Vigilante: The Way West: New Beginnings in a Post-Apocalyptic World
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At 1200 hours the convoy stopped for lunch and nature calls. The two leaders met with the Maintenance Sergeant and received the news that there were currently no red line issues with maintenance.
This good news led Gus to recommend that the convoy continue south in the hope of getting farther ahead of the slowly moving storm that seemed stalled. Levi agreed, and at 1330 hours, the convoy continued south on Dean’s Bridge Road with an intermediate destination of Sandersville; fifty-five miles southeast of Ft. Gordon.
Levi and Gus decided to send two Hueys, along with a squad of Infantry, and certain Supply Personnel into Ft. Gordon to find the repair facilities and depot level parts storage. They would also recon the Fort to determine if there were additional items the 1AB could use.
Using the PRC-77 radios, Gus contacted Susan to be on the lookout for signs of life around Wrens and Sandersville.
Ft. Gordon
23 September 1300
Depot Repair Facility
Ft. Gordon
“Forward 1, this is Search 6; over.”
“Search 6, Forward 1; your transmission is weak, with static, but readable; over.”
“Forward 1, Search 6, please advise Forward 6 and 5 that I am immediately flying back to your location for face to face; over.”
“Search 6, Forward 6 is here now and advises that he and 5 anxiously await your arrival; over.”
Forward 1, Search 6, Roger, on the way; out.”
The Road
23 September 1420
FTOC
The Road
Colonel Ben Smith arrived at 1430, asked for a cup a Joe and suggested Levi, Gus, and the Sergeant Major have a sit down.
Levi ordered a rest break, and the four men of the Brain Trust gathered around Levi’s trailer to hear what Ben had to say.
“Sir,” said Ben to Levi, we have discovered a small community of farm folks who had moved onto Ft. Gordon to find a little bit of safety in a world turned upside down.
The folks were currently living on subsistence farming, that, with the coming cold winter is doomed to failure. They have few pigs, two cows, one calf, and one bull. I was even more surprised to find that they have a massive meat rabbit operation.
I was both surprised and pleased to find that they have reserved the livestock for the future, and meat was provided by large rabbits they had been able to save in the very early days of the grid going down.
Sir, these are smart folks who know how to farm, and they know how to prepare for the future.
They have a fair supply of preserved foods, but this bunch has perfected the raising of large rabbits for meat. I have to say that this is a vocation that could serve our own needs very well.
I spoke with their leader, Mr. JaVonn White, who is incidentally Black, as, are most of his group. He reports that the rabbit operation could easily be expanded to an extensive undertaking.
I recommend we inform them of what’s coming at them and invite them to join up.”
Gus began laughing and said, “Well, I like the idea, but I know who would absolutely love it.”
The Sergeant Major also began to laugh as he realized who Gus had in mind.
“Okay, okay,” demanded Levi, “what the hell is so funny, and who else would be so thrilled? That is, if you don’t mind letting me in on this little secret.”
Gus pointed to Bradley to allow him to break the news.
“Well, Genrul, that, would be Sergeant Wong.”
Now, all four guffawed at the idea.
“It seems,” said Levi, “that everyone is in agreement, if for no other reason than to please our inscrutable Sergeant Wong; are there any objections?”
There were none, and Levi said, “Ben, may I assume that you have already worked out the logistics in that magnificent bean counting brain of yours.”
Ben tried to hide his smile and failed miserably to look insulted when he said, “Of course, sir, I already have the Maintenance boys prepping some trucks.
It this group wishes to join us, I would guess that they will catch up by sometime on the 25th or 26th.”
“Okay, Ben, I like it, now make it happen.”
“Yes sir, but please don’t tell our crazy Chinaman until I can be there to see his reaction.”
It was agreed, and Ben immediately flew back to Gordon for his meeting with JaVonn White.
