The Rule of Three: An Extinction Cycle Novella

CHAPTER SIX

Dee couldn’t believe how refreshed the shower made her feel. To wash all the stench, grime, and dirt away after so many days. It was heavenly. She stood under the glorious hot water, for a time forgetting the repugnant Variants outside, the horrors of the last few days. Reluctant, she reached up and turned off the water, then stepped out. Drying herself, she paused. Looking into the small mirror, she gazed back at the gaunt reflection. Squinting, she let out a bark of laughter. She stared at her collar bone poking out and traced the curvature of her neck with her hand, surprised. She was happy to lose some extra pounds, but shocked at how quickly it had happened. She turned away from the mirror.

Dee pulled on her borrowed clothes, grateful to have something clean against her skin. Gathering herself, she headed back into the main section.

Checking on Boss, she found him sound asleep, gently snoring.

Hearing Ben talking in the war room, she walked over.

“Yeah, that’s correct, Falcon 1. I picked up two today. Over.”

Hissing and static carried over the airwaves through the speakers. “Anything happening on the Variant front? Over.”

“None seen today, but definite signs, of course. I had to take out two of them collaborators though. Over.”

“All right, Dusty Hollow. Report in tomorrow. Over.”

“SNAFU, Falcon 1. Wilco, Out.”

Ben reached up. Switching off the radio, he turned to Dee. “Hey, how you feeling?”

“Great! Thanks so much. That shower was heavenly.”

Dee was staring at the monitors and the camera feeds they showed. She could see several Variants moving across the feeds. Pointing at them, she asked, “You’re not worried?”

“Not really. I’m more worried about the ones I can’t see. These ones are just looking for a way in, probing, looking for a weak spot. I don’t get much sleep, though.”

Dee could see from the bags under his eyes that Ben was telling the truth. Hell, no one got much sleep these days. Last night in the boat was the best sleep she’d had since all this began.

“Well, since I’m here, how about I watch for a few hours?”

“Yeah, maybe. We’ll see how we go.”

Dee looked back to the monitors, and she could now see at least twenty of the Variants roaming around, sniffing at everything. Searching.

“You’re seriously not worried?”

Ben shook his head. “SNAFU.”

“SNAFU? I heard you say that.”

“It’s military jargon. It means Situation Normal All Fucked Up. We use it sarcastically, meaning it’s chaos, but that’s normal.”

“Oh right, so you were in the Army?”

Ben nodded. “Yes, I served in the NZ Army, then the NZSAS, two tours of Vietnam, followed by some other stuff. Retired from the NZSAS when I was 45, then trained soldiers until I retired five years ago.”

Dee looked into Ben’s eyes. She could see pain buried deep. Those eyes had seen things no one should see. Not wanting to press him any further, Dee changed the subject. “Do you mind if I ask who you were talking too?”

“No, not at all. I was talking to the Army… or what’s left of it.” Ben pulled out a map of New Zealand and continued. “We have pockets here in Wellington, holed up in the bunker under Government House. There’s a small group in Auckland, under the museum. A few are scattered on the South Island, in the mountains. Most evacuated out to the islands with the Navy. Here on the Chathams, Stewart Island, Great Barrier, and Mayor Island.”

“What about other survivors, like Boss and I?” Dee asked, hopeful of news of Jack.

“A few, yes, when we can find them. We’ve been flying them out to Mayor Island.”

“Then why are you here?”

Ben rolled his shoulders, stretching out a kink, and sighed. “Well, since I have this little bunker, I was recalled to active duty and ordered to stay behind, hunt for survivors.”

Dee allowed hope to float back into her mind. Perhaps Jack was still alive. Maybe he had been airlifted to safety.

“Can we radio Mayor Island and ask about my husband, Jack?”

“It’s pretty chaotic over there, but sure, let’s go for it.”

He turned back to the bank of radios and turned one on. He turned the detent dial until he had the right frequency, then pushed down the talk button on the microphone.

“Falcon 7, Falcon 7, this is Dusty Hollow, over.”

A voice immediately answered, making Dee’s heart leap with excitement.

“Falcon 7 receiving. Over.”

“Falcon 7, looking for civvie, maybe brought a few days back. Over.”

“Name, Dusty Hollow? Over.”

Ben looked at Dee. “Jack, Jack Gee. G-E-E.”

“Falcon 7, Civvies name is Jack Gee, that’s Golf-Echo-Echo. Over.”

“Received. We’ll get back to you. Out.”

