Season Three: Episode 5 -Too Far Gone- Loss

A/N- WE HIT OVER 300 REVIEWS! :D YAY! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! But the conclusion is drawing nigh. Hang on tight, because we are going to get real deep here, and A LOT is going to happen. SO let's go!

Now when Clementine finally looked up and met the woman's face with hers, her heart nearly stopped. She didn't know what to say or how to say it, but the little girl remembered and knew this was definitely her...

[Address Lilly]

[Keep Quiet]

She couldn't believe it. She just couldn't believe it, this was definitely her, there no mistaking. What were the chances that this encounter occurred? Was this fate? Meanwhile, it took a moment but the woman recognized the hat. She stared wide-eyed at the little girl speechless... shocked. It only took another second for her to get her bearings and realize what was happening here.

She turned back to her boss. "Crane! Where did these guys come from?" Lilly inquired from him.

The burly man looked back at her with an expression of frustration. "Don't get all uppity with me! I told YOU to interview them so interview them, goddammit!"

Clem stared up at the woman with the rifle pointing at her face. "Lilly... it's me Clementine." She whispered only loud enough so that the three closest to her could listen. "Do you remember me? Please…" Lilly looked back at her, confirming that this was that little girl that been with her at the beginning, when she lost her only family...

She remembered her father... for maybe the first time in months, maybe in a year or two, it had been so long ago. But the woman shook those somber thoughts away, and she gave her an inconspicuous curt nod of her head.

(?) You tried to talk to Lilly.

Lucas and Dusty both looked from Lily to Clementine and realized that these two somehow knew each other. It was quite a commotion with the rain pounding against the metal of the bridge, allowing loud pitter-patter raindrop sounds to echo throughout the tunnel that was the covered bridge. Lily gave one more glare to Crane before responding to the captives she had in front of her.

The now short haired woman replied back, keeping up her façade. "State your business here. Now." Lilly demanded from the two men on either side of Clementine.

Lucas was the first to answer her however as Dusty leered at the bandits around them, two of them however were getting strategically close to them specifically. "My name is Lucas, and these are my companions, this storm here is going to get worse and worse, and we wanted to provide safe refuge for this group here. This bridge isn't safe."

Lilly looked back and scanned Zach and the pregnant Rachel then the keeled-over Leanne who was still taking her punishment from Crane. The bandit leader roared when he caught wind of Lucas's words. "We ain't goin' nowhere till that bald piece o' shit Chris gets back here! Then ya'll won't have to worry about space in your little 'refuge'!" He mocked their quest.

Clem and Lucas then remembered that Chris was dead since yesterday when they returned his supply bag here. These men were waiting for this dead man to come here, which would never happen... Lilly was the one to say something next. "If what they're saying in true, then your putting us ALL at risk, Crane!"

But Crane snarled back. "You talk back to me ONE MORE time, I won't hesitate to put you down, lieutenant." The leader then looked over at the bound brother and sister of the group and ordered one of his other lackeys. "I'm sure his girl's cries will get Chris to come running!" He pointed at Rachel. "Shoot her!"

"NO!" Zach protested in vain.

Now was their moment to strike, Dusty whirled around and pulled the barrel of a rifle forward off the bandit next to him. This resulted him to fall onto his hands and knees, and Dusty used that man's own rifle to shoot him point black in the face.

*BANG!*

Meanwhile, Clementine watched in almost a slow-motion version as she saw an internal struggle inside Lilly unfold. The little girl earned another stare towards her, and she furrowed her eyebrows at her. But Clementine knew... she would not want this baby or herself to die.

And of course, she never did like Crane anyway...

So in a sudden change of heart, Lilly lifted her rifle and shot her fellow bandit in the head that stood next to Lucas which gave him that free window.

At that point all hell went loose, bullets began to fly everywhere, and there was near to no cover to hide behind on this bridge, so it was whoever shot first, lived. But Clementine watched as the bandit ordered to shoot Rachel followed through, even in this new chaos. He then pulled the trigger, but she saw Lucas still running towards her.

