Russian Doomsday Read online

  “If you don’t pull your head out of your ass, you’re gonna get fired. Oh, and for your information, you are going to freak out your clients with those stupid books. Smarten up, Pike, get with the program and the real world. That shit is just a bunch of fake news and fairytales,” she said, and scooted back to her desk.

  Pike watched her go, turned back, and stared at his computer. Frustration choked him. These people lived in a bubble. They had no clue how the rest of the world felt about America. Instead of red and white stripes on the flag, it should be a red and white bullseye.

  CHAPTER TWO

  St. Marys, GA, 10 July 2018

  Pike put his long legs up on the coffee table and balanced his laptop on them. Finally, in the privacy of his studio apartment, he could look up anything he could find on POSEIDON. He thought back to earlier in the day. How could Johnny and Bev be so ignorant? He could feel his face grow hot at the remembered contempt they’d shown him. Something was going to happen. Of that he was certain. But they didn’t want to know or hear about it.

  He was already overwhelmed by the information he’d found so far. Dr. Rhy had written a book, POSEIDON: Russia's Death Torpedo. He quickly ordered a copy from Amazon and hit the early delivery selection: he wanted the book as fast as he could get his hands on it.

  He went on to Facebook to see if Margo had come back on or seen his message. She had, but it only said to call her. He felt around on the couch, lifting pillows to locate his phone. It had been a while since he’d heard her voice.

  “Hey Pike, how’re you doing?” Margo said. Her sweet southern voice sounded wonderful, all the way from Missouri.

  Pike felt his heart slam into his chest and his mouth widened into a smile, heat suffusing his face. He didn’t have to look into a mirror to know his face was beet red. It always went that color when he heard her voice. She was the most wonderful person in the world. He sighed happily. “I’m good. How have you been?” He raked his free hand through his long dark hair nervously; he had taken it out of its neat ponytail after work, and it just touched the back of his collar.

  “I can’t complain, until now. What did you think about the article?” she asked.

  “It scared the hell out of me. I’m less than three miles from the Atlantic Ocean here. A halfway decent hurricane can kick our ass here, you know that. How many times over the past years have we had to evacuate?” He laughed nervously, looking around the cluttered room. I really need to clean this place. He raked his hand through his hair again, his foot jiggling nervously. And it wasn’t from the articles.

  “You should be. I really think this is the real deal, Pike. Orlov has always been a dickweed, and we both know Russia is spoiling for a fight. The fact that they brag about it, it’s like rubbing our noses in it. Who has the biggest and most badass weapons.”

  “But the President’s meeting Orlov next week,” Pike said, confused. He pulled at a thread on his shirt, unraveling it. “And Orlov met with former President George Bush up in Maine a few years back. I thought we had good relations with Russia. They even offered to help with North Korea some months back. I mean, I know we have our differences, but really, I thought we’re about equally matched. It would surely be crazy and reckless for Russia to do something like this”

  “True. I think it’s a smokescreen, though. It might be all for show, Pike. It’s like propaganda: Oh, we get along so well, we sit in each other’s presence, we respect each other’s country, and so on. You know how the President met with Kim Jung Shithead? Well, do you think that little nutbag will stop making his bombs?” Margo asked.

  “No, I guess not,” Pike said, sighing.

  It was so good to hear her voice. He didn’t care what the conversation was; just listening to her filled his heart with joy, the lyrical sound of her voice.

  “What?” he asked, coming back from his romantic thoughts. She’d been talking while he’d been distracted.

  “I said that Orlov is a tyrannical, power hungry jerk, and wants to be top dog. He doesn’t give three shits about his own people. What makes you think he’d give a good goddamn about Americans? He doesn’t. We’re all expendable so long as he gets what he wants, and that is world domination, pure and simple. He wants to rule the world, and now he has a weapon to use on us. And when he does, all he has to do is hint at using it on others and they’ll all come into line and under his control.”

