Kk, I know this is a short ch, but it's important and I've been pretty stressed out lately. So sorry, but I hope you enjoy it anyway =)
"Sir! We just had another huge wave spike on the radar, and it isn't project Alice's signature this time!"
Captain Towns walked towards the screen, squinting at it as he leaned forward. "That's impossible."
"Apparently it's not, this radar is top notch!"
Towns scowled. "How could it pick up anything we haven't programmed??"
"I don't know. Maybe it's similar to Alice."
"It is mainly DNA powered." He muttered, rubbing his chin. This was either very bad, or very good news. It depended on too many variables. He needed to see the cause of the spike for himself.
"Keep me informed, and find out anything you can about the cause of the- disturbance. Don't loose it." He finished in a deadly tone.
The soldier promptly sat up straighter and directed all his attention on the screen.
Carlos drove through the sandstorm, trying to find a place to pull off for shelter. If they didn't shield the windshield soon it would be too scratched to see through. Alice was in the passenger seat, her sharp eyes scanning the area for any sign of anything useful.
Three hours after sunrise they had left the shelter of the base to move to the next one, needing to re-supply. The base that had housed the clones had been stripped clean. Carlos could use new armor, and he had very little ammo left. If they ran into zombies, it was darn lucky that they would only be after one of them. As for food, they had nothing but a little water.
But this sandstorm was killer. It was near impossible to see, and it was literally ripping the truck apart piece by piece. Even with the extra armor.
"There!" Alice pointed to a dilapidated gas station off to the right. "If we go to the right drive through we'll almost be all the way out of it."
Carlos directed the car over, parking where she directed. He sat back, thinking about grazing the place for supplies, but he recognized it from before. They had stripped it long ago.
"Well dear, we've stopped for directions. Happy?" He teased, rolling his head over to look at Alice.
She laughed. "Oh yes. Let's ask the locals."
"So how far until the base?"
"It'll take us around a day of straight driving to get us there. We better hope this storm doesn't last longer than a few hours."
Carlos sighed. "Tell me about it."
Alice lay her head back, gazing absently out the window.
Carlos watched her, wondering what she was thinking. She seemed so deep in thought.
Suddenly she buckled over, letting out a cry as she grabbed her head, gritting her teeth.
"Alice!" Carlos bolted over to her, holding her shoulders. "Alice, look at me!" He commanded, deeply worried. "What is it?"
Alice looked up at him, her face twisted with pain. Her words came out choked. "They- found- unhhhhhhh" She sighed, passing out, slumping against Carlos' shoulder.
Carlos folded her against the seat, lowering her gently to the point where she would be most protected. Cautiously, he drew his gun, looking around, his senses on high alert.
Hearing movement behind him, he whipped around, firing off two shots through the window. It shattered, giving way to a dull thump as a body hit the ground. Carlos peered through the wire mesh still intact over the window frame to see not a zombie, but a fully equipped umbrella member. Before he could whip around to attack the other soldier behind the car, he felt a sharp pain in his neck. His gun slipped from his now weak hand, and he slumped over, completely unconscious.
Outside, the sniper sent his message back to base. "Targets acquired sir."
