The Last Bastion of the Living: A Futuristic Zombie Novel (48 page)

“
It
’
s rather amazing. I should have never let them keep me out of such vital planning and kept you, Castellan, in the dark of what I knew.
”
Commandant Pierce paced back and forth before Dwayne
’
s desk. She would give her head a shake every few seconds, the look of disbelief not leaving her features.

Dr. Curran stared down at her pad, her silence disconcerting.

Dwayne lightly touched her shoulder, pulling her attention to him.
“
There has to be a way to sort this out, right?
”

“
It doesn
’
t matter, Castellan
Reichardt
. We were all pawns and it
’
s too late now.
”
She looked years older now. It was evident she had not realized the full extent of the conspiracy within the SWD, if at all.

“
We can release the information Lindsey compiled,
”
Dwayne suggested.

“
If we leak the information about how the SWD cleared the valley, the citizens of
The Bastion
won
’
t care. They
’
ll be thankful to the SWD for freeing them from the
Inferi Scourge
.
”
Dr. Curran slumped in her chair.
“
They
’
ve won. They have control.
”

“
We
’
ll just have Maria tell them that they
—that
you
lied to her!
”
Lindsey leaned heavily on her cane, glaring at the doctor.
“
You totally fucked her up and didn
’
t even tell her what you were doing.
”

“
I did what I believed was right,
”
Dr. Curran said defensively, then deflated again.
“
It doesn
’
t matter anyway. Maria won
’
t be able to tell the media what happened out there.
”

“
If the SWD confines the veterans of the mission, won
’
t that be suspicious?
”
Petra asked.

“
I have important information about that,
”
Caitlyn said softly.
Her vivid blue eyes gazed at Dwayne sadly as she reached out and took his hand in hers. Dwayne could feel his daughter
’
s fingers trembling and he wanted to pull her into his arms and comfort her like he had when she was a little girl.
“
Sometimes Secretary Mayburn forgets I
’
m still in the office, or maybe he just doesn
’
t care about security clearance.
He sometimes speaks openly about confidential matters.
I
’
ve just ignored it until today.
I overhead something that really bothered me.
”

Leaning toward her, Dwayne tried to give her a reassuring look.
“
What is it, Caitlyn?
”

With a sigh, she tucked her blond hair back from her face, her wristlet catching the lamp light, flashing brightly for a moment.
Obviously struggling with words, or maybe having second thoughts about confiding in the people in the office, his daughter took a moment before responding. At last she said,
“
The soldiers clearing the
Inferi Scourge
from the valley...they
’
re not coming back.
”

Dwayne stared at her, mouth agape, trying to process her words.
“
What?
”

Commandant Pierce lowered her eyes as Lindsey swore impressively. Petra sat down heavily in a chair, clutching Lindsey
’
s pad. Dr. Curran sighed sorrowfully.

“
They
’
re not letting them back into the city, Dad.
I know they
’
re Constabulary soldiers.
They
’
re your people.
I was afraid that you were part of that decision until I heard all of this. But I should have known better.
”

“
Shit,
”
Dwayne exhaled.
“
Shit.
”

“
It makes sense in a terrible way,
”
Commandant Pierce said angrily.
“
The SWD created its own thinking
Inferi Scourge
, used them to clear the valley, and will dispose of them to ensure there
’
s no risk of further infection. There was never any cure for Maria and the others.
It
’
s all been a lie, hasn
’
t it, Dr. Curran
?
”

Dr. Curran shifted around in her chair so she could glare at the commandant.
“
I
’
ve been working on a cure since I successfully made Vanguard Martinez into the first viable thinking
Inferi Scourge
. All other scientists
before me
had failed, but she was perfection. I did lie to her and the others. I knew that there was a possibility that they would be destroyed, but I didn
’
t think it would really happen. Mr. Petersen swore that he would give me the time to develop a cure. I modified
the
virus. I was convinced I could discover a way to turn it off.
”

“
And did you?
”
Lindsey spat out.
“
Did you find your fucking cure?
”

Dr. Curran began to laugh, hysteria edging the sound.
“
I never had to find a cure!
”

Dwayne
gripped the armrests, leaning down to gaze into her face
, his anger barely held in check.
“
You
’
re allowing them to die!
”

“
That
’
s not what I mean!
”
Dr. Curran waved her pad at them.
“
I received some very important intel today that no one but I has seen.
The SWD doesn
’
t possess this information, not that it would change anything.
”

“
What are you talking about, you stupid bitch?
”
Lindsey shouted.

