As the days went by, Woodbury found itself struggling to complete supply runs. One failure after the other led to The Governor's growing frustration and disappointment. A few, including Shumpert, had been injured in the fray. More often than not, Nikolai found himself being posted on watch duty for the most remote parts of the wall. Nikolai was unaffected by this, as he did not have anyone distracting him from his duty. He still rarely spoke, but he found himself volunteering for runs more often than he did before. He remained distant from the townspeople, still not being very trusting of others. He had received several compliments for his physical strength, especially during construction projects. Slowly but surely, Nikolai had established himself as the strong and silent type. On this particular day, Nikolai was posted on the most isolated station in the furthest corner of the town. The giant stood there, stone-like in determination. Today he was partnered with Tyreese, whom apparently requested to be on the same shift as the giant. Tyreese was pacing back and forth atop the bus, which constructed part of the makeshift wall. Tyreese spoke to the giant, "It is getting crazy around here. We've had 4 people injured in the last week alone. I think The Governor is getting a bit hasty." Nikolai said nothing, as usual. Tyreese continued, "We've been going on missions relentlessly lately. Some of the people are growing discontent. With the attack on the prison looming ahead and the frequent runs, some people are scared that whoever attacked us before will strike again." Nikolai merely stared straight ahead, not acknowledging his words. Tyreese asked, "What are your thoughts on the whole thing?" Nikolai stood straight, golem-like and unmoving. Tyreese sighed, "You know, you could say something. It is a lot more polite than being rude and saying nothing." Nikolai, once again, said nothing. Tyreese was visibly getting annoyed at this, and said, "What the hell is your problem? Do you have beef with me?" Nikolai slowly turned towards the man, and, for once, spoke to someone other than The Governor or Martinez. Softly, in his deep tone, made more menacing by his helmet, the giant spoke, "I am merely trying to perform the duty given to me." Apparently, the Black man had not been expecting that. He said, a bit light-heartedly, "You know, it isn't a sin to talk to other people." Nikolai responded with a subtle nod. Tyreese said, "Well, whatever the reason, you seem pretty efficient with heavy weaponry, evident by your wielding of those big guns on your back." Nikolai did not respond. He merely resumed his former position of standing still, observing the landscape for any detectable movement. Of course, there was none. It didn't matter. As long as The Governor posted him on gate watch, he would not have any reason to complain. Tyreese spoke, "You know... It isn't a bad town. Its quiet, mostly. There's shelter, food, medicine. Pretty sweet deal, huh?" Nikolai did not respond. As strong as he was, endless travel made him weary. Deep down, Nikolai was relieved he found at least temporary refuge. The giant looked at the Black man, and softly spoke, "It is...nice to have shelter, I admit." Tyreese nodded his head, saying, "I know, man." They stood there, watching for several more minutes, until a tap on Nikolai's shoulder made the giant whirl around, hand on one of his blade handles. The Governor was there, saying, "Easy, now. Tyreese, go take a breather. I need to talk to Hoss for a minute." Tyreese swiftly left with a nod, most likely to go join his sister for a meal break.
As soon as Tyreese was out of sight, The Governor spoke, "Listen, Hoss. I need to make a very important topic of notice to you." Nikolai stood straight, fully at attention. Nikolai said, "Speak, sir." The Governor continued, "Some of our scouts have made inspections of the enemy's base. They are in a prison not far from here." The Governor presented Nikolai a map, pointing at a small red "x" which determined the exact location of the base. Placing his finger over the "x", The Governor spoke, "This is where we plan on making our attack." Nikolai made a careful examination of the location on the parchment. Indeed, the prison would not take longer than an estimated 45 minutes to drive there. The Governor continued, "We have scouts whom check upon their progress every few days. They set up a temporary sniping post, observing their group for several hours. The scouts write down their recordings. Afterwards, they report back here." Nikolai nodded, signaling for The Governor to continue. The Governor spoke, "Nikolai. I must ask you. Do you feel loyal to this town?" Nikolai could immediately feel his moral conduct grinding among the insides of his brain. The giant considered the question extraordinarily carefully, before he spoke, "Governor, you have proven yourself a