To All Reviewers - To give a bulk response to the majority of reviews, Maggie's death wasn't an easy call to make but it made sense considering what she had done after losing her father in the comics. Glenn was her savior and without him, her taking her life was something sadly easier for her to do. I hope that makes sense to everyone as much as it does suck to lose her character, and also having to put Hershel and Billy through that trauma. Thank you all for the reviews though, I'm glad the death was still a shock even though some expected it!
Bluntwave - So Doug and Alice did have an idea to do what Milton from the TV series did which was remove the nails and teeth to basically neuter the walker but unfortunately they took too long to make it safe. Also, Billy's personality is going to be changed but not directly from the wound more from the experience.
Rodan1920 - Sorry for the wait again, personal loss and computer troubles kept me out but I am back now and I hope you're ready for a wild right!
Chapter 34: The Beginning of The End
Maggie let out a hiss, blood squirting from her torn jugular as the female walker tore a chunk of her neck free. Maggie collapsed backward as the group of survivors sprinted towards the girl, "Good lord!" Chuck exclaimed in horror as he reeled back, glancing back to Hershel, who weakly collapsed to his knees.
"Oh my god, Maggie!" Tyreese exclaimed as Andrea snatched her rifle off the ground, leveled it on her shoulder, and took a direct shot through the walker's skull. The group reached Maggie's side in seconds, finding her in a pool of her own blood, weak spurting breaths leaving her mouth, "Get Doctor Stevens now!" Tyreese ordered as he knelt down and cupped a hand around Maggie's throat, attempting to stop the bleeding, "Maggie, just save your strength, hold on!"
"Let me die...let me…" Maggie's gravely voice begged one final time before her eyes grew still and her chest stopped rising completely,
"Fuck...oh Jesus fucking Christ," Tyreese all but gasped to himself as he let go of Maggie, scooting himself back from her and slowly shaking his head while looking at the fallen girl,
"I...I can't believe she…" Julie whispered out, her whole body shaking wildly while she pushed herself into Ben,
"She just walked out and went right up to it...didn't hesitate, didn't do nothing but talk for a minute then step forward so it could grab her," Chuck explained in disbelief, "Hershel...Hershel saw it all," He added on with a sorrowful look,
"Where is he, we can't let him her like this," Lee swiftly said while glancing over towards the fields, though the farmer was nowhere to be seen, "Guys? Where is Hershel?"
Just then the group heard a snarl as Maggie sprung back to life, her reanimated corpse lunging immediately towards Tyreese but before Tyreese could even register what was happening a bullet tore through her forehead putting Maggie down once and for all. The group looked up and saw Carly, smoking gun still raised, looking down at the girl with pursed lips. She let out a low shaky exhale as she lowered her gun and then turned away without a word.
Back inside the infirmary, Billy slowly blinked his eyes attempting to register what he was seeing as he came to. With a low pained groan he slowly sat his sore body up and looked over only to see Molly jump back as if she was seeing a ghost, "Holy shit!"
"Molly?" Billy grumbled as he lifted his head, feeling a slight painful throb, "What the fuck happened, where am I?"
"T-The prison...you...you got fucking shot," Molly stammered back,
"Shot?" Billy replied with a small shake of his head, "No, we were at that store and...and I was talking to Mark, getting some things to bring back with us…"
"Yeah, and then some of those assholes from Woodbury showed up," Molly continued, attempting to jog the teen's memory, "Martinez got shot and you ran out, trying to make them surrender and then you got shot...in your head,"
"My head?" Billy repeated in disbelief as he ran his hand along his wrapped bandage, "How the fuck am I alive?"
"I don't know," Molly said with an uncertain laugh, "You looked like one-hundred and eighty pounds of dead meat in this bed for the last few weeks,"
"Weeks?!" Billy exclaimed as he tossed his blankets off his body and struggled to get up, "Christ, where's my dad and Maggie?"
