ONE NATION: A Post Apocalyptic, Dystopian Saga

by Michael W. Huard

  Tyne, Raegan, Jansa, Chaya, and Mahira all looked at one another. Resin swallowed a bit awkwardly as well at just hearing some of the planning that he and Sin had come up with.

  It was the gladiator, of course, who then shouted out, “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  Sin looked to Mahira.

  “Nope. Once we get close to him, we take him down. That’s what we came up with.”

  Mahira then surprisingly yelled, “LETS’S DO IT THEN! After, we put the Statue of Liberty back up and claim victory!”

  There was a pretty good-sized amount of chatter inside the room suddenly, but Raegan raised her hand up to slow everybody's thoughts down.

  “This is going to take a ton of work. If we do this, we're going to need everybody’s help. And we can't speak to any allies on the airways either. Focus, all of you. This is where my original idea comes into play. The postal system we need more than ever now to reform. We can work incognito and get letters out all amongst those that have survived the bombings in New York and any allies we have left.”

  The others in the room were a bit taken aback

  Everyone, instead of cheering, just nodded their heads.

  Raegan knew more needed to be said.

  “Now as to the to the part of destroying the Godbot. Once we hopefully earn his trust, well, I'll turn that back over to Resin and Sinaye.”

  Resin cleared his throat some.

  “Well, the truth of the matter is … we've come to the conclusion that we need a weapon. We have gathered the tools to begin, stuff like a soldering iron, solder, a disposable camera, a small toggle button, some insulated thick copper cable, enamel-coated wire, and a high-current momentary switch. Sin and I, with help from Tyne, are creating an EMP gun.”

  Everyone wondered more about this gun.

  “It works on the principle of electromagnetism. EMP devices use a high-voltage generator that will convert 3.7 volt into few thousand volts. Voltage is further amplified through passive voltage multipliers, then it passes to an electromagnetic coil with the help of a spark gap. This coil will then produce a high frequency electromagnetic pulse.

  “If we can some get the proper beam to work with this, a blast into Omagus at a very close range would render him inoperative. The trick is to generate the heavily needed power pulse to fry his electronic control processors and render him inoperative. In essence, it’s a laser beam of the highest quality. One that would cost millions. We need one with an energy storage capacitor and parabolic reflector, along with a superstructure or frame and laser scope.”

  He was losing everyone now. The sisters seemed perplexed.

  “In the end, the beam is on a rifle that consists of heavy-duty copper cable capable of handling the kind of electrical surge over a period of a few nanoseconds without melting. It incorporates the capacitor and a switch. We fire it, and bye bye goes the Godbot!”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  It was another night for Sun and Karma to sit out on the deck in their little community in Liberty, Maine. Karma had made up some apple cider this breezy night and they had sat and chatted for nearly an hour already.

  Karama finally came to ask, “So where do you see your relationship with Jo going?”

  Sun gave her a funny look.

  “It's going, let's just say that. He's just a calm guy, one who centers me. I hope it lasts, and I’m pretty sure it will.”

  She looked at Karma wondering if she would ever find love. “What about you? I’ve noticed that you haven't taken a liking to anybody since we all thought Gavin was a dream guy. I’m sorry about what happened. Really, you know how I feel. We all liked him so much.”

  The Asian American teen sitting in her wooden chair near her friend tipped her head back and took a long sigh.

  After being around both men and women for a while as of late, and losing Gavin, who she really liked, she was lost in any search for companionship with men.

  “I think I'm going to take in a sexbot; one kind of like Chaya has. You must have heard about that, right? She has a lover she calls Krons. She seems happy. I’ll have Tyne program him to do as I say and keep me happy. I mean, why not, right?”

  Sun grunted. “Well, you do know that the Y-Wood Corp are the ones who make these dolls. If I recall, they are in a heap of rubble, so you may want to reconsider your options.”

  “Ha, ha,” Karama replied.

  “You could ask Sin and Resin to make you one though, but I would think that it might be a bit embarrassing,” Sun added with a smile.

  It was then, before Karma said any more, that she looked out in the darkness by the barb wire fence. Suddenly, a small figure appeared.

  In a flash, Karma was reaching for her samurai sword, which was leaning against her chair.

  Sun was next, already flipping one of her laser pistols out from a side holster and holding it up in that direction. She then called out, “Who's out there? That fence signifies private property and you should not be across it.”

  Yet, whoever it was had already gotten around the fence and the figure, which was not that big, continued stepping forward as it reached the lighted area of their cabin. Each of the women now saw that it was a young girl coming out of the shadows.

  She had a dirty face, with thick, long, and curly brown hair. Her clothing was worse for the wear as well. Neither Karma nor Sun did anything to scare her enough to make her run away. They just watched her closely as she walked closer to them.

  “Hi,” the young girl spoke. “What are you two doing out here?” she asked somewhat casually.

  Both Sun and Karma looked at each other with a curious stare. This was weird, having a young girl out in the dark just standing there. Both scanned in all directions just in case there were others about. They saw no one!

