“What’s that over there?” Heather asked as she pointed at a large tent north of the camp.
“That is the council meeting tent,” Jake answered. “All of the officials meet there to conduct business matters regarding this camp or the places nearby.”
“Are you one of the officials?”
“I am. So are five other people. Eight extra people will go in there during the meetings as well, but only to observe.”
As soon as Jake finished showing Heather, Shine and Eddy around the camp, a soldier was seen walking towards him. The man was wearing a uniform alone rather than tactical gear. He had a clear, dark brown complexion, a shaved head, and a thin mustache. He approached Jake and shook his hand.
“Tyrese,” Jake started. “Good to see you.”
“I see things went smooth in Tallahassee,” Tyrese responded.
“Things would have been smoother. Tallahassee is getting more populated every day by infected. Is the meeting set up for this afternoon?”
“It is,” Tyrese sighed. “If you’re suggesting what I think you are suggesting, the senator might not be too happy about it.”
“Well he can be upset all he wants,” Jake responded. “If he wants to stay here and milk Tallahassee dry of its resources, then he can do so on his own time. But I’m not gonna put this settlement in too big of a risk without a unanimous vote from the other officials.”
Jake and Tyrese proceeded to the trailer with all the canned food and water.
“I mean, look at all of that,” Jake continued. “We have more than what we need for everyone here. Can he not see that?”
“I hear ya,” Tyrese answered. “The guy’s a pencil pusher. He has had absolutely no idea what goes on outside this settlement since being rescued. But if he can make a good argument as to why we should stay here, everyone else will probably side with him.”
“True, but he can’t exactly force people to side with him, as much as he would like to.”
Jake grabbed two bottled waters and handed Tyrese a bottle.
“All I’m saying is this, Jake,” Tyrese suggested. “Just give a convincing statement that the rest can agree upon. I’ll do the same, and I’m sure Brandon will do so as well.”
“Yeah, alright,” Jake agreed.
“Besides, it all goes down to your final decision anyways. You’re the guy in charge after all.”
With that, Tyrese headed to the council meeting tent, where he and a couple of others were setting up for that night’s business meeting.
An hour later, Jake finished checking on the survivors when Kaylee O’Brien, a young Irish woman, met up with him. Her face was slightly round and had a fair, peach complexion. Her eyes were as green as the emerald Celtic cross necklace she was wearing. Her straight, bright copper red hair brought out the pink freckles that were sprinkled across her cheeks.
“What are you up to today, Jake?” Kaylee began.
“About to head to my meeting,” Jake answered. “Hopefully, we can get away from Tallahassee and head somewhere not as dangerous.”
“Hopefully.”
Kaylee’s accent brought out the Irish lands where she had grown up.
“Has something been up?” Kaylee asked.
“Yeah,” Jake responded. “Those things are multiplying quick, making it hard for our boys to do their...”
“I’m talking about you.”
Jake turned to face Kaylee.
“What do you mean, Kaylee?” Jake asked.
Kaylee sighed and began to explain to Jake where she was getting at as they continued to walk.
“When you rescued me five months ago in Auburn, you were calm. You were at peace when you weren’t out there fighting. But as the weeks started to go by, you started to change.”
“A lot can happen in five months,”
“You’ve started looking over your shoulder,” Kaylee claimed.
“I got my eyes on everyone at camp,” Jake counterclaimed.
“You’ve started sweating a lot.”
“Temperature’s high in North Florida.”
“It’s only been in the 60’s.”
“Heavy gear and thick clothing.”
Kaylee circled around and stood in front of Jake, halting him by resting her hand on his chest.
“You keep to yourself!” Kaylee concluded. “You have friends for a reason; people to talk to. I just wish you would start using that benefit.”
“Answer me this,” Jake responded. “What is there to talk about?”
“Anything.”
“Well I’ll be doing a lot of that in this meeting I’m heading to.”
Jake patted Kaylee’s shoulder and proceeded to walk past her towards the official’s tent.