"They should be outside I think, your dad was here almost every day and Maggie came down like...an hour ago, maybe?" Molly explained while jumping up and helping Billy get out of bed. His legs were a bit wobbly but surprisingly it didn't take long for the teen to find his strength, "You know, I don't think the Doc will be too happy with you getting up,"
"I don't fucking care, I need to go see my dad," Billy rebuffed, "I need to see Mags,"
"Okay, okay," Molly nodded with a growing grin, "I was never one for following rules anyway, I'll help bust you out," Billy reached out, using the blonde woman to steady himself while he began to take a few steps forward. The pair only made it four steps however before Doctor Stevens and Kenny came walking through the door, the redneck now having a freshly bandaged hand and the doctor holding a proud smile on his face. The four stopped in shock as they met each other and after a moment Molly let out a short chuckle, "He's awake…"
Back outside Lee jumped into action immediately, with Maggie dead and Hershel suddenly missing the man could only assume the worst and right now all he could think of doing was to find him. "Tyreese, Axel, Chuck, get something to cover her up with and get this fucking walker out of here. When we find Hershel, the last thing in the world he needs to see is either one of them," Lee ordered, causing the three men to jump into action, "Andrea, Carly, go check out C-Block and the cafeteria. Julie, Ben, see if he went to A-Block, Rick and Dale, keep an eye outside, see if ends up wandering back. I'll go to the infirmary," Lee let out a low exhale and looked around at the others, "Guys, with Billy in a coma and Maggie gone...we may want to prepare ourselves for what Hershel may do…"
"Let's not think like that, Hershel is a godly man, he doesn't believe in suicide," Rick swiftly pointed out, "We just need to find him,"
"You're right, let's not waste any time," Lee agreed and the group all split up rushing to find the elderly vet,
Back in the infirmary Doctor Stevens and Kenny stared wide-eyed at the younger Greene boy, "I can see that," Doctor Stevens replied to Molly in utter shock, "William, are you alright? How does everything feel? Do you know where you are?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine, I need to see my dad and sister, please," Billy begged,
"That's fine, I'll send for them, but you need to stay here for me, I need to monitor you," Doctor Stevens urged,
"Yeah, pop a squat kid, I'll go and get your dad, he'll be happy as hell to see you up," Kenny said with a quick nod as he turned towards the door only to pause as Lee came jogging inside,
"Kenny! Hey, Hershel here? We can't find him since - Billy!" Lee exclaimed in joyous surprise, "Jesus, you're awake!"
"What's wrong with my dad?" Billy asked back, looking at Lee with a sense of worry, "Why do you look so freaked out about him?"
"Yeah, what do you mean you can't find him? Since what?" Kenny added on in confusion.
Lee's eyes flicked between the four in front of him before solely landing on Billy, "Billy...We're looking for your dad because...because your sister...I'm sorry, Billy, she took her life," Lee hardly admitted causing Billy's eyes to grow wide while Molly looked over to Billy, tentatively placing a hand on his shoulder attempting to give him some comfort, "A walker...was brought in and chained up but she walked up and let it bite her neck...your dad saw...and now we don't know where he went,"
"Oh, fucking hell…" Kenny said under his breath as he too turned to Billy who stood silent, seemingly taking in all the news but not knowing which emotion to feel in response, "Jesus Christ...how does something like this happen? A walker was brought inside here?" Kenny continued, his tone growing low and agitated,
"Doug and Alice were going to research on, they brought it in, chained it up, and were going to make it safer in time but...I don't think it was planned on her part, just something she decided to do," Lee merely guessed in response, "But what happened isn't what's important now, the priority if finding Hershel before he does something he's gonna regret,"
"Hell, no more use talking about it then, c'mon, we gotta find him," Kenny sharply ordered as he headed towards the door,
"Kenneth, please, you must be careful with your hand!" Doctor Stevens called out to the southern fisherman desperately but it clearly fell on deaf ears,
"Billy...are you alright?" Lee gently asked the teenager who let out a long breath along with a few quick blinks, as if being shaken out of a dream,
"I need to find my dad," Billy calmly replied, though the trio could hear the intense sincerity in his voice,
Doctor Stevens pursed his lips and looked at Molly, "I don't like it, but it's clear he's not going to just sit down. Watch him, and if he starts to act strange, lose his balance, anything out of the ordinary you bring him right back to me. A serious head injury is no joking matter," Molly silently nodded back as she, Billy, and Molly made their way out of the infirmary joining the hunt for the missing farmer.
