Renn followed her friend down from the fields and into the abandoned town. In such a wild landscape, the empty town appeared remarkably maintained. She had often argued that they should not make their crops so noticeable. She stated repeatedly that they should allow the buildings to fall into disrepair in order to avoid attention. Sadly, her words had gone unheard.<br/><br/>Theirs had always been a peaceful community. They were hidden by the mountains that surrounded them, and so, managed to escape attention. They were preyed upon by the traveling human marauders that were so common, often traveling in packs. These were easily handled. They needed only to give what was requested in order to avoid conflict.<br/><br/>She was led into the house they used as their munitions storage. The many guns they had gathered, as well as the amunition, were kept locked safely out of reach, to be used only in emergencies. Now, as she entered, she saw that the guns were being loaded. The paintball guns that they normally used were cast aside against the wall. This alarmed her.<br/><br/>"What is it?" she asked as she entered.<br/><br/>The room was full of boys in their late teens, some as old as their mid twenties. She herself, at the age of 32, was the oldest in the community aside from the few who had been adults when the world ended. She had assumed the role of leader when no one else had stepped forward. Now, as she entered, the youths before her all stopped what they were doing and faced her. One boy, appearing to be in his early twenties, spoke up.<br/><br/>"The militia have stirred up the hornet's nest, Renn. We were watching the ridge this week, because I was worried they were up to something. I was going to come inform you tonight. I think the militia were making moves against the vampires. They've been camped just on the other side of the eastern ridge. Something went wrong. We have to expect that it will be us the vampires attack. We are the most visible established community for a hundred miles."<br/><br/>His words hit her like a stone to the stomach. She exhaled sharply, stunned. After allowing herself a moment of panic, she gathered herself and began issuing orders. "John, start the girls gathering food and provisions. Tell kelly to make sure she's got something to carry the baby with. Brandon, keep working with the guns, but only arm enough to keep you and the rest of your party armed. It will do us no good to go handing guns to those who are not ready for them. Make sure that all of the paintball guns are loaded with the silver powder balls you made. That will at least help a bit. We set out tomorrow, as soon as its light enough out to be safe. There's a lot to be done. Lets see to it. Bobby, you're with me. We need to plan a route."<br/><br/>They all scattered, each of the sprinting off to their assignments. They had trained for this for years... but none of them had ever expected it to actually happen.