“Jake,” Kaylee called out.
Jake turned around and gave Kaylee a blank stare.
“Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled,” Kaylee advises. “And whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.”
“Always reading that Good Book, huh Kaylee?” Jake chucked.
“Somebody’s got to.” Kaylee answered. “When God gives you a task and the weapons to do so, you do what needs to be done.”
“Well, if I’m not mistaken, you already know I don’t believe in that sort of stuff.”
“Well there was a time that you used to believe in something.”
“What I believe in,” Jake responded. “Is the here and now. And I also believe that the only ‘Eyes in the Sky’ that I need... are those pilots that do their job everyday.”
Jake began to head inside the council tent to begin the meeting, not turning back to Kaylee, who stood still with a concerned look on her face.
Chapter 3
The inside of the council meeting tent seemed larger than it looked on the outside. There was a small table next to the entrance with a plastic dispenser filled with purified water. Next to the dispenser were plastic cups and some granola bars.
The middle of the tent was a long, narrow table. On one of the table there was a chair that Jake sat in with a card in front of him with the words Jaycob Riley: Marshal etched in the card. On Jake’s right was a chair where Brandon Peterson sat in. In front of him was a card with the words Brandon Peterson: Chief of Z-Corps etched in it.
On the left of Jake sat a man nearing his thirties. Even in the post apocalyptic world everyone now lived in, he kept his slick, stylish posture, wearing a white, buttoned up shirt with a black tie. He stayed clean shaven and kept his hair short and neat. The card that laid in front of him had the words Alan Scott: Senator etched in it.
Sitting across from Jake was Tyrese Jones with a card on his end of the table with Tyrese Jones: Presiding Officer etched in it. On Tyrese’s left side sat Nicholas Singletary. As the year had passed, his eyes grew weaker, so he wore some glasses that were found in a pharmacy. In front of him was a card with Nicholas Singletary: Surgeon General etched in his card. On Tyrese’s right was a man in his mid twenties with short, curly brown hair. The card in front of him had the words Trevor Swafford: Treasurer etched in the card.
Behind Trevor was a chair and desk with a young woman who looked to be in her twenties, with straight blonde hair. On her small desk was a typewriter and a card with the words Victoria Flores: Secretary etched in the card. Behind Senator Scott sat a balding man who looked to be middle aged. He was clean shaven with thick eyebrows, and had a military build to him. He had a name tag on his Z-Corps uniform with Bryan Willis: Adviser engraved in the tag.
After the six council officials, the secretary, and the adviser sat down in their spots, the observing officials sat down in the seats that were aligned behind Jake. One of the observers was Trystan Xavier, now the Infantry General of the Z-Corps. Next to him was the Special Ops General, Boris Holt, a gruff looking man in his late twenties. He was clean shaven, save for the small goatee under his lip, and had black, crew cut hair.
Behind Trystan Xavier and Boris Holt was HR-Team Colonel Micheal Stevenson and Spartan Colonel John Demarais. Next to them was J
effery Dikes, who served as a Representative for the people in the settlement. In front of Jeffery Dikes was Malachi Watson, who served as a Mayor for the settlement.
Once every official was settled in the meeting tent, Jake began to speak.
“Alright,” Jake started. “The date today is the fifteenth of August, and the P.A. year is Year 2. Madam Secretary Flores may begin recording this meeting. Presiding Officer Jones will now begin.”
“Yessir, Marshal Riley,” Tyrese responded. “Senator Scott, what is the official survivor count?”
“There are 237 civilian survivors,” Alan answered. “And there are 155 military survivors, totaling up to 392 survivors in the settlement.”
Tyrese then turned to Brandon Peterson.
“Chief Peterson, what is the risk rate since last meeting?”
“There has been a high rate of undead and a low rate of raiders in the Tallahassee area. There has been 8 attempted breaches since the last meeting.”
Tyrese then turned his attention to Trevor.
