Well, we're coming into Episode 4 now. Sorry if the update times become a tad bit erratic from this point onward, as I have a lot of work to be doing, but I'll try post new chapters as regularly as possible. It's not easy to find time for but I like writing these so I will write when I find the time, just thought you should know in advance.

I'll talk to you all again at the bottom. Enjoy!

Gathering their brief amount of belongings and possessions, the group slowly crawled out of the safety of train boxcar. They had arrived at Savannah sooner than expected, almost surprised by meeting their destination so soon. Kenny was adamant on embarking into the city as soon as possible, not wishing to waste anymore time to get to the waterline. Lee was aware that the entire group, the two newest to tag along, Christa and Omid especially, were all sceptical of the idea. Kenny seemed to be denying any other possible notion besides finding a boat and sailing it far away. But with this arrangement came more questions, where would they go? What if there was no boats? Kenny brushed these aside without as much as a thought towards them, leaving the others to feel uncertain how clouded his judgement currently was.

Lee assisted in helping Carley out of the locomotive that had served them well, holding her side which was ailing her once again. However, Carley was joined by Omid on the injury list, but the persian mans' wounds were much worse as he had no real kind of surgery or a certified medical figure to look at him, as well as the group lacking much basic medical equipment. Lee would resolve that issue when it becomes drastic, as there is no other option at the minute.

Glancing over at Clementine, Lee sighed in frustration. He felt upset that she would endanger the group by talking to a complete stranger, also lying to him about her working walkie talkie. He felt hurt that she wouldn't tell him about this, but tried not to show any visible discontent to her, as he couldn't possibly force himself be outwardly angry with the little girl. Clem crumbled to confrontation, apologizing profusely and stating that the man was nice and that he was a 'friend'. With the walkie talkie now strapped to his belt buckle, Lee would have to gain more information from Clem about her new acquaintance, and what he's been saying to her. Spotting the sense of guilt and genuine remorse on her face reinforced the fact that she was still only a child, and she simply didn't know any better than to trust most people that gave off a friendly impression. He could never blame her for it.

Kenny seemed agitated at the front train, glaring back at Christa as she tended to her boyfriend, as he appeared not to be in the waiting mood. Chuck brandished a shovel at a nearby trackside cabin, smiling as he twirled it around in his calloused hands. Ben stood arms crossed behind the group, seemingly anxious about what nightmares Savannah had to offer him. The teenager lacked any kind of self confidence, especially now that Kenny was giving him the cold shoulder, guilt had completely overwhelmed the boy.

"Right, are we ready to go then? We've been fuckin' around too long I reckon." Kenny remarked, shoving a pistol into his waistband. "The sooner we get on the water, the better."

"What about Omid? He needs medical help, he might not make it too long without it!" Christa exclaimed, ignoring Omid's pleas to stop worrying about him.

"Listen, I don't c-

"-We'll find him help, don't worry. We'll get the shit we need first, then we'll get out of here." Lee jumped in, not wanted more conflict to resonate before they had even set foot in the city. "Right, Ken?"

The Floridian huffed in concealed rage, not thinking too highly of the new group members. He was proving too hasty to check for a boat, as many were sceptical whether any boats would be there regardless. Kenny was too arrogant to even listen to any other suggestions, which could come back to haunt them in the future if there plan A doesn't go accordingly, which seemed more and more likely now.

"He's not listening to anyone, Lee. He's gonna get us all in trouble." Carley murmured wearily to him, eyes glaring at the Floridian.

"I know Car, but he just wants to be safe, can't say I don't agree with him there. I'll make sure he doesn't go outta line, okay?" Lee replied cooly, reassuring the reporter about the situation, who seemed unconvinced nonetheless.

"Whatever, if you think so. What about Clem? What are we gonna do about her 'friend'?" Carley questioned, switching her gaze over to the little girl. Lee shook his head, recalling the precarious little issue they had to deal with on the side.

"We'll just have to keep an eye out for anything strange I suppose, and make sure she can't talk to him unless we need her to or something like that, I'll have to talk to her about it later." Lee shrugged, knowing that this problem could potentially be fatal, who knows what kind of person Clem was talking to. "I just wished she would have talked to me instead of whoever the fuck is on that radio of hers."

"Clem adores you, Lee. She just didn't know it was dangerous. Don't think that she doesn't trust you or anything, because it's the exact opposite in reality, she trusts you with her life." Carley smiled, rubbing his shoulder soothingly.

"I hope you're right, because this is where her parents are, and I know she's going to wanna look for them."

