​FIVE|

"Burn the school! Burn the school!"

The chant rocked the walls of the school visibly. There were kids with fire, there were kids with gasoline. In all but few seconds the school would be gone, reduced to ashes. Reduced to nothing but a mass of smoke-filled rubble.

"Stop it, stop it!" yelled a girl. "We can't do this! We can't!"

"And why not!" yelled another. "There are no adults! There are no teachers! What do we need a school for any ways? It'll just be an eye sore!"

"What if someone burned your house? Where would you stay?"

"Everyone, listen up!" Evan ran up to take charge of this situation. "We can't burn the school. For one, it has tools we could need. Another thing is that we wiell need places to meet. You do know what this is don't you? This is exactly what happened to the kids in Perdido Beach! This is exactly what happened to them! Morgan Carter's cousin was in that! He is still alive, and Morgan just talked to him! Isn't that right?"

"That's right!" All eyes turned to Morgan, who walked forward. "Sam Temple, my cousin, is the leader of the FAYZ in Perdido Beach. The Fallout Alley Youth Zone. FAYZ."

"He told us to put a ration on all the food. Something they didn't do till it was too late. They regret that, because now many of them are starving. They've had over six months without any adult."

Melanie walked up to Morgan. "And right now, they are sending a team to see if they can find a way to get to us here in Auburn. You never know."

"Another thing," Jake stood up next to Evan. "Auburn isn't the only town in the FAYZ two. Not by a long shot."

"How so?"

"We figure the FAYZ centers on the steel plant, or another factory or maybe the power plant. We figure that we have ten miles in every direction. Every single direction. Maybe more, we don't know. Since we are all under sixteen, I think that none of us know how to drive. Am I correct?"

There were murmurs through the crowd. "I know how to drive a tractor!" one boy said. "It's about the same."

"And I know how to drive, too," said Jordan, the girl wo spoke up earlier.

"Alright," Jake said. "I was wrong. Jordan, you'll be in charge of teaching people how to drive. " She nodded, satisfied.

"Does anyone know how to hunt or fire a gun?" Evan questioned. A bunch of guys and a few girls' hands went up. "Alright. Some of you will be in charge of policing people. Some will be in charge of food. Okay?"

"We'll also need some people to keep the restaurants running, some people to keep the food ration in place. We'll need printers to give the food coupons out."

"Screw this! This is fucked up. I ain't following this damn code." It was Diesel, the school's chief bully. His real name was Michael Karn.

"As Diesel said. We ain't following this, Fish boy. Who's with us?" said Jonathan, Diesel's follower.

Again, there were murmurs among the crowd. It must have sounded pretty good. Either that, or they were to scared of Diesel to disagree.

A few hands went up. "That's right. And who likes Fish Boy's plan- the world full of rules?"

"Jonathan. keep your fucking mouth shot! You need to learn that not everything revolves around you and your boy, Diesel," Melanie said.

"Shut your mouth Drama Girl. No one cares."

"Is that right? Who wants to live?" Many people's hands went up. Nearly all of the crowd. Everyone minus Diesel and his followers, that is.

"Hmm... Everyone except your gang. What do ya think of that, idiot?"

"Um... Uh..."

"I thought so," Melanie snapped. "More than you ever do."

"Back to business," Jake interrupted them before another word could be said. "Morgan, what else is there to do?"

"Keep everyone organized and away from riots. That way, more people will live. And you may have noticed, some of you have 'powers'. Those of you that do, we would like you to tell us who you are and what your powers are. We need to keep track so those in the first FAYZ can help us if they can get to us."

"What we really need is to make them shut up," Jonathan said.

"What everyone needs is for you to either shut the fuck up and leave, or just leave and mutter your little curses on the way out. No one gives a damn, you bastard," Morgan said.

"Fine then, bitch," Diesel muttered. "Jon, let's go." The two troublemakers left with that final remark.

"They'll be back, you know that."

"Yeah, I know, but do I care is the proper question."

"Do you?"

"Nope. I don't give a damn whether they live or die."

"That's harsh, Morgan."

"I know, Jake. But I don't give a damn."