The Fourth Phase

EIGHT

The rotor blades of the NH-90 helicopter loomed out of the darkness. The pilot had nestled it between the cabbage trees dotting the beach. Dee moved out from the bush and onto the sand dunes. The white sand squelched under her boots like corduroy pants rubbing together. She swept her rifle up and down the beach. Jack gave her a nod and she peeled off left while he went right. Dee took up a covering position next to the door. She made eye contact with the pilot and he slid open the door. Dee let out a shrill, quick whistle, and watched as the Renegades exited the bush at a light jog. The Joneses jumped in and turned, covering Ben as he jogged the last few steps. He gave Dee a reassuring pat and hopped in, making for the vacant co-pilot seat. Jack spun and climbed in after him, with Dee bringing up the rear. Eric, stationed to one side, slid the door closed with a thud as the whine of the powerful Rolls-Royce engines fired up. Dee took her seat, smiling at Jack.

That was a smooth transition.

Ben had made them practice it for a whole day and night. Again and again, he’d timed them, shouting that they could do better, had to do better. That their lives would depend on it.

She felt her stomach drop as the chopper lurched off the ground, swinging out over the Hauraki Gulf and back towards Mayor Island. Dee was looking forward to seeing Boss and George. She was looking forward to finally having a shower and spending some quiet time with Jack. Maybe he would get the solar panel working better so they could watch a movie with Max and George snuggled between them, and Boss sitting in his chair pointing out all the plot holes while Jack argued with him. She smiled, a comforting tingle buzzing in her chest. The argument they’d had about the eagles in Lord of the Rings had lasted for three days. Jack had become quite animated, gesticulating wildly as he explained why the fellowship couldn’t use them to fly the ring directly to Mordor. That argument had then morphed into why the Star Destroyer hadn’t fired on the escape pod in Star Wars. Dee shook her head, remembering how Jack had stormed off and gone into the bush for a few hours.

She was surprised at how much she loved Boss and George. Seeing them each day made her happy. She’d thought she had found pure happiness with Jack, but a sliver of the puzzle had always remained unfinished. Amid the terror and the chaos of their flight, she’d found that last piece. Dee knew the fight was far from over, and now, with this new threat from the Indonesian Navy, she worried that they would never have any semblance of a normal family life.

Jack got up and moved over, plonking down beside her. Dee shifted over, giving him some space. She met his gaze, watching his blue eyes twinkle, then nestled into him, enjoying his warmth and comfort. No words were needed. She knew he felt the same. Had the same fears and worries, the same doubts. He was just as determined as her to not let the Variants get them. Dee felt for her necklace. Rubbing the metal and diamond between her fingers comforted her. Jack rubbed her hand, interlocking his fingers into hers. She smiled up at him, happy that she was heading home to the boys and Max.

A squawk in her headset brought her back to the present. “Renegades, listen up. We’ve got our first mission. It’s a straight pick-up. A scientist from a lab has called in for an immediate evac. ETA twenty minutes. I want everyone prepped and ready. Understood?”

Dee nodded and said, “Affirmative.” Her mind raced. They were barely trained. Were they even ready? She exchanged a glance with Jack. His brow was furrowed, and he was fiddling the stock of his rifle. Dee was struggling to grasp that anyone was left alive on the mainland. And a lab? She looked at Ben, hoping to learn more.

“Good. Renegades, let’s do this quick and clean. I want to get…”

Dee turned towards the cockpit at Ben’s pause. He had cupped his hand around one headphone, and his head was tilted, looking out the side window. She watched his brow furrow, then he shouted something into the microphone. Dee exchanged a quick look with Jack, who was also frowning. She flicked her eyes to Eric and Tony, who both shrugged. Ben untangled himself from the co-pilot’s seat and moved between the gap to join them. He remained standing, Dee watched his face for any clues. It was grim. Her heart sank.

What was going on?

“All right, Renegades. I’ve just received word from Falcon 6. Mayor Island is under attack.”

Dee struggled to take on this news. Under attack?

Ben continued. “All I know is, it’s collaborators and Variants. Mahana has ordered us to proceed with our mission. Picking up this scientist is deemed a PRIORITY ONE. He’s sending two squadrons to Mayor Island as reinforcements.”

