A/N: Hello again everybody! Thanks once again for the reviews and continued support this far along, as we're nearing the mid point of Episode 4 and nearing the end of the series altogether, this chapter I hope entertains, while I answer your reviews!
ffapathy- Glad you enjoyed and Luke opening up and revealing these secrets was done for the purpose of bringing him closer to Clementine and Molly, it shows he can finally tell the full truth to Clem and proves to Molly that she finally means more to him than Jane or Bonnie did, as she has gotten him to open up to things he didn't want to talk about, but had too. Jane didn't know him long enough and I imagine Bonnie would be more akin to just be supportive of him and not as challenging as Molly is, the twist was something I had planned from around the tenth chapter of this fic, of Luke being Carver's father as I re-read No Going Back and it just fit to me and explained little holes in the story. I liked you noticed the subtle little scene between Eddie and the robin as I'm using the spirit animals less frequently now but they do make more subtle appearances as the last one I imagined to either Rebecca or AJ giving Eddie some comfort at that time.
Yep I remembered attention to detail with the three deceased, I've thought about how they died and since Chapter 31 I think, is when I decided this is how they're going to go out. Also not knowing what JJ/TT actually did but seeing the results makes him a more terrifying villain, as the group didn't know what he did to Tom, or how he set up Tom in the first place, or even managed to kill Edward. JJ works behind the scenes and I've shown the reader his evil plots so far, so when he has finally lost it. I've put the reader's in the group's position of not knowing what it is JJ has done to make him even more unpredictable and crazy as a villain and wondering what on earth he'll do next. All in all thanks again for another awesome review I can't thank you enough!
Aqua Destiny's Embrace- What will the group do? Find out this chapter and yep the revelation shocked everyone like I hoped it would (still surprising you this far into the series, I am proud of myself), anyway thanks again for reviewing!
Justsomeguy23- Speechless and hating JJ, understandable indeed but thank you for your review and yep Luke was AJ's half brother if Rebecca had found it, I imagine she'd treat Luke more like a son than she did beforehand.
TWDRUNNER37 and paradoxilla- So everything shocked you last chapter from Robert's demise, to Luke's secret too what JJ did, glad it did and thanks for your reviews! Robert had survived for a long time and grew into an interesting character into his own right, but I just felt his arc had come to an end now, as he didn't go insane like many leaders before him and had the pride to step down and was on his way to finding redemption when... BAM! Yep bad shit happens and you'll learn soon how Robert died...
As for now, enjoy the chapter!
"Was It Right?"
Olivia asked herself this as she gazed down at the papers laden out on her desk, all of them detailing the services running short in Utopia, there were no longer enough guards on the perimeter, walker hordes outside of the grand city had reached such a number the only way in or out of this place, was by air travel. The Economy here was struggling, employees could only work certain hours as most of the time they had to look after those who had been euthanized, with a lack of employment supplies were starting to run short. Food, water lines, sewage, building materials... all of that wasn't running up to it's usual standard with a lack of people to deliver and maintain them, this sparkling city was losing whatever charm and grace it had.
Olivia slammed her fist on the desk.
"When do you ever stop!?" she demanded of the walkers outside of the walls, it had been several years after this epidemic had first started and so many of them had been wiped out, she had seen it herself in the first days of this city, how thousands upon thousands of walkers fell at the impressive gunfire hailing down on them. Back then she was merely a Secretary serving under the President himself, what a noble man he was, stern, authoritative, but underneath that exterior he could kind and caring... after the first lady and his two children had been slain in the earliest days, he had turned to her and she was happy to comfort him. Soon that turned into something more and...
Well, did it matter any more if Olivia had slept with him? That she had slept with the most powerful man on the planet? In the old world she would have been splashed across tabloids, made into an instant celebrity. But in this new world, it didn't matter who the hell you were any more, as long as you were alive that's all that mattered and Olivia could sit in this chair and pretend she was a president and pretend she was doing good for everyone, but deep down she knew she really wasn't.
She sighed to herself, pushing back her greying hairs, looking out of the flickering lights of the city.
