Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead or any of its characters
A/N: Hello everyone, here is the 7th chapter as promised: where Clementine and AJ interrogate Abel to discover where Lily and the raiders had taken Louis, Assim and Omar after their attack on the school. While on a scouting mission to form a rescue plan to save their friends, Clem and her team...have an unexpected and not to so friendly reunion with one of the twins.
Reviews and comments will be appreciated
Chapter 7: Interrogation, Recon and Reunion
Morning had eventually arrived as the sun slowly rose over the school grounds...which was dead silent, except for the sound of roasted bodies crackling and footsteps echoing out as Clementine had quietly walked and glanced around the courtyard, which was littered with several bodies of walkers that she and her friends had killed shortly after Lilly and her people had escaped with Luis, Omar and Aasim as their prisoners. As the young teenage girl silently stared at the lifeless, mangled and burnt corpses...she had sadly glanced over to her right to see Willy down on his knees, sobbing as he held Mitch's lifeless hand in his own.
"Mitch...I...I...I..." The younger brunette muttered softly as he wept, struggling to say something as he held his best friend's hand before breaking down in tears as he couldn't think of anything.
As Willy continued to cry, Clem had silently glanced over her shoulder to turn to Ruby, whom was starting to dig a grave for Mitch before stopping; due to being equally saddened at seeing how heartbroken the younger brunette was at Mitch's death when he attempted to protect Tenn from Lilly after she had taken him hostage during the battle for the school...and how they had covered the combative brunette's face with a blanket as a sign of respect after they put out the fires that had spread across the schoolgrounds during the battle. After their silent exchange, the redhead had hesitantly returned to her task and Clementine gave a silent sigh before she walked up towards the younger teenage boy.
"At the start, I was so little, and...and Mitch looked after me. People said that he was a dick sometimes...but he was always nice to me. And now he's gone." Willy started off gently, recounting on how Mitch had been his protector when he first arrived at Ericson's and a big brother towards him, before and after all the teacher's, except for Ms. Martin abandoned them as the young African American teenage girl silently listened with a sympathetic frown on her face.
"Stabbed in the eye by some asshole, who didn't even know his name!" He angrily added, as the haunting memory of witnessing Lilly impaling his best friend through his eye shortly she stabbed him in his carotid artery was still fresh on his mind.
"I know that its hard Willy, but you need to pull yourself together." Clem stated softly as she placed a comforting hand on the broken boy's shoulder, showing that she understood his pain perfectly whilst informing him that he needed to move on in order to cope with Mitch's death.
"I tried...I don't know how." The younger brunette replied whilst sadly shaking his head, stating that he didn't know how to cope with the loss of his best friend.
"Ask yourself what he would do." The young African American teenage girl stated softly as she advised Willy to simply put himself in Mitch's shoes and imagine what the older combative brunette would've done if he had survived the attack on the school.
"He'd find a way to get our friends back...and then he's bash Lilly's brains out with a rock." Willy answered softly as he immediately knew what Mitch would've done if he was still alive: how he'd come up with a plan to rescue Omar, Aasim and Louis...and personally beat Lilly and bash her skull in with a rock, which was the exact moment Violet walked up towards him and Clem.
"Hey. AJ's waiting for you in the basement. We got Abel tied up in the basement. He's alive, but's he's out cold." The older blonde greeted softly as she informed her younger girlfriend that AJ was waiting for her and keeping an eye on Abel, whom they had thrown and locked up in the basement shortly after they had survived the attack on the school.
"Thanks." Clem replied as she thanked her girlfriend for letting her know that her boy was waiting for her so they could interrogate the middle aged raider together as Ruby and Tenn silently joined them.
"...We should bury Mitch. It's time." Violet stated softly as she knelt down beside Willy and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, claiming that it was time for them to give Mitch the proper burial he deserved with the younger brunette nodding in agreement whilst Tenn sadly glanced at Willy with a nervous and guilty expression on his face as he stepped forward.
"I'll help you carry..." The scar faced boy attempted to say, offering to help Willy carry Mitch...only to be met by a rather angry response by the grieve stricken brunette.
"Get away from him! You're the reason he's dead!" Willy shouted with great ire burning in his eyes as he angrily pushed Tenn away from his best friend's corpse and onto the ground with Clementine, Violet and Ruby staring in utter shock!
"Willy!" The redhead exclaimed after she, Clem and the older blonde witnessed the younger teenage boy coldly shoving Tenn onto the grainy soil while blaming him for Mitch's death!
"Well it's true! We had a plan and that idiot messed it up!" He angrily snarled while reminding the three older girls about the plan that Clem and Violet had them work so hard, along with the advice that the African American teenage girl before the raiders busted down the main gate: how she advised them to ignore Lilly if she ever mentioned Sophie and Minnie during the battle...and how Tenn stupidly broke out of cover, despite Clementine silently begging him not to listen to the raven haired woman as he slowly picked himself up from the ground.
"C'mon Willy. None of this is Tenn's fault! You know whose really to blame." Clem automatically countered as she defended her girlfriend's surrogate younger brother while reminding Willy that it was Lilly whom was responsible for Mitch's death, not Tenn!
"I can't believe you're defending him! This...This is bullshit!" The younger brunette shouted while turning to the African American teenage girl with fresh tears rolling down his face before glancing back at Tenn, whom had a deeply hurt look on his face before taking off.
"Tenn." Ruby cried out as she, Clem and Violet looked on in sadness as they witnessed the scar faced 12 year old boy run off towards the dorm building.
"I'll handle this. Talk to Abel, find out where Lilly took Louis, Assim and Omar." The older blonde stated softly as she informed Clem that she would check in on Tenn whilst she and AJ confronted the middle aged raider to learn where Lilly and the rest of their people took Assim, Omar and Louis.
"Alright. Don't worry Violet. I'll get him to talk." The younger teenage girl stated while nodding her head softly and assuring the blonde that she would get the location of where the raider's base was from Abel.
"And Clem...don't be afraid to...you know, hurt him a little. Maybe you'll get more out of him than Ruby and I did." She swiftly added while giving her girlfriend permission to use whatever methods she wished to force Lilly's gravely wounded second in command in telling her where the raider's base...much to her genuine surprise/shock.
