Chapter Text

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By The Gate

“That’s not what I asked you, I’m asking you why?” 

“And I’m trying to tell you, it only made sense!” 

The elder pinched his nose bridge, closing his eyes. A vein visibly pounded just between the edges of his hairline, those eyebags carrying a little more weight as the afternoon sailed by. 

Joey watched him, noting how the man in front of him was anything but at peace recently. It didn’t mean he could just hide things from him; the harsh reality was just that. 

A little distance west of the gate is where they stood, leaning back against one of their vehicles - an old Ford F-Series - while Saxon stood tall with his arms crossed, just observing the city. That’s how Joey found him. Rather than doing his usual routine, Saxon was waiting outside for something; not on a smoke break or doing anything with the vehicles. Just… waiting patiently. It worked in Joey’s favor, so he didn’t mince words with any questions.

Joseph frowned. “Look, I know it’s risky. But don’t you think that they could have some answers we don’t?” 

“I—” Saxon paused, not trying to continue negatively. “Maybe so. Sorry, tell me again, full and thorough.” 

“Okay, so Mabel, we believe she’s Ryder’s mom. They’ve been separated a while - she, her granddaughter, and Ryder’s wife - from him.” He recalled the information, his ally focusing intently. “Elena went with her to bring them all here, I thought you might’ve had something to tell them with how much you’ve been working.” 

Saxon pondered for a moment, his lips pursed together as his eyes trailed off. 

“It meant something, didn’t it? Family possibly reuniting.” 

“Yeah.” Joey didn't hesitate to admit it. “Pretty sweet to see.”

“I understand.” He affirmed. A whistle of the wind passed by before he spoke again. “I don’t have anything really. I was able to conjure up a few maps, pinpoint a few areas, but none of them convey the message. They might be miles into West Virginia by now.” 

“Fuck, that’s possible.”

“Exactly.” Saxon firmly said. He put his hand on Joey’s shoulder, facing him straight on. “Listen, son. You know full well that we can’t just trust everyone that passes through our walls with a story. Those battered younguns, sure, but this is different. If we fall into a trap, there’s no stopping the Irish from runnin’ in for everything we have. Nash said he ain’t no stranger to a team, you see?”

The implications alone put a hard chill into Joey’s bones. He made a look of disgust, not meeting Saxon’s eyes anymore. 

“If he’s got someone like Ryder hostage, I don’t think he’s alone. Guy isn’t a slouch.”

“You’re learnin’ business, my boy. What’s the first rule?”

“We have to protect our family first.” Joey said, almost robotically. “Before we spill blood for another.” 

“That’s what I like to hear.” 

Joey sighed. “Not that simple, is it?” 

“Not if you keep doubting me, it won’t.” Saxon answered honestly. He brought his son figure closer, wrapping his arm around him. “You learn though. Elena said he ain’t a slouch so it could be a good test.” 

“That’s what I just said, buddy.” 

“Joseph, don’t you start now…”

Joey shook his head and looked off to the side, not responding as quickly as expected. In the midst of his thinking, the sounds of a horse trotting became increasingly clear, gate creaks audible from their so-close-yet-so-far distance. 

“Alright. You comin’? Buddy.” Saxon walked backwards. 

He instinctively pushed himself up. “You know it. Let’s go.”

“That’s the Joey I know.” He jabbed Joey’s arm. “After you. Mama Bear and her cubs await us - as they say in the south.”

“You read too much, dude.”

Chuckling, Joey made his way around the truck. Immediately, they spotted the family, all dressed in similar gear, coming along with a furry friend. The two men turned to each other, suddenly feeling a lot more secure in the situation. Elena led them, Mabel hitching a ride back. To the right, a border collie followed whom they believed to be the youngest of the lot, her mother opposite her side. 

The most glaring detail was the granddaughter’s missing right arm. She dressed similar to her forebears, matching her mother with a hat atop her head. Her blonde hair and green eyes were reminiscent of her father to Joey, she caught him looking and offered a kind nod. 

“Miss Nash, thank you for escorting our guests.” 

Elena hopped off the saddle, helping Mabel down afterwards. “With how things have been recently, I might have to start a taxi service.” 

“We’ll pay you in pears, hun.” The oldest said. 

As if on queue, her granddaughter picked out a couple pears from her bag. The family’s dog growled, pawing its way up to Joey. He smiled awkwardly, his hand approaching the dog’s head. 

“Hey, bud. I’m no harm.” He slowly planted, his warm gesture calming her. 

“Epona’s her name. She ain’t a threat, long as you ain’t either.” The teen girl said, splitting the pear in half and handing it to him. “She loves these.” 

“Epona, huh?” Joey smiled, continuing to pet her. He took the pieces, hanging one low, Epona snacking at it instantly. “Haven’t seen a dog in ages.” 

As he dabbled in welcoming the pet, Mabel took the fruit, led the other woman up to who they were told to be the leader, and offered him one. 

“Mabel Summers.” She put the other hand on her chest. 

“As I’ve been told, Mrs. Summers.” Saxon was already in a hurry, taking the pear. “Thank you. I hear you and Miss Nash have got a common enemy. Pleasure to have an answer to some thoughts.” 

“She told us a bit about him, he don’t sound like a friend of Ryder’s.” She kindly replied. “He’s been away from us a while and must’ve gotten into trouble.”

The Gallipolis leader shrugged, biting into his pear. “Mmm, circumstance’ll change us all, you can’t be too sure.” 

That earned a slight scowl from the woman to Mabel’s left. Her hands lay down by her waist, eyes sharp under the brim of her hat. 

He swallowed, facing her. “And you are…?”

“Audrey Summers, mister.”

Now, he put out a welcoming hand, first to Mabel. 

“Saxon Mac Allister. There’s Joseph, and you’ve met Elena, of course.” He shook hands with the two mothers, while Joey was chuckling, being licked affectionately by Epona already, much to Elena’s dismay. “And you, dear?”

Audrey’s daughter gave a kind wave. 

“Juliette, but people call me Jules.”

“Alright… well, I can’t stand here and say I have the slightest idea on where your beloved Ryder is, but I assure you I do not trust that McCarthy.” He stated outright, no room for doubt within his grizzled old voice. 

“If he managed to get back to Foxtrot after what happened…” Elena clenched her fists. “We could be in a shit ton of trouble.” 

Audrey raised an eyebrow. “And what exactly happened? You still haven’t answered that part. Just wanna know if there’s trouble.” 

Elena angered visibly, holding her words for a moment. Audible was the scraping of her teeth - then her hands closed aggressively. 

“What I did isn’t as important as the trouble he could bring to us. To me.” 

“And what he might be doing to Pop.” Jules echoed as she joined the circle. Epona followed her closely, whimpering over the mention of Ryder. “‘S okay, girl.”

Saxon furrowed his brows briefly, then reached into his pocket, bringing out a paper filled with scribbles and notes. All of the Summers’ circled around, trying to see what was on it, the man giving Joey an awkward look before explaining. 

“We’re here, Gallipolis. Stefan let me know about some trouble… here.” He pointed at the area where Willow Wood stands. “Somethin’ to do with Rodney, which is here. That don’t count Rodney itself out, though the place was torn apart, blood everywhere according to him and Annie.” 

“Lurkers?” 

“Don’t know. They’re bunching around somewhere North, leaving gaps to travel around the river.” Saxon noted, more to himself than anything. “Where’d you folks come from?” 

Jules was about to answer - her mother beating her to the punch. 

“Came in from West Virginia last night. Me and Jules kept near the river ‘fore the call came. Saw a few, nothin’ else worth seeing.”

They spent the new couple minutes covering the surrounding areas. Mabel showed decent knowledge despite how rushed the map was, while Audrey chipped in with some thoughts as well. 

A heavy exhale escaped Audrey, her eyes glistening a little under her hat. She lowered her head, clearing her throat as Saxon continued tracing estimations of where locations were. 

“The bridge, last I checked, was still in good condition. That the same?” 

“No, actually,” Mabel said, “Huge hole in the middle, we had to cross from the sides. There was some blood, animal carcasses, arrows too. Might’ve been a scuffle there recently.”

Recalling what he saw, Joey smiled. “That could be good! I don’t think McCarthy had more than a pistol on him when they passed by, no one was on their tail.” 

“But he did say they were heading to the bridge.” 

“You said it yourself, Pop. He could be fibbing, trying to find his way home using the bridge’s location.” 

Saxon bobbed his head around, but ultimately agreed. 

Just then, Mabel wiped some sweat off her forehead, taking in a couple heaving breaths and placing her hands on her hips. 

“Tired?” The Gallipolis leader asked.

“No, no… just feelin’ a few things.”

Juliette stepped towards her, quick to touch her grandma’s wrist. Her pulse was just a bit irregular, the strong emotions threatening to burst at any moment.

“I hate to say it, but I don’t think we’re gonna get all the answers right now, Mrs. Summers.” Elena seemed to conclude, her words a bit loose for care. “And I’d rather not be royally fucked against whatever he has on his side.”

“Elena’s right.” Joey echoed. “This could take days.”

“I ain’t sayin’ she’s wrong, but we ain’t gonna get anywhere just sittin’ around. He could need our help.” Audrey said in a kinder tone, then turning to the leader. “I know it’s a lot to ask, but Mr. Mac Allister, we’ve been waitin’ ages for even an inch of reason to go one way. If we gotta kill the sun’uva bitch ourselves, you got it. Y’all won’t have to lift a finger.” 

Saxon rolled up his map, watching the three new faces await his words. 

He was firm in his beliefs; the eyebags heaving with each blink Audrey took, her mother-in-law’s appeasing approach amplified by slight desperation. They only served for even more confidence. 

“Miss Juliette?” He called, dramatically averting his gaze to the teen with a look that said all she needed to know. “What do you think? About all this.”

Both Elena and Joey’s eyes shot open. The latter tightened his lips, his body doing a full 45 to hide his expression, while Elena covered her mouth. 

“What? You can’t put it all on her-” 

“Ma…” Jules groaned, this time she silenced her mother. “He asked me. It’s alright.” 

Audrey’s mouth hung open, but she shut it, closing her hand as well. 

The teen shook her head before answering. “I… I think Pop is strong enough. We ain’t no use to him runnin’ around like cats in a room full of rocking chairs. We need rest, Meemaw. Ma, you too.” 

Mabel simply closed her eyes. All she could think about was how close they were. How close she was to pushing past the evils of the everyday world to lay her eyes on her son. Her and only child. All she had left of… 

“Jules, hun…” Audrey muttered. 

Juliette dangled her head in her mother’s direction, her eyes pleading, left arm wrapped around Epona, who was now standing on her legs. 

“The queen of the house has spoken.” Saxon said with a subtle smile. “We’ll find your pop, sweetheart. It just ain’t right to run in when you all haven’t had a decent meal in what I assume may be weeks.” 

Both mothers couldn’t offer a rebuttal. Juliette was right, and they knew it. 

“And what if he comes back?” Elena asked. “Ryder is one thing, but Roy and his people are another.”

“If he doesn’t plan on risking life and limb in old greasy Gallipolis, we’ll be fine. Few days is all we need.” He confidently spoke, then turned to Joey. “Son. Take them to the hotel, please?” 

He was already on it, gesturing in the direction vaguely. The Summers family, though somber in the moment, swallowed their hurt. 

“Thank you, Elena. Mr. Mac Allister.” Audrey spoke, before turning away. 

“Obliged, senorita.” Elena was already halfway onto Sammy, speeding away to continue the rest of her day. 

Watching them all head off, Saxon held his hands behind his back, stepping around in place. 

He grumbled under his breath, the uncertainty of it all beginning to spread further than from himself. 

Did he buy himself some time? 

Was there time to buy? 

He felt bitterly displeased internally, eye catching how Jules leaned into her grandmother’s shoulder, while Audrey fell back to walk with Epona. 

It was beautifully pictured in front of him, a family longing for its missing piece. Someone they all loved, in ways only a family could love one person.

A shift of the breeze passed by, hair sticking onto his own sweat beaded forehead, so he gave it a quick wipe, exhaling, and forcing himself to smile. 

It always made him a little less nervous when he was reminded of how close everyone could be. 

Uncle Kenny’s Bar

“Cheers!”
“Cheers.” 

They tapped their shot glasses together, both of them downing their drinks in a flash. 

The bar was loaded - well, as good as ‘loaded’ could be nowadays - with Gallipolis folk, all glad to take time off for some fun and games. If they drank, they had their fill, a few planned for it and then some. If they didn’t, it was completely okay for them to just be seated. The premise was to enjoy the day with their allies. 

