FrostBite848- Exploring Maggie's reaction to Glenn's loss will be explored throughout future chapters not to worry. As for Kenny, at the moment he is acting as Rick's direct right hand, and while he is helping Rick with things he could do alone, Kenny will most definitely get his own things to do in the future similar to how Lee and the other Telltale characters like Doug are getting to do.

Blaszczu2500- Martinez is going to have a bit of a larger role in this chapter, so hope you enjoy that!

TWD Jacob 11- Maggie was definitely one of my favorite comic characters as well, and I will be showing her a bit more as these chapters go on exploring how she deals with Glenn's loss.

Gracie Miserables- Losing Glenn is still a hard loss as I love his character, and I also love Maggie and Glenn's relationship so it sucked cutting it so short but don't worry Maggie would take a long time to move on, so I'm not going to pair her up anytime soon.

Jestalnaker94000- Sorry my friend, can't spoil anything about Judith, you'll just have to wait and see!

SuperSonicHeroes- The idea that Ben and Martinez would know each other was something I thought of early on since Martinez wasn't a local in Woodbury just like Ben wasn't a local either. So I figured why not have the two know one another, and I plan to have the two interact a bit this chapter as well!

Gooffy- Glad you liked the chapter, hope you like this one just as much!

Storylover580- I really enjoy pulling in those moments from the game or comic we all know and dread, sometimes they may play out as in Otis's death but other times like with Chuck I want everyone to think, "Oh I know exactly what's happening," then just pull out a big switch so they aren't ever sure what to expect. Thanks for the review!

Midnightrebellion86- Having Duck stick around longer was always something I wanted to do, let him explore the world without a mom, and become a bit more mature. If Kenny were to die before him however, it's hard to say how the poor kid would take it as Katjaa's loss crushed him.

CitrusBird386- Thank you so much for the review, that's the main thing I wanted to get right in this story, I wanted every character to sound right, make choices that followed their character so no one was sitting there saying that this character or that character would never do something like that. Also glad to hear last chapter was one of your favorites, hope this one is just as good!

Enjoy

Chapter 28: Preparing For The Future

Martinez, Chuck, Ben, and Julie worked on the eastern side of the yard pulling bodies into smaller piles and taking a torch to them, lighting the corpses up to burn just as quickly as they dumped them down. "This was smart thinking, Mister Martinez, the smaller piles will burn faster than one huge body pile," Ben said while standing up and wiping off the sweat from his brow,

"How you doing little missy?" Chuck asked Julie who stretched and rolled her neck slowly,

"I'm fine Chuck, don't worry, just not something I ever imagined having to do," Julie replied with a short-lived smirk,

"We'll not that them boys are back, and we got these new fellas here, hopefully, we won't ever have to do this again," Chuck muttered back,

"That would be awesome," Ben agreed before looking back to Martinez, "So...it really is cool to see you again," The teenager said with an awkward smile before noticing Martinez didn't seem to be listening, or really paying attention, merely staring out towards the front gate. "Mister Martinez?" Ben asked causing the Latino man to finally shake out of his thousand-yard stare,

"Huh? Oh, Ben...I think we're a little past the mister stuff, you can just call me Martinez, it's alright," The teacher said with a short chuckle as he returned to the task at hand, "So, I was there when the school fell, I didn't think anyone else got out of there," Martinez said looking over to the two teenagers, "Everything happened so fast too, it's like they started from the inside…"

"Wait...you didn't know?" Ben asked back causing Martinez to look back at him in confusion, "Things did start from inside the gym, one of the cheerleaders, Jenny Pitcher I think, couldn't take it. She was freaking out about her parents back home and when she couldn't get in contact with them anymore she just lost it, went into the bathroom and took some pills...a lot of pills," Ben lowly stated, "It was that next morning when someone went into the girl's room and god...you know what happened after that,"

"I wish I didn't, Ben," Martinez lowly stated, "Things moved too fast, I wasn't prepared for it and I let you kids down, I should have protected you guys, now you're probably the only student I have left," Martinez then looked over to Julie, "Your dad is the one that got him out, right?"

"Yeah," Julie softly replied, "He brought me and my old boyfriend there for safety but once everything started to go down he led us out, saved Ben's life on the way from a walker, and he stuck with us ever since," Julie explained with a smile towards the teenager, "I'm glad we were there for him,"

"Me too, a damn miracle," Martinez finished before his ears perked up the sound of Rick and Kenny shouting from behind him, "Shit…" Martinez lowly said under his breath while slowly turning to watch the pair take off towards the garage,

"Now what the hell has got those boys so rattled up?" Chuck grunted with a frown,

"No clue," Ben replied while Martinez shut his eyes and let out a low exhale.

