Surviving the Apocalypse

Unexpected Surprises

Hanna refused to sleep in the house her father left her, the quest she always got when she entered prompting her to empty it for a reward on how much it would expand her storage space. Unlike the other times however, she found that coming here this early had its benefits, as it was now apparent to her that her stepmother had looted the house between spring break and when she would graduate in 8 weeks time. So much so, that the value skyrocketed by over 3 million credits compared to the last times she had cleared it out after graduation because she refused to come here.

The first night of spring break she made one phone call that the person responsible for the information said she had an even chance of it working. Crystal had told her to dress to impress, as it was the only chance she had. Why she would tell her that was beyond her imagination, but she followed the advice to a t. She had even went dress shopping and visited the salon for a makeover, barely recognizing herself in the mirror before she went to the upscale restaurant Crystal told her to take her too. The reservation had been slightly difficult to get, the only table available even with 6 weeks notice was the VIP table that had a 10,000 credit sitting fee.

When she saw Crystal dressed in the same fashion she was, Hanna got the intense feeling that this was a date more than a recruitment meeting that is was supposed to be. Crystal was blushing as brightly as she was when she sat down, clearly nervous about having accepted the invitation.

“So Hanna, can I ask what we were to one another for me to have told you that particular line?” Crystal asked before taking a sip of the glass of wine that had been served.

Hanna was a little surprised that Crystal knew she was the source already, clearly at ease with the possibility she was from the future somehow. “Well, I was under the impression we were good friends, perhaps building to something more after everything we went through. But I will freely admit, you blindsided me with this one.” She said before drinking almost the entire glass of her own wine which made Crystal laugh.

“I will say, I have impeccable taste. So, before I make a fool of myself, will you answer a few questions?” Crystal asked nervously.

“If you will answer the question of what exactly it is I said to you.” Hanna replied blushing as she had a clue as to what it might be.

“With the location, wine selection and what you said, I told you what my perfect date would be. So, are you even lesbian?” Crystal asked with her face beet red before she even asked. Hanna had a feeling that was exactly where this was going, but had never seriously considered it.

“If I am being honest, I never considered it before this moment. I will admit, many times I considered kissing you to see where things would go, but the future isn’t cheery and wonderful.” Hanna told her.

“Yes, the zombies are going to be a major problem. I just have no idea when it is going to be, nor will anyone believe me if I said anything.”

Hanna wasn’t all that shocked to hear that. She had a feeling before that Crystal had been aware of the apocalypse before it happened. “123 days is when the outbreak will first begin. 3 days later is when the military completely abandoned the city, leaving everyone left behind to fend for themselves.”

“Oh s**t. So, before I decide to abandon everything that I hold dear at the moment, what are you going to do about it?” Crystal asked.

Hanna smiled. “I am making a Camp for the survivors who believe that we must retain what makes us human, even if we are forced to evolve to face the new threats. Evolution at any cost is not worth it. As far as your father, he doesn’t survive 6 weeks in the aftermath, congestive heart failure that can’t be treated. Whatever else you hold on that list, needs to be secured before that date, because when I come from, you are all that survives what is to come.” She told her before the first course she had preordered arrived. She realized it was indeed her idea of a perfect date, before the apocalypse.

Crystal dropped her shoulders as she nodded, coming to terms with what Hanna had said. “Well, if it is meant to be, I suppose that is the date he has earned. I have 5 people I wish to save, will they be welcome if I come with you?” she asked before she began eating the bay scallops that had been served to them.

“Of course, we will help any that helps us help them.” Hanna said making Crystal smile as she caught the meaning.

“I like the motto, words to live by.” Crystal said raising her glass.

“Words to live by indeed, and I have tried to do so many times.”

Crystal smiled as she looked up at Hanna. “So your dad did manage to give you his ability to reset time when he died, it was a risk to contact me considering who my father is.” She said non threatening.

“Some risks are worth taking, even if someone is setting me up without ever clueing me in.” Hanna replied evasively which made Crystal laugh.

