Brian Steele - 4POCALYPSE - Four Tales of a Dark Future

“Dr. Eliot Thyssen. Scientist. Self-proclaimed genius. Always working on some serum that extends life and makes humans more resilient to disease. Always pushing us to find more people to test it on. Blah, blah, blah. Just another REMF.”

“Wait a minute,” Kel said. I could hear it in his voice, the rise of realization. “This Thyssen guy, he’s been doing this research of his since before the pandemic. Hasn’t he?”

“Of course,” Harmon replied. “Why the hell do you think we survived when everyone else is dead?” His eyes darted between Kel and me. “He said that a few would still be out here, alive, strong enough to have fought off the virus. We’ve rounded up a dozen or fifteen since the die-off, but I was surprised to see you two so close to the base. You must have been kids when it hit, huh?” He stared at us. Harmon looked to be in his late forties, so he would have lived through it as an adult.

“You’re an idiot,” Kel said to Harmon. “You haven’t got a fucking clue do you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Thyssen created the pandemic. He destroyed the world. He killed damn near everyone. How can you not get that?” Kel shifted back and forth on the balls of his feet and I saw his finger tighten on the trigger of the Beretta. I leaned in and whispered to him.

“The time will come,” I said. “But not right now. We need this guy to get into the lab. You’ll have your moment. Okay?” I knew how he felt. Thyssen had killed my parents, along with Kel’s father and billions more. Retribution was coming. It was coming hard.

“You’re lucky you’re such an ignorant ass,” Kel stated.

“I swear I didn’t know, man,” Harmon said, hanging his head. “I’ll help you. If you want to take Thyssen out, if that’s what you’re after, I will do what I can. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Kel and I glanced at each other when we realized that Harmon was crying. He really didn’t seem to know that the man who had been ordering him around for the past thirteen years was responsible for the worst genocide in human history. Nevertheless, I would keep an eagle eye on this guy. I trusted no one. Not even Kel, for that matter.

“You really want to help us, Harmon?” I asked. He wiped his eyes and looked up at me. Kel kept the pistol trained on him.

“Absolutely.” His expression changed and I saw the familiar glint of barely contained rage floating across his face. “I lost my wife and daughter to the sickness. I lost everyone. Everyone.” His fists were clenched, now, his jaw set and his teeth grinding together.

“Just get us in to the lab complex. Help us put some payback, some justice, where it belongs.”

“Thyssen.” Harmon said the name through his teeth. It sure sounded like Kel and I had a new ally. There was no mistaking the hatred in Harmon’s voice.

“Harmon,” Kel said, lowering the pistol, “I appreciate your situation. More than you might realize. But, be aware. If you try and fuck with us, I will make certain you die. Painfully. Are we clear?”

“As a bell,” Harmon nodded. I reached out my hand. He took it and stood. Looking back at the Humvee and then back to us, his eyes narrowed and he almost grinned. “What’s the plan?”

Harmon had been more than willing to share the layout of the lab complex with us. There were six levels, the main lab being on the lowermost level. The first level, on the surface, was the garage, and then came the main living level, with a kitchen and entertainment room. Below that were the living quarters for the civilian staff. The military barracks was on the fourth level — there were only three soldiers left, according to Harmon — and the science staff level was above the lab.. The cadre, as Harmon called them, were the small group of scientists who ran the show.

Thyssen was in charge, with Hollister and Cameron next in line. I was not surprised to hear that Thyssen ran the lab with an iron fist. If my father had hated him as much as I remembered, there would have to have been a good reason. It was strange. I was actually looking forward to meeting this Thyssen guy. For a great many reasons. I couldn’t understand how someone could live with themselves, knowing that they were responsible for billions of deaths. It seemed unfathomable to me.

The three of us had cleaned up the Humvee, burying Richards as best we could. The plan was to have Harmon bring us in as prisoners. That would gain us entry and then we were on our own. Harmon would follow ten minutes later, so that we would have back up if we needed it. I was placing a lot of faith in the soldier, but twice since we left the highway, I had caught him wiping tears away. I could only hope he maintained his composure and stuck to the plan. We talked on the way to the lab, which was located within the White Sands Missile Base.

“So,” I said, over the clatter of the Humvee’s diesel. “What did Thyssen tell everyone to keep them in line after the pandemic struck? Why did folks not leave to join their families?”

“Well, the facility was locked down weeks before the pandemic really took hold and wiped everyone out. Looking back, I must have been a true idiot not to see the signs. Thyssen had to have known ahead of time that the pandemic would go widespread. Otherwise, why lock it all down so quickly?”

“You were just following orders,” I said. “Being a good soldier.”

“Being an ignorant fool is more like it.”

“So no one questioned the lockdown?” Kel asked.

“Initially, there were some folks who wanted to leave, to go to their families. We were all afraid, getting the reports and stuff on television and radio. Two people, Franks and Bertram, were phlebotomists. They were the most outspoken about getting out of the lab.”

“What happened?”

“Well, we thought they left. Snuck out somehow. Went AWOL. No one ever knew for certain. They just disappeared one day.” Kel and I exchanged glances at Harmon’s reveal. That didn’t sound foreboding. No, not at all, I thought sarcastically.

“Anyway, Thyssen gathered us all in the living area one day and explained that he had had conference calls with doctors and scientists all over the world and there was no doubt that this super virus was wiping out the human race. He said that he and his team were working on a cure, but it would take time. He needed all of us to help maintain a semblance of order and ensure a future for humanity.” Harmon glanced at me in the rearview mirror, where Kel and I sat supposedly bound in the cargo area. “Thyssen is one hell of a speaker. He could probably sell ice water to an Eskimo.”

“Nice,” Kel said. “Another Hitler.”

“Who’s that?” I asked. To which I received some shocked looks from both Kel and Harmon. “What? I was only six when it happened. Schooling for me was learning how to survive more than anything else. I take it that it’s some nasty historical person, right?”

“You could say that,” Harmon replied. Then they gave me an unnecessary history lesson. In the end, though, I could see the Hitler reference might be applicable, in a fashion.

We all grew silent as we entered the gates of the missile base. Harmon wove the Humvee through the streets and toward what looked to be a solid concrete wall. Just as we came upon it, the road dipped down into a significant grade and I realized we were about to go underground. Into the lab complex.

Harmon stopped the Humvee and reached out to swipe an access card on a metal pedestal. There was a speaker that crackled into life.

“Access code?” The male voice demanded.

“Seven zulu eight eight two. Staff Sergeant Harmon.”

“Welcome back, Matt,” the voice said. “Any luck?”

“Two. One male, one female. Good shape, too.”