Fallout: Assiniboia - First Year

The following is an account found on a Computer in a dilapidated house by scavengers in the now abandoned St. Vital district of Winnipeg in 2148. The computer was delivered to technicians with the Assiniboian Ministry of Culture who managed to save and restore the partially damaged files, including this journal of Richard "Rick" Kingsley. The following is excerpts from that journal of the first year after the War of 2077, and the establishment of the Dominion. NOTE: Spelling and grammar has been left as is, in order to maintain the authenticity of the document for future generations.

October 23, 2077: I can't actually believe I'm alive right now. This morning, right before I was to leave for work and send Charlie to school, the air raid sirens went off and the radios and TV went to the Emergency Broadcast. That was the first time that I actually saw my life flash before my eyes. It was weird, hearing the sirens and the blare from the TVs… but nothing happened. There were a few jets that flew north, most likely to try to intercept some Russkie or Chinese bomber or something. But no missiles, no bombs, no nothing.

Around 4 PM, all the TV and radio stations were diverted to General Mondale, the Yankee guy in charge of Winnipeg. He said that all communication with the US Army and the government was interrupted, but the curfew and other things were still in place while contact was to be made. He also said that, at this time, it was clear that no missiles or bombers were going to hit the city. He did say some technology had been destroyed by something he called an "electromagnetic pulse," but that it wouldn't effect any civilian technology. The General just told us to carry on with our lives. As if we can.

So what the hell does that mean? Winnipeg, of all the cities in Canada and the US, was not hit by nukes in a nuclear war? Really?

Judywas freaking out all day, and I can't blame her. I'm so glad Charliewas so tired he finally did go to sleep tonight. Neither Judy nor I can right now. Lucky kid. She still thinks a bomb might come and wipe us all out while we are sleeping, or that some secret American research project might be unleashed on us, that Winnipeg was protected to be a testing site for some new weapon to use on China. She burst into tears as all these conspiracy theories ran through her head. I just held her all night. Hopefully we can get some answers soon.

At least I have an excuse to not go to the office tomorrow.

October 25, 2077: The entire city is on lockdown now. General Mondale has declared Martial Law, ordered all traffic to cease (like anyone has gas for cars, or would be able to get a Chryslus if we wanted to!) and all stores and schools to close. So, still no work. All well.

The army is patrolling the streets, but you can hear gunshots and explosions all over the city. Funny that no one around here in St. Vital is firing at the soldiers. You keep hearing the horror stories of how they would shoot anyone nearby after an ambush, civilian or freedom fighter. After what they did to Calgary a few months ago...

Charlie was excited to get to stay home from school, like all seven year olds would be, but Judy is now worrying about everything: Food, hydro, water, her relatives in Brandon and Toronto. I'm trying to get her to relax, but she was always such a worrywart and conspiracy theorist. Now she thinks that aliens started the war, but saved Winnipeg to turn us all into slaves. I know she has always been a bit crazy, especially when she stopped painting, but now it's getting ridiculous.

Found every bottle, pail and glass I could find and filled them up with as much water as possible. Even though no bombs hit Winnipeg, that doesn't mean the water might become containimated.

October 26, 2077: The US soldiers are being really polite to us I will give them that. They might just be in shock that they are still alive when most likely their families back home are dead, dying, or gone. They are very somber, and almost resigned to death. A private, a conscript from the South, broke down and began crying when he saw a young woman and her daughter walk by. Must have reminded him of his own young wife and kids. Poor man.

They've brought in some rations from Fort Headingly and distributed them to us, a week's worth of military food for us since our fresh food is running out now. It was almost nice, a festive occasion, getting to talk to neighbours again, after being cooped up for so long. Some people even began to talk about how, maybe, it wasn't a bomb at all, and just some weird American fantasy. Then Mr. Jenner, some district manager for a factory with its headquarters in Toronto, said he couldn't call there. Another lady said she tried to call her relatives in Regina, but just static. So… maybe it is, maybe it isn't? I don't know.