Dee stood up, grabbing the bar above her. “Are you serious? I don’t care about some scientist! That’s our home. The boys are there!”

Jack leapt up, joining her. “She’s right, Ben. Screw the scientist. It’s the friggin’ boys we’re talking about! Our family!”

Ben looked at Dee and Jack, his face softening. “I’m with you guys. I want to get home and fight too. But this scientist, she may hold the key to ending this. So, I know how you feel. I love all those back on Mayor too. But we have to trust the soldiers to do their job. If we have a chance to find a cure for this madness, then we have to take it. If we do our jobs right, we’ll be back in the air within minutes.”

Dee’s head swam, and the thumping of the chopper blades pounded in her head. She squeezed Jack’s hand and felt him squeeze back, trying to comfort her as she sat back down. Dee raised her hand to her mouth, stifling a sob. She couldn’t believe Ben was choosing the mission over her family. She loved Ben. After all, he had saved her, and helped Jack too. But now he was obeying orders rather than dash home to fight? Dee glanced at Jack. He had his hands on his head, rubbing them through his hair.

“Dee!” Ben shouted, getting her attention.

She looked up at him. Brushing aside her emotions, she replied. “Sir?”

“I want you locked and loaded. Get some food in you. I want your rifle clean and ready.”

Dee rubbed the back of her neck. “Yes Sir.”

She busied herself, going through the motions, trying to take her mind off her swirling fears. Jack nudged her on the arm, handing her an energy bar. Dee accepted his offering and leant in, kissing him deeply. She needed to feel his love, feel his touch. She needed the familiar warmth of his lips. He broke the embrace and looked down at the map Ben had handed him before returning to the cockpit. Dee clicked bullets into her magazines and secured them into her pouches.

She stared out the window at the Coromandel coastline whizzing by. The chopper was flying low over the Firth of Thames, hugging the coast. All was dark, and Dee wondered if anyone had escaped the scourge and headed for the bush-clad mountains of the interior. She knew just how littered it was with valleys and gorges, trails and old huts.

The NH-90 helicopter flew up the coast, skimming over the town of Thames, lying silent and dead. It followed the Waihou River south for twenty kilometres before turning south east. Dee recognised the blunt, rocky cliffs of Mt. Karangahake emerging out of the dark.

She raised her eyebrows. They built a lab, here? Where?

Movement from the cockpit made her look up as Ben returned to the hold.

“All right. We’re two minutes out. I want a clean exit, just like we practiced. We’ve got a five-minute hike from the LZ to the entrance. The scientist is a Dr Katherine Yokoyama. She should be there waiting for us, just inside the lab entrance. We grab her and go. Stay frosty. Possible Variants in the area.”

Ben turned without waiting for them to answer. Dee knew it was expected they understood.

She watched him grab his gear and assemble it in smooth, practiced motions. She looked across at Eric and Tony.

Tony was grinning at her. “You two lovebirds ready for some real action?”

She shook her head at him as he made thrusting pelvic motions. Dee knew he was just blowing off steam, acting all brave.

The hold fell silent as each of the Renegades prepared themselves to enter a night that was full of terrors. She felt the bump of the chopper as it hit the ground. Eric slid back the door in a quick, fluid action. Dee jumped out and spun left, checking for Variants. Leaves and dust spun around, agitated by the wash of the blades. She stared over the sight of her rifle, ignoring it. Tony grasped her shoulder and Dee headed off into the darkness. Jack went right with Eric. She glanced back and saw the muscular frame of Ben bringing up the rear. Eager to get on with this mission, Dee took a few breaths to calm herself, then jogged along the gravel road leading up the mountain.

Jack strode up the narrow gravel road, the sharp bits of rock crunching under his feet. He swept his rifle left and right looking for any contacts, his ears straining for any noise. He had the route to the lab plotted out in his head, so had no need to consult his map. Jack struggled to grasp the fact that there was a secret government lab hiding in this mountain. He and Dee had hiked this area extensively over the years. Once a source of coal, and more importantly, gold, the landscape was a warren of valleys, rivers, and soaring andesite cliffs veined with quartz. The quartz had brought the early settlers, who’d had a tendency to dig mines, hunting for treasure like dwarves.