She had been regretting her decision to euthanize those Russians a few weeks ago, at first that commander certainly was a treat in the bedroom, but then after a few days she looked at her papers and then at brain dead men she wondering around this grand building. It hit her then, they could have solved this issues, had she not euthanized them and made them useless. But at the same time, they were rebels who would have overthrown her authority and she really cared that much about being leader and maintaining order...
All of her sins were catching up to her and she was powerless to stop it.
There was a knock on door.
Blinking back the tears in her eyes, she barked "Come in!" and Robinson, her most trusted solider slowly crept into the room, the look on his face screamed bad news. It was in the middle of the night and Olivia's eyes were baggy from dealing with a day of these constant stresses and for him to come to her at this time... well it had to be something urgent.
"Yes, Robinson?" she wearily asked.
"The jets are back, they found nothing and no-one. We passed Wellington, but it's burnt to a crisp now and Alexandria was too far but we expect the same has happened there as well. Pretty much it's nothing but a wasteland out there, there isn't anybody else".
Olivia blinked back some more tears.
"I really was pining my hopes on Wellington" Olivia muttered sadly, gazing at the dark horizon outside of her window once again "Rumour had it, it was the place many survivors flocked too, but if there are no survivors there, then..."
She imagined the only people left in the wilderness now were complete savages or bandits and if they truly were the last of humanity, a dark beacon glowing in this dark, dark world than the weight of the walkers piling down on them was causing this city to crack... it was too grand and majestic to be obtained with walkers still out there and Olivia thought she was a saint by not killing anyone, after these past few weeks and the situation forever getting worse, now with the final bombshell of Wellington's end had forced her hand and she finally realised that she had to stop living in the delusion she had built herself.
"Robinson, everything's coming to a standstill" she murmured "I tried for so long to help us maintain a society with law and order..."
Robinson was silent.
"But the world just keeps on getting shitter doesn't it?" she emitted a humourless laugh after this.
"Utopia can probably only last a few more weeks" Robinson muttered honestly "Most of the guys at the wall are busy with the women who can't refuse... and the Russians helped maintain the wall around this city too, so with them gone, it won't be long before thousands of them break in here..."
"and we're blocked in" Olivia muttered in horror "We'll be slaughtered".
There was a grim silence in the office at this statement.
"It was stupid decision to do that to the Russians" Olivia muttered "I must have been mad with power, but I just so afraid of losing my position I doomed us all. and what was I hoping for? That some make-believe group would come from the outside and solve our problems?" she laughed harshly at herself "We'd need at least a thousand people to do that... there was no way in hell that would succeed..."
"You kept us together Olivia, for this long when everywhere else has fallen" Robinson said backing her up "You did all you could..."
"I appreciate that" Olivia said with a small smile, "But I can't run on this plan anymore Robinson, I can't just continue to play safe until the end reaches us. The time has come to act... and as much as I regret it... we need to wake up and face this threat!"
With this she proceeded on out of her office, Robinson could only stare on after her, before she brought back the Russian Commander tugging him by his larger hand, his eyes were unfocused and the scar on his head was clearly visible. Olivia looked at him and stroked her aged fingers across his bulging chest.
"It hurts" she muttered looking into his blank eyes "It really does Commander, I always preferred you when you spoke, when you opposed me. You would never have slept with an old thing like me before... but..." she laughed at that point "I've killed you, I've convinced myself for so long I never killed anyone, but I've been slaughtering rebels. Turning them into nothing but vegetables and sex toys all because I was scared for my own life... I really wanted to be a good leader and I wanted to show people I could do it..."
She inhaled deeply at that point, as Robinson continued to openly gawk at her, wondering where all of this was leading too.
"But you taught me something, sometimes taking a risk doesn't pay off... but sometimes it does"
With this she swept behind her desk and swiped a knife from nowhere and silt the commander's throat, he made a few surprised gasps as blood from his windpipe squirted and sprayed in every direction, staining the pristine white office with a shocking crimson coat. The commander fell to the ground as dead as could be, still oozing blood from his still form, as Olivia drenched within his blood simply stared down at his dead body, as blood dripped from her greying hairs and landed with quite splashes on the recently cleaned floor.