After seeing the troubled expression on her face as soon as the words came out of her mouth, Violet had softly reached for and held Clem's hand in her own as they traded a gentle look: with the blonde giving her a soft and warm smile, which the African American teenage mirrored as her older girlfriend silently gave her approval/blessing to do whatever she needed to learn where Lilly and the rest of her people ran off with the three captured teenage boys. As soon as the two girlfriends had let go of each other's hands, Clem looked on in silence as Violet headed off to comfort Tenn before she walked towards the rust covered metal hatch doors that were directly behind the dorm buildings. Once she had opened the doors and walked down the stone steps into the basement, the young teenage girl couldn't help but smile softly as she spotted Rosie, laying near the boiler and glancing towards a small corner on the right side of the room and heard an all too familiar spinning/clicking noise which she immediately identified as she walked down the small hallway.
"Hey Rosie. You helpin' AJ keep an eye on our 'guest'?" Clem greeted as she walked up to the Pit Bull, whom panted softly after sensing her arrival and growled happily as her new owner scratched her upside her head.
However, as soon as she stood up straight...the smile on her face slowly turned into a deep frown as she glanced at the pool of dry blood that was still wet on the concrete floor...and she immediately knew whose blood it was.
"...Brody..." The young African American teenage girl whispered somberly as she glanced at the dried stains of Brody's blood, which she fairly guessed that Louis, Violet and the others tried to clean up when they eventually brought themselves to enter the basement shortly after AJ had shot Marlon...and sadly glanced up, as she heard Rosie softly whimpering as she also stared at the dried smear of the redhead's blood.
"I know girl...I miss her too." Clementine whispered softly as she informed Rosie that she had missed Brody as well, which earned a soft growl/moan from the Pit Bull before she walked towards the small corner of the room: where she found AJ sitting patiently in a wooden chair, examining his recovered S&W Model 36 revolver in his hands while watching Abel; whom was either unconscious or sleeping tied up to a similar chair with a large amount of duct tape wrapped firmly around his waist and arms folded behind the backrest.
"Got your gum back, huh?" She asked casually as she had heard the repeating echo of her boy spinning the chamber of his .38 revolver the moment she entered the basement.
"Uh huh." AJ answered softly while turning to his mother as he continued to spin the five shot cylinder before glancing back to the unconscious middle aged raider.
"Ready?" Clem stated after taking in a deep breath to mentally prepare herself while asking her son if he was ready to begin questioning Abel.
"Yep." He replied while nodding softly, showing that he was ready to interrogate the middle aged brunette whenever his mentor/guardian was.
As soon as she and the six year old boy were good and ready, the young African African American teenage girl had silently walked up towards Abel and after quickly realizing that he was actually asleep instead of being out cold...a sly grin grew on her face, as she instinctively knew how to get to his attention.
"RISE AND SHINE ASSHOLE!" Clem shouted out loud, which effectively did the trick as the middle aged raider woke up with a deeply startled expression on his face as soon as he opened his eyes!
"Son of a bitch..." Abel muttered softly while clearing his throat as he swiftly recovered from the initial shock and smirked in amusement once he was wide awake
"Well...that's no way to wake an old man up from his afternoon nap. I was having a nice dream too, about this girl I used to know...from before. She also had me tied up, but I wasn't her prisoner...if you get my meaning." The middle aged brunette instantly added with a sarcastic tone in his voice as he revealed that he had fallen asleep after Violet and Ruby threw him in the basement after the attack on the school and jokingly stated how his current situation reminded him of a time when he had an S&M session with a hooker he once knew before suddenly coughing hard whilst making an unsettling gagging sound...which genuinely surprised and worried Clementine.
"Got any water?" He softly asked after recovering him his unexpected coughing fit, wondering if either the teenage girl or her kid had any water on them and luckily for him...they did.
"Drink." AJ softly ordered as he stood up from the chair, reached underneath his jacket and pulled out a worn out blue plastic canteen that he offered to the middle aged man, who he despised so much ever since their unfortunate reunion in the woods after he and his mentor/guardian were exiled from the school.
"You got good manners, Squirt. Don't mind if I do." Abel stated casually as he sipped down a small amount of water as soon as the six year old boy her brought the canteen close to his lips so he could drink before he pulled the held held bottle away.
"You've had your water. Now its time to talk." Clem stated with a serious look on her face as the middle aged raider leaned casually against the backrest of his chair.
"This your first time interrogating someone, isn't it? You let me dictate the agenda: makes me think your weak." Abel asked with a smug grin on his face as he could see the uneasy look in the young teenage girl's eyes and pointed out the most obvious tactic she and her boy were using: by making themselves look vulnerable and allowing himself to think that he was in control...that he'd slip up and reveal the location of his and people's base with Rosie growling softly in a threatening manner after sensing the overconfident tone in his voice.
"Don't make this any harder than it has to be, okay. I just wanna know where Lilly took my friends." The young African American teenage girl automatically replied while demanding to know where the raven haired woman and the rest of her raiding party had ran off to with Louis, Omar and Aasim.
"It doesn't matter. As soon as she gets there, she's gonna turn around and come right back for me. So you better give me the 5-star treatment. If I'm smiling when she gets here...you may just be able to trade that for a little mercy." The middle aged raider strongly countered while revealing that as soon as Lilly and the remaining members of their group had dropped off the three teenage boys they had managed to capture during the attack, that they would restock on supplies and return for him.
"We underestimated you little shits, but Lilly won't make the same mistake twice. She'll be back, trust me. She can't afford to leave anyone behind." He swiftly added as he admitted how he, Lilly and their fellow raiders underestimated how well prepared Clementine and her friends were and smugly stated on his raven haired leader wouldn't fall for their antics a second time.
"You honestly think that Lilly would come back for you? Look at the state you're in; you're worthless to her now!" Clem asked while scoffing and shaking her head as she sarcastically reminded Lilly's second in command of the badly wounded state he was in from he injuries he sustained during the battle for the school.