October 27, 2077: Fuck, things have gone down hill, and so fucking quickly.

When I and Charlie had got out stuff and was heading back from the ration drop off point, there was a commotion near us. One man tried to grab extra rations, and the lieutenant in charge demanded he return them. When the man tried to run away, he pulled out his revolver and shot the man in the back of the head five times, killing him instantly. Everybody freaked out: screaming and crying. I picked up Charlie and ran all the way home, three blocks away. Judy was freaking out when we got back, thinking it was that was dead, or some massacre happened. I assured her it was just an idiot trying to get more than he was allotted, and nothing bad should come of it.

October 28, 2077: Spoke too damn soon. A truck of soldiers that are patrolling this area after yesterdays incident, was blown up earlier, and a dozen men in face-masks and captured assault rifles killed the few that survived. One of them pulled an old Maple Leaf flag from his jacket and stuck it near the smoldering truck. More soldiers came, including those guys in the big metal suits of power armor, but by then the Independence guys were long gone.

The Canadian Independence Party is still a thing? I swore they were wiped out by now, or were busy in places like Toronto or Vancouver. You know, the real cities. Not Winnipeg.

Usually, after something like that, the soldiers would then round up a dozen or two people, hold them at Fort Headingly or Stoney Mountain, and demand the "rebels" turn themselves in. Not now. The soldiers are jittery, nervous and, frankly, afraid. Can't blame them, really. They are in an angry, occupied land, and most likely they can't ever go home again. By now even the most die-hard solider was wavering, while the kids they sent up on occupation duty were just trying to survive. Poor bastards.

October 29, 2077: Winnipeg is in full-scale anarchy now. Thank God we got those extra rations, because we are just staying in our house. Judy is going on and on about how it was the aliens using brain rays to mind control us to fight each other. This is really starting to get annoying.

Jim and his wife Gaylene next door did come by, saying they needed to get out of their house. Thanks to Jim's old job at the University of Manitoba, he had his personal computer hooked up to the UniNetwork thing that the school was so proud of installing a few years ago. He told me that he was talking with some co-workers who live on the other side of the city, and it sounded like there was a lot of fighting going on. Guys claiming to be the Canadian Independence Party were ambushing US Army convoys, and apparently managed to even bring down a guy in power armour with a couple improvised mines. Apparently the North End is even worse than usual. Looting, rioting, fires: it was all happening up there. The Army blew up a couple bridges into Kildonan, built a wall with barbed wire and old cars separating it from St. Boniface, and had turned the Forks into an internment camp. Happy days.

October 30, 2077: It's raining right now. Thick black rain. Sometimes, because it's so cold, it's sleet. Jim called us and told us to not go outside: it was the fallout from the bombs all over the world. It was finally coming back down. It was radioactive, and deadly. I had to tell Charlie that the rain would make him really sick, and, no, he couldn't go outside. It wasn't that heavy, but it sure looks scary: black clouds dropping black rain.

This evening, before I went to bed, I found Judy popping Mentats in the bathroom. So, was that what was making her go crazy. I asked her to give me them, so that maybe she won't go crazy on us. She gave me the box pretty quickly, but now I'm wondering, how much more does she have? I will have to look tomorrow.

October 31, 2077: WHAT?! That is really all I can say. WHAT!?

Just yesterday, Winnipeg was about ready to tear itself apart. Now… it's over?

Duncan Cooper, the Premier before he got kicked out by the US Army for being all "Free Canada!", is back, and General Mondale ordered his soldiers to cease fighting and return to Camp Headingly. Is it really happening? Jim says it is, but I'm not so sure.

Still can't go outside: it's still raining. Maybe it's just the cabin fever, or maybe I'm getting a bit paranoid as well. At least Judy isn't spouting off so many ideas now that I found most of the Mentats. I'm just going to keep them away for a while. Maybe she will calm down. But it's anything but calm now.

