Chapter 8-Setting Up
Quick note-This is on the same day as the last chapter.
Alden's P.O.V
Alden gets off the couch in Daryl's house and looks at Luciana, who was sitting at the table eating. "Are you hungry?" Luciana asks. Alden nods as he stands up. He puts his holster on and walks into the kitchen where Strand was cooking.
"I hope you are hungry. Daryl had eggs and bread. Eggs and toast," Strand says as he hands Alden a plate.
"Thanks," Alden says as he goes to the table and sits down by Luciana. "Where is Troy?"
"Right here," Troy says as he walks inside. "I was talking to Daniel, Aaron, and Jesus about the plan for the warehouse. They are riding out to Kingdom today," Alden nods as he eats. Strand and Cole come out with their own plates.
"There is a plate in there for you, Troy," Cole says. Troy nods as he goes into the kitchen.
"So, what are we supposed to do today?" Cole asks. "You three are heading to the Sanctuary. Daniel is going to Kingdom,"
"Maybe you should see if Rick needs any help," Luciana says as Troy comes out. They eat their food. After they get done eating. Troy, Luciana, and Alden walk out to the truck. Alden climbs into the driver's side, and they leave Alexandria.
Daniel's P.O.V
Daniel, Strand, and Jesus ride horses on the road. Daniel was following Aaron and Jesus. "So, Daniel, what did you do before the turn?"
"I was a barber in L.A. I had my own shop with my daughter and wife," Daniel tells them.
"I'm assuming they didn't make it," Jesus says.
"No, they did not. Now I have this group and Skidmark," Daniel says.
"Well, Scott said he would watch Skidmark and Gracie for us," Aaron says. Daniel nods as they see a walker ahead of them. Jesus pulls his sword out and stabs the walker in the head as it comes close to the horses.
"I might ask you to cut my hair at one point," Jesus says.
"I will do it," Daniel tells him. "How long do you plan on staying in Alexandria?"
"A little while. Hilltop has enough fighters after the war. The other communities need help," Jesus says. Daniel nods as they ride forward.
Alden's P.O.V
Alden drives the truck up to the gate of the Sanctuary. "Why the hell would anybody live here?" Troy asks.
"I lived in an outpost. Never like living in a factory," Alden tells them as a savior opens the gate and lets them go in. Alden turns the truck off and gets out of the car.
"Look who came back. You finally realize that they don't give a shit about you or us?" A savior named Jed asks.
"No, I'm here because Rick asked me to," Alden tells him as Gabriel walks outside.
"Alden, Luciana, Troy. Is there a problem?" Gabriel asks.
"Yeah, we need to talk," Luciana tells him. "In private," Gabriel nods as he motions them inside.
"What about us, sweetheart? Shouldn't we know what the problem is?" Jed asks as he stops in front of Luciana.
"Hey, man. Back off," Troy says.
"You got yourself some bodyguards, sweetheart?" Jed asks her.
"Call me sweetheart again, and I'll break your hand," Luciana tells Jed.
"Sorry," Jed says with a grin.
"Go do something with yourself," Gabriel tells him as they walk past him. Jed grabs Alden's arm.
"Nice gun you have there," Jed says. Alden pulls his arm away from Jed.
"Try not being a dick. Maybe you'll get Rick's trust," Alden says.
"So you've become his bitch too. Are you going to fall in line with the widow, his bitch, and his dog Daryl," Jed says. Troy turns around and grabs Jed by the neck. He pushes him up against the railings.
"Listen to me. Keep your mouth shut before I push you over this railing and break your neck," Troy says. He throws Jed to the ground and walks inside with the others. Jed stands up and looks at the others saviors outside.
"What are you looking at?" Jed asks in anger before he walks away.
Aaron's P.O.V
Aaron, Jesus, and Daniel ride into Kingdom and get off their horses. "My friends. What has brought you here?" Ezekiel asks as he walks up to them.
"We need to talk to you, Ezekiel," Jesus says. "It's about the warehouse," Ezekiel nods as he leads them into the theater. He sees Carol talking to Jerry.
"Hey, guys," Carol says to them.
"Jerry, this is Daniel. He came back with Daryl," Aaron says. Daniel nods to Jerry.
"So, what is it you need our help with?" Ezekiel asks as he sits down.
"We have a plan. A plan that should work in clearing out the warehouse. But we need more people and weapons," Aaron says.
