He lowered the book to his lap and closed his eyes in preparation for his nap. A blinking image was flash frozen to the inside of his eye lids. A nagging sensation started somewhere in his brain and tried to force its way to the front. The technician tried to shake the feeling and was winning as he slipped into a deep sleep.
Blinking light! The tech's eye's popped open and he sat up and stared at the console. The little red light continued to blink. In his ears, Bob Marley had gone on to singing about shooting a sheriff so the tech couldn't hear the soft note of the alert chime. He jerked the ear buds out of his ears and instantly heard the alert tone that accompanied the blinking light.
"Shit! Hey... hey dude, wake up!" A snort was the only reply from his sleeping partner. "Dude! Wake up!" louder this time and accompanied by a thrown paperback as emphasis did the trick.
The second technician sat up, startled. "Hey, what the fuck?" The first tech pointed at the console and the second tech turned to recognize the red blinking light and alert tone that had now been sounding for approximately ten minutes. "Oh fuck! When did that start?"
"I don't know. I just noticed it."
"What's it say?" asked number two.
"I don't know, dude. Why don't you look at the screen." replied number one. Number two rolled his chair closer to the console and read the text box.
Number two turned to the other. "It says it’s detected an anomaly and gives the coordinates." After a moment’s thought he added, "Check the printer. It should have sent photo's to the printer." Number one jumped up and went to the printer. He stood staring at the two pages setting in the tray, afraid to touch them. Finally, he lifted the two pages and looked at them. After checking the date and time stamp he let out a sigh of relief. It had only been a few minutes. He'd been afraid that they had zoned out for hours and if that had happened they would have really gotten their asses chewed. Feeling better, he brought the photos back and handed them to his partner.
Number two immediately compared the photos. A bowl shaped valley with a small village and a road running east to west through the center was the main focus on both photos. The first was taken six months ago just before “Key Hole” began its journey. The second was now about fifteen minutes old. In the second photo a partially constructed square could be seen around the small village at the heart of the valley. The square was missing in the first photo.
The straight lines could only mean interference by the intelligent hand of man. Definitely not the work of the infected creatures that now inhabited the majority of the surface. Number two continued to compare the photos. He couldn't tell what the lines were or what they meant but they definitely weren't there six months ago. He looked up at number one. "When's the next pass?" he asked.
Number one checked a counter on a second monitor. "One hour twenty six minutes. Do we wait for a second pass to confirm?"
Number two thought and after only a couple of seconds made a decision. "No. We have to tell her now. If we wait she'll blow a fucking gasket. I don't need that shit."
Number one nodded his head in agreement. "You taking it to her or you want me to do it?" Again, two thought a moment before answering. As the senior technician he should be the one to deliver the news but he hated going to talk to her. He wanted to give the job to his assistant but then thought if he did that and she had questions he'd still get his ass chewed for not being there to answer them.
Decision made, he said, "Nah, I'll do it. She might have questions." With that, he stood and started for the heavy, thick steel vault door that led out of the small control room. As he left, he said over his shoulder, "keep a close eye on the monitor. If I'm not back by the time of the next pass, make sure you get more photos." Number two stepped over the raised threshold and was gone.
Number one continued to stare at the monitor a couple of seconds then sat back down. He had an hour and nineteen minutes now before the next pass. He could read a couple more chapters. He rolled his chair over to where the book lay splayed on the floor. After retrieving the book, he popped his ear buds back in and smiled as the sweet Jamaican reggae sound filled his head again. He leaned back and propped his feet up on the console and opened his book. Four minutes later, he was fast asleep.
Chapter 13
The Future is Ours … Maybe
I haven't had a lot of time to write over the last month and a half. I've gone to bed dog-tired nearly every night since we started the move from the Lebanon compound to the Dell. There have been many more problems with the move and the aftermath than I ever expected. Most of the problems have been minor, concerning the breakdown of equipment and running out of certain supplies but a few of the problems have been serious. And the source of the problems has left me disillusioned.
We started the move around the first week of September and the evacuation of the Lebanon compound went smoother than I had anticipated. I expected there to be problems with that part. I wasn't prepared for there to be problems with the moving into The Dell part. As soon as the part of our group that had remained in Lebanon started showing up we ran into trouble. There were issues with supplies that we had never had before.
We don't use money or a barter system. So far, the way we have done things eliminates the need for money. If we need something, we go and scavenge it. If we have something, it is shared equally with the whole group. Food is dispersed by weight or volume and is based on how many people in your family group that you’re trying to feed. Everybody gets the same amount. If we have it, it gets dispensed. There is no hoarding and the theft of food is taken very serious. As a matter of fact, stealing food gets you kicked out of the group. I made that clear from the start. I won't tolerate it and I'm not about to watch kids go hungry because someone is used to more food than we can spare.
