45
Last Alarm
Chapter 45
Enemy at the Gates
Part Nine
"What firefighters and people in our military and cops do is separate from what the rest of us do; basically these people say,
"I'm going to protect all these strangers." _Denis Leary
Location: Tokonosu International Airport "The Floating Island"
5 Miles off the coast of Japan
Main Terminal Building
Time: Mid-Morning
Z-Day Plus Four
We were so f_cked.
Angrily I kicked over a trash receptacle in the middle of the hallway, sending its contents spewing all over the floor as I stormed past a small group of police officers and frightened civilians standing nearby who quickly moved out of my way and stared at me with a mixture of shock and fear in their eyes as I passed by.
Physically and mentally exhausted and so pissed off that I was barely able to see straight, I didn't even bother to look up at any of them as I walked past not caring whether they or anyone on the entire f_cking island was frightened by my outburst or not as I headed back to one of the luxurious VIP lounges on the second floor of the Main Terminal where the SAT had set up their temporary Command Post as I pondered on just how quickly things had gone from bad to absolute shit, in so little an amount of time.
Ever since the Infected first made their appearance on the island, the small police force stationed at the airport had been trying their very best to secure as much of the Main Terminal from the Infected as they could and keep the remaining survivors safe until help arrived.
It was no easy task, and despite their very best efforts, the Infected had now invaded the Main Terminal itself, and it was only a matter of time before there was no safe place left for us to hide.
Sub-level Three had been the first section of the Main Terminal to fall due to the majority of the Infected having accessed the lower levels through the network of underground maintenance tunnels that snaked all around the island and to the Mainland.
But with my help, the airport police had finally managed to secure all points of ingress and egress to Sub-level Three, leaving the rest of the Terminal secured… at least, for the time being.
But as monumental a task it was trying to keep the Infected out of the upper levels of the Main Terminal with only a handful of police and one burnt-out former SAS commando as its sole defenders, by some miracle we had somehow managed to keep the rest of the building secure for almost four days, despite the odds being stacked so highly against us.
But truth be told, we knew from the very beginning that there was just no way our small force could have ever held a structure as large as the Main Terminal of Tokonosu International Airport with so meager a fighting force as we had, and I doubt even an entire regiment of combat troops could have successfully defended a place as large as the Main Terminal and keep the thousands of Infected roaming the island at bay.
But the stress and frustration I felt of our attempts to defend the building with so meager a force wasn't the reason for my outburst just now.
The real reason for my rage was all because of the actions of a small group of frightened people who had apparently lost faith in the police to keep everyone safe, and had attempted to escape the island all on their own.
And the resulting disaster that followed because of their stupidity had now probably doomed us all.
As if dealing with the Infected weren't bad enough, we had also been forced to contend with the hundreds of panicked civilians under our protection who were now in a state of near hysteria.
And evidently everything we had done and the lives that had been lost trying to keep everyone safe was just not good enough for a certain group of people who decided that the best thing to do now was to bug out while they still could, without telling anyone.
And as a result of their paranoia and their dissatisfaction with the way the police were handling things, those very same people decided to take matters into their own hands…. with disastrous results.
It had all happened just last night after Rika, Tajima and I got back from another near-suicidal operation to draw the Infected away from one section of the Terminal so that our defenses could be strengthened.
And when we arrived back to the temporary base that had been set up in one of the VIP lounges on the second floor, we were informed by Commander Nanahara as we walked in, that several civilians had been reported as missing after the last head count had been made.
And upon further investigation, the officer that had conducted the head count had also discovered that among those who were missing were a couple of airport maintenance men, as well.
After the report came in about the missing civilians and airport maintenance workers, the consensus amongst Nanahara and his staff was that the missing civilians had apparently taken it upon themselves to try and escape the island on their own with the two missing maintenance workers obviously serving as guides.
Having barely escaped death in the tunnels myself, I had then offered my opinion that the group was probably already dead and not worth sending search parties out to look for them, when one of the search teams that had already been sent out to look for the missing civilians called in over Nanahara's radio that they had found a few of the would-be-escapees in one of the luggage sorting areas on Sub-level One, and were requesting that a medic respond to their location immediately.
After Nanahara had acknowledged their report, he had then ordered a couple of other teams to head to where the first search team had reported in, as we all then began the long walk downstairs to link up with them and find out exactly what the hell was going on.
And that's when the shit hit the fan.
We probably weren't even halfway there to the first team's location when a frantic call suddenly came in over Nanahara's radio that the team was under attack by the Infected and needed help before the radio transmission suddenly cut off.
Realizing there was no time to waste, Nanahara didn't even bother trying to raise the team on the radio again as he immediately ordered all teams to converge on the first team's location and assist them as we all then hauled ass as fast as we could downstairs.
And as we burst through the fire escape stairway and rushed down the steps to the lower sub-level floors of the Main Terminal, the sound of angry snarls, pain-filled screams and gunfire echoed from below as the earpieces of our radios blasted with the frantic radio traffic of the other search teams who had arrived ahead of us and were now apparently also being overwhelmed by the Infected.
Realizing that the situation was now even worse than we had previously feared, we pushed ourselves to move even faster down the stairs when we accidentally collided into a small group of screaming men and women bounding up the steps who were obviously all that was left of the remaining civilians who had tried to escape earlier.
Their clothing torn and covered with blood, and every one of them acting as if death were right on their heels, they were all bounding up the stairs two steps at a time and knocked all of us aside in a desperate attempt to retreat from the horror below.
Cursing loudly as we painfully picked ourselves up, we ignored the fleeing civilians and continued our descent to the basement below as the noise from weapons fire mixed with screams of pain and fear intensified.
And once we burst through the door leading into Sub-Level One we found ourselves in the middle of a shit storm as we found about six of Nanahara's men still left alive who were desperately trying to hold off dozens of Infected all by themselves, as I noticed the remains of several police officers lying nearby whom had already been dragged down and torn apart by the Infected.
Immediately upon seeing their plight; we quickly rushed forward and opened up on the Infected with our weapons as we tried to help the surviving officers beat back the Infected who were still steadily increasing in number, somehow.
Unfortunately, we realized after a few moments of intense fighting that the increasing number of Infected pouring into the area was ultimately just too much for us to handle as our ammo began to run low and the fight became hand-to-hand, as some of the police suddenly found themselves out of ammo and were then forced to fight back with rifle butts, knives, and even their bare hands.
Realizing that the situation had indeed become hopeless, Nanahara had then immediately ordered everyone out as he and a couple of other officers tried to help carry out a few injured civilians that had been trampled upon by the other survivors, while the rest of us who still had ammo, covered everyone's retreat as best we could back to the stairway as the Infected continued to press in on us.
But we had waited too long.
"LAST MAG!" I shouted as I fired into the horde as the cops around me began to fall back having used up the last of their ammo, leaving me, Rika, and one other cop left to cover their retreat.
"I'M OUT!" Rika suddenly shouted as her carbine ran dry.
"BOUNDING!" Rika then shouted as she slapped me on the shoulder letting me know she was peeling away as she started to run back to where the other cops were waiting at the doorway.
"BOUND!" I shouted acknowledging her as I fired single shot at the Infected while she ran back towards the others as the young cop and I continued to retreat backwards towards the door as we continued to fire away at the Infected.
I was down to the last few remaining rounds of my last magazine and we were only a few feet from the door when I heard a loud scream in my ear and saw the young policeman who had been standing next to me suddenly fall and then disappear as the Infected immediately fell on him.
Instinctively, I aimed at the nearest Infected attacking the screaming man and had just let off a round when I suddenly felt a strong jerk on my harness causing me to stumble and fall as I was then roughly pulled back by Rika and Tajima who had grabbed me just before the other Infected were about to pounce.
The screams of the kid being torn apart rent my heart in two as Rika and Tajima dragged me through the door and then slammed it shut as the door then shook as the Infected slammed their bodies against it.
Unfortunately, there was no time for any of us to grieve for our fallen comrades because we all knew that the door wouldn't hold for long under that much punishment, as we immediately gathered ourselves together and began the long ascent back up the stairs, all of us breathing heavy as we trudged upwards.
And as we climbed upstairs, no one spoke, each of us reflecting on what had just happened as well as the realization that eventually the door would give under the weight of all the Infected pushing against it and it wouldn't be long before the Infected reached the upper levels and then gained access into the Main Terminal itself.
And I have no doubt that deep on everyone's mind was also the thought that because of the selfish, reckless actions of a few people interested in saving their own lives, the rest of us were now doomed.
And as I walked up the steps, my boots feeling as if they had been filled with concrete, I couldn't help but want to throttle every one of those sniveling idiots the moment we returned upstairs.
When Jim used to talk to me about his days as a fireman, he had often said that people are the biggest danger to themselves and others when they're the most afraid because when people are scared enough, they'll start to do things that truly defy logic.
And apparently Jim's words had rung true in this case, because evidently the fear of death had just been too much for this particular group and the only thought that had been on these people's minds was getting as far away from the Main Terminal as they could.
But what enraged me even more was that they had intentionally meant to leave us to whatever fate awaited us while they made their getaway.
And my fury threatened to explode as I remembered the panicked, tear-filled faces of those people who had knocked us down on our asses after having already nearly trampled their comrades to death in their desperate attempt to retreat back up the staircase.
The lives of others obviously meant nothing to these people.
And as the pounding on the door below us echoed in the stairway, my mind was filled with nothing but the thoughts of murder at the memory of the sounds of the pain-filled screams of the policemen who had died so horribly, as they tried to save those very same idiots.
And as bad as it sounds, at that moment deep within my heart I truly wished that the Infected had found them before the cops had.
Not everyone who had gone into the tunnels had ended up as a hot meal however, but some of those who had survived the initial attack wouldn't be around for much longer.
Despite how quickly we had taken action upon our arrival, we had still been too late to be of any help to some of the injured civilians we had dragged out, whom had already been bitten by the Infected.
And as an added blow, we also discovered that a couple of the police had also been bitten as well as the Contagion suddenly began to take its effect upon their bodies before our very eyes.
I turned away as Nanahara raised his pistol and ended their misery, but then as we examined a few of the other survivors, what really tore everyone's gut apart including my own was when I saw that one of the civilians that had been bitten was a little girl who couldn't have been more than seven years of age.
Seven years old…. and her life was already over.
And all because a bunch of stupid, f_cking idiots had decided to take matters into their own hands, and whose recklessness had now needlessly robbed that little girl of her life.
When the remaining survivors were angrily confronted with the consequences of their actions, instead of showing any type of remorse for their recklessness, the remaining survivors had then begun screaming bloody murder at us that everything that had happened was actually our fault because we were not doing enough to ensure everyone's safety.
The reaction amongst the surviving police officers who had just lost several of their comrades trying to save these ungrateful bastards was stunned disbelief as everyone just stood there and stared at the unrepentant civilians in mute silence.
I on the other hand, was f_cking furious.
While I hadn't known the cops who had died personally, I had been fighting by their side for the past three days, and having their ultimate sacrifice shit-on by these ungrateful bastards was the last straw.
And as patient and calm as Jim always was, I knew that in this case even he wouldn't have blamed me for reacting the way I did next.
Firemen and cops have always had a kind of rivalry going on between them, just like theirs always been a rivalry going on between men and women in the Army, Navy and Marines, and Jim used to tell me that it was no different between cops and firemen for him back when he was still a fireman.
But whenever a policeman or fireman got hurt, that rivalry shit stopped, and they would practically kill themselves trying to help each other.
Hell….with Jim not being a fireman anymore and no longer forced to play by the rules, I'm pretty sure that if he had been here I would have had to actually hold him back.
As it was, it took Rika, Tajima, and two other cops to stop me as I rushed at those sorry pieces of shit and then take me to the ground and hold me there kicking and screaming and making all sorts of promises of endless pain to come, as Nanahara quickly ordered his remaining men to hurriedly escort the remaining survivors away, lest I manage to break away and murder all of them before I could be stopped.