At the middle of the table, Dolly put her empty cup down, picking up her card deck and getting right back to shuffling. She sat between Astrid and Asher, neither of them indulging in the beverages. Mika had their chin on the table, staring off into nothingness, while they were a few whispers and giggles between Celine and her new pal, Annie. 

Dolly’s temporary drinkmate, Bernadette, washed down their shot with some water, before looking across at the dealer. 

The cards emitted the famous sound as they slapped against each other, mixed around with expertise. Bert raised an eyebrow at the technique; there hadn’t been a faulty move at all. 

“You’re… really good at shuffling, Dolly. Where’d you learn?”

She snapped her head up without a break in stride. “Oh, nowhere really. I guess I’m just really good with my hands.” She realized what she’d said immediately, cheeks going red. “UH–I mean, I’m self taught, haha!” 

Having to hold back a laugh, Bert trailed her gaze to Astrid, whom was completely unaware anyone was saying anything, her attention on the laughing girls at the front table. Asher, however, raised his eyes widely, then shook his head. 

“What game are we playing?” He changed the topic, tinkering with his goggles. “And is it cheating if I wear these?” 

“Blackjack?” Bert suggested. “Spades is alright too.” 

“I wouldn’t mind a poker game.” Asher looked over his shoulder. “You two gonna keep giggling or are you gonna join?” 

Caught off guard, Annie jolted back into Celine, almost spilling their cups. A bit of Celine’s rum dripped onto the desk, while Annie’s cup shook, ice shuffling around. 

“Sorry, yeah. I can play.” 

Asher’s confusion piled up, so he looked at his fellow newcomer’s cup. Nothing but ice in the process of melting. 

“Did you want a drink with that or…” 

“Ohhh, no-no, heh.” She gestured with her hands. “I kind of enjoy having it melt naturally. Raw, fresher; all that jazz.” 

He raised an eyebrow but ignored it nonetheless. Quickly, he diverted his attention to someone who was sitting all alone on the far side - Stefan was completely asleep at the same table - scooting over and calling out to him. 

“Solar! Are you up for a game?” 

He visibly hesitated for a moment; the ambiance around the bar probably not completely to his liking. A few eyes fell onto him, so he diverted his gaze, grabbed his cup and got moving. 

Annie switched spots with Celine so she could be closer to the action, and asked again. “What game are we playing anyway?” 

“Spades, anyone?” Astrid responded this time, a prideful smile on her face. “Or do y’all actually want a chance at winnin’?” 

While they discussed, Solar stood there a moment. His hands tightened around his cup - coffee, it smelt like - as he stared at the space between Annie and Asher. 

Asher caught him, scooting a bit more to his left. “Oh, my bad.” 

Sol placed himself there, a good gap on either side. 

Dolly expertly passed the cards around, two each, as everyone gathered properly in a circle. 

“Poker’s probably the most simple. Texas Hold’Em. Is that okay with everyone?” 

Collectively, she received positive responses, so all the players picked up their cards and the game was just about ready to commence. 

“What’s the bet?” Dolly questioned, her hand on the deck. 

Celine yelled so loud, the entire city could probably hear her. “Winner has no chores for a week!” 

“What she said.” Asher agreed, smirking. The rest of the table, again, was completely fine with it, so they began. 

When Annie flipped her cards over, she turned to Celine, who’d now just gone quiet. 

“Psst, hey.” She whispered, covering her mouth. “I’ll update you. If we win, we both get no chores.”

Celine smiled connivingly, not needing to say anything. 

Immediately, there was a certain dynamic between each player. 

Annie peered around the table to update Celine. Astrid had her hand tight to her chest, peering around for any signs of anxiousness. Goggles were pulled down, covering Asher's eyes despite some protests, Mika sat quietly, giving away absolutely nothing, and Dolly herself was more focused on running things smoothly. 

Most noticed her movement, but when her eyes eventually landed on Solar, he wasn’t even holding his playing cards up. They sat flipped down on the table, his expression completely blank. She wasn’t sure if his poker face was this good or if he was dead. He hadn’t blinked once. Definitely unsettling. 

“Is Solar always so stone faced? Mika too.” She asked, low so no one heard. 

Celine giggled, her hand covering, then nodded. “Have you heard them talk? Aucune émotion!” 

Without money, the flop - first three cards - were played down. Everyone was in, no reason not to be. 

Ace of Clubs. Ten of Spades. Seven of Hearts. 

Body language started to change. The three blondes seemed positive in their own ways; Asher scooped off his goggles and tossed his cards down. 

“Statisically bullshit.” He was out, sulking in his seat. “Damn goggles might be cursed.” 

“How do you see through those?” Bernadette asked with a smile. 

“More for protection, useless against awful cards.” 

Next round. Dolly revealed the Turn: King of Spades. 

Now, the players started to talk a little. Annie sat up, watching the two stone faced players who somehow were still in the game. 

“Do you two plan on speaking?” 

Mika looked at her. “We’re playing.” 

He didn’t respond, but visible discomfort grew onto Solar’s face. He turned more to the left, hair covering his eye from Annie’s gaze. 

Dolly’s interest seemed to peak. “Um, Mika? Where’s Flynt? I haven’t seen him in a few days.” 

They didn’t smile as such, but Mika’s face shifted a little as they pulled their sleeve up. The lizard crawled around, making himself at home under the warmth of his owner. Everyone shared some attention, except for Mika’s fellow stone faced player. 

“He’s still not dead.” They joked, their voice making them sound oh-so serious. “Pretty cool.” 

“You aren’t either, double cool… or something like that.” Dolly said with a smile. “Or… triple if Confiance counts?”

“Come on, Solar.” Celine called him out, as if she sensed his expression. “Give the lizard a compliment.”  

He frowned, not wanting to look that away.

Astrid spoke, “Leave him alone, girls. He ain’t gon’ give you shit. No chores is a pretty big bet.”

“Which I’m gonna win.” Bernadette half-joked, pulling their cards close. Both Dolly and Astrid seemed to enjoy those theatrics.

They pulled back the pressure, going back to whispering tactics. Despite the pressure dropping, Solar’s negative expression didn’t go anywhere. Asher looked at him, then at the two women who were having a good time. 

Solar’s cards also weren’t the best. A pair of Kings wasn’t a hard beat with the current deck. 

“You alright?” Asher muttered. “Your cards aren’t exactly world beaters.” 

“Hmm.” Solar only hummed. The other man took that as a sign to back off. 

With the crowd calm again, only one person out, the dealer didn’t waste time. The River dropped next to the other four, revealing itself as a Queen of Spades. 

“Damn…” Annie muttered. Her eyes went rogue, managing to catch sight of Solar’s poorly hidden hand. She turned to Celine. “Might not win, but neither will your friend.” 

“They’re all my friends. You’re my friend, which person are you talking about?” 

“Oh–” Annie paused. “Um, I meant Solar. Sorry.” 

Right on cue, Solar folded. He tossed his cards onto the table without a word, a small show of frustration and discomfort. He wasted no time getting up and departing as well. 

The others weren’t too focused on the game to notice, or already put off by him, so they didn’t give chase. Celine heard someone leave, so she frowned for a split second. 

Annie folded next. “Only right that I do some chores during my first week.” 

“Damn.” Her friend said as if she was the one with the deck. 

“Welcome aboard, sister!” Bernadette jokingly responded. They looked over to Mika, who was kind of staring at the community cards. “And on that note, I also fold.” She dropped her cards down. 

Dolly, Astrid and Mika were the only ones left, each eyeing the victory in their own way. Mika dropped first, their deck an impressive King-High Straight. They didn’t really seem all that happy or impressed - probably because they had no idea what it meant. 

A slight frustrated sigh escaped Dolly, stamping her foot on the ground under the table. Astrid, though, smirked. She bit her lip, holding back the excitement. She swept her right foot a little, catching it right under Dolly’s. The card dealer nearly yelped, but resorted to rolling her eyes and silently leaving her leg in place. Astrid chuckled, then dropped her cards. 

No doubt about it. An Ace-high Flush. 

“Haha! I told y’all! They don’t call me the Ace of Spades for nothin’.” 

Dolly shook her head, hanging it low to hide her admiration. “No one calls you that.” 

“Oh, shush. No chores this week for me. It’s gon’ be a great week.” She kicked her boots onto the table. “Good game, y’all. Darn close, Mika.” 

Mika nodded. “I was close?” 

“Don’t tell me you didn’t know that…” Annie butt in from the other side. “Good game. You guys are pretty fun for… well, the end of the world.” 

Dolly scooped all the cards back up into the deck, her and Bernadette getting into their own conversation over their choices of drink. Mika set Flynt down on the table, them and Astrid watched him scatter around. 

“We’ll get the reward next time, crois-le.” Celine reached for Annie to indicate she was talking to her. “I’m gonna get a drink. Give me a minute, guys.” 

She grabbed her walking stick and got moving. Annie took the moment to glance into her cup. The ice had melted slightly, a small smirk arriving on her face. Asher noticed, side-eyeing and looking at the cup. The newcomer quickly grabbed it and took a sip, almost unfazed by the presumed chill. 

She exhaled, patiently putting the cup back down. “No drink for you, Asher?” 

“No.” He dragged it out. “Not my thing. Ice water, maybe.” 

“Well what’s mine is mine. I’m not much of a sharer.” 

“That’s fine.” He nodded, then got up and slid past away from the table. He gave her a thumbs up. “Seeing that we’re all sharing the chores, I’ll be glad to see you around.” Asher moved with those words, joining Mika on the other side of the table to check on the lizard. 

Annie watched them for a few seconds, until Celine came back with something of her own. She went back to talking to her friend. Her friend. Maybe things weren’t gonna be so bad. It was just gonna take some time to get them to like her. 

-

Group 2 

“And that’s how I got this scar right here.” 

Shel took a sip of her drink behind the frost desk. “So let me get this straight. You got impaled, this random teen finds you and rescues you before death, and his people manage to nurse you back to health? No questions asked?” 

“Thaaat’s right,” Shabina said, her voice slightly slurred. “I–hic–I was fucked up for like… a month? I dunno, you’d hafta ask Ronnie, heheh…” She lowered her shirt down to cover her scarred abdomen. 

“If we could, we would… what was he like?” Said June, to Shabina’s right. “He doesn’t sound like an old dude.” 

It took her a few seconds to properly gather her thoughts, the bottle of vodka in front of her was half empty. Everyone around could tell there was zero intention of leaving a single drop remaining.

“He wa— he’s a good guy. All of them were nice, to be honest. Heh, ‘n they fucking saved my life, so they all earned some extra points in my good book. Kinda like you guys, except it wasn’t that bad this time..”

The girls shared a good laugh at that, Marnie sitting near Becca who was standing up, leaning on the table. None of them were exactly easily reading Shabina’s emotional state, though the bartender assumed that it was one of those days; she didn’t want to intercept but she also wasn’t planning on letting her customer blackout. 

“What about you, Marns?” Becca asked after taking a sip of her coffee. “Any cool stories?” 

The girl didn’t take too long, twisting her chair around as she spoke. “Oh, yeah. Honestly I was sort of waiting for the talking stick to go around. No offense.”

“hic—none taken.” 

Focus - albeit somewhat tipsy - shifted to Marnie. 

“Uhhh… you guys know I haven’t exactly had the best with groups in my time.” She started, voice low. “Everywhere I would go, something would go wrong. Leaders, raiders, maybe even unlucky circumstances. Somehow, places that I considered safe would… I guess, ‘fail’ is the most inclusive word?” 

She took a swig from her glass to compose herself, then looked between everyone. 

“To me, there’s nothing more important than having people you trust. People you consider friends. Maybe someday, you will consider them family. Everywhere I went, that’s what I thought would be best for me, because it’s part of who I am.” She looked away, eyes landing on her friend over with the card playing group. “I had a… ‘friend’. We weren’t super close before this started, the end brought us together as survivors and as friends.”

“As it did with literally fucking everyone.” 

“Bec…” 

“What? That counts us and Marnie!” 

“Heh, honnêtement, it’s okay.” Marnie took the compliment, snickering. “Anyways, we joined a band of survivors, that being my first group. Yadda, yadda, yadda, people started getting desperate, and we were attacked by a group of bandits. They caught us really off guard, setting the place on fire and shooting what felt like fucking unlimited arrows at us. I managed to hide, but it was… unpleasant to say the least.” 

Shabina interrupted accidentally, a couple burps followed by another sip straight from the bottle. When she placed it down, it was swiftly taken away by Shel. “Hey?!”

