Apocalypse [Book 1]

by Matt J. Pike

I don’t ask anything for it, her company is all the thanks I need. But she’s forever going all-out to prove her worth. That’s great in some ways. It means I have someone I can trust and, in this world, two is many multiples better than one. But I don’t want her doing it just to show me she serves some purpose or value to keep her around. Love is better than that.

  So the birthday gift I want to give her more than anything is the feeling of value in her own self. I want to find things that make this place feel as much like her place as it does mine.

  The one thing she talks about missing the most is her guitar. She’s mentioned it a few times when we’ve talked. So that’s my mission. I’m going shopping at some point. I’ll just hit all the abandoned houses in the area as I’m sure guitars would be reasonably common. While I’m there I might see if I can find a few of the movies mentioned as favourites on DVD, some jewellery and maybe a nice outfit to wear. Then I just need to think of something nice for dinner and maybe somewhere different to have it and I think that’s starting to sound like a good 18th birthday.

  ****

  Monday, May 26, 2014

  3.45pm: Lazy day today. It’s been a long time coming. The only thing I did that resembled work was varnish the doorframe. It’s not a perfect match with the other wood, but it’s close enough to be passable. I gave it two hours to dry then, once I was able to shut it, I repaired the light block-out and marched straight to the generator. For the first time in a week we have light. I’m even running one of the heaters for a while. It’ll burn through the fuel but it’s totally worth a trip to resupply just to feel normal again.

  The trick is to not get the place too hot, just a little something to take the edge off is all you need. It sounds crazy, but we’re both getting used to the cold. I don’t want to lose that because I’ve got a feeling it’s here to stay. But taking the bite out of it helps. It’s currently 10 degrees in here and that’s about right in terms of a balance between comfortable and maintainable.

  5.30pm: Fi’s playing some Guitar Hero games on the old Xbox360 at the moment (she’s better at it than me already). It’s not a real guitar but a little something to make her happy, I suppose. I’ve been fighting the need to plan my next step today. Part of me has this need to constantly plan for the future, whether it’s the Canberra trip or the hovercraft or the bug-out plan – I think it’s some sort of genetic or instinctual survival mechanism kicking in. But some days I’ve just got to say ‘no’. I mean, I don’t want life to be all about survival. I don’t want to live in a world where that is the only thing driving me. Just existing – I want more than that. Maybe it’s unrealistic but I just want to have those days where nothing happens. I like nothing. Just slobbing and doing things I choose to do because I like them – and for no other reason. So I’m just going to chill and read some Game of Thrones then I’m going to flick back through the diary again, see if I can add anything else in.

  At some point I’m going to re-type the diary out on the computer as I wouldn’t mind a digital copy. It has been a reasonably interesting 10 or 11 weeks, after all!

  ****

  Tuesday, May 27, 2014

  12.15pm: I’ve just spent the morning reconfiguring the war room. I’ve taken down the world poster as I doubt I’ll get more global news anytime soon, and replaced it with a map of the path I intend to take to Canberra.

  I’ve started to put together a list of what we’ll need to survive the trip – and it’s scary long! I think the best strategy is to start two lists. One would be the dream list of what I could take if I could build a functional hovercraft to carry us and the other would be the bare bones what we can carry on foot list.

  The second list was a very depressing one to put together. In fact, I’m really struggling to see how it can work at all. There is just no way to get to Canberra if we have to set off with everything we need to survive. I think I’d be forced to construct some sort of sleigh I could tow behind me; it’s the only way. It shouldn’t be too hard to put together, but I don’t want to spend any time thinking about it until I’ve explored every possibility with the hovercraft.

  Speaking of which, I’ve started to draw up some loose plans for the hovercraft (HC). I can break the construction down into four areas – mechanics, chassis, base and engine. The last one is the most important. If I can get a functioning engine working then I can fudge the rest together, I’m sure.

