Chapter 2: Rochester
Sasquatch sat on the highest built tower in the Army Base, armed with nothing more than a sniper rifle and a Red Bull energy drink. He was scanning for zombies all around the area, occasionally taking out one or two, but for the most part the area was relatively secure. This was a breath of fresh air, especially after the absolute hell the soldiers just went through in Danforth. He was shaken by his radio making static then finally a voice coming over the frequency, "Hawkes to Sasquatch, do you copy?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm here princess, what d'ya want? Over." Sasquatch replied.
"There's been an RV spotted coming in toward the base. They've contacted us, and are going to join us for a few days. Maya Torres is with them, she and I went through basic together. Over."
"Alrighty, I'll watch their hinds and make sure no zeds make a surprise entrance. Over and out." He lifted up the sniper rifle and aimed down the sights. He caught sight of the rapidly approaching RV and no zeds attached. A relief.
The U.S. Army was repositioned in Rochester to evacuated any other survivors in the area, as this was the next major city on the list with high valued assets needed for extraction. While it was not as hellish as Danforth was, there was still enough horror to go around.
Sasquatch watched as a few more vehicles appeared behind the RV, causing him to attend to the radio once more. "Were we expecting others with these guys? Over."
"I'm not sure, we will question the others when they all arrive. Over."
"We cannot just bring everyone into this base, it's cramped as it is, Hawkes. Over."
"Just make sure no zeds approach. Over and out."
Hawkes approached the now parked convoy outside of the gates to their army base, an old strip mall. The groups began to emerge from their cars, Maya being the first one out of the RV. "Well, well, if it isn't the Torres Terror." Hawkes announced.
"Horrible Hawkes, you haven't changed one bit!" Maya replied. The two girls embraced each other as the others began to conglomerate as a group. "Trumbull was condemned, and we had to get out of there. No thanks to the Army." She said.
"We had orders that there were no survivors in Trumbull. Why would command say that?"
"Beats me, but I think there's a lot more they aren't telling us." Maya whispered. The Army lying about orders meant something serious was going on, which was quite obvious to anyone who walked the streets. However, they seemed as though they didn't want to be found out about.
Lily approached the group, her brother Jacob in tow. Maya spun around and her eyes widened with joy, "Oh thank God, you made it!" She wrapped her arms around him. Marcus, Ed and Jeff stepped off the RV with bags of supplies slung over the backs, while a few other survivors emerged from their own cars. "We have loads of food, medicine and ammo. We just needed a place to stay for a while. Gas was getting low, and we knew you all had a safe zone here. We know what needs to be done in order to survive, so please, can we stay with you all for a bit? Just until we find a more suitable place to live." Maya begged.
Hawkes looked at her, then looked back at the base, it was nearly filled to capacity, but having more people was always good. A few soldiers came over to the gate to see the commotion; some sighed, others cheered. The zombie apocalypse certainly did not bring out the best in everyone. "You can stay. So long as your people put in their effort to contribute to this place, all should be well. We could use a few new faces anyways." Hawkes smiled.
The group began to move in and step up their places accordingly. Marcus, Ed, Jeff, Maya, Lily and Jacob remained behind with Hawkes. "We really need to figure out what is going on. Trumbull was a shit-show, and the fact that the army in place there could care less was frightening. We lost a lot of good people." Maya stated.
Jacob nodded, "If what I was told really happened in Danforth, then it won't be much longer until they do the same here. We don't have much time. They're just eliminating the cities with zeds but who knows how far this thing has spread. They can't just blow up the world!"
Hawkes's face became straight-laced, "We are doing our best. I have my orders and I am trying to get done what I can. My unit has also had our fair share of losses," She took a breath. "But if what you say is true, then you're right. We don't have much time. They're trying to extract high priority assets. After they do, they get rid of the left overs in the city and move on. They're trying to cure this, but at the expense of everyone else." She sighed.
"Then we need to take matters into our own hands." Maya stated.
"And how do you propose we do that?" Hawkes asked.
"Kidnap a high priority asset. Demand answers. They can't just keep taking them away in the helicopters. The government knows something and are not telling us, and it's time we fight back." Maya instructed.
"Maya, we can't just take down the government by insisting we keep an asset. If they really need him, they'll fly in and bust a cap in all of our asses." Marcus intruded.
Ed and Jeff nodded in agreement. As they did, a static came over the radio, and command began to speak, "We have received a distress call from Dr. Klyne, a man who's research is vital. He was in Trumbull a few days before hell broke loose, and might have some more knowledge about the spread of this shit. Get him back to HQ safely and prep him for extraction. Over and out."
Hawkes looked at the group, who all looked at each other. "Here's our chance. Let's not waste it." Hawkes stated.
Maya smiled, happy that her plan was actually getting green-lit. "Me, Jeff and Ed can all go." Maya said. Ed gripped his machete even tighter, and Jeff tipped his cowboy hat. "Just give us the coordinates, and we'll be off."