All of our other supplies are handed out in much the same way. You come to Jim and explain your need and if we have it on hand you get your fair share of whatever it is. Just because someone else might not want a part of whatever it is does not mean you can have two shares. I've found that the only way to make a group like ours work is to be ruthlessly fair about things and for everything to be as transparent as possible. I don't allow supplies to be hidden and I explain every decision made concerning the distribution of food and other items. That way no one can say that the leadership, Jim, Dave, and me, keep more for ourselves or that we are taking care of certain individuals. So far, that system has worked well. Not so much now, though.
As soon as the rest of the group started showing up, we experienced arguments and hurt feelings. We've managed to squash most of it but there are still a few arguments that we haven't been able to resolve. It all started over the choice of housing. When Jim, Dave, and I discuss issues like housing we try and base the decision on need, the size of the family and so on, and then once the decision is made we inform everybody involved. If the decision is sure to be unpopular, then I make it and I am the one that takes the heat for it. Before the move, Jim and I talked about the how the houses would be assigned and thought we had come up with a fair system.
The largest houses were set aside to be used as dorms for the single folks we have in the group. The big houses have the most rooms and allow anyone living there to have some privacy. The smaller houses would then be assigned based on the number of people in the family with a few houses set aside for any new comers that might show up and want to stay. I thought this was a fair system. Unfortunately, not everyone agreed with that assessment.
We had arguments right from the start.
"My house isn't big enough."
"My house is too big."
"Can't I have the house next door?"
"Why do the singles get the big house?"
Kat pointed out that she had warned me this would happen and she was surprised that I wasn't prepared for it. I pointed out that I thought we had this part under control. That's why we’d spent so much time working out the details. She said that was part of the problem, we’d taken all the decision making out of
it and people resented not having any control over their own lives. I had to agree with her but I also had to point out that we didn't have room or the ability to cater to everyone’s personal needs. We had to do what was right for the entire group and not base our decisions on personal wants, likes, or dislikes. She nodded her understanding. "Welcome to the government," she said.
I pointed out that her and I had been in government most of our adult lives.
"Yea, but now you're Big Brother telling people where they can live and how they have to live. Not a popular concept,” she said.
"I get it but it's no different than what we've been doing for the last five years," I answered.
She shook her head. "It's a lot different. People thought by coming here they'd be secure and secure means that all the personal freedoms they lost would be restored. They were expecting things to be more like they used to be. Not more of the same in a new location."
"Well that's just silly. Of course, things are still the same. We still have the Stinkies and the Road Gangs to worry about. That's why that big wall is out there," I said, pointing in the general direction of the wall. "We’re still about a heartbeat away from starvation and I don't have time to listen to somebody whine about the fact they have to pack water from the spring farther than their neighbor does."
She laughed and nodded. "I know it’s silly, dear, but you’re going to have to find a way to balance all of this or this place isn’t going to work." I asked what she meant. "Yes, I agree the needs of the group should be your main concern but if you don't try to accommodate some of needs of the individuals there won't be a group. People will become disillusioned, some will rebel and most will eventually leave whether it’s in their best interest or not,” she explained.
I wanted to tell her if leaving was what they wanted, they were welcome to it. That’s not the right way to look at it but all this controversy over what I considered to be such a trivial matter really pissed me off.
I’m smart enough to realize that if people started leaving that some of the skills we depended on here for survival would go with them. That hurt the chances of the rest of us to survive. I couldn't let that happen. Kat was right; I had to find a way to balance the group against the individual. I told her I understood what she meant and would try to find a way to appease people.
When the final move to The Dell was made not all of the projects were completed. We were still finishing the guard towers. They were up and functional but not all of them had a roof and some were still missing sandbags for protection.
Another project that wasn't complete yet was our electrical system. The valley had electrical power in the time before the Event and power lines ran alongside the road down the valleys center. We had the two large generators but deciding how best to use them had been a problem. We didn't have an electrical engineer in the group and they are hard to come by now. What we eventually decided was to use the lines already in place to carry the power.
We built a shed at each end of town and placed a generator in each. We cut the power lines as close to the center of town as we could and hooked up each side to its own generator. That meant that each genny only had to run half the village. All of our handymen had gotten together and thought this should work. So far, it hasn't, and they were still trying to run down what the problem was.
There hadn't been city water in The Dell. Most houses received their water from wells dug close to the house. An electric pump on the well supplied the house with the water. If we could get the electricity up and running, all the houses should have an internal supply of water and no one would have to carry water then. I decided that should be my first project to try and mollify the group. Electrical power and water in each house should go a long way toward pacifying everyone.
I talked to Jim the next day and he thought that would make folks a lot happier and happy people argue less than unhappy ones. He and I went to talk to the guy's working the generator issue and explained what we wanted. I wanted those generators up and providing power as quick as they could get it done.
