I am basically good with what happened. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that our actions were violent, and brutal. But I have come to accept that if we as individuals and a community are to survive there will be instances of extreme violence and that compassion is not something that holds the same value for everyone. There is really not so big a jump from a Zom to a brutal killer who derives pleasure from killing. Good and evil are terms and perspectives that are a societal creation. From what I have seen of late, survival and the idea of good versus evil are sometimes at odds with each other. What helps me here is the teachings of the Buddha that pointed to the motivation of the actor in determining if an act is good, or evil.
The group is way out of whack in many ways. The events have messed with everyone and I think that we all have taken some time to weigh the events and try to cope as best we can.
Charlene and Mark spent most of the day in Hinsdale. We all have kept busy the best we could. Those with sig-oths (significant others) were never far from each other.
Matt surprised us at lunch time and offered prayers and went into a spontaneous sermon about what had happened and in Biblical terms justified what we as survivors had done. I think it helped a lot of people.
We never got into a regular church thing but after the lunch Arcelia and a few others asked Matt if he would / could do some type of Sunday morning service for us. He agreed.
July 10th
Word came down from Hinsdale today; Pedro is starting to show signs of infection. While The Major and Charlene did the best they could, the conditions were such that it had not been possible to keep the environment sterile during the surgery. They are trying to give him IV antibiotics, but they are not hopeful. Charlene decided to stay up there for a couple days, until the crisis passes, one way or the other.
Have you ever noticed the difference between regular and reduced salt Spam. At lunch today I did, the real deal is so much better, I am not sure if the is the salt, or the fat, or whatever, but the taste is different.
July 11th
It was a nothing day. Our thoughts and prayers are with Pedro. So far they have managed to slow the infection and that is a good sign. But it is still not contained and we are starting to run low on the meds he needs. We may have to make a raid to Pittsfield Hospital and that would be very tricky.
Ron made his first preflight test today of his new plane, he did fine. Tomorrow he is planning to take the first flight since his forced landing.
Mark told me that he and Steven were going to take a trek down to Rhinebeck. Apparently Steven had seen something that he thought we might be able to use. I wanted to send more than just those two, but they refused to go for it citing the risks.
July 12th
Early this morning we got a radio call from Charlene. She asked if Matt could make the trip up. Pedro was losing and it was just a matter of time for him. He knew it and was asking for the Padre to come and give his last rites. Matt obliged the best he could.
Pedro died about 4:30 that afternoon, “Via con Dios mi amigo”. We built a funeral pyre for him and burned his body. None of us could bear putting the bullet in his head to make sure he did not come back. The fire was better.
July 13th
It has been very quiet today. We are still all pretty much dealing with the events of the last week with the ups and downs of the holiday and then the sudden attack, mayhem and death that had followed.
Margo and I tried our hand at fishing again. We had not done so in years. It was nice to go back to a time when life was much different. It was a kinder and gentler world back then or at least for us it was and once again we caught nothing except a few weeds and sticks.
July 14th
Anne and I were called into the Office of The Three. When we arrived, Nick, Lauren and Matt were also there. They wanted our opinions on a merger with Hinsdale. It was just a general question that was tossed out. But it was actually something that had been on more than a few of our minds of late.
We all knew that it was going to eventually happen the first week that we were associated with them. In the original discussions between the Major and Charlene that door had been opened. Now we were standing at the doorway and trying to decide if it was time to cross the threshold.
I felt, and in fact I think everyone in the room felt that it was time to set a date for the move. But there were some issues that would need to be sorted out. The biggest question was which way the move was going to go, to Hinsdale or to Peru.
Charlene assured us that the Major and the Hinsdale folks were on board with a move. But like us realized that there were the logistical issues. For one thing I think that there would have to be a meeting in which the leaders of both sides would need to set some guidelines. We realistically should have everyone attend the meeting and make it a town hall type discussion to cover all the bases. It was decided that the next step was to present it to all of our people at dinner.
To the credit of The Three it was Henry who opened the discussion. Early on Charlene admitted that she had a vested interest in the union and that she was for the sake of the effort stepping down from her position until things settled out and then she would consider re-election. This opened another issue, replacing her.
In the course of everything else to discuss we added a special election to the agenda. There would be an election run-off between Anne and Lauren for the opening in “The Three”, a referendum of yea or nay to unite with Hinsdale and finally a non-binding opinion poll to see where everyone felt we should set up the new united group, in Peru, Hinsdale or as a third option, build or seek a new location.