The civilians hadn't even bothered to wait for the cops to escort them as each one of them immediately turned tail and dashed down the corridor as fast as they could as the cops did their best to catch up with them.
When the survivors were finally gone, Rika and the others held me down for a little while longer before finally letting me up, although it still took a while for me to cool down enough before they felt comfortable enough to let me out of their sight.
And as I stood there trying to breathe the fire out of my lungs I was suddenly reminded of an incident that had happened the week before GREEN and BLUE Team were scheduled to fly to Africa, when I had taken Jim to a local pub for a friendly drink, even though it was me doing most of the drinking.
We had only been there for a little while and I had just tossed back a couple of pints and Jim, of course, had just started on his third cup of coffee when the bartender reached up and switched the channels on the telly behind the bar and a news flash appeared on the screen about the forest fires raging on in New Mexico.
As the newscaster announced the latest road closures brought about by the fire, the news report suddenly shifted to the on-scene camera crew who was trying to interview some pissed off civie who was screaming at the top of his lungs about how the police wouldn't let him go through the police barricades and try to save his home.
"Job security…" I heard Jim say sarcastically under his breath as the man on the telly screamed about the incompetence of the police and firemen for their inability to put the fire out while people's homes were burning all around.
"Job security?" I asked as Jim looked at me with a weird smirk on his face.
"Yup…job security." Jim repeated as he took another sip of coffee.
"Most people in this world value their lives enough to run away whenever danger presents itself…" Jim explained noticing the confused expression on my face as he placed his cup down and gazed at the spectacle unfolding on the TV screen.
"And then there are people like that guy…." Jim said pointing a finger at the TV as he let his voice trail off, his meaning finally becoming clear to me.
"Of course, if people always did the right thing…." Jim said with a chuckle.
"Then there wouldn't be a need for cops, firemen, or EMS." Jim added shaking his head as the people at the television station were probably having fits as they hurriedly trying to *bleep* out every other word that the man was screaming on live TV.
"Yeah…as long as there are people like that, I doubt there's much chance of any of us being laid off any time soon." Jim said with a laugh as I thought about it for a moment and then nodded my head in agreement.
"That's a pretty shitty thing to shay…" An attractive, but obviously inebriated, woman sitting on a barstool nearby snapped angrily.
"I suppose some people would agree with you….." Jim said with a smirk on his face as he glanced over at the drunken woman. "But then again most people in this world haven't seen things from our perspective."
"Oh yeah?" The woman said with a loud un-lady-like belch. "Like what?"
"Like, no matter how many times you try to prevent people from doing things to harm themselves or others by telling them to not do stuff like "Turn around, don't drown"at low water crossings so they don't get swept away by rising flood waters… "Jim went on as the man screaming on the TV became even more belligerent.
"Or, don't drink and drive so they don't kill anyone…." Jim said under his breath sarcastically as we both watched the woman try to order another drink and then began cursing loudly as the bartender intentionally ignored her.
"Or like that guy screaming his head off because the police won't let him go past the police barriers to his home during a forest fire.…" Jim said gesturing towards the TV as the woman glared at the bartender for ignoring her and then back at Jim.
"No matter how much you try to reason with people like that who obviously don't want anyone telling them what to do…" Jim said with an amused look on his face despite the woman's angry gaze. "They'll still do whatever they want; even if in the end they end up getting themselves or someone else hurt or killed."
"He's only upset because he's afraid of looshing his home….!" The woman immediately snapped in response to Jim's explanation as we both noticed her slowly beginning to rock back and forth unsteadily in her chair.
"I'm sure he is…" Jim said in that gentle voice of his that always reminded me of a father patiently trying to correct a stubborn child.
"Yes, and I'm pretty sure that he honestly believes that his presence up there will result in his home being miraculously untouched while the rest of the surrounding area burns to a bloody crisp, too." Jim dead-panned as I barely succeeded in stifling a laugh as Jim's sarcasm went completely over the woman's head.
"But if he's there, and his house is on fire he can jush put it out wish a garden hoshhhh…" The woman lisped stubbornly as Jim rolled his eyes in disgust. "Those fuggin' cops should give him a chance to shave his home if the fire-*burp*-men, won't."
"Even animals know better than to stick around when a forest fire is burning…." Jim said trying hard to keep from laughing at the woman's antics.
"And then when they finally realize "Hey, maybe this really wasn't such a good idea after all…." Jim added as he took another sip of his coffee. "Then it's too late, and then people start screaming that the police and firemen aren't doing something."
"Well they shooold do shumthing…." The woman snapped. "Thash their job."
"Yes it is …." Jim said with a sigh as his face suddenly turned serious. "And some of us actually will go into dangerous places like that and try to save them."
"Unfortunately, some of us never come back out…." Jim said his voice trailing off as the woman suddenly fell out of her chair and onto the floor with a loud crash.
"OH MY GAW…IS SHE OKAY?!" Some of the other patrons shouted in horror as a few of them began to get up from their chairs….drinks still in their hands, of course.
"She'll be fine…" Jim said after kneeling down next to the woman and examining her as he then motioned for the bartender to go ahead and call an ambulance just to be safe. "But she'll have one hell of a hangover in the morning…."
"And absolutely no recollection of this conversation…." Jim said with a chuckle as he looked up at me with a sad smile on his face.
"Like I said…job security." Jim said shaking his head as the thoroughly inebriated woman lying on the floor began to snore loudly.
Two days later after that incident at the bar, I found out while watching CNN that despite the warnings from the police, the man who had been so adamant about saving his home had somehow managed to sneak past the police barriers later that day and had just been found dead in his driveway.
The search teams who found his body stated that the man had never even made it out of his car before a firestorm swept over the entire area, incinerating everything in its path.
The man had been the only casualty and all because he had refused to heed the warnings given by the Police and Fire Department.
And then his surviving relatives launched a suit against the Police and Fire Department for his death.
That incident at the pub was just one of many that I'm sure Jim had experienced throughout his career that proved that sometimes no matter what you do, it's just not appreciated by some people.
And oftentimes when their own recklessness often leads to disaster, those same people will then turn on the very ones who tried to keep them from hurting themselves in the first place.
I had already experienced that myself many times before unfortunately, but today's disaster was the first time I had ever come so close to actually murdering someone for being stupid.
The entire incident was f_cking tearing me up inside and there wasn't anything I could do about it as all of us including the girl's parents watched helplessly as their little girl slowly began to turn right in front of all of us as the Contagion spread throughout her body.
I can't imagine how the parents were feeling as they watched their own child writhing in pain as she turned into a monster, and knowing that it was their own fault.
I have seen a lot of tragedy in my life, and I have seen a lot of horrible things happen to children as well, but for some reason, what was happening to that little girl was really making me feel like shit.
I left without another word, not wanting to witness what I knew was about to happen next knowing that if I had stayed any longer, I would have definitely murdered every one of those people who had run out of the room earlier, as the report of a single gunshot echoed down the hallway.
And for some strange reason, a part of me was also beginning to feel responsible for what happened, even though I know I wasn't at fault as I stormed angrily past everyone and headed back to the SAT lounge area to knock back a bottle of Jack Daniels.
F_ck, who wouldn't be screwed up after going through all that and not want a drink.
Trying to take my mind off the image of the little girl, I glanced up at the counter of the bar and grimaced at the five empty bottles of whiskey and rum still standing there, which told me that I wasn't the only one trying to drown out his troubles around here.
"Selfish pricks, taking all the good stuff…." I growled as I looked around for something decent to drink and finding only cheap, airline shite in the cabinets.
"Ah, well, maybe I'll start on the Russian vodka, at least that's half-way decent stuff…" I muttered as I grabbed a bottle of Smirnoff and tried to drink myself into a stupor, which didn't take very long.
Gotta give it to the Russkies, when it comes to making a drink that'll turn a man totally shit-faced in the smallest amount of time, they're second to none.
While I was sitting there trying to give my liver a workout, Rika, Tajima, Commander Nanahara and the rest of the airport police were busy running around the building all morning trying to make sure all of the doors in and out of the facility were locked down tighter than a nun's arse, after that last incident.
Me however… all I've managed to accomplish was to clean my weapons, and try to drink myself into a stupor.
Normally, I'd have been making better use of myself to everyone rather than just sit on my arse crying over a bottle of vodka, but after the whole mess with the fuel truck yesterday, and all the bloody fights with the Infected afterwards, one after another, after another….
And now the girl…
And now it seemed as if any and all motivation left in me had just disappeared, and all I wanted now was to be left alone and get thoroughly shit-faced.
But then the image of the little girl's face popped back into my head again, and before I even realized it, tears had begun to fall down my cheek.
She had looked so scared and frightened of what was happening to her and after seeing what had happened to the others who had been bitten, she was probably even more frightened of what she knew was going to happen next, even more.
The sight was so heart-breaking that I noticed that even Rika was crying as they led the girl away, which was not something I thought was possible because that woman is about as hard core as they come.
Trying hard to forget that image, I grabbed the vodka bottle and unscrewed the cap, tossing it aside as I took a large swig from the clear glass bottle, the sting of the fluid hitting me almost instantaneously.
The vodka was the Smirnoff "Gold Leaf" brand, and someone had supposedly posted on the internet somewhere that the thing about this particular brand of vodka was that the little flecks of edible gold "flakes or leaves" mixed into it supposedly cut the inside of the throat so that the alcohol could get into the blood stream quicker.
Nice bit of tripe some wino probably came up with, but right now I didn't really care if that was even true or not, because at the moment all I wanted to do was to drink myself stupid so I could forget the pain of the day as I took another snort.
And before long, I wasn't feeling any pain whatsoever as I sat on the couch alone in the VIP lounge looking and feeling completely defeated and absolutely worthless.
"F_ck…" I muttered as I belched again for the fifth or sixth time in a row as I suddenly began to feel warm, fuzzy and light headed.
"Aye, I'm "pished" as the Scottish say, well and truly pished. " I said to myself as I took another swig of the bottle, enjoying the feel of the burning liquid going down my throat.
Yeah, I know…. hell of a way for a former Special Air Service trooper turned professional soldier-of-fortune, to act in a time of crisis.
F_ck it….. I'll get my act together at some point soon before we leave the facility.
Until then, the whole world can kiss my arse.
Sometime later when the effects of the vodka had worn off somewhat, I decided to take a stroll throughout the Main Terminal and make sure things were squared away as I walked out of the lounge and then headed down the long hallways armed with the bottle of vodka in one hand and my Sig P226 tucked into my waistband.
And as I made my "patrol" around the terminal, I happened to pass several police officers as they were talking amongst themselves and recognized them as a couple of the officers I had stormed past earlier.
My angry outburst earlier had not been directed toward them at all, but I knew that by now they had received word as to the fate of their comrades who had died earlier, and the last thing I wanted was any more tension between the police and myself.
Too many good people had died for people who had proven they didn't care about anything but their own skins.
And while those stupid wankers had no appreciation for the ultimate sacrifice made by the police earlier, I would never….ever, forget their courage.
And so with genuine heart-felt respect I nodded my head in greeting at the cops who noticed my friendly gesture and nodded their heads back in return as I continued my little jaunt around the Main Terminal.
Satisfied that all was in order, I then headed up the stairs to my little "sanctuary" up on the roof again just like I had yesterday.
And as I wandered across the gravel roof to the edge of the rooftop and then peered down over the edge below and saw the vast multitude of Infected out on the tarmac, the sheer numbers of them giving the appearance of an invading army ready to charge the walls.
There were literally thousands out there now compared to the relatively few hundred that we had fought on the first two days of the Outbreak.
And obviously despite everything we had done to stem the flow of Infected coming in from the maintenance tunnels connecting to the Mainland, it had all been in vain, and now it appeared as if the entire population of the city was standing there right on our front doorstep.