Carley's brow furrowed slightly. "Her parents? Didn't you say-

"-Yeah, I know they're dead. But she doesn't know."

"Ah."

"Yeah, you're beginning to see the issue now."

The reporter stood back, realizing the problem Lee was facing, understanding the turmoil that must be raging in his mind. Carley touched his arm gently, gazing into his eyes with a sense of understanding that beared some of the substantial burden he was carrying.

"Well I'm sure whatever you try to do, you'll be trying to do the right thing."

The town was eerily silent, the odd caw from a crow, the shuffling of footsteps against the cobblestone street and Omid's grunting as he limped along behind the group, Christa watching over him with anxious eyes. The looming trees hung moss bunting proudly across their reaching branches, with sported a riveting green in the bright beams of the glorious midday sun. The buildings were of a strong Georgian style architecture, with various balconies out to make use of the richer climate.

Clementine jogged up beside Lee, gazing up at him. He knew what she was looking for, and kept his game face on, feeling marginally bad for being slightly cold to the girl. Her eyes wandered over the walkie talkie attached to his belt strap, before settling them back on him.

"Can't I just hold it?"

Her voice was as gentle and powerless as it had ever been, aware of her guardians disdain towards the man she had been speaking to; but she pried on the matter regardless. Lee couldn't help but let a tiny portion of disappointment appear in his expression, which he was sure she picked up on.

"Just for a little while? We're getting real close to where my mom and dad are. Maybe I can-

"-Not now, Clementine. Maybe later, okay?"

"Okay..." She muttered, looking back down at her feet.

Lee looked back to Christa, who strolled alongside her injured boyfriend, worry plaguing her face.

"How's Omid?" Lee asked, concerned about the man's health.

Christa paused slightly before speaking, trying to sound positive but realistic.

"His leg is pretty bad."

"I'm fine." He shook off.

"You're not fine! You need to rest.. He needs to rest!" Christa exclaimed to Lee, demanding some respite for Omid. Lee nodded, acknowledging her request. Omid was beginning to seem pale, and his breathing was becoming heavier as they walked the streets.

"Kenny, how much farther to the river front?"

"Should be just a few more blocks up ahead." Kenny replied tiredly.

"And there'll be boats there?" Christa inquired spitefully, constantly questioning their plan.

"There sure as hell better be." Lee muttered to himself.

"There'll be boats. Have to be. Have to be." Kenny sighed, a vague sense of blind hopefulness in his tone, a blockade of denial for there to be any other way.

"It's okay to be okay, Kenny knows what he's doing." Ben surprisingly vouched for him, earning a hard stare from the Floridian.

Kenny shook his head at the comment, not buying the compliment for a second. "You're lucky to still be here right now, Ben, so I'd shut it if I were you." Kenny snarled at the teenager unneededly.

"What?! I was sticking up for you man!" Ben voiced, confusion in his expression.

"Can we please not do this now? We need to work together." Carley piped in, attempting to smooth out the conflict. Kenny just snorted, looking back out in front of him, while Ben just shoved his hands into his pockets, taking another blow to his self esteem.

A bell kind of noise rang out sharply at a sudden, stopping everyone in their tracks. The belltower in the church opposite of the group rang loudly, alarming everyone. The noise echoed through the vacant avenues.

"What the hell?" Ben exclaimed, frightened at the commotion.

"Maybe this city isn't so dead after all." Christa murmured cautiously, her tone wary.

"Keep moving. No one's ringing that bell. It's automatic, on a timer." Kenny barked, his eagerness to get to the waterfront was unrelenting.

Lee took a quick glance at his watch, realizing something wasn't right. "What kind of church bell goes off at twenty past the hour?" He questioned, making the group suddenly agitated at the eery occurrence. Looking back up at the belltower, Lee spotted a shadowy figure hastily scurry across the rooftop, and out of his sight.

"Someone's up there!" Lee exclaimed, pointing up to the rooftop.

"Are you sure? I don't see anything." Ben replied, scanning the church for any movement.

"Maybe he's right, guys. We don't know-

The walkie talkie in Lee's belt burst awake with a wail of static, before a voice came through the speaker.

"If I were you, I'd get out of the street. Now."

Lee grabbed the radio, feeling the sense of eyes boring into him.

"I thought you said that thing didn't work!" Christa stated, glaring at the device in his hands.

Lee shrugged, pushing down the button on the side to respond to the stranger.

"Who is this? Is that you up in the bell tower?"

Waiting for a response, the tension became palpable as Lee couldn't help but feel as if they were being watched. Flinching slightly at every toll of the bell, the walkie talkie remained mute, only helping to serve up more questions.