Close to twenty minutes passed, and the only things found in the cellblock were the odd discovery that Hershel had recently been in his cell, tearing apart some of his bags before disappearing back into the unknown. The group had filtered back into the yard, now assured that the elderly vet was no longer in the building, "Anything?" Lee called out to Julie and Ben,
"Nothing man," Ben replied with a quick shake of his head, "The guy is just gone,"
"Yeah, we even made sure to check the garage," Julie added before doing a double-take as she saw Billy standing next to the ex-professor, "Billy? Holy shit, you're awake?"
"If you say so," Billy dryly replied, slowly looking around the yard, "Nothing from you guys either?" The teen asked Carly and Andrea as they approached,
"Nothing, everyone we ran into said they hadn't seen or heard from him...you alright?" Andrea gently asked the teen who willfully ignored the question,
Just then the group heard the sound of thumping feet as Chuck, Axel, and Tyreese ran towards the group, "Guys, you moved Maggie?"
"What? No, of course not, we left that to you guys," Lee denied with a look of concern, "You lost her?"
"She turn?" Billy suggest without much care in his tone, something that gave few a concerned shiver down their spines,
"She did...but I put her to rest already," Carly lowly informed the younger Greene boy,
"So you telling me, now Hershel and Maggie are missing? Shit...that ain't good," Kenny muttered under his breath. Though before the man could continue he looked up and stepped forward, "Now what the hell is going on?" He asked aloud as he noticed Rick running along the inner gate, waving and yelling to get their attention.
Rushing over, the group reached Rick who let out a few huffing breaths, "S-Someone lit off some f-firecrackers at the eastern tower, got the dead all gathered up there now. What the hell is happening?" Rick asked in complete bewilderment,
"It was my dad," Billy confidently stated, "When we packed up to move in here, I took some from my room, he found them and took them away, telling me that they'd only cause problems," Billy explained with a short shake of his head, "That's what he tossed his cell to find, and he's the one who must have taken my sister's body,"
"Taken her where?" Lee asked back,
"Home…" Billy lowly replied before turning and storming right towards the garage,
"Billy hold on, we need to think this through," Rick called out to the teen, "If Hershel really just left with Maggie's body to go back to the farm alone...who knows what could happen to him out there,"
"Listen, y'all just get things back in order over here, I'll go with him, make sure all three of us get back here safe...I owe Hershel that," Kenny wholeheartedly stated,
"Kenny -" Carly began to argue only for the man to toss up a hand as he began to follow Billy,
"No use in arguing, this is what's happening," Kenny sharply interrupted, his tone holding complete finality on the subject. With haste, the middle-aged father jogged over towards the garage entrance catching Billy just as he got to the door, "You remember how to get home from here?"
"Every step," Billy murmured back as he walked to a motorcycle, running his hand over the seat of the bike before resting it on a handlebar, "I'll be back in a few hours, at most,"
"Hell you will," Kenny scoffed as he instead moved to a patrol car, pulling open the squeaking driver door and resting his arm over the top, "You'd be on your ass by the time you hit the first turn,"
"You're not stopping me from going after my dad," Billy shot back, his glare cold and hard,
"Wasn't planning on it, just want to get you to him in one piece," Kenny clarified as he motioned to the passenger seat, "Get in, we're burning daylight," Billy stared back at Kenny for a moment before nodding and walking to him.
However, just as the teen began to pull the door open, "Billy," Molly's voice easily called over from the garage entrance, "Here," Molly tossed the teen Hilda, a concerned look resting in her eyes. It seemed like a silent plead for him not to go, but the rest of Molly's demeanor showed exactly how much she understood what anyone should do for family, "Don't get fucking shot this time, alright?"
"I'll do my best," Billy nodded, his lips flickering into the briefest of smiles as he got into the car, clutching the blonde's climbing pick in his hands,
"Molly, you get that gate open for us?" Kenny called from the driver's side. The girl let out a nod and spun around, taking off towards the front gate while Kenny started the car and followed her out. With a quick yank, Molly was able to pull open the entry gate just enough for Kenny and Billy to drive out past the gate, leaving the prison, heading right towards Hershel's farm and hopefully the man himself.
