We walked in, guns pointed, with Daryl, Glenn, and me bringing up the rear. I followed the lead of the two men, keeping my gun ready in case any more walkers showed up. Once inside, I lowered the weapon slightly and took a look around. The building was eerily empty—the reception area looked like it hadn't been touched since the beginning of this nightmare. We called out, searching for whoever opened the doors, the tension thick in the air. I bet we all felt a little dumb for doubting Rick. Thank God he noticed that camera move.
A sharp click echoed through the room—a gun cocking. Almost in unison, everyone pointed their guns toward the noise. Standing there was a man holding a massive weapon, one I couldn't even begin to identify. Not that I knew much about guns—I delivered pizzas for a living, after all.
"Any infected!?" He shouts. He's a blonde older man, tall and stocky and didn't look anything like how you'd expect a doctor to look.
"One of our group was but he didn't make it," Rick explains. Desperation was laced all in his tone.
"Why are you here? What do you want?" The man says, coming closer now. I tucked myself closer into Glenn and leaned into side. He glanced down at me and placed a kiss onto my forehead.
"A chance." Rick pleaded, lowering his weapon.
"That's asking for a awful lot these days."
"I know."
It gets quiet as the man surveys our group. Finally he says, "You all submit to a blood test, that's the price of admission."
I squealed, ready to turn around and bolt right back out those front doors. I have a terrible fear of needles, and the idea of giving my blood to the government for safety? Yeah, no thanks—that just screams bad news. Before I could act on my impulse, Glenn held onto me tightly, pushing me forward. Once Rick agreed, everyone scrambled to grab their bags and bring them inside. Glenn practically dragged me further into the building and into an elevator with the rest of our group. My anxiety was spiking through the roof at this point.
"Vi, seal the main entrance and kill the power down here," the doctor said into a system on the wall. Great, so there were more doctors than just him. Nice.
The tension in the elevator was palpable as we stood in silence, crammed in like sardines. There were at least ten of us in there, and it was going straight down. Being underground during an apocalypse... never thought I'd see the day.
"Doctors always go around packing heat like that?" Daryl asks.
"Well there were plenty lying around and I familiarized myself. But you look harmless enough. Except you, I'll have to keep my eye on you," he looks down and jokes with Carl.
We learned the doctor's name is Edwin Jenner, and he led us down a cement hallway lined with rooms, finally bringing us into a large room that was suddenly illuminated by a bright overhead light. The glow revealed about twenty high-tech computers, all lined up in rows. I was shocked to see the place was completely empty—no other doctors, no staff, not even other survivors. Just us and Dr. Jenner. The absence of people made the situation feel even more unsettling.
"Welcome to zone 5," the doctor announces after telling 'Vi' so turn up the lights.
"Where is everybody?" Rick asks. Glad I'm not the only one thinking about how suspicious this situation was.
"The other doctors, the staff?"
"I'm it. It's just me here." The doctor's answer definitely shocks us all; we all share a concerned look.
"What about 'vi'?" I ask. Now that my suspicions are confirmed and I know no one else is here.
"Vi, say hello to our guests. Tell them...welcome." He says, speaking to no one I can see.
"Hello guests, welcome," a robotic voice coming from some sort of intercom. The group stays silent as she speaks.
"I'm sorry. But I'm all that's left. I'm sorry." Nobody says anything. "Alright, let's start with these blood tests."
"No, no, no, no." I whisper to myself. Glenn grabs my hand and squeezes it for some reassurance.
I made sure to be the last to get my blood drawn. Daryl and Shane had to hold me down in the chair while Glenn stood in front of me, blocking my view of the doctor. Despite the doctor's assurances that this was for our safety, I was still on edge. Each time someone returned with a fresh Band-Aid on their arm, my heart rate spiked.
"You tell me you see people getting eaten alive, and you're still afraid of a tiny poke?" the doctor chuckled. I couldn't even see him, but I was ready to throw a punch for his comment.
"Don't you have a tattoo?" Shane asked, glancing at the small heart inked on my ankle.
"She has more than one," Glenn chimed in, referring to the other tattoos on my thigh and spine. Tattoos were for pleasure, though. Large sterilized needles pulling my blood out? Not so much.
Glenn caressed my face with one hand and rubbed the top of my head with the other. His touch actually calmed me down a bit, his big brown eyes locked on mine as he whispered sweet nothings. But the second I felt the prick of the needle, I screamed at the top of my lungs, my body jerking involuntarily. Shane and Daryl tightened their grip on me for a moment before letting go, everyone backing off as the doctor finished up.
