The Last Gallon (12 page)

Kara was right, Kara was always right. The convoy slowed the average speed of the Armadillo down into the 40mph range. The bright side of the whole affair was the MPG gauge was reading off the chart as the car just lumbered along. Knoxville was only about an hour away the day before when they were by themselves; it was now looking closer to 2 hours minimum.

Mark notices that Tennessee was hit very hard during either CWII or RWII. Most of the smaller towns along the interstate were completely razed or had sections bombed out. It reminded him of the pictures of post World War II Europe, just utter devastation and desolation.

The convoy passed a sign stating it was 20 miles to Knoxville. “Only half an hour” Mark said with a sigh. Kara shook her head and gave him an “I told you so” look. Joey and Cindy were playing cards in the back seat; everyone was about as laid back as they could be on such a journey.

Whump
whump whump tink tink. Rounds started bouncing off the Armadillo and the Bradley directly behind it suddenly. Mark saw the muzzle flash coming from a barn about 300 yards off the road. He quickly keyed the radio and relayed the information to the rest of the convoy. The lead Bradley opened up with the chain gun and brought a quick end to the sniper’s ambitions.

Joey and Cindy didn’t even look up from their game. Mark told them they didn’t need to get complacent and Joey said they wouldn’t though Mark wasn’t sure if he was just agreeing to shut him up. Kara decided to take up a watch to see if there were any others out there.

There wasn’t. The desolate, bombed out area was apparently too depressing for even roving gangs. Mark started to wonder if people didn’t just turn around and go home after seeing the horrors of Tennessee. It made him wonder what the rest of the south looked like. They hadn’t noticed much damage in Virginia or North Carolina but they had not really traveled too far south. He wondered if Charlotte was levelled. He knew Atlanta was under the control of the Mexican drug cartel, the Zetas. They had captured much of the south and half of Texas when America was weakened by two consecutive wars.

Within 12 miles of Knoxville the convoy started seeing billboards with a greyscale confederate flag. They knew the New Confederate Army occupied the city so they assumed that was their flag. Mark called Vincent and told him he should hang back and let him try to work out passage through the city for everyone. He
explained that rolling in with an army might be a bad idea. Vincent agreed and told him that they would be glad to give up a gold piece per vehicle if necessary.

At the 5 mile mark the convoy slowed to a halt and Mark was able to speed up for the first time all day. The convoy circled up in a defensive posture like the old west circling of the wagons. The Bradleys formed the points with the
Humvees filling in and protecting the H2s and deuces.

Mark & family made the Knoxville barricade checkpoint in a mere couple minutes. As they slowed they were surrounded by no less than a dozen soldiers. Their commander came out in full civil war style regalia. Mark exited the car and salute
d the man who returned the favor. That seemed to relax the tension a bit and he asked Mark what their purpose was.

Mark explained that he and his convoy were
traveling through and looking to head to Nashville and on up to Clarksville. The lieutenant laughed at the mention of Nashville and informed Mark that there was a significant toll for passing through sovereign NCA territory. Mark asked what the toll would be for his 21 vehicle convoy. The man’s eyes widened and Mark could almost hear the cash register ‘ching’ and see the dollar signs in his eyes. “Sheeeeet boy, 21 cars equals 25 gold.” Mark shook his head no and offered 4 bottles of moonshine a pound of tobacco and 10 gold. The lieutenant thought for a second and said “15 and you got a deal.” Mark stuck out his hand and they shook on it. He went to the trunk and pulled out the tobacco and moonshine and set it at the man’s feet. “The 15 gold will be in the last vehicle” he told the man. The lieutenant nodded and saluted Mark. Mark returned the salute and got in the car.

Mark called Vincent and told him the arrangement. He said he would make sure a Bradley was in the back for the final payment. Mark thought that was a good idea as well. He told Vincent to radio if they ran into any issues, he was going to get rolling. Vincent rogered in the affirmative and Mark got the Armadillo rolling.

The road to Knoxville was filled with dragon’s teeth chicanes to keep any through traffic slow enough to shoot. When they got to the city proper and the bypass they were directed to take the bypass. It added several miles but they would not have to travel through the city walls. The town was surrounded by a stone wall of a size Mark had never seen. It was at least 7 stories tall and looked like it was up to 20 feet thick. The city looked like a super-sized castle.