  I’m going on a road trip tomorrow. I’m looking for a guitar for Fi’s birthday but I also want to nosey around Kennards Hire to see if they’ve got any industrial fans. That’s the key. I need a way to generate enough thrust to drive the HC forward – if I don’t have that the rest is meaningless.

  While I’m on the road I might also have a look through Mark and Jemma’s place. I assume they got raided at the same time we did a couple of days ago but I wonder if they found their stash. Mark and Jem kept 2/3rds of the big haul we found going house-to-house and it was their idea not to share it with the community. My guess is they may well have hidden the food in a secret location on their property that might not have been discovered by the Norwood hubbers. The extra food would be very handy, particularly the pasta and noodles (I remember them taking the bulk of that) – that stuff would be so much lighter and easier to haul long distance.

  Gotta go, the smell of fresh bread is in the air… yum!

  8pm: I’ve just spent the last couple of hours running Fi through the Canberra plan. I’d given her a heads-up on the idea before, but today I went though all the pros and cons were on making the move. I found it really hard. As I was saying the words out loud to someone else it started to dawn on me this place won’t be a part of my life forever. I could tell Fi was also affected by this. She agreed with all the logical points I made, but her eyes told me she didn’t want to leave. The security of having a home does have a value, doubly so considering what we’ve gone through to keep it. But, in the end, the numbers don’t lie – we cannot survive here long term. Fi agreed with this assessment and the general plan to head in the direction of Canberra.

  Fiona had her reservations about Canberra as a final destination, given their population might now be suffering from the same food supply drain as anywhere else and I agreed. I don’t see Canberra as the destination, I see it as the direction we are heading in with any number of towns and cities between here and there our potential new home. Other than that she liked my way of thinking, although I suspect her belief I can build a HC is somewhat less than mine. Strangely I’m not offended; maybe I’m deluding myself it can be done.

  ****

  Wednesday, May 28, 2014

  4.50pm: Massively successful day today. It’s amazing what little gifts this world has to offer when you look hard enough.

  My first stop was Kennards Hire, I think I found something just about perfect within minutes. It’s a cooling fan that is seriously industrial strength. It’s about a metre in diameter and says it spins at 850rpm. I don’t know how to do the calculations but that seem like it’s going to be prefect. It runs on 240v electricity, so all I need to do is rig up the second generator on the HC, plug in the fan and I’m away. They had three of them in stock so I think my best bet is to take all of them. I’m not entirely sure if my HC will work better with one or two fans. Come to think of it, two fans might be better in case one breaks down in the middle of nowhere.

  I was going to leave hauling them back to the house for last, but it was too good a find to wait. I dragged them back one at a time. They were heavy, very heavy but on wheels. This helped for most of the trip back, but every now and then they’d break through the ash surface and take all my energy to pull out. Talk about hard work. Talk about totally worth it.

  After I dropped the third one back home I stopped in for some food and drink to re-energise then headed back out on a high.

  I had a delicate shopping request from Fi (erm… feminine hygiene products and the pill) and headed in the direction of the chemist on Magill Rd. Along the way I stopped in at every
house I knew was abandoned and went shopping for Fi’s birthday. I visited most of the same houses I had with Mark and Jemma, but this time I didn’t bother with the kitchens instead I headed for the lounge rooms and bedrooms. I found so much cool stuff. I found a kickass mink coat (I think it’s mink, whatever a mink is), plenty of DVDs I know she likes (Mighty Boosh box set, Easy A, Juno, and about six movies starring Johnny Deep), a pair of his and hers matching watches, a nice necklace and a holy-crap-huge diamond ring!

  I might keep the ring for a little while down the track.

  When I arrived at the chemist it had predictably been looted. Almost everything of any use had been taken, including feminine hygiene and birth control products. That was not good news. I had a feeling if I arrived home without said products no amount of holy-crap-huge diamond rings would’ve atoned. There was still a quality selection of hair dye and heel balm, but they were useless.