But as I looked closer, I suddenly noticed something odd about their behavior as compared to what I'd become used to seeing before.
Instead of shuffling about aimlessly as always, all of the Infected were just standing there looking directly ahead as if daydreaming.
"What the f_ck are they doing?" I muttered under my breath as I watched the Infected staring straight ahead with vacant eyes as a horrible thought suddenly entered my head.
The way the Infected were acting now was almost like the soldiers of an invading army waiting for the order to attack which sent a cold shiver running through me suddenly at the thought of the Infected actually beginning to display signs of intelligence.
Blind, and dumb, the Infected were a dangerous enough foe as it was, but the possibility of them being able to coordinate an attack was a horror to terrible to imagine.
"Please don't let tell me they're actually becoming…." I said under my breath believing that what I was witnessing was indeed my worst fear coming true before my very eyes when one of the Infected suddenly moved forward and bumped into another.
And then as the two Infected bumped into each other, they then began to shuffle off in different directions bumping occasionally into other Infected who would then commence to shuffle around in all directions as well.
I blew a sigh of relief, feeling a little foolish for being so paranoid as I then lay down on the edge of the roof just like I used to do when I was a kid and peered down at them over the edge.
And as I was looking down at the Infected who were still standing quietly and not shuffling about like the others, I had to admit, I actually found watching them fascinating on a certain level as I observed them just standing there, not making any noise.
And from all appearances, it really did look like the Infected were in some sort of dormant stage and just waiting for some form of stimulus to awaken them and have them go on the attack.
Or maybe….
"Could they all be listening?!" I said aloud as the hairs on the back of my head stood up and for a split second, the fear I had felt earlier about the thought of the Infected actually "evolving" came back with a rush.
After all, it had been four days now since the Outbreak began, and as quickly as the Contagion had spread the availability of prey in the city must have diminished significantly by now.
And it only made sense that the lack of food would force the senses of the Infected to become even more acute in order for them to be capable of finding prey which was why the Infected were behaving so differently now.
But as quickly as that horrible thought popped into my mind, I dismissed it just as quickly.
"Steady Andy-boy, you're starting to crack up there, mate." I said shaking my head at the silliness of my own paranoid thoughts as I then turned my attention away from the scene below, and took another swig from the bottle and then propped my head up on my hands so that I could look out across the bay to the city, and watching the smoke plumes rising into the air from several active structure fires burning in the city.
"Things really are going to hell in a hand basket over there, aren't they?" I heard a familiar voice say behind me.
I didn't even have to look around to see that it was Rika who was talking to me, having become quite used to her following me about like a lost puppy, although by this time I didn't mind it anymore, and was actually happy for her company.
"Aye, it is, and I really am starting to hate being stuck on this f_cking island." I replied without even looking up at her as she walked over and sat beside me and quietly gazed out over the horizon for a moment before speaking.
"I can't really argue with you there, but I have some news that might cheer you up…." Rika replied as I glanced up at her.
"And that is…?" I asked.
"Commander Nanahara just informed the rest of us that he finally made contact with JSDF Command and advised them of our situation…." Rika said with a smile on her face.
"And they advised him that several JSDF Maritime Defense Force ships as well as ships from the American navy are still on station off the coast…." Rika said pausing suddenly for a moment as I noticed her staring at me with a strange look on her face.
"And…?" I said waiting to hear the rest and also growing uncomfortable with the way she was staring at me.
"And they also said that while most of the American fleet was currently headed back to the American base at Pearl Harbor, a small number of American ships including a small aircraft carrier are steaming this way to extract everyone off the island." Rika said still staring me with that weird look on her face.
"Pfft…" I said sourly unimpressed by this latest bit of news. "They sure took their sweet f_cking time making that decision to come here, didn't they?"
"Hey, what's with you…?!" Rika suddenly snapped apparently having finally spotted the half drunken bottle of "Gold Leaf" vodka sitting next to me.
"Bloody hell…..here we go." I mumbled under my breath mentally preparing myself for the lecture from "Big Mama Rika" that was about to commence.
"Dammit Andrew-san…!" Rika said bitterly as she placed her head in her hands. "Are you f_cking kidding me?!"
"Aye, so I've had a little to drink…what's the big deal with that?" I growled as I took another swig from the bottle in defiance.
"Do you honestly believe you should be sitting here getting shit-faced with everything that's going on right now?" Rika said sternly, glaring at me with a look of either disappointment or disgust, I couldn't tell which.
Not really caring what she thought at that particular moment, or wanting to wait around for the angry lecture that I knew was about to follow either, I casually reached over for the bottle and then rose to my feet intending to walk away before the situation got nasty, but then suddenly felt my head spinning and my body swaying slightly as I tried to steady myself.
And as I struggled to keep myself from falling on my ass in front of Rika, it occurred to me that just yesterday I had been thinking to myself about how much I had wanted to prove myself to these people that I was an asset and not a liability.
But right now I was doing a really shitty job about it, and was completely making an ass out of myself.
But at that particular moment, I didn't f_cking care, not one bit.
"You saved my life today, lass…." I said just as Rika was about to tear into me, the impact of my words causing her to hesitate.
"And you've been a good friend to me, despite all the ugliness between us earlier…" I added as Rika stared at me in mute disbelief that I was actually being nice to her.
"And I'll never forget it…" I added as I looked Rika squarely in the eye.
"But if you're thinking about bitching at me for having this bottle Rika, then I'd rather you just f_ck off and leave me the hell alone…." I grumbled as the look on Rika's face changed from one of astonishment to one of absolute fury as she suddenly reached over and smacked the bottle right out of my hand and it fell to the asphalt-covered roof and shattered into a thousand pieces.
"WHAT THE F_CK, RIKA!" I shouted angrily at her as she stood there glaring defiantly at me.
"Let's get something right her right now buster!" Rika said taking a step forward as if she were about to tuck me one under the chin.
"I know you're upset after what happened today, but that doesn't give you the right to go drinking yourself stupid!" Rika said hotly as she stood there with her hands on her hips like the way my mum used to when I got in trouble.
"We still need you Andrew-san!" Rika said exasperated as I took a step forward of my own and stood nearly toe-to-toe with her.
"Oh f_ck off, woman…!" I shouted angrily in her face as I dumped all the rage that had been building up in me all day, right at her.
"Do you have a family of your own….do you have any children?!" I shouted as I then dumped all the rage I had built up over the past several years at her, as well.
"Have you ever even held an infant in your arms before?" I shouted as I began to feel tears welling up in my eye.
"Un-f_cking-likely…!" I roared in anger as Rika looked back at me without any visible emotion at all in her face.
"I was a father once, Rika…" I said lowering my voice as I struggled to control myself. "And when I lost them, I lost all my connections that kept me going in life."
"My wife, my daughter, my whole f_cking family…!" I shouted as I lost my struggle with my emotions as Rika stood there without saying anything as I released several years' worth of pain and anguish right in front of her.
But when I raised my head after I regained control of myself, it was the look of sorrow that she was giving me now that made me want to start yelling at her all over again.
I didn't want her sympathy or compassion…
All I wanted was to be alone.
And so without another word I immediately turned on my heel and made my way back towards the stairwell, hoping to keep the confrontation from escalating any further.
And Rika… smart girl that she was, must have realized that there was no point in trying to argue any further and thankfully, decided not to follow after me.
Relieved to see that Rika wasn't following, I descended the stairs and then walked across the Sky Bridge headed back towards the Main Terminal, where I returned to the VIP lounge and was grateful to see that no one was about.
Earlier, I had wanted to drink myself into a coma, and falling into a coma is exactly what I hoped would happen once I lay my head down.
But as I lay on the couch falling asleep turned out not to be so easy, as my mind was still reeling from the confrontation up on the roof between Rika and myself as I did my best to try to forget about it until finally, the effects of the vodka kicked in and I fell fast asleep.
Location: Tokonosu International Airport "The Floating Island"
5 Miles off the coast of Japan
Main Terminal Building
VIP Lounge
Time: A couple of hours later…
"Andrew-San… Andrew-San…. wake up!" Tajima suddenly roared in my ears as I felt myself being roughly shaken awake from my alcohol-fueled sleep and then found Tajima's visibly anxious face mere inches away from my own.
"Okay! I'm up… I'm up…what's the big f_cking deal?" I growled as I rolled over and then felt a sudden lurch in my stomach that threatened to make me want to puke up all the liquor I had drank earlier.
"The Infected is the f_cking problem, Andrew-san!" I heard someone shout from the doorway and peered over to see Rika standing there in full tactical gear with an M4 carbine in hand and her PSG-1 A1 slung over her back, and the angriest scowl I had ever seen on her face before.
"Oh balls…" I muttered as I sat up and the room began spinning as I then rolled off of the bed and crawled towards my gear so as not to fall flat on my face as I heard Rika give a disgusted snort.
And as I finally managed to get to my feet without falling and began to don my gear I noticed Tajima out of the corner of my eye make a face as Rika then entered the room with her rifle in hand and approached me as I stood shakily in front of her.
"If you've come for a fight Rika, it's with the wrong f_cking person right now…. "I growled in warning before Rika had a chance to say anything as she suddenly came to a halt and glared angrily at me.
"I'm not looking for a fight either Andrew-san…." Rika said testily. "But your behavior lately is becoming a concern."
"Yeah, I said some pretty nasty things earlier and maybe I am acting like a complete asshole too, I admit…."I muttered as I picked up my carbine and quickly checked the action of my weapon and then checked the pouches on my vest to make sure that my magazines were secure.
"But right now I don't want to talk about it, we clear?" I said staring Rika directly in the eye.
"Crystal…" Rika replied through clenched teeth as we all then quietly exited the VIP lounge and headed towards the Command Center on the other side of the lounge area where the rest of the SAT and airport police were busily collecting weapons and ammunition.
"Whatever's going on must be pretty bad…" I thought to myself as I gazed upon all the frightened faces of the cops who were hurriedly arming themselves as fast as they could.
Not wanting to be caught unprepared for whatever it was that was freaking everyone out, I walked over in the middle of all that chaos and managed to snag a few extra magazines for my MK 18 carbine and a few 18-round Mec-Gar magazines for my old SAS-issue SIG-Sauer P226 that I kept in a cross-draw holster on my vest.
A loud shout from someone calling "Attention!" suddenly sounded as Commander Nanahara stormed into the room with two other police officers at his heels, all of them appearing extremely anxious and making me wonder even more what's got everyone so puckered up all of a sudden.
"I was informed by JSDF Command just a few minutes ago that the NATO task-force that has been steaming towards us has been advised of our current situation and will be launching a rescue mission to help eliminate our current threat as well as extract everyone on the island to the American warship U.S.S Bonhomme Richard." Nanahara said addressing everyone.
"Current situation…?" I thought to myself as an even more horrible thought entered my head at the name of the American ship Nanahara had mentioned.
"Hold on…." I said out loud as Rika and Tajima looked over at with shock written all over their faces at my rude interruption. "Commander Nanahara, did you say the U.S.S. Bonhomme Richard was coming to rescue us?"
"Yes, Lance Corporal Poynton…" Nanahara said gruffly apparently not used to having someone interrupt him in the middle of his addressing the troops, I suppose.
"Of all the ships in the friggin ocean, why did the Yanks have to send the "Bonnie-f_cking-Dick…?" I said cursing my luck, as my guts once again beginning to churn from the memory of my time aboard that particular ship so long ago on a training mission with the SEALs back when I was still a member of RED Troop.
But the biggest thing I remember about that particular voyage had nothing to do with the training mission whatsoever; rather, it was the miserable memory of me puking my guts out the entire trip that had caused a sudden wave of nausea to come over me at the mere mention of the "Bonnie Dick's" name.