“If you’re gonna get shitfaced, at least do it at a pace we can all keep up with.” She fixed up a cup of water, handing it to Shabs. “Here. Slowly for the hiccups.” 

“Mhm…” She groaned, groggily consuming a considerably small sip. “Good looking, Aunt Shel.” 

June crossed her arms. “No more interrupting, please?” 

“Yeah, yeah–sorry. Allez, Marnie.” The drunk gave up the floor, then made a face. “Uh, is that the right word?” 

“Oui. Ou allons-y.” 

“I prefer that second one.” Shel said, smiling. “So you guys get attacked. Then what happened?” 

“Uhh… I can’t remember how long I waited, but when I finally left, I thought escaping was plausible.” Marnie scratched the back of her head. “Little did I know, Emma was there. But it wasn’t Emma anymore. She attacked me, and for a few seconds, it wasn’t looking good for your old friend, Marnie Millet.” 

“Jeez. That couldn’t have been fun.” Becca said, wincing. “You’ll always remember the first person you lose. Y’know, especially if they come back and try to chew your face off.” 

The storyteller giggled. “Perfectly said, Becca. I managed to hold her off, just barely. The fire exit was close, got through the door and tossed her over the railing… I can still remember the sound of her head splattering seven floors down.” 

All of them quietly reacted. It felt like they were all thinking about their firsts, whoever they may have been. All except for–

“She shouldn’t have attacked you. Emma, I mean.” June said with a sad tone. “She was your friend… a bite shouldn’t change that.” 

The collective response was awkward. Shel looked at Becca, who was about to respond, and shook her head, mouthing a ‘No.’ It didn’t look like Shabina had heard what June said, so Marnie took it upon herself. 

“It happens, June. C'est une maladie, it’s deeper than your own choices.”

“I don’t know… I’ve never seen anyone I know like that. Maybe it’s not my place to say anything.”

Marnie responded by patting her on the back. “Well, we’re gonna work hard to make sure that none of us have to see that again.”

That put a smile on the teen’s face. 

After the slight somberness of the conversation, the group went back to banter and even had Shel show off her technique on making some of these unique drink requests. Sometime along, more people joined the fun around the area, such as Alejandro and Elena - arguing as always when grabbing their requests - but the core group stayed seated up top. 

At one point, Shabina spun around in her seat. The sensation brought her to intoxicated hysterics; anything was better than her drowning in sorrows, I suppose. The seat stopped with her facing the other way around, eyes landing on an incoming person. 

“Why is everyone here?” The small voice asked. 

“Penny? You came here all by yourself?” 

The young girl beamed. “Yep! I even rode my pony!” 

Shabina’s head lifted as if she was a robot who’d just been activated. “Woooahhh, that’s really good.”

“Huh?” Marnie said, looking at the entrance. “Where’s Joey?”

Penelope joined them at the table, helped up into the seat beside Shabina by Becca. “I dunno. He didn’t come back to the house, and I thought Pop came here to get his coffee.” 

“Nope, he’s not here.”

“It’s okay. He’s probably busy… Um, Miss Shel?” 

“Let me guess…” Shel was already looking for the drink. “Orange juice?” 

“Yep! Thank you!” She held her hand out, the other was occupied with something she was moving from her back pocket. It nearly slipped out her hand when she was multitasking, and it caught Shabs’s eye. 

“Whatcha got there, kiddo? Another drawing?” 

“This?” She lifted it up. Becca was tilting her head to try and see it properly. 

“It’s a picture of some upside down dudes.” She joked. 

Penny made a face, and realized that she was in fact holding it upside down. “Ohhhh. I forgot to leave this at the house, and I don’t have my own horsebag yet.” 

“A satchel, you mean.” Said Marnie. 

“Yeah, that.” The young kid agreed. She then pondered for a second, making a strong thinking face. She looked between Shabina and the others. “Do you all wanna see it?” 

They weren’t gonna say no to that. 

She put it on the table, all the adults, and June, leaning in to get a good look. At first, it was quite sweet to look at. A nicely framed picture with a sight so beautiful that it could’ve brought any survivor to tears. It just looked so… lively. A beach with all the sunshine and waters; the main focus of the image was a young girl, her hair in shoulder lengthened pigtails, and, presumably, her mother both smiling, frozen in time. It was as if they were enjoying the day - a regular day - for all those who never could again. Those who never had a chance. 

“Awesome.” Becca nodded with approval. 

“I’ve never been to the beach,” June mumbled, “but it’s always looked like so much fun.” 

Shel turned to her. “It was. You didn’t have to worry about work or school. You could just… be. I didn’t really go much, but when I did, it was fun. I wish you could’ve experienced that.” 

“Hic–” A sound came from the middle. Everyone looked up, Shabina having a fist to her mouth as she looked at the picture. 

“Sommmebody misses the beach a lot…” 

Shabina’s eyes welled up–without looking at the girl, she spoke. 

“Who… who is this?” She sniffled. “In the picture, I mean. The girl with the pigtails.” 

“Umm…” Penelope wasn’t sure how to react, so she answered calmly. “The little girl is my sister. Her name is Kamila Jewe–” 

“KJ?!” She shouted, loud enough to garner the attention of every person who had their wits about them - so everyone but herself. “Like, Kamila Jewel KJ?!” 

“That’s what she said, yeah.” Marnie interrupted. 

The little girl flipped the photo over, showing Shabina the writing on the back. In purely drunk fashion, it took her a few seconds to capture it properly, before she read aloud. 

“Annual San-Santoso Vacation.” She said, needing to wipe a tear away. “Kamila Jewel Santoso–OH MY GOD!” 

“AH!” 

She ditched the photo, pulling young Penny into a hug. Whatever she was saying was muffled by their closeness, leaving June to pick it up and read the rest. 

“And Amiya Santoso.” She read quietly, the other three picking it up. “Her mom?” 

“I thought Sa-” Becca was about to say something when Shel put her hand on her arm. She shook her head, silently asking her to not butt into the moment. 

The sisters watched the embrace, Penny giggling a little as she properly adjusted into it. 

Becca frowned, looking at her big sister, then at the hand on her arm. She pulled back a little, hesitating, and then grabbing onto Shel’s hand. The older of the two turned, a little surprised to see Bec looking at her with admiration. As if to say she was happy to still have her. They shared a look, both smiling. 

It didn’t look like Shabs was gonna quit the embrace anytime soon, so Marnie went back to her drink and June kept on looking at the picture. It made her feel… something. She wasn’t sure what it was. There was just a feeling at the back of her mind, a familiar itching feeling that she couldn’t set her mind on. 

Regardless of it all, they were all certain of their status. There is a group worth protecting. A family, both by and beyond blood. A body of people who will do anything for the person beside them. Deep down, that’s everything you want. 

He sat in the empty room, staring at the cold concrete floor. It had been a while since his eyes were focused on anything else. There was no way out apart from the way he came in - or rather, where he was forcibly sent through - so he assumed the worst was about to occur. 

Did they know he and Dario were lying? Has someone innocently shown up looking for them? If you could think of a scenario, best believe Leo had already thought, considered and become slightly afraid of it. That way Lando was treating him didn’t exactly make him any more confident. 

He occasionally heard some commotion from just outside the room, giving a look to his left every single time, as if expecting that fate was ready to look him in the eye. With time slowly breaking his mind before any words could, he was completely deafened to the sound of the door finally opening. 

“Leo Smith…” A bitter old voice spat, low like the thunder, door shutting behind them. It took him a moment, first responding with a tired hum, before it activated something in his mind and he glanced beside him.

“What the heck?” He exclaimed. 

Standing before him was the woman who’d terrorized him and his friends once before. Bearing a new scar across her face, eyes held down by the tiredness of age, stress and visible anger, it was his turn to be isolated against her. A concept that left very few unharmed. 

“So you are alive, hmm?” Christa walked slowly until she stood directly in front of him. “Fate isn’t exactly high on my list of things I believe, but there may be a God after all if he was kind enough to give me a second bite at the cherry.”

He was speechless at the revelation. Truth be told, he never really found out what happened to her that night. All that mattered was that his home was safe. 

“You-You’re alive??” 

Christa stood in front of him, fists clenched. “Better believe it. And it seems like you all can’t keep your distance. Now tell me…” She stamped on the ground, the sound echoing around the room. “Where is your group.” 

Leo flinched. He didn’t answer, trying to keep his breaths still, looking her in the eye. 

“Llanzo told me what Dario said.” Christa continued. “That you two have no one else but each other… Hmph, it’s real funny how you all protect each other. You and I both know that ain’t true, but what I don’t get is why you’re opposite the river all of a sudden. And where everyone else is.” 

“The school’s gone.” Leo suddenly chirped out. 

His counter was immediately shocked. She stepped back, raising an eyebrow. 

“You’re lying.” 

“Why would I lie about that? It’s… it’s fucking gone.” He said, voice low. “Did you do it?” 

Christa chuckled. “Why would I waste my time on that? In case you haven’t noticed, we aren’t hooked at sea anymore. A bomb won’t turn us to toothpicks.” 

“Then I don’t have anything else to talk to you about.” The blonde turned his head away. “You’re alive and you fucking hate me and I think I can live with that because you aren’t the first.” 

She hummed. A few moments passed, both of them looking around the room as if waiting for the other to say something. Leo’s lips parted a few times, hesitating before taking back what he wanted to say. Eventually, Christa spoke. 

“Your mother. You wouldn’t be acting like this if she was around, that’s for sure. She’s gone?” 

It hit Leo like a hammer. He felt his stomach gaping, a sense of dread leaving a bitter taste in his mouth. Again, the lack of response gave her the answers she needed. 

“That’s what happens. Maybe if you all stayed in line, we wouldn’t be in this position.” The words left her mouth with a disconnect that he was unfamiliar with. “Maybe she’d be alive, sitting with you in here. Maybe she’d give me the answers that I fuckin’ deserve because you aren’t giving me shit.”

Leo grumbled, then spat on the ground between them. 

“Fuck. You. I told you the truth.” 

She stepped in front of him, kneeling. “Heh… just when I think someone can hit rock bottom, you continue to dig. It’s impressive, honestly.” She got up and headed for the door.

“Wait, how long do I have to–” 

“Shut it or I’ll hang you out there for all your friends to see!” Her voice snapped loudly as she grabbed the door handle. 

She exited, but left the door open, leaving him alone once again.

Her footsteps echoed away, eventually turning into full silence. It was like that for a minute or so, before he heard another voice. 

“-oody, let me go!” 

He faced his left, getting up. Dario was thrown into the room, the door then slammed shut and locked. He ran over, banging at it. 

“You can’t fucking lock me in here!” The Brit shouted to whoever wanted to listen. He punched the door one or two more times before giving in. 

“Dario!” 

Dario’s attention aggressively focused over and he stormed at Leo, grabbing him by the shirt. “You bloody idiot, that’s fucking Christa!” 

“I-I kno–” 

“She’s gonna kill us both.” He let go, running his hands through his hair and pacing around the room. “She’s gonna kill us both, and if the others find us, we’ll already be blown to bits!” 

“If you’d just let me explain—”

“Explain what?!” 

Leo raised his voice. “She doesn’t know anything! I think she’s just trying to scare us with our own words, so I only told her that we lost Ericson’s. I’m certain she doesn’t know anything else.” 

“Oh you’re ‘certain’?!” Dario stopped mid pace, chest heaving. “Because ‘certain’ will get us fucking buried if you’re wrong!”  

Leo swallowed, fingers twisting by the sides of jacket. “I’m as certain as I can be. She knows Noelle is dead, I couldn’t lie about that but… she asked about people. I didn’t give her anything. Just what we agreed on.” 

Dario laughed, humorless and sharp. “Brilliant. Truly stellar lying, mate. That’s why I’m in this cement shithouse instead of my fucking bed.” He dragged a hand over his face. “Christ, my bloody head is gonna burst!”

“If you’d just stop shou–” 

“Don’t fucking tell me to stop shout–” He cut himself off, pointing at the door. “You listen here, she’s gonna come back in here and–and that’ll be it. Game over, no bodies to bury.” 

Leo couldn’t really find the words to calm Dario down. The Brit started spiralling once more, breathing heavier by the moment. 

“Dario.” He said, voice too quiet to be heard over Dario’s footsteps. When that didn’t work, he grabbed him by the arm. “Dario, look at me.”

“What is i–”

Before he knew it, the two of them were face-to-face, clumsily in a very poorly executed kiss. Leo leaned most into it, pushing Dario’s head back. It was quite messy for a second, Dario stiffening like he’d been slapped, until he reciprocated it momentarily. 

