Chapter 2: Food for Thought
It's just so well seasoned
and so nicely flambed
and so lovingly served on porcelain
And with it, a good wine and gentle candlelight
Yeah, I'll take my time
You've got to have some culture
Because you are
what you eat
and you know what it is
Mark Jamesfield: Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
The crowds of hungry Atlanta continued to grow outside of Mark Jamesfield's subdivision through the course of this week, as remnants of police civil authority began to demand opening of the gates. Armed with axes and other improvised weapons, the able-bodied people who rallied to Jamesfield fought valiantly against mostly unarmed individuals who attempted to pour through the gates. Eventually, those who survived ran away to join the growing refugee camps to the southeast, leaving only a few who were killed defending their homes. The successes in holding off the hungry mobs proved their offensive capacity, and under Jamesfield's ruthless leadership, the people of his community proceeded to loot nearby grocery stores, but found that not much remained. The combination of fires, looters, and the roving mobs of the hungry have left very little to be found within walking distance of the community. (-14 Followers, +32 Food)
Pedro Cardenas: Mexico City, Mexico
Continuing their odyssey from the smoldering ruins of Mexico City, Cardenas and the remnants of his unit have found themselves in increasingly dire straits. Still considerable distance from his father's farm and besieged by criminals and raiders, his followers have been quickly running out of food. Though the eating of pets, including dogs and cats have allowed some to survive, deaths from exhaustion and the raids which continue have risen throughout the week. The slow moving group has been last to several groceries along the way, and only token food has been found. The group has begun to fight amongst itself, as the former soldiers and their families are the first to take whatever food is found for themselves. With another week or two of travel still likely, Cardenas is faced with no food and dissent among his people. (-36 Followers)
Alexis Gray: New York City, New York, United States of America
As with much of New York City, Manhattan was hardly spared the fires of the collapsing modern world. Though structurally some of the buildings managed to survive mostly intact, a large part of the civilians had either perished in the flames, barricaded themselves in their homes, or fled for the illusion of safety elsewhere. Some of the local gangs in the projects managed to, ironically, preserve some sort of order among themselves, but violence soon erupted to a large degree and they soon turned upon themselves. By the second week of the Change, the gangs realized the value of foodstuffs over the now worthless dregs of jewelry and other former measurements of wealth. Entering in the equation was Alexis Gray and her college friends. To the surprise of almost everyone with her, Gray killed one of the gang leaders with incredible brutality, and ultimately gained their allegiance. Despite this, other gangs remain active in the area, and with much of the population having fled for the country, they now fight against Gray's people for the remaining resources. (+34 Followers, +170 Food)
Benedikt Margeir: Reykjavik, Iceland
The government of Iceland continues to function fairly well, and with the support of American Air Force and Army personnel, have managed to preserve order throughout the island. Thanks to the support of fishermen such as Benedikt Margeir, they have managed to establish a feasible rationing system. Food, including a surprisingly large amount of fresh-caught fish, has allowed for continuing survival on the island. Benedikt Margeir has become increasingly influential, calling upon other able-bodied fishermen and rallying a government-backed fishing expedition. Their successes have continued to supply the government with food for the people, as well as keeping themselves well-fed. (+14 Followers, +24 Food from government rationing)
Iain Mac Gille Eathain: Ardgour, Scotland, United Kingdom
In the two weeks since the onset of the Change, Iain Mac Gille Eathain and his friends and family have managed to eke out survival in the far northlands of Scotland. The isolation of the community of Ardgour and the farms around it from the rest of the island have meant that as of yet, few if any refugees from the more populous regions to the south have arrived. The lack of a working ferry to the island have forced any refugees to travel along a small path, and so far only a few people have arrived, who have been adopted by the various people of the community. With ample food and supplies the local communities seem to be fairly safe from attack or raids, kept well away from modern routes of travel and civilization. (+10 Food from extra stocks)
Dr. Victor Hsiao: Fort Hood, Texas, United States of America
