THE END - Book I - Of THE EVENT SERIES

by Marshall Huffman

  “No rush. We will continue to send planes out looking for people. We have been somewhat successful in the Napa and Sonoma Valley area. Found several vineyard workers that had been in the cellars. We found a couple of guys using an old Buick to get around on. They were doing quite well for themselves.”

  “I think we are going to find that for some time. Lots of caves, tunnels and other places that people may have survived. With some luck, we may get this country up and running again,” Randy said.

  “But in what form? I don’t think we can ever hope to be the same United States of America. Hell, when all this shakes out, America may cease to exist,” the Colonel told him.

  “I hadn’t thought about it like that. I guess I was just assuming we would somehow come together as a nation again. You’re right though. It may never be the same again.”

  “If you want to leave tomorrow. I can have a plane take you back,” the Colonel said.

  “I would appreciate that.”

  “It would be my pleasure. You have done us an invaluable service. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all you have done for us.”

  “Well, as they say, we’re all in this together. I guess that has never been more true than now,” Randy replied.

  “Amen to that. God bless you son.”

  ****

  As they were beginning to prep the plane to take Randy back to Pennsylvania a strange thing happened. The sky grew dark, lighting flashed, and it started to rain. It was the first rainfall since all of it began. Everyone came out and stood in the rain, letting it soak them. The intensity started to pick up and people began running for cover. It rained in sheets for several minutes, soaking the parched ground. And then, almost as fast as it had started, it quit. One minute it was raining in torrents and the next the sun was back out.

  “That was certainly different,” Captain Raleigh said as he looked over the plane once more.

  “Think we will run into more of this after we take off?”

  “If we do, I can’t think of another plane I would rather be in. This baby is built like an Abrams Tank. It will take more than a little rain to slow her down.”

  The flight back was uneventful. No rain, no clouds, and no strange occurrences. They circled the small town a couple of times and people appeared once again. A car started for the landing field. By the time the plane had come to a stop, Randy was climbing out.

  “You guys going to stay tonight?”

  “Nah, we’re going to go on to Washington DC and refuel. We’ll spend the night there and head on up to Maine like we were originally supposed to do,” Phil said.

  “Good luck to you and thanks for everything,” Randy said as Phil closed the door.

  A truck came bouncing over the field as the plane taxied to the end of the runway and Captain Raleigh waved before gunning the engines. The dull silver plane picked up speed, bounced once, and was airborne.

  ****

  Rachel came walking up as the plane circled once and headed for the east.

  “Glad you made it back.”

  “And I'm glad to be here. I missed you. You look great. Almost totally healed,” he said looking her over.

  “Lost a couple more pounds too,” she said turning around.

  “Did I ever tell you that you look terrific?”

  “You might have mentioned it but it would be okay if you said it again,” she said smiling.

  “You look terrific.”

  “You look pretty good to me too,” she said.

  “Just pretty good. I’m crushed.”

  “Yeah right.”

  ****

  Two months had now passed and while it was not the same as before, a great many improvements were being made. The two communities continued to grow and each week, true to his word, Colonel Webber sent a plane to check on how things were going in Herminie. They would exchange information about what was working and not working.

  The people from NORAD had an advantage when it came to pure scientific knowledge. They had already started to automate some of the functions that Herminie still did by hand. They also had a radar station up and running but it was more of a moral victory than a practical one.

  Slowly the weather started to change. Rain would suddenly appear and the temperature varied from one week to the next. It even snowed for a short time in Colorado Springs but two days later the temperature was in the seventies once again. Some vegetation started to grow which was the first positive sign that the planet could regenerate. A few trees actually started to bud.

  The people in Herminie planted a small plot of wheat, beans and tomatoes to see if they could survive in the soil. Of course it would be sometime before they knew if the experiment was going to work or not.

  While the two colonies grew in a somewhat parallel course, they had their own unique differences. The Colorado Springs was more military like in structure. Colonel Webber was the authority figure and made a great deal of the decisions with limited input from his subordinates.

  Herminie continued with the town meetings and the council that helped to guide them.

  Both communities continued to expand and Herminie finally filled up to the point that they had to expand to Irwin, Pennsylvania, a few miles north. It was like starting all over but it didn’t take nearly as long since the basic program had already been tested. Just like in Herminie, they set up the relocation and job placement offices in a central location.

  Within a few weeks, with the help of some of the people from Colorado Springs, they were able to get a coal fired generating plant up and operating. This brought electricity to Irwin, Herminie and the surrounding area.

  It was a huge step forward. Not long after that, water was restored to all areas and a central gas station was opened. The amount issued was increased to ten gallons a week so people could travel back and forth to work.