The taller of the two pulled back, immediately stammering. “U-Um, sorry, I don’t know why I– I just–”

Dario just stared at him for a few seconds, completely stunned. “Did you just…” He swallowed. “In here? Now?”

There was a long and horrible silence that persisted between them. Somewhere outside the room, they heard footsteps incoming, but just to move past them. 

“Fuck.” Dario coughed out. “That’s… that’s not how I thought it would happen.” 

“Me too… Wait, you’ve been thinking about it?” 

“Sure? I don’t know.” 

Leo looked very uncertain, hands fidgeting together. “I can not do it again.” 

“No, no… Just–” He paused, a beat passed. “Not like that, please.”

“Okay, Dingo.” Leo teased.

Dario plopped himself down on the ground, back against the wall. Leo followed, so he spoke. “Sorry for shouting. I… I’m glad it’s us together. Well, us and the cowboy lad.”

“And Jimmy.” 

“Yeah…” Dario looked down and slowly slipped his hand into Leo’s. Leo blushed a little, tightening a grip onto it. “We aren’t telling anyone about that, alright?” 

“Already forgotten.”

-

Berkeley Springs Castle

The atmosphere was a strong contrast to their last full meeting. Heads hung low, nothing more than a couple glances shared in the lead up to the discussion. 

All that accompanied the moment of silence were the soft sounds of a graphite against paper, August leaning down over his notes. He was there, though late, when their friend - and resident doctor was taken away. When he asked the others if they wanted to join the table, he understandably got some mixed responses. 

To his right, Antonio silently asked Tracy about the status of Luna, the latter telling him that she’d taken his daughter to one of the bedrooms for her nap. Kamaria sat in between Tracy and Luke, who twiddled his thumbs nervously, and Amy completed the council set beside August. 

The walkie-talkies were on the table, in case of any contact; at this moment, far from their greatest concern. 

“I can’t sit here and play around with words.” August broke the silence, dropping the pencil. “What happened near Westernport… I didn’t think we’d get caught off guard like that. We still found a reliable place for storage, that hasn’t changed, but it came at a-.” 

“We don’t need to hear the positives, August. Shit went south, somethin’ that happens.” Luke responded, still staring down at his hands. “Far as I’m concerned, it feels like a targeted attack.” 

Antonio frowned. “Sí. They could’ve taken A-Wut too, you said?” 

The ginger nodded. “Probably could’ve killed us too.” 

“Then it must mean they wanted Björn… him only.” 

“Castillo said the same, and that they might’ve had eyes on us for a while.” Amy voiced in full confidence. “Germany’s a doctor, lot of need for doctors going around with all the bullshit communities have been through.”

August shook his head. “I don’t know…” 

“Amy makes a good point, August.” Antonio said, though slightly reluctant. “Imagine how many doctors have died over the community attacks?” 

“Doesn’t give them the right to come and take ours.” 

“And I agree. The situation, es difícil… Björn can handle himself, I hope.”

Amy scoffed. In front of her, Tracy rubbed her face a couple times, stressed about the uncertainty of everything. She peeked through a gap, giving August a knowing look, what they had talked about earlier. Huxley winced, brows tightening. 

Amy caught them eyeing each other. “What are you two doing?” 

Neither of them replied, causing her to grow slightly annoyed. Luke and Antonio looked at them as well. 

“Now isn’t the time for staring contests, you idiots. Speak up.” 

Tracy played with one of her locs, trying not to face anyone as she began to speak. 

“Well… we’re in a precarious position. I talked with Foster again, she told me there’s another group of people, some she met in the past year. They got attacked, and now a friend of theirs has also gone missing. Me and August aren’t 100% sure on it, but maybe, just maybe, they could be connected?” 

“It’s a long shot, all this stuff with Harrison is an issue as well. They don’t know what’s going on, we don’t know what’s going on.” He paused, the words hanging on his tongue. “We think the people down in Elkins might.” 

Luke’s eyebrows raised, the others all sharing confused looks. 

“Are you crazy?!” Amy shouted, her voice bouncing around the walls. “We don’t know shit about them.” 

“Yes, literally the point. We know all about Harrison, but we can’t do anything because it jeopardizes all the fuckin’ innocent people!” 

“Girls, chill out…” Luke tried to intervene to no avail.

“It’s not black and white, Amy.” Tracy continued. “We don’t have any other options but to go to the one group who we can guarantee has something in terms of knowledge. I’ve been thinkin’ about it, shit, we could kill two birds with one stone!” 

Amy stood up and slammed her hands on the table. “They took our doctor, who in case you forgot, couldn’t keep his mouth shut if the world depended on it! One word and those motherfuckers might barrel down our doors tomorrow. We can’t leave again, and we don’t have to ask anyone shit!” 

“You don’t believe that and I know it.” Tracy followed her stance. She stuck a finger up to the ex-militant’s face. “You need to stop acting selfish and fucking do what leaders should be doing!” 

“Which is what?!” 

“Well first, grow a fuckin’ pair!!”

“Enough!” 

Kamaria yelled at the top of her lungs, her right hand tightly grabbing onto Tracy’s shirt, while her halved left arm hovered in Amy’s path. 

Clenching his face, Antonio attempted to listen, in case the commotion had woken Luna up. A few seconds passed and nothing. 

“Puta madre, what is it with you two?” Kammie asked. “Tracy?” 

Tracy looked at her, wearing a frustrated expression. The hand came down from her shirt onto her arm, immediately wearing an effect on her.

She exhaled, her thumb tracing itself onto Kamaria’s forearm. “Sorry, this is all just fucking me up. Luke’s right about us being targeted, and I feel uncomfortable with a target on our back that we don’t have eyes on.” 

Kamaria stilled for a moment, turning her head away and keeping a smile from reaching her lips. She exhaled out her nose.“Tracy, I’m sure Amy feels the same. We all should.”

“What she said,” Amy quipped. “It doesn’t mean you can go on making plans without the rest of us.”

“We were going to tell you all. Honest.” August said. 

“We were.” Tracy nodded, looking Kamaria in the eye. “It just needed some fixing.”

“Doesn’t matter, we all need to be better.” Antonio’s voice took over the room. “Yelling at each other when our friend is missing isn’t going to help.” 

Amy nodded, sitting back down and looking at Kamaria. “You can let go now, dudes.”

“Oh, yeah.” 

They all placed themselves back down, taking a moment to just breathe. In the midst of their own misery, the doorknob twisted, creaks following. 

“Are you all still meeting?” The voice of Folasade came through, gesturing behind her as she came in. “Brought fresh meat, maybe he can help.”

The council members watched as A-Wut walked in. New bandages were placed around its neck; the knowing gaze he wore would earn a sympathetic response had it not been at this time. 

He waved. “Hi, guys.” His voice was coarse, strained and small. 

“A-Wut.” Luke stood, walking to him. “Jeez, you sure you’re alright?” 

“Mhm. Need to h-help.”

“Uh-uh, you gotta rest, kid, neck injuries ain’t nothing to play around with.” 

A-Wut scrambled his hands around, head still as possible. “‘m fi-fine. Hurts when I move.”

“He can talk enough, Luke.” Sade agreed with the injured guy. “He’s the best view we have, better than August’s.” 

“If he says he’s fine, we could use the help.” August said, picking up his pencil and paper. “A-Wut, tell us what you remember. He can write it down here.”

“Sure.” Luke agreed. “Sure, I can live with that.”

They passed the utensils over to him and asked for him to note down all he could remember from the attack. He sat at the far end of the table, August’s notes there for him to use - though they couldn’t match up to the exact experience of what happened. 

All six council members waited silently, Folasade leaning on the wall behind them. She seemed quite unimpressed, already known to two members, but was content with waiting on a clearer explanation of the entire ordeal. A-Wut wrote best it could, pausing a few times. He bore visible discomfort, wincing; the pinching refused to cease. 

Eventually, he put the pencil down, handing the paper to Sade as she was closest to him. 

She read for herself first, raising an eyebrow at the details. 

“Okay… Um, he says he and Björn were walking outside the city, grabbing the greens we needed. They were just talking, and then it stepped into the other trap, a wire catching onto his throat. Björn called for help, didn’t notice the second trap, and it caught his foot completely.” She summed it up, voice firm. “The two people who attacked them, one of them wore a mask. The woman called him ‘Skull’. He didn’t talk, but he looked strong. A-Wut heard the woman stop Skull from trying to kill him, but she didn’t try to help it out of the trap. He fainted before the rest happened.” 

Antonio hummed, looking at A-Wut intentively. The big man watched his words carefully, hesitating a little. “And you’re sure the woman didn’t want to kill you? She didn’t help you out of the trap, amigo. You could’ve choked.” 

“Yes.” He said, then taking the pencil again and writing a statement. 

Sade read aloud. “They could’ve cut my head off, I wouldn’t be here to tell you the story if she let him do it.” 

“They ran away as soon as they got Björn, Zahra can vouch.” August indeed agreed. “Didn’t try to kill any of us, which honestly surprised me.” 

“Don’t start feelin’ sympathy…” 

Before another disagreement could begin, Tracy cleared her throat. 

“A-Wut, we’re really strugglin’ for direction, to be honest with you, and all we’ve got is the idea that one group knows that there’s trouble coming our way. We had the idea that we might have to go to Elkins, see what they’ve got going on. This was definitely targeted by the way you described it, and we’ve found out some friendlies down at the trading center have a friend who’s gone missing as well.”

“Yeah.” He nodded immediately. “Anything–urgh–anything helps.” 

The council members faced each other, uncertainty hanging in the balance. 

“If we can’t find Björn, we can at least figure out some shit about Harrison.” Amy gave in, still a bit reluctant in accordance to her tone. She got up, walked to A-Wut and patted his shoulder. “Appreciate the help. I need to get some lunch, we can meet again tonight to discuss a plan, deal?” 

The others all were okay with the conclusion. With that, A-Wut, Amy and August all departed the room, while Sade stepped closer to the table. 

She sat on the edge, asking. “What’s she so mad about?” 

“She’s just worried, I reckon.” Luke said, frowning. “We don’t have much to go off of. Elkins itself may be a long shot.” 

“We do nothing and things get worse, Luke. Who knows? We get lucky and suddenly August and Tracy are geniuses.” Antonio said with a shrug. “Who doesn’t love a little gamble?” 

Sade pointed at him. “Damn right. If we bank on nothing, we won’t get anything.” 

“Yeah, well right now I’m bankin’ on another issue comin’ up before we get close to a solution.” He continued sulking, scratching at his beard. “I should get some rest, sorry.” 

“You alright?” Kamaria looked at him. 

“Yeah, yeah… just takin’ it a little too hard, I think.” 

“Oh. Well, we’re good to go if you wa-”

He didn’t need a second invitation, quickly getting up and heading out. 

“Ooookay then…” 

Antonio stood up next, pushing his chair back into place. “If you girls need me, I’ll be down the hall with Luna.” 

“And I’m gonna let some people know the plan, if that’s okay with you, Tracy?”

The loc-headed woman sarcastically chuckled, swatting the air. “Ha-ha, sure thing, Shanti.” 

“Good, you’re learning.” 

The big man went right in the direction of the bedrooms, while Sade exited through the meeting room door, leaving Kamaria and Tracy last in. The latter let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, pinning the center of her forehead on the table, closing her eyes. 

Kamaria watched, smiling with one side of her mouth. After careful consideration, she reached her arm around Tracy’s shoulder, slightly tugging her a bit closer. 

“Hey, Kammie.” Tracy muttered, moving her left shoulder in closer, her head still planted on the table. “Thanks.” 

“Yeah.” 

They stayed still for a while, silently accepting the other’s presence. 

Kamaria thought about saying something - maybe offer some kind words to her obviously stressed friend. She rarely got that frustrated. With how things had been, it was understandable. 

“Y’know…” Tracy broke the silence for her. “You were totally blushing when you got between me and Amy.”

“Wha– I was not.” Kamaria calmly raised her voice. 

They both giggled a little, refusing to face the other, but still staying close together. 

“Without your armor on, you’ve got no mask to keep me from seeing. I don’t mind the compliment.” 

“Callar. There’s no time to flatter yourself when we’ve got bigger issues to deal with, Tracy.” 

Tracy picked her head up, chin now pressed onto the table now as she looked at Kamaria. Her eyes were lidded, though she wore a slight frown.

“You’re not wrong, but I…” She paused, her blue eyes slowly dragging away. “I can’t stop myself from feelin’ the need to make the best out of shitty situations.” 

Kamaria’s face softened. Moving back, she leaned on the table, giving herself a better view and silently waiting for Tracy to continue. 

