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  Only the Few

  L N. Denison

  Published by L N. Denison, 2017.

  This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

  ONLY THE FEW

  First edition. January 21, 2017.

  Copyright © 2017 L N. Denison.

  Written by L N. Denison.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  EPILOGUE

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  Also By L N. Denison

  This is for all the people that helped me to make this a better story...the list is endless. And a special thanks goes out to Ian Bristow for the amazing work he did on the cover, and the structure of the book. Kudos, Ian!

  PROLOGUE

  Saturday, the twenty-fifth of January 2025 would remain burned into Corporal Catherine Hyde’s mind forever. Her parents, sister and she had taken a trip into Central London on her weekend leave from The Army. It was nice to feel human again. Hyde’s mum hated her career choice, but they didn’t argue about it. In contrast, her dad – a military man – welcomed her decision to join the armed forces. He pushed for it, sending her to the cadet corps from the age of twelve. He called her ‘the son he never had’, and he radiated pride whenever they saw each other.

  The Hydes ate at Garfunkel’s and took in a musical. Catherine’s family were still in the auditorium, while she made her way deep into the basement to find a toilet before the interval ended. Flicking through old messages from an ex on her phone was preferable to going back to the second half of ‘Cabaret’. The musical was her mother’s choice, and Catherine forced herself to suffer through it for her sake.

  The building shook above her head as the sound of a violent explosion invaded the basement corridor. Desperate to get back to her family, Hyde thought about leaving, but the heat that radiated through the concrete above her told her it was already too late. Hyde’s own survival now depended on her getting away from the washroom before the ceiling caved in. Wracking her numb mind, she focused on how she could save herself. Part of her job after the first bomb attacks had been to stock purposely built bomb shelters. Every premises had to have somewhere safe to go, and the nearest one for Hyde was beneath her. Time was vital. The fallout would kill her if she hesitated. As if on autopilot, she moved out of the toilets and headed to the end of the dimly lit corridor. She gagged on the stink of burning flesh, rubbed at her stinging eyes, and lifted the carpet at the other end of corridor to uncover a purpose-built hatch.

  Climbing down, Hyde replaced the hatch then stumbled down the long, winding stairs. On reaching the bottom, she fumbled around for the dimmer switch on the wall. The light filtered in just enough to see. The protective suits and masks were in the cupboard where her team had placed them, along with field ration packs.

  ~

  Waiting for days in isolation was harder than Hyde’s training could have ever prepared her for. Haunted by what she might find when she resurfaced, by thoughts of her family burning, she waited and cried.

  Fiddling with the radio was the only thing that kept her from sinking entirely into despair. Although the white noise meant no amount of calling was going to get any response, she still tried. The constant static was better than the silence from above. Hyde contemplated staying put for a few days, but curiosity got the better of her. Was anything, anyone, left out there? Going to the supply cupboard, she took out one of the smaller protective suits, gloves, boots and a full-face gas mask. She had faith that the equipment would protect her body, and she prayed her training would shield her mind.

  The winding flight of stairs seemed much shorter than when Hyde had stumbled down them. Knowing that hesitation might send her back to the shelter, she took a breath and opened the hatch. The corridor was filled with smoke and she was glad the mask cut out whatever smells mingled with it. Once she reached the main auditorium, the young corporal began looking for survivors, but could only see grey ashes everywhere. She was walking over what could be her parents. Grief rose up inside her, swamping everything else like a tsunami. Falling apart and joining them in the dust would be so much easier. But like all waves, the crashing grief receded and she regained her composure. On her knees in the ruins of her world, she could almost hear her dad telling her to fight, to survive. She got to her feet and her legs took her out of the theatre.

  Outside, the scene of complete devastation hit her head on. A wall of still silence and grey dust enveloped everything. Once-majestic buildings that had touched the skyline were reduced to rubble. The burnt out shells of cars littered the road. Hyde’s lungs tightened, struggling to draw breath as she tried to see past the desolation to find anything of the world she’d known.

  ~

  Her barracks were in no better state than anything else, demolished beyond recognition. The streets had been uniformly devastated, silent. Stopping a hundred metres away, she held her breath and searched for any signs of life. Oh! Thank God! Her heart pounded as she saw members of her unit climb out of the bomb shelter below the destroyed building. An overwhelming rush of emotion flowed through her, pushing its way to the surface as the familiar khaki and brown military uniforms came towards her. At least I have one family left.

  Because of the suit that covered her face and body, they were wary, pointing their rifles in her direction. She raised her hands and began to lift the mask from her face. As they drew closer, they visibly relaxed.

  “Hyde, so good to see you,” Corporal Jimmy Edwards shouted across the compound. “Stand down, it’s Hyde.”

  A few of them exchanged joyful expressions as others high-fived, which gave away how happy they were to see her. All except Sergeant Bryn Jones, who stayed stiff and alert. For some reason, he disliked Hyde. She felt the urge to kick off at him, to find out why, but thought better of it. He was her boss and good soldiers respected the chain of command. With nothing left to live for, being a good soldier was all that mattered.