Unlike the behemoth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier U.S.S. George Washington that I had been aboard two years prior on another training mission where I hardly felt any movement at all within the confines of that floating city, the "Bonnie Dick" was a much smaller WASP-class amphibious assault ship or "commando carrier" whose hull (along with my stomach) seemed to roll with every f_cking wave.
And at Commander Nanahara's mentioning of the name of that ship coming to our rescue, a part of me couldn't help but wonder if perhaps I was better off staying on the island and taking my chances with the Infected.
"As I said, the Americans will soon be launching a rescue mission as soon as they're within launching range of their aircraft…" Nanahara continued after clearing his throat.
"And after everyone is evacuated off the island and safely aboard ship…" Nanahara said as I felt another wave of nausea roll over me again at his words. "Then the Marines will be engaged in clearing the island of all the Infected so that the JSDF and NATO forces can set up the airport as a temporary base."
"Until help arrives, howev…" Sakura began as a series of loud whoops and cheers interrupted him, as the physically and mentally exhausted police expressed their joy upon hearing the news.
As mentally and physically drained as everyone was, I couldn't blame them one bit for celebrating so loudly at the news that help was on the way, after all, we were all in pretty strung out shape and even after all I had been through in my life, the shit we had all experienced the past couple of days had finally gotten to me too.
And just like the others, I too wanted to shout and holler as loudly as they did at the prospect of being evacuated final off this deathtrap even if in the end it meant that I would end up hanging over the railing of the "Bonnie Dick" and puking my guts out all over the side of the hull,throughout the entire trip.
But like Nanahara was just about to say before he was interrupted by all the cheering coming from his men, our current predicament still wasn't over, and now was just not the time to relax and let our guard down just yet.
But as stressed out as these guys were, their premature celebration at the news of our being rescued could not be helped I suppose, and as happy as I was to hear the news that relief was on the way, my old instincts that had been honed sharp over many years of covert combat immediately went into overdrive at the sudden lapse of noise discipline amongst the group of police as their loud shots echoed down the halls of the complex.
And at the sound of all the cheering echoing down the corridor a sudden terrifying image entered my mind of the thousands of Infected that I had seen standing dormant outside earlier as if listening for the slightest sound suddenly springing into action and charging the Main Terminal in an endless wave of death as I noticed Nanahara frantically trying to quiet them down, without success...
But just as I about to shout at everyone to shut the f_ck up, a loud, pounding noise coming from somewhere below us telling me that it was already too late, and that the paranoia I had experienced earlier had been completely justified as everyone stopped shouting and looked at each other in horror as we all then hurriedly raced over to the windows and looked down.
I already knew what was happening before I even reached the window, and my heart sank as my worst fears were confirmed as I noticed that the Infected outside were no longer standing still or wandering aimlessly about like they had been earlier.
Instead, it was now painfully obvious that my suspicions that the hearing of the Infected had become more acute had been correct, and the Infected had indeed been listening for the slightest noise to suddenly erupt all along.
And so when the policeman had suddenly broke out into loud cheering, the Infected had reacted immediately to the sound and were now slamming their hands against the thick, laminated glass walls surrounding the entire front of the Main Terminal in an all-out effort to get in.
And to make matters even worse, the civilians who had all been eating their meals in the large Food Court located on the second floor above the enormous Visitor's Center below us had immediately panicked at the sights and sounds of the Infected trying to break in, and their loud screams of panic were now drawing even more Infected from all over the airport as the growing mass of Infected below began to bang even more furiously against the glass.
"Oh crap…" I muttered as all of the cops looked on in shocked silence apparently transfixed at the sight of so many Infected suddenly pressing against the glass, or maybe they were just horrified at the realization that it had been their loud celebrating that had now probably doomed us all.
But then what I saw next took away ten years off my life.
Horrified by the vast numbers of Infected slamming their hands against the glass, most of the cop's attention was fixed on the bunch directly below us when suddenly one of the Infected who I noticed had been shuffling far behind the others stopped slowly shuffling forward and then broke into a sprint.
"WHAT THE F_CK?!" I said in utter disbelief as I hear terrified gasps coming from all the cops as the Infected man ran straight for us and then slammed his body against the glass wall, the resulting impact making a loud "BOOM" that echoed up from below as the screams of the civilians intensified.
"Holy shit!" I said out loud, the shock and surprise at this latest development unmistakable in my voice.
"Shimatta…..!" Tajima swore at the sound. "They can run, now?!"
"I didn't know "They" were capable of running…." I heard Rika say in a voice filled with horror as she suddenly gasped at the sight of another Infected man suddenly running towards the building, the loud "BOOM" made as he impacted the glass drowning out the sound of the other Infected hammering away with their fists.
"Neither did I…" I replied as another Infected 100 meters away from the complex suddenly also began running towards the building and then slammed heavily against the glass, the resulting "BOOM" as its body impacted the glass making everyone flinch involuntarily while the civilians below screamed even more hysterically in fear, causing the Infected to grow even more aggravated.
"Chikusho…" Nanahara muttered his voice a little shaky. "As if things aren't bad enough, now they're becoming even more lethal."
"And they're doing this just because of the noise we made?" Tajima said sucking in his breath as the Infected man slammed his body against the glass. "They've never reacted that way to noise before, why now?"
"Actually, I think it's because they're adapting…." I began as another duller, "BOOM" came from somewhere behind us interrupting me, as we all then immediately ran to the rear of the building and scanned the tarmac below.
And just like their Infected brethren gathered at the front of the Main Terminal, the thousands of Infected standing on the tarmac had apparently heard all the commotion going on in the front of the building and were now banging away at the closed steel shutter doors of the airline cargo loading area at the rear of the Main Terminal.
And just like what was happening in the front of the building, an occasional Infected person would suddenly sprint forward and slam his body against the building, the resulting noise of its impact drowning out all other sound as the screams of the civilians continued to increase ever louder.
"Makimura…" Nanahara said addressing one of his officers but then stopped as we all gazed in horror at the sight of several "runners" suddenly breaking away from the mass of Infected slowly moving towards us and then begin sprinting towards the building as several loud "BANGS!" sounded loudly from their impact with the steel shutter doors.
"Corporal!" Nanahara snapped at the officer he had addressed earlier who seemed mesmerized by the sight of more "runners" running towards the building, but then snapped out of it at the sound of Nanahara's voice.
"Take two men with you and hurry up and quiet those civilians down!" Nanahara barked as the terrified officer didn't even bother to salute as he barked at a couple of other cops and they all sprinted down the escalators to the Food Court on the floor below us.
"Listen up people!" Nanahara barked as everyone turned away from the glass.
"The Infected can beat their heads against the rear of the building all day if they want to…" Nanahara began as he gestured for all of us to follow him.
"We all know that the rear of the building is concrete construction, and the shutter doors in the cargo areas are heavy gauge steel, so they can't possibly break through that…" Nanahara said as we all followed him.
"However, the real danger here is the front of the building where it is weakest…" Nanahara said as we reached the other side of building and then gazed below just as another "runner" began to sprint towards the glass.
"Andrew-san…" Nanahara said motioning for me to join him as glanced out the window for a moment at the sound of another "BOOM!" before turning back to face me.
"You said something about the Infected were" adapting", somehow?" Nanahara said wincing as another "BOOM!" suddenly echoed from below.
"Yes, sir…." I said looking Nanahara squarely in the eye. "I honestly believe that their current behavior is an indication that the Infected are adapting in response to the lack of food."
"Explain…" Nanahara said as another "BOOM!" echoed below as the screams from the frightened civilians seemed to have quieted down, no doubt because of the efforts of the cops Nanahara had sent to quiet them.
"When animals are starving from a lack of food, their hunting instincts become even more sharpened as their hunger intensifies…" I began recalling my earlier experiences when I used to hunt back home.
"And as their hunger grows…." I said pausing as all of us watched as an Infected woman who had been slowly shuffling towards the building suddenly bolted towards us and slammed her body against the glass with a dull "THUD!"
The impact of the female's smaller body against the glass was not as powerful as any of the males who were still engaged in slamming their own bodies against the glass, and it almost sounded comical to listen to.
But Nanahara was right, if enough of the Infected began to attack the glass in the same way, the impact of their bodies no matter how big or small, combined with the weight of the thousands of other Infected pressing against it would be disastrous.
"As I was saying, as their hunger grows their desperate need for food will then also increase their viciousness….." I said as I watched the female move back and then slam her body against the glass again before more Infected began to crowd around her as she and the rest then hammered away at the glass with their hands.
"And thus greatly increase their hunting abilities…" Tajima said finishing my sentence for me.
"That's not good." I heard Rika mutter, her face ashen.
"That's a f_cking understatement, lass…." I replied sarcastically as I turned around and headed back towards the weapons pile and started grabbing even more ammo hurriedly as the rest of the cops finally broke away from the window and also began grabbing gear and ammo as another "BOOM" echoed below followed once again by the panicked screams of the civilians who were now becoming unglued at the constant loud impacts of the "runners" despite the efforts of the cops to calm them.
"We need to get those people out of there…" Nanahara said bitterly as the screams once again began to intensify. "All that f_cking screaming is just agitating the infected even more."
"Where do we put them, sir?" Tajima said as he stuffed more magazines for his MP5 into the pockets of his *BDU trousers. "We can't put them on the roof; they'll be in the way of the rescue team."
"Commander…" I said to Nanahara as a sudden idea popped into my head as I crammed every pocket I had on my clothing with even more magazines for my carbine.
"Hai…?" Nanahara replied as he slapped the charging handle of his H&K MP5, every pocket he had crammed full of magazines as well.
"I think it would be best to have the civilians evacuated across the Sky Bridge to the administrative offices located in the West Wing…." I said as I noticed Rika and Tajima move up behind me. "Those offices are normally sound-proofed and should be a large enough area to contain them all."
"Good idea…" Nanahara said nodding his head as he barked some orders to several of his men nearby as they all hurriedly dashed down the escalator.
"And with your permission, sir…" I said after Nanahara finished making radio contact with the corporal and his men he had sent down earlier and advised them of the situation.
"I'd like to head downstairs and help your men try to keep the Infected contained to the lower levels, if indeed they do indeed break through before the rescue team arrives." I said as Nanahara gave me a hard look for a long moment and then slowly nodded his head.
"Very well…" Nanahara said reluctantly as he turned his attention to where Rika and Tajima stood silently.
"And take the "Dirty Pair" there with you too, while you're at it!" Nanahara barked pointing at Rika and Tajima as I noticed them visibly stiffen at his words as he then turned and ran towards the escalators to join his men.
"Understood, sir." I said as I turned to face Rika and Tajima who seemed extremely pissed off at Nanahara's remark that had been aimed towards them.
I wasn't at all sure exactly what Nanahara had meant by referring to Rika and Tajima as the "Dirty Pair", but whatever he meant by it had sure hit a sore spot with them based on the looks on their faces, and I could only venture to guess it had something to do with the whole "Mr. Cuddles" incident which I knew Nanahara was still pretty pissed off about.
But as much as I was tempted to ask Rika and Tajima to explain what Nanahara had meant by the hidden insult directed towards them, another loud "BOOM!" followed by a couple more in unison reminded me that we were quickly running out of time.
"Before we go guys, there's something I need you to do…." I began as both Rika and Tajima winced as the sound of another loud "BOOM!" echoed up the corridor.
"What…?!" Rika said a little too loudly, the anxiety in her voice unmistakable.
"I need you to tell some of your guys to take some weapons and ammunition and plant them at our fallback positions from the Food Court all the way back to the airport administrative offices..." I said as Rika nodded her head in understanding and then grabbed a cop as he was walking past who nodded his head after she spoke to him and then shouted for a couple of other cops to follow him as they all ran down the corridor.
"Why are you taking those?" Rika said as she noticed me grabbing a few grenades from the weapons stockpile and then stuff a handful of shotgun shells in my shirt pocket for my Mossberg.
