Chapter Twenty Five: Savior

Rick Grimes quickly learned that in order to live in this world, there wasn't room for any mistakes. A mistake could mean you losing your live or putting others in danger. A mistake could mean the difference between life and death, it could make the difference whether or not you find a way to live until tomorrow.

He also learned that mistakes took many forms, and that the form that his mistakes took were people. He wanted to believe that Shane was a good man, and that the Governor was not a mad man driven by his own crazed delusions. But he also knew the truth, and the truth was very simple: kill or be killed. There were no rules or guidelines to dictate how the killing was done. It could be from being eaten by a walker. Or it could be from a person you wanted to trust, pressing a gun against your temple.

Rick found himself in the latter scenario.

A week ago, a group of people had gone out on a hunt to bring back as much game as they could before the final preparations were made in order to safe guard Alexandria. Everything took a turn for the worst when a single person strayed too far and caught the attention of a cluster of walkers. The zombies gave chase, and their hissing and growling caught the attention of more walkers nearby.

Soon the herd was on the move, like a slow and steady pack full of decaying, snarling corpses, and before they knew it, the horde was at the safe zone, testing the new barriers that had been put only days prior.

Panic ensued, leading to people turning on each other. Rick and Michonne did their best to keep some semblance of order, as did Beth and Spencer, but their efforts were wasted when some safe zone members got ahold of the weapons vault.

One man managed to pull a gun on Rick before he could draw his own. So he stood with it pushing against his temple while Beth tried to speak to them all in calming tones. The gentleness of her voice seemed almost out of place, since it was punctuated by the sounds of people shouting and the growing sound of snarls and growls of the walking dead.

"How do we know you and yours won't leave us for dead if they breach the walls?: one man shouted out.

Beth looked towards the direction where they had spoken. "Because we will need to stay together if we are going to survive this! If we turn on each other now, we're all dead!"

"They're going to get through!" Someone else shrieked.

"Listen to me!" Beth yelled back.

"The walls will hold."

The calm and quiet of Daryl's voice rippled through the crowd, effectively quieting them.

Rick stared, stunned how the simple trick teachers used in loud students worked so well on a group of panicking adults. But when hm the gun was pulled away from his head, he decided not to think about it too much. He reached out and touched his son's shoulder reassuringly, then felt relief when he saw Judith wrapped in Carol's arms.

So he stepped forward. "Daryl is right. The walls will hold. Right now, what we need to do is make a choice. To stay here and see if they break through, or leave and find somewhere else."

"But Alexandria's always been safe!"

"Until you came!"

"What if we can't find another place?:

"What about the children?"

A sharp whistle cut through the air, silencing the crowd once more.

Rick glanced briefly at Ken, who was glaring at everyone.

"I think Rick had the floor," she growled, folding her arms.

Rick cleared his throat. "Ken and Daryl had prepared transportation should we need it. There's plenty of room for everyone and the children."

"But if the walls hold, why should we leave?"

Daryl spoke up again. "Because they know we're here. This place is just a feeding ground with walls. It only takes one getting through before the rest follow."

The man who had pulled a gun on Rick turned towards him. "What can we do to stop them from getting through?"

Ooo0ooO

A small group of men and women were selected to go with Rick to begin picking off the herd with high powered rifles that could be shot from a safe distance. The watch towers would be used to their full advantage.

Another went with Beth to scout the perimeter, to ensure that it was secure and to find weak points in the herd that could be used to bring down its numbers.

Daryl selected another group to come with him and Carol to move the children into theIraq most secure house, the main house. This was the last house where the basement hadn't been sealed shut, and was only meant to be used for emergencies. They agreed this constituted as one. The children needed a place to hide, and the main house was also closest to the garage where they had the large vehicles stored in case the herd got through and they needed a quick getaway.

Spencer delegated with the rest, acting as both their peacekeeper and their leader.

Beth returned with her group first, assuring the others that the walls were holding up fine for now. Beth stepped to the side to speak with Spencer quietly.

"They'll hold," she repeated, "but if the herd grows anymore, they might use their weight to bring it down. I saw it before at the prison. These walls are stronger, granted, but with enough of them..." She glanced around, worried. "They're like ants, Spencer. If one manages to crawl over the others and gets in, that's it. We can fight until we get everyone on the RV or the bus, but..."

"Some fights are better left lost?" Spencer finished, lifting a brow.

Beth nodded solemnly. "We can't allow anyone to try to play hero here. I know there's a lot at stake but if one person makes a mistake, they're putting everyone at risk and that can't happen."

"We can't stop them if they try," Spencer muttered, rubbing a hand over his eyes.

"I know," Beth sighed. "But we have to try. Just keep doin' what you do best."

Spencer laughed bitterly. "Hide? Get stabbed?"

Beth's eyes flashed a bright blue. "Be their leader."

Ooo0ooO

Days passed slowly. Tension remained high within the safe zone. No one took comfort in the constant buzzing and hissing of walkers milling outside their walls.

Rick and his task force managed to put a dent in the herd's size, but they had to keep a stop and go rhythm going. Too many gunshots would attract more walkers in the area and the remaining herd responded strongly to the noise.

Impatient as ever, Beth approached the few from Rick's original group who she hadn't talked to, not since they had entered the safe zone. Tara was sitting with them and looked surprised, but that didn't match the uncaring look that Rosita sent Beth's way, or the expressionless look on Abraham's face. Eugene was the only one who seemed somewhat pleased to see her.

Beth, who was tired from working double shifts, glared at the latter. "Rumor has it you know a way to stop this."

Eugene blinked. "The herd? No... I mean... I'm not like Rick and y"all."

Beth stepped closer. "You know what I meant."

Abraham stepped between them. "So what if he does?:

Beth's eyes narrowed. The red haired man was a great deal larger than she was, but right now, she felt her palm twitching to hit someone. "If he has any idea on how to create a cure, don't you think we need to take him where he needs to go in order to do that?" she snapped.

Eugene cleared his throat nervously. "Washington. I need to go...there."

Beth met his anxious gaze. "And you can stop this."

The mullet haired man shrugged. "I wouldn't put a 100% guarantee on it, but I think I know where to start."

"Are there others that you want to come with you?" Beth asked.

"Where he goes, I go," Abraham stated.

"Ditto," Rosita echoed.

Beth looked back towards Eugene. "Anyone else?"

"Just a few," he told her. "But how are we going to get through the herd?"

"I'm working on it," Beth said, twisting her ring again and again.

"Why are you so gung-ho about this now?" Rosita wanted to know.

Beth stared at her.

It was simple really. One of the little girls that Beth was watching had come up to her, crying, and asked her if her mommy and daddy were going to die. Then she asked if she was going to die. It had ignited something in Beth, a determination that she had felt while stuck in that hospital.

Survival instinct.

The time for hiding and jumping from town to town, living on game and stolen, rotting food needed to end. If there was a way to survive this thing, Beth wanted to find it. She knew she wasn't capable of doing it on her own, but she knew how to lead people.

"Because this needs to end," Beth stated firmly before turning on her heel and walking away.

Ooo0ooO

Disclaimer: I do not own TWD.

Author's Note: For the sake of the story, Eugene is going to become more important. Granted on the show, he isn't the guy with a plan for a cure, but in this AU, he'll be a part of it.

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