Resistance_ The Gathering Storm Part 14

"Maintain control of that elevator," Hale replied as projectiles pinged the modules around him, "but find cover. It won't be long before they attack you as well. Over."

Hale heard two clicks as Kawecki acknowledged the order. Yorba was using the heat-activated reticle to find targets and fire through through the module he was hiding in. Striking up a rhythm, he began to destroy the drones with machinelike efficiency. Some of them exploded, strobing the big room with momentary light, while others crashed into storage units, cargo modules, and the floor below. the module he was hiding in. Striking up a rhythm, he began to destroy the drones with machinelike efficiency. Some of them exploded, strobing the big room with momentary light, while others crashed into storage units, cargo modules, and the floor below.

Hale managed to bag a couple of Patrol Drones with well-placed shots from the Marksman. Then the battle was over, and an uncanny silence spread through the room.

Barrie was the first one who crawled out into the open. "Come on," she said. "I don't think the cores are stored on this level, but we need to make sure, and the clock is running."

Hale gestured, and the team followed her over to the vertical storage units, where the inventory continued. It took about ten minutes to check the rest of the shelves and confirm what she had predicted. "The fuel cores are located somewhere else," she announced. "Probably on a lower level. We need to get back on the elevator."

Kawecki and Pardo were waiting for them by the time the rest of the group arrived. They gathered together, and Gaines took the controls.

"Check your weapons," Hale said grimly, as the platform began to drop. "Because if there are a bunch of stinks on the next level down, they sure as h.e.l.l know we're coming."

But once again there were no Chimera waiting to shoot at them. The only illumination came from regularly s.p.a.ced pools of light, and they could see that this room was quite different from the one above.

The floor consisted of gratings that crisscrossed a large open s.p.a.ce. Below them, and located to either side, a maze of large storage chambers could be seen. They were open to each other and filled with what looked like water. Vertical boxes occupied each chamber, some of which were empty, and others of which contained cylindrical objects.

Above the storage chambers a system of rails could be seen, along with the chain hoists that rode them, and could be positioned anywhere in the room.

"This is it!" Barrie said excitedly, as the platform came to a stop. "They store the fuel rods in those water-filled chambers in order to keep them cool." From what Hale could see, it looked as if the rods came in several different sizes.

Barrie was gone after that, and he had to jog to keep up with the scientist as she hurried out onto one of the walkways. Kawecki and Yorba remained behind to guard the elevator. Gaines and Pardo followed Hale.

"There!" Barrie proclaimed, as she came to a halt. "See the smaller ones? That's what we want."

Hale followed her pointing finger down to a section of storage silos and saw that roughly half of them were filled with silvery canisters. Each was about the size of a standard oxygen tank. That meant they were larger than he would have liked, and no doubt heavier as well, which explained the need for chain hoists.

"It's my guess that the actual fuel rods are about the same diameter as a milk bottle," Barrie said, "and twice as long. Each canister probably contains three or four of them, all protected by a steel cylinder and at least three inches of s.h.i.+elding. Inside, nestled between them, is some form of neutron absorber. What we need to do is jerk one of them out of there, load it into one of the s.h.i.+pping containers stacked against the far wall, and take it up to the roof."

Hale met her eyes.

"Is that all? For a minute there I thought the process might get complicated."

Barrie's eyes narrowed.

"The clock is running, Hale ... Shouldn't we get going?"

"All right," he conceded, turning to Gaines. "Go get one of those chain hoists and slide it over here. Pardo, jump down there, and get ready for the hookup."

"Gotcha, Lieutenant," Pardo responded as he laid his weapon on the grating. "We'll jerk that thing outta there in no time at all," he said confidently.

The Fury lived in the ever present now.

It didn't think, not the way humans do, nor did it have a need to. Because its purpose was simple-to execute a carefully prescribed set of activities which, when combined with the functions carried out by other Chimera, would enable the virus that had created them all to conquer the planet.

Any planet. planet.

In this circ.u.mstance it meant living where the Fury was designed to live, in a body of water that it considered its own, defending it against anything not Chimeran. So when the not-Chimera appeared on the gratings above, the Fury could hear their discordant speech-sounds, and followed them to a point it knew as a unique water-taste.

Stealth came naturally to the Fury and it propelled itself through the water with its flexible tail, making barely a ripple as it swam through the shadowy depths.

The chain hoist ran along a rail, and made a loud rattling sound as Gaines towed it into place. Then, having positioned it directly above Pardo, he lowered a pair of cargo hooks.

Pardo took control of them and bent to make the necessary connections. Gaines, who was watching from above, took hold of the control unit that dangled from the hoist. The moment he touched a delta-shaped b.u.t.ton a loud whine was heard, chains rattled again, and the canister began to rise.

