The APOCs Virus (10 page)

"They're forming a circle!”  Ethan said. It was truly odd that they didn't slow their speed in the tight ring.  It reminded him of a circus. 

"What the hell are they doing?" 

"Something's not right here.  Let's go!" Ethan said.

“This is completely wrong.”

A fire
-
truck blocked their escape from the parking lot.  

In one fluid movement, Ethan changed into four
-
wheel high and shifted the Jeep into first gear. 

"Let's not get too close," Bill said cautiously.  He checked the chambers of the big handgun one more time, sitting as straight as possible in his seat. 

“I
am
going to get a little closer," Ethan said.  He reached under the seat and pulled out a Luger semi-automatic.  He sat the gun in his lap as he removed four twenty-round clips from the glove box and placed them on the recessed dash.  "Get the handheld light that's on the back seat." 

"I can't see shit, they're really kicking up some dust out there," Bill said.  He plugged the halogen light into the Jeep’s cigarette lighter. 

"Let's skirt the perimeter on top of that dune,” Ethan said.  He pointed with one finger, so as not to take his hand off the steering wheel.  "Don't turn on the light until we get close enough."   

The Jeep hit the curb flying straight for the soft sand of the dune.  Most of the larger vehicles wouldn't be able to follow them.  Ethan picked up the clip, inserted it in the handle of the handgun and snapped it securely by slapping it on his leg.  They took the hill at a forty-five degree angle, staying near the harder
-
packed top.  

 Moving to within fifty yards, Bill turned on the high intensity quartz beam.  The light cast a tight shaft of illumination on the back of the hook and ladder truck.  Between driving and watching, Ethan had his hands full.  Drive in a crack he thought, and break our goddamn backs. 

Bill brought the cast of the light to the front of the fire
truck and let out a gasp.  Before he could think what to do next he heard the explosion from Ethan's gun go off very near his ear.  The zombie with the dead yellow eyes sprouted a fountain in the middle of its forehead.  They watched its arms shoot out and shake in convulsions in front of its body.  It looked like a baby waving mad goodbyes with both hands.  The inertia flung the still shaking Apoc off the moving truck and into the path of the oncoming cavalcade.  They watched the military trucks run over him several times before they finally looked away.  It was eerie, Ethan thought.  How they didn't even break formation or slow down for it. 

Another yellow-eyed Apoc with wrinkled skin was riding in a squad car, two vehicles back from the fire truck.  He had his arm out the window like a father on a Sunday drive.  Bill held the light with one hand and the gun with the other.  The big pistol went off with a blaze of fire making the creature's head simply vanish.    Evidently the bullet had not completely mushroomed out until it had also hit the driver sitting next to him. 

The police car swerved toward the Jeep before swerving back again into the line and overturning in a cloud of dirt.  Two of the following squad cars plowed into the overturned car and all three exploded into a blaze of fire.  The next vehicle deviated from its course and pulled away from the burning cars.  It came to a stop right in front of the now-stopped Jeep and cut off its engine.  The remaining cars and trucks followed suit.  One of the police cars pulled about ten feet closer than the others.   

A huge wrinkled man with a police uniform and loudspeaker in his hand got out of the squad car.  Bill swung the light up and illuminated the Apoc.  They had time to see the telltale- jonquil-yellow, lifeless eyes that seemed to consume the light instead of radiating it back.  They saw its cracked and peeling, hideous face and patches of its remaining hair. 

"Turn off, and keep off that light if you want to see your men again Lieutenant McCullough," the creature said into the speaker.  It spoke with a deep resonant tone that had the force of a cannon blast. "And Mr. Bell, I would suggest you put down your weapon also if you want to hear what I have to say." 

"That damn thing knows both of our names," Bill said as he switched off the light. 

"That's better," the thing said.  "Now we can get down to the business of being friends." 

Both Bill's and Ethan's eyes were darting around, Ethan watching for a trap. He was mentally working out their options, and escape if necessary. 

"So what do you say Lieutenant?  Friends?" 

"Fuck the friends stuff, Apoc.  Where are the men you stole those vehicles from?"  Bill yelled.  He was standing up on the floorboard with his head through the Jeep’s open convertible top. 

