Wasteland Rules: A New Dawn (The World After Book 3) (21 page)

   “Where is the hacker?” Derek called as they ran down the
stairs.

   “The Red Beret captain took him.” She called back as she
dashed down the stairs and out into the mall.

   “We need to find them!” Derek insisted.

   “The only way out of this place is the front entrance;
they had to have left through there.” Rora replied over her shoulder.

   The center of the mall was a disaster zone. The walls
were blown apart by bolt and gun fire. Rubble from the android’s entry and
crash into the elevator shaft littered the floor. Dead bodies were scattered
all around where they had been thrown after being shot. Rora and Derek picked
their way through the mess and ran for the exit. Derek stopped briefly to grab
an MP-5 submachine gun with a fore grip and toss it to her. An extra magazine
was already taped to the existing magazine with electrical tape, but he tossed
her a couple more.

   As she slung the submachine gun over her shoulder and
pocketed the magazines, he picked up an M-14 like the one Tex had carried and a
few extra magazines. Then he pocketed a couple of grenades. Even under extreme
duress he still followed Rules #9 and #18, take everything you can carry and
you can never have enough ammo. Once they were armed, Derek led the way out.

   Both Derek and Rora felt the building shake and lights
failed as the approached the entrance. The battle still raging between the
Prince and the android must have knocked out the generators. They could still
hear the continued bolt and rail gun fire as they exited the building. The
outside was empty of any gunmen; all of them must either have died in the
battle inside or fled during the battle. One of the SUV technicals was gone and
the other two had their tires shot out.

   Closer inspection revealed several gunmen with their
throats slit or shot at close range with a conventional firearm. The gunmen had
all been stripped of their weapons and ammo. It appeared that the Red Berets
followed rules #9 and #18. The three dirt bikes were scorched wrecks, and it
looked like someone blew their gas tanks. All of the local transportation had
been systematically disabled.

   “Looks like they have a good head start.” Derek stated
laconically.

   “We need to catch the Red Berets and we need to get out
of here before one of the monsters inside wins and comes looking for us.” Rora
replied emphatically.

   “Let’s look around back. These couldn’t have been their
only vehicles.” Derek responded quickly.

   She followed as he jogged around to the back of the
building. Derek proved to be right. There were several vehicles at a makeshift
garage based around the auto department of a department store. Unfortunately
most were under repair and not usable. Based on the scattered parts and tire
tracks, there had been more vehicles but they had left in a hurry. Probably
gunmen fleeing the scene.

   Derek gave a cry of jubilation as he peeled back a heavy
tarp. Underneath were four wicked looking performance bikes. They had been
upgraded with light armor protecting the gas tank and shielding in the front.
All four looked to be in perfect condition.  He checked the gas tanks and then
grabbed a gas can to fill up two of them. He started one to make sure they ran
and it came to life with a loud roar.

   Then he tossed her a helmet and gestured for Rora to get
on the other one. She didn’t know exactly how to ride a motorcycle but it
couldn’t be that different from the ATV she drove in Atlanta. Derek spent a
couple of minutes showing her the basics and then he indicated it was time to
go.

  “Voice.” Derek asked loudly. “Any sign of where they
went?”

  “No, but the likely route is straight down old Interstate
eighty.” The Voice informed them calmly. “I’m sending the route now.”

   Derek checked the phone’s GPS and kicked the bike’s
kickstand up. “Let’s go!” He announced as he put on his helmet.

   “Wait! What about the plane and our extra gear on it?”
Rora asked.

   “No time. They have a head start and it isn’t that far to
Des Moines.” Derek explained. “Besides, the only thing of value was the pulse
rifle and it had some sort of smart lock. It’s coded to the DNA of the clones.
There’s no way I could get it to work.”

   A violent explosion shook the mall and ended their
conversation. Flames shot out of the openings in the roof and rattled the tools
nearby. Then a slow rumble started and the mall began to collapse in on itself.
Derek threw the throttle all the way open and roared off. Rora imitated his
actions and followed as close as she could. She wobbled a little bit, but
managed to maintain her balance. They were on the highway before the dust
settled from the mall collapse.

   The bikes were incredibly fast, and they reached speeds
over a hundred miles an hour as they chased after the fleeing Red Berets. Rora
had never felt such freedom and excitement. The sensation of the wind rushing
past her and the landscape whizzing by was intoxicating. She knew the SUV was
much slower and it was only a matter of time before they caught up, but she
tried to enjoy the ride as much as possible before that happened.

September 7, 2029

Interstate 80 East of Omaha, Nebraska

   All five of the Surviving Red Berets and the hacker were
crammed into the armored SUV technical. Tom had managed to grab the hacker and
free his remaining squad members during the confusion. Sasha and Saad had
killed the few gunmen outside and then they had disabled or destroyed the other
vehicles in the parking lot. Valderra was driving and Roberts was riding
shotgun. He was in the middle row with their prisoner, and Sasha and Saad were
in the back. He had no doubt that Storm would survive and come after them; the
man was tougher to kill than a cockroach.

