NOVEL WEB S3E79 – SOLA POWAAA
About three weeks have passed since the naming of our little group. The wall is nearing around 75% completion, and we’ve started gathering cinder blocks for the next stage of the wall. The whole voting thing is gonna happen next week, so people have been putting themselves up for vote for all the different spots.
So far, Shane is the best choice for head of security, Hershel is the top choice for head of healthcare, Dale is up for the head of industry, Jim turned out to be a higher up in Atlanta power and water so he’ll be the head of utilities, and Rick is actually the top choice for head of agriculture. We also have two people who weren’t part of the main group in the show. Kim is actually shaping up to be the top choice for the head of infrastructure. She went to college to become a city planner. Lastly, a man named Hector is looking to be the head of construction.
Hector was in the first group to join us after we set up in the prison. He and his group were scavenging in Clidell, a town near the prison. A group of our own scavengers ran into them and told them about the prison. Hector, along with his two teen kids and wife, decided to join up with us pretty quickly.
As for the position of leader, the only person running against me is Carl. Personally, I’m voting for him. Jokes aside, it’s pretty clear that people want me as the leader, which I find pretty shocking. I thought for sure people would be at least partially likely to try and get Shane or Rick to sign up. Lori absolutely tried to get Rick to, but Rick’s slowly getting more and more used to being a farmer. Speaking of Lori, her baby bump is starting to get even bigger. She can’t do hard labor anymore, which is fine, she never did it anyway.
That’s enough of a recap. Right now, I’m getting ready along with Gerard, Shane, Amy, Glen, and Hector. A team of scouts finally found a store with solar panels on display, so we’re gonna go grab those. The scouts couldn’t get them because the store was surrounded by a small horde of about twenty walkers, which would’ve overpowered the three man team without the use of guns.
As far as why Amy’s coming, she’s become a pretty damn good shot recently. She absolutely sucks with guns because the loud sounds make her flinch, but with a bow? She’s a regular Robin Hood.
We also decided against taking Daryl, as he’s currently teaching a few people how to walk quieter in the forest and sneak up on walkers.
“You guys all packed up?”
Shane looks at the group, seeing everybody equipped with their weapons and packs. He nods his head as he looks at us and says,
“Good. Remember, if we get separated, turn on your walkies. For now, though, Penny and I are gonna keep ours on so we can communicate between the two groups. Alright, let’s load up.”
The groups are split into two, with me, Amy, and Glen taking my truck, and Shane, Gerard, and Hector taking the other.
I climb up into the driver's seat of my truck, turning the key and hearing it roar to life. As we all hop in and get ready to leave, Glen comments from the back seat,
“Damn, we should get a radio tower back up and running so we can get some music in here.”
I nod my head,
“Honestly, not a bad idea. Write that down for later.”
As the guys start to drive off in the truck in front of us, I begin to tail them. While we drive, I think back to the skills people got from that one faction upgrade I bought. Most people got things that are relatively useless. Things like [Jeweler], [Sculpting], and [Toycraft] to name a few. But there were a few that were incredible.
Amy, for example, got the skill [Blacksmithing]. So, it seems that skills given don’t have to fit people’s personalities. Shane got the skill [Tailoring], too. Hector actually just got an upgrade to his skill [Construction 2], turning it to [Construction 3]. Dale ended up upgrading his [Mechanic] skill from 3 to 4.
Overall, it was extremely worth it.
Amy’s voice brings me out of my thoughts,
“So, Penny, how many solar panels do you think are in there?”
I shake my head,
“Honestly, probably not many. I’m surprised they found any at all. I’d expected to have to find an actual solar farm to get them, or go to some rich area and take them off a roof.”
She nods her head,
“Honestly, yeah. I don’t even know where you’d go for solar panels without the internet.”
I rub my chin in thought, thinking back to how it was in my past life,
“Well, you’d most likely have to call a roofing company. But they’d be insanely expensive, and wouldn’t really work off their price. The place we’re headed to is apparently a roofing company’s store.”
She nods her head. Gerard’s voice rings out from the rear seat,
“Yeah, the store had a solar panel on display at the front with a big sign advertising it. The guys couldn’t get a clear view of the inside of the store, but they could see the panel clearly.”
I think for a second before responding,
“I hope they have a lot of them. It’s gonna take quite a bit to power the prison.”
The next ten minutes or so are spent with idle chatting, catching up with one another, and watching for any potential hazards. Every now and then, Gerard pops his arm out the window and takes a few shots at walkers as we drive by.
Eventually, we get into the limits of the town. As we pass into it, Shane calls me on the walkie with a crackle,
“*KSHH* Hey, Penny, the place is just a bit away. There’s a parking lot just a few blocks down that we’re gonna be stopping at to get out.”