  “Are you all alone?” asked Sun. “Are there others with you? What is your name?”

  The child, who was maybe nine years old, shook her head to signify that there was nobody with her.

  Sun again asked her what her name was.

  It was then the girl said, “My name is Pearl.”

  “Okay, Pearl,” Sun replied back. “Now tell us what you were doing out here and where you have come from.”

  The brown-haired girl hesitated but then said, “They're watching you.”

  Both teens on the porch again looked at one another in concern.

  “Who are they?” Karama asked.

  The little girl then stepped back a few steps and whispered, “They are those who say you are trespassing here.”

  It was then she turned and ran off into the darkness.

  Both Sun and Karma started down the porch stairs after her, but then realized it would be better not to run out in the dark just yet. Both just stood there with their hands on their hips looking all about. It was a very interesting encounter, to say the least. No way were they going to be drawn out beyond the fence right now.

  “I’ll probably go to tell the others,” Karma then said to her friend.

  Sun curled her lips a bit, thinking before answering.

  “Why do that? I mean, why don’t we have all the fun? I say tomorrow we go on a scouting mission.”

  Karma thought about it, stopping on her way down the stairs.

  She acted as if she was not positive, and that that Sun’s thinking was maybe not the best of ideas, but then Sun asked if she was chicken, Karma soon agreed to wait.

  She was not afraid. She was not a chicken!

  Chaya gathered the crew the next day to discuss plans, since all communication lines were down, to start a mail service in the Northeast. The runners needed more details on what they would be doing. Those who would be on the carrier team sat and listed to her with great interest. They were finally going to get to travel some and most were excited to see how it would all go down.

  “There's no way to get the word out without doing it ourselves. The postal service is something Raegan has always wanted to see reborn and it’s up to us to make it happen. Traveling will of course b
e necessary, and you guys are going to do it. Some of you will be put into squads that can travel to the northeastern states quickly using our fastest flyers. Remember, there is no way to contact anyone back here when you’re out there. You must move quickly and be precise. Do your job and get back here pronto.”

  Many of the sisterhood had already put Raegan’s plan into action. Some were working on envelopes and paperwork, flyers representing what she had in mind.

  Chaya now had the so-called runners before her.

  “The goal for you is to inform people that a line of communication all about the Northeast is now up and running. It is the sisterhood’s hope this starting point will catch on and spread to the West. We have to start somewhere, right?”

  The ones sitting before her all called out that it was a good start and they were ready to move to action. They were pumped to begin.

  Chaya then pointed to Grammy Wal.

  “It has been decided that Grammy here will be the head postmaster, and none of us can think of anyone better. As for a name for the whole thing, meaning for this project, it’s going to be the United States Postal Service. That's what it used to be, so we're sticking with it.”

  Those gathered nodded their heads in approval.

  Grammy Wal now stood to speak. “There's a lot to this. As pointed out, we will start with the New England states first. We’ll put you all in pairs and the first notifications will be about how the Postal Service hopes to give communication back to the people. Letters will be delivered and picked up at various points in each of the New England states to begin with. We hope to hit a few other surrounding states too as soon as possible.

  “You all will get the ball rolling, and also be asking and looking for volunteers to help spread the word. It’s going to be awesome. It matters, it brings hope and a sense of well-being. God knows we need that now. There may be resistance, doubt, and concern. Be ready to deal with it.”

  Chaya then called out, “Each of you who wanted this job, I say now, we’re all very proud of you. Let’s have Grammy announce who the squads are going to be and hit the skies soon.”

  Hobbling about with her cane, Grammy Wal called forth while pointing to people now.

  “Okay everyone, I just want to say one more thing. With the Corporation down and out, there should be many out there ready to make this work. Just believe in it yourself and keep going.

  “There’s also the aspect of where the Postal Service’s headquarters is located. I thought, well, we all thought about this for some time, and have come up with none other than right here in Maine. We will not say where, it’s a big place, but we will say to all who ask, Maine is a ‘peace state’ under the new laws of the reforming nation. This, my minions, will be our greatest voice. Hearing these words will raise people up. A ‘peace state’ will raise eyebrows, but that’s what we want. This is our goal.”

  Before Grammy finished, Chaya announced, “I almost forgot. Those going out will be returning and going up to Chimney Pond for a good while as a reward for your efforts. You will get an extra rotation on the mountain for services rendered.”

  Grammy Wal, the new postmaster, then went about naming teams. There would be 7 overall.

  One would be Tyne & Naiera, another Chaya and Johan. The five others were named after and soon all went their own ways preparing for first departures.

  Johan was surprised to hear his name called to go on such a mission. He was actually very pleased, though. He had hoped it would be with Sun at his side, however.

  Later in that afternoon, an argument with his mother worked to no avail on changing such. She did not want the two of them together. She told Johan that Chaya was someone with much more experience and she was not willing to discuss the matter again.

  All the while, Sun and Karma, who were not chosen to be mail carriers, slipped out into the wilderness beyond the fence. Their idea was to just take a look at where that young girl who called herself Pearl may have come from.