"...I can heal." Abel stated weakly, claiming that he his wounds would 'heal' by themselves over time...even though he young teenage girl's word true: how he was practically deadweight to Lilly and the rest of their crew...especially with an injured shoulder and broken leg.
"There is no rescue party Abel. Just a bunch of pissed off kids who want you dead." The young African American teenage girl replied plainly as she pointed out a cold/painful truth out to the middle aged raider: how Lilly and his fellow raiders wouldn't be coming back to rescue him and how she, AJ, Violet, Ruby, Tenn and more importantly Willy wanted to kill him as payback to avenge Mitch!
"So tell us where our friends are. You trade that...for mercy." AJ automatically added after his mentor informing Abel of his two options: he could either give up the location of his people's base in exchange for his life...or they'd simply kill him if he refused to cooperate.
"Lilly will never give 'em up. The only reason we came here was more manpower. Losing Yonatan and me...for three sprouts who could barely hold a gun...even a moron like me can do the math on that one." The middle aged raider replied while panting softly, claiming how Lilly wouldn't let the three teenage boys they captured during their raid on the school go without a fight and revealing the main reason that his raven haired leader, along with the rest of their crew targeted the school was to simply 'recruit' more soldiers for the ongoing war they were currently fighting.
"We're going to them back." Clementine stated sharply as she sat down in the wooden chair AJ was previously sitting in whilst her son stood up with his arms crossed against his chest.
"You don't know what its like out there...it's a bloodbath! One community against another, from Richmond to the coast! Back at the Delta, we're at war with some pretty sick fucks who make me look like the Virgin Mary." He angrily countered, claiming how the young teenage girl and her friends didn't have the first clue on how brutal the nightmarish world they lived in truly was and revealing that he, Lilly and the rest of their community were fighting a group of people who were worse than him, his leader and the other members of their crew put together!
"We need people to fight it. Soldiers who do what we say and point the guns where we tell them to! You little tards were supposed to be easy pickings..." Abel continued, revealing how he, Lilly and their group needed additional soldiers to help defend their community home and angrily stated on how the residents of the schools were supposed to be easy prey!
"That's called kidnapping." Clem calmly replied, stating on how the raven haired woman whom was once her 'friend' and her crew were merely capturing and forcing children into becoming soldiers against their will!
"Give it whatever goddamn name you want. I call it survival." The middle aged brunette coldly countered, showing that he didn't care what he, Lilly and their fellow raiders were doing was morally wrong.
"What sort of place is this 'Delta' if they use forced labor to defend it?" The young African American teenage girl asked, demanding to know what sort of 'safe haven' Abel's and Lilly's community was if they condoned kidnapping and using slaves to protect it from walkers and other dangerous survivors!
"You think we like doing raids like this? Our home is under threat...Its's a good home, built to last and I'd do a lot to protect it. Maybe you can understand that." Abel answered while justifying his actions, stating that his home was under attack and that'd he do whatever he had to make sure if was safe.
"And I'd a lot to get my friends back. So stop wasting my time." Clem stated, showing that she indeed understood and that she'd do whatever she had to save Omar, Aasim and Louis while standing up from the chair.
"...Alright. Front pocket. The answer to all your question." The middle aged raider cryptically replied, claiming that what the young teenage girl needed to 'find' his and his group's base was in his front jacket pocket.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Clementine had searched Abel's jacket pockets; where she pulled out a rolled up piece of paper from the right pocket and unrolled it to reveal a faded but still readable message on it.
"Go on. Read it." Abel automatically stated with a sly grin on his face as he ordered the young African American teenage girl to read what it said on the paper.
"'Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, amoung the beasts, that shall ya eat.' What the fuck? Is this code?" Clem asked while glancing up with a puzzled look on her face as she didn't understand the contents of the paper...and would soo be deeply stunned/angered by the answer.
"No, it's fucking Leviticus. I was hoping it'd be some timely moralistic shit about turning the other cheek. Well...come on. That thing isn't going to light itself." Abel answered with a smug smirk on his face as he revealed that the 'message' was actually a verse from the Book of Leviticus and jokingly stated on how he had hoped the passage would've been from Matthew 5:38-40: which was about the saying 'an eye for an eye.'
"You wanna know where your friends are? A smoke will clear my mind." The middle aged raider added as he offered the young teenage girl a rather unexpected trade: the location of his and Lilly's base for a mere cigarette!
Even though Clementine was genuinely surprised that Abel would sell out Lilly and his fellow raiders for a simple smoke, she silently nodded in agreement to his terms as she rolled up the worn out bible page, took out the Zippo lighter she kept in her jacket pocket and lit the cigarette before offering it to the middle aged brunette.
"Ohhh, now that...is heavenly." Abel muttered softly after he inhaled on the non-burning end of the cigarette and breathed out a small puff of smoke with AJ looking on in silent fascination and curiosity.
However...as soon as he had his smoke, the middle aged raider began to cough hard...which deeply concerned Clementine and her boy, as they noted the awful hacking/gagging sounds that Abel made as he continued to cough violently and stared in great horror as he began to vomit a large amount of blood that spilled down on the concrete floor underneath him.
"...Shit..." The middle aged brunette muttered softly in a weakened voice after recovering him his sudden and not so pleasant coughing fit.
"T-That's a lot of blood." AJ stated softly as he and his mother looked at Abel with deeply concerned expressions as he began to softly wheeze for air.
"...Oh, fuck...this is...not good." Abel muttered softly as he continued to wheeze before groaning/whimpering softly in pain with the young teenage girl and her boy glancing at him with genuine sympathy.
"He's...gonna die. Isn't he?" The six year old boy softly asked while glancing at his mentor/guardian as he just knew that Lilly's second in command was dying from his injuries.
"...We have medicine. We could still patch him up." Clem answered softly, thinking that she and her friends could use whatever medicine they had to treat Abel's wounds.
"...I don't think so. When you pushed me off that balcony...something must've burst inside of me. No medicine can fix this..." Abel replied while wheezing as he revealed a shocking revelation to the young African American teenage girl and her son: how the impact from the fall must've punctured or knicked an artery inside of him...and sadly stated on how no medicine could help in the state he was already in.
