Flux Read online

  Conn snapped back to reality, lifting his AR-15 into a firing position. He pressed on the trigger, letting rip with a prolonged burst. The others joined him. The crack! crack! of gunfire was tremendous, even in the open space of the forest clearing. The direwolf pack scattered, fleeing in multiple directions, leaving their fallen comrade behind, bullets twanging of tree trunks, ripping loose shards of bark.

  “Fall back to the trucks!” Brett yelled over the barking guns. “Come on people! Hustle!”

  The early morning forest was punctured by the intermittent crackle of gunfire, accompanied by shouts of ‘contact!’ Conn and his teammates ran, hell-for-leather, navigating through the maze of trees and vegetation, dragging their sleeping bags and rucksacks with them, whilst simultaneously trying to line-up a shot and fire on their four-legged, fleet-of-foot, pursuers.

  After scarpering, the direwolf pack regrouped in less than thirty seconds. Then, the four canines split up into pairs. One pair swept left, whilst the other went right, moving in a flanking formation. Arcing around the humans’ position, the animals aimed to cut their retreating prey off.

  Despite their bulk, the direwolves were lithe creatures, moving deftly through foliage, bounding over logs and under dangling tree limbs. Their movements revealed they truly were experts in the art of killing and everything that came with it. Panting hard, the wolves stayed on the humans, flanking them, tongues hanging from their gaping jaws, sucking in the musty scent of their prey, tracking them with relative ease.

  Conn had lost sight of the wolves. It seemed his teammates had as well, for like him, they had ceased firing some time ago. His eyes darted back and forth, covering the length and breadth of the forest’s façade. It was as if the direwolves had just vanished. Their prowling silhouettes were now gone.

  Did we scare them off?

  “We’re almost there! Not far now!” Brett told them from somewhere off to Conn’s left. “Just keep moving!”

  None of them needed telling twice. Adrenaline coursing through their veins, the team continued on, determined to get out of the forest alive.

  “Where have the direwolves gone?” Benny yelped, the fear evident in his boyish squeak.

  “Can’t see anything.” Lex called out.

  “Me neither.” added Reilly.

  “Just keep moving!” Brett bellowed.

  Conn suddenly realised the trees were beginning to thin out. They were almost out of the forest. Conn spotted the pick-ups first, their bulbous shapes situated at the periphery of the forest, just off the highway: one grey, one blue; a dirt-bike each loaded onto their rear trays.

  “There!” he pointed to them. “Directly ahead!”

  They were almost at the roadside, when one of the direwolves cut Conn off. The bald beast emerged casually from the trees, walking calmly out in front of him. With its sinuous figure slinking low to the ground, the monster bared its teeth in a ferocious smile, its pointed ears pinned back against it leathery skull, mane visibly standing on-end. Working on instinct that had previously abandoned him, Conn raised his AR-15, preparing to shoot. He made to squeeze the trigger-

  -when a large dark shape appeared out of the corner of his right eye. This was followed by a horrendous impact, the pain of which seemed to consume his whole body. Amidst the concussive wave of agony, rolling over him like an ocean wave, Conn’s brain registered a terrifying snarl and then he realised he’d been tackled by one of the other wolves.

  Was the first one just a distraction? Conn pondered to himself. Have I been bitten?

  Young Conn hit the deck with a painful thud, the wind already knocked out of him, before he was even introduced to the forest floor. He heard the assailing wolf scamper off, somewhere to his left, unseen. No doubt it would round on him any second. Terrified, Conn searched about for his assault rifle with outstretched arms, wheezing as he tried to suck in a breath. He felt like he was suffocating, dying almost. He couldn’t get a breath. It was as if his lungs weren’t working anymore.

  You’re just winded. Said a voice. Don’t be a pussy. Get up! Do it for Anthony!

  A shadow swept over him as he lay there immobilised, desperately trying to breathe. A grey direwolf snout appeared before him almost touching his nose, its dark lips pulled back in a tight snarl. The canine’s rancid breath spilled over Conn as he lay prostrate, unable to move. If he had the energy to do it, Conn would probably have vomited. The smell from the creature’s orifice was putrid. A rumbling sound reverberated somewhere deep inside the irate animal’s throat. Conn locked eyes with the beast. With nothing else to do, he waited for the end to come. Hopefully, this meant he would get to see his parents again.