capable leader." As aloof as Nikolai was, loyalty was a particular subject that Nikolai held a fierce passion for. The Governor had treated Nikolai very well since he had entered Woodbury. The patched man never seemed to raise his voice unless needed. His conduct towards his people seemed fair, at least to what Nikolai could tell. To Nikolai, it seemed that the giant found himself being magnetically attracted to The Governor's charisma. There was only one aspect of The Governor that Nikolai was weary of. The patched man had lied about the incident with the traitor named Merle. He had made Nikolai out to be a hero to the town when in actuality he was merely a vagabond. Nikolai saw this aspect as a very grey area. For one, he could understand the desire of keeping the public happy. However, the concept of lying still made the giant uneasy. The patched man spoke, "Well, I am very pleased to hear that you think so." Nikolai nodded courteously. The Governor said, "I've been hearing several rumors about your abilities in combat. You are clearly not a people person. You seem better suited for fighting, shooting, being on watch, the like." Nikolai said nothing. The Governor spoke, "You have made it very clear to the people that you aren't here to make friends. However, it seems like whenever we go on a run, they ask me to make a request specifically for you to accompany them." Nikolai slowly turned towards the man, yet still said nothing. Over time, the town had slightly grown on the giant. He remained aloof and distant as usual, but he made sure to complete his assigned duties to the best of his ability. The Governor continued, "The people here consider you to be a reliable asset. Although some are put off by your distant nature, you have proven your worth by actions, not words." Nikolai asked, "The people find me useful?" The Governor nodded with a warm smile, "That's right. You've been here for a little under two weeks, and people are already saying good things. These people need someone whom they feel that can protect them. Someone who can help them when they need it. Nikolai, I am requesting you to be The Vanguard of Woodbury." Nikolai turned towards the man. The giant spoke, "Vanguard, sir?" The Governor said, "I need someone like you to help Martinez. These people need protection, and they will want someone with your reputation." Nikolai spoke, "These civilians do not know anything about me, Governor." The Governor responded, "No. But they trust you. You can't see it, but they do. We need you." Nikolai didn't respond for several minutes, merely staring ahead." The Governor must have known of the conflict in his mind, because he said, "I'll give you time to think about it." Before Nikolai could say anything, The Governor had turned on his heel, descending the ladder. The patched man swiftly strode away, rounding the corner and vanishing from sight.
The Governor's words echoed within Nikolai's head for hours afterwards. Something about what he said had resounded in the very furthest corners of the giant's mind. This was the first time he had ever been in a community since the undead had risen from the grave. By performing what he had thought was merely duty, he had unintentionally given himself a reputation. Nikolai had not expected this. Then again, maybe he should have. He only thought that he should have some sort of obligation to the town for taking him in. He remained aloof, single-mindedly performing tasks assigned to him. He had remained a loner for the entirety of his life, all throughout his youth and school years. Even growing older, he never really socialized with anyone besides his parents. He had severe trust issues from the hellish life he had endured. Years of abuse from family members and being bullied by his peers had made Nikolai very distant and withdrawn. The giant did not like conflict, and did whatever was necessary to avoid it. Most of the time, he ignored others, remaining indifferent to them. However, on a few occasions, he had lost control, changing completely. When pushed to the limit, Nikolai changed. He became a monstrous, ruthless embodiment of chaos, entering a berserk rage and harming anyone whom dared to cross him. Nikolai did not like that aspect about himself. He did everything in his power to avoid fighting because of this reason. The giant lie upon his mattress in his bedroom, thoughts crossing his mind endlessly. He had not expected such a request from The Governor at all. He was hoping that he would be left alone if he performed his duties to their optimum efficiency. The exact opposite had happened. But was it really all that bad? This was the first place he had stayed in, and so far, compared to the outside world, it was much more preferable. Honestly, he liked being on his own, but here, he had food, shelter, and running water. Perhaps this town may actually be somewhat tolerable.