  Slowly but surely life was becoming more bearable. Like all good things, setbacks often occur just when things look their rosiest. Both the town of Herminie and Irwin were soon to discover that.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  Pennsylvania

  “I didn’t expect to see you here,” Randy said, standing in the field that now served as a landing strip.

  “I needed to have a word with you in private,” Colonel Webber said.

  “Really? That sounds kind of ominous.”

  “I won’t bullshit you. We may have a problem developing.”

  “Okay. Shoot.”

  “We have located two new colonies of survivors. One in southern Kentucky and one in Utah. They aren’t as big as ours but they are a concern.”

  “In what way?” Randy asked.

  “Let’s just say they have a different idea of how society should operate,” Webber said.

  “Meaning?”

  “They are totally lawless. It’s like the old west all over again. They all carry guns and have broken up into several gangs, for lack of a better word. They raid each other’s supplies and think nothing of kidnapping women and taking them away.”

  Randy didn’t say anything. He was trying to let what Webber had said sink in. How could things digress so far so fast? What about the good people? How did they handle this kind of situation? A myriad of thoughts raced through his head.

  “I know. Frightening isn’t it?” Webber said, breaking the silence.

  “Are both groups like that?”

  “To some extent. Utah is the worst of the two. They have four gangs fighting it out for control. Kentucky has two fighting and one fairly reasonable group in the middle trying to broker peace.”

  “Why are they fighting in the first place? I mean it isn’t like there isn’t enough land for everyone. Hell, think how few people live in this huge land now?”

  “I didn’t say they were very smart. They seem hell bent on being in control of the same area for some reason,” Webber replied.

  Randy shook his head. When in deep thought he always ran his fingers through his hair and he was doing it now. Webber had
noticed this before when he was in Colorado so he just waited.

  “You’re worried that they will keep fighting and expanding until eventually they start spreading out?” Randy asked.

  “Sort of. We aren’t particularly worried in Colorado but I am concerned about your people here. We have plenty of weapons and the resources to do whatever we need to do to take care of anyone that tries to pull that shit with us. The real question here is how would your community handle the situation? You have no trained people nor do you have the resources we have,” Webber said.

  “This is really unbelievable. Instead of fighting, survivors should be banding together. What the hell is wrong with people?”

  “Good question, unfortunately, one without an answer.”

  “So what are you suggesting?”

  “The way I see it is we have three choices,” Webber told him.

  “I’m listening but I doubt I’m going to like any of them very much.”

  “You won’t, but unless you can come up with another solution here is what I see. One is that we do nothing and hope for the best. Maybe they will kill themselves off or come to their senses. Two is that you can move your people to Colorado Springs and we can form a defense team to protect both our groups. Together we would be a hell of a formidable group,” Webber said, trying to read Randy’s expression.

  “And the third?”

  “We go there and straighten things out before it gets any worse. We form a provisionary expedition force with enough men and fire power to stop this lawlessness in its tracks before it spreads.”

  “You mean we would actually go out and stop this by force? Even if it comes to killing other survivors?”

  “No, I mean, saving those that want and need to be saved. Doing whatever is necessary to allow those people to live in relative peace.”

  “That’s splitting hairs, Colonel,” Randy said.

  “Maybe from your point of view, but not from mine. I think we have a duty to protect everyone from harm under any circumstances. This is no different than if a dictator tried to set up shop in this or any other country we are sworn to protect.”

  “That’s a military view. It still goes against my feelings. I think we need everyone to help rebuild this country.”

  “Randy, you need to see the bigger picture here. Rebuild what country? There will never be an America as we knew it. That is over forever. I said it before and I’ll say it again. It will be hundreds of years before we can even think about rebuilding a country. For now it is still a game of survival. Day to day, week to week. That’s all we can do. Every time one of those thugs in Kentucky or Utah kills a good person, it’s a travesty. We have a duty to help those people. I simply can’t be concerned about those who place no value on human life. I can tell you one thing for sure, if they venture into Colorado they will never leave alive. We will take them all out. Each and every one,” Webber said somberly.

  “Colonel, I respect your feelings, really I do, but I just don’t know. Going down there just seems wrong to me. Look, I’ll bring up what you have said at the next town hall meeting. I won’t let my opinion influence what I have to say. I’ll simply tell them what is happening and what you have outlined as our options. The best I can say is that ultimately they will make the decision. I can’t speak for the people here, I am only one voice,” Randy said.

  “Let me ask you this. How long do you think a committee can run a town? At some point, someone has to step forward and take responsibility. Ruling by committee cannot work over the long haul. It has its place but you can’t run a business that way and you can’t run city that way. No matter what, at some point, you need a leader to make the hard decisions.”

  “It’s working for us so far,” Randy replied.

