Dead Mech by Jake Bible Read Free Book Online Page A

we’ll all find out soon enough
once Bisby makes his report to the Commander.”
    “Must have been some crazy shit to take out
Stanislaw…”
    “Hey Guys,” Mathew called a few feet from
Masters and Themopolous.
    Masters turned, raising his rifle. “Whatcha
got Matty?”
    “Incoming. Half mile out.”
    ***
    Bisby, seated in front of Capreze’s desk,
lifted his head from his hands, eyes burning. “That’s it.”
    Capreze, fingers steepled in front of him,
sighed. “That’s not good.”
    Uncontrollably, Bisby laughed. A short,
harsh bark of a laugh. “Ya think?”
    “What I mean, Biz,” Capreze stood. “Is that
the behavior the deader was exhibiting sounds frighteningly like
adaptation.”
    Bisby watched as the Commander paused, then
continued. “The zombies have some reasoning ability, but no impulse
control. They don’t hesitate…”
    “Sir?” Bisby asked, exhaustion fighting for
his mind.
    “Hmmm…?” Capreze muttered, lost in
thought.
    “Stanislaw…?”
    Reality ripped Capreze from his musing.
    ***
    “My God, how did they get here so fast?”
Masters called out, placing a fresh clip in his carbine and taking
aim. He squeezed the trigger, watching as several yards away three
zombie heads exploded.
    Mathew flung a grenade at the approaching
undead, hoping his timing was right. Within a second the grenade
exploded sending pieces of zombies high into the air. He looked
behind him back towards the base. He tapped his com.
    “Hey Rache? Sure could use some help out
here,” he said, staring at the unmoving mech still positioned by
the hangar.
    “Hey Rache? You in there?”
    ***
    “Rache? Rachel!” Mathew shouted over his
com. Rachel pulled herself from her grief.
    “What Matty?” she answered weakly.
    “Um, are you watching this at all?!?” Mathew
continued shouting. “We are about to get overrun here!”
    Rachel shook her head violently, painfully.
She checked her scanners and gasped. “Oh, God! I’m so sorry! I’ll
be there in one minute!”
    She set her mech to full power, not
bothering with the motor drive and began to run the thing towards
the pyre. “Hold on!”
    “That’s the idea! Hurry please!”
    Rachel quickly shoved the idea of losing
Mathew also out of her mind.
    ***
    “She’s on her way!” Mathew shouted to
Masters and the Doctor, barely heard over the concussions from the
carbines.
    “What can I do?” Themopolous yelled.
    “Grab the ammo bag from the ATV!” Masters
yelled back. “Pull out all the loaded clips!” He squeezed the
trigger, more zombies fell. “Toss a fresh one to us when we call
out! Fill the empty ones we toss back to you!”
    Themopolous dashed to the ATV and grabbed
the bag, nearly pulling her shoulder out of socket from the weight.
She dragged the bag closer to Mathew and Masters.
    “Okay, I’m ready!” she called.
    ***
    Rachel’s mech ran past the funeral pyre, not
bothering to wait for Masters and Mathew to stop firing. Bullets
ricocheted off the battle machine’s frame.
    Mathew, Masters and Themoplolous watched in
awe as Rachel ran her mech into the middle of the dozens of zombies
still left. Furious, she lifted her metal fists and smashed down,
crushing the undead beneath her. She did the same with her massive
feet, mashing the creatures into pulp.
    Within seconds, all was still.
    Rachel’s chest heaved, then seized. Far
away, Mathew’s voice called to her, but it all went black before
she could respond.
    ***
    “Commander?” Harlow called over the com.
    “Yes, Harlow?” Capreze responded, walking
with Bisby from his office. “Whatcha got?”
    “Looks like company may have followed
Bisby.”
    Capreze glanced at Biz and narrowed his
eyes. “I wasn’t aware of that. How far out?”
    “At the funeral pyre. Sounds like Rachel
came in and saved my boy’s ass, but…”
    Capreze stopped, Bisby did also, waiting,
not privy to the conversation.
    “But what?”
    Harlow hesitated, “Well, sir, it sounds like
Rachel may have passed out.