Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

The only difference was that Kaley was now filling the role of Tatiana while Cynthia was filling hers. She was now the one clearing the rooms with us while Cynthia was posted right next to Jared. The Reaper on her hands was as imposing as ever and that was something we would rely on if ever we needed more fire in firepower since Cynthia was still equipped with a PS90 and her takedown AR.

Aside from Kaley getting the Reaper, I upped some of the guns Artem\'s group and everyone else was using. It took a bit of time adjusting to their new loadout but a threat of a hulker appearing once more was on everyone\'s mind. However, not a single one appeared after the last time and they just managed to get more practice with living err-- moving targets.

We started with thinning out the dead from the outskirts then eventually moving into the thicker parts of the city.

Artem and I led our crew while still holding our handhelds but speaking of them, Artem would soon get something crafted by our engineering department. They all talked some big game about something that could kill a hulker in one blow but I would need to see it first before I believe it.

With that said, we brought home a large trove of medical supplies and equipment, sharing a portion of them with Iskoh, Morales, and Mauricio, and receiving something of an almost exact value. We also acquired food, gas, weaponry, and etc. but we leaned to clearing the other hospitals around the medical center from last time.

From Iskoh and Morales\' side, we received their specialties of aquatic nature while I received the exact opposite from Mauricio.

Rice was just a staple in our country and we secured more sacks not only from the Intercity but the surrounding places where Mauricio had his own network of people to trade with. I\'ve met with them a few times and they have access to something we didn\'t have much of.

Farmland.

Sure, we almost got three cities to our belt but we didn\'t have enough places to put up larger farms to plant more produce because of fucking concrete and paved roads. Furthermore, open spaces would be better for farm animals as well. We had small gardens, greenhouses, barns, coops, and etc. built around our area but nothing could beat a few hectares of land that\'s just waiting to be cultivated or grazed upon.

We had seeds and animals to spare so why not come up with a fair arrangement?

Mauricio set up a meeting with them and even Iskoh came with us.

It actually came out smoother than expected because, from experience, it would always take too long if greedy merchants wanted a slightly bigger cut than everybody. It was just that my group supported by Iskoh, Morales, Mauricio, and even Jessica was enough pressure to make everyone else that had a community on a smaller scale buckle.

From what I\'ve heard last, her group managed to take out the leaders of a group that was giving them pressure from the north, making their people join her in the process. It used to be just a battle of attrition but they took the offensive at the right moment. The soldiers and the equipment we sent them helped immensely and it was decided we\'d send more to solidify her hold on the airport and the golf resort which was now their main HQ.

A visit to their place was also discussed and we would do so in another week or so.

Taking it back, we could\'ve gone the tyrannical route with the negotiations but we still kept ourselves in check, making sure that everybody wouldn\'t be shortchanged.

We had the advantage but we used it to build stronger connections. There\'s a difference between leading with fear compared to what we were trying to do. Besides, following an example of a certain barb-wired bat-wielding antagonist was not our style. Violence was our go-to option for taking care of the dead but it was a last resort for dealing with people just trying to survive.

What\'s decided in the end was a fair cut with everyone involved where the farmers and ranchers would utilize the resources given to them while our groups would send in security and offer medical help. It\'s not like every condition or illness disappeared when the zombie apocalypse happened so people with medical needs still needed to be served.

In some twisted way, ever since the end of times started, some of the medical professionals we had actually practiced or focused on medicine for once.

For example, the hospital in our own DDR Camp was actually a private one and only people with deep pockets could afford the health care. People who were less fortunate only had the luxury to go to free clinics where it was heavily understaffed or lacking resources to actually help people.

But now, even if our resources were finite and strictly regulated, it goes to anyone who actually needed it as long as it was available. Furthermore, our medical staff were not concerned about getting fat stacks of cash anymore since they\'d work tirelessly to give a correct diagnosis to a patient before doing what was needed to be done, be it a simple prescription of medicine or performing a complicated surgery.

Granted a few of them still operated on the premise of getting special favors over doing something they could only do but it was much better than what it used to be.

They\'d actually do something first then ask for something later, or even ask for nothing at all.

Speaking of doing nothing, there was a certain someone that actually listened to us after a while and was improving day by day.

Tatiana was actually healing faster than expected but we still kept her away from doing hard labor. In doing so, I proposed an exercise to keep her busy and it was to achieve the same control she had with her right hand with her left hand. She was already training to use her left hand given her situation but I made her perform exercises that required more finesse.

The first one was to hit it where it hurts because I prepared a lot of food she liked but I made her use chopsticks instead of a spoon or a fork.

She didn\'t even know how to use them with her right hand and she was struggling so hard, she couldn\'t even have a proper bite.

I kept swatting her hand every time she tried to cheat her way into eating delicious food and she fucking hated me for it. Kaley and the rest couldn\'t do that to her aside from me, but it was all for her sake. Getting better and getting better could actually mean two different things. However, my goal for her was to achieve both but it needed some tough love.

Well, to not be a complete asshole, there was a time allotted for her to do the exercise and to actually eat so I just fed her myself when the timer rang. It became a love-hate relationship between us in her recovery but each time we were done, she\'d actually thank me sheepishly before going back to her room. One of the things that kept her going was once she was completely healed, everyone would do something special for her.

With that said, the highlight of my week was still seeing Kaley wearing the ring I made for her. She\'d always smile every time she look at it and it was a fun morning when our roommates saw her wearing it on her finger for the first time.

Congratulatory messages were instantly given but the topic instantly went about discussing our special relationship once we were all inside the \'safe zone\'. It was obvious the arrangement we had with everyone would stay the same but they just had to ask to make sure. However, Kaley soloed me the first few nights and it led me to get \'ambushed\' by everyone else every time I was free the day after.

This version of keeping everyone happy was taxing on my part but it was hard to say no. I decided to keep on with it for as long as I could since we had more pressing issues to take care of.

After I sent our pilots to deliver the hulker to the president\'s side, they came back with our cargo helicopter full of passengers. I would have no problem integrating 50+ new people in our midst but it\'s just that they were a little bit… different.

I had no fucking clue why the president would send me random-ass people but if they\'re gonna stay here, they gotta follow our rules to the dot.

Well, Mikhail just clocked the fuck out of the biggest guy in cuffs before it turned into a fucking brawl.

\'Weird trade, not gonna lie....\'