Final Dawn: Escape From Armageddon (22 page)

     They came upon the chain link fence. Just behind it was the canvas smell barrier that hung from ceiling to floor.

     “We’re getting ready to enter the industrial area. As you can see, the gate to this fence is not locked. That’s because
many of our workers go in and out of the area throughout the day. Some of you will too, as you volunteer to help in the various areas.

     “The fence has several purposes. First of all, it is intended to keep the pets and children out of this area. Please stress to your little ones that they are not to go past this point unless they’re with an adult.

     “Also, it’s to serve as a reminder that this area is dangerous. If you’re not working in one of the areas behind this fence, you should stay out.

     She smiled. “As for the
big canvas tarp and its purpose? I’m not going to tell you. But you’ll know as soon as we walk through it.

     Sure enough, as the group walked through the canvas barrier, some of the more sensitive noses turned up. They were greeted by the very distinct smells of livestock and their droppings, mixed with the aroma of diesel fuel and the exhaust from one of the diesel generators, which
Bryan had fired up and tested earlier in the day.

     “Here in Bay 14 is our power plant. It is extremely dangerous in there. Please
stay out unless you’re with Bryan, helping him do something. We certainly don’t want anyone being electrocuted. This is the only bay in the whole mine where we have a locked gate.

     “This is Bay 15, and as you can see, it contains our water storage. Each of those huge tanks contains 5,000 gallons of water. I know you can’t even see the end of the row
s, so I’ll save you the trouble of trying to count them. There are 140 of them. That’s a lot of water, but it’ll take that much to keep us alive for several years.

     “All of the swimming pools that you see
full of water are not for swimming. They’re for water also. Just as added insurance we’re going to keep collecting water from our city faucet as long as the city water station is still operating. Or until we run out of things to fill.

     “Bay 16 holds all of our cattle, pig and chicken feed. You’ll find three different brands of dog food and three different brands of cat food on the shelves in our
Walmart. This is where the main supply is stored. If the Walmart is out of your favorite brand, let Sarah know and she’ll come and get some from here to restock it.

    
“They came to the livestock bay. “This is Bay 17. All of the cows are friendly, so if your little ones want to go and pet them, that’s fine. Please don’t let them get too attached to these animals though.”

     The adults in the group understood why, but didn’t say anything.

     “Nearing the end now, this is Bay 18. As you can see, it has everything we need to process meat for the kitchen. And since we have little ones present, I won’t elaborate beyond that.

     “Bay 19 is our dump. You’ll notice as you get settled in that all of our trash cans are marked either ‘paper’ or ‘non-paper.’ We’re separating our garbage in this manner in case we ever run low on diesel fuel, and have to start burning our garbage as fuel. Hopefully it’ll ne
ver come to that, but it’s an added precaution we’re taking. Just in case.

     “Bay
20. The reason we have a fence in this area is because of the diesel fuel in those tanks. When they work in this area, the guys wear special booties and coveralls that minimize the static electricity and lessen the chance of fires. Please, please, don’t ever go into this area unless you’re working with Mark or Bryan and they explain all the procedures to you.

     “The last bay I want to show you is Bay 21. As you can see, there are a variety of vehicles parked here. These will be very carefully maintained while w
e’re here, and driven around this part of the mine on a regular basis, so that they still work when we break out. These are the vehicles we’ll use to farm our crops and gather supplies once we leave the mine.

     “The last three bays, numbers 22 through 24, are being used for storage and supplies. All there are
in those bays are stacks and stacks of boxes and lumber and stuff. Not worth seeing, but you’re welcome to walk over and check it all out if you wish.”

     No one wanted to.

     So Hannah continued.

     “Well, it looks like it’s almost
lunch time, so let’s all head back to the dining room and enjoy a hot meal. Mark will take over for me there and share some more information with you while we’re eating.”

     The group walked back to Bay 9, asking questions of Hannah along the way.

     Little Anna, Debbie’s daughter, asked if there was a pony she could ride.

     Hannah grew sad and went to one knee.

     “No, honey, there isn’t, and I’m sorry. But I’ll tell you what. How about if we make Uncle Mark your personal pony? We’ll tell him that he has to put you on his shoulders and take you for a pony ride whenever you want. And if he ever says no we’ll spank him and make him go to his room. Okay?”

     Anna giggled. “Okay,” she said. “It’s a deal.”

     As they neared Bay 9, an old fashioned dinner bell started to chime. Mark had hung it on the kitchen wall for the kitchen staff to signal when each meal was ready. And everyone gathered at the kitchen’s serving line, where forty trays were lined up for the taking.

     Each person took a tray and found a seat.
Bryan remained standing after the last person took his seat, and offered a short prayer.

     “Dear God, thank you for the blessings we’re about to receive. Thank you so much, Lord, for the opportunity to gather here in this place and enjoy each other’s company. And for the chance to continue our lives together under your guidance and wisdom. We will carry on, with your continued blessings and in your name. Amen.”

-46-

     After Bryan was finished, Mark stood up to speak.

     “May I have everyone’s attention, please
? I don’t want to interrupt your meal, but there are a lot of other things we need to discuss, and the best time to get everyone together is at mealtime. So please continue to eat, while we share the information with you.

     “And please, feel free to interrupt me at any time if you have any questions.

