FIC: Cry Havoc - apocalyptothon
Entry for the apocalyptothon fic-a-thon. (ie. APOCALYPSE!!!)
Title: Cry Havoc
Author: lyl (lyl_devil)
Fandom: NCIS
Rating: PG-15 (for a swear word or two)
Pairing: none
Warnings: none
Recipient: storydivagirl
Request: I like the idea of the Yellowstone Caldera, so let's try that. I would love Gibbs/DiNozzo.
Summary: “It's going to be a good day.” “Do you remember when we would say that and actually mean it?”
Notes: Sorry this wasn't Gibbs/DiNozzo. You can think of it as pre-slash if you want - if you squint and turn your head sideways. :)
Notes2: Beta'ed by the lovely idontlikegravy, who helped me find an end to the fic-that-would-not-end-in-a-reasonable-manner.
~!~
The sky was a dark grey, and even though it was early afternoon, it looked closer to twilight than anything else. Then again, that was what it looked like most days. The dark, sunless days were sometimes interspersed with black clouds and hazardous rains, but those were rare.
The end of the world sucked.
Looking up at the sky from his balcony, Tony - again - cursed his entire planet for being idiots. All the pollutants and other crap in the air only made the damage done by Mother Nature that much worse. It was still getting worse, in fact. The Asian countries that had already been spewing out metric tons of carbon monoxide and other nasty chemicals into the environment hadn't stopped, though they had slowed. A smaller market would do that. Not that that stopped them from continuously pumping out goods to sell. They didn't seem to have caught on to the fact that the world had changed. Most other parts of the world had realized that the global market was collapsing in the wake of a disaster of this scale, but some refused to see. The US and parts of Canada may be almost uninhabitable, but that hadn't stopped industry completely. There was still a market in parts of South America, Europe, Africa and Australia, so the mentality seemed to be 'there's a demand, so we shall supply'. (Tony kept having visions of mountains of cheap ‘Hello, Kitty’ paraphernalia accumulating and growing next to some big factory in China.) The demand was nowhere near the supply, and the gap was widening every day. The unofficial boycott didn't really seem to be having any effect, and probably wouldn't. Some places continued to manufacture goods, for the sake of manufacturing. However, people had become more aware that actions had global consequences, and were determined not to return to the days of blissful ignorance and scoffing at the doomsayers. They knew that continuing to run those factories would only add to the current problems.
It had all started fourteen months ago, when a mild earthquake had been felt in DC. Well, mild in DC. It had registered a 6.4 at the epicentre. That the epicentre had been Yellowstone National Park hadn't really been a blip on most people's radar. There were the odd people who predicted that this was the start of something catastrophic - some even announced that it was the previously inactive supervolcano showing signs of eruption - but the general populace was used to hearing - then ignoring - talk of doom. In a society living with constant 'terrorist threats' and 'we're killing our planet', a few odd balls predicting a giant eruption of a sleeping volcano were put into the 'as if' category.
Too bad they were right.
“It's going to be a good day,” said a voice behind him. Tony didn't bother to turn around, continuing to look at the ash-filled sky that cast a grey light over the world now.
“Do you remember when we would say that and actually mean it?” he said as he was joined on the balcony.
“When colours were actually colourful? When days even half this bad caused air quality warnings? When we would go out of the city just because we could?” Turning his head, Tony looked at Kate for the first time.
He could see her glance at him from the corner of her eye, and knew she wasn't brining good news.
“The scouts came back,” she said, her whole body tensing slightly, though it was hard to tell; they were all in a constant state of tension these days that even sleeping was stressful.
“They didn't find anything,” he said before she could. Tony turned back to look out at the city, not noticing his hands turning white as he gripped the railing.
“They found some supplies, more equipment for Abby and the other tech kids - some more stragglers - but nothing else,” she listed, sounding like a good second-in-command, which she kind of was by virtue of being there.
Tony didn't know how he came to be in charge of this area. He would be the last person anyone would consider leader material. He'd fallen into the position unexpectedly, and no one had suggested he leave. Yet.
“What are our numbers?” he asked after a few minutes.
“Fifteen hundred and seven- no, eight,” she said, smiling slightly. It took him a minute, but he finally figured out where the smile was coming from.
“Marcy had the baby?” he asked, genuinely pleased.
“Healthy baby girl,” she said. “Ducky's walking around all pleased and smug.”
“Well, he's kind of a grandfather now, Kate,” said Tony, some of his old teasing coming back. It had been so long since he'd joked and teased anyone, that it felt strange. Almost like he was play-acting, but still sort of real.
“They've named her Jennifer Ellen Palmer,” she added, her voice carrying a tinge of sadness. It was a feeling they all lived with - loss. In this case, it was more personal. The baby's father - Jimmy Palmer - had died five months earlier in the last attack.
The attacks were what had changed a country hit by a major natural disaster into one giant war zone. In the wake of the Yellowstone eruption, the US had crumbled. Communication systems had collapsed, disaster relief agencies and plans had proven insufficient in the face of the scale of the destruction, and the lack of any reliable information had caused mass panic. As ash, gases and various bits of debris from the supervolcano were thrown into the upper atmosphere for the better part of a week, the entire world had watched as black clouds spread across the entire planet, blocking out the sun.
As all satellite based technologies became useless, communication was thrown back fifty years. The US had become one giant disaster area. It was when the news spread that most government officials had 'gone to safer ground' that things really went bad. The borders collapsed, along with the entire infrastructure. People found themselves abandoned, all on their own, with no possibility of help from any corner.
In the first days after the eruption, when people began to realize the extent of the disaster, there had been a general exodus from the country, hoping to find a better life on some other continent. Until the borders of those countries slammed closed once they realized what was happening. Tony really couldn't blame them, despite his own anger at the situation. Having hundreds of thousands of refugees from North America swarming into your country, putting massive stress on a system that was already feeling the effects of the eruption, was not something to look forward to.
That left millions of people stranded - those that hadn't lived anywhere near Wyoming, anyway. Tony remembered seeing video of the eruption from three miles away, taken by a reporter who mistakenly thought they were a safe distance. The molten rock had been thrown thirty to forty miles in the air, spreading a path of destruction in a hundred mile radius around Yellowstone. It was some of the last images seen before the television signals had been cut off by the ash.