Further up the field Axel, Doug, and Tyreese who picked up Carl chased after Rick and Kenny, "Where are you guys going?!" Doug exclaimed causing Rick to glance back while Kenny continued to charge to the garage,

"Watch Carl for me, we're going after him!" Rick yelled back,

"That's crazy, we don't know if he's really gone, maybe he's somewhere else and you missed him?" Doug rapidly guessed, "You two can't just leave again,"

"No, he's gone Doug, he's going back to that town and we're going to stop him before he gets there. He doesn't know the area so he's going back the way we came, in Kenny's Rv we'll reach him in no time," Rick retorted just as Kenny came squealing out of the garage, screeching to a halt right next to the cop,

"And then what?" Tyreese asked back as Rick opened the door to the Rv,

Rick glanced back to Tyreese who kept his gaze steady on Rick, "I'll stop him, why do you think we're doing this alone?" Rick merely replied before slamming the door shut behind him,

"Rick! Kenny! You can't do this! Wait!" Tyreese yelled out as Kenny put his foot on the gas and tore out the front gate of the prison,

"He really meant...god, what happened to them out there? What could make them take so drastic measures?" Doug asked while shaking his head slowly in disappointment,

"I don't know, all I do know is those guys get an idea in their head, they pretty much just do it," Axel noted while the trio watched the Rv disappear from sight,

"You got that right," Tyreese sighed while easily setting Carl down, "Carl, let's go find your mom, huh?"

"Tyreese, do you think my dad likes me? Like for real, I don't think he does," Carl sullenly asked the athlete who immediately knelt down,

"Of course he does Carl, your dad loves you! Why would you even ask me something like that?" Tyreese asked back,

"He keeps leaving me and lying. He always goes somewhere and every time he comes back he promises not to leave me again, and then he does. Then mom cries and I feel so bad, I think if he really loved us he wouldn't leave, right?" Carl explained as he sulked,

"Listen, son, your dad loves you very much, everything he does is because he loves you. He takes care of the group, everyone looks up to him because he is a great man. He protects all of us, especially you and your mother, regardless of the burden. Understand?" Tyreese sharply explained while putting a hand on Carl's shoulder,

"I think so," Carl quietly replied,

Meanwhile, just outside the prison, Rick sat in the passenger seat of the Rv while Kenny kept his eye directly in front of him. As they reached a large open field Kenny clenched the wheel tight, "There," The redneck icily growled as his eye locked on the back of Jeff who was sprinting across the field, "Shoot that fucker!" Kenny ordered causing Rick to pull out his sidearm and lower the window.

The one-armed sheriff pulled the upper half of his body out the window and jutted his pistol forward taking a few quick shots which caused Jeff to spin around in shock. Without hesitation, the biker pulled out his gun and fired at the inclosing vehicle a few times. Rick immediately returned fire but after another set of missed shots he pulled himself back into the Rv, "I can't hit shit with this thing bouncing all over the fucking road!"

"I can," Kenny coldly replied before slamming his boot down on the gas pedal and aiming the vehicle directly at the biker.

"Oh fuck!" Jeff screamed out as he turned and tried to escape his doom. It was too late, the Rv crashed into the biker just as he turned his back on it. A sickening crunch was heard and Kenny hit the breaks sending Jeff flying forward, rolling across the field a few yards away. "C-Crazy fu-fucks!" Jeff coughed out through the blood that was filling his lungs. Kenny and Rick silently exited the vehicle and Jeff made one final pitiful attempt at survival reaching for his sidearm with his one good arm. "C-Can't move...tried to kill me...can't k-kill me!" The biker gritted out to the duo.

Rick stepped ahead of Kenny and kicked the pistol out of Jeff's hand without as much as a flinch. Rick stared for a hard second at the biker, looking over his damaged body, bones stuck out through his skin and clothes, his right leg remained twisted completely behind his back, and arm was dislocated and laying behind his neck. Blood was beginning to soak into his attire and he spurted some blood onto his red skull bandanna that somehow remained tied around his head.