"...Shit...I-I never wanted things to end like this. Everything...it...it all got out of hand. Now look at me: I'm a fuckin' mess." He added somberly with genuine remorse in his voice as he softly admitted that he never wanted to hunt down random kids to take part in the war against the people threatening his home and how the need for additional soldiers had gotten completely out of control.
"Will he turn?" AJ asked softly while turning to Clem, wondering if Abel would turn into a walker.
"No!" The middle aged man immediately while shaking his head after hearing the six year old boy's question about his dreaded fate.
"My...my whole life, everything I ever got...I got with my own two hands...and my will. For my own body to turn on me...to take control...I'll tell ya where to find Lilly. Just promise that you won't let me turn. I'm begging you." Abel added weakly as he recounted on everything he had accomplished in his life before and after the world went to hell before breaking down into tears as he promised Clementine that he would give her the location of his and Lilly's base if she agreed to not let him turn into a walker...which earned a sympathetic frown from the young teenage girl and her boy.
"If you're honest with me...I'll put you out of your misery. You have my word." Clem stated solemnly while giving the slowly dying raider her word, stating that as long he was being truthful with her...she would honor his request and end his suffering so he could die as a human being.
"Okay...we have a boat. We're docked a few miles west of here, at an old fishing pier. Your friends will be on the boat...on the 2nd deck, where we keep prisoners." Abel replied while nodding weakly as he revealed to the young teenage girl and her boy that he and his group had a boat that was docked at an abandoned fishing pier and that they would find Louis, Omar and Aasim on the 2nd deck of the boat.
"You got what you wanted. Please...don't let me turn into one of those thing." He weakly stated as he upheld his end of the bargain and softly pleaded/begged Clem to honor hers while weeping softly which earned deeply sympathetic frowns the African American teenage girl and her son.
"Okay Abel...Okay." Clementine stated softly as she fully intended to keep her promise and turned to AJ, whom was about to hand his mother the revolver.
"Not that. I wanna...let me keep my face." Abel softly replied as he asked the young African American teenage girl not to shoot him, as he wanted his face to stay the same.
Even though she was deeply stunned by his request, Clem silently drew out her knife and approached the slowly dying raider, whom glanced at the floor while wheezing softly before turning to her son.
"You don't need to watch this." She stated somberly, informing AJ that he didn't need to see what was about to happen...especially since she didn't want it to taint his innocence.
"...I want to." The six year old boy softly replied, stating that he wanted to witness his mother carry out a mercy killing for the first time.
As soon as the words left her boy's mouth, Clem gave a silent nod before she turned back to Abel and after taking in a deep breath to help calm her nerves...she softly raised the middle aged raider's head in her left hand before swiftly impaling her knife right through his temple with Abel emitting one final scream after feeling the tip of the teenage girl's blade penetrating through the right side of his skull before he soon died after she pulled the knife out.
'"At least...he can't hurt anyone anymore." AJ stated softly as he pointed out to Clem that Abel wouldn't be able to hurt them, their friends or any other innocent soul ever again.
"...Yeah." The young African American teenage girl replied as she agreed with her son on how Abel would no longer pose a threat to them and the school while placing her blood covered knife behind her back underneath her jacket before they silently glanced at the now dead raider's corpse.
"...C'mon. We have a boat to find." She added softly as they had the information they needed to find Louis, Omar and Aasim.
Although, as soon as Clementine walked away...AJ simply stood still in complete silence as he continued to stare at Abel's lifeless body with a confused and conflicted look starting to form on his face, due to what he just witnessed before he eventually ran after his mother as they walked up the stone steps and exited the basement; where they spotted Violet, Ruby and Willy working on repairs to the main gate.
"Hey Clem. So how'd it go?" The older blonde stated as she greeted her younger girlfriend the moment she and her boy exited the basement and asked on how her 'conversation' with Lilly's second in command went.
"It couldn't have gone better. Abel said that Lilly and her people are holding Louis, Aasim and Omar on a boat on the river." Clem answered truthfully as she informed Violet, Ruby and Willy that she and AJ got the location of the raider's base from Abel...much to their genuine surprise and delight.
"Clem, where is this boat?" Ruby asked as she was still deeply stunned upon hearing that shocking revelation about how Abel, Lilly and the rest of group had an actual river boat!
"According to Abel, their boat is docked at an old pier that's a couple of miles west from the school. We should scout the area to see what we can find." Clementine answered as she revealed the location of the raider's boat to her friends and recommended on they should send a small group on a reconnaissance mission to scout out the area.
"That's an excellent idea. We need to learn everything we can about this boat before we board it." Violet stated as she strongly agreed with her younger girlfriend's suggestion about sending a team on a scouting mission: as they needed to gather enough intel so they could form a plan of attack on the raider's ship.
"Could I come you with guys? I wanna help." Willy stated softly while asking the older blonde if he could accompany her, Clem and AJ on the scouting mission and much to his delight, the two girlfriends nodded their heads 'yes'.
"Ruby, will you and Tenn be okay by yourselves while we're gone?" The blonde softly stated while turning to the school nurse, asking if she and her surrogate younger brother would be alright whilst she, Clem, AJ and Willy headed out to search for the raider's boat.
"Don't worry Vi. Tenn and I will hold down the fort while you guys are away." The redhead answered as she assured her friend and leader that she and the young scar faced boy would be fine at the school while she and the others headed out into the woods to look for the raider's base.
Once Clementine and her group had collected their personal gear/weapons, they walked past the still standing steel doors and out into forest with Violet taking point and Willy covering the rear with a bow in his hands as they headed towards the river. Although...as the four friends walked through the woods for what felt like two whole hours, AJ had been abnormally silent during the entire trek as he glanced at the grainy soil with the same conflicted/troubled look he had on his face after he witnessed his mother ending Abel's suffering out of mercy as Clem studied the map of the school whilst Willy kept an eye out for any walkers that would be prowling around.
"Once we find the boat, we'll look for a way to sneak on board." The young African American teenage girl stated softly as she folded the map and placed it in her right jacket pocket for safe keeping.
"Yeah...if Tenn doesn't fuck it up this time." Willy acidly spat while pointing out the fact that Tennessee would compromise their plan jut like he did when Lilly and the raiders stormed the courtyard...which earned a soft glare from AJ as he and his mentor/guardian turned to face the younger brunette.