"P-P-pr-President?" Robinson stuttered in shock.
Olivia clutched onto her bloody knife even tighter.
"I'm not your president, fuck that bullshit and all those titles" Olivia snapped doing a complete 180 from her usual personality which caused Robinson to gaze at her with even more caution.
"What... why did you do that!?" Robinson muttered.
"Because he is useless and I can't continue to look after him" Olivia snapped harshly "It's time to let go of him and all the others I have, I want you to do the same Robinson. Kill all those whores you have, every last one of them or so help me I'll do it myself!"
"Olivia!" Robinson yelled in alarm.
"What!?" she snarled, looking back at him and daring him to challenge her and fight back, his lower lip trembled and he couldn't formulate a response. He wanted that selfish easy pleasure from one of the women who couldn't refuse. He had never been lucky with women before and Olivia had given him all he could have possibly asked for, yet... after a while there was lessening satisfaction. He hadn't earned his pleasure and he had tried to convince himself like Olivia this was all for re population and not killing anyone and all that stuff, but he knew the truth deep down.
That's why he couldn't argue back.
"If you want to get yourself a real woman, then there are still plenty left around who can help the community" she informed Robinson "The one's here we have killed, we need to let them go for good. It's the kindest thing we can do for them is too live on for them and we can't do that if we're babysitting them. I want all the Soldiers on the wall to kill there whores as well, I want every single goddamn vegetable in this city wiped out!"
"Olivia?"
"That's an order Robinson!" Olivia snapped "I don't think I care anymore, whether everyone has a bitch fit about it, the time's come to wake up and focus our attention on the walkers and actually surviving! I want all those euthanized burnt on a pyre at the city centre, if they resist have Soldiers kill them anyway and drag them out. But don't kill anyone who is still in their right minds, restrain them if you have too but I want everyone in this city around that pyre tomorrow at 3!"
"Why?" Robinson inquired.
"Because I'm going to give everyone a speech explaining why" Olivia said "I'm open for rebellion against me, I don't care anymore as long as we survive because... we might be all that's left! I can't repopulate the earth anymore, but I'm going to do my damn hardest to protect those who can!"
"Is that all?" Robinson asked, rather awe-struck.
"No. Not only do I want everyone working to protect this city, it's time we fought the walkers once again..."
"You can't mean...!" Robinson began.
"I'm ordering you to execute Code: AX..."
"But..." Robinson began.
"You said it yourself Robinson" Olivia reminded him "There's no one left out there, all communities are destroyed and there's nothing but savages outside. We have enough bombs in our underground units to blanket bomb the US and Canada combined and that's what we're going to do. To wipe out the walkers once and for all".
"Are we really doing this? There could still be people..." Robinson began to reason.
"There is no one left out there worth saving anymore!" Olivia protested "We need to think about here and us! We need to do this, AX is our last hope you know those walkers will never stop coming and if we don't fight back we're going to stay in here until they break in. I want Men stationed around the walls to gun down the thousands outside of our city. I want Jets back up in the air, as many of them as you can order and then..."
She sighed there.
"How many nuclear warheads do we have?"
"Three" Robinson responded "But we have to think about the radiation and permanent damage using bombs on such a scale will cause..."
"The land is already damaged and uninhabitable" Olivia reasoned "But I'd rather have a smoking crater without walkers, than land with walkers on. So... we need to get started as soon as possible, do you read me Robinson!"
Robinson blinked in a confused manner, the enormity of the task on his shoulders was something he had yet to digest.
"Robinson!" Olivia barked.
"Yes!" he exclaimed making his mind up "We're gonna do that Olivia, it's about time we fought back!"
"I knew I could rely on you" Olivia smirked "Enough whoring and wasting around, let's fight again it should give those sex crazed men at the wall something to do to kill time... hell I'm glad Wellington fell now! If it hadn't then we'd probably still be wasting away..."
With this Robinson left the room as Olivia sat back down again, the tears were now none existent on her face, the Commander's body still lay on the ground and the silence in her happiness was quite unnerving. She felt the damp blood on her clothes and hair and shivered slightly, but nothing could ruin her new fighting spirit, she clutched her knife tighter in her hand and walked on over to her bedroom, preparing to rid herself of her own mistakes and distractions.