Charlie was sad he couldn't do anything for Halloween. So we took turns dressing up in costumes and telling spooky stories. Of course, nothing is as scary as a big bomb dropping on us… or whatever is going on now through the city.

November 2, 2077: It finally snowed for the first time. Surprised it took so long. But it's still that black radioactive stuff, so Charlie is still cooped up inside. It's getting a bit difficult to keep him cooped up like this. Hasn't been any school for almost two weeks, so now Judy and I take turns trying to teach Charlie some. Math and Spelling, some reading with the books we got. He really does like Red Ruby Fire Truck. Perhaps the least propagandized book we could find.

November 9, 2077: Premier Cooper gave a speech today on the radio. All the TV stations are off air now, as the fighting a couple weeks ago damaged the old CBC transmitter. I remember Cooper was a great campaigner but, wow, this speech was impressive. I felt shivers down my back when I heard this bit:

"The Third World War is over, and there are no winners or losers of this conflict, only veterans and survivors. And we are all veterans of the War of 2077, and we are all survivors of the biggest, most destructive, and most deadly war of all of human history. The loss of life can only begin to be contemplated by our minds. The loss of centuries of history and culture is a crime that will echo for as long as the human race may live.

"I'm saddened to say that, after weeks of attempts, all efforts to reach the outside world beyond Manitoba have failed. We know Brandon, Portage La Prairie, and many of the small towns survived. But Winnipeg is perhaps the only city in North America that may have actually been spared the destruction of Nuclear Holocaust. We do not know how, or why, but it is an irrevocable fact.

"However it is up to us to take what little pieces we have left and start anew.

"As survivors, we must go forward, and not allow ourselves to stumble, to fall into the canyon of self-pity or the cave of despair. It is time for us to step out of our shelters and homes, roll up our sleeves, and get to work in rebuilding the world. We have been passed the torch of human civilization. We shall not let it burn out.

"No one can know what the next few months hold for us, or the next few years. But, if we work together, remain strong and unified to a common goal, we can do more than survive. We can thrive. We can reclaim what had been taken from us. We can do more than survive. We can win."

Judy had tears in her eyes when it was over. Charlie, of course, had no idea what was going on, and was impatient to listen to music or read the Fire truck book again.

Someday, I hope, he will remember this.

November 12, 2078: Just got a letter from Souris today. Apparently Mom, Dad and my sister is fine back out there. Great to know that, but I have no idea if we can get out there to see them. I'll send them a letter here as well soon. Not sure how they got it here. I'll find out soon.

December 2, 2077: The Dominion of Assiniboia. It has an interesting ring to it. But that is what my country now is. Canada is dead, but if what Premier Cooper has to say is true, Assiniboia is going to be a newer, better Canada.

The winter is pretty cold, but not a lot of snow on the ground, and it's not as radioactive as everyone thought it was. Apparently, all the nukes going off meant that the earth actually shifted in orbit one way or another. But, no nuclear winter. Well, we can wait till April to decide if that's the case.

The old US Army has been broken up, with a lot of the men (except those that are accused of "war crimes," as they are going to be punished) still in the new Assiniboian Army. Some soldiers were able to leave the army, and went south, hoping to maybe get back to their home. I heard that southern conscript boy was one of them. I hope he makes it, but if he makes it to South Dakota I would be amazed.

The Mounties are being reformed as well, as the RAMP. Still get the red serge, and they are going to try to find horses that might be able to be trained for riding again. All the former RCMP officers, after being disbanded by the US, are eager to get back again.

I went to my old office in Downtown Winnipeg for the first time since October 23. The walk down there nearly killed me, and I had to stop and rest several times. I'm so used to driving myself years ago even as gas spiked upwards, and then taking the bus that I got lazy.