Dee paced around the room, grinning from ear to ear. She had hidden in that damp, stinky basement for thirteen days, and in the house for two. Fear of getting torn apart and eaten had frayed her nerves. But she had survived. Boss had provided humour. Her hope of seeing Jack had never diminished. But now it flared up anew, thanks to Ben. He looked like a gentle giant, but Dee had seen the ruthless former SAS soldier in action.

Ben looked at Dee, a twinkle in his brown eyes. Smirking he said. “Wait a minute. Is your married name ‘Gee’?”

Dee laughed. “Yes, I know. Dee Gee.”

It felt good to share a laugh with him.

The radio crackled to life. Dee’s heart hammered in her chest. “Dusty Hollow, Dusty Hollow, this is Falcon 7, Over.”

“Receiving Falcon 7. Over.”

“Nobody of that name on the civilian manifests, Dusty Hollow. Out.”

She was devastated. She had allowed herself to hope. Hope that Jack had made it to Mayor Island. She sat down in a chair, deflated. The roaring in her ears drowned out the rest of the radio conversation.

Ben put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry Dee, I really am. I’ll get you and Boss to the next airlift.”

Dee nodded numbly, eyes downcast. “I should have gone to him. He was in the bush. But I made him come to me.”

“Dee, where was he?”

“Um, he was up in the mountains. Killarney Lakes area.”

Ben got up and started pacing around the small room. “So he would’ve come across the country toward the city, right?”

Dee could feel a spark of excitement. “Yeah. He loves those back country roads.”

Ben fumbled through his pile of maps. Finding the one of the surrounding area, he excitedly pointed down. “Look. All the roads got choked up quickly, so maybe he had to skirt this area, forcing him wide to try to come into the city from the south?”

Dee nodded her head in agreement.

“If he ran into any Variants, he may have been taken.”

Ben placed both gnarled hands on Dee’s shoulders. “Dee, I think I know where he is. If he’s alive, he’s here.”

Dee looked at the map. Ben was pointing at the Waikato River. Next to his finger, she read Karapiro Dam.

“The dam? Why would he be there?”

“Those guys you met? Well, they used to find survivors too, only they give them to the Variants. I captured one of the traitors and extracted some information. The Variants use the dam as a meat locker, a slaughterhouse, and a bloody nest!” Ben spat the last words.

Dee felt herself fall to the ground. Food? Her Jack, now food? The mere thought of it curdled her stomach. She could feel tears welling up in her eyes.

“We have to try and find him,” she sobbed. “I need to know. Will you help me?”

Ben stroked his long beard. With a steely glint in his eyes, he said, “Hell yeah. Let’s go kill these bastards!”

Dee and Ben spent the rest of the evening making preparations. Planning a rescue was not something Dee had ever thought she would be doing, but the thought of her Jack being stored as food to be consumed was not something she could bear to imagine. This guy, who through kindness and a quirky sense of humor had helped her through the darkness. Who, through sharing his joy of movies, books, and the natural world, had helped Dee see the magic of the universe. She wasn’t going to give up on him. She had to know, and if she could banish some of these monsters to the pit of hell from whence they came, then all the better.

Dee checked on Boss a few times, but the poor kid just slept right through. With exhaustion creeping in, the bunk next to him looked more and more inviting.

“Hey, Ben.”

“Yeah?”

“I’m going to turn in. Wake me up for my watch, okay?”

“All right, sure. And Dee, don’t worry. We’ll go find him.”

She could see the genuine belief in Ben’s eyes. Seeing it comforted her, but that old demon of self doubt nagged at the back of her mind, threatening to pull her back down.

Dee lay awake for some hours, her body battered and bruised but her mind racing, thinking out all the scenarios. What if Jack is dead? Could I still go on? What chance do we have? Sleep finally pulled her into its embrace.

Dee woke to Boss shaking her shoulder. “Hey, sleeping beauty. Where are we?”

Pushing herself up, Dee struggled to shake the cobwebs out of her mind. “Umm, we’re safe… Ben… saved us… his place.”

“Ben?”

Dee ran her hands through her pixie haircut. She patted Boss on the shoulder. “It’s okay. After you were knocked out, Ben shot those two rapists and brought us here. Come on, I’ll introduce you. I bet you're starving, anyway?”

Boss looked relieved, and followed Dee into the war room. Ben turned as he heard them walk up. Dee could see his eyes were red and slightly puffy.

“Hey. You should have woken me for my watch.”

“It’s all right. You guys looked exhausted, thought I’d give you some rest.”

“Still, you need it too.”

Ben tilted his head to one side. “I’m used to it. Been surviving on little sleep most of my working life. This must be Boss?”

Dee grinned. “Oh yes, sorry. Ben, Boss, Boss, Ben.”

