Voyage of the Dead - Book One Sovereign Spirit Saga (5 page)

            “As you all know, the
Sovereign Spirit
is quite a special ship with many unique features and capabilities…”  Although everyone here was familiar with the ship, Scott thought it wise to remind them all of just how lucky they were to be sitting on his ship.  He spent the next few minutes cataloging all of the advantages and options that the
Sovereign Spirit
offered.   

At more than one and a half football fields in length, the
Sovereign Spirit
was one of the largest private luxury pleasure craft in the world, an expedition mega yacht, but she had begun her life as a working open ocean passenger and car ferry in the North Sea.  Later she was converted to a specialty cruise ship.  More recently she had been used by a satellite television network for party cruises and film shoots in Europe and Asia.  Scott Allen had purchased her after winning more than $300 million in the Mega Millions Lottery.  The
Sovereign Spirit
had been a steal at less than $10 million.  One of the three diesel engines needed to be replaced for a million dollars.  Then Scott added lots of “toys” and upgrades that ate up another five million.  And this around the world cruise had cost two million and change, including wages for the crew, fuel and provisions, etc...  It had still appeared to be a good investment.  Scott had planned to use her for a few more private cruises to exotic locations and then find a spot in either the South Pacific or Caribbean to permanently dock or moor her as a floating resort hotel, specializing in scuba diving and fishing excursions.  Then she would serve him as both a source of income and a vacation home.   Now it appeared as if he had invested in what was possibly the best sanctuary and largest lifeboat in a world that was falling apart before his eyes.

The
Sovereign Spirit
had some unique capabilities that could be very valuable for survival in this newly changed world.   Because she was built as a long range ferry, this ship had a vehicle deck with roll-on-roll-off (RORO) doors and could carry several hundred cars and trucks.   There were currently about forty vehicles aboard, including half a dozen exotic sports cars, over a dozen SUVs, including a stretch limo Hummer, two fuel trucks, a large RV, several amphibious vehicles and even a mini submarine.  Near the rear ramp door there was a full dive shop with scuba gear for fifty people, plus a dozen jet ski watercraft, as well as surfboards, wind surfers and a couple of kite surfing rigs.  Scott had also added a two lane bowling alley and video game arcade on one side of the upper level vehicle deck, and a mini casino with video slots and three regulation gaming tables on the other side.  There was no lack of recreational options for those onboard.

One of the other major modifications that Scott had made to the
Sovereign Spirit
was to replace four of the six lifeboats on the boat deck davits with more useful auxiliary vessels.  These were comprised of a 38 foot Cigarette speed boat capable of going over 80 mph for up to 300 miles; a 38 foot Fountain Sportfisherman express cruiser with a 50 mph top speed that boasted a comfortable cuddy cabin, generator, and dive platform; a 38 foot Packman landing craft capable of transporting a car, SUV, or light truck ashore, as well as conducting deep sea fishing, scuba diving, and replenishment operations; and a 38 foot Hydra Terra amphibious excursion vehicle with seating for 48 passengers that was used as a tender to take people ashore and was capable of driving up a beach or boat ramp to operate as an excursion bus on land.  The remaining two life boats each had a capacity for 110 people and there were enough additional life rafts in automatic dispensers on deck to accommodate a total of 1,000 people (which was the maximum Coast Guard approved capacity of the
Sovereign Spirit
). Scott had also added a thirteen passenger Bell 214-ST helicopter to the pad above the newly expanded Sky Deck and a Seawind amphibious airplane was attached to a crane over the fantail behind the swimming pool.  Scott had thought of all these things as expensive toys until listening to the news that morning.  Now they looked a lot more like valuable survival tools. 

As far as living conditions went, the
Sovereign Spirit
boasted over 150 passenger cabins, capable of sleeping between 2 and 4 guests each, plus more than 200 bunks for crew.  There were two dining rooms, five lounges with bars, an internet café with Wi Fi, a large library, a well equipped gym, a game room with pool and ping pong tables, a spa with saunas and Jacuzzis and an impressive outdoor bar on the aft deck next to the swimming pool.  Obviously, the ship was currently carrying far less than her full capacity of passengers, crew, and vehicles, so crowding would not be an issue.   She was also well stocked with supplies.  A quick check with the quartermaster had revealed at least another two week’s worth of perishables, two or three months worth of frozen meats, and as much as six months supply of dry and canned goods, not to mention the well stocked liquor and wine lockers.  The diesel fuel tanks were close to half full and one of the fuel trucks on the vehicle deck was full of extra diesel too.  In short, the ship could remain at sea for many weeks, even months if necessary, and travel at least another four thousand miles without refueling.  

“So,” Scott summed up, “as you can see, even though the world seems to be going to Hell in a hand basket, our own situation is far from hopeless.  We have plenty of food and fuel to wait at sea for things to quiet down before we even need to think about going ashore, or where to land.  And wherever we go we will be bringing our own vehicles and support systems with us.  Even if it is not safe to live ashore for an extended period of time, we can keep living on this ship indefinitely if we have to.  Any questions?”

“Damned right there are!” shouted George Hammer, a tall and broad shouldered man with thinning hair in his late fifties.  Scott had expected trouble from him.  He was a general contractor who had just finished building Scott’s new beach house in Cabo San Lucas.  His bonus for completing the job on time had been for him and his wife to fly to Hawaii and cruise back to Cabo, via the Galapagos, on the
Sovereign Spirit
, then present Scott with his new vacation home and take a check for the retention on his contract.  This crisis had obviously not been part of the deal.  “What do you mean about waiting out here at sea for weeks, or months?  We’re supposed to be arriving in Cabo tomorrow!  My daughter and grandkids are waiting for me there and so is my business!  What makes you think you can keep us out here?  Who made you king? Why don’t we all vote on what to do now?”

