Crossing the Boundaries- Chapter Ten (standard:drama, 0 words) [10/12] show all parts
Author: Siobhan	Added: Jun 03 2001	Views/Reads: 2685/2288	Part vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Alyssa and Faith make it back to camp and realize that in order to survive, they must take control and grow up. The camp becomes the epicenter for the plans to get supplies. Only a small group of campers have returned and Ben is still missing.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

and there's no family down there to keep us tied," Tyson looked 
incredibly sad.  Alyssa knew why because he had an older brother and 
sister who were at college.  They were both much older than him for he 
had been a supprize.  His older brother Jonas, was twenty-seven, and 
his sister, Nadine, was thirty-one.   Nadine was married but infertile 
while Jonas never married so there were no nieces or nephews that Tyson 
had to go rescue. 

"I brought Faith up here with me.  How come you guys are up?" Alyssa
wanted to know. 

"We heard the noise and decided to see who else was here.  Are you guys
unloading?" Brenda inquired. 

"Yeah we are.  Sorry if we bothered you with the noise," Alyssa
apologized and felt guilty. 

"No problem, we can't sleep anyways.  We'll help you," Tyson offered and
very soon, everything was piled in the cabin that was now Alyssa's and 
Faith's new home. 

"Thank you so much," Alyssa hugged Brenda and Tyson.  When she leaned
against Brenda, she felt that her stomach was pudging out a small bit.  
She looked at her with curiosity and her suspicions were confirmed by 
the twinkle in Brenda's eyes.  Brenda was pregnant. 

"Well, we'll see you in the morning, bye," and the happy couple left. 
Faith and Alyssa made their beds and took showers before the running 
water was gone. 

"So how was Ben?" Faith asked from her top bunk. 

"He hasn't arrived yet and I don't think that he told Kellin that him
and I were engaged.  I really hope that nothing has happened to him.  
Okay, we have to make plans for tomorrow.  Do you want to build fences 
or plant a garden?" Alyssa announced.  Faith had to think about that 
because she liked to play in the mud but she really loved to build 
things. 

"I think I'll build the fence," she decided after careful consideration.
 They lay there quietly because neither one of them could sleep.  At 
least not with all the thoughts that raced through their heads.  Alyssa 
eventually fell asleep and was tormented by images of her parents and 
Ben.  When she woke up she felt worn out and exhausted. 

Faith and her made a light breakfast of canned fruit before going to
work.  They had to first walk their dogs on their leashes so that they 
could release their bladders.  They then did the kitty litter and took 
Godzilla for a walk so that he could poop.  They then fed and watered 
all the animals. 

Faith tackled the fence project like it was a meal and she had never had
food.  They were first going to build a fenced in area that led from 
the extra door and room in the cabin so that the dogs could have an 
inside and outside area.  They were also going to fence in an area 
where Alyssa could plant her garden. 

Alyssa figured out the perimeter of her garden and began to hack away at
the earth.  She made it a small pit so that the garden would be 
surrounded by a hill of dirt along with the fence.  She then figured 
out what she was going to plant.  She chose peas, corn, tomatoes, 
grapes, cabbage, lettuce, melons of all kinds, strawberries, and 
several different types of flowers.  Dandelions were edible so they 
were planted.  She also planted sunflowers for their seeds.  She 
planted roses and hibiscus flowers because the roses were edible and 
the hibiscus flowers were good for Godzilla.  She planted the vines and 
fruit trees all around the edge of her garden. 

It was back breaking work and soon they took a break for lunch. 

"Wow, your fences are looking excellent," Alyssa commented.  Faith had
got the dog fence finished and they were going to install a doggie door 
in the extra door from the extra room to the outside. 

"Thanks, so does your garden," Faith returned the compliment and they
munched on their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. 

"After I'm done, I'm going to see if Ben's arrived yet.  Then this
evening, we're going to call everyone to the Memorial Hall and discuss 
our future," Alyssa decided. 

"Sounds good to me.  Well, I'm going to finish my fences.  When I'm done
with that, I'm rolling out the wire mesh over both areas so no wild 
animals get in and bother your garden or our dogs," Faith stood up and 
walked back outside.  Alyssa stood up too and walked outside to go find 
Ben.  She watched their eleven dogs race joyously around the fenced in 
area, they were pleased to be out of the stuffy cabin and she was glad. 


She reached Ben's cabin and knocked.  Kellin answered once more and he
looked irritated to see her again. 

"He hasn't arrived yet," he announced and started to shut the door. 

"Did Ben tell you that he and I are engaged?" Alyssa inquired.  She had
to know because from Kellin's attitude, she didn't think that he had. 

"No, you two are engaged?  Well, then I'll tell you what he told me over
the phone.  There was a horrid accident on the road here, some 
teenagers, none from camp, lost control, smashed into each other and 
all of the empty cars on the road.  He says that he and some other kids 
are clearing it away but it's going to take several weeks.   He also 
found a medical student who is willing to live here and Ryan, the 
preacher in learning," Kellin's whole attitude changed.  He was now 
warm and friendly and explained everything about Ben.  Her heart 
pounded with excitement.  He had found a medical student and a 
preacher.  Even though he was only a preacher in learning, he would be 
able to make the knot between Ben and her final. 

