viscus morbus chapter 3

Chapter 3: The Raid

Location: Atlanta, USA

Date: 2/5/2013

Time: 0610

When I woke up, it was still dark. Glancing at my phone, I found that it was still around six in the morning. Still, I found myself unable to return to sleep after lying down for a few minutes. Being a (ex-) student, I supposed that it was hardwired into me to wake up at this time, as I usually left the house ten minutes later to catch the train.

Not sure what to do, I walked out of my 'room' and wandered around the warehouse. I saw several other shapes in the darkness, presumably others who were still asleep. However, the warehouse seemed somewhat empty, as there was much empty space, which showed some signs of habitation, but the inhabitants were nowhere to be found.

I nearly jumped, as someone placed a hand on my shoulder. Reaching for my pistol, which I had finally identified as a walther P22,  I whirled around, to come face to face with a human man. As I leveled my P22 at him, he put up his hands and said, 'Hey relax, I am Daniel Matthews, the informant. I am on your side.'

Lowering the gun, I replied, 'oh ok. I just came in yesterday. What am I supposed to do now?'

'Oh, you are the Singaporean guy. Do you have any special abilities? By the way, what's your name?'

'Name's Keane. As for special abilities, I can breathe fire, but that's it' I replied

'Oh then you should focus on helping other infected escape from hospitals.' He replied quickly, with a trace of disappointment in his tone, doubtless because of my lack of special abilities.

'So, you want me to help break others out of hospitals?' I replied, somewhat taken aback.

A simple 'yeah' was his answer.

I nodded, and replied, 'Right. When do I start, and where can I get ammunition and food? I am hungry'.  He simply gestured at one of the various piles of crates. I walked over, and started to rummage, finding a large variety of ammunition in one, and food in another. As I settled down to eat, thoughts were raging in my head. Although I had shot and killed others when I was on the run, which was in self-defense. Was I prepared to do it again, but this time, I would be the one on the offensive. I sat there, mulling it over, a half-eaten sandwich in my hand, forgotten. Then, something clicked in my mind, and I realized that I would be helping to save others like me.

Finally returning to reality, I finished the sandwich, and proceeded to spend the next hour searching for ammunition of the right caliber for the rifle and pistol. Then, knowing that I would need a plan, I went back to my makeshift room, and rummaged through my bag, looking for a scrap of paper. I was stunned to discover an entire pad of foolscap inside. I took out my pen, and started to scribble. I took stock of my weapons first.

This is what I wrote:

Rifle- SAR-21 - 5 magazines, 150 rounds

Pistol- Walther P22 – 3 magazines, 45 rounds

Combat knife (I found it in the crate)



That was it. Then, I fired up my now battered computer, delighted to find that it could still run, and piggybacked onto a random wireless network, of course, with my IP address masked. Then, I searched for the near-by hospitals. I took their names down, one by one. Being a black dragon, I knew that I would have to operate at night, so I took down the names of the two nearest hospitals, hoping to break their patients, or as I saw them, prisoners out before sunrise. It was a tall order, and I knew it. Still, I wanted to give it a shot.

It was when I settled down to write out my action plan that I noticed the header on my foolscap. It read: ANDERSON JUNIOR COLLEGE. I stopped, and just stared at it. It was a relic of a life, which was long gone. Something prompted me to take out my collar pin and place it on the ground, next to the foolscap. Then, my mind whisked me back to the past.

For the next hour, I just sat there, lost in the memories of my former life. My friends who had not been retained would be serving in the army now. I knew that I would have to fight them if I ever returned. Then, my mind wondered again, and I was brought to a future that could have been, in which I was graduating from school, and had just received my certificate as my parents looked on.

At the thought of my parents, I forced my mind to go blank, and just stared at the collar pin. My emotions were in turmoil, yet I was calm. I wondered what prompted me to think of the future that could have been. I knew that it would never happen. I would never graduate. All I could do now was to move on. Just then, Daniel Matthews stuck his head in my room, shattering my thoughts. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but when he saw me, he seemed to decide against it.

'What?' I demanded.

'Am I interrupting anything?' he inquired, both curious and cautious.

'Not really. What is it?' I replied, as I shoved the foolscap pad and collar pin back into my bag.

'I just came to pass you this,' As he said it, he handed me an iPhone, ' it will allow us to keep in touch. Its non-traceable'

'I already have one, thanks.' I said, passing the phone back to him, as I took mine out. Then, I realized that my SIM card would be useless here, and took the phone back, and took out the SIM card, and swapped it with mine.

'But your government would have black listed your phone by now.' As he said it, his statement was confirmed, as my phone could receive no signal. Sighing, I took the other phone, as I did not have the resources to hack and change the IMEI code on my phone. I booted up the other phone, and proceeded to load my files back in. It took the better part of an hour, as I had quite a few of applications and contacts to load in. I also hacked the phone to give myself access to the command line.

After I was done, I continued to muse on how to achieve my goals. I would probably have to sneak into the hospital first, and then create a diversion so that I could get to work. I sat there, plotting, as I knew that I had several hours till sun down.