"Make it quick," Kenny grunted while stepping away from the pair, keeping an eye on a small group of walkers that lumbered towards them,

"Fuck you!" Jeff finally shouted out causing Rick to look into his eyes,

"You were betraying us! You were going to lead them right to our fucking front door!" Rick fired back,

"You selfish piece of shit! You've got the room, the supplies, for hundreds!" Jeff attempted to yell back before coughing up more blood and wheezing hard, "We tried to make the town safe but the biters always get in...we aren't ever going to be as safe as that place...I was going back for my people...they deserve to be safe too" The biker weakly finished

"After what they did to us! What they did to me! Kenny! Michonne! GLENN! They killed him! That man was the purest, kindest person in this fucking world and that pyscho cut his head off! That's who you'd bring?! You're a poison worse than the dead! You're fucking animals!" Rick howled out while reaching down and grabbing Jeff by the collar,

Jeff gritted his teeth and grabbed at Rick's hand, "They are who they are...I wasn't going for them, I was going for the good people you sonofabitch! They wouldn't have hurt you or your family...but that doesn't matter anymore," Jeff finished before spitting in Rick's face, speckling blood and spit over the man's face, "Do it, finish it you fuck," The biker ordered.

Rick's eyes flared and his hand wrapped around Jeff's throat. The biker let out a choking gag and squeezed Rick's wrist as he felt his airway close. Rick let out a grunting yell and clamped his hand as tight as it would good, Jeff's mouth opened and he began to writhe under Rick as he struggled to breath before finally going limp under him. Rick released his hold on the dead man and he looked to Kenny, "Good fucking ridance," Rick nodded silently and glanced back to Jeff, "Let 'em turn," The redneck coldly added on as he headed back to the Rv, Rick took another moment before turning and following.

Back at the prison, Billy laid flat on his bunk, staring up at the ceiling with a small grin stuck on his face. "Well, that was fun," Molly's voice chimed out causing Billy to lift his head and look over to the blonde who was zipping her hoodie back up,

"Yeah...you aren't gonna leave still are you?" Billy nervously asked causing Molly to look over with a rather unsure expression, "No, come on, you can't," Billy immediately continued while sitting up,

"It's just...those people, that place I used to be at...I can't see them again, I can't do it, Billy," Molly weakly explained,

"What happened?" Billy replied with a short shake of his head,

Molly pursed her lips as she stared at the nineteen year old but after a few moments of looking into his concerned eyes she broke, "Me and my sister found Woodbury a few months after everything, that guy Martinez, he was the one who actually opened the door and got us inside. When we first got there it was like, paradise, things weren't perfect, but it was a hell of a lot better than struggling outside with the geeks." Molly explained as she eased herself onto the table across from the bunk, "I didn't get mixed up in much, but I did help that other guy Jeff scavenge for the time I was there, met Doc, Alice, and some other prick in the infirmary too. I didn't know much about the guys in charge though, just their names, Crawford and Phillip." Molly almost spat out while crossing her arms,

"So what happened? What...went wrong that made you leave?" Billy asked while swinging his legs over and sitting straight up on the bunk,

"The fucking rules," Molly muttered,

"The rules?" Billy repeated in confusion,

"Crawford and Phillip agreed that there needed to be some rules, a set of principles everyone had to live up to, and if you didn't...or couldn't...then you weren't fit to live in their society," Molly replied with a frown, "Everyone got a job, you had to work it or you'd leave" The blonde girl explained, putting air quotes around the final word, "Rations were given once a week, barely enough to survive on, but if you'd try to get more, they considered you a looter and you died, no questions asked." Billy's eyes widened, "A-And the sick, the ones who needed special treatment or medicine," Molly hardly said with a small quiver in her voice, "They were the first to go,"

"Your sister…" Billy gently said,

"Diabetic," Molly replied with a nod as she wiped her eyes quickly,

"Molly," Billy easily said while reaching out and taking the girls hand, "That's not us, we don't work like that here and no one would ever allow it to happen. Even if those bastards somehow showed up here, they wouldn't get to us, I know it, we're safe,"

"You can't know that, Billy, you don't know what people are capable of! I'm safer on my own, I just am," Molly abruptly fired back while taking her hand away from the teen and storming out of the cell leaving Billy alone, hanging his head.

Molly stormed a few cells down and entered her cell grabbing her backpack and swiftly unzipping it, "I'm not being stupid, I'm being smart," Molly barked out as if someone was chastising her, "I don't care, he'll just die too, getting attached to anyone is a fucking dumb idea! I had my fun, I tried to warn Michonne, but it's over. Crawford will find this place, and they'll want to fight...and they'll die, I'm not staying here for that!" The blonde continued to argue against this phantom.

