The General,
-"What happened last week, that was a terrorist attack. Nothing more, nothing less. An improvised attack to scare our citizens into believing that our safety is compromised. But no, it isn't. The culprit of this violent act was wrong. We fixed the fences within two days, that shows strength. The fifty men & women who sacrificed their lives to protect us all will not have died in vein. Already, we have sent out our best men to find & bring this terrorist to justice. Once found, he will be punished, severely, for his crimes." Patrick addressed to the crowd of men, women, & children that gathered around the podium.
Several American flags stood half masked around the scene.
-"No, it was an improvised explosive, modeled after C4, that's as much as we know so far." Charles Yen said to Patrick.
Charles Yen was the explosives expert who had studied improvised explosives, bombs, missiles, etc. He was consulting Patrick on the matter of the bomb.
-"So this wasn't pre-made, he made it from raw materials." Patrick responds.
-"Essentially, yes. He had combined several explosive things, shotgun pellets, firecrackers, gunpowder, a ton of explosives." Charles says to Patrick.
-"Why shotgun pellets? He was trying to blow up the fence."
-"Well, I'm sure his goal, like every terrorist, was to create as much chaos as possible. Twelve men near the fencing died, three were wounded. The cause were either fragments or the bullets."
The Group, 7 days ago,
Everyone rushed through the corn fields. Jon sprinted towards the silo, searching for Megan. Fire was everywhere, exposing a ghastly smoke that arose over the farm.
-"MEGAN!" Jon calls out.
Several walkers begin to swarm around Jon. He fires in quick succession at them, but misses practically all of them. Jon runs, quickly around the farm.
-"MEGAN!" Jon yells again.
A large explosion erupts. The farm, silo, house, chicken feed, & crops erupt in flames. Metal pieces fly everywhere, the group watches in terror.
-"My farm!" Daniel yells; turning to the ruin.
A large cloud from the explosion arises over the farm. Megan was awakes in the back of the police cruiser to the explosion. Her breathing is heavy.
-"What!? What the f*ck! What's going on!" Megan yells in the cruiser.
-"Why am I handcuffed!? What the hell's going on!?"
Thomas had disappeared from the cruiser, he was searching around for Bree, the horse had run off into the crops. Aaron watched in horror.
-"Did anyone see if Jon came back?!" Aaron calls out to the group.
-"No, I saw him run off into the crops." Jeff responds.
Aaron looks off towards the barn. His heart leaped & he pushed back tears. The group stands & looks off towards the farm.
Megan struggles in the cruiser, trying to free her hand from the cuffs. A lone walker courses towards the cruiser, the side door is askew. The walker finds its way into the cruiser.
"No, no, no!" Megan screams, struggling with handcuffs.
The Group,
Overlooking the remnants of the farm, the group morns the loss of Jon to the explosion.
-"He always was trying to make people laugh." Aaron announces.
-"Whether it was intentional or not, he always could bring a smile to someone's face." Mason chimes in.
-"He was carefree, never intended to hurt anyone." Jeff says.
-"& he was the most awesome guy in the world." A manly voice announces.
The group turns to the man who stood behind them. His clothing was slightly charred & he had a little amount of ash on his face. Jesse starts to laugh & Helen bolts to him, hugging him.
-"You lucky *******." Aaron says with a laugh & smile.
-"Well-
A loud scream cuts off the groups short lived reunion. It's distinct & is coming from the police cruiser. Thomas returns from the crops, Bree in his arms.
-"Where did the scream come from?" Thomas says; scared.
-"HELP!" A voice calls out from the cruiser.
-"MEGAN!" Jon screams as he notices her from the back window of the cruiser.
The Group, Jon rushes over to the cruiser, Megan struggles, handcuffed in the backseats. A lone walker meanders it's way into the cruiser. Jon rushes to the cruiser & pulls the walker out. Jon bashes the corpses head in with the butt of his handgun. The walker lashes out at Jon, gripping his arm & pulling it close to it's broken mouth. Jon thrusts the walker to the floor where he stomps it's head in. Blood & brain fragments trail up Jon's jeans. His breathing is heavy & sweat trickles from his brow. He turns & looks in at Megan who is panting in fear. Jon hurriedly opens the cruisers door & grabs her hand.
