7:55 AM
Fun Kingdom

"Mornin', Miss Murphy."

Carol blinked awake. She'd fallen asleep sitting up on the living room couch with Sophia's head in her lap. The sun was now scattering light through the silver blinds of the House of the Future. Carol unclipped her toy walkie talkie. "Hey, Pookie. Good to hear your voice. How are things in there? Over."

"One's that ain't got worse are gettin' better." Daryl coughed a little between every few words. "Your boyfriend Tom got sent down to the infirmary an hour ago, though. Sorry. Over."

"He was probably just afraid to stay in the same building as you," Carol teased. "Over."

"Well, I hope he don't die. Man's got good taste in women. Over."

"Are you getting better? You sound better. You aren't coughing quite as much. Over."

"M'fever's broke. Coughin' less. Luke's asleep on Dixon right now. He ain't doin' to well, poor little guy. But he ain't coughed up any blood yet so Hershel's not sendin' him down. Hershel says we all got to stay until twenty-four hours after we're symptom free, just to make sure we don't contaminate no one. Dixon's already in the clear, just waitin' out the twenty-four now. Baby Eve's fever's under control. The rest of 'em...hangin' in there. Noticed we ain't got any newbies in the last six hours. Over."

"Dr. Stevens says those of us who haven't developed symptoms by now won't as long as we don't have prolonged exposure to one of you. Which means this thing is under control, and we'll be over it once every one of you in quarantine and the infirmary gets better." Or dies, but she couldn't bring herself to say that.

Sophia sat up now on the couch. "Is that Daddy? Can I talk to him?"

Daryl must have heard her. "Hey, baby girl," he said. "What you doin' up so early? Over."

Carol handed Sophia the walkie talkie and she pressed the orange button on the blue toy. "I fell asleep on the couch. Are you better? Over."

"Gettin' there." Cough. "Gonna bust this joint in a couple days, I bet." Cough-cough. "Have a tea party with m'girl. Over."

"I'll make your favorite. Snickerdoodles. Over."

It was almost a full minute before Daryl replied, and when he did his voice was extra raspy, which led Carol to think he'd had a coughing fit from all the talking. "Lookin' forward to it. Gotta go. Love you, Soph. Tell yer mama I love 'er. Over and out."

"Dad loves you," Sophia said.

Carol smiled. "I heard that."

Carol took the walkie talkie back from Sophia and was standing to clip it on her belt when the baby monitor on the windowsill crackled: "Hello? Anybody awake? It's Rosita."

8:00 AM
The Kingdom

Gavin sat eating breakfast at the school cafeteria table with Frankie and his crew. Dwight was out of the infirmary now, but he had a bandage on the side of his face, and stitches creeping out of it. He would be scarred for life from the wounds from the shrapnel. Some people in the Kingdom had passed by to glare at them. Others had offered a seemingly friendly hello. One man had stopped by and said, "Thank you for not turning over the king," but another, "It should have been you instead of Richard."

As Frankie took a bite of the pancakes now, she murmured in pleasure. "God, I can't remember the last time I had pancakes."

"Try them," Sherry urged Amber. "They're good."

"I'm not hungry."

Alden smiled faintly at her. "Mark was a good man," he said. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"I should have never left the harem," Amber muttered.

"Don't say that," Dwight told her. "Life will be better now."

"Easy for you to say. You still have your wife. And your sister-in-law." Amber glanced at Tina.

"I lost my sister," Gavin told her. "I lost good men, too. We've all lost people."

"Do you think my mother's still alive?" Amber asked. "She was in the Sanctuary. She can't work consistently. She gets sick. And without me in the harem to earn points for her - "

"- She can join us," Gavin assured her. "Wherever we end up. We'll look out for her."

"Thank you," Amber said quietly.

Dianne came up to their table now and asked Gavin, "Can we speak privately?"

Gavin nodded, downed his orange juice, and rose from the cafeteria bench to follow Dianne out into the hallway, where the archer leaned back against a folding table and crossed her arms over her chest. "King Ezekiel told me what he asked of you last night. To leave the Kingdom and take the surrendered prisoners with you."

Gavin nodded.

"I reminded him that he promised he would provide protection to your people in exchange for your help overthrowing the Saviors. He interpreted that deal to imply protection until victory was won. I suggested you may have interpreted it differently. That you may have interpreted it as an offer of permanent settlement. Did you?"

"Does it matter if I did?"

"I have the king's ear. I can persuade him to take you and your crew in, if that's what you want. But those surrendered Saviors – the ones who were with Jed and Regina – I worry about them slitting the throats of our people at night."

"I don't need your charity. I'll find my people a home."

