Change of Fate at the St. Johns' Dairy

To Black Jack278, Kura, backfromthedead91, and the Guest, I wish to extend a special thanks to you for reviewing and sincerely hope that you enjoy this brand new addition to Replay.

The first thought I have when I awaken to the side of the guest bedroom is to scream bloody murder. I didn't need my glasses to make out the blurry hulk of the bookcase that shields the hidden door from the prying eye.

I thought I had evaded my fate. But it looks like fates thrown it right back in my face.

That's what I thought at least, until I feel a small tug of my hand. My blurry vision travels across the room, settling on the figure standing at the bedside.

Clementine.

"I kept your glasses safe for you." She reassures, holding out the assistances to my vision.

"Thank you..." I breathe, reaching out and take the glasses from her.

Putting them on, I press myself up into a sitting position. Both legs are still intact. That was just a memory I was experiencing. It doesn't seem right though, that the memory felt so…real.

"The nice lady said dinner is ready. Do you want to come with us?" She asks, eager with the prospect of food.

"Yeah…sure…" I get up, allowing Clementine to lead me down the staircase and into the dining room.

You're probably thinking that I shouldn't be eating. Well, it's not me on the plate tonight. Why should I be worried otherwise?

I can hear water running in the bathroom. By the looks of it, it was both Larry and Lilly. Odd, but not uncommon. Clementine situates me between Danny and herself, so she could also sit with Lee. At any other time, sitting next to a St. John could provoke another torrent of nasty memories. I can't help being carefree now. Whatever happens next, it doesn't matter because this go around, I'm alive.

Brenda looks at us friendly, "Now ya'll dig in and eat as much as you like."

Duck immediately begins shoveling food into his mouth like we are in the quickest eating contest. Clementine attentively pokes at the food sitting before her, unsure of the taste. Before Kenny, Lee, Katjaa, and I can even take one poke, three hundred pounds of lumbering Larry crashes down the stairway, shouting and cursing incoherent words as he makes his way into the kitchen. The bathroom isn't upstairs… He clamps onto the doorway, staring the St. Johns straight in the eyes.

"I trusted you!" He screeches, causing the children to drop their utensils in fright.

Lee wraps a protective arm around Clementine, and Kat does the same for Duck.

"Now what are you talking about darling? You can still trust me." Brenda plays the confusion card, scanning Larry with calculating eyes.

"My daughter is up stairs, without any legs!" Larry screams, clenching his fists at the fact.

Katjaa removes the plate from Duck's grasp, receiving a contradictory response. My eyes widen. No way… I switched spots with Lilly. Lilly's going to die while I get a chance to live! This is all my fault.

"Everything could of turned out okay for you folks…" Danny mumbles beside me.

It has to be a coincidence right? The fact that Lilly is experiencing the same dilemma I had when I was in her position. Yeah, it's a coincidence. Just a coincidence…

"You had to go snooping around…" Andy adds.

"We go after folks that were gonna die, one way or another. We have to think about surviving! We have to use what's given to us. That's how I was raised, and that's how I raised my boys." Brenda justifies.

"Like you folks…" Danny looks up from his plate, trailing his eyes along our faces.

"Clementine, run! Kenny, get your gun!" Lee jumps up along with Kenny, trying to get Clem to sprint for the exit.

Danny and Andy produce guns, pointing one barrel at Kenny's face and the other at Lee's.

"Don't move." The elder of the two warns.

"Look, we're leaving." I try saying, standing up slowly.

I don't know what to do. I am in Lilly's position and she's in mine. This is the part that was written to exclude me. This is the part that's unpredictable.

A thump. A crash. I know what's going to happen next as the sliding begins.

"Clementine. Duck. Close your eyes." I order quietly, watching to make sure the children obey

Lilly's hands materialize first, fingers digging into the floor as she drags herself across the threshold.

"Clem-" Lee starts, but sees her eyes are covered. That didn't stop him from receiving the butt of the gun to the face, knocking him out cold.

Just as the moaning for help begins, Danny doesn't hesitate to do the same to me.