Pardo was crouched down, waiting for the canister to clear the surface, when a pincer shot up out of the water to grab his throat. His features contorted, and he made a horrible gargling sound as both hands went to the sinewy arm that held him.

As soon as he saw what was happening, Hale opened fire. Gouts of water jumped into the air as the projectiles sought their target, but the creature was extremely tough. Barrie's Bullseye was slung across her back, and she couldn't fire the Reapers without spraying Pardo, so she looked as if she was about to jump down when Hale beat her to it.

The thing was pulling Pardo under by that time, and as Hale landed on the concrete chamber wall, he drew the .44 Magnum in a last-ditch attempt to save the Sentinel. The two-handed grip came naturally but the pistol was still difficult to control due to its ma.s.sive recoil. He put all six of the explosive rounds into the Chimera's brown sea lion-sized body.

There was blood in the water, lots lots of it, as what remained of Pardo floated to the surface. He arrived belly-up, and when Hale saw that the Sentinel's face was missing, he triggered the revolver's secondary-fire mode. That detonated all five of the bullets that were buried in the monster's muscular body and blew it in half. A series of closely overlapping of it, as what remained of Pardo floated to the surface. He arrived belly-up, and when Hale saw that the Sentinel's face was missing, he triggered the revolver's secondary-fire mode. That detonated all five of the bullets that were buried in the monster's muscular body and blew it in half. A series of closely overlapping thuds thuds were heard, the water heaved, and chunks of raw meat boiled to the surface. were heard, the water heaved, and chunks of raw meat boiled to the surface.

The kill brought Hale no pleasure as he emptied the revolver's spent casings into the water, replaced them via one of the two speed loaders that he carried on his belt, and flipped the cylinder closed. The handgun went back into the cross-draw holster.

The canister had cleared the walkway by then, and as Gaines towed it toward the elevator, Barrie knelt on the grating.

"I'm sorry," she said softly, "but we have to go."

"Yeah," Hale replied. "I know."

Then, as he'd been forced to do so many times before, he had to leave a fallen comrade where he was. Adrift in a cooling tank, his face gone, and no longer recognizable as human.

By the time he and Barrie arrived at the elevator, Kawecki, Yorba, and Gaines had already dropped the canister into a rolling cargo module. It was equipped with both a cradle and clamps to hold the cylinder in place. Once the lid had been closed and secured, all they had to do was transport the module to the roof. And that, based on the earlier battle, was where Hale figured the team would run into trouble.

More than an hour had elapsed, which meant Chimeran reinforcements were on the way, or had already arrived.

So as the elevator began to rise, there was a series of clicks, clacking sounds, and a loud whine as Hale slipped a full magazine into what had been Pardo's Bullseye. While the Marksman was ideal for some tasks, a free-for-all melee wasn't one of them.

No sooner had that thought pa.s.sed though Hale's mind than he heard a chorus of guttural growls, screeches of rage, and incomprehensible stink-speech, and an army of Hybrids rushed the humans. Someone, or something, had released them from their vertical coffinlike storage tubes, and the air was thick with their rank odor as dozens of the raging beasts surged forward.

Fortunately, none of them was armed, but the strength of their charge was sufficient to instantly put six of the hideous creatures on the platform, where one threw itself at Gaines. The Sentinel fired through through the Hybrid's abdomen, thereby killing the stink immediately behind it in the process, but not before the Chimera managed to sink its fangs into his throat. Bright red blood sprayed the surface of the elevator as Gaines went down, his neck ripped open, his eyes already gla.s.sy in death. the Hybrid's abdomen, thereby killing the stink immediately behind it in the process, but not before the Chimera managed to sink its fangs into his throat. Bright red blood sprayed the surface of the elevator as Gaines went down, his neck ripped open, his eyes already gla.s.sy in death.

Meanwhile, the platform continued to rise and Hale, Kawecki, Yorba, and Barrie poured automatic weapons fire into the ravening horde from point-blank range. The mad chatter of their weapons, combined with the screams of dying Hybrids, created a cacophony of sound.

Having emptied her Bullseye, Barrie drew both Reapers and fired them into the mob. Chimera fell like wheat before a combine, their bodies effectively blocking the beasts behind them while the elevator made its way upward.

Hale lobbed two grenades into the crowd just before it disappeared from sight, heard two slightly m.u.f.fled explosions, and took pleasure in the knowledge that another half-dozen Chimera were dead.

But then the body-strewn platform delivered the team and their hard-won prize onto the building's flat roof. The AA batteries were still operational, and even though there were fewer brids than there had been before, those that remained began firing on the elevator as soon as it surfaced.