A few buildings emerged out of the gloom; they looked like barns to Jack. He could see two to his left, and there was a large vehicle shed with a couple of tractors and a 4x4 sitting dormant inside, waiting for their owners. Owners who would never return. Not, at least, in human form. Directly ahead lay their target. A large corrugated iron shed, its dark paint blending it into the bush behind it. The shed was nestled against the mountain, with its back end hard up against the earth. The people who had built this lab had been clever; they’d hidden the entrance within a working farm, so any strange vehicles coming and going wouldn’t raise an eyebrow. Jack wondered what was so important that the government had gone to all this effort. Pausing, he glanced to his left, checking Dee’s and Tony’s positions.

Jack crept up alongside the corrugated iron-clad building. It bothered him that they hadn’t heard any Variants yet. It was too quiet. He couldn’t even hear any of the birds that frequented the area. Stopping at the corner of the building, he risked a quick scan of the tree line.

Jack took a deep breath, savouring the smells; the farm, the rusting iron, the wet long grass mixed with old manure. A strange chemical smell from inside the building reached him. He scrunched his nose at its pungency. Jack turned, catching a glimpse of Ben moving up behind him. Ben flashed the “Go” hand signal for him to proceed. Taking a calming breath, Jack sprang around the corner, keeping his rifle up and searching for hostile targets. He saw the sliding doors a few metres ahead and jogged to the far side. Crouching, he took a covering position and waited for Eric to reach the other side.

Dee ran up, and Tony and Ben crouched in front of the doors.

Jack, seeing that everyone was in position, pulled back on the door, straining with the weight. The door slid along a well-oiled runner, silently gliding open. Dee, Ben, and Tony disappeared inside.

Jack glanced over at Eric, watching as the soldier scanned the farm. Eric gave him a quick nod and Jack searched into the gloom, looking for any of the horrors he knew waited out there. He sighed, struggling to keep his building apprehension from bubbling to the surface. He needed to keep focus. Ben had said this scientist could hold the key, the key to their salvation.

Did she have a cure?

Jack continued to look out into the chilly night, his eyes and ears straining for any indication of the Variants. A soul-destroying screech shattered the silence, followed by a cacophony of howls and screeches. Jack glanced over at Eric, meeting his fearful eyes. Eric reached down, clicking on his radio.

“Captain. We have company. Over.”

“How many?”

“No visual yet. Over.”

“Hold position, we’re on our way. Out.”

“Wilco. Out.”

Jack’s hand tightened on his AR-15, as he felt along and flicked off the safety. He’d known the bastards had been out there waiting, but had hoped they could just do this one thing without being harassed.

Bloody Variants.

He heard muffled footsteps thumping onto the concrete floor as Ben, Dee, and Tony emerged with the scientist, joining him in the doorway. Jack glanced up at Katherine. She was petite with toned, wiry muscles. Small-framed glasses perched on her nose, and her blue eyes stared back at Jack as if assessing him. He saw fear in her eyes, but also determination. He glanced down at the small metal case she gripped tightly in one hand. Was this the cure?

Another screech tore through the night, grating on his mind. He looked over at Ben, waiting for the signal to go, as the thumping of the chopper reached him. Jack watched in horror as he saw it lift off above the trees, banking sharply away from the mountain.

Ben’s radio squawked. “LZ is hot! I’ve got multiple direction hostiles. Renegades, get out of there. I’ll extract you from somewhere else. Protect the asset. Find me a new LZ.”

Ben spun around. “Back inside the lab. Now!”

The Renegades fled into the barn. It was piled high with fertiliser and drums containing God-knows-what. The stench was making Jack’s eyes water. He pulled up his buff, covering his mouth and nose, trying to block it out.

Up against the back wall was a smaller shed that reminded him of a cool storage area. Once inside, Katherine spun a wheel attached to a door, granting them access to an alcove. She raced to a keypad still glowing, Dee hot on her heels, and punched in a code. A final internal door hissed open, revealing tunnels behind. Emergency lighting lining the walls threw out a warm orange light, illuminating the smooth concrete walls and ceilings. The floor was lined with a hard rubber mat. Jack glanced back at Ben, Tony, and Eric filing in behind him. The Renegades crowded into the corridor. He was happy to hear the door slam with a hiss, locking out the Variants.

Jack’s head swam as he stood apart from the other Renegades, glancing around the inside of the lab. He couldn’t believe the chopper had taken off without them. The concrete tunnel-like corridor stretched away. Jack could see multiple doors on both sides.

