Doomsday America.

Chapter 317 Expedition Preparations

"Wait, Mr. Gavin!"

No sooner had Gavin finished speaking than Connor's extremely nervous voice came through the radio.

He shouted to Gavin in a trembling, hoarse voice.

"I really don't want you to come up empty-handed, but... but if the biker gang catches up with our escape route, we might not be able to hold them off. Their cars are faster and more agile than ours!" "Fuck you, you know their cars are faster, huh? So you have to hold on even if you can't, you son of a bitch. Only by holding out until I find you will you have a stable future. Stop wasting your breath here and go get your guys to build more fortifications and traps!"

Gavin yelled back at Connor.

Then the radio went completely silent, and Connor stopped responding.

After confirming that the radio had completely stopped, Gavin let out a breath, then tapped the map on the table and said to the people standing beside him, "Mazefak, where the hell are Silver City and Hurley? I've never heard of those two cities before today!" As he finished speaking, Gavin's fingers darted across the map.

Thomas, standing nearby, then pulled out a travel guide, flipped to the section on New Mexico, and found Silver City. "Sir," he said, "Silver City is a small town with a population of less than ten thousand. It's located near the end of the Hilla River, only about 150 kilometers from El Paso, Mexico." "There aren't many attractions or events worth promoting here, so it's not very well-known. It's normal that you don't know it; even I've never heard of it before." "As for Hurley, where Connor and the Brotherhood claim to be based, it's a village with fewer than a thousand people, its fame is far less than Silver City's." "But generally speaking, both Silver City and Hurley are located around the 10 Freeway. Just follow the 20 Freeway through Dallas, extend your gaze to the 10 Freeway through San Antonio, and then continue along the 10 Freeway into New Mexico; you'll find Hurley and Silver City."

"Oh?"

After listening to Thomas's account, Gavin quickly moved his finger across the map.

Thomas explained it very clearly, and since Line 10 and Line 20 are major interstate highways, Gavin finally located Silver City and Hurley. The next moment, Gavin began calculating the approximate distance.

About half a minute later, Gavin rubbed his forehead and sighed as he spoke to Edward and Thomas.

"This distance... is almost over a thousand kilometers. Considering we'll have to detour around many zombies that might block our way, the actual distance will definitely be greater than the number on paper." "Furthermore, because we also need to rescue Connor and the Brotherhood, we can't use helicopters in order to try and integrate them into our system as a whole." "On the one hand, we'll need at least a combat team of twenty-four people to get there to fight. Add to that Connor's group of about sixty, plus the biker gang members we might capture. If everything goes smoothly, we'll need helicopters that can carry at least eighty to one hundred people when we return."

"But we don't have that many pilots, damn it, and even if we did, intercontinental flights would be too dangerous." "Especially since the terrain and climate of New Mexico are completely different from those of central Texas where we are."

"When we used helicopters to travel to and from Houston last time, the terrain was relatively uniform, so we didn't encounter any drastic weather changes." "But in New Mexico, who knows how bad the dust storms are? I don't want to fall out of a helicopter, so this time, we'll try to bring them back to our territory through purely ground-based military operations!"

At this point, Gavin rubbed his scalp vigorously again.

What kind of challenge would it be to simply drive over a distance of at least a thousand kilometers in the apocalypse?

It goes without saying how difficult this would be; if anything went wrong, the entire convoy could easily be blocked by a random horde of zombies. But could he really let Connor and the dozens of members of the Brotherhood continue their journey towards Phoenix?

Stop joking, he needs people, he needs everyone!

Thinking of this, Gavin sighed, picked up the map, folded it, and then put it in his pocket.

Then, he flipped his wrist to look at his tactical watch and said softly.

"Alright, let's eat first. We can talk after we've eaten."

"The wolves were howling all night; the addition of new foals has clearly made the wolf fathers incredibly excited." "After dinner, let's go see the newborn wolves, and then... let's prepare to assemble the pack for our long journey."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gavin didn't even consider whether he should set off.

He made getting ready to depart his task for the day.

Thomas remained expressionless, while Edward raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but come over to Gavin and say something.

"Boss, let me lead the team this time. As for you, Mrs. Nikita is still pregnant, and besides, you need to stay home and stabilize the camp, don't you?" "With Eugene and me, and Martin, that keen-nosed hunter, finding the Brotherhood won't be a problem. We can handle it." Edward gave Gavin a gentle smile as he finished speaking.