It was close to an hour before the pair were even close to the farm, more roadblocks had popped up since the group had moved from the farm to the prison but thankfully it was still passable in the prison cruiser, "It's just straight on from here," Billy said to Kenny as the took a final right turn and reached an old dirt straight away,
"I remember…" Kenny nodded as he looked around at the vast and now overgrown cornfields, "All them months ago, I remember when Katjaa and I stumbled upon your farm only a few days into all this mess," The man lowly continued as he played the night over in his head, "Your brother Shawn and Hershel were taking care of Clementine, Shawn found her that night if I recall,"
"Yeah, he found her in a treehouse with his friend Chet," Billy nodded a mournful smile on his face as he remembered the image of his older step-brother when he and Chet returned with the little girl, "He was good like that, brave and smart...always went out of the way to help anyone,"
"I wish...I wish I had gotten to know him better, I wish I hadn't...hadn't stood there when he died like a fool," Kenny bitterly added as he tightened his good hand on the wheel, "Your father has gone through too much in his life...to lose a child, I couldn't bear losing my wife, but to lose six of your own…"
"He is the strongest person I know," Billy thoughtfully added, "But even he has limits that he can't take...I...I don't know if it makes sense, but I am sad for my dad but so angry at my sister for doing this to us," Billy hardly continued, tears starting to form in his eyes, "Arnold, Lacy, Shawn, Rachel, and Susie. They didn't have a choice, they got killed but Maggie...she decided to die because of...it's not fair,"
"I know, it's not easy, loss is a hell of a thing without throwing that in there. Even with Carol, I thought...hell, I mean we can forgive them eventually but it don't make it any less wrong. No matter how tough it gets you to stick it out, go as far as you can, and help the folks you care about," Kenny wholeheartedly stated as Billy let out a silent but fully understanding nod in response.
It was only a few minutes later the pair saw the distant farmhouse coming into view, "There it is...dad is probably already here,"
"I don't know, a hell of a trek to take on foot," Kenny reminded the teen, "Took us an hour by car,"
"You didn't grow up out here, my dad did," Billy returned as he looked out the car window, focusing solely on his family home, "He knows every back trail and shortcut in the county, he'll be here,"
Kenny hummed in agreement, oddly enough he did believe the kid, Hershel was one man that always had a way of getting things done. Kenny slowed their car and pulled off to the entry gate of the farm that was ever so slightly ajar. "Fence has held up," Kenny noted, running his eyes up and down the crudely fortified fence that Hershel's son Shawn had started and was later finished after his death.
"Over here, dad buried all of my brothers and sisters along the east fence next to the barn," Billy lowly said while pushing the fence open. Kenny eased his pistol out from the back of his belt and followed the teen, fence or no, it had been well over a month since anyone had been at Hershel's farm. "Christ...last time I was here was when we came back to bury Rachel and Susie," Billy weakly muttered out,
"I remember that day y'all left for that," Kenny nodded, briefly reliving the day he and his son buried Katjaa. Before Kenny or Billy could continue the pair heard a grunt and then a plap as a huck of dirt was tossed away. Clearing the side of the house the pair relaxed as they found Hershel, now knee-deep in a hole shoveling away.
The elderly farmer must have been at the job for a good twenty minutes at least, the sweat on his brow and running down his back proving it. Billy felt a pit in his stomach as he saw the body laying on the ground next to Hershel's hole, a blanket thankfully covering the face of his sister. The youngest Greene took a tentative step forward but his eyes widened when he saw his father reach forward, snatching up a bottle of brown liquid and guzzling more than a fair share. Kenny grimaced, and Billy lightly shook his head, "Dad?"