Ft. Gordon
23 September 1700
Ft. Gordon
Ben and Gus returned to Ft. Gordon and Gus quickly made his way to have a sit down with JaVonn White. Ben introduced Gus and explained his position in the hierarchy of the ROA.
White asked the two men to have supper with his family, which consisted of his wife and two teenage children. They readily accepted the invitation, and the three men sat down to discuss the future.
Gus said, “Mr. White…”
White interrupted and said, “Colonel, everybody just calls me Jay, and I’d be pleased if you would, too.”
“Thank you, Jay, I am honored, now as I was about to say, the weather is going to change very rapidly, and your group has no chance of making a go of it here on Ft. Gordon.”
“Yes, sir we know the winter is coming on fast, too fast, and I must say that I’ve been worried about what we should do. What do you suggest?”
Gus smiled and said, “Jay, I’m glad you asked because I do have a suggestion. What I think you, and your people should do is to join up with us. We plan to head out to Texas first, to see how things look there, but we may go on into Mexico, or perhaps Arizona.”
Jay took on a pensive look for several seconds before he said, “Hmmm, Texas, huh, well, ain’t none of us ever been to Texas; sounds pretty good to me.
Sir, I have to ask, how many are in your group?”
Ben smiled and said, “We are an Armored Brigade of around fifteen hundred of us in total.”
Jay was taken aback and said, “Wow, that’s a lot of folks. I guess with that many, and being armored and all you can probably handle that other bunch of armored folks that came through here back in early spring. That was a mean bunch; they killed some of our people and stole most of our supplies.”
Ben grew excited, saying, “Jay, how big of a unit were they?”
“Oh, I would say they was about battalion sized, but they didn’t seem to have no mechanics with ‘em. How they keep them damned eight wheeled monstrosities runnin’, I got no idée.”
Ben asked, “Jay, how do you know they were battalion sized?”
Jay smiled and said, “Oh, easy, I spent three years in the Marine Corps, in Supply, ‘course that was before I studied Agriculture at Georgia Tech. Graduated, too, but that was, oh, I guess a good twenty years or so, ago.”
“Jay, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
“I’d like that, Colonel.”
It was then that Jay’s wife Esther told them to get out of the dining room, so she could get supper on the table.
Jay sent his son Caleb, and daughter Hannah to each family and to tell them to come immediately to the Day Room for a crucial meeting.
Once everyone was present Jay introduced Gus and asked him to make his proposal.
Gus spoke of the 1 AB and its mission to fight the Islamic Caliphate, catch up to, and destroy the Mercenary Mechanized Battalion that had killed some of Jay’s people. He also spoke of the bad weather to come, and the desire to find a place to begin again, even if it meant going to Central Mexico.
When Gus mentioned the war against the Caliphate most heads turned to one man; Mohammed Jabbar Williams. They watched as he rose from his seat and interrupted Gus, saying, “You juss want to make slaves of us. You make war on my religion, enslave us, tell wild crazy stories about Ice Ages and shit. Honkey, white bread cracker, I ain’t goin’ nowhere with you.”
Gus looked, unflinchingly at Williams before saying, “Mr, not one word of what you just said is true, and I’m glad you spoke your mind because I must tell you that in the ROA, there is no room for y
our kind of hatred. Slavery, racism, and bigotry have no place if we are to survive and thrive.”
Gus then turned to Jay and said, “Jay, is this the attitude that defines your people?”
Jay was furious at Williams, who had been a constant thorn in the side of the entire community. He said, “No, Colonel, it is not,” and looking directly at Williams, he said, “Williams, get out of my house. Keisha, if you want to remain with this man, then you must go with him, but if you want to get away from him, then I promise to protect you. You will remain in my home, under the protection of my family.”
Keisha was ten years younger than Williams, and she had good reason to fear him. She slowly rose from her chair and upon gaining her feet bolted to Jay and his family.
Williams was furious and ordered her to return to his side. Keisha was crying and terribly afraid. Esther put her arm around Keisha to give her comfort and strength.