"Thank you Kellin.  I've got to go finish taking care of my garden," she
skipped off, her heart light and her mind filled with images of 
different kinds of weddings. 

"Why are you walking on air?" Faith inquired when she returned to finish
up the garden. 

"Ben will be here in a couple of weeks.  He had to clear up an accident
so that he can get here.  He found a medical student and a preacher in 
learning so now when he gets back, we can get married.  I can hardly 
wait," she attacked her garden with a new relish.  The two sisters 
finished their tasks about the same time and took showers and changed 
their clothes. 

"Do you want to ring the bell?" Alyssa asked.  She hoped that Faith
would so she could go down to Memorial Hall and gather her thoughts 
briefly before everyone poured in. 

"I'd love too," Faith eagerly replied.  She loved to ring the bell and
though she was acting very mature for her age, her love for the bell 
was very much like the thirteen year old that she was. 

"Alright, then I'll meet you down at Memorial Hall," and the sisters
split.  Right before Alyssa reached Memorial Hall, she heard the bell 
clang.  She walked in and sat down to think.  They were going to run 
out of running water but she knew that the water was extremely pure up 
here.  There was a small waterfall in the middle of camp and it was 
surrounded by three rock and dirt walls.  It would be a good showering 
area and drinking area.  They could also wash their laundry there, so 
she decided the water issue was not a problem. 

Then there was electricity.  Very soon, it too would be gone and they
would need lights, cooking, and communications.  She figured that the 
communications would be gone completely.  The lights would be taken 
care of by flashlights and candles, also fireplaces.  The cooking would 
have to be done by fireplaces.  Then she thought of cold food and again 
thought of the waterfall.  It was very cold and they could build 
shelves into the wall behind the waterfall for it was not rock but 
dirt.  They could then just store the cold food in there. 

Food was an issue.  They had no livestock and the meat would soon run
out.  Perhaps she should send people to the surrounding cabins and 
farms so that they could capture the animals there.  They would then 
have cows, pigs, goats, chicken, turkey, and domestic creatures.  They 
could capture stray deer and the wild pigs that wandered through camp.  
This would mean more fence building but they could do it. 

People started wandering in and she noted who was all there.  Brenda,
Ryan, Kellin, Bryan, Barbra, Melissa, Sarah, Shawn, Philip, Jeff, 
Jeremy, John, Lucy, Amanda, Beverly, Joshua, Eric, Steve, Natasha, 
Jordan, Cleo, Micheal, Evan, and Sharlene, along with all of their 
siblings.  Faith walked in last of all and gave Alyssa a thumbs up. 

"Welcome everyone.  I thank you all for coming back but then some of us
were just afraid to stay home so glad you made it here.  I do hope that 
you all brought food and water, along with food for your animals.  If 
you can, I suggest you go to all the stores in town and get all the 
seeds that you can so that we can have food once store food runs out.  
My younger sister, Faith, builds fences so perhaps, if you're really 
nice to her, she will help you build some for your pets.  We have a 
rather large problem facing us.  We will soon have no more running 
water or electricity.  I have already thought about this and I am very 
vexed but we'll have to do.  The water problem I think is solved.  
There is a water fall that is surrounded on three sides, not only is 
this a good running water source for showers, laundry, etc., but we can 
create shelves in the soil behind the water fall and have a 
fridgerator.  Lights, well, I hope you all brought flashlights, 
candles, matches, and batteries.  If not, another reason to go to the 
stores in town.  With the cooking, we'll have to use fire, rather 
obvious.  We're going to eventually run out of meat and for many of us, 
that is something we cannot live without.  So, I suggest making trips 
to the surrounding farms and cabins whereas we'll take any of the 
animals found there.  What do you think?  I have several papers up 
here, they are for different activities.  I have building fences, 
making shelves, going to farms, going to town, and watching younger 
siblings.  I'd highly appreciate it if you could come up here and sign 
your name to whatever you seek to do.  Please spread it out 
appropriately.  We don't want everyone doing one thing and no one doing 
anything else," she explained and everyone agreed with her.  People 
began to wander up and sign their names.  She had chosen to go on the 
expedition for animals for food trip. She saw Faith sign her name up 
for the building the fences. 

"Okay, everyone.  Let's go hop in bed and we'll begin at the break of
dawn," Alyssa instructed and Faith walked with her back to the cabin. 

She looked at the lists to make sure everything was set up okay. 