  ~

  After being dead for weeks, the radio in the bunker crackled back to life, causing a sudden surge of hysteria among Hyde and her colleagues. This was what they had been waiting for: a sign that someone else was out there. At first, they heard nothing but white noise, but then a faint voice began to battle against the constant static.

  “Hey guys,” Jimmy Edwards shouted from inside the small radio room. “Someone is trying to get through. Get in here.”

  One by one, the remaining members of the ‘King’s Fusiliers’ crashed through the small doorway, vying and jostling for the best position to hear what was trying to be said. All gathering around the radio in anticipation, Hyde placed an arm around Private Charles Hardwick’s shoulders. The sixteen-year-old turned to face her and smiled, earning him a playful mess of his short blond hair.

  “Charlie Farlie,” Hy
de whispered the young man’s ear. “This could be it, the thing we’ve been waiting for.” She watched as another smile encased his lips. Waiting for news from the outside world had become painful, but now it was happening. The voice at the other end of the transmission was male, but it wasn’t clear who was speaking. The broadcast began a few minutes later.

  Original broadcast: Air date: Monday, February 17, 2025, 14:00 hours. Origin of transmission: Unknown.

  On Monday, May 6, 2024, our country was attacked in the most heinous way. It is estimated that around 100 high powered bombs were released, timed to hit each selected target in the U.K. within 10 seconds of each other, causing extreme damage and major casualties. It is still unclear who released them, but we are making every effort to find out... and we will find a way to retaliate with maximum effect. All we know for certain is that it was one of our neighbouring countries. Sources tell us that the government had reneged on a deal with this country, regarding a classified cloning program to build the perfect soldier. It has recently been discovered that this program was a failure from the very beginning, and the plug was pulled by its creator. We don’t know where the creator is, or what went wrong. Nor do we know what happened to the creations...whether they are dead or alive. Saturday, January 25, 2025, another bomb attack occurred, targeting London: Parliament in particular, thought to be committed by the same faction. Now we mus.......

  The message cut out.

  “We need to tell Major Clarke.” Hyde headed out of the tiny room with a sense of purpose, brushing aside colleagues who stood in her way. The rest of the men stayed put, most likely to see if there would be any further transmissions. It was now a waiting game.

  Arriving outside the major’s office toward the back of the bunker, Hyde adjusted her garments and knocked on his door. She stood stock still facing the office door and waited for a response.

  “Enter.”

  She entered and marched to the front of the major’s desk, noticing Lieutenant Barnes sitting to the side as she did so. She came to a halt in front of the Major’s desk and went rigid, waiting.

  “At ease, corporal,” the major ordered. “What is it?”

  Hyde paused for a second before answering.

  “Sir, we have received a transmission,” Hyde halted for a moment to gauge a reaction from her commanding officer. She glanced over at the lieutenant and watched as he pinched his eyebrows together.

  “Carry on corporal,” the lieutenant said.

  Hyde cleared her throat, a wave of nervousness flooded her senses. “We don’t know where the transmission originated from sir, and don’t know if there are any survivors.”

  “What do you suggest we do?” the major questioned. “It sounds as though we have nothing to go on.”

  Hyde had lost the use of her mouth and found herself incapable of answering the major’s question.

  “You’re dismissed,” the major said.

  Hyde stood to attention, saluted both officers’ and turned to leave the office, shutting the door behind her. She paused before moving away and pressed her ear against the door upon hearing voices.

  “What do we do from here sir? Is it time?”

  “We do nothing until I have received confirmation that the message wasn’t a hoax. Once we know, then we can put the plan in motion.”

  Plan? What plan? Hyde thought as she scurried into the corridor to make her way back to the radio room.

  CHAPTER 1

  Almost seven months after the choking dust had almost settled, a small unit of ten people, which included six fresh faced privates, some of them untested; two corporals, including Hyde, Sergeant Bryn Jones, and Lieutenant John Barnes, set out on a mission to find survivors. Countless unsuccessful search operations had been carried out by other units over previous months, but it was hoped there would be people alive deeper in the countryside. The unit took three all-terrain vehicles and made their way 217 miles north to the Yorkshire Dales. Drones had picked up heat signatures of both man and beast. Most of the human signatures were around caves that used to be tourist attractions. But they could be cavers. The photos of ugly, scaly, scarred faces had imprinted themselves in her mind along with evidence of their cannibalistic tendencies. Reports of a strong caver presence in the area led to the order to avoid the creatures at all costs. It was an order Hyde would be more than happy to obey.