What the hell were they doing down here?

“Jack!” called out Ben.

“Yes, Sir?”

“You’ve got point. I need you and the doctor to find us a way out. Okay?”

Jack nodded and turned away, looking down the long corridor. Find a way out? Where? He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked into the calming eyes of Dee, his rock. She gripped his shoulder, kneading his tense muscles. She didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to.

Jack clasped her hand. Thanking her with his eyes, he smiled at her and gave her hand a squeeze.

Right okay, a way out? Where are we? Karangahake Gorge. What’s here? Mines, trails, bush, and rivers. So, how’s that going to help? How? It’s just trees and more trees. Those things out there will catch us before we can get anywhere. Trees! Yes, that’s it! Trees!

Jack spun around, looking at Katherine. “Do you have another entrance to the lab? Like a back entrance on the other side?”

She looked at Jack, her brow furrowed. “Yes. A maintenance entrance, Why?”

Jack flicked his eyes to Dee and Ben, smiling. “There’s a treetop zip-line in the next valley. It goes right across to Dickey Flat.”

Dee smacked him on the shoulder. “Yes, of course! It’s new, though. Let’s hope they finished it before the chaos.” Katherine was staring at Dee, her mouth hanging open, gaping like a fish. Jack scratched at his temple and narrowed his eyes, watching. Dee had turned front on towards her. She shrugged her shoulders. “What?”

“I can’t… I can’t believe it. Diana? Is it really you? After all these years?”

Dee tugged on her ear, frowning. “How do you know my name?”

Katherine let out a bark of laughter, a grin spreading across her face.

“It’s me, Katherine. Katherine Yokoyama. Doctor if we are being formal. I’m a friend of your mother’s. I haven’t seen you since you were little. Look at you, all grown up!”

Dee shrugged her shoulders. “Okay. I’m sorry I don’t remember you. Mum died a long time ago.”

“Died?” Katherine took a few steps towards Dee. “Maybe now, after all this, but I spoke to her just as the Hemorrhage Virus took hold.”

“What?” Dee backed away, reaching out for Jack.

He grasped her trembling hand and gave it a squeeze.

The shrieking, tearing sound of metal being torn apart preceded the desperate thumps of the Variants trying to get into the lab. Jack pivoted around, searching out the entrance. The door shuddered as the Variants slammed into it, rattling the hinges. He glanced around at the metal framing, praying that it would hold.

“We need to leave, NOW! Renegades, combat retreat spacings. Let’s go!” yelled Ben.

Jack gave Dee a reassuring embrace. She hugged him back, before breaking away and fiddling with her carbine, checking the magazine. He knew from experience that she would be troubled by the scientist’s revelation. It pained him to see her in distress, but right now they had creatures hunting them. Her eyes met his, and she gave a nod that she was okay. Satisfied, he took his place at the front.

Striding up the long tunnel, he glanced back to the Renegades, comforted by their presence. A seed of doubt was gnawing at Jack. Where was everyone else? It seemed strange that Katherine was the only one here. This lab was huge. A place this size would require a large number of people. Not just scientists, but support staff too.

Jack reached a T-intersection. A door labelled Stairs lay directly ahead.

How many levels does this lab have?

He swept his rifle around, searching for targets. Satisfied they were safe, he looked back at Katherine. “Which way?”

Katherine pointed right, and Jack strode on, eager to escape the lab. He held his rifle up and walked heel to toe, eyes sweeping over the doors as he passed them. He read a few of the labels on the doors. Genetics. Bio security. Behavioral Lab. Staging Area. He shook his head. The names meant little to him. It struck Jack just how silent it was inside the lab. It was the perfect place for the government to build a lab: inside a disused mine.

Where do you go if the pass is blocked? Do you dare enter the mines? He grinned. Always thinking in movies.

They reached another sealed door. Katherine moved past him and punched in a code. Before she pulled open the door, Jack grabbed her arm. “Wait. There’s something bugging me. Where’s everyone else?”

Katherine pulled her arm out of his grasp and turned her head to look first at Dee, then back to Jack. The ghastly sound of tearing metal echoed down the concrete tunnel, followed by the awful howls of the Variants. They had broken through. Katherine brushed past Jack, opening the door. “They all left, okay, to be with their families.”