She took one last look back at the city and most particularly the part of the city everyone called... "Wellington" named after the establishment Olivia had so much faith in but never got to see. Wellington was pleasant area, covered in rolling green plains and spotless buildings, an ideal day out for a good view or a picnic, yet that idealised Wellington had fallen and Olivia was glad it had, it was the wake up call she had needed. The world wasn't peaceful like that anymore and if she ever wanted it too be, she had to earn it.
By fighting for it.
"That's just what we do to people who aren't of use anymore, I'm sorry"
The weeping father slowly closed the door on them, Jena was stunned as she felt the dark spot from underneath her clothing spread as Ethan looked on in shock, the gunshot still ringing in his ears.
"Jena?" he called out blankly.
It was freezing out here, they were getting closer to Wellington but the endless piles of snow had built into an unforgiving blizzard that Jena and Ethan had to pile their way through, but with their fingers turning a deathly shade of blue and with the feelings in their hands and feet numbing out of existence it was clear they needed shelter of some sorts and the small house they had found was ideal for that, yet it was locked and inside a terrified family had screamed at them to leave.
"GET OUT OF HERE!" The mother had screamed, Ethan and Jena could hear the wails of two children and the mother and father who yelled back at them.
"WE JUST NEED SHELTER! WE'RE NOT GOING TO HURT YOU!" Jena protested "IT'S JUST ME AND VIKTOR HERE AND WE ARE HARMLESS...!"
"BULLSHIT!" The father bellowed "WE'RE STILL ALIVE BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T LET ANYONE IN! THEY ARE ALL BANDITS OUT THERE AND FUCKING THIEVES! WHY SHOULD YOU BE ANY DIFFERENT!"
"BECAUSE WE ARE!" Jena screamed "WE CAN HELP YOU! WE CAN HELP YOU FIND SUPPLIES! LOOK, WE'RE HEADING TO WELLINGTON ARE YOU...!?"
"GET AWAY! JUST GET AWAY! MAKE THEM GO HONEY!" The mother screamed from inside of the house, as there was a distinctive click of a gun from near the door, Ethan and Jena were planted in front of.
"We might freeze to death out here!" Ethan exclaimed, adding his input "Please, me and Jena have come a long way and we only require a night of rest in a warm place. We'll be on our way in the morning..."
Yet Ethan's reasonable words, didn't resonate with the father.
"GODDAMMIT! JUST LEAVE! THIS IS YOUR LAST WARNING!" He screamed.
"WE ARE GOING TO DIE OUT HERE!" Jena screamed back "WE CAN'T LEAVE! JUST LET US IN... WE CAN HELP...!"
At this the door had creaked open a fraction and Jena turned to Ethan with a small smile on her face.
"Well, looks like people can still be..." she began with a hopeful little smile, before a resounding BANG echoed across the snowy plains and the father had said it; "That's just what we do to people who aren't of use anymore, I'm sorry"
He closed the door, as Jena fell, she had been standing in front of the door and had been the one to take the bullet to the heart while Ethan had merely stood there and watched her fall. As she hit the snow, Ethan came to his senses and picked up her frail old form, feeling a fleeting sense in his stomach. Knowing full well she was going to die, but... but he didn't want her too! They had come this far!
"Jena" he said to the elder woman.
She cranked open her eyes and grinned at him.
"Who'd have... who'd have thought we'd have got this far?" she smiled, before coughing up some blood, holding her convulsing body Ethan felt something seep through him that he hadn't felt in a long time.
A wave of sadness.
"You look sad, you really are going to miss me, aren't you?" Jena asked.
"Y-Yes" Ethan admitted honestly, surprised that his voice was shaking as much as it was, as he faced the prospect of being alone once again.
"Always the honest one" Jena laughed to herself, before she shuddered and looked at the white sky above her.
"What's your real name Viktor, what are you really doing?" she asked "I just want to know, it's a dying woman's wish".
Ethan felt himself reply automatically.