The bypass ran right along the wall. Atop the wall sat a myriad of weaponry, all of which would track you as you drove by. It was very un-nerving. Kara asked Mark to please speed up as the missile
system and CIWS following them was creeping her out. Mark agreed because looking down the barrel of a gun was bad; looking down the barrel of a Gatling gun that fired bullets damn near the size of their grenades was just damn frightening.

Vincent called and confirmed the last truck had made it through and paid the toll. Once that happened Mark noticed the guns no longer followed them and he breathed a sigh of relief. Vincent called in and told Mark he never wanted to get on these guy’s wrong side and Mark couldn’t argue with that. He added “If you do piss them off, make sure you do it away from home!” The two laughed and then realized they were probably
being listened to so they complimented the NCA on their awesome presence.

Everyone felt better after they returned back to I-40 and were on their way to Nashville
. The city was about 180 miles away or nearly 5 hours with their turtle-speed convoy. It was decided they would not travel during the night due to the vulnerability of such a large group so they would have to call it a day before they got near half-way. Mark was ok with that as the slow pace was really grinding on him. He felt pressure that their defection was known and the cartel would be heading in their direction. Hopefully they moved as slow as his army or they would be in big trouble.

Just past Ozone TN was Renegade Mountain.
The convoy took up camp at the site of the old ski resort. It was a perfect location to spend the night besides the creepiness of it. Vincent circled the wagons and used the deuce in a half trucks as a perimeter line with Bradleys parked behind them as a firing line. They were about as secure as you could get out in the wilderness of modern America.

The crew of Vincent’s top people and the family sat around one of many camp fires and told stories of their adventures. Mark opened one of the remaining bottles of moonshine and shared a drink or two with everybody in their group. Cindy finally opened up and told some stories from her past life.

“My mother and I lived in Wichita when the war broke out. Dad was part of the Kansas National Guard. He found out that they were to not only stop the street riots but go door to door and confiscate weapons. It broke him up inside. He felt a duty to his country but he felt a duty to us as well. Three days before the mission was to start he got really drunk with a bunch of guys from his unit. He decided he was going to come home and kill us so we wouldn’t have to live through what was about to happen. Four of his fellow guardsmen followed him home. They followed him in and knocked him out with a tire iron. They then proceeded to rape my mom and me continuously.”

“When he woke, he was tied to the radiator in his bedroom and was forced to watch the men
take turns with us. It went on for hours. I passed out 3 times and was praying for death. When raping got boring they would beat us, when that got boring they would start raping again. Dad was hysterical and at one point he broke his restraints. They shot him. We knew we were done for at this point and I was letting myself go when I felt the heat.”

“They set the house on fire when they left. I swear I woke myself up because I remember hovering above my body kicking at it with my foot. When I awoke I felt myself being sucked back into that sore, bloody body. I shook my mom awake and we crawled out the back door. Since we knew what would be coming for the area we got in the car and just left.”

“We had nothing but our ripped and tattered night clothes and whatever was in the car which turned out to be 22 dollars and a 38 snub nose. We used the 22 dollars to get an outfit a piece at the thrift store and then robbed our way across the state so we could afford to eat and to fill the gas tank.”

“Keep in mind I was 11 at this time and I was knocking over gas stations and fast food restaurants. Fortunately for us the country was crumbling beneath us and the riots and small scale wars breaking out distracted law enforcement from making any efforts to catch us.”

“We made our way to Kansas City when the real shit hit the fan. We realized we didn’t need to go into cities unless it was absolutely necessary. We saw rioters and looters shot by police, army, and homeland security; just about anyone with a uniform was out there. I saw a mother drop her baby in the street and keep running. It was horrifying.”

“Then the bombing started. The army was shelling the city from miles away. One second people would be standing around, the next minute they would be molten blood and bone. I don’t know how we made it out alive.”

“We got caught up in a biker gang in Illinois after that. Mother thought it would be safer but it just meant that we were raped frequently and treated like shit. I kept that revolver hidden the whole time and when I got the opportunity I used it. This greasy bastard was raping my mom in the back room of this filthy trailer. I had the gun hidden in my bag the whole time. While it was mom’s turn I got it out and hid it behind my back. When he opened the door to come get me I put a bullet right through his heart and actually enjoyed watching his blood running out of him. That’s when my mom started taking pills and you know what happened after that.”