  Once more Pike felt the tingle of fear cascade through his body. It wasn’t what she said so much as the fact that he knew these were the games governments played. Who had the most might, the most armament? It had been played out over and over since time began and governments ruled.

  “But wouldn’t we retaliate? Wouldn’t we just bomb the hell out of them? With our weapons, couldn’t we just wipe them off the map?" he asked, repeating Johnny’s logic. He also knew that doing so would kill themselves as well. A no-win situation.

  “No, Pike,” she said, “because these things are artificially intelligent nuclear weapons. They only need to be launched in secret, far away from us. The Russians could launch them simultaneously, and with their stealth technology, whether in water or the air, we’d never know it until it was too late. They could double-whammy us. That’s what I’d do.”

  “What d’you mean?” Pike asked, though he thought he already knew the answer. He was hoping against hope that it wasn’t what he was thinking. It was a scary thought.

  “Look, I’m not saying Orlov is going to launch these things now. I’m not saying he’ll do it in two or three years. But one day he will. I’m damn sure of that. And when he does, bend over and kiss your ass goodbye. All he has to do is build up an arsenal. The ones he sends will hit on each coast, making those dead zones. Then explode a few in the upper atmosphere and Bob’s your uncle. A massive EMP wipes out technology across the board, us, Canada, Mexico, and probably a lot of South America,” she said.

  Pike scrubbed his face once more. She was making too much sense. He grunted.

  “We’d be in the stone age. There would be massive die-off instantly from the blasts and subsequent fallout. You’ll have planes falling from the sky, food shortages, hospitals useless.... You name it, Pike, we’ll be in a world of hurt. Not to mention anyone who lives along the coast. And again, whoever didn’t get toasted in the first blast could end up dying from radiation sickness.”

  Pike swallowed. That small alarm bell he’d heard earlier was starting to get louder. He could feel the sweat popping out on his face and he wiped at it. He brought his hand up in front of his face. It was shaking badly, and all of a sudden he was breathing fast, near panic. He had the sudden urge to cry, to lie on the floor and throw a full and all-out temper tantrum.

  He took a deep breath to gather his sanity. “So, what do we do, Margo? The guys in my office just laughed their asses off at me. If it comes today or in five or ten years, I’m screwed three ways to Sunday.” He slumped down low into the curve of the couch. Looking at his shirt, he noticed it had the start of a large rip in it. He wondered how it had got there.

  “Let me think on it, Pike. Give me a couple days and I’ll get back with you.” A pause. “You still dating that waitress? I saw your status says single?”

  “No, we broke up a while ago. She met some douchebag. No worries, though, it was never anything serious. How about you?” he asked, trying to keep the hope out of his voice. I really do need to get over her and get a life.

  “No, there are mostly tourists up here and I’m not even going to tell you how gross some of them are. It is a small town here and everyone knows your business,” she laughed.

  He grinned. She’d always had the best laugh. He couldn’t help but smile when he heard it. He let out a heavy sigh.

  “Do you miss your ex-husband?” He knew he was pushing his luck. He wanted to know what had happened. There was silence on the other end and he could have kicked himself for asking. He didn’t know why he’d done so.

  “It was fun for the first year or so, you know,
traveling. Bobby and I stopped at every tourist trap and pretended we were on vacation.” She laughed, and he didn’t like that she had fond memories.

  “I’m glad you had fun and enjoyed it.” Though he really wasn’t, but he didn’t know what else to say. He’d opened this can of worms.

  “Well, I liked to read, so I took a lot of books. That helped to eat up the time on the road. Later I upgraded to a tablet. But then me and Bobby started arguing all the time. You know how it goes, in close quarters and always together. I guess it wasn’t the greatest combination.” He could almost hear her shrug and her self-deprecating laugh.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”

  “It’s okay, Pike. They aren’t really bad. Just not great.” She laughed again, and he couldn’t help but smile. “Look, don’t worry. If it happens anytime soon, you won’t be alive to worry about it, okay?”