The atmosphere around me changes. Instead of being a kind and loving piece picked straight from Heaven, The St. John's Dairy has transformed into a living nightmare. Lee is stirring beside me, with Clementine clutching his arm fearfully. Larry is repeatedly pounding on the door, shouting for his daughter. Kenny scans the area for another exit, aside from the locked door. It looks like we are in some kind of meat locker.

"What happened?" Lee rubs his head painfully. I can feel a throbbing pain in the back of my head as well.

"They have Kat and Duck." Kenny informs us, halting the examination.

"Give me back my daughter you no good sons of a-" Larry stops midsentence, gasping loudly and gripping his chest.

Within seconds, Larry crumbles to the ground. He had a heart attack. Clementine squeaks and Kenny stares, wide-eyed. Larry doesn't move.

"Is he…?" Clementine asks, unable to speak.

Kenny retrieves a nearby salt lick.

"We have to do this." He mutters.

Lee nods slightly, knowing that if Larry is dead, he'll come back to life. In the end, we're all infected.

"I don't want to see!" Clem cries.

I kneel to her level and hold her close, preventing her from witnessing the events to come. I close my eyes as well. She cries out when the salt lick connects with ground. Kenny pants quietly from having to lift something so heavy into the air. Opening my eyes slightly, I grimace at the sight of Larry, his head completely crushed and nothing but his jaw remaining. I feel my gag reflex jerk and it takes all my willpower to keep from throwing up over Clementine's shoulder.

"It's done." I tell her in a quiet voice, patting her hair that poofs out.

She sniffles quietly, collecting split tears in her hands as she pulls away. Lee walks over and scoops her up in his arms.

"I'm sorry sweet pea…" He apologizes, rubbing circles on her back.

Kenny glances away from the mess that is splattered on the ground like a picture and speaks, "We need to find a way out."

"I saw that air duct. If we can unscrew it, that is." Lee mentions.

I think back to my training as I stand on two feet. We used materials to replace things. In this case, we need a screwdriver. A coin would work. If I remembered correctly, Larry said something about having sixty cents.

"Larry has a coin on him. We can use that to unscrew the air duct." I point out.

"Good thinkin'." Kenny praises, searching Larry's pockets as though as the man wasn't dead.

"Found 'em." He pulls the coins out, throwing a quarter to me and another to Lee.

Lee and I begin unscrewing and within a few minutes, the air duct was off and we could peek into the ventilation shaft, not much bigger than Clementine.

"I'll go." The little girl offers.

"You sure Clementine?" Lee seems a little doubtful. He doesn't want to relinquish his sight on Clem.

I don't blame him. We're surrounded by a family of cannibals.

"Y-ya." She stutters as Lee picks her up to the proper height and allows her to climb into the shaft.

I can hear her hands and feet as she climbs through the shaft to an unknown destination. There is a short pause and a startled squeak, making all of us freeze. It isn't until the child's face appears behind the now opened door do we all take a breath.

"Did someone see you?" Lee questions, gathering the girl in his arms.

"No. But…th-there's a guy standing there." She reports.

"Let's go." Kenny goes through the entrance, eager to return to his family.

I glance at Larry, grimacing as the blood still wells around his unidentifiable skull. If Lilly was here, she'd by angry. But from personal experience, I know the former military personal is now a walker. I follow Lee, Clem, and Kenny as we enter a blood splattered room.

"Sick…" Kenny mutters, searching the red painted counters for any sign of a weapon.

My eyes find their way instinctively to the gleaming curved blade. Pushing my glasses up, I grab the object by its wooden handle and test its weight in my hand before transferring it to my right. It seems sturdy and pretty light weight. Might come in handy. Kenny opens the double barn doors situated as the center point in the room a crack in order to spy. I can hard make out the muffled voices of the St. Johns'. With a sigh, Kenny shuts it and motions me over.

"One of them is guarding the entrance. If we sneak up on them, we can take them by surprise and grab there gun."

"I'll go too." Lee jumps in.

Kenny shakes his head, "Only one of you can go. Someone has to stay with Clementine."