Rachel's pleas fell on living ears as Lucas valiantly dived in front of the pregnant woman, and he took the full force of the rifle bullet into his body meant for her. "GAAH!" And then immediately the bandit that had fired was shot down by an enraged Dusty who took cover by a nearby crate.

Lucas remained motionless in front of the still bound Rachel and Zach who were exclaiming for assistance not only for themselves but for Lucas's sake too. And Clementine would do just that, and she sprinted towards them, cautiously avoiding the gunfire as Dusty and Lilly waged war against Crane and his remaining man, Ted. She could hear that Crane guy shout. "You fucks! Fuckin' DIE!"

Safe for the time being however, Clementine approached Lucas' body and knelt down beside him. She was startled when she heard a moan coming from him, and she expected that this was the beginning of a walker. But when he fluttered his eyelids and inhaled sharply through gritted teeth, she realized that he thankfully was indeed still alive.

"Lucas!" She exclaimed, quickly reaching forward and removing the bindings of Zach, remembering he was a medic.

Once they were off, he gave a grateful nod and rolled Lucas on his side, so he could examine his wound. He let out a pained groan and reached for his injured shoulder, covering it with his hand. "Fucking hell..." He seethed.

"Are you okay?" She asked worryingly.

"I'm alive, that's one thing." He replied weakly. "At least, I think I'm alive..."

"You could have been killed..." She murmured. Rachel was still in awe at this near stranger, saving her life.

"I knew the risk." He stated boldly.

"But you still did it, why?" She questioned him.

The injured man's expression turned to a look of guilt as he lifted his head that was rested on the ground and met her gaze. "I let her down." He muttered.

"Who, Rachel?"

"Michael's mom..." He replied with a sigh. "I let them both down... Michael... Rachel..." He closed his eyelids for a second as a single tear rolled down his cheek. He then opened them once again and looked at Clementine with the same sorrowful eyes. "I just wanted to get one thing right... To help this Rachel... and her child..."

"You did, Lucas, you did." She told him comfortingly, touching his unharmed shoulder, next to the ground. "Your Rachel would be proud of you... And I'm sure Michael will be too."

Zach continued his work as he was done comforting his sister. This Rachel had gone through a near death experience and had needed some support from her brother for just a moment, clutching her pregnant belly. He glanced down at Lucas, whose injury had his full attention now. "You need to sit up if I'm going to take a look at your shoulder properly now." He informed the wounded man.

Lucas let out another pained groan as he rose into a sitting position. He was awfully pale... Clementine hoped he would be okay.

Zach couldn't believe that this had happened though. But it did, despite the circumstances. "I can't thank you enough for what you did. I don't know how I can ever repay you, but I'll start with fixing your shoulder. It's the best I can do."

"Seeing your sister safe is thanks enough." Lucas stated with a weak smile.

Zach turned his attention to Clementine. "I got this... Please go help your friends, and save Leanne too." He pleaded.

Clementine nodded. "Do your best with him."

"I intend to." Zach replied with a confident nod.

"Wait Clem, take this." Lucas pulled out and handed out his hatchet to her. He must have seen that she lost her screwdriver from earlier. She nodded in gratitude and gladly took hold, and pocketed it.

Now back to the matter at hand. Clem turned back to see Dusty firing at Ted who was hiding behind the cars, and Lily firing at Crane who kept Leanne close to him. Clem called over to her friend. "Dusty! I'll cover you!"

The burned man acknowledged that with a nod and popped up from his cover ready to make a move. The little girl pulled out her only pistol, and she fired at the cars were Ted was hiding behind. After firing a few shots the bandit that brought them to the bridge at gunpoint had to duck from her gunfire. All the while, Dusty had quickly moved up to the other side of the cars, and he aimed through both the passenger and the driver's windows. He fired a rifle round through the glass and clipped the top of Ted's skull, silencing him forever.

Teamwork had paid off as Crane realized that he was all alone now against at least three enemies by himself. The bandit leader picked up Leanne, hooking her around the neck with his left arm, and he growled. "This… This is bullshit! This is fucking bullshit!"

