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The Ferry

Based on a dream. Or nightmare.

The Wallace family had completed their mission in Washington and were on the road, returning to their

base of operations in New York City. Things had gone as smoothly as expected; as usual, their edge

was that they had Sasha on their side, and no one expects a sixteen-year-old to do anything out of theordinary. Now, in contrast, she was relaxing in the back seat, listening to Lady Gaga on her iPod,staring out the car window at the New Jersey forests.

Her parents were likewise quiet. The family tended to keep to themselves after each operation, as if toput some distance in their minds between what they had just done and where they were now. It wasn't

because of guilt; it was simply the only way they could ever feel like a family, at least for a little while

until the next mission came up.

Shortly after entering Monmouth County a fog rolled in, and they and the few cars around them slowed

a bit. Hazy red glows ahead of them marked fellow travelers. The fog grew quite thick, and they

continued to slow, just about to residential speed. Tabitha let out a grunt of impatience. Burt smirkedbut kept his eyes on the road.

In a few moments the traffic slowed to nearly a crawl. Up ahead, out of the fog, loomed what lookedlike some sort of building. The road, five lanes wide at this point, led into it. Burt and Tabitha both

thought it strange; the structure was certainly larger than the toll booth they expected to pass just before

the Raritan River. Perhaps it was some sort of new construction, the latest boondoggle rendered fromParkway tolls.

As they drew closer, they realized that what they were seeing was a ferry, and a large one at that.

Dad, why is there a boat in front of us? Where's the bridge? Sasha asked, leaning toward the frontseat to get a better view.

Beats me, Burt replied. Maybe they're doing some construction and detouring traffic this way. He'd

have checked his GPS, but they didn't have one. Burt didn't trust them.

Well, I guess we're going in, Tabitha stated. Keep sharp, you two. I don't like this.

You never like anything, Mom, Sasha replied. Tabitha just grunted again.

They drove up the ramp and into the belly of the ferry. Some disinterested looking men were motioning

with glowing batons to assist drivers in parking on the wide deck. The Wallaces pulled up and parked,and stepped out into the dank, moist air. Other drivers and passengers were doing the same and slowly

walking toward stairs along the sides of the ferry, all of which led down below.

I don't like this, Tabitha repeated. I'm staying with the car.

Sorry, ma'am, one of the attendants sighed, not even looking over at them. For your safety we ask

that all passengers proceed to our accommodations below deck. Thank you for your understanding.

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Let's not make a scene, Burt whispered to his wife. We still need to get back to the city withoutincident.

Tabitha grunted again. You're the one who's good at making scenes. Nevertheless, she walked with

her family toward the closest stairs. As they walked, Tabitha checked her weapons, hidden beneath hercoat.

At the stairs, an older gentleman stood staring into the gray nothingness. He glanced back at theWallaces, then looked around before speaking. You look like a good family, he said, his tone oddly

grave. Listen. I know about this boat, from my gramma. When you get downstairs, they're gonna offer

you some pudding. There's melon and tapioca. No matter how bad it stinks, you have to eat the melon.You understand?

All three of the Wallaces eyed the man strangely, but said nothing. Burt nodded once, and the mannodded back. Then they went down.

After walking down a short hallway, they found themselves in a wide room. Windows on both sidesshone with the light gray of fog. Folding chairs were arrayed this way and that. In one corner toward

the bow stood a snack bar. People were slowly filing in, some chatting away obliviously, others

murmuring softly at the strangeness of their situation. The Wallaces found some chairs in a stern

corner, turned them toward the center of the room, and sat.

It's stuffy in here, Burt complained. I should knock out a window to get some air. He grinned and

looked over, catching a glare from his wife. Sasha just rolled her eyes and sighed, in that way onlyteenagers can.

Eventually the boat shuddered, and the Wallaces could feel a gentle tug as the ferry got underway. The

view outside the windows never changed, still packed in with swirls of gray emptiness.

The attendants shuffled into the room, and started working their way around the passengers. Tabitha

could see that people were confused by whatever the attendants were saying, sometimes shaking theirheads. Most were then getting up and forming lines at the snack bar.

