Chapter 1: The First Week
I love those dear hearts and gentle people, who live in my home town.
Because those dear hearts and gentle people will never, ever let you down.
They read the Good Book from Fri to Monday, that's how the weekend goes.
I've got a dream house I'll build there someday, with picket fence and rambling rows.
I feel so welcome each time that I return, that my happy heart keeps laughing like a crowd.
I love those dear hearts and gentle people, who live in my home town.
Ian Piper: Luke, Maryland, United States of America
Note: Blaze Injun: if in the future you could be a bit more clear (perhaps in a brief summary before or after your story) on what it is exactly that your character is doing, I could clarify your stats, or at least update them. The story was hard to interpret, and I was unsure what it was that your character was actually doing. I need to have a simplified summary of what you're doing to accurately project what'll happen to your group and people.
The town of Luke persevered through the initial hours of the Change rather well, and order was maintained by the town's new mayor, and a conference among the Tri-Towns brought together the desire for mutual protection and safety in the wake of several small instances of civil unrest. Ian Piper was appointed as the new chief of police of Luke, leading a de facto paramilitary force to attempt to organize a strong defense against the inevitable hordes from the East Coast. Fortunately for the Tri-Towns, the local National Guard and military chose a location further east to set up a refugee camp, causing many of those fleeing to stop before they reached the perimeter. Using the time provided, the local militia and police organized road blocks and in record time, also acquired everything they could to set up a defensible position in the region.
Benedikt Margeir: Reykjavik, Iceland
As Iceland descended into the quiet of the post-Change period, people did their best to adapt to the Changed circumstances. The police preserved order on foot, while some businesses did shut their doors "for the duration." The fishing community of the town saw a booming business, as local citizens hoarded their food, buying fresh produce whenever possible. Benedikt Margeir showed more foresight than many other fishermen, keeping his spare produce away from the masses. It seemed also that the Changed nature of the world may well have benefited him, as the quiet appeared to have brought the fish readily to the surface. By the end of the first week, his family and friends not only had enough to eat, but extra to save up for future days. An ambassador from the government of Iceland soon showed up at the Margeir's door, stating that under the Emergency Act of 2010, all citizens of the island nation must turn over their food supplies to government rationing in the midst of the crisis, as they attempt to preserve the integrity of the country. (+30 Food)
Roger Martino: Estacada, Oregon, United States of America
The Martinos spent the first few days after the change cut off from the surrounding farms and the main town. A few other confused farmers exchanged words, and it began to quickly dawn upon them of the problem which could well be at hand. Three days after the Change, the Martinos and several of their neighbors took a walk into town, to discover an atmosphere of growing panic among the population. With several unemployed loggers deputized by the chief of police, the mayor and city council had placed emergency guards over the local grocery stores. The Martinos caught up on the latest gossip, and many seem to believe that the incident was a failed US Army weapons test, and that the government would soon be on its way to provide for the community. Other talk spoke of the bodies of three state troopers that washed down the Clackamas, torn apart by knife wounds and even possible animal mauling. The police filed a report at the station, holding the bodies in preparation for the federal government's arrival. (+10 Food from shopping)
Bert Fields: Smokey Mountains, Alabama, United States of America
Bert Fields and his fellow campers, isolated from the world and unsure of what occurred soon found themselves retreating further into the mountains, despite internal dispute. Some argued that they should head back towards civilization while fields suggested setting up a new camp among the beech strands. The canned food and other food found on the way have proven insufficient, quickly running out as only a few are found. After one camper broke his leg climbing a particularly difficult slope, he and three others abandoned the party and set out towards civilization with their share of the food. Now, without any more food to feed the whole of the party, the rest seem all too anxious to follow the path of the others and leave Fields alone to what they believe to be a survivalist fantasy. (-4 Followers)
Alexis Gray: New York City, New York, United States of America
The ash of the fires in New York City provided considerable contribution to the growing clouds over the skies of the North American eastern coast during the first week of the Change. Unchecked fires, brutal violence, and the confusion of the collapse of modern technology all contributed to the burning of the city, and its great population was quickly consumed in its wake. On the campus of Columbia University, Alexis Gray and her friends added to the chaos with a looting and burning spree, accidently killing a campus policeman in the process. As the student population clogged the roads and violence spread onto the campus, they barricaded themselves in the dorms, but the fires of the city drew ever closer, threatening to turn their refuge into another inferno. (+6 Food from looting)
Pedro Cardenas: Mexico City, Mexico