"If we have to fall back in a hurry, I doubt we'll have time to bother with taking head shots…" I replied as I motioned for them to grab a few grenades as well.
"And we'll need to unload everything we can on these things, and push them back as hard as we can whenever they finally break through the glass." I said as Rika then started grabbing a few grenades for herself as well.
"You really think those "runners" are strong enough to break through that thick glass?" Tajima said with a look of genuine alarm on his face.
"Not by themselves…" I said as a couple of more "BOOMS!" thundered below as we began heading for the escalators.
"But I have to agree with Nanahara that between them and all the other Infected pushing against the glass, I don't think it will be long before all that glass will begin to give way." I began but then stopped as the sudden sound of a bunch of "BOOMS!" suddenly echoed from below followed by the sounds of screams and running feet began to thunder.
"F_ck….!" I swore as I realized that a lot more "runners" were all hurling themselves at the glass in a combined effort to break in, with the resulting chaos erupting from the panicked civilians obviously becoming more than the few surviving cops could handle as we saw a whole bunch of people running up the escalators adjacent to us as we rushed down the escalator to the Food Court.
And once we finally arrived, we found Nanahara and a few of his men had somehow managed to calm the panicked crowd down again and were quietly directing them out as some of the airport medical staff tended to several people who had been accidentally trampled by the others seeking to get away, reminding me very much of the incident we had all experienced that morning as the image of the little girl's face suddenly popped back into my head.
"Those windows are made to withstand storm force gales and tropical storms…." Tajima said as I shook the little girl's image out of my head and tried to focus on our present situation, as we walked past the others and then looked over the railing of the Food Court into the large Visitor's Center area and watched all of the Infected beating themselves bloody against the glass on the front of the building.
"Even if a bunch of them slammed against the glass all day, I still don't see…" Tajima began but then immediately went silent as the sound of a loud "CRACK" echoed in the building as a large crack suddenly formed on the glass as the hushed silence abruptly dissolved into mass hysteria.
"Get everyone upstairs, NOW!" Nanahara roared as the room immediately became filled with the sounds of panicked screams of terror and pain as people once again began trampling over one another in a desperate effort to get away.
And as the screams of fear echoed all around me, I stood transfixed as I watched in horror as the single crack became many, each one increasing in size as the Infected, who had become even more agitated by the panicked screams of the civilians, began attacking the weakened glass with renewed ferocity.
Time: Noon
Location: Approx. 100 miles from Tokonosu International Airport
U.S.S. Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) Wasp-class amphibious assault ship
Current Speed: 20+ knots at Flank Speed
Normal Ship's complement: 104 officers, 1004 enlisted personnel
Normal Marine detachment: 1894 officers and enlisted personnel
Current Ship's Complement: Roughly 64% remaining of Ship's Normal Complement of Naval Personnel and Marine Amphibious Forces.
Approximately 46% of Ship's Normal Complement of Navy and Marine Personnel Officially Listed as "Missing".
On the deck of the U.S.S. Bonhomme Richard, the decks were awash with the gale-force winds blown up by the main rotors of several Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopters readying for take-off, their turbines screaming as their crews made final preparations for transporting the relatively small number of assault troops being sent to help support the survivors fighting for their lives on the island airport situated just off the Coast of Japan.
Despite the blast of wind and noise howling all around, the flight deck was a beehive of activity as dozens of flight-deck personnel wearing brightly-colored clothing that identified their role on the flight deck were busily running back and forth amongst the helos, using exaggerated hand signals to communicate with each other as well as to the pilots of the aircraft.
Already several U.S. Marine Sea Cobra gunships were stationed aloft and flying in formation overhead of the small, amphibious ship as dozens of U.S. Marines and several members of the US Navy's SEAL Teams along with several members of the Army's famed anti-terrorist unit, SOFD-Delta or "Delta Force" as they were commonly called, waited patiently in each helo.
Below decks the ship was no less as busy with all personnel hurriedly checking weapons and equipment while others labored to make the ship's landing craft ready for the secondary mission to clear the island of all Infected.
Amongst all the helicraft positioned on the flight deck of the "Bonnie Dick" however, one particular helicopter painted in black with no visible markings stood out from amongst all the rest of the grey-painted American aircraft readying themselves for take-off, as the pilot and crew onboard the distinctly European-made helicopter waited patiently along with the others for flight clearance.
Inside the cabin of the all-black Agusta-Westland AW101, several soldiers all dressed in black BDU's with subdued patches identifying them as members of England's Armed Forces were busily checking their weapons and gear.
Each man in the small group of men huddled within the small confines of the helicopter was literally a walking arsenal, each of them armed with a variety of assault weapons and sidearms of all sorts, as well as a large assortment of grenades secured to their vests with the spoons on each grenade taped securely, and deadly razor-sharp knives hanging from their belts.
While he watched his men busily checking the gear, the team leader of the group sat quietly in his seat near the open door of the helo listening intently to the radio traffic being transmitted over the large pair of headphones that he wore over his head.
Henry "Henno" Garvie" was a man in his mid-thirties, bald, and of medium height but with build of a professional wrestler who turned his attention away from his men as he checked the breech of his M203 grenade launcher mounted under his desert camouflaged M4A1 carbine, before peering through the eyepiece of the ACOG sight for perhaps the dozenth time.
And as he listened to the radio chatter coming over the pair of earphones he wore, Henno once again glanced over at his men and grunted with satisfaction as he watched each man busily preparing for the task ahead.
As his eyes scanned over each man, his gaze settled for a moment upon Pete, his second in command, who was busy checking the optic on his own M4A1.
Sitting next to Pete was Jem, a tall man with unkempt, curly hair who was the team's best marksman and was busy checking the elevation turrets on the riflescope attached to his weapon, a Mark 12 MOD.1 Special-Purpose-Rifle that had been fitted with a laser designator and folding bipod.
Jaimie, a young man in his early twenties who had joined the team only a few years ago along with another young recruit named Alex, had already checked the settings on the scope of his own sniper rifle, another Mark 12 MOD.1 S.P.R, and was now busy inspecting some of the 77-grain Sierra-MatchKing MK.262 rounds in the rifles magazines he was carrying while Ricky, the team's explosives expert was busy studying a copy of the layout of the Main Terminal.
Satisfied that his team was ready, Henno suddenly frowned as some radio traffic came over the earpiece of the tactical radio he and each man carried as he stopped to acknowledge the radio traffic directed to him as the rest of the team continued making final checks of their gear and sidearms.
"This has been confirmed…?" Henno said with a grimace.
"I'm afraid so…." The voice of his commander Colonel Aidan Dempsey said over the earpiece of his tactical radio. "For better or worse, Alpha Protocol has been confirmed to be on the island."
"Acknowledged…" Henno said with a sigh as he shook his head.
"Good luck, Henry…" Col. Dempsey said in a noticeably amused voice before the earpiece finally went silent.
"Shit!" Henno suddenly swore out loud as the eyes of all of his men glanced over at him startled by his outburst before they went back to checking their gear.
Henno gritted his teeth as the words uttered to him by his commander began to sink in, and for a brief moment he was almost tempted to request that the mission that he and his men were about to undertake be aborted.
"Alpha-Protocol" had long been the official designation for former British SAS soldiers that had gone missing over the years, and to Henno's chagrin, that also included the identification of a certain former teammate of his, a certain Lance Corporal Andrew Poynton whose confirmed presence at the airport only served to deepen the team leader's anxiety.
Up until now, it had only been a rumor that the former SAS trooper was still possibly located in Japan working private security for a Japanese politician, although it could not be confirmed with any measure of accuracy.
But it wasn't until Col. Dempsey had been advised that one of the men assisting the police on the island was indeed former SAS that Henno and his commanding officer began to speculate as to the identity of who that man really was.
And now it had been confirmed as Henno felt his stomach tightening up in a knot.
"Bloody hell…" Henno muttered to himself as he glanced over at his team who had stopped checking their gear and were now all staring at him with looks of concern on their faces.
"Alright then boys…." Henno said with a sigh as he then scowled at Pete who had started to laugh at the look of misery on Henno's face having also been previously advised of Andrew Poynton's presence by their commanding officer.
"It looks as though we're finally going to finally reunite with an old chum of ours…" Henno then growled over the tactical comm unit to his team as he flipped Pete the bird, as the others looked on in confusion.
"Who?" Alex, a young man in his early twenties of Middle-Eastern descent who was the team's medic, asked.
"Who do you think?!" The team leader snapped as the atmosphere in the confines of the helicopter cabin became suddenly tense as the reason for Henno's anxiety became all too clear.
"Holy shit…" Jem said banging his head against the wall of the cabin. "We're f_cked."
"Too right, mate." Ricky said rubbing his temples. "We'd be better off crashing into the sea."
"Bloody hell, I thought he was dead….." Pete said still laughing as he locked a magazine into his SIG-Sauer P226R and then holstered the sidearm in his thigh holster.
"Apparently not…." Henno said shaking his head as he closed the door of the cabin as one of the men on the flight deck raised his arm signaling the pilot to take-off as the pilot pulled back on the collective and the rotor blades bit into the air.
And as the wheels of the AW101 lifted away from the deck of the carrier and then moved into formation along with the squadron of CH-47 Chinook cargo helicopters and their Sea Cobra escort gunships, there was absolute silence amongst the group of men huddled in the cabin of each aircraft.
It would take them a little over half an hour to reach their destination, and all the men that were travelling towards the airport could do now was wait patiently until they arrived on site.
But that had absolutely nothing to do with the silence amongst the men onboard the black Agusta-Westland AW101.
Unlike the many other high-risk missions they had all experienced together, this particular mission now had an unexpected element added to it, namely a former teammate, whose last encounter with the team members had been less than cordial.
And if indeed Andrew Poynton was indeed on that island, something told the men of RED Troop sitting inside the AW101, that the Infected were going to be the least of their problems.
Location: Tokonosu International Airport "The Floating Island"
5 Miles off the coast of Japan
Main Terminal Building
Second Floor Food Court
Time: Afternoon
As disturbing as it was to watch, I couldn't help but be slightly amused by the persistence of the Infected as they continued to repeatedly slam their arms, which were now nothing more than bloody stumps, against the glass walls of the Main Terminal building.
Earlier everyone, including myself, had thought the worst had finally occurred when the glass had started to crack under the impact of the "runners" slamming their bodies against the glass.
Fortunately for us, the thick, laminated glass had held despite the frenzied efforts of the Infected to get in and now that the hysterical civilians had finally been relocated to the Administrative Offices located in the West Wing of the Main Terminal, all excess noise had finally been removed.
And after a short while with no more noise to aggravate them, the Infected had finally settled down somewhat, although they still continued to half-heartedly beat at the glass.
But with all of the civilians finally having been moved and everyone under strict orders to not even speak above a whisper, I figured that we were relatively safe for now so long as there was no noise around to antagonize the Infected again.
Still feeling a little woozy from the effects of my bender awhile ago, I leaned against the railing on the balcony of the Food Court above the Visitor's Center and gazed out the huge windows.
While the pressure on the glass was not as bad as it was before when all of the Infected were slamming against it earlier, it had still been weakened significantly, and everyone was keeping a close eye on it, all of us knowing that the glass wouldn't withstand another direct attack like earlier.
Purely out of reflex, I pulled the magazine out of my carbine and checked to make sure it was full before shoving it back up the magwell and slapped it home with the palm of my hand as I then went through the process of checking all the magazines for my Sig P226.
The Sig P226 I carried had been my trusted friend ever since it was first issued to me when I was finally accepted into the SAS and had become an official member of RED Troop.
I used that pistol on dozens of operations and loved it so much that after I left the SAS I made sure that the pistol came with me too.