Nikolai rose from his mattress, and exited his apartment building. The early evening sun cast a fiery orange light across the paved streets of Woodbury. There was a crisp, cool breeze in the air, and Nikolai felt the wind flutter across the fabric of his chest. It felt...nice. Even though it would still get hot outside, he still wore clothes that concealed his entire body, being very self-conscious of his appearance, helmet covering his head. He saw children playing, a couple grooming a dog, and smelled meat cooking in the air. It almost seemed...normal. He began making his way to the The Governor's office building, when his thoughts were interrupted by a commotion that erupted in the street. Nikolai lumbered towards the crowd of people that had gathered in the middle of the road. Someone was shouting rather loudly, and the people were watching intently. The massive man could easily see above everyone's heads, and he saw The Governor and another man staring at one another. The Governor seemed calm and collected, while the other man was obviously furious. The man opposite The Governor was much shorter than the patched man, standing at roughly his chest. He had scruffy red hair and was in obvious discontent. The man spoke, "How can you even think of giving this freak a home?! He makes everyone uncomfortable! He doesn't talk to anyone. He is rude, and seems like another mouth to feed! The last time you took people in, we ended up being attacked!" Nikolai immediately knew the shorter man was speaking ill of him. Nikolai remained unaffected by this. The Governor did not respond, merely standing there, hands in his jacket pockets. The man continued, "We don't need his help! We don't need to be taking in strangers! At a time like this, we can't be taking in new people. You're putting us all in danger!" The Governor spoke with a smile on his face, "Now I'm sure you're aware, we need all of the help we can get. The attack on the enemy camp is coming soon, and we desperately need reinforcements." The shorter man replied, "Yeah? Well I think that we should just leave them be. If they don't attack us, we don't attack them. We station heavier defenses on the wall, arm every citizen. That way we will be more prepared next time." The Governor responded with a skeptical look, "What you are saying implies gives them ample opportunity to strike us first. What if they attack when a huge horde of biters is nearby? What if they come in here with heavy vehicles, ramming straight through the gates? Are you really willing to put your family at risk?" The shorter man responded, "They may be too afraid to say it, but I'm not. Let's examine the facts. Under YOUR leadership, terrorists attacked us in our OWN TOWN! My family is scared, we're all scared! You keep saying we will attack this prison, but all I see is false words." The Governor had adapted a stern look upon his face now. He clearly did not like having his leadership questioned. The patched man responded firmly, "I admit we are going through a rough patch, but I think we should be looking at all we have accomplished. We should be proud of what he have built." The crowd looked at one another, some nodding, some giving skeptical looks. Nikolai began to notice what Tyreese had meant by the people growing discontent. There was clearly a divided opinion among the populace on the issue of whether to actually attack the enemy camp or not. Since Nikolai had resided in this town, nobody had spoken much of it, although the frequency of training drills had increased dramatically. The shorter man spoke, "Instead of looking at the past, we need to look at the future. Instead of fighting this enemy camp, why don't we try trading with them instead? Wouldn't it mutually benefit both communities?" Nikolai couldn't help but see the wisdom in those words. The Governor responded, "I told you once before, they spit in my face on the idea of peace." The short man spoke, "Supply runs have failed lately, and it is making the morale here plummet. How are you going to fix this?" Suddenly, Martinez appeared beside them, trying to mediate, "Now listen Michael, I know that you've been stressed lately, but listen. We are well stocked with ammunition, food, resour-" Michael cut him off, "Who invited you? Stay out of this." Martinez immediately looked annoyed, saying, "Look, man. Just chill out." Michael had begun to lose his temper, "Yeah it is well-stocked for now! But what happens when it runs out? If supply runs continue to fail at this rate, we will find ourselves starving sooner than later." Nikolai could see all of the man's points. However, he thought Michael was being rather fearful. Surely things in this town weren't that bad. Michael spoke again, "Governor, you've been acting hasty, and you're slowly losing it. The people are getting anxious." The Governor spoke with fierce determination, motioning to all of his people, "I assure you, we will survive this. We will win this conflict. After everything we have been through? This is merely a minor setback! After all of the bullshit that has been thrown our way? We rebuilt our great community. This is the holy ground!" Nikolai himself couldn't help but feel at least some inspiration from the patched man's words. The Governor seemed like an eccentric man, but he certainly knew how to speak. Some of the crowd had begun to nod approvingly at the patched man's words, but Michael remain undeterred. He said, "Yeah. You keep telling us the same thing, but we'll see what happens." Michael looked away from The Governor towards the people, "How many of you think that we should leave this prison alone?" No hands were raised. Michael said, "Are you really that afraid of voicing your opinion?" One of the people in the crowd said, "Michael, just go home and take some personal time. We're all tired, man. It's been a rough day." Several people in the crowd gave nods and murmurs of agreement. Seeing this, Michael was absolutely fuming, and said, "Fine, but my family and I are leaving!" The man elbowed his way through the crowd, managing to break through. The Governor stood there, merely staring at the man as he walked off.