Abhorred at these recent actions and trapped by hostiles towards him, he took the only exit available which was a maintenance door that was on the upriver side of the bridge. Crane kicked it open and dragged Leanne out with her, much to the blonde's struggle and protests. Dusty and Lilly then converged with Clementine near the same door, ready to chase him down. Lilly stated to the two of them. "They've got nowhere to go but up!" She motioned towards the service ladder which led to the roof of the bridge.

"I'll go first!" Dusty immediately volunteered to go up first, and he ran outside to follow them up the ladder.

Before Lilly went out herself, she turned her attention to Clementine, who was raring to go outside too. But Lilly shook her head at that. "Clementine..." It felt odd to have that name roll off her tongue. "You stay down here, it's dangerous to go up there. You might slip or get shot-!"

"Lilly, I am not the little kid you knew before." She declared to her. "I can take care of myself, please, let me help. I can do this."

(?) She will remember that.

"I believe you hon, really I do but-!" However Lilly was interrupted by a gunshot above them. "Fuck! No time!"

Lilly turned heel and quickly made her way outside and to the ladder as well. Clem instinctively followed her and found herself on small metal platform which only gave enough space for her to turn around and climb the ladder behind her now.

The river below however was only a four or so feet beneath the bottom part of the bridge. Rushing loud with gray and white rapids, the waterway would be merciless for anyone who would fall in. Clementine tentatively climbed the ladder, she was already drenched from the downpour to her dismay. The storm had really picked up and was in full swing now. When she finally climbed up to the roof she found a familiar scene: Crane was holding Leanne hostage with his left arm still around her neck, and in his right hand he wielded a revolver pointed to the blonde's temple. Dusty had his pistol aimed towards the two of them with Lilly right next to him. "It's over man, let her go!" He demanded of the bandit leader over the howling wind.

"I don't take orders from nobody not you! Not anyone!" Crane retorted back at him, keeping his meat shield near him. "Come on motherfucker, come on! You think I'm playing?!" The burly man looked behind him and saw that he was very close to the edge.

"Just try asshole! See what happens!" Lilly barked at him while she kept her rifle aimed at his forehead.

Clementine safely pulled out her pistol to protect herself just in case, but as the seconds passed, she realized that according to the look on Dusty, she could only assume that the burned man was flashing back to St. Francis, specifically when Katherine had held Maree hostage...

It was second chance for him...

Crane peered over the edge behind him once more, and his demeanor faltered, as he understood that his last stand would be a vain one. "...Alright! Alright! Look, we can hash something out I'm sure..." He paused and his arm loosed a little off of Leanne. "Let's talk!" But Dusty took his chance to redeem himself.

He lined up the sights.

"I'm done talking!"

*BANG!*

The bullet that had that had been fired out of Dusty's gun ripped through raindrops, and found its target into Crane's neck. Red spouted like a fountain, and the man choked on his own blood. Leanne was able to partly escape his grasp when Lilly took her chance and fire her shot.

*BANG!*

The larger caliber round was a bull's eye as this one obliterated the right half of Crane's face into a mush of tissue and bone. His gurgling was the only sound he sputtered before the impact from both shots made his body topple back over the ledge and down to the roaring river below... unfortunately his grasp was still enough to pull Leanne back too.

"AHH!" At the last second, the woman grabbed hold of the edge of the roof, her feet dangling with no support to stand on. "HELP! HELP ME UP, PLEASE!"

"Come on!" Clementine motioned the two adults to beckon the woman's call. The three of them ran to the other side, careful not to slip, while Clem and Dusty took hold of both of her hands. "Hang on!" Together, they heaved up all her weight and onto the roof with everyone else.

Leanne's chest was heaving as Lilly took hold of her arms and pulled her back to the middle, safe from the ledge. "Thank you... thank you so much..." These strangers, these fellow survivors risked their own lives to save hers. Maybe she shouldn't lose hope in others yet...