Since the eruption, the survivors had mostly moved to the cities where there was a better chance of survival. Stores and homes were raided for non-perishable foods and supplies; power was available, but limited, and they all knew it wouldn't last forever. Everyone knew it wouldn't last, and they'd been fending off scavengers for the past year. They'd formed their own community - a tribe of sorts - and had to defend their territory from outsiders. He'd heard stories from some of the stragglers escaping from other groups, and it had made his skin crawl. The Eruption had changed everybody, but some it had changed in the wrong way. There were more than a few enclaves being run like personal fiefdoms, but they weren't the most dangerous. The people that really had Tony and the others scared were the desperate ones. They were the ones that made insane attacks, not caring who died in the process. Someone else had something they wanted, and nothing but a bullet would stop them from getting it.
Recently, however, the dynamics had shifted. Now, the attacking parties often seemed to be from outside the US/Canada, and no one liked to dwell on that too much. Parties outside the country were interested in whatever they could find in the ruins of the cities, and DC was a prime target. It was in one such attack that had led to the death of Jimmy Palmer, along with six others.
“We should start looking for a new place to live,” Tony said, pulling his mind away from the past. “We're growing too fast for this place.”
Kate nodded in agreement. “I'll send some of the guys out today. Anything in particular you want them to look for?”
“Several large apartment complexes grouped together, preferably surrounded by lower buildings. We need enough room for two to three times as many people. Underground parking garages if they can manage it, near a power plant and a source of fresh water,” he rattled off, having spent enough time thinking and talking it over with Kate and several others. Currently, they occupied three medium sized apartment complexes and a few adjacent buildings. The one Tony and Kate lived in was the centre of their little community for the single reason that it was the largest.
“What about near a hospital? Some of the doctors have been asking about better medical equipment,” she added.
“What kind of equipment?”
“Ideally, they want a fully functional hospital,” she said ruefully, correctly interpreting the look on his face, “but they'll settle for some breathing apparatus; oxygen tanks, masks, respirators.”
“I'll add it to the list,” he said, though they both knew he'd put it at the top. “It's really getting that bad?”
“Those air purifiers are really helping, but not enough. Especially for the children.”
Tony closed his eyes and clenched his jaw, trying not to think of the room full of kids on the third floor, struggling for every breath through damaged lungs.
“I'll take a team out this afternoon,” he said. “Anything else?”
Kate shook her head, and Tony felt a smidgen of relief that there were no other disasters awaiting his attention.
“Guess I'll go meet the newest addition,” replied Tony, trying to sound more upbeat than he felt as he headed indoors. By the look on Kate's face, he'd say he hadn't succeeded.
~!~
A quick glance in the cracked mirror had Tony smiling ruefully for a minute. He'd never thought there'd be a day where dressing like a combat soldier would be the norm, but now he couldn't think of any other way to dress. The few times he'd worn casual clothes from the old days, he'd gotten double takes the entire day, even from the people who'd known him before the end of the world.
Instead of Armani he wore black fatigues; instead of a suit and tie he wore layers of dark clothes. His loafers had been replaced with combat boots, his gun moved from a belt clip to a thigh holster. In fact, his entire wardrobe consisted of black on dark grey. He had a few white items, but rarely wore them. He wore dark clothing in a dark world, as did most of the other soldiers. Well, they were called soldiers, but they were more 'people who decided to protect their group'. True, there were a number of soldiers from all branches of the military, as well as police and federal agents, but there were also those who had simply decided to strap on a gun and help to protect their new community.
And they definitely needed the protection. There had been a war on the streets of DC for the first six months, as they fought over territory. Tony had known what area he wanted, and was determined to keep it. There was a truce now, between all four groups, with defined borders that were strictly enforced, but that hadn't been the case in the beginning. While they might be organized like gangs, they weren't run with that mentality. Territory wasn't the most important thing; it was the ability to keep your people surviving. There'd been a power struggle in the most aggressive of the groups, with a new leader emerging. (The pack mentality of the Renegades always kept Tony on edge and suspicious.) That change in leadership had been the catalyst for the truce and continued peace in the DC area, because now was not the time to get delusions of grandeur. The leaders of all four communities knew that, for which Tony was endlessly thankful. The whispers of power struggles coming from New York and Miami continued to frustrate them all.
A soft knocking at the door pulled his attention, and he turned to see Abby peeking in through the partially opened door.
“Hey, Abby,” he said, smiling in greeting. “I hear you got some new toys this morning.”
“Yeah, Kate had some of the muscle boys bring them down earlier,” she said with a smile. Her voice was deep and rough, as though she'd been talking too much recently. Or not been talking at all. These days, Abby alternated between not saying a single word, and giving voice to every thought in her head, for days at a time. She'd been in one of her silent moods for the past few days, and Tony was relieved to hear her speak again. He could never tell what was going through her head during those quiet times, and as much as he hated when she babbled on for thirty six hours straight, at least he knew what she was thinking.
Kate had mentioned once that she worried it was all too much for Abby to take, giving voice to Tony's own thoughts and worries. Too many people hadn't been able to deal with the 'new world', finding unique and not-so-unique ways to end it all.
“Did you see Jennifer?” he asked, moving closer to her.
“She's definitely a cutie,” Abby agreed, a genuine smile on her face for the first time in longer than Tony cared to remember.
“That she is,” he said, returning the smile with one of his own.
“Have you- any word on...” Abby started to ask, looking everywhere but at him.
“Sorry, Abs. Still nothing,” he said gently, knowing what she was asking after. Or rather, 'who' she was asking about.
Gibbs. One of two missing members of their family. He and McGee had been liaising with local law enforcement down in Austin when all air traffic had been grounded and all available resources were being diverted to Wyoming and the surrounding states. Their last contact, before communication collapsed back to land lines and short range radio waves, had Gibbs telling them he and McGee were tagging along with one of the rescue teams on their way North. To Ground Zero.
“I found another sighting,” she said after a minute, still not looking at him. “In Knoxville, Tennessee, three weeks ago.”
“Abby...” he warned in a low tone.
