The girl stared at Ed's body on the floor. She felt strange. Ever since she had arrived in that place, she wanted to kill him.
To erase him once and for all from existence.
And now that, in a way, she had done it, she didn't feel exactly as she had imagined.
She was satisfied that finally he would no longer be a problem. She could now eliminate him completely from her mind and erase those memories that were reborn with his arrival.
But at the same time, she feels as if a part of her, which she didn't even know existed, had been taken from her.
Her thoughts are interrupted by Lee's hand on her shoulder, and she looks at him over her shoulder.
- I'm fine...
she says, stepping away from Ed's body, walking over to the table and picking up her pistol.
Lee follows her with his eyes, and then turns to the man's body.
He stares at it for a few moments, remembering everything that man had done. And now, with that pathetic appearance, he got what he deserved.
Lee simply could not feel sympathy for that piece of shit.
"All that, for what?"
Sighing, he raises his pistol and shoots Ed in the head.
Lee holsters the gun again, and faces Ed's body, grimacing slightly at the appearance of the man's corpse.
He was mutilated, with some bones even sticking out through his skin. The girl had managed to break a total of sixty bones, although Lee assumed that Ed had died from the pain after thirty, forty broken bones.
Tougher than Carver, at least.
Turning around, he is slightly surprised by the hug the girl has given him, sinking her face into his chest.
He returns the hug, pressing the girl against his body.
They didn't need to say anything, they knew each other well enough to simply enjoy each other's presence and know what the other was thinking.
Walking away after a while, they leave the garage in a hurry, right after Lee gets the keys to all the vans outside. Better safe than sorry.
The fighting between the communities was not over yet, and they had a certain baby to rescue.
They would have to be careful when they got out of there, those people could simply mistake them for enemies and shoot them without asking questions.
Walking over to one of the vans, Lee opens the vehicle door and tosses Clementine the key. He could drive if he wanted to. Ed pulled out his left hand, he could still turn the wheel and change gears, but not at that moment.
In the middle of a fight between communities and with Aj being taken to an unknown place, he would rather not risk it.
He would have time to train later... maybe.
The girl started the vehicle and sped off, knocking over the back fence of the garage as she drove off.
As she drove away, Lee took out the knife he had tied around his forearm and looked at the wound.
He tried not to think too much about it before, with all that situation going on, but now, it was strange.
To say the least.
He felt as if his hand was still there. He could feel his fingers moving, the back of his hand itching.
It was more agonizing now that he had time to notice it, than before.
- So... what do we do?
Clementine asked beside him, and Lee sighed slightly.
- Let's warn Kenny. He can tell us where this community of theirs is, and then we'll go after Aj.
Lee said, looking at the empty streets they were walking through. Well, not so empty, but the pursuing runners weren't exactly a threat.
- We're going to approach them with the car? They might very well mistake us for members of the new frontier and shoot us.
The girl said.
- Let's leave the van a couple of streets before the entrance, and go on foot. In hiding, we will only come out when we see Kenny, or Luke.
Lee said, and the girl nodded.
There was silence for a few seconds, and Lee looked at the girl. She was feeling a little strange, restless...
- Are you all right?
he asked, and the girl sighed.
- I don't know... I feel strange. I don't regret it, it's just... it's just weird.
She tried to say, not quite knowing how to explain what she felt, or how to choose the best words to say.
- Well... it's not often that you break the bones of your own blood... maybe it's that, or the fact that it was your first time.
Lee said, looking at the bodies, or the remains of bodies lying in the streets.
- Did you feel strange when you did the same to Carver?
She asked, and Lee arched an eyebrow.
-... No.
- That's what I thought... the fact that he and I shared the same blood makes me angry. And the thought that I feel weird about it just makes it worse.
The girl said, slightly disgusted.
- It doesn't matter anymore. He's dead... you don't share the same blood anymore.
Lee said, sighing slightly.
-... I wish I was yours.
The girl said, looking at him, and Lee looked at her with a warm smile, feeling his heart beating with joy.
- You are already mine.
he said.
- I know. I meant by blood.
Clementine said.
- In that case, I'd like that too, sweet pea. But, I don't think it makes much difference. Not anymore.
He said, and before the conversation could continue, a car speeded down the street ahead. It wouldn't be something they would be worried about, if the car wasn't one of the vans from the new frontier.