"Zeljko, My real name's Zeljko I'm an agent deployed by the Russian Government to find a cure for the infection" he muttered "I wanted to get to Wellington, where there are a lot of people in the hope of finding an immune survivor who can give us a cure".
Jena smiled to herself, still gazing at the sky.
"If you weren't such a far-fetched person, I wouldn't have believed that far-fetched story" she said before she looked at him for the final time.
"Yet I do, good luck Zeljko son"
and with that she went still, the snow piled on her recently deceased body as Ethan let her slowly fall to the ground, as he rose up having not had any call him Zeljko since his parents had done all those years ago and that just made Jena seem more like his mother in those moments, his mother who had genuinely loved him and known the real him, back when he was an innocent, carefree child and where he wasn't an agent that lived under many false identities and name's. He realised in those moments he had just lost a mother figure and he felt a warm feeling crawl up his throat and something sting at the corner of his eyes...
No. He wouldn't cry.
Something else clouded his emotions in those moments, something he couldn't control. He had the strength so with it, he broke down the door to the house, grabbed the startled father's gun before he could react and in his fury had looked at the cowering, pathetic family that had been responsible for Jena's death. The two children clung onto their mother, crying and looking at him like he was... like he was...
A monster.
Ethan didn't care in those moments, maybe it was because of what he did next, that allowed him to feel nothing as the Wellington Wolf. As he grabbed the children and mother by their hairs and flung them into a basement Ethan had spotted while coming in. He soon tackled and chucked the father inside the basement as well. Ethan was aware they had fought him, he was aware he had punched and scratched and screamed at and had blood leaking from his skin. Yet none of the pain registered, the weeping and winded family were cowering in the basement exactly where he wanted them. Maybe he would have gotten one of the guns from his bag and shot them all there. But Jena was on her feet again as a hostile walkers, bringing chunks of snow into the house as she lumbered her way towards Ethan and with this another spur of the moment plan came to Ethan's senses, as he grabbed Jena by the hairs and flung her into the basement as well. The family screamed and backed into a corner, as Jena got up again.
"LET US OUT! PLEASE!" The father screamed "PLEASE HELP US, MY CHILDREN... YOU CAN'T... YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO THE CHILDREN...!"
The children were wailing in horror, as their screams drew Jena closer towards them, her greedy hands were outstretched. Ethan smiled a savage smile down at them, as he began to close the basement door on them.
"I don't forgive you, but let's see if she does" Ethan muttered, as the family screamed louder.
"That's just what I do to people who aren't of use anymore, I'm sorry" Ethan muttered in sarcasm, before he slammed the basement door shut and sat on it as the family wailed from below and begged to be let out. But Ethan blocked out all emotions, sound and pain as he continued to sit there as the family's wails turned to screams of pain and agony and soon the only sound that was heard from the basement were faint whimpers and the crunching of Jena devouring flesh. They had tried to fight her and they had failed no doubt, Jena had not forgiven them in the slightest.
Soon, everything was silent from the basement.
That, was how the Wellington Wolf dealt with monsters, that weren't himself.
Did he need to do it again?
It was the morning after and the shock of losing Robert, Jasper and Frank had not settled yet at all, the group were debating fiercely over the smouldering campfire about what on earth needed to be done with JJ. The insane boy himself was tied up to a tree, still plastered in blood and looking completely out of his mind as he nibbled away at one of his bloody fingers while speaking to himself quite openly.
"Fun... fun... fun... fun..." TT sing sang.
"I guess it is fun" JJ agreed, with a smile of his own "You were right TT, I guess I gave up back there, I'm glad you stopped me from breaking"
"Yep and look at the fun we're having!" TT exclaimed in joy, causing a few heads to turn in his direction. "So come on then JJ... who do we eat next?"
"Stop it!" JJ blushed "They're all staring now, they all look so delicious I can't decide..."
"Jesus, fucking, Christ" Jason snapped "Didn't I say back in the church that JJ's a complete lunatic, now look at him his completely fucking broken! Why are we even debating this! He needs to be put down right fucking now!"
There was a silence across the group, in the hours they had spent arguing JJ seemed to have gone deaf as he payed them no attention what-so-ever and continued to rant and rave to himself as if he and TT were the only two people to exist in the world.
