Chapter 275: A herd.
The moment the gate was closed, Philip Harg started with the jokes over the radio. "So, a priest, a snake and angel walk into a bar."
Father Nicodemus groaned.
Everyone laughed, including those back at the base in the command center and the wall.
Major Elio shook his head. "I have missed that son of a bitch," he muttered.
"The priest tries to convert the snake." Philip said. "The snake hisses and says I already tempted humans once, I am retired. The angel mutters, he has a hot 401k."
Laughter filled the vehicles.
"I have got one." Siegfried volunteered. "A priest, a snake and an angel walk into a bar. The priest tries to bless the bar. The snake coils around the holy water and says, not today, Father. The angel sighs and says, can we just drink in peace?"
Nimo chuckled. "They are doing this deliberately you know," she said to Sunshine. "They want to get on Father Nicodemus’ nerves."
Sunshine nodded. "Oh I know."
"The snake orders for a bloody Mary." Philip said.
Father Nicodemus gasped. "That is sacrilegious!"
"It is exactly what the priest in my joke said." Philip guffawed. "The snake replied relax Father, it is just tomato juice. The blood’s metaphorical. The angel adds, like most of your sermons."
Sunshine shook her head and said into the radio, "Can we just focus on the mission."
Father Nicodemus sighed in relief.
"Torture the good Father on your own time." She added.
Father Nicodemus huffed. He raised his eyes, seeking for patience from the heavens. For a heartbeat no one spoke, all they did was watch the snowflakes drift from the wounded sky.
The vehicles went further down the mountain road, the more uneasy Sunshine felt.
She was not alone, Major Elio who was in the lead vehicle was the same as her. He had his sharp eyes searching far ahead.
"I...." O’Toole started.
Suddenly, Major Elio stiffened. His eyes widened like he had seen a ghost. "Stop!" He barked.
O’Toole’s foot pressed on the brakes, his eyes turned to the major, reflecting the curiosity of everyone else in their car.
"What is it?" Morris leaned towards him, then his gaze followed that of Major Elio, but he could not see what frightened him.
Swallowing hard, Major Elio motioned at O’Toole to turn back. "Turn back now." His voice trembled. Then he spoke through the radio and told all the vehicles to turn back.
"What the hell is going on? Why should we turn back?" Morris demanded.
But before he could press any further, Sunshine’s voice cut through the radio, sharp and commanding. "Do as he says, turn around, now."
Confusion erupted, but fear spread faster. Drivers began spinning their vehicles, tires crunching in the heavy snow. The engines roared as they tried to reverse up the slope.
"What the hell is going on?" Jon asked, bringing his head out of the window briefly.
His driver’s leg was braced against the brake. "Boss, what do we do?"
"Of course, turn the damn car around like the others or are you thinking that we will still go hunt that thing without them! Your thinking is too slow sometimes." Jon answered rudely, adding curses to his words.
In front, Major Elio was already radioing for alarms and wall protection mode to be turned on. They were not so far from the fortress so they could hear the warning alarms and instructions for everyone to stay indoors.
Fog and mist suddenly started to thicken as if it had been summoned. It was so much that it was hard to see what or who the enemy was at first but then, shadows began to form.
"That Pink bitch." Sunshine muttered. "Ate my fish and sent me mist."
Like a mad person, Nimo drove the vehicle her only mission right now was to enter the gates of the base. "We can make it. Then we curse Pink and all the stupid watchers."
"The mist has stopped moving." Nala told them through a radio.
Sunshine looked back, wondering why the mist was on a halt yet a minute ago it was rolling violently.
"There is something inside, don’t stop the vehicles." Sunshine shouted.
She did not need to tell them this. They could all see, what looked like thousands of pairs of oval shaped dark orange eyes peeking from the mist.
Father Nicodemus began to mutter a prayer, calling on the heavens to help them or accept their souls.
Meanwhile the mist seemed to roll back slowly like it was unveiling the surprise it had brought to their doorstep. Like its own sick version of a gender reveal. The further back it went the more they could see what secrets it was hiding.
A heard of massive, blackened cattle emerged from the mist, their hides scorched and cracked like burnt earth. Smoke hissed from their mouths, and every exhale melted the snow leaving dark ash behind.
"Get inside! We have to be ready to close the gates." Dwayne shouted from the main watch tower, his voice booming through a megaphone.
The guards at the gate trembled. Some of them would have shut them already out of fear if not that Hades Quinn was standing there. The vehicles seemed near yet too far in their opinion.
"We cannot risk the lives of thousands just to save them." One man said.
Hades wanted to throttle the man, but he clenched his fingers instead. "My wife is out there, no one is shutting anything until she is safe behind these walls." His words were laced with venom.
Hadrian took his weapon from him. "Go to the bunker or your house, wherever you feel safe."
Gratitude filled the man’s eyes, her bowed and ran off.
"Coward." Warren stated as he run up to them to ensure nobody closed the gates just yet.
The vehicles roared towards the open gates. The watchers lifted their heads from their meal which they were eating slowly.
One by one the vehicles sped through the gate. Snow kicked up behind their wheels. Almost all the cars had entered when the herd reached the last vehicle. It was loud, hooves pounding, the sound of the stampede drowned out almost everything else.
Then came the scream.
The sound came from Jon’s vehicle, the last in the line which had sputtered and stalled just a few meters from the gate. His driver slammed the ignition again and again, but the engine coughed smoke.
"Help! Help me!" Jon’s voice tore through the static radio.
Hades answered. "Listen Jon, it is already too late, stay in the car for now. We are going to find a way to come for you."
The gates were already being sealed.
"Oh fuck you Hades, I will take my chances at running." Jon replied.
"Jon!" Hades cursed.
They rushed into the command center and watched him jump out of the car; he started to run but fear gripped his legs when the herd turned its attention to him.
He covered his eyes, waiting for the cows and bulls to stomp him to death. But instead, their skulls slammed into the vehicle, it buckled. Every inch was hit with a horn and shoved back and forth. Then the vehicle was kicked, it rolled down the mountain.
Jon squatted down and started to cry, waiting to death. He wondered how long it would take for Sheldon to start hitting on Tracy. He regretted his attempt of bravery that had brought him on the mission.
What had he been trying to prove?
Soon, it was silent all around him. Slowly, he opened his eyes and blinked in confusion. The heard had was gone and it had not harmed him.
"I...I am alive?" He whispered.