The Event Series (Book 2): The Gospel According to Matthew, Margo & Lance

by Thomas Larson

  But that all changed, Teckla, broken with the loss of Frank, decided she would stay in the camp. With her announcement Charlene and the Major decided that it would be better if they stayed too, Karen and Paula were both still in a bad way with their wounds and it would be better not to move them. Ron decided he should stay with Karen. Chelsea, she just didn’t care, she had lost Ethan, and it no longer mattered.

  E said that he wanted to stay at Romanica also, but Del would not hear it and that discussion ended quickly.

  The group to Dalton decided to use Hinsdale instead figuring it was a known place and closer to the camp.

  We would maintain contact the best we could, and give it about two weeks, if, and hopefully this would be the case, if no Hunter’s showed up we would all return. It was a gamble.

  We broke out around noon and headed toward our new homes. It was sad. Matt led us in a prayer, and it ended with a “may we all meet again soon, Amen.”

  It took a while for us to get the place in Peru, the old maintenance garage we had first stayed, warmed up and back into livable conditions. It was strange being back in the place where it kind of all began. Code and I shared the same room that Tom, Mom and I had.

  We had some food supplies with us, and I did the best I could to make something warm for dinner. Nick had given me a couple of his recipes to work with. It was not very tasty, but it was warm. I would kill for a bottle of Siracha sauce.

  I am Matt, I have decided that it would be wise for me to add my journal to the collective. We have seen how quickly things can go bad, and I do not want my thoughts lost.

  We have left the nest today and God will be with us, this much I know. We have sent those who have suffered so to a resting place in the peaceful hands of You, our Lord. Tanya and I have been given His strength to deal with this, and we share that strength with our flock. I wish that I could sooth the pain of my mother, and of those who recently lost loved ones. In time, I will be able to help them, but for now we need to be strong, to survive and to spread His will.

  March 12th

  We all made radio contact just to check in and see how everyone was doing. We are all settled in. E talked with the Major for a bit and then Matt.

  “I have started a journal while we are here, and that if all goes well it will add it to the collective storage.” Matt told him.

  “Yeah, let’s keep our fingers crossed on that one” E replied.

  “Our Lord will see us through”, said Matt, resolve in his voice.

  I was fired as chef this morning, I messed up the grits, what do I know of grits? It is ground corn, you boil it! WTF!

  We stayed close to home today. Del and I headed out for a little recon work but found no tracks, maybe, just maybe we were gonna be okay.

  Mark did the dinner thing tonight, he is no Nick, but he is better at cooking than I am. I think Michelle helped him through, but then, we used to have a Men Cook Picnic before the meteor, and he usually came up with some tasty items. I could really enjoy a bacon wrapped jalapeno right now.

  It is the second day of our deliverance. The Lord has smiled upon us with the find of canned goods and fresh water. All are well and His Grace is upon us. Nick has blessed us with a tasty meal. We have seen no Hunters or heard of anything foul, a devil’s toy, today.

  March 13th

  It is still quiet here in Peru, we have had no visits or signs of Hunters. E has been playing with the electronics equipment that we had left behind when we moved out last summer. He has reactivated some of the old warning systems and cameras.

  Bored, cabin fever….I have my drawing stuff, did some pencil sketches, Henry, Ethan, Frank…..I want to remember them, have us all remember them.

  It is quiet here in Hinsdale, the Lord has given us peace, we do not want. Okay I guess a warm shower would be an earthly delight right now, a hot shower, would be one step away from Heaven. We are holding up well, and still no Hunters. Blessed be His name.

  March 14th

  We had a call from Romanica this morning, all is quiet up there. Karen is up and moving around and Paula is on the mend. The Major was asking E about some equipment issues and they worked that out. The Major also said that he tried to contact the Pittsburgh this morning, but was unable to get any answer. He was thinking about trying to reach out to Lakota or Seminole but held off.