"Are you done?" I asked, cautiously pulling my arm back and inspecting it. A tiny dot of blood marked the crook of my arm. I stood up, almost tipping over right into Glenn's arms.
"Are you ok?" Edwin jokes, now beginning to pack up my stuff.
"We haven't eaten in what feels like days," Amy announces. The group murmurs their agreements. We were all pretty weak too from getting our blood taken I bet.
After a second he goes, "Well let's eat!"
Jenner gave us a quick tour, showing us individual places where we could sleep with our own families. Glenn and I got a tiny room with a single bed and a desk. We dropped our bags onto the desk, and I sat down on the bed, feeling the weight of the day finally catching up to me.
"It wasn't that bad, right?" Glenn asked, a smile on his face. I could see the relief in his eyes, and it made me happy too. Seeing him at peace, even for a moment, was everything to me. It felt good not to have to worry about imminent threats, at least for now.
"I don't care how bad it was. I feel sick, and my arm hurts," I muttered, trying not to sound too negative, but the whole situation was still getting to me. The idea of being part of a government experiment, even for our safety, made my skin crawl.
"Baby, stop, look where we are. Where we're going to sleep," he said, dropping to his knees so he was at eye level with me. We locked eyes, and I couldn't help but soften under his gaze. He leaned in and kissed me gently. "You're so beautiful," he whispered, his voice full of warmth.
His words and touch eased some of the tension I'd been carrying. Despite everything, here in this tiny room with him, I felt a flicker of hope.
My cheeks flushed and a smile creeped onto my lips. He was so good at making me forget things and brightening my mood. "And I'm all yours."
"Forever?"
"Forever."
"Promise?"
I leaned back in and rubbed my nose against his. "I promise."
Glenn tackled me playfully, peppering my face and neck with kisses while simultaneously tickling me. I broke out in laughter, squirming beneath him, loving the kisses but desperately trying to escape the tickles. "Okay, okay! Stop!" I pleaded through giggles. He finally relented, leaning back onto the bed beside me, a satisfied grin on his face.
Once I caught my breath, I got up and dug into my bag, pulling out the small baggie of weed I'd found earlier. "Do you think we can smoke here?" I asked, holding it up.
"I'd put it off for now," he replied, coming over to grab the bag and inspect it. "Is this the bag you argued with me about losing?"
My eyes widened. Oh yeah, I had totally blamed him for that. Glenn raised his eyebrows, clearly waiting for an apology. "Just because I found it doesn't mean you didn't lose it," I teased, trying to wriggle out of it.
"Oh yeah, sure," he said with a dramatic eye roll, slipping the bag into the pocket of his plaid shirt. "Well, let's see if I lose it this time."
"I wish we had some seeds. We could get a potted plant and just carry it around like a little baby. Permanent stash," I mused with a grin.
Glenn chuckled, shaking his head. "You and your ideas. Let's just focus on staying alive for now."
"Fair enough," I agreed, smiling back.
Glenn opened his mouth to respond, but before he could say anything, the door swung open. Amy stood there with a wide smile. "He's made spaghetti and garlic bread, there's wine and sweets as well," she announced. "Come eat."
Grateful for the interruption, we followed her down to the dining hall, where everyone was gathering around a table. Edwin was busy making plates and passing them around, while Dale poured glasses of wine. With no room left at the table, we found a spot in the back of the room on some empty counters. The doctor handed us two bowls of spaghetti, and I passed one to Glenn. We both dug in like we hadn't eaten in days, the warmth of the meal and the lighthearted atmosphere almost making me forget about the losses we'd endured. If only everyone could be here right now.
"Are you guys drinking?" Dale asks.
"Of course!" I nod with a brow raised in disbelief. No way he just asked that to the two youngest adults in the room. We get our own glasses of wine but the doctor gets up and reaches into a fridge, grabbing a beer for Glenn. Glenn takes it and hands me the wine so I combine them to give myself my own large glass.
"You know," Dale starts, "in France and Italy it's tradition for children to have a little wine with their dinner."
Lori rubs Carl's head and says sarcastically, "well when Carl is in France or Italy then he can have some wine with his dinner.
Rick smirks, "awe c'mon what's the harm. He can have a little taste."
Lori lets Carl taste some wine and he scrunches his face up, shuddering at the bitter taste of the red wine. We all erupt in laughter at his cute little reaction.