But even though it was an excellent sidearm all by itself, a part of me still wished that I had also managed to get my Heckler & Koch USP Tactical .45 out of my pack as well before this shit had started, the extra firepower definitely coming in handy if the Infected did manage to break in.
Unfortunately, there just hadn't been enough time for me to think about retrieving that other pistol since I too busy thinking that I was about to be attacked by flesh hungry monsters at the times, so the Sig would have to serve as my only back-up weapon for now.
"Everyone ready…?" Commander Nanahara transmitted quietly over his portable radio as I glanced over at him and then back at Rika and Tajima standing next to me who were busy checking their own primary and back-up weapons.
I couldn't quite hear the response that came over the radio, but from the way Nanahara nodded his head I assumed that everyone was good to go in case the shit really did hit the fan.
"Hear anything more from JSDF Command…?" I said quietly as the SAT Commander walked over and joined us as I stood up and stretched and then cracked my neck to try to relieve the tension in my muscles.
"Not a thing…." Nanahara replied as he checked the safety on his MP5.
"How long has it been since your last transmission?" I asked as I could see the muscles on the SAT Commander's jaw tighten.
"Over an hour since I advised them of our situation…" Nanahara replied as he gazed at the Infected still pushing against the glass. "They said the ships were just outside the usual range they normally prefer to launch their helicopters, but the Americans said they would be scrambling immediately, regardless."
"Good, because I'm not sure how much longer that glass…" I began as a sudden loud "CRACK" interrupted me as the ominous sound of glass breaking echoed in the large building as the already weakened glass finally began to give from under the weight of all the Infected.
"Bugger….!" I swore as all of us watched in horror as the fissures in the glass grew as the Infected, aggravated by the sharp sound of the glass cracking, began to press even harder against it.
"Best you break out the good gin, love…" I said with a smirk as I glanced over at Rika who looked back at me with a confused look on her face.
"We're about to have company…" I said as the other cops standing nearby rushed over as we all then raised our weapons and prepared ourselves for the final assault.
And as the terrifying sound of the glass continued, I couldn't help but wonder that after all the days of fighting and watching people dying if any of us would be left alive by the time the rescue teams arrived.
The next few moments would tell, I guess.
Strange things happen in battle, and I've experienced a lot of things that I would consider odd that occurred to me several times in the heat of combat.
And just like those times, for some reason at that exact moment I felt like time had just suddenly slowed and all sound around me just suddenly disappeared and I couldn't hear anything else other than the glass loudly cracking in front of us.
And then my instincts suddenly roared at me to snap out of it as the entire panel of laminated glass finally fell away and the Infected poured through the opening in a flood.
"SEND THEM TO HELL…!" Nanahara roared in Japanese as he raised the muzzle of his MP5A3 and opened fire along with the other SAT officers as the corridor echoed with the roar of automatic weapons fire.
"F_cking A…!" I said out loud in agreement as I aimed my carbine at the horde of Infected flooding into the building and opened fire as a thin smile of satisfaction formed on my face as each shot I made hit it's intended target as I continued to fire single shot at the Infected until the bolt of my M4 locked back as my carbine ran dry.
Not bothering to worry about saving the mag to re-use later, I let the empty magazine drop to the floor as I hastily snatched another out of my vest and slammed it into the magwell and then slapped the bolt catch with the palm of my hand before I opened fire again.
In a matter of seconds the once beautifully waxed granite floors of the Main Entrance of the Main Terminal began to look more like the killing floor of a slaughterhouse as blood, bits of brain tissue, assorted body parts, and whole bodies covered the floor as we fired round after round into the horde below, cutting them to pieces.
And at first it seemed as if we might be able to stop the flow of Infected flooding into the Reception Area by the growing pile of Infected that began to build up around the shattered glass panel which was effectively plugging up the hole that had been created.
One SAT officer next to me however, became a little too excited and started getting sloppy as he fired a blast from his Benelli M3 pump-action shotgun and the sabot slug round he had obviously loaded his shotgun with slammed into one of the Infected.
But unlike the usual damage that comes with using buckshot, the solid slug the cop fired from his shotgun tore right through the body of the Infected and smashed into another glass panel behind it as the weight of the Infected pushing on the glass caused the damaged panel to give way as even more Infected began to pour into the building.
"WATCH WHAT YOU'RE DOING!" I shouted at the cop over the roar of automatic gunfire as I realized that my warning really didn't matter anymore as I unloaded the rest of my magazine into the horde before my carbine ran dry again.
"F_ck…" I muttered as I let the second empty magazine fall and clatter to the ground beside the first, as I hurriedly reached for another.
And as I once again hurriedly reloaded and resumed fire at the Infected, out of the corner of my eye I noticed that some of the airport cops were beginning to freak out a bit and start moving back in response to the large numbers of Infected pouring into the building.
The SAT cops however, were a completely different story as I noticed with no small amount of pride that Rika and Tajima were in complete control of themselves, their faces set in grim determination as they calmly fired and reloaded their weapons smoothly, efficiently, and with deadly precision at the Infected.
And even though he most definitely had his hands full, Nanahara was just as cool under fire as they were, calmly firing his MP5A3 in small bursts, and all the while still directing his men at the same time.
But even though the Infected were dropping like flies from all the murderous firepower being hurled at them from our weapons, it was plain to see that our best efforts were just not going to be enough to hold back the sheer volume of Infected that continued to pour into the building as the Infected crawled over the still bodies of their fallen and began to fill up the entire ground floor.
And as we continued to concentrate our weapons fire at the Infected entering through the shattered glass panels in front of the building, before long I could hear the sound of gunshots coming from our flanks as the police who had been covering the escalators leading up to the second floor began to open fire at the Infected at the bottom of the steps, who had begun to tear away at the furniture that we had clogged the steps with.
Two days ago, when we noticed that the numbers of the Infected on the island were continuing to increase despite everything we had done to seal off the maintenance tunnels connecting the island to the Mainland, Nanahara had anticipated the possibility of the Infected breaking into the Main Terminal and had ordered that any and all methods of entry into the upper floors of the building be barricaded.
He might as well have been asking us to sew up the holes in all of Jem Poynton's underwear, in my humble opinion, that would have been just about as impossible.
Everything about the airport had been designed to handle thousands of travelers per day, and in order to help ease the congestion of such large numbers of people moving within the airport during peak travel times, the corridors had been intentionally constructed oversize to deal with the heavy foot traffic from both travelers and airport employees, every day.
And also in order to deal with such a high volume of human traffic within the building the designers of the airport had made sure that there were plenty of escalators built into the airport to handle such a heavy number of people as enormous multiple parallel layout escalators were installed throughout the building.
When all was said and done, the airport was indeed a marvel of human engineering and design, but for a handful of police and one mercenary it was a tactical nightmare, and we all knew that it just wasn't going to be possible for our small band to try to defend such a place against the horde of Infected trying to get at us.
And while we had tried as best we could to block off all the corridors and escalators leading to the upper levels from the ground floor with furniture, couches, and vending machines, there was just no way the meager fortifications we had hastily thrown together two days ago were going to effectively hold back the huge numbers of Infected pouring into the building now.
And by the time I had burned through magazine number six, the order from Nanahara that we knew would eventually come….finally did.
"FALL BACK! FALL BACK!" Nanahara ordered as we left our positions at the railing and hastily abandoned the Food Court just as the Infected finally made their way up the blocked escalators despite the murderous fire from the cops who had been trying to hold them off.
And as the cops responded to Nanahara's order to fall back and link up with us, we continued to maintain a steady stream of fire at the Infected as we all ran up the one long corridor that hadn't been completely blocked so that we could hold off the Infected near the entrance into one of the Main Terminal's VIP lounges which led off to the more expensive bars and restaurants located on the Third Floor.
Unfortunately, as large as the corridors were there were no fire doors built in that would have at least provided some measure of holding back the Infected, or at least maybe bought us a few precious minutes.
As it was, there was only enough time for us to jump over the small barricade of lounge chairs and sofas we had made earlier and grab a few extra magazines from one of the small piles located there that the cops had placed earlier at my request before the Infected began to make their appearance at the entrance into the corridor.
"OPEN FIRE!" Nanahara shouted as the corridor was immediately lit up with the flashes and roar of gunfire as we tried once again to knock down enough of the Infected to seal up the corridor by filling it up with bodies.
"HOLD YOUR GROUND!" Nanahara roared as we continued to pour into the Infected who were steadily inching closer and closer to our position as they crawled over their fallen brethren in their ceaseless attempt to reach us.
"Shit, we need more firepower!" I shouted as I noticed Tajima glancing over at me, nod his head and then ran off.
"Where the hell's he going?!" Nanahara shouted at Rika as he hurriedly reloaded his weapon.
"I think he went to go get a bigger toy to play with!" Rika shouted licking her lips with apparent delight as she slapped another magazine into her M4 and began to fire single-shot at the Infected with her carbine to save ammunition, as a big grin mysteriously appeared on Nanahara's face.
I had to admit my curiosity was piqued by the strange behavior coming from Rika and the SAT Commander, and I couldn't help but wonder just what type of firepower did the SAT have that I hadn't seen yet.
"Guess I'll just have to wait and see…" I muttered to myself as I leveled my carbine and resumed fire at the Infected coming up the corridor and burned through three more magazines with seemingly little effect on the large numbers of Infected coming at us, when I heard Nanahara give the order for us to fall back to our second defensive position.
"YOU F_CKING WANKERS!" I roared in frustration as I let rip a long burst from my carbine into the horde and noticed some of the rounds going high and others going low as realized that my anger and frustration at our inability to hold the Infected back was really beginning to get to me now, when I suddenly heard a loud thunderous roar coming from my left and was suddenly pelted by burning hot brass flying at me
"THE HELL…?!" I swore as I glanced over at Tajima who was standing there next to me wearing several belts of ammunition over his shoulders looking every bit like f_cking Rambo as he let rip with a belt-fed Sumitomo NTK-62, a weapon I had definitely not expected to be part of the SAT's arsenal.
"THAT'S IT SON, POUR IT ON!" I whooped over the thunderous roar of the machine gun as Tajima swept the muzzle of the big gun left to right as the Infected simply came apart under the murderous hail of lead when the pile of furniture blocking one of the other corridors leading up to the Third Floor nearby was torn away by the Infected and they began to approach us from the other side.
"Oh c'mon…..give us a f_cking break…!" I heard Rika groan with exasperation as she and I both shifted fire to the new threat and tried to cover the retreat of the officers trying to pulling back as I suddenly heard a series of pain-filled screams coming from behind us and then Tajima's gun abruptly went silent.
And as I glanced over at Tajima wondering why he had stopped firing I noticed to my horror that a couple of the airport policeman who had been fighting alongside Tajima had gotten a little too close to the action and had had been overwhelmed as they tried to reload their empty weapons.
And as the two policemen disappeared screaming under the pile of Infected tearing away at them, several of the other Infected were now quickly closing in on Tajima, who was still in the act of reloading his own weapon as the Infected moved towards him with arms outstretched.
Immediately upon seeing the danger, I quickly leveled my carbine at the Infected and squeezed the trigger as a short burst erupted from the muzzle of my weapon before the bolt suddenly locked back on an empty chamber, to my dismay.
With no time to spare, I let the carbine swing down by my left side on its sling, as I then yanked my Sig P226 from its holster and unloaded three rounds into the head of the closest Infected, knocking it against another standing near it as Tajima gave up trying to reload his weapon and took the opportunity to remove himself from danger.
With Tajima no longer in danger and now having a clear field of fire, I returned my pistol back to its holster and then grabbed my Mossberg shotgun from its scabbard on my pack and unloaded three blasts into the Infected which knocked a few of them back against the others, but still didn't do much in the way of slowing down the rest of the horde.