Hershel slowly craned his neck, his glossy eyes taking a moment to focus on the pair standing before him, "Billy?" Hershel asked, his speech having the slightest slur attached,
"Dad, what are you doing? Why are you out here alone? You don't drink," Billy chastised his father as he stepped closer, "You told us all you gave it up the day Arnold was born, never had a drop since,"
"Until today," Hershel nodded in agreement but to Billy's surprise he watched his father bring the bottle back to his lips and swallowed down another gulp, "You brought my son out here?" Hershel then asked as he turned to Kenny,
"No, he volunteered to go with me," Billy corrected, "I was coming out here for you regardless,"
Kenny silently agreed, "Hershel, people are worried about you. You took off without a word, some are expecting the worst," The fisherman attempted to explain in a calm tone that surprised Billy, having not heard Kenny speak in such a gentle way. Hershel pursed his lips and sipped on his bottle again, "How much have you had?"
"Not enough," Hershel grunted back,
Kenny looked to Billy before stepping forward and kneeling down, "Why don't you let me switch out with you. We get Maggie put to rest and then finish this up at home," The southern man gently offered,
Hershel shoved away Kenny's helping hand and stumbled back, almost falling over on the other end of the grave, "For weeks I put aside my daughter's feelings, I neglected the pain she was in believing she'd come out of it and heal but how could she? So much loss, I wouldn't talk about it, I robbed her of that grief," The man bitterly announced with a shake of his head, "And now I've lost my family, I've lost my children,"
"Not all of them, your son is standing right here expecting his father," Kenny sternly shot back, "I know I ain't winning no father of the fucking year awards but you are a damn good one and you have to keep being that as long as he is breathing,"
Hershel let out a nearly snarling laugh as he sucked down some more liquor before shaking his head, "A good father, my children have all died because of my neglect, my failure! I blamed you for Shawn's death for so long but I saw that my anger was only in spite. You saved your son, you protected him while I failed to save mine. Rick runs to my farm, shot boy in his arms, and is able to keep him safe while I allowed my two eldest to be eaten by the dead in my barn! My daughters...my little girls, I should have been watching them and protected them from that murderer, Thomas, and now Maggie...what good could I do for my son who got shot because I let him out from my watch…" Hershel nearly sobbed, his head dropping low and arms falling limp,
Kenny hung his head and let out a pained exhale, understanding the man's plight all too well, knowing the guilt that can weigh on a soul from inactivity or mistakes. Standing back up and moved to Billy's side who stood arms crossed, glaring down at his father, "Might just be best to wait for him to conk out, can't keep at the bottle much longer before it takes him,"
"Just go!" Hershel called out giving his arm a sluggish wave, "Let me be,"
Before Kenny could try to respond Billy suddenly shoved past him, storming towards his father, "So what's your plan then? Finish that bottle, drink yourself to death and leave me all alone? Just stay here and die with the rest of the family with a bottle in your hand?" Billy spat out, his eyes full of rage,
Hershel's face tightened and he pulled himself out of the hole immediately, "You do not talk to me that way! I am your father, the bible teaches -" He began to lecture only for his son to swiftly interrupt him,
"Respect thy mother and father, but you are not my father!" Billy screamed back causing Hershel's eyes to go wide in a mixture of shock and hurt, "My father does not drown his sorrows in liquor! My father does not give up on hope! My father does not choose death over his children!" Hershel pursed his lips and diverted his gaze from his son, "And I don't mean just me, I mean that for everyone, Maggie, Shawn, Rachel, Susie...every last one of my brothers and sisters who died. If you loved any of us, my father wouldn't be standing before me like this,"
Kenny watched as Hershel's fists began to clench, his whole body starting to shake and he gingerly began to lift his eyes back to Billy's. The southern man took a half step forward, knowing Hershel had been known to have spouts of anger in his grief, but to his relief, the farmer suddenly yanked his son into a tight embrace. A soft whimper left Hershel's mouth as he kept his last child against his body and Billy immediately began to return the hug, knowing that he reached his father. Silently Kenny walked around the pair and took hold of the shovel by the grave, clumsily digging what he could with his one good hand.