Molly finished stuffing her pack with her few personal items and stood up, ready to head to the cafe to take a few days worth of food with her. The blonde woman, however, only took two steps before freezing as she saw Sophia staring silently from the cell door, "M-Move kid," Molly said attempting to come off as rough and angry,

"Don't go," Sophia weakly said shocking Molly, it had been the first time she had heard the girl speak since her mother, "Please?" Molly stared back at Sophia, her eyes wide but her hand turning white knuckled as she clutched her backpack.

Back out in the yard, Lori stood against the northmost fence, staring out into the distance intently, "Worried?" Mark asked causing the mother to glance back and surprising let out a smirk,

"Not anymore, not now. I think I worry more about not being able to stand up and not fall back into my bed soon," Lori replied while thoughtfully rubbing her stomach, "It's not that I care less for Rick, it's just...he always comes back. I feel like it'd surprise me more if he didn't return," Mark let out a soft chuckle and nodded understandingly, "I worry, I do, but I feel like it's only so I don't feel guilty about the fact that i'm not worried. It's gotten to the point where I expect him to be fine, even after what happened to him last time. I think it's maybe because of how worried I was last time, the thought of raising this baby without Rick was eating me alive, I think I had to stop worrying to survive. God, does that even make any sense?" The woman finished with a weak smile,

"It does," Mark immediately agreed, "These days, the world is so fucked but to me, that sounds like hope that things will work out. I'd hang onto that, keep believing that he's going to return, that things will work out how they are supposed to. Besides, when did sense ever matter in this crazy world?" Mark asked with a shrug,

"Fair enough," Lori agreed, feeling a bit more comforted,

Just behind Lori, Carly sat with Duck, Carl, Clementine, Ben and Billy. The reporter was entertaining the young twins. Duck sat alone, staring at the start of a new group of walkers piling up on the fences. Clementine and Carl noticed their friend and quickly ran over trying to pull him into a game,

"Hey Duck, want to...play tag?" Carl asked after a moment of thought,

"No...I'm okay," Duck mumbled back,

"Hide and seek?" Carl followed up with,

Duck shook his head silently, "Um, we could draw…" Clementine thought only to get another no, "What do you want to do?"

"Wait for my dad," Duck sighed,

"Oh okay," Clementine nodded before going silent. After a long few minutes Carl and Clementine sat down next to their friend, "Do you...feel bad?"

"Sometimes," Duck admitted, "Looking at them helps," He added on while staring out at the walkers,

"What? How?" Clementine quickly replied,

"My mom died like they did, but they are still here." Duck mumbled before looking directly over at Clementine, "Do you think that maybe the people are still people in there. Like just stuck in their head? Maybe my mom isn't really dead, just...stuck,"

"I...I don't know, maybe?" Clementine replied in some nervous confusion,

"Maybe your parents are walkers too," Duck guessed, "And maybe they are happy, just being...walkers together," Clementine's eyes began to water and she could only bury her head in between her knees and weep over her parents. Duck instantly put his hand on the girls back, "Sorry…" The kid sincerely said,

"It's okay, I just don't want to think about that," Clementine replied causing Duck to quickly nod.

As Clementine's sniffs slowed and she gave her eyes a final wipe, Duck looked over to Carl, "Maybe our dads stuff will grow back," Duck stated causing Carl to look at him confused, "My dads eye and your dads hand, they could grow back like how a lizard's tail grows back,"

"No that's impossible," Carl denied, "Some animals can do stuff that we can't, like birds, my dad can't fly!" Duck and Clementine couldn't help but giggle over the thought.

Further up the yard Lee continued to dig through the piles of corpses, checking each one over before shaking his head and moving onto the next. Tyreese, Axel, and Doug watched the man as he worked between grabbing another corpse to put into a burn pile, "Either of you a bit more concerned about him than Maggie?" Tyreese lowly asked the pair,

"Not really," Axel replied, "Not sure what he's doing, but I'm sure he's got a good reason,"

"Yeah, he doesn't seem very upset, or crazy, he's been acting normal since he got back, maybe even more involved with Carly," Doug noted with a short shrug, "Either way, of the two, Maggie is in much worse of a state. Hershel hasn't been able to leave her side these last four days," The geeky man added on with a sullen tone,

"Yeah, I can hear her wailing all throughout the night," Axel agreed, "It's hard to hear some nights, ain't nothing we can do to help though,"

"If only," Tyreese muttered in agreement,

"How about that other woman, you know the quiet one, how is she doing?" Axel asked while looking to Tyreese, "I heard that she got into some trouble while out there,"