Joey took his place behind Cindy and hugged her as tight as he possibly could. He whispered to
her “It’s all better now, it will never happen again.” When she heard his encouraging words she broke down. She turned around and buried herself in his arms. Everyone in the camp was stunned. The stories the poor girl told wound haunt them the rest of their lives and they didn’t even have to endure it. The fact that she was still a loving, caring human being was an amazing feat. Most people wouldn’t function or would have offed themselves long ago but Cindy was a survivor.

Everyone left Joey and Cindy alone, their night was over anyways. Nobody could imagine doing anything but going back to their little piece of ground and crying after her stories. Joey rocked her back and forth and stroked her hair. He kept repeating that it was all going to be ok. He then whispered “Cindy, I love you” in her ear. Cindy stopped crying and pulled slightly back so she could look in his eyes. “You do? After all you know and you don’t know half of it” she started to say. Joey wouldn’t let her finish. “I don’t care Cindy. I know who you are, I know what you are, and you are the most amazing, affectionate, and caring woman I have ever met. I love you now and I will love you forever.” Cindy smiled a true smile of joy and began crying happy tears for a change. “Joey, I will, I will love you forever too. I am yours if you will keep me.”

The next day everyone woke up with the sun. Joey and Cindy were locked in an embrace in their sleeping bags. A few of the guys who had heard her story the night before saw the two of them and were so moved by the scene they walked around the camp perimeter and gathered as many flowers as they could. When the two lovers woke up they were surrounded by wild flowers. It made them and everyone else in camp smile. It was a good start to the day.

The goal was to make it to Nashville and hopefully up I-24 a bit towards Clarksville. It was a lofty goal, especially with the way people acted whenever they mentioned Nashville. It almost sounded like they would be in for an all out war.

The convoy rolled out towards Nashville as soon as everyone finished their breakfasts and cleaned up. Vincent had a rule to leave a place looking better than they found it. He had one caveat to that rule, if you shot at him he was going to mess your place up beyond recognition.

Cindy had a flower from the camp tucked in her beret. Seeing it made everyone smile. She was a little embarrassed that she had allowed herself to get a little tipsy and spill her guts on her past but it didn’t seem to turn people away like usual. She felt closer to everyone and many felt like they had made a connection to her as well so it was overall a positive experience even if it hurt like hell to recall.

The convoy planned on taking I-24 once they reached Nashville. Once through the city they would continue up I-24 before making their way west around Paducah. They would be encroaching on Coal-lands territory for a bit of the journey but Vincent didn’t seem too concerned. The people in that region didn’t seem overly aggressive unless you messed with their family or possessions. The convoy did not plan on doing either.

As typical in so many days, upon arriving in
Nashville the plan changed significantly. I-40 avoiding the city was blocked, I-24 was blocked downtown and all the bridges across the river were blown out. There was one way through the city, and it involved entering the inner city walls.

And what walls they were. They appeared to be granite and had decorative columns running up them every 25 feet or so. It was beautiful
and rather odd. As usual Mark volunteered to be first in line and try to negotiate their safe passage.

Mark understood the columns when he reached the checkpoint. The guards were in ancient Greek dress but had SCAR rifles instead of swords. “State your purpose” the closest guard said with his muzzle ready but not pointed directly at Mark which was very much appreciated for a change. “We wish to pass through” Mark informed the man. “Where are you going?” the guard inquired, more out of curiosity than protocol. “Missouri” Mark answered generically and added “starting a new life.” The guard seemed satisfied. “One gold tribute per car” he demanded. Mark shook his head no and counter-offered “5 gold and 50 gallons of diesel.”

The guard went into his shack and made a call. He appeared to get into an animated conversation with the person on the other side and after he slammed the phone done and shook his head he went back out to see Mark. “You’ve got a deal, we will collect everything up front.” Mark handed the 5 gold and told the guard the tanker would stop when it was its turn to come through. The arrangement was agreed to and Mark shook the guard’s hand. Another man opened the gate and made a gesture to go ahead.

Mark pulled forward into the city walls. New Nashville extended from I-24 to I-440 from Charlotte Ave to just south of Broadway. It encompassed a good bit of Vanderbilt and the park where the Parthenon was located. Charlotte Avenue was the new main street and it was lined on both sides with olive trees. Mark noted owls
standing watch in many of the trees.

