“You’re a tough bastard, I’ll give you that.” Sam waved at him as he closed the garage doors, then he jumped in Frank’s pickup with Max.  He pulled forward, the trailer with the Corvette and the gun safe following behind.  Allistor pulled in behind them and let out a long sigh, ready to get back to the Warren and crash.   He felt a slight twinge as he realized he was about to get some alone time with Amanda.

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Money for Nothin and Your Skills for Free

The next several days passed uneventfully.   Parties went out foraging, occasionally running across mobs.  There were injuries, but no fatalities.  People worked on their skills, trained their bodies, ate, drank, and got to know each other better.

The Mustang sold for forty-one thousand klax.  The Corvette - still the only Earth vehicle on the market - went for an even higher sixty thousand klax.   Ramon and Michael had returned with a box truck filled with wine and other usable items, including the grinder which was now installed in the crafting hall.    Allistor had sold six cases of the best wine for two thousand klax each.  Then he’d stopped putting them up for sale, wanting to allow time for the buyers to spread word about the quality of the wine.  In a few more days he’d start putting up single bottles.

The old flintlock hadn’t sold.  Allistor wasn’t sure why, but he intended to modify his write-up and put it back up.

A week after establishing The Warren, they were sitting on over a hundred thousand klax.  Everyone had become stronger and more skilled in their professions.  They had foraged more food and supplies than they could use in two months.  They now had a fleet of three pickup trucks, a box truck, a Humvee, a tractor with several modules, three ATVs and a pair of dirt bikes.  Things were looking up.

Allistor called a meeting as everyone was eating lunch.  “Okay, folks.  You’ve all been doing a great job!  We’ve got food, cash, weapons, and a safe place to sleep.  I think we should spend some of our moolah and make some improvements.  The question I have for you is… do we add to the stronghold?  Do we buy some scrolls for our various professions?  Or do we spend it in some other way?”

Meg spoke up first.  “I mean, I think we’ve got plenty of room here.  Do we really need any improvements to this place right now?”

“We could expand upward?”  Nancy offered.  “Put some walls up.  Make it easier to get some sunshine.  And it would protect the crops we plant.”