“holyyyyyy shit” Maureen whispered to herself, neck hunched over the computer screen, cigarette in hand.
The gentle tap of her cane was more hurried and forceful than usual as she made her way into the underground living quarters.
Opening the door into the room she interrupted the flow of her crew. Bob was teaching self-defence to Wren, Archie was sprint training on the treadmill and Lara was completing her first ‘workout of the day’ which was a combination of thrusters, burpees and pull-ups; a full body workout that would have crippled most.
The lights in the living quarters flickered on, off, on, off, on. Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to face Maureen, who stood smiling in the doorway.
“I have news. Big news.” Maureen shouted in her croaky voice, that cracked with the decades she had spent smoking her Marlboro cigarettes.
Lara and Archie towelled off their sweaty foreheads, Wren removed her MMA fighting gloves and Bob moved towards the kettle. He always made tea whenever there was some form of announcement or update from Maureen, it seemed to help create more of a calm atmosphere.
Whilst the kettle continued to boil, Maureen informed the group, excitement clear in her voice “The internet”… she paused to ensure everyone was listening. “It’s back. Kind of”
“WHAT!” The group exclaimed in harmony
“I said kind of… it seems that the interference that was hampering the remaining satellites and data centres has started to stabilise. It has been intermittent but I managed to connect with our network, get some of the latest news and government announcements. In addition some of those low-level satellite balloons I mentioned last week, they’re starting to be put into operation too, helping to add coverage and stability… there’s a ‘global’ WiFi being shared, open to all called ‘FreedomNet’, I imagine it is heavily monitored but it is the best way to get connected right now”
“Bloody hell Maureen, I thought you were being quiet in there” Bob chimed in as he poured the hot water into his large glass tea pot, its filter filled with his favourite loose leaf tea.
“I have so much to cover. I don’t really know where to start”
“Start with the worst news, always start with the worst Maureen and then build us back up!” Archie said, his voice a little shaky.
“Okay. Closer to home, the UK is not in great shape. The government has issued a ‘dead list’ for want of a better title. Essentially, this is where bodies have been found and identified.”
“Oh my god” Wren whispered
“I wasn’t able to view or download the list, I think too many hits at the same time before the network went back offline”
Archie and Lara lowered their heads. They had family and loved ones in the UK that they were desperate for updates on. Likewise, Wren was desperate to know details about Norway and New York for her own family and friends.
“The list is UK only, but other governments are starting to do the same. I’ll look for Norways next time the networks are back up and running” Maureen said softly, looking at Wren’s sparkling eyes.
“Even more concerning, is the scale of change to the landscape of England, Wales and Scotland. It has been confirmed that Ireland has not had any substantiative changes with only small pockets of creatures being found across their countryside.”
“I wonder if there’s any logic to any of this, or if it’s all simply up to chance” Bob pondered.
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Nudging him in the ribs with her elbow, Maureen continued “The government have created ‘safe’ zones across the country, setting up temporary camps with food, water and accommodations which are a mix of tents and buildings that won’t have already had residents within them.”
“Moving to a safe zone has been deemed as optional, but highly recommended. This is to help the military focus on defence and logistics, without having to worry about enforcing public compliance. It also appeases those not wanting to leave their homes.”
“So where are the safe zones and are they necessary?”
“There are hundreds of sites across the UK. Closest to us is the city of Ipswich, it’s an hours drive or a full day’s hike away from here. If you want to go”
“You all know about the city of London. That forest you saw two days ago though Lara, it’s much bigger than we thought. Essentially Oxford through to Cambridge have largely been replaced by new forest, with pockets of humanity in between, random towns and villages sit completely surrounded by this forest.”
“Helicopters and aerial units are being attacked by creatures trying to enter, but satellite and drone imagery shows most towns to still be in good stead, some with strange and indiscernible creatures roaming the streets.”
“Most concerning though, is the mountainous region that appeared in Northern Wales. The stone-men that were reported to be gathering are now marching and expanding their territory. Half of their army… yes Army, estimated to be over one million strong…. anyway… half have essentially captured Mount Snowdon and are in the process of terraforming the mountain… “
“What does that mean” exclaimed Archie
“we are unsure what exactly they are doing, but ‘terra-forming’ is what was said, essentially adapting the environment to suit their specific needs - whatever they may be. The other half is currently marching into England, specifically the city of Liverpool. It’s a war zone. Full scale evacuation of the population to Manchester whilst the military are doing everything they can to contain them to the city. “
“Finally, to possibly seem a little blunt. This is war, they are killing those getting into their way and have shown zero compassion so far. At least, that is what has been reported.”
“Closer to home. The military have declared evacuation points and times to Ipswich, they have stated that our surrounding area, through to the forest will not have military support and they will be essentially falling back from this area to focus their efforts in London, Liverpool, evacuations to Ireland and fights breaking out across Scotland. Which is a story for another time.”
“For now, I’ll summarise what’s happening here. Number one - there are shuttles every six hours from Finchingfield airbase… so, very close, they will take any individual that turns up through to Ipswich.”
“From Ipswich there will eventually be transportation to Portsmouth and then ultimately Ireland, as the last remaining area not currently impacted by the events”
“There are also military transportation patrols that will rotate at random around villages and cities to pick up anyone that cannot make it to the initial pick up areas. Leaflets are being dropped from the skies with local information that says the same too - that will happen from tomorrow”
“My only concern, is that once the military decide to fully withdraw from this area - which sounds like it will be within the next week… what happens then? What happens to residents that don’t want to move? Does this become a lawless area? And what’s happening in that forest; anything around area seems to be missed out of the updates received so far”
“Okay, let's vote. Stay here and hide. Stay here and venture out to support those in need or we move to Ipswich and work from there?” Bob declared.
“Good idea” Maureen said, almost as if she knew that’s where Bob’s head would go, she handed out paper and pens. “Write your preference on your piece of paper, fold it and put your answer in this hat - we will all do what the majority vote for…. but please note, there will be no hiding. We stand and support from here, or we stand and support from Ipswich”
Everybody wrote their preference down in isolation ‘here’ or ’Ipswich’ being the choices. Once the hat had made its way around the table back to Maureen, she dropped her own vote in.
“So chief… what’s our plan” Archie said, eyebrows raised
“Who died and made me Chief?” Maureen queried
“It’s pretty clear you’re the boss here, Maureen” Wren chuckled
“Well… let’s find out” Maureen said as she shuffled the papers and pulled the first vote out.
“Here” … another vote “Here”… “Here”… “Here”… “Here”…
“Well that concludes it, I suppose. Quite the brave bunch we are. Dare I say… team?”
“Damn right we’re a team” Lara chirped up “a team where three of us have been gifted otherworldly powers and the other two have the best experience in the business”
“Haha, we have had our fair share of life experience” Bob sounded off
“So Boss… what is our plan?” Wren said
A wry smile crossed Maureens lips.