But their victory must have been short-lived because after when Lilly placed Leanne down and approached Clem and Dusty, the latter's eyes went wide and he pointed upriver. "What is that?! Oh my god!"

The females addressed what he was pointing at, and Clementine could only make out for a moment or two of what it was.

...It horrified her, it horrified them all.

Tumbling in the rapids was a long yellow school bus, scraping and thrashing all around the currents, above the water. And before anyone else could react-!

*CRASH!*

*CREAK!*

*SCRAAAP!*

The impact from that huge piece of debris into the bridge made all of them loose their balance. But unfortunately, since they were close enough to the ledge, Dusty and Clem were knocked back and fell into the riverbed! Lilly reached out to grab Clementine's little hand, but she was only inches short as Clem and her friend continued falling and falling and...

*SPLASH!*

The current was already taking her downriver as she was underwater. She didn't get a good breathe of air to begin with, so Clementine had to make her way back up to the surface, now!

She kicked her legs, flapped her arms, doggie paddled if she had to. But eventually, her head and lungs found fresh oxygen as she popped up above water. She quickly looked around and found herself being at the mercy of the storm-driven water highway. She had to breathe, she couldn't slip back under. Clementine looked up to see the covered bridge getting further and further away, and that's when her ears perked up.

"CLEMENTINE!" The little girl whirled her head around, looking for the source of where Dusty's voice was. But she found him only a few yards away from him. "Swim! Swim towards me!"

(!) Swim To Dusty!

The twelve year old coughed and spluttered as she attempted to paddle towards her friend. He must of been swimming towards her too, because soon he was right next to her. They grabbed each other's hands but before Clementine could speak another word, she heard Dusty panic. "No, no no no no no no NO!"

And water engulfed them both again and everything went black...

...

...

Clem...

...

Clementine... you have to wake up sweet pea...

...

I'm here with you... stay with me...

...

"...Stay with me, Clem! Come on!" Her lungs suddenly puffed out with blown in air.

Another second later, the little girl shot up when a glop of water in her throat, and then she spat out a mouthful while coughing uncontrollably. Dusty backed off while Clem gasped for new breathes of life. *cough* *cough* *gasp!* *cough*

"Good girl..." Dusty had a relieved smile on his face as he rubbed Clementine's back soothingly. "You're okay... you're okay."

The twelve year old finally made sense of their surroundings. When her hands clenched, sand was collected in her fists and she realized that they were washed ashore back on the lake's lone beach, leaned up against a large log. With the river they were riding on to their right which dissipated into the Great Lake in front of them, all they could hear was nature's noises and their own breathing. "W-what happened?" She looked up to Dustin for answers.

And he responded by knitting his eyebrows with worry. "We, well we fell into the river... and then," He paused. "It got too rough, and we went under for a while."

"I almost drowned, didn't I?" The realization had just hit her, Lucas, Lilly, and the rest of them were hopefully way up river, still alive and kicking.

Dusty nodded. "Yeah, you did... I almost did too." He then noticed that Clementine was really shivering, *brrr* so he did about the only thing he could do at that moment. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and pulled her close, sharing his body heat. "Sorry. Should've asked." But nevertheless he rubbed her arms to create some friction and heat for her. "It's the best I can do for now..."

Still, Clem appreciated it a lot, she didn't even object to any of his actions, in fact she welcomed the slight warmth. "Thank you." She muttered silently to him. The two of them just needed to rest even if just for a moment. Weirdly enough the little girl heard the young man chuckle. "What's so funny?"

Dusty's chortle went silent. "Fire... water... what does it take to kill us?" Remembering the burnt down Resort, noting that they have survived both elements.

"I guess we're both just lucky." Clem stated for the two of them. Or perhaps they both had people looking out for them from above.

(?) Dusty will remember that.

"Yeah... probably." He liked to think that their loved ones were watching out for them too. "Then again if I let you die, I think Kenny would haunt me for the rest of my life."

Clem held in the giggle this time and instead let reality reset into her mind. "What do we do now, Dusty?"

