THE TOCABAGA CHRONICLES: (BOX SET - PART I - BOOKS #1-5)

by Thomas H. Ward

  MAY 10, 2025

  Robbie my best friend was killed by the Feds on April 27, 2025 and was buried at sea like everyone else. We make white crosses out of plastic fence posts and paint the names of those that died and the dates they lived so they will be remembered. We included the six Rangers who were killed fighting for our freedom in our cross cemetery which is ringed by a small white picket fence. The Army took the Rangers’ bodies away for burial at a National Cemetery. We had a 21-gun salute and ceremony for everyone who was killed fighting the FPF, the so-called Federal Police Force. Robbie was a Board member on Tocabaga and we voted to replace him with Jim Bo who is my son-in-law.

  Everyone gets buried at sea here because we have no room for a cemetery and don’t want dead bodies buried near us. The coyotes would dig them up and eat them. Coyotes are a dangerous problem after coming here in the year 2000. They are fast, smart and eat anything, even people, but they usually try to make easy kills of rabbits, cats, and dogs. We try to shoot them on sight but they are very elusive and roam mainly at night. One ran down the middle of the street in broad daylight the other day. It went by so fast most people did not see it.

  One of the Rangers killed in the battle with the FPF had his wife and daughter coming here to live this month. We will greet her and make sure she is taken care of. Captain Sessions had the terrible job to make sure the dead Rangers’ family members were contacted.

  Captain Sessions is a 6 foot 180 pound man of good looks, has light brown hair and an ugly scar running across his cheek from a bullet wound. He has a very commanding air about him and his troops follow every order he gives them without question. There are a lot of tough men in the Rangers and Captain Sessions is one of the toughest I have seen. He is a smart battle hardened Ranger who cares about his men and they care about him. I like him because you can tell he is a man of his word.

  The Rangers took all 65 FPF (Federal Police Force) prisoners that were captured during our battle on April 25, 2025, away by truck to a secure location, but they would not tell us where they were taken because of security reasons. Who knows, maybe they were all eliminated or terminated by the Rangers, as there were a lot of hard feelings. You could tell the Rangers hated the FPF and rightfully so in my opinion. Everyone hates the Feds and I am sure no one minds killing a few of them. I believe they should all face a firing squad and be shot for treason.

  Since April 25th, we do not have to do security duty since the Rangers handle everything in regards to our security and protection. They come to the bar for some of Eddie’s beer when they get time off. We are all bonding very well and becoming good friends.

  Our people spend most of the time trying to grow enough food and catch 1,000 pounds of fish per day. We have a lot of mouths to feed and 40 people go fishing all most every day. Many take out boats and go far offshore but most fish on the shoreline.

  On April 27th, the rest of the Rangers arrived by truck, Hummers, and helicopters making a total of almost 600 men now based at the Fort. Everyone is happy about that as now we have real protection and a real sense of security. They are always flying in and out of the Fort on dangerous missions to fight crime or terrorism wherever it may be found. Usually about 200 men remain here at all times.

  Captain Sessions gave us the ID badges to hand out to all our people. They hang around our necks on a silver chain and must be shown when we go into the Fort. Not many people want to leave the compound because it is still not safe on the mainland.

  As promised by General Harper, Tony now has an ice machine and we have a huge generator, the size of a 60-foot truck to provide power for our freezers, and air conditioning in the Bank, three restaurants, church, and bar. The church has good attendance every Sunday by Rangers and other Christians.

  We have no Muslims living here now but a friend of mine who is a Muslim contacted me the other day by cell phone. He believes in freedom and the Bill of Rights and wants to come here to live. His name is Aamir meaning civilized in Arabic; it certainly fits him.

  At about 1600 hours, my radio hissed, “Jack, a guy named Aamir is at the Bridge and wants to see you.”

  I replied to Steve, “Tell him I will be right there. Oh, by the way he is a good guy so no need to worry about him.”

  Steve said, “He is with four other men.”

  “Ok, keep your eye on them. I don’t know who they are.”

  My wife Hemmi heard the radio chatter and said, “Aamir. I wonder how his wife and daughter are doing.”

  “I will find out and let you know. Aamir probably wants come here to live.”

  “See you later, Honey. Make me a surprise for dinner tonight.”

  “Ok, but all we have is fish and rice.”

  “Great then make some grilled fish surprise with rice. That sounds good to me.”

  My son Tommy and I left my house after putting my Glock 17 in my holster and grabbing my AR 15 9mm carbine. The squeaky back door slammed shut on the way out. Jumping into my old 1997 Ford 4x4, which still runs great but the radio and odometer don’t work, I drove to the bridge.

  Years ago, Aamir used to come to the local bar for a beer where I met him. We became friends, and many times we discussed religion and terrorism. Aamir is from Morocco; he moved here and became a citizen to have a better life. He told me he hates al-Qaida and other extreme terrorist groups, as they want to run your life and tell you how to act and behave. My guess is he wants to come to Tocabaga to live. Aamir is five foot six 120 pounds, with jet-black hair, and dark eyes with a kind face.

