazed up at Maria and whispered,
“
But it was worth it, right?
”

“
Yeah,
”
Maria assured her.
“
It was worth it. We saved humanity.
”

“
We
’
re heroes,
”
McKinney declared, relishing the word.
“
We
’
re fucking heroes.
I want a statue. A big one.
”

Omondi
laughed despite everything.
“
Well, you deserve it. We all do.
Especially our fallen.
”

Holm tried to speak, but what emerged from her mouth w
ere
barely words or sounds.
But Maria could make out the gist of it.
She had said Cormier
’
s name.

“
Gather around,
”
Omondi
ordered, digging into his pa
ck. He withdrew small
flares and struck them against the ground. They lit up as he formed a circle around the remaining survivors of the
Inferi Boon
S
pecial
O
ps.

Maria
’
s wristlet buzzed against her skin. It wasn
’
t the jolt sent to activate her ne
rvous
system, but the buzz to indicate Dwayne
’
s call was coming in.
Startled, she gazed at the wristlet in confusion. It buzzed again, an urgent sensation against her battered flesh.

No one around her seemed to notice. They were all staring intently at the fleet of tiltrotors whirling over the approaching
Inferi Scourge
. There was a flash from the lead aircraft and then the earth below it was on fire, the
Scourge
caught in an
inferno
.
The
Boon
cheered.
More flashes from the othe
r tiltrotors were followed by a
conflagration
on the ground.

Maria
’
s wristlet kept buzzing.
Unsure of what to do, she glanced over her shoulder.
The carrier loomed nearby. She hesitated, but a quick look at the squad told her they were too busy watching the beautiful sight of the tiltrotors destroying the mob of
Scourge
heading their way.

As quietly as possible and trying not to draw attention, Maria hurried toward the carrier.
She heard footfalls and
cast a quick look over her should
er
to see
Denman
tailing her with curiosity in his eyes
.
Ducking around the carrier, she activated the secret program.

“
Honey, I
’
m coming home. Can this wait?
”
she said with a grin.

“
Maria, run! Hide!
The SWD issued a kill order for the
Inferi Boon
!
”

She only had a second to register Dwayne
’
s terrified expression before she heard another volley of
missiles
hitting the ground. Denman stood near her, staring at her wristlet in confusion.

“
What do you mean?
”
Maria finally asked.

“
Run!
They
’
re going to kill all of you! Hide!
”

“
We need to warn the others!
”
Maria gasped.
She grabbed Denman
’
s arm, yanking him after her.

As she was about to clear the side of the carrier, she saw the last of the
Inferi Boon
Special Ops waving frantically at the approaching fleet of tiltrotors.
T
hey were cheering and leaping
, overjoyed at the sight of the lead tiltrotor moving steadily toward them.

Denman yanked her backward.

“
Omondi
!
”
Maria screamed.

The big, beautiful black man with the wonderful smile threw out his arms to welcome the tiltrotor crew.
It was the last she ever saw of him as the crew on the aircraft unleashed their
arsenal
and the
Boon
was engulfed in
a firestorm
.
The tiny form of Cruz disappeared in a wash of fire
.
McKinney and Holm staggered briefly out of the
blaze
before being engulfed again.

Denman dragged Maria around and pulled her after him. She instinctively ran with him in the shadow of the carrier, then bolted around a low wall that encircled the station.
Hunched over, they
scurried along the wall
, waiting for the blast of fire that would engulf them. The tiltrotors continued to hover as they fired at the carrier and the building.
Flaming debris filled the scorching hot air and Maria choked as they fled.
Reaching the side of the building, they broke into full sprints now that they were out
view of the tiltrotors.

“
Keep running!
”
Denman shouted.
“
Aim for the lake!
”

The massive building next to them shuddered as
eruptions
within the concrete walls resounded through the dying day. In the distance, the Maelstrom Platforms roared to life. This was it. The final push. The day the
Inferi Scourge
would be completely wiped from the valley.

As they arrived at the
rear
of the building, Maria saw that the ground sloped straight into the dark waters of the lake. More explosions rent the air, hot wind and ash swirling around her.
Denman ran straight into the waves lapping up on shore.

Casting a
hasty
look over her shoulder, Maria saw that some of the tiltrotors were moving on to attack other locations, but the ones remaining to destroy the station were drifting their way.
She wasn
’
t sure they had been seen.

Wading into the water, she felt her armor pulling her down.
Gasping, she pressed on into the shadow of the dam.
Denman vanished beneath the waves, then reappeared further away.
He didn
’
t have to breathe anymore, but her lungs were functional again.

She dove under and tried to swim through the murky water, fish and underwater plants flowing around her.
The armor kept dragging her into the deeper
depths of the
blue lake
. Kicking furiously, she held her breath.
Finally, afraid at how deep she was sinking, she swam toward the surface.
It took many hard, fast kicks to get her even near the top.
Denman emerged from the murk, gripped her under the arms and helped her swim upward.

They crested the waves halfway along the dam.
Maria
’
s
lungs ached, but she was surprised at how far she had managed to swim.
Denman
’
s hands
tugged
at her armor, unclasping it.
In the shadow of the dam, they bobbed on the choppy waves as more fireballs erupted out of the station.

The Maelstrom Platforms growled to life again in the distance and the world was full of smoke.

They managed to disconnect the top of Maria
’
s armor from the bottom
half
and let it sink away.

“
Better?
”
Denman asked.

She nodded, feeling more
buoyant
.
Her undershirt stuck to her skin, but the water felt wonderful.

“
Okay, we keep
along the
dam until we can get to those trees over there.
”
He pointed to a thin line of pines growing up against a steep incline.
“
We need to get into the foothills.
”

“
Do you think they know we
’
re alive?
”
Maria asked.

Denman lifted his wrist out of the water and stared at his wristlet.
Maria followed suit. They were water resistant devices and the shiny surfaces reflected their frightened faces.

“
I saw you talking to someone. Can they help us?
”

Maria hesitated, then nodded. Sliding her finger over the surface, the screen activated.
She quickly accessed the hidden program.

“
Maria, it
’
s Linds.
I have your feed redirected to me now, not Dwayne.
”
Lindsey appeared to be at a workstation in the Constabulary.
“
I am jamming the feed from all the
Inferi Boon
wristlets right now. How many of
you
a
re
alive?
”

“
Me and Denman. That
’
s it.
”

Denman sank into the water
so just his eyes were visible
above the waves
.
He was watching the tiltrotors moving over the station. So far, they had not been spotted.

Lindsey
’
s shocked expression transformed swiftly into one that was all business.
“
Okay.
That
’
ll make it easier.
They
’
re attempting to confirm that all of
you a
re
dead using the wristlets.
I
’
m trying to come up with a false transmission that will make them think you were inside the building.
Meanwhile, you two have got to get away from that area. It
’
s fuckin
’
ground zero.
”

The Maelstrom Platforms continued to roar.
Somewhere in the distance, more explosions filled the air with fire.

“
Is Dwayne there?
”
Maria asked.

“
I
’
m here,
”
her lover
’
s voice said from off camera.