“So why not you?” he asked with a shake of his head.

“To find a cure. Why else would I stay?” Katherine replied, a defiant look in her eyes.

Jack let it go and concentrated on getting through the lab.

Jack could see another intersection up ahead. He looked back at Katherine, his eyebrows raised. She indicated left, not meeting his gaze. Jack reached up and wiped the sweat off his brow. He was so tense. And the Variant screeches were getting louder. He took some deep breaths, trying to calm himself. He remembered what his grandmother had taught him: “Keep calm and carry on.” He had to do that now. Now was the time to stay calm. They had to escape with Katherine and whatever was in that case. The Colonel thought it more important than Mayor Island. Important enough to risk the Renegades, untried at combat as half of them were.

Jack reached the end of the tunnel. Doors stood to his left and right, both marked with the bio-hazard symbol. A door directly in front of him was labeled Maintenance. The other Renegades jogged up behind him, then turned and faced back down the corridor. The Variants following them screamed out. Louder. Jack caught a whiff of the tangy, rotten fruit smell that always hung around them as it drifted down the tunnel. A sudden flashback of the corridor in the dam flickered through his mind. He shuddered, shaking away the memory.

“Keep moving!” called out Ben.

Katherine punched in the code and pushed the door open. A hideous screech rang out behind them. Jack turned with the others, searching for the source. Seeing nothing, he spun around, passing into the maintenance room. Movement to his left caused him to jolt his head up. Several Variants were scampering over the pipes lining the walls. Katherine let out a blood-curdling scream that rang in Jack’s ears. He flicked his eyes to Dee. “Go back! Hostiles!” He pivoted around, grabbing Katherine’s arm.

“Multiple targets coming from our six,” yelled Tony.

Jack watched as dozens of Variants poured down the tunnel in a wave of hungry terror. He pushed Katherine back into the maintenance room and raised up his rifle, getting a bead on the lead Variant.

“Watch your backs. They’re on the walls,” he warned.

Jack moved in front of Katherine, protecting her, and fired, aiming for the nearest creature’s head.

“Inside!” Ben yelled.

Jack fired and ran, heading for the door at the far end.

The Renegades fought their way into the room. Ben slammed the door to the corridor behind him as the mass of horror slammed into it, shaking the door in its frame. He spun back around quickly, taking down a Variant running along the pipes.

“Move it! Protect the Doc.”

Dee pulled Katherine into the middle of the group, and the Renegades moved on as one. Firing, reloading, and firing again. Within a couple of minutes, they had dispatched the Variants.

“Jack! Go, before these other bastards break through,” said Ben, slamming a fresh magazine into his rifle.

Jack turned at Ben’s instructions. Tony was wrapping an arm in a bandage, blood seeping out. The body of a Variant stared up at Tony, its torso riddled with bullets. Jack jogged the short distance to a big grey door. It had several bolts and a keypad on it. He looked at Katherine.

“Code?” he yelled as he started to fling back the various bolts.

“NZLV-8675309,” she yelled back.

Jack punched it in and tried to open the door, but it wouldn’t budge. “Doc?”

She looked at him, eyes scrunched together. “That’s the master code. It should open everything.”

Dee pushed him aside, racking her shotgun. “Fuck this!”

She blasted the keypad, sending pieces of metal, wood, electronics, and plastic everywhere.

Jack stared in admiration as she then kicked open the door. He grinned at her, and ran past into the rock-strewn tunnel beyond, running towards the pinprick of light.

Emerging into the early morning glow, he glanced left and right, trying to get his bearings. He saw the Kaimai Mountains stretching away to the south. He could see Mt. Te Aroha peeking through some low clouds, its antenna soaring on top. Looking left, he could just make out the farmland stretching towards the Pacific Ocean.

The thumping of boots on the rocky ground alerted him to the others’ approach. Ben caught up to him and grasped him on the shoulder. “Where’s this zip-line, Jack.”

Jack nodded towards the farmland. “This way, about a kilometre.”

Ben gave his shoulder a squeeze. “Keep going, Jack. Lead us to safety. I know you can.”

Jack smiled at him, searching his face to confirm his words. Taking a breath, Jack turned and jogged into the awakening world as the hideous screeches of the Variants echoed around the Karangahake Gorge.