“Don’t get me wrong, Amy’s fuckin’ stuck up, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t make a mistake.”

A few moments passed. She felt a pit grow in her stomach, the lack of immediate response making her feel worried she said a bit too much.

Then she felt a hand on her chin, softly pulling her head left, to face her. 

“Hey, it’s not a mistake. Not yet, at least. You and August made a call, and it is the only call we could possibly make that doesn’t involve sitting here and doing nothing.” Kamaria said with conviction in her voice. The remaining sunlight left a glint in her eyes, leaving them glistening, a perfect contrast to the softness in Tracy’s blue ones. 

“I don’t know…” She huffed, looking down. “I guess I’m just worried.”

Kamaria hesitated, but then grabbed Tracy’s hand and brought it up to her face. Tracy’s gaze followed, seeing her friend close her eyes, Kammie’s warm breaths tickling the small hairs on her hand. 

“This fucking stresses me out too, Trace. I don’t… I don’t wanna lose anyone else.” She paused, still keeping her eyes shut. “But we need to take a shot… see where it goes.” 

The words left no question, no subtlety. The woman without armor dropped the hook into the water, and she opened her eyes, staring–waiting for the desired result.

Tracy stared for a while, almost forgetting to breathe. She huffed through the nose, smiling at one corner. She lowered her hand, Kamaria’s still holding hers and following down. 

“You’re not just talking about the plan, are you?”

“No,” Kamaria said, “I’m not.” 

Tracy waited for a second. Her eyes trailed downwards, then back up. “Can I–” 

“Yeah. It’s okay.” 

Without another word, both of them leaned in. 

They slowly moved in, eyes closing after the point of contact. Tracy sat up more, while Kamaria’s hand moved from Tracy’s to slide up to cup the side of her face. 

All their worries dissipated for a moment, they were letting everything go. 

It was a nice feeling. The feeling of understanding each other on an extra level.

They weren’t sure how much time had passed. They weren’t sure if time was even passing at all.

When they pulled back, their arms scraped against the edge of the table, leaving them both chuckling a bit; the silliest smiles painted on. Tracy nudged her nose against Kamaria’s, about to speak - probably something cheesy - when they heard the click of the door. Both women snapped their heads in that direction. 

Antonio creeped in, covering his eyes jokingly. 

“I thought I should take the walkie-talkie…” He picked it up by the antenna. “Lo siento. I’m happy for you two.”

“Thanks, big guy. Yeah, let us know if someone calls.” 

“I shall, we could use some good news.” 

He turned away and headed back out where he came, closing the door. When they were sure he was gone, Tracy waited until Kamaria faced her again before placing a slick kiss on her nose. 

“Oh– okay, that one was a little annoying.” 

The darkskinned girl backed up, chuckling. She got up and pulled Kamaria up by the hand. 

“I’ve been waiting to do that for so long, Kammie, you don’t even know.” 

Kamaria scrunched her face. “I sure do now.” 

“Don’t forget it, gorgeous.” Tracy flicked back at her. She then let Kamaria’s arm go–as slowly as possible, leaving the warmth almost hesitantly. She exhaled. “What a day.” 

“Right. You feel a little calmer now?” Kamaria jokingly asked. 

Tracy giggled and swatted the air. “I’ve gotta spend some time with the old timer in case this whole thing takes a few days. Guess I’ll see you at the meeting later?” 

“Yeah. I’ll see you then, Tracy.” She said, now being the more breathless one herself. 

Tracy watched her, both women not trying to boil over into balls of excitement. A sense of fulfillment rested within her; she flicked Kammie on the cheek as a goodbye and left. 

The door slammed shut; Kamaria smiled to herself, sitting back onto the table. She felt pretty good about herself all of a sudden. 

With all they had coming up, at least she knew she wasn’t alone. For now, the best course of action was to just go with the flow. Embrace the stability before the incoming storm.

Canary Inn

Pencil scratches were the only real sound apart from when a cup touched back down on the desk. After lunch - which wasn’t exactly a big gathering today - there were a few folks who’d stay behind or come in to take in the quiet of the Canary Inn.

She’d painted a pretty decent picture, portraying the emptiness of the area in a very kind manner. The buildings were abandoned, stains of decay, grass growing onto the walls. Westernport might’ve been a beacon of both success and failure, but it made for a decent place to remember. She wanted to draw the empty shack they’d found; her mind just struggled to keep off of what happened after. She felt ashamed to feel like the day was kind to her, so she occupied herself. 

“Hey, Castie.” 

Zahra closed her journal, looking up at Chloe. She looked quite tired, planting herself across with a thud and heavy exhale. 

“Chloe.” 

“You doing alright? I heard A-Wut’s feeling better.” 

“I don’t know.” She shrugged. 

“Yeah?” Chloe leaned onto the table. “I would’ve said the same.”

Zahra raised an eyebrow. “Why’s that?” 

“Feelings haven’t always been my best friend.” She said with an awkward chuckle. “Sometimes they make you feel like things you can’t control are all your fault.” 

“Mm… they’re there. I mainly just want to cut that masked guy’s head off.” 

The blonde bobbed her head to the side. “That’s an emotion, isn’t it? When my… my grandpa died, I just wanted to hide away, do nothing, let the world consume me. I felt sad, but I tried to hide it with disconnection.” 

“You still seem pretty disconnected.” 

“Fuck you, I know that.” She swatted the air. “Look, I know it’s not the same, I can’t help but feel like there’s some distrust going on and I don’t wanna sit back and let it all hurt the group. You and August are close, has he talked to you about what happened?” 

“I didn’t think we needed to. He was right there with me.” 

“And that’s good, but maybe it made him feel weird. I got on Luke’s ass about not telling people shit, but he wears his emotions on his sleeve. If we’re not careful, someone in charge could get stuck in their head.” 

Zahra seemed to consider this, looking down at her journal, tracing on the front cover. 

“I did talk to him about an old friend.” She said lowly. “It was nice, seeing more to him than that commitment he has to results.”

“Exactly. We’ve all got baggage.” Chloe continued. “In an old group, we didn’t ask too many questions. Then people got to distrusting each other, then they started hating each other, we lost focus and… now I’m here. I don’t want that shit to happen again.” 

“It’s funny, how bad us adults are at communication, huh?” 

“Oh tell me about it…” She trailed off, looking left. Sitting at the far end of the long table, Amal was seated with Janey and Molly, the mother possum trotting around the table as she’d been fed some fruit. 

Before long, Amal finished her food and departed without a word, much to the confusion of the other two. They caught Chloe looking, so Molly, already standing, picked up the possum and headed in their direction. Janey was close behind. 

“She alright?” Zahra asked.

Molly pouted as she shrugged. “No clue. Didn’t say anything.” Janey noticeably didn’t add anything on, she just kept looking at the door as if waiting for Amal to return. 

Chloe and Zahra looked at each other, both uncertain on what might’ve been going on. They didn’t want to pry with the new folks too much, so they changed the topic.

“The possum, huh? Where’s Jaime?” 

Janey took a second before answering. “Something hurt her. Priscilla was hungry and I didn’t want her to have to come here.” 

“Tired, huh?” The blonde questioned. “Thanks, kiddo. She’s having a hard time with the medicine deficit.”  

“What kind of medicine does she need?” The young girl seemed immediately interested. 

“Shi–Stuff that we don’t have.” Zahra answered. “Jaime’s… sick in a certain way. Cough drops won’t fix her and neither will this stuff with the trading center.” 

“So she needs us, I think.” Janey deduced, sort of. “I was talking to her after she was with Luke, she was really hurt.” 

“What happened?” 

Molly explained. “I don’t know the whole story, Luke and her were hashing something out, she started getting a little crazy then she attacked him, I had to break it up. He did a pretty bad job talking, but once she got back inside, she was okay.” 

“She was calmer when we talked. I… don’t know everything, but she was telling me a lot of nice things. I’m not sure why she and Luke were fighting.” 

“I wish Bjorn was here to explain… I don–” Chloe stammered a little. “Fuck, he told me once that she was in really rough shape when she first joined the group. Like, worse than most people. The meds help her a lot, but without them and without him, she’s gonna get worse.” 

“And now isn’t a great time to be getting worse.” Castie claimed. “She needs some support, I think you’re a good help, Janey. Not to say we want to force you to do something you don’t want to.” 

She shook her head. “It’s not a task. She’s my friend, I want to help her.” 

“We’ll be there with you… if she lets us.” 

Chloe leaned her arm onto the table, hand on chin. “She’d better. We need all hands on deck. That includes Amal, whatever’s going on with her.” 

“She’s a teen.” Molly said in her ignorant tone. “You know how they can get all moody sometimes.” 

“That’s not nice.” Janey retorted, furrowing her brows. 

“I was being sarcastic.” 

“Oh… I knew that.” 

“Scree!!” Priscilla then hopped out of Molly’s grasp and onto the table.

Castie jumped back a bit, embarrassingly. The pet’s comfortability prompted the two to join Chloe and Zahra. The latter opened her journal and stood it up so they couldn't see her flustered look, while Chloe got up and got notice that none of them had actually eaten lunch. 

“Communication, huh? So this is how it feels…” She muttered as she headed to the back kitchen. 

With all the trouble on deck, at least it wasn’t enhanced by stubbornness.

Eerie aura never seemed to exit the darkened indoors of the compound. Add that to the mind fog that had dawned upon Björn’s mind, and you got a very unsure individual. 

He was being guided downstairs, following in the footsteps of that woman whom he’d seen the day he woke up from his injury induced sleep. She seemed alright to say the least. Vaguely threatening, a wild look in her eye, but he trusted that she was an ally. Perhaps one that he didn’t have the pleasantries of seeing too often. 

Lightheadedness, limping and plenty of body soreness; the feelings the German felt most. He’d stumble here and there, balance not as its best with the makeshift cast around his foot. That meant he needed some help, so Jamari took it upon himself to keep the doctor stable as they made it down to the flight of stairs. 

Noa unlatched a key from her belt as they turned the corner, where there was someone sitting by a door. They were asleep, arms crossed with their head leaning back against the wall. 

“Finley?” Jamari called, and the person shot up, nearly falling off her chair. 

“Yeah, yeah?” She rubbed her eyes, Noa covering her view as she jabbed the key into the hole. “Ugh… sorry, sir.”

The tall woman scoffed. “You don’t fucking sleep on the job. This is an important place, you should know better.” 

Finley rolled her eyes. “Yes, ma’am… I didn’t hear a word from them and lost track of time. It won’t happen again.” 

“Noa, lay off. Didn’t you say it is nearly impossible to infiltrate?” Jamari walked forward, Björn still leaning on him. “I’m sure Miss Finley trusts your words more than mine.”

“I did say that. Still, no excuses.” Noa finally unlocked the room, twisting the key out and opening the door. She looked at Finley, pupils constricted making for a scary look. “You keep watch, keep your eyes awake and try not to sound so pathetic.”

Finley angered, but didn’t argue back, so the three entered.

Immediately, a chill pressed onto all of them, Jamari and Noa seeming completely used to it. Björn, though, was fascinated - or maybe overwhelmed - as he shivered once and peered around. He coughed, nearly tripping over his own feet. McKenzie noticed, and offered him a hand which Björn didn’t hesitate to take. They eventually made it to another door inside the room.

Björn raised an eyebrow. “What is this place? I cannot seem to recall.”  

“It’s my home.” Noa turned to him, grinning. “In case you have forgotten, dear Björn, we do not take prisoners for no reason. If they are so… useful may be the best word, yes. If they are useful, they must prove their survivability first. They are punished before they are welcomed in. Some survive their crimes, others have lost their heads for less.” 

He was off put by how disconnected her voice sounded, like she enjoyed the idea of punishment. 

Jamari dusted off his clothes and headed for the door. He asked, “Is it still only two?” 

“Milliken and that other girl. One of them is out of their chains.” 

“Chains? What did they do again?” The German continued to show how out-of-the-loop he was. 

“The boss made the call,” Noa replied, “I wasn’t going to argue with her choice. My baby needs her nourishment by any means necessary.” 

“Follow me, Björn. Watch your step.” 

He opened the door, a putrid smell attacking their senses. Björn gagged, covering his mouth and nose briefly before the smell itself weakened. Jamari took his arm again, leading him past what looked to be traps? His thumb traced over the inside of Björn’s elbow, serving to keep him calm. 

Threads hovered over the ground, a rusted saw blade was on the ground beside– it all served to make him more uncomfortable. Why hasn’t he been shown this the whole time he’s been here? 

“Shh, someone’s coming!” They heard, then came shuffling and rattling chains. 

