Wayne Gray

Thanks for taking it for another spin, Doha. This one took the most out of me to write, but I'm glad I did it. You probably know what I mean. Enjoy the ride. 🙂

Glad you liked it! Thanks for reading and commenting. 🙂

So ... I am not sure where you're from. But in rural Kentucky in 1993, the internet was not a part of everyday life for the average person. There are no smartphones. Most people didn't own a computer. Google didn't exist. Email wasn't widely used. So information was harder to come by, and harder to disseminate. People relied on radio stations, HAM operators, CBs, and televisions. What information is coming into and out of the county is due to the above avenues. Some of that information is carefully tailored to the audience by governmental agencies. Some, however, is coming from outlets the government does not control. HAM operators, in particular, are a thorn in the side of the propaganda machine. I looked up the HAM operators in Kentucky, and a lot of them were there in 1993 too. I remember when growing up, it was a popular hobby for quite a few folks my family knew. The setting is fun for me. It makes this an interesting write, just from the limitations of the times. Currently, the government is saying "This outbreak is contained. Stay calm, and we will have control of it soon." Everyone else is saying "We're dying. We're under attack from the sick. The government is lying to you." Fun stuff, eh?

you're right. I mean ... we're literally watching society crumble around these people. It is bound to be dark. But that means there's a potential for a far brighter future too. As for Pamela, Wayne feels if they've fallen so far as to sentence a teenage girl to death, then why bother trying to live? That's his take. Mark is far more pragmatic. He's not a monster, but he has deep reservations simply because he is certain of the outcome. Is he right? Even if he is, does that make what he wanted to do right? Ah. Shades of gray. I love it. Thanks for the comment, tim. 🙂

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Thanks for the faith! We'll get to "better" times, if I have my way. Stick with me.

LOL. So you did. Thanks for encouraging me to post it!

Glad to hear you're engaged in the story. I've never written a survivor/apocalypse tale before, but it's kinda fun. Thanks for commenting!

Well ... we have the benefit of knowing things they don't. But ... you might be right. It's pretty scary taking the risk Wayne is taking. Thanks for reading and commenting!

Oh, I'd be uneasy leaving a ticking bomb in the house too. You're pretty sure it's gonna go off, but you don't know when. And you don't know if the box you put it in will keep you safe. Yeah. That'd make me uneasy too. In Communicable Disease circles, that's called "Infective Dose." How much does it take for the average person to become sick with a disease? Some hemorrhagic fevers are wild ... the infective dose is down in the ten viron region. TEN viruses can cause disease. That's nuts. Well, this thing is similar. The average person seems to get sick with a very small dose of virus. While those left seem to be immune to the airborne version. Will having a sick person so close at hand have an impact? I guess we'll see. Thanks for the comment, Dave!

Yeah, Pamela got a raw deal, for sure. you're right in that she was able to provide more information to our guys. Maybe some good will come from that. I won't say more about her situation just yet, but we're certainly not done with it. The mysterious smell hanging over the county is completely gone while the whole place goes mad with zombies staggering around. Great theory concerning the smell and efforts to control the spread. I swear, sometimes I wish I could read the comments before writing the story! 🙂 Ah, so you're advocating for the "specialize and dabble" approach to learning skills. It's not a bad idea for Wayne to learn a bit of stealth and combat and for Mark to learn some basic repair skills, for example. We'll see if they have the time required to do that or not.

July 12, 1993 Monday, 345 AM Sorry about looking in your book, Wayne. Guess I was curious about what you were writing in here. Yeah, you told me, but still - sometimes, a man has to see for himself. Since we're keeping track of the world and what's happening in it, I reckon I should do my part, eh? Right now, you're asleep. I had you go to bed - because you were nodding off, sitting beside the radio, listening for news of what's going on. And I'm thinking we need to get rest when we

Thanks! You've got more reading available in this universe if you like. I hope you give A Silent Song and Broken a try at some point. 🙂

Thanks, Larry! I’m working on creating the next chapter now. Luckily, engineer Benson is still alive to tell his tale. 🙂

Thanks for reading/commenting! I watched TWD until the show stopped being about people surviving zombies and began showcasing the absolute worst humanity had to offer (so, season two). I hate the belief that when given the choice, we choose to devolve into barbarism. So … this will not be that. These folks will not have the luxury of scrambling for power. That’s so far out of their minds as to be laughable.

Hehe. There are going to be many situations you're not going to like in this one. The hope is that the victories outweigh the setbacks. But that's really up to luck and how well I play. Wish me luck!

Glad you find it interesting. It’s a wild game, so I think a story based on it has a lot of potential. Thanks for the comment!

It’s an intense game. It makes for good base inspiration material. 😀

Glad you’re intrigued. There will be more, so stick around. 🙂

Thanks! Glad you're enjoying the story so far. If you like intense, then stick around. It's about to get WILD.

God, if you love a zombie apocalypse, then stick around. You will eat this up. It's about to get so messed up, so hang on! Thanks, CincyKris. More to come.

Thanks, JohnnyC! Same to you - I hope you have a great New Year. And I hope you stay interested. We'll see how long of a story Wayne and Mark have - I really don't know either. Which is weird, and oddly inspiring. Hopefully I play well enough for us to end up with a good long story.

These guys need to stay joined at the hip if they have any chance. you're right. They both sorta know it too. Mark is such a fucking bad ass. He really is. But ... we get to see his Achilles heel here. And he's nowhere near as savvy as Wayne is when it comes to the science of staying alive in the modern (in the nineties) age. Sure, he can survive out in the woods. But we're about to find out what Wayne brings to the equation. So hang on. 🙂

Zombies! Aieeee! 😄 Yeah, this game opens with these lines ... "This is how you die." So there are no illusions. There's no "winning". There's no end to whatever caused the apocalypse. There's just this new world, where you are trying to survive in a newly hostile environment. At first it bothered me. But now? Now, I kinda like it.

There are ZERO rainbows ahead, though there might be some lollypops. I know there are, actually ... they're about fifteen calories, and pure carbs. At least, that's what they are in the game. LOL. I've never written horror, but this game really inspires me to try. So here we go. Thanks for the comment. I hope you stick around.