Many of the buildings were rebuilt to look Greek or they had a new facade which made them look Greek. The entire city had a very Greek vibe. The road was made of stone and made travel very slow going so Mark more or less idled the entire way. About half-way through town an owl landed on the hood of the Armadillo with a
thunk and turned and looked at the family before flying off.

Shortly after this
happened Mark noted guards along the wall were yelling and gesturing wildly. He feared that the owl was a bad sign and their “deal” was about to go south. It was practically confirmed when a pair of armored chariots cut him off at 22
nd
Avenue. Four guards much like the ones at the checkpoint stepped out but had their SCARs still slung to their back. One of them motioned for Mark to exit the car which he reluctantly did.

“You are hereby formally invited to council with the great and mighty Athena, ruler of
Athenia” the guard announced. “Your convoy may park along the road and await your return, please follow us” he said as he sharply turned and re-entered the chariot. Mark got back in the car and the family was eager to hear exactly what was going on.

“Well?” Kara asked as Mark started following the chariots. “We’ve been invited to meet Athena” Mark said, “The great and mighty Athena, ruler of
Athenia.” Kara couldn’t help but smile at the absurdity of the whole situation but Mark gave her the look. “We’ve got to take this seriously or all our lives are in danger” he informed her. She acted like she locked her mouth shut and threw the key out the window. “Exactly” Mark confirmed.

The Parthenon
in Nashville is a full-size replica of the Greek Parthenon. Apparently after the fall of civilization the combination of sororities and fraternities with their Greek traditions and overtones combined with the building still standing made the residents believe that the Greek goddess Athena had watched over them. This part of the city remained relatively intact compared to the rest of Nashville so they built walls around it to protect it.

One day a beautiful woman walked into town and claimed to be a descendent of Athena. She had a pet owl and a personality that drove people to her service. She took up residence in the Parthenon and the rest was new history. The residents planted olive trees and either her personality or the real Athena intervened and owls flocked into the area.
Athenia had an owl population akin to most cities’ pigeon population.

The chariots and Armadillo pulled up to the outside perimeter of the park where the Parthenon was located. Lake
Watauga had a trireme sitting in the middle of it that was bristling with modern weaponry. Clearly if you approached the Parthenon from that direction you would find yourself annihilated by 105mm guns, TOW missiles and various chain-guns and other medium to heavy weapons.

The Parthenon itself had a sort of dry moat cut around it with defensive positions every 25 feet. They apparently did not want to wall the structure off which made sense, in Greece it was placed up high so it could always be seen, to wall it in would go against tradition.

Behind the building in the park Mark saw what looked like a stadium and various other buildings. It was really hard to believe that he was in Nashville and not in Athens. He found himself eager to meet the young lady who claimed to be descended from a goddess; he pictured her as being highly insane.

The family were led up the front steps and into the building itself. It was no longer an art museum and appeared to be Athena’s personal home. The lobby area was a comfortable sitting area with couches and ottomans in luxurious fabrics. The family was told to go ahead and get comfortable and Athena would call for them when she was ready.

Everyone just sat and soaked up their environment while waiting to be called. Clearly they weren’t going to be killed but they still needed to play their cards right. If this woman was insane then setting her off could mean their doom. It was a tricky situation because nobody had a clue what protocol was.

After about 20 minutes a guard appeared, this one female, and told them to follow her. Once inside the inner sanctum the scale of the place was quite astounding. They were led to the main chamber that contained the giant statue of Athena and as the enormous doors of the chamber were opened by more female guards the shine of the gold nearly blinded them.

Dwarfed by the statue, there was a throne at the bottom between Athena’s feet and in the throne sat the new Athena. A long red carpet led from the door opening to the base of the statue and the family was instructed to approach Athena. Once they moved forward their guard turned and walked out and the giant doors were closed with a resounding thud. They were now alone with a deity and they had no idea on how to address her.

“Greetings Stewart family” Athena said which stopped the family in their tracks. “My owl told me you had arrived and we would like to welcome you to Athenia.” Mark bowed awkwardly still not sure what to do and responded “Thank you for your kind welcome. If you will please excuse me as I have never spoken to a goddess before, how do we address you?” he asked hoping his honestly wouldn’t hurt him in this endeavor.