"It wasn't Tenn's fault." The six year old boy countered as he automatically defended his best friend as Willy continued to blame him for Mitch's death!
"Yes it was! Mitch died because he..." The brunette angrily attempted to reply before stopping in mid-sentence...after noticing the rather unsettling look on the younger boy's face.
"Say one more word about Tenn. I dare you." AJ stated in a rather intimidating tone as he dared Willy to insult/blame the scar faced boy one more time.
"Guys, look." Violet stated as she called out to her girlfriend and two younger boys while glancing over her shoulder, which immediately earned their attention...as they had found and spotted the raider's boat floating motionlessly on the river!
Once they had arrived at their main destination, the four friends had crouched down to avoid being as they crept in closer to a safe enough distance so they could survey the raider's antiquity river boat.
"See anything?" Clementine asked softly while turning to AJ as he drew out the binoculars they had brought with them for the recon mission.
"A beach, uhm the boat and...a wood street on the water." The six year old boy answered truthfully, informing his mother that he spotted see the small beach, the raider's boat and dock that Abel told them about.
"That's called a pier, kiddo." She stated softly as she explained to her son that the 'wooden street' was a pier.
"Pier." He repeated with a soft grin after learning that the 'wood street' he spotted was called a pier before handing the binoculars to his mentor.
"Okay, let's spread out and focus on those areas. Keep your heads low." Clem stated softly with her friends nodding in agreement as they separated and got into different positions that gave them a better view of the small beach ahead of them and as soon as she was about to join Willy...she spotted a rather odd object on the ground.
"A rabbit's foot?" She softly asked with a puzzled look on her face as she picked up the item: which was in fact a severed rabbit's foot.
"Omar used to carry around a rabbit's foot for good luck. You don't think..." The younger brunette stated as he immediately recognized the rabbit foot and explained on how the 2nd African American teenage boy had carried it around as a good luck charm.
"We'll take it home. We can give it back to him once we've saved him." The African American teenage girl replied as she placed the rabbit foot in her left jacket pocket for save keeping and stated on how they'd return it to Omar once they saved him, Louis and Aasim with Willy nodding in agreement.
"Anything useful?" Clem asked as she knelt down next to the younger brunette.
"Looks like building material, furniture. Probably stuff from the train station." He answered truthfully, informing Clem on how the raiders were loading building material and worn out furniture onto the boat, which he fairly guessed they had looted from the train station where Marlon first found her and AJ as she glanced through the binoculars to scan the surrounding area.
"They're loading those rafts with supplies." Clementine stated softly as she spotted a raft loaded with crates floating motionlessly on the river.
"I could cut those loose and ride them down river, easy." Willy replied, claiming on how he could cut one of the rafts loose during the rescue mission and ride it down river to a different spot of the beach before Clem glanced to the right and spotted another raft also loaded with supplies tied to the dock...along with a raider, an African American man armed with a makeshift crossbow guarding it.
"Sheet metal, wood...and quite a bit of it." She automatically added as she identified the supplies that Lilly and her people were loading onto their boat.
"We should have that stuff!" The younger brunette exclaimed after hearing what sort of material that the raiders had salvaged while looting the train station!
"Huh...are those torches?" Clem softly asked as she immediately noticed the lit poles on the pier.
"Maybe...why?" Willy answered softly, even though he was deeply puzzled to how Clementine reacted when she first saw the torches.
"We could use the fire." She replied softly while explaining on how they could use the torches to their advantage during their rescue mission.
After she withdrew the binoculars, Clem had walked towards Violet, whom had smiled softly at her younger girlfriend as she knelt down beside her as they glanced towards the raider's boat.
"You ever seen this boat before?" The African American teenage girl softly asked, wondering if her girlfriend had ever seen the raider's river boat before.
"No. Marlon kept us confined to the safe zone." The older blonde answered while shaking her head 'no' and explaining on how Marlon had never let her and others venture this far out in the forest.
"The pier leading up to the boat? It's our only way in and out." She softly added while informing the younger teenage girl that the pier was their only means of boarding the raider's boat.
"Well...let's see what else is down there." Clementine stated softly as she drew out the binoculars and glanced towards the raider's river boat with her girlfriend glancing in the same direction, where they spotted several points of interest: the pilot house, the main entrance, the rear deck, pier, the path that led the small beach and importantly the name of the vessel; the S.S. Fitzgerald.
"I don't see anybody in the pilot house." She stated softly while informing her blonde girlfriend that the pilot house was currently empty...much to their relief.
"Clem, when you and AJ were interrogating Abel...did he mention where they kept prisoners?" Violet softly replied while asking her younger girlfriend if she and AJ managed to find out where Lilly and the rest of their crew held captives whilst questioning the raven haired woman's second in command.
"Yeah, he did. He said that Louis, Aasim and Omar were being held on the second deck." Clem answered while nodding softly as she informed the older blonde on how Abel told her and her boy on how Lilly and their held prisoners on the 2nd deck before they glanced back to the boat.
"I can see an entrance..." She swiftly added while informing her girlfriend that she had a clear view of the main door to the raider's river boat.
"I saw that too. It looks like there's a door on the other end." Violet replied, stating on how she had a good view of the main door as well.
"There's a small opening at the top of those closed doorways. AJ and I know how to deal with those." Clem stated casually as she noticed the small gap above the main hatch and informed Violet on how she and her boy had past experience in getting through tight spaces.
"The pier has plenty of cover...if we're real careful, we can sneak on board without being seen." She automatically added, stating that if they were careful and hid behind the crates on the pier, they could enter the boat without being detected by Lilly and her crew.
"There are a few on deck and a couple others on the pier. There could probably be a few more inside." The African American teenage girl softly stated as she and Violet spotted a large number of raiders, which they instinctively knew were Lilly's crew standing sentry on the beach/pier and on the rear deck of their boat while fairly guessing there were probably more keeping an eye Omar, Louis and Aasim.