  Looters had got to most of the good stuff behind the counter. Most of the stuff on the shelves had been taken or landed on the floor and been buried in ash. All of the heavy duty painkillers had been swiped, but I did find some generic brand versions after sifting through the ground ash. I kept any painkillers I got my hands on too, probably not something you think you’d need until it’s too late to get them I figured. There were also a few containers that looked like antibiotic tablets of different varieties which I took as well, just in case. I ended up with about a dozen packets of things that were all in pretty bad shape – not the most successful trip it must be said.

  On the way home I took the next street across and went into all the abandoned houses, this time visiting bathroom instead of bedrooms and lounge rooms. The mission soon turned from boyfriend fail to success as I found an ample quantity of the missing items. Not only that, there were more painkillers, a couple of first aid kits and other ‘could be handy one day’ items.

  I also found a pretty sweet looking acoustic guitar in the third house I visited. It’s got its own hard case with spare strings, picks and some other guitary looking stuff too.

  By the end my backpack was nearly full, I carried a guitar in one hand and dragged the coat behind in a couple of garbage bags (for protection) in the other. A good few hour’s work.

  On my way back I dropped into Mark and Jemma’s place. I had a pretty thorough sweep of the house before checking the garage and shed but there was no sign of the food. Based on my conversations with them I knew they would’ve kept it somewhere hidden. I’d probably spent a good 20 minutes there when I had the idea to check the manhole. They had a ladder in the laundry which gave me the idea (who keeps a ladder in the laundry?). Talk about pay dirt – there was not only food from the big find but a bunch of other boxes, all neatly marked and itemised. I didn’t have a chance to check through it all but I took all the pasta I could cram into the backpack, filled another box with food and vowed to come back again in the next couple of days.

  So, from today’s little expedition I have got the crucial item to make my HC a reality, I’ve stocked up on medical supplies, got Fi’s birthday covered plus I’ve found another stash of food and other goodies. High five, me.

  I managed to sneak all of Fi’s birthday gifts into the shed without her knowing. I’m still debating what the best thing to do with the HC fans is. I think my best bet is to move two of them over to Mr Nichols’ shed. I’ll probably end up building it there as he has way more room. I’ll leave one fan here to tinker with in the meantime, to see if I can actually get the generator and fan working. The other thing that needs solving is steering. This should be pretty simple. From what I remember of hovercraft I’ve seen, they have a series of vertical rudders positioned behind the fan. When the rudder angles to the right, directing the air that way, the HC moves right and vice versa. Shouldn’t be too hard to figure something out.

  So, engine and steering development at my place, build at Mr Nichols’.

  9.30pm: I’ve been thinking about the base. The tyre tubes could do the trick nicely but, if I could find the right material (resilient and malleable enough) I could make a more ‘legitimate’ HC base. I could keep it fed with an air compressor as there were plenty at Kennards I could borrow. I’m so pumped (pardon the pun) about this. I really think I can build one.

  ****

  Thursday, May 29, 2014

  10.15am: Finding the food stash at Mark and Jemma’s has been a real bonus. I’m going to store all of the pasta and noodles for the road trip which is going to save a hell of a lot in weight to carry. The flip side is I’ll need to bring equipment to light a fire with me. Dad has a little camping BBQ somewhere in the shed I can use. The biggest weight issue there is the hotplate. I’ll also need to carry a bottle of gas and a pot with me. We would have to use the gas sparingly so wherever there’s the option to burn wood instead we should take it. Access to fresh water is also a massive issue I’m struggling to resolve. We’ll need it for drinking and boiling pasta. I think I need to test my water purifying theory soon to see if it works.

  Speaking of testing – this afternoon I’m going to try to rig the second generator up to one of the fans to see what sort of thrust it will generate. If this works and I can build a HC, one of the side benefits is we’ll have a petrol powered generator travelling with us, so we can take any other electrical appliance we think we’ll need. In theory we could find a place to camp down each night, pitch a tent over the HC and run lighting and heating within. We’d be a mobile house.