Apparently I'm out of a job now. The owner was killed by a heart attack in October after he heard the sirens. I knew old Andy's heart wasn't good, but what a way to go, especially when it turned out that no bombs dropped at all. Most of the other offices, being some branch of some company in the US or Toronto, are also out of work. Going to be a lot of office guys like me looking for a job now.

It was a stroke of luck then that I stumbled on something. As I was walking back, I ran into Jerry, a co-worker of mine. He said that guys like us were being welcomed into the new government. So on the way home I stopped at the Legislative building. Lots of troops around there now, and it took a couple hours, but eventually I was seen by a lady, who, after I told her I was an accountant, she immediately said the Finance Ministry needed workers, so hired me. When I came home to tell Judy the news, she was happy. Well, she said she was happy. She had been quieter and more distant lately, but she was jittery, more excitable when things happened. Did she find where I hid the Mentats again?

December 25, 2077: For being Christmas, it's not exactly so merry.

The hydro finally cut out last week. The dams up north must have stopped working, I guess, or power lines are down. I can only write on this thing still because I was able to find some fission batteries.

Judy's paranoia is back full force now. Even though I have a government office job, she's been going on about the lack of food and the fact that I'm not actually bringing home a paycheck yet. The walk there and back is two hours long, so I've been spending nights at the office in the Legislative Building rather than walk home, so of course Judy thinks something is up. She never says anything, but the suspicious look on her face, the forced smile, it's all telling me something. Even though the Finance Minister, Klein Hardwright, let's me work three days there and then stay at home two days because of the long walk I have, Judy is always suspicious when I'm over for more than a day. Should find a new home closer to work.

Charlie is finally back to school, but the walk there is a concern. While the weather has been hovering around freezing for a while, the slush has been proven to be radioactive. He fell into a puddle once on the way to school, and became very sick. Thank God the school had some Radaway: they gave him some and he was better in just a few hours. Didn't help Judy's mood at all.

We managed to have a bit of a Christmas dinner. Of course, it was just the boxed Salisbury Steak and YumYum Devilled Eggs and a few cans of fruit that we were able to get. Rationing is still on, and getting worse and worse. But, it was nice enough. Managed to get a baseball bat and ball for Charlie. I promised him that we could go play when the snow does clear up.

January 7, 2078: It was surprisingly easy to find a new home. It's still in St. Vital, but in the far south corner now, close to Osborne Village. Most of the stores there are still open, and seem to be getting restocked again. That's… odd.

The previous owners of this house, a man, wife and three kids, just wanted to get out of Winnipeg and head to Steinbach. With all the chaos in Winnipeg, I can't blame them. At least my walk to work in about an hour now, so I can come home every night. Judy is still suspicious, but she won't say anything.

I'm still surprised at how mild the winter has been. The snow is perfectly safe now, with only the tiniest traces of radiation, just a tad bit more than what you would get standing in a perfectly constructed nuclear power plant. That's… assuring, I guess. Don't think anyone wants anything to do with uranium or atomic power now. I know I don't.

The Red and Assiniboine river's, though, are still highly irradiated, most likely because towns along both rivers had been nuked. Can't swim or drink from it. Hasn't stopped some people from doing it though, and most of them have died of radiation poisoning after drinking too much, to often.

I've heard rumors at the Ledge that they are going to turn some of the old shopping malls into indoor greenhouses, using the technology from those Vaults down in the US. Seems like a good idea, but would they be able to grow enough food for the one million people here in Winnipeg? Time will tell, I guess.

February 4, 2078: Today I was called to a meeting at the Finance Department (we now have our own building, the old insurance building across the street from the Legislative building), and it was about making a new currency for the Dominion. Some people suggested just to stick with things like bottlecaps, or maybe even scrap metal. Though absolutely no one said they wanted the dollar anymore. Another thing the US ruined for us now, it seems.

"Why don't we use Pound, like in England?" I asked. There was a moment when some people wanted to disagree, but Minister Hardwright liked it, and said he would talk to Premier Cooper. Got some pats on the back, so that was good.