As the week progressed in Mexico City, the violence escalated as it did in most major cities across the world, as gangs and other individuals enacted their various vendettas upon each other. It quickly became apparent that the weapons of the old world were no longer of any use, and despite the training and experience they possessed, Mexican military units in the city continued to be overrun. Pedro Cardenas' unit was one of the last active, and were the first to hear of the collapse of the headquarters' perimeter at the capital on the third day of the Change. With over half of the unit dead, including the commanding officer, Cardenas gathered the survivors willing to come, as well as numerous locals from the neighborhood he had been protecting. Despite protests, he was followed by literally hundreds out of the city to the east, and the core of the military unit continued to fight their way through gangs and marauders using makeshift weapons. As the clouds of ash from the burning of Mexico's capital blocked the sun, they bypassed the refugees on the major roads leading out, and by the end of the week, they managed to fight their way at last out of the urban center of the city. (+300 Followers, +120 Food)
Ivan Hopkins: Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
Ivan Hopkins and his family were some of the first to guess at the extent of the disaster known as the Change, on the second day of the new world, they were quick to check in with their neighbors and nearby family, discovering that the problem was not only isolated. When shopping, it turned out the whole region was assuredly blacked out by unknown causes. It was also discovered by local law enforcement that gunpowder was not working as it once was and word quickly spread. Hopkins discovered the true extent of the disaster on the third day, buying supplies in Glenorchy, where representatives of the provincial government had arrived. Contact was confirmed to have been lost with the rest of the world, and the government announced that it was to treat the emergency as though it could potentially be permanent. The Emergency Crisis Management Committee declared an immediate census of the island's farmers, food, and population in order to determine the best response. The announcements claimed that rationing would soon be implemented and all grocery stores were shut down immediately following the statement. At home, the Hopkins' family house filled quickly as relatives moved in, and a close eye was kept, in case things went bad from worse. (+30 Food from Shopping)
Michael Weston: Homestead, Florida, United States of America
At the time of the Change, Michael Weston and his friends were assisting a local wealthy family with their local horse ranch, and after realizing the scale of the disaster, they attempted to gather supplies and the horses to flee north. Under Weston's leadership, they made it out of the city and into the suburbs, which continued to burn from the fires of the post-Change airplane crashes. Fleeing under the shadows of the great fires which were consuming local fields and communities, they managed to reach the southern part of the Everglades by the end of the week. Unfortunately the roads were rendered impassable at the time of the change, as they were clogged by several crashed semi-trucks. With the roadways looking impassable, it appears that a much more dangerous route may have to be taken through the swamps themselves. (+10 Food, +7 Followers)
Mark Jamesfield: Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
By March 10, 2010, the fires which continued to consume Atlanta, fueled by several explosions at local factories and auto dealerships, managed to at last reach into the city's suburbs. The panicked looting and violence which typified the cities, were brought into the formerly quiet subdivisions of the outskirts as well, and many were murdered or killed in their own homes, trying to protect their properties with guns which failed to function. In a cauldron of fire, rape, and chaos, like those consuming the world's greatest cities, Mark Jamesfield and his close friends rallied their subdivision, gathering the support of the community, tearing down a fire barrier to prevent the spread of flames. The local neighborhood association gave them full support, as they closed the community's gates and set up a patrol along the fences. Ordinary looters and confused individuals were easily repulsed during the first few days of the crisis, but this was not to last. The people of Atlanta seem to have learned that there is a place where not everything has apparently collapsed. At the end of the week, crowds have begun to gather at the gates of the community, as they demand to be let in to safety. Added to this is the lack of any replenishable supplies of food, and they could well starve within the space of two or three weeks even with the tightest rationing. (Control of Neighborhood Achieved, +330 Followers, +700 Food)
Simon Wales: Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
With the support of his brother and his growing "Flock" Simon Wales has continued to have an interesting experience in the fire-wrecked ruins of Belfast. As the city drowns in constantly escalating violence, Belfast burns in the ever-reaching fires. The local section of the Irish Republican Army have entered into a brutal and violent war over the food stores and other items against the reformed Loyalist Volunteer Force, which have superior numbers. The fighting has been brutal and vicious as the two factions struggle for absolute control over Belfast. It is in this atmosphere of de facto warfare that Simon Wales and his flock fled to the Belfast Botanical Gardens, left largely ignored by the warring factions and the run of the mill looters. Several other refugees had already hidden there, as well as employees of the park. Swayed by the fervor of the self-proclaimed "Father" Wales, the locals joined his Flock as they barricade the entrance and set together a safe haven in the Gardens. Despite the refuge serving some purpose, the fighting between Protestant and Catholic continues to grow with a vengeance, and it seems highly likely that the fires of a new war could spill over into the Flock's new home. (+20 Followers, +60 Food)
Timothy Whitely: State Road 189, Utah, United States of America