Back in the prison, a strong downpour had begun forcing the rest of the group back into the prison, now all sitting and thinking about what had happened to Maggie, as well as Hershel. Gathered up in a small lounging area put together outside the cells in cellblock b stood Dale, Andrea, Tyreese, and Martinez while Mark sat on a couch behind them, head hanging down. "Jesus Christ, I can't believe something like that really happened," Martinez sighed before giving a small groan and rubbing his still healing wound on his abdomen,
"I hate that I got involved with anything to do with bringing that walker in here," Andrea bitterly added, "I was so dumb, thinking that we were all safe and happy in here, and I bring in the biggest threat,"
"Hon, you couldn't have known what Maggie was going to do," Dale instantly reassured his girlfriend, "No one could have,"
"You listen to him, girl, you can not blame yourself," Tyreese vehemently added in agreement,
Suddenly the group heard Mark speak up, his voice low and full of guilt, "She came to me...right before she did what she did. She threw herself on me and we...we had sex, and then she...she killed herself. How could I have been so stupid? I shouldn't have...I should...God damn it...why?" Mark sighed as he buried his face into his hands while the others stared back at him in shock and sympathy,
Meanwhile, Lee and Carly had made their way towards the generator room, looking for Doug, noticing their geeky friend hadn't been seen since learning of what happened to Maggie. As they pushed open the door they spotted the man busily working on the machine, using Ben as an extra hand, directing the teen around to different areas. "Doug? What are you doing?" Carly asked,
"Diagnostics," Doug curtly replied, not giving the pair a second glance, "Ben, head to switchboard three and pull levers two and three for me,"
"Sure man, but uh...how much longer are we doing this? I told Julie I was only going to be a few minutes, I'm guessing Chuck is getting tired of babysitting," Ben meekly asked, reluctant to keep up with the task he had been doing for thirty minutes now,
"If you don't want to help you can feel free to leave!" Doug suddenly snapped out surprising everyone, including himself. Ben stared back at Doug who stood slack-jawed for a moment before clearing his throat, "Ben...I am so sorry, I...I'm not sure where that came from. Please, I appreciate all your help and you can go," Ben let out a small nod and headed out of the room, giving a final concerned look to Lee and Carly,
"Doug? Everything okay, buddy?" Lee asked as he slowly approached,
Doug braced himself on the generator control console, hanging his head in shame, "Lee...I don't know how to handle this...what I was a part of,"
"What do you mean, Doug?" Carly asked in a gentle tone, "What were you a part of?"
"Maggie...I convinced Rick not to put down that walker. I agreed with Alice to even bring the thing in here, I fought for it to happen and now Maggie is gone. I was a part of that, I know I didn't make her take her life but I provided the means…" Doug answered, his voice breaking with each word, "I was a fool, and now someone who should still be here isn't and...and I still am,"
"Doug no," Lee sharply interjected, "This wasn't your fault, but more importantly you belong here. No matter what you think and feel, your life is just as important as anyone else's,"
"To what end, Lee? I was a terrible doctor. I can't fight walkers, and I certainly can't fight against people," Doug denied, "So many better people are gone, and for once I am a direct cause for one of them,"
"You can't think like that, you're the one who provided us the power that has saved lives and helped deliver Lori's baby, Doug you can't treat yourself like that," Carly urged as she reached out and placed a hand on his back,
"I...I want to believe that but I need to be of use, I need to do something for this group. I owe a life…" Doug whispered back, shutting his eyes, seemingly making the statement a promise.
Two weeks later…
Rick stood in the armory with Lee and Tyreese while Andrea and Mark suited up in a pair of riot suits, "That one should fit better," Rick noted as Andrea finished strapping on the chest piece to a smaller riot suit, "What do you think?"
"Yeah, way better, I'm not swimming in it like the other ones," Andrea nodded,
"I just hope with the heat out there we won't drop in these black suits," Mark joked as he strapped a helmet on his head, "There, looks pretty sweet, right?"
