Apocalypse- the Plan Read online

  Table of Contents

  Apocalypse: The Plan Pages 1 – 305

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  Charlie and Wolfe Pages 306 -435

  The First Night Pages 436 – 705

  Apocalypse: The Plan

  When Mike Hodges and his friends decided one night on a whim to join the Army, they could have never imagined how their lives would change. As things worked out, their joining the Army didn’t have anything to do with what was to happen, but it did give them an insider’s view of what was soon to begin.

  They always knew that with the state of the world, with climate change, over population and worldwide starvation, with the fact that no one was able to get along with each other, that if something didn’t change civilization would one day implode. However, when the world began to be destroyed all around them, they couldn’t believe what they saw happening.

  As they watched the world fall apart, they soon realized that what they were seeing wasn’t just some horrible series of random events, there was a method to the madness. Someone was executing a mad but a deliberate plan. But who would be so crazy to do what they were seeing?

  Wilson, the UFO fanatic, of course said it was an alien conspiracy. Mike, the levelheaded member of the group, believed it had been caused by government incompetency. Both found compelling evidence to support their point of view, but they also doubted that they would live long enough to know for sure who was right.

  But thanks to the memories of a childhood adventure, they found a way to survive long enough to see the truth unfold before their very eyes.

  The only question was, in the end, would they be able to live with the answer they found?

  Apocalypse: The Plan

  By Gary Chesla

  November 2019

  Chapter 1

  I leaned back in my bent and lopsided lawn chair and looked out over the water at the city from my hidden lookout spot on Brunot Island (Brew-Know).

  Brunot Island was a small island situated in the Ohio River off Point State Park in the center of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It had always been my favorite spot to get away from it all.

  For as long as anyone could remember, the island had been here, but it was almost as if the island didn’t exist. No one ever talked about the island and if you would stop people on the street and ask them what the name of the little island out in the middle of the Ohio River was, no one would be able to give you an answer. They would always look out in the river as if to verify that it was still there before shrugging their shoulders and reply that they didn’t know. For some reason, the idea that the island even had a name had never crossed their mind.

  The island was right out in the middle of the river where everyone could see it, but it didn’t exist as far as the citizens of Pittsburgh were concerned.

  The island wasn’t open to the public and the only way to reach the island was by boat. The island was overgrown with trees and brush and was home to a small power generating station that had been built at the center of the island. All most people knew about the island was that there was a power generating station on the island and that no one was allowed to go there. There were no bridges to the island and no roads to take you there. There weren’t any docks to tie up a boat, and as far as anyone knew you would be arrested if you tried to go there. The constant sight of patrol boats going up and down the river around the island tended to keep curiosity seekers at bay and reinforced the idea that any trespassers would be prosecuted, even though I had never heard of anyone ever being arrested for getting too close to the island. It was just a place that you couldn’t go, so no one ever gave it much thought.

  There had been rumors that there was a secret military research center located out on the island, but for the most part, people just assumed that there wasn’t much there of interest. The island looked very uninviting from the shoreline and from downtown, thick thorny brush and strange looking trees made the island appear to be dangerous and impassable by anything other than snakes and spiders. People said that if there would have been anything there worthwhile, someone would have already built an amusement park on it, or the Steelers would have moved their training camp out on the island. The Zambelli Brothers had never used the island to set off fireworks after a Pirate game or during the many Pittsburgh Fourth of July celebrations, so it had to be a worthless hunk of rock sitting out in the middle of the river that wasn’t suitable for anything. In Pittsburgh, if the Steelers, Pirates or the Zambelli Brothers didn’t have any interest in something, then it had to be worthless.

  It had also been one of the few places in the area that had never boasted about George Washington having been there. We had another island on the Allegheny River on the east side of the city called Washington’s Landing. Everyone went to Washington’s Landing to boat, picnic and just spend the day relaxing. As the story went, George Washington was canoeing across the Allegheny River one day and his canoe capsized. Washington swam to the island, now called Washington’s Landing, to get out of the river. The thinking was that if Brunot Island had been anything special, Washington would have swam there instead of to the island now called Washington’s Landing. If it wasn’t good enough for George Washington, then it wasn’t good enough for us. Brunot Island it seems had always been ignored.

  The island had always piqued my interest as a kid and I had always wanted to know why I couldn’t go there. The answer I always received was that it was too dangerous and that no one was allowed on the island. I was told to forget the island and to go get ready to go to Kennywood.

  Kennywood was Pittsburgh’s world-famous amusement park where everyone in Pittsburgh went for entertainment, the roller coaster capital of the world.

  Of course, I was always happy to go to Kennywood, but I still wanted to go out to Brunot Island. Why? I guess just because it was there.

