Chapter 29-1- Beyond Our Walls Part 1

[Litmaster]

I was racking my brain trying to figure out why Puck referred to others as newbies, given his low rank. I think y'all might have hit the nail on the head.

One question that I have is, what does Puck mean when he says that he is Prior Active when the Col. assigns him to Michael for training?

There's a long history of people in the active Army looking down on their National Guard and Army Reserve counterparts. There was a time when there might have been some justification to those views, but these days those elements have probably seen as much war-time service as the active duty Army. I think CPL Puck was just venting, something he's quite adept at. Notice how his attitude changed when he realized that Michael had combat experience in the Middle East.

That's part of it, CP, but I think the main reason is that we will find out that most of the 'soldiers' at the base are just newly drafted civilians who were former evacuees from all over Southern LA. That explains the 100mph tape and the fact that Michael is promoted to HQ so damn fast (given that he's a real sgt).

Quick Theory About Irwin's History

Evidence:

• The strong emphasis on medical clearance at Irwin
• That their helicopter was recognized upon arrival at Irwin.
• The 35 mile isolation buffer from the outbreak
• Puck isn't a 'newbie' despite only being in 1 1/2 years
• Irwin was between training cycles at outbreak = Few Active Duty Personnel

Theory:

• Irwin was probably used as an emergency EVAC site at the time of the outbreak
• Much of the base's current personnel are probably made up of civilians who were flown out of LA and nearby locales
• Even with the geographic isolation, they must have had an internal zombie outbreak due to some of the evacuees being infected and then turning upon arrival
• The internal outbreak was quelled, but they probably lost many people during the mini-disaster
• Puck was one of the few original Army guys to survive the outbreak, and so was quickly promoted to positions of responsibility over the incoming civilians
• So the colonel (highest ranking left alive) took over with an iron fist and a firm mandate that all Irwin personnel MUST get a physical at least once a month to ensure no further outbreaks happen

Yeah, so the more I think about this one, the more it makes sense. Here's a few more thoughts on what must have happened:

1. The Fort is made up primarily of civilians who were 'drafted' under Kimmet's command soon after being evacuated from nearby locales. So most of them probably don't know shit, don't follow commands really well, and Kimmet has had a hard time just avoiding a mutiny. So he's not going to be open to any kind of dissent...

2. So there must still be some helicopter pilots on the fort (how did the colonel get to Pantex...walk?!)

3. There must have been an early outbreak due to some of the evacuees being infected and slow-turned, nearly wiping out the place...

4. ... which explains the Texas barriers and gun towers at the barracks! After quelling the outbreak, Kimmet must have ordered that the barracks be set up as an internal fortress to detain any newcomers, where they would stay in isolation and under guard for at least a week to see if they turned. Then they would need a thorough check-up before being allowed into the base proper. This is how the fort has been able to contain any further outbreaks.

5. And that also explains all the leftover junk (guitars, clothes) at the barracks, which must have been left by people who were not medically cleared and were exiled from the fort. Still wondering about why Puck told them to stay off the 2nd and 3rd floors of that place (at 5:23 of 26-2)... is there signs of some violence at the barracks where somebody turned and killed everyone inside, but it was contained within the barracks walls?

Oh wow...if we are to assume pantex is the nuke site...could a nuking of LA be in the future?...hmm sounds ominous...also a likely possibility considering the things we saw/heard

This might be what the colonel is thinking, but I don't think it will go down that way. One more thing:



The Title: Beyond Our Walls
So this chapter is where we will get a lot more information on the larger scope of the outbreak going on 'beyond out walls'--which will mean the walls at Irwin, and probably also the walls over at Dunbar Tower with C.J. and the gang (BTW, can we now call it Dunbar Tower instead of 'The Other Tower' to finally avoid confusing it with the original tower?). At any rate, I predict that Kimmet is going to tell Michael about how widespread the disaster is, how he is phone contact with a few isolated compounds around the western U.S. that managed to avoid being overrun, how he is making plans on assembling forces to defeat the 'enemy' (zombies), and how nukes may be involved. We will also get insight that the colonel knows about the disaster being a bioterrorist attack that has wiped out nearly the entire globe, and that the nearest GZ is somewhere in Los Angeles.


Prediction: After Tanya is found with Z-Cooties, the colonel is going to want to banish her. She will protest, claiming that she has made real headway into developing a zombie vaccine. Kimmet won't believe her, Micheal will defend her, and somehow this will end up in Michael convincing Kimmet to allow him and a small team to go back to LA on a recon mission to Ground Zero to get more information on the source of the outbreak, or something. The other way it could go is for Kimmet to lose command, the shit hitting the fan, and our heroes escaping mass-chaos in a hurried exodus back to LA. Not sure which yet.



And finally, I think the info CJ has will be more juicy and detailed than the 'big picture' stuff the colonel has gleaned... Our groups are going to have lots to talk about if they ever get back together...