Eventually one man walked up to the Wallace's corner. He was portly like the rest of them, with a dourexpression and sunken eyes. He spoke in a practiced monotone. Ladies and gentlemen please join the

line at the snack bar. We are offering delicious melon and tapioca pudding for our passengers. Please

proceed to the snack bar.

No thanks, Tabitha replied assertively. We just ate.

We insist ma'am. If you do not wish to get in line we will bring you tapioca pudding so you might as

well just get in the line so that your trip will be a pleasant one thank you for your understanding.

Fine, bring me pudding then, I won't eat it, Tabitha said. The attendant just stared at her, his smalleyes glinting behind folds of flesh. Tabitha stared right back; she was not easy to intimidate.

Burt finally stood up. I'll tell you what, I'm a little stir-crazy right now, I'll get in line. Melon puddingfor everyone.

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The attendant slowly turned his head to look at Burt. You should try the tapioca I suggest it we are

well known for its delicious texture. Then he walked away.

Burt and Tabitha looked at each other. This is screwed up, he said. I'll be right back. Sasharemained behind, moving over to sit next to her mother. While Tabitha had no trace of fear on her face,

Sasha looked quite concerned.

It took a few minutes, but Burt finally got to the front of the pudding line. Another fat attendant was

behind the counter, scooping pudding out of steel trays with paddles. He looked up at Burt, wordlessly.

Three melons, please.

The scooper produced three bowls from below the counter, and slopped the orange-green melonpudding into them. Burt could catch whiffs of the pudding's stench as he scooped, and wrinkled his

nose up. The scooper also took small scoops of white tapioca pudding and plopped them on top of each

bowl. He half-tossed the bowls onto the counter, again without a word.

Burt returned with the pudding and handed Tabitha and Sasha their bowls and spoons. The two of them

rocked their heads back when they smelled their snacks.

I'm not eating this, Tabitha said.

Me neither, you've got to be kidding, Sasha agreed.

Burt looked around for the man who had warned them about this before. He found him, sitting with

probably his wife across the room. The two of them were doing their best to choke down the melon

pudding. The man, perhaps sensing that he was being watched, looked up and saw Burt. He noddedonce, and then resumed eating.

Eat it, Burt said. But just the melon, like that guy said.

Tabitha and Sasha looked at him incredulously. He just stared back at them. I said eat it.

Sasha begrudgingly complied, while Tabitha still didn't move.

Listen, he said. You said you don't like this. I don't either. Just eat the damn pudding. If things start

to go crazy start to go more crazy after that, you have my permission to do things your way.

Tabitha stared for a moment longer, but finally she spooned up some of the melon pudding, carefully

avoiding the tapioca on top, and ate it. She stared at Burt again as she swallowed, only barely wincingfrom the taste.

Burt began eating as well. It was difficult work. The pudding had a rancid smell, like rotting meat. Onthe plus side, he couldn't really taste the pudding at all, since the smell was so awful. After just a few

spoonfuls his stomach started turning.

Seriously, Dad, if I eat any more of this I will totally yarp all over the floor, Sasha complained. I am

done. I ate some of the stupid pudding. She put the bowl on the floor besides her and dropped her

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spoon into it.

Tabitha was done as well. Out of spite she had eaten just about all of the melon pudding, leaving the

dollop of tapioca intact. She placed the bowl onto the floor just as Burt had reached his limit.

Ladies and gentlemen we have a surprise for you, another fat attendant announced at the front of theroom. Your choice of pudding has determined where you will go next on your fantastic ferry ride this

morning. If you picked tapioca please enter the door to my left otherwise enter the door to my right.Please select the correct door for your pudding we know what kind you ate. Thank you for your

understanding.

Oh God what now, Sasha said. The Wallaces got up and headed for the melon door. Of those who got

up at all, most, unsurprisingly, was heading for the tapioca door.

There was a shout from the back of the room. The Wallaces turned and saw a line of large men slowly

working forward, rousting people from their chairs and pushing them toward the doors. They held two-

by-fours and baseball bats, and weren't shy in using them lightly on the more reluctant passengers.

