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march away?” He looked at each of us in turn. His brown eyes were fierce and determined. “No, it must be tomorrow, or it might never be at all. As soon as we can get outfitted, we’ll be out of here. As for my arm, it’s a risk we’ll have to take, because we’re not risking just my life here. We’re risking the fate of the world.”
    Everyone was quiet as we thought about this turn of events. Samuel was our leader; wherever he decided to go, I would follow him. It was Makara I was worried about. She had a good point. Samuel was not one hundred percent. He was not even fifty.
    “Then we’ll leave tomorrow,” Lisa said.
    Everyone stared at her.
    “Wait,” I said. “You’re coming?”
    “Makara and I talked it over when you left. You guys will need me out there.”
    “Yeah, you’re coming,” Makara said. “But not tomorrow. Sam isn’t...”
    “Makara,” Samuel said. “I appreciate your concern, but as long as I don’t put stress on my arm, I should be fine.”
    “Stress that is guaranteed to happen,” Makara said. “We can’t predict what will happen out there.”
    “But we can predict what will happen if we stay here,” Samuel said. “An all-out siege by the Empire and no hope of making it to Bunker One. That’s all that matters.”
    Makara sighed, clearly unhappy. “I’m not going to win this one, am I?”
    “Makara...”
    “No. It’s fine. You’re our fearless leader. We’ll follow you to Bunker One, even if it means you’ll probably kill yourself in the process. I just hope those Files are worth the price.”
    “They will be,” Samuel said. “I’m sure of it.” His eyes turned to Lisa. “Are you sure about this? There’s a good chance we won’t make it back. We could sure use someone like you, but no one’s forcing you to do this.”
    “When Makara told me about what you guys were doing, I wanted to help. I’ve been cooped up in that bar too long, and I’ve never been one to ignore the call to adventure. That’s why I became a Raider in the first place.”
    “We have a mission to accomplish,” Samuel said. “As long as you know how serious this is, we’ll all get along fine.”
    “I’ve been nothing but serious my whole life. I’m ready for this.”
    Samuel’s and Lisa’s eyes met and locked for a moment. I wanted to smile. It was clear that they each liked what they saw. Turning away, Samuel cleared his throat.
    “Anyway, we’ll head out tomorrow morning, before sunrise. I want to make it at least to the Boundless by tomorrow night, which shouldn’t be a problem, barring difficulties.”
    “Great,” Lisa said. “I’ll get my stuff ready.”
    Char shook his head. “I don’t like this, but I won’t be stopping you. You make some good points, Samuel, but it is my medical opinion that you should give the wound another week to heal. Another week and the chance of infection will go way down. You’re asking for trouble if you head out tomorrow.”
    Samuel listened. I could tell that Char’s words carried a lot of weight, but Samuel remained resolute. “No. It’s now or never. I can feel it in my bones. I wish I could wait that long. But I can’t.”
    Char nodded. “So be it.”
    Anna, who had been quiet the whole time, looked between Char and Samuel. I wondered what she was thinking. If only she could come with us...I almost wanted to suggest it, only I knew Char would want to keep her in Raider Bluff. Besides, she and Makara had gotten off on the wrong foot.
    “If there is anything you can’t find in the stores, come see me and I will supply it myself.”
    With a nod, Char left the room, Anna in tow.
    “I’ve already mapped our journey,” Samuel said. “I don’t know how long it will take, but I expect plenty of roadblocks along the way, especially once we make it to the Great Blight. You guys can spend the rest of the day figuring out what we need. Alex has all the batts to buy supplies– we just need plenty of cold weather gear, as well as