my part to defend freedom around the world. That’s what we did then we Americans; we defended freedom.
“Seems a silly notion now but that’s what we did. Now I am attempting to do the same in my little part of Texas, I’m trying to defend freedom here. Only now its freedom from zombies; a while back I would have felt ridiculous uttering that word in serious conversation. Freedom from raiders and murderers and thieves and I need good men and women who can help me in my quest; you understand Mark?”
Mark looked up at Colonel Martin and for the first time he realized that all of this was for real; all of it. This was not some dream and he was not sleeping, he was uncertain why he was just at this moment coming to that realization.
The gold band on Colonel Martin’s finger was a stark reminder to him of what had been lost by everyone and what needed to be maintained to prevent further erosion. He knew at that moment that this was to be his destiny; his calling was to save his piece of the world and possibly mankind.
“Yes sir I completely understand what you are saying Colonel Martin and what happened at the theater will not happen again on that you can count.”
“Excellent. Well it was good meeting with you Mark and good luck; you’re dismissed now.”
Isabel was outside waiting on him. Neither of the two spoke on the way back to camp, it was up to him now and he had to do whatever it took to keep peace in the area and follow orders.
But he had come to realize something in the months he had been with the unit; his belief was that the safety and protection the unit prided itself on was but an illusion. No one was safe here; all the guns in the world would not save this place from what was out there waiting to pounce on them.
He had learned that back in Louisiana, The Wasters would probe for any weakness and then pry and poke until that weakness became their advantage. The virus would not stop at the gates, it would return and when it did it would be devastating. What he didn’t know, what he couldn’t know was that out there were things far worse than the dead.
Chapter 24
June 2, 2026
Two months before Operation Scorched Earth
Mark’s reputation within the unit increased and as it did he and Isabel began to get closer to one another. He saw her children as his own and a relationship flowered between the two of them. Her hard exterior slowly started to show cracks and he was able to find a way into her life
She resisted at first but eventually gave in as she started to realize that this life of hers was uncertain and she may not live to see her fortieth birthday, hell she may not live to see tomorrow the way things were going.
She still had hopes and dreams but they were mostly dependent on a certain normality returning to the world and there was no guarantee of that and in fact in all probability normalcy would never return.
What was normal anyway? The definition of normal varied from person to person. One person’s version of normal would not necessarily be another’s idea of normal. To her this was normal now and she decided to reach out and live again while there was still time.
Mark and Isabel became very close and in fact best friends as well as lovers. Their life together began to seem typical of how anyone’s lives may have been before the plague or as close as one could get and were beginning to relegate life outside the borders of the farm to the back of their minds.
Then the rains returned and washed away the sunlight. Puffy white cumulus clouds and blue skies had given way once again to a gloomy atmosphere. Hours of continuous rainfall had turned into days and days in turn to weeks
The hope had been that the fountains of the heavens had finally dried up and the sun would shine forever were dashed against the rocks of reality. With the rains came the Wasters; they found the camp just as Mark had thought. They found them because they were there; they found the
“Seems a silly notion now but that’s what we did. Now I am attempting to do the same in my little part of Texas, I’m trying to defend freedom here. Only now its freedom from zombies; a while back I would have felt ridiculous uttering that word in serious conversation. Freedom from raiders and murderers and thieves and I need good men and women who can help me in my quest; you understand Mark?”
Mark looked up at Colonel Martin and for the first time he realized that all of this was for real; all of it. This was not some dream and he was not sleeping, he was uncertain why he was just at this moment coming to that realization.
The gold band on Colonel Martin’s finger was a stark reminder to him of what had been lost by everyone and what needed to be maintained to prevent further erosion. He knew at that moment that this was to be his destiny; his calling was to save his piece of the world and possibly mankind.
“Yes sir I completely understand what you are saying Colonel Martin and what happened at the theater will not happen again on that you can count.”
“Excellent. Well it was good meeting with you Mark and good luck; you’re dismissed now.”
Isabel was outside waiting on him. Neither of the two spoke on the way back to camp, it was up to him now and he had to do whatever it took to keep peace in the area and follow orders.
But he had come to realize something in the months he had been with the unit; his belief was that the safety and protection the unit prided itself on was but an illusion. No one was safe here; all the guns in the world would not save this place from what was out there waiting to pounce on them.
He had learned that back in Louisiana, The Wasters would probe for any weakness and then pry and poke until that weakness became their advantage. The virus would not stop at the gates, it would return and when it did it would be devastating. What he didn’t know, what he couldn’t know was that out there were things far worse than the dead.
Chapter 24
June 2, 2026
Two months before Operation Scorched Earth
Mark’s reputation within the unit increased and as it did he and Isabel began to get closer to one another. He saw her children as his own and a relationship flowered between the two of them. Her hard exterior slowly started to show cracks and he was able to find a way into her life
She resisted at first but eventually gave in as she started to realize that this life of hers was uncertain and she may not live to see her fortieth birthday, hell she may not live to see tomorrow the way things were going.
She still had hopes and dreams but they were mostly dependent on a certain normality returning to the world and there was no guarantee of that and in fact in all probability normalcy would never return.
What was normal anyway? The definition of normal varied from person to person. One person’s version of normal would not necessarily be another’s idea of normal. To her this was normal now and she decided to reach out and live again while there was still time.
Mark and Isabel became very close and in fact best friends as well as lovers. Their life together began to seem typical of how anyone’s lives may have been before the plague or as close as one could get and were beginning to relegate life outside the borders of the farm to the back of their minds.
Then the rains returned and washed away the sunlight. Puffy white cumulus clouds and blue skies had given way once again to a gloomy atmosphere. Hours of continuous rainfall had turned into days and days in turn to weeks
The hope had been that the fountains of the heavens had finally dried up and the sun would shine forever were dashed against the rocks of reality. With the rains came the Wasters; they found the camp just as Mark had thought. They found them because they were there; they found the
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