Please enter the doors because this room will shortly not be safe for you so for your safety please enter

the correct door. Thank you for your understanding.

Tabitha tensed, ready to start doing things her way, but Burt placed a hand on her shoulder. There are

too many of them. We'll take care of this later. He turned Tabitha around by her shoulders, and the

three of them continued toward their door.

Almost there, one of the servers stepped in front of them. Sir it seems this is not the correct door for

you please go to the other door. Burt grinned.

Dad, you didn't eat any of the tapioca pudding did you?

Maybe a little, Burt chuckled. I'll see you guys in a little bit. Let's see what's behind door numberone.

Thank you for your understanding.

Behind the tapioca door, people were formed into a line that snaked back and forth as if for an

amusement park ride. Everyone was agitated, and even larger attendants stood here and there with bats

and clubs keeping people in line. Some passengers were crying, some were yelling at the men keepingthem in place. The attendants all carried the same blank expressions, unchanged even when they struck

anyone trying to get out of line.

Ladies and gentlemen for your choice you have been selected to ride our funtastic minecar ride. To

our knowledge this is the only minecar ride in a ferry and so it should be a unique and memorable

experience for you. For your safety please stay in line and remain calm and quiet. Thank you for yourunderstanding.

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The announcement was repeated every couple of minutes as the line crawled forward. Between thebouncers with their weapons and the secured cables delineating the queue, there was nowhere for the

frightened passengers to go. For his part, Burt remained calm and amused. He was interested in seeing

what sort of minecar ride they could have on this insane boat.

He finally made it to the front of the line. An empty minecar rolled into view from behind heavy plastic

straps hanging from the left wall.

How many, the operator asked.

Just me! Hey, I have a heart condition, is this ride safe for me or should I skip it?

It doesn't matter if you have a heart condition please get into the minecar enjoy your ride thank you

for your understanding.

Burt laughed, and hopped into the car. He looked around for a seatbelt, but there was none. The car

shot forward into a dark tunnel. Burt held on to the sides of the wooden car as it swerved left, and then

dropped down onto the ride's first decline.

All around were steel struts and beams and rusted pipes, venting gasses from cracks. It even seemed

that the walls were moving. Here and there, other minecars were careening down the tracks, theirpassengers screaming. Burt noticed that the tracks were only either flat or heading down.

Someone fell out of a car nearby. His body bounced off steel columns and shattered on horizontalstretches of pipe, and eventually vanished into blackness below. Burt just chuckled and held on a little

tighter.

At last came the final drop. Burt had seen it coming, and heard it coming from the wails of the ridersbefore him. He held on as tightly as he could as his minecar fell down the last set of tracks. He sped

through a stretch of darkness before bursting onto an open, flat portion of track bathed in a red glow.

The car suddenly lurched to the right and its body tipped left, hurtling Burt to the ground. He

instinctively rolled sideways for a few revolutions, then sprang up with a grin.

Around him was a hellish landscape. The ground was cracked and dry, and bare cliffs and mountains

stood here and there. The sky was ashen clouds laced with blood red from the sky above. There was no

sign of anyone. The minecar tracks went on for a short distance and then simply ended his car was

nowhere to be seen. The exit from the ride was standing on its own, with nothing around or apparentlybehind it.

Well this is something. He reached down and produced his two combat knifes, one in each hand, andquickly switched them to reverse grip. The backs of their ten-inch blades rested comfortably against his

forearms. Smiling from ear to ear, he slowly scanned the horizon, waiting.

After a couple of minutes, another minecar rattled out of the exit. It swerved and dumped two women

at Burt's feet. He didn't bother helping them up.

The pair of newcomers caught sight of Burt and yelped, scrambling backward. They slowly stood up,

whimpering and looking around. Where are we?! one shouted at Burt. What's going on?!

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I don't know, but we're going to find out soon, I hope, Burt replied.

Are those knives? the other asked. Are you gonna kill us?

Not me, Burt said.

That was when he first heard the faint gurgling. It didn't seem to be coming from any particulardirection, but it had multiple sources. Burt dropped to combat stance and continued scanning, while the

women backed against each other.