Those around Williams knew that trouble was about to begin, and they started to ease away from him.
Williams continued to scream at Keisha, ordering her to return, and telling her of the beating she would receive. In anger, he turned to the other families shouting, “Now you can see what these white devils bring to us? They destroy our families, and make us slaves! Well, I’m telling you that I will not leave here without my wife, and I will not allow this white trash to make me his House Nigga!
While Williams had been screaming at Keisha, Gus had slowly freed his pistol and held it to his side, but ready, should it be needed.
As Williams reached into his pocket, someone shouted, “He’s got a gun!” but before he could bring it up to fire, Gus placed two rounds squarely in the center of Williams’ chest. The sound of the two shots was deafening in the large room as the echoes added to the cacophony of noise.
Williams was thrown back across the chairs from the first bullet’s impact, and he landed in a crumpled heap; dead before he hit the floor.
Not knowing exactly what the crowd reaction would be, neither Gus nor Ben holstered their weapons; instead, they placed them in a non-threatening position at their side.
Jay was the first to recover and held his hands out to the group, saying, “Everyone, calm down, just calm down. Roy, check to make sure Williams is dead.”
Gus thought the women of the group would be crying and screaming, but everyone did as Jay had ordered. There was no panic or threatening moves by anyone.
Gus heard Esther say to Keisha, “Now, don’t you worry child, he can’t hurt you no more. You’re in our family, now.” as she held the young girl tight.
Within seconds the entire group had rallied around Esther and Keisha to offer hugs and reassurances that all would be well.
Gus decided to holster his weapon and stood aside watching the outpouring of love and support for Keisha. Shortly thereafter, Ben did the same.
***
Chapter 3
Rabbit Stew
The Road South to I-10
24 September 0900
The Convoy
Levi, Gus, and the Sergeant Major walked on over to the Mess Truck to tell Sergeant Wong about the rabbits.
“Labbits!” shouted Wong, “You bling labbits to Sergeant Wong? Oh, you make me velly happy,” and as Levi and crew turned to go, Sergeant Wong said in a voice just loud enough for them to hear; “Labbits, no more lats and cats.”
As Levi began to turn back to Wong, the Sergeant said, “Juss kidding, juss kidding, no cats.”
Levi was about to get serious when Wong said, “Sir, you know I only kidding, no lats either.”
The three men left Sergeant Wong, who was so happy that he was dancing. Gus thanked Levi for making sure he got to see Wong’s reaction, which they all thought was priceless.
Gus asked, “Do you think Wong really speaks with that old Chinese accent?”
The Sergeant Major said, “Nah, he thinks he’s funny, and he is, but he just likes to pull our leg; labbits and lats, please. Still, I have never heard him speak any other way.”
Throughout the Command, there were few who knew that Sergeant Wong was born and raised in Oklahoma, the adopted son of a ranching family.
Yep, Sergeant Wong was a born comedian, and he loved the attention. There was not one person in the Brigade who didn’t like good old Sergeant Wong.
The Brigade and the citizen component were thrilled to learn of the addition of much-needed farmers, and they were ecstatic to hear about the rabbits.
They soon realized that they were farmers before, and they will continue to be farmers when the Promised Land is found, but until then, they worked in many other areas.
Fort Gordon
25 September 1300
Front Gate, Ft. Gordon
The small community seemed thrilled to be joining the Republic of America.
Levi flew in to welcome the group and introduce himself. When he asked for questions, one of the new members asked why they called themselves the ROA when they didn’t have a country.
Levi smiled and said, “Did the Jews stop being Israelites when they wandered in the wilderness for forty years before finding their promised land? Nope, they remained Israelites, and we are no different in that, though we are searching for our own promised land we are still the Republic of America, and I welcome you to the civilian side of our ranks.”