  He could hear the smile in her voice and loved her for it. She was so wonderful. He just wished she was there with him. That would be perfection.

  “Thanks, that makes me feel soooo much better.” He laughed. He really did feel a load better, though he didn’t know why. Maybe because she’d said it?

  “We’ll figure this out, Pike. Do you have any friends, by the way, who are like-minded?” Margo asked.

  “Not really. I do have one contact on Facebook who’s a prepper, but I don’t know him personally. Seems to be a really nice guy, always helpful, shares his insights and tips. He doesn’t sound crazy or theory conspirator-esc,” Pike said.

  “Okay. PM him and tell him what we’ve been discussing. From now on let’s keep this within private messages and texts. I’ll get back to you soon. Try not to worry overmuch.”

  “Okay, Margo. It was good talking to you. Have a good night.” He hung up, laid the phone down and put his head back on the couch, looking up at the popcorn ceiling. He brought his hands up, wrapped his fingers in his hair and pulled. This was just too overwhelming. Too much to think about.

  He almost wished he were as stupid and obtuse as Johnny and Beverly. At least then he would probably sleep better tonight. He hated this helpless feeling, like everything was outside of his control. He’d never thought of himself as a control freak. Life was just too short for that kind of burden, but man oh man, this stuff? This stuff was way outside of his control, and maybe even the government’s control as well.

  How could it have all gone this far? Why did countries want to kill each other off? Didn’t they know they would only be killing themselves? It would be a domino effect. Either by weapons or economic collapse, things would just go downhill once they started. And wouldn’t there be a lot of nuclear fallout? Wouldn’t that travel back over to Russia? He wished he drank; he’d get good and drunk and pass out.

  Lincoln, NE, 14 July 2018

  Sayer Bleak sat looking at the screen, his hands cupping his face. He was stunned. He’d been away for a week doing survival training with his friends in Colorado. He normally practiced on the weekends on his farm. He was seriously considering moving there. It would be something to talk over with Joy. She could get a job there easily, as she was a great nurse.

  The guys he’d spent time with had a pretty sweet set up, and he’d learned a lot. Several of them were retired Navy SEALs. They knew how to survive out in the wilderness if anyone did. They’d taught him a lot about weapons, and they’d put him through some tactical training too.

  He reread the article Pike had sent. He’d never heard of it, but then when he googled it, all kinds of things popped up. It nearly took his breath away. What is wrong with this world? he asked himself. It was as though humankind wouldn’t be satisfied until it extinguished itself, taking the planet along for the ride.

  Sayer had been into prepping for over three years now, as he felt the socioeconomic situation was spiraling out of control. There had been quite a few computer virus scares, Ransomware attacks, hacks, break-ins, and all kinds of software breaches. It was only a matter of time before something went wrong and technology would be a thing of the past, pushing the world back to the 1800s.

  He’d not told anyone at work, though there weren’t many who worked for him, nor had he ever discussed prepping with his customers. He’d been warned by other preppers to keep his mouth shut about what he had and what he was doing. His Facebook profile was under an assumed name. He kept the two aspects of his life separate. It was better that way, and he’d never used his picture on his prepper profile. He didn’t want to be recognized. There had been a couple of unsettling incidents.

  Only his girlfriend, Joy Flannery, knew, and that was only because they’d been together four years. They lived on the small farm she owned and had got together before he’d started prepping. It would have been hard to do it without her knowledge. Or take weekend survival training.

  She was an odd bird but he loved her all the same. A surgical care nurse, she loved her job. All that morbid shit never seemed to bother her. She had a dark and wicked sense of humor, and he liked that about her too. They matched well, like yin and yang. In some ways they were complete opposites and yet they saw almost everything in the same way. Though she didn’t participate in his prepping, she supported him in his goals. He loved her for it.

  Sayer had asked her to marry him two years ago, but she’d said no. She was happy just living with the man she loved. She didn’t need or want a piece of paper to prove they loved each other and were together. She didn’t want children either. That had bothered him at first. He had a couple of nieces and nephews, but they lived in Hawaii and he’d not seen them in years. But after he got into prepping, he’d decided that bringing a kid into this world might not be the best.