Watching Younger Siblings		Going To Town	Going To Farms Barbra
				Brenda		Bryan Lucy				Ryan		Russell Amanda				Shawn		Kellin 
Jenny				Philip		Melissa Vallery				Amanda		Sarah 
Carlie				Beverly		Cleo Kevin		Jordan Joshua		Sharlene Louise 

Making Shelves			Building Fences Nora					Jeff Candice					Jeremy
Eric					John Natasha					Steve Lana					Micheal Justine Evan Faith 

"Well, everything looks in order.  Guess we'll see how things go
tomorrow," Alyssa sighed and lay down in her bed. 

"Well, if anything.  Fence building will be easier," Faith chuckled and
they were soon asleep. 

The next day, Alyssa again had everyone meet in Memorial Hall. Everyone
gathered and sat down.   They were all listening to Alyssa and seemed 
to be treating her like their leader. 

"Okay, I'm going to read one person from each list and if you are in her
or his group you will go stand by them.  They will stand also when I 
call their name so that you can see them.  Watching Siblings would be 
Barbra.  Going to town would be Brenda.  Going to the Farms is Bryan.  
Making shelves is Nora and building fences is Jeff.  Alright, may you 
all have the best of luck and may we all find and build everything that 
we need," she got down and stood by Bryan. 

"Let's go to our vehicles," she instructed and they all obeyed. 

"We're doing the most work aren't we?" Cleo inquired. 

"No, we're all doing basically equal work because without one we'd
really be in trouble," Alyssa replied.  She was hoping to get enough to 
feed them for quite a while but she really didn't want to talk anymore. 


"So, how do you plan on getting things like cows up here?" Melissa
wanted to know. 

"Well, sooner or later we'll find horses and we can herd the cows,"
Alyssa replied.  They smiled at her and she saw Kellin nod his head. 

"Okay, when you go to a house, leave a broken tree branch or two in the
shape of a cross to say that you were there.  If there are animals that 
we need to return to, leave two crosses.  Alright," Alyssa explained. 

She received yes and okay from everyone.  They all split up and she
hopped in her suburban.  She was keeping the trailer attached because 
it could hold quite a few animals. 

"Can I ride with you?" Kellin inquired.  He had his own car but she
didn't mind the company. 

"Sure, hop in," Alyssa smiled and he sat in. 

"So, when did you two become engaged?" he inquired. 

"When he dropped me off at my house," she responded. 

"Ah, I didn't even know you two were in love, I mean, I knew that he
liked you and you showed some signs of liking him but I never knew in 
love.  When did you two decide on that?" he sounded as if he were 
upset.  She snuck a glance at him and saw that he did look irritated. 

"We decided that we loved each other the same day that we became
engaged.  I think our current situation exploited how we truly felt," 
she explained. 

"Uh huh," he sounded as if he didn't believe her and thought what she
said was a bunch of bull. 

"What's wrong?  Why does it bother you that I am going to marry your
brother?" she wanted to know. 

He coughed in shock at her question then said, "I just think it's weird
that a girl my age is marrying my older brother.  I mean, how weird is 
that?  I don't actually mind you, you're okay, I guess but the age 
thing is just creeping me out." 

"Get over it," she laughed, "You mean to tell me that you are bothered
because your brother is marrying a younger girl?  How goofy!  I'm sorry 
for making fun of you but that just is hilarious.  I bet you'll marry 
someone younger than you perhaps, even, gasp, older!" 

"Ha ha ha, you're not funny.  There's a turn off to our right up ahead,"
he pointed and they turned into the gravel driveway.  She parked the 
car and was greeted by ecstatic barking from two scraggily dogs.  They 
looked as if they were starving and she bet that they were. 

"Hi, pretty babies.  Oh do you need a new home?  I know that you do,"
she pet them and they leapt up trying to lick her face. 

"Aren't they cute?" she laughed out and looked at Kellin. 

"Livestock, remember?  Food?  We'll put them in last," he advised. 

"Right!  Oh, I'll be back," she promised the dogs and they barked for
her to return but she was on a mission.  There was a stable out back 
and they first went there.  She was bummed out not to find any horses 
or cattle but there were three goats, two kid goats, and loads of 
chickens. 

"Well, this is okay," she smiled and they first led the goats and their
kids into the trailer.  They came willingly for they longed for the 
human touch.  Next they had to chase the chickens round and round until 
they eventually each caught one. 

"Wow!  I got one," Kellin joked as he threw the squawking fowl into the
trailer with Alyssa right behind him.  It seemed like an eternity 
before they finally had rounded up the entire flock. 

"Okay, I'm going to break into the house and see if there are any
animals in there that need to be rescued.  Are you coming with me?" she 
asked. 

"Yeah, I'll come," he replied.  There was no need to break in the house
for the doors were unlocked.  The television was still running and in 
the kitchen, the faucet was running and the remains of a broken plate 
were in the sink.  She found a tiny kitten hiding under the couch and 
she cuddled it to her chest.  She nuzzled noses with it and decided 
that it had to be hers. 

"Did you find anything?" she inquired.  Kellin only shook his head and
then he spotted the tiny kitten and rubbed it's little belly.  It 
purred ferociously and then it's little stomach growled. 