"Yeah, I don't know the whole story and I doubt I ever will. She's been keeping to herself, I've tried to tell her if she needs a person to talk to I could be that for her, but nothing. She's just business as usual, you know?" Tyreese explained before pursing his lips and shaking his head, "I still wish I hadn't fucked this up with Carol, and I wish she hadn't done what she did, I don't think the fallout will ever end,"

"With Julie I'm assuming?" Doug inquired causing Tyreese to silently nod back, "Time heals all wounds, you're her father, she can't hate you forever,"

"You're right," Tyreese dryly replied, "Just until I'm dead," The trio stopped talking as they heard the incoming sound of an engine, looking over they saw Kenny's Rv returning with a large splatter of blood across the front, "Well, that was quick,"

"Ugh, what is that on the front?" Doug asked with a queasy look,

"Maybe they hit one of them things," Axel guessed,

The trio approached the Rv as it entered the prison and parked in front of the gates, "Did you get him? Did you bring him back?" Doug quickly asked,

"He ain't get away," Kenny retorted without looking to the man,

"I'm calling a meeting," Rick sharply ordered, "Lee! It's time, we do it tonight!" He called out to the prisoner who stood up and looked over, nodding weakly back.

Hours later the group was inside the cell-block, each taking a rest from their long days of work before getting ready to attend Rick's meeting in the cafeteria. Patricia offered to sit it out and watch over the kids, who definitely didn't need to hear what was going to be said tonight. Lee and Carly stood in their cell, the later letting out a low exhale as she mentally prepared herself for what she was going to hear, "I see people making their way over to the cafe, we should go too," The reporter said while taking a step out of the cell,

"Carly, wait," Lee quickly said causing the short woman to stop and glance back at him. Lee let out a slow exhale and rubbed the back of his neck, "I wasn't sure when or how I was going to do this, but I think it's better to do it now, before we have to talk about all that stuff. While we're both still happy with just being back with each other, and nothing else,"

"Lee, what are you talking about?" Carly asked back while returning to the cell, "You've been acting weird all morning, what's going on?"

"Carly...Glenn died out there, he was younger than me by years and he's gone and I'm not," Lee explained causing Carly to tilt her head in minor confusion, trying to figure out where Lee was going with this train of thought, "This world now, anything can happen at any time, no one is as safe as they want to be, all we have is the time with the people we care about,"

"Lee…" Carly gently said only to pause as she watched the man reach into his pocket and then pull it back out closed.

Carly's brow jumped up and she let out a soft gasp as Lee uncurled his fingers and sitting on his palm was a diamond ring, "I know it may be a little loose and strange considering how I got it today," Lee admitted, "But I knew I had to take this step, Carly. That whole time I was gone, all I thought about was you and Clem, you two were all that mattered to me. I wanted to be back with you, it didn't matter how long it was for, I just needed to see you again. We don't know how much longer we have together, but I want to make sure for however long it is, we're together," Lee warmly finished,

Carly's lips parted yet no words left her mouth, Lee gulped nervously as he watched the woman for a minute before seeing her blink rapidly a few times and let out a relieving exhale, "Yes," She finally said causing Lee to break into a wide smile which Carly quickly shared. The short reporter held out her right and and Lee quickly slid the ring onto her third finger before embracing Carly in a tight hug, "I love you, Lee" Carly happily said while squeezing the man's neck,

"I love you too," Lee instantly replied,

After a few more moments of embracing Carly pulled back and looked at her finger, blushing slightly before letting out a nervous laugh, "I guess without a church or judge, that's really all we have to do, huh?"

"Well, we could still tell everyone and have a little ceremony, I'm sure Hershel would say a few words for us, and it'd be something nice to remember," Lee replied,

"I'd like that, we can talk to him tomorrow, and then let everyone know," Carly grinned before pulling Lee back into another embrace.

A floor above Rick stood against the metal banister outside his cell, glancing back at Lori as she exited their cell behind him, "Carl asleep?"

"Passed right out, Patricia will be checking on him while we're gone but I think he's out for the night. Ready to go?" Lori asked,

"No," Rick lowly replied to Lori's shock, "Lori, I killed a man today," Lori's eyes went wide and she stared at Rick, "Jeff, that man from Woodbury, Kenny and I hunted him down today. He only came with us to find this place and then he left to go back to his town. That's where we went today, and killing him made me notice something. It made me see what has started to happen to us...my job trained me to uphold the law. Today, I watched Kenny hit Jeff with the Rv like he was an animal, he didn't care and neither did I. Then, when I realized he was still alive, I finished the job, because I thought it was the right thing to do. I didn't think past that,"

"Y-You're right though, he would have brought his people back, brought harm to the baby," Lori replied, denying Rick's words fervently, "You did the right thing, you shouldn't feel remorse."

