The Crash Box Set, page 28
part #1 of EMP Crash Series
Mack had moved the horses to a safe place and was about to return when he heard a cry from outside the camp. The patrol had returned unexpectedly and had seen the carnage that Mack's army had wrought. The other guards had fled to the other side of the camp, meaning all of Mack's people were caught in the middle, and it was not an enviable position in which to be. Mack fired his gun as he made his way back into the main camp. He knew he had to be there to direct his troops as they would be more effective with a commander than they would be as just a rabble of people. As he made his way through the devastation it brought back a lot of memories of his early career in the army, a time he thought he had left long ago.
When he returned, he saw the battle had been fragmented. Luis and his group had chased after the guards who had fled and were now gone. Grace was just returning, having left people to guard the vehicles, and Saul was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Mr. Smith. When he asked where Saul had gone, people mostly didn't know, although one mentioned Saul had said he had a score he needed to settle. Mack scowled, as going after Mr. Smith like that hadn't been part of the plan. Once again, Saul had endangered them all. Right now, they needed leadership, order, and a chain of command, but with Luis and Saul otherwise occupied Mack needed more help. He called to Steve and made him a deputy.
“I'm going to hold the line here and coordinate the attack. Right now, we're pinned down from two sides and that's not a good position to be in. I need you to run to Chris and tell him to leave the horses and attack to the east. You got that?” Steve nodded eagerly and Mack watched him run low through the gunfire, impressed by the courage he was showing.
“We've made it this far! We can keep going! This day can be ours! Remember to breathe. Don't waste your ammo. Wait until you have a clear shot. You're doing well and I'm proud of you,” Mack yelled to try galvanizing the people around him.
He told Grace to get back to her people and bring the wagons into the middle of camp as they could use them for shelter. Bullets flew past him as he kept his head down and wished he had had a helmet. The battle raged on and it was impossible to tell who was winning, but the bodies continued piling up. There were roars from far away in the camp, and Mack hoped Luis was still alive.
Moments later Steve was running through camp back to Mack, crouching down and hiding from the flurry of bullets flying through the air. But then a shot went clean through Steve's leg. The young boy yelped in pain as blood gushed from the open wound and he fell to the ground, trying to claw forward. Mack cried out and looked to the source of the shot. It was the man with no name, limping forward, his legs and arm bandaged from where he had been shot before. His gun was drawn and he walked tall through the battlefield, as though he was invincible. Mack burned with anger as the man with no name approached Steve and drew his gun again, then turned and smiled as he saw Mack coming toward him.
“Don't you dare!” Mack yelled.
“Or what?” the man with no name said dryly.
“This is the price you pay for starting a war. There are always casualties. I knew you were going to be trouble when I met you on that damned farm. I should have killed you then. You could have had a good life here. All you had to do was listen to that rambling fool's ideas and you could have done anything you wanted.”
“Leave Steve alone,” Mack said, and pointed his gun squarely at the head of the man with no name.
“I never was going to make it out of this alive, not once you started shooting up the place. I have made my peace with that. Have you?” he said, and time froze as he squeezed the trigger and a bullet shot out.
Before Mack knew it Steve's struggling body was still, and his eyes were glassy-looking. The man with no name laughed and turned to point his gun at Mack, but Mack's reactions were sharper and soon the laugh was no more. The man with no name crumpled to the ground, but the damage already had been done. Mack ran to Steve and cradled his limp body. Mack had seen many soldiers die over the course of his career and it was always a tragedy when a life was cut short, but Steve hadn't been a soldier. He hadn't signed up for this. And now he was dead.
In the chaos of the battle, Mack took a moment to look around. Dead bodies from both sides covered the ground and the air was heavy with the thick smell of blood and burning metal. It was a pointless battle, one that would not be remembered in history, yet one that would leave its mark on all involved.
He returned to the armory and fired more shots. In the distance, he could see Chris still alive, even though others had fallen beside him. They had lost more people than Mack had expected and, in that moment, he spared a thought for his wife. He hoped that wherever she was she was not involved in something like this.
The battle had been frantic and people around him were beginning to become battle-scarred. On the other side of the camp he could see Luis' group emerging, looking triumphant, but there was no sign of Luis with them, and Mack's heart sank. But they moved through the camp and provided relief for those at the armory, managing to pin down the onslaught that had been coming from the edge of the camp. Mack could feel that victory was close, but there was still a ways to go yet. However, when he looked around he couldn't see Grace either, and it seemed that when he needed them most his closest allies all had deserted him. So he was left barking orders, hoping they were okay.
When Grace had realized Saul was nowhere to be found she remembered his vow. She knew he had gone after his brother, but she wasn't about to leave Mr. Smith all to him. After carrying out Mack's order to secure the bikes and lay down some covering fire she left her group and went looking for Saul. She ducked and dodged her way through the camp, hiding from guards as they ran past. She saw some of them fleeing into the woods, but she didn't give chase. It was clear now that when you ruled by fear like Mr. Smith you did not inspire loyalty from your followers, and she looked forward to telling him that in person.