The closest Chimera were only a dozen feet away, and scored hits on both Kawecki and Yorba, but they were unable to put either Sentinel down before being killed themselves. That gave the humans control of one AA gun and the northwest corner of the roof. Though wounded, Kawecki and Yorba were still functional, and already starting to heal as they took cover behind the gun mount and s.h.i.+eld.

Hale crouched next to Barrie, and they were protected by the metal cargo box as projectiles continued to slam into it. He put the Bullseye down, and was prepping the Marksman for use when the radio transmission came in. "Hollywood to Echo-Six. We're inbound from the south. Do you read me? Over."

The voice was familiar.

"Purvis? Is that you? Over."

"Who the h.e.l.l else would they send to retrieve your miserable a.s.s?" the pilot replied. "I'm still on the s.h.i.+t list for making that drop north of Valentine. Over."

"I'm sorry about that, I really am," Hale said sincerely. "So how bout I buy you and your crew a drink? Or a couple of drinks? a.s.suming you can pluck us off this roof that is. Over."

"Consider it done," Purvis replied confidently. "And it'll be more than a couple. Over."

"Don't bring the Party Girl Party Girl in yet, though," Hale advised. "We've got some stinks to deal with first-not to mention some AA batteries. Over." in yet, though," Hale advised. "We've got some stinks to deal with first-not to mention some AA batteries. Over."

"Roger that," Purvis replied. "How's the neighborhood? Over."

"Nasty by now," Hale answered. "Can you give me a couple of gun runs? Over."

"Your wish is my command," came the response. "I have two Sabre Jets circling at Angels five. They'd like nothing better than to hose that place down. Over."

"Just keep them off the building," Hale replied. "Echo-Six out."

There was still a single Hybrid located at the southwest corner of the roof. It couldn't bring the AA gun into play because mechanical stops kept the weapon pointed skyward-but it could plink away at the humans from behind the weapon's s.h.i.+eld. Hale solved the problem by launching a drone toward the stink. It flew over over the AA battery, fired down on the brid, and killed it. the AA battery, fired down on the brid, and killed it.

That ceded control of the entire west end of the roof to the humans as the first Sabre Jet roared in from the south. Rockets jumped off wing rails and sleeted in to hit a group of Steelheads on the ground as they jogged toward the building. Body parts were still cartwheeling through the air when the pilot fired his .50 caliber machine guns. The fighter was equipped with six of the weapons, and the hail of sh.e.l.ls carved a path of destruction through the base. The plane was so low that they caught a glimpse of the pilot's helmeted head as he pa.s.sed the building.

Meanwhile there were still two antiaircraft cannons operating, and as the stinks turned to watch the jet flash by, one of them brought its AA gun around in an attempt to fire on the Sabre, and exposed his back in the process. Hale saw the Marksman's reticle flash red, and fired. Blood sprayed the AA gun's s.h.i.+eld as the brid slumped forward-and Yorba nailed another Chimera with his Auger. "That's for Pardo!" Yorba shouted.

Only one AA gun remained as another Sabre Jet made its run across the base. However, the pilot had a Chimeran fighter on his tail and barely managed to get off a flight of rockets before being forced to pull up in a desperate attempt to escape.

It was at that moment that Barrie got up and began to sprint toward the last AA battery, firing all the way.

"No!" Hale shouted and took off after her, but it was too late as a hail of Chimeran projectiles brought her down. That prompted Kawecki and Yorba to fire on the surviving stinks, both of whom ducked.

Hale paused next to Barrie's body, then pulled a grenade and pitched it in under the gun's s.h.i.+eld. There was a flash of light as both Hybrids were blown apart.

Moments later the Party Girl Party Girl was there, throwing its shadow over the roof, and Hale scooped Barrie up. She was surprisingly light. There was blood on the front of her s.h.i.+rt and her eyes were open. was there, throwing its shadow over the roof, and Hale scooped Barrie up. She was surprisingly light. There was blood on the front of her s.h.i.+rt and her eyes were open.

"Am I going to die?"

"No," Hale said firmly, and even though he knew he couldn't be heard over the roar of the VTOL's engines, he could tell that she understood.

"You're a liar, Hale," she said, as he leaned in close to hear. "All "All of us are going to die. The only question is when." of us are going to die. The only question is when."

She pa.s.sed out as medics rushed to take charge of her, and the rest of the survivors entered the plane. Kawecki and Yorba made certain that the box of fuel rods was securely fastened to the D rings set into the deck. They took off seconds later with the port gunner firing like mad as a pair of t.i.tans arrived from the north.

As the Party Girl Party Girl turned toward the south, Hale knew that the mission had been successful. So why did it feel like a failure? That question, like so many others, went unanswered. turned toward the south, Hale knew that the mission had been successful. So why did it feel like a failure? That question, like so many others, went unanswered.

