The Phoenix Reborn Series. Book 1. The World Burns to Ashes

New Directions

5 weeks had gone by quickly, and they had found large parts of Chicago and the surrounding area had been untouched by the Bombs. The farms had been left untouched, and despite that they continued using the bunker as a source to produce food.

The representatives from the other bases had arrived, and Lincoln was nervous as he prepared to address the assembled delegates. He had a lot to cover with them, as most of them would be responsible for representing these districts for atleast another 18 months before the next election was scheduled. 515 Bases had sent 4 representatives each, and they had barely found a conference Hall large enough to support all of them. They had all finally taken their seats just before it was time for him to walk out.

He looked at them as he walked out, and knew that most of these people were determined. The reports from all of the bases were favorable, and the criminal element had not lasted long when Platoons of Marines began being deployed to their strongholds. Most had wisely decided to be drafted, but a few had been intent on their fight and had met a quick end when the force of the survivors fell upon them.

"Representatives, it is excellent to see you today. Under normal circumstances these issues would be handled by Congress in Washington, however as we are all aware that is no longer possible. It will be up to each group of delegates to decide how you will separate, but two of you will be assigned to the Senate, while the other two will be Representatives. Before we settle that matter, we have much to discuss about the future direction of our Country.

"Never before has our Republic been so threatened, nor before the bombs our Representatives so paralyzed by differences that upon reflection no longer matter. Never again can we allow that paralysis to infect our Congressional Representatives. Never again can we become so separated that we lose sight of that which is most important.

"Effective today I am authorizing each base Command to use the Emergency Production Act, as well as Executive Order to salvage the equipment necessary to restart the many industries our nation needs to survive. Never again will money paralyze our ability to operate, as even if the state itself must provide the services needed, under the 14th Amendment, Debts of this Nation cannot be questioned. The need for us to expand our Military has never been more desperate, and I will implore each of you to search your souls as we decide on how we will move forward together as a Nation.

"Each of you was assigned a tablet upon your arrival, and it gives you secure access to the database of information we will be using for the foreseeable future. You and your colleagues from your base will decide which of you will operate as the Senate Delegate, and which will be the Representative Delegate. One Civilian and One military Officer will occupy each delegation from each District. Part of our task over the next few weeks will be to decide on how future delegations will operate, and just how much of the old system we will be keeping." Lincoln told them. "Once you have decided, you will each lock your Delegation into the system, and we will continue with our business at that time." he told them all before he sat down.

As soon as he finished speaking there was a flurry of activity as the people from the bases decided how they would split themselves up between Senate and House of Representatives. He watched as the number of selections climbed quickly, and within half an hour they had decided which of them would be in which delegation.

Lincoln stood up, and stepped forward to the microphone. "I thank all of you for your ability to make this decision quickly, as we have much work to do. The first proposal for your consideration will forever change the way we consider our country. It is clear to me that the Experiment our fore father's created has failed dramatically. A Constitutional Democratic Republic was doomed from the beginning as soon as political parties were introduced. The separation of state and federal power only served as another division to separate the people. It is my proposal that we today, change our form of Government to a Constitutional Empire that operates based on a Resource Economy.

"We can cling to the past, and attempt to correct something that was doomed from the start. Or we can allow this cowardly attack to wash away the past, and emerge stronger not only as a Nation, but as a United Race. We can select the best parts of our history, and learn from the many mistakes of the past." Lincoln told them all.

"How exactly would that work sir?" one of the many delegates asked.

"I am glad you asked, as it is very important. A resource economy means that each city we create or rebuild can be made to maximize the automated productivity that we have the ability to create. The New Government will establish any market that is on need, and the resources will be harvested and used as close to the source as possible. We will use every bit of our knowledge, intelligence, and ability to ensure the needs of our people are met. Everyone will have to develop skills that can contribute to the overall benefit of society, and I also recommend a mandatory term of Military Service for all citizens. Further details can be found in your briefing packets, and each of you is welcome to go through them.

"The key parts of this are the Market Economy as we knew it will be gone. No longer will Corporations be the only one conducting business, as Food, Water, and Shelter will be considered basic rights of the people. As well as security in the knowledge that we will do everything in our power while designing these new cities to ensure these events never occur again. The changes will be many, including the need for these delegations never needing to squabble over the cost of things again.

"Proposal 2 Aligns with the Mandatory term of service, and codifies that all education facilities will now be ran according to the rules and conduct of a Military Academy. Each Citizen under the age of 18 shall be required to attend an accredited institution from the age of 5 onwards. If the child will turn 5 on that calenders year, they will be required to attend school that entire year. Each student will be assessed at appropriate intervals to best determine what skills are best suited to them, to ensure they will be productive members of society upon completion of their service. Again full details can of this proposal can be found in the briefing packets you have available." Lincoln said as he noticed a few of them were surprised by these ideas.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I know these measures are far from what everyone is used too. It will be a dramatic shift not only in policy, but what we legally do and do not have the authority to do. As our fore father's once decided on how they would guide their descendants into the future, we must do so once again. The question we must ask ourselves, is will we learn the lessons of history? Or cling to a past that has shown us that the end is the utter destruction of our entire planet." he said as one of the Representatives stood.