“Fear not, your father was one of my few allies that he entrusted with part of his plan. He always said I would like his Junebug, even if he was crabby with her.” Crystal said making Hanna gasp. “Guess I never revealed that before. Seems we have a few things to discuss before we decide if a second date is appropriate, I would have thought me telling you this would mean I had told you everything.”

Hanna chuckled as she looked at Crystal. “It has never been so easy between us because of some unfortunate circumstances in previous timelines. Despite the attraction that has apparently been mutual, it never felt like the right time to broach this topic.”

Crystal nodded understanding. “So I used my intimate knowledge of your past to set up a scenario where those events never took place, when you asked for something that would get my younger self to trust you with no questions asked. The only risk with this approach being I decide you aren’t good enough to risk my life for. I won’t declare my undying love for you, but I would definitely like a second date and to join you if your true goal is to combat what the Second Dawn is doing.” She said to Hanna evenly.

“Considering I blew up a nuke in Paxton’s face last time, I will take any help with the Second Dawn I can get. Another date, if you tell me what on the beach under the moonlight means.”

Crystal blushed as she looked at Hanna. “In my dream date, that is where we would make love.” She said making both women blush.

“You are much less shy this time around, I might like it.” Hanna said appreciative as they kept eating and talking about anything but the Second Dawn and zombies.

Hanna woke up the next morning with plans to meet Crystal, as well as two of the 5 people she wanted Hanna to help her save. So when she arrived at the coffee shop just down the street from the hotel, she wasn’t surprised to see her sitting at a small table with an older woman and a boy that looked like he was no older than twelve. Clearly her brother, who most definitely took after her mother more than her father.

“Hanna, this is my mother Claire and my brother William. If you are going to fight the Second Dawn effectively, you are going to need this.” Crystal said handing her an external hard drive.

“You don’t need to earn my trust.” Hanna told her before ordering her coffee.

Crystal smiled as she remembered the kiss last night before they parted ways, and knew the attraction was definitely mutual. “Perhaps not, but it is data we will need regardless of that. There may not be much here in the way of resources, but there are a few close enough that the data could be invaluable. Besides, if we are ever going to rid ourselves of this vermin, we need as much Intel as we can get.”

Hanna looked at her seriously. “No unnecessary risks where those monsters are concerned. This data isn’t worth what it could cost, especially when there are other methods for obtaining it.” She admonished Crystal who looked at her defiantly. “Remember, I already have first hand experience with those costs. I have no desire to repeat them.”

Crystal nodded as she pouted a little. “So your goal isn’t just to destroy them than. I would ask what it is, but I don’t trust myself with that knowledge until the s**t show starts.” She said making Hanna and her mother laugh.

“My only goal is to survive long enough to see the zombie threat eliminated, so humanity has a chance to evolve without losing what makes us human. If the Second Dawn wants to destroy me for that, so be it. I will fight if I have to, but this isn’t my first rodeo.” Hanna told her before her coffee was delivered and they piled into the minivan that Claire drove.

The mine was far further along than it had ever been before the apocalypse had begun, the excavation and reinforcement complete with 121 days before they needed to seal the gate. Crystal and Claire were both impressed as they saw the greenhouses being built, barracks and a proper dining hall with attached kitchen that could feed 5,000 people all at once. James had 10 crews working 12 hour days for her, the administration infrastructure and mainframe server being installed in the first level of the mine while they further excavated the spring chambers to make them larger and more complex so they could raise over a dozen different types of fish, scallops and crab all within the cave system that had become flooded.

“Whoa, my father would be impressed if he could see what you are doing here.” Crystal said looking around.

“Right now the cost is astronomical, so I am not sure he would be able to match mine even if you told him exactly what you were seeing. They assume it will happen far slower and they will have a lot more time to prepare before it does. Unfortunately, neither of those is true, but they wouldn’t believe us even if we told them.” Hanna answered even though it wasn’t really a question.

“Hey boss, we have an unexpected windfall in the ore that we are recovering from the cave in. What should we do with it?” Peter asked handing her a breakdown of the metals they were finding.

