Ch. 40
"So, this is the place?" Sam said as he walked around the so-called bullet factory that Eugene had led him to.
"It is indeed. Though the machines will need extreme washing as well as the surrounding area needing to be cleared of Walkers. But it is an excellent position for our current forces." Eugene said.
Around the two of them members from Sam's outfit, currently at thirty volunteers including him and Eugene, went about the factory making sure that it was secure.
"The train tracks out back, is there a station nearby?" Sam asked.
"Affirmative. A couple of buildings down to the right is the train station."
Sam smiled as a few thoughts ran through his head. He walked to a window and stuck his head out, looking toward the train station. All of the buildings seemed connected and the area was only a two-way street with a single lane going either way.
"What are the buildings made of?" Sam asked.
"Brick."
"Abraham!" Sam ducked back inside and made his way over to the ginger. "Did we bring sledgehammers?"
Abraham turned toward Sam and the group he was commanding fell silent as they eyed the boy.
"I believe we did. Why?"
"This place is good and all, but it's a factory. Next door is apartments, and past that is a train station."
"So, what, you want to bash down the walls?" Abraham asked.
Sam motioned for the man to follow him to the window he had looked out of. "See this, open street with a lot of places for people to hide. Say the Saviors find us, or they follow us. We get under siege. We can't go outside and get supplies to the rest of the group in other buildings. So, we just knock down a few walls and make supplies accessible to everyone even during a siege. Plus, a bit more defendable."
Abraham nodded and then turned to two people that Sam had recruited in Alexandria and told them to go and fetch the sledgehammer.
Soon, Sam's base would be up and running.
"This the best map you could find?" Sam asked the crispy paper rolled onto a wooden table. He had converted a central room at the top of the stairs into a nerve center of sorts. A large round table sat in the center and the room was devoid of windows only meaning that the only light in the room, was provided by candles.
"The only map we could find," Rory said. "The rest were torn, burned, or crumbled when you touched them. I swear to God with the way shit's falling apart, you would think that it was a thousand years since civilization was intact."
"Yeah well didn't someone write that it would take ten days for society to collapse?" Ethan, one of Sam's former raiders, said.
"Yeah well tell that guy to fuck off. Took a lot less than that." Sam said as he took out a pen and began marking key locations on the map.
"To be fair he probably didn't expect the dead coming back to life," Rory said, to which everyone nodded in agreement.
Others took out pens and markers and soon began writing where different points of interest were. The Kingdom, Alexandria, Hilltop, Outpost's, soon they were all identified on the map and then, Sam's pen hovered over the location he had brought the men and women under his command.
"What's up?" Rory asked.
"Nothing, it's just—I have no idea what to name this place? I mean, Alexandria, The Kingdom, we need a good name for this place. Something for the history books that they'll write someday, you know?" Sam said his gaze never leaving the map.
"Better give it a good name then. its shit like this that goes in history books. And gentlemen, we are apart of history." Ethan said, finishing marking areas on his portion of the map and getting up. "I'm gonna go and help Abraham out in the armory. See ya'."
Sam stared at the man and his hand moved the Pen, deciding to name the outpost for what it was. His hand came back and saw The Foundry scribbled in his messy handwriting.
smiling a bit he looked up to Rory. "Okay, I think we should take stock of everything we have. Bullets, guns, seeds for growing food. After we're all settled in we'll head out and scout around the area."
"Got it," Rory said. "I'll start organizing a watch."
"No, get Abraham to do it.." Sam said.
"I can do it just fine Sam."
"I'm sure you can, but Abraham was in the Army, he has more experience."
Rory rolled his eyes. "Look, Sam, I can help. Just give me a leadership role, I can do it."
"Just get Abraham for now. We don't need any surprises."
Rory scoffed and stormed out, leaving Sam alone in the room, looking down at the map. The Saviors had men, too many men to fight conventionally. Guerrilla tactics would only work for so long before Sam slipped up and Negan found him and his group.
Sam swore under his breath as he looked up from the map and began to pace.
Constants and variables would rule how the next few months would go. He would either win a war or go down swinging. It all hinged on the constants and variables or the next few months.
"Sam?" His head shot up and he saw Beth standing in the doorway.
"Beth, hey. How's the infirmary going?" Sam asked, stepping away from the table.
"As good as it can get. If we have room in the garden you're setting up, could we grow some herbs? Better we start so we don't get too reliant on the other groups."
"Of course. I'll let Prim know when I see her. So, doctor Greene, how's that feel?"
Beth scoffed and walked into the room shaking her head. "Yeah. I have no idea who told these people I was a doctor."
"From what I heard you performed a few surgeries in Alexandria."
"Minor stuff."
"You helped with Carl's eye," Sam said.
"Yeah, helped. I didn't do the majority of the surgery. I'm good with basic stuff, but I'm not my daddy."
Sam smiled. "I know. The lack of a beard gave that away."
She swatted his arm. "You know what I mean."
"Aye, I do. Look, we'll keep an eye out for any medical books or journals and the like. Get you trained up, then you'll train up others."
"I have no idea what I'm doing," she told him.
"Good, that makes two of us. If I'm being honest, I'm faking it so that people 'll think I know what I'm doing."
Beth wrapped her arms around him and pecked him on the lips. "You're doing fine."
She turned and walked out leaving Sam alone in the room once more.
"I hope so." He said quietly. "I really do."
So walk me through it Eugene," Sam said as he moved through Eugene's workshop. Buckets of bullet casings as well as scrap metal were scattered through the workshop. There seemed to be a laboratory of sorts in the corner that was taped off with a sign saying Eugene's Purposes Only.
"Here we'll sort the bullet casings between rifle as well as sidearm rounds, then put them in the appropriate caliber bins. From there we will fill the bullets with black powder, made by yours truly."
"Gunpowder? You can make it?" Sam asked him.
"Yes, sir. Black powder is made of seventy-five parts saltpeter finely ground, fifteen parts charcoals, and ten parts sulfur. All ingredients must be fine ground separately. I accomplished this with a hand-cranked flour mill. It can be dangerous so I will handle it personally."
"Good, just don't die. You need anything?"
"Always be on the lookout for sulfur, and saltpeter, drugstores contain them and I am sure people did not think to take them. Also, scrap metal will always be appreciated. Lead if you can, if not, iron will work."
"Alright," Sam smiled as he strode through the workshop. "Seeing this, well, it's the kinda thing that just, give me the tingles. We are gonna fuck those Saviors up.
AN: Okay short again, but this was to let you guys know that regular updates will be making a comeback. Also, what do you guys want to see? I'm curious, is there anything that you guys want to see that doesn't pertain to the main storyline, or a POV that you guys might want to see? Let me know, but until then I am going to bed. Review! ~Pacco1