“
Stand down, Rooney,
”
Commandant Pierce ordered, her expression curious.

Dwayne
glared at the scientist
.
“
Make yourself clear.
Now.
”

“
The modified virus I gave the
Inferi Boon
was the closest we had to the original virus.
”

“
Original virus?
”
Commandant Pierce arched her eyebrows.
“
The
Inferi Scourge
Plague Virus?
”

“
No, no.
”
Dr. Curran poked Dwayne in the chest.
“
Get out of my face and I
’
ll tell you.
”

Dwayne complied.
It was probably the best idea because he was close to losing his temper.
He tried to estimate how much time he might possibly have to start a public groundswell to bring the
Inferi Boon
back into the city. It would probably take them another few days to completely clear the valley after they killed the Anomalies.

“
The original virus was a gift. We, humanity, didn
’
t realize it at the time. A gift that landed in the ocean and every nation on earth raced to discover what had fallen from the heavens and still remained visible on satellite and radar.
”

“
You
’
re talking about extraterrestrial?
”
Lindsey said in a dubious tone.

Dr. Curran nodded.
“
Oh, yes.
It was.
What was discovered in international waters was a capsule that contained several strange containers. One had the most beautiful fabric ever seen by human eyes. The others contained mineral specimens.
And one contained vials of the virus.
”
Dr. Curran sighed.
“
The
original
virus.
”

“
I don
’
t remember any of this from history,
”
Petra said in a cross tone.
“
I don
’
t believe it.
”

“
Well, for once the nations of the earth cooperated in keeping humanity in the dark about what had been discovered.
The Unified Nations of Earth Council determined that since there was no message within the capsule, we had to regard it as a possible weapon.
The virus and other objects were secured at the Unified Nations of Earth Disease Control Laboratory.
It wasn
’
t until nearly a decade later that it was discovered that the virus samples had been stolen one by one over the years. The
Inferi Scourge
Plague Virus appeared soon after.
The virus I used to create the
Inferi Boon
was recovered from the laboratory of the United Eastern Seaboard States of America. According to the data recovered alongside the virus, it had only been modified slightly.
”

“
What is your point?
”
Lindsey shouted at her.

“
My point, little girl, is that we were idiots!
”
Dr. Curran stood up and held
out
her pad.
“
We were fools!
We began altering and experimenting with the virus before we even knew what it was meant to do!
”

“
There wasn
’
t a message. You said so!
”
Lindsey
’
s face flushed red beneath her blond hair.

“
There was a message, wasn
’
t there?
”
Commandant Pierce said in a soft, dangerous voice.

“
The fabric...scientists didn
’
t realize until much later
, when it was far too late,
that it was the fabric that held the message. The actual weave itself was a language.
The virus was a gift. Immortality, perfect health. The minerals, building blocks for utopia. Somewhere, out there, we have benefactors.
”
Dr. Curran sighed wistfully.
“
Though if they have been watching for the last one hundred years, I
’
m sure they regret their gift.
By the time we understood what the virus was for it was too late. No pure sample of the virus remained, and the Inferi Scourge were nearly done finishing us off.
”

“
The virus you gave the
Inferi Boon
was not altered as much, so what does that mean?
”
Caitlyn asked.

“
It means that the virus is doing what it was originally intended to do.
It
’
s restoring the
Inferi Boon
slowly back to life.
I
’
ve been keeping close tabs on Maria Martinez without the SWD
’
s knowledge. No, I didn
’
t trust them either.
The virus is restoring her, healing her.
Already I have seen some dramatic changes in her scans that she may not even be aware of yet.
”

“
What does that mean for the rest of us?
”
Petra asked, her hand pressed to her breast.
“
We
’
re going to be immortal?
”

“
The last of the virus is in the
Inferi Boon
.
Out there.
”
Dr. Curran waved her hand.
“
Everything was destroyed once they were dispatched.
All samples of the virus were eliminated. Gone. This was our last ditch effort in every way.
If the
Inferi Boon
failed, we
’
d all die anyway.
”