A NEW NOVEL FOR THE OFFERING
Alex Bowden
Awakening, after fifteen years in an induced coma, Alexander Bowden finds himself in the middle of an unimaginable nightmare. The world he knew is gone, reduced to ruin, humanity is dead and he is the only survivor, except for a half-man, half cyborg, named Lomac.
Bitter, angry Bowden has nowhere to turn, he must shoulder the grief of his lost wife and son alone, encapsulated in a vast, sterile facility simple called the Project, situated in the middle of nowhere. Forever doomed to a hopeless, meaningless existence.
And then he discovers there are survivors beneath the ruins of London, a hundred miles south of the Project.
And an impossible hope ignites in his troubled heart.
BOWDEN: OUT OF TIME
AN EXCERPT
Thirty minutes later there was still no sign of the patrol. The shower was irresistible, he would get something to eat at the same time. Bowden gathered up the blanket, along with the empty canteen and the gun, which he slung carelessly over his shoulder. There might be something to see when he returned later in the afternoon, after the midday heat. The sun was bright today, playing havoc with his eyes, a dull ache throbbed at the back of his head. The sunglasses were a welcoming relief, but they could only do so much, the continuous glare was relentless. He slid down the pile of rubble, raising clouds of dust and headed for the transporter. The scanner beeped at him again. Bowden paused, the tiny screen showed increased activity all around him, the source wasn’t identified. He frowned as a slight tingle rippled over his skin, a faint alarm bell rang in his head.
The rattle of loose rubble behind him registered too late. He made to turn when the breath was knocked out of Bowden as something crashed into his back sending him sprawling into the dirt. He rolled, breaking his fall, ending up on his knees shaking the dust out of his eyes. Dazed he looked up, coming face to face with a devil straight out of hell!
Six feet from where he knelt there was an animal about the size of a small mongrel dog, its body horribly deformed and bloated. It was covered with blue veined, white lumps and leprous open sores, which seeped a vile looking, colourless ichor into the brute’s tick infested, and coarse, black hair.
Black beady eyes glared at Bowden, ablaze with feral anger and madness, its jaws, foam flecked and drooling, snapped spasmodically, baring long yellowed teeth that hungered for fresh blood, his blood!
With a hissing snarl the creature threw itself headlong at Bowden. Acting on pure reflex Bowden threw himself to one side as the hurtling beast flew over his head. Bowden rolled, gaining his feet and without stopping he dived for the gun which lay, still holstered, a few feet away. He reached it, yanked it from the holster, whirled and fired without pause. The crack was sharp and flat as with a startled squeal the creature leapt into the air flopping over onto its side, writhing on the ground, its anguished cry was cut short as Bowden fired a second shot, taking its head off in a welter of brackish blood.
A loud sibilant hiss made Bowden spin about. There was another one of the creatures above him on a pile of rubble, a third to his right, circling stealthily, two more were creeping round behind him. He was surrounded.
Without hesitation Bowden shot the one on top of the dirt pile. The bullet struck its leprous body blasting it apart, the remains tumbled down the far side of the rubble. The brute to his right leapt, snarling and spitting. Bowden ducked knocking the creature aside with his forearm having no time to fire again. Off balance, he stumbled and fell. The two creatures behind him rushed forward.
Screaming Bowden hastily fired three rounds at the charging beasts, he hit one but missed the other. It sprang onto his chest, jaws agape, fetid breath stinking like rotten meat making Bowden gag. He clubbed the monster aside with the butt of the gun. The brute shrieked, leaping away, a horrific gash oozing thick black blood across its shoulders.
Struggling to his feet Bowden dashed for the transporter, shooting the wounded creature in the head as he ran. Its pained squealing was cut short as it rolled over in the dirt, stone dead.
The last of the creatures leapt onto Bowden’s back mere feet from where the transporter was parked. Bowden howled as sharp claws raked his back, vicious teeth sank into his shoulder, making him stagger and nearly fall. Frantically Bowden reached behind and tried to tear the slashing, frenzied thing off his back, but it clung on tenaciously. For long agonising seconds Bowden stumbled around trying to pry the monster loose as it clawed and bit him repeatedly, he could feel his own blood running stickily down his back, the smell of which was driving the creature to greater frenzy.
Desperately Bowden threw himself backwards, falling heavily on his back. The sickening crunch of bones was drowned out by the brute’s ear-splitting screams ringing in Bowden’s ears. Weakly Bowden rolled away from the crippled thing, his head swimming. He lurched to his feet dimly aware the creature was not quite dead. Even now it was trying to get to him, its front claws scratching feebly at the ground trying to haul its broken body forward, its eyes blazed insanely, pink froth bubbled from its mouth.
Fighting the disgust welling up in his throat Bowden walked over to where his gun lay, he picked it up and stood over the creature. Its jaws snapped and snarled trying to bite him. Bowden emptied the guns magazine into the thing.
A strange scrabbling noise filled the air, rousing Bowden from his morbid fascination of the creature which resembled a huge rat, or possibly a mutated dog, he couldn’t be sure, though the rat description seemed more accurate.
Looking around Bowden searched for the source of the weird scrabbling and started in horror. A hundred and fifty yards away a huge sea of black, leaping bodies were tearing towards him, hundreds of them! With a cry Bowden turned and fled, fear lending wings to his feet.