With the situation that the community was in, and considering that that street led directly into the community entrance, it couldn't be members who had just escaped.
That's what they would think, if it weren't for the people shooting in their direction. And as soon as they saw them, they were also shooting in their direction.
- Ah, fuck!
Lee grumbled, buckling his seat belt as Clementine accelerated the vehicle and swerved into the street ahead, both of them ducking as they passed close to those people.
They made it into the street, but the car began to skid, and the girl began to lose control.
- Shit, they must have hit one of the tires!
She said, a bit annoyed and with some desperation in her voice, stepping hard on the brakes and turning the wheel before the car crashed into one of the buildings. And even then, the vehicle barely missed an overturn.
- Are you all right?!
Lee asked as soon as they stopped, and the girl nodded at him.
-... They're coming!
she shouted, ducking as another wave of bullets hit them.
Fortunately, perhaps, the car had stopped near an alley ahead. Grumbling quietly, Lee took off his seat belt and kicked hard at the front window.
They both got out as soon as the glass shattered, and they ran toward the alley, using some dumpsters along the way as cover.
The problem was that runners were advancing toward them at the end of the alley.
They were surrounded. And Lee doubted that they would make it out of the alley without being shot by countless bullets.
Running his eyes around, Lee pushes a dumpster down an outside fire escape.
- You first!
He said, helping the girl up, and soon after, he followed her.
Looking over his shoulder for a few moments, he starts up the stairs as he sees that those people have started shooting into the runners, where a few of them, have been caught by the creatures. Maybe even bitten.
After climbing a few more steps, they enter through the window of one of the apartments, and breathe a sigh of relief to see that the place was empty.
- Argh... now what?
Clementine said with a grumble, turning to Lee, who groaned slightly from his shot arm.
- We look for another way out...waiting for them to leave is not really an option, the runners from all over the city will be drawn here.
Lee said, strapping his knife back on his forearm and walking out of the apartment.
- Are you all right?
He asked, looking down both sides of the hallway, and stepping forward after finding nothing but long fallen bodies.
- Yeah... you know, it's almost a miracle that, even after all these years, I haven't been shot once. It even seems that all the bullets are drawn to you.
The girl said, and Lee gave a nasal laugh.
- Well be thankful. Getting shot sucks. The worst isn't when the bullet is inside you, it's the way in. The force of the bullet's impact blows up the whole surrounding area.
Lee said, stabbing his knife into a fallen body just in case.
- Hm, you have been shot so many times, and it always seemed to be no big deal.
She said, with a certain tone of regret hidden in her voice.
- The pain is horrendous, but... I don't know, I've adapted to ignoring it, I guess. It's not like I have a choice.
he said, and the girl arched an eyebrow.
- You adapted?
- Yes, you see, humans are very curious creatures. We can adapt to almost anything, as long as it is practiced often. I feel pain, from something, almost every day, so I've kind of gotten used to ignoring it.
He said, looking at the two exits from the second floor of that building. The runners and people were concentrated on the door to the right, so they only had to go to the left.
- Hm... I never thought that one could adapt to pain.
- Anyone can. As I said, we can adapt to almost anything. Maybe that's why, combined with intelligence, humanity isn't completely extinct. Who knows.
He said, opening the door. Before he could open it fully, however, he stared at the barrel of a gun pointed at him, and quickly attacked whoever that person was.
He tried to punch the man, however, his punch was blocked and countered with a kick to his stomach. But Lee was faster and dodged to the side, trying to stab the man, who in reflex, used his rifle to stop the blow.
However, this left him with a large opening, which Lee took advantage of and punched him in the face. A strong punch, and blood splattered on his fist.
The man, however, recovered quickly and turned his body around, kicking Lee in the chest, who is sent flying backwards.
Clementine tried to help him, but another man appeared and grabbed her. Struggling, the girl bit two of the man's fingers, who was forced to let go, and as she turned around, she took the piece of wood that was propped up on the wall beside her and hit the man in the face, sending him backwards.
However, the man recovered quickly, and ignoring the pain in his face, mixed with the blood trickling down the side of his head, he grabbed the piece of wood the girl was holding and threw her to the ground.
Clementine struggled, until at one point she head-butted the man in the nose, followed by an elbow to the face. The man groaned in pain, and blood began to trickle down his nose, but all things considered, he was a grown man, and much bigger than Clementine.