"I'll stay Lee." I volunteer, holding out my weapon for him to take, which he does.

"Thanks Mark." He whispers as Kenny opens the door and descends into the room quietly.

"Will Lee be alright?" Clementine quivers at my side, staring at the closed doors as though as she was expecting it to burst open at any second.

"Of course. Lee's strong." I reassure her, watching the door myself, listening intently for any signs to suggest what's going on outside our line of vision.

If I listen closely, with the hearing only developed in warfare, I can make out the thump of a body followed by grunts. They might need help.

"Come on Clementine." I open the door, charging into the barn.

I wasn't really prepared to witness the next events, and I know without a doubt that Clem wasn't either. The moment we enter, a shriek emits itself from the little girl's mouth as a pitchfork skewers the chest formally possessed by the youngest St. John, Danny. Lee's widened eyes find their way to us but Clementine grabs my leg, fear pulsing through her like a wild fire I can feel.

So this is what happened to Danny St. John…

In my previous life, I would never know what became of the family that appeared to be harmless folk living on a dairy which was believed to be a little piece of Heaven at the time. Was there any signs? Was there anything to lead us to the revelation we know now? Was there a way to save me without giving me a second chance, a replay? There most likely was. The way the eldest brother wanted Lee to stay away from the barn. The fact that Brenda wouldn't allow me to have visitors should have been a massive warning sign. Did we intentually blind ourselves to the truth of the situation?

I snap out of my thoughts as Kenny tosses the St. John's gun to me, upon which I easily catch it single-handedly.

"Protect Clementine." He orders as he rushes out into the starry night.

"Clem, I-" Lee struggles to find the correct words to justify his actions.

"Go Lee." I motion to the door. Better give him time to figure out how to explain himself to the now silenced girl.

The man hesitantly leaves. It only takes me a few second though to hear Lee's hushed voice.

"Carley…?"

"You guys didn't come back."

"Do you have your weapon?"

"Never leave home without it."

"The St. John's are nuts. They killed Lilly and Larry had a heart attack."

"Me and Ben are here to help then."

"The front gate is too dangerous. Go around the perimeter and search for another way in. I have to find Kenny."

I hear the rustling of plants. I assume that is Carley and Ben leaving to find an entrance. I can hardly make out Lee's next words. They are so hushed and hard to pick up. I open the barn doors in order to see and hear.

Lee is calling feebly for Kenny, who isn't in sight as he makes his way to the house.

"Danny, Andy is that you?" Brenda questions, her shadowy figure appearing behind the screen door once Lee enters the fenced off area.

"Y-ya it's Andy." Lee attempts to imitate the brother's voice.

Brenda gasps and retraces her figure from the doorway. She hasn't bought it. The trees around us crackle menacingly as the wind picks up, whisking up dead leaves for dramatic effect. The darkened clouds stretch across the sky like an omen. It is a telltale sign of a storm brewing.

Lee climbs up the porch steps and is promptly shouted at by Brenda, words that I can't make out. However, the man opens the door anyway, slowly entering as he says something along the line of 'let her go'.

Their voices fade into the wind as I adjust my grip on the gun. Clementine refuses to release my leg. We both flinch when a scream echoes through the clearing, but I shift my attention to the three forms standing off to one side of the house.

"Leave Duck alone!" Kenny pleads as the eldest St. John presses the boy's head with the barrel of his gun.

Lee reappears on the porch with Katjaa, but this barely registers.

Kenny charges at Andy, quickly receiving a bullet to the stomach. He crumbles to the ground, holding the point of impact as his face is flooded with pain.

"Kenny!" Katjaa cries, rushing to his side.

With the St. John distracted, Carley runs to their aid by sharpshooting Andrew through the skull. I can feel my heart pounding furiously in my ears when Lee tackles him. Together the duo tumbles to the ground, leaving the gun in their wake as they crash right through the white picket fence.

Both men stay down, but not for long. Andy picks himself up and grabs the still dazed Lee, dragging him a little before dropping him and proceeds to turn on the generator.

When was it off…?