  After reading about the Russian’s POSEIDON, he was even more certain it really was for the best. He thought about the United States’s enemies. Russia had always been there in the background, waiting and watching. North Korea ranked high in that category as well. It was all so unsettling.

  Pike wanted to know what he thought. Run for the goddamn hills, or just kiss your ass goodbye. He normally didn’t give out his number, not to strangers on Facebook, but he and Pike had been communicating for over a year and a half. With this news, he thought he should take a chance. He sent his contact information in a private message and waited. A few minutes later, his phone rang. He picked it up.

  “Greg?” the voice asked. It had a southern twang to it.

  “Yeah, but my real name’s Sayer, I don’t put my real name on my Facebook prepper page,” Sayer said.

  There was a pregnant pause on the other end. “Oh, okay. I guess that makes sense. Maybe I should do that?” Pike laughed nervously.

  “Maybe. Especially after you sent me that article. Where did you find out about this? I’d never heard of it, but when I googled it, a bunch of articles and YouTube videos popped up.” It had shocked him just how much had come up, and yet not one word on the news. Nothing.

  “A friend of mine, Margo, she sent it to me. She’s also becoming a prepper. We went to high school together back in the day, but she moved away. We keep in touch,” Pike explained.

  “I’m glad she brought this to your attention, and thanks for bringing it to mine. It really blows me away that this has been going on for a couple years already. There’s been nothing on the news. Like it was some big secret.” Sayer shook his head.

  “I know. She suggested I contact a prepper I trust. I know we don’t know each other, Gre…Sayer, sorry, but we’ve been communicating for a while now and I get the sense you are trustworthy. You’ve always been a straight shooter with me, as far as I can tell. You don’t seem like one of the crazies I’ve seen posting on your site or other sites.”

  “Thanks man, I appreciate it. I like to think I’m a good guy. And not to get all gushy, but I think you’re okay as well. I’ve run into some real crazies and had to block them. Hell, there was a couple of guys I even had to report to the local police. They scared the hell out of me. Once some guy was actually stalki
ng me, back a few years ago. That was when I changed my name online,” he said.

  “Shit man, that’s scary. Yeah, I think I will build a new profile just for prepping. Especially now. I don’t want to put you on the spot, but what do you think about this? Should we be worried?” Pike asked.

  “After reading it and looking around, I’d say yeah. I won’t say today or tomorrow, but between North Korea and Russia, something’s going to come. The thing is, how can a person prep for every contingency?” Sayer asked, knowing the frustration in his voice was shared by Pike.

  “Yes! That’s what has me frustrated and overwhelmed,” Pike said. “It’s like there’s so much that can happen. What do you do? Where can you go? No place is safe.”

  “You’re right about that brother, for sure,” Sayer said, nodding his head in agreement.

  “I’m just irritated. Everyone around me seems like they either don’t care or don’t want to know,” Pike complained, frustration loud and clear in his voice. “I can’t hold a normal conversation about any of this without them laughing and making fun of me. Like I’m some kind of paranoid freak. They treat me like I’m a raving lunatic to be pitied or castigated,”

  Sayer understood that very well. That was why preppers were such a close-mouthed bunch. People thought they were weird at best, crazies at worst. He’d heard people talking in diners about world events. He’d hear them in the next booth or across the way. He’d heard enough over the years to keep his mouth shut. No one wants to stand out or be a beacon for denunciation.

  Yet Sayer knew, deep down, that if the shit really did hit the fan, those same people would be at his door begging for food and protection and anything else they could get. He would, of course, have to turn them away. Prepping was a somewhat solitary endeavor. You could manage yourself and loved ones; all the rest would just have to die. It was a bleak mindset, and called for brutal decisions and choices. That was why it was so vital to keep things under wraps, below the radar of neighbors and friends.