She made her way to the very back of the camp to Mr. Smith's hut, but found it empty. However, there was a trail by the door that suggested somebody had been dragged out. After following the trail, she tried thinking where Saul would take Mr. Smith. The river was perhaps too far, but the tent where they all had been kept prisoner was a good bet. Indeed, when she followed the trail it led exactly to there. She peered in and saw that Saul was holding Mr. Smith at gunpoint. She walked in.
“I told you that you had to get in line,” Grace said. Mr. Smith was trying to remain composed, but there were beads of sweat trickling down his face and his armpits were stained.
“He's my brother. I should be the one to do it. It was lucky I got there when I did. I caught this coward trying to get away on a bike. Funny that, his whole place comes under attack, and instead of defending it, he runs. But that's what you're always used to doing, isn't it brother? Running away instead of trying to prove yourself.”
“Better than breaking the law and getting put in prison over and over again, or running out on your family,” Mr. Smith spat back.
“You like to think you're a big, bad lone wolf, but the truth is nobody wants you around because you're a liability. Even now there's a whole war being waged, and instead of helping your people you're in here with me, putting your own personal goals ahead of everything else. You see, Grace? This is what I'm talking about. The world can't go on like this. We all should be working together and there's still a chance for you to make the right decision. I'm sure that you, me and Mack can work things out. Most of the bad guards will be dead by now. I never wanted them in the first place, I just had to use them so I could build up this place. I never wanted it to be like this, I wanted us to all get along. Take care of Saul and we can go out there and put an end to this war. Nobody else has to die,” he said, trying to make an imploring case to Grace.
Grace moved forward so she was standing beside Saul.
“You're wrong. There's one last person who has to die. You. Do it, Saul. End this now,” Grace said. Saul's hands gripped the gun and they started shaking as he tried willing himself to pull the trigger.
“You're the same as you always were, Saul. You never could do anything useful. You messed everything up and you'll always mess up everything. You can't even do this right. You're pathetic. And you wonder why I wanted to leave home?”
“All we ever wanted was to give you a good life! We just wanted to protect you and care for you, but you threw it back in our faces. Mom was never the same after you left. You were her baby. She always loved you more than me, and you had to go break her heart. And look at you, you don't even care.”
“No, I don't care, because I'm better than you. I'm better than all of you!” he said.
By this point he had stepped around slowly so his back was to the tent entrance. Grace yelled at Saul again to pull the trigger, but Saul was unable to do so. Mr. Smith merely laughed and shook his head one last time before he turned and moved out of the tent. Grace glared at Saul and followed, drawing her gun. She pointed and pulled the trigger, closing her eyes at the last moment. Then she heard a cry of pain. When she opened her eyes, she saw Mr. Smith was cradling his leg, but still moving, albeit far more slowly. He was wheezing and she raised the gun again, remembering how he had threatened her and gripped her jaw. Anger rose within her like a viper ready to strike at its prey, but just as she was about to end Mr. Smith's life, Saul was by her side, wresting the gun from her grip. She glared at him once again, but he had a solemn look on his face.
“You don't want to do that,” he said, “let the wild get him.” Grace let her gaze linger at the trail of blood that followed Mr. Smith into the forest. Then she and Saul turned away as they returned to the main conflict.
Chapter 19
In the aftermath of the battle there was much rejoicing from the victors, even though their triumph had come at a very great cost. Sorrow thundered through the camp as people went through the fallen bodies and inevitably found a family member or someone they had thought fondly of. Mack was disheartened to see that Chris eventually had fallen as well, although the horses were still safe.
The camp was a literal war zone with empty bullet shells and corpses on the ground. The fight had raged for hours, and although it was still a bright day the sun soon would dip below the horizon, completing its descent. Mack looked up at it and mused that even though much had happened to the people of Earth, the rest of the universe and time was continuing without any thought of what was occurring to them.
Bullets had torn holes through tents and it would take a lot of work to get the camp up and running again. Mack divided everyone into teams again. They needed to collect all the guns and unused ammo and put them back in the armory, gather up all the dead bodies and make a note of who had died, make sure the horses and other modes of transportation all were accounted for, take stock of the supplies, and generally make sure they all were safe, and that there were no stragglers from Mr. Smith's regime.
After talking among themselves, the people of the camp decided they would burn all the bodies on the bonfire. Even though there were many cultures, they all had come together against Mr. Smith and the best thing to do was to deal with the dead bodies quickly. It pained Mack to see Steve and the man with no name being gathered up together. Now in death they both were corpses, whereas in life they had been two completely different people. Although they all were exhausted from fighting, there was still a lot of work to do and they put in the effort long into the evening.
Shortly after they had been tidying up, Mack was given a morale boost as Luis appeared, half-dazed and looking much the worse for wear. Upon seeing him Mack embraced him tightly.
“I thought you were a goner,” he said.
“So did I for a while,” Luis said, looking relieved.
