Harem in a zombie apocalypse

[31] Planning again

In the dim light of Cassidy's garage, we began preparing for our long journey. I had never thought in my wildest dreams that I would be packing for a post-apocalyptic road trip. Yet, here we were, a college student, a high school teacher, and a gun enthusiast, with our fates intertwined by circumstance.

Cassidy broke down our essentials into categories: food, water, shelter, and defense. For food, we had canned goods, energy bars, and a few bags of rice. For water, Cassidy had an impressive collection of water purification tablets and filters, along with a few gallon jugs to get us started. For shelter, we had a couple of lightweight camping tents and sleeping bags.

For defense, Cassidy was in her element. "We'll need to bring as many firearms as we can," she declared, her eyes flicking over her collection with a discerning gaze. She was like a child in a candy store, only her candy was made of cold, hard steel.

First, she picked up the AR-15 I had chosen earlier and a handful of magazines. "Reliable and versatile," she commented, giving me a nod of approval. She then handed Ms. Yan the compact handgun she had chosen earlier, along with a few boxes of ammunition. "Remember, aim for the head," she reminded her.

Cassidy then turned to her own armament. She fondly picked up the twin pistols she had introduced to us earlier. After securing a few extra magazines, she moved on to a shotgun and a sniper rifle. She swiftly assembled and checked each weapon with a practiced hand, the guns clicking and whirring in response.

The hours wore on, filled with the metallic clink of cans and the heavy thuds of packs being filled. As we double-checked our provisions, ran through our plan one last time, I felt a strange mixture of fear and anticipation coursing through my veins.

***

The rustling of maps and Cassidy's excited ramblings filled the room as we prepared for our impending journey. Spread across the wooden table was a large map of the western United States, its surface littered with highways, towns, and cities. Salt Lake City, our first destination, was marked with a small red circle.

"There are several routes we could take," Cassidy began, her finger tracing the potential paths from Reno to Salt Lake City. "The most direct would be I-80 East, but that means passing through both Elko and Wendover. Both are large enough towns to have been hit by this... whatever it's called," she said, her brow furrowing. She seemed to be mulling over the risks in her head.

"We could go south, down to Tonopah, then take US-6 and US-50 up through Delta and Provo. But that's a long way round," she said, her tone suggesting she wasn't thrilled with the idea.

Ms. Yan, who had been silently following the discussion, then pointed to a route that cut through the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, bypassing the larger towns altogether. "What about this one?" she asked, her finger tracing a winding route through the heart of the mountain range.

Cassidy frowned, "That's a more rural route. It's longer, and we'll need to watch out for fuel. There won't be as many gas stations, and those that are there might be out of fuel."

We debated for a while longer, each option having its pros and cons. The direct route was faster but risked encountering more zombies. The southern route was safer but longer. And the mountain route? It was an unknown.

Ultimately, we decided to take our chances with the mountain route. It seemed the least likely to have been heavily populated and therefore less likely to have a large concentration of zombies. Cassidy was worried about fuel, but we had enough to get us through the mountain range, and we could always look for more on the other side.

"Alright," Cassidy concluded, a determined glint in her eyes. "We leave at dawn. Get some rest. We'll need it." With that, she rolled up the map, ending our discussion. Tomorrow, our journey would begin.

Q: Are you a planning person?