  It took five hours to reach the checkpoint. The light was fading fast across the desolate landscape. After establishing the guard rotation, which thankfully didn’t include Hyde tonight, setting up camp was the main priority. Each soldier dragged a one-man-tent from one of the vehicles and erected it. These would be their homes for a few days. A separate munitions tent sat in the centre of camp. The off-duty members of the unit formed a circle around an open flame, warming themselves while they stomached their barely edible rations. As usual, they chatted about anything and everything as a way to maintain their close bonds. It wasn’t long before the stars began to appear in the clear evening sky. Hyde lay back and breathed in the cool air as she stared at Orion’s belt and forgot about everything.

  Charlie Hardwick turned to Hyde and asked at a whisper, “Are you scared?”

  Hyde broke her gaze from the stars and focussed on the young private.

  “No, Charlie, I’m not scared... just a little apprehensive,” she replied at a hum, wiping her brow with her sleeve. “We don’t know what’s out there.”

  Silence ensued, and Hyde turned her attention back to the stars.

  After a while, people began heading towards their tents to rest, as the unit was up early to begin their mission. Only four would be going, leaving behind Charlie and a few of the more experienced grunts to look after the camp and the equipment.

  ~

  After only a handful of hours, the unit was woken by a loud and constant clanging. Unit commander Lieutenant Barnes had expressed a wish to begin the mission before dawn. Still feeling groggy, the soldiers chosen for the mission clambered out of their tents and gathered the necessary equipment for the first patrol. Handguns were holstered, rifles slung over shoulders. Going through the familiar routine, Hyde’s hands trembled as the spectre of the cavers reared in her mind again, but at least the air didn’t hold the constant taint of ash it did at home.

  The farther they trekked towards their first objective, a river, the more uneasy Hyde became. Following a stream, the group of four entered a narrow gulch lined with man-made caves deep enough for several people to shelter together. As they moved through, Hyde felt eyes on her. Searching her surroundings, she saw nothing suspicious, so she decided not to voice the concerns of her paranoid imagination. Being a lone female in a male world isn’t easy.

  The unit crept through the high, narrowing ravine, their wits about them. Shrieking, clawing, ragged figures seemed to come from out of the earth itself, too fast and too many for anyone to get a shot off. Hyde’s rifle was ripped from her grip as she tried to bring it to bear in the close quarters. Human cries and unearthly caver screams rang out around her. Breath reeking of decayed flesh bombarded the side of her face. Sharp-nailed hands clawed at her wrists, seeking to restrain her as the caver sat on her belly after it tackled her to the ground. Fear gave Hyde strength, which forced her to see past the pain of her awkward landing. Her knee connected with the beast hard, causing it to hiss and fall away. With her own attacker temporarily down, Hyde strained to see how the rest of the unit were fairing. Was anyone coming to help her or was she going to be the rescue party? Judging by the few upright khaki legs she could see, it looked as though at least a couple of the guys were still making a stand. Hyde’s vision filled with the butt of a rifle coming towards her head. She tried to bring her hands up. Her world turned black.

  ~

  A thumping pain shot through Hyde’s head, and her vision blurred as she slowly opened her eyes. The stone floor she lay on was wet, cold and dirty. Her hands were tied behind her back, rope held her arms tight to her sides and her feet were secured tightly at t
he ankles. The air stank of rotten meat, and the thought of where that meat had come from made her retch. The only flicker of light came from what looked like three separate tunnels that filtered through the cave where she lay. Am I the only one left? Have I been separated from the others because I’m female? Or am I the next thing on the menu? None of the options were helping her think straight. Pull it together Hyde, you’re alive, it’s a start.

  Struggling to loosen her bonds proved futile. The knots were tight, with no wiggle room. Pins and needles gradually morphed into numbness, but she didn’t stop trying.

  The silence was breached by a faint shuffling that steadily got closer. Hyde strained to see what was coming from beyond her resting place, then pretended to be asleep. The shuffling stopped right beside her. The sudden silence made it hard to remain still. Please, please go away. Her senses sharpened. It made the poke in her lower back even more painful.

  “Woman, wake up.” The voice was deep, raspy, inhuman.

  Hyde twisted her body to look at her captor. What stood over her was a grotesque abomination, its skin scaly and slick. It was mostly naked, scarred and horribly deformed, with only wisps of hair on its head. She didn’t want to think about what the dark stains around its mouth meant. The creature could’ve been no more than five-foot-tall, but its muscle definition more than made up for its lack of height. She could see the strength permeating as it flexed its muscles, showing her that it was in charge. The grainy photos didn’t have nearly the same impact as seeing and smelling an actual caver. I’m so screwed.

  The result of a failed government program, the few remaining cavers had escaped from the city walls before the apocalypse, dwelling in caves to survive, and feeding on the flesh of anyone who dared to enter their space. As the human population dropped, they resorted to coming out of their dwellings to find a food source.

  “Woman!” The caver grunted, looking down at its captive, taking deep, angry breaths, contorting its face into an evil sneer. Maybe if I don’t respond, it’ll go away again. It stood, flexing its muscles even more, then kicked Hyde’s arse several times. The hard impacts sent shockwaves up her spine forcing a scream that echoed throughout the cavernous prison.