"He doesn't even recognise what I'm saying, the kid's lost it" Jason said pushing his argument further forwards "If we want to get to Howe's place we need to be rid of him, do you know how much time and effort it would take to constantly watch him!".
"His a friend!" Luis argued back (it was surprising out of everyone, that Luis was jumping to JJ's defence) "I can fucking watch him myself if need be! Besides we don't know the full story yet, how do we know for certain that JJ killed those three!?".
"It's pretty fucking obvious" Jason snarled.
"I don't know, I'm not too sure, but I'm siding with my son on this matter" Maria muttered "We've known JJ the longest, maybe we can get through to him and ask him what really happened..."
"It looks like a goddamn massacre happened!" James exclaimed, the death of Frank had hit him hard indeed "Look, I know he was your friend. But now my friend is dead and it's been hours and we've got nothing from that kid. Nothing! I don't want an explanation, I want peace of mind and as we're unlikely to get an explanation from this freak, I just want him dead!" James proclaimed.
"JJ has always shown signs of being damaged" Terri muttered entering the debate "For a while it seemed like he could contain himself, but right now regardless of what happened, we saw him eating them. It's not the fact he is a good or bad person anymore, the fact remains he can no longer be reasoned with and has resorted to mindless insanity to deal with whatever pain was plagued him for so long. I've known JJ and I've liked him as a friend very much, but it's too risky to keep him around. He needs to be dealt with as soon as possible".
"How can you say that Terri!?" Luis exclaimed in horror "It's just you, me, mum and JJ here left from our group! His our family and you're just going to let him die!"
"This isn't an easy choice" Terri reasoned "But..."
"It certainly sounds easy to you!" Luis snapped "It always has done, you've hated him for ages. You've always thought he was off his rocker! But not me! I'm giving him a chance, I think he can still be redeemed!"
Jason opened his mouth to argue back, but was silenced by Terri.
"I know what you're doing Luis" she muttered icily "and I can't stop you, but you need to let him go. What happened to him isn't your fault and you can't fix it..."
"That's a fucking lie and you know it" Luis growled "People can be saved and redeemed, regrettably I learned my lesson from Clem here".
"Me?" Clementine said as she saw now that Luis was looking at her with impressionable eyes and it was then she realised she had made it her mission in Wellington to make him see the world as a brighter place. She had saved Nick, a good friend of Luis' and brought him back from the impossible and she realised that stuff like this, along with her impulse to go back into the field to save Luke (where he had followed her) seemed to have inspired him to follow in her footsteps. Yet right now, in this scenario she was insanely worried about how this had affected him, she had (deep down) been on Terri and Jason's side in the argument that JJ needed to be put down it was the correct and sensible option. Yet Luis arguing for the exact opposite and she was the role model that had inspired him to think this way, if she went against him now... she could picture the rage and disbelief that would spread across his face. She could hear his hateful words already, she could see his face slumping, all the faith he had rebuilt in humanity would be tarnished once again and he'd be that same cynical asshole once again. He wouldn't be the guy that had dived into the riot and saved her, he wouldn't have been the one that carried her through the herd after the hospital and Luke supposed death, he wouldn't been the one to agree to the plan to save Nick at the prison, that wouldn't have been the Luis that joked around with her, or threw bottles with her... that Luis would have been gone.
She remembered her first time meeting him, as he had held her back from saving someone, that hostile face in the shadows and his lack of faith in humanity... he merely wanted allies to save himself.
He never expected to make a friend.
Yet he had one right now, his complete and utter faith resting in Clementine's hands, as the 15 year old realised then just how close she and Luis had become and if she went back on her word now... she'd be that boy in the alley. Holding Luis back from saving somebody who could have been saved despite the risk. She convinced herself in those moments that whatever was going through Luis' head that gave him justification to spare JJ, she simply had to support, because maybe, maybe a small part inside of her wanted to see JJ gain redemption anyway. Sarah had liked him at one point, there had to be good in JJ somewhere, somewhere deep down, right?
