by James Ryke
“He says he can gain control after he sees someone else’s blood. Why is that?”
“Well, the sight of blood at first turns him psychotic. I found that out the hard way when someone walked into your office with a cut on their finger. Thank goodness he was restrained because I am sure we would have all ended up dead—at least everyone in that room. He turned into a completely different person. I believe it is related to what is known as the vasovagal syncope—that is when someone feels woozy or faints at the sight of blood. It is hypothesized that this reaction can be traced back to when we were all cavemen, and that it actually helped people survive. For example, when a caveman was cut, and he was bleeding pretty heavily, if he passed out, it would drop his blood pressure and heart rate and slow their bleeding—thus allowing them to survive longer. It seems that Serum 71 somehow enhanced and tweaked the vasovagal response. Instead of feeling woozy or passing out, Chass is first driven mad by it, but once it is on his hands, he can regain control.”
“What can be done for him? Can he…ever… be the same?”
The Doctor looked down, his mind carefully selecting the proper words. “Well, the first thing I started doing was getting a collection of blood from some in the Congregation—this was something I had already started doing to prepare for the upcoming conflict. Every time Chass seems to lose it, I use the blood to calm him back down. Of course, when I first pull out the bag of blood, he loses it completely, but after a few minutes of the blood being on his hands, he relaxes. I have also tried a few medications, and they seem to level out his mental state. A very high level of Ritalin, sedatives, and anti-depressants are helping—but, I only have a very limited supply. He is taking such a high dose that I doubt it will last more than a few months.”
“What about his sense of empathy?”
“The best things he has that’ll help him are his memories. He remembers what it was like to be in love and have friends he could trust. I think that’s the difference between him and someone that has a serious psychological disorder. He remembers what it was like to grow up with you and Rick and to have loving parents. It was his memories that drove him to come back here and tell us what the Executor is planning. Right now, he doesn’t give a damn about the two of you, but he remembers that he once did. But as time passes by and his memories start to fade, I feel that it will be increasingly more difficult for him to relate to anyone that is not like him. I feel that with medication, we don’t have to keep him tied up, but without it, who can tell.”
“Do you think that’s safe?”
“I think that he is much more likely to get aggressive when he is tied up than when he is not—and the medication keeps him pretty sedated. Rick agrees with me.”
Isaac paused for a moment, his brain spinning with possible solutions. “All right, let’s just hope that we don’t come to regret this decision.”
***
“It will be essential for us to cut murder holes into the roof that point down to the ground—that way, no one on the roof will have to expose themselves when they’re returning fire.” Rick paced back and forth as he talked.
“I thought I was on the ‘do not talk to list,’” Kate said.
The two of them were now standing on top of Costco, their clothes dark with sweat and covered in dust. The sun had just begun to set, sending out a perpetually changing light that dipped into the horizon. Kate was wearing a pair of tight jeans and a low-neck blue shirt that emphasized her bust line.
Rick looked at Kate, his eyes locking onto hers. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but the last conversation that we had, I apologized to you, and you blew up at me. You were the one that said, ‘don’t ever talk to me again.’”
Kate folded her arms. “Well, your apology sucked. I felt worse after than before. And even if that was what I said, here you are, talking to me again.”
Rick walked over to the edge of the building and placed his hands on the three-foot-high wall. “All right, I promise you that I’ll keep our conversation completely professional. But, before I do, let me add this: I was wrong about you.”
“Oh, yeah?” Kate said, her hands balling into fists. “How’s that?”
“I tried the solar-powered vehicles you made the other day,” Rick answered. “They were ingenious—I never thought something like that could be created in a situation like this. You have been behind every major project that has improved the lives of the Congregation. The water collection system has pressurized the sinks, and now we have running water; you hooked up the battery bank to the lights so now we have electricity; it was your intuition that got the toilets running; the electrical water heater gives us instant hot water and does so efficiently; and even the stupid gasifier provides a gas we can use for cooking. Most of that stuff doesn’t matter in a survival situation—we would be able to live without it—”
Kate tried to interject but Rick talked over her, “—but your inspiration does. I lecture people all day about what needs to be done, and they’ll do it, but only the bare minimum of what I ask them. With you, it’s different. With you,” Rick looked straight at Kate, “these people believe that their lives will be better. You give them hope—not like the churchy hope that Isaac gives them, which also seems important, but something that’s more tangible.”
Kate frowned, her brow furled in confusion. This was not the way she thought the conversation was going to go, and she felt disarmed—even betrayed at Rick’s shift in opinion.
Rick turned back to the sunset, “I saw this coming, you know. I didn’t know exactly how things were going to end, but after seeing so many indicators of a collapse, it was inevitable. I planned every scenario in my head, even sometimes entertaining the most bizarre, but no matter how much I planned, I’m amazed at how different everything is from what I thought it would be.”