CHAPTER ELEVEN.

DEAD END.

Near Madison, Wisconsin Thursday, November 29, 1951 It was pitch black, with only the car's headlights to show the way.

The man called Twitch was behind the wheel, and had been ever since Henry Walker and his wife, Myra, had left Indianapolis two days earlier. Twitch was a runner, one of a very small group of men and women who dared to transport mail, medical supplies, and occasionally people back and forth between the government-controlled heartland and Chimera-occupied territory to the north.

Their destination was the city of Chicago, where the Walkers planned to join Freedom First and give that organization the recordings in which President Grace could be heard discussing what Walker viewed as treason.

The three of them had slept in the station wagon the day before, because they were well into what Twitch referred to as "the stink." Chimera-occupied territory. So there was nowhere else to sleep except in a cold car, parked in an old barn, a hundred feet off the highway.

Now, as they listened to radio station WLK, and Twitch hummed along with Tony Bennett's "Cold, Cold Heart," Walker sat in the seat next to him, and Myra was propped sideways in the back seat.

Twitch had thinning hair, beady eyes, and a hatchet-shaped nose. A two-day growth of beard covered his gaunt cheeks. His incessant humming was starting to drive Walker crazy, and Twitch had a bad case of body odor, which was one of the reasons Myra had chosen to remain in the back seat.

Of course, we'll smell like Twitch soon, Walker mused, and it won't seem so bad then and it won't seem so bad then.

It had been snowing on and off for days, so they had put chains on the tires, which rattled against the inside of the wheel wells as the vehicle followed the road northwest past the remains of Lowell off to the east. There weren't any tire tracks to follow, which was why Twitch was keeping the speed down to twenty-five miles per hour. It was a precaution Walker approved of.

The wash of the car's headlights provided Walker with occasional glimpses of empty houses, burned-out vehicles covered in snow, and cl.u.s.ters of improvised crosses. Drainage ditches were frequently used as makes.h.i.+ft graves because they were both handy and the right depth.

The journey rolled by rather peacefully, with only the soft murmur of the radio, the incessant whir of the heater, and the steady rattle of chains to keep Walker from falling asleep. But then, as the station wagon started up a long sloping hill, Twitch swore. He wasn't a talkative man, which made anything he said important enough to pay attention to.

Walker sat up straight. "What's wrong?"

"Lights," Twitch said laconically, as his head gave an involuntary jerk to the left. "Behind us."

Walker felt a heavy weight land in the pit of his stomach as he looked back over his shoulder, past Myra's sleeping form, stretched out across the back seat. Twitch was right. There, about a quarter of a mile behind, two headlights could be seen through the filthy rear window. "Who are they?" he wondered out loud.

"Don't know," Twitch answered grimly. "But I can tell you who they aren't ... aren't ... And that's friends of ours. You'd better wake your wife and get ready to bail out. If it's a car that belongs to human jackers, that's bad, cause they'll take everything we have and leave us to die, but if it's being driven by the Chimera, then we might as well blow our brains out and save them the trouble." And that's friends of ours. You'd better wake your wife and get ready to bail out. If it's a car that belongs to human jackers, that's bad, cause they'll take everything we have and leave us to die, but if it's being driven by the Chimera, then we might as well blow our brains out and save them the trouble."

It was a long speech for Twitch, and Walker knew the runner was serious. So he reached back to wake Myra.

"Wake up, hon ... And lace up your boots. We have company."

Myra sat up quickly, looked back, and saw the lights just before they disappeared into a dip. She made no response, but Walker knew she was scared, and had every right to be.

"It could could be a coincidence," Twitch said tersely, "but I doubt it. We can't turn off, because they'd just follow our tracks. And odds are they have a roadblock waiting for us up ahead, so I'm going to pull over. Grab your packs, get out, and run like h.e.l.l ... Then, a.s.suming you get clear, make your way north. Sorry, folks, but that's the best I can do." be a coincidence," Twitch said tersely, "but I doubt it. We can't turn off, because they'd just follow our tracks. And odds are they have a roadblock waiting for us up ahead, so I'm going to pull over. Grab your packs, get out, and run like h.e.l.l ... Then, a.s.suming you get clear, make your way north. Sorry, folks, but that's the best I can do."

"But what about you?" Myra wanted to know, as she pushed her husband's pack over the seat. Both of them secured their heavy winter coats, and put on thick gloves. "What will you you do?" do?"

"I'm going to turn the lights off, turn around, and run straight at them," Twitch replied grimly. "They won't be expecting that. And, if I'm lucky, I'll squeeze past to the left or right."