As they were nearing a pharmacy that seemed to be abandoned – owners were a victim of the marauders’ attacks. So they helped themselves with the supplies they can find.
“Walter, can you make sure we have everything on the list?” Benjamin asked.
“Sure!” Walter responded.
“Well, we need some Betadine and more disposable syringes. Oh, we also need more vials of antibiotic.” Walter added.
“Alright, we’ll look for some more in their stock room,” Benjamin said. As he made his way through the stock room, memories came back – a reminder of the sad event when marauders killed the innocent – all for a useless cause. This made him more upset, but he has to get things done so that they come in prepared in case the military do use force.
While the group was doing all the errands, they were unaware of the arrival of the military lead by Lieutenant Payne. They went directly to the farm house of Grandpa Taylor.
Back at the farm, Grandpa Taylor accidentally looked up on the horizon and from where he was sitting in his favorite rocking chair at the porch; he can tell that the military was coming. He called his wife and Aaron, “Lisa, Aaron…everyone, come here quick!” Everybody there looked up or peeked to see what Grandpa was hollering about.
Lt. Payne and his men stopped in Grandpa Taylor’s house and the lieutenant asked, “Sir, is Dr. Perry here?”
“No, he is out in town,” was Grandpa’s reply. “What is it that you need from him?”
“The Captain wants to speak with him,” the lieutenant answered. “We will wait for him.”
“Alright,” was all Grandpa Taylor said to the men.
Grandma Lisa and Aaron, was worried that they might see Benjamin bringing in some supplies and other stuff. The rest of the men stopped with their operation at the barn when they see the military coming and pretended to go about their lives in the farm. They don’t want to look conspicuous and alarm the military of their operations.
As soon as Anthony saw what was going on in the farm house and seen the military talking to Grandpa, he immediately informed the men and proceeded to go and meet Benjamin in town to let him know of the developments.
Meanwhile back in town, Benjamin’s group was already packing their stuff to the car and saw Anthony’s car approaching them. They stopped in their tracks and waited for Anthony. Anthony parked the car and immediately waved to the group.
“Ben, news from the farm,” Anthony pause. “The military is there and probably looking for you,” he added.
Benjamin nodded.
“Walter, Victoria and Mary, you guys drive without me, but I will have to go there first and you guys probably will wait an hour before heading back to the farm so they won’t detect you carrying all these supplies.
“Right,” Walter agreed.
“Ben, I am going with you,” Mary said worried.
“No honey, you need to stay with the kids, Grandpa and Grandma. I will be back,” he assured her. “It’s going to be alright. The Captain just probably wants to talk to me again.”
“Alright then, Ben, we can drive back to the farm together,” Anthony said.
“Ok, let’s go,” Benjamin said.
Then he and Anthony drove off back to the farm while Walter and the women stayed and decided to go look for more supplies.
As the guys got near, Benjamin tensed up. He was expecting to have another talk with the Captain, but not this soon. He wondered what was going on.
Anthony and Benjamin got out of the car and were greeted with Grandpa and the Lieutenant.
“Dr. Perry, good day to you. The Captain wants to have a word with you,” the lieutenant said. “We need to get back to the headquarters now,” he said with a hint of urgency.
“Aright, just give me a few minutes to talk to my dad,” he gestured towards Grandpa Taylor. Grandpa nodded in acknowledgement.
The military moved and Benjamin whispered to Grandpa, “I will be back and inform every one of the Captain’s decision and find out more about their operations.” Grandpa just nodded.
“Take care, son,” he squeezed Benjamin’s shoulder.
Benjamin climbed to the military jeep accompanied by the lieutenant. They drove in silence all the way to headquarters.
When they arrived, the lieutenant motioned for Benjamin to go inside the office.
Benjamin knocked. Tok, tok, tok.
“Come in,” was a reply from the other side of the door. Benjamin entered and was greeted with a stern-looking Captain Phillips. He was not in the mood for a friendly chat with Dr. Perry.
“Have a seat,” the Captain motioned for Benjamin to sit down.
“No thanks, am alright standing from where I am,” was Benjamin’s reply.
“Alright then,” the Captain paused. “You know why I summoned you here, right?” He looked sternly at Dr. Perry.
Benjamin just nodded.
“Let me tell you that going against our operations would mean that we will have to use force to get the orders done. We don’t have enough time for delays,” he said.
“If anybody tried to resist us, we will, and let me stress that, WE WILL SHOOT or eliminate them,” the Captain added.