"Oh poor baby," Alyssa cried out and searched the fridgerator.  She gave
it a bit of turkey after making sure that it smelled okay. 

"Alright, time to load the dogs up and then we need to head on to the
next farm," Kellin commanded.  She agreed and they got the dogs into 
the suburban. 

"I think we should name them 'Survivor' and 'N.B.'," she announced as
Kellin left a cross of branches in the opening of the driveway. 

"Why 'N.B.'?" he wanted to know. 

"New Beginning!" she exclaimed as they passed several driveways with
crosses in them.   She saw one with two crosses in it and pulled in to 
see what needed to be rescued. 

She discovered two cows and that whoever had been there before them had
left them plenty of hay and water. 

"What was in there?" Kellin asked when she hopped back in.  The little
kitten was snuggled in his lap, sleeping. 

"There were two cows and that was it," she replied and they drove onto
the next farm and were pleased to find that no one else was there.  
Kellin hopped out and they left the windows open enough for the dogs to 
stick their heads out.  Two basset hounds and a collie were at this 
farm waiting to be loved.  There was also a pig and her piglets.   
There was a huge herd of cows and Alyssa cheered to see three tall 
horses.  They caught chicken, geese, and four ducks.  They then went 
inside to find five cats and two charmeleons. 

"What are you doing?" a little girl of about six asked as she tottered
out of her bedroom.  Her face was tear streaked and her fine blonde 
hair was a tangled mess. 

"We're coming to get your animals because we didn't know that anyone was
here.  Do you have anyone to take care of you?" Alyssa crouched to her 
level and the little girl nodded her head. 

"Tommy, but he's only eight. He said that we was going to have fun but
it's not fun anymore.  It's scary.  Can we come with you?"  she asked.  
How could Alyssa say no to those pretty little blue eyes and pouty 
bottom lip. 

"Of course.  Take us to Tommy," she instructed.  She looked at Kellin
and he just smiled.  The little girl grabbed her hand and they shuffled 
to the parent's room where a little boy lay in the bed watching 
cartoons. 

"Tommy," she cried out. 

"What Anne?" he didn't even look up, his little eyes were glued to the
screen. 

"Look," she yelled.  He looked and his eyes widened with shock. 

"Peoples?  What do you want?" he jumped up, his very stance threatening.


"Tommy, be nice!  They come to take our animals but we was here so they
want to take us too.  Come on Tommy," Anne explained and she saw his 
face change from angry to sad. 

"I thought we was having fun," Tommy mumbled. 

"All you do is watch t.v.!  I'm bored and scared and lonely.  I want
mommy and daddy," she began to cry.  Alyssa automatically picked her up 
and held her gently. 

"It's okay Anne, we're here now and we'll protect you," she promised. 

"Come on Tommy, we're going to take you with us.  You'll have animals,
other kids, and food," Alyssa prompted. 

"No, you can't make me go and you can't take my animals.  Anne you have
to stay here," the boy looked and sounded as if he were going to have a 
temper tantrum. 

"Now Tommy, you listen here.  I'm not gonna do what you say cause your
not mommy and daddy.  These peoples are being nice and your being mean, 
now stop it," Anne yelled at him and he glared at her. 

"Anne, daddy and mommy put me in charge and your s'posed to listen,"
Tommy screamed and was starting to get hysterical. 

"Is that it Tommy?  Your parents made you man of the house?" Kellin
wanted to know.  Tommy nodded his head with his bottom lip sticking out 
in a pout. 

"Well that, as the man of the house you do need some help.  That's why
your daddy got married.  So, you could be manly and come with us so 
that Anne would have food.  We will help but we'll leave you most of 
the work cause being a man is a hard thing to do and we can't even 
begin to fill in that job.  What do you say Tommy?" Kellin offered his 
hand to the younger boy. 

"Will that really be the man of the house thing to do?" he asked eagerly
and Alyssa looked at Kellin with admiration.  She hoped that his being 
good with kids was a sign about his brother being good with kids. 

"Of course, it'll prove you to be one of the best mans of the houses,"
Kellin promised and his eyes twinkled with humor. 

"Can I bring my lizard?  I caught him before mommy and daddy went
bye-bye.  He's a horny toad, my mommy told me, but he doesn't look like 
a toad," Tommy pointed to a box next to the bed. 

"Yeah, you can bring him along but you have to hurry and pack your
stuff," Kellin instructed. 

"Anne, go run and pack your things," Tommy commanded his baby sister and
she scurried off with excitement.  He jumped off the bed and ran down 
the hall, into what must have been his bedroom. 

"I'm glad that you are here with me.  I wouldn't have thought of doing
that," Alyssa laughed. 

"Well, that's something that Ben and I are good at.  We do very well
with children and we understand their needs," he replied with a smirk. 

"Oh yeah, if a little girl came to you telling you that she had blood in
her underwear, you wouldn't know what to do," she retaliated. 