  Mark made the meal again, he is doing well. He has also gotten the hot water on, Code helped. SHOWER TIME!....woohoo.

  The way of the Lord is the way of peace, and yet, there are times when the sinners need be smitten mightily. The Hunters are sinners, though they have no soul. LJ, Langley, Tanya and I moved to the railroad bridge today to see if the Hunters have taken the bait of the homing device. We found about 6 G’s on the bridge and several A’s buzzing about like angry bees. The sword of the Archangel Michael was mighty on this day. They are no more.

  March 15th

  It was a warm and kind of foggy day, we stayed inside. The fog is really eating up the snow. The roads are clear.

  We had radio contact with Matt and The Major, both their camps have had no action. Matt told us about the Hunters at the rail bridge and how they were able to kill them. It sounds promising, let them leave us alone and not be the threat they were to Winter Love. We have learned, we know more of what they can do.

  The Major has been in contact with the Pittsburgh, they had a little information on the Hunters and it helps some. In doing some contacting with other remaining military units, the Pittsburgh found that there had been 10,000 of each Hunter type created. Based upon their best intelligence about 6000 of them have been terminated or shut down. That leaves about 4000 out there. The vast majority of them are in the Midwest, Chicago, Detroit, Kansas City, Dayton region. They estimated that only about 300 are in the northeast. And of those three hundred most are in the Boston, New York area. Originally 25 were located and attached to the Fort Drum Command.

  The Major and XO Gaines figure that we may still have about 10 out in the field that might be an issue for us and of the 10 most of them were G’s. The rail bridge has saved us in a lot of ways. The ones that attacked Winter Love had crossed Lake Champlain while it was frozen over. Lucky for us the Hudson River near Albany has such high banks which acts as a barrier for us, we were for the most part safe.

  E suggested that we should return to Romanica, but that was put on hold. Matt and the Major had also thought about this, but they want to wait for another few days to make sure that the Hunters had not found the camp.

  The Lord has seen fit to allow us to dispatch the evil, the mechanisms of Satan, and science. We must, with His blessings, return to the bridge and send more of these machines, these bringers of death, to judgement.

  Our future will be one in which such machines; these false saviors are shunned, and removed from the path of humanity, in His name, and with His blessings, Amen.

  March 16th

  Are the Hunters really so bad, I have to wonder, they have been assigned a task and they are doing it. It was the guys who made them that messed up. I mean we haven’t seen anything of the Zoms in a while, although that may be because of the weather, Mom always said they slowed down or stopped in the winter time.

  Del, Code and E were talking today about the idea of taking the weapon system from the Hunters and maybe modifying it for us to use. It sounds like an idea, but it’s risky. We would have to try to disassemble the machines, and we saw what happened to Frank, Joseph and Ethan. And if we wanted to use the extra magazines that may be left in Arsenal, well, that could be tricky also. Maybe it is best to leave them alone.

  Few devils to slay today, only one flyer, and it is no more. I think that if the Lord is willing, we only need to spend a day or two more away from the camp. If it remains quiet then we can return.

  With time to spare I have thought about the code by which we live, the Lord’s Code. We have loosely adopted the Biblical Laws, but maybe now, in light of 2000 years of change we should “adapt” the Bible. There are things
that no longer apply, and things that are different from the far past. Perhaps He will give me guidance.

  March 17th

  E was unable to make contact with Romanica this morning; he could get through to Hinsdale. Maybe it is nothing, but maybe…

  “E,” I said, “Del and I want to take a run up that way and check on them.”

  “No, I don’t think that is a good idea, it may just be something simple.” He said.

  “Or it may be that they are in trouble and need our help.”

  “Yeah, but what can you two do that they can’t?” He glared at me.

  “We, ah….” Del glared at him defiantly.

  “I know, I am worried too, but we set this up so that even if one group was attacked the others could survive. Give it a little time.” Said E.