"Sir, may I have a moment?" the woman asked respectfully.

"You may." he said stepping back from the podium and allowing her to approach.

She walked up to the microphone and looked at him while speaking so she could be heard by all. "Sir, let me be the first to say it is an honor to be here today. Since the bombs fell there has only one been constant, and that is your daily updates to our command staffs. You so far have done an excellent job leading us through this difficult time. However our government has never been run by a single man, and despite how well you have done the job alone, allow us to help you.

"Allow us the rest of this day to establish a structure we can agree upon, and begin the review process of the bills you wish to submit." she suggested.

"What is your name ma'am?" he asked the young woman who appeared to be 25 or 26. Her long curly red hair tried to hide her brilliantly blue eyes.

"Meghan Rapiho President Masters." she replied bowing slightly.

"Do you think you could guide the rest of the Representatives through selecting a Command Branch from the Senators pool? I believe as there are 1030 of them, we should trim the number to 1,000. That would give us 30 seats in the Command Branch of our new government until a permanent solution can be found." he asked knowing they would likely discuss it before they voted.

"I assure you we will quickly establish a governing body that will make future generations proud sir." she replied as he stood up and made his way to the exit.

Lincoln was surprised he had made it out of there before lunch, but had people there monitoring the situation so it didn't desolve into what the old Congress had been. However within an hour he had been informed that the 30 Command Branch Representatives had been selected, and would be reporting to the new building that had been temporarily commandeered for the Presidential Suite.

Half an hour later he had been informed that the new leadership of both Senate and House had been selected, and a second Hall had been ordered commandeered for their use. Before his new team had even arrived they had begun deliberating on the motions he had been working on for weeks.

He had gone through everything extensively, and had made 70 proposals for how he thought the country could better serve and protect the citizens. It just required the citizens to play a proactive role for the Nation, and this new Congress seemed to be embracing his ideas.

He was not surprised when the 30 people walked in, as this building was the new equivalent to the White House. "Welcome to the Executive Branch of our Government, were each of you selected to a role? Or will we be figuring out what each of our responsibilities will be as we move forward?" Lincoln asked them.

"We volunteered for the Positions, and most of us have relevant experience to what we have been assigned to do. I am Jacob Black, and I will be your Vice President. We know the tasks from the old world that need to be done, however I have a feeling they intend to move quickly through your proposals. They have heard you sir, and they are already deciding how we will change our election system, and have added term limits to all representatives from each of the houses." Jacob said surprised at the speed with which they were moving through the proposals.

"They are coupling them with Emergency Powers at this time, until a vote can be held among the survivors to authorize it in full. The vote to turn it into a Constitutional Convention has already passed, and they are seeking your approval so that it may be submitted to the bases in the surviving 'States', and it can be ratified quickly be a general vote. Emily Peterson sir, your new Chief of Staff." she informed him and introduced herself.

"Excellent Ms. Peterson, as soon as the bill has been transmitted to me for signature I will of course approve it." Lincoln replied as each of his new Executive Officers introduced themselves and decided where their offices would be. Lincoln found one that was attached to a suite, and for this place it was essentially luxury. He spent hours pouring over the latest intelligence reports, and was surprised at 1700 when his Chief of Staff brought in 2 dozen of his proposals that had been passed by each Chamber.

He began looking through them, and saw that the majority of them had been passed nearly unanimously and several had even been passed by mutual consent in both Chambers. "Sir, President of the Senate Michelle Chalmers is here to see you, as well as President of the House Winston Gunter." Emily told him.

"Show them in." he told her as he closed his laptop and waited only a couple minutes before they walked in.

"Mr. President." they both said greeting him as they sat in the proferred seats.

"Ms. Chalmers, Mr. Gunter, what is it that brings you here this evening?" he asked politely giving them his full attention.

"We wished to discuss what our focus as the new Congressional Representatives should be?" Ms. Chalmers asked him politely.

"As far as what I wish to be legislated? You will forgive me, as I am not a politician. My concern right now is surviving what will be coming, wether it be Winter or War. What Congress does beyond the scope of my proposals so far will be up to the membership. I however would suggest the focus be on safety, security, and establishing a more permanent structure between the States and Federal Government. After that either killing the ways before the bombs, or determining which aspects we wish to keep as we forget ahead. We are at the beginning of an event that shall forever reshape the way our world has been. We need to find a way that we can be both successful, and safe." Lincoln told them honestly about his priorities.