"Yeah" Clementine muttered "Yeah, we spare him at least until we can find out what happened. We will get the real story from him it will just take some time and if we're all watching him..."
"We don't have time for this!" Jason snapped "We need to get to Howe's, he puts that at risk! We-Put-Him-Down!"
"I agree with Clem" Luke piped up "We can't kill him if we didn't know what happened. It might look obvious, but we never know and we have the numbers here too watch him and..."
"Luke" came a new quiet voice "Do you remember what happened the last time you let a mad-dog live?"
Eddie stepped forward, his presence silenced everyone, as he continued to speak.
"Wyatt died Luke and we got divided" Eddie snapped "Don't make the same mistake man, or someone you know is going to die. I mean that, you think you have JJ under control, but he'll find a way out and when he does... we might live through it. There is only one of him after all, but the damage he could do. The people he could take... I'm begging you Luke, don't make the same mistake. You are going to regret this if you let him live".
Luke gulped, Eddie's black eyes now boring into his own. Luke was only agreeing with what Clementine was saying because it seemed like the morally right thing to do, if Clementine hadn't have backed JJ's chances than Luke doubted that he would have as well. But with Maria (the sensible Medic) and now with Clem fighting for him. Luke had shamelessly followed suite and convinced himself he didn't want his group resorting to murder with no evidence, despite the very obvious murder scene. He still needed some sort of explanation from JJ to get the truth, that's the lie he told himself to make this seem like it was the best choice.
Unknown to him, Clementine only agreed as Luis had done, as had Maria. Despite her sensible side screaming at her to disagree with her son, she found that she couldn't do it. Not after seeing him go through such a positive change and too watch his old friend die... if that we're too happen she knew Luis would return to his sulky state, as she knew Luis blamed himself for how JJ had turned out and now Luis was hoping he could help the blonde haired boy. So with that Maria had decided to try and help him as well, convincing herself she didn't want too lose another member of their old group. First Tom had descended to madness and now JJ... she couldn't take it, maybe it was a foolish decision but she was making it anyway.
Eddie's speech however left an impressive silence within the group, before Luke found that he had to break it.
"Maybe I will" he said "But I have faith this time around Eddie, it ain't gonna be like last time".
"Faith isn't going to save you, it didn't save me" Eddie snarled before he turned away from Luke and proceeded to sit on down by the dead campfire once again, he looked into it's ashes and was reminded of everyone he had lost in Wellington. Violet, Rebecca and AJ...
"Although..." he muttered to the ashes "Don't come crying to me when something bad happens because all I'm going to say is, I told you so"
With this grim statement out of his system, Eddie remained silent and allowed the group to make another stupid mistake.
"I'm with you then Luke" Nick muttered rather predictably "Any movement from this guy though, if he escapes or harms anyone we kill him instantly" Nick warned, despite following Luke he was also aware of Stephanie and the baby he had on the way and he wouldn't be too forgiving or trustworthy, if someone found eating people had escaped their grasp. But with Luke and his friend Luis and Clementine backing the decision to let JJ live, it didn't seem like such a bad idea in Nick's eyes. Maybe he really was stupid, maybe he was just following the herd rather than trust his gut instinct, but he had faith in the group and he wasn't going to be a pessimistic asshole in this situation. He had helped himself and Sarah a long time ago, two people who were helpless... it wasn't the same as JJ but... he had also helped Stephanie as well. He could do this, he had a lighter side and he was going to continue fighting for good.
"Yeah, I'm with you guys" Stephanie agreed, taking hold of Nick's hands, she would obviously be following the majority of her group's leadership, yet she remained holding onto tightly to the father of her child regardless. As if seeking his protection and care even more now as she felt as though she was doing something very wrong, but couldn't speak out in words where this unease was coming from.
"Well I really don't like this" Molly muttered right off the bat "But if everyone thinks he can't be any danger, I'm going throw my hat in and say why the fuck not. We kill him anyway if he puts a toe out of line so that's good enough for me". As Molly hadn't actually seen the state of the three deceased her mind was more at ease than the others and she had naturally gravitated towards the decision her group had made for her.
"This is madness!" Jason roared "Stop being green loving fucking hippies! and get your head out of your arses he needs to die!"