-"J-Jon, I'm handcuffed." She says as Jon tries to pull her out. -"Wh-What? Why the hell are you handcuffed?" Jon responds; confused. -"I thought she was an unknown, couldn't take any chances." Thomas responds. -"What the f*ck! She nearly died because of you." Jon lashes out. -"Jon, stop, it's done with." Megan intervenes.
Jon glares at Thomas for a minute before lessening up.
-"I'm sorry, It's just... You know." Jon says to Thomas. -"Yeah, I understand, sorry." Thomas responds. "Can someone please uncuff me?" Megan says out of the blue.
Thomas nods & pulls the key for the handcuffs from his utility belt. He undo's the handcuffs & Megan feels her marked wrist.
-"Thanks."
Three weeks later... The group ventures on through Oklahoma, Colorado, & Utah, reaching Nevada. The supplies dwindled over the weeks, but there was enough to last for at the most, a month. The maps used for direction were often times unclear & brought the group into Kansas for two days. The warm desert was a major change the climate that the group was used to. The group was approximately five hours from Las Vegas. Everyone was excited, especially Jesse who loved Vegas with a passion. On the way, Megan's baby bump became more distinguished, despite her small frame. Jon became more defensive of Megan, making sure she was at comfort at all times.
In the distance, the group spots the buildings, lit up like the Christmas.
Henry, Henry inspects the decomposing tissue of an unfortunate soldier. The subject strapped to the steel table was Mr. Pines, a soldier who died during the attack. Henry sighs when the chemical compound shows no effect on the tissue. Henry uses tweezers to place the tissue in a contamination bag & toss it down the chute leading the crematory. A man walks into the room, the atmosphere in the room changes, as though evil had entered the room. A man with a police like mustache, graying black hair, & a blue military suit with distinguished medals stood before Henry, his hands behind his back. He clears his throat.
-"Henry." He says sternly. -"Yes sir?" Henry addresses the man without facing him. -"Do you have the compound complete?" He asks. -"Which one?" Henry responds. -"The acid." -"You mean your torture chemical?" -"It's not torture Henry, It's punishment." -"No, it's disgusting." -"Maybe one day you'll see things like me." The man says with a distinguished smile. -"Only if I become sick & twisted."
The man slowly approaches Henry.
-"Do you need to be taught some manners like the last time, Henry?" The man says, placing his hand on Henry's shoulder & gripping firmly.
Henry remembers the punishment he received for disobeying Patrick's commands.
-"N-no sir." Henry responds. -"Good man, now, hand over the chemical."
Victoria,
Warm water runs over the cutting board. Victoria washes the vegetables & meat off the board & down the sink. She hums a song while her son Zach enters the room. He's listening to his IPod & reaches into the stainless steel fridge & grabs the milk carton. Instead of pouring the milk into a glass, he drinks from the gallon.
-"Hey, no, don't do that." Victoria snaps at Zach.
-"Why?" Zach responds, setting the carton back in the fridge.
-"Because it's disgusting, leaves bacteria & other gross things." Victoria responds.
-"Whatever." Zach responds, walking away.
-"Don't talk to me like that Zachery."
-"My names Zach Mom." Zach responds, leaving for his room.
The Group, The caravan of cars trail closer & closer to Vegas.
-"Hey... Do you guys see that?" Helen says; pointing out towards the fencing surrounding Vegas. -"It has fencing, Jesus, Aaron was right, this place must be heavily fortified." Jesse responds.
Megan leans closer to the front window of the truck, peering at the fencing. Several soldiers patrol the fencing, & walkers line practically everywhere around it. The outskirts of Vegas consists of mostly destroyed buildings & a small crappy town. The town looked less dense with walkers.