  Crack - Crack!

  Conn heard two shots ring out, followed by a pained yelped and then the wolf was gone. Then unexpectedly, he was moving again, bouncing around all over the place. Arching his neck around, he found Reilly and Lex dragging him, pulling him by a shoulder each, gripping him by the back of his Kevlar vest. Conn didn’t say anything. He was still having trouble breathing, let alone speaking. Still, he would thank them both later. Suddenly, his teammates dropped him, one of them tossing his AR-15 into his lap. Leaning his head back, against the soil he looked up, eyes trailing towards the edge of his vision. He could just make out the tray of the grey-bodied F-350.

  They had made it… he hoped.

  Conn sat up, his breathing gradually returning to normal. It was then that he saw the four direwolves vaulting towards them, their powerful hind and forelimbs propelling them forward with gusto. In that split second, they appeared unstoppable to him, their heavy-set limbs kicking up detritus from the forest floor.

  “Contact!” He screeched, shimmying up against the pick-up’s rear tyre. Conn raised his gun, looking down the sight. He pressed down on the trigger-

  -letting off a single shot, before the assault rifle cut out.

  Clip’s empty! A voice told him: it had run dry as they fled the forest. He hadn’t been counting his rounds properly.

  “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” Conn hissed.

  He ejected the empty magazine. Feeling for a fresh one, Conn fumbled about, probing the breast-pockets woven into his vest. Above him, the pick-up rocked as someone- he wasn’t sure who- jumped into the tray. Conn yanked out a fresh clip. Before slapping it in place, he chanced a look at the direwolves. They were virtually on top of them at this point.

  “Aaahhh!” Conn heard Ben shriek, at the top of his lungs.

  A split second later, the pick-up’s .50 cal machine gun boomed to life. Taken by surprise, Conn clutched his ears tight, his AR falling in his lap. He watched the predators scatter into the sanctuary of the greenery. Above him, Benny swept the heavy machine gun back and forth in a wide left-to-right/right-to-left arc. Leaves were torn to shreds and branches shattered into tiny pieces as the wave of bullets tore into the forest. He wasn’t sure if Ben had managed to hit any of the direwolves, though. Still, it did the job- they were gone. That was all that mattered.

  The rookie had saved them, it seemed.

  “Cease fire!” Brett shouted. “You’re wasting ammo!”

  Brett was right, Ben was wasting ammunition. The quartet of hypercarnivores was gone. There was no need to keep firing. The .50 cal cut out after a second.

  “Let’s get the fuck out of here,” Conn heard Reilly say, in a heavy, sombre tone.

  Standing at the edge of the rainforest, the four remaining direwolves watched the mechanical shapes disappear from view, fumes pumping out from behind them, as they fled. The outlines of the shrinking vehicles were warped by the mirage, created as a result of the heat rising from the warming tarmac.

  The former Beta wolf- now the Alpha- stepped forward onto the cooking bitumen. A portion of its grey skin was etched with a bloody wound, a red line lancing across its left-hand side just above the hip joint. Flies buzzed about the open wound, but the predator paid the miniscule insects no mind. The canine raised its head to the sky, letting out a howl. The male’s call, heard for miles arou
nd, was both a lament and a cry of anger. It wanted revenge for its fallen mate. Shortly thereafter, the other direwolves joined in, raising their heads in unison, calling out to the big blue above.

  5.

  Conn was on his back again, looking up at the night sky, silently contemplating the identity of the unseen sky-gods flicking the lightbulbs on and off. Overhead, insects buzzed and chirped. In the distance, lumbering giants bellowed back and forth to one another. Apart from these sounds, the camp was as quiet as a grave.

  It had been a quiet ride with Reilly that day. Neither said much to the other. Conn did thank him for dragging him back to the pick-up, though. He owed him that much at the very least. Reilly told him not to sweat it. They continued for another hour or so in total silence, and then Reilly hit him with it.

  “Do you blame me?” Conn remembered him asking, rather sullenly.

