Sabre dancing with the dead Ch 22
Tokonosu, April 21 20xx
Day 10.
0936
Wolf and Kat sat across from each other under the awning, drinking tea. Breakfast was done, a crew was handling the dishes and Kat had some time to talk. She wasn't happy, as Wolf had expected.
"You're going to the library aren't you?" she asked him.
"Yeah Kat, I don't see where we have much choice in the matter. We need to make long term plans, figure out how to keep us in food, water, shelter and all the rest of it. You have to see that we are just scavenging off the city's corpse. It's not going to last. So we need to gather information on the how to do the things we need to do, otherwise any plans are bound to fail." Wolf said quietly.
"And you're going to go with them when the mission is set, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"Damn you, why do you have to go? Let the others risk their lives and bring back what you need. You're not a soldier. What do you think you can offer that makes it worth risking your life?"
"Kat, I'm going to be the one who will be collecting the books and maps that we need. Locating the resources that we will need. I'm one of the few in this group who is trying to think beyond the end of the week and on to next month, 6 months from now and years from now. I've told Saburo and Shinji what I am trying to do and they agree with me. They will get me there and secure the area while I'm running round inside, getting the intel we need. I don't promise that it will be a cake walk but I have to do this. Who else will?"
"Well, I see one problem that you obviously haven't." She smirked.
"Ok, spill. I don't know everything and I'll be the first person to admit it. Knowing there's a problem now means we can come up with a solution BEFORE the shit hits the fan."
"This is Japan. The university is Japanese. All or most of the books will be in Japanese. YOU don't speak Japanese. How are you going to know what you have if you can't read a damn thing? Or even find it when the stack labels are in kanji?"
"Ohhhh Crap." He looked sheepishly at her.
"Well duh! If you are going, then I suggest that it be more than just you chasing info. You are going to need a few gophers who can speak English and understand what it is you need to find, collect it from the stacks and bring it to you. You coordinate things, they do the running around and Saburo and the others keep the building secure." Kat reasoned.
"Ok, I can buy that. What else do you see that I don't?"
"For a start, you aren't going to do this in one day. It might take as many as 5 or 6, so plan on staying there. You will need three times the security people you figured on. You will have to do it watch on watch, with people doing 4 hours on, 8 hours off. So, you will need to take supplies for a week, and a bunch more people. First question, can the APCs carry everyone and everything?"
"Good question. I think they carry about 10 people. That limits us to 40 people. If we take one of the bowsers with us we will have water. The gear can be carried lashed down on deck or in trailers. We'll have to go back to the supply depot for those." Wolf frowned at that thought.
"Ok, so 40 people. Figure you and your gophers makes 10. That leaves 30 for the security detail, 10 per shift. We're well off for weapons and ammo now, so that's covered. Plus, take some cross bows, and your security can make quiet kills and lessen the chances that the critters will get too thick. Hey, Shinji picked up some claymores from the depot too didn't he? Set some up around the perimeter and use command detonation." Kat said after a moment or two.
Wolf chuckled. "You still remember all that stuff? I'm impressed."
"Well, I absorbed a lot of this stuff back in our doomer days. To me, the field trips were nothing other than extreme camping. I never thought the world would be stupid enough to blow itself up. Zombie apocalypses on the other hand, who figured? I've never used any of it since then but I still run some of the scenarios in my head like we used to do. I do it once in a while if I'm bored. And I never have less than a month worth of supplies on hand. Like being into Sci Fi, I think being a doomer tends to be a permanent thing. Of course I'd never tell or admit it to anyone. They'd think I was nuts." She grinned at the last comment.
"Yeah, some of my co-workers used to say the same about me. Most of the people I spent time with lived in Condition White, with rose colored glasses on all the time. This mess being global, I doubt many of them are still alive. Most of 'em will be critter poop by now. I figure my brother is for sure."
"Let's not go there. I'm trying to keep myself occupied so I don't start thinking about Mom and Dad or my sister Leslie. If I do, I'll be useless for a few days. Best not even think about it. So let's get on with planning this crazy little excursion of yours. For a start, what do you know about the layout of the campus and the buildings?"