Two weeks have passed since the onset of the Change and Victor Hsiao and the scientists at the Super Collider have done their best to help local military forces preserve order in central Texas. Hsiao has even been granted advisor status by the base's commander who has proclaimed martial law throughout Texas due to a lack of any civilian authority remaining intact. The military forces, after dealing with several small fires on the base, did their best to evacuate the massive populations of Dallas and Fort Worth, suffering casualties among the panicked mobs during the initial chaos. With the help of local police and the intact remnants of local National Guard forces, a multitude of refugee camps have been set up north of the burning metropolises. By the end of the second week, refugees from as far east as Louisiana and as far west as Los Angeles had arrived in the camps. It is estimated that perhaps over fifteen million people total may be populating the camps, and the sheer numbers have overwhelmed any attempts to preserve order, as violence and bloodshed become common as people fight over scraps of food. Numerous diseases had begun to break out by the end of the second week, spreading like wildfire through the population. (+5 Food from rationing)
Simon Wales: Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
The Flock led by Simon Wales has done well in preserving the Botanical Gardens in Belfast, and have had their first taste of bloodshed. Though converts have arrived, whether out of true faith or the desire to eat for the day, they have attracted the attention of the warring IRA and LVF, which continue to fight over the scraps of the city. As farming is set up and the community continues to arm itself with makeshift weapons, the powers in the community made their steps to consolidate power. The Protestant LVF, in one vicious offensive, slaughtered the leaders and main supporters of the Irish Republican Army in one bloody evening. After consolidating their power, they realized that they would need more food to make it through the Change intact. After a successful expedition, the Flock's Botanical Gardens were some of the most flush and successful settlements within the ruins of the city. At the end of the week, the LVF arrived, demanding that the Flock open the gates of the Gardens and give control of their food and production for the protection of the Protestant government in the newly proclaimed Principality of Ulster. (+66 Followers, +140 Food)
Ivan Hopkins: Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
The Emergency Management government of Tasmania has declared immediate martial law and absolute rule for the duration of the crisis known by some as the Change. The government has announced several emergency measures to help preserve the country during this tumultuous period. All farms and grocery distributers are to be under the direct management of the state government for collection purposes as the harvest would ultimately need to be brought in. All farmers are instructed to prepare themselves for the arrival of the townspeople of the island and to begin preparations to house and train them in farming. Ivan Hopkins' falls under the new jurisdiction and by the end of the week, a government representative arrived to coordinate and oversee the new production and management of the farm.
Timothy Whitely: Odgen, Utah, United States of America
Timothy Whitely and those following him, regardless of the fleeing masses from the burning ruins of Odgen and Salt Lake City, have reached the ruins of Odgen after several days of travel. In their path have been the remnants of gangs and other unsavory individuals, though they had plenty of food, they lacked weapons. Most of the group were butchered by the raiders, taking their food, though Whitely and some of his people managed to flee with what little they could carry. By the end of the week, they were hiding in a shattered building in northern Odgen, as most food has gone and they continue to be pursued by the raiders, hoping to acquire the remnants of their food. (-3 Followers, -10 Food)
Psymon Butler: Delaware, Ohio, United States of America
After a day's travel off of Interstate 71, Psymon and his crew journeyed to the town of Delaware, meeting with several friends who had gathered there based on what had previously be jovial apocalyptic plans. As the week progressed, they set up their camp in the extensive yard there, and began to set down roots. They gathered a sizeable amount of riot gear from the local police station, though they murdered the one caretaker left behind during the evacuation to the refugee camps in the south. Several other murders took place as Psymon was forced to kill several local farmers for their stock and horses, after they refused to cooperate. With increasing supplies, they've managed to avoid any attacks from raiders or desperate mobs, as populations continue to flee to the refugee camps south of Columbus. (+11 Followers, +22 Food)
Michael Weston: Ochopee, Florida, United States of America
After struggling through the Everglades for much of the week, Michael Weston and his dedicated followers managed to make it to the small community of Ochopee, which offered food in exchange for help holding back several attacks from desperate mobs fleeing from Naples. The swamps resulted in the spoiling or loss of a large amount of food in the travel, as the people with Weston struggle to maintain some resemblance of humanity. His considerable military experience and history of strong martial arts allowed Weston to influence and encourage the people of the small Floridian town to let him help. Throughout the remaining part of the week, he assisted in preparing the community for the attack which would inevitably come, preparing makeshift weapons for the upcoming battle.
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