"Stick to soda pop, bud," Shane jokes. I start feeling the effects of the wine almost immediately. It had been long since I drank and had a full stomach, so the alcohol was probably hitting us all much faster.
"Not you, Glenn," Daryl said between his drunken laughs. He has his own damn bottle of wine that he was sipping on. Glenn turns to him with a smile. "Keep drinking little man, I wanna see how red your face can get."
That makes me laugh so hard that I snort, starting another wave of laughter from the group. I didn't even know I could do that. Has to be the wine. To stop the commotion, Rick taps his glass with a knife, causing all to give him our attention. He announces, "It seems to me we haven't properly thanked our host."
"He's more than our host, he's our savior," T looks back at the doctor with his words, giving him a solemn look of appreciation. We shout and cheer some more for who tips his glass at us and takes a swig. He doesn't smile or even make any type of expression at all. We minus the first if not the only people he's seen in forever.
"So when you're gonna tell us what the hell happened here, doc?" Shane asks once everyone has quested down, "all the, the other doctors, they were supposed to be figuring out what happened. Where are they?"
"Shane, we're celebrating. Don't need to do this now," Rick tries to stop from ruining the mood but he fails because Shane goes on without even giving him a second glance.
"Woah wait a second, this is why we're here, right? This was your move. Came here to find all the answers but instead we found him. Found one man. Why?"
"Well, when things got bad, a lot of people just left. Went off to be with their families," Edwin explains, "And when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted."
"Every last one?"
"No, many couldn't face walking out the door. They opted out. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time." the doctor continues." His words left the group silently returning back to quietly eating until Andrea asks, "you didn't leave, why?"
"I just kept working. Hoping to do some good."
Glenn gets up and shuffles his feet. He has a frown on his lips now. He locks eyes with Shane, "dude, you are such a buzzkill, man."
I hated how easily we could lose laughter and hope in times like this. So, I jumped up, hoping to inspire my friends with a toast. "I know it's been a rough couple of days, and we've just had some devastating things happen to our little group, but I just wanted y'all to remember that we're here, our stomachs are full, and we're safe. Now that we're together, it's possible for things to get better. We're strong, and this is a family now."
"I'd toast to that!" Dale raised his glass, and a chorus of cheers followed as everyone clinked their glasses, returning to the joyous mood from before.
After dinner, Dr. Jenner resumed the tour, leading us down a different corridor from where we'd been staying. The group followed him in single file. "There's a rec room down here," he said, gesturing ahead, "and otherwise, just common areas. There are showers with soaps and shampoos, but go easy on the hot water, okay?"
It felt surreal, almost like we'd stumbled into a time capsule of the world before everything went to hell. For a moment, as we walked through the sterile, well-lit halls, it was easy to pretend that this was just another normal night.
T and Glenn stop in their tracks at his words. In disbelief Glenn says, "hot water?"
"That's what the man said!" T shouts excitedly, smiling from ear to ear. I mean we all were excited. Taking baths in sometimes boiled, sometimes just straight cold quarry water has gotten old really fast. Last time I took a hot shower was months ago.
We all raced to our respective rooms, no doubt everyone was ready to get in line and get clean. I picked out some comfortable clothing, and waited for Glenn to get his own. And we get to shower together? This was going to be so amazing.
"I'm so grateful right now," I said aloud, just thinking to myself.
Glenn faced me, his cheeks pulled back into a beaming smile. "As long as you're happy, I'm going to be happy."
I snuck over to him, wrapping my arms around his waist and leaning my head onto his shoulder. "I'm always happy when I'm with you."
"We are so cringey," Glenn laughed, but he still hugged me back. Then, with a playful grin, he lifted me up and tossed me over his shoulder. I yelped in surprise, laughing almost immediately as my boyfriend sprinted towards the showers with me slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The wine had me giggling, and I cheered him on as he carried me.
The bathroom was huge, with separate stalls containing stand-up showers, toilets, and sinks crammed into tight spaces behind each door. Steam filled the room as many from our group took full advantage of the hot water.
We found a vacant stall, squeezed in, and quickly stripped off our clothes. Glenn let out a cheer as soon as the water hit his chest, standing under the showerhead with a blissful expression as the hot water drenched him. I squeezed between him and the wall, shuddering slightly as the spray washed over me. The water running down the drain turned brown, a grim reminder of how much grime we'd accumulated despite our best efforts to stay clean. As much as we tried to maintain some semblance of hygiene, nothing could compare to a real shower.