  “Tommy, I want you to meet a guy named Aamir and tell me what you think of him. He is a friend from a long time ago and he is a Muslim.”

  Tommy said, “A Muslim and you like him?”

  “Yeah, he has always been nice to me and he thinks the way we do. He even drinks beer. I know a number of Muslims and they are just like us, only the radical’s cause problems.”

  “Yep, that is true.”

  Arriving at the bridge we jumped out and ran up the small hill that the bridge forms and at the apex I saw Aamir holding a small white flag; he was under guard by the Rangers. Looking down the bridge where Iron Maiden was located there were four other men standing next to a car. I looked carefully at them but did not recognize any of them. None of them had weapons showing.

  The Bradley named Gun Smoke had its machine guns at the ready and four Rangers were standing nearby watching them closely.

  I reached out my hand to Aamir and said, “Hello, my friend, long time no see.”

  Aamir, a happy smiling guy, put out his hand to shake mine and replied with his Arabic accent, “Jack, it is great to see you. How is your family?”

  “Great, Aamir, I would like you to meet my son Tommy. How is your family?”

  “Tommy, it is my great pleasure to meet you. Your father use to talk about you all the time when you were in the Marines.”

  “Hello, Aamir, it is nice to meet you also.”

  “My wife and daughter are okay, but we could be better. I need your help Jack.”

  “How can I be of help to you?”

  “Jack, there are 23 of us who need protection, food, and a safe place to live for our children. This island is the best place and we should have come here sooner, like you advised me a couple of years ago. Is that still possible? Why is the Army here?”

  I was thinking, for a group of 23 to come here would create problems, especially if radical violent groups such as al-Qaida ever attacked us. The question is which side Aamir and his people would choose to fight with. This was very risky because they would be walking around here with weapons. I don’t know if I can really trust Aamir and since I do not know all of his people it is a very unsure situation. I have known Aamir on and off for about 15 years, sometimes Aamir could be a hot head and lose his temper quickly. I often wondered if Aamir had any ties to extremist because of all the trips he would take overseas each year for 2 or 3 weeks at a time. Trips like that cost a lot of money and he did not make that kind of money years ago wo
rking as a waiter.

  Many of our people do not care for Muslims since 9-11. All these years we have been fighting al-Qaida all over the world and now they are here in the US cutting off heads and killing those that do not believe as they do. Rumor has it that there is a large group of 1000 men roaming around the country killing at will. There are also small groups of 5 to 10 men who seem to be good guys in the daytime but at night they become al-Qaida members. They are around so you need to be careful of strangers, as you never know whom you are talking too; you could get killed on the spot. The other problem is IED’s or roadside bombs, which are being planted all over the place.

  “Aamir, this island is now called Camp Tocabaga and Fort Desoto is an Army Ranger base. That is why you see the tanks and Rangers here guarding the bridge. To let your group come here would require a background check on all your people including you. I need to get the Army to approve first, and then our people would need to vote on letting your group in or not. I don’t know all your people and letting them carry guns in our compound could present problem. So it is not an easy situation. If it was just you, your wife, and kid it would be a lot easier.”

  “What do you mean a background check?”

  “Every adult would need to provide a DNA sample, have a picture taken along with finger prints and then Army Intelligence would check everyone to see if they are on any terrorist list, criminal list, or whatever.”

  “Jack that is bull shit we are all US citizens. It is discrimination on your part.”

  “No, not on my part, it is what the Army requires for security. Security comes first here, as there are over 1,000 people here. It’s no different than going through security at the airport.”

  “I am wasting my time talking to you get me the Army Big Shot to speak too right away! You cannot show discrimination just because we are Muslim!”

  “Fine I will radio him to come and meet you but I suggest you simmer down first. Being a hot head, yelling at me will not help you one bit. I have known you a long time and I can tell you I don’t care if you are Muslim. The Army doesn’t care if you are Muslim but we do care if anyone is a potential terrorist.”

  I took out my radio, “Colonel Turner, this is Jack Gunn at the bridge. Can you come here to meet some people who want to live in our compound? Over.”

  The radio hissed back,”Jack, I will be there in about 30 minutes with Captain Sessions, over.”

  Waiting for Colonel Turner I asked Aamir,”Who are the other people in your group, how do you know them?”

  “Five are my relatives and the others are from the local area. Most of them are my long time friends and I feel they can be trusted.”

  “Aamir, if any of these people fail a background check then everyone in your group is suspected as a potential problem. It gives you black eye so to speak.”

  “Jack, all I can say is bullshit to that thinking! I am really concerned about my kid and wife. We have six little kids under age ten. Can you just let the women and kids come here to live? ”

  “It is not up to me, Aamir. If it were I would agree to that.”