“It was touch and go there. I wasn't sure we were going to make it, but they're all good people. I was caught in a big brawl, and then a couple of them tried to get away. I chased them through the forest and we got into a fight. Then they ran away. I was knocked down. It took me a while before I came to. I was just lucky they decided not to finish me off.”
“I think most of Mr. Smith's men gave up the cause when they saw that it was lost, and when he didn't appear,” Mack said. Luis asked what happened with Mr. Smith and Mack told him what he had heard from Grace.
“It's a shame he got away,” Luis said. “I would have liked to have made him pay for everything he put us all through.”
“From what Grace said he was losing a lot of blood. So I doubt he made it very far,” Mack said, although deep down he had his doubts, and was afraid they had not seen the last of Mr. Smith.
At that point Danny came over and expressed joy at seeing Luis again, then told him the sad news of Steve's death. Mack left the two new friends to talk with each other. All through the camp he saw scenes like this, of people who had formed bonds in the face of adversity. He knew the camp would be stronger for these people having come together.
After they had taken care of everything and set the bodies alight Mack gathered them all around. The guards who had not been killed had been tied up. They were sitting near them, although far away from the weapons, for Mack wanted to address them as well.
“Today has been a long, hard day, but I'm proud of you all. Everyone in this camp did more than was asked of them. You came together and fought back against the person who had caused you so much pain. A lot of people gave their lives today, people who were close to all of us, and I would like to pay our respects to them now. We will miss them, and we always will remember them. As we move forward and as this camp is rebuilt, it will be with the knowledge that we are only here because of their sacrifices to us.
“And now, for those of us who still live, we have choices to make. We have prisoners here, guards who were working for Mr. Smith. I don't know how justice is supposed to work in this new world. There are still so many things we're going to have to figure out on our own, but I want us to try being the best possible versions of ourselves. So I would like to offer them a choice. Either they can try making it out there by themselves or they can stay here, as long as they promise to behave and give themselves accordingly.
“Now, I don't want to speak for everyone because the last thing you need is someone else telling you what to do. So I suggest you form some kind of committee that can make these decisions. But right now, I just wanted to say thank you to you all for what you've done here today. You all should be proud of yourselves. Let's enjoy the feast tonight!”
His words were met with a loud cheer and people started socializing as food was brought out and cooked, away from the bonfire of burning bodies. Now that Mr. Smith was gone, the food could be shared equally, as could the alcohol that he had been hoarding. Soon enough, Dana, the woman to whom Mack had spoken about the state of the city, came up to him. He was glad to see she had survived the ordeal.
“A few of us have been talking,” she began.
“We like your idea of a committee, but we also like the idea of you sticking around. None of this would have been possible without you. I think most of us are going to stay try making a go of it here. Hell, part of the reason why most of us came here in the first place was because we were promised a sanctuary where people were working together to build a community. So we might as well make that a reality. We'd like you to stay, though, and be a part of this. It's still going to take a lot of work to repair the damage Mr. Smith caused. Not just with us, but with the people in the area, and we could use all the help we could get.”
“I appreciate the offer, and I'll think about it,” he said.
Then he promised he'd stay for at least a few days to make sure everyone was okay, and that there were no more surprises in store. As the evening continued he noticed Grace was standing by herself, so he went over to see her.
“I was ready to do it,” she said.
“I would have killed him if Saul hadn't stopped me. Most of my life has been spent in cyberspace, and whenever I did something to anyone it always was… removed... detached. It was easier that way. But I was right there and I was ready to end his life.”
“It's okay. I'm proud of you for everything you've done here,” Mack said.
“And Mr. Smith is still alive. You didn't kill anyone. You're not a bad person, Grace. Even if you had killed him, I'm not sure you would be.”
A small smile crept across Grace's lips. “It's funny, isn't it? When we first met I was a bad person, at least in the eyes of the law. If things had gone differently I would be in prison right now, and you'd be with your wife.” She looked directly at him.
“In a way, I'm glad that things happened this way, and that we had a chance to become friends. But Anna is still out there somewhere, and I'm not going to rest until I find her.”
He could tell by the way she visibly relaxed that what he had said made her feel better. He was glad she wasn't going to lose herself in the darkness of self-doubt, for she had been too full of that already.
“You're not going to stay here, then? You could make a pretty good life for yourself here. There are a lot of good people, and they look up to you.”
“They are good people, and I could have a good life here, but it's not my life. As long as there's a chance Anna is still alive I must try finding her. I couldn't live with myself if I didn't. It's going to be hard to leave, though,” he said, and he meant every word.
Even though only a few days had passed the community was already strong. The newly-formed committee had decided to extend the hand of friendship to the guards who had been captured as a way of ushering in a new era of forgiveness. Some of them took it, others decided to take their chances on their own. So they were given rudimentary supplies and shown on their way. The place was abuzz with possibilities and Mack was pleased to see it getting up and running so quickly. It was amazing to think it had been only a few days since the air had been alive with the sound of gunfire, and death had hung heavily all around them.