Back in our old apartment, Glenn and I used to take showers together almost every day. Sometimes, I'd run him bubble baths with bath salts and bath bombs—little luxuries that turned into our own casual but romantic date nights when we didn't have much money. I closed my eyes, letting the water wash over me, and let myself drift back to those moments before everything went to hell. Saying I missed it didn't even begin to cover the longing I felt for that peace.
When I opened my eyes, Glenn was watching me through the water, his expression soft and his eyes filled with love. I smiled at him, then whispered, "Turn around. I'll wash your back."
He moved without hesitation, exposing his toned back and broad shoulders to me. I planted a couple of soft kisses between his shoulder blades, then squeezed a generous amount of liquid soap into my hands and began massaging it into his muscles. A low, approving moan escaped his lips, and I took it as encouragement to keep going.
My fingers worked into the tightness of his muscles, the result of all the running, carrying, and fighting. His body was defined and sculpted from the constant physical demands of our situation. I traveled my hands around his shoulders and down his chest, sliding them slowly and deliberately.
As I reached the bottom of his stomach, he let out another moan, this one a bit louder. Standing on my tiptoes, I repeated the motion while pressing soft kisses to his ear. Each touch elicited another satisfied groan from him, and I couldn't help but smile at the way I was making him feel.
"Aye!" T-dogs voice boomed from another shower. "I can hear y'all freaky asses!"
Glenn and I crack up at his protests. Alright. I can keep my hands to myself.
Glenn and I cracked up at his playful protests. Tonight was going to be the best sleep I'd had in months—a real bed, a warm and clean space, a full stomach, and wine. The only thing that could make it better was adding some weed to the mix.
I was going to be in a coma tonight. I didn't care for any protests from Glenn, I took an empty water bottle and got creative, using a knife to poke some holes. I needed some aluminum foil or something.
"I'll be back. I'm gonna go check the kitchen, okay?" Glenn didn't pay no mind really to what I said. I guess he trusted I would be safe which was true. It felt good.
I passed by Sophia, Carl, and Carol as I walked down the hall. Sophia gave me a quick smile before continuing on, and I wondered if I looked as drunk as I felt. I ruffled Carl's hair absentmindedly and made my way to the kitchen, trying to remember where it was.
A sudden door slam made me jump. I followed the noise, tiptoeing down the hall and around the corner. Shane's shouting echoed off the thick walls, though I couldn't catch every word. His voice was hoarse and frantic, filled with desperation as he banged on the door. I had to wonder—was he shouting at Lori, or was it something else?
As I approached, I hesitated, unsure if he had heard me. I was just about to place my hand on the doorknob when a scuffle erupted inside. My curiosity was piqued. Lori's voice broke through, clear and panicked: "Get your hands off me!"
Fueled by the urgency in her voice, I swung the door open. The scene that met my eyes was beyond anything I expected. Shane was pinning Lori down on a pinball machine, his actions aggressive and forceful. His face turned beet red as he spun to look at me, shock and guilt written all over him.
Lori, disheveled and terrified, had one hand clutched at her crotch and the other desperately pushing against Shane's shoulder. Her breath came in ragged gasps, her eyes wide with fear. The room fell into a stunned silence as we all processed what had just happened.
"Don't tell me you're doing this now…" I said, my voice barely a whisper but dripping with disgust. The situation was infuriating. How could they be so careless, especially with Carl and Carol just down the hall?
Lori scrambled to her feet, her breaths coming in sharp, shallow gasps. "It's not what you think," she said, her eyes darting between me and Shane. Shane, on the other hand, had his head bowed, his hands covering his face in shame.
"We were just talking, that's all," Shane asserted, his voice tight. He met my gaze for a moment before storming past me and out the door. Lori immediately collapsed onto the pinball machine, her hands gripping her hair as she struggled to calm her breathing. She avoided eye contact, clearly rattled.
I felt conflicted, unsure of what to say or do. The whole thing felt like a mess that wasn't mine to untangle. I reached for the doorknob to close it behind me, eager to escape the uncomfortable scene.
"Thank you for showing up when you did," Lori's voice trembled from behind me.
I turned back, my expression cold and lips pressed into a thin line. "Rick is a good man," I said, before walking away. I tried to make sense of what I'd witnessed—Lori's betrayal, Shane's desperation, and the complicated web of their relationships. It was all too much, and right now, all I wanted was to find that tin foil and forget this disturbing encounter.
"Wake up, baby. Wake up."
The soft coo of Glenn's voice cut through my deep slumber. My eyes fluttered open, only to be met with a pounding headache and waves of nausea. I groaned and turned away from him, burying my face deeper into the pillow.