  I had gone to the Carnegie Library to try to learn what I could about the island, but all I could find out was that it was an island that had been owned by some French guy hundreds of years ago. When the island was flooded in the early 1700’s, he gave up and sold it. The island finally ended up being purchased by a local utility company that was interested in the island. Duquesne Light Power Company now had a small power generating station on the island, but the plant only operated during times of high energy demand to produce additional emergency power when their other facilities couldn’t keep up with demand, like during the summer when everyone had their air conditioners turned up to the max. The island it seemed wasn’t even suitable for a real fulltime power plant.

  One summer evening I decided I wanted to see the place for myself, so I got my canoe and when I didn’t see anyone out on the river, I paddled over to the island. I guess I had been about twelve years old at the time.

  I had seen the Pittsburgh River Patrol chase boaters away from the island many times in the past, which had also increased my interest in the island. So I had watched and planned my first trip to the island very carefully. I timed the patrols so I knew when and how much time I would have to make my move. I had packed a few candy bars for energy and around dusk I made my move. I was surprised when I made it all the way out to the island without being caught. I pulled my canoe up on shore and hid it behind the trees, then I went for a walk to see what I could find. It was a small island, so it didn’t take me more than twenty minutes to determine what was there.

  I was pleasantly surprised at what I found. The island was heavily wooded around the edges of the island, but the center of the island was made up of two grassy overgrown fields. It was there I first discovered there was a herd of deer that lived on the island. There were rabbits, squirrels and geese also living on the island and it wasn’t the dangerous, uninhabited lump of rock that most people who
had given the island a second glance would have thought. I found the small generating station in the center of the island, but it appeared to be quiet and deserted. To me it looked like it had been abandoned for years.

  The island was much different than what I had expected. The trees hid the real island from anyone that looked out this way from the city. The island looked small, wild and uninhabitable from the outside, but I found it to be quiet and relaxing once I was there. I determined that since the island was privately owned, the owners just didn’t have any interest in sharing it with the public. Duquesne Power Company probably felt that the island served its purpose as it was, maybe it’s main value to Duquesne Power Company was as a tax write off, and they would only be opening themselves up to liability suits if they allowed people to come out here for recreation. Besides the island was less than a mile long, not really large enough to do much with. But whatever the reason for the island having mysteriously existed out in the middle of the river, hidden in plain sight from the people of Pittsburgh, I was happy to be the first person I had ever heard of to actually set foot on the island.

  I spent many evenings out on the island as I grew older. It was my secret place to get away and do a little fishing, and I never really told anyone else about it.

  Just like now, when I wanted to be by myself and enjoy a little peace and quiet, I would come here and sit behind the trees and watch the city and all the activity out on the river. It was cool knowing that I could see the city, but they couldn’t see me. I would spend hours out on the island every chance I would get.

  I could see Point State park clearly from this end of the island. The Allegheny River flowed around the east side of the city. The Monongahela River flowed around the west side of the city. The two rivers met at the point, Point State Park, to form the Ohio River which then flowed around Brunot Island. I always thought it was interesting how the Allegheny River was always clear and blue, while the Monongahela River appeared brown and muddy. When the two rivers joined to form the Ohio River the clear water flowed to the right of Brunot Island while the brown water flowed around the left side before the water blended together and seemed to clear up on the other side of the island before continuing down the Ohio.

  From my hidden spot on the island I could watch the kids playing in the fountain at the point, the fountain sprayed water fifty feet into the air and the kids would run under the water on hot humid days to cool themselves off.

  The city was always fascinating at dusk when the buildings would turn on their lights, creating the beautiful bright Pittsburgh night skyline as the buildings stood out against the dark Pennsylvania night sky. During the day, the all glass PPG Building would reflect the sun light, creating a rainbow of colors over the city. I could see the traffic coming out of the Fort Pitt and Liberty Tunnels and spread out across the parkway. The cars going into and coming out of the city, as they shot through the city’s streets and highways, reminded me of the blood flowing through the veins and arteries of a living being. From the island, I could see that Pittsburgh was a thriving, living city.

  At night, PNC Park and Heinz Field would send out a glow over the night skyline as the Pirates and Steelers would play baseball and football. I could hear the crack of the bats at PNC Park, a short burst of fireworks following that sound would tell me when the Pirates had hit a homerun. I could hear the fans chant of “Defense” coming from Heinz Field as they got behind the Steelers and cheered them on to hopefully another victory and another trip to the Super Bowl.

  I would always get hungry when the smoke from the fans tailgating outside of Heinz Field would drift over the river filled with the juicy smells of burgers, hotdogs and Kielbasa, football fan’s favorite foods before a Steeler game. I would just have to sniff the air and suffer as I munched on a granola bar, because if I tried to bring a grill out to the island, the trail of smoke rising into the sky would give me away and would probably get me arrested or something.