  “For now. What happens when you get two thousand people? They are still coming in almost every day. You have already outgrown the mine and Herminie. Soon Irwin will start to fill. At what point will those two want to go their separate ways? It will happen. Egos and ambition get in the way and someplace along the line you will need a leader who can step in and hold the group together. With no one in charge, nothing will get done until it is too late. Committees take far too long to react in a crisis and I can assure you, you will face thousands over the next few months alone.”

  Randy was running his fingers through his hair again. Webber knew he was really thinking about what he had been told, not just blowing it off.

  “Look, I’m not saying you’re wrong, but how do we suddenly change in midstream? This is what we started with and trying to change could cause the same reaction as what those people in Utah,” Randy said.

  “All I am saying is that you need to give some thought as to how you are going to govern over the long haul. I’m telling you right here and now, a committee will not get the job done when push comes to shove. The longer you wait, the harder it will be to make the necessary changes. A group of advisors is one thing as long as someone has the final say. A committee that votes on every problem that comes along will never get the job done,” Webber said.

  “But your way has so much potential for abuse. A dictatorship could happen almost overnight. Then what?”

  “There is always that chance. So a lot of thought has to be given to safeguards. Remember when we talked about people having guns? I’ve thought about that for a long time and I agree, they should have the right to have them. It is one sure deterrent to having someone come in and set up a dictatorship. Knowing the citizens can rise up and fight against a dictator is an important element in keeping people free. The fathers of this country realized that and it is still just as valid today as then.”

  “No offense, but don’t you have a dictatorship of sorts in Colorado Springs?” Randy asked.

  “Ah. You think I rule with an iron fist. Whatever I say goes? No, Randy. It doesn’t work like that. We operate similar to how the government operated before all this happened. The only difference is that we don’t have a lot of silly rules and all that crap that kept anything from really getting done. We have a panel of eight officers and they bring concerns to the discussion forum. We talk about it and if a consensus isn’t reached we vote on it. I might add that a secret ballot is used. If seventy-five or more percent are for something, it is carried. Anything less falls on me to make the final decision. I guess you could say at that point I do become a dictator. Just like the President when he vetoes a bill. I have the ultimate vote but up until that point, it is by democratic vote. No one ever knows how people voted unless they choose to reveal it.”

  “Yes, but you could become a dictator if you wanted to. The military would follow you because you are their commanding officer,” Randy argued.

  “I suppose it could be that way but hopefully others would rise up if I attempted that.”

  “Easy to say but hard to do. You have all of the trained men.”

  “Then let me ask you this. If I wanted to be a dictator what would keep me from coming here in force and just taking what I wanted or thought I needed? Look, the potential always exists for someone to try to become a dictator, but we need to start someplace. You want to keep a council that makes decisions as a group, fine with me, but mark my words; it will not work when you reach a critical mass. I don’t know exactly when that will be but it will happen.”

  “Like I said, I’ll bring it up at the next meeting but I doubt anything will change for some time.”

  “So you are going to stay and take your chances?”

  “I honestly don’t know what the others think. Hell, I don’t even know what I think exactly. You have had time to think this out, I haven’t had that luxury. I’ll need time to really think.”

  “Fair enough. I’ll be back in a week and we can talk about it some more. All I will say is that you need to start thinking about what you would do if they decided to come and try to take over here. Kentucky isn’t all that far away and you can be pretty sure they know you are around here. Even with limited communication, word still gets around,”
the Colonel said.

  “I appreciate your concerns. I’ll make sure I spell it all out at the town meeting. We will get the word out to our people that it is a critical meeting for all of us. In the meantime I’ll brief the council about our conversation and your thoughts on what needs to be done, Randy replied.

  “Good enough for me. See you next week,” he said as he waved and climbed back aboard the plane. A few minutes later it was heading west again.

  ****

  Now what? Randy thought. How the hell is this going to play out? He headed back to town slowly, trying to think through the conversation he just had with Colonel Webber. He would have to word this just right to the council or they would overreact.

  Ben had been doing a fine job so far but he was near the limit of what he could handle. Randy saw the small changes in his personality. He seldom smiled any longer and his sense of humor had long vanished. His disdain for those who couldn’t make a decision was starting to show through more every day. Randy wondered just how much longer Ben could hold it together. Then what? A vacuum would form and then what would happen?

  Maybe Webber was right. Maybe they should pack up and head to Colorado and join forces with them. They could certainly offer more protection than we have staying here, he reasoned. Still, even that option didn’t sit too well with him and he was sure others would balk at the move. It could turn ugly fast if this wasn’t handled correctly.

  His mind raced. Here he was acting like the others he had talked to that didn’t want to leave where they were. He thought those people that didn’t want to move to a safer place were crazy. He shook his head. He was acting just like them. I guess I can give advice better than I can take it, he thought.

  He walked over to the Hospital and found Rachel. She was giving a shot to a young girl who was yelling at the top of her lungs.

  “Geez, how do you stand that?” Randy said.