Dystopia: The Long Road
Page 1
Dystopia
The Long Road
Copyrights
Copyright © 2016 D.J. Cooper
All rights reserved
ISBN – 13: 978-1535410595
ISBN – 10: 1535410590
Copyright © All rights reserved worldwide. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored, transmitted by any means, for profit or gain, without the expressed permission of the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, organizations or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
This is a work of fiction. No techniques are recommended without proper safety measures and training. The author nor publisher assumes no liability for your actions.
Visit www.djcooper.co
Acknowledgements
Many helped bring this book to completion with words of encouragement, support and help. Many personal barriers impeded this work and there is so much I have to be grateful for.
I’d like to thank my friends and family who supported and encouraged me to write this book. A great friend Dickie Gales, who brought the accent of the character Dickie to life. Kelly Standish-Curry, who worked to help edit out the mishaps.
Jamie Waylein and Michelle Jodoin my lovely daughters who also served as the beta readers on this work.
Randy Mills a man who gives me space to write, encourages me to do so and cheers me on to bigger things. I love you Randy.
My children Chris and Jamie, who always believe in mommy even when she can’t believe herself. I love you both and am truly blessed and thankful for such amazing children.
Foreword
“One of the darkest evils of our world is surely the unteachable wildness of the good."
-H.G. Wells
This book took more than eighteen months to write, the first book fell out like word vomit yet this one I once described as bleeding through my fingertips. Part of the struggle was the ever changing landscape of the craziness that surrounds us. Keeping with the premise of the first book it was difficult not to include the struggles faced by many today.
The story of the friends that must make it to their family is one of struggles and strife, full of betrayal. A new understanding of the things people will do in bad situations. Often times I am reminded that the rule of law (ROL) only serves to keep the honest in line, once ROL disintegrates many of our friends and neighbors may turn to crime or even on the very friends they say they love.
The book continues the story of Matt and Destiny in a changed world. What would you do without your world of technology? Without fast food, fast internet and instant gratification? In a world where you question the source of every meal? Could you survive? Could you make it on a journey of more than nine hundred miles?
Like the first book, follow up to the story you will find a list of resources that I hope you will find as useful as I have. It is one thing to know of something, it is a whole different concept to put it into practical application.
I hope you enjoy The Long Road as much as I did in writing it, I hope you can identify with the characters and it sparks the questions in you that arose when writing it and that it encourages you to prepare.
DJ Cooper
Table of Contents
Dystopia
Copyrights
Acknowledgements
Foreword
Dystopia
Chapter 1
“Time is short”
Chapter 2
“The time draws near”
Chapter 3
“Trouble in the wind”
Chapter 4
“In the midst”
Chapter 5
“The End is now the Beginning”
Chapter 6
“Welcome Friends”
Chapter 7
“The Others “
Chapter 8
“The Road”
Chapter 9
“Out of the Fire”
Chapter 10
“A changed landscape”
Chapter 11
In Darkness… Danger
Chapter 12
“The Storm”
Chapter 13
“Treachery”
Chapter 14
“Trouble Doubles”
Chapter 15
“Grief and Guilt”
Chapter 16
“The Camp”
Chapter 17
“In Darkness we move”
Chapter 18
“Wolf insheep’s clothing”
Chapter 19
“Luck can change”
Chapter 20
“Light at the end of the tunnel”
Chapter 21
“Unexpected friends”
Chapter 22
“The Relay”
Chapter 23
“Overland”
Chapter 24
“Bittersweet arrival”
Chapter 25
“Sickness”
Chapter 26
“Reality of life now”
Note from the Author
Resources
Composting
Rain Water
Solar Hot Water
Wood Fired Hot Water
Solar Panels
Batteries
Solar Window Heaters
Morse Code
Bug out bags aka the BOB
A.N.T.S
Cache
Canning and preserving
Dakota pit or fire hole
Ham Radios
Videos
About the Author
Dystopia
Chapter 1
“Dark days loom ominous”
Dystopia
The Long Road
Chapter 1
“Time is short”
“If the day should ever come when we must go, if some day we are compelled to leave the scene of history, we will slam the door so hard that the universe will shake and mankind will stand back in stupefaction…”
-Joseph Goebbles
September 6th
John stood looking at the wood pile, wondering if what he had cut and split this year was going to get them through the winter. He thought, ‘It is already this cold and it's only September, New England winters can be brutal.’ Grabbing an armload for the old wood stove, he headed back inside.
He loved a good fire in the mornings, but this early in the season, troubled him to be in need of a morning fire. Starting to cool off so soon meant the winter would be long and cold.