The burned man pulled away from Clementine, much to her discomfort, to stand up and scan the near horizon, narrowing his eyes at their destination: the lighthouse was thankfully about the distance of half a mile away down the beach. The only problem was...

A barrier made up of the dead stood between them and sanctuary... and the horde was heading towards them. They only had maybe five more safe minutes until they converged. "Water's too cold to swim around them, we're already freezing... we can cut back through the woods, move up river but... shit."

Clementine was about to suggest covering themselves with walker guts to sneak past them, but seeing as it was still raining, the smell would just be washed off, so that idea would not work. "Can we go through them?"

Dusty's eyebrow's arched at that suggestion, but then they settled back down. "If we find a spot where they're sparse enough, we'd be able to know how many we're dealing with. If we're quick we can cut as a path through."

He was right, in the dense woods without the trail to follow, they could get lost or swarmed with limited space to go on. On the beach, they would be able to see where they were going, and they might have a better chance... it sounded like suicide, but they didn't have much choice now, did they? The walkers were almost on top of them. "You got something quiet you can use?" Wanting to attract as little attention as possible.

Clem pulled out Lucas's hatchet, she had some real experience with this weapon, however it wasn't the most ideal melee, it still got the job done most of the time. "I'm ready."

*Thunder*

Dusty pulled out his fire iron and stood side by side with his little companion, fearlessly advancing on the walker hoard, all the while spotting for the fewest amount to slice their way through. "Here goes nothing."

Soon, the first walker they came across was killed instantly with one thrust of Dusty's fire iron. Then the crowd of lurkers came ever closer, with walkers lunging at them from every side. Clementine was still close to Dusty, who was currently stabbing through a cluster of walkers and trying to find a path through.

(o) Use hatchet on walker.

Clementine managed to reach up and stab a walker through the forehead, ripping the tool out before the walker could fall. As she kept following Dusty's path she noticed how confined they were becoming. Clementine wielded the hatchet firmly and edged towards another walker which was currently unaware of her presence.

(o) Use hatchet on walker.

Clementine swung her hatchet and stabbed the walker in the back of the head, quickly tugging it out as it collapsed to the floor and ran after Dustin, dodging several walkers that got too close. Clementine found the burned man, taking note that he had been splattered with more walker blood, it was running down his face, mixing with the rain drops already there. She began to walk beside him again. Dustin acknowledged her presence and gave her an anxious look before swinging at another lurker.

She saw that he was busy slicing the back of a walkers head opened when another biter lunged from the side and grabbed hold of his weapon and attempted to pull him towards it's snapping jaws.

(o) Use hatchet on walker.

Clementine stabbed the walker in the back of the head with her weapon, killing it instantly. Dusty pushed the body off his iron and turned towards Clementine. "Thanks." He whispered quietly. "Now let's give one last push." He instructed her.

(o) Use hatchet on walker.

Clementine swung her hatchet at a fast approaching walker, the weapon cutting into it's forehead. It fell towards her, she had to keep up.

Dusty thrust at another walker, embedding it in its eye socket and fiercely pulling back, ripping it's skull off like plucking a grape from its stem, a spurt of blood streamed out of the freshly torn neck as it fell.

(o) Stomp on walker.

Clementine noticed a walker that was crawling on the ground, making it an easy target to kill, so she used her foot and stomped it dead on the head, it mushed like a rotten fruit. Dusty cut up another walker beside her.

(o) Kill Walker.

The twelve year old kicked a walker in the knee, it's leg buckled and collapsed. Lifting her hatchet, she killed it with one swing to the back of the head.

(o) Use hatchet on walker.

She swung her hatchet towards another walker, the blade missing it's head and cutting into it's cheek. She struggled, attempting to pull the stuck hatchet out. When she couldn't, Dusty noticed and came back to her, grabbing hold of its head and impaling it with his iron weapon easily through the top of the skull. Once the walker was lying dead on the ground, she pulled the hatchet out.

Now because of this backtrack, the two were completely surrounded by a new barrage of walkers hobbling towards them. "Fuck! This is... fuck!"