“Mr. Swafford, do we have a count on supplies?”
“Yes we do, Presiding Officer Jones,” Trevor answered. “We have roughly 2800 shipments of canned food items and non-perishables, roughly 5600 shipments of bottled water, and roughly 1000 shipments of over-the-counter and prescription medicine.”
As every word was being spoken, Victoria continued to type in her typewriter, recording every detail that was revealed in the meeting.
“Now that the basics are covered,” Jake started. “Let’s get down to the immediate matter. We may need to move away from Tallahassee a lot sooner than anticipated.”
“Let me stop you there for a moment,” Alan interrupted. “We have all agreed that we would set up a temporary settlement here for one month. You even finalized that decision. It has only been two weeks.”
“Yes, I did finalize that decision; but that was before seeing Tallahassee becoming more and more populated with the undead.”
“Are you basing this on a hunch that we will become overrun, even being 10 miles away from the general city limits?”
“I am basing this on 8 attempted breaches.”
Alan turned to Brandon with a look of disgust.
“Chief,” Alan asked. “Out of the 8 attempted breaches since our last meeting, how many of those were in this settlement?”
“Three in this one week alone,” Brandon answered.
“Two last week and the other three were back in Pensacola,” Tyrese replied. “And those three were spread out throughout the span of one month. Three in this week has gotta count for something.”
“And out of those three attempted breaches,” Alan continued. “How many, Chief, were attempted breaches executed by undead?”
“One, Senator.”
Alan focuses back on Jake. “One breach. We’re always going to have at least one attempted breach done by infected. Why is Tallahassee so discerning as to want to leave it?”
“Well why is it so concerning as to want to stay?” Jake asked.
“I can tell just by looking at the survivors,” Nicholas replied. “Jake, you and I have been friends ever since before this started up, and I understand you mean best. But the survivors... they just got settled in. They’re already tired as it is moving from city to city every month.”
“I understand that they’re tired,” Jake responded. “But like Brandon said, five breaches. Sure only one was executed by undead, but if looters have un-silenced firepower, then they can attract the undead, and there could be some panic.”
Jake then turned his attention to Tyrese.
“Tyrese,” Jake continued. “You were with HR-Team Bravo when they were rescuing ten civilians from that fire station.”
“I was,” Tyrese answered. “We barely got out of there in one piece. It’s about as populated here in Tallahassee as it is in major metropolitan areas.”
“They are Hostile Rescue Teams, Marshal,” Alan stated. “The very ones that the late David Miller himself founded. They are highly trained professionals in situations like that.”
“But our Scavengers are not,” Jake responded. “They are trained, yes. But they are neither prepared nor equipped to be caught up in hordes of those sizes.”
Bryan Willis rose up from his seat.
“Seems to me like you guys could invest in a scouting party,” Bryan suggested. “Could be a way to compromise for the time being, and it could benefit for the near future if we consider setting up shop anywhere else.”
Everyone sat briefly silent.
“How do you suppose we do that for the time being though?” Jake asked. “We can’t just set up a scout party in a day. That kind of planning and training could take weeks.”
“I can check on some of the infantry at the settlement borders,” Brandon suggested. “I’m sure we could find some infantry members with the skills to get in, scout an area, and get out quick if they need to.”
“Like I said,” Tyrese whispered to Jake. “I’d help you out the best I can. Maybe this could keep the Senator’s mouth shut at the same time as benefit the survivors and the settlement as a whole.”
“I don’t know about this,” Jake responded. “Unless we can find someone fast and agile, this may not work.”
“Well, we do have a couple of new recruits going into training a few days from now. Maybe we can see what they are capable of.”
Jake pondered on the thought for a moment and then made a final decision.
“We’ll stay here for the remainder of the month as was finalized at the last meeting,” Jake decided. “And we will invest in special scout teams. However, if the scouting program works and they find a certain area to be risky to camp around, we will leave the general area alone, regardless of what might be in the city.”