"Glenn, I just want to sleep peacefully," I mumbled, trying to snuggle back into the bed. The remnants of last night's wine and weed were making it difficult to keep my eyes open.
"Are you sure you want me to leave you here?" Glenn's voice carried a hint of concern.
I didn't respond, too exhausted to manage more than a tired murmur. All I wanted was for him to stay right behind me, to cuddle and let me drift back into sleep. The footsteps faded, and the door clicked shut. Within seconds, I was drifting off again, eager to return to the peaceful rest I so desperately needed.
I didn't know exactly how long I'd given into sleep, but when I opened my eyes again, I felt like I could fall right back to sleep if I didn't move. The relentless thumping in the back of my head was the only thing keeping me awake. I let out a loud groan and grabbed my temples, rubbing them in circular motions.
Realizing I was naked, I quickly grabbed some clothes. Digging through our bags, I pulled out one of Glenn's shirts and a pair of my shorts, slipping them on slowly. One night of proper sleep had eased the kink in my back that had been bothering me for days, and I barely had to stretch or do any yoga poses this morning.
The hallways were eerily quiet, with no sounds coming from any of the rooms, including the dining room. My anxiety started to creep up as I noticed the dining room, which showed signs of recent activity—leftover eggs, cups, and a few dirty plates. I wondered if maybe the doctor was a fake and had plans for some crazy experiments. But no, Daryl, Shane, and Rick wouldn't let that happen.
I spotted a bottle of aspirin at the end of the table, its label looking nothing like the familiar store brands—almost intimidating. Still, I poured two capsules into my hand and dry swallowed them. I found a pan with leftover eggs on the stove and used sink water to rinse them off before eating. After a quick yawn and stretch, I shuffled back towards the main room. The pain meds kicked in faster than anything I'd ever had before, but I wondered if the doctor had something for anxiety too.
When I entered the main room, I was relieved to see the group gathered around a big screen. Their eyes were glued to an image of what looked like a brain. I slipped into a spot beside Glenn, burying myself into his side as I tuned into the doctor's speech.
"Those lights- It's a person's life—experiences, memories. It's everything. Somewhere in all that organic wiring, all those ripples of light, is you—the thing that makes you unique and human." The image on the screen continues to magnify as it displays a series of lights and flashes traveling across nerves across the brain. "Those are synapses. Electric impulses in the brain that carry all the messages. They determine everything a person says, does or thinks from the moment of birth to the moment of death."
"Wait, what is this?" I called out, "sorry I was late."
"This is Ts-19. Test subject nineteen. A person who was bitten and volunteered for us to record the process. Vi, scan forward to the first event."
At his words, the robot beeped and the playback began scanning forward until it showed us the brain now almost completely dark. There were the same lights flickering on the outside of the brain but the center had become dark like a black tree was planted and growing in that person's head. The doctor was deadpanned as he explained, "It invades the brain like meningitis. The adrenal glands hemorrhage, the brain goes into shutdown, then the major organs. Then death. Everything you ever were or ever will be…gone."
The person on screen convulses and writhes until they just stop and stay still. The group is quiet, everyone no doubt thinking of the people they have lost. There really was no coming back from this. Then again, once you were decaying and dead, how could you ever possibly come back?
"Scan to the second event."
As a red glow flickers at the base of the brain, the rest remains dark. Random sparks shoot out into the larger area of the brain but no further lights grow. Jenner is quick to explain, "The resurrection times vary wildly. We had reports of it happening in as little as three minutes. The longest we heard of was eight hours. In the case of this patient, it was two hours, one minute… seven seconds."
I stare intently at the screen as red glow begins to flicker at the base of the brain. The rest of the nerves remain dark and sparks shoot out into the larger area of the brain but no further lights grow. I furrow my brow in confusion, "it restarts the brain?"
"No just the brain stem. Whatever gets them up and moving."
"But they're not alive?"
The Dr. gestures towards the monitor. "You tell me. The frontal lobe, the neocortex, the human part—that doesn't come back. The you part. Just a shell driven by mindless instinct."
The subject moves, its mouth opens and closes. The head moves side to side, the shoulders move as if the arms were being lifted. It was reanimating. Then something rips through the brain and I recognize it as a bullet obviously and the subject stops moving bad the brain goes completely dark. He tells the robot to shut everything down and begins to turn like he is going to walk off.
"Do you even know what it is?" Rick questions, taking a step closer to Jenner to stop him from leaving.