Our electrical expert was Tony Jessup. I explained to him how important it was to get the power working. He said he understood and they would redouble their efforts to get it fixed. He said he thought they were close and he'd let me know as soon as they had it fixed. That was all I could do, wait for them to get it going. Standing over them and yelling, "Hurry up!" wasn't going to work. So I left them to it and hoped they would be quick.
Over the next couple of days we had to quell several arguments. We even had a couple of fights, real physical confrontations, and I grew more concerned. The latest incidents had to do with property lines and that was enough as far as I was concerned. I told Jim and Dave both to pass the word that there would be a village meeting in the church this evening at 6 p.m. and to make sure that everyone understood it was mandatory. I wanted the entire group there to hear what I had to say.
I knew the meeting wasn't going to be pretty and I needed to calm down and prepare what I wanted to say so I went home to rest and prepare. Home. It's funny how quick I had taken to calling the little cottage home. Kat and I had worked hard to get the place cleaned up and with our few possessions scattered throughout it now had a homey feel. We enjoyed sitting on the porch in the mornings and having a cup of coffee and in the evenings we would sit and talk while we watched the sun set.
It’s the closest thing to a home we’ve had since the day of the Event. I was happy and Kat was happier than I had seen her in a long time. With the way we felt after moving to the Dell, I couldn't understand why we were having these problems. I hoped I could get some answers at tonight's meeting.
I spent the afternoon at the cottage with Kat. We discussed what I intended to say at the meeting tonight and she gave me suggestions on how to handle some of the arguments that would surely come up. I told her how I intended to explain that our situation remained unchanged and that all the same rules that had governed us in Lebanon still applied here. She asked if I had given anymore thought to a transfer of authority to an elected leadership. I told her I had been thinking about it and considered moving that way the next summer if the food situation stabilized. She told me she thought it was a good idea and telling the group that tonight might help to stop some of the bickering. I said I'd think about it as we fixed dinner.
We ate an early dinner and I enjoyed a small bourbon on the porch before we headed down to the meeting. I was still hungry and I knew Kat was as well. Our dinner had consisted of a cup of rice each and a can of mixed vegetables. It wasn't much but it kept us from starving. I sat on the porch after dinner and sipped my drink thinking about the meeting and getting mentally prepared for the confrontation that was sure to come. I wasn't looking forward to it.
Kat and I walked down to the church just before six. The sun had set and it looked like it was going to be a pleasant late summer evening. If I'd known how unpleasant things were going to get, I might have turned around and went back to the cottage.
The doors were open on the front of the church and I could see people already inside. The noise emanating from the building told me that our flock was already deep in discussion and they didn't sound happy. I entered to find Kat and I were the last to show. The place was packed and all eyes turned toward us as we came through the door. Jim and Dave were at the front beside the pulpit and I could tell from Dave's face that he was concerned.
I showed my wife to one of the pews in front and I mounted the dais to join my two assistants. I conferred with each and Dave confided that he was indeed concerned and had stationed some of his security people in the back rooms in case they were needed. Jim just shook his head. "I hope you have something brilliant planned. I think we’re going to need it," he said.
"Well here goes," was all I said as I stepped up to the pulpit and signaled for quiet. It took a couple of minutes but everyone finally settled down and I was able to begin. "I asked you to come here tonight so that we might, together, come to a resolution on the p
roblems we have encountered since our move," I said, addressing the entire congregation.
There wasn't an immediate call to have me tarred and feathered. "We have only been here a week or so and we’re already facing difficulties that I don't think any of us were prepared for. What I'd like to do tonight is find out what all your feelings are and then try and come up with a solution that is acceptable to everyone.”
I glance at Kat and she nodded for me to continue. "I know some of you are not happy with the way The Dell is organized and I'm sure you think that your anger is justified. So, I would like to start by saying that whatever you might think or what you thought moving here would mean but our situation is exactly the same as it was at the Lebanon compound. I think if you understand that, a lot of the other issues will go away."
Before I could continue, a young man about halfway back on the right stood up. "What you mean is that you three are still in charge and the rest of us have to eat the shit you throw us," he said. There was an immediate clamor of support for what had just been said. I tried to regain control by staying calm and asking for quiet. It wasn't working.
The young man that had made the comment was Stanley Hooten. He liked his friends to call him Hoot and he had come to the group while we were still in Missouri. He was a big kid, well over six-feet but had lost some of his bulk due to our forced diet. He was far younger than I was and I knew he had the potential to be formidable in a fight. I could see his girlfriend, Dawn Taylor, sitting next to him, goading him on, though I couldn't hear what she said. Dawn and her family had literally run into us on the road from Memphis. She was young and her age didn’t help her to accept the present situation at all. Her parents, Ricky and Diane, had assimilated into the group well but Dawn never had. I had seen her and Stanley hanging together and hoped that they might help each other accept things as they now were. I could see that wasn’t happening.
We Go On (THE DELL) Page 15