The Decay

Chapter 10 - Epsilon

10

… 6 months later …

Mike woke up in his bed. He opened the wardrobe on his opposite the bed and put on a pair of blue jeans, a white t-shirt and a camouflage vest. He went next door, grabbed a hunting rifle, a case of bullets and his handgun, before walking downstairs. Leaving his house, he walked along the walkway and down to ground level. Daniel was waiting for him. “Good morning Mike, are you ready?” Mike nodded. “Let's go.”

His life had changed radically in the past 6 months. Maxine, the woman Mike had spoken to, had arranged for him to join team alpha, one of the three squads responsible for keeping the place safe and hunting for food nearby. The squad consisted of Daniel as the captain, Mike, and two others. The first of them was a woman named Ellie. She was in her thirties, a tough woman who enjoyed violence as much as a kid enjoyed a nice chocolate ice cream. The other one was a young boy named Marcus. He was only 18 but he could handle himself. His first encounter with a bear had made him the victor, although his left ear was now gone.

The job wasn't too boring, the pay was good. Mike had managed to get his hands on various furniture including two wardrobes, a table with four chairs, two display cases, several shelves, a dresser, and even a weapon rack, with space for a few rifles, among other things. He had managed to get new weapons, namely a hunting rifle in fairly good condition, a pump-action shotgun, a spare pistol and, his latest addition, a fine sniper rifle, a gift from Daniel.

Mike flipped his silver coin, the one Sam had given him. He always carried it with him. “So, where are going today, Dan?” he asked. Daniel spat out his cigarette and stepped on it. “North,” he said. “Towards the old Winchester Town hall, or what's left of it. Marcus said he saw some boars there yesterday.” “Speaking of which,” said Mike, “Where did Marcus and Ellie go?” Daniel laughed. “I gave Ellie the day off, she needed a rest. As for Markus, I asked him to do me a favour.” “So just us two today?” asked Mike. Daniel nodded, “Just us, yes.”

Daniel was carrying a brand new hunting rifle in his hands, a silenced sniper rifle strapped onto his back. Together, Daniel and Mike walked towards the ruins of the Winchester Town hall. As they approached, Daniel made a sign with his hand and they both went prone. Daniel unstrapped his sniper rifle, placed it in front of him and looked down the scope. Two boars were moving around inside the ruins, but that wasn't all. Walking along the road to the right were two men. On their sleeves were big, black 'ε' symbols. Epsilon mercenaries. “What are they doing here?” asked Mike. Daniel kept looking down the scope. “I have no idea. It's unlikely that they are hunting. They get food from jobs they do.”

“Formation Z,” said Daniel. “Roger,” replied Mike before quickly getting up and moving towards the right. Mike crouched closer to the mercenaries.

In the past 6 months, other things had changed as well. Mike had received training from Daniel, improving his overall performance, both physically and strategically. A trained killer.

Mike grabbed a rock and threw it past the mercenaries. They quickly drew their weapons and looked in the direction of the noise. Mike was now at a few meters from the mercenaries, still out of sight. He counted to 3 and threw his knife at the man on the right. The knife struck the man in his left eye and he dropped down, screaming. The second man was already down, a bullet from Daniels rifle hitting him in the middle of the forehead.

Everything had happened so quietly that the boars had not noticed anything. Mike snuck over to the mercenaries and took his knife. He searched their bodies and found an envelope in one of their pockets. He took it and moved towards the boars. Daniel moved up behind him. “Good job, Mike. Time to deal with the boars,” he said. Mike nodded and, with a quick movement, shot both boars with his hunting rifle. They each grabbed a carcass and headed back home.

As they went past the main gate, Mike turned to Daniel. “I found this on one of the mercenaries. Haven't opened it yet,” he said. Daniel looked at the envelope in Mikes hand, then took it. He inspected it briefly before unsealing it. He read the contents out loud:

Good news, J. Everything is going according to plan. Mr. Z is happy to work with you to further your goals, as long as the gold keeps coming. Epsilon will remain at your disposal until Mr. Z says otherwise. Only three components remain.

- T.

Daniel looked worried. “What is it, Daniel, what does it mean?” Daniel took a deep breath and looked at Mike. “I'm not entirely sure, but I gather that this so called 'Mr. Z' is leading the Epsilon Company. They are working with J, presumably John Thorne on something and, whatever it is, they seem to be ready soon. If John is involved, it can't be good.” Daniel put the letter back in the envelope. “I had better bring this to my superiors. Take care of the boars, Mike.” With that, Daniel went towards town.

After dealing with the boar carcasses, Mike went home. His home was nothing like he had ever had before. Past the main door was a small hall, a cabinet and a shelf on the right. Entering the living room, a wooden table with four chairs were in the middle, a pair of shelves lining the left wall together with a display case on the right side. Up the stairs was a storage room which contained a weapon rack, a wardrobe, a chest and a single shelf. His bedroom was next door, a display case on the right side and a nightstand on the left. A big wardrobe filled the wall opposite the bed and a small desk was in the corner of the room. The remaining open space of the second floor contained another small desk and a cabinet where two small generators were stored. Mike had been amazed at the fact that they had electricity, despite it being used sparingly.

Mike cleaned his weapons thoroughly before heading out for lunch. Having skipped breakfast, he was looking forward to a nice meal.