"It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal-"
"Or the wrath of God," Amy suggests and I raise my eyebrows and shake my head. My mother always told me how great God was but how he would come for all the sinners one day. If this was the case, why are all these innocent children dead? And some of the worst people alive?
Andrea crosses her arms and presses the doctor too. "Somebody must know something, somebody, somewhere."
"There are other facilities, right?" I ask next. I need to know if I'll ever be able to go back to my apartment with my boyfriend and watch movies while eating pizza.
"There may be some. People like me."
"How do you not know? Can't all of you Communicate somehow?"
"I've been in the dark for almost a month, the communications, directives- everything- it all went down."
"What about everywhere else? You're telling me that there's nothing, anywhere?" Jenner says nothing, which means I'm right and the whole world has gone to shit. "Oh my god." I stretch out the God as I put my face in my hands. My whole family could be dead for all I know and I'll probably never know. The whole world could be gone, we could be the only survivors here.
"I'm gonna get shitfaced drunk, again," Daryl announces in his gruff accent. He was the only one who could say something as the rest of us stood speechless.
Dale paces around the computers, stopping underneath a large red clock that was… counting down. I had noticed it but thought it was just telling the time in military time. Now I see the numbers going down. Dale asks, "Dr. Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you and I hate to ask one more question, but…that clock—it's counting down. What happens at zero?"
"Oh, the basement generators shut down," he says so nonchalantly and simply walks away
Rick notices too and he asks Jenner what else and ignores us. "Vi, what happens when the power runs out?"
"When the power runs out, facility decontamination will occur." The robot answers. What the fuck does that mean.
Shane, Glenn, T, and Rick run off to find the basement and the rest of us stay in the main room with the doctor. Dale tries to get him to keep talking but he just ignores us, being even more suspicious now. He was truly pissing me off and it takes a lot to get me angry. When Daryl storms off I follow him to the kitchen where he grabs another bottle of wine.
"You drinkin?" He asks without even looking at me.
"Hell yes," I sigh out, slumping down in a chair. He cracks open the bottle and takes a long chug directly into his mouth. He hands it to me and I follow suit. Fuck. This is so fucked.
I notice his face, unreadable like usual, but he is staring off into space at the plain walls behind me. "What's on your mind?"
He's silent at first until he finally looks back at me. "Ain't nothin out there. This is just what it's gon be."
"Yeah." I hand him back the bottle and study him while he takes a couple more shots of it. "I thought about it, but didn't want to believe it. Shit happened so fast."
"I was out huntin with my uncle, my pops. Things just came out of nowhere, ripped right into him. Bit my uncle, too. Went through hell and back with Merle to get out the country. I ain't know what I was expecting."
"Bet you didn't expect to end up with us."
Daryl scoffed, taking another swig and shaking his head. His voice got lower and lower as he spoke. "Damn straight. I had a chance to get out of this shit. My brother saved my life. Only mother fucker I could trust to watch my back. Always."
That made me sad. I definitely cared for Daryl but I didn't know if I could ever convince him that the people here were for him. "You can trust us. Me at least. I do care for you, I'm sure we all do. I hope you can let go of that."
"Of what?"
"Thinking you aren't one of us. We're in this shit together now. I meant what I said. This shit is a family. You're valuable, not just a meat shield. Not just manpower."
I wasn't sure if he was going to respond at all. He had stopped looking at me, hanging his head and gripping the bottle tightly. I was afraid he might cry or something. I stood up from the chair and cautiously walked over to him, placing a hand on his back. As I got closer, I noticed his shoulders shaking slightly. It was tough to watch him like this.
I hugged him gently, and as soon as I did, he pulled back and turned. I saw him rub his forearm across his face, likely wiping away tears.
Before I could say anything, the sound of machinery powering down cut me off. We both looked up at the ceiling as the air shut off, and the lights dimmed. Without another word, Daryl and I scrambled towards the hall. We saw the rest of the group emerging from their rooms, their faces showing the same distress we felt.
Jenner now had his lab coat on as he took long strides back to that main computer room. Daryl was the first to address him, "What's going on? Why is everything turned off?"
Without slowing down, Jenner takes the bottle out of Daryl's hands. "Energy use is being prioritized."
"Air isn't a priority? And the lights?" Dale questioned, now following the Dr in tow. I fell in line behind him as well, the rest of the group coming as well.
"It's not up to me. Zone 5 is shutting itself down."
He was really pissing me off with all the vague shit now. I took it steps so I could be beside him as I shouted, "you needs to tell us what the fuck is going on. Now!"
