Them-2 Chapter 44

Chapter Forty Four – Near White Sulfur Springs, West Virginia

Burt picked up his coffee and angrily threw it at the man standing on the other side of the table. The man barely managed to dodge the heavy mug, even though some of the scalding coffee splashed on his neck. The news he brought was not good. Not only had the hippies received reinforcements, those reinforcements were trained military personnel. In addition, the idiot stated that well over three hundred members of the congregation left behind to deal with the hippies had deserted and he had almost a hundred more under guard that tried to walk off earlier that very morning.
They didn’t know if the military with the hippies came from the bunker complex or from other sources. If they came from the bunker, it was a clear violation of their agreement. Burt smiled at the thought. He didn’t like the idea of letting the President’s daughter go free. Once they got rid of the hippies and established themselves in the bunker, he didn’t think the military could do anything about it. He figured it was a bluff. He had plans for her.
He and Moses decided it was best to leave at least six thousand members of the congregation behind to take out the hippies. If they lost half of them, that was war. Moses had also demanded that he remain behind to put the fear of God into the men who would lead the assault. Since the knowledge had somehow gotten out about the slime no longer working, the membership was slowly starting to crumble. Many people were smart enough to realize that Father Moses was actually running a con game, although a good number of them realized it well before now but took advantage of the protection.
The thing that Burt still feared the most was the ants. He realized that if just one foraging ant found the thousands of people packed together, that information might be relayed back to the nest and without the protection of the slime they could be attacked and wiped out. That was one reason he kept an armored bank truck for his own personal use.
“So they got military reinforcements!” Burt yelled, enjoying it when the man cringed. “At most they have a thousand men and half of those are armed with friggin crossbows. Against six thousand of us, they don’t stand a chance.”
“But, they have those armored personnel carriers,” the man fearfully blurted. “Civilians against armor, not a good idea. A lot of the men don’t understand why it’s so important to kill the hippies. They figure why not just let them do their thing and smoke their dope and have their free love.”
Burt’s voice went down almost to a whisper. “First of all, they killed and maimed over two hundred of our people. We can’t let them get away with that. Vengeance is mine sayeth the Lord, and Moses is the Lord. Secondly, if we let them spread their disgusting ways around, pretty soon we’ll have thousands of them infecting the congregation. It’s best to deal with them now and get it done.”
The man didn’t dare remind Burt that it was they who attacked the hippies first. He also didn’t add that over two thirds of the congregation was strongly against attacking them again.
Burt changed the subject. “Any word from Rogers and his people?” One of his trusted lieutenants had been sent out with a foraging team to search National Guard Armories and see what weapons they could add to their arsenal. The man was ex-military and knew his business. They were due back any time.
“Communications reported they were on their way back with a surprise. Didn’t say what it was though.”
“Get the people together in two hours,” Burt ordered. “I’ll talk to them. You say you have around a hundred would be deserters under guard?”
“Yes sir.”
“Good. I’ll pick ten of the bastards at random. We’ll give the congregation some psychological encouragement.”
Two hours later Burt stood on the steps leading up to the Inn and glared down at the dirty masses below him. Behind him stood a hundred members of his Brotherhood of Protectors, his personal goon platoon. They were all armed with assault rifles and had extra ammunition magazines. They received special treatment in the way of food, and other private privileges and acted as the church’s police force. The majority was hardened criminals sentenced to life in prison without parole. The few thinkers among them had been carefully culled out and eliminated.
“We have discovered that a number of people have sinned against the Lord!” Burt bellowed. His voice carried well and a feeling of anticipation mixed with dread spread through the large crowd. “Bring out the sinners!”
Another squad of Protectors pushed and shoved around a hundred men and women onto the grass knoll to the right of where Burt stood. They had their hands bound behind them and their faces were covered in fear.
“I have been doing a lot of holy reading.” Burt addressed the crowd. “Back in the old days, the Romans punished their criminals and sinners using what they called, decimato!” Burt halted to let the words sink in. Actually, it was the Roman Army’s way of disciplining soldiers who ran from the enemy, but Burt loved the concept. “Under decimato, one in ten of the sinners will be selected and punished. The remainder will be set free to rejoin your ranks with the full understanding that God chose them to live and so forgive their sins.”
Burt nodded to the officer in charge of the guard who stepped forward and slowly walked down the line of prisoners. Ever so often he would point at one, who was quickly pulled from the line by other guards. By the time he reached the end of the line, there were eleven prisoners separated from the others. Burt noticed the man had pulled out the ones that he himself had secretly selected, except for one young female. Evidently, the man was mad at this particular woman and wanted her punished also. She had probably refused to lay with him. The officer grinned at Burt, then rejoined his men.
Burt pointed at the remaining prisoners. “The rest of you may rejoin the congregation.” He also signaled for the guard to cut their bonds. As soon as they were back among the large crowd, Burt signaled for silence.
“In accordance with the wishes of Father Moses, these sinners will be punished as an example to others who harbor sin in their hearts.”
Another squad of Protectors brought out the deadly ten-foot poles with one end sharpened to a point. Holes had already been dug for the base of the poles to slide in. Each of the prisoners was impaled on a pole and the pole lifted into position. The screaming of the dying men and woman was ear splitting.
Burt did not like the looks on the faces of many of the people in the crowd. They did not seem to portray fear, but anger, and it was slowly spreading. He signaled for his Brotherhood of Protectors to step forward. The angry faces were quickly replaced with appropriate looks of fear and the crowd started to draw back.
“Tomorrow morning we will rid the earth of the sinners to our south!” Burt yelled. “We will avenge your brothers and sisters killed by the hippy murderers. After they have been sent to hell, we will rejoin Father Moses and the rest of the congregation in our new land of milk and honey.”
Someone shouted from the crowd. “They have armored vehicles and the United States military backing them!”
“Who said that?” Burt scanned the area of the crowd he thought it came from. “We have six thousand holy warriors against their one thousand,” he replied. “Plus, our cause is just. They have murdered members of our church and spit on the Lord’s gospel. They are an abomination in the eyes of God!”
Someone else in the crowd yelled. “They’re fellow Americans! You’re the abomination!”
Burt was furious but could not identify the person who had spoken those words. No problem, it didn’t matter to him. He pointed to a man in the front of the crowd and ordered his guards to pull the man forward. As soon as the screaming man was well clear of the crowd, Burt walked over and shot the man point blank in the head.
“Thus will those who defy the will of the Lord be treated!” He screamed at the shocked crowd. He was upset because the blood spraying from the man’s head got his clothes and pistol bloody.
“As I said, tomorrow we will eliminate the sinners to the south. Are you with me?”
The crowd did not sound enthusiastic, only those in the front ranks muttered low growls of approval because they knew they were directly in front and highly visible.
The sullen standoff was shattered by the sound of gunfire. The crowd started to open up to allow the foraging patrol to enter the area. They were astonished to see three monstrous battle tanks creeping down the road with several armored personnel carriers behind them. The tanks stopped in unison and the tops opened.
The lieutenant in command of the scrounging detail saluted Burt. “Reporting back with three M60A3 Tanks, sir. They’re not as good as the new M1 Abrams but I took the time to teach these men how to use them. They have a good supply of 105mm ammo and lots of M60 ammunition. We also have four M113 armored personnel carriers with fifty caliber machine guns mounted and ready to rip.”
Burt glanced to the crowd who had turned from wary hostility to curiosity. “The Lord has provided!” he yelled. “He has blessed our endeavor and found it good. Tomorrow we will go forth and conquer in his holy name.”

