Words built the world once.
Before guns, before walls, before it all fell—words held it together.
Laws. Oaths. Promises. Constitutions.
Now here I was, with a pen that felt heavier than any weapon I'd ever carried, trying to hold something together with the one thing this world hadn't trusted in:
Paper.
The First Line
I started with one sentence:
"All people under The Right Arm are equal in life, protection, and voice."
Then I stared at it for two hours.
Not because it was perfect. But because it was real.
This wasn't about control. Or even safety. This was about building something that wouldn't collapse when I did.
The next morning, I walked into the courtyard where Hershel was trimming vines along the greenhouse wall.
I handed him the paper.
"Thoughts?" I asked.
He read it silently. Then smiled.
"I had a Bible once that started with less," he said.
I chuckled. "You think it'll work?"
"If it's spoken loud enough… and if it's enforced fair enough."
I found Andrea in the tower, cleaning her scope.
"People trust you," I told her. "They listen when you speak. I need you to help me shape this."
She raised a brow. "You want me to write law?"
"I want you to remind me where freedom lives," I said. "Because if I build a cage, it dies before it grows."
She thought for a moment, then nodded.
"I'll help."
She added something at the bottom of the draft later that night:
"Defense exists to preserve the people—not dominate them."
Leah, on the other hand, was blunt.
"You write rules, Rick, you better be ready to punish those who break them."
"I am," I told her.
She crossed her arms. "Are you ready when it's one of ours?"
That question haunted me long after she walked away.
We held the next council meeting in the big barn—the only space big enough to fit all nineteen of us, plus half the new heads of trade, security, and housing.
I stood in front with the draft in my hand. The paper trembled once. Then I steadied it.
"This is a start," I said. "Not a commandment. A charter. A foundation."
Graves asked, "You trying to crown yourself president now?"
"No," I said. "I'm trying to make sure no one ever does."
Silence.
Then Dale raised his voice gently.
"I've lived through a lot. And I've watched too many good things fall because no one wrote down how they were supposed to work."
He looked at the others.
"If we wait for chaos, we'll get it. If we prepare for it, maybe we'll stop it."
Key Articles (Spoken Aloud)
I read the core draft aloud.
Article I: All people have the right to food, water, safety, and a voice in decisions that affect the community.
Article II: No person may be judged or punished without fair hearing by a selected jury of citizens.
Article III: No leader may serve beyond two terms without majority approval from both the council and community.
Article IV: Service in defense is voluntary, not mandatory.
Article V: Anyone found abusing power will be tried like any other citizen. No exceptions.
After the meeting, as others debated and dispersed, Amy found me.
She tugged on my sleeve.
"You really think this'll stop another Governor?"
I looked down at her, tired but sure.
"No. But it'll stop us from becoming him."
I stayed up long after the fires died out.
Maggie brought me water. Kissed the top of my head.
Carl sat nearby, drawing pictures of what he called "our flag"—a bent arm holding a branch and a blade.
"Is this what a country feels like?" he asked.
"No," I said. "But it might be what a people feels like."
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