A few more traps to pass and they made it as far as they should go. A running engine hummed, powering what little light brightened an ugly looking room. Broken glass lingered under their feet, no doubt the prisoners’ attempts to trigger a trap. 

Jamari walked slightly ahead of his compatriot, waving at the people inside. 

“Evening, future allies.” He stepped on something, feeling it crunch under the weight of his boot. He checked the bottom, dusting the pieces off. “I’ll have you know that these rebellious acts will get you nowhere.” 

Björn looked over his shoulder, eyes landing on two people. One of them was standing straight up, hands cuffed in chains that had her bandaged wrists straining. The other sat nearby, hugging her knees to her chest, noticeably under chains that weren’t holding her hostage. 

“This is the doctor I was telling you about. He was… ill for a while, but now he’s here to help. I thought it would be good for him to meet you two.” 

The woman who was cuffed grunted in pain while trying to loosen the uncomfy feeling. “Urgh, uh, hey?” 

She was taller than average height in that yellow jumpsuit, her bandages ripping slightly. By her feet, there were some headphones - probably unusable at this point - and her brown hair barely creeped out under her hat. 

“Hello. Which one of you is Milliken?”

The woman smiled, a pained one. “That would be me, sir. Sydney’s the name.”

“Nice to meet you, Sydney.”  

“I never got the young one’s name.” Jamari noted, crossing his arms. “She’s said a lot more though.” 

“She’s had a hard time, just… just give her some time.” Sydney pleaded. 

The younger of the captives tightened her grip on an item, Sydney looking at her and whispering something. She looked to her elder, then down at the ground. 

“Hey.” Björn kneeled, his giant frame still quite tall. “The sooner you cooperate, the sooner you will be free. Please. My name is Björn Eberhard, you can call me Björn. What’s yours?” He calmly spoke through his physical pain. 

She hesitated for a second, sighing. Björn caught her moving something behind her back, but wasn’t sure about anything at the moment, so he didn’t ask. She sat up, her face coming fully into view. Old scars etched into her cheeks, haired tied back into a ponytail, no look of innocence in her young eyes. 

“My name’s Priscilla. I don’t like nicknames, so call me Priscilla.”  

Björn felt a hand on his shoulder, he glanced up at Jamari who had a blank expression. As he tried to get back up, a sharp pain bothered him again, forcing him to fall a little bit into one of the contraptions.

*VRR-SHING!* 

The machine immediately woke, whirring briefly and sending what should’ve been a life ending stab into Björn’s coat. It cut through, just under his armpit, barely missing his ribs. 

“Eberhard!” Jamari tugged him away, catching him with both arms. “Oof… you need to be quite careful down here.” 

“Tut mir leid… I am not used to this place.” He replied as he regained his balance. His eyes searched, only finding more and more traps. “Why? Why do we need all this?” 

“Why? Well, because she asked us to.” Jamari lowered his voice, turning Bjorn away. “Because with her dying breath, she said ‘make the world a better place’... you understand, right?” He pinched the inside of arm, where his injection entry wound was. 

The German’s sense flickered, feeling hot–no cold–no hot. He mumbled, shaking his head. 

“Yes… Yes, I do.” 

“Good. Now come. Supplies came in, we need you now to help with some patients.” 

“Of course.” He turned to the girls. “Be careful.” 

The two men left, leaving the prisoners with nothing but the sounds of rusted machines and flickering lights. Priscilla, out of her chains, creeped over to check on the triggered trap. It slowly moved itself back into place, much to her dismay. 

“Are they gone?” Sydney asked. 

Priscilla nodded, and grabbed the chair that she managed to hide. “You’re too nice to them.” 

“I’m trying not to get us killed. Just play nice.” 

“They don’t–” She got up on the chair, taking out her knife and jabbing it at the keyhole in Sydney’s cuffs. “We came to them for help and they did this to us.”

“I know, kiddo, I know.” Sydney said, looking at her friend. “The sooner we’re out of here, the sooner we can find real help, okay? Just follow my lead.” 

Priscilla frowned, covering her face with an arm. 

“I’ll try my best… to follow, I mean.” 

“Priscilla.” The older woman quieted her voice. “You’ll do just fine. I can feel it.” 

After conversing with each other, sharing any information attained and trying to see things out from both points of view, the groups eventually agreed to take matters into their own hands. The words and speculations weren’t to any avail without visual reference, there was one place that they could use as a good point. 

Zel’s mood teetered on the brink of annoyance back at the house. Between him and… well, himself, he still wasn’t completely convinced by the information that Monty and Wallace had individually conjured up, and that show put on a few days ago didn’t exactly help him feel any safer. Still, he trusted his people and the new arrivals enough to step outside and check out the tourist attraction. His interest warranted an extra body or two, Pete was more than willing to help out, and Keke joined as well. And so they set foot, trekking off a dozen or so minutes ago. 

“You sure having an owl around is a good idea?” Pete asked, averting his gaze towards anything but the pet on Zel’s shoulder. “I’ve seen some things.” 

“Not to sound like a piece of shit.” He patted himself where the owl rested. “But I trust Bea more than I do you, and it’ll probably stay that way.” 

“Don’t bargain with him, we’ve all tried.” Keke said jokingly. 

The newcomer took note, nodding. “Alright… Is she ever a big help?” 

“She’s observant enough. Got me out of a tight spot a few times, and she doesn’t talk back.” Zel dryly stated. “You grow to like her presence, trust me.” 

“I’ll keep that in mind.” 

They continued their trek for a few minutes, using the best navigation methods possible. There were some footsteps; no more than a few days old, the occasional road sign, or just the base of direction that Monty tried to give. The most important - and most morbid - message: head north until you find blood. 

“Uh, hey, Pete.” Keke called, hands in her pockets. “Those two you showed up with. Is there a story there?” 

He didn’t answer for a moment, staring off miles ahead. Keke assumed she’d been ignored, so she was about to mutter something, but then he spoke. 

“It’s… I don’t really think about it a lot. I try to keep positive, they do a pretty good job of doing the same. Guess it just worked out for us.” 

“Really? No group or anything?” She immediately replied. “Not to pry! I just want to cover the bases, if that’s okay.” 

He scratched the back of his head with his wrapped hand. “It’s fi-” 

“*Hooo-!” Bea suddenly sounded, cutting him off. Just then, they heard a sound coming their way, all of them on quick alert. 

A car followed them up the path they’d been travelling on, slowly coming to a halt at a safe distance. It was the Mitsubishi that they’d been working to repair, with Seth at the wheel. 

They rolled down the window and waved. Zel stormed over.

“How’d you get it moving?”

They shrugged. “Maybe you guys didn't try hard enough. Ignition was jammed!” 

The three on the outside stood there, looking at the aging vehicle. The engine hummed as healthy as you’d ever hope, no sign of failure. 

“Are you guys gonna get in or what?” They raised an eyebrow. 

And so they did. It was better for them to cover distance quicker, in case whatever - or whoever - was still out there doing what they did. 

Sometime along the way, they began conversing once more. Zel kept an eye on the road, hoping to catch this trail previously mentioned. 

Pete popped a question. “So how did you guys become a group? It’s not often that you find a full house.” 

“I don’t know… it just sort of happened?” Seth answered. “Same place, same time. We’ve all had our struggles.” 

Keke noticed their gaze shift off slightly, so she took over. 

“We didn’t fully trust each other at first, circumstances forced us to. I still remember those assholes that tried to rob the store that I found first; walkers took a chunk out of them. God, I’ve always hated ban—”

“Keke.” Zel interrupted. “You’re trailing off.” 

“Shit, yeah.” She shook her head. “Maybe the best way to say it is when you can sense that someone is good, y’know, when you can really feel it… You can’t help but want to put a smile on their face.” 

“Or food on their table.” Seth added, the Canadian next to him nodding. 

Pete hummed in agreement as he stared out the window, eyes on the forestry. He couldn’t help but think about it. About them. If they were okay. If they all managed to make it out all in one piece. He hoped for it everyday. 

Zel could see him from the side mirror. He didn’t exactly want to ask, but the silence was deafening. A man could hide a million thoughts behind a single look. 

“I… I used to think it wasn’t really worth staying in one place. I’m not all about the sentimental stuff, if the place wasn’t good for me, I’d leave without a word.” He then chuckled a bit, wiping his nose. “Maybe I’m a little mellowed out now, maybe these guys are just good company.” 

“That might be the nicest thing you’ve ever said about us.” Seth joked. 

“Oh, I wasn’t talking about you, you suck.” 

Everyone burst into laughter. Seth nudged their elder on the arm before focusing back on the road. They drove on for a couple minutes before the driver and the main passenger spotted something. 

Footsteps. Not regular ones that print into mud. Ones with some color to them. 

“Might be mortos nearby.” They pulled over a few paces from the first footstep. 

“What if that guy and his team are here?” 

“Can’t be too sure. No guns?” Seth opened their door. 

Zel reached under the seat, picking up an item. “No guns.” 

All of them exited the car, shutting their doors as lightly as possible. Seth unsheathed their knife, while Keke opened the trunk, her golf club laced by some barbed wire ready for her to use. Pete had his machete strapped to his back.

The newcomer was confused when he saw Zel exit the car wearing a full gas mask. His right hand was in a balled fist, with sharp claws sticking out by the knuckles. 

“Move slow. We don’t know if there’s a threat or not.”

“After you, Wolvie.” Keke joked. Zel rolled his eyes, crouching in front of the others and moving in. 

They followed a trail, blood mixed into dirt. There were some splatters that were dried up into the grass, a putrid stench waving in and out with each gust of wind. Seth and Keke visibly became irritated, Pete kept an eye on what was behind them, and Zel’s exhales were a little more audible the further they headed in. Bea was complying with their silence. 

“Gruhhh…” 

“GAHHH!” 

Walkers were in the area, whether that was better than the living, they were yet to see. The sounds of squelching and chewing on organs didn’t pass them by. 

Zel stopped behind a bush, ordering them to stall behind him. He tried to get a clear view of the threat. The camp itself was wrecked; blood, organs laying on the ground, the entire place was a mess. There were two tents with one of them being torn to shreds. A body was on the ground, maybe the last survivor. The undead were nearly completely clothed, still showing the tears and remnants of who they were when they were alive. 

“Four strays. Two are… doing what they do…” 

“Disgusting.” Seth frowned. “Two of us can circle around. Where are the others?” 

“One is by the tent. I can take him. There’s an unlit campfire where the other one is.” 

Pete and Keke moved up, kneeling in the middle. The man gripped the end of his weapon. “I’ll take the one at the campfire. You two go for the distracted walkers.” 

Everyone was on the same page, including Bea, who flew upwards. They all moved quickly. 

Zel quickly pounced on the nearest one. He burst out the bushes, his knives-turned-claws slammed into the walker’s skull before it could even notice his presence. “Hnngrahh!” 

The sound alerted the others, opening opportunities for the others. 

“Psst! Over here!” Seth called. Two of them mindlessly followed the noise. 

The second one didn’t get a chance to move far - Keke swung her weapon down at the knees, causing it to buckle and fall to the ground. She stomped on its head to put it down. Seth’s task was a little more difficult, they evaded a walker’s first reach, but were grabbed by it the second time. 

“Urghh, shit!” They held it off, stabbing into the cheek first to disconnect the jaw, then getting it in the head. 

“You okay?” Keke asked. Seth exhaled and quickly checked over themself, giving a nod. Pete took care of the final walker with a slice through the head. 

“Good job, guys.” Seth cleaned their knife. Them and Keke then walked over to what the walkers were feasting on. It was a woman, her body laying down flat on the ground, eyes still open. 

“She’s… poor woman.”

Zel arrived with some stuff in his hand. He’d picked up some abandoned supplies, a couple bags, water bottles, stuff a panicked person wouldn’t see. When he saw the body, he raised an eyebrow inside the gas mask. 

“Who killed her?” 

“What?” 

“Look at her head.” He pointed at it. “She hasn’t turned, stabbed through the forehead.” 

They looked at the other walkers, three of them were clearly freshly turned. Their skin had decayed, but not to the extent of them being unrecognizable as human beings. Their ages were much harder to deduce, but the woman who had not turned looked around twenty-to-thirty years old. 

“How long do you think she’s been dead for?” Keke, visibly uncomfortable, asked. 

“Could be a couple days.” Seth estimated. “Someone must’ve attacked or– I-I don’t even know what to think. Fuck, Monty had to see all this… alone.” 

Zel shook his head. “Don’t start that, he chose to wander off on his own, Seth. All things considered, those fuckers could’ve killed him right here. By the looks of it, he got away clean.” 

