The Light Reapers: End of the World

The E-One APFF rocketed forward with amazing speed for such an enormous truck. As they blew past the front gates and approached the car pile-up, the Team noticed vehicles on each side which made it impossible to go around the roadblock.

“I see movement around the cars, which definitely are not normal Air Force personnel. Everyone down.” As they moved closer, some infected starting shooting at them. Their shots weren’t wide and were not very accurate. Just as they came near, bags exploded against the windows and windshield and the smell of urine and feces permeated the cabin.

“What is that smell?” Mia asked. Doc told her that the infected threw their urine and feces on the uninfected to contaminate them.

“They only exist to spread the virus, which seems to be some deep-rooted instinct they develop when the infection takes hold of their brain.”

Mia looked confused, “That’s crazy.”

“Yeah, it’s what we have been dealing with since we came across our first infected.” Doc answered.

Just then, Shaw burst through the roadblock and sent cars and bodies went flying. The Team didn’t stick around to view the devastation as Shaw hit the window washers to clean the filth off. “Damn that’s nasty”.

“Yeah, but smart. They throw this shit to keep us hunkered down and not able to open the windows to return fire.” Priest added.

“Hmm, never thought about it like that,” Doc said. They continued on and made their way to the airfield and as they got closer something dark and they could see rippling far in the distance. It looks similar to a wave, was the best way to describe it.

Priest brought up his bino’s. “Holy shit.” His voice had an element of astonishment. “That is a wave of hundreds of infected coming this way. We do not have even close to the firepower to deal with this mass, no matter how many the truck takes out.” There was silence for a moment.

“What about the cannon?” a voice said. Everyone turned to Allison.

“What?” Priest questioned.

“I’ve been reading the manual for this thing to pass the time and it has two water cannons that produce about 1500 gallons a minute.”

Priest thought for a second, “That is some serious pressure. It won’t kill them, but it could take a lot more out and give us some time

to take down more of these things.” “Good work, Allison.” She showed him how the controls worked. The water cannons were on the front and on the top of the massive truck, and the operating controls were on the passenger side dash board. “I was wondering what all these buttons in front of me were.”

Tug looked out through the windshield. “My God, there is a shitload of them.”

The horde was about 50 yards away when Priest opened up with the water cannons. Pressurized water came bursting out at a high rate of speed, and they took completely the initial dozen of the closest infected off their feet. The half dozen behind them caught the high-pressure blast of water in the upper chest or in the face. Those that caught the water stream to the face had their necks snapped by the pressure.

“Holy shit! Do you see that?” Shaw laughed.

Priest aimed the cannons to the front and the sides as dozens more of the infected dropped like bags of wet cement. Those taken down by the first blast were now being crushed under the massive 5-foot tires. It was comical to see the infected screaming as they approached, only to have their mouth fill with water right before their head snapped back and took them off their feet.

“Looks like slaughter time in the chicken coop. All those infected flopping around with their heads barely hanging on their bodies,” Tug commented.

The sound of multiple bodies deflecting off the truck was deafening. The crescendo of the noise along with the screaming of the infected was enough to drive you mad. Those who were not used to the shocking sounds of battle had their hands covering their ears as the truck continued on its journey of destruction and mayhem. Unhindered and unimpeded, the massive truck plowed through the hundreds of bodies littering the ground.

The water cannons were causing considerable damage in taking down massive groups of the infected. Some of those who had been infected longer had sizeable pieces of skin and tissue blasted off their face and bodies. None of them could keep their balance, much less attack the bucking truck. The feelings of dread and despair displayed as they entered the horde were now cheers and shouts as they came out the other side of the throng.

“Holee shit, that was a first,” Doc yelled.

“First time for me too,” Priest added. “Everyone ok? Doug, are we on the right road?”

“Yeah, should be another mile or so.”

A few minutes later, they came across an empty flight line. Without knowing exactly how many infected they just killed, the team knew they needed to work quickly searching for a helicopter. After the rest of the Team bailed out, Shaw turned the truck around to face the way they just come.

Meanwhile, the team frantically spread out to search the hangars for any aircraft. Two hangars produced nothing, but as Tug entered one of the last hangers, he stopped in his tracks.

“Well, my, my.” He walked in through the pedestrian door and a moment later the team flinched as the sound of the hangar doors groaning to open reached their ears. They turned around to see Tug standing in the open hangar bay right in front of an UH-60 Pave Hawk. The Air Force’s rendition of the Army’s Blackhawk.

“Shit,” Priest cursed. “Sweet ride, but we cannot use it,”

“Why not?” Tug asked.