Today, I interviewed a Delta Force Operator about his experiences through World War Z. He's quite the unassuming type with the way how he holds himself and the way he dresses. The average person would probably think that he's just some office worker who has less than 20/20 vision. It might not be obvious to many people, but I knew why Grayson wore them, it was to hide that look, that look of absolute resignation and weariness.
We had lunch at a café overlooking the San Francisco Bay area. The weather is nice this time of year, not too warm, and not too cold. I couldn't help but notice the way how Langley held himself, he was just so unassuming, and that's probably what made him so good at his job. Can't say how helpful it would've been against the Zombies though. His accent is also difficult define, very multicultural and a slight West London twinge.
So where were you when this all began?
I was on deployment in the South-East Asian regions. Our friends at the Mossad were getting jumpy about something, and we always took them seriously. I wish the politicians and bureaucrats did the same, otherwise we wouldn't have lost so many people.
What were you doing there?
My team and I were collecting intel on whatever we could. First it was urban deployment; we were out hunting for some mid-level drug and gun runners. Used high-end gear to eavesdrop on villages and drug cartels. When we first discovered signs of Zack, we were camping out near the river, listening in on a village. They were talking about some of their own being possessed with demons. Naturally, I thought those people had got caught up in narcotics. We didn't think much of it.
When did you start to suspect something was wrong?
When we started hearing howls and moans that were unnatural coming from a hut. We decided to go and take a look, so we sent in a drone.
[Pause]
It was the most messed-up shit I saw. The villagers had been so afraid of the infected that they threw food through the windows, all of it had been spoiled and none of it eaten. The Zombies inside the hut were in horrible shape… broken limbs, gaping wounds… textbook injuries. Back then I didn't know they were zombies, but I knew that narcotics didn't do that to people, unless if it was something new entirely. Either way, it got me concerned and I sent the intel back to command. While we were waiting on the uplink, Zack managed to break himself free. The entire village was in chaos. People were running out of their homes, screaming that the demons were after them.
Protocol said that you could not engage…
Yeah, so we just stayed on our side of the river and watched. Zack just pounced on everyone. Villagers were getting torn up and killed in the confusion. Most of them were trying to get Zack back into the hut. I made sure that all of my team's helmet cams were on, this just wasn't a "normal" occurrence. [Gestures quotations marks] Then I guess when I first felt fear was when one of the dead got back up and started moving again. It was a girl, probably fifteen - Zack got her pretty good, - she had her insides just hanging out. And she was moving about in this slow shuffle. I knew there was no way she could be alive, despite what I saw. I kept my optics trailing after her, and the black pool of blood that followed her. When Command finally saw what we saw, they gave us the order to contain the situation. Analysts back home thought it was a bioweapon, so we had to do the work from afar.
How'd you stop Zack?
We were a four man team, which would make it difficult for us to contain a village of eighty people. After all, we were there for recon, not containment. Anyway, we started sniping Zack with suppressed weapons. Centre mass shots weren't doing anything. Rationality said that this so-called bioweapon probably made them more resilient… so aim for the head.
I remember looking down my scope and seeing dead black eyes staring right back at me. I squeezed the trigger and watched the black mist that coated the head. But my round had entered the nasal cavity and shattered the neck.
I watch it topple over, but it didn't die. It just kept on moving. Got back up and continued searching. It was unbelievable. I shot it again, watching the brain splatter… this time it didn't get back up.
So what happened after you cleaned up?
We suffered no casualties, but the whole team was on edge. Whatever the implications were, it was never good. Anyway, we spent the better part before Yonkers, in South America. It was getting pretty heavy down there. But at least we weren't the only ones. Anyway, we had an idea of what we were fighting. Sanders gave a dry laugh when we realised we were fighting zombies. It was unbelievable at the time, fighting undead. But that's what we were doing.
Do you think Special Forces did much during this time?
I'd like to think so, considering some of the casualties I had heard of. But the time we bought was mostly squandered… [Sighs] I'll be honest with you and say that I wouldn't hesitate to kill the fucking assholes who decided to profiteer on this. Whole world just went to shit, the whole system failed us.
I interviewed the guys who made and marketed Phalanx…
Don't suppose you could give me his contact details?
[I laugh] No…
Anyway, at least the people back at Fort Bragg took us seriously. I heard the Rangers began practicing for headshots. Don't get me wrong, they're great marksman, but usually they put two rounds centre mass, and if possible, a shot to the head. MASOC and Force Recon also trained for headshots as well. Anyone who was in early contingency groups is proficient with headshots. You had to be, or else you weren't going to last very long.