  The big guy’s entire demeanour had changed, since the team lost Audrey. Conn had never seen Reilly like this, not in all of the three years of knowing him. He was usually so full of life, cracking jokes and such.

  “For what?” was Conn’s reply.

  “For Audrey,” Reilly looked straight ahead, “for the direwolves; for that clusterfuck back there.”

  Conn didn’t answer. He didn’t want to lie. The big guy did fall asleep on his watch. Still, Conn had to ask himself whether being awake or not would have saved Audrey. There was no guarantee any of them could have intervened to save her in time. They didn’t even know where she had gone; how far into the jungle she had ventured. In actual fact, none of them could be sure she was even dead. They were all simply presuming that the direwolves got her. In addition, Reilly had been the one to take out the lead direwolf when Conn himself had frozen.

  So, the remainder of the trip was spent in silence, uncomfortable as it was. When the team finally decided to make camp, they bunked a little closer to the highway this time around.

  No one really said much, once they got settled at the new campsite. They just started munching into their evening rations, hungry and exhausted from their ordeal. Reilly went off by himself to eat his chow alone, his characteristic good-humour and warmth all gone. The big guy didn’t venture too far away though. Conn didn’t follow him; he wasn’t sure if he was welcome. Instead, Conn stayed by the trucks. Benny sat under a giant, thick-bodied redwood, with Lex for company. Although, neither appeared interested in conversing with the other. Even so, this pairing seemed to piss Brett off, who occupied himself by checking over the two pick-ups, eating as he worked. Later, when they decided to call it a night, Conn noted Lex set up her sleeping bag at one end of the camp whilst Brett was at the other.

  I guess there really is trouble in paradise, after all.

  Breakfast was much like dinner the night before. No one really spoke about anything of any great substance, let alone to one another. Losing a team member was always hard. It didn’t matter that they had been through it all before. It still left a mark; no matter how tough someone was. Audrey was liked by everyone which ultimately made it even harder.

  Finally, Brett broke the grim silence, “Time to move, people.”

  He swung his M4 into place over his shoulder, moving towards the trucks as he did so. The team, although they complied with Brett’s instructions, were slow to get going. Clearly dispirited, moving in single-file, the quintet traipsed towards the bulky vehicles, shambling like the living dead.

  “Benny, mount up!” This was Brett’s way of telling Ben to get his dirt-bike ready. Once again, the rookie was on reconnaissance, albeit alone this time.

  Ben climbed into the tray of the blue F-350, to retrieve his nimble blue-and-white motorcycle. Reilly was already posted up at the side of the pick-up waiting to help him, apparently eager to get going.

  “Lex, you’re with me,” Brett told her.

  “Not today,” Lex said rather awkwardly, her tone subdued and deflated.

  Conn wasn’t expecting that. Still, he was slow to pay attention to what was unfolding in front of him. Like Reilly, his head was more than a little muddled by the previous day’s events.

  “That wasn’t a request,” Brett responded vehemently. “You’re riding with me.”

  “Like hell I am,” Lex said flatly, narrowing her dark eyes. “I can make my own decisions. And who I ride with is up to me.”

  “This isn’t up for debate,” Brett shot back at her.

  “I said no!” she replied. “I’m riding with Conn.”

  Conn wasn’t expecting that, either. This really snapped him out of his scrambled state. Huh?

  Lex was looking at him, almost pleading with her big, doe-like eyes. Her expression was nervous, as if she was unsure what Brett would do next. Conn shot a look at Brett, his usually pale face flushed red with embarrassment and rage. His short, blonde hair appeared to be standing on end.

  “I’m in command, don’t you forget that! Now get in the fucking truck!” Brett stepped towards Lex, his arm outstretched, making as if to grab her.

  Conn stepped in his way, placing his assault rifle between them. He had forgotten how lanky Brett was until his team leader was looking down on him. Conn guessed he must have been a full head taller. Still, he didn’t back down. He glared at his commander, virulence in his eyes. Brett’s left eye twitched almost like a poker ‘tell’, as if he was preparing to make a move.

  “Try it!” Conn dared him, tensing slightly, anticipating a tussle.