The fence buzzes to life as the St. John yanks Lee's hands behind him. Lee's wits start returning, creating a power struggle between the two as Andy attempts to electrocute his head.

"Save him!" Clem says to me urgently, pushing the gun up close to myself.

Pulling myself out of my personal daze, I press the stock against my shoulder and aim for Andy's head. I take a step forward, breathing in the chilling air to calm my bouncing heart. Tightening my grip, I follow his movements fluidly. Suddenly, a painful fire ignites in my shoulder, the shock it produces causing me to pull the trigger. Much to my dismay, the bullet simple gets Andy's shoulder. On the brighter side, it is enough to allow Lee to overpower him.

Dropping the gun which is quickly incased in Clementine's arms, I rub my injured shoulder sorely. The jerk on the gun caused the blood to once again leak onto the makeshift bandages.

Lee pins the St. John to the ground and deals blow after blow to his face until it is deemed unrecognizable. Clementine and I approach the group as they gather to witness Lee beat Andy into literally a bloody pulp. Taunts flow from Andrew's mouth like a broken faucet the moment Lee stops and begins to stand up.

"It's over!" Lee shouts, panting heavily from the exertion.

The remaining St. John disagrees.

"Finish me then." He urges.

Lee's eyes find their way to us, the awaiting group, and then back to Andy. He proceeds to turn away and starts walking to us.

"Come back Leeeeee!" Andrew shouts, his voice traveling to all the walkers' ears in the vicinity.

Rain pours down viciously, almost in mourning, pattering the ground like a death march as the generator sputters and dies, allowing the walkers to destroy the fence lines and crawl like spiders onto the farm.

Lee never turns back, leading us away from the St. Johns' Dairy.

I risk a single glance back. Andy is sobbing openly, drenching himself in his own tears and raindrops. Lumbering towards him is a walker, a zombified version of the once illusive caring mother, Brenda. After that, I don't look again. Not until the farm is nothing but a speck in the distant smoke colored sky.

The walk back to the motor inn is dead silent, aside from the occasional grunt from Kenny. The rain has ceased only a few moments ago, creating the surrounding areas of the road into a muddy mess. The leaves are sucked into the depths and no longer rustle in beat with the wind. I can easily feel blood soaking my shirt, drying up and caking my skin. I'll have to clean it later.

"Daddddd…" Duck complains as his father slows down to a limp, "Dadddddd, what's that noise?" He questions, just as the same noise fills everyone's ears. It's a held out note that ends abruptly and begins again a second later. The sound of a car door left open.

We all peak around the corner of a patch of trees down a mud covered road. Low and behold, a car awaits us. The station wagon's lights are bright, a signal in the ashy sky. The driver's door is left wide open, keys in the ignition, beeping heartedly away as it awaits the owner to return.

Upon closer inspection by Kenny of the back window, it reveals a whole new revelation. As Lee retrieves the keys, Kenny releases a whistle.

"Food, supplies, it's everything we need." His voice holds eagerness, his eyes brightening when Lee opens up the back. It is like a piece handed to us from heaven, excluding a cannibal family. But as the thunder crackles in the distance, I know it's not ours for the taking. Whether we want to admit it or not, it's just not ours.

"We can't take this." I speak up when I see the duo reaching intently for the supplies.

"What are you talking 'bout Mark?" Kenny looks at me, bewildered, "No one's here to claim it."

"Do I get a vote?" Clementine pipes up, peering around Lee's leg.

"Of course sweet pea." Lee assures her.

"I think we should leave it," She agrees, "It's not ours."

"Clementine…" Lee kneels down to her level, "We need those things."

"Wont they come back to get it though?" Her innocence portrays her years. She is too young to understand survival.

I realize now that we do need these things.

"No…they won't…" He straightens himself, turning away to shield himself from Clementine's unguarded emotions.

He pulls packages filled to the brim with necessities out; he slides boxes into open arms, until everyone but Kenny and Lee are holding an object. It feels more than wrong to do this, but there is no turning back now.

Nothing but dead silence follows us as we make the final trek to the motor inn.

Anyone excited for Episode 3?

-Soul Spirit-