Judy was shocked when I mentioned that we are getting new money. "Are you crazy? We have the dollar. Perfectly fine. Now they will be useless!"

I tried to tell her that people are only still taking it because no one knows otherwise. But the US dollar has nothing to stand on, now that the US doesn't exist. But she wouldn't listen, going on how Assiniboia is really a front for a New World Order. She found the Mentats again. Great.

March 6, 2078: It's been a while since I could use this thing. Now that we have a new currency, we have to make it work, so been pulling overtime to try to figure out how, even if, we can do an exchange rate with the old US Dollar. We decided to make 1 to 1 for now, and will still accept dollars for a couple years. People are suspicious of it, especially as the food situation is now desperate and most people are complaining that we are more concerned with money than feeding people. Rations have been getting smaller and smaller a supplied dwindle When you walk near the river, even though it's frozen over, you can see dozens of people trying to ice fish. You can't find a dog or cat on the streets anywhere. If old Spotty or Fluffy hadn't been killed and eaten already, they were being kept inside all the time to make sure some passer-by decided to have a dog steak. There are even reports of cannibalism in some places, especially, funny enough, in Selkirk.

Someone broke into our house a few nights ago trying to find some food or something to sell into the black market that sprung up in Osborne Village for food. I managed to scare the person away with Charlie's baseball bat. But if that person had a gun, I wouldn't be here right now. Maybe I'll get a gun now, just to be safe. Judy won't like it, but she didn't put up much of a fight this time when I mentioned it to her. I've managed to wean her off the Mentats again, but now she is very quiet, sullen and lonely. Even Charlie's silly antics aren't enough to cheer her up anymore. Now I'm worried.

April 3, 2078: Just got world my old neighbor Jim had died of cancer. The background radiation, so the doctors say, is high, but not a serious danger in Winnipeg. Just don't stay outside too much, they say. Gaylene, however, blamed the lack of food killed him before the treatments at the UofM hospital could help. I offered to come by and help her move somewhere, but she said, and I quote: "I'm getting out of this damn town. Nothing but death here now." I knew she had family out in BC, but she wasn't seriously going to go all the way out there, is she? Where did her kids live now? I don't know, but hopefully she will get to where she is going.

Assiniboia just announced that school is now going to be going on for a full 12 months of the year until further notice. Charlie was hugely disappointed when he heard that, sad that there was no two month holiday. Instead, every month there would be a full week off of school.

April 10, 2078: Someone, or a few someones, were rummaging through Jim and Gaylene's old house yesterday. They carted off with a few things, mostly food, clothes and some furniture. I really didn't want to resort to that kind of scavenging, but… well, Jim's dead and Gaylene, wherever she is, is gone… so maybe I'll take a look tomorrow through the house… and maybe some other abandoned ones.

Other people have been leaving, going to relatives elsewhere in the city of away all together. Many more people are dying. The Health Sciences center is apparently so full they are treating people in the parking lot, if they even have the supplies anymore. They are screaming at the government to do something, but, what can we do? There just isn't the resources or machinery to build what they need.

April 17, 2078: Sobering news today. The population of Winnipeg was now only 500,000. Half a million people have either died, starved, or left. Every day, someone else I know either had someone they knew die, or decide to leave, so it's not just the people in the North End and Kildonan. The destruction of those bridges months ago did nothing good for them. I've had a few people I just started to work with you suddenly never showed up again. Everyone in the city is quiet, somber. There are gun shots, which echo over a city without cars or machines… if it's a bunch of different ones, it's a shootout, either between different people trying to get the same materials or between looters and the RAMP. If it's a couple shots, it's someone killing for… something. Food, anger, desperation. If it's a single shot, it's a suicide.

Guns. They are everywhere. From old army units, something smuggled in by the Independence Party, or already here before the bombs and the Yanks and fighting started. Even saw some people try to make their own. The Americans were more lenient with gun laws than the old Canadian government was… to a degree. But now Assiniboia will never be able to get it under control.

