No Objections

Finished reading: AD18

(The first thing I have to say is -- goddamn, that a long comments thread. Finding Apocalyptic Daria 18 took almost as long as Daria and Jane's unexpected Road Trip.)

Jane is told that Daria has to be watched over the next four days. Daria is also told that she has to stay, because of her previous anaphylaxis. Karen tells Daria that she has been praying for her, both for her healing and her salvation.

We learn the name of the old man who talked to Jane in AD17 -- Glen Bates. A former Marine, he tells Jane that killing is sometimes justified and points out where in the Bible that can be found. One of the church members comments on Glen "fondling" Jane and Glen argues briefly with the busybody.

Exposition Radio clicks on and we learn that martial law has been declared in Maryland and Virginia. Areas are being decontaminated with "volunteers" from nursing homes, jails, and prisons. A few people have been executed by the military for crimes.

The narrative is interrupted by radio pirate Dr. Neon braking in on the frequency. He states that the US Army is acting forecfully against secessionist movements and home-grown militias.

As Daria is chatting outside the church, the power goes out. Daria's medications and the church's food have to be refrigerated and there might not be enough gasoline to keep a generator running. The pastor talks about a "spring house", a structure built above an above-ground spring where items can be kept cold. Jane departs with several others to provide armed security on the trip.

(* * *)

There really isn't much to Chapter 18. It's not so much a self-contained story as providing some justifications for the things that have happened before. Jane is given bibilical justification that she was okay to kill her assailant. Her friend has a name. Daria has to stay a few days longer.

The plot point of the spring house is introduced, and one suspects that finding the spring house will not be without incident, as more or less nothing has been without incident. (Jane and Daria have been singularly unlucky.) Furthermore, we learn that gossip has not been stamped out even in Methodist churches.

I can say that I read it, and that I had no objections reading it. On to AD19.