  The more I crunch the numbers of travelling by foot the more I realise I need the HC to become a reality.

  2pm: Mission very successful. I connected the generator to the fan unit and turned it on. The power that thing generated was quite impressive. I then put the generator/fan combo on a piece of wood balanced on a couple of old skateboards. It was a bit of a rickety set-up, but I barely had to ease the fan past 2 on the meter before it began moving forward. It worked! Now I have to take into account that the skateboard wheels on the concrete floor gave some pretty generous friction, but it’s a success, nonetheless.

  Weight is already becoming an issue. With the generator and one fan coming in at around 70kg, a second fan would make it close to 100kg. That’s before people, food, water and other requirements. I think two fans is the way to go, it will give a better power to weight ratio and will mean if one fan goes down we still have some power. I think I’m going to push my focus to the base now. I need to come up with a solution for the best way to keep the base light, air-filled and resilient. Once I have something that meets the brief I need to put the engine parts on and run a test. It will either move forward or it won’t – I’ll either have a winner or go back to the drawing board.

  I’m struggling to think of a solution that works. With real hovercraft, I know they have a compartmentalised base, which mean one puncture won’t stop the whole thing working. That’s why I was initially leaning towards the tyre tubes, but I’m concerned I won’t get the stability I’m looking for. Maybe I could use two larger truck tubes with car tubes supporting them on the inside (in case there’s a puncture in one of the truck tyres). I then need a skin to protect the tubes – maybe a combination of bubble-wrap (if I can find some) and towel material for cushioning, then something water resistant and smooth for an outer layer. I think it’s a case of see what I can scavenge and work backwards form there.

  There’s a Tyrepower on Magill Rd and a SuperCheap Auto on Glynburn Rd. I can smell another expedition tomorrow.

  While I was tinkering out the back we apparently had a visitor. Some older guy (at least that’s what Fi thought by the sound of his voice) knocked a few times and kept calling out my name. Eventually he left, without trying to break in or anything. I’m trying to think who this could have been but I’m drawing a blank. It all seems harmless enough, but at the same time it’s a scary thought – we were totally unprepared. I think Fi and I will sit down tonight and work out a scramble plan for random strangers. We should come up with reasonable actions for all circumstanc
e – whether the visitors are friend or foe.

  ****

  Friday, May 30, 2014

  8.45am: It’s funny (or maybe sad) that someone visiting your place is a major talking point for the evening, but that’s what happened last night. I literally could not think of one person it could’ve been knocking at the door and calling out my name… which means I have no idea why they were doing it either!

  The best thing to come from the whole incident is Fi and I have now got a series of action plans in place for when someone knocks on the door. First priority is not to let anyone in. Unless someone we know drops over completely out of the blue, there’s no one left in this immediate area I want in the house. There may be a few remnants of the Trinity Gardens community still around (I think last night’s door knocker is probably one of those) but anyone I had any relationship with is no longer with us. So, if someone like that comes again, we will just see what they have to say and try to avoid engaging them any longer than necessary. If there are visitors with less benign intentions we can assess the threat while they’re on the other side of the door. We can either hold our ground and fight or, if the numbers and weapons are against us, flee to the cellar or enact the bug-out plan.

  We talked long and hard about what sort of threat constituted us abandoning the place and I think we are in agreement that with any sign of a gun, or if we’re outnumbered by more than 2-3, then we run and never come back.

  I think we’re both glad we’ve had the conversation now, but I’m a little annoyed and embarrassed it took a random visitor to spark it.

  Well, must sign off for now as a busy day awaits. I’m heading to Kennards Hire to grab an air-compressor, drop it home then head out to Tyrepower and SuperCheap Auto to see what I can borrow for the hovercraft. Should be fun; I might even take a few things just to pimp it up too :D. Fi wants to contribute a bit more to the planning of the Canberra trip, so while I’m out she’s going to investigate a way to distill water from the ash ice.