-"If we continue on this route, we're bound to be trapped by the horde, might as well go through that town over there." Megan says softly. -"Right." Jon responds; turning the truck,
The Group,
The convoy speeds through the streets of the old town. Megan's eyes are focused on Vegas, Jon keeps his steady hands on the steering wheel. Up ahead, Megan spots a grayish black lump lying in the middle of the road. She dismisses it for a random piece of trash. The truck runs over the piece, there's a distinguishable click. A large explosion follows the click & the truck is flipped from the back. The truck slowly raises from behind until it crashes upside down on the road. The UPS truck skids to a stop, but not before crashing into the back of the military truck, squishing the large cover & breaking the rear. The armored truck crashes into the UPS truck & the entire convoy comes to a complete stop.
The General,
The sound of an explosion sounds in the distance. Patrick's head bolts up from the book he was reading.
-"What was that?" Patrick asks hurriedly. Several soldiers look around the room, Hardings peers through the window & looks towards the fencing. -"Not an inner explosion sir, want me to send some troops out to investigate?" Hardings says, looking back towards Patrick. -"Yes, let's see if we can track it back to the terrorist." Patrick says, standing now. The troops file to the door. -"Squads Alpha, Omega, report to the gates, we've got an explosion." Hardings announces over his comm radio. -"Let's go." Hardings orders the immediate troops. Hardings leads his troops out to the front gates, there, they team up with Alpha & Omega. In the distance, the group can see the mild smoke trail from where the explosion most likely occurred.
The Group,
The man disappears through the smoke & confusion. Thomas screams in disorientation, firing off shots in the direction of the man's truck, screaming Bree's name. He collapses to his knees, places his hands on his face & begins to cry. Jesse hobbles out of the military truck, violently coughing & swinging his machete, disoriented. He does so before he collapses & falls unconscious. In a daze, Jon slowly awakes on the side of the road, pulled out from the truck by the men armed with weapon's & dressed in uniform. Laying beside him is Megan, Raychelle, & Jesse, all unconscious. Jon notices something off about the way he hears things. He realizes his hearing is lost in his left ear. He nervously smacks at his left ear, trying to tell if his hearing was truly lost. Jon turns his attention to Megan who is coughing, but her eyes are still closed. He watches her breathing become slow. Jon frantically checks for her pulse on her neck then looks for signs of breathing. He gives CPR, hurriedly pushing two sets of air in her mouth. After a few compression's, she regains consciousness, but her skin is very cold & she shivers violently. A soldier with a first aid badge on his shoulder crouches at her side.
-"Stay back, she's going into shock." He commands Jon who watches in bewilderment.
The man lay's Megan on her side & quickly removes his military jacket & places it around her torso. The shivering has lowered & large trucks begin to approach the wreckage. Thomas cries as he looks around for any signs of Bree. Jeff attempts to calm Thomas down but is shoved away. Aaron checks up on everyone before approaching a man who was helping Megan, Jesse, & Raychelle onto stretch beds.
-"Who are you guys?" Aaron asks.
The soldier doesn't pay attention at first, loading the supply crates from the military truck into their military truck which was significantly bigger in size. Aaron stops the soldier who quickly turns to him.
-"Make it quick, we've got to get your people to an infirmary." Said the man who is labeled on his jacket as Hardings.
-"Who are you guys?" Aaron asks again.
Hardings hands a crate to a soldier inside the truck & looks to Aaron.
-"You don't know?" Hardings asks, confused.
Aaron shakes his head.
-"We're the last of the U.S. Army, we're the Martyrs."
The Group,
Aaron looks onto Hardings, his eyes slightly widened.
-"So you're the last of the U.S. Government." Aaron says slowly.
-"Yes sir, & it appears you are too." Hardings responds, pointing to the secret service badge on Aaron's dress jacket.
Aaron's eyes look down at the badge & he nods.
-"If I might ask, what are you doing outside of Vegas if your a government official? Were you just a random agent?" Hardings asks Aaron.