So you were gearing up to fight Zack?
In a way, yes. But, well… you know how it is. Only Spec Ops took the time to train themselves against Zack. I knew things were about to hit the fan when Israel closed its borders and began a quarantine. It was hard for a lot of us to not explain to everyone what was going, but even if we could, who would listen?
Were you at Yonkers?
Yes I was, high-morale military engagements never go down well. It was like they got all the strategists out and threw in rookies to replace them. My CO was pretty pissed about the ordeal. Our line had the least media coverage, but at least we were the most prepared.
We didn't bother with digging trenches for the tanks, we knew from experience that mobility was key, and it was our strength as well. I swear all the tactics we employed at Kuwait and Desert Storm was virtually non-existent. They must've dug up some old fossil who wanted to live out the "glory days" of the Cold War.
What did you guys do differently?
We had Advance Sniper Teams on the rooftops. Riflemen and LMGs on ground and second floors, marksman up on the third floors. The vehicles needed room to move.
I remember a line that was very mobile, that was you wasn't it?
[Nods] Yes. We had four Abrams, eight Bradleys, and sixteen Humvees. My CO, Colonel Scott Fletcher had requested Abrams with only anti-personnel ordinance. Logistics didn't ask why, and we got what we wanted. So my team and I would be stationed on an apartment block across the river. We would pick off as many zombies as we could before they reached the wire. If any of them would make it, other teams would be free to engage.
Abrams had been outfitted with TUSK, so that meant more guns could be fired without exposing the crew. Fletcher had the tanks run perpendicular to Zack's approach, so that if any of the Zs made it into the final phase line, they would be torn up and crushed.
Bradley's and Humvees will hold at pre-determined positions to lay down fire. When Fletcher briefed us, he ran us through retreat plans. It was clear that none of us had faith in how the battle was going to play out. We knew that we had already lost, and Fletcher was just going to minimise the casualties. Defeat was inevitable.
Anyway, since Yonkers was high-profile, we all had to wear our tabs. So I was wearing the Delta Patch, Special Forces and Rangers tab. This is something I would never do, but orders were orders. Fletcher also ordered everyone but the team leaders to take off the Land Warrior. I had seen the scans before… that kind of equipment would be demoralising.
[Grayson sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose] Everyone in my sector had fought Zack before, so we had prepared differently. We had guys armed with shotguns and PDRs to protect our flanks to stop Zack jumping us. Sniper Teams would carry semi-auto SASRs. And everyone would be packing hollow point for their sidearms. No one wore MOPP. That was a stupid idea. We relied on mobility and manoeuvrability. So instead, I wore a vest, elbow and knee-shin pads, and a helmet. Melee was inevitable, so we needed to prepare for that. I made sure I my tomahawk at the ready.
We held out the longest and got the most kills. Couple of media birds were circling us because we had the most success. There were other experienced zombie fighters spread out across Yonkers as well, but they weren't under the command of men like Fletcher.
Zack was scrambling over his own trying to get to us, by this time, Fletcher had ordered the Abrams to pull back, and the Bradleys and Humvees to ease up on the fire. He also called for supply drops constantly to get us the ammo we needed. But we had also made sure that we packed plenty before coming to Yonkers. Basically shoved an ammo crate into any possible space. One crate for everyman there. And believe it or not, we burned through a lot of ammo. But we made sure our shots were accurate. All rifles were switched to semi; stop some of the greener guys from spraying and praying.
What do you think the outcome would've been if Fletcher had been in command of the entire Task Force?
We would've won, no doubt. We set up phase lines, rigged with claymores to slow Zack down. We employed equipment that was made to kill infantry, not maim, but kill. You'd think that someone would've learnt something from zombie movies besides from just "aim for the head".
A lot of the other units ran out of ammo and had to bail, weakening the line. Logistics hadn't gotten enough rounds for everyone.
Did Fletcher order you to set up sandbags?
Yes, the height was actually quite logical. They delayed Zack long enough, and made headshots easier because of the position the rifle and LMG would be rested on. I think LMGs were only that effective in our sector. Other sectors well, all those guns did was just make Zack crawl.
We probably killed a few thousand alone without air support. Nightstalkers raked up the most kills out of the airborne assets. Their gun runs would've scored a lot of headshots.
What happened after Yonkers?
When we retreated back to the safe zones, West Pointers finally took over Command. More people like Fletcher began running the show. Special Forces and Advance Sniper Teams were constantly out on deployment. Just imagine massive stealth groups silently taking out Zack.