July 15th
In the early morning Anne and I talked about why she had accepted the nomination for becoming a member of “The Three”. She explained that she felt that Teckla, Charlene and Henry have been all doing a great job. She knew that it was a good course they had taken. She felt that as the resident “expert” in the research of the undead she could bring some interesting insights to the table. We have all changed.
It was our typical Election Day activities. There was a lot of talk about the vote, but on who to elect to The Three, that remained quiet and close to the individual. I think that the consensus was that either of the candidates would be good in the role, so no one was really worried about who was getting in. It was also pretty much a done deal as to our joining with Hinsdale but the real issue was the where, there are the three options.
The first option was that we all stay in Peru. In my mind the pros to that are that we were more isolated and thus less likely to be found by wandering bands of the living, like the biker group. Also we had no true issue with the Zoms other than an occasional visit but nothing significant and all had been quickly handled. Our base is a safe and secure compound although it would get more crowded with the addition of a dozen new people. Our food situation was good, we have already begun to bring in crops.
But there were also cons. The town itself was on the small side and we have pretty much scavenged what we could from the shops and homes. Our canned food supplies were somewhat limited which meant that we would need to make foraging trips into Hinsdale or Dalton to stock up. In itself that has some risk.
Moving to Hinsdale has the advantage of being still reasonably well stocked with supplies and goods which include vehicles, fuels and warehouses. There are many buildings and locations that could and would make for a safe and secure compound for our combined group.
A downside is that with winter coming we would need to really focus on getting the housing issue taken care of quickly. We also need to consider the fresh crops. We would have to make almost daily trips to Peru for the balance of the growing season to harvest those crops. One other concern would be the frequency of the visits by the undead. Hinsdale has about five Zoms wander into town each day. And although they are quickly dispatched it has to do with the proximity to Pittsfield.
I think that the number of visitors is something that we can work with based on the
current numbers but I do have concerns that the increase in human activity in the area could result in an increase in wandering Zoms.
Of course, there is one big issue that we need to consider, and that is the reason for the third option. That issue is the radiation readings that we have been concerned about over time. We have in our tracking of the levels found that there are occasionally days when the numbers are near the danger zone and others where nothing is detected at all. We have pretty much concluded that the levels are related to wind direction but we have yet to determine where the point of origin is. Once we determine where the radiation is coming from it will make it necessary to move somewhere. But until we figure that out, option one and two seem most logical.
If or should I say when we are going to make a long distance move, it would be best done in the early spring with preparations being made from midwinter on. It is going to be a major effort and depending where we decide to go it will require time to get settled and properly build a new complex.
I have learned to like where were we are right now. But I think that the fruits of the tree called Peru are pretty much picked clean and it is time to move. Hinsdale is the better choice simply because we would not be completely starting from scratch.
At the evening meal the vote was taken. Anne easily was elected to the vacant post on “The Three”, and the idea of uniting with Hinsdale was approved unanimously. The non-binding referendum was split 60-40 in favor of moving to Hinsdale.
July 16th
I guess there was still a little love of drama and ceremonial in us all. It was decided that rather than just announce the results by radio of the votes at Hinsdale and Peru we would have the leaders meet at Check Point Charlie today at 10:00 am. I know it sounds kind of goofy, but this was, or would be a very big event, one way or the other.
The actual event was much less dramatic than expected. We all showed up, The Major and The Three shook hands and the results were announced. It was decided that we would unite. The motion had carried in both camps with no-one voting against. As I mentioned, yesterday our results were 60-40 for us to go to Hinsdale. Hinsdale was 80-20 to stay in Hinsdale. So it was pretty much a done deal that we will be living in Hinsdale. Now it was just a case of working out the details and as they say the devil is in the details. We will see how that all goes.
July 17th
There was still a lot of buzz this morning about the uniting of the two towns. Charlene and Mark were off early to visit Hinsdale. They have their reasons and actually it is probably a good thing because it has created a line of informal communications between the communities.
The Three have spent the day getting ideas and input from many of us to help them understand and plan what logistical issues will need to be addressed. They would need to resolve issues of who would be in charge which would be akin to the forms of government (I hate that term but it is the most fitting one I can use). We will need some code to live by, although both communities were pretty much on the same page with that one.
There will need to be planning for housing, supply distribution and other responsibilities. One of the questions that would come up is on the eating and dorm like living. Do we continue to do the community meals and living or is it time for the bonded and non-bonded to separate out. There will be many of these niggling little details that arise but for right now it’s deciding on when the actual move will take place.