After a brief silence, Gavin smiled and shook his head at Edward.

"Alright, let's talk about it after dinner. Besides, I won't lose my fighting ability just because Nikki is pregnant. And this involves dealing with the Brotherhood and the biker gang, which I'd rather handle personally." "Because if possible, I'd like to try to mediate their conflict and try to devour both sides!"

"Never mind, we'll talk about it later. Let's go eat."

"If I remember correctly, Doris said last night that there would be apple pie this morning, right?"

"That's right, sir."

Thomas quickly answered Gavin's chuckled question.

"Because Steve's exploration team found a large fruit storage center yesterday, although most of the fruit inside had lost its refrigeration due to the power outage and had become rotten." "But in any case, quite a few apples were still preserved."

As soon as he finished speaking, Thomas followed Gavin out of the broadcasting studio.

When Gavin appeared in the hallway, he was immediately greeted by a chorus of greetings from the workers rushing to the kitchen.

Gavin even spotted Winnie bouncing around, and Winnie, upon seeing Gavin, immediately broke free of the crowd and rushed to his side, grabbing his arm and saying, "Aha, boss, I caught you! Did you get any good news on the radio?"

Most of the men in the camp possessed personal wireless devices; these weren't rare, and field agents had already found plenty of them during the exploration missions. Therefore, Winnie knew that the Brotherhood had extended a trade invitation to Gavin.

Hearing Winnie's question, Gavin raised an eyebrow and smiled, then put his arm around Winnie's shoulder and said.

"There is indeed good news. The Brotherhood has asked us for help, and we might be able to get dozens more new members."

"etc!"

Upon hearing this, Winnie's smile vanished instantly. She grabbed Gavin's arm in astonishment and asked incredulously.

"Boss, they've called for help? You're not going to run all the way to the Brotherhood, are you? Where are they? How far away are they?" "You're as sharp as ever, kid. You'll know this information after dinner. Let's eat first."

After responding, Gavin couldn't help but take a look at the little girl's height.

He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt like Winnie had grown a little taller...

Winnie's smile vanished completely. She understood Gavin's meaning and knew that the reason he hadn't mentioned the exact distance to the Brotherhood was because it was incredibly far. She couldn't possibly eat. Even as Gavin led her to the table, Winnie's worried expression remained hidden, her eyes lowered.

When Gavin arrived, Nikita was already sitting lazily at the table, staring blankly at the dishes while gently stroking her stomach. Seeing this, Gavin helped Winnie to her seat, then returned to sit down next to Nikita.

Nikita, perking up, moved closer to Gavin and asked amidst the constant shouts of "Welcome, Boss!" from all around.

"Sir, what did you say to Winnie? That kid doesn't seem very happy. Did you briefly reject her advances again?" "Ha, she'd rather that, but it really isn't this time. It's just that I might have to go on a long trip..."

As Gavin answered, he gently stroked Nikita's paw in his hand.

Upon hearing Gavin's words, Nikita's smile vanished instantly. She licked her dry lips and calmly whispered, "If you call this a long trip, it must be even farther than Houston. How long will it take? More than a week?" "No, if everything goes smoothly, it should be over in two days at most. Don't worry."

Gavin patted Nikita's hand and then chatted with the guys at the main table next to him.

The main table was currently occupied entirely by the elites from the camp's early factions; even their families couldn't find a seat. For example, Old Feng's wife and children had moved to the logistics group to eat with Hela and others from the teaching group, leaving only Old Feng himself at Gavin's central table as a camp elder and core member. Besides him, Madison, Eugene, Steve, Martin, Edward, Bella, Old Bert, William, Sariel, Horst, Feng Minglu, and Sean were also seated at the table. They had all overheard Gavin and Nikita's conversation.

So, in just a moment, Eugene and Martin's eyes lit up; they smelled the scent of a major operation. Before breakfast was fully served, the waiters chatted briefly about the possible operation. Only after breakfast was completely arranged did Gavin, as usual, stand up, raise his glass to the waiters, and offer his morning toast. The clinking of cutlery against plates continued, and the aroma of drinks and apple pie gradually wafted through the air.

In just over ten minutes, Gavin finished his breakfast and then got up to leave the rest of the staff to their own devices.

Seeing Gavin get up, Martin glanced at the pie in his mouth, then quickly raised his hand and called out to Gavin.

"Boss, I'll eat a little longer and then come down to find you."

"Eat up. After you finish eating, all team leaders and deputy team leaders of the field operations should assemble in the lobby."