"They're in the transports," he said as he nodded to the Apoc in the back of the truck.  Fifteen men hidden in the truck's interior now stood with their hands bound behind their backs.  "The others are in there," he said   pointing to the other transport.  "That is, the ones that are still alive," he laughed.  "If you cooperate our friendship can be beneficial to both of us." 

 "It's not fair," Ethan said with a sourness in the pit of his stomach.  "That you know our names and we don't know yours."  

"I am Abaddon," the beast boomed.  "Leader of what you call the Apocs. We prefer to think of ourselves as the 'Chosen'.  But call us whatever you like, just don't call us late for supper." Abaddon's cackling laugh was like fingernails on a chalkboard. 

"Just what is it you want from us?" Bill asked. 

"Number one.  I need you and your friend Mr. Bell—Ethan, I'm sorry, I forgot we were all friends, to lay off the heroics.  You have already killed several of my men tonight.  And how many in the last three nights of your little raids?  Ten times that amount?"  

"It's not something I feel guilty about.  What else do you want?" Bill asked skeptically. 

"Here's the list.  May I send one of my men over to give you a copy?" Abaddon didn't wait for either one of them to answer before sending over the Apoc from the police car next to his. 

 Ethan and Bill watched the smaller Apoc approach them with a sure gait.  He was wearing a black sleeveless Devil's Reich T
-
shirt and blue jeans.  His face was accented by the deepening wrinkles set off by the red bandanna tied around his forehead.  The bandanna was holding down matted blondish hair. 

"He looks like a kid," Ethan said to Bill. 

As the Apoc got nearer, he was glaring at them with burning, reproachful cadmium eyes.  Bill snatched the list out of his hand.  The Apoc had long, sharp, dirty fingernails,
the better to rip your heart out with my dear
, Ethan thought and returned the hostile glare.  The creature stood in front of them, his face a glowering mask of rage and body rippling with fury, then quickly returned to the car.  

"The list, gentlemen," Abaddon said scornfully, focusing their attention.  "Just let me go over it with you so there are no mistakes.  We demand two 20,000 watt diesel generators, a high tension industrial-strength crane, two hundred yards of twenty-four gage coaxial cable and an uplink satellite dish." 

"Oh is that all?" Bill asked sarcastically. 

"As a matter of fact, no," the creature said.  "From this point forward think of Oceanview, and Virginia Beach as the domain of the Chosen, and I as their King." 

Ethan brought his pistol up from behind the seat and fired.  Abaddon's right cheek disintegrated.  The beast was thrown only slightly back by the impact of the bullet.  He wiped off the bits of tissue from the loudspeaker and began to speak.

"It's very unfortunate that we have to display these hostilities toward each other.  But I thank you for fulfilling another prophecy for me: 'And I saw as if his head had been slain, and his fatal wound had been healed.  Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him’.  Revelation, chapter thirteen.  May I remind you, that also in chapter thirteen it says, this is from the Book of Mark, by the way," Abaddon said smugly.  "And he stood on the sand of the seashore a beast coming up out of the sea.  The beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth, that of a lion.  And the black dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. And the whole earth eventually followed after the beast, and they worshiped the dragon, because he gave his authority to the beast, and the whole world worshiped the beast’." 

"I've about had enough of this bullshit," Ethan said. 

"No wait," Bill said, then turned toward Abaddon.   

"And what if I can't or decide not to follow your demands?" 

"As for the can't, I know that's a lie, Lieutenant.  I know you have great influence over the powers in charge and the public.  As for the not, I think you want to save the lives of these men too much for that kind of foolishness." 

"So you'll use the men as a bargaining chip?" Bill asked. 

"If you don't provide me with the equipment I ask for by this time tomorrow night, I will kill the people and procure the things I need myself." 

"What kind of guarantee do I have that the men will be safe if I deliver the goods?" 