“I second,” Tyrese agreed.
“All those in favor of investing in a scouting program, notify by saying ‘Aye’”
“Aye,” everyone repeated in unison.
“The ‘ayes’ have it. We will begin investing in a scouting party. We will look for qualified soldiers and test them to make sure they will be able to scout unknown territories and evade from any threats if need be. This meeting is now adjourned. Dismissed.”
As the officials were leaving, Bryan walked up to Jake.
“Jake,” Bryan started. “Can we talk?”
“About what?” Jake asked.
Bryan pulled Jake away from some of the officials that were socializing.
“Some of the members of the committee are starting to wonder whether or not you are able to function properly as Marshal,” Bryan answered. “They’re wondering what is going on with you, with some of the propositions you’ve been making and some of the disagreements that had to be settled in here.”
“Well they end up getting settled,” Jake responded. “And we’re able to compromise. To benefit everyone in the settlement.”
“Yes, but with all that’s going on right now, some people are wondering if you are fit to lead for the time being.”
Jake looked past Bryan and saw Alan and Boris conversing with some of the other officials.
“If I’m not mistaken,” Jake assumed. “One of those pushing for my leave is the Senator.”
“Oh, you think?” Bryan answered.
“Well you and I both know why he wants me gone.”
“Oh yeah, but he’s not getting what he wants. If you leave, Tyrese will be taking your spot. If he’s not fit, then the spot is going to go to me.”
“True,” Jake agreed. “But with me gone, that’s just an extra step on his political ladder that he goes up.”
“Yeah, well with the way he’s going, he might have to relinquish that title of his and give it to the Representative. But don’t give him any reason to take you down with him. If something comes up that makes you think that he could do that, you come let me know, and I’ll help you take him down.”
“Thank you,” Jake responded. “I’ll be sure to do that.”
&nb
sp; As Jake left the tent, he grabbed a small cup of the water that was set on the table for the officials. As he took a sip, he snuck a glance at Alan and Boris through the corner of his eye. They were whispering to each other, making sure nobody else was listening, unaware that Jake was eavesdropping on them. He then left the tent, and headed towards the infirmary.
Chapter 4
As Jake made his way towards the infirmary where Joseph Boyer laid resting in, he was met up by Brandon at the military outpost nearby.
“Hey, Jake,” Brandon started. “Sorry we couldn’t get everything set up to leave sooner.”
“No worries,” Jake reassured. “The council made some good points. The civilians do need to take some time away from traveling too often. We are gonna need extra soldiers guarding the borders though.”
“I can arrange that. The only thing that might be a challenge is setting up a scouting group. We have Scavengers for grabbing supplies, equipment, and the occasional survivor, but they have no idea what they’re getting into.”
“Yeah,” Jake sighed. “Which is why I wasn’t too fond of staying in this area. It’s way too dangerous at the moment, and I have a feeling that it’s only gonna get worse. Let’s hope the new recruits are good at bearing a tough burden.”
“One can only hope,” Brandon agreed.
When Jake and Brandon arrived to the tent Joseph was staying in, they came across Caleb Lake, the doctor in charge of watching everyone in the tent.
“What’s the situation on our newest patient?” Jake asked.
“Well he’s not experiencing any symptoms of infection,” Caleb answered. “He’s past the five hour mark, so he’s cleared. That scar of his wasn’t that deep, but it is being monitored in case he gets any other infections like Tetanus. Overall, he should be out by morning.”
“Did he have any visitors?” Brandon asked.
“Just his parents,” Caleb answered. “You two are more than welcome to come in and check on him.”
Jake and Brandon entered the tent and saw Joseph sitting up in his bed. His side was patched up neatly, and he was holding an opened bottle of water. He was talking to his mother, who was sitting in a chair next to him. Joseph’s father, Eddie, was standing propped up against a wooden post, with his arms crossed in front of him.
Z-Day Chronicles (Book 2): Rising Up Page 2