  E has become our leader, I don’t know how, or why, but he had taken charge. It is even more surprising considering that LJ had not tried to take charge. The way he acted when he first got to the camp would have made me think that he would have. But I think that when he found out how we ran things and also that a lot of what he had done was responsible for the loss of many of his people, I think it messed with his head.

  In a way, it makes me understand what Tom when through in the early days, when he was our leader, and how hard it hit him losing Mom.

  The Major contacted us later in the day. They had a medical thing going on and as a result were kind of tied up. Chelsea had tried to commit suicide, and they were sewing her back up when we called. She took losing Ethan a lot harder than we realized. It was a surprise really considering how much of a cheerleader type she was.

  In the beginning was the word, and the word was light. In the beginning were the lost souls, and wanderers, and He brought them together, and made them whole, and safe, and they thanked Him. From Him, there came a community, a gathering, a church. It was not a building, but a family; they were and are as one. Yet along the way the house of the church became more important than the family, the gathering and the way was lost to many. He has brought this plague upon us to bring back to the family, to bring it nearer to Him. He has tasked us, and those like us, to bring the faith, the love, the family back to Him.

  I once thought that it was the building that would bind us back as one; now, now I see it as the word. Thank You my Lord, I will share Your will.

  March 18th

  Another day in Hinsdale, and we are under your protection Lord, all is well. We have again gone to the rail bridge and to our delight we have found no new toys of the devil. It is my belief that the scourge has passed. It is time to re-unite the family.

  It was quiet again today, nothing to report. Code and I revisited some of the homes and businesses to see if there had been anything we had left behind. There was nothing that was of value to us.

  Over lunch E suggested that we should start preparing to head back to Romanica. If they had not been attacked by now, it is likely that they will not be. He thought that we moved the homing device in time and that the machines had been tricked to go to the bridge.

  March 19th

  We got a call from The Major this morning, he and Matt are of the opinion that it was safe for us to return, E agrees. The Hinsdale crew was able to get cleaned up and back to camp by about 2:30 or so.

  We started packing up and taking some time to shut Peru back down to a standby mode. In the afternoon the weather closed in and we actually got a late season snowstorm. We stayed one more night at Peru.

  “I think I am going to read Tom’s journal” I told Code as we huddled together that night. We were protected from the weather, but it was not all that toasty warm.

  “Why, what made you change your mind?”

  “I never said I wouldn’t read it, I just wasn’t ready, and the shit of the last week or so has made me ready,” I answered.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah, I am, he did stuff and I think I would like to know how he felt about some of it. I mean the thing with Mom, the getting us to where we were, I always just took it for granted and never really considered how it, how, he felt about it.”

  “I understand, if you…” but I cut him off.

  “I know you will be there for me. I think that is part of it. Watching what happened with Teckla, and Chelsea kinda opened my eyes, I know you can’t keep this promise, but promise me you won’t leave me, or die on me.”

  He was quiet for a minute or so, then said, “I love you, and I promise.”

  I realized, I loved him too, I mean, I knew it, but it was that moment when we changed.

  We slept well, there was something different, a wonderful peace, and yet a terrible fear.

  March 20th

  We cleared out of Peru about eight this morning, it was a quiet ride for Code and I going back to Romanica. Last night, in that little instant things have changed. It is kind of scary, what do I say next. We have formed, no really, kind of formalized our bond. What can I say, I am 15 years old, I wish Mom or even Tom was here to talk to.

  The world has changed so much, I think about back there before the die-off, we had all the time in the world, the biggest concern was what TV show to watch, or texting with my nerdling friends. Now, it is surviving, eating, making it to next week. It’s not fair.

  We were back in camp about 9:00. It was almost like we never left. Nick had oatmeal ready and there was herbal tea, actually sassafras tea. It is not too bad. I miss Starbucks. We settled into our cabin. It is now no more visiting, Code is going to stay with me in my cabin, no more visits or occasional sleep-overs from the “boys’ dorm”.