"I was prepared to, that is before your friend blew half my head away, give you half of the men tonight.  I'm not sure now if you two are serious about being my friend.  In other words, you don't have a choice.  There are no guarantees.  Except that I am Abaddon, son of the Black Prince and have no need to lie.  I have powers beyond the scope of your thinking  . . . beyond your wildest dreams." 

"If he has so many goddamn powers, why does he need coaxial cable?"  Ethan whispered to Bill. 

"My powers are far-reaching Mr. Bell, but I'm afraid they don't include coaxial cable." 

A look of surprise shot across Bill and Ethan's faces. 

"How did he hear that?" Bill asked.  "He's at least fifty yards away!" 

"Like I said, my powers are immense.  Now do we have a deal?" 

"I'll do it," Bill said. 

"Fine. Possibly we can be friends after all." 

The creature got back into his squad car.  His car led the procession back over the curb and into the darkened streets. 

 "Are you going to get the stuff for him?" Ethan asked. 

"I don't know what choice I have.  I wonder what he's going to do with all that stuff?" 

"Sounds to me like our friend Abaddon, the Antichrist, is going into the TV business." 

"Anything is better than the Reverend Swanson." 

"The pompous ass." 

"The Reverend Swanson?  Or Abaddon?" 

"Both." 

"You know what really bothers me Ethan?  It's that shot he took to the head.  We've killed enough of these things in the last few days. That shot should have wiped his ass  . . . .  You don't think there's any truth to what he said do you?" 

"At this point Bill, I don't know what to believe."  He put the Jeep in gear and drove over the top of the dune to the seashore. 

Ethan had no idea that their confrontation had been witnessed by a woman watching through the reflective glass of the high
-
rise next to them. 

But he would soon enough.

CHAPTER 11

MDR-V6

  "A rough estimate, Dr. Puck, would be one hundred, that’s a doubling of new cases each night," Ava said. 

"That's a pretty wide range, by what means did you derive those figures from?" he said over the secured phone line. 

"The reason for such a wide range is in the way we have to gather the information.  We have contacts in all the major hospitals.  In addition to that I have been able to compromise the police data bank.  I also buffered in those cases that may have gone unreported or untreated.  This is a scary place to be, and most of the people are not reacting rationally." 

"What kind of cooperation are you getting from the authorities up there?" 

"It's worse than we thought. The military has the police department in its back pocket.  The only cooperation I'm getting is vague and standoffish at best. Let me put it this way, they treat me like a reporter and not a representative of a government agency—the agency that might be able to put an end to this madness. The doctors and staff at the hospitals act completely differently.  I think they realize what the military's up to and they just want to see an end to this thing as much as we do.  They have given me their full cooperation.  It's kind of refreshing to see people acting sensibly.  With their help I believe I have come up with a few things you might find interesting and perhaps useful. Not everyone who is attacked ends up getting the disease.  About half the people brought in eventually die. I have been working with patients with a direct link to an Apoc attack, either through eyewitness reports, or telltale signs of an assault.”  

She waited for him to answer, but Puck said nothing.  She wondered if the connection was severed.  She decided to continue.

“As I was saying, about half the patients eventually die. Their injuries are the most bestial  in nature, it’s no wonder they have such a high mortality rate.  Some of these people’s deaths can be directly coupled to exposure to the virus. Their bodies reject it in a most brutal fashion.  Profound bleeding from their orifices, followed by brain embolisms, massive coronary thrombosis, or both.  It is quite easy to diagnose these cases—their eyes protrude from their heads almost to the point where you'd think they'd explode.  For whatever reason their bodies violently reject the MDR
-
V6 virus.   Another forty-seven percent will eventually recover. Their blood scans show no signs of being exposed to the contaminant.  They're released and show no long term effects." 

"And the other three percent?  They become Apocs?" Dr. Puck asked.  

"Yes, and they have caused quite a bit of calamity in the hospitals.  It is usually quite sudden and unexpected.  They do, however, seem to have an abnormal healing rate.  Other than that, they look, act, and test normal up to the point of turning."  

Dr. Puck interrupted, "From the information I have gathered here at the research center I would deduce that they have a partial immunity to the virus.  In all the studies we have conducted the 'turn', has happened in just a matter of minutes," he said sternly.