"Let's not go there.  That's girl stuff and I don't want to talk about
it," his face and voice were full of disgust.  She laughed hysterically 
at his humorous grimace which only made him glare at her so she 
couldn't help it, she laughed harder. 

"I'm glad you think that is funny," he retorted and turned his back from
her.  She saw his shoulders shaking with laughter and soon they were 
rolling around on the floor cause they were laughing so hard.  Tears 
were rolling down both of their faces and then Tommy walked in. 

"What's so funny?" he asked with a strange expression on his youthful
face. 

"You know what?" Alyssa asked through gasps for air, "I don't remember. 
Do you Kellin?" 

"Nope," and they began to laugh harder. 

"You guys are weird," and Tommy went off to pack the rest of his things
up that he wanted. 

When they were finally all packed up, they turned the suburban towards
the camp but not before putting two crosses in the driveway and drawing 
in big letters, horse. 

They pulled in the camp and were greeted by no one. 

"Well, jeez, they're all too busy working to even greet us," Kellin
commented. 

"Can you find out if there is anywhere we can put our new friends while
I take Tommy and Anne to siblings watch?" Alyssa inquired, her hand lay 
on top of Anne's shoulder. 

"Tommy, I need you to be a man and take care of Alyssa and help out at
the sibling watch.  If any of the nice girls there tell you to do 
anything, you need to be manly and listen and do as they say," Kellin 
instructed to the young boy.  Alyssa could already tell that Kellin was 
Tommy's new roll model and a smile lit upon her face. 

"How is listening and doing as the girls say being manly?" he wanted to
know and Alyssa almost laughed.  She wondered what Kellin was going to 
say to that one. 

"Well, if we chose to ignore them, we could get really hurt to hurt
someone else and that is very wrong so instead, we listen and obey thus 
proving our manhood," Kellin explained and Tommy bought into the story. 
 Kellin winked at Alyssa and she shook her head, barely able to contain 
the laughter that bubbled up inside of her. 

"Okay," Tommy walked over to Alyssa, "I've got to go and help out
because I am the man now and they need my help." 

"Of course they do Tommy," she agreed and Kellin tossed a grin her way
that she couldn't help but return.  They reached the cabin where she 
knew the kids were because she could hear them yelling and it was right 
by the playground.  Tommy barged right into the playground and marched 
up to Lucy. 

"I'm the man now so I came to help.  I'm s'posed to listen and obey you
but also watch Anne.  So, I'm the man to help you out," he informed her 
and a delighted smile spread across her face. 

"Well of course young man but right now, the only thing I can have you
do is help me by playing with the other kids and keeping them 
entertained.  But, before you go, I would like your name big man of the 
 playground," she played along and cast a questioning look at Alyssa.  
She just shrug her shoulders and went to talk to Barbra.  Anne had 
already ran off to join the many little kids running all over the poor 
playground.  She guessed that Barbra was inside so she pushed open the 
door. 

It was a nursery inside and very cleverly done.  Because the girls
hadn't any real beds to set up for the kids, they had created tents out 
of the chairs and blankets.  The children slept under there then anyone 
who had brought an infant, had brought some kind of bed for them.  
Barbra was sitting on a chair, bottle feeding a little baby in her 
arms.  She looked up and saw Alyssa whereas she smiled and with her 
head, gestured to the chair beside her.  Alyssa hurried over and sat 
down. 

"This is Rebecca, she's the younger sister of Cleo, Micheal, and
Jordan," Barbra whispered, as she looked at the tiny baby, "Isn't she 
just the cutest?"  Alyssa had to agree as she looked at the tiny fist 
curled up on the soft little cheek, which reminded her of Brenda. 

"Can you keep a secret?" she asked, her voice more a puff of wind. 

"Uh huh," Barbra mumbled. 

"I think Brenda is pregnant.  Her stomach was puffing out when I hugged
her the other night and when I looked at her, her face read what I was 
thinking," she whispered back. 

"No way!  Oh how sweet but how will we be able to help her give birth?"
she wanted to know. 

"I was talking to Kellin and Ben has found a medical student so I am
hoping that it'll be something that will help her," Alyssa smiled and 
ran her hand over the baby's soft hair, "She's so cute." 

"I know," Barbra whispered and looked at the baby with infinite fondness
in her eyes.  Alyssa could tell that she would adopt the baby girl 
without a single thought, if she were able. 

"Well, I've got to go help Kellin with the animals.  We've still got to
get the horses and cattle so I've got to go," Alyssa got up and waved 
to her friend.  She then blew a kiss to the little tiny girl and as if 
acknowledging the kiss, the baby stretched her arm and opened her hand. 
She had caught the kiss. 

Alyssa walked back to the suburban to see Kellin struggling to get the
goats out without releasing the chickens. 

"Do you need help?" she laughed as he kicked a clucking hen back into
the trailer. 