"We have this under control Jason" Luke snarled "Or don't you have any faith in me as a leader at all?"
Jason was silent after this.
"We'll put this too a vote then!" Luke exclaimed "Whoever wants to see JJ killed here and now, raise your hands!"
Jason thrust his hand into the air instantly, Terri followed suite.
"It's the right thing to do" she persisted.
Ethan gazed at her and remembered the family he had killed in vengeance for Jena and how he dealt with monsters, how he dealt with threats to the group and found his hand drifting into the air as well.
"It's for the group's safety" he said.
James raised his hand into the air, after a few moments silence, Aidan, Jessica, Cristina King and Eddie followed his lead.
"You're insane, why keep him alive after what he did?!" Aidan inquired.
"He needs to go!" Jessica persisted.
"This isn't an easy choice you know, I just think you guys are a bit..." Miss King finished there trying to find the words to define the group who disagreed with her.
"A bit what?" Luke challenged.
"A bit emotionally blinded by it" Miss King said "I know it's a hard choice, but it's easier for us guys to see it, as we weren't as close to JJ as you were. I'm just saying looking at it from an objective point of view, I think it's the right choice".
Sighing, Luke did a quick count of those that wanted JJ dead.
James, Eddie, Jason, Miss King, Aidan, Terri, Ethan and Jessica 8 of them.
There was sixteen of them within the group and Luke knew what this meant, as he counted those that hadn't raised their hands.
Luke, Clementine, Molly, Nick, Stephanie, Luis, Maria, Melanie 8 of them.
It was spilt vote.
"Why do you want to keep him alive?" Aidan snapped at Melanie.
"I just want the truth" Melanie muttered "I'm not that emotionally blinded as Cristina said, it's just... what we saw. Did Robert kill himself and then what the hell happened with Frank and Jasper, did they get into a fight or something? Why were they naked? What if JJ came across the scene like we did and it broke his sanity or something? It sounds mad but I need answers and JJ's the only one who might have seen something to help us... I know it's stupid but to honour those who died we at least deserve an explanation for what the hell happened back there".
She finished there, as she gazed at JJ knowing full well the kid had answers somewhere and she needed to find it out.
"It's a spilt vote" Luke announced "So... we're in a bit of sticky situation people. But I doubt JJ would want himself killed and as you guys voted me leader here..."
"THIS IS BULL!" Jason exclaimed.
"No, let him make that mistake" Eddie muttered darkly "He'll learn, believe me".
"I guess JJ lives for now then" Luke muttered, feeling drained and it was barely the first thing in the morning, after burying Robert, Frank and Jasper and now having this debate along with constraining JJ, he was exhausted after the revelations he had revealed last night as well. He still had to let the inner core of his group know about that, but now the worst thing had happened. There was a clear divide within the group as half had wanted JJ put down while the half did not so these next couple of days were going to be stressful, with Howe's on the horizon, the worsening winter, the wolves tailing them, the walkers that could show up anywhere and at anytime, the increasing urgency of these dreams and unbeknown to all of them an incoming bombing raining all the way from the distant city of Utopia...
Added that to now keeping an eye on JJ and finding food...
Luke groaned and sat down on his one leg, massaging the place where one of his eyes used to be, he truly was battered by the constant hells this world threw at him, as the group dispersed muttering angrily amongst themselves.
"Thanks for backing me up Clem" Luis mused.
Clementine found that she couldn't look him in the eye.
"It was... really nothing" she muttered shyly.
"Hey Luke" Stephanie muttered "I'm getting better with the bow and you look exhausted, you rest here and keep Nick company I'm going go get us some breakfast".
"Stef are you sure?"
"Yeah, I'll take Clem with me" she told him as Clementine found herself by Stephanie's side, as Clementine looked down at him, both of them shared an uneasy glance and then both of them looked back at JJ.
"Be careful" Luke muttered at Clementine.
"You too" he replied.
Clementine was now heading off to deal with animals, Luke looked at his divided group and then at the babbling form of JJ.
and he had to deal with animals too, he had taken Robert's gun from his discarded backpack...
Just in case he needed it.