April 20, 2078: I had to use a knife to make a hole in my belt today, just because I lost so much weight. To think I was over weight and had high cholseteral the last time I saw the doctor. He'd be proud of the fact I lost so much weight. If he was still alive. Overdosed on Med-X or something. Most likely just couldn't take the strain of seeing everyone die anymore.

April 29, 2078: Curfew and checkpoints are being established all over the city now. Apparently the smuggling is becoming so bad that they need to do this. Well that's slightly worrisome. At least since I'm working with the government, my ID should get me almost anywhere.

The snow is melting away, slowly. Looks like Nuclear Winter was a myth after all. Some people said that because of the change in the earth's rotation, we have moved several degrees away from balanced, to the point that we are closer to where Nebraska and Kansas is than before. If anything, we should warm up and never weeks of -40 weather ever. Well, that's a silver lining to the War of 2077, huh?

Judy refuses to leave the house now. She is shaking constantly, eyes darting all over the place. I tried to take her out for a walk, but before we even got down the street she was shaking and crying too much. Everything is out to get her, she said. I immediately took her home, and called a doctor. The doctor said she was actually going through Mentat withdrawal, and paranoia and depression of sustained Mentat use is to be expected. Unfortunately, he was out of fixer or anything to cure the addiction. At least now she doesn't have to worry about looking after Charlie for two months, I guess.

May 7, 2078: I came home late again today, thanks to all the security checkpoints that are being set up all over the city. I came home, to find Judy sitting in a chair staring at the door. What happened next…

"Where have you been?"

"Checkpoints, Judy. I told you, they are setting up those checkpoints all over town now."

She narrowed her eyes, walked over to me. "Just tell me."

"What?"

"What office intern are you cheating on me with?"

"WHAT!?"

"Why the hell have you not been coming home on time ever since you started working there? Why are you going to work so early? Is it to screw around with your mistress?"

"What the hell makes you think I have a mistress? I can barely walk two blocks now before some police officer or soldier stops me to look at my ID!"

We kept arguing, back and forth, she accusing me of infidelity, me trying to defend myself. Finally I brought up the Mentats.

"That has nothing to do with this!"

"You are addicted to those drugs! The Doctor himself said they cause paranoia! You are imagining things!"

"That's what he want's you to believe!" She broke down and began to cry, but before I could say anything, she ran upstairs to our bedroom and locked the door, refusing to come out. Charlie came in from playing on the street with some other kids when he heard us screaming at each other, and I just told him Judy and I had a bit of disagreement. I made supper (or, rather, just a box of Mac & Cheese in the microwave and some chocolate) before I helped him with supper and sent him to bed.

I tried to get into our room, but it was still locked. I told her I was sorry, and that I will do all that I can to be home on time now, and that I wasn't having an affair. I loved her and Charlie too much. She didn't reply. I'm sleeping on the couch tonight. Or, at least going to try to.

May 8, 2078: I… I can't believe it.

I came home today to find Charlie running outside screaming and crying, with different neighbors, most of whom I had barely met yet, trying to calm him down. Two RAMP officers were outside our house, and as soon as I saw that, I ran to the door.

After convincing him that I lived here, they told me that a woman living her had shot herself, committing suicide. Her body was found in the bedroom, and, somehow Charlie was able to jigger the lock to open the door. That's when he saw her…

Judy, Judy, Judy, Judy… why Judy?

There was a note, but all it said was "Remember Charlie's Birthday. I'm sorry. See you later."

Charlie is still crying, and I'm trying to do my best to not cry in front of him. Got to stay strong for Charlie.

June 1, 2078: There was such a huge backlog in funerals in Winnipeg that we decided to just cremate Judy. Most people are just being thrown into mass graves outside the city. Charlie is slowly coming around, but he's still sad and can't sleep at nights. I can't blame him, neither can I.