“Real crazy killer, whoever did all this.” 

“Hoot-Hoot!” The owl suddenly called in the distance. 

Just like previously, attention followed. She flapped her wings, rushing away from something. The group readied their weapons again, the bushes shaking with incoming movement. 

Bea flew right onto her owner’s shoulder, a paper in her mouth. 

“Where’d you–” He took and rolled it open, squinting at it. “It’s a map.” 

“It’s our map.” The incoming person replied. Their gun flicked aimed between the four of them, a young girl walking behind them. “She picked it up, then your owl took it straight from her hands.” 

Zel snarled. “Wasn’t yours to begin with then, eh?” 

She came more into view, her boots stepping into blood-filled grounds. Suddenly, Pete stepped in both sides. 

“Wait, wait!” He stalled, looking at the two girls. “Clementine, right?” 

She lowered her gun. “Yeah… Oh my God, Pete?”

“You know her?” Keke asked. 

“Kind of. Lower your weapons, she’s harmless.” 

The Willow Wood residents weren’t sure, but the sight of the kid with their challenger made them feel a little soft. Some more than others. Seth put their knife back in its place, leading Zel to reluctantly retract his claws. 

“I thought you guys lived in West Virginia?” 

Clementine pocketed the gun. “It’s a long story. You don’t know how good it is to see a familiar face.” 

“Likewise. I met these guys today, they’re alright if you trust my word.” He patted her on the shoulder, then noticed the kid. “She’s new.”

“Thea’s been with us for a few months. Me and her are looking for our friends.” 

The three behind them decided to come join the conversation. Keke and Seth were happy to wave, while Zel was extremely offputting. 

“You can rid of the Darth Vader cosplay, dude.” 

The Canadian audibly sighed, but complied. He took the gas mask off, greeting them with nods. 

“Sorry about the owl. She’s inclined to help, well, me and only me, to be honest.”

Clementine smiled. “It’s okay. Teetee’s got an eye for these things, but we’re just glad that the map isn’t going far.” 

“It has locations.” Thea said in a small voice. “I was reading it.”

Zel had another look to see if the girl was right. He read it, the miniature map reading OHIO. The city of Gallipolis was circled as a trading partner, an indicator of where they could look next. It also had some other cities marked, perhaps groups that these people were planning to check out next. 

“Good eye, kid.” He actually sounded complimentative for once, earning a small smile from Thea. “If Pete here trusts you two, then we’ll fill you in.”

“I do. And between this mess and that weird event down by the river, we could use all the help we can get. Might be a real threat out there.” 

“Near the river?” Thea asked. “Clem, do you think it was them?”

“Could be.” Clementine winced. “We need a place to stay. We don’t have much, low on ammo and food.” 

“We’ve got food.” Seth crossed their arms, smiling. “I’m sure Wallace would love an audience for dinner.” 

Keke smirked. “He loves any audience.” 

“Alright, alright.” Zel spat, waving for them to follow him. “ I don’t wanna hang around here any longer. Let’s go.” 

And through the blood filled path they went. The map was a huge score in what was turning into a real crisis. The web continued to grow, weaving strangers together to make new allies. All they really had was each other, and there was something out there threatening that togetherness. 

-

Streets

There wasn’t a better way to end a good day than with the feeling of wind flying through her hair. 

Taima kindly huffed with each show of affection, earning a playful giggle from her friend on the saddle. 

Holding Penelope still was Bernadette, the two heading off from the fun and festivities at the bar, the teen’s aim to get the girl back home to her pop without a fuss. What better way to do so than a little lesson - she’d been made aware of Penny’s supposed attempts being unable to go ahead. 

Bert sat behind, only intervening if the pace had gone wayward, Taima’s directional knowledge was impressive for a pony’s standard. They weaved out of the city, passing by one or two who were heading to wherever adults went in the evening. 

There wasn’t a care in the world for the kid. It’s the moment she’d been waiting for, Bert wasn’t planning on stealing that. 

“Hehe, go, Taima!” Penny squealed, snapping at the reins. Her pony picked up her speed, the broken roads soon turning into soil as the house came into view. 

“*BRRFF-NHHEEGH!*”

Her father’s horse, Seraphina, squealed as she was hitched up. The young girl felt excitement, excitement in telling her dad how much fun she had riding had risen into her bones. 

She felt he’d been quieter, more focused on other things the past few days. He’d say he was okay, but she was no fool. She was ready to put a smile on his face.

Something was odd though. It took Bert a few glances, they weren’t so sure, but the more they moved, the more apparent it was; Seraphina didn’t look so calm. She was neighing aggressively, and hopping up and down to gain anyone, anyone’s attention. 

They raised an eyebrow and reached for the reins, the makeshift post just a few paces away. 

“Okay, slow her down, Penny.” 

“Yeah,” she replied quickly, lowering her voice. “Woahhh, Taima, woahhh, girl.” 

Huffing, she slowed into a walk instantly. They parked up at the post, Bernadette getting off first and helping Penny down. The young girl was handed the reins so she could hitch, while Bert circled around to check on the startled.

Bert themself was cowering slightly. She put a hand out, creeping towards the horse. 

“Hey… it’s okay. Woahhh, breathe.” She tried to calm Seraphina, earning a turn of the horse’s head. 

Seraphina made another wail sound, but halted the erratic jumping. Bert wasn’t sure - was she hungry? Did something bite her? 

“Is she okay?” Penny asked behind the teen. 

Bert nodded as she started slowly brushing her hand on the horse’s neck. “Mhm, she’s okay… you’re okay, right?” 

“*Mmm…*” 

“I don’t speak horse, sorry.” 

A small snicker escaped Penny, who trotted in front of the horse. Seraphina seemed to recognize her immediately. She let out a small sound, then breathing through her nose. 

“It’s okay. Do you want snacks?” 

Bert reached into the satchel, grabbing an apple and cracking it in half after a couple failed attempts. They fed the horse, handing the other piece off so Taima could have a little nutrition as well. 

Seraphina had relaxed now. She sat down, her back legs plopped on the ground.

“Good girl,” The blonde said, “come on, Penny.” 

They left the horses to their rest, walking up the small staircase and reaching for the door. Penny was about to knock, but Bert decided to see if the door was unlocked. To her luck, it was. 

“Pop should be here then.” She observed, allowing the kid in and shutting the door behind them. 

They expected a call. Either Saxon or Joey to ask who’d shown up, but it didn’t come. Maybe they were taking a nap, washing something… something to drown out the noise. 

A small breeze passed her by. Something a bit off in the house temperature. 

“Um… hello?” Bernadette called out, her head on a swivel as she shivered. 

Penny was light on her feet, more comfortable. Beaming, she picked up Miss Bunny and trotted into the living room, excitement coursing through her veins. 

“Pa?” 

The blonde’s boots scattered on the wooden floor as she rushed to step ahead of Penelope. The glare of the sun split into the living room, its brightness against the darker atmosphere causing Bert a slight issue. 

“Ugh-” She groaned, closing their eyes and raising her forearm to cover it. 

When she opened her eyes again, they found someone sat down. Their arms down on the armrests, straight posture, the sun hitting the right side of their face. 

It was definitely not Saxon or Joey. 

Her hand flew back, attempting to grab the young girl’s. 

“Oh, P-Pen–” 

“Scream, and I’ll shoot whoever comes running while you both watch.” 

Both of them froze. 

“Hmph… Galaxies of infinite possibilities, and this is what I get? So boring. Not worth burnin’ the place down for this.” 

His ginger hair was the first tell, and then it was the weapon in his right hand, already pointing towards them. He pointed at the sofa across from him. 

“But it works, aye? Sit.” 

They didn’t offer Penny anything, keeping a tough face on as she followed orders. Penelope did the same. Again, Bernadette was squinting. 

“What? Sun givin’ ya problems?” He asked, almost in an insulting tone. He stood up and his giant frame covered the shine completely, emphasizing the control he had in the situation. “Can I get a thank you, Miss…?” 

“Archambeau.” Her gaze went downwards. “And thanks…” 

“Strong name. Well, right… any weapons?” 

None on Bert. Left it on the horse. 

He tilted his head, watching Penelope. She was scared, sure, but she did her best not to give him all the leverage. 

“Fair play. You keep it tucked away, and this won’t get ugly.” He said, sounding impressed. The gun stayed pointed towards them, but his finger wasn’t on the trigger anymore. 

Penny stared at him, suddenly feeling a bit of deja vu. The accent, the hair… she only had a few minutes worth of his presence before, it wasn’t easy to forget about the talk of the town.

“You’re Roy.” She said, voice confident. 

“You remembered.” Roy genuinely looked impressed. “I wasn’t sure I’d left a fierce welcome. Complete accident, that was.” 

Bernadette’s head snapped in her direction. “What? This is the guy? How’d you get in here?” 

“Heh.” Roy chuckled lowly. “It may sound shocking, but I’m a lot more experienced than yer ones with the rifle up top. Call it a routine entrance.”

“What do you want? We don’t have a problem with you or your friend.” 

He nodded. “Tha’ may be true, but you see… there’s a friend of yours, not so innocent. Tried killing me and did a poxy job, though I’d bought some luck. One way to get answers, ya’see?” 

Penny had all the answers he wanted, but chose to keep herself quiet in fear of what might’ve gone on if she said the name. 

“Guess I chose the wrong place,” Roy continued. "Don't fret, I don’t wanna kill her or you or anyone if I don’t have to. And what’s a game between old friends without some… bait?” 

Immediately, shuffling came from behind, both Gallipolis residents looking over their shoulders. 

“HMPH!” An assailant sounded. 

“PENELOP-” *THWACK!* 

Penny jumped back as Bernadette took the back of a rifle right into the face, falling flat on the ground instantly. 

“BERT!” She squealed out of pure shock, before a hand was placed over her mouth. 

Blood rushed out of their nose as multiple assailants tied her hands and legs together. They felt their vision falter, glasses nowhere to be seen. 

“I’ve got the child.” Roy ordered, voice booming. Bert could feel him walking towards her, helpless.

She whimpered, trying to move even an inch. But it was to no avail.  

“Aye, listen… You're a good kid. Just go along and no one gets hurt, girlee-….”

The voice faded away. Her consciousness followed soon after, darkness and silence swallowing her in an instant.  

Meanwhile, Penny’s eyes welled up in fear. What to do… there was the plush toy to her left, so he handed it to the kid and picked her up, taking her into his chest. “Here, here… don’t make this worse.” 

She wasn’t sure what to do. If she made noise… he’d make it worse. She didn’t want anyone else to get hurt. 

“Just breathe, please.” He stood straight up, patting her on the back to try and calm her. “Same way out, keep a good eye.” 

Watching through the small gap she had, Penelope could see Bert being carried out over one of their shoulders. She closed her eyes, the creaking soon becoming footsteps on the soil. 

All she could do was feel the breeze pass through and hope to be safe. 

The river was calm, just the simple sounds of the water flowing under the evening sky. There wasn’t a ‘good’ indication of where they were going just yet, so they hung near the river to keep track. 

Arthur hadn’t said a word. Not for a while. His rifle rested in his hands, limbs clanking more than flowing with anxious blood. Ruby was quiet as well, the struggle wearing more obviously on her face the longer they walked without any sign. 

In front of them, Christina was just trying to pass the time. It wasn’t very comfortable amongst them all, at some point, she decided it best to not let the silence drive her crazy. She picked up a rock every now and then, attempting to skip them on the water.

The sound was somewhat soothing–a stark contrast to the bland white noise that left all three of them stuck in their heads.

Someway along, Arthur noticed some footsteps that led up to a hill, trees creating some brush. He didn’t see a reason to go that way, might’ve been a traveler getting by, nothing that they need to concern themselves with. 

Meanwhile, the skipping got better and better. Christina picked up a rather flat rock, thumb slipped atop of it with two fingers under. 

She didn’t take much of a run up, simply flinging it downwards at pace.  

*plop-plop-CLUNK!* 

All three of them stopped in place, glancing at the stream. It wasn’t very deep - not on this end at least - so they all tried to see how that sound came to pass. 

“Christina? Do that again, sug.” 

The young teen scooped up another rock, this time directly chucking it in the area of which the big sound came from. 

*CLUNK!* 

Arthur kept his rifle readied as they all closed in on the river. There was… a wire, or something like it, stringing into the deeper middle of the river. 

“Is that…?” Ruby trailed off. She picked at the edge from which the wire began, plucking out the bloody end of a harpoon gun. “It’s Dari-WOAH!” 

The ginger almost tumbled completely over, a walker inside the stream tugging at the weapon’s hold. Her grip managed to hold as she wrestled with the undead’s strength. 