"Please," he snarled and kicked another hen in and she just about fell
over with laughter.  She scurried over and began to block the hens 
while he got the goats out.  The goats stood stunned as if they were 
shocked to see the forest again.  Alyssa slammed the door shut and 
heard the chickens finally quieting back down again. 

"I take it that they got a pen set up for the animals," she assumed and
saw a smile form on his face. 

"Actually they've got more than that.  They have all the fences done and
we were not the first group to stop back," he explained and she was 
quite impressed. Faith had meant it when she said that the fence 
building was going to be easier with more people. 

She walked behind the goats while he walked in front of them and they
walked to a corner of the Recreation field.  The goats had a small 
wooden house inside a large fenced in area with part of it containing 
the corner of the Recreation Field.  There were seven other goats 
inside and she helped him usher their addition in.  The goats all mixed 
and she stared with content at the horned creatures.  She knew that 
they, as in the kids, were all going to survive because they were not 
giving up. 

The chickens were a pain to get into their hen house but when they were
finally forced in; it had taken an hour and a half.  There were about 
forty other chickens in the little house. 

"What time is it?" Alyssa panted out as she wiped the sweat off her
forehead.  This was too much work for a bunch of squabbling chickens. 

"It's three: twenty-two," he replied after looking at a watch on his
wrist. 

"I've had enough of this for a day.  I say tomorrow, you and I go back
to the horses in your car.  We leave it there, ride the horses, herd 
the cattle, and return back here.  We then put up one of the horses and 
ride together on one.  We get there and you can drive back while I ride 
back.  How does that sound?" she inquired after offering a plan. 

"Like I am going to sleep well for a change," he laughed and they parted
ways to go do their other chores.  She went back to the suburban and 
grabbed the cats two at a time. 

Alyssa walked to her cabin and was greeted by the joyous barking of her
dogs, along with her added additions. 

"Hi babies, how are you doing today?" she crooned but couldn't stop for
she had to take care of the cats. 

"Hi sis, and how was your day?" Faith sauntered out, her face red from
the sun and she looked very tired. 

"Exhausting but what about you?" she wanted to know as she handed Faith
the two cats in her arms. 

"Just as bad.  The fences we got done early so we decided that the
animals needed a home so we built little houses for them all which was 
even harder than the fences.  We even got done with those so now I've 
been lounging around," she explained with a sigh. 

"I've been with Kellin, Ben's younger brother, all day.  We caught
chickens, goats, lizards, cats, dogs, etc.," Alyssa groaned. 

"Speaking of Ben, Justine offered me a place to stay when you and Ben
move in together.  I know that I am welcome and everything, but you two 
together, being mushy, just well, living with Justine is a bit more 
appealing.  I mean, don't get me wrong, I love you dearly, but I'd 
rather not live with a newly married couple," Faith flushed and looked 
uncomfortable.  Alyssa could understand for she had been trying to 
figure out how they would be able not to embarrass Faith. 

"You know that I love you too but I think that is a great idea.  I was
trying to figure out how we could be in the same cabin cause I did 
doubt your ability to cope with Ben and I being a husband and wife," 
Alyssa laughed. 

"Oh thanks, but yeah, I thought that was really nice of Justine," she
smiled and looked so much more relieved now that she knew the idea was 
welcomed by Alyssa. 

"Well, go back to lounging around.  I'm going to take care of my garden,
bring the rest of the cats up, and see if the dogs want to go for a 
walk," she grinned and imagined herself being dragged around by the 
fourteen dogs, now barking and yipping at her from their yard. 

"You mean that there are more cats?" Faith looked astonished and Alyssa
laughed. 

"If you could put them inside and come with me, we could get the rest of
them.  They are being put up for adoption amongst our camp along with 
the dogs that we rescued," she explained. 

"Alright, well I'll come help you," and she hurried into the cabin where
she dropped off the two new additions.  They made their way down to the 
suburban and brought up the remaining four cats.  After that, the two 
girls took two dogs each and did walked once around the camp and they 
did this until all of the dogs were taken care of.  Then Alyssa tended 
to her garden where she weeded, watered, and propped up the baby trees. 


"Alyssa, come eat dinner and then go to the Memorial Hall and we'll see
what we've gained today.  I'll ring the bell," Faith called from the 
doorway.  Alyssa nodded her head in agreement for the sun was setting 
finally.  She came in and ate a meal of baked beans, hot dogs, and a 
water. 

"Very nice meal.  Though, hopefully soon, we'll be eating a bit more
higher class food," she laughed and Faith nodded in agreement. 

Soon, Alyssa walked over to the Memorial Hall and heard the loud clang
of the bell.  People sauntered in, their faces exhausted but happy.  
They knew too, that they were going to survive.  The loud chattering of 
small children and babies were presently heard as the day care center 
walked in.  Tommy saw her and waved with a cheerful smile on his face 
which caused Anne to also see her and wave.  Alyssa waved back and she 
felt sheer joy in her heart and then she felt sadness for she wished 
that Ben was there to share it with her. 