  Colonel Turner and Captain Sessions pulled up in their Hummer along with two Ranger guards. They jumped out of the Hummer and I said,”Colonel Turner, Sir, this is Aamir. Aamir this is Colonel Turner and Captain Sessions. The Colonel is in command here.”

  While shaking hands Turner said, “It is a pleasure to meet you, Sir.”

  Aamir replied, “The pleasure is mine, Jack told me that it is up to you to let people in to live here. Is that correct?”

  “Yes that is correct, Aamir. Anyone coming here to live has to have a background check. This takes about one month.”

  “One month. That is no good we need to come here now. I told Jack this is discrimination because we are Muslim.”

  “Sir, I had no idea you were Muslim but it makes no difference to us if you are Muslim, Jewish or whatever your religion happens to be.”

  “Colonel Turner, what if just our wives and kids come here and not the men. Can you let them in sooner than one month?”

  I butted in,”Aamir, why now after almost 2 years are you in such a hurry to protect your family? What is going on and why are you so worried? Aamir tell us the truth if you want us to help.”

  “Well the truth is they are coming and some are already here.”

  Captain Sessions replied,”Who is coming? Who is already here?”

  “The al-Qaida Army. That is who and that is why I want my group here for protection.”

  Colonel Turner, Sessions, and I just looked at each other and no one said a word.

  Everyone knows about al-Qaida; they are a Theoterrorism group. According to Oxford Dictionary, Theoterrorism is terrorism that has a religious motive or purpose.

  I commented,”Look it is hot, let’s get in the shade, have a cool drink, and talk more about this. I suggest we go down to the bar.”

  Aamir said,”Okay, just a minute, I need to tell my men I will be back soon.”

  Aamir yelled something to them in Arabic and they waved back to him.

  Aamir, Tommy, and I drove to the bar in my truck and the Colonel and Captain followed behind us. On the way there, no one spoke a word.

  “Getting out of the truck Aamir said,”Not much has changed here except the jungle is taking over the island.”

  Tommy replied,”Yeah that is one of our big problems, everything grows so fast here. We got a million rattle snakes here so watch where you walk.”

  We all laughed because we all hate snakes.

  As we walked into the bar, Tony who knows Aamir said,”Aamir, how the hell are you doing?”

  “Hey Tony, nice to see you again. You look the same as two years ago.”

  “Colonel, Sir, what do you guys want to drink?”

  “Ice-cold cokes all around, Tony.”

  Tony gave us all an ice-cold coke with real ice. Everyone was a little more relaxed and not feeling the pressure of the hot steaming sun. An ice-cold coke always tastes damn good when you are hot and thirsty.

  When I used to travel all around the world, there were two words that no matter where you went everyone knew. Those two words were OK and COKE.

  Captain Sessions asked Aamir,”How do you know al-Qaida is coming here and how many men do they have?”

  Aamir replied, “I am Arabic so I know; please do not ask how I know. I know a lot of information about al-Qaida that you do not. I can tell you the number of men is anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000. I know that they will kill anyone who is not of the same belief; they rape women, and take children as slaves. I do not want that to happen to my family.”

  Sessions asked, “Where is al-Qaida located?”

  “I do not know exactly, they are everywhere in small groups of 5 to 10 men hiding out until it is time. Gentlemen, I beg you to let the women and children in. I must go now before it gets dark, we need to be at home when night time comes, but I will return tomorrow for your answer.”

  Tommy asked, “Aamir, you said hiding out until it is time. Time for what?”

  “Time to attack here. I must leave here now before it gets dark please take me back to the bridge. I will be back tomorrow at noon for your positive answer.”

  Aamir shook hands with the Colonel and Captain, and we drove him back to the bridge. It was tense and no one spoke on the way back.

  Pulling up to the bridge I told Aamir,”I will do my best to convince the Colonel to let your kids and women come here. I suggest tomorrow if you know more information about what al-Qaida is planning and when then please share it, as that will be a big help to show you are with us. As for the men in your group, we will figure out something, somehow we will help you. I will do my best.”

  We shook hands and Aamir said,”Thank you, Jack and Tommy, peace be with you.”

  “Aamir, how is Rahim doing? Tell him I said Hello.”

  ”Rahim is doing fine. I will tell him hello from you.”

  Rahim is a mutual friend of ours. He is also a Muslim and a great guy.
He looks like a big bear at six foot four and around 280 pounds. He is a friendly and just wants to live in peace. He moved here from Morocco years ago and is a US citizen. I actually trust Rahim more than Aamir. I wonder why Rahim did not come here with Aamir since they are close friends.

  “Thanks, Aamir, peace be with you also.”

  I walked with Aamir down to his car to get a better look at the other four men who were waiting for him. They looked at me and I looked at them. I bowed my head slightly and raised my hand as if to say hello. All did the same, except for one man who wore a black ball hat and black shirt. He did not move but just stared at me. I could tell looking into his eyes he did not like me. I could see the hate emanating from those black eyes; I had seen this hate before so I knew this guy was trouble. He was giving me the evil eye.