"That's not what I'm talking about, I don't care about Jeff, but it made me see how detached I've become," Rick replied before shaking his head, "I'd kill every single person in this place if I thought it'd keep you and Carl safe. I care for these people but I know I'm capable of making that sacrifice. I find myself ranking them, sometimes looking at them and thinking of who I like the most. Who I would need the most if I had to choose. I've seen so many die already and I feel so little attachment to those who are left, even more so without Glenn. And at any moment, I know if I had to, I'd kill them. Isn't that evil? Doesn't that make me evil?"

"I...I don't know," Lori stammered back with just a hint of fear,

"Neither do I," Rick softly replied while turning his head and looking away from his wife.

Forty minutes later the survivors were all gathered in the cafeteria, Rick, Kenny, and Lee stood in front of the others, each doing their best to recount the tale of what happened to them inside the walls of Woodbury. "...And after that we made our way back here, we all worked together to get inside here once we saw it was overrun, and I had grown to trust Jeff and Martinez over that time." Rick explained at the tail end of the story,

"I did, Jeff was the one who broke me out, saved me from those people, had us all fooled," Lee added on,

"I knew that fucker had to be planning something, he just never sat right with me, it all seemed too easy," Kenny grunted with a shake of his head,

"Because it was," Martinez suddenly said causing the group to look over to the man, "We were ordered to free you guys, the whole plan was to take you home and then go back, Logan and Larry, that wasn't supposed to happen but...it made it more convincing," The latino admitted,

"Sonofbitch," Kenny growled while reaching to his belt for his gun,

"Whoa, easy Kenny!" Lee immediately shouted out while holding up a hand,

"Give us one good reason why we shouldn't just kill you," Rick said glaring at the former teacher,

"Because I'm still here," Martinez merely replied, "I didn't know that whole time if I was gonna go through with it, Crawford and Phillip are monsters and being away from them made me feel peace. Still, they are capable monsters, and they scare the fucking hell out of me, but once I saw Ben...my student...no, it had to end, they may find this place, but it won't be from me and if it comes to it, I'll protect this place from them,"

"Why didn't you tell us about Jeff then?" Kenny snapped out,

"I didn't know he had gone!" Martinez quickly explained, "I was trying to talk him out of it the last four days! I'm sorry, but not everyone there is bad, Jeff wasn't, we're prisoners! Lackey's who do as told or one more tally mark in those psycho's body counts! I wanted to give Jeff the chance to realize what I did, that their way isn't a way worth living! You have to trust me, I didn't know," The latino pleaded while looking around at the others,

"I trust him," Ben immediately interjected, "Martinez helped out more than anyone these last few days, he's only tried to help, we can't blame him for wanting to save his friend from making a dumb choice,"

"I reckon, if he weren't being honest, he would have never told us all that," Chuck added on,

"I agree," Lee thoughtfully added on, "He's no different then the doc and Alice, and we trust them just fine,"

Rick kept a hard eye on Martinez for a minute before slowly looking away and saying, "Regardless of what we did to stop Jeff, and what Martinez didn't do, the fact doesn't change, they'll find this place eventually."

"You aren't joking," Molly suddenly jumped in from the back to the surprise of the others,

"Now what the fuck do you know about it?!" Kenny exclaimed with a toss of his hands,

"Easy grandpa," Molly snapped back, "Listen, I used to live in that town,"

Rick instantly looked to Martinez who looked at Molly in shock, having not seen the woman until this moment, "I-It's true, holy shit, we thought you died," Martinez stammered back,

"I escaped...I escaped too late, but I still got out," Molly explained, "These guys, they are relentless, they'll find this place soon, and we need to ready for them when they get here,"

"So what's the plan then Rick?" Andrea quickly asked,

"Do you expect us to leave?" Doug asked with a raised brow,

"Not at all, I remember what it was like when we found this place, I have no intention of abandoning it," Rick sharply replied,

"What about this national guard station you talked about, couldn't we raid that for supplies?" Mark asked,

"Yeah, what do you know about that place?" Dale agreed while looking to Martinez,

"I was only there once, barely remember how to get to it, but I know we didn't take everything, and Oberson still uses the place for fuel, that much I do know," Martinez explained,

"So they make people fight to the death for entertainment? What kind of people do that?" Julie asked in disgust,

"The worst kind," Molly retorted,

"You said The Governor may be dead, how can you be uncertain? What did you do to him Michonne?" Hershel asked the silent black woman,

"Everyone calm down," Lee quickly said drawing their attention, "We can sort the rest of this out later, but what's most important is the fact that they are out there,"

"He's right, and with Jeff dead, they'll realize it soon and come after us," Kenny nodded in agreement, "Don't know when it could be, but it'll happen sure as shit,"

"We just need to make sure, when they do get here, we're ready for them." Rick finished the thought while looking around the room at each of the survivors.