"Yeah, I wouldn't fuck with you," Lee joked back,
"Andrea, helmet," Tyreese called out as he tossed one over to the woman,
"I know this thing can save my life, and Dale insists, but I really wish I didn't have to wear all this shit," Andrea grumbled as she reluctantly put the helmet on,
"Look, you two are getting posted into the two front towers to keep an eye out for any attacks," Rick replied, "You will be the first to take shots but all be the first targets, we got to keep you safe. Billy and Carly will shift in and out when you need them,"
"Billy and Axel are stocking the towers with a few boxes of ammo for rifles, and some of the grenades we looted from the national guard station," Lee added on, "It'll give you two a decent advantage if anyone gets too close to the fences,"
"Sweet, I know I'm not as good of a shot as Andrea, but I got a hell of an arm, trust me," Mark smirked, "Anyone comes to mess with us, I'll do whatever it takes,"
"We know you will, Mark," Tyreese lightly chuckled as he gave the man a pat on the arm, "Come on guys, let's get them out there,"
"You guys go on, Kenny wanted to talk to me at the fences," Rick said as he followed the group out of the armory, but instead split off heading towards the far exit of the cell block. The sheriff moved out the block and headed up the prison yard moving towards the man in the faded ballcap by the front gate, "Kenny," Rick called over to the man who turned and gave him a respectful nod,
"Perfect timing, now about what I wanted to talk to you about," Kenny began with a motion out towards the massed walkers outside the fence, "See that? You know what it is?"
"Walkers," Rick replied with a short chuckle,
"Naw, it's a god damn wall Rick," Kenny smiled, "Think about it, we got probably three or four lays thick of the dead, and nothing is getting to us until they get through them. Not even bullets,"
Rick pushed his hand into his pocket and let out a small nod, "You've got a point, no one can storm our gates without wasting tones of ammo on that horde," The sheriff agreed, "We'll leave them be, for now, let them be our first layer of defense,"
"Exactly what I was thinking pal," Kenny nodded as he gave Rick a soft pat on the shoulder while the pair headed back towards the others in the yard.
As they noted a few things such as Dale learning to walk with a new-fashioned peg leg for his stump, Michonne and Tyreese playing Lee and Carly in a friendly game of basketball while Hershel, Chuck, and Axel led the harvesting effort on the farm with the help of Billy, Molly, Ben, and Juliet.
Kenny took the chance and lightly jogged over to the older farmer who despite his loss had been slowly, started to come back around, as weak as it was. Kenny stepped over to the man and reached down, grabbing a fresh tomato and sinking his teeth right into it, "Hell of a job you did Hershel, one hell of a job," Kenny congratulated,
"It was a group effort, I didn't do it alone," Hershel dryly replied, "We may have even been too efficient, a lot of this will go bad without storage,"
"Don't be so sure, if we brave the chore and clean out the freezer, Doug could get juice flowing into that box again," Kenny suggested,
"That...wouldn't be a bad choice, it'd take the flavor out of the food but it's better than...wasting...it" Hershel began to reply only to slow his words before stopping altogether, his eyes widening in pure fear as he looked out towards the horizon.
Just a few yards away Lori sat watching over the kids when Patricia approached her, "Hey, need an extra pair of eyes for the kids?"
Lori looked up and smiled at the woman, "Actually yes, with everyone else so tied up, it's getting a bit difficult,"
Patrica's smile grew, "I don't mind, I have nothing better to do," She joked out to the mother, "Hey, think we're watching a movie tonight?" The ginger-haired woman added only for a sudden burst of blood to spray over Lori's face. Patrica's eyes drooped wide, her jaw dropped and blood began to leak from a now giant hole in her forehead. Lori let out a piercing scream as the woman's body dropped like a sack of bricks.
Outside the fence, Crawford Oberson lowered his smoking rifle slinging it over his riot suit-covered shoulder with a smile. He slammed a fist down on his humvee causing the driver to rev the engine and speed forward along with a whole convoy of trucks and cars. In the center, a massive tank led the group, sat above in the opening stood none other than The Governor right arm entirely missing, a black eye patch over his left eye, and his body covered head to toe in a stolen riot suit that matched Oberson's. With a menacing, icy shout, The Governor jutted his finger out towards the prisoners and howled, "KILL THEM ALL!"
Okay, here we are, the war has begun! It took so long to get to this moment but I am so, so excited to finally be here! The next chapter will be a flashback to what was going on in Woodbury since the group escaped, filling everyone in on their preparations for this war, but after that, it's going to be two to three massive chapters of fighting, shock, and death! Please, please, leave me a review with your thoughts and predictions, I love to read them and I mean it, it won't be long until the next chapter, I'm way to excited to hold back now!