Final Dawn: Season 3 (The Thrilling Post-Apocalyptic Series) by Mike Kraus Page B

two had disappeared as his accent had grown stronger from the stress he was under. He glanced at Leonard’s hand and belt where he carried the empty pistol and the radio that he had taken from the equipment locker. Looking back at Leonard for a long moment, he weighed the option of giving the man another weapon.
     
    “Can you shoot?” Krylov picked up a rifle from the floor and threw it at Leonard who caught it with one hand. He dropped down on his one knee and swung the upper half of his other leg around, sitting on a step near the back of the room with the rifle placed firmly against his shoulder.
     
    “I can manage.”
     
    Krylov nodded, relieved, then looked at Nancy. She held out her hands expectantly and Krylov threw her a rifle as well, raising an eyebrow in surprise. She caught his look and shrugged as she slid the bolt back and chambered a round. “Women don’t shoot in your country, Commander?”
     
    The oddity of Nancy’s statement caught Krylov off guard and he laughed involuntarily as he turned around and resumed his watch on the door. Try as he might, he couldn’t stop himself from laughing, and was soon joined by Nancy, Leonard and a few nearby crewmen who had heard what she said as well. The laughter spreading on the command deck in the midst of the battle was infectious, and Krylov soon found himself wiping tears from his eyes as he struggled to keep focused on the open door.
     
    When the last of the creatures assaulted the room, throwing themselves through the open door in a desperate attempt to kill the people inside, they were not met with fear but with laughter, focusing the attention of each person with a laser-like precision. The attention was accompanied by a hailstorm of bullets that tore through metal and flesh alike, destroying the creatures’ attempt in a few short seconds. The juxtaposition of conflicting emotions sat strongly with Leonard in particular, who was the first one to stand up and make his way toward the creatures’ bodies, hobbling along on his crutch.
     
    Krylov stood up and joined Leonard, then Nancy, who took Leonard’s arm and placed it on her shoulder. The three stood with the crew behind them, staring at the mangled bodies of the creatures on the floor as their laughter gradually died out. Krylov cleared his throat and turned to his crew, smiling grimly at them.
     
    “I think that’s the last of them. Get us a head count started, then get us moving again. Once we’re clear of this damned canal we’ll surface and take stock of the damage.”
     
    The crew moved slowly at first, stepping gingerly over the creatures strewn across the floor until Krylov yelled, clearing the last of the happy mood from the air. “Get your asses moving now! ”
     
    Everyone, including Leonard and Nancy, jumped at Krylov’s order, and the crew broke into sprints, hurrying to their stations and down the hall to find missing crew and prepare to get the submarine moving again. Leonard held out his rifle to Krylov who looked at it and shook his head, pushing it away. “Keep it, Mr. McComb. We might need it again.”
     
    Leonard and Nancy looked at each other and began moving toward a pair of vacant chairs. Krylov spoke again, raising his voice so that the crew left on the command deck could hear him. “Excellent work, by the way. Not just you two. Everyone. Now let’s get out of here, shall we?”

Andrey Lipov | Sergei Usov
    Panama Canal Main Lock Control Room
    12:42 PM, April 25, 2038
     
    “If we get back to that ship, I’m never getting off again.”
     
    Andrey snorted at Sergei’s comment as they watched the dark form of the Arkhangelsk move slowly forward through the open gates of the lock. The ship was submerged, but they could still see it as it passed through the water, clearing the lock gate and escaping the carnage that had surrounded it.
     
    After the unexpected destruction of the bridge, Andrey and Sergei had watched nervously as the lock filled with water,