"And it looks like they're well armed too." The older blonde replied as she and her younger girlfriend noticed the weapons that the raiders had on them; which consisted with crossbows and M1 Carbines that were outfitted with silencers and as she and Clementine continued to scan the ship...that was the exact moment they saw Louis being escorted to a different part of the boat by Sullene.
"Vi...I see Louis!" Clem cried out softly as she spotted the older African American teenage boy...along with the dark haired raider who tried to kill her in a crazed fury through the binoculars.
"Abel wasn't lying...this is it." Violet stated softly as she felt a strong sense of relief washing over her; especially since the information that Abel provided them checked out before she and her girlfriend glanced to the dirt path leading to the small beach.
"Damn it. There's no good cover leading to the boat. We're going to need one hell of a distraction." The young African American teenage girl stated as she pointed out a rather obvious fact to the blonde: how the trail leading to the pier was too exposed and how they would need a huge diversion to keep Lilly and her crew occupied while they snuck on board their boat with Violet nodding in agreement.
"Walkers!" A male raider cried out in alarm, which immediately earned hers and Clem's attention as they glanced back to the beach just in time to witness three walkers exiting the forest and approaching the raider's ship...only to be gunned by a Caucasian man with a clean shaven head and armed with an M1 Garand carbine and Lilly's sniper, whom was armed with a crossbow.
"Maybe we could get walkers onto the beach somehow..." Violet stated softly as she immediately thought of a perfect distraction to keep the raider's busy.
"Might not be that hard as you'd think..." Clem swiftly replied as she completely agreed with her girlfriend's idea about using walker's as decoys and fortunately knew someone who could probably help them before walking over to AJ, whom was kneeling on top of a rock, due to the tall grass obscuring his view of the dirt path leading to the beach.
"See anything useful?" She softly asked, wondering if her son had spotted anything useful that could help them for their attack on the boat.
"They have horses." The six year old boy answered plain and simple as he informed his mentor/guardian that Lilly and her people had horses with them.
"Let me see." Clementine replied while drawing out and glancing through the binoculars one last time at the small area that led to the beach and spotted two main objects of interest: extras torches that were set up and the two Cleveland Bay horses that were calmly eating small mouthfuls of hay.
"Huh...more torches." She muttered softly in fascination while turning to her boy after spotting the extra lit poles on the forest trail, which was what obviously attracted the three walkers to the beach.
"Setting the hay on fire would surely get their attention...might even scare the horses too." Clem swiftly added as she instinctively knew that burning the hay would also be perfect distraction...especially since the flames would scare the two Cleveland Bays, along with the walkers that would be marching towards the S.S. Fitzgerald.
"We could get on the boat easier that way." AJ softly replied as he completely agreed with his mother's plan: since Lilly and her crew would have their hands full with the fire, walker and horses during the complete chaos on the beach!
"If we cut those horses loose, that should slow down anyone from chasing us." The African American teenage girl stated as she instinctively knew that she and her friends needed to cook up a plan to get rid of the raider's horses, which would make their rescue mission go a lot smoother before she turned to face Willy and Violet, whom were finished scouting their assigned areas.
"We should get out of here before they spot us. We can go over the plan once we're somewhere safe." She softly stated with her son, girlfriend and the younger brunette nodding in agreement as they walked away with their heads low to avoid being spotted by the raiders.
"What's the plan?" Violet asked while turning to her younger girlfriend once they, AJ and Willy were at a safe enough distance to go cook up a plan of action.
"Well...we know they've got guards posted on the pier and the boat. There's no way we can take them all at once." Clem answered wisely as she pointed out to her friends on how the S.S. Fitzgerald was well defended and that a direct attack was completely out of the question for obvious reasons.
"Our only hope is to distract them while we sneak on board." She automatically added, stating on how their best shot at rescuing Omar, Aasim and Louis was to sneak on board the boat without alerting Lilly and her crew.
"We should also burn their stuff." AJ stated, suggesting on how they should burn the supplies that the raiders had salvaged from the train station.
"That'd work. We could burn the supplies or the hay they keep for the horses." The African American teenage girl stated while nodding in agreement with her son's suggestion in burning the raider's supplies...which she instinctively knew would no doubtingly piss Lilly off to no end.
"Whatever we don't burn, we should take." Willy replied while suggesting on how they should steal the supplies that they didn't burn for themselves.
"Ruby would love to have the horses...but I'd rather steal the supplies. I can make traps, weapons!" He softly added, knowing how the redhead would've jumped at the chance to keep the horses whilst claiming that he could craft makeshift traps and weapons to defend the school from the supplies.
"Yeah...we'll steal their supplies and burn the hay as our distraction." Clementine replied as she agreed with Willy's idea about stealing the supplies and stated on how they would burn the hay to scare the two Cleveland Bays.
"If you're going to steal from the rafts, you'll need to do it quietly." She swiftly added whilst reminding the younger brunette that he'd need to be extremely stealthy while lifting the supplies from the rafts.
"I wouldn't do it any other way." Willy stated casually as he assured the African American teenage girl that he'd be careful while he was cutting the rafts down the river.
"The fire will lure the raiders away from the boat and we can sneak across the pier." Clem replied, explaining how the fire would lure Lilly and her crew away from the ship whilst they snuck on board to find and rescue the three teenage boys.
"If anybody sees us, they'll shoot!" The younger brunette countered while pointing out a rather crucial fact: how a member of the raven haired woman group would shoot them as they crossed the beach!
"You remember that guy I told you about before? James? He sent in walkers to save me and AJ from Lilly and Abel. Maybe we can convince him to do it again." The young African American teenage girl replied as she instinctively thought of James and finally revealed to Violet and Willy on how the mysterious mask wearing stranger had used a small group of walkers to protect her and AJ from the raven haired woman and her second in command...much to the blonde's and younger brunette's silent surprise/shock.
"If we can lead a big enough group of them onto the beach...we can blend in without being seen." She softly added, stating that if they could lure a huge herd of walkers onto the beach with James help...they'd be able to approach the S.S. Fitzgerald without any of the raiders noticing before walking further into the woods with Violet, Willy and AJ right behind her.
"Perfect." The older blonde stated as she strongly felt that her younger girlfriend's plan was their best shot at rescuing Louis, Aasim and Omar.
