A/N: Hey guys! I had this idea bouncing around in my brain for quite some time, so I decided to write a little something about it.

Update 12/10: I decided to continue this story, so if you want to read something I whipped up quickly, continue onto the next chapter!

[EPISODE 1: AGAINST THE TIDE]

Prologue: A Broken Promise, aka the cracks within Luke's heart deepens, due to a sudden twist of events.

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'It wasn't supposed to be like this,' was the only thought coursing through his mind as a warm hand pulled him up from the icy depths.

No one was supposed to die today, or at all throughout the past two weeks. Nick, Pete, Rebecca, Alvin, Sarah, Carlos, and so many others had died due to his failures of creating or sticking to a decent plan.

Shit starting going down (Well for today, at least. Stuff had been going downhill since the fucking apocalypse started) when the group thought it would be a oh so fucking great idea to listen to Arvo and cross a freaking frozen lake.

He had prayed nothing would ruin the mood of his surprisingly joyful birthday last night.

Naturally, the odds were not in his favor.

He just had to crack the ice and fall in, being unable to fully move himself out of the chilly death pit, due to his injured leg.

Just his damn luck.

Bonnie and Clem were the only members of the group relatively near him, Bonnie panicking and yelling at Luke to let her help him escape his seemingly unavoidable doom of broken ice and several approaching walkers. Clem watched their argument with silence, but her distressed expression was louder than thunder to Luke.

He never was into deeply involved in a religion, but this sure damn looked like karma coming to bite him in the ass. After all, the one who leads others to their deaths is the one who deserves to die the most of all.

The last few minutes of his predicament were a jumble. The ice pulsed with each gunshot that Bonnie fired at the incoming walkers, groaning with each shaky step that Clem took towards him.

Despite his pleas for Clem to stay away and just leave him to receive the punishment that he completely deserved, to complete the loop of all the deaths caused by him and not harm anyone else, she kept on coming, stubborn as a damn mule.

He peered up into her amber eyes, full of determination as she reached him and offered her hand out to him.

"It's gonna be alright."

CRACK!

No... No, it's not gonna be okay.

The ice shattered beneath them, as the screams surrounding them were quickly drowned out by the pressure of really fucking freezing cold water that burned his eyes and lungs.

The only sound that reached his ears was a steady, BANG! BANG! BANG!

It sounded like...

He turned around to see the source of the racket. He could barely make out the murky shapes of a small figure fighting off a larger one, that was clinging onto her foot. After a second, the lurker was off and she was heading towards Luke.

Oh no.

Another walker popped up near her, yet Clem didn't see it, oblivious to the arms reaching out to end her chances of survival.

Luke rushed over to help, despite his body screaming at him to just leave her and get some damn oxygen!

He plowed into the sinking lurker, strangling it and pushing the cursed thing down into the dark depths where it belonged, freeing Clem from her captor. However, the blasted thing grabbed onto his ankle, shaking and pulling him down as into waters as well.

Clem watched for a second, before furiously shaking her head and swimming downwards towards the killer, grabbing its arm off of Luke.

Luke felt relief rush throughout his body.

The walker snatched Clem and lunged towards her neck, taking a huge bite out of her neck.

His relief vanished in an instance.

Clem's mouth opened in a silent scream. The water darkened around her, turning a murky red as Luke watched, frozen in shock. Blood poured from her neck, as her eyes started to close.

OH MY FUCKING GOD!

NO, NO, NO, NO! NOT AGAIN!

Slowly, she reopened her eyes, struggling to keep them open. They settled on Luke with surprise, as if she only noticed he was there for the first time.

She opened her mouth, to let out a helpless whimper "Luk-"

The lurker latched itself onto her, ripping her throat out mid-sentence. Her bright eyes died out instantly, but her deadly stare remained on Luke.

Luke backed away in disgust, his lungs blazing and his eyes burning themselves at the sight of Clem's sudden demise.

He felt repulsed at that walker, at the world, but most of all... at himself.

He killed her.

HE KILLED CLEM!

HE COULD HAVE DONE SOMETHING AND NOT WATCHED LIKE A FUCKING DUMB IDIOT! NOW SHE'S JUST A PILE OF SHREDS AND IT'S ALL HIS FAULT!

Instinctively, he tried to take a deep breath to calm himself down (which he doubts would be possible anymore) only to choke on the chilly water entering his systems.

A moment later he felt a hand gripping onto the back of his tattered sweater's collar, pulling him upwards. He presumed it was another walker searching and successfully finding their next meal.

"I'd come back for you..."

Clem had kept her promise.

"Thank ya, Clem. I'd do the same."

Except he didn't. He failed the lil' kiddo.

He deserved this. To be eaten alive and be in pain, after all the trouble he had caused everyone else. Plus, he gets to suffocate at the same time! What a generous bonus!

Sorry if I don't taste good. I'm not exactly a happy meal at the current moment.

Luke stayed limp, preparing for something to start chomping on his shoulder. He wasn't expecting to be slowly raised out of the water and onto the ice, where a cold wind rustled his frozen bones.

Wait... what?

Luke stared up into his savior's eyes.

Jane's dark gaze returned his.

And that's all he remembered before passing out.