"What is the plan?" Carol asks.
"We build a path for the walkers, and we kill them as they get to the end. We need to make sure the path is sturdy and to kill and move the walkers," Daniel says.
"We lost a lot of our warriors in the war," Ezekiel says.
"I know," Aaron says to him. "But you have weapons, and you have archers that will help us,"
"We would be glad to help," Carol says. "When do you plan on doing it?" Carol asks them.
"In the next few days. We have to talk to Maggie for more people, and we need to make a good barrier to keep the walkers in," Jesus says.
"We can help with that. We have R.V's you can use," Ezekiel says.
"Good," Daniel says.
"Thank you, Ezekiel," Aaron says.
"Of course. We are all in this together," Ezekiel says. "Why don't you stay for lunch?"
"Sure," Daniel says. Aaron and Jesus nod. Ezekiel smiles as he leads them away.
Luciana's P.O.V
Luciana, Alden, Troy, and Gabriel sat in the meeting room inside the Sanctuary. "So, what is the problem?" Gabriel asks.
"The night of the party. Five saviors took weapons and food from Hilltop and left. Me, Strand, Luciana, Cole, and Troy hunted them down and killed them," Alden says.
"Sounds like the problem was solved," Gabriel says.
"It wasn't before we killed Liam. He told us this was just the beginning," Luciana says.
"We think there are more like them," Troy tells them. "Have you noticed anything?"
"No," Gabriel says. "We could bring in one of the saviors,"
"None of them can be trusted," Luciana says.
"Laura can be trusted. She has been helping me with the saviors since I've gotten here," Gabriel says.
"You trust her?" Alden asks.
"I do," Gabriel says.
"Maybe one of us should stay here," Luciana asks. "See if we notice anything weird,"
"It's not a bad idea. But who would want to stay here?" Alden asks.
"I will," Troy says.
"Why?" Luciana asks.
"Because it means I'm not near Daniel. Who is still pissed at me and I think wants to kill me," Troy says.
"It hasn't gotten any better?" Luciana asks Troy.
"He doesn't threaten me," Troy says. "I'm also the best person. They won't trust Alden. Luciana, you have farming experience because of the stadium, and they need that at the campgrounds. They don't know anything about me, and I won't take their shit,"
"He's right," Gabriel says. "If they trust any of you guys. It would be Troy,"
"How long are you going to stay?" Luciana asks.
"I don't know. Until we have a lead," Troy says. Alden and Luciana nod.
"You two can look around if you want," Gabriel tells Alden and Luciana, who nodded.
Daniel's P.O.V
Daniel stood watching as one of the members of the Kingdom trained a horse. "Nice, isn't it?" Carol asks as she walks outside. Daniel looks at her. "Never saw horses before all this. I lived in the city," Carol tells Daniel asks as she sat down.
"I did too," Daniel tells her.
"We were talking in there. Aaron and Jesus told me about the barbershop you had and your family," Carol says. "I had a daughter too,"
"What was her name?" Daniel asks her.
"Sophia," Carol says.
"What happened to her?" Daniel asks her.
"We got trapped under cars by a herd on the highway. Sophia went out too early and got chased off the highway by two walkers. Rick went after her and hid her so he could kill the walkers. He came back, and Sophia was gone. We don't know what happened after. All we know is a walker bit her and killed her. A man named Otis put her in a barn with the rest of Hershel's family. When Shane opened it. Sophia came out as a walker. Rick put her down," Carol tells him. "Yours?"
"She died saving as many people as she could. She saved Alicia in the end," Daniel says. Carol nods. "I came here hoping to honor my daughter like Daryl is honoring Glenn," Carol nods as Aaron and Jesus walk outside.
"We should be getting to Hilltop," Aaron says. Daniel nods as he stands up.
"Have a good day, Carol," Daniel says as he goes to the horses. Carol nods as Daniel, Aaron, and Jesus climb on their horses and leave the Kingdom.
Troy's P.O.V
Troy follows Gabriel through the Sanctuary. Alden and Luciana had left after the meeting, only leaving Troy a radio. Troy looks at Laura. "Are you sure you trust her?" Troy asks Gabriel, who nods. "Then maybe we should bring her in,"
"I agree," Gabriel says as he motions Laura over. Laura looks at them.
"Hey, Gabriel. Troy, what's up?" Laura asks.