Kate walked to Rick’s side and looked towards the sunset. “How so?”
“The things I thought would be important,” Rick answered, “are still really important, but there are other things that I did not give too much thought towards that seem just as vital.”
“Like what?”
“Let me explain it this way: Several years ago, I spent hours trying to convince my wife of how horrible and brutal the world would become—about how quickly even the best of us would turn into devils in order to survive. Long before my wife and I had ever met, I had seen the worst of humanity, and so, I spent my life preparing for it. This hell-like world is one where only the strong seem to survive—and that was my approach to this situation and, to some extent, it still is. That’s why I push people so hard—because I know if I don’t, it will result in a level of suffering that no one should have to endure. Now, especially now, none of us can afford to be complacent.”
“But what has changed?”
Rick rubbed his face with his hands, “It’s easy to get stuck into a situation where survival is all that we think about—where it becomes the end of every decision. I thought that as soon as Isaac saw what the world would really be like, he would exchange his charity for a more practical attitude. But he hasn’t—if anything, this situation has strengthened him. I was so sure that within a few weeks, the Congregation would become just as hell-bent on living like the rest of the world. I thought they would completely reject their faith in humanity and turn into a reflection of how wretched the world has become. But they haven’t—if anything, they’ve become better for it.”
“Why do you think so little of people?” Kate said, her voice softening to a whisper.
Rick looked down, took a deep breath, and paused. “I fell madly in love with my wife when we first met. She took a little more convincing than me, but when we were finally married, I thought that my joy had peaked. Of course, we had our fights, but she was always a good person—a good individual that did not judge other people. And then we had a baby boy; his name was David. When I saw him born, I was overcome with an emotion that extended far beyond anything I had ever felt—even with
my wife. From that day on, even the mere thought of my child made me smile. All of my priorities changed. The country I was living in was not the place I wanted my family to grow up in. I left my employment at the CIA and began to campaign to be a United States Senator. I know it might not seem like it now, but I believed that I could help change how things had become.
“I was not the most popular candidate, but my ‘common sense’ agenda seemed to be steadily gaining media attention. I proposed laws that only would apply to congressional members—such as mandatory yearly background checks, strict enforcement of insider trading laws, and pay cuts to every member of Congress who failed to pass a budget. Three months after I began running for office, my wife and child were murdered.”
Kate gasped.
Rick continued. “Fortunately, it was quick and painless—they were most likely asleep when they were shot. The news media flipped the story as a home robbery that had just gone bad—despite the intruders not taking anything. The police, either because they lacked funding or they were bought off, barely looked into the case. My entire world had been flipped upside down because I represented a small threat to some political opponent.”
Kate touched Rick’s arm, “I’m so sorry. I had no idea. Can I ask you something and, please don’t be offended?”
“Yes.”
“Is that why you eat alone? You always serve yourself three plates…are the other two for them?”
Rick clenched his jaw, noticeably taken aback by the question. “That doesn’t matter.”
“I’m sorry, Rick,” Kate said, her face brightening with a red glow, “I didn’t mean to—”
“No, you’re right…,” Rick said, his voice softening. “I…miss them…I miss them so much. But, I’m losing them: My son was young when he died—so young that I still did not have a good idea of what he was going to look like. Even my wife’s memory is fading. Before the EMP, I began and ended my day in a bottle of alcohol. The more I drank, the more real their memories became. I haven’t had a sip of alcohol since this all started—and now, their memories are fading. This whole situation has brought new sobering clarity.”
“I’m sorry to bring up something so painful.”
Rick stayed silent for several moments. He let out a long sigh. “After they were murdered, I spent several more months looking into the case, trying to figure out who was responsible. I never found out who ordered the murder of my family, but I did find out that these ‘political hits’ had become widely used by influential people. The whole system was much more corrupt than what I had anticipated. What I uncovered was a powerful truth: The system was unsustainable. Between the rising food and energy costs, the diminishing value of the US currency, the depletion of natural resources, the massive government debt, the change in global weather patterns, and the collapse of Europe, the world as it existed, was on a collision course with disaster. It was as if my eyes were opened. Preparing for the future became my only obsession.”
“If I would have met you before this crisis,” Kate said as she looked at Rick with a painful smile, “I would have laughed in your face—I used to think that alarmists were either crazy or they were selling something. I was the eternal optimist—I hope I still am. Maybe that’s what motivates me to get out of bed and work so hard each day.”
“It’s more than that, Kate,” Rick replied. “You’re a leader, and if something happens to me, you’ll be the one who takes my place. Isaac will still run the organization of the groups, but you’ll give them direction. You’re smart and adaptive, much more so than anyone else here. And you’re strong-willed—almost to a fault.”
