Steven Konkoly - The Perseid Collapse

“Why don’t you just give him yours?” Charlie asked, pointing at the rack of bicycles hanging on the far wall.

“Because there’s four in my group, and I only have three bikes in the garage? I don’t plan on walking to Boston.”

“Who said anything about biking to Boston? Ed’s Jeep survived the EMP.”

“Shit, Charlie! Will you keep that down?” hissed Ed, pulling them deep into the garage. “I wasn’t going to say anything until we got inside, Alex, but we’re taking the Wrangler down to Boston.”

“Isn’t the fuel system contaminated?”

“I checked it out,” said Charlie. “It’s fine as far as I can tell, and I know a thing or two about cars.”

“I didn’t think you could submerge a Jeep,” said Alex.

“You can’t, but it didn’t get submerged.”

“How? The water in my garage reached the ceiling. We can’t run the risk of that engine seizing up ten miles down the road, Ed.”

“It was pure luck. I went into the garage to start the cars, but decided to open both garage bay doors first. After opening the second door, I thought about the hand-cranked radio on one of the shelves. I brought the radio inside and got distracted. From what I could tell, the water never rose over the wheel wells. Just flowed right out of the garage,” said Ed.

“Un—believable. You win the EMP car lottery and take it one step further by accidentally saving the car. You need to hit Vegas when this is over,” said Alex.

“If Vegas ever goes back online, I’ll book the first flight.”

“I guess we have some planning to do,” said Alex.

“We should probably leave for Boston in a few hours,” Ed suggested. “Two hours there, two hours back, give or take an hour or two. We should be back before dark.”

“It’s not going to be that easy. We have no idea what happened down in Boston or the seacoast of New Hampshire. We could be looking at this,” he gestured to the neighborhood wreckage, “times ten.”

“We can swing further inland once we cross into New Hampshire, get away from the 95. Between the two cars, I have a full tank. That’s twenty-two gallons, more than enough to get to Boston and back to Limerick. We can throw a few extra gas cans in the Jeep to give us more range.”

“Distance won’t be the problem. There’s something else. We watched the police commandeer civilian vehicles in South Portland, and one of the petty officers at the Coast Guard station said they had been instructed to disarm civilians on sight. They tossed my pistol in the water without hesitation. What if the police are doing this everywhere?”

“I would have flattened any son of a bitch who tried to take my pistol,” said Charlie.

“I had a 240 ‘bravo’ pointed at my head, Charlie. Not a lot of choice there. I think we need to give the police a day to simmer and replace their motor pool, then set out first thing tomorrow with a solid plan,” said Alex.

“That’s almost twenty-four hours away. Samantha’s gonna flip out when she hears this,” said Ed.

“We’ll get everyone together and explain the situation. Based on what I’ve seen so far, putting a functional vehicle on the road today is a risky move, especially considering the type of equipment we’ll need to bring with us to ensure our safety in Boston. If they’re tossing civilian pistols into the water without a second thought, imagine what’ll happen when we try to explain a trunk full of combat rifles.”

“What’s to stop them from confiscating our car tomorrow? We’d be in the same situation, except we’d have lost a day,” said Ed.

“There is no guarantee. Just a gut feeling based on experience. By tomorrow, people will start venturing out onto the roads. Anyone with a car will try to leave the more populated areas. They know it’s only a matter of time before the situation explodes. With more cars on the road, the police will have their hands full. The most I expect to encounter is a checkpoint or two along the way. They’ll be focused on traffic heading north. We’ll be headed south. I’ve seen this before. Every time we rolled up on a city in Iraq, the same thing happened. The streets went quiet while everyone tried to figure out if we planned to launch a major offensive or bypass the city. The next day? Mayhem. Cars backed up into the city along the main roads, families fleeing on foot, carrying suitcases and valuables. If we wait until tomorrow, we’ll be able to blend in and lower our risk of attracting attention.”

“I’m going to need you to explain this to my wife. She’s ready to drive down to Boston herself.”

“Here’s what I’m thinking overall. Early tomorrow, we put the families on bicycles and send them out to my parents’ place in Limerick. It’ll take them four hours tops to get there.”

“Longer if the roads are like this across town,” said Ed.

“True. They’ll have to walk the bikes down Harrison Road at least a mile before it eases up. Maybe longer. Anyway, at the same time, we head south for Boston. If all goes well on our end, we’ll be back with the kids in time for dinner. Everyone is welcome to stay at the farm as long as they’d like. It’s up to you guys. I don’t plan on returning here once we retrieve the kids,” said Alex.

“Thanks, Alex. I’ll have to talk it over with Sam. A lot will depend on what we see out there.”

“I know Linda will want to wait it out, but maybe I can convince her to do the waiting in a less populated area,” said Charlie.

“We’ll have running water and electricity, if that helps sway your decision,” said Alex.

Charlie asked, “Won’t the solar panels be fried?”

“We have two banks of solar panels, each fully independent, with its own controller, inverter and battery storage bank. One of the two systems is disconnected at all times. No link to the grid and all cables detached. The solar panels themselves should be fine, according to the manufacturer,” said Alex, shrugging his shoulders.

“The prospect of hot showers and cold drinks might sway the vote, my friend. It’s going to get really rustic around here—really quick,” said Charlie.

“That’s a fact. How about we give you some time to dig through the house?” Ed asked. “I’ll bring cold beers over in an hour or so, and we’ll work out the rest of the details. I should have Sam onboard with the plan by then.”

“Sounds good. Hey—does anyone else know about the Jeep?” asked Alex.

“Jamie was in her garage across the street when I started it. I let it run for a few minutes to make sure the fuel system was fine. Both of her garage doors were open.”

“I suggest you shut both bay doors and reengage the manual release. Make sure it’s locked. How about the door on the side? Looks like mine was busted open by the water.”

“Busted, along with the windows,” said Ed.

“At some point sooner than later, we need to shore up your garage so nobody can get in and try to steal your car. I’d be willing to bet that Jamie wasn’t the only person in the neighborhood to hear the engine start. The only thing I’ve heard so far is the water spilling out of the sewers.”

“I heard him start the car from inside my house,” said Charlie.

“Then it looks like we may be spending the night at Ed’s house and posting a watch. You’re holding the winning lottery ticket, Ed, except your ticket is a thousand times more valuable than any of this weekend’s winning mega-bucks tickets. I’ll swing by when I’m done taking an inventory here. Stay safe, guys. We all know what can happen around here when things get desperate.”

EVENT +09:13 Hours

Scarborough, Maine