John fancied himself quite the outdoorsman and decided he would try out his fire-starting skills by using his flint keychain. He began to strike the sparks at the paper he had all crumpled up and placed at the bottom of a pile of wood he stacked neatly in a tipi. Not really paying attention he started humming along to the song on the radio, then began to sing along. “I’m not the one who’s so far away, when I feel the snake bite enter my veins.” This was one of his favorite bands, he liked a heavier sound and Godsmack was definitely one of the bands that topped his list.
The phone let out the sound indicating a text just arrived.
Scowling as he got up to check it, “Damn phone, just when a good song comes on.”
He walked over to where his phone sat on the charger mumbling, “First the fire won’t start and now who the hell would be texting me at this hour?”
Turning back to the fire, giving up on his quest for flame free fire starting, he unceremoniously tossed a match into the stove. John felt edgy today as he went to check his phone. Seeing it was a text from Matt, all was forgiven and he checked it right away. Reading the text he raised his eyebrows,
“
Hey there guy, you might want to check out the news.”
Bing, bing… another text arrived
“You know me, I don’t usually worry about news, but something is up with this.”
John texted him back saying, “Hey guy, I'm checking it out now.”
Aiming the remote and turning on the TV, John grabbed a cup of coffee and sat to tend this fire that still refused to start. Absently, he was looking to the TV from time to time. One of the commercials caught his eye for lawn tractors drawing his attention to the screen.
Continuing to watch as the news returned, he caught sight of the ticker rolling across the bottom. “Ebola virus has been confirmed at hospitals in the following six U.S. cities. New York, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Denver, Sacramento and Detroit… Please stay tuned for an official announcement.”
This piqued John’s interest, and he decided he would wait and watch the announcement. John rarely watched the news, except for the weather reports, because he felt like it was all propaganda. This new tidbit might prove entertaining, he thought. He figured he had a little time before the official announcement of this new event, which he was sure would raise some kind of cry for new laws or changes, ‘they always do’ he thought. With September 11th right around the corner, he already expected something to draw attention away from it.
He didn’t bother to wake Amy, knowing she was never interested in what she called his, “conspiracy theories.” While he sat waiting, he was contemplating what this could mean. Since it was bothering Matt, he was sure it was very important.
The “Beep, Beep, Beep” sounded on the TV indicating the news conference was beginning. He refilled his coffee for what he was sure would be another round of useless banter on this or that. But, Matt wanted him to watch and he trusted his friend’s instincts, so he watched.
Not long after the beeping, the announcement began; a spokesperson from the Centers for Disease control in Atlanta appeared for the camera and approached the podium. The announcer began to speak, “Ladies and Gentlemen, Dr. Ralph Sorenson, incident manager for the CDC Ebola response.” A rather nervous looking and visibly uncomfortable man walked into view. A tiny little man, with a comb over and what looked like glasses from the 50’s took the podium and began to speak.
“Health officials have confirmed cases of Ebola within the U.S. Patients are being treated at undisclosed hospitals in the following cities; New York, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Denver, Sacramento and Detroit.”
There was a long pause as the weary spokesperson continued, "Understand, we know how to stop Ebola. It won’t be easy or fast, but working together with our U.S. government and international partners, we are doing it in Africa and can do so here, but it will take time.”
He paused for the murmuring to quiet and continued. “Ebola is a deadly virus. It is spread through direct contact with the blood, secretions, and organs or thru other bodily fluids of those who are already infected. This is not an airborne virus, I repeat, it is not airborne! You cannot catch it from casual contact. Symptoms, which can begin anywhere from two to twenty-one days after infection, include fever, muscle pain, headache and a sore throat, these symptoms will then be followed by vomiting, diarrhea and rash. If anyone in these cities has been experiencing these symptoms, please report to the nearest health care facility as soon as possible. The CDC is sending workers to the affected cities to fight Ebola’s spread, and while the number of CDC experts may change slightly from day to day. More than fifty CDC personnel are being sent to remain in these six cities continuously.
“Again, the CDC’s public health experts in West Africa and here in the United States are working closely with our U.S. Government and international partners as part of this worldwide emergency response to the Ebola outbreak. Our primary goal is to contain this disease and keep Americans safe, thank you for your vigilance and stay safe America.” He nodded to the announcer, turned and without looking back, exited the stage.
John laughed out loud saying, “Matt has sure lost it if he thinks this is news.”
Although, he didn’t want to admit that something struck him in how antiseptic it all was, and he thought it might be best to keep his ear to the ground. He was amazed at how little else about the whole Ebola thing was said. It seemed eerily absent from all the other channels. It was like a little blurb and then nothing else and this is what struck him as strange.