“They said a group of armed men and women passed through. They barely stopped to trade, let alone talk, but they were there-”
“Abby.”
“-and they also said they were being led by-”
“Abby!”
“-and they described him perfectly, Tony,” she said, finally looking at him. Tony's heart clenched at the look of desperate hope on her face. Abby's entire world had been rocked by the Eruption. For so long Gibbs had been her centre - her one constant - so when he'd disappeared into the disaster area, Abby had been lost. Ducky hypothesized that his and Kate's presence had helped her to cope with events; helped keep her somewhat grounded. Every one had dealt with it differently - was still dealing, in truth - but to varying degrees of success. He and Kate had the professional persona to cling to, him a cop and Kate as a Secret Service agent, and Ducky was one of those people who just seemed to accept and adapt to anything. Abby had surprised everyone by being the least adaptive of them all.
“You know you can't trust everything you read,” he told her gently, stepping towards her. “You know that half those stories are always fake.”
“But lots aren't, Tony,” she said, eyes filling up with tears, “he's out there and he's coming here. I know he is.”
The last was whispered in a lost voice, twisting at his heart.
“Aw, Abs,” he sighed, pulling her into his arms. He held her like that for several minutes, feeling her arms wrap around his chest threatening to crush him, while her tears soaked his shoulder.
After what seemed like an eternity, Tony pulled away slightly. He tilted her face up to him, and put forth his best 'earnest, I-will-do-it' face.
“We'll find him, Abby. If he comes anywhere near the area, we'll find him.”
Abby just blinked at him, all red eyes and wet lashes. He would love to tell her that he was sending out search parties to look for Gibbs, but knew he couldn't. He wouldn't put his people at risk by sending them out to roam around the Eastern Seaboard looking for two men. He had to concentrate his efforts on the people right here, right now, no matter how much of him wished he could just take off and search for Gibbs and McGee himself.
“Now, I hear you have some new toys to play with,” Tony repeated, deliberately changing the subject as he manoeuvred her out the door, grinning as her eyes lit up.
The day got a little brighter with her smile, Tony thought.
~!~
“You're late,” said Kate as Tony joined her and eight others in the underground parking garage. They were all geared up and ready to head out and scavenge for medical equipment, the only thing delaying them was him.
Tony wasn't really surprised to see her as part of the team, either. She'd taken it as her personal responsibility to keep him alive, not trusting anyone else to watch his back while they were out. Tony didn't argue too much, because there was no one else he'd rather have watching his back than Kate.
And he didn't even mean that in the dirty sense, either.
“Abby found another sighting,” he said in a low voice as he grabbed his own set of weapons and com set from the makeshift armoury. “Fucking internet!”
The discovery that there was still a cyber community was both a blessing and a curse. There was power and there were phone and cable lines, so there was an internet, as limited as it was. Very little data came from outside North America, but the network in-land was well established, if spotty. It was mostly used for communication among the different communities, though there were the odd 'rumours' that surfaced, like the sightings Abby kept track of religiously. She was convinced that every 'mysterious group of people' that was reported was Gibbs and McGee making their way back home.
No one commented on the map she'd put on her lab wall, with red lines connecting the sightings from one side of the country to another.
“So she's speaking today?” asked Kate as they made their way to one of the four trucks they were taking.
“She's getting better,” Tony defended, though not severely. Kate hadn't been criticizing, and Tony hadn't been offended, though most wouldn't have known that by their tone of voice. By now, they'd worked closely with each other for over three years. Kate knew how much Tony loved Abby, and Tony knew Kate was still Abby's best friend.
“She smiled. Twice,” Tony confided, letting his own smile show.
“Really?” asked Kate, sounding as happy as Tony had been.
“Yep. She even called the guys from this morning 'muscle boys'.”
Kate just laughed, surprising Tony. It was something else he hadn't been aware was missing.
They drove in silence after that, heading out further than they had in the past. What they were looking for would not be found in the small buffer zone they'd created around their buildings. Everything of value within a fifteen block radius had already been inventoried months ago.
They had guards stationed at the fifteen block perimeter, but had active surveillance and routine patrols out another ten blocks. No one was taking any chances, despite the truce.
The scouts had mentioned some buildings of interest where they might find what they were looking for. They were well out past their self-imposed boundaries, but not near enough to any other territory to make it a danger to their citywide truce.
It was at the fourth location that Tony began to feel the first stirrings of trouble. They'd found most of their shopping list, but Tony wanted to check out the last two locations before heading back. There was still enough room in the trucks for more, and the fewer of these trips they had to make, the better.
A warning from one of the perimeter guards had Tony and the rest of the team tensing. There were the odd small groups of people living in abandoned buildings, usually twenty to thirty at a time, but they knew better than to bother any of Tony's people. He had a 'don't bother me, I won't bother you' agreement with the various packs and gangs that were living in his territory.
He really hoped it was just one of them coming too close.
The back of his neck started to prickle with awareness. “Cover!” he yelled even as he dropped down behind the truck, Kate by his side. Something small exploded from the brick wall behind him, sending dust and small fragments of brick at him and Kate.
Great. A sniper.
“One with a silencer,” added Kate, making him aware he'd spoken aloud.
“Do we have a location?” he asked into his headset.
“Not yet, sir,” replied Steiner, his voice calm and composed. Steiner was a former Marine, and Tony had yet to see him rattled by anything.
“It came from the north-east,” said Kate, peeking around the back end of the truck.
“Anything?” Tony asked at large, willing anyone to give him more information. He had four people at various points around their location, walking perimeter, but the rest of his team was inside the building, trapped by the sniper.
“Give me a role call.” he demanded, wanting to know if he'd lost anyone yet. Everyone reported in okay, lifting one worry from his mind. For the moment, at least.
“I think we've got a way out,” announced another voice in his ear. Tony identified it as Amanda McGuire, a former inner city paramedic.
“You think or you know?” Tony asked, edging towards the front of the truck to try and get a look at their sniper's possible location for himself.
“I know, sir. Ellins found an exit with enough cover to conceal us.”
“Good, do it.”
“They've got to be in that old parking garage,” said another voice over the radio. “It's the only one with an angle that makes sense.”