So it wasn't too difficult to immobilize her.
Lee staggered backwards after being hit with two consecutive punches to the face, and on the third, he blocked with his forearm and kicked the man's leg, causing him to be on his knees, and with his guard down enough to be hit hard with a punch to the face.
Looking forward, Lee runs toward the man who was holding Clementine, but feels his leg being grabbed, and consequently, he is knocked to the ground.
Turning around, he groans in pain as he is hit by a kick to the face. His attacker then kneels on his chest and begins to punch him repeatedly in the face.
At one point, Lee put his knife-bound arm in front of him, and the man practically screamed in pain as he punched the tip of the blade.
Taking advantage of the man's moment of distraction, Lee punches him in the neck and throws him aside. Getting up quickly, he runs toward the man, who looks at him wide-eyed and gets off Clementine, holding a knife in his hands.
However, Clementine kicks him in the side of his knee, causing the man to lose his balance.
Lee took advantage of the man's opening and punched him hard in the face, sending him backwards.
Without giving the man time to rest, Lee punched him again, this time with a sharp blow to the chin, causing the man to fall violently to the ground, unconscious.
Turning to Clementine, he helps her up.
Clementine gasps slightly, her eyes widening as she looks forward. Quickly, she pulls Lee to the side and throws herself and him behind a dumpster, escaping the shots that were aimed in their direction.
- Holy shit! Will! Are you all right?!
a female voice shouted, and the man Lee had hit in the neck crawled backwards. But before he could move away, Clementine pointed her gun at him, forcing him to stay still.
- He might not be in the next few moments!
Lee shouted panting, feeling his face burning from the blows he had received.
Nothing he wasn't used to.
- Fuck you, asshole!
The woman shouted again, and Lee rolled his eyes.
- Do you really want to risk his life like that?! We're not from the new frontier, but we can be worse than them!
Lee shouted again, slightly irritated. He was wasting his time with this useless situation.
- Hold on! Lee! Clem!
Luke's voice caught both of their attention, and slowly, they stood up, seeing Luke right next to a tall woman with short black hair, probably the one who had yelled earlier.
And on the other side of him were Molly and Kenny.
- Holy shit, pal!
Kenny exclaimed, approaching him in a mixture of happiness and surprise, alternating his gaze between him and the two men on the floor.
- Jesus, Kenny. I almost killed two of yours.
Lee said, stepping out from behind the dumpster and walking over to his friend, where they both shook hands firmly and looked at each other excitedly.
- I noticed. Goddamn, I guess being mutilated didn't make you any less dangerous!
Kenny exclaimed, crouching down beside the unconscious man.
- Actually, it did. If he had both hands and eyes, they'd be dead.
Clementine said, putting the pistol on her waist and looking at Kenny, then at Luke and Molly, who were approaching ahead of the others who were also walking toward them.
- Jesus, Will. There were two of you, and only one of him, and you still got your asses kicked.
Molly said, mocking the man, who simply gave her the middle finger.
- If he didn't have that knife I would have won.
He said grumpily, and Molly smiled more openly.
- You had a rifle, and a pistol... he didn't kill you out of pity. Although, I have to admit, you are a pretty capable guy, even though you are limited.
She said, looking at Lee with an arched eyebrow.
- I have to be... Look, Kenny, I don't have time right now. We need to go after Aj.
Lee said, and he stood up with a slightly more serious expression.
- He's been sent to a ranch. McCarroll ranch, I think. We have to go after him. We would already be on our way if we hadn't been hit by a rain of bullets.
Clementine said, and Kenny nodded to her.
- I know where it is. Come on, we can go in one of our cars.
Kenny said, and started to walk out of the alley, but the woman from before stopped him, giving him a hard look.
- Kenny... who made you the leader? Do you dictate the orders by any chance? These people almost killed two of our people.
The woman said.
- And you almost killed us. I think we're even.
Clementine said, standing next to Kenny.
- Look, Lenna, I don't give a fuck if you don't like it. I know these two, I trust them. Besides, do you really think I'm going to obey an order from you when you used me as bait? Carley is fucking dead because of that! If you refuse to see that, well, fuck you!
Kenny said, turning away from the woman, irritated, and walking with quick steps out of the alley.
Clementine and Lee looked at each other for a moment before following Kenny, with Molly following close behind.