"Hello, everyone.   Welcome back home and you have no idea how much I
appreciate all the work that you did for all of us," she smiled and saw 
almost everyone smile back so she continued, "For all of you who had 
ventures that took you out of our precious survival camp and you who 
watched the children.  I ask, if you can remember, that you record all 
the children and items, what type you had, and so on, on a piece of 
paper.  There is a pile of paper and pencils in the back and when you 
are done I would be so grateful if you piled them back in a neat pile.  
Thank you so much.  Next issue, we have quite a few animals and 
children who need nice homes.  If you have animals or children please 
put an exclamation point by their name and a description and for 
tonight, you'll have to live with them not that is a bad thing but 
you'll have to wait until tomorrow.  Also, we are probably going to 
have more excavations tomorrow out into the world because we must 
gather as much as we possibly can before everything collapses and what 
we have is all that we get.  Those of you who worked on things here 
today and will have nothing to do tomorrow, well, I have a new task for 
you.  We'd really appreciate it if you could separate the cabins into 
rooms.  As in, build walls.  I know that in my cabin, for example, I 
would love to have two bedrooms, a living room, and a place where I 
could store things.  So I'll leave that up for discussion.  Does anyone 
not want to do it?  Wow, you guys are all for it, then, could I have 
everyone draw up their cabin and what they want done, this does include 
fences for animals that you have or would like to adopt.    Okay, I 
don't know what else to talk about so I guess we are dismissed." 

"Wait!" John yelled, "Lana, Nora, Steve, Natasha, Micheal, and I have
worked on a band all day after we were done with our work and we would 
like to perform tonight.  I always find that a little it of 
entertainment cheers me up!" 

"Excellent," Alyssa cheered and stepped down.   The band assembled with
Steve playing the drums, Nora playing bass, Micheal playing acoustic, 
John had a trumpet, Natasha had a flute, and Lana had a set of hand 
made drums along with wind chimes.  They all had a microphone in front 
of them though once they began, it was clear that there was no need for 
microphones, their voices were loud enough.  The group was amazing and 
the small concert lasted for two hours with everyone dancing and having 
a fun time.  Alyssa found herself in the mosh pit with Kellin and Bryan 
and her younger sister, Faith, which astonished her.  They smashed into 
each other and their laughter was filled with an innocence that Alyssa 
had thought was lost when their parents all vanished.  Tonight, it was 
back for a brief visit and it was beyond fun. 

The band eventually ran out of songs and John laughed into the
microphone, "We're kind of out of songs so I guess it's time to head 
off.  Anyways, I saw some sleepy heads who need to go to bed.  Thanks 
for listening to us and if we have times to practice tomorrow, we'll 
also play then."  Everyone disassembled and faith and Alyssa dawdled to 
their cabin. 

"Tonight was excellent.  I forgot of our current position and I was so
happy," Faith chattered. 

"I know, I can't believe how much fun I had," Alyssa laughed and brushed
her red hair off her face.  She was shocked at how much fun she had and 
hoped it would be the same tomorrow.  She couldn't even begin to guess 
how astonished Ben would be when he finally got back and saw everything 
that had happened in his absence.   It was incredible and even more was 
going to be done tomorrow.  She could hardly wait until his return. 

When they got to the cabin she began to sort through the supplies and
she added up everything and her totals were: 

Food Items:					Light Ware: 260 cans of baked beans				1200 boxes of
matches 410 bread loaves					932 candles 749 cans of fruit					1525 
boxes of batteries 319 bottles of soda				437 flashlights 222 peanut 
butter					210 Insta-Flame 304 jelly 1076 bottles of water					Tools: 
36 cheese					2746 nails and screws 42 butter						1459 washers 847 
containers of spices				2014 nuts and bolts 6146 candy bars, etc.				67 
hammers 5 cakes						82 screwdrivers 119 boxes of cookies				522 planks 
of wood 43 saws Clothes:						59 window panes 423 kid shirts					43 
doorknobs 513 kid pants, shorts, skirts, dress, etc.		23 tool boxes 747 
pairs of socks for kids				67 tape measures 357 pairs of kids 
shoes				81 hooks 1023 underwear for kids				53 yards of chain 122 baby 
shirts					47 tubes of silicone 319 baby pants, shorts, skirts, 
dresses, etc.		619 light bulbs 549 pairs of baby socks				14 generators 
312 pairs of baby shoes				718 yards of chicken wire 961 baby diapers/ 
pull ups				517 buckets of paint 821 adult/ teen shirts 1024 adult/teen 
pants, shorts, skirts, dresses, etc	Entertainment: 2115 pairs of adult/ 
teen socks			113  gameboys 1076 pairs of adult/ teen shoes			817 board 
games 3002 adult/ teen underwear		 	530 balls 417 bikes 
Entertainment:					384 rollerblades/ roller skates 716 miscellaneous 
toys				4987 Barbies and accessories 5064 books/ writing and coloring 
utensils		853 toy cars 1749 polaroid cameras and film			916 stuff 
animals/ beanie babies 

Alyssa looked over the lists once more than went to bed.  She was
satisfied that everyone was intelligent enough to survive on their own. 
 She said good-night to Faith then went to sleep dreaming of Ben and 
her parents. 