“He's right,” said Kate, turning to look over her shoulder at Tony. “It's got to be coming from there.”
“Alright. Ellins, McGuire, go secure that sniper. The rest of you, take up position and make sure there aren't any more. Cover our people as best as possible.”
“That almost sounded commanding, DiNozzo,” said Kate, pitching her voice low enough to not be carried over the radios.
“Oh, I can show you 'commanding', Todd,” Tony replied, putting just enough innuendo into his voice to make her roll her eyes.
“In your dreams, DiNozzo.”
“Always, Todd. Always,” he replied, eyes continuously scanning for any additional movement.
Several tense moments passed, as they waited for word from their people, adrenaline pumping through their bodies with every second. Tony wanted to be the one to go after the sniper - be the one to take the risk while his people stayed safe. His people knew it, too. They'd ganged up on him enough times in the past, pulling him away from the riskier aspects of this new life. Arguments that he'd done this sort of thing before the Eruption always fell on deaf ears. He'd been frustrated and angry, not understanding why everyone kept trying to coddle him. Finally, he'd had it out with Kate one day. She'd told him that they all knew he'd rather put himself in the line of fire, and that's why they took his place; that no matter how valuable he was in the field, he was more valuable to the community as a whole, alive. He'd never felt the weight of expectations until just then.
He still had trouble holding himself back while his people went head first into dangerous situations, and sometimes didn't come back. He'd idly wondered if it was his own way of subconsciously trying to kill himself, like so many others had, but Kate had reassured him that he'd been the same before, just a little less manic about it.
The minutes seemed to drag on, the odd soft 'pop' of a round hitting the ground or a wall breaking the silence. They all kept their radios silent, waiting to hear from McGuire and Ellins.
Tony's patience was nearing the end when they finally broke radio silence.
”Multiple hostiles. said a quiet voice, male. Ellins.
“How many?” asked Tony, his voice calm.
”Too many to take on ourselves.” added a McGuire. ”They're guarding the sniper. They're pros, sir.”
Shit! Tony silently cursed. Roving bands of ex-soldiers or mercenaries hadn't been a big problem in the DC area like it had been in some of the other cities, but it looked like they were heading his way. Just his luck to run into a group of them when he was this far from home base and reinforcements.
“Alright, can you-”
”Damnit, we've been spotted!” announced Ellins, still keeping his voice low.
“Get out of there!” Tony ordered, only to be interrupted by spurts of gunfire. “Ellins! McGuire!”
Getting no response, Tony made the decision to send the rest of his people in. He never left a man - or woman - behind. It was a lesson learned from his NCIS days, that carried over. Nobody was taking his people, not without a fight.
They moved in silence towards the parking garage, hoping that the distraction provided by Ellins and McGuire was enough to pull the attention of the sniper. Their luck seemed to hold, as the remaining eight people all reported successful entrance to the dilapidated building that looked too old after only a year.
“Moving up,” he said, feeling Kate move with him, his guardian shadow.
”Fourth level,” announced another voice over the com, guiding them towards their goal.
Kate moved in tandem with him, clearing every corner as they ascended the concrete stairwell to the fourth floor. They met another of their team on the way up, and Tony felt more confident with every step.
Reaching the designated door, they waited while everyone got into the best position, listening through the metal door for any sign of what was awaiting them. An angry female voice could be heard, which Tony recognized as Amanda McGuire. He traded a look with Kate, and saw his own relief reflected in her face. One of them was still alive, at least.
“Everybody in position?” he asked, waiting to hear the affirmatives. “No gunfire unless directly threatened - we want our people alive, not killed by friendly fire. On my count. Three. Two. One!”
It all happened in slow motion for Tony, but in reality it was over in a matter of seconds. They managed to overpower the guards and disarm them, all without firing a shot, which Tony was particularly proud of. Ammunition was hard to come by these days, even if you had ransacked every police station, gun shop and corner store in their section of DC.
Tony watched as his team searched the men they had captured, but his attention was pulled by the sniper's nest and something pricked at his memory. He scanned the area more intently, and felt a shiver of fear at what his eyes were telling him.
“Does this look familiar to you?” he asked, looking at Kate with wide eyes. She had the same look of realized horror on her face.
The padded sniper's nest, the folding table with chairs and cards, the discarded piles of blankets. It all added up to an obvious conclusion.
“This is a guard post,” he said out loud, grabbing the attention of his team. They turned to look at him with wide eyes, suddenly realizing where they were. They were in a guard post - like the ones littered around their own perimeter - that contained multiple personnel, and supplies to sustain them between regular supply runs. It also contained a direct link back to their home base, which they had no doubt called some time before.
Reinforcements were on their way, and Tony was unprepared.
“Secure them prisoners, grab what weapons and ammo you can. We're out of here,” he said in an urgent voice, watching as they all bolted into action. He palmed his sidearm, preferring the familiar feel of the hand gun to the sub-machine guns they regularly carried, especially for close combat. He didn't like how this was playing out, and cursed himself for being caught off guard.
“How long, do you think?” asked Kate, moving further from the group to protect.
“Depends on how far away they were when they got the call,” he said moving parallel to her, using one of the concrete pillars as cover. “Not lon-”
The hairs on the back of his neck stood up, prickling his awareness. There was a sudden silence just before a burst of heavy treads on concrete thundered through the open-air garage. A quick flash around the corner from his position grabbed his attention. Reflexes kicking in, Tony stepped out around the pillar, gun raised automatically towards the assailant, aiming for the head.
At first, all he could see was the gleaming black of a semi-automatic pistol aimed at his own head, but a surprised gasp from Kate managed to pull his attention higher.
Higher, until he was staring into a pair of familiar blue eyes, looking as shocked as he felt. His heart thundered in his chest as his brained tried to process what his eyes were seeing. The blood was rushing through his ears, and for the first time in his life Tony thought he might faint. In all his wildest dreams he'd never thought this day would actually come, or that he would feel like this.
“DiNozzo?!”
It couldn't be...
“Gibbs?!”