A soldier hurriedly grabs the last supply crate & motions for them to get in the truck. Hardings nods & waves Aaron over to the truck. The two of them get in, sitting across from each other.
-"So, to answer that earlier question..." Hardings says.
-"I was a secret service agent originally working under the president. I was among the best agents, graduated top of my class, anyway, instead of protecting the president, for some reason, I was supposed to protect a scientific genius, Dr. James Hendrick. He supposedly had the ingredients to make the cure & was being transferred to Las Vegas after New York City fell. We got into a plane crash down in Tennessee, everyone died in the crash except me, & well, the rest is pretty self explanatory." Aaron responds. -"Damn..." Hardings responds.
-"Well...Wait! Do you have anything Hendrick might've left, any notes, files, anything we can go on?"
-"No, unfortunately...Why?" Aaron responds. -"Because, we have some brilliant scientists back at the city who've been hard at work on the cure." -"Sorry friend, all I have is memories."
The truck slows to a stop at what appears to be some fencing. Several soldiers line the gates & two help open the gates for the truck. Aaron looks out & notices the crosses with several walkers nailed to them.
-"Hey, why'd you crucify those walkers." Aaron asks Hardings, pointing to the crosses.
Hardings looks up to the crosses.
-"Well..." Hardings looks to a man labeled as Miller who shakes his head.
-"W-Well you'd have to ask The General." Hardings responds.
-"Is he in charge of all this?" Aaron asks.
-"I guess you can say that."
-"What about the President?" Aaron asks now.
-"What do you mean 'President'." Hardings responds with a strained laugh.
Aaron looks at Hardings like he's mad.
-"You know, the guy who runs the U.S."
-"Oh him, he's dead."
-"What?" Aaron asks, surprised.
-"Yeah, he didn't get out of D.C. in time."
-"So you take orders from a General? What about the Vice President or the rest of the cabinet?"
-"Well, a few cabinet members made it, the Vice didn't, & I guess well, we needed a strong leader with experience & none of the members of the cabinet wanted anything to do with it, or atleast that's what The General says. Although one of the cabinet members, I think William Bently, wanted the position, but he died two dates before the election could even commence. Cause of death is still unknown." Hardings responds. Aaron looks at Hardings then to the now appearing Vegas casino's & buildings, all lit up. -"How'd you stabilize power?" Aaron asks. -"Well, mostly because we installed five backup generators the moment we arrived, but we have daily help from the scientists. Alot of solar panels were installed & we only power the electric fences for a certain amount of time. But other than that, we use electricity efficiently. We're only on the first generator." Hardings responds. -"This is amazing." Jon says randomly, peering out the truck. -"It truly is." Miller responds. -"Welcome to Las Vegas." Hardings says warmly.
Aaron,
Aaron stands before the four infirmary beds, Jon is awake, he is watching Megan silently while answering questions from a soldier with a clipboard.
-"All I know is, we were driving down the road to Vegas, Megan & I spot this thing in the middle of the road. We ignore it as a dead animal or piece of trash. Next thing I know, bam, there's this explosion, the truck is flipped & I fall unconscious." Jon replies to the soldiers question.
-"Thank you for the information Jon, we'll file it & investigate." The man says, exiting the infirmary.
Jon sighs & looks up at Aaron who stood & listened to the conversation.
-"Persistent aren't they?" Jon says with a frown.
-"Well, their intentions are good." Aaron responds.
-"Yeah, but you'd think they'd know when to not bother someone, especially after they got into an explosion."
Aaron nods a little.
-My only question, why have a bomb in the middle of the road?" Jon asks.
-"It'd probably serve as a trap for walkers." Aaron responds.
-"Yeah, but wouldn't they need to get in & out of Vegas? Why put it in the middle of the road."
-"I don't think the soldiers did it Jon, I don't know if you saw, but this man came running in to the wreckage, he took Bree."
-"What?" Jon asks surprised.
-"When did that happen?"