"What the hell was that? Is someone trying to fuck with us?!" Omid questioned, looking over his shoulder.

Ben shrugged and grimaced slightly. "Sounded more like a warning..."

"Maybe we should follow his advice and get the hell out of the streets." Carley suggested, hand gripping her Glock 17 tightly.

Chuck spun around, gazing away into the distance. "Ask not for whom the bell tolls." He muttered lowly, to no one in particular.

"What are you yammerin' on about?" Kenny inquired, increasingly frustrated by the whole scenario. The group turned around slowly, following Chuck's gaze, only to be met with a familiar yet all the same, horrifying sight.

"It tolls for thee..."

Walkers advanced towards the group from an adjacent avenue, spotting the vulnerable group out in the open street. They snarled and growled as they stumbled closer, completely outnumbering them with the vast and unorganized ranks of the dead.

"Everybody, run!"

Breaking out into a sprint, the group bolted down the street, only to be cut off by another herd coming in from the opposite street, closing them into the single street with a smaller road to pass through, a couple of walkers lining the path. Chuck lead them along, knocking the flailing biters with a swing of his shovel, resulting in a sickening crack upon impact. Kenny ran along the wall, however, he failed to spot the walker stuck underneath the wrecked car, which swung and caught his leg, causing the man to crash down onto the tarmac, his pistol sliding out of reach.

"Kenny!" Lee shouted, whipping out his gun and firing a round through the skull of the walker, releasing it's grip on his leg.

"Little too close, don't you think?" Kenny exhaled in relief, grabbing his handgun and climbing back to his feet.

"Ben!" Lee heard a voice cry, spinning around to find walkers closing in on the teenager and Clementine, Ben looking utterly terrified and clueless, like a deer in headlights. The girl glanced up at her elder, waiting for him to find a solution that wasn't going to come.

"Ben, help her!" Lee yelled, fear evident in his words as the walkers continued to close in on the pair. Ben froze to the spot, petrified of the dead coming towards them. A gun rang out beside Lee, glancing over to see Carley firing at the walkers with pinpoint accuracy. But they proved too strong in numbers, and no gap appeared in the small herd.

A walker clambered over to Clementine, the girl shrieking in fear and closing her eyes in anticipation for the pain as it closed in for the kill, before a shovel smashed it upon the head. Chuck drove the tool into it's body, pinning it down against the concrete path. Ben stumbled behind the older man, as the walkers turned their attention to Chuck. Carley continued to fire, giving some room for Clementine to manoeuvre out of the spot and scramble over to Lee's open arms. He held the girl tightly, scared at just how close he came to losing the most precious entity in his life.

Chuck continued to fight away the walkers, swinging wildly as Ben stood helplessly behind him, weaponless, rendering the teenager as good as useless in the conflict.

"Go on ahead!" Chuck yelled out. "We'll catch up!" The elderly man nodded to Lee in understanding, making him aware that they'd be alright.

Joining up with the others, Kenny pushed forward down the street. "Move your asses! River Street's right up ahead!" He bellowed, still determined to get to the water.

"That's not all..." Carley murmured, gazing ahead into the distance. Another band of walkers staggered towards them from down the street.

"Oh give me a fucking break!" Kenny yelled furiously, his knuckles white from clenching his fists too long.

"Wait, where the hell is Chuck and Ben?!" Christa asked, wondering about the pair's safety. The group glanced back to find Chuck battling away stubbornly with the walkers still, his effort was tireless as he seemed to show no signs of stopping, Ben behind him, nearly contemplating sprinting away down the avenue behind him apparently.

"Shit! They're in trouble, we gotta help them!" Omid exclaimed.

"He said they'd be fine, c'mon, we gotta get off the street!" Kenny yelled, pushing through a gate into a mansion behind them.

"We can't just leave them, Kenny!" Carley scowled, firing rounds at the growing number of walkers.

"There's no time! We gotta go, now!" Kenny demanded, ordering everyone into the mansion lot. Lee looked back at Chuck and Ben, seeing the futile attempts of the man. The fear in Ben's eyes was devastating, as he backed away slowly from the growing crowd of biters. Lee knew they needed help, but could he risk his own safety trying to rescue them?

[Help Ben and Chuck]

[Continue without them]

We're back with a tough one! A hectic scene to come back to, they could survive without Lee's help, but don't take that as a promise! And risking Lee's own safety could prove fatal... Who knows? It's up to you guys!

Thank you all so for reading! Make sure to leave some feedback. Have a great day!