  The two teenagers made their way into the woods searching for where the young girl may have come from. It wasn't too difficult to track her footsteps; each of the young women had been trained in the ability to do it.

  But once they came to a roadway, they lost the trail. They could go down the road left, right, or cross over to the other side of the woods. They guessed that she may have come from across the way, so they went over and again found her trail through the trees, where they eventually came to a good-sized open section of three beaten-down buildings. Signs were posted all about saying no trespassing. Also, other signs noting security cams were on the dirty windows here.

  Sun put her finger to her lips to tell Karma to be very quiet as they scanned the area for movement still on the edge of the woods.

  But nothing, meaning nobody, was seen moving about. They both came closer and, while peeking through dirty windows, they spotted no one inside either.

  These buildings appeared to once be some sort of a paving company or maybe a plowing company. A few really big trucks, old and rusted, were still here sitting on the far-right part of the large driveway.

  So, the girls went beyond this spot, down a dirt pathway, still searching.

  After a bit, they came to another place that was quite interesting. It was an old white house with a large brown painted cross on the above panel of its double doorway. The whole area was surrounded by a white picket fence.

  It was here they spotted a couple utility vehicles. Karma looked to her friend, whispering, “This could be it?”

  Sun nodded.

  “Okay, so let's circle around to the left, see if we see anything, take a peek in the windows, just so we can get an idea who could be inside. Those SUV’s are working and that tells me people are about.” She motioned for Karma to follow, who had brought her samurai sword strapped to her back and one laser pistol on her side as well.

  The gun was out now in her hand. Sun herself had both her laser pistols out as well as both skirted around to the side of the white house.

  They positioned themselves about to take a look in, when loud clanging bells sent both of them jumping back some.

  “Holy crap,” were the words both said at the same time as Sun put her hand afterward on Karma’s shoulder, telling her to not move.

  Karma whispered, “Jinx.”

  Sun shook her head to say not to fool around.

  Two men followed by another third man and then a woman exited the place. They got into their SUV vehicles and tore out of the dirt driveway leaving a cloud of dirt and dust behind them.

  After waiting a few more minutes, the girls made their way inside to look around.

  Strewn about inside were various food items, empty liquor bottles, blankets, and other various odds and ends. Pews or seated columns were here all in front of a stage, where once an alter stood but had been knocked over.

  “They’re living here, using this place to hang out,” Sun explained. “I don’t see signs of a young girl though, or any kids, for that matter. I don't know.”

  Karma kept looking about.

  “Well, these folks are pretty close to where we are, so odds are, these people may know about us either way,” she soon told Sun.

  “Right,” Sun answered. She figured such.

  It was then that they both heard the sounds of vehicles outside again. Sun went to a front window, peering out.

  Several vehicles, not just SUV’S, some four wheelers, motorcycles, trucks, and a dune buggy car, had pulled up out front. They had now formed a semi-circle out there facing the front of the big white house.

  “Shit we got major company,” Sun announced, nodding to Karma to come and look herself.

  “There's about 10 of them that I count so far.”

  Karma just shook her head, seeing them.

  “Should we try to talk to them or stay hidden?” she asked Sun.

  “They know we're in here. They must have had someone watching out by the road. We may have actually missed their spy.”

 
But before she said more, some guy yelled out from outside, “Hey, little dollies. We know you're in there. You two are awful cute and young to be wondering about by yourselves. Just so you know, we won't hurt you. Why don't you come on out and introduce yourselves?”

  Sun, through the dirty window, saw that this man had long stringy black and gray hair and a matching beard. He wore dark sunglasses and even still had one hand covering his eyes from the sun as he looked at the white house in front of him.

  His crew laughed and also were looking forward, waiting to see how things went down.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Both the young women inside had their weapons at the ready. Karma kept looking over Sun’s shoulder, trying to get a better view.

  “Yeah,” Sun stated. “They’re armed, if that’s what you’re looking for.”

  “So, what do we do?” Karama asked, pacing back and forth, now pretty concerned.

  “Give it a little bit,” Sun replied. “I'm sure they will reveal their true intentions more.”

  It was a brief moment of quietness before the man again called forth to the old church, “There's eight of us guys and two women out here, and a few more women back at camp with the kids. So, the numbers aren't quite equal. I think you two would make excellent new prospects for our little gang. We call ourselves the Devils. We used to have a lot more motorcycles, but ya know, things change. What say you? How about joining our little family?”

  Sun rolled her eyes, looking to Karma.

  The Asian American kept her gun close to her chest.

  Sun made a motion to the back of the old church.

  “Let's make a run for it. There’s no need to shoot these people down here. We should avoid a fight. We can get some backup and maybe a conversation can be had with some sort of meaningfulness to it. They will not listen to us two alone.”

  It was then that both of them bolted for the back door, soon opening it. They ran out into the woods, and right away some of the vehicles started coming that way after them. Someone began yelling, “Over here! There they are, making a run for it!”