  The island was my way of watching the city, without the city knowing that I was there. It was my own secret island, a place that no one else could go. I had always loved this place and I loved looking at the city.

  “Hey Mike,” a voice called out from behind me as I heard the sound of the approaching footsteps. “Why don’t you go get a bite to eat. I’ll stand lookout for you until you get back.”

  I jumped, causing the wobbly lawn chair that I was sitting on to almost collapse, as the sound of Ed’s voice startled me. I quickly realized that I must have drifted off and had been dreaming, because when I opened my eyes, the view staring me in the face of downtown Pittsburgh was vastly different than what I had been dreaming about.

  There were no cars coming out of the tunnels, making their way into town. The buildings were all dark, making a dark silhouette against the darkening evening sky. There were no kids playing in the fountain at the point any longer. PNC Park and Heinz Field were also dark, it had been ages since a ball game had been played in Pittsburgh, there would be no more Super Bowls for the Steelers. In fact, there were no more Steelers or fans to cheer for them.

  There were no sounds or signs of life anywhere around the city to be found. In fact, the city had been this way now for about a year. What had been a thriving, vibrant city full of life and activity, was now a cold, dark city inhabited by the dead.

  Pittsburgh had been the home to many horror movies. The zombie craze started in Pittsburgh in 1968 when the classic movie Night of the Living Dead was released.

  Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead soon followed fanning the flames of the zombie craze even more.

  Soon other horror films came out of Pittsburgh.

  Flesh Eater, Two Evil Eyes, Silence of the Lambs, Innocent Blood, a remake of Night of the Living Dead, The Dark Half, Stigmata, The Mothman Prophecies, The Land of the Dead, Sorority Row, Homecoming, River of Darkness, Scream Park and many more had all been filmed in Pittsburgh. In all, over twenty-three major horror movies had been filmed in Pittsburgh. There were plans to build a Horror Movie Hall of Fame in the city to solidify Pittsburgh’s place as the horror movie capital of the world. However, from what I have seen and heard over the last year, all the cities in the country now had an equal claim to the title of the horror capital of the world, the dead world.

  It now feels like all those movies had been a glimpse of what was soon to come. Maybe in a way, they had been a warning that everyone had failed to recognize and had just been ignored.

  In a way, what I now saw in Pittsburgh was a fitting fate for the city, how it had always been meant to end, But unlike the movie The Land of the Dead, there were no longer any Zambelli Brothers to distract the dead by shooting off fireworks to make the zombies stop and stare up into the sky at night.

  During the day, you can see the dark dead bodies that still stagger through the streets in the city. But for now, the bodies walking around in the city are not what worries me the most, what worries me are the bodies that float down the blood colored river towards our little island. The only way the dead can get out to the island is by being washed up on the island. That is why we continue to post a lookout to watch the river. What had been a forgotten or ignored island in Pittsburgh, my private place of escape, was now called home by the few of us that had been able to survive the death and horror that stalked the living in Pittsburgh.

  The little forgotten island that patiently waited to prove to the people in Pittsburgh that it wasn’t a worthless piece of rock, finally showed that it had a purpose.

  “Thanks, Ed,” I replied. “I could use a break. I won’t be very long.”

  “Take your time,” Ed replied as he took my place and made himself comfortable on the green and yellow lawn chair and lit up one of his famous homemade smokes.

  I slowly turned and began to make my way to join the others. All I could think about after my trip down memory lane was that I knew this was coming, I just wish I had been better prepared. The problem was, even though I knew this was coming, I didn’t know where or wh
en or if it would really happen.

  You might say if I knew this would happen, why didn’t I do something to stop it? In my defense, the factors that would lead to the end of life as we knew it, where not things that could be controlled. There were so many things beyond our control that I wasn’t sure if anyone could have stopped it from happening. I believed, as I realized what could happen many years ago, was that it was already too late to even try to stop it. The chain of events that had led to this point were too far along for anyone to stop.

  I had always been skeptical of mankind’s chances of survival. The world was a disaster when I was a kid and had been going down hill ever since. The world was overpopulated, thousands died every day from starvation and disease around the world.

  Countries and people could not get along with each other and were constantly at war. More and more roque nations were now in possession of nuclear weapons, and many nations welcomed assured mutual destruction as their pathway to Paradise.

  Global warming was creating large migrations of refugees seeking better living conditions free of starvation and misery. The refugees fled to countries already struggling to support their own people and did not welcome having to deal with other country’s problems, compounding the world’s problems.

  On top of all the problems, no one had a plan to solve the world’s hunger and over population problems. From what I could see, the only plan that mankind had was to kill others before they could kill you.

  The future of civilization had always looked bleak to me and I knew that one day mankind would finally destroy itself.