"LET'S GET A MOVE ON PEOPLE!" I shouted above all the noise coming from all the weapons fire as well as the loud blood-chilling moans of the Infected, as the area officially became much too dangerous for us to even think about attempting to defend anymore as we all began to fall back towards the corridor leading up to the next defensive position on the Fourth Floor where Nanahara and his men were waiting for us, as I emptied the last remaining shells from my Mossberg.
"ANDREW-SAN, MOVE YOU'RE ASS!" Rika shouted as I fired the last round from my Mossberg and then as much as I hated to do this to such a great firearm, used it as a club and smacked the closest Infected in the face as it fell backwards, minus most of its teeth.
With no time to reload, I dropped the shotgun and bolted up the corridor as I grabbed one of the last few magazines I had left on my vest and reloaded my carbine on the run as I saw Rika, Tajima and the other SAT jumping over the pile of desks and vending machines at the end of the corridor while Nanahara and his men covered us.
And as I slapped the bolt catch on my carbine I happened to glance up at Rika as she was banging away at the Infected trying to cover me and saw a look on her face that I'd never seen before, and one I doubt I'll ever forget.
Fear.
Instinctively, I made a dumb move and looked behind me to see what it was that had freaked Rika out and saw one of those f_cking Infected "runners" push past the other Infected and come hauling ass right after me with saliva pouring out of its mouth.
"OH, F_CK!" I screamed as I turned my head back around and ran like a bunny as the damned thing ran after me with arms outstretched.
Unfortunately, as fast a runner as I usually am, I apparently just wasn't fast enough to get away from this bastard as I suddenly felt him slam into me and send me tumbling, ass-over-teakettle to the floor, with my face hitting the floor with a solid smack.
"AHHHHHH….F_CK!" I roared in pain and in fear as I felt blood filling my nose and my mouth as I quickly tried to kick away at the "runner" who had fallen on top of me and was now clawing away at me like a f_cking cat.
"YOU WANT A PIECE OF ME ASSHOLE?!" I shouted angrily as I ignored Rika's shouts for me to get clear so she could shoot the sonuvabitch as I slammed my left boot into the "runner's" chest and slammed it against the wall as I struggled to grab my MercWorx knife from its sheath.
But just as I managed to finally get my hand on the handle of my knife I saw a flash of movement out of the corner of my eye and saw Tajima run up and kick the Infected right in the face, knocking it away from me and completely dislocating its jaw, where it hung grotesquely off to the side.
"What's the matter, Andrew-san….?" Tajima said with a smirk as he let loose a short burst at the other Infected from his weapon before it went dry as he then pulled his Glock pistol from its holster. "Is getting older beginning to slow you down?"
"Ah, f_ck you, Taj…" I growled in reply as I drew my knife and with a single swipe, decapitated the Infected f_cker who had started crawling towards me, evidently still intent on having me for lunch, as I then held my knife up and watched the trails of blood trickle down the titanium-steel blade and then turned and grinned like a madman at Tajima as the body of the Infected fell to the floor.
I have to admit, there are times I just love my knives more than my guns, and this time was one of them.
"Guns are just a tool, as long as they go bang when you squeeze the trigger, that'll do." Andy McNab, the team leader of the legendary "Bravo Two Zero" SAS team during Operation Desert Storm once said.
And I have to admit, I mostly agree with his opinion on that even though I know my buddy Jim didn't and was a real gun nut who would only buy higher-end weapons made by H&K, Sig, or Colt, no matter how outrageously expensive they were.
But knives, ah…knives are a work of art, and so long as you keep them sharp, they'll never fail you in a tight spot.
But right now was definitely not the time to engage multiple hostiles with only a knife no matter how high quality it was as I quickly wiped the blood off of the blade and returned it to its sheath as we both then hauled ass and joined the others.
The fighting that went on in the corridor was hard and furious and before long I found myself in a bit of a spot as I fired my last magazine at the Infected, and then quickly looked around for the pile of loaded magazines that were supposed to be piled nearby, and saw that there were none left.
Unfortunately, by that time every magazine had evidently been picked up the SAT and stuffed into the pouches of their vests as I turned around and rapped Tajima on the shoulder and then held my hands out to him, as he stared back at me with a "Are you f_cking kidding me?" look as he realized what it was I wanted.
"Andrew-san…you're kidding, neh?!" Tajima said as I heard a loud snicker coming from Rika as she continued to fire away at the horde.
"I'm all out of ammo, bud…" I said flatly as I gestured again for Tajima to hand me his weapon.
"So why take my weapon?" Tajima said sounding almost like he was whining.
"That is your last belt of ammo, right Taj?" I said as Tajima gripped his weapon even tighter like a little kid who didn't want to share his favorite toy with anyone.
"Haaaaiiii…." Tajima said warily.
"Well would ya mind letting me have a go at it then?" I said as the Infected began closing in even more. "I'd never had a chance to shoot one of those before."
"Demo…." Tajima whined as even Nanahara began to laugh at our little exchange.
"Just give me the f_cking gun, will ya Taj….?!" I said with a sigh shaking my head wondering why I had even bothered trying to be nice instead of just yanking the friggin' thing from him as Tajima reluctantly passed me the NTK-62.
Gleefully I wrapped the ammo belt over my left shoulder and raised the muzzle of the machine gun up just as couple of "runners" began to push past the other Infected.
"All right, kiddies…." I said with a grin as Rika and Tajima both raised their weapons.
"Let's dance…." I said as I squeezed the trigger of the NTK-62 and the corridor was illuminated with the muzzle flash of our weapons and the corridor echoed with the roar of gunfire as the "runners" and the rest of the Infected fell heavily to the floor like wheat being cut down with a scythe.
Time: Noon
Location: Coast of Japan
Several Miles from Tokonosu International Airport
Interior of Agusta-Westland AW101…
Approx. 50 miles from Tokonosu International Airport…
Henno had once again ordered everyone to re- check their weapons, and other tactical gear as was their standard procedure prior to final approach, even though the highly-skilled team had already checked and re-checked their equipment dozens of times prior to boarding the helicopter as well as during the entire flight.
"Okay then boys, listen in…" Henno then began as the rest of the SAS team huddled closer to hear him over the high-pitched whine of the rotors still audible within the closed cabin.
"The JSDF "Apaches" have already arrived on station and are attempting to draw the main body of the Infected away from the Main Terminal…" Henno continued as he briefed his men on the latest intel coming through his headphones.
"But they're having a tough time of it because the numbers of Infected on the island are a lot higher than previously reported." The SAS Sergeant said grimly.
"How bad is it?" Pete asked as the rest of the team leaned closer.
"The last report given by the police stationed on that island before all radio traffic ceased…." Henno replied a scowl forming on his face. "…was that there were hundreds, maybe thousands of Infected at the airport now, and that the Main Terminal itself had finally been breached. "
"Considering how long ago that last report came in and how long it took us for us to be scrambled…" The SAS Sergeant said pausing for effect. "…the chances are good that we may already be too late, and finding anyone left alive, is highly unlikely."
"But if indeed there are any survivors left when we get there…" Henno continued. "Then we're all going to have one helluva fight on our hands trying to secure them."
"Kinda makes you wish we brought our Minimi's with us now, don't it boss?" Alex quipped causing Jaimie to snigger before the look shot at them from Henno silenced them both.
"Let me make this absof_ckinglutelyclear to you two rugrats, our mission is to help DELTA and the SEALs keep the survivors safe until reinforcements arrive, understood?" The SAS Sergeant growled as he glared at the pair. "The Marines are in charge of clearing the Main Terminal….not us."
"And if there aren't any survivors left once we get there…." The SAS team leader continued. "Then we will continue on with our secondary mission which is to clear the Air Traffic Control Center."
"But our Number One Priority mission is the survivors, if there are any…." The gruff SAS Sergeant said pointedly. "…not shooting the bloody building into Swiss cheese like a bunch of Yanks."
"Awwww…..." Ricky said in mock disappointment as the rest of the team snickered at the look Henno shot at him in annoyance.
"Once the rest of the task force arrives and the Marines land their amphibious craft ashore…" Henno growled as he continued to glare at Alex and Jaimie. "…our orders are to stand by on station while they clear the airfield of the Infected and secure the rest of the island."
"Only after that's been done will any survivors that have been found then be extracted off the island after everyone's been examined by the medics to make sure they're not infected…." Henno said as he gazed upon the faces of his men.
"You boys have been with me long enough to know that there's no room here in this team for anyone who wants to go off on his own and try to be a hero…." The veteran leader of RED Troop said his voice deepening. "And if I catch any one of you cheeky bastards freelancing on this job you are going to get your arse kicked by me first before your arse gets kicked off the team."
"Leave that freelancing hero shite for the Americans…" The team leader said with a look of disgust on his face.
"They all think they're John Wayne anyway." Henno added as the rest of the men in the helicopter broke out in laughter as they moved back into their own places in the chopper as Pete leaned over to speak to his team leader.
"What are we going to do if Andy is really there, mate?" Henno's second-in-command asked somewhat nervously, as the team leader sighed heavily in response.
In truth, there was no way the veteran SAS Sergeant knew how to answer that question himself as his thoughts drifted back to the events that unfolded after the Northern Ireland operation that had ended so tragically for his former teammate and best friend, when he was still a member of RED Troop.
Henno and his former teammate hadn't exactly parted on the best of circumstances after that particular operation, and the resulting tension between them after Andrew had been forced out of the SAS had no doubt put him on Andrew's personal hit list, even though he had done all he could to try to patch up the rift between them, to no avail.
Andrew had by then become a wild card, a risk that the Regiment would tolerate no longer, and so the physically and emotionally scarred SAS corporal had been dismissed, not just from the Regiment, but from the Army as well, a move that had finally pushed the broken man over the edge.
After Andrew's dismissal from the SAS, Henno had followed his best friend's trail for several months, keeping tabs on Andrew as he traveled to France and settled there for a few months to recuperate from his injuries before heading off to Germany.
After a relatively short stay in Germany, he then received word that Andrew finally seemed to have settled down in Hungary, residing in a small flat overlooking the city of Budapest, before finally losing track of him altogether when Andrew left his flat one day without a word, and never returned.
Grief-stricken over the loss of his friend, it wasn't until several years later as he was walking through the streets of London on a day of leave that to his astonishment, he literally walked into Andrew.
Despite all the time that had passed, he had to admit Andrew wasn't looking too bad…at least from a physical standpoint.
Andrew's once normally clean-shaven face now sported a beard, his hair was now long and messy, and a noticeable bruise was visible on the left side of his face, probably from a recent bar fight.
But apart from that, the former SAS Trooper seemed in good health as Henno immediately offered Andrew to come in for a few pints in a nearby pub, in hopes of renewing their old friendship.
After a few drinks had been downed and more than an hour was spent reliving stories of past missions and past shenanigans, Andrew had then surprised him when he began to open up about what he had been up to since leaving the Regiment.
Time: Four Years Ago
Location: London, England
"So what have you been doing with yourself then, Andy?" Henno asked his former teammate as he took a gulp of his lager whilst Andrew was nursing a brandy.
"Just finished working a security gig in Japan…" Andrew replied as Henno studied his best friend's face. "Got back here not long ago to sort out some odds and ends before moving on again."
"How good's the money on the outside, then?" Henno then asked as he noticed a smirk suddenly forming on Andrew's face.
"Oh…the moneys good but…" Andrew replied before taking another sip of his brandy "But this last job, was a bit shit."
"How so?" Henno had then asked as he ordered another round as Andrew sigh heavily.
"Would rather not talk about it right now to be honest, mate." Andrew replied with no emotion in his voice as he knocked back the rest of his drink as the bartender came back and refilled their glasses, as Henno then noticed a stainless steel pistol tucked into Andrew's waistband that was revealed when Andrew's brown leather jacket opened slightly as he was raising his glass to his lips.
