Reclamation — Nathan Hale

Six years ago Civilization died under a hail of kinetic energy weapons, leaving the stunned survivors around the world to struggle through five years of almost continuous winter. Most people starved to death, many resorted to cannibalism but eventually starved to death anyway. Only a few survivors were prepared enough, strong enough, or ruthless enough, to survive the unending worldwide cold. Nobody survived unscathed. Now, in the sixth summer after the war, the sun has reappeared, the snow has departed and the weather appears to have become more normal. After giving profound thanks to God, for the first time in years the prepared survivors have been able to sow their fields and allow their herds to grow, while they prepare for what they have little doubt is coming. What is coming are the other survivors, the ones that survived mainly by using human beings as cattle. For the most part they have no cattle, their fields are planted with old hybrid seed that will barely produce food and then only once. But what they do have is an abiding faith in Allah, the satisfaction of finally having an American Caliphate, a warrior culture, and weapons, many weapons. The only way the Caliphate can grow and prosper is for them to take for themselves what the survivalists have. The only way for the survivalists to survive, is to protect what they have and they are more than willing to do so. The survivalists are also well armed and the General had hand-picked most of his men so they aren't teary-eyed, turn the other cheek, Christians but are warriors also. Civilization has ended, but the fight for survival continues. Only all four of the horsemen of the Apocalypse have been riding throughout the world for the past six years and shall continue to do so. Conquest, War, Famine and Death now have a new deadly friend, Pestilence, only their new friend appears to be man-made and redefines the word deadly. The saga continues. The survivors are also working desperately to stave off a new dark age while turning the light of civilization back on. Most cities are now huge lakes, the coasts have been stripped to bedrock, and even the large amount of supplies the survivalists had stored is running short. They are also in a race against the Caliphate to secure whatever resources still exist that will help them to reclaim their nascent civilization. Only the Caliphate wants more, much more. This is the time that Allah told the Prophet about. This is their opportunity to not only become the dominant religion in the world but the only religion. They have the men, the weapons, and the will to dominate. The only thing standing in their way is a paltry few citizen survivors. With the will of Allah on their side how can they lose? Of course, those paltry few citizen survivors have an entirely different opinion about the matter.