     “On the wall behind me is a list of all of the positions we need filled with volunteers. One of the best ways to fight boredom for the next few years will be to stay busy. There are plenty of jobs to keep everyone occupied, and we’re encouraging everyone to find something that interests them and volunteer for it.

     “However, we will never force anyone to work if they don’t want to
.”

     Robert, David’s brother, read down the list on the white board behind Mark, and broke the ice.

     “I see there’s two positions for the water plant. What’s involved in that?”

     “Mark smiled and said “Thanks for asking, Robert. The water plant positions involve refilling each RV’s water tanks twice a week with clean, recycled water, and emptying the shower water from each RV and transferring it to the water plant. It also involves treating the water at the plant, by adding various chemicals, aerating it, and testing it twice a day to see how each batch is progressing. As in every one of these positions, we’ll provide training and someone will help you. None of these jobs involve working alone. In every case, there will be at least one other person working with you.
This particular position would require each volunteer to work probably twenty to thirty hours per week.”

     Robert said “Well, you can put me down for one of those slots.”

     Mark complied with Robert’s request and wrote ‘Robert’ in block letters next to the entry.

     “Anyone else?”

     No response.

     “Okay, I’ll move on then. If any of you have any questions about the other positions, please see myself or Bryan in the next day or two and we’ll tell you what’s involved for each one.

     “For those of you who are new, we have been discussing the type of government we want to have in the mine going forward. We’ve come up with an idea, but wanted to fly it by you new folks to see if it was acceptable to you.

     “It is important that you do not see the mine as belon
ging to the four of us who set it up. That’s not the case at all. The mine belongs to all of us. Each of us is an equal partner, and should have an equal say in how it is run and the decisions that have to be made.

    
“For the past week, we have been kicking around different ideas for running the mine, and what we’re all recommending is that we borrow some things from some of the Native American tribes, and other things from our modern United States government.

     “What we’re proposing is that we get together one evening a week right here, in this room. We’ll have an elected speaker to do what I’m doing right now, and opening up the discussion and keeping order. The speaker will have no more power than anyone else. He or she will just keep things moving
and maintain a certain decorum.

     “Under our plan, anyone at the weekly meeting can bring up any matter of discussion they wish. Say, you don’t like the amount of calories we’re being given with each meal and would like to see it increased. You stand up and raise your point, and state your reasons why. Then, one at a time, in an orderly fashion, anyone else who wants to add their input either for or against your proposal will have their turn to speak. After everyone has stated their opinions, we will ask for a show of hands.

     “Everyone who is over eighteen years of age may vote. Persons who are younger than eighteen may attend the meetings, but are not allowed to participate in either the discussions or the voting.

     “If the majority of the votes are in favor of an increase in calories, then the calories will be increased.

     “In the event of a tie vote, our three elders will vote a second time. Since there will always be three elders, and since each must vote in the event of a tie, there will always be a decision made.

     “The elders are simply the three eldest members of our group. Native Americans placed great respect and dignity upon the elders in the tribe, and we should do the same. The elders, because of their experiences and wisdom, o
ccupied a place of honor, and enjoyed special privileges due their position.

    
“For example, you’ll notice on the white board behind me that we are looking for three volunteers for elder aids. Two females and one male. These aids can be adults, but ideally should be teenagers of the same sex as the elders they assist. Since our elders, by nature, are usually elderly, they require assistance in some of the things they do.

     “Their aids will do things like help them get up in the morning and assist them to getting to breakfast. Do their laundry for them. Keep their homes clean if they are unable to do it themselves. Select their tray at mealtime and bring it to their table, and then clear their tray after they are finished.

     “These types of positions in Native American culture were looked upon not as positions of servitude, but as  positions of great honor. Because usually, the aid grew quite close to their elder, and had the opportunity to learn from them, and absorb some of their wisdom.

     “There are other benefits bestowed upon the elders. They will occupy the three RVs closest to the common areas. They will never be assigned any jobs or tasks, unless they themselves choose to do them. Their RVs are furnished more elaborately than the others, and no one else starts their meal until the elders are all seated.

     “These are just a few things that some of the early American tribes did to honor their elders, and we propose that we carry on in those traditions.

     “One last thing we want to give the elders is the power to settle personal disputes between any of us. Say Bryan and I have a dispute over a particular CD. Each of us thinks we own it, and neither of us is willing to share
. Because, after all, we all know that Bryan is a selfish, self-centered butthead.

     “We want the elders to have the authority to decide who is in the right. And we both agree that their decision is final, and agree to abide by it.

     “Along with that authority will be the power to marry two of us. There will be no ministers or justices of the peace in here or on the outside after breakout. We propose that if two of us fall in love, and convey that love to the elders, that they have the legal right to declare us married. And to grant divorces as well.

     “Okay, what I’d like to do is give everyone the opportunity to debate this proposal for our new government. Who’d like to go first?

     Bob, David’s dad, stood up and asked “In the case of a dispute between parties, do they have to go to the elders and ask for a resolution, or do the elders just step in and make their decision?”

     Mark said “Ideally, the two parties will agree to take their dispute to the elders and ask them to make a ruling. However, if the elders notice fighting and arguing going on between the two and want to put a stop to it, they certainly have the authority to step in and do so.”