But stealth no longer matters after initial contact, though.
That is true, but we never stuck around long enough and Zack doesn't have a high IQ anyway. But when we do, SOAR would drop us of on rooftops. Spec Ops would clear out the building and provide security for the sniper teams do their job. We found a lot of inventive ways to kill zombies, most of it involved us not firing a shot at all.
We'd dangle popped flares over balconies and rooftops and watch Zack jump out from below. There's something comical about watching dozens of ghouls walk mindlessly to their "deaths". Something about bright lights and loud noises attracted them.
I lost count of how many kills I made, but it was a lot, in the thousands, probably tens of thousands. But that was the average amongst Special Forces. Unless if you were in observation and recon teams, then the kill count would be lower.
So you volunteered to lead near-suicidal, hit missions?
Pretty much. It helped creating blue zones and drawing off pressure from the red zones. Our job was vital. We also spent a lot of time clearing out major highway routes so that downed pilots would have less of a hard time getting back. Highways are death traps, and Zack likes to stick his hand out of the car to hold you back.
I also lead teams to help reinforce and train up survivors in blue zones. Worked 'round the clock. And I must say, I wouldn't have survived this long if it wasn't for fine German engineering, and the experience in SEA.
What do you mean, "German engineering"?
Well, when Destres came into play and new tactics were introduced. Most weapons systems had been replaced by SIR. Good gun, tough, accurate, and reliable. But it wasn't the gun that any of the Spec Ops used.
We needed something which would allow us to move quickly, and hit hard and fast. Precision was already a given. I used a fully kitted HK-Four-One-Six. Everything you love about the AR-Fifteen and the AK-Forty-Seven all in the one gun.
Apparently when everything was being shelves, we still got our access to top of the line hardware.
The Four-One-Six allowed me to drop more Zs than SIR ever could. All Spec Ops practiced at the range, we forced ourselves to make headshots second nature. And since we were always heavily outnumbered, we had to learn how to drop Zack really fast.
What was your fastest time?
Thirty kills in seventeen seconds. That was when I was helping out at a stronghold, an old high school building.
Could you tell me more about the times you were dropped in to help out people in the blue zones?
Sure. So it was just me and my team. Rangers weren't with us, they were with Hundred-and-First Airborne and Tenth Mountain were in the rocks performing patrol duties. They were basically doing what we were doing, but a lot closer to the safezones. They didn't get the option of running, but at least the rocks made it difficult for Zack.
Back in the cities, it was hell. Some of the blue zones were barely managing. The ghouls were hounding them day and night. And you could tell where the blue zones were, they were usually surrounded by mountains of corpses.
So we would drop in by air, train the locals, resupply them and do whatever we can to improve conditions. After that, we would fly out as another team came in, and we would be deployed elsewhere.
Every now and then we would get ambushed by secessionists. Apparently they didn't want our help, or find out what they had done. Either way, we marked them as hostile zones… I regretted doing that actually.
What do you mean?
When the military began reclaiming the country, my team and I were to act as observation and hunt any straggling ghouls. So we reach this town, the name doesn't really matter. So we set up observation equipment, and pour out chemicals to cover out scent. As a recon element, we still had to use camo because there were still groups of roving bandits out there.
Anyway, a Little Bird came in on approach to drop supplies. It was shot out of the sky before reaching the drop point. I used my radio to try and hail the people inside, but they just responded with threats.
Looking through the binocs, I could see children playing in the streets, at the same time; I radioed back to Command and told them of the situation. Five minutes later, the whole town was shelled. The military still kept a task force trained to clear out secessionists. Most of it was composed of Spec Ops and fire support.
When the main battle group elements had moved on, the task force was sent in to assess damages. I saw way too many dead kids that day. Clearing out the remaining houses was no better, it was sick as hell that town.
It had the smell of decay, death and rape all over. It was then I realised that man was still just as bad as the lowest depths of hell.
Were there any survivors?
A harem of women and children, and a young doctor who had seen too much suffering, he was the only good person left in that town. I could see it in his eyes; he was overworked and had been forced to make more difficult choices than a medic.
He was just so quiet when we came through; it was like he was done with it all. And I don't blame him.
You had a pretty heavy career then?
I guess so, but by this point in time, it was more like a life, rather than a career.
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A/N: Well, that's chapter one done. I thought I'd write this to work on my epistolary skills, and at the same time, maybe set up a premise for a third person WWZ story.
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