  Brett, both his green eyes narrowed to slits, said nothing. He just stood there fuming at Lex’s and Conn’s combined scorn… and his own impotence.

  “Lex, pick your truck,” Conn said loudly, not taking his eyes off the enraged figure of Brett. “It’s your choice whoever you want to ride with, no one else’s. Take one of the bikes if you want: get yourself some fresh air, maybe.”

  Reilly stepped away from the blue F-350, clutching his AK-47 tight, his knuckles turning white, waiting to see how things were going to turn out. Ben stood off to the right of the group, holding onto the handlebars of his bike, unsure what to do. Lex stepped inside the passenger side door of the grey F-350, slamming it shut.

  “Conn, you’re with me.” she leaned her head out of the open window. “Oh, and you’re driving, too.”

  Conn almost laughed, a smile lingering at the edges of his mouth. A few seconds went by, before he began backing away from the infuriated figure of Brett, refusing to turn his back on him. Brett struck Conn as the suckerpunch-type. He wasn’t going to get caught sleeping, least of all by that bitch-fist.

  “Reilly, get her started up,” Brett called to the towering redhead, trying to reassert himself. “Time to move out.” he added. “Ben, scout out ahead of us, make sure the coast is clear.”

  For a moment, the bewildered man-boy just stood there, unmoving. Then shaking his head, he snapped out of it, firing up his dirt-bike. Twenty seconds later, he was racing ahead of the two stationary pick-ups, just glad to be leaving the uncomfortable scene behind.

  Stepping inside the pick-up, Conn asked jokingly, “Where to m’lady?”

  Lex leaned over and put a hand on Conn’s forearm. “Thank you,” she said, softly.

  Her hazel eyes gleamed as they searched his face. For a second, Conn thought she was going to kiss him, but then she didn’t. Rather, she just smiled at him. Conn watched her thin lips, wondering if he should make a move. After a quick bout of contemplation, he reluctantly decided against it. Instead, Conn put the key inside the ignition, turning it over. Pulling away from the roadside, he took them off down the highway, making in the general direction of Brookeborough.

  “Don’t mention it.”

  After a while on the road, Conn got tired of the silence. No one seemed to talk to anybody these days, himself included. Realizing this, Conn decided he’d had enough. He needed some kind of socialization before he lost it altogether. It was hard enough already being on the road, without a demoralized team, to boot.

  “So, you wanna talk about it?” Conn probed.
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  “Talk about what?” Lex asked, not making eye contact with him. Instead, she watched the world zip past.

  Conn wasn’t sure if she was playing dumb.

  “Brett,” he said, deciding not to beat around the bush.

  “Do you wanna talk about Anthony?” Lex kept her eyes on the road.

  “No,” Conn’s response was curter than he would have liked.

  “Then, it looks like you have your answer,” Lex told him.

  A few more minutes of quiet passed, before Conn decided to try and lighten the mood.

  “Y’know,” he started, “you look kinda sexy, when you get all pissed off.”

  “Really?” Lex laughed nervously, taken totally off-guard.

  She wasn’t sure how to answer that. Even so, Conn noted the wide smile that spread across her face, causing small dimples to form in her cheeks. She finally took her eyes off the road to look at Conn.

  “Yeah,” Conn replied. “I used to love watching you go to town on people in Debate Club, back in school. You got so fired up. It was awesome, actually.”

  Lex didn’t reply right away, instead she laughed some more, blushing hard this time. Conn liked her laugh, it wasn’t forced as far as he could tell. It seemed natural. Lex had always been easy to get along with. He could see himself with a person like her.

  With her?

  She wasn’t a high-maintenance type of girl, that’s for sure. And that’s definitely part of what he liked about Lex. So, yeah, Conn supposed he could see himself with her.

  Could she see herself with me, though?

  Lex was still smiling at him, her reddened cheeks calming to a dull pink. He returned her smile quickly, before looking back at the road, lest they crash. On their right, they passed a beaten up, and broken down, dark blue sedan, its bonnet popped open. Conn got the impression the vehicle had been like that for a while now.

  “How come you never asked me out in high school?” Totally without warning, Lex just dropped it on him, drawing his attention away from the battered vehicle. “Before all this… the Flux, I mean.”