“This is not a democracy!” trumpeted Captain Fisher, right on cue.  “You are aboard a ship on the high seas!  Maritime law says she goes when and where the owner and captain decide.  But I will be more than happy to offer you a life jacket and a raft, if you want to leave.”

“No need for that, Captain,” said Scott.  “This is all a bit much for any of us to deal with logically right now.  I’m sure Mr. Hammer is not the only one of us who feels like charging off to rescue someone.  I can think of at least a hundred people that I would like to save at this moment.  But we need to be realistic.  Our priority, or should I say
my
first priority, must be the security of this ship and the people aboard her.”

“But what if we don’t want to be here?” persisted Mr. Hammer.   “Can’t you just drop us off in Cabo?”

“Possibly,” nodded Scott.  “We may be able to do that.  This ship will not be going near the shore, but I have already considered a scouting flight with the helicopter.  Depending on what we find, it might be possible to drop you off.  But I must warn everyone that until we know more about this disease, anyone who has any direct contact with people ashore will not be allowed to return aboard this ship.   And obviously we will not be picking up any survivors or refugees until we have some way to be sure they aren’t carrying the infection.  Any other questions?”

            “What about communications, sir” asked one of his son’s friends from college.  “Are the phones and internet working?”

            “Good question, Mitch,” answered Scott.  “Everything seems to be working fine on our end.  The satellite phone and data feeds are online and we are able to access the internet.  The problem we are having is getting through to people on the other end.  All the phone calls we tried making this morning failed to go through because the circuits are busy, but we will keep trying.   As for email, some of them are being returned as undeliverable and others seem to be going through.  Perhaps after this meeting some of you young folks can try getting through on instant messenger, or twitter, or whatever, and tell us what you find out.  As you know, we have access to satellite TV and that should continue for as long as stations keep transmitting.  The Captain can tell you more about the rest of the communications available to us.”

            “Yes,” Captain Fisher added, “All the satellite systems, including GPS navigation, television and internet are up and running.  The radar is fine and we’ll be tracking all vessels in the area.  We also have a lot of radio gear and that is working.  We’re monitoring both civilian and military frequencies as closely as we can, but much of the military traffic is coded now.  At the moment, everyone seems confused and there are a lot of mayday calls.  Still, we should be able to piece together a pretty good picture of conditions out there.  Situational awareness will be critical in deciding how to proceed from here.  And, as Mr. Allen explained, we are all lucky to be on a ship with so many capabilities.”

            “Ok, then,” said Scott. “I’m sure there will be a lot more questions, but many of them will probably take time to answer.  And you will probably get more answers about what is going on out there from TV or the internet than either the Captain or I can give you right now.  In fact, it would be helpful if some of you monitor different sources of news and take notes to share with the rest of us.  So, I suggest we conclude this discussion for now and plan on meeting back here before dinner.  I’ll try to be available if any of you have urgent news or questions before then.”

*****

Interlude in Hell

El Segundo, CA: 10:15 AM, April 1, 2012

            Carl spent most of the morning nursing the stolen and battered ambulance through the side streets of El Segundo, having been forced off of PCH by traffic jams and swarming zombies within a mile of LAX.   He was totally lost when the engine finally died amid clouds of steam and loud clunking sounds.  Carl’s luck was still holding however, because the ambulance had died on a stretch of road without any zombies roaming along it.  He decided to press that luck a little more by searching the vehicle for anything else of value before abandoning it.  That turned out to be a smart move.

            Luckily this ambulance had been operated by the Los Angeles County Fire Department, so it was equipped for more than simply picking up sick people.  Carl had already found the pick head axe that he’d used to dispatch the zombie hood ornament in the windshield.  Now he found a fireman’s jacket and some heavy yellow coveralls that would deflect all but the sharpest zombie teeth.  He also found a folding multi-tool knife, a set of bolt cutters, a coiled rope, and a repelling harness tied to a backpack marked ‘search and rescue kit’.  Perhaps best of all was a small cooler bag full of the paramedics’ uneaten dinner of plastic wrapped sandwiches, sodas, chips, and candy bars.  As he was about to leave he spotted a compact folding aluminum ladder mounted to the ceiling of the rear compartment.  Thinking of the walls and fences lining many of the roads in this area, he realized that this could also be a life saver.  

            Carl figured he was carrying about forty pounds of gear when he stepped out of the ambulance, but he felt that most of it would contribute to his survival.  There was no traffic on the street and still no sign of zombies, but he knew that wouldn’t last.  Looking around he spotted a water tower a block away.  That seemed like a landmark to head for.  He was almost there when the first zombie charged towards him from behind a house across the street.

            Carl held the pick axe in his right hand and the folding ladder in his left as he turned to face the threat.  It was a middle aged woman with bloody wounds on her arms and more blood dripping from her gaping mouth. He used the ladder to block her headlong attack while he swung the axe beneath it.  The axe head cut her belly wide open and guts began to spill out, but that didn’t deter her advance.  Carl nearly panicked as the woman tried to bite through his fireman’s jacket, until he remembered that in most zombie movies they could only be stopped by destroying their brains.  ‘
So be it,’ Carl
thought as he took another swing with the axe.  The hapless woman fell to the ground with brains leaking from her split skull. 

              Carl spun away from the fallen zombie lady and sprinted for the water tower.  Looking over his shoulder he spotted three more zombies emerging from houses across the street, but he thought he could outrun them.  The fence around the water tower was ten feet high and only twenty feet away as Carl began to unfold the ladder he was carrying.  It was an ingenious tool that could be used as anything from a step ladder, or scaffold, to a 12’ extension ladder.  Carl needed the latter and in a hurry!  The zombies were less than a hundred yards away and closing fast.  Much faster than Carl thought zombies were supposed to be able to move.