"You may not need our charity, but I think your girlfriend really likes it here. And I think you and your crew would make a good addition to our community."

As a matter of pride, Gavin didn't like the idea of being King Ezekiel's subject, but Frankie did want to live here. She'd made that clear enough. And if he could give that to her... "Are you sure you can convince Ezekiel?"

"He's not Negan. He has advisors because he actually listens to them. Now it's just me and Jerry and Daniel, with Colton and Richard dead. Jerry's with me on this. I don't know where Daniel stands, but I don't think it matters. I'll prevail. I always do."

Gavin smirked. "You'd have made a good lieutenant. You certainly have the humility."

That drew a hint of a smile to her stern face.

"Tell you what," Gavin said. "You persuade him. And you prevail. I'll leave the women here, including my workers. And DJ and Dwight and Alden and I will take the surrendered prisoners to the Sanctuary this morning so they can be handled there, and you don't have to worry about whether they'll slit your throats at night. We'll stay at the Sanctuary a couple week, help Laura put things in order, and then we'll be back here. But you let me bring Amber's mother with us, too. She's in the Sanctuary. If she's alive."

Dianne nodded. "It's a deal."

8:15 AM
Fun Kingdom

Carol looked through the bars of the gate of Fun Kingdom to where Rosita stood with Sasha by her side. Both wore bandanas pulled up around their mouths and noses. Carol looked beyond the two women to Woodbury's military truck and one of its armored vehicles parked around the circle. Bob, wearing an N95 mask and carrying a medical bag, got out of the driver's seat of the military truck and then climbed into the back of it. Carol could hear the sound of coughing drifting from beneath the army green canvas canopy toward the gate.

A sense of dread settled in her stomach like a stone. "Is Woodbury lost?" she asked.

"Simon is dead." Rosita shifted her gray army cap up slightly on her head. "His soldiers are dead. All of them. But Woodbury…We lost the water tower. And fire spread." She nodded to Sasha. "Sasha led a hard fight to control it, but we lost the gardens, the animals, the gate and a chunk of the fence, a lot of the houses. We salvaged what we could manage from the warehouse and the infirmary. We got some of it in boxes and across the drawbridge and into our vehicles, but then walkers began flooding from the woods. They must have been drawn from miles away by all that shooting and the explosions. Eventually they made it to us. We had to take off before they overran us. As we were fleeing, Halley threw herself into the herd to be devoured, to distract them so we could get away. I think she thought she was going to die from the virus anyway."

"The virus?" Carol asked. "It's hit you, too?"

"You mean it's here?" Sasha asked.

"We've lost six people since last night. We've got anyone with symptoms quarantined in one of the theaters." She glanced at the military truck. "Have you brought your sick here?"

"They're being treated by Bob in that back of that truck," Sasha replied. "He has mild symptoms, but he's managing to work. Rosita and I are the only ones who haven't had any symptoms at all. We've lost more people from this disease than we did from the battle."

"Who did you lose?" Carol asked shakily.

Rosita closed her eyes and breathed in through her nose. When she opened them, she replied, "It would be easier to say who we didn't."

Carol bit down on her bottom lip hard. She glanced at the truck – where the last survivors of Woodbury were quarantined – and blinked to keep in tears as she waited for Rosita to list the living.

Rosita swallowed. "Besides Sasha and Bob and I, Rick still lives. Tara. Morgan. Andrea. Milton. Oscar. Tyreese. Though Oscar and Tyreese are both recovering from gunshot wounds. And they all have symptoms of the virus now. They're all in the back of that truck."

"And who else?" Carol's question was a throaty plea. "Who else lived?"

"That's all," Sasha said dully. "That's everyone."

"Dr. S?" Carol asked.

"He caught the virus treating patients," Rosita answered. "He died about a half hour before we took off."

"Jocelyn?"

"The sickness put her in the infirmary before she could even help us fight," Rosita answered. "She didn't make it."

Carol dreaded telling Michonne that her old, dear friend was dead. And Dr. S, too. Michonne had kept saying it wasn't serious, but she'd clearly liked him. "The Terminus mercenaries? Gareth and Alex and Martin and…"

"All seven dead."

"Abraham?" Carol asked, still not able to believe so many were gone.

"You say you lost six," Rosita demanded, "who?"

Carol gritted her teeth. "Mr. Jacobson. Mrs. Richards. Mrs. McLeod." All three were elderly, but there were younger deaths, too, people in their thirties: "Jeanette. Eileen."

"And the baby?" Sasha asked anxiously.

"Eileen's baby is in quarantine. Moderate symptoms. We have enough formula to last her and Judith until they're old enough for cow's milk."