Starvation has reached an all-time high. Over 2,000 people a day are dying of hunger, and another 2,000 are leaving daily, but to make up for it over 4000 refugees are coming, but most are being turned away for the lack of food. At this rate, their won't be a Winnipeg in a few months.

It also snowed yesterday. Everyone just seemed stupified at the white stuff. It melted away overnight, and was a muggy plus 30 Celsius the next day. The weather is weird. Weirder than normal Manitoba, I should say.

July 1, 2078: Happy Canada Day. There was a big fireworks display planed on the Legislative Grounds. More just to try to cheer people up, the first one since the American Annexation. So… yeah. No one was really cheering or anything, and the Prime Minister and Mayor were mostly ignored in their speeches, but some free food went a way to making some people content with what happened.

The Polo Park indoor greenhouse is finally working, after months of planning and work and trying to find all the parts needed. Which is great, because the weather was been constantly frigid for a long time, and the farmers around Winnipeg that actually do have the big fancy fusion powered tractors said that the constant cold weather and frosts have made attempts to plant a nightmare. So… basically food is going to still not be any good for longer yet. Great.

So Winnipeg survived the apocalypse. Well, at this rate I don't think we are going to see the post-apocalypse at this rate. I knew I should have bought a spot in Vault H, even if that meant using all our savings back then. Maybe Judy would still be alive.

August 9, 2078: Finally some good news. The first crop of food from Polo Park and the other indoor green houses growing quickly, and should be ready in a couple months or so months. The smart guys at University of Manitoba know what they are doing, being all agriculture scientists and all. I just hope we get them soon.

There is plans now to turn almost any large, indoor space into greenhouses: the Hudson's Bay Company, the Airport, dozens of apartment buildings and malls. Of course, the resources are just not there to turn everything into a greenhouse. I should know, the Finance Department is now basically taking stocks of everything in Winnipeg to see what can and can't be used.

Charlie is back at school and almost back to normal. Of course, I don't think any kid could be back to normal, especially after walking in to see their mother's brains splattered all over the wall. But, I guess with all the death and dying around us, everyone is almost used to it. I hate the fact that Charlie is almost desensitized to it… but what the hell can I do? Not like the TV where you could just shut it off.

TV. That's something I miss. I wonder if we could get that to work again?

August 19, 2078: Today when I was at work, a huge protest was outside the Ledge, demanding increased rations. 5,000, 10,000 people or something, I don't know. There were a lot. RAMP and Army troops with guns stood on the steps to hold them back. One person fired a gun in the air, and all hell broke loose. The military guys, most of them still Americans, startled, also began to fire where the gunshot came from, hitting dozens of people. A mass stampede trampled hundreds more. I could only watch from my office as panic broke out. At the end, 389 were killed, over 600 wounded. Now the city feels like it's back to the week after the war. I think I can safely say I'm going to be at home tomorrow.

August 20, 2078: Just as I expected, Martial Law again. Charlie and I are at home today. I'm starting to hate this house. After all, this is where Judy killed herself. I haven't even slept in our old bedroom since that day. I did my best to clean the stains then, but the blood is still there. Or, at least I think it is. I'm going to try to scrub it out again.

Riots are breaking out all over the city, and now instead of US Army troops, it was Assiniboian Army and RAMP. Because both the RAMP and the Army are using the same colored combat armor, both are being shot at, even though it's only against the Army. Summary executions are the order of the day, and even if they are trying to target the former Americans, RAMP officers are getting killed as well.

I'm starting to get really tired of all this. Riots, hunger, panic, death. Maybe it's time Charlie and I went on a trip out west, go find my parent's.

No, an eight year old cannot make that trip, and I'm not going to leave him while I go. I'll just send more letters. Better than nothing.