-"You weren't fully aware, I didn't expect you to be, but yeah, this man just came in, took Bree, then left."
Jon frowns. A man in a lab coat enters the room, he's carrying a clipboard & four bottles of water. He looks suave, clean, professional.
-"Hello, my name is Dr. Henry Osborne, I was assigned as the physician." Henry announces, shaking Jon & Aaron's hand.
Henry places the water bottles on a small coffee table before returning with one. He hands one to Jon & looks down at his clipboard.
-"Let me see, Jesse or Jon?" Henry asks Jon.
-"Jon." Jon responds, opening the water bottle & taking a drink from it.
-"I'd introduce myself to these three but unfortunately, their unconscious." Henry says looking to Aaron.
Henry looks to Aaron's badge & smiles.
-"So your name's Aaron, okay, that's a start. Secret Service aye?" Henry says.
-"Fifteen years." Aaron responds with a smile.
-"Nice."
-"What about you?" Aaron asks Henry.
-"I-Uh, I was a scientist at the Institute of Scientific Pursuits in Virginia. & before that... an Army Medic." Henry hesitates.
-"How many years in the army?" Jon asks.
-"Three." Henry responds quickly, his eyes drift to his clipboard.
-"Right, so, let's see, Jon, I'm going to give you a standardized check up." Henry announces.
-"Okay." Jon responds.
Jon,
Over the past few days in the infirmary, me, Megan, Raychelle, Jesse, & Helen were treated for our injuries. Raychelle had it easy, breaking her pinky, the hearing in my left ear has been damaged & I fractured my thumb, Megan well, thank god the crash didn't injure the baby, but she did break her wrist. Jesse fractured his shoulder, & Helen fractured her hand. Everyone was treated for & Henry more than delivered with his medical knowledge. He even gave Megan an ultrasound. The baby was growing healthily in her, & we'll be able to know the gender in three weeks. We were released two days later.
-"How are you feeling?" I ask Megan who walks with me.
-"I'm feeling okay, a little tired, but yeah." Megan responds.
A tall man accompanied by another wearing ragged clothing walk down the sidewalk. Megan stops walking & stares to the man walking with the tall man.
-"Hey, what's-
-"My-my Dad, that's my Dad!" Megan interrupts hurriedly.
Megan quickly runs to the man she claimed was her father. She forces a hug on him & he looks confused at first. Megan is in tears, hugging him tightly. -"Daddy, daddy!" She says, crying. -"I...Who are you?" The man ask, his arm raised, confused. -"Daddy, It's me Megan, don't you remember." Megan says stepping away. The man looks onto Megan, at first confused, then his eyes widen. -"M-Megan, oh my god Megan!" He yells. The man lifts & hugs her profusely, he kisses her cheek several times & cries.
Victoria,
Victoria hears the commotion outside, it disturbed her Zumba lessons. She looks out the glass to a man who looked like Dr. Calder & a young girl. Her gaze drifts to The General then to a handsome man standing alone, watching the apparent reunion. Victoria's eyes are glued to the man, she had to have him.
Jesse, Jesse lays conscious on the infirmary bed, taking drinks from his water bottle & observing the doctor work. The doctor was checking up on Jesse before he was allowed to leave. -"So...Jesse, it appears that you've got a minor shoulder fracture, I wouldn't move it too much, you might have to stay a couple of days before it fully heals." Henry says, placing the clipboard down on a tray.
The General, The earlier reunion between the girl & her father had Patrick thinking. As far as he could remember, that girl didn't belong in Vegas, neither did her friend. Patrick had source checked the name Megan, there were two Megan's, non of which looked like her. Patrick takes a drink from his whiskey before there's a knock at his door. -"Come in." Patrick announces. A man in uniform enters the room. Patrick swivels the leather chair around to face the man. He salutes -"At ease Private." Patrick says. The man releases himself from the salute. -"Sir, one of the outsiders would like to speak with you." The Private announces. -"Outsiders? I figured, that girl wasn't familiar. When did we get outsiders?" Patrick asks. -"Wednesday Sir." The Private responds. -"Wednesday, how come nobody informed me?" Patrick asks. -"Well sir, Henry had us keep them in the infirmary, checking up on them for any bites, scratches, infections, or viruses."