"And the sixth?" Rosita asked.

Carol swallowed and glanced toward the military truck. "Tara's sister. Lilly. Her niece Meghan's still alive but in quarantine."

"Oh shit," Rosita muttered. "Tara lost Alisha too. Her girlfriend. She was shot and killed in the battle."

"How's Duane?" Sasha asked. "Morgan couldn't bear losing him, too, not after Jocelyn."

"He's alive," Carol told her. "He's in the infirmary. That's a step beyond quarantine. Patrick, Carl, Duane, and Tom are all in there right now. All in bad shape but hanging in. But the good news is that no one new has been added to quarantine in several hours. And Dr. Stevens thinks the anti-viral medicine is going to pull most people through."

"Anti-viral medicine?" Sasha asked.

"Didn't Dr. S administer one?"

"We didn't have any," Rosita said. "He hammered it with antibiotics even though he knew it was viral. Just to reduce any co-infections at least. And he gave everyone fever medication. And cold compresses and…whatever he could do. There wasn't much he could do."

"We used the anti-viral that's meant for our cows. You didn't have any for the goats?"

"We did," Rosita told her, "but we used it on the goats. A while ago. We should have used in that damn pig. We think this started with Violet."

"Maggie and Beth checked all our animals," Carol said. "None have any symptoms."

"Then just the one you traded us," Rosita said coolly.

"Hey," Sasha said quietly but firmly. "Hey. We can't do that."

Rosita sighed. "I'm sorry. I just…it's been a bad day. Which is the understatement of the year. Violet was healthy when we got her. She must have caught it somehow at Woodbury. I know we need to stick together. Not blame each other. Because there's not much of us left." She glanced at the truck and then at Carol. "Will you take us in? Whoever lives through this? Will you take us all in permanently? Woodbury's not salvageable. Flood damage from the water tower bursting. Burnt up houses. Burnt up gardens. Over half the front fence gone. And I don't know how long the walkers will be there devouring the dead."

"We can pay our entry fee in gasoline," Sasha told her. "We've got those two tankers. We moved them before the battle so they wouldn't get exploded. They're eight miles outside of Woodbury in a church parking lot. If someone will give us a ride, Sasha and I can go get them today."

"I'll have to talk to the others," Carol said, "but that's a formality. No one is shutting these gates against your people, after all you've lost. We'll find a way to make it work." She nodded to the truck. "But the ones with symptoms, they need to go straight into quarantine. No contact with any of our well people. We'll get them an anti-viral right away. And if Bob is functioning, he can help Hershel treat the patients in the theater." Carol unlatched the gate and swung it open. "Welcome to Fun Kingdom."

11:00 AM
The Sanctuary

Gavin, Dwight, DJ, Alden, and Laura sat around the old familiar council table, but today, no one stood at its head to intermittently slam a baseball bat inches from their fingers.

"The fires are out," Laura reported. "We lost the outdoor garden and the west cornfield, but the indoor and rooftop gardens and the east cornfield are still intact. The fence is temporarily patched, but it needs real fortification. Tobin says the patch will only hold against walkers for a couple of weeks."

"Who's Tobin?" Gavin asked.

"Alexandria's construction foreman. He fought in the battle. Some of the coalition soldiers have been staying to help with various things. But Tobin's going back to Alexandria today. Will you oversee the fortification?"

Gavin nodded.

"We're still boarding up broken windows. We got the generator running again and the power back on as you can see." Laura waved at the overhead lights.

"Who's supervising the workers on the factory floor right now?" DJ asked.

"J. Money. He was with me during the rebellion. And Aaron from Alexandria. He has good people skills."

"And the surrendered soldiers?" Dwight asked. "What's happened to them, the ones who fought for Gary?"

"Most of them followed Shane. Maybe they were afraid of what the workers might do to them now that Negan and Gary are gone. Maybe they just wanted an adventure. I don't know, but only three stayed here. They're locked up with the six surrendered soldiers you all brought. We'll need to decide what to do with them. That's one of the purposes of this meeting."

"I say we let them out," Dwight suggested, "and give them jobs but no guns. Observe them. Make sure they assimilate."

"This place will need armed guards," Gavin said. "The Sanctuary's got, what? Laura and J. Money now? And everyone else is an unarmed worker? I saw three soldiers standing guard out front, but I didn't recognize them. I assume they're coalition soldiers?"

Laura nodded. "From Hallowbrant and the library. They're volunteering for four days, and then they go home."

"We can train some of the workers to be guards," Alden suggested.

Laura looked at Gavin. "You okay with that?"