He was getting ready to shut off the TV when Amy came out of the bedroom saying, “What’s this? You, watching the news?” Yawning, she whined, “it’s cold in here, didn’t you make a fire?”
John leapt from his seat; he had fallen into his own thoughts and completely forgotten about the fire. Clamoring over to it, he realized it was but a smoldering pile of newspaper ash; none of the wood was doing anything but smoking. In a flash he had a blaze going and Amy was snuggling next to the stove calling out for coffee.
John wondered sometimes how he and she had managed to stay together, they were nothing alike. She made fun of his theories every time he had anything that concerned him. Luckily he and Matt talked often and he could talk about anything with him. They had been friends for as long as John could remember. As he stood making more coffee, he reminded himself ‘I need to call Matt and talk with him about all this.’
The rest of that day while Amy watched her shows on the TV, John made a quick inventory of the supplies on hand. He was still concerned about the early cold and worried more about if things went badly this winter that there would be many that would not be ready to brave it. He chopped more wood that day than many others. He didn’t know if it was because of the news or just that those damn shows annoyed him.
Something about the news this morning was really beginning to eat at him and by dinner time he was completely into his own thoughts on everything that could go wrong. He decided that between now and the 11th he needed to do a few things and would start on them tomorrow. He didn’t bother to tell Amy his thoughts because he knew she would just scoff at him.
Chapter 2
“The time draws near”
“I do not believe in a fate that will fall on us no matter what we do, I believe in a fate that will fall on us if we do nothing.”
-Ronald Reagan
The days passed like a blur as John continued his inventory, his thoughts on the anniversary of September 11th. There always seemed to be some kind of threat on this anniversary. He wasn’t sure if it was because of the day that the crazies came out of the woodwork or if there was something about it.
It was another cold day; he wished this cold front would pass. The thought of winter starting already was unnerving to say the least. Amy was already in complaint mode, constantly bitching about the fire. He wished she would get up and just put some wood in the stove instead of crying she was cold.
Sometimes he did wonder why they were together; she was a pretty woman with her nails always done beautifully. She had short blonde hair that sat on her shoulders and perpetually needing some kind of goo or ooze in it.
He on the other hand, was what his friends affectionately called, the “Grizzly Adams” type. Having scruffy hair and beard, he carried a few extra pounds. Which he swore Amy orchestrated with all her good cooking.
Some days he also wished she would live up to her threats to go and move to Florida to stay with her mother. But most days he loved her and wanted to keep her safe and warm.
Being the day before the anniversary of the fateful day the towers fell, he wanted to make sure his things were well organized.
He looked at this day as his annual inventory and prep check day. It was not that he actually thought there were any threats, but it made a good reason to make sure his house was in order before winter.
He checked his bug out bags and replaced anything going out of date on this day. Being prepared for an emergency was always very important to John, especially living in an environment where a day without heat during the winter could equal death. He had a “BOB” for Amy too, but he doubted she would ever carry it f
arther than down the long driveway. He began to go through the bags starting with his own. He pulled out a number of smaller bags first each containing different kits. One for medical supplies he set aside this one would need to be updated and another for fishing and fire starting he set aside, these he would just check.
After removing the tent and the space bag holding his dry clothes he began his annual ritual of changing batteries in the flashlights. He exchanged the antibiotics and pain relievers as well as his vitamins. He placed it all back into the pack along with replacements for his freeze dried foods and edibles. Amy’s bag was far easier to check, as hers contained only her clothes, freeze dried foods and smaller versions of the kits he kept in his bag.
Feeling satisfied with his day he headed to the kitchen to see what she was cooking up. She was a wonderful cook and it was something she loved to do, he did appreciate the good eats.
Tomorrow he will have to work and was not looking forward to it; he hated his job as an electrician. It made him think of Dez and Matt and how they got to choose their own schedules, he thought ‘they sure got it good, what the hell am I doing all this for?’ ‘I totally should have gone into computers instead of electrical.’
Something wonderful was summoning him from his thoughts; it was a terrific smell coming from the kitchen. He recognized it and knew immediately she had made his favorite.
He practically danced into the kitchen singing, “Yay for me, it is lasagne night.”
Amy loved it when he would get excited about what she cooked, and secretly he knew it and would do it often so she knew he appreciated the good grub.
September 11th
As the morning sun began to shine, John headed outside to take care of making sure Amy had enough wood inside before he headed to work. As soon as he opened the door, he knew it was much warmer today.
He still wanted to bring in the wood and make a fire for her as she was sure to want one. He dreaded going to work today, and it weighed heavy on his mind. Surely they would make this day a day of remembrance like Martin Luther King Day or Presidents Day.