END
~!~
What little information about the eruption that was actually put in here, was from these resources:
www.yellostonenationalpark.com/calderas.htm
www.exodus2006.com/yellow.htm
www.armageddononline.org/yellowstone_caldera.php
Title: Cry Havoc
Author: lyl (lyl_devil)
Fandom: NCIS
Rating: PG-15 (for a swear word or two)
Pairing: none
Warnings: none
Recipient: storydivagirl
Request: I like the idea of the Yellowstone Caldera, so let's try that. I would love Gibbs/DiNozzo.
Summary: “It's going to be a good day.” “Do you remember when we would say that and actually mean it?”
Notes: Sorry this wasn't Gibbs/DiNozzo. You can think of it as pre-slash if you want - if you squint and turn your head sideways. :)
Notes2: Beta'ed by the lovely idontlikegravy, who helped me find an end to the fic-that-would-not-end-in-a-reasonable-manner.
~!~
The sky was a dark grey, and even though it was early afternoon, it looked closer to twilight than anything else. Then again, that was what it looked like most days. The dark, sunless days were sometimes interspersed with black clouds and hazardous rains, but those were rare.
The end of the world sucked.
Looking up at the sky from his balcony, Tony - again - cursed his entire planet for being idiots. All the pollutants and other crap in the air only made the damage done by Mother Nature that much worse. It was still getting worse, in fact. The Asian countries that had already been spewing out metric tons of carbon monoxide and other nasty chemicals into the environment hadn't stopped, though they had slowed. A smaller market would do that. Not that that stopped them from continuously pumping out goods to sell. They didn't seem to have caught on to the fact that the world had changed. Most other parts of the world had realized that the global market was collapsing in the wake of a disaster of this scale, but some refused to see. The US and parts of Canada may be almost uninhabitable, but that hadn't stopped industry completely. There was still a market in parts of South America, Europe, Africa and Australia, so the mentality seemed to be 'there's a demand, so we shall supply'. (Tony kept having visions of mountains of cheap ‘Hello, Kitty’ paraphernalia accumulating and growing next to some big factory in China.) The demand was nowhere near the supply, and the gap was widening every day. The unofficial boycott didn't really seem to be having any effect, and probably wouldn't. Some places continued to manufacture goods, for the sake of manufacturing. However, people had become more aware that actions had global consequences, and were determined not to return to the days of blissful ignorance and scoffing at the doomsayers. They knew that continuing to run those factories would only add to the current problems.
It had all started fourteen months ago, when a mild earthquake had been felt in DC. Well, mild in DC. It had registered a 6.4 at the epicentre. That the epicentre had been Yellowstone National Park hadn't really been a blip on most people's radar. There were the odd people who predicted that this was the start of something catastrophic - some even announced that it was the previously inactive supervolcano showing signs of eruption - but the general populace was used to hearing - then ignoring - talk of doom. In a society living with constant 'terrorist threats' and 'we're killing our planet', a few odd balls predicting a giant eruption of a sleeping volcano were put into the 'as if' category.
Too bad they were right.
“It's going to be a good day,” said a voice behind him. Tony didn't bother to turn around, continuing to look at the ash-filled sky that cast a grey light over the world now.
“Do you remember when we would say that and actually mean it?” he said as he was joined on the balcony.
“When colours were actually colourful? When days even half this bad caused air quality warnings? When we would go out of the city just because we could?” Turning his head, Tony looked at Kate for the first time.
He could see her glance at him from the corner of her eye, and knew she wasn't brining good news.
“The scouts came back,” she said, her whole body tensing slightly, though it was hard to tell; they were all in a constant state of tension these days that even sleeping was stressful.
“They didn't find anything,” he said before she could. Tony turned back to look out at the city, not noticing his hands turning white as he gripped the railing.
“They found some supplies, more equipment for Abby and the other tech kids - some more stragglers - but nothing else,” she listed, sounding like a good second-in-command, which she kind of was by virtue of being there.
Tony didn't know how he came to be in charge of this area. He would be the last person anyone would consider leader material. He'd fallen into the position unexpectedly, and no one had suggested he leave. Yet.
“What are our numbers?” he asked after a few minutes.
“Fifteen hundred and seven- no, eight,” she said, smiling slightly. It took him a minute, but he finally figured out where the smile was coming from.
“Marcy had the baby?” he asked, genuinely pleased.
“Healthy baby girl,” she said. “Ducky's walking around all pleased and smug.”
“Well, he's kind of a grandfather now, Kate,” said Tony, some of his old teasing coming back. It had been so long since he'd joked and teased anyone, that it felt strange. Almost like he was play-acting, but still sort of real.
“They've named her Jennifer Ellen Palmer,” she added, her voice carrying a tinge of sadness. It was a feeling they all lived with - loss. In this case, it was more personal. The baby's father - Jimmy Palmer - had died five months earlier in the last attack.
The attacks were what had changed a country hit by a major natural disaster into one giant war zone. In the wake of the Yellowstone eruption, the US had crumbled. Communication systems had collapsed, disaster relief agencies and plans had proven insufficient in the face of the scale of the destruction, and the lack of any reliable information had caused mass panic. As ash, gases and various bits of debris from the supervolcano were thrown into the upper atmosphere for the better part of a week, the entire world had watched as black clouds spread across the entire planet, blocking out the sun.
As all satellite based technologies became useless, communication was thrown back fifty years. The US had become one giant disaster area. It was when the news spread that most government officials had 'gone to safer ground' that things really went bad. The borders collapsed, along with the entire infrastructure. People found themselves abandoned, all on their own, with no possibility of help from any corner.
In the first days after the eruption, when people began to realize the extent of the disaster, there had been a general exodus from the country, hoping to find a better life on some other continent. Until the borders of those countries slammed closed once they realized what was happening. Tony really couldn't blame them, despite his own anger at the situation. Having hundreds of thousands of refugees from North America swarming into your country, putting massive stress on a system that was already feeling the effects of the eruption, was not something to look forward to.
That left millions of people stranded - those that hadn't lived anywhere near Wyoming, anyway. Tony remembered seeing video of the eruption from three miles away, taken by a reporter who mistakenly thought they were a safe distance. The molten rock had been thrown thirty to forty miles in the air, spreading a path of destruction in a hundred mile radius around Yellowstone. It was some of the last images seen before the television signals had been cut off by the ash.