Michael stormed off in a rage, and at the last moment before entering what must have been his home, whirled around. He stomped up to Nikolai angrily. It seemed everyone was too stunned in the crowd to try to stop him. Nikolai could feel the tension in the air as the crowd's eyes were magnetically attracted to them. The shorter man looked like an ant standing next to the giant. Michael practically yelled, "And what's your story? Too good to talk to anyone?" Nikolai merely looked down at the man, not speaking. Michael continued, "Look, I'm telling you. You make my wife uncomfortable, and you make everyone else here uncomfortable. Some of them think you'll kill them in their sleep! What is your problem? Can't talk because you're retarded?" At these words, a slender woman with black hair came up behind him and said, "Mikey, come on now, don't make a scene. You've already done enough." Nikolai observed the woman, she seemed sad, an absolutely pitiful look in her eyes. Michael turned towards the woman and said, "Listen babe. I don't think we need to be taking in new people. We've taken in people before and some of them have turned out to be bad ideas." The woman responded angrily, "You do this every time!" Michael angrily shoved the woman off of him, saying, "Get the kids, we're leaving. Wife, we are getting out of here." Michael grabbed his wife's hand and began to walk away, dragging her with him. At this, Nikolai spoke, "My apologies, sir. I did not mean any disrespect to you or your family." Michael looked up at him, looking even madder than before, "Yeah? You think that's enough? We don't know anything about you! For all we know you could be a terrorist!" The Governor was suddenly behind Michael, saying, "Enough of this! Michael, you're being paranoid! This man found Dixon and brought him in! You should know that!" Michael turned towards the patched man and screeched, "Who is to say that he isn't aligned with Dixon in the first place? All of a sudden this freak shows up and has Dixon on a silver platter? Bullshit!" The Governor then said, "Michael, enough of this!" Michael screamed, "You're the problem here Governor! And so is this freak!" Suddenly, Michael had lost his temper, whirling around and hitting Nikolai in the stomach with a solid right punch to the stomach. It did not hurt Nikolai much, but he could definitely feel it. The wind was knocked out of the giant. The Governor immediately tried to restrain Michael, but it did no good. Michael dipped his shoulder, tossing the patched man over his back. Several people in the crowd had begun to voice their disapproval, some trying to restrain him. Michael was completely out of control. The black haired woman tried to grab Michael, but to no avail. Michael rounded on Nikolai, drawing a knife. The shorter man said, "Come on retard! I'll take care of this problem myself!" The Governor lie on the ground, having landed on his elbow. He was clutching it in pain. Michael charged straight at Nikolai. The giant dodged a swing of the knife. He could hear the blade cutting the air, whistling by his left ear. Michael kept swinging wildly, getting all the more angry as he did so. Nikolai remained composed, knowing that his stamina easily outclassed the shorter man's endurance. Michael screeched in fury, managing to land a blow to Nikolai's gut again. The wife once more tried to get Michael to calm down by coming up behind him. In rage, Michael turned, and accidentally made a slash across the woman's cheek. The stunned look of pain and hurt across the woman's face immediately convinced Nikolai that this had gone on long enough. Michael payed no mind to what he had just done, coming for the giant again. Nikolai stood still, catching Michael's right wrist which held the knife. Nikolai proceeded to squeeze. Michael began to groan in pain. Nikolai felt no anger, but he did believe that Michael needed to be neutralized. The giant slowly tightened his grip. Michael was beginning to visibly look as if he was in pain, as the knife dropped from his hands. The shorter man said, "Alright! Alright! Let me go!" Nikolai ignored his words. The giant still tightened his grip. Michael's hand began to turn purple from the lack of circulation. The crowd began pleading with Nikolai to release the man. The Governor rose, clutching his elbow. He walked up to Nikolai, saying, "Alright Hoss. You've done enough." But Nikolai still increased his grip. And continued to increase it until a sickening crunch was heard, followed by an intense shriek of agony. Nikolai had squeezed the man's wrist so hard it snapped the bone. Michael fell to his knees, clutching his wrist. Immediately, his wife was by his side, crying in grief. Nikolai turned to look at the crowd, and they were all staring at him in utter disbelief and bewilderment. The Governor himself looked taken aback. The giant felt no sympathy for the man lying at his feet, and merely stared down at lumbered away from the crowd towards his bedroom building. Nikolai had merely neutralized the threat. He had not killed anyone, he had just disarmed a dangerous man. The giant entered the building, and immediately lie down on his mattress. He fell asleep not long afterward, allowing his troubles to be feathered away by sleep.