Location: Atlanta, USA

Date: 2/5/2013

Time: 2000

As the sun set, I gathered my weapons, and my phone. I then checked the location of my first target: Presbyterian Hospital.

As I stepped out of the warehouse, I jumped up, and winged my way high into the air to avoid detection. I then glanced at the phone again to check if I was going in the right direction. Then, I took out my two guns and checked them. I was satisfied to find that they were both fully loaded, and in working order. I had brought all the magazines for both my guns, as I knew that I would end up fighting sooner or later.

Soon, the hospital building loomed into view; the red cross mounted on the roof a big giveaway. Suspecting that the hospital may be under sniper protection, I landed on an adjacent roof, from which I scanned the area. However, I did not need to look far. There was a soldier at the other end of the roof, in prone position, facing the direction of the hospital, presumably to take out anyone who tried to escape. His back was to me. I supposed that they did not expect anyone to try to break in.
Silently, I crept up behind him, the P22 at the ready. Then, he moved, and I froze, afraid that I had been discovered. Thankfully, I had not. He merely reached for a radio, and said, "Hunter reporting in for the start of watch. Watch will end in six hours. Over."

Then the radio cracked to life as another voice replied, "Roger. Carry on."

Then, the soldier replied, "Roger, will report if anything happens. Over and out."

He then put the radio away, and took up a prone position, with his rifle pointed at the hospital. I crept up behind him, and brought the butt of my pistol down on his neck, breaking it with a 'snap'. He made a gurgling noise, and gasped for breath before passing into the beyond. Quickly, I frisked him, finding two full five-shot magazines for the sniper rifle. The rifle in question remained in its initial position, thanks to its bipod.

I grabbed the rifle, intending to hide it so that I could take it later, on the way back, I heard the sound of engines below, and quickly crouched, afraid that someone would see me. However, I risked a look below. I saw an army jeep, escorted by two motorcycles in front and behind of it. There was a small flag mounted on the jeep, which had three stars on it. It was a general's jeep. Quickly, I took the soldier's shirt, and threw it on, together with his cap, so as to fool the people below into thinking that all was still well. I then slammed the bolt on the rifle home, and took aim at the jeep, waiting.  I knew that I only had one shot.

The general stepped out of the jeep, the three stars on each of his epaulets shined briefly as they reflected the light from a near-by street lamp. I took half a lungful of breath and lowered my head onto the cheek piece, like I had done so many times when I practiced my air rifle skills.

The general strolled up to the sentry at the entrance of the hospital, totally oblivious of my presence above. I took careful aim through the scope, lining up his head with the crosshairs.

The general then saluted the sentry. As he did so, my finger tightened on the trigger, gradually pulling it back, feeling the first pressure, careful not to jerk the trigger.

The sentry returned the salute smartly, and the general's jeep and escort drove off, presumably to the parking lot. The trigger reached the second pressure. If I pulled any more, the rifle would fire.

Both the general and the sentry then brought their hands down. I pulled the trigger all the way, and the rifle fired, kicking back into my shoulder. There was a loud 'Blam!' as the gun discharged, and I saw the general's head explode into a fine red mist, as the bullet passed through it. Then, the sentry was hit as well, his head becoming a mass of blood and brains. Cycling the bolt, I quickly took out the other sentry, who was running to call for backup.

Knowing that time was of the essence now that I had announced my presence by assassinating a general, as everyone would doubtlessly be on alert. I examined the hospital building, trying to locate the floor where those that had already transformed were being housed. I hit the jackpot at the eighth and ninth floors, whose windows had been covered with heavy blackout curtains. Cocking the SAR-21 , I jumped off the roof and winged my way to the eighth floor, the sniper rifle strapped to my back.

As I approached the window, quickly closing the small gap between the two buildings, I maneuvered myself so that I would hit the window feet first. Then, my feet made contact with the glass. It all happened very quickly, as the glass shattered almost instantly, and I fell into a ward, feet first, and batted aside a hazmat-suited doctor who was standing by a patient's bedside.  

My abrupt and dramatic entrance prompted doctors and patients alike to stop and stare at me. In the ward, there were anthropomorphic wolves, dragons and some other creatures that I could not recognize. However, I had no chance to speak, as I had intended, as one of the doctors whipped out a pistol and emptied the magazine into me. He was a rotten shot, and less than half of his shots hit me, and of course, the bullets did not penetrate my scales, but they did create some holes in my shirt, and that made me annoyed.

I simply looked the offending doctor in the eye from across the room, and said, "Idiot. The SAF tried that too. When will you people learn?" While I spoke, I strolled towards him, while I leveled my rifle at him. I continued, "And you are a doctor, correct? Then, I assume that you have some degree or other. Tell me, what prompted someone with so much brainpower to shoot at a dragon, who also happens to have a gun?"

Before he could react, not to mention answer me, I shot him clean through the head with the rifle. While I did so, I heard one of the nurses scream in fear, while others threw their hands up in surrender. I also heard several guns clatter to the floor. "Anyone else wants to play hero?" I asked.  "No one? Good." I continued, and proceeded to pick up the three pistols that had been thrown down in surrender. All the while, the other infected in the room had been staring at me, but no one uttered a word.