Hunter & Bree, The brown sack covering Bree's head was removed as Hunter brought her to the edge of town, where they could see the front gates. -"P-Please let me go." Bree begs Hunter. Hunter tugs the back of her ponytail & shushes her. -"Keep it down girl or they'll find us." Hunter responds under clenched teeth. -"What are you talking about!?" Bree asks. Hunter smacks his hand over Bree's mouth & pulls her back into the town. -"Shut up!" Hunter whispers loudly. Bree groans through Hunters hand & struggles with the rope bindings on her hands. -"You see those." Hunter says; pointing to large wooden crosses near the entrance. Bree nods in compliance. -"Do you want that to happen to you?" Hunter asks Bree. Bree shakes her head again in compliance. -"Then shut up." Hunter whispers aggressively.
Hunter releases his hand from her mouth.
-"This is what 'The General' does to people." Hunter says.
-"W-why?" Bree responds.
-"From what I've eavesdropped on, he crucifies people who've committed a sin, hypocritical in itself, but he's to twisted to see that."
-"Why's he twisted?"
-"I don't know, probably corrupted with power." Hunter responds.
-"Maybe he's doing the right thing, I mean, he's getting rid of people who've sinned."
-"No, there's no distinction from right & wrong with him. He just enjoy's murdering people. It's like a hobby to him. He doesn't rid the world of evil, he pollutes the world with it."
Aaron, Aaron enters the well decorated office, the smell of cigars & leather fill his nose. Aaron looks to a man staring out the window in a large leather swivel chair. He can hear the distinct clanking of ice in a glass & the exaggerated "Ah" released from the man's mouth. -"Take a seat." The man says. Aaron moves to the two leather chairs before the large wooden desk covered in documents, whiskey bottles, an ash tray, & a Desert Eagle. The man swivels around in the chair until he fully faces Aaron. Shadows cover his face, but Aaron can see the glare from his cigar & the grey smoke trail. The man leans forward slightly, his face becomes visible in the table lamps light. He sets down his glass of what looked like whiskey & places the cigar in the ash tray. -"So... You're the outsider I've been hearing about." The man says. -"Yes." Aaron responds sternly. -"Well, I'm 'The General', I run this place." -"The General? So you must be a former military general." Aaron responds. -"Yes, ten years." He responds. Aaron nods. The General's eyes glance down to Aaron's badge. -"So you were in the Secret Service, Aaron." The General asks. -"Yes sir." Aaron responds. -"Who were you told to protect?" The General asks, taking a drink from his whiskey. -"Some major scientist who supposedly found the cure for this virus." The General raises his eyebrows. -"Which scientist?" He asks. -"Dr. James Hendrick." Aaron responds. "Wasn't he that famous genius?" -"Yeah." -"So is he dead, or is he among your group?" The General asks. -"He's dead, unfortunately, died in the plane crash." The General nods & takes another drink from his whiskey. -"So, do you have any left over documents that we can go on? We have scientists that could probably use those notes to make the cure." -"Again, unfortunately, the documents were lost in the crash."
Henry, Henry inspects the blood cells of the outsiders. Each of the cells contained the virus, which was expected, but these were fresh samples. Henry was only allowed to give blood transfusions & donations, any blood that was studied was considered a violation of privacy, which didn't make sense to Henry. Henry puts a small dose on the serum he had been working on for the past week, the virus attacked the serum & destroyed it. -"Goddamnit." Henry says under his breath.