Gavin nodded. "It will make them feel like the liberation is real, too, like they're part of the community and not just servants."

"And the Sanctuary will need more trained men," Laura said. "Supply runners, too. These workers, they've cowered behind walls, but some of them are going to need to take risks like the Saviors once did. We can urge them by paying them more points."

"You're keeping the point system?" Alden asked.

"It works," Laura told him. "Not all of Negan's ideas were bad. It's a way to allot resources and make sure necessary work gets done. We just need to be fairer about the way we run the system. Gavin? Do you agree?"

"I agree it works. You need to set more realistic wages and give people who truly can't work - because of age or illness - a sustenance number of points. And don't use dangerous jobs as punishment or as a threat to coerce women to have sex. Either those jobs are too dangerous to be done at all, or you need to pay a wage that compensates for the risk. You don't need people putting walkers on the fence anymore, for one. That never really worked for protection. That was just Negan's way of fucking with people's minds."

"What's going on with Simon?" DJ asked.

"I want to try to contact Egypt or Woodbury or Paris again," Laura replied. "To see if Simon ever showed up. But I also don't want to tip Simon that they know he's coming if he's listening in."

"He'd have arrived by now," Gavin reasoned. "Either he's moved into Woodbury, or they've overthrown him. I say give them a ring. See who answers. And hope it's not Simon. And tell them Shane's coming. It might avoid a battle when he shows up at Woodbury's gates with ten armed Saviors. Where's Gregory, by the way?"

"The Hilltop took him back," Laura replied.

"Jesus Christ," Gavin muttered. "You can't be serious."

"To try him for treason, I mean," Laura said. "And possibly execute him."

"Who's even running the Hilltop now?" Dwight asked. "With Shane gone?"

"Looks like it's going to be Jesus. Reluctantly. He left with Gregory and his soldiers this morning. He says he's going to form a council when he gets back. And now Natania and Cyndie are in charge of Hallowbrant, and what's left of the library community is rolling into them and abandoning the library. Apparently the roof caved in recently, and Regina extorted them so much they haven't been able to regrow much in their gardens this spring. So those communities will combine forces."

"Did Dr. Carson go back to the Hilltop?" Gavin asked.

"His brother is a doctor at the Hilltop. They have a doctor already. So, I've made a proposal that he stay here and continue to be the Sanctuary's doctor, in exchange for us supplying the Hilltop with thirty gallons of gasoline each week. We still have those five gas tanker trucks at the satellite outpost. Do you agree with that price, Gavin?"

"Hell, I'd say it's cheap for a good doctor," Gavin replied. He was wondering why Laura kept asking him if he agreed with everything, though, as if he were somehow in charge. "How'd you manage that bargain?"

"He's sweet on one of the workers."

"Ah. Speaking of the workers, I need to go down to the factory floor. I need to see if Amber's mother lived, offer to take her with us when we go."

"Take her with you?" Laura asked. "When you go? Go where?"

"The Kingdom. My crew and I are settling there."

"All of you?" Laura asked, looking from Gavin to DJ to Alden to Dwight.

"We'll stay and help you for the next two weeks," Gavin assured her. "And then we'll be back and forth to help as needed for the next couple of months. Until you get everything well established."

"But I thought you'd want to be here," Laura said. "At the Sanctuary. In charge."

"Looks like you're already in charge," Gavin told her.

"I don't think that's the way the workers see it. At all."

"What do you mean?" Gavin asked.

"Come on. I'll show you." Laura's chair scraped back and she threw the door to the council chambers open.

Gavin followed Laura out onto the metal balcony where she stood with her hands on the rail in full view of the factory floor. She nodded to Aaron and J. Money, who were the only armed men on the floor, and they nodded back. When the workers spied Laura and Gavin standing at the rail, they began to cease their labor. Little by little they gathered toward the center of the factory floor and looked up at the two former lieutenants.

From the balcony, Gavin scanned the crowd for Amber's mother. As he was searching for her, all of the workers suddenly dropped to one knee before him.

Gavin looked down at them in confusion.

"I am Gavin!" one of the workers shouted.

"I am Gavin!" another echoed.

And then, in unison, they chanted, "We are Gavin! We are Gavin! We are Gavin!"

Stunned, Gavin took a step back. "What in the holy hell?" he muttered.

"Word got out you organized this whole thing," Laura told him as the chanting continued. "That you orchestrated the assassination of Negan, and that you overthrew both Jed and Regina at the Kingdom. They think I have my authority from you. Temporarily. You can laugh at Ezekiel all you want, but people need a king, Gavin. Or an emperor. Or a god. So I think you better give them a little speech."