“Little help here?!” She shouted. Christina stepped in and grabbed the toggle, helping tug back. The combined strength enabled them to dig the weapon out the water, both of them falling back when the pressure ceased. 

The walker came too, growling and reaching for Christina’s leg. She kicked at it, evading its grasp but not the full pressure. Her spear was still strapped to her back as she struggled. 

“RAHH!” Arthur stamped onto the head, blood splattering onto the ground. He gave it once more for good measure, feeling its skull smash under his boot. “Fuck! Hope there isn’t more hanging around. You two okay?” 

Christina was helped up by Ruby, and she immediately unsheathed the spear and looked around. “I’m okay, thanks.” 

He instinctively put his arm on her shoulder, pulling her closer to him. They both turned to Ruby who pressed the button to retract the harpoon gun’s wire. 

“Good you didn’t fire that gun…” She said, her voice fading slightly as she looked at the weapon. “Whadd’ya think?” 

Arthur’s eye suddenly lit up. He smirked. “Okay, we might be on the right track.” 

“We should keep an eye out. See if one of them is anywhere nearby.” 

Ruby frowned. “You sayin’ they might’a been separated?” 

“I don’t know. Something tells me they wouldn’t stray far from each other.” 

Christina chuckled, but caught herself when the two adults looked at her. Arthur shook his head and patted her on the shoulder, then pointed ahead. “There’s some footsteps that take us to that hill. It might be good to get some high ground and find a road. Any way to find out where the fuck we are.”

“Maybe find some dinner too…”

“That too. C’mon, girls.” 

This time, Arthur intended to stay closer as he guided the teen forward and led Ruby a few steps away from the stream. In little time, they reached the hill and moved on upwards, nothing but greenland filling up the area left and right. All of them were reasonably on their toes. 

Ruby walked backwards in an attempt to scathe any attempt of the undead sneaking up on them, Arthur doing more of the looking around for old footsteps. That left Christina to face forward, reaching the top of the hill and stopping in place.

“Shoot!” She whisper-yelled, suddenly dropping down to the ground. Arthur nearly tripped over her; he faced ahead and saw what she had seen. 

“Ruby, get down!” He plopped down, a loud thud coming with it, then the redhead followed. Ahead of them, on the other side of the hill, was a compound. Or maybe a community? They weren’t sure. Arthur tried to get a second look, but his vision wasn’t doing them best from this distance. 

“Do you think they saw us?” The teen sounded panicked. “What do you see?” 

“Shh! Don’t make too much noise.” He raised his rifle, resting his elbows on the dirt and looking into the scope. He made out the figure of someone on watch, walking back and forth at their post. “Someone on watch, she isn’t lookin’ our way.” 

“Just one person? She got any sight?” 

“Patience, ma’am.” He naturally joked, continuing to assess the situation. “Gate’s closed… fuckin’ shotgun. Nothing with sight.” 

“Packs a real wallop, though!” 

He could feel Christina tense up, so he turned his rifle to the left. Lo and behold, a trail–a real roadtrail–was in use. Unfortunately, it was a direct route to the front door of this compound, and there were some people hustling on horses to get there. At least six of them, Arthur noted. 

“Riders coming in. Keep your heads down.” 

Christina kept her head up for some reason, squinting as the riders came closer into view. Arthur didn’t notice her with his other eye closed, and Ruby was hiding a little behind him, so she was an uncontested viewing of the crew. 

There was a glaring… ok, maybe not glaring, but an odd issue with what she was seeing. Something was tied up to the back of a horse, and it certainly wasn’t an animal. 

“I see something!” She exclaimed. The man with the rifle took her word without question. 

Indeed, there was something. Or rather, someone. 

“The fuck? They’ve got someone tied up.” 

“What?” Ruby gasped. “Someone they ain’t friendly with?” 

“Too hard to tell.” He followed them on their way up to the compound. The woman up top didn’t hesitate; she shouted something that was drowned out by the distance, and opened up the gates. 

“Something tells me these guys aren’t looking to make any new friends.” 

“Keep looking, we’ve got you covered.” 

And so he did. The group stopped outside the gate, hauling the unconscious body over one of the women’s shoulders. There was a man, quite the stature on him, his arms cocooning around something that was indecipherable with his body in the way. They all walked towards the entrance, where Arthur could spot what looked like people doing work. 

“Jesus… are those chains?” He muttered, more to himself, when someone new suddenly came into view. Their arms were crossed, the shift in body language visible in all but the tall man. 

A chill ran through his body before he could even compute what he was seeing. He didn’t need a second look. Hell, he barely needed one. 

The woman stopped right in front of the returning brigade, that fierce look in her eyes amplified by the feeling that she’d spot a sniper from a thousand yards away. She too was quite tall, her status amongst the group made obvious by the respect she commanded. Arthur bit his lip and let the rifle down, the bottom of the weapon hitting the ground and snapping the girls into focus. 

“What? What is it?” 

“Son of a bitch…” He shook his head. “We’ve gotta get outta here, right fucking now.” 

Christina’s confusion only grew more prominent. “Are you going to tell us what you saw?” 

He got up, grabbing her by the back of the shirt to lift her as well and rushed down the hill. 

“If she sees us, she’ll fucking kill us all.” 

Ruby seemed to get the gist, the fear instilling itself into her by the expression she had as she rushed to catch up to them. 

“Who’s she?!” The teen finally raised her voice, loud and proper. 

“We–” He nearly shouted back, stopping himself. “Fuck, we’ve gotta find the others!” 

Ruby took the opportunity to pull the teen aside. “Ceecee, sug. If it’s who I think he’s talkin’ about, then we’ve got no time to waste.” 

She furrowed her brows, but relented. They made it down the hill, Arthur leading them back towards the river to retrace their steps. He looked over his shoulder a few times, eventually focusing on getting as far away as possible. 

In a matter of moments, things had gotten a lot more complicated. And they didn’t even get a meal out of it. 

The sharp sting of his clogged nose pinched his senses once again. A cool breeze worsened the inhales, though brought peace to his otherwise sore body. 

He spat on the ground, the dirt soaking up the moisture immediately, and for a moment, he could smell the incoming rain. Dark clouds spread around the orange-yellow hues of the sunset. A storm, perhaps the least of his worries, was certainly brewing. 

It was an unusual phenomenon, his legs being so… wobbly. Part of him felt a bit nervous, while the other still felt damage that had been so severe. 

He couldn’t undo mistakes, unfortunately. 

Despite this, walking an unfamiliar path was like bread and butter to him. With it came arrogance, confidence, and even some unwanted experiences. 

He always found himself looking forward to the next. 

He never expected a path to call for him. 

Crumpled in his right hand, an old paper, famous amongst survivors who bit off more than they could chew. This paper commended him, labeled him a savior who was not doing any saving, and gave a location of which he should come face-to-face with his actions. 

Has anyone found out? Are they waiting for a moment to take his head off? What reward may you garner for the head of a criminal? Definitely not a million bucks, he’d say that for sure, but it might’ve been close. 

As always, Harrison Francis planned to stay ahead of the curve. How can you turn in someone you can’t get? There’d be no prize apart from his soul being buried six feet deep - only if they were lucky. 

The compound was not much further away, he could spot it just down the old road. He stopped, standing atop a hill, pocketing the crushed page while his other fist lay by his side. On his travels, he made sure to carry what he needed in his backpack. Some nutrition, ammo he’d pick up from the land, stuff of the sort. 

With a deep breath, he turned, facing the other side of the hill, smirking. 

Scattered around, mindless without any sound to follow, his undead allies weren’t gonna be hanging too far away. They were scattered, some trotting into each other, far enough from any being who could join them.

He spoke lowly, “Call you if I need you.”

They continued to circle around, and so he stepped into the eyeline of whatever awaited. His hands lay calmly in his pockets, attempting to appear friendly in his own self sentence. 

A short gust of wind passed him by, the hairs on his face standing up while a droplet of sweat passed off his cheek. 

He’d spotted a watchman, facing the other direction currently as they took a sip of water. Next, his ears picked up on a repetitive, slamming sound. 

*thump! thUMP! THUMP!* 

It grew louder the closer he’d gotten, so he prepped his hands in case. A foot came into view, planted into the grass as its conductor continued their assault on the poor plant. 

“Err… hello there?” 

“Huh?!” The person snapped backwards. Their hands were heavily wrapped, but the face mask put real worry into Harrison’s heart. 

He stepped back, hands in the air. “Oi-oi. Come in peace, mate. I promise.”

The masked individual looked him up and down, audible exhales repeating themselves. 

“Francis?” He said, voice deep, pointing at him with a trembling hand. 

Harrison nodded. “Think that’s still my last name, yeah.”

The sound of a rifle’s shuffle echoed from up top, both of them glancing up to see the watchguard now pointing it at both of them. The masked man didn’t seem to drop the hostility, so Harrison created a little more distance between them. 

“Skull, back down,” The guard said. “He isn’t a threat.”

Skull huffed, head on a swivel between his ally and the leader of the Trading Center. 

Harrison walked past him, hands back up. He motioned with his head. “Is he alright?” 

“That’s none of your concern.”

“Heh, very friendly…” 

The guard lowered his rifle. “Mr. Francis. We weren’t sure you’d show up, not this soon at least.” 

“Well.” Harrison stopped just in front of the gate. “A man needs a sick day. I’m an adventurer.” 

“You’re a murderer.” 

“I’ve read the wanted poster, sure. Manipulator, murderer, all that and a bag of chips.” He joked, smirking. “Flattering, it was. Monster’s a harsh term, I prefer: vessel of change.”

“Sure…”

“Right, listen. We’re not here to fuck spiders, mate. Call the boss.” 

The guard audibly groaned, waving his hand, most likely at another. He leaned onto the edge of the watchpost, wearing an irritated expression. Harrison chuckled softly, and then the thumping began again. It initially caught him off guard as he turned fully, only to see Skull back pelting his fists into the same tree. Something was really wrong with him.

Over the next minute or so, the guard chose to ignore anything from Harrison’s mouth. The wanted man didn’t mind, he whistled a little bit, kicked into the dirt, anything to pass the time until he got what he came for. 

Waiting paid off. The guard punched a button suddenly, then walked away with his rifle. In front of the man on soil, the gate began to pull back, groaning with each inch from both sides. Harrison stood tall, hands clasped together. One person came towards him, their left hand carrying what looked like some rope. He recognized her as the woman who called him here. 

“A rope?” He tilted his head, pouting a little. “Hmm. Sure that’ll be necessary, ma’am?” 

“Up to you,” Amiya replied. “I know what you’re capable of. Though it wouldn’t be fun pummelling you if you can’t fight back.” 

Once again, he raised his hands in a show of compliance. “Have a heart. I got the letter, got here as fast as I could. Your boy, bald as bandicoot, real weasel, ain’t he?” 

She snarled. “Ugh, surprised that he managed to put it in your hand without fainting, to be honest.” 

“Likewise. Anyways, I… Well, an apology wouldn’t do it. I’m mainly just surprised that you aren’t a righteous bunch, putting out wanted posters and everything.” 

“Someone had to do it.” Amiya stepped close, not faltering under his muscular frame and joking tone. “You don’t rule with fear, yet you’re one of the most successful leaders out there. I’m just wondering… what’s the plan? Statewide domination? A world where wounded survivors are always calling for your help?” 

“The first,” he said instantly. “It isn’t domination as such. It’s reliability. They rely on us, they give us their supplies. We have all the supplies, we can distribute, while also stacking over what we already have.”

She nodded along. “I had that feeling.”

“Smart of you.” 

“Shut it.” She crossed her arms. “As I said in the letter, as mad as we are at you, it… it helps to understand you just as much. And how many people know?” 

“Three, but one’s been gone a while. Might not come back.”

“That’s how it goes,” Amiya disrespectfully replied. She sighed, rolling the rope around her shoulder. “You understand the terms here, don’t you?” 

“You writing ‘Or we’ll give you a taste of your own medicine’ is a bit of a tell, weren’t iffy.” 

“Good.” She put out her right hand. “Come in. Your friends’ll know that times are changing soon.” 

He smiled, shaking her hand firmly. 

“Let’s keep it clear. One wrong move and you’re done.” Amiya let go, furrowing her brows. “And get your nose cleaned up, blood is getting all over your ‘stache.” She said as she turned and walked away. 

Harrison reached up, the warm, sticky blood spilling onto his hand. He wiped it on his shirt, watching the Elkins leader walk inside, unbothered and not waiting. All things considered, he might’ve just registered a big point in the win column.