Holding out his hand to Ben, Boss said, “Thank you for yesterday.”

“That’s all right kid. Not all men are bastards. Just a lot of them.”

Dee watched the exchange, admiring how they accepted each other so quickly. She guessed the apocalypse could bring out the worst and the best in people.

Before the Hemorrhage Virus had torn into the fabric of society, throwing the country into chaos, she never would’ve imagined herself doing any of the things she had done in the last couple of weeks. Deep down inside is a strength most of us never know exists, until the greatest of circumstances call upon it. That time is now. Today it is time.

After a hearty breakfast Ben rustled up for them, Boss started to look more like his old self.

Ben gathered them around the table in his war room and spread out one of the maps. Ben filled Boss in on what they had figured out while he was unconscious, then outlined his plan.

“So. This is the nest where we think Jack is. There are multiple entrances, but only three of us.

“Boss, you’re going to be in the river on the boat you two found. Dee and I are going to go in, look for Jack, and get out, killing any of those bastards we can. As you discovered, these things don’t like the water for some reason, so that’s our escape route. Now, I’m not going to sugarcoat it: this is probably a suicide mission, and I’m disobeying orders. But I’m tired of the Army just running and hiding.” Ben looked both Dee and Boss in the eyes, then carried on. “I’m giving both of you the opportunity to back out now. I know neither of you have training, but someone with determination and a will to survive can overcome great odds.”

Dee put her hand over Boss’s. “I know it’s a lot to ask, Boss. If you don’t want to do this, it’s fine.”

Boss nodded, shrugged. “Sure, why not, I’m in. Two weeks ago I was just another millennial playing video games and annoying my parents. It’s better to burn out than to fade away, eh?”

She couldn’t help but grin at his movie reference. Just like Jack. Probably why she liked the kid so much.

“Thanks, Boss. I appreciate it.”

Hearing this, Ben crouched down and opened a big duffle bag next to the table. Pulling out some guns, he placed them on the table.

“All right. Boss, you’re going to take these in the boat as backup. If we get out of there alive and Variants are attacking us, as I know they will be, you’re going to have to give us covering fire. Don’t worry too much about hitting them. Just give them something to worry about. I’ll give you both some quick lessons before we move out at 1100 hours, okay?”

Dee and Boss nodded in agreement. Satisfied, Ben pulled out a rifle, the same as the one Dee had seen him use in their rescue.

“This is for you, Dee. Again, I’ll give you a quick lesson before we go, okay? I’ll also give you a shotgun — easier to hit them with. Now, if we get out alive, Boss, you fish us out of the river and we motor to this vehicle I’m going to drop off here,” he pointed to a spot on the map. “Then we hightail it up this road straight to this airfield. I’ll call in the chopper to get us out to Mayor Island.”

Dee looked at Ben and saw a determined look. She felt happier knowing he was a seasoned professional. It was an extremely simple plan, but as he was the only one with military training, it was the only course of action to take. Jack was out there, and she had to know.

Boss said, “Umm, why can’t we wait for your army buddies?”

“They would never approve it. The order went out about a week ago. Get out with as many survivors as you can find, or hunker down. The virus hit too fast. Our small armed forces were not ready for this. It was a miracle the Navy and Air Force were having exercises in the Pacific. As harsh as it sounds, they are not worried about one man. It’s us, or no one,” replied Ben.

Smirking at Ben and Dee, Boss said, “Let’s go hunt some Orcs!”

Dee looked at Ben, curious to see his reaction. Ben returned her gaze, then started laughing, a deep down belly laugh.

Dee couldn’t help but join in. It felt good to laugh. It settled her building nerves.

At 1100 hours Dee found herself following Ben back down the same road they had driven up the previous day. She couldn’t help but shudder in disgust as they pulled onto the farm where Missing Teeth and his buddy had tried to rape her.

Dee and Boss climbed out of the vehicle and headed toward the boat.

Dee hugged Boss goodbye before he climbed in.

As he moved out into the current, she waved. “Good luck… Thanks Boss.”

Boss returned the wave. “Now, you owe me one.”

Jumping back into the car, Dee found herself grinning as she followed Ben again.

The sun was reaching its peak, and she enjoyed the warmth of its rays. She couldn’t help but wonder if this was the last time she would feel them on her skin. She couldn’t help but think she was on her farewell drive, taking in her last sight of the world they had lost. Dee wound down her window and let the wind blow through her hair, enjoying the sensation. Jack always said to enjoy the little things.

They broke the world and ripped my life apart. I’m going to do my best to take back what’s mine.

Don’t give up hope, Jack. It’s all we got left.