Benjamin just listened as the Captain went on about his plans and he knew that the Captain was deadly serious in finishing their job in their town.
“So, if you have arms, ammo and food supplies, better surrender them to us and there will be no bloodshed,” the Captain finished saying. This prompted Benjamin to snap out of his thoughts.
“We will send out our men 5 days from today – to give you time to inform the townsfolk and prepare the arms and food supplies to surrender.”
“I will inform everyone about what you said,” was all Benjamin told the Captain.
As he exited, his mind was already racing. One of the soldiers drove him back to the farm and dropped him off.
What the Captain told him just confirmed his fears and, that they will need to push through with their plans.
Everyone was there at the house, waiting for Benjamin to arrive and eager to hear about any news from the military. As they hear the car engine of a military jeep approaching and heard a familiar voice, Mary went directly out to greet him.
“Ben! Am glad you’re back!” she hugged her husband tightly and he hugged Mary back.
“Is everyone at the house?” Benjamin asked Mary.
“Yes,” she said.
They went inside and Benjamin could feel the tension from each and everyone – anticipating what Benjamin has to say.
“So what is the news,” Grandpa asked breaking the silence.
“Just as we have anticipated... The Captain is serious and will use force if needed,” Benjamin answered.
“We will need to brief the townspeople about this and proceeding with our plan and how we can defend our town. We need everyone’s cooperation,” Benjamin added.
Everyone nodded in agreement.
“We need to inform them early tomorrow morning. We don’t have much time since the Captain only gave us 5 days before they come here,” he added.
Chris told him how they can defend the town and some of the men had to guard a few feet ahead – to inform the remaining people to give enough time to prepare and get in position.
Everyone agreed. The rest of the night, the men have discussed their fighting strategies and how they can get the rest of the townspeople involve.
As the night went on, it was already past 1:00 AM when the group finished. They went to sleep.
Benjamin entered the room, checking his boys. He was so proud of his family – for being strong and more so with Justin for coming through for his family when he needs him the most especially for defending his brother and his mother.
He kissed his boys good night and went to join Mary in bed.
He hugged Mary and assured her that they are going to be alright after seeing her worried look on her face that never disappeared since they got word about the military’s coming over to take control of the
town.
“We will defend our town for our family – to fight for our freedom and our survival,” Benjamin said. “I will not leave you, but you have to make sure you will be there for the kids,” he added.
“But…Ben!” she cried out. “I don’t want to have anything happen to you and to the kids,” she blurted, tears welling up in her eyes.
“Mary,” Benjamin held her and touched her face and looked in her eyes, “I will not leave you. I will do everything to protect our family, the town we live on and our future…especially our children,” he said gently, then kissed her.
“I just don’t like what is going on…” she went on…but she was too tired to continue. All these things happening were getting her body and mind tired and she dozed off to sleep.
Benjamin was deep in thoughts. He didn’t want any bloodshed, but he needs to do this for his family.
At the headquarters, Captain Phillips reported to the White House about what’s happening. The President did not like the news and was afraid of any resistance, but she stood firm on her decision. Order must be restored and they will need to get things done as soon as possible. The rest of the constituents especially in the major cities are starving.
She told the Captain to use all force necessary to get the job done.
The next morning, Chris, Benjamin, Anthony, Walter and the rest of the militia went to the town and informed the rest of the townspeople about the proceeding plans. They agreed to set up a secret meeting place for all men in the town to discuss any further action in order to avoid of being seen in the day.
That night, everyone had gathered in Grandpa Taylor’s barn. The men were discussing their strategies and have assigned designated persons for each post. Adam was also there in the meeting. Every one of the men actively participated in the meeting.
As the meeting finished, everyone slowly dispersed.
Colonel Caesar, after hearing the word about the impending war in their town against the army, immediately informed the President that he resigns immediately. He does not want to fight against his own people. The President has no other choice but to let him go.
Upon hearing of the Colonel’s resignation, some of the soldiers went to his side and joined him. Colonel Caesar informed Chris and Anthony that they will be joining the militia – him and his fellow soldiers who resigned.
“Some of the soldiers’ families are victims here, too and they do not like to fight their own men – especially families and friends. So we have left our post to defend our own people,” was what Colonel said to Chris over the radio.
“We will join you there first thing tomorrow,” the colonel added.
“Alright Colonel, we are happy to have you back here again and join forces with us,” acknowledged Chris.
After the radio call, Chris informed Doctor Perry, about the new developments. Benjamin was elated to hear that the colonel and his men are going to help them.
