expensive tea to the visitors. He walked to the door and said over his shoulder, “In case you were wondering, the kids wanted to stay with us” and left without waiting for an answer.
He found Chris had loaded the bull without issue but the cockerel he had in exchange was even more foul-tempered than the one they had brought. It was a similar story with the young ram. Its little horns had just started to grow and looked out of place; like a teenage boy with a light fluff of a moustache. He displayed a bit of attitude to Ana until Chris picked it up bodily and slid it into the back of the pickup.
“Good to go” he said to Dan with a satisfied smile.
“Me too” he replied, smiling wider “I’ve done my own trade”
They looked puzzled, until he couldn’t contain it any longer “I’ve swapped Eve for the kids!”
They were still confused, and he explained that Eve had made a huge drama about announcing that she wanted to stay and be at one with nature. They both laughed with him, and began the journey home.
So was established Dan’s settlements first official trade route.
FISH OUT OF WATER
Emma gave up on the idea of using a vehicle after a week. She eventually found a working car on the third day of her journey, living off the remaining food and water she found in abandoned shops still hosting the desiccated remains of the former owners.
The problem was the roads; they were blocked in most places. She hadn't driven in nearly seven years since she had first learnt, having lived in university accommodation and used public transport ever since. She didn't know the city from the road perspective, and using trains was clearly no longer an option.
In the end, she had to travel over thirty miles to the south to escape the built up areas before she began to look for transport again. She travelled lightly, with only the small rucksack containing a few items. She kept the handgun and spare things of bullets - magazines she believed they were called - and kept the precious laptop safe.
Three times she had to hide when she heard the sounds of other people; she couldn't afford the delay or the inherent risk of interacting with them.
She had taken to travelling on foot during darkness; a darkness so complete as she had never seen before. The lack of light pollution made her see the skies over the city as she never had.
Eventually she found a working vehicle, having used the hill it was parked on to get the engine going.
She began her long, looping journey around the country to find her way north. She had never driven on a motorway before, and found that she had to go slowly and weave between abandoned and crashes cars, their drivers showing skeletal remains where they were exposed.
After she had escaped the city limits she took to travelling during the daylight, twice in the first day having to go back up the motorway to find an alternative route as the pile ups had blocked the lanes entirely. She made slow progress, made worse on the fourth day of driving when she struggled to siphon enough fuel to keep going. She tried the radio as she drove, finding nothing but static on every station. Not even an emergency broadcast remained and she wondered if the system had ever even been activated.
She crept northwards, sticking to the centre of the country and using the blue road signs to direct her.
NEW LIFE: OLD LIFE
On Dan's instruction the Rangers had been hunting in pairs further afield. The farms were a hive of activity, with crops being planted and animals being bred. Chris was happy and excited, claiming that the herds would be doubled within a couple of years. There was fresh meat and fresh vegetables were starting to ripen. Apple and plum trees were sprouting and every square inch of greenhouse space at the gardens was either already planted or earmarked for planting soon.
Dan was sleeping off a night shift spent awake in Ops when he woke around lunchtime to noise downstairs; more than
He found Chris had loaded the bull without issue but the cockerel he had in exchange was even more foul-tempered than the one they had brought. It was a similar story with the young ram. Its little horns had just started to grow and looked out of place; like a teenage boy with a light fluff of a moustache. He displayed a bit of attitude to Ana until Chris picked it up bodily and slid it into the back of the pickup.
“Good to go” he said to Dan with a satisfied smile.
“Me too” he replied, smiling wider “I’ve done my own trade”
They looked puzzled, until he couldn’t contain it any longer “I’ve swapped Eve for the kids!”
They were still confused, and he explained that Eve had made a huge drama about announcing that she wanted to stay and be at one with nature. They both laughed with him, and began the journey home.
So was established Dan’s settlements first official trade route.
FISH OUT OF WATER
Emma gave up on the idea of using a vehicle after a week. She eventually found a working car on the third day of her journey, living off the remaining food and water she found in abandoned shops still hosting the desiccated remains of the former owners.
The problem was the roads; they were blocked in most places. She hadn't driven in nearly seven years since she had first learnt, having lived in university accommodation and used public transport ever since. She didn't know the city from the road perspective, and using trains was clearly no longer an option.
In the end, she had to travel over thirty miles to the south to escape the built up areas before she began to look for transport again. She travelled lightly, with only the small rucksack containing a few items. She kept the handgun and spare things of bullets - magazines she believed they were called - and kept the precious laptop safe.
Three times she had to hide when she heard the sounds of other people; she couldn't afford the delay or the inherent risk of interacting with them.
She had taken to travelling on foot during darkness; a darkness so complete as she had never seen before. The lack of light pollution made her see the skies over the city as she never had.
Eventually she found a working vehicle, having used the hill it was parked on to get the engine going.
She began her long, looping journey around the country to find her way north. She had never driven on a motorway before, and found that she had to go slowly and weave between abandoned and crashes cars, their drivers showing skeletal remains where they were exposed.
After she had escaped the city limits she took to travelling during the daylight, twice in the first day having to go back up the motorway to find an alternative route as the pile ups had blocked the lanes entirely. She made slow progress, made worse on the fourth day of driving when she struggled to siphon enough fuel to keep going. She tried the radio as she drove, finding nothing but static on every station. Not even an emergency broadcast remained and she wondered if the system had ever even been activated.
She crept northwards, sticking to the centre of the country and using the blue road signs to direct her.
NEW LIFE: OLD LIFE
On Dan's instruction the Rangers had been hunting in pairs further afield. The farms were a hive of activity, with crops being planted and animals being bred. Chris was happy and excited, claiming that the herds would be doubled within a couple of years. There was fresh meat and fresh vegetables were starting to ripen. Apple and plum trees were sprouting and every square inch of greenhouse space at the gardens was either already planted or earmarked for planting soon.
Dan was sleeping off a night shift spent awake in Ops when he woke around lunchtime to noise downstairs; more than
Similar Books
