Doug awoke early the next morning, eager to test the effectiveness of his new precautions. As soon as he opened his eyes, he immediately checked his security system and confirmed that his network traffic appeared to be encrypted. He then went online and accessed his various accounts. Everything looked fine.

Then he noticed that a notification message popped up on his phone, alerting him to a new update for his security software. Curious, he clicked on the link and downloaded the latest version of his security app.

It only took seconds before it finished installing and rebooting his device. When he returned to his desktop PC, Doug saw that a warning window was displayed on its screen:

Warning! Your security has expired. Please renew your subscription or purchase a premium plan today.

The words flashed across the screen, taunting him. They reminded him of those ominous red text messages he used to receive when he forgot to pay his cell phone bill.

Now it was happening in the real world, and it scared him. Without his security measures active, whoever else was watching him could easily access his private information. Worse, they could potentially harm him physically too.

Doug's blood ran cold. Now he understood why his friend Kyle had insisted on changing his passwords. With each passing minute, his fears grew stronger. Whoever was spying on him was undoubtedly planning something terrible.

There must be a way to stop him!

Suddenly, Doug remembered that he had set up a second layer of protection on his laptop. Using a password management program, he created a complex series of random alphanumeric strings that formed a seemingly unbreakable code.

Even if someone managed to break his encryption, they would need to spend countless hours trying to decipher it. Not only that, but they would have to guess every single letter and number combination until eventually finding the correct sequence. Even then, it would likely take them years to crack the algorithm, assuming they possessed the skills required to do so.

And yet, Doug doubted that anyone could actually manage it. All they would accomplish was wasting precious time while he escaped unscathed, laughing at their futile attempts to catch him.

Still, he activated his two-factor authentication anyway, just in case someone did figure out his codes. Just in case…

This was one precaution that he wasn't willing to risk missing.

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He was grateful that he had spent most of the day gathering fuel and water, considering he wanted to lay low for a while - but he knew his solar and wind power generators attached to the house only worked when it was either sunny or windy, and in Chicago it rained often. Fortunately it was often windy, but he couldn’t consistently count on either power source long term. He had to rely on his backup diesel generator more often than he’d like to admit, and with the 50 gallons he’d recently acquired it would last him a week in the worst conditions, a month at best. He knew he couldn’t lay low forever. He had to resurface eventually.

I wonder how long I can go without going outside?

That question lingered in his head as he watched the rain fall on his security camera, wondering what the weather would be like tomorrow. He hoped the clouds would clear, allowing him to recharge his batteries and charge his devices, but he knew that it would probably continue raining for another couple days. That meant less sunlight, which in turn translated into lower energy output. More importantly though, it meant fewer opportunities to scavenge for resources.

Doug cursed under his breath. "Why does this always happen!?" he yelled, throwing his pillow against the wall.

He grabbed his tablet and turned on his security system, hoping that it might distract him enough to calm him down. Sure enough, after checking his alerts, he saw that he received a new message from Kyle.

"Hey buddy," it read. "Hope you're doing okay. We've got some bad news."

For a brief moment, Doug panicked. What did Kyle mean 'bad'? Were they attacked? Was someone hurt? Had they finally caught him?

Before he could dwell on such unpleasant thoughts, he composed a quick response.

“What’s the bad news?”

─ Message Sent

He then moved onto his next task - figuring out how much fuel he'd need to last until his supply of diesel ran dry. He had been careful to ration his fuel, but he knew that he needed to be precise. A miscalculation could mean the difference between life and death. After several minutes of meticulous counting, he arrived at his estimate. Two more weeks, tops. Maybe three, if he was lucky.

Doug shook his head in frustration. It wasn't enough. He needed more fuel, and he needed it soon. He thought about his options. He could try to scavenge for more fuel, but that meant venturing out into the dangerous world outside his bunker. And even if he managed to find some fuel, there was no guarantee that it would be enough. Another option was to try to trade with other survivors. Doug had heard rumors of groups of survivors who had banded together like Lisa’s to form small communities.

Perhaps one of them had a surplus of fuel that they would be willing to trade for something else. But the idea of dealing with other people made Doug uneasy. He had always been a loner, and the thought of trusting someone else with his life was a daunting prospect.

Doug sat down at his desk and opened up his laptop. He began to research alternative energy sources that he could use to supplement his current setup. He read about hydroelectric power, geothermal energy, and even biofuels. But all of these options required specialized equipment and knowledge that Doug simply did not have. Plus, they would take time and resources to implement, and Doug couldn't afford to wait.

With a heavy sigh, he knew he had no other option. He’d have to venture back outside eventually. But until then, he could distract himself inside Conquest. The only downside was that running his VR headset, haptic gloves and router would only drain his resources faster.

What other choice do I have? Hide here indefinitely with the lights out? I don’t think so!

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