The day has come of the army’s pending visit; everyone was at their respective post. As soon as Captain Phillips and his men arrived, Benjamin was there to meet them.
“Captain, I do not want any bloodshed. We never wished to result in violence. We just want to defend our rights. That is in our Constitution. We have the right to defend our town and to arm ourselves,” Benjamin said. Walter was with him.
“I understand what you are fighting for, but this is from the President and we are here to execute her orders,” Captain Phillips said.
“Then you leave us no choice. I would like to invite you to a fight one-on-one. No guns, no other weapons but just man-to-man fighting for their own rights and principles,” Benjamin challenged.
“Alright, I accept your challenge. Men, stand on your ground and do not shoot. This is our battle,” Captain Phillips told his troops.
***
Chapter 32 – Taking Back the Country
The two men were poised in a stance ready to fight. Having been in the military, the Captain has a better edge when it comes to fighting skills. He was trained with different combat skills, while his opponent is not.
Benjamin on the other hand, though he is not trained with any combat skills, but he did know a few techniques. During his teenage years, he used to do street fights and had always been good at it. He may feel a little rusted after all those years, but when it comes to survival, he knows how to fight. He is well-aware of the body’s weak points and he can use his knowledge to his advantage.
Captain Phillips gave Dr. Perry the first punch and missed.
“Nice one, Doc,” he snickered. “It won’t do you any good if you are just dodging my advances.”
Benjamin just focused on his opponent – looking directly at his opponent’s chest, the best way to know what the next punch would be. Anybody can dodge someone else’s punches if one can focus on the opponent’s chest – this gives away which arm is going to be used to hit the target.
Ten minutes and Dr. Perry was continuously dodging the punches. Then, POW! He was able to hit the Captain. Blood trickled from the Captain’s nose. Captain Phillips paused and wiped the blood from his thumb and looked at it.
“This is getting interesting,” the Captain said. “I won’t be nice anymore,” he added.
“You know you can just surrender now and let us get things done,” the Captain continued. “If you lose in this fight, you will have to surrender sooner or later.”
“I will try my chance,” Dr. Perry said. “I will fight for my rights and for my family.”
The fight continued on, and seems that both men were not going to go down just yet. Both are determined to stand for what they both believe in. They both are bloodied and panting.
From a far distance, Colonel Caesar and his men marched towards the town. Upon seeing the commotion ahead, they picked up their pace and hurried towards the scene. He saw it was Captain Phillips and…
“Oh no! It’s Doctor Perry!,” the Colonel exclaimed. “Men, let’s pick up more pace shall we?” he added as they were heading towards the commotion ahead.
And so they hurriedly went to the area where the Doctor and the Captain were fighting.
“STOP with all these fighting,” hollered the colonel. “Captain Phillips, no more fighting.”
“This is the determining factor as to who will win,” the Captain retorted. “Are you with me or against me?” he asked.
“I have resigned at my post and have decided to join Dr. Perry and the militia to defend what is right - what is rightfully ours,” the colonel answered.
“What?!” was the captain’s bewildered reply.
“This is not right, Captain. The marauders have been conquered. We fought hard for the survival of our families. They are no longer a problem in our society. It seems that the government has misused its power. It is not right to confiscate what every citizen has. Our war has ended and we are not fighting our own countrymen,” the captain said with a serious look on his face.
“Who among you is willing to support Captain Phillips and who among you would like to fight for our rights?” the captain asked Captain Phillips’ men.
Half of Captain Phillips’s men joined forces with the retired Colonel’s group and Dr. Perry’s lead by Lieutenant Payne.
“Look at that, Captain,” the retired Colonel started, “seems that most of your own men has seen the truth and are willing to fight to protect our constitution and you seemed to be outnumbered now. We have the number and the arms to fight your troops. You know we don’t want any bloodshed if possible, but you need to understand why we are resisting,” He continued on.
“This fight is not over. We have orders from the President,” the captain said.
“And we have our principles that we are fighting for. We are staying on our ground and fight for what is right. We are taking back our country,” Benjamin said panting. His body was too beaten up, but everyone could see his fighting spirit is not down.
“You won this time, Doc,” the Captain said looking at Benjamin and then around where hi
s gaze stopped at the retire colonel and added, “You guys may have won this fight, but we will come back and finish what we came here for.”
With that he called the men – or what is left of his troops and retreated.
To Be Continued…
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The Second Amendment: A Novel On Surviving The Coming Collapse Page 20