“Sell the gold, silver and palladium. We can use the funds for other things. Process and store the rest, we will need them for other projects down the road.” She answered looking at the manifest he was showing her.

“You got it. James said he needs to speak with you.” Peter told her before he disappeared back inside.

“This is an active mine?” Crystal asked surprised.

Hanna smiled. “Last resort, a safe place where no zombie can penetrate and no human will be able to easily invade. Especially once we get the defensive systems online.” She answered as she showed Claire and William how they could help the people with Crystal following her.

“What am I supposed to do?” Crystal asked making Hanna blush a little.

“For me, or for the Camp?” she asked pointedly making Crystal blush as they found James working on the barracks building.

“We are going to need more supplies, but the trusses have a 4 month backlog.” He informed her.

“Single slope roofs can use 4×6 beams for roof structures spaced 14 inches on center. Have 200 of them being delivered tomorrow with another 2,000 next week. You can order as many as you need for the next 15 weeks.” Hanna replied as he looked at her a little surprised.

Who taught you that?” James asked knowing it was perfectly accurate for the snow loads they would have to contend with.

“Some guy I know said he was an expert at building everything but trusses. Had to find a work around and considering solar panels will be going on the roofs anyway, we need good roof lines angled the proper direction. Two birds one stone kind of deal.” Hanna answered making him shake his head before he walked away knowing it was likely him that told her that.

Crystal was amazed at the easy way she bantered with almost everyone she interacted with, allowing them to use their expertise to make decisions about how to build, excavate or whatever their assignment was. Most of them were exactly that as well, experts in the fields they led. What amazed her most as they walked around was the size of everything, including the area they had stakes out for the Camp walls that the construction was just starting on. 40 foot behemoth things that were built to be able to support a lot of weight and wide enough that several people could walk side by side. “How many people are you building this Camp for?” she asked once she saw the different pens for the animals being built.

“7,000 is the initial target, but once everything happens we will be constantly expanding the exterior of the Camp out as well as improving the interior. Previously we have called it the last bastion of Hope for humanity to survive. This time, I am hoping that we will be able to get a head start on things while we still have society to assist us without even realizing it. Want to come on a visit with me? There is someone else I need to recruit, and we don’t have a clue as to get him to believe me.” Hanna asked her.

“You never asked what it is I am supposed to do here in Camp. I would like to contribute.” Crystal said stubbornly as they walked towards the car that Hanna had here already.

“Previously you assisted me in actually running the Camp as the second in command. So for the moment you are doing exactly what you need to, getting to know the people we will lead in a few short months. Getting to know how we will do so, things like that.” Hanna told her as they got in.

“So who are we going to recruit?” Crystal asked.

“Doctor Howard Harrington.” Hanna said making Crystal smile.

“We do have a way in than, but it won’t be easy. He hates his work to be interrupted by unexpected surprises.” Crystal told her. “I just have no clue where his lab currently is.”

Hanna didn’t reply as they pulled into the nondescript building just a few blocks away where her security office was located. For the moment, it was where their stockpile of weapons was being secured. “Right here. Found him the first time through with only 8 of his team left alive. Second and third time’s we only lost a few who turned because of the virus.”

“This virus takes weeks to kill and months to turn the people to zombies, but you are discussing it like a super plague that wipes away humanity. How can you reconcile the two?” Crystal asked.

Hanna looked at her and smiled. “It is a good thing you specialize in molecular biology and will understand this when we talk to the Doctor.” She said holding the door open for Crystal who giggled at the action as she walked through the door and up to the secretary.

“How can I help you?” the elderly woman asked them.

“We need to see Doctor Harrington.” Hanna answered without elaborating.

The woman looked at them amused. “He is in the middle of an experiment ladies, he won’t be seeing anyone.” She answered evenly.

“Tell him Crystal Johnson came here needing to discuss a wildfire scenario that we need his consultation on.” She said with a smile as the woman dialed a number on the phone and picked it up and relayed the message as given.