Since the eruption, the survivors had mostly moved to the cities where there was a better chance of survival. Stores and homes were raided for non-perishable foods and supplies; power was available, but limited, and they all knew it wouldn't last forever. Everyone knew it wouldn't last, and they'd been fending off scavengers for the past year. They'd formed their own community - a tribe of sorts - and had to defend their territory from outsiders. He'd heard stories from some of the stragglers escaping from other groups, and it had made his skin crawl. The Eruption had changed everybody, but some it had changed in the wrong way. There were more than a few enclaves being run like personal fiefdoms, but they weren't the most dangerous. The people that really had Tony and the others scared were the desperate ones. They were the ones that made insane attacks, not caring who died in the process. Someone else had something they wanted, and nothing but a bullet would stop them from getting it.
Recently, however, the dynamics had shifted. Now, the attacking parties often seemed to be from outside the US/Canada, and no one liked to dwell on that too much. Parties outside the country were interested in whatever they could find in the ruins of the cities, and DC was a prime target. It was in one such attack that had led to the death of Jimmy Palmer, along with six others.
“We should start looking for a new place to live,” Tony said, pulling his mind away from the past. “We're growing too fast for this place.”
Kate nodded in agreement. “I'll send some of the guys out today. Anything in particular you want them to look for?”
“Several large apartment complexes grouped together, preferably surrounded by lower buildings. We need enough room for two to three times as many people. Underground parking garages if they can manage it, near a power plant and a source of fresh water,” he rattled off, having spent enough time thinking and talking it over with Kate and several others. Currently, they occupied three medium sized apartment complexes and a few adjacent buildings. The one Tony and Kate lived in was the centre of their little community for the single reason that it was the largest.
“What about near a hospital? Some of the doctors have been asking about better medical equipment,” she added.
“What kind of equipment?”
“Ideally, they want a fully functional hospital,” she said ruefully, correctly interpreting the look on his face, “but they'll settle for some breathing apparatus; oxygen tanks, masks, respirators.”
“I'll add it to the list,” he said, though they both knew he'd put it at the top. “It's really getting that bad?”
“Those air purifiers are really helping, but not enough. Especially for the children.”
Tony closed his eyes and clenched his jaw, trying not to think of the room full of kids on the third floor, struggling for every breath through damaged lungs.
“I'll take a team out this afternoon,” he said. “Anything else?”
Kate shook her head, and Tony felt a smidgen of relief that there were no other disasters awaiting his attention.
“Guess I'll go meet the newest addition,” replied Tony, trying to sound more upbeat than he felt as he headed indoors. By the look on Kate's face, he'd say he hadn't succeeded.
~!~
A quick glance in the cracked mirror had Tony smiling ruefully for a minute. He'd never thought there'd be a day where dressing like a combat soldier would be the norm, but now he couldn't think of any other way to dress. The few times he'd worn casual clothes from the old days, he'd gotten double takes the entire day, even from the people who'd known him before the end of the world.
Instead of Armani he wore black fatigues; instead of a suit and tie he wore layers of dark clothes. His loafers had been replaced with combat boots, his gun moved from a belt clip to a thigh holster. In fact, his entire wardrobe consisted of black on dark grey. He had a few white items, but rarely wore them. He wore dark clothing in a dark world, as did most of the other soldiers. Well, they were called soldiers, but they were more 'people who decided to protect their group'. True, there were a number of soldiers from all branches of the military, as well as police and federal agents, but there were also those who had simply decided to strap on a gun and help to protect their new community.
And they definitely needed the protection. There had been a war on the streets of DC for the first six months, as they fought over territory. Tony had known what area he wanted, and was determined to keep it. There was a truce now, between all four groups, with defined borders that were strictly enforced, but that hadn't been the case in the beginning. While they might be organized like gangs, they weren't run with that mentality. Territory wasn't the most important thing; it was the ability to keep your people surviving. There'd been a power struggle in the most aggressive of the groups, with a new leader emerging. (The pack mentality of the Renegades always kept Tony on edge and suspicious.) That change in leadership had been the catalyst for the truce and continued peace in the DC area, because now was not the time to get delusions of grandeur. The leaders of all four communities knew that, for which Tony was endlessly thankful. The whispers of power struggles coming from New York and Miami continued to frustrate them all.
A soft knocking at the door pulled his attention, and he turned to see Abby peeking in through the partially opened door.
“Hey, Abby,” he said, smiling in greeting. “I hear you got some new toys this morning.”
“Yeah, Kate had some of the muscle boys bring them down earlier,” she said with a smile. Her voice was deep and rough, as though she'd been talking too much recently. Or not been talking at all. These days, Abby alternated between not saying a single word, and giving voice to every thought in her head, for days at a time. She'd been in one of her silent moods for the past few days, and Tony was relieved to hear her speak again. He could never tell what was going through her head during those quiet times, and as much as he hated when she babbled on for thirty six hours straight, at least he knew what she was thinking.
Kate had mentioned once that she worried it was all too much for Abby to take, giving voice to Tony's own thoughts and worries. Too many people hadn't been able to deal with the 'new world', finding unique and not-so-unique ways to end it all.
“Did you see Jennifer?” he asked, moving closer to her.
“She's definitely a cutie,” Abby agreed, a genuine smile on her face for the first time in longer than Tony cared to remember.
“That she is,” he said, returning the smile with one of his own.
“Have you- any word on...” Abby started to ask, looking everywhere but at him.
“Sorry, Abs. Still nothing,” he said gently, knowing what she was asking after. Or rather, 'who' she was asking about.
Gibbs. One of two missing members of their family. He and McGee had been liaising with local law enforcement down in Austin when all air traffic had been grounded and all available resources were being diverted to Wyoming and the surrounding states. Their last contact, before communication collapsed back to land lines and short range radio waves, had Gibbs telling them he and McGee were tagging along with one of the rescue teams on their way North. To Ground Zero.
“I found another sighting,” she said after a minute, still not looking at him. “In Knoxville, Tennessee, three weeks ago.”
“Abby...” he warned in a low tone.
“They said a group of armed men and women passed through. They barely stopped to trade, let alone talk, but they were there-”
“Abby.”