He kept ignoring us all, even as Daryl started getting closer and shouting in the side of his face. Thankfully the rest of the men show up and Rick gets right in the Dr's face, demanding to know what was going on.
"The building is designed to shut off all nonessential power and keep the computers running to the very last second. That starts at about the half hour mark". As we get near the computer area and see the clock Jenner says, "right on time."
Daryl snatches the bottle back out of the doctor's hand, now content that we got some answers. Glenn makes his way towards me and shakes his head with a grimace. That could mean a million things. I didn't think anything was looking good right now.
The doctor sits down at a desk and begins speaking. "It was the French. They were the last ones to hold out as far as I know. While our people were bolting out the doors and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in the labs till the end. They thought they were close to a solution."
"What happened?"
"Same thing that is happening right now. They ran out of juice. Lost all power. No power grid. Ran out of juice. The world runs on fossil fuel. I mean, how stupid is that?"
Shane goes to yell in Jenner's face and to be honest I was ready to do the same thing. Thankfully we have the level headed Rick, "Everybody get your stuff, we're getting out of here now!" He screams.
Glenn and I started sprinting with the rest of the group. I was fully on board with getting out of here, with no objections. Before we could get very far, an alarm blared loudly through the speakers. My anxiety spiked immediately, and I had to press my hand to my chest, trying to calm myself before a full-blown panic attack took over.
The screen turns on by itself and the robot voice announces, "Decontamination process to start in thirty minutes."
Before anyone can really get out, a metal door rolls up from the floor, trapping us in the room. The sounds of screams and protests fill my ears combined with the sound of my own heart pounding. Glenn's stature changes, becoming even more panicked as tries to keep me consoles but also shouts, "he just locked us in here!"
Daryl in a drunken rage charges at Jenner, causing all the men to have to grab him and hold him down. The sight doesn't help my demeanor at all, my legs buckling underneath me. The emotions that were swimming through my head were hard to process, my breath hitched before I started full on hyperventilating.
"Majesty!" I opened my eyes to see Rick, Glenn, and Amy standing over me. Did I seriously just faint? "Are you okay?"
"What's going on?" I breathed out, accepting the help from the two boys to get me up. "Are we going to leave?"
"This summabitch won't open the doors!" Daryl shouted, taking another attempt at Jenner's life. He was quickly stopped by Shane and T. "Whole place is gon' explode and he's tryna keep us trapped in here."
Once his words resonate in my head, I get a burst of energy and charge at the doctor. "You do not get to decide that for us! It's our lives." Glenn snatches me up and sits me down. Tears start pouring out my eyes as soon as I'm sitting as another wave of panic starts to settle in my heart.
"She has panic attacks. She has really bad anxiety," Glenn explains to Rick as they stand over me. "She'll keep fainting."
"I can give her some medication. Will calm her right down." The doctor calmly offers Glenn. That pretty much enraged Daryl once more.
"How about you Open those fucking doors!" Daryl screams and Shane is with him this time. They go at the door, using axes against it. All the guys are trying their best, and I was trying to zone them out completely so I could calm myself down. This was seriously some sick shit.
"Those doors are designed to withstand a rocket launcher." The men stopped at Jenner's words. Daryl was quick to make another attempt at the man's life, they finally disarmed him so that could stop and Rick went back to pleading.
"There is no hope. There never was. You said it yourself last night. It was only a matter of time before everyone you loved would be dead." We all snap our heads up at the confession. I was in shock that Rick could speak like that, he didn't even seem like the type to be so pessimistic about our futures.
"What you really said that? After your big talk?" Shane yelled at Rick who was sending pleading eyes towards Lori.
Carol was sobbing, "This isn't right. You can't just keep us here. My daughter doesn't deserve to die like this."
"Wouldn't it be kinder, more compassionate just to hold your loved ones and wait for the clock to run down?" Jenner dismissed the cries of Carol and spun around to continue typing at his computer.
"Stop trying to justify this! We're trying to survive, not get blown up!" I shouted, my voice breaking through the chaos. "We didn't come here to be trapped and decide how we die. If we all die painfully, that's on us, but you can't lock us in here and choose our fate! If I go out there right now and get torn apart, then that's my choice!"
Jenner stared at me with an unreadable expression, saying nothing. His silence only fueled my frustration.
Then Shane, clearly at his breaking point, raised his shotgun and aimed it directly at Jenner's face. Despite everything that had happened in the last twenty minutes, Jenner didn't flinch. Rick and Lori rushed to intervene, pleading with Shane to lower his weapon. The barrel of the shotgun was pressed so close to Jenner's cheek it was almost touching him.