   The bigger question was which of the two psychopaths
would win the battle in the mall? The man in the metal suit or the man in the
metal mask? It had been quite a shock to discover that Prinz had survived the
destruction of his compound. Somehow the Outfit leader had found his way to
Omaha and used his skills and possibly cached weapons to take over. It was
unfortunate the man had been a traitor; he would have been a great asset to the
U.S.T.G.

   Hopefully they made it to U.S.T.G. territory and the
protection of heavier weapons before either one was victorious. Des Moines was
only two hours away; and even though it was the edge of the current territory,
it had a good sized garrison. They didn’t even need to make it to the city.
Massive fields of food crops surrounded the city and were the primary source of
the U.S.T.G.s food.

   When the U.S.T.G. had nationalized all critical
industries they had seized control of all the seed companies. Once the plant
virus had run its course, new plants had been able to be grown. But there were
limited sources of seed available; and unfortunately, modern agriculture had
created sterile crops. That meant that they could be harvested once and then
new seed was needed. So unless you had access to fresh seeds, you were unable
to grow anything. And that was pretty much limited to food crops. No one kept
seeds for pine trees, and there just wasn’t enough grass seed in the world to
come close to replacing what was lost.

   A massive project had been launched to clear any and all available
land around Des Moines for the creation of the massive farms. Farm equipment
had been requisitioned and sent to the new farms. Tens of thousands of workers
had been sent to operate the machinery and process the grain. Giant grain silos
were built that dominated the southern edge of the city near the newly enlarged
train depot built to handle the increased volume of grain. The trains ran day
and night transporting food to the processing centers in the major cities.

   The U.S.T.G. had built or expanded the rail system in the
territory they controlled and used it as the main method of transportation.
High speed rail lines connected the largest cities for passenger travel.
Following the Collapse, U.S.T.G. operatives had roamed the country collecting
railroad cars and engines. It really was the most efficient way to move people
if they only had a limited number of places to go. The same was true for cargo.
And the trains always ran on time.

   Flights might be limited;, but they could catch one of
the trains and be in Joliet, just outside of Chicago, at the main military
headquarters in less than six hours. Then Tom could relax once he had handed
the prisoner over. Until then he had Storm, the Prince, and whatever that metal
man was to worry about. Any or all of the three could be pursuing them right
now.

   “What was that thing?” Roberts finally asked, breaking
the silence.

   Surprisingly, the hacker was the one that answered even
though he hadn’t spoken thus far. “That my dear, was an android.” He said
cheerfully.

   “That’s pure science fiction.” Tom snapped.

   “Obviously not.” The hacker pointed out. “There is no
other explanation for what we saw.”

   “It was a man in a metal suit.” Tom argued.

   “Have you ever seen a metal suit like that?”

   “No, but that doesn’t mean the Collective didn’t build
one.” Tom continued to argue.

   The hacker chuckled. “You Red Berets really are blindly
loyal and doggedly stupid aren’t you?”

   That earned the hacker a backhand from Tom, effectively
shutting him up. The hacker’s face changed briefly from congenial to an icy
hate filled demeanor. For a moment Tom thought the man might actually attack
him. But then the hacker resumed the deferential and easy going attitude he had
had previously.

    “How long?” Tom demanded from Valderra.

    “Last road sign said sixty five miles, so less than an
hour.” Valderra called back.

   Tom grunted and sat back. He still hurt all over from the
beating the Prince’s men had given him. And he was still traumatized from
seeing Storm kill even more of his men. Templeton’s performance had been a
surprise. If he hadn’t gotten careless he could have killed Storm. It was very
likely Templeton had been some sort of plant, sent to kill Storm. He had been
much more impressive a warrior than his file or physical appearance would have
indicated.

    His musings were cut short as they were all startled by
bullets bouncing off the rear of the technical. They looked back to see two
people on armored bikes chasing them. A man and a woman were on the other side
of the median closing fast. Storm and his pesky girl. Somehow they had escaped
and found transportation. That man was infuriatingly resourceful and lucky.

   “Shoot them!” He roared and the other Red Berets snapped
into action.

   Saad climbed onto the middle row as Tom shoved the hacker
into the back seat. He popped up through the roof hatch and steadied the 30-06
hunting rifle he had taken from one of the Prince’s gunmen. Saad methodically
fired at the pursuers as Tom shoved the AK-74 he had scavenged out the firing
port on the driver side window and returned fire also. Sasha fired her captured
M4A1 carbine through the rear firing port on full auto. They had been forced to
leave their gear behind as they fled and were only armed with the guns they had
been able to scavenge.

   The gunfire from the SUV forced the pursuing bikers to
drop back for a minute but they regrouped and came again. Storm was firing what
looked like an M-14 and the girl had an MP-5 submachine gun. They were behind
the arc of the SUVs mounted weapon and the median was protecting most of their
bodies and the bike from being hit by the Red Beret’s fire. The two
concentrated their fire on Saad and he was forced to duck back into the
vehicle. The rounds ricocheting off of the SUV’s armor coming perilously close
to hitting him.

   “Can’t you go any faster?” Tom yelled at Valderra.

   “This thing is heavy, I have my foot all the way down.”
He yelled back.

   The combatants continued to exchange fire as they raced
down the highway, Derek and Rora firing repeatedly into the SUV and the Red
Berets returning fire with their captured weapons. The exchanges went on for at
least a dozen miles with no effect. Bullets sparked of the SUV’s armor and
metal grating but couldn’t penetrate. But the vehicle was taking a pounding and
it was only a matter of time before a few rounds got through.

   Without their normally issued and vastly superior
weapons, the Red Berets didn’t have much of an advantage. They also didn’t have
the protection of their armor and it was making the others tentative. They
ducked whenever their pursuers fired on them, even though the armored SUV
provided great protection. They returned fire when they could, but all they
were doing was blasting holes in the concrete median. Storm and the girl would
merely duck down to provide very small targets, which were incredibly difficult
to hit while moving at this speed and with such poorly maintained weapons.

   Tom snarled in frustration. Derek and Rora probably
couldn’t stop them before they reached the border, but he wasn’t one hundred
percent convinced they wouldn’t get a lucky shot.  It was only a matter of time
before the Red Berets ran out of ammo for their scavenged weapons. Then they
would be helpless against their nemeses.

   “Hold your fire!” He ordered. “Stop wasting ammo. Only
fire when you have a good shot.”

   “We must have hit them!” Sasha suddenly announced.
“Look!”

   They all watched as the two bikes went down an exit ramp
and disappeared from view. “They’re coming back.” Tom responded harshly.
“There’s no way Storm gives up that easily. Keep watching and be ready.”

   Sure enough, a minute later, the girl reappeared up a
ramp and resumed firing. Sasha and Tom returned fire and she dropped back. But
they were caught off guard when Storm suddenly appeared on their side of the
road. He flew up a ramp and soared onto the highway. Taking careful aim, he
fired his entire clip into the passenger side at close range. The heavy rounds
from the M-14 slammed through the metal grating covering the window and into
Saad. The last remaining original member of Tom’s squad was flung across the
vehicle as the bullets tore into him.

   “NOOO!!!” Tom screamed as his soldier’s body landed on
him in a bloody and lifeless heap.

   Roberts and Sasha frantically returned fire, but Storm
had already dropped back off via another ramp. A metallic orb dropped through
the firing port and into Tom’s lap, startling him. He quickly glanced to his
left and saw the girl racing away. She had taken advantage of the distraction
of Saad’s death to cross over and throw a grenade into the SUV. Tom flicked the
grenade away from him and callously threw Saad’s body on top of it. He would serve
even in death.

  The grenade exploded with a muffled thump. Saad’s body
absorbed most of the blast, but some was redirected downward and blew a hole in
the floor. The SUV shimmied and swerved before Valderra regained control. Then
it started to shake and shiver.

   “What’s wrong?” Roberts asked Valderra.

   “The blast must have damaged the shocks or suspension
system somehow.” He replied through gritted teeth. “I have control, but it’s
fighting me.”

   “We’re close!” Tom yelled. “Keep going!”

   Derek and Rora continued to pursue them and kept a steady
stream of fire on the SUV. Tom, Sasha, and Roberts fired back; but they were
getting low on ammo. The two pursuers switched their focus and began shooting
at the rear tires. They were solid rubber, but enough damage would cause them
to come apart. The SUV began to swerve wildly as pieces of the tire began to
join the trail of fluid leaking behind the vehicle.  Tom began to genuinely
worry that they weren’t going to make it. 

   But just as he was about to order something desperate the
border checkpoint slowly came into view. It was a large concrete fortification
built across the interstate. Big bunkers housing heavy machine guns and
soldiers with anti-tank weapons sat on either side of the road and heavy steel
gates blocked the roadway itself. Razor wire topped fences stretched out from
the checkpoint as far as the eye could see. Tom knew several armored vehicles
sat on the other side of the gate, ready to respond if someone manage to breach
the gate.

   “Wave something white out the window!” Tom ordered
Roberts. “We don’t want them to shoot us.”

   She rummaged around and found a dirty rag that had once
been white. It wasn’t exactly white, but it would have to do. Roberts stuck it
out the window and waved it wildly as they approached the checkpoint. Patrols
and other missions left through the checkpoint and went into the Uncontrolled
Zone occasionally, but he knew that an armored technical approaching would be
considered a threat.

   Despite the “white flag” being waved, the gunners in the
bunker fired a warning burst at the SUV. Valderra slammed on the brakes and
they slid to a halt. He turned as they slid and came to a rest with the driver
side of the vehicle facing the checkpoint. Tom grabbed the hacker and scrambled
out, and the others followed. He threw his weapon away and held his hands up
the air. The others quickly followed suit.

   Soldiers swarmed out of the checkpoint with guns at the
ready and surrounded them. The soldiers forced them down onto the ground and
cuffed all of them. Tom wasn’t going to fight them; it could all be sorted out
once they were secure behind the checkpoint. From his vantage point on the
ground he could see Derek and Rora stopped in the distance, watching from their
bikes as the Red Berets were led inside the checkpoint. He smiled; another
victory won over Storm. Maybe his luck was changing.