“-and they also said they were being led by-”
“Abby!”
“-and they described him perfectly, Tony,” she said, finally looking at him. Tony's heart clenched at the look of desperate hope on her face. Abby's entire world had been rocked by the Eruption. For so long Gibbs had been her centre - her one constant - so when he'd disappeared into the disaster area, Abby had been lost. Ducky hypothesized that his and Kate's presence had helped her to cope with events; helped keep her somewhat grounded. Every one had dealt with it differently - was still dealing, in truth - but to varying degrees of success. He and Kate had the professional persona to cling to, him a cop and Kate as a Secret Service agent, and Ducky was one of those people who just seemed to accept and adapt to anything. Abby had surprised everyone by being the least adaptive of them all.
“You know you can't trust everything you read,” he told her gently, stepping towards her. “You know that half those stories are always fake.”
“But lots aren't, Tony,” she said, eyes filling up with tears, “he's out there and he's coming here. I know he is.”
The last was whispered in a lost voice, twisting at his heart.
“Aw, Abs,” he sighed, pulling her into his arms. He held her like that for several minutes, feeling her arms wrap around his chest threatening to crush him, while her tears soaked his shoulder.
After what seemed like an eternity, Tony pulled away slightly. He tilted her face up to him, and put forth his best 'earnest, I-will-do-it' face.
“We'll find him, Abby. If he comes anywhere near the area, we'll find him.”
Abby just blinked at him, all red eyes and wet lashes. He would love to tell her that he was sending out search parties to look for Gibbs, but knew he couldn't. He wouldn't put his people at risk by sending them out to roam around the Eastern Seaboard looking for two men. He had to concentrate his efforts on the people right here, right now, no matter how much of him wished he could just take off and search for Gibbs and McGee himself.
“Now, I hear you have some new toys to play with,” Tony repeated, deliberately changing the subject as he manoeuvred her out the door, grinning as her eyes lit up.
The day got a little brighter with her smile, Tony thought.
~!~
“You're late,” said Kate as Tony joined her and eight others in the underground parking garage. They were all geared up and ready to head out and scavenge for medical equipment, the only thing delaying them was him.
Tony wasn't really surprised to see her as part of the team, either. She'd taken it as her personal responsibility to keep him alive, not trusting anyone else to watch his back while they were out. Tony didn't argue too much, because there was no one else he'd rather have watching his back than Kate.
And he didn't even mean that in the dirty sense, either.
“Abby found another sighting,” he said in a low voice as he grabbed his own set of weapons and com set from the makeshift armoury. “Fucking internet!”
The discovery that there was still a cyber community was both a blessing and a curse. There was power and there were phone and cable lines, so there was an internet, as limited as it was. Very little data came from outside North America, but the network in-land was well established, if spotty. It was mostly used for communication among the different communities, though there were the odd 'rumours' that surfaced, like the sightings Abby kept track of religiously. She was convinced that every 'mysterious group of people' that was reported was Gibbs and McGee making their way back home.
No one commented on the map she'd put on her lab wall, with red lines connecting the sightings from one side of the country to another.
“So she's speaking today?” asked Kate as they made their way to one of the four trucks they were taking.
“She's getting better,” Tony defended, though not severely. Kate hadn't been criticizing, and Tony hadn't been offended, though most wouldn't have known that by their tone of voice. By now, they'd worked closely with each other for over three years. Kate knew how much Tony loved Abby, and Tony knew Kate was still Abby's best friend.
“She smiled. Twice,” Tony confided, letting his own smile show.
“Really?” asked Kate, sounding as happy as Tony had been.
“Yep. She even called the guys from this morning 'muscle boys'.”
Kate just laughed, surprising Tony. It was something else he hadn't been aware was missing.
They drove in silence after that, heading out further than they had in the past. What they were looking for would not be found in the small buffer zone they'd created around their buildings. Everything of value within a fifteen block radius had already been inventoried months ago.
They had guards stationed at the fifteen block perimeter, but had active surveillance and routine patrols out another ten blocks. No one was taking any chances, despite the truce.
The scouts had mentioned some buildings of interest where they might find what they were looking for. They were well out past their self-imposed boundaries, but not near enough to any other territory to make it a danger to their citywide truce.
It was at the fourth location that Tony began to feel the first stirrings of trouble. They'd found most of their shopping list, but Tony wanted to check out the last two locations before heading back. There was still enough room in the trucks for more, and the fewer of these trips they had to make, the better.
A warning from one of the perimeter guards had Tony and the rest of the team tensing. There were the odd small groups of people living in abandoned buildings, usually twenty to thirty at a time, but they knew better than to bother any of Tony's people. He had a 'don't bother me, I won't bother you' agreement with the various packs and gangs that were living in his territory.
He really hoped it was just one of them coming too close.
The back of his neck started to prickle with awareness. “Cover!” he yelled even as he dropped down behind the truck, Kate by his side. Something small exploded from the brick wall behind him, sending dust and small fragments of brick at him and Kate.
Great. A sniper.
“One with a silencer,” added Kate, making him aware he'd spoken aloud.
“Do we have a location?” he asked into his headset.
“Not yet, sir,” replied Steiner, his voice calm and composed. Steiner was a former Marine, and Tony had yet to see him rattled by anything.
“It came from the north-east,” said Kate, peeking around the back end of the truck.
“Anything?” Tony asked at large, willing anyone to give him more information. He had four people at various points around their location, walking perimeter, but the rest of his team was inside the building, trapped by the sniper.
“Give me a role call.” he demanded, wanting to know if he'd lost anyone yet. Everyone reported in okay, lifting one worry from his mind. For the moment, at least.
“I think we've got a way out,” announced another voice in his ear. Tony identified it as Amanda McGuire, a former inner city paramedic.
“You think or you know?” Tony asked, edging towards the front of the truck to try and get a look at their sniper's possible location for himself.
“I know, sir. Ellins found an exit with enough cover to conceal us.”
“Good, do it.”
“They've got to be in that old parking garage,” said another voice over the radio. “It's the only one with an angle that makes sense.”
“He's right,” said Kate, turning to look over her shoulder at Tony. “It's got to be coming from there.”