Her eyes widened a bit before she hung up the phone. “He will be down in 5 minutes, please follow me.” The woman told them as she stood and led them to a conference room.

Exactly 5 minutes later he walked in looking a little perturbed at Crystal who shook his hand. “Ms. Johnson, this better not be one of your theoretical scenarios again.” He said a little cross with her.

“Actually Doc, I want to introduce you to Ms. Hanna Storm. She is the one with the issue.” Crystal said as he shook her hand.

“I will still blame you if this is a waste of my time.” He said looking at Crystal. “It is nice to meet you Ms. Storm.” He said sitting down before Crystal slid a folder to him.

He looked at the first image for a moment and shook his head. “Where did you get this?” he asked her.

“My father left it for me after he passed.” She said clearly evasive. “I suggest you keep looking, as that in and of itself isn’t why I am here.” She encouraged as he flipped the picture over and looked at the next viral blowup.

“Looks like a common Coronavirus, perhaps one of the new mutations going around. Slightly dangerous to those who are vulnerable, but hardly a wildfire concern Ms. Johnson.” He chastised before he flipped to the next one and stopped in stunned surprise. The marking of the two viruses be just looked at clearly marked and combined in a freak mutation of science. “This isn’t a mockup, is it?” he asked looking at Hanna.

“No, it isn’t. That was taken from a sample created by a group-“ she began as he looked at her.

“I am well aware of the Second Dawn and their atrocious attitude toward forcing humanity to evolve at any cost. But this?!” he exclaimed as Crystal looked at the viral clustering and her eyes went wide.

“This can’t be accurate, these two viruses aren’t even from the same families. How could they combine?” she asked as he sighed before flipping to the last photo and saw the companion virus that was actually the one responsible for the development of abilities in humans.

“With this as the bridge between them.” He said holding it next to the photo of the combined one and marked the viral markers in the photo for her to see. “If this is real, it would be a real wildfire event. We need to warn-“ he began to be cut off by Hanna.

“You can’t warn anyone. If you know the Second Dawn, you know how insidious it is. My father tried to sound the alarm and was forced to kill himself to avoid triggering his ability.” Hanna told him. “General Paxton is in their pocket, though I am not sure how pervasive it is through the government.”

Harrington looked at her with a smile. “So, the little pink actually managed to transfer his ability to you, didn’t he?” he asked Hanna.

“Yes, he did. If you know that much, you must know what his entire plan was.” She replied evenly making him scoff.

“Hard to develop a vaccine with one hand tied behind your back. If I had live samples that I could study it would be one thing, but operating to cure a virus that has lay dormant for millions of years with incomplete data about what is going to happen is next to impossible. We will be lucky if it doesn’t take decades, and certainly can’t start until after this breaks out of whatever controls it is under.”

Hanna looked at him with a smile. “If you would be willing to relocate your lab to my secure location, you can begin the work as soon as the lab is set to your specifications. The only caveat is you can’t whisper a word of it to anyone until we have a functional vaccine.”

He looked at her with his own curious smile. “I am going to need more to work with…” he trailed off as Hanna slid a small box with 3 slides in it. “Follow me.” He said simply before he lead them into his secure lab, everyone who worked there wondering what the hell was going on.

They watched as he slid the first slide into the microscope and displayed the image on the screen while he looked through the eye piece and focused it on what he needed to see. Crystal saw the same virus in the photo in the sample, but also saw slight changes to the makeup of how it was structured.

“This is amazing, obviously not entirely effective, but it gives us a better starting point than where we are at currently. Let me guess, Marcus has had you on a treasure hunt for God only knows how long?” Harrington asked her as he looked at Hanna.

“You knew my old man well it seems.” She replied without elaborating.

“It will take a month to move and setup my lab to this new location, and I am going to need some equipment that isn’t so easily come by.” He said looking at her.

“Give me a list as soon as possible, the lab construction will be complete in 3 days, you can move the equipment you have here than.” Hanna told him.

“This lab is going to require very specific safeguards for the work we will be doing young lady. It can’t be done just anywhere you p