  The Lord has seen fit to allow us to return to our home. It has changed us; this time away, we had become comfortable in our place, and in doing so neglected some things that we should be watching for. We lost people because of it. He is a hard task master and teacher; we seem to have gotten the lesson.

  Tanya and I have done what we can to help my mother. She is broken, but the Lord will help us and we will restore her. Frank was important to her, and yet, she was strong before this all happened, and will heal.

  I had once thought about building a church building, and at the time it was or seemed a good idea. But now, now the Lord has showed me that it is not the building, but the people who are the church and he has tasked me to build them, make them the church.

  March 21st

  Things are pretty much back to normal, I guess. But we all keep an eye over our shoulder wondering about the hunters.

  Now that we are back, E has taken back his lab and is looking into things again. His checks on the radiation have shown no significant changes or any serious threats so the sense that we have to move has taken a back seat. We’re kind of good here.

  We are all struggling with the deaths of Frank, Joseph, and Ethan, but there are some who are suffering more. What do you say? What can you tell them, or how do you talk to them, there is so much pain. I remember it from when Mom was killed; there was nothing that seems to help. It just is an empty hurt that we each deal with the best we could. In Tom’s case, he went blank for a bit. I had Meme and Gramp around and that helped. But it was still an empty place where those people you loved once were.

  Meals are quiet; there is still a funk hanging over the place. I think it is only time that will fix that.

  I spoke with Mom today; she is hanging in pretty well. She is strong, and will be okay. I think the shock of what happened has been hard on her. I know that after all the years of knowing him I found that Frank’s death also impacted me. He was a good man, and he made her happy.

  I have also ministered to Taylor about the loss of Joseph. She seems to have accepted what has happened fairly well, it is still a shock, and she suffers the pain of the loss. But she has accepted that this is part of the new world and will move forward.

  It is Chelsea that I am struggling with. She has already tried to escape her pain in a wrong way trying to take her own life. I had always judged her as almost bullet proof because of the cheerful exterior t
hat she has shown over time. Tanya has spent much time watching over her and talking with her. I am not certain that she will recover from this loss.

  It leads me to an interesting question Lord; that I need Your help with. When is it time to let a soul go? When is it Your will that they be allowed to join You in that better place. By holding them to the earthly bounds are we following Your will, or is it a selfish act that has been taught to us by the philosophies of the old world? I must consider this.

  March 22nd

  It was kind of strange; Code and I don’t usually attend Matt and Tanya’s Sunday Service. But this morning it just seemed the right thing to do. The dining/rec hall was full; I guess that with all that has happened we weren’t alone in that thought. What is it about attending church that makes you feel good as you leave? Today, I think it was just about the family, as it is, being together.

  Nick put up a special spread for lunch today. We had ribs (deer, yeah, I am getting used to it), with corn, and some of that new bread he has been making.

  Tay and Chelsea are staying close to each other; I guess they are helping each other out through this. Mark and Michelle are hanging close to Teckla. It is sometimes awkward to talk with them, but everyone is trying.

  Over lunch Charlene announced that Teckla was stepping away from The Three and there was a vacancy to replace Henry. We will be holding an election on Wednesday, April 1st, to fill the spots.

  Lord, my flock has suffered, they have seen and done things that are terrible to the eyes of the world and yet to Your eyes I am not so sure. You have placed us here, in this time and space, and asked us to live. I have taken this task and live for You. Tanya, my helpmate has taken the task also. We do as You lead us.

  I was heartened to see so many of the flock this morning. I realize that it is the result of recent events, but it was still something that made me realize that although many do not turn full time to you, they still have you in mind. We are a church, a family, and that is good.

  Thank you Lord.

  March 23rd

  At breakfast I told E that I was kind of disappointed that we had not heard from the QUalz ship, okay, really it was more not getting any message from Tom and Asuna.