“Alright. Ellins, McGuire, go secure that sniper. The rest of you, take up position and make sure there aren't any more. Cover our people as best as possible.”
“That almost sounded commanding, DiNozzo,” said Kate, pitching her voice low enough to not be carried over the radios.
“Oh, I can show you 'commanding', Todd,” Tony replied, putting just enough innuendo into his voice to make her roll her eyes.
“In your dreams, DiNozzo.”
“Always, Todd. Always,” he replied, eyes continuously scanning for any additional movement.
Several tense moments passed, as they waited for word from their people, adrenaline pumping through their bodies with every second. Tony wanted to be the one to go after the sniper - be the one to take the risk while his people stayed safe. His people knew it, too. They'd ganged up on him enough times in the past, pulling him away from the riskier aspects of this new life. Arguments that he'd done this sort of thing before the Eruption always fell on deaf ears. He'd been frustrated and angry, not understanding why everyone kept trying to coddle him. Finally, he'd had it out with Kate one day. She'd told him that they all knew he'd rather put himself in the line of fire, and that's why they took his place; that no matter how valuable he was in the field, he was more valuable to the community as a whole, alive. He'd never felt the weight of expectations until just then.
He still had trouble holding himself back while his people went head first into dangerous situations, and sometimes didn't come back. He'd idly wondered if it was his own way of subconsciously trying to kill himself, like so many others had, but Kate had reassured him that he'd been the same before, just a little less manic about it.
The minutes seemed to drag on, the odd soft 'pop' of a round hitting the ground or a wall breaking the silence. They all kept their radios silent, waiting to hear from McGuire and Ellins.
Tony's patience was nearing the end when they finally broke radio silence.
”Multiple hostiles. said a quiet voice, male. Ellins.
“How many?” asked Tony, his voice calm.
”Too many to take on ourselves.” added a McGuire. ”They're guarding the sniper. They're pros, sir.”
Shit! Tony silently cursed. Roving bands of ex-soldiers or mercenaries hadn't been a big problem in the DC area like it had been in some of the other cities, but it looked like they were heading his way. Just his luck to run into a group of them when he was this far from home base and reinforcements.
“Alright, can you-”
”Damnit, we've been spotted!” announced Ellins, still keeping his voice low.
“Get out of there!” Tony ordered, only to be interrupted by spurts of gunfire. “Ellins! McGuire!”
Getting no response, Tony made the decision to send the rest of his people in. He never left a man - or woman - behind. It was a lesson learned from his NCIS days, that carried over. Nobody was taking his people, not without a fight.
They moved in silence towards the parking garage, hoping that the distraction provided by Ellins and McGuire was enough to pull the attention of the sniper. Their luck seemed to hold, as the remaining eight people all reported successful entrance to the dilapidated building that looked too old after only a year.
“Moving up,” he said, feeling Kate move with him, his guardian shadow.
”Fourth level,” announced another voice over the com, guiding them towards their goal.
Kate moved in tandem with him, clearing every corner as they ascended the concrete stairwell to the fourth floor. They met another of their team on the way up, and Tony felt more confident with every step.
Reaching the designated door, they waited while everyone got into the best position, listening through the metal door for any sign of what was awaiting them. An angry female voice could be heard, which Tony recognized as Amanda McGuire. He traded a look with Kate, and saw his own relief reflected in her face. One of them was still alive, at least.
“Everybody in position?” he asked, waiting to hear the affirmatives. “No gunfire unless directly threatened - we want our people alive, not killed by friendly fire. On my count. Three. Two. One!”
It all happened in slow motion for Tony, but in reality it was over in a matter of seconds. They managed to overpower the guards and disarm them, all without firing a shot, which Tony was particularly proud of. Ammunition was hard to come by these days, even if you had ransacked every police station, gun shop and corner store in their section of DC.
Tony watched as his team searched the men they had captured, but his attention was pulled by the sniper's nest and something pricked at his memory. He scanned the area more intently, and felt a shiver of fear at what his eyes were telling him.
“Does this look familiar to you?” he asked, looking at Kate with wide eyes. She had the same look of realized horror on her face.
The padded sniper's nest, the folding table with chairs and cards, the discarded piles of blankets. It all added up to an obvious conclusion.
“This is a guard post,” he said out loud, grabbing the attention of his team. They turned to look at him with wide eyes, suddenly realizing where they were. They were in a guard post - like the ones littered around their own perimeter - that contained multiple personnel, and supplies to sustain them between regular supply runs. It also contained a direct link back to their home base, which they had no doubt called some time before.
Reinforcements were on their way, and Tony was unprepared.
“Secure them prisoners, grab what weapons and ammo you can. We're out of here,” he said in an urgent voice, watching as they all bolted into action. He palmed his sidearm, preferring the familiar feel of the hand gun to the sub-machine guns they regularly carried, especially for close combat. He didn't like how this was playing out, and cursed himself for being caught off guard.
“How long, do you think?” asked Kate, moving further from the group to protect.
“Depends on how far away they were when they got the call,” he said moving parallel to her, using one of the concrete pillars as cover. “Not lon-”
The hairs on the back of his neck stood up, prickling his awareness. There was a sudden silence just before a burst of heavy treads on concrete thundered through the open-air garage. A quick flash around the corner from his position grabbed his attention. Reflexes kicking in, Tony stepped out around the pillar, gun raised automatically towards the assailant, aiming for the head.
At first, all he could see was the gleaming black of a semi-automatic pistol aimed at his own head, but a surprised gasp from Kate managed to pull his attention higher.
Higher, until he was staring into a pair of familiar blue eyes, looking as shocked as he felt. His heart thundered in his chest as his brained tried to process what his eyes were seeing. The blood was rushing through his ears, and for the first time in his life Tony thought he might faint. In all his wildest dreams he'd never thought this day would actually come, or that he would feel like this.
“DiNozzo?!”
It couldn't be...
“Gibbs?!”
END
~!~
What little information about the eruption that was actually put in here, was from these resources:
www.yellostonenationalpark.com/calderas.htm
www.exodus2006.com/yellow.htm
www.armageddononline.org/yellowstone_caldera.php