Along with sufficient vehicles for the group, Ben had seen to the preparation of three semi-trucks with 54’ trailers to be fitted out with hutches and processing facilities for an anticipated burgeoning of the rabbit population.
Ben was able to provide, courtesy of a local feed store, at least a ton of rabbit food.
The puppies, now around ten weeks old, were introduced to the rabbits and ordered not to hurt the bunnies. At that point, the pups were sure the rabbits were really just squeaky toys, and they wanted to get the squeakers out.
Jay and clan were thrilled to see friendly dogs again and assured Ben that his folks would be happy to take care of them and teach the pups to protect, rather than hurt the rabbits. Each day the puppies were carefully introduced to selected rabbits, and within two weeks they were taking naps together
The Doctors Monroe thought that was a match made in heaven.
The Road South to I-10
25 September 1300
The Convoy
The convoy approached Wrens and found no sign of human habitation, but did find a few sets of nearly skeletal human remains, along with shell casings from both inside and outside of a few homes.
The insides of the houses had been ransacked by looters; mechanized Merc looters! A closer inspection of the human remains indicated that many ring fingers had been cut off. Gus was beside himself trying to understand why these animals would cut fingers off to remove a ring, when there were abandoned jewelry stores all along their route.
Now the ROA had another mission, along with the litany of tasks that kept their plates full. The Mercs would pay, oh yeah, they would pay.
As the days progressed, the Brigade made better time than ever as they followed the murderous rogues who always seemed to be just over the horizon.
Contact
28 September 1130
Convoy Rest Stop
The Road
The morning was crisp and clear with dawn temps in the low 40s Fahrenheit. The air was still, allowing the songs of the birds who were ready to move south.
“Rover 6: Eyes 6; over,” came the call from Colonel Levins (Eyes 6) to Levi (Rover 6) over the PRC-77 radio mounted in the Cobra Cockpit.
“Eyes 6, Rover 5, go ahead; over,” responded Gus (Rover 5).
“Eyes 6, Rover 5, we just flew over two LAV IIIs in hull-down positions manning a roadblock at crossroads, map segment Charlie one. Shall my flight of two Snakes attack? Over.”
“Have they spotted you? Over.”
“Roger, Rover 5, but we are well out of range; over.”
“Roger, 6, wait; out.”
Jonesy sent his runner to find Levi while Gus and the Sergeant Ma
jor began discussing the situation. Levi and Trooper were visiting Jay and the rabbits: it took five minutes before he could get back to the Commo Truck.
When he arrived, Gus quickly filled him in on Eyes 6’s sitrep.
“So,” asked Levi, “whada’ya think?
Gus said, “I find it difficult to believe these two LAVs are part of a Battalion. They would undoubtedly leave a larger footprint than just two vehicles.
Bradley thinks it’s most likely some Cavalry boys from Gordon who managed to get a couple of LAVs running and have brought them home for defense.”
“Okay, tell Susan to hold fire and continue the mission, unless they start shooting at her.”
The Sergeant Major turned to Jonesy and told him to call Eyes 6.
“Well, crap,” said Levi, “I don’t want to shoot it out with some folks who have them for their own protection, and I certainly don’t want to have another incident like that dumbass sergeant back in Findley.
Okay, I think we need to make sure they aren’t hostiles; if they’re not, then we should go, make nice and say, hi. If they are bad boys, well, they shouldn’t have grown up toys, ‘cause it’s all fun and games until somebody loses an eye.
Bradley, get a Sneaky Pete patrol out tonight to slip in close to try to sort this thing out. Have a Huey drop them off about a mile out.”
“Roger that, sir,” said the Sergeant Major.
Levi looked pained and said, “My friends, I just have this tingling up my spine about this situation; I sure hope I’m wrong. Gus, if I am wrong, let’s make some friends and give them a couple of PRC-77s.
“Sure thing, Boss, it ain’t like we don’t have access to about fifty-thousand stored around the country.”