"Follow us, Laura," Gabriel says. Laura nods as she follows them. Gabriel leads them into a room. Gabriel locks the door and makes sure no one else is in the room.
"What is going on?" Laura asks him. Troy and Gabriel look at her and then explain what was going on. "Why are you telling me this? I'm one of the saviors,"
"Gabriel trusts you. Should he trust you, Laura?" Troy asks her.
"Yes, he should," Laura says as she looks at Troy. Troy nods.
"If you hear anything, don't act on it. Find Troy or me," Gabriel tells Laura, who nods. They leave and head back into the Sanctuary.
Maggie's P.O.V
Maggie walks down to the gate as Daniel, Aaron and Jesus come into Hilltop. "What are you guys doing here?" Maggie asks as Al helps Charlie off a horse.
"We need to talk to you," Daniel tells her. Maggie nods.
"About what?" Al asks.
"The warehouse," Jesus tells Al.
"I'll meet you guys inside," Al says. They nod as they follow Maggie into her office. Once Al and Tara get into the room, Daniel looks at them.
"So we have made a plan for the warehouse. We talked to Ezekiel and got what we needed from him. Now we need your help," Daniel says.
"What is the plan?" Al asks.
"We make a path for the walkers and kill them as they get to the end. We will split the herds on each side and have people move and shoot them," Aaron says.
"What do you need from Hilltop?" Tara asks.
"We need people. The Kingdom said they would give us the supplies we need to make sure the path is sturdy and weapons. But they lost a lot of their fighters against the saviors. Now we need people from here and Alexandria. We'll send someone to Oceanside," Jesus says.
"You'll get the people you need. Just let us know when you need them," Maggie says. Daniel, Jesus, and Aaron nod.
"Well, we don't have a lot of time before dark. We should head back to Alexandria and check on Luciana, Alden, and Troy," Aaron says.
"They go to the Sanctuary?" Maggie asks.
"Yeah," Daniel says as he stands up. Aaron and Jesus hug Maggie and Tara before they head back out to the horses and leave for Alexandria.
Alden's P.O.V
Alden looked at the door as Daniel walked inside. "How was your trip?" Luciana asks.
"Good. We will have everything we need," Daniel says.
"Tomorrow Cole and I will go to the campgrounds and look at it," Strand says. "We'll get the directions from Aaron,"
"Where is Troy?" Daniel asks.
"He's staying at the Sanctuary to see if he can find more like Liam," Alden says.
"We should all get some sleep. We have a busy few days ahead of us," Daniel says. They all nod as they go to bed.
Aaron's P.O.V
Aaron sat on his porch eating stew. He looked at the door as Jesus walked outside with his own bowl. "Did Daniel take Skidmark?" Jesus asks.
"Yeah, Gracie is sleeping," Aaron says as Jesus sits down beside him.
"What are you thinking about?" Jesus asks him.
"Can I ask your opinion on something?" Aaron asks Jesus, who nods. "Do you think people are meant to be leaders?" Aaron asks him.
"That is an odd question," Jesus says.
"I know. But I was thinking about the people we know who are leaders. Rick, Maggie, Ezekiel, Daryl. Then I was thinking about Negan and Gregory. People that should have never been allowed to lead," Aaron says.
"I think some people are just born leaders. People like Rick and Maggie are amazing leaders. So is Ezekiel," Jesus says.
"And Daryl?" Aaron asks.
"I think he is the best of them all. Daryl listens to his people. I mean, he was willing to go back to the Prison for them. He lost his family there, and he was willing to go back. Daryl was a follower before he left. He listened to Rick. He came back with this new group that trusts him and listens to him. I think Daryl was always a leader. He just never knew it," Jesus tells him. "I think for some people. Leading is what they were born for," Aaron nods.
"You think you'll stay in Hilltop forever?" Aaron asks.
"Maybe. If I have a reason to leave. I'll leave," Jesus says as he looks at Aaron. "Goodnight, Aaron," Jesus says as he stands up and goes inside.
"Goodnight, Jesus," Aaron says as he looks into the night.
Thanks for reading. This chapter set up some more stories coming up for Troy in the Sanctuary and the warehouse. Also in case, you haven't figured it out. Jesus and Aaron will be a pairing in this story. The next chapter will focus on Al, Rick, Negan in Alexandria, Strand, and Cole going to the campgrounds. It might have some minor parts for people like Troy and others. As always, suggestions, ideas, and feedback are welcomed. Until next time.