Gavin patted Eugene on the shoulder, left after saying a few words.

However, instead of going to the main hall, he bypassed the guard posts and headed straight for the gate.

As Gavin approached, the young clerk on the sentry post quickly gave him a military salute.

"His Majesty!"

He shouted exaggeratedly.

Gavin smiled as he looked at the sentry post and the AR-15 in his arms, and said...

"Bondy, you've been at camp for almost three weeks now, how's it going?"

While exchanging pleasantries, Gavin patted Bondi on the shoulder and casually pulled half a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and tossed it to Bondi.

Upon receiving the cigarette, the black-haired, blue-eyed Bondi smiled excitedly and nervously raised the cigarette to Gavin.

"It is my honor, sir!"

"Haha, I'm relieved to see you looking so energetic. Keep up your post, buddy."

Gavin smiled and patted Bondi on the shoulder again, then walked down the stairs, through the hall, and out the door, heading towards the Wolf Park.

When he appeared, a large herd of animals rushed out of the hall. There were at least thirty hunting dogs, a dozen foxes, and a large flock of crows—the variety was countless. Gavin walked further and further away amidst the animals until he stood alone in front of the wolf enclosure, leaning against the fence and looking towards the wolves. After more than a month of development, even the wolf pack had expanded considerably. Keeley and his men had swept through the forest near the farm more than a dozen times, demarcated their territory, and dealt with all the other predators within it.

If the wolf pack consists of only a dozen or twenty wolves, they may not be able to deal with the wild bears and cougars that have ended their hibernation.

But the wolf pack was too large; around two hundred wolves was simply excessive. At least around the farm, there were no other hunter groups that could rival them. When Gavin arrived, Keeley astutely spotted him.

He lowered his head and nuzzled against his lover, then used his mouth to lift up the lightest-colored wolf cub, holding the still-closed little creature in front of Gavin and raising it high. Gavin caught the wolf cub, then playfully slapped Killie's head with his free hand.

"Don't play with your brat like that, you idiot."

"quack!"

The raven chided Killie twice in agreement, while Killie licked his lips nonchalantly and then nuzzled his head toward Gavin. Seeing this, Gavin remained silent for a moment, then snorted irritably.

"Get lost. I don't want to lick your penis. It's covered in your saliva, you bastard."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gavin reached out and tugged at the wolf cub's wet scalp, then lifted the cub and brought it to Kili.

Killy quickly picked up the wolf cub, returned to the mother wolf, and then carried the cub to Gavin.

After looking around at the souzi, Kiri returned them all to the mother wolf, then raised his head and let out a long howl.

In an instant, the wolf pack sprang into action. The strong male wolves all responded to the howl, leaving their respective mothers and venturing beyond the wolf enclosure. Even now, the other animals in the camp were still unaccustomed to encountering the wolves. The dogs kept their distance, and even the foxes, their long tails drooping, cowered in the corner of the stable. And Gavin…

Looking at the more than eighty strong male wolves that had been released from their cages, and then at the packs of dogs and foxes hiding nearby.

Gavin shook his head and couldn't help but sigh.

Look, the scene before us is so similar to this apocalyptic world.

A few hounds and foxes can get along well, but they always have to keep their distance from wolves.

Even though they knew the wolves wouldn't harm them, their sheer size and presence were enough to deter hounds and foxes. Wasn't Camp Gavin just like that wolf pack? Even if they weren't a cult, they weren't necessarily aggressive towards everything in the apocalypse. But their mere presence was enough to instill fear in other groups, who desperately kept their distance.

Of course, for every person who leaves, many more join.

In the past month alone, Gavin has even taken in four or five newcomers who fled to the camp from Kansas—and that's Kansas, for crying out loud! They're much closer to Chicago than to Dallas, but they still chose to settle in his camp, didn't they? However, everything has its pros and cons. While welcoming more people, Gavin has also effectively deterred organizations like the Doomsday Youth and the German Steel Legion from making any contact with him. What are they afraid of?

Afraid of being swallowed up?

Are they afraid of being merged?

Afraid of being killed?

Afraid of being bullied?

Are they afraid that their ambitions will vanish completely?

Or are they afraid that their freedom will be gone forever?

Gavin was unsure, but he had already made up his mind.

He would lead his men to clear away every obstacle in his path.

And the tentacles of Camp Gavin... began to extend from today's Brotherhood.

This time, he's determined to lead the team himself!