Saying nothing about the pistol, he and Andrew had then left the bar and settled down in a table nearby and ordered another round of drinks and talked for hours, before Andrew finally left with the promise to come and visit him and the rest of the boys again.
But as expected, he never saw Andrew again after that day.
"Gentlemen, five minutes out…!" The co-pilot said over his headset snapping Henno back to reality as he then held up the five fingers of his right hand to signal his men and shouted "FIVE MINUTES!" as each man then held up the five fingers of his hand in response, and then glanced over at each other to make sure everyone had acknowledged the same signal.
As everyone sat quietly in the cabin of the helicopter, Henno closed his eyes and mentally prepared himself for what he knew was probably going to be the worst mission that he and his men would ever experience.
There was absolutely no doubt in Henno's mind that RED Troop, DELTA and the SEALs would have a hard time trying to find any survivors, even with the Marines having the lion's share of clearing out the Main Terminal.
Still, if the intelligence was even half correct on the numbers of Infected that were wandering around on the island, then even the supporting strike force of Marines accompanying them wouldn't be enough to clear out, much less hold the complex until the task force arrived.
"Three minutes out…!" The co-pilot announced over his headphones as Henno held up the two fingers of his right hand and shouted "THREE MINUTES!" to his men as each man returned the signal before Henno tightened the sling on his carbine.
"Holy shit…!" Jaimie suddenly gasped as Henno glanced up and noticed the young SAS trooper staring out the widow of the helicopter, his mouth hanging open.
"F_ck me….!" Ricky muttered said his eyes growing wide as he and then every man in the cramped cabin moved over and peeked out the small windows on the sides of the helicopter.
"How can anyone have lived through that…?" Pete said under his breath as Henno peered out the window at the thousands of Infected shuffling all over the island like ants and sucked in his breath at the sight.
The airport looked like it was under siege.
While the runways were visibly unscathed and most of the structures on the island seemed intact, large plumes of smoke rising into the air from burning aircraft, vehicles, and small buildings from different sections of the airport, gave the appearance that a pitched battle had taken place.
"Why are there so many fires?" Alex asked out loud his eyes looking like they were about to pop out of his head.
"Probably the police trying to staunch the spread of the Infected…." Pete said in reply. "And quite possibly the Infected may have knocked over some fuel containers too and accidentally made things worse."
"Look at them…" Jem breathed in awe at the sheer number of Infected shuffling all over the island. "Like f_cking ants they are."
"How did the infestation get so bad all the way out here?" Alex asked looking a little sick. "They can't f_cking swim, can they?"
"The report given was that the maintenance tunnels linking the island to the Mainland were breached."Henno replied. "Supposedly the airport cops down there tried to plug up the hole, but apparently it didn't work."
"Bloody f_cking hell…." Ricky said his voice filled with awe. "And we're supposed to hold the fort against all that?"
"Not if the "Apaches" do their job right…" Henno replied as he pointed out the window to the group of JSDF "Apache" attack helicopters slowly hovering over the Infected in the distance.
And as everyone gazed upon the scene below, Henno let out a small grunt of satisfaction as "Phase One" of the plan to re-take the "Floating Island" seemed to be working, as he and his men watched as waves upon waves of the Infected were being lured away from the Main Terminal by the thunderous "whop-whop-whop" of the main rotors of the JSDF Apache helicopters, which had arrived way ahead of the transport helicopters.
While the job of the attack helicopters on this mission would normally have been to protect the transport aircraft during flight as well as to provide suppressing fire with their mini-guns and rockets to cover the deployment of the troops once they arrived on station, the role of all of the Sea Cobras and Apache attack helicopters on this particular mission had been dramatically changed.
And so instead of protecting the squadron Chinooks and their passengers as was their normal duty, the mission of the attack helicopters now was to draw the Infected away from the Main Terminal with the noise from their rotors.
And for all intents and purposes, the plan seemed to indeed be working as the SAS team watched the Infected moving like a vast sea of bodies as they followed the sounds of the helicopters to a remote section of the island that had been pre-selected by the JSDF Military Command as the designated "Strike Zone" for an upcoming fire mission.
And once the helicopters had succeeded in luring the Infected to the "Strike Zone", Phase two of the operation would then commence as American F-18's would then fly over and napalm the entire area, exterminating the heaviest concentration of Infected and leaving a relatively smaller number of Infected for the amphibious forces and their troops to deal with, once the rest of the task force arrived.
"Right…!" Henno suddenly barked snapping everyone to attention. "Now you can see why bringing the Minimi's wouldn't have made much difference."
"One minute...!" The co-pilot said over his headphones with a noticeable edge to his voice as Henno then gave the signal to his men to mask up as each man donned black nomex balaclavas over their heads and then placed protective goggles over their eyes.
While a human bite is indeed powerful and can cause a nasty wound, the teeth of a human being are not sharp enough to bite through clothing, and as a precaution, each member of the rescue team was covered from head to toe in protective gear leaving no skin exposed.
"Stand by…!" The co-pilot said over the headphones as Henno opened the door on his side of the helicopter as the cabin filled with the scream of the turbines and the rush of wind from the rotors as Ricky attached the end of a long rope lying on the floor of the cabin to a swinging arm mounted above the door of the helicopter.
"Roof…." The co-pilot said calmly over the headphones as the helicopter approached the roof of the Main Terminal which had been designated as their entry point as they moved into position and then hovered 40 feet above the roof, as the team leader glanced at the American Chinooks moving into their designated entry points all across the roof and watched as their rear cargo ramps lowered and long ropes were cast out.
"Good luck, lads….."The co-pilot said calmly into the headphones. "Execute!"
"Roger that…." Henno replied as he removed the headphones from his head and then signaled to his men to move into position.
"ROPE!" Henno then shouted as Ricky kicked the coil of rope out the door where it snaked out onto the roof below.
"GO! GO! GO!..." Henno barked as each member of the team moved over to the rope and then grabbed hold and slid down the rope one-by-one to the roof below, quickly taking up defensive positions on the roof in order to protect the rest of the team "fast-roped" to the roof.
A technique first used in combat by the British during the Falklands War, "fast-roping" had quickly become standard practice in special operations organizations around the world ever since, and was still considered the fastest way to insert personnel to the ground when time was of the essence, or it was not feasible for the transporting aircraft to land.
And while speed was indeed a factor on this particular mission, it was not the primary reason that everyone had agreed that fast-roping would be the best way to deploy the small strike force into the Main Terminal.
After much debate, the commanders in charge of the mission had all agreed that the possibility of any of the aircraft and their crews being compromised by any of the Infected attacking the aircraft on the ground during deployment of the troops was too great, and rather than risk losing men and aircraft by landing and deploying troops on the ground, all aircraft would hover over the building and "fast-rope" onto the roof instead.
And once the rescue teams had gained entry into the building and any survivors found were secured, then the Marines would clear the Infected out of the Main Terminal floor-by-floor and secure the building and try to hold it assisted by snipers from the SAS, DELTA, and SEAL Teams positioned on the roof as well as the supporting fire from the machine guns from the helicopter gun crews until the Main Landing Force arrived.
While another larger force of Marines would have also been deployed on the exterior of the complex and have been tasked with securing the perimeter from the outside, the shortage of men and available aircraft had made such a major operation impossible.
Like much of the world's Military Forces, the Outbreak had caught much of the American Military by surprise, and as the world reeled from the horror of the Outbreak, the American Military was scrambling what few resources they had available to answer the many calls for help.
The "Bonnie Dick" like many of the other ships in its squadron, had been moored at the U.S. Naval Base in Sasebo, with much of their ship's complement and Marine forces out on liberty with only a skeleton crew on board supervising the refit of the ship prior to deployment when the Outbreak began.
And despite orders to get underway immediately from his superiors as the Contagion spread out of control, the "Bonnie Dick's" captain had delayed as long as he could for his crew and ship's complement of Marines to return to the ship, as the remaining crew members already below decks, scrambled furiously to make the ship ready for sea as fewer and fewer numbers of sailors and marines trickled on board.
With the Contagion spreading like wildfire, and fearing for the lives of his remaining crew and the large numbers of civilian refugees onboard, the captain finally ordered all mooring lines to be cast off despite the desperate pleas of his men to wait a little while longer for shipmates and family still trapped on Kyushu Island to return.
Sympathetic to their pleas, but unwilling to sacrifice the lives of those already on board, the captain was forced to order his men to their stations as the heartbreaking sound of screams and pleas for help echoed across the harbor from the thousands of doomed civilians still left on shore.
And as he ordered his helmsman to steer out of the harbor, the sound that would forever haunt the captain and crew of the "Bonnie Dick" were the mournful cries of the hundreds of people drowning in the harbor who had leapt into the sea in a futile attempt to swim out to the departing naval vessels.
And later, when the final tally was taken of the remaining Military personnel onboard, the resulting loss of Navy and Marine personnel due to the Outbreak had been significant, with less than two-thirds of the original ship's compliment of sailors and marines aboard.
And as a result of such a massive shortage of manpower, the rescue mission being undertaken now was operating with less than one-third of its normal fighting strength, and until the "Bonnie Dick" and the rest of the task force came within range of being able to launch their amphibious forces to relieve them, the relatively small rescue force was on their own.
And as Henno gritted his teeth as his turn came to slide down the rope onto the roof to join his men, he gazed upon the hundreds of Infected still surrounding the Main Terminal who had not been lured away by the noise of the supporting attack helicopters.
And as his feet finally hit the gravel-covered roof, Henry "Henno" Garvie knew that there was no telling exactly how many of the Infected were still left wandering inside the Main Terminal building itself.
And despite all that he had said about the role of his men, the SEALs and the DELTA team was only supposed to be securing any remaining survivors, Henno knew that he and the rest of the men of RED Troop were still going to be in for the biggest fight of their lives.
Author's Notes:
It's been a couple of months since my last update, and most of it has to do with the holidays, which for all of us in Emergency Services results in an increase in fire and EMS calls which left me with little time to work on this any other chapters.
Poynton90 was the one who actually wrote this chapter, and mostly what I did was supplement what he had already written and tweak it here and there, but even then it took a lot longer than I thought to finish and I apologize for the long wait between chapters.
One of the reasons for the delay had to do with the difficulty of trying to figure out how the fight at Tokonosu Airport would have been undertaken, since there are no drawings or any type of renditions of the layout of the fictional Tokonosu International Airport anywhere to help me.
That being the case, I had to make up my own version of how the Main Terminal was constructed based upon my own visit to the International Airport in Dallas during one of the "Project Akon" Anime Conventions my younger brother and I went to a long time ago, as well as looking at pictures of the Main Terminals of several other airports around the world.
And as much as I really would like to be as accurate as possible on how a Naval Task Force and a Military Rescue Team would be deployed to a situation such as the one written in this chapter, I still had to do a lot of guessing even though I based much of the battle at the "Floating Island" based on the real-life events that occurred in the books, "Blackhawk Down", "Operation Thunderbolt" and the infamous SAS mission to free the hostages at the Iranian Embassy in London in 1980.
Anyway, my thanks to Poynton90 for tall the hard work he did on this chapter and the one following it which will all tie together with what happens to Jim and the teens at Takagi Manor, who will have their own epic battle.
And yes, as you may have already guessed, in my version of this fanfic, some of the Infected are starting to "evolve" due to the lack of food and are becoming far more lethal than the original slow-moving, Infected in the original manga.
Thought I'd add an extra element of danger in my story to make things more interesting.
Thanks everyone for all your support! Jim
On Another Note….
I've always been grateful for the positive reviews I've gotten from readers who have thoughtfully taken the time to write how they felt about a certain chapter, or the story itself as a whole.
But I have to tip my hat to Rexlerod for his review that quite frankly, was one of the funniest I've had in a long while.
But as far as why that cup of coffee is supposed to be Jim's last….
Well, I'm afraid everyone's just going to have to wait and see.
Thanks again for your support! Jim