Then suddenly, the little girl heard a "ahhhhhh..." It was faint compared to all the walker groans around them, but it was distinct and it was real and nearby.

A woman's scream?

Clementine pushed that thought away however when Dusty forcefully took her by the arm and tossed her off to the side.

"HEY!" Dusty waved his arms like a person with a death wish. "OVER HERE YOU SONS OF BITCHES!" He banged his fire iron on some fallen wood to get all the walkers' attentions.

"What the hell are you doing Dusty?!" Clementine exclaimed at him wide-eyed. She noticed he was moving away from her and more towards the forest with at least a dozen walkers going after him now. "Get back here!"

But Dustin ignored her words. "JUST RUN! GET BACK TO THE LIGHTHOUSE! TELL THE OTHERS! GO NOW!" He then turned heel and sprinted off into the woods, making as much noise as he could along the way.

Clementine's eyes stung with tears, and it was too late to beg or protest, she couldn't just let his efforts be for nothing, otherwise all would be lost for them. It hurt her so much, but Clementine ran and ran through the escape route within the dead Dustin had provided her.

She escaped the horde on the beach, and there was nothing but sand and rock that stood between her and the others at the lighthouse...

Clementine's clothes, for the most part, were being washed of lurker blood because of the rain. Not that it served much purpose at this point anyway.

She was out of breathe but relieved when she reached the lighthouse. Arriving at the base of the spire near the front door, she noticed something lying on the ground. At first, she considered simply brushing it off as a dead walker from this morning, but as she got closer at attempting to identify it, the body on the ground looked all too familiar. It was the source of the faint scream she heard earlier in the horde...

It was... Brooke.

Clementine reeled back in horror. "Brooke... Oh my god..."

The red head was sprawled out on her back, the back of her head cracked open and her own blood spilling out onto the grass, pooling around her body. Brooke's eyes were widened, her face frozen in a look of shock.

Clementine glanced up at the top of the lighthouse and saw that the railings on the balcony were broken. Did Brooke fall...? Or was she... she couldn't possibly have been pushed?

Whatever had happened, it would seem that she had died on impact with the ground and she hadn't turned because of the crack in her skull.

Clem knelt down beside her dead friend and reached out a shaking hand. She gently ran her fingers down Brooke's face and closed her eyelids. "I- I'm sorry, Brooke..." Clem whispered an apology as she back stood up.

Why was Brooke dead? How long had she been dead? It was hard to tell, a few minutes maybe? What had happened while she was gone? Was anyone else dead? Was AJ okay?

Clementine's thoughts were racing as she sprinted towards the lighthouse door and burst into the living quarters. It pained her to leave Brooke outside but she didn't have much choice. She needed to find AJ.

She was greeted by a grim sight. Someone had been on a rampage... The table was flipped over and chairs were thrown across the room. There was clear echoed shouting coming from upstairs, and as keen as she was to find out what was going on, she quickly made her way over to the stairwell. She didn't make it far though, because as soon as she reached them she noticed was what she guessed was another dead body... covered by a blood stained white sheet. Whoever was under it was very small, so it couldn't be Michael or Hazen.

Clementine's heart sank. She felt her knees begin to tremble before her legs buckled underneath her, and she collapsed to the ground beside the body. AJ... He was... No, he couldn't be...

Clementine covered her mouth to stop herself from gagging. A sob was caught in her throat and she knew at any moment she would start to wail uncontrollably. Who else could be under this sheet?

No one else could be under it but...

Clementine closed her eyes and pictured AJ in her mind. He was the only family she had... He couldn't be gone... He couldn't be! He wasn't!

She needed to know, she needed to see this. Clementine swallowed hard and reached for the white sheet. She gripped the material tightly, her hands shaking violently as she peeled back the cloth.

Could it be...? Was AJ...? And then she saw... and sobbed.

"No... AJ..."

No.

A/N- It was hard to write, but it is done...

Our final climax is HERE... It is time for Clementine to face her ultimate fear, her ultimate demons. The ultimate finale of Season 3... what will await for her at the top of the tower?

Stay tuned.