“What are you talking about if something happens to you?”
“I’m taking a dozen of our best soldiers on a supply run.”
“Supplies? Like what?”
“Firearms. We only have forty-six rifles and a dozen handguns, and our ammo is limited. We need at least six times that if we’re going to stand a chance.”
“Where are you going to get that many weapons?”
“The Executor.”
“That’s suicide. How big is his army—seven thousand people or something—you can’t face that. There’s no way you can steal firearms from them. That’s crazy.”
“Crazy or not, we need more guns, and he’s the only one in the area that has what we need. As it is, we don’t have enough firepower to mount an effective defense. I already spoke to Isaac. If I don’t come back, you are the one to take my place.”
“I don’t have any tactical training; I can’t teach anyone about combat.”
“I’ve already assigned people to take over the tactical training; you just have to take my position as the head of the Security Force. It shouldn’t be hard since, as you once said, ‘I don’t do anything.’”
Her face turned a deep crimson red. “Did I say that? That doesn’t sound like me.”
Rick laughed.
Neither one spoke for several moments. Finally, Kate broke the silence. “How long will you be gone?”
“A week—maybe two. We have to take our time approaching the Executor. If he knows we’re in the area, it will make our task that much harder.”
“Ok,” Kate said flatly.
“I need you to begin the construction of our defenses.”
“Like what?”
Rick kneeled. “We need to have murder holes drilled into the roof that aim down at the ground at varying angles. The holes should have enough room for a gun to shoot through, but not enough room so that the person is exposed. We can use the existing drains, but there aren’t enough of them.”
“Why don’t we just shoot over the railing?”
“Like you said, they have several thousand well-armed soldiers, and you can guarantee they’ll have snipers that’ll take out any head that peers over the wall. Murder holes will limit our visibility and our range, but they’ll offer far more protection. We can’t fight a battle of attrition with the Executor. Ideally, the murder holes will cover various angles of fire so that it will be impossible for the attackers to know who is covering what area. Each murder hole station needs to be reinforced with sandbags or concrete.”
“But what about the retaining wall? Won’t that stop a bullet?”
“It will stop most bullets, but it won’t take too many shots before the wall starts to give way. If it’s reinforced, they’ll have to use thousands of bullets just to clear out each murder hole. We also need to construct several sniper ports from inside the building—that’ll give us an increased range that won’t sacrifice our cover. Each sniper needs three or four holes that they can rotate between so that their position is not readily identified. The sniper holes will need to be at different elevations on the existing metal shelving. They’ll have to learn how to change their positions of fire.”
“I feel like I should be writing all of this down.”
“The murder holes will be your priority, but I also have three more important tasks. We need you to remove the parked vehicles from the parking lot and plant vehicle barriers all around the building. The most dangerous thing we face is the possibility that a vehicle filled with explosives is rammed into the front gate. Anything concrete will work—as long as you bury them vertically and about half of it in the dirt. Highway barricades would be ideal. Remember: the most important thing is that they’re difficult to remove. It might be smart to anchor them somehow. The old tractor and forklift you got working will be the only things strong enough to carry the barriers—the holes, however, will probably have to be dug by hand.”
“It’s a good thing we found a pallet of gloves then,” Kate said with half a smile.
“The last thing that I need you to work on, and this is almost as important as the murder holes, is a structure inside of Costco. The existing shelves will work perfectly, but you’ll have to disassemble them and reassemble them into the positions you want. In the very middle of the building, I need you to build a large square structure that stretche
s to the roof. You’ll need to add multiple floors to this inner structure because this is where everyone will be sleeping as soon as it’s complete.”
“Why do you need everyone sleeping in the same spot—everyone is just getting used to the open space in Costco?”
“I know, but this is important. The structure also needs to be airtight—don’t let anyone cut holes in it to make windows, despite how hot it gets. If anything, you can put a fan that blows air from the ceiling and down through the structure. The weather is starting to cool down, so I don’t think the heat will be much of a problem. If you get time, and you have the resources, I need you to weld steel plates to the sides of the structure of at least the first two levels. These plates have to be at least an inch and a half thick, but the thicker, the better.”
“I don’t understand. Why—”
Rick shook his head, “I’ll tell you, but this is something you have to play pretty close to the chest. Only a few people can know the purpose behind the structure; otherwise, we’ll lose the element of surprise. Also, you might want to pick Jane’s brain for any good defensive strategies—she’s a pretty smart kid. Don’t tell her about the special project, though—I don’t know how well she can keep a secret.”
“Well,” Kate said, with an exaggerated sigh, “is that all you need me to do.”