But even if we killed Jenner, the reality was we'd still be trapped.
Suddenly, Shane let out a monstrous scream and fired at the computer screens behind Jenner, causing glass to explode everywhere. The group scattered for cover as Shane continued to unleash his fury, blasting every computer in sight. The noise was deafening, and the destruction was relentless.
Eventually, Rick managed to tackle Shane, the two of them struggling over the shotgun. Rick's elbow connected with Shane's face, forcing him to drop to the ground. Rick stood over him, pointing the butt of the gun at Shane's face. "Are you done now?" Rick demanded, his voice a mix of anger and desperation.
"Yeah I guess we all are," Shane reminds him, his words creating a thick tension that settles in the room. Everyone falls silent, our ragged breathing filling the space. We were all feeling a little anxious now.
"I think you're lying," Rick starts, "I think you're lying when you say there's no hope. If that was the case you wouldn't be here, you would've Bolted with the rest of them. You chose the hard path. Why?"
"It doesn't matter," Jenner answers.
"It always matters. You stayed when others ran. Why?" Rick leans forward and forces Jenner to look him in the eye. I watch their interaction intently. If anything I had faith in Rick to talk us out of this situation if he could've.
"Not because I wanted to," he stands up, finally showing a slither of emotion which he had been lacking for the past twenty minutes. He pointed at the screen. "I made a promise to her...my wife."
"Test subject 19 was your wife?" Lori asks in a strained tone. The idea clicks in my head and my heart aches for this man. Imagine being sentenced to find a cure for people, testing on your wife, having to put her down, and honoring her dying wish to find a cure- all alone. Just to get nothing.
"She begged me as long as I could to keep it going- how could I say no?" He lifts his arm and drops them at his side. His voice is drowned out by the sound of Daryl slamming the ax on the metal door. The banging made my headache but I tried to keep a focus on Jenner as he spoke, "she ran this place, I just worked here. She was a loss to the world. She was an Einstein in our field. She could've done something about this."
"All we want is a chance. Your wife had no choice, but you- you do. Let us keep trying, please." Rick was practically begging now.
After a moment of silence the doctor sighed, the lot of us giving him a hopeful eye as he walked across the tables. "I told you top sides locked, I can't open those."
The doors opens open, I glance at the clock and notice the 6 minute mark has just struck before Glenn grabs my arm and begins dragging me out of the room. I turn back to Jenner who had just finished whispering to Rick. I felt bad he would die alone here. "You're gonna find her!" I shouted, giving him a weak smile.
Glenn gathers the rest of our things in a hurry, I help but spend a couple seconds grabbing books and non perishables from the kitchen. Back on the road we go, we would need something. The stairs felt like they took forever to get up? I was sweating bullets by the time we got to the main lobby where we quickly discovered the doors were locked and the windows were indestructible.
The men tried axes, chairs, bullets- nothing. All of it was for nothing. I noticed Amy sobbing now, Andrea trying her best to keep her consoled but it wasn't working. "The glass won't break?" Sophia's little voice questioned- that was what broke me. There really was no hope.
I fall to the floor and allow myself to cry peacefully this time. To have something ripped away from us like that, the choice to live or not was cruel in its own way. Everyone looked defeated at this point and there was truthfully nothing we could do now.
"Rick, I have something that might help," I look up at Carol's voice and see her reaching into her backpack, pulling out a grenade. "At the camp when I washed your uniform, I found this in your pocket.
"Everybody, get back!" Rick's voice cut through the chaos, trembling with urgency. He dropped the grenade at the base of the windowpane, and Glenn immediately threw himself over me, shielding me from the blast. My ears rang from the explosion, and shards of glass flew through the air, a shower of deadly fragments that seemed to last forever.
We were lucky, it felt like we had some divine protection. Instinct took over as soon as the explosion subsided. I was up and running, Glenn at my side as we followed the men who were providing cover fire against the encroaching walkers.
The RV, with Andrea, Amy, and Dale already inside, became our refuge. Glenn and I squeezed in, huddling together as I worked to steady my breathing. The explosion behind us was deafening, the CDC erupting into a massive inferno, collapsing under its own weight. The flames and smoke billowed into the sky, marking the end of that chapter.
The caravan roared to life, the engines of all five vehicles starting up simultaneously. We sped away from the smoking ruin, the scene behind us fading into a distant, bittersweet memory.