"Okay, who is the oldest here?" I queried the patients, a tone of urgency in my voice. I knew that the clock was ticking.

I saw one of the dragons stand up, and say, "I am Ben, and I am twenty. I am the oldest here. Who are you, and why are you here?" The others looked on, the same questions in their eyes.

"I am in the resistance. I will explain later, after we get out of there." I replied. "Here, take this. You will need it. I am going to break all of you out of here, but I am going to need some help. Follow me." I said, as I tossed Ben one of the pistols. My statement caused some murmuring, and one by one, the others stood up, and came to me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one of the doctors take out his mobile phone, presumably to call for help. I quickly whipped one of the pistols that I was holding round, and shot the phone, destroying it, prompting the doctor to stare in shock at me. "Don't kill me." He pleaded.

I turned to look at the medical staff. I had forgotten about them. I simply told them that as long as they co-operated, I would not harm them. This led to some of them breathing sigh of relief, while others looked at me in suspicion. Turning to the other infected, I handed the two pistols to them, instructing them to hand them to any one of them that had experience with firearms.

Then, I beckoned them on, and pointed them to the next ward. There were three wards in all, including the one that I had just raided. We quickly freed the others on the level, and rushed up the stairs to the next level, and freed the others there as well. In between wards, I heard the sound of engines revving, and tires screeching to a halt.

As we raced out of the last ward, I heard the lift chime, and soldiers poured from the lift, as the doors opened. Seemed like someone had radioed for backup. I fired a short burst from my rifle, as I ducked behind a door, while reloading the gun. I motioned for the other infected who were unarmed to stay in the ward, while those that had pilfered weapons from the doctors and the various offices joined me, and began to take pot shots at the soldiers. I knew that we had to act fast, as doubtlessly; more soldiers were on the way. Quickly, I took out soldier after soldier, all the while advancing on them. When there was one soldier left, I pulled out the combat knife, and hurled it at him. It missed, and clattered off the wall behind him. 'How anticlimax' I thought, as I leveled my gun at him, only to find that it was empty. As I reached for my pistol, I saw his chest acquire some new holes, as one of the others shot him. Knowing that the lift was our best bet, as there would probably be soldiers running up the stairs, I herded everyone into the lift, and entered last, intending to protect everyone with my body.

When the lift reached the first floor, the first things I saw were the five soldiers facing us, with shotguns at the ready. I knew that if any of them fired, we would be minced meat. I quickly whipped out my pistol, and fired several shots in quick succession, causing the soldiers to duck. Then the other infected and I picked the soldiers off one by one.

We then charged out of the lobby, killing another two soldiers on the way. At the entrance, there were five Humvees, whose engines had been left running. Their previous occupants were most probably the recently deceased soldiers. The Humvees were perfect for our purpose, as not all could fly. Each ward had about five people, so we had thirty people. I pointed at the Humvees, and motioned for everyone to get in, while pulling out five others who could drive.

"Where are we going? Won't we just be caught again?" Ben acquired, sounding worried.

"No. You wont be recaptured. I did not run from Singapore to come here just to be captured. I know somewhere safe. You people just have to follow me, and yes, I can drive." We then proceeded to board the Humvees; just as more soldiers ran into the lobby, investigate the sound of gunshots. As I got into the lead Humvee, I made a rude sound at them, before revving the engine and making the vehicle careen down the driveway, onto the main road.

Luckily, the soldiers were too astonished to fire at us, and all the Humvees made it out safely. As we hurled down the nighttime streets of New York, I glanced at my phone, and was astonished to find that it was only ten o'clock. The entire saga had only lasted two hours. However, I knew that I would not be able to execute another raid tonight, as I knew that I would have to help these people to settle in, and to hide the Humvees.

I paid for my lapse of concentration, as we nearly missed the last turn, and I had to take the turn very sharply, causing the vehicle to skid, while the tires screeched in protest. There were also several shouts from behind, as my passengers were thrown about thanks to the sharp turn. I hastily apologized. These people had obviously never taken a taxi in Singapore before.

We hurled into the compound, and screeched to a stop in front of the gate, where we screeched to a stop, and everyone got out, some slightly shaken thanks to the bumpy ride.  The astonished sentries just stared, as I rolled down the window, and told them that they were with me.

I then motioned to the other drivers. I knew that we would not be able to keep the Humvees. The number plate numbers would have been toted by now. Luckily, all the drivers were dragons, so we decided to drive the Humvees out of the city, leave them there, then fly back, in order to draw suspicion away from the warehouse.

Location: Atlanta, USA

Date: 3/5/2013

Time: 00:00

Around two hours later, we returned. I had forgotten to brief everyone on what to do, and they were presently milling around and making a lot of noise. I quickly gathered them round, and told them to get whatever they needed from the crates, and not to disturb those that were asleep.

Feeling tired myself; I helped everyone to find a space to sleep, and helped them to get whatever they could not find, before settling down to sleep. I was burnt out, as the raid had consumed much of my energy.