"...But what about after we get everybody home? The raider's will just come back and attack us again! What then?" Willy asked with a worried/frightened look on his face as he brought up a rather important scenario: how Lilly and her people would simply return to attack the school and force them into becoming child soldiers against their will!
However, before either Clementine or Violet could answer, the young African American teenage girl had paused in mid-walk after hearing a loud chopping sound and catching a glimpse of someone chopping wood with an axe not too far from their position.
"Hide now!" Clem stated while glancing over her shoulder as she ordered her group to take cover before the mysterious person spotted them.
As soon as the words left her mouth, Violet, Willy and AJ broke into a fast run and ducked behind several trees that were several feet apart, along with Clementine, whom slowly glanced out and gave a soft sigh as the mysterious figure continued to chop wood.
"Clem, who is it? Is it a raider?" AJ stated softly while whispering softly and asking his mother if the person who was chopping wood was a member of Lilly's group.
"Is has to be. You guys wait here. I'll see if they know something that could help us." She answered softly while turning to her son and Violet and instructed them to stay hidden whilst she interrogated the mysterious raider for additional information that could help for their attack on the S.S. Fitzgerald with her boy and the older blonde nodding in agreement.
After she had stepped out from behind the tree, Clem had drew out her knife as she quietly crept up behind the raider, whom was in fact a teenage girl with pinkish red hair and completely unaware of the young teenage girl sneaking up behind her until she swiftly grabbed her and placed the tip of her knife to her throat.
"Drop it." Clementine stated plain and simple as she ordered the mysterious raider to drop the axe, whom did just that while breathing heavily after feeling the cold steel pressed against her neck.
"The kids that your people kidnapped...have they been hurt?" She softly asked while demanding to know if Louis, Aasim and Omar had been harmed after Lilly and her group brought them to their ship.
"I don't know what you're..."The red haired raider attempted to say before she was cut off.
"I'm not fucking around! Answer the question!" Clem angrily replied, showing that she was in no mood for games and demanded to know if the three teenage boys were alright or not while pressing her hunting knife to the pink haired girl's throat!
"No! No...we need them to fight. They're all okay." The redhead answered softly, stating that Louis, Omar and Aasim were fine and how Lilly and the rest of their crew needed the three teenage boys to be in prime condition for their training.
However...before the young African American teenage girl could ask the red haired raider any further questions, that was when something truly...unexpected happened.
"Clementine, wait!" Violet cried out, which quickly earned her girlfriend's surprise as she glanced to the older blonde with a confused look on her face...which gave the mysterious raider the opportunity to free herself from the young teenage girl's hold and turned around to face her.
"That...that's Minnie." She softly added while stepping forward as she immediately recognized the red haired raider...whom was in fact Minnie, who stared in silent awe/shock after seeing Violet as she stepped forward.
As soon as the words left her lips, Clem stared in utter shock/disbelief after hearing how the raider she just attacked and interrogated was actually one of Tenn's presumed 'dead' sisters and Violet's ex-girlfriend...watched in awkward silence as she witnessed the older blonde and Minnie embrace each other, along with AJ and Willy after they had came out of hiding.
"...After the attack, I wasn't sure. I mean...I heard they burnt half your school down. Who survived? Ruby, Mitch? Brody? Tenn?" Minnie started off gently after she and Violet pulled away from the hug, stating on how she had heard about what happened during the raid and was deeply curious to learn who had survived the raider's siege on the school.
"Ruby and Tenn made it. Mitch didn't...and Brody, she...um, she died." Willy answered truthfully, informing Minnie that both Ruby and her younger brother survived the the raider's attack on the school...whilst sadly revealing that Mitch didn't and that Brody had died before the attack ever happened.
"...Are Tenn's boots holding up okay?" The redhead softly asked with a distraught on her face after hearing that both Mitch and Brody were dead...even though she was completely unaware of how the older combative brunette and older redhead had died.
"...His boots?" AJ asked with a puzzled expression on his face as he was deeply baffled by Minnie's extremely bizarre question!
"They're so old...they're more holes than rubber. I duct taped them up the last time I saw him, but that was...a while ago." She answered softly, explaining on how Tenn's boots were in a bad state due to them being really old and how she had fixed them up with duct tape before she and Sophie headed out into the woods with Marlon and Brody.
"His boots are fine." Clem answered truthfully, stating that Tenn's boots were alright...which immediately earned the redhead's attention.
"So...You're Clementine. The girl who took over after Marlon died. It's weird...I thought everyone would want to lean on their own. Not the new kid." Minnie stated coldly with a glare on her face while turning to the young African American teenage girl, whom was deeply surprised by the level of hostility she had detected in the pink haired girl's voice as she found it sad/pathetic that Violet and the others would follow her instead of simply moving on after Marlon's 'tragic' death...just like when they thought she and Sophie were 'dead'.
"I'm not the one in charge of the school. Violet is." Clem calmly countered while revealing to the redhead that Violet was the new leader of the school!
"Really? The Violet I knew could barely stand to talk to people...let alone play class president." Minnie asked with a genuine surprised look on her face after hearing that Violet had taken Marlon's place as the new leader of the school...while coldly bringing up her ridiculous phobia to speak in public on the day she was elected as class president, which earned a heated glare from the older blonde...as she was deeply hurt and offended by her former girlfriend's harsh words.
"You're the one who convinced the school to fight back. From where I'm standing...that puts you in charge." She automatically continued, stating on how she heard from Lilly or the other members of her raiding party on how Clementine had convinced Violet and the others to fight back...which made her the new leader in the redhead's point of view.
"You're 'leadership' is going to get my little brother killed." Minnie added while coldly stating on how the African American teenage girl's so called 'leadership' would eventually get Tenn killed!
"Excuse me?" Clem asked with an extremely offended look on her face while crossing her arms after those cold/harsh words left the redhead's lips!
"...Abel figured that he could talk Marlon into handing everyone over, like he and Lilly did...like they did before. But you ruined the whole plan." Minnie started off softly while turning around, explaining how Abel had planned on convincing Marlon into simply handing Louis and the others over to him and his crew, like he did with her and Sophie the previous year...and coldly stated on how the young African American teenage girl had ruined everything while turning back with a cold glare on her face...which Clem mirrored with a deep sense of disgust/contempt towards the older teenage girl.