Athena threw her head back and laughed. “Most call me all-powerful, great one, and all other manners of flattery but you may simply address me as Athena. I commend you on your honesty as well, most subjects just blunder and blather and don’t make a lick of damn sense.” Mark laughed this time; he had to admit that he kind of liked the girl. “Let us retire to somewhere a little less intimidating” Athena said as she hopped off her throne and bounded down the steps towards the family. She took Mark’s hand and led them towards a large oak door to the right of her statue’s left foot. Kara gave him a nasty look and he shrugged his shoulders.

They entered an opulent room with plush rugs and pillows everywhere. Athena motioned for Joey to shut the door and as soon as he had she plopped down on the pillows and propped herself against the wall. “Being like that takes a lot out of you” she informed them and motioned for them to take a seat. She then turned to Kara and apologized for taking Mark’s hand in that fashion. Kara blushed and said it was ok and wondered how she saw her reaction.

“So you’re wondering if I am full of shit?” she asked quite bluntly. Mark decided to continue with the honesty bit and shook his head yes. She looked at them with a serious look and said “Sometimes I wonder myself.
I don’t have full recollection so not everything is complete. I remember a few things before the wars. I remember swinging in a tire swing made by my father, I remember going to school in a small town school with maybe 5 classes for each grade level. But it’s after the war that gets weird” she explained. “I woke up in a field of daises, completely naked. There was nothing but flowers as far as the eye could see. I got up, picked a direction and started walking. As I walked things happened. I had a dress on, then a helmet, then a spear and suddenly there was an owl on my shoulder.”

“As I walked buildings started to appear and
before I knew it I was here. I was here and I knew every damn thing there was to know about ancient Greece. I built this city from memory and it is only about a dozen projects from replicating a section of Athens. We obviously lack their topography but we are almost building for building like them. I can close my eyes and see every single detail. I cannot tell you how this building disturbs me with its inaccuracies.”

“When my owl and I are together I learn everything he has seen while he is away from my side. I have stopped treason, tyranny, affairs, and a myriad of other things with his vision. I saw your arrival and knew you were special. That is why you are here; it was he who landed on your car.”

Mark told her he didn’t quite understand what she was saying. He told her he had never heard of such an occurrence like she experienced but was never close-minded about the possibilities of extraordinary things happening. She cut him off in mid sentence and said “Mark, you and your family are going to rebuild this world. You are, if you want it plainly, going to unfuck all that is fucked. Your cache is going to contain the materials to not only lay your enemies to waste but to bring your allies together. From this day forth you may consider us your allies. We shall stand by your side when you decide you need us there.”

Mark was beside himself; obviously this girl
had some powers beyond the realm of normal human ability. She knew who they were and what they were doing and nobody knew that except Vincent and his family. Whether or not she was a goddess was a matter for discussion, but she obviously had something going on. It was all very confusing for someone that had always been grounded in absolutes.

“I know it is a lot to swallow” Athena said in a comforting tone “Let us go feast with your whole convoy and then we will watch the games. I must insist you spend the night with us; you may be on your way in the morning at first light.” Mark was not thrilled about being delayed another day but he also didn’t want to piss off the second ally he had ever made either.

Dinner was amazing. It was a combination of modern Greek and Nashville flavors. If you have never had souvlaki with BBQ sauce you are missing out. The entire convoy ate until they were stuffed and then the ouzo started to flow. Maidens continuously walked the 200 person table and topped off shot glasses as everyone spoke toast after toast until they were well toasted.

Athena stood from her position at the head of the table and called for her own toast. She toasted to the relationship between her and her guests and how important their alliance would be in the future. Everyone had to take her word for it
since she was the only one with future sight.

She called Kara and Cindy to her side. They got up with a very confused and worried look on their faces. Two maidens approached them with a box in each one’s hand. When they reached the girls they went down on one knee and presented the boxes. Athena spoke “These gifts represent the warrior spirit in each of you. I will be honoured to fight by your side one day.”

The girls opened the boxes and they contained a Greek warrior’s helmet much like Athena’s but slightly less grandiose. They were both overjoyed with the gift and put the helmets on immediately. They fit perfectly.

Athena then called Joey and Mark up. Their gifts were too big to hide so they were just presented by the maidens. They were spears much like Athena’s very own. “These gifts represent your warr
ior spirit. I will also be honored to fight by your side one day.” Mark and Joey graciously took the spears but wondered what the heck they were going to do with them. Athena answered for them “I had your car modified to hold them on the roof for you.” Mark and Joey liked that idea; it would make the Armadillo even fiercer.