Kyle West - Extinction

“Ashton would know,” I said.

“We can try contacting him,” Makara said.

“This deep underground?” Michael asked.

Makara didn’t have an answer for that.

“There has to be a way to communicate,” I said. “Ashton called Bunker 84 while he was in Skyhome.”

Samuel clicked the start menu. As soon as he did, the other computer screens came to life, bathing the control room with blue light.

In addition, the large display screen ahead flashed on, slowly gaining in color and clarity. A large map of the United States and Canada was displayed.

“What did you do?” Makara asked.

Samuel shrugged. The large screen displayed red dots pinpricking the topographic map, each with a number above it. 84. 16. 108.

“Bunker locations,” I said.

A similar map had been on the LCD of the plane that took us to Bunker One, only this one was far more detailed.

The map also appeared on Samuel’s screen.

“It looks like I can control the map,” Samuel said.

He clicked on the location of Bunker 84, located in Northern California. Immediately, he was taken to a web site of some sort, dedicated to the Bunker. On the screen were links naming different departments. Hydroponics. Recycling. The Citizens’ Council. Security.

“Click that last one,” Makara said.

Samuel clicked on “Security.” The website was bare and utilitarian, and obviously not meant for most residents’ general use. There were several more links. An Officers’ Directory. Nuclear Development. I wanted to tell Samuel to click on that one, just out of curiosity, but nukes weren’t what we were after. One of the links said “Security Feed.”

“There,” Makara said.

Samuel clicked on it. More screens popped up, displaying on the large screen ahead as well as on Samuel’s computer. Row upon row of camera feeds loaded, ranging in number from one all the way to three hundred and six. Not all the camera feeds could fit on Samuel’s screen, so he had to scroll down to see them all. As he scrolled, the main screen ahead also scrolled down, mimicking Samuel’s actions.

The only problem was, all of the video feeds were dead, with completely black screens. The word “offline” showed in the bottom right corner of each feed.

“Offline,” Makara said.

“Go back,” I said. “And click on the ‘Power Plant’ link.”

Samuel complied, digging his way back from the camera feeds until he arrived at the listing of departments. He clicked on “Power Plant.” It took us to a screen that showed basic schematics for the reactors that must have been powering the Bunker. There was a “details,” which Samuel clicked.

Hibernation. Backup module available.

“What does that mean?” Makara asked.

“It means the reactor must have shut down once it realized it wasn’t being used,” Samuel said. “Probably.”

“Then how is this place running?” Michael asked.

Samuel shrugged. “There must be some form of backup power for the Command Center servers alone. This place would be the most important to keep online. I guess the cameras have lower priority.”

“Try turning the backup module on,” Julian said.

Samuel clicked it, setting it to on. The computer thought a moment before accepting the change.

Nothing happened. Then, a message appeared on the computer screen, giving a timer.

“What?” Makara asked.

Samuel read the message out loud. “Backup module online in five minutes…”

“Is it really turning on?” I asked.

“I guess,” Makara said.

“While we’re here,” Samuel said, “might as well look at some of that other stuff.”

Samuel backed out of the screen. The countdown was minimized while he clicked on the “Nuclear Development” link.

“Really, Samuel?” Makara asked.

He shrugged. “Might as well take a look.”

A wealth of information overtook the screen. There were twelve silos. One through three were empty, while the rest read “armed.”

“So three of the silos have shot off missiles?” Makara asked, now curious. “Where to? When?”

“Let me see what I can dig up,” Samuel said. “Maybe Elias had been busy.”

“If they had gotten to this computer,” I said, “don’t you think they would have restored power a long time ago?”

“Good point,” Samuel said. “Which makes me believe that the Community did not fire any missiles. They probably couldn’t even get past the login screen.”

“So, who shot them off?” Makara said.

“This would have been before the Community,” Julian said. “The U.S. fired three nuclear missiles in the fifteen years Bunker 84 was online.”

Why would Bunker 84’s authorities launch nukes? Had they been aware of the xenoviral threat long before Bunker One was? Or had Bunker One given the order itself?

“Found it,” Samuel said.

We crowded around the computer. In a column labeled “expired targets” three dates were listed: November 22, 2034, December 5, 2036, and July 17, 2045. Next to these dates were target locations.

The first two were nothing like what I expected.

Bunker 23. And Bunker 144.

“What?” I asked. “They nuked Bunkers?”

It was a moment before Samuel answered. “Apparently.”

“Why?”

Something about Bunker 23 was tripping my memory. I remembered it being mentioned, somewhere…

Fortunately, Makara filled in the blank.

“That was the one you talked about, Samuel, when we found the Black Files. It was in Nebraska, the closest one to Ragnarok Crater. Could that have something to do with it?”

“Maybe,” Samuel said.

“Maybe?” Michael said. “I say probably.”

“You said Bunker 23 was where the first infections happened,” Makara said. “Maybe Bunker 84…panicked a bit.”

It would never be clear what had happened in those early days, unless we found a detailed explanation somewhere. Something we didn’t exactly have time for unless we just happened to run across it.

“Okay,” Julian said. “What about Bunker 144?”

“Elias mentioned that one,” I said. “It was built in Alaska. Bunkers One, 84, and 144 were all meant to be counterpoints to one another. It’s hard to imagine the xenovirus finding its way up there, especially if it was only 2036.”

“Maybe they saw Bunker 144 as a threat,” Makara said. “Also, I don’t see how nukes can hit Bunkers. Aren’t Bunkers built underground to avoid that sort of thing?”

“They are,” Samuel said. “But it’s possible they used bunker-busters — not designed to detonate until they are underground. A nuclear explosion like that would wreak havoc — not just from the awesome power, but from collapsing tunnels and burying exits.”

“Where did the third one go, then?” I asked.

It showed it launching in mid-2045, but it gave no target location. 2045 would have been around the time Bunker 84 fell.

A moment later, the fluorescent lights flashed on above, one after the other. Power had been restored in full. I blinked as my eyes adjusted.

“Let’s check on those cameras again,” Makara said.

Samuel returned to the directory and cycled through the cameras, one at a time. Many were still black, but the rest were up and running, revealing people in rooms and hallways, seeming confused that the lights had come on. Both Lords and Angels suspected some trick on the part of the other side.

“So how do we find out who’s on our side?” Makara asked.

“Maybe Lionel can help with that,” Samuel said.

Samuel motioned Lionel down to the control room floor. Lionel reached the bottom of the curved steps and ran to stand next to us. He looked over Julian’s shoulder at the monitor.