Nearly a week passed by as the prisoner survivors continued to clean up the yard and let things return to the way they once were. Still, the words that Rick, Kenny, and Lee spoke all rung heavy in their heads. While some minor projects continued to be worked on, the main issue the committee was focusing on was how to properly arm themselves in case Woodbury attacked.

On the night of the sixth day Rick and Lori sat in their cell, the latter laying her head on her husband's lap, "What are you thinking about?" Rick softly asked as he ran his hand through Lori's hair,

"What?" Lori mumbled back,

"We were talking about when I first showed up at Atlanta then you zoned out," Rick replied, "What were you thinking about?"

Lori continued to stare silently for a moment, remembering the night she had slept with Rick's best friend Shane the night Atlanta fell. She thought Rick was dead, but even so, that didn't stop the guilt and regret, "Nothing. Dwelling. We've been through a lot, I was just thinking about it all," Lori lied,

"So Carl and Duck getting their own room is nice, it's one more step to things getting back to normal," Rick smiled,

"I'm glad, when you were gone he couldn't sleep alone, I was afraid he'd never get past it," Lori replied while sitting up and holding her belly, "It's nice to be alone with you sometimes. Oh!" The mother gently exclaimed while rubbing her stomach,

"The baby at it again?" Rick merely asked,

"He's kicking like crazy-shit, I'm doing it again, I keep saying he instead of it. It just doesn't sound right, I mean I know it could be a girl but because of Carl i'm just so used to saying he. I wish we knew, though it's not like we have a nursery to paint or anything," Lori sarcastically noted.

Rick froze in place and put his hand over his mouth, "Shit I...I've got to make a crib or bassinet! I've been so preoccupied about everything else I didn't even think about this. There is still so much I have to do!"

"Relax Rick, we still have time, let's get some sleep and we can talk more in the morning, we have a big day tomorrow anyway." Lori said while slowly laying down which Rick followed, "Good night, Rick," Rick warmly smiled back as Lori laid down, though the sheriff couldn't help but worry about how underprepared he now was.

Early the next morning Doctor Stevens made his way into the prisons infirmary, the once wrecked room was now sparkling clean. Stevens, Alice, and Doug each worked hard to clean up every contamination in the room making the most sterile environment they could over the last few days. Now the doctor had a more pressing matter to get to, entering the room he immediately spotted Alice who finished making the last of the twelve medical beds, "You're here early, good, Douglas?" Doctor Stevens called out,

"He's in his cell, he stayed up late helping finish this place up so I let him sleep," Alice replied,

"That's fine," Stevens replied as he walked over to a nearby desk and dropped his back on it with a thud, "Alice, it's time we have an important conversation,"

"About what?" Alice asked while looking up at the elder,

"Last week, I nearly died, and while I've come to terms with that fact, I simply can not allow myself to die so soon without properly training my replacement," The doctor firmly stated before pulling out a stack of three thick textbooks from his bag, "These books, they are everything that you need to know if you're going to be a proper doctor for these people,"

"Doctor Stevens, what are you talking about?" Alice asked in bewilderment,

"Alice, you are a very capable individual, I chose you as an assistant because of how well you can perform. But now, I need to accept that I can't be the only one to be relied on, I need you to step up and enter the role you've been training for. These books, read them, I will be testing you by the end of the week, and by the end of the month I expect you to pass those tests perfectly," Stevens firmly stated while crossing his arms,

"Doctor Stevens...I don't think I really want to be-" Alice gently began to argue,

"It's not about what you want anymore Alice, it's about what role we have to talk," Doctor Stevens interrupted with a calm tone, "We may not want to do these things but we are required to. We don't get to decide what ways we help people, we merely help them in the ways we are able. You can help these people Alice, you can learn from me and then teach someone else down the line making sure this knowledge isn't lost! You can save people!" Doctor Stevens passionately stated, "So please, take a book and start reading!" The man all but pleaded,

Alice rolled in her lower lip and thought for a moment before nodding, "You're right, it's...my duty to accept this responsibility, thank you Doctor Stevens," The girl warmly stated while walking over and sitting at the desk, picking up a book and immediately opening it.