The next morning, when she woke up, it felt like a normal day at camp
and then she remembered the fog and the end results.  She sighed, 
rolled over, stretched her legs and stood up.  She saw that Faith was 
still asleep so she didn't touch the lights but instead went outside 
for a minute.  She could hear the talkative birds and animals but 
silence of the people.  Everyone was still asleep.  She went back 
inside and went to feed the dogs. They greeted her with barks and she 
quickly silenced them, afraid that they would wake up the whole camp. 

Suddenly she heard, "Alyssa, come here now!"  She ran back into the
sleeping room of the cabin and saw Faith desperately clicking the light 
switches up and down with no reaction. 

"Oh great," Alyssa moaned and saw Faith was about to cry.  It wasn't as
if they hadn't expected the power to short out but not so soon.  She 
felt broken but it wasn't the end of the world.  If any thing, the fog 
was.  They would survive for they had been prepared for that to happen. 
 She decided that the power outage changed nothing for they still must 
gather more and she hoped that they would be able to save a few more 
children. 

"We'll live Faith," she smiled and saw Faith nod her head weakly.  The
loss of their parents and now of the power took it's toll on both girls 
and they began to cry and then laugh hysterically.  School and their 
parents had never prepared them to face a life like the one they had in 
front of them. 

When Faith finally rang the bell, Alyssa was already waiting at Memorial
Hall.  The faces the entered were full of worry and distraught and 
Alyssa's heart went out to them.  These faces were those of her people 
and she thought how much they had changed.  The expressions and the 
looks in their eyes were no longer those of a group of kids coming up 
to camp to have fun but were those of a determined adult, refusing to 
give up and ensuring survival for the whole group.  She knew that her 
eyes and expressions were the same way and she knew that was how she 
felt.  In a matter of five days, she had grown up ten years, if not 
more. 

"Hello everyone, I see that you've all discovered the same thing that my
sister, Faith, and I found this morning.  The power is gone and through 
is it is unfortunate, it was far from unexpected.  We're well prepared 
with our lighting system and our keeping food cold system so, 
basically, we'll live.  This doesn't change anything and we need to 
continue to follow our plans that we made yesterday.  I must say that I 
am impressed with everyone's hard work and by the quanities of supplies 
we have.  I have to admit that I was worried that we would not get a 
good collection because I figured the kids would have ransacked 
everything of true value but my guess is they took the electrical 
appliances, and of what use are those now?  I also think it is that the 
kids do not realize that they are in real trouble which is why I am 
having us collect now for soon they will realize and by then, it'll be 
too late.  Now, let's get back to our work," she smiled and they all 
parted ways to continue their work. 

She met up with Kellin and they climbed into his car.  They drove off to
the house with the two horses and they hopped out of the car.  Alyssa 
smiled at Kellin and they saddled up the horses.  They were both glad 
that they had gone to the horsemanship camp for they now knew how to 
take care of horses.  The climbed up the horses and rounded up the 
cattle.  They then walked behind them at a slow trot and the cows just 
walked on as if they had nothing else better to do.  They reached the 
house that had two cows left and Alyssa left Ben with the remaining 
cows so that she could get the other two. 

When she walked into the stable, her stomach churned and she lost her
breakfast into the hay.  A stench of death and decay filled her 
nostrils and the sight displayed before her eyes explained why.  The 
two cows were ripped to shreds and there were huge paw prints in blood 
everywhere.  Flies buzzed around her and she weakly slapped them off.  
She stumbled back out and took in deep breaths of the fresh air.  She 
had never been more disgusted and she threw up into the grass again.  
She finally climbed back onto her horse and rode back out to Ben. 

"Where are the cows?" he inquired, giving her a strange look. 

"They were dinner for something with big feet," she explained and felt
ver dizzy.  Kellin just grimaced and they continued on.  They rode the 
cows into the Recreation Field, which was almost all for them, and then 
they took Kellin's horse to the stable. 

Kellin climbed up onto Alyssa's horse behind her and they trotted back
over to the farm where his car awaited.   He jumped off and waved to 
her. 

"Adios cowgirl.  I'll meet you back over so start off now so that we get
back around the same time," he suggested. 

"Of course you silly city boy, I was going to say that," she laughed and
turned her horse back around towards the road.  The horse and rider 
sauntered down the driveway and Kellin clambered into his car. 

Alyssa was trotting down the road when the honk of a horn startled both
her and the horse.  She looked over her shoulder and waved to Kellin.  
He grinned, waved, and honked the horn again.  He then drove around her 
and she started the horse in a gallop after him.  They reached the camp 
about the same time and she dashed over to the stable.  She put her 
horse into the proper stall then walked over to her cabin. 


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