"What the hell? He gave you and Sophie away!" Violet demanded with a similar glare on her face, as she was deeply baffled/disgusted by her former girlfriend's current behavior while reminding her on how Marlon sold her and Sophie out to the raiders!
"Yeah, and we all survived it. Marlon would never had made them fight the way you did. He wouldn't have gotten people killed." The redhead coldly countered, stating on how she and Sophie had both survived and adjusted to their new lives and how Marlon wouldn't have let Mitch or anybody else killed by fighting back against Lilly and the rest of her group unlike Clementine did.
"Minnie, you're wrong! Clem protected us." The older blonde softly countered as she automatically defended her younger girlfriend.
"Yeah? Then how come so many people are dead?" Minnie asked sarcastically while demanding to know why Mitch, Brody and Marlon were dead...and would soon be be deeply taken back by the answer.
"Hey Minnie, news flash: Marlon murdered Brody!" Clementine stated bluntly as she angrily revealed to Minnie that Marlon had murdered Brody in cold blood!
"What?" The redhead softly asked with a horrified expression on her face after hearing that truly shocking revelation!
"He bludgeoned her with a flashlight and left her to turn in the basement...because she couldn't live with herself and keep his secret anymore." She calmly added while closing her eyes softly, revealing how Marlon had bashed Brody's head in by striking her incredibly hard with the flashlight he was holding before taking off and leaving her to die and reanimate as a walker with Willy and AJ glancing down at the ground in sadness.
"Where's Sophie? Is she alive?" Violet softly asked, as she noticed how Minnie was out in the woods by herself and demanded to know where her twin sister was.
"...She, um...She died...protecting the Delta. A hero." Minnie answered softly as she hesitantly revealed that her sister had died while fighting against the people whom were threatening her new home...much to Violet's and Willy's dismay as they shook their heads in sadness after hearing that Sophie was dead.
"A hero? God, you're..." Clementine asked in a demanding tone, as she was deeply disgusted at the redhead's demented sense of morality until she stopped in mid-sentence.
"Minerva!" Lilly suddenly cried out while calling Minnie by her full name...which deeply alerted the young teenage girl and her group!
"Oh, shit!" She softly cursed as Willy's and AJ's eyes widened in shock the moment they heard Lilly's voice, along with Minnie, whom had a conflicted expression on her face as she witnessed them duck behind different trees.
"Rockingham!" The redhead replied back as Lilly and the raider with the bald head and beard checked in on her.
"Finish up and head back. I want to be in before dark." The raven haired woman stated firmly as she ordered Minnie to finish gathering the necessary firewood they needed for the trip back to the their home community...and was completely unaware of the conflicted look on the redhead's face, as she secretly glanced towards Clementine and her group...along with the pleading looks the young teenage girl and Violet had on their faces as they silently begged her not to rat them out to Lilly and the man with her.
"...Yes ma'am." Minnie answered while nodding softly as she understood how she and her group were on a time table...while Clem and her friends gave a soft sigh of relief, as they heard Lilly and the bald headed raider walking away.
However, as soon as she witnessed her leader and fellow raider head back to the ship...Minnie softly picked up her axe and silently walked up to Clementine with a cold look in her eyes, which she automatically mirrored.
"Our boat leaves for the Delta in two days...then it'll be a couple of weeks before we can come back for the rest of you. And when we do...don't fight. The only way you're gonna be able to save your friends is by letting us take them." The redhead stated softly, revealing how she, Lilly and the rest of their crew would be leaving for their community in two days and that they'd return for her and the others in a few weeks...and softly begged the African American teenage girl to convince Violet and the others to give them selves up when they returned to the school.
"I'm serious. Don't fight this." She softly added adamantly as she begged Clementine to simply accept that joining and becoming part of the Delta was the only way to survive.
"...It's not too late, Minnie. You could still come back to the school with us." Clem stated softly as she informed Minnie that she could simply leave the raider's and return to the school with them...much to her genuine surprise.
"...No...No I couldn't." Minnie replied softly with somber eyes, stating that she couldn't go back to the school before running deep into the forest as Clem, Violet, Willy and AJ watched on...and with the older blonde frowning deeply hurt; especially since she no longer recognized the teenage girl who was once her girlfriend.
"Vi...are you okay?" The African American teenage girl softly asked with a concerned look on her face as she noticed the deeply hurt look on her girlfriend's face.
"...Nothing's changed. Our plan is to get on that boat and save our friends...so that's what we're gonna do." Violet answered softly, stating that Minnie being alive didn't change anything and how they were going through with their rescue mission to save Louis, Aasim and Omar, which earned a soft nod from her younger girlfriend.
"You guys should head on home. Start getting everything ready and everyone caught up on the plan." Clem stated softly as she instructed Violet and Willy to head on back to the school to make the necessary preparations they needed, along with filling Ruby and Tenn in about their upcoming attack on the S.S. Fitzgerald.
"Everybody except Tenn." Willy stated bluntly, showing that he didn't want the scar faced boy to be a part of the upcoming rescue plan...much to AJ's annoyance.
"I warned you." AJ stated strictly while turning to the younger brunette after hearing that insult towards his best friend.
"Enough, both of you!" Clementine snapped, as she was slightly annoyed by her son's and Willy's bickering about Tenn.
"AJ and I will go find James." She softly added, stating that she and AJ would go look for James and try to convince him to help them in rescuing Assim, Omar and Louis.
"Good luck." Violet stated softly as she wished her younger girlfriend and her boy the best of luck in finding the mysterious 'ex-Whisperer' before they headed further into the forest whilst she and Willy headed back to the school.
A/N: There it is everyone, the 7th chapter to A World with You as promised! I would like to deeply apologize to my fellow Fanfic authors and loyal followers for the two year wait. I was so busy working on my Sly Cooper and other fanfic projects that I wasn't able to focus on this one. I would also like to apologize if the 7th chapter seems lacking in details or beating around the bush; it was the best I could with what I could think of at the time. Until next time, bye.