July 18th
The first day of negotiations of the union actually went pretty well. The group (Teckla, The Major, Henry and Anne) set a time table for the move. The goal was to begin the formal move on August 1st and be completely switched over by September 1st. Charlene and Mark would be allowed to move up a little earlier.
They decided that it would be best to continue the community living arrangement that was going on in both towns. But there was the realization that a larger facility would need to be developed. There were a couple of suggested locations that included a local nursing home, an office building and a motel. Further evaluation on each would be completed.
Back in Peru we were evaluating what we would need to transfer to Hinsdale. There would really not be all that much stuff to move. Most of it would be the computer/surveillance equipment and the set up that Lance had created. Anything else could be replaced or was already in place at Hinsdale. (Note: as I re-read this, boy was I wrong)
We have not heard anything on the radio that would indicate that the remainder of that biker community was doing much. It may be that they did not expect the raiding party to be back quite yet. Or it would be that they figured out that we could hear them if they used the radio and were working on other means of communications. Either way, we are still “on guard” for some form of retaliation. We disposed of the bulk of their fighting force, or so we believe, but that really does not guarantee our safety.
July 19th
In the course of trying to find an area or building that would house us we realized that while we were in the city itself we were open to some potential risks of visitors. So we looked around a little for potential sites close to the city. There was a place called Camp Romaca to the south of the city that looks like it will be perfect for what we need. A scouting party went down and checked it out. It has about a dozen little cabins and some larger buildings for dining and activities. It had a restaurant style kitchen and dining room large enough for us all to gather for meetings. There is also a laundry set up that was primarily for the bedding and towels; we can expand it to cover our regular laundry. There was an exercise room, and an actual game room with video machines.
The cabins would need to have the windows reinforced, and some work will need be done of the external doors to strengthen them. About a third of the camp is surrounded by Plunkett Reservoir so we have a natural barrier there. The rest of the camp could be fenced as we had done with Peru. With a little work it would be easy to make it a Zom resistant fortress. The living would be another story.
Right on the edge of Hinsdale there is the Ford dealership where I had acquired the Coyote. This works out well because it is close enough that we can easily get to it and it also offers a location to repair and update our vehicle fleet.
In the case of a fire, we are about five miles from the fire station in which the Hinsdale folks are currently living and with the reservoir right in our backyard we are good with water to get that issue solved quickly.
July 20th
Someday I will learn that I should just keep my mouth shut, although in this case it was more a case of thoughts. I had just thought to myself, “Gee, we have not heard anything from the rest of the biker gang.”
When we got back to Peru, Lance took me aside and said that he had been monitoring the biker’s radio and heard was female and they were general messages like “where are you”, “when are you coming back”, “can you hear us”.
“Lance, I think we need to listen to this and stay on top of what they were doing. I do not believe that the remainder of the group will just go away.”
“For sure,” said Lance, “They have to know where we are and will figure out what happened, if they have not already.”
We brought the information to The Three, as well as with the folks up at Hinsdale. What to do was the question.
July 21st
A timetable of August 1st had originally been set for the move but with the radio transmissions it was now sooner than later. The goal is to get started on the camp and make it safe as quickly as possible to be completely moved in just a few days. Some (Mark and Charlene) are already moved up to Hinsdale. The living quarters in the cabins were assigned even before the final plan was put into place. It is the defenses and other issues that need work.
More radio traffic today, and the biker group seems to be getting a little more concerned and desperate in there transmissions. Toward the end of the day it has changed from trying to talk to the bikers to trying to talk to anyone.
They know something is wrong, but they do not know how wro
ng. Something will need to be done and that something is the hard question. We must assume that the group is hostile, and that they will become more so when they finally know for certain that their scavenging force is dead. So the question becomes do we make contact, do we invite them in, do we wait for their move or do we wipe them out without warning.
I am glad I am not making the choices. Personally, I would like to think that we can work out the issues as was done with the remains of the brotherhood but realistically I think that is a naïve approach. What would I, or Charlene or Teckla do if the roles were reversed? I know that I would not want to join up with the group that killed my “clan” and I would like to extract a little payback.
July 22nd
Teckla got on the radio with the remainder of the biker group today. She talked with a woman named Marisa. It was a short conversation in which the attack on us was explained and the results were revealed.
The Event Series (Book 1): Life After the Meteor Page 22