Timothy Whitely and his immediate friends and family were quick to recognize the possible consequences of the Change, even if the city government of Park City was not. They quickly headed into town, buying enough that they could carry on a prolonged, height, including food and medical supplies. They set out on the third day of the Change east on State Road 189 as the first refugees from the fires of Salt Lake City and Provo began to arrive in the community, sparking a panic while they safely beat the crowds. As a quiet road, there were a few camped out still in their stalled cars or hiking along the freeway, and these few stragglers were picked up by Whitely. In Kamas on the fifth day, the full extent of the disaster had still not completely struck the area and they were able to buy more food. Afterwards, they continued their journey on the highway to the east. By the end of the first week, a few more stragglers and hikers joined the group, as they began to turn north towards the Utah-Wyoming border. (+9 Followers, +30 Food from shopping)
Redmond Steele: Berowra, New South Wales, Australia
To the surprise of many the national government of Australia managed to regain and preserve comparative order in Sydney for several days after the Change. Emergency stockpiles of food and water were distributed to active military units, which managed to be able to intimidate people still unaware of the full extent of the Change in regards to munitions. Redmond Steele managed to be one of those able to finagle extra stockpiles for those in the northern suburbs of Sydney. He fed the local people, as well as quickly securing private food stores and stockpiles. By the fifth day of the Change, the situation began to worsen, with over eighty percent of the city without running water or any water at all, leaving well over three million still living people in increasingly desperate straits. Military units in the center of Sydney were overrun one by one, until the emergency government, military, and distribution center in the Royal Botanic Gardens was overrun by a desperate mob. After contact was lost, several riotous groups from the city were repulsed by Steele's unit, using salvaged fire axes and other melee weapons. As the situation continued to worsen, Steele's unit gathered the remnants of other nearby forces, and immediately conscripted able bodied civilians to help carry the large available stockpiles of food and water. The large caravan made camp on the last day of the week in the suburb of Berowra which was left abandoned in ruins after a terrible fire on the first day. At night it was easy to see the fires of the ad hoc refugee camps and the roving mobs and violence which was closely following Steele's band. (+560 Followers, +910 Food)
Andrew Williams: Antioch, California, United States of America
The community of Antioch was given some warning on the first day of the Change when the first few refugees from the outskirts of San Francisco arrived. Unfortunately, on the third day, overwhelming hordes of possibly tens of thousands arrived, consuming food in their path. The National Guard declared an emergency refugee camp, the first to be established in the region, and headquarters to be established in the city. The average people of Antioch, while willing to help, have found their own food sources to be nationalized and rationed in order to help those affected by the disaster. The mayor has called for support for the National Guard, but there remains some reluctance, and fear that they could be overwhelmed by the constantly growing crowds from the great cities of America's West Coast. Andrew Williams, hoping to do his part for the crowds, acted as a close representative of his particular community, helping the National Guard with its efforts, and helping the distribution of the food they brought with them. In exchange he and his friends have been provided with food to keep them supplied for the time being. (+20 Food)
Psymon Butler: Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
On the second day after the Change, fires continue to consume household after household, but overall they seem to have managed to avoid the same scale of devastation of violence which has occurred in other major cities across the world. The downtown area continued to burn throughout the week, as the population fled south or west, to Army and National Guard refugee camps set up at Springfield and Harrisburg. Psymon Butler and his friends were among the few to join the looting mobs at the Polaris shopping mall, hitting the sporting goods stores, while the other thieves robbed jewelry stores and cash registers. Butler and company rested at the store on the second night, and throughout the rest of the week they began the slow journey north, against the flow of traffic, as people fled to the proclaimed refuge zones of the southwest. By the end of the week, they were still encamped on Interstate 71, almost forty miles north of Columbus, having found some old acquaintances en route. (+6 Followers, +20 Food)
Moderator's Notes
Good stories so far, I hope you guys keep them up and look forward to further developments. If you're unsure of yourself as a writer, I encourage you to write anyways. The more you write, the more likely you'll improve over time. As a tip which helped me significantly when starting as a moderator, Microsoft Word and spellcheck are perhaps the greatest friends any writer can have.
The map is not likely to be regularly updated, just as an fyi. In most cases it doesn't really matter anyways. My recommendation is to stay focused on your own area, and use what maps you can find online or your own personal knowledge to be your guidance. There's no reason that someone in the backwoods of Alabama should know who's where in Europe anyways.
the situation starts becoming dire(heavy resistance, disorder, low food etc) Pedro and the group will look to move away from their position to other areas of the city still in order and join with these various groups.
Epic update.