The shapes appeared next. Darkish, greenish, humanoid but creeping on the ground in unnatural ways,

and leaving shining trails of slobber behind them. They appeared out of nowhere, still a distance away

but closing quickly. Yellow eyes glared.

Not one willing to wait, Burt rushed toward the closest of them. The thing lurched back in surprise, but

Burt leaped on it and drove a knife into its skull. The other knife sawed its head clean off in one stroke,

and he flung the severed head at another beast nearby.

Several of the things were close by now, and Burt continued his assault, slashing across faces and

limbs. Their anatomy was similar to humans but slightly less in muscle and bone density. He wouldhave no trouble keeping them off as long as he conserved his energy.

The women who had arrived in the second minecar were not so lucky. With no weapons they could notkeep the pack of monsters from piling on top of them. They let out panicked screams as they were

bitten, torn, and shredded to pieces.

After his initial flurry, Burt had time to look back and view the carnage. Ah, they're hungry bastards,are they. While it was too late to save the other humans, they had attracted a good cluster of the things

for him to dispatch. He holstered one of his knifes and drew his bolo machete from its back sheath. He

then dashed over and proceeded to cut down the eight or so creatures feasting on the remains.

In a few moments it was done. No more of the things were around except as corpses leaking black fluid

into the cracks in the ground.

Burt considered what to do next: either explore some or try to get back up to the ferry. He then heard

the gurgling once more, but this time deeper and from more directions. He decided that staying might

be risky.

He jogged over to where the minecar tracks ended. He stood facing the direction they should have

continued, and thrust his machete forward. Its blade disappeared. He pulled it back, and the bladereappeared intact. Works for me, he uttered, and without hesitation he leaped past the tracks and

vanished.

The room behind the melon door was an old-style theater, with the typical rows of plush red seats,

heavy maroon curtains, wood-paneled walls, and large screen in front. However, whereas a typical

theater is clean and comfortable, this one was mired in dust, cold and clammy. The chairs were rustedand lumpy, the curtains torn, and the walls stained and splintered. After the very few passengers who

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had choked down some melon pudding had taken their seats, some old newsreels had started runningon the screen, their audio tracks warped with time.

Sasha sat in her seat with her knees drawn up to her shoulders, hugging her legs and trying to stay

warm. Her mother sat next to her, relaxed but alert, periodically scanning the room. The only attendantsthat remained stood around the entrance door, which seemed to be the only way in or out.

I hate this waiting. Where is your father?

Having a better time than us, probably. Do we have to stay here?

Your father prefers that I wait, so we'll wait.

Sasha sighed and hugged her legs closer. The newsreel droned on.

Without warning, the paneled walls began to glow with a sickly green light. Strange screams and angry

shouts echoed throughout the theater, and dry winds blew in from all sides. While most of the

passengers looked around in fear, Tabitha only grimaced. Get ready, Sasha. I don't believe we'll needto wait for your father's permission much longer.

No! The older gentleman from the garage deck cried. He was seated toward the front of the room,next to his wife. We're supposed to be safe!

From out of the glowing panels crawled misshapen, greenish creatures, gurgling and bellowing.Rivulets of slime accompanied them, oozing down the walls. The humanoids' yellow eyes darted

hungrily across the room, looking for prey.

Tabitha glared at the grotesque things for a moment, then said flatly, Sasha, annihilation protocol,level 5. Kill them all.

Sasha's eyes widened and glassed over. Yes, mother. Level 5. Without a wasted movement, shesprang sideways from her seat, twisted sideways, and landed in the aisle in a three-point stance. Her

mother stood up and produced a pair of submachine guns from the folds of her coat.

Tabitha immediately opened fire and walked toward the nearest wall. She continually swept its length,

perforating the monsters as they crept down the walls and into the room. Splatters of black blood

sprang up across the entire mass of them, forming a darkened mist. Some of them turned toward

Tabitha, but were quickly dashed to pieces by the gunfire.