"Holy shit, Doc, you got this place in ship shape," Kenny's voice suddenly said as he entered the room,

"Thank you Kenneth," Doctor Stevens smiled, "Though it was mostly Doug and Alice, I assure you,"

"Hell, it'll be good for Lori and the baby, plus if anyone else gets hurt," Kenny added on with a smile as he looked the room over, "Right, you wanted to change my bandages?" Doctor Stevens nodded and Kenny quickly sat down on a medical bed.

The elder returned to Kenny's side and began to undo the wrap around his head, after a moment the doctor carefully inspected the gunshot wound on Kenny's head, "Hmm, well it seems to be healing up quite nicely, I'll still be monitoring it over the next few weeks, any infection there will be very dangerous," Doctor Stevens explained as he prepared a fresh bandage,

"Shit, well, hope the damn universe throws me a fucking bone for once," Kenny muttered out,

"Kenneth, I noticed the issue with your hand, I can see your bones have healed improperly and you don't seem to get much use out of it," Stevens suddenly noted,

"Yeah, no shit, it's fucking busted," Kenny retorted,

Doctor Stevens let out a short chuckle as he began to rewrap Kenny's head, "Come back down here later today, I want to take an x-ray, Doug said that he can power the room at any point. I think I may be able to help fix that hand so it's at least capable of being used." Kenny's eye widened, "Mind you, it won't ever be the way it once was but it'll be better than that,"

"Shit Doc...I don't know what to say," Kenny stammered out under his breath, "I'll try to get back to you after we take a look at the armory,"

"Wonderful," Stevens simply replied before standing up and giving the redneck a pat on his shoulder.

A few hours passed by before Rick, Lee, Tyreese, Kenny, and Dale were gathered in the armory taking stock of what supplies they had stored in the prison. "Not counting our few guns we brought in with us, we got ten rifles, six shotguns, eight of these riot suits, not counting Lee's. A shit ton of these batons and a few things of tear gas," Lee reported,

"Ammo?" Rick asked,

"Not as much as I'd have hoped," Lee replied, "Maybe a few hundred rounds all together, and that'll go fast in gun training,"

"No kidding," Kenny agreed,

"Guys maybe we should hurry this up, running the generator while we take inventory is burning through that gas," Tyreese added on,

"Don't worry, the kids are watching a movie with the others, figured while we were doing this we'd let the others at least have some fun," Rick replied while looking to Dale,

"It's not enough," The elder stated while shaking his head in disappointment,

"What do you mean, Dale?" Lee asked back,

"We don't have enough for what could be coming. You said there were fifty people in that place, that doubles our group, and that's including our kids. You saw the weapons Jeff and Martinez had, that beats a few shotguns and bolt actions by far. Those men are trained, we just sit behind our fences playing cards...let's be honest here, we aren't ready for this," Dale hardly stated,

"Old mans got a point," Kenny admitted, "But you got any ideas on how to fix it, or you just being an asshole about it?"

"Ken," Lee disapprovingly interjected,

"Yeah, one idea," Dale retorted, "The national guard station, we need to find it and raid it for supplies. You heard Martinez not everything is gone, we need those guns if we're even gonna have a chance,"

"Can't argue with that," Lee nodded,

"But Martinez said he didn't even remember how to get there, we don't know where to look," Rick reminded the others,

"If they are looking for us then we need to look for that place, or we're screwed Rick," Dale sharply replied,

"He's right, we need to put together a team and go out there searching for the place, like it or not we have no choice," Tyreese firmly stated,

"Yeah, I saw we load up in Dale's Rv...at least eight of us for protection and then go, don't stop until we find this place," Lee added on causing Tyreese to nod along with him,

Rick let out a low exhale and crossed his arms, "Who would go?" The sheriff asked with a raised brow.

Alright huge chapter, a lot happened! And we finally got the vote I've been planning, I want to give you guys a chance to see more of your favorite characters in the story so I've set up a poll on my page where you guys will vote for the eight survivors going on the scavenging run! Now, obviously some will be exempt from selection like the kids, and Lori but other than that it'll all be your call! I also want to use this vote to see how many people will interact with the story, if it goes well I will probably set up more votes! So if you like this idea please click on my screen name at the top, put your vote into the poll, and of course, leave a review for me!