August 23, 2078: Martial law lifted again. That's great, because I need to get out this house. I'm going to find a new one ASAP. I'm haunted by everything here: my wife, my job…

Food is somewhat better now. After that first rushed harvest at Polo Park, now they are staggering it out, so every month a new crop of fresh food will be available. Also St. Vital Mall is being turned into a green house as well, and gym's at different schools. Hudson's Bay building was not, as some traders got together, called themselves the "Rediboine" Trading company, and took over the building. Weird name.

August 24, 2078: Apparently when neither Charlie nor I were at home earlier today some robber broke in and stole the fission batteries I had stored for my computer. I already know that almost every fission battery you could buy is now either being used to power the lights for the greenhouses or are on the black market. So as soon as this one is done, this computer is kaput. Great.

I'm going to find a new place, and get out of here. ASAP.

October 2, 2078: Today, when I was in the lunch room, there was this pretty young woman who was there. Mary was new, apparently just came to Winnipeg from Lac du Bonnet, and got a job at the Finance Ministry. She sat at my table, as I'd been eating alone for months now since Judy's death, and struck up conversation. Before I knew it, I told her my life story and was sobbing in front of her. Everyone else in the office just stayed clear. This happened all the time. Still… it was the manliest moment I've ever had. Crying in public. Haven't done that since Judy.

But Mary didn't leave. She just held my hand until after I recovered, and smiled, and said that she would gladly talk to me whenever. I asked her if she would like to go to dinner that night. Of course, as soon as I said that, I realized that there wasn't a single restaurant open in Winnipeg at all, so I hit myself in the head. Mary just laughed.

October 18, 2078: I brought Mary home one night to make her some dinner, and she met Charlie. Although he was at first shy, soon he was laughing as she told funny stories, and Charlie was showing Mary the drawings he did at school that day.

I got some sirloin steaks (cost me half my daily pay at the black market at Osborne Village), and fried them up. It was a bit tough, having been frozen for so long, but it was steak. After that, Mary, Charlie and I all went for a walk. She was still living at the refugee camp set up at the Manitoba Museum, so we decided to spend that night looking for a house we could share.

We ended up in St. Boniface to the north, when we found an old French man packing up a cart pulled by a donkey, though it looked like it was sick, ill fed, and ready to keel over. I couldn't speak French, but Mary could, so she asked what he was doing. The man said he was leaving to go be with his grandkids outside of town, and leaving his house. I asked if we could buy it. Mary translated. He paused, and then tossed the key at us.

"Prenez-le! Prenez-le!" he said. Mary tried to offer him money, but he refused. He told a story of how he and his wife, right after they were married over 50 years ago, bought this house. She had just passed away from old age after a long life together. He only wished us the same.

I could feel tears in my eyes and Mary told me the story. As much as I would have loved to stay with Judy all my life, I can't. But Mary… she more than makes up for it, I know.

October 23, 2078: It has been one year since the War of 2077. No work today, as October 23 is now a day of mourning. Premier Cooper gave another speech, but I wasn't able to listen to it. I'm busy packing up this house to move to my new one.

The Fission battery is almost dead. I'll be sad to give up my computer, but I'll just leave it here. Whatever person moves into this house could get it to work, and know my story.

I proposed to Mary the other day at work, and she said yes. The Wedding will be in December. I'm so glad that she said so. We only knew each other for a few weeks, but it has felt like all our lives. Or maybe the radiation is finally getting to both of us, making us behave crazy. Apparently too much radiation will turn you into a zombie thing… I think it's just a silly story.

Charlie will have to go to a new school now, but he's alright with that. Most of the kids he was friends with had already left his old school, and there were talks that all of St. Vital and the Fort Garry part of the city was going to be abandoned soon. Good riddance to it is all I can say now. And in less than a year, Charlie will have a new sibling. Mary is so excited, as am I. Doctors said it shouldn't have an extra leg or two heads. Would love it just the same anyway.

This first year has been tough. We are all hungry and tired, but the food system is finally working now, and rations have been going up. But, like Premier Cooper said last year, we are survivors, and we will get through.