Moses was a very happy man. The news from Burt about the three tanks and APC’s had just made his day. His personal convoy was within a few miles of the bunker complex that would be their comfortable new home. Most of the five hundred devout members he had selected to go inside the bunker were in trucks and cars behind him. The rest, well over three thousand, were walking but would be picked up as soon as the vehicle drivers could turn around and make the return trip. He fully expected the entire move to take several days but if they lost people due to hunger or accidents along the way, it was the will of God.
He had been adamant in his demand that Burt remain behind to supervise the elimination of the hippies. Should Burt become a casualty during the conflict, it would be no great loss. Moses had already grown tired and leery of the man. Burt had been a good enough lieutenant; however, his cruel methods often disturbed Moses. Plus, his ambition had grown and he could no longer trust Burt’s motives, especially since he had surrounded himself with those horrible prison convicts and allowed them to ravish his flock too often. The man was by polar, one minute as calm as could be, the next drooling in anger or greed.
Moses had also been very selective in those left behind. His devout followers and Saints had circulated among the entire congregation and provided him with a list of the dissenters and the thinkers. Anyone, who had openly expressed displeasure with his leadership or doubt about the sincerity of his religious convictions, or seemingly on the verge of mutiny, had been left with Burt. They would either be killed in the fight or, if they were lucky enough to survive, they would be absorbed into the colonies he planned on settling around the bunker site.
The vehicle in the lead suddenly came to a stop. Moses saw men in the back of the truck looking up into the sky. He could not see from the interior of the armored SUV, so he opened the door and glanced up. A large brown colored helicopter had just flown over them. It was one of those huge things the military used to carry cargo. He couldn’t remember what they called them. He didn’t think the helicopter presented any danger, it was probably sent to keep track of his movements. A commando assault on his convoy could result in only one outcome, the death of the President’s daughter who was in the truck behind him guarded by six armed men.
Moses ordered the driver to blow his horn to signal the convoy to move on. Half an hour later they reached the entrance to the complex. Moses sent a security detail inside to make sure the military had left no traps, then he ordered them to search the entire bunker. He was genuinely surprised to discover they had kept their word. Good for them,” he thought. He had absolutely no intent to keep his. He had discovered that the young girl excited him in ways many others had failed to do. He would break her, eventually.