"Not a hell of a lot. I wonder if anyone here has ever been there. Maybe that Sakurazaki kid or his girlfriend might be able to help us out there. We could ask everyone at lunch time if they know the place. We have a city map, so getting there is relatively easy. All we gotta do is avoid traffic blockages and masses of critters."
"Let's go see if we can find Kenji and Fuki. Might as well see what we can learn. Kat said as she stood up from the table."
"Ok. I think they are working in the boat shed with the supply group."
They walked the couple of hundred feet over to the large shed which was used to store boats after they were hauled in the winter. There were still some boats in there. Their owners had not had a chance to launch them before the disaster hit. Wolf had only glanced around the few times he was in there and this time he noted a couple of large cabin cruisers and 5 or 6 sailboats in the 30 foot range. Nice to know, if they had another large group arrive.
Kat saw Kenji were working at moving staples into the kitchen storage area, and asked if he and his girlfriend had been students at the university. He confirmed that they both had been, so Kat asked him if he'd give them some information about the layout of the campus.
Kenji waved his girlfriend over and the 4 of them went back to the dining area. Wolf tried to explain what he wanted to know, using his very basic Japanese. "Nothing like a crash immersion course to get you going on a new language." Wolf thought. Kat helped with the details and over the next hour they got paper and pencil together and worked up a map of the campus. Then they drew up the floor plan of the library, which both of them had been in many times. Between the two of them they figured they had given an accurate description of the building's layout, its access points and the grounds around it.
Wolf thanked the both of them, and they went back to what they had been doing. Kat excused herself and went to get lunch started. Wolf started enlarging on the areas of information they would need to pick up and had a look at the map of the city, to determine a good route to the University. Neither Kenji nor Fuki had ever driven there, they both lived up in the Northeast part of the city and had always taken the bus. The day of the rise of the undead, they have been with Kenji's parents for a family do
Kat went into the kitchen to get the makings for another pot of tea. While she was off doing that, Wolf pondered the city map in its entirety. They were on the South West corner, and the university was across the city in the hills to the North East. Just about as far apart as it was possible to get, and there were miles of road, and several bridges to cross before they could even get to the hills on the North East side. Then there was at least 11 miles of switchback roads going up the hillside to the university. Thinking back on the drive down from Fujimi academy, all the bridges they'd passed were plugged solid with cars. Mangled cars at that, given the pounding they'd taken from mortar fire as the JSDF tried to halt the flood of critters.
As he studied the map, he realized that the area the JSDF held was almost half way to the University. He also noted that there was only one bridge to cross. He began to wonder if it might be possible to get them to assist in the mission. He decided to discuss that with Saburo and Shinji once he finalized the planning. Perhaps a face to face meeting would get them to assist. It would certainly help with trained manpower. Now h started to feel like he was getting closer to a workable plan.
Kat had made up her mind by the time she came back with the tea.
She put the tea pot on the table, looked Wolf in the eye and said "I'm going with you."
"Oh no you're not." Wolf glared at her.
"Damn right I am. You can bitch all you want but I'm going, and I think I might have the gophers we will need to make this work. I'll ask them tonight after dinner." She glared at him.
"Look Kat, I could never live with myself if you got hurt out there. Be reasonable. Stay here where I know you are safe." Wolf pleaded with her.
"Not a chance. It's not going to happen. What do you think? You think I am all peaches and cream and worry free while you go out there and risk your life? To hell with that. I'm done with sitting here waiting. We go together or not at all. Deal with it."
"Well Shit!" Wolf thought to himself. He knew he had exactly zero chance of changing her mine once it was made up. So be it.
"Alright, So who do you think we can use as gophers?" He asked.
"The kids who came in yesterday. My students. They all speak English at least well enough to communicate with you and I can give them the details in Japanese if needed. They are all very bright, and Saya may even have some ideas we can add into the plan. We'll find out later tonight." Kat said easily, knowing that victory was hers.
"Good enough." He said. "I'm off to talk to Saburo and Shinji about the chances of getting an assist from the JSDF troops by the ship yard."
With that said, they split up, Wolf to find the pilot and the trooper. Kat set off back to the kitchen to assist in getting lunch going.