Along the other way, Sasha acrobatically leaped among the invaders. Blades deployed at her wrists and

ankles sliced apart anything that drew near her. Among her flips and dashes across the creatures, assevered limbs and heads skittered and rolled, she would pause and produce, seemingly out of nowhere,

a P7 pistol, which she would use for a few head shots, before continuing her melee assault.

Despite the pair's efficiency, the volume of creatures did not slow down, and the later arrivals merely

crawled across the piles of the dead into the theater, just as eager as their predecessors. The passengers

huddled together in the center of the theater, terrified.

Tabitha decided that a change in strategy was called for. Sasha, exit protocol! She then whirled

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around and gunned down the attendants who, despite the chaos around them, had remained idle at thedoor.

Sasha disengaged and dashed to the door. She flipped on top of the one surviving attendant. Please do

not exit the theater until the entertainment has concluded thank you for your understanding. One shotfrom her pistol ended the conversation. She stood up and backed against the wall as her mother walked

up to the door and kicked it open.

Outside, Burt was amidst several attendants who were swinging wildly at him with their bats and two-

by-fours. Their movements were slow and deliberate, and so Burt had little trouble dodging and

counterattacking with his knives. Still, his expression revealed that he was more tired than he let on.

Tabitha and Sasha emerged from the theater, and Sasha methodically shot each of the attendants, one

bullet per head. When the last one had fallen, Tabitha approached her husband. We were waiting.

I know, and Iappreciate that, Burt replied, out of breath. He looked over as screaming passengers

started running out of both rooms. But from what I've just been through, I have to admityou were

right.Again.

Tabitha smirked.

Sasha was already heading for the stairs. Kids, always in a rush, Burt mused. Shall we, my dear?

By the time the Wallace parents arrived on the garage deck, Sasha had already dispatched the fewattendants who had remained on guard. The trio met up at their car as fellow surviving passengers fled

frantically out of the stairwell and to their own vehicles. Area secured, but only temporarily, she

reported.

Indeed, Burt said. Those things will be coming up here. We need to close off their access. Honey,

give me the MPs and then go grab the AT4. Sasha, locate the pilot house and eliminate any hostiles.

Wait, Tabitha interrupted. If we take out the pilot, how will we get this ferry back to shore? Sasha,

after you find the pilot house, wait until the ferry docks. Then take down the pilot and anyone, or

anything, else.

Once again, my dear, Burt added with a smile, and nodded to Sasha. The girl ran off.

Tabitha handed over her submachine guns to Burt, who calmly walked back toward the stairs, turning

sideways to let other passengers past. He trained the guns on the stairwell and waited.

Meanwhile, Tabitha popped the trunk of their car, unlatched the hatch to the modified spare tire

compartment, and carefully pulled out a rocket launcher. She carried the 40-inch tube over her shoulder

to a spot by the edge of the deck and dropped to one knee, also facing the stairs. She pulled the safety

pin, aimed at the passageway, and threw over the cocking lever.

The stream of humans emerging from below deck stopped, and seconds later a swarm of mottled green

creepers burst from the doorway. Burt blasted away with his guns, slowly moving backwards as theinnocent passengers cleared away. After just a few seconds, he shouted Do it! and ducked behind a

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nearby truck.

Tabitha pressed the firing button, and with a brilliant back blast, the launcher's projectile flew from its

housing and into the stairwell. The ensuing explosion collapsed the stairs, blew out the side of the

ferry's hull, and burned up all of the monsters caught in the fireball. Burt sprang up from his hiding spotand swiftly eliminated any that still survived.

The couple returned to their car and stowed their weapons, while astonished passengers either fled totheir cars or stared with a mix of disbelief and relief.

Back to your vehicles, everyone, Tabitha ordered. We should be on our way before too long.

Indeed, within a few minutes, the fog bank cleared in front of the ferry, revealing a berth on the

northern shore of the river. The boat slowed as the engines shifted to neutral, then jerked even slowerwhen they switched to reverse. Gently the ferry nestled up to the dock, and Tabitha and Burt jumped

over the rails with ropes to tie down the boat. The engines idled back to neutral, and several shots

sounded above the garage ceiling.

All ashore! Burt called.

Copyright 2012 Bill HavankiLicensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

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