The General, -"Well Aaron, have you considered staying in Vegas?" Patrick asks, taking a prolonged drink from his whiskey. Aaron looks to the glass of whiskey then scratches his stubble. -"Yeah, we had been planning on coming here since Missouri." Aaron responds. Patrick nods slowly. -"Missouri." Patrick says. -"Yeah, we had been driving from Bardstown, Kentucky. Before that, Chicago, & before that, well I had crashed down in Tennessee." Patrick thinks on Bardstown, he remembers an earlier conversation revolving around the rumors of Buck's death at Bardstown. Patrick puts on a deceptive smile. -"You didn't, per say, come across a man named Buck, did you?" Patrick asks lightly. Aaron pauses at the question. He remembers Buck as the cruel man he was. -"Yes...We did. But not in Kentucky, we met him in Chicago, offered us to come with him, said we would not live past a week if we didn't join him." Aaron finally responds. -"So why'd you leave him?" Patrick interrogates. -"Well, let's see, he nearly killed Jesse, played a twisted game of duck, duck, goose that was basically Russian Roulette, killed a fourteen year old, shot Jon & tortured us, then raped Raychelle, then ripped the eyeballs from Stephen's face & left him to die. The things he did were terrible." Patrick's eyes widen & his brows raised. The information swelled around his head. -"Did you kill him?" Patrick asks. -"No, but we left him for the walkers." -"So you essentially killed him." Patrick finally asks. -"You can say that." Aaron responds. Patrick nods.
-"You sinned." Patrick says.
-"In this new world, who hasn't?" Aaron responds.
Patrick slowly nods.
-"I see your point, & though I disagree with your groups actions, you did a public service, ridding the world of his evil." Patrick responds.
-"Yeah, he got what was coming to him."
Patrick took a drink from his whiskey. He thought over the words spoken.
-"Well, I'd be more than happy to let your group stay in Vegas, we need more people like you." Patrick says with a warm smile.
-"Thanks, have you got anywhere for us to stay?" Aaron asks.
-"Of course, we have several rooms to choose from in Vegas, all from the casino's of course."
-"That'd be great." Aaron responds with a smile.
-"We have energy, water, safety, & most importantly, control."
-"This place sounds perfect." Aaron responds.
-"It is."
Aaron thinks back to the crosses with walkers nailed to them.
-"Hey, before I go, can you please answer one question?" Aaron asks.
-"Sure." Patrick responds.
-"Why do you have crosses outside the gates?"
Patrick pauses, then thinks of a way to avoid the question, but he might as well attempt to deceive him.
-"It serves as a scent hider, you see, walkers would normally be attracted to us because we don't smell like them, so we use the walkers to hide our scent." Patrick try's to deceive.
Aaron looks at Patrick then thinks over the response, it didn't make sense, but it was best not to push the subject.
-"Makes sense." Aaron responds.
Jesse, Jesse rests in the Penthouse room he was granted. He had taken a shower, which was an invigoratingexperience. He smelled fresh & he felt good. Jesse takes a bight out of the bagel that he found in the mini fridge. He enjoyed the honey-like flavor that filled his mouth as he slowly chewed & savored the moment. As he eats the bagel, he overlooks Vegas, it was a stunning view. He could see the mountains in the background of the city of lights. It was days since the crash, Jesse had forgotten that it happened, but the shoulder aches quickly reminded him. Jesse thinks back on the earlier conversation with Helen, who had decided to live with Jesse. It revolved around searching for Bree.
Jeff, Sitting solemnly at a table waiting for breakfast, Jeff thinks back to Adam & his wife. It felt like years ago since Adam died, centuries since his wife. Jeff forces the emotions that swell in his throat away. The waitress brings him a glass of water & asks if he's ready to order. -"I would like the 'Omelette you can't refuse' with a side of cinnamon toast." Jeff orders. -"Okay, your order will be out in a few minutes." The waitress responds with a warm smile. Everything about this place seemed off, everybody was too friendly, too caring. This community seemed like a lie, or maybe it was just the pre-conceived feelings Jeff had for strangers. Ever since Buck, Jeff didn't trust strangers so easily. Within the month that Buck died, the group had met another group of strangers. In the end, Jeff was forced to put a