Lintero Part II

Section III

We Have a Plan

Myself, Matt, Heren, and Ace sat at a table with map, weapons, armor plans, compass, pencils and markers in hand. Finally, I jutted in “So, tell me more about this army.” Matt gulped, then replied “There is not much to say. What army do you think usually just goes by ‘the army’?” Heren gasped. “You mean!? No, our government can’t trap us here. That’s insane!” “Sorry, but the only way out is up.” “‘Up’? So, how will we get up? By balloon?” I interjected. Matt looked down at his side of table, smirked, and still with his head pointed to the table, brought his eyes to each person there. Heren realized it. “You… no, even if you are a rough, tough Texan. How can you fly us out of here?” Matt got up. “Follow.” We all got up, and followed Matt up the stairs, and into a dark room. Suddenly, a light flicked on and we saw it. Plans. Not just of a plane, but how to fly it, where to get it, how to start it, how to fuel it up, etc. and even a simulator with a military plane on it ready to fly.

Heren finally spoke. “So, how will this help? There aren’t any airports or bases around here…” Matt again smirked. “Your ‘expert map maker’ isn’t as skilled as you told me, Torin, but anyway, come here Heren.” She walked to a window. “There. Do not adjust the the telescope, just look through it.” “And what am I looking at? A barb-wire fence?” Matt adjusted some dials, and the telescope angled up ever so slightly. “And what am I… Ohhhhh. Is that a…”  “Yup. C-130J ‘Hercules’. Cruises at 410 MPH at 22,000, 2,000 mile range, and we can get above any ground installations by going to 26,000 and activating any jammers.

“Alright, and how will we get this?” Torin chimed in. “Simple, take the sewage lines underneath the base, to access manhole 3C, we will then very stealthy get to this building, where we unlock the hanger. Then, we get to the hanger, load up, fuel up, take off, and fly at 26,000 feet to Ann Arbor in Michigan, pick up a snow landing kit, then fly and land just outside Timmins in Canada to fuel up and meet a group, and just keep flying north.” “Well then, what will we need?” “We’ll need advanced combat rifles capable of mounting suppressors…” Ace remembered something . “You mean like this?” He held up a pistol with a metal tube on the front. “Let me see that. Follow me underground.” We all went down to a basement, where Matt turned on a light, pressed a red button, and zombie targets ran toward him. “Pew! Pew! Pew!” Each of the targets had a hole in their head. “Ehh, not bad.” Matt took one more shot and the tube flew off. “That… is what I was afraid of. So, we need suppressed guns.” Heren jutted in with the obvious. “So, what about your guns? This is a gun store, right?” “Suppressors aren’t legal in Kansas. So… that would be an impossibility. However, there is a police armory east of here, 20 klicks away.” Heren asked “Really? 20 kilometers?” “Yes, and I’m glad you know that.” Sarah started in. ”I’m tired, and I want to sleep. Can we go use one of the rooms or park around back?” “But Sarah, this could be…” I mustered the strength to say before blacking out on the floor.

Section IV

An Unneeded Problem

When I awoke, it was about noon. I was outside, in the van. The only one with me was Ace. He was ill, and needed medicine. I was just exhausted from last night, so that was why I passed out, he said. “Oh boy… this is bad. What do you feel like?” I asked. “Like I’ve been lit on fire, but I’m not burning away. My throat feels cracked, and I am now…” He then threw up into a bucket Sarah must have placed out for him. Crawling out of bed, I got Ace’s medicine tablet and turned to the poisoning section. Nothing matches the symptoms, so I check Bacterial Infections. Nothing. “Gah.. hold on, man.” Ace was starting to wheeze. Heat exhaustion? I turned to the ‘Other’ section, and there it was. Perfect match. “Okay, I’ll be right back. I need a rag and some  water.” And so I rush off.

In the gun shop, I found a bottle. Just an empty bottle. “This can hold the water…” I ran to the sink. Nothing. Pipes must be broken. Then I remembered a river, clear as crystal, nearby. As I ran there, I saw the military forces nearby, marching in uniform. Tanks and soldiers with barbed wire were all over. It took a while, but they passed without me knowing. I got to the river, and tripped. Someone was coming. Only one, though. I reached for my axe… my axe! It was still in the van! I had to run. Grabbing the bottle, I filled it and got out. I had to get something… a gun? too noisy. A knife was my best bet. Never thought I’d say this, but I was glad I had taken Martial Arts when I was 8.

I ran out of the water, adrenaline pumping and not caring about the sound I made. I jumped into a bush, waited for the steps to run out, and then kept moving. I finally made it to the van, and Ace was happy to see me. he took the water, and drank most of it. I had to stop him to moisten the towel. As I tended to him, there was banging on the door. I grabbed a kitchen knife we had, and walked to the door. “Who’s there?” “It’s just me, Heren. Calm down, you’re shaking.” She entered the RV. “What’s wrong?” “The military, out there. About a hundred of them, 2 tanks, an APC, and 4 humvees… bad things are about to happen.” Just then Matt came in. “How’s Ace’s heat exhaustion?” “Fine, for now.” I replied to Matt. “Listen, one quick thing Matt.” “Sure, what is it?” “When I went out there, I saw the military. Some tanks, humvees, and a lot of troops.” “Dang… you’re certain they were U.S. tanks?” “Well…” I started getting this cold feeling inside me. My heart started sinking, and I looked slightly down. Matt realized something terribly, and I could tell. “Heren, you and Torin are on recon duty, take this camera.” He handed Heren a Canon camera. “You go out, and if you see anything, look, hold the button for five seconds, take off your finger, and repeat. Take pictures of ANYTHING that looks military, so troops, tanks, APC’s, helicopters or jets if you see any, just anything. We need to know what’s out there, so we can make a new plan.”

“Hey wait, Torin is in charge!” Heren replied in a stern voice. “Look, I’m sure your leader agrees with me, right Torin?” I gave a quick, agreeing nod. I realized what I had done all too late, as Matt looked at me with  “Okay, now go, we need all the intel we can. When you get back, check Ace to see if he’s okay. If he is, meet in the office, upstairs, in the shop. Also, wake Sarah and get Joel for this. All hands on deck for this meeting, when y’all get back, of course.” “Fine. Torin, let’s go.” Heren stormed out of the RV. I followed behind.

“Torin, wait.” I turn around quickly, keeping my eye on Heren. “Look, I’m sorry. It’s just… it’s been a while since I’ve been with people, not infected. Also…” Matt trailed off. “You like her, don’t you?” “Huh?” Matt seemed a little surprised. “How did you read me so well just now?” “If I can tell, you’re pretty obvious. Heren is blinded by the situation, so she doesn’t realize that yet. Stay calm, and don’t freak.” “Ok. And, she’s right. You are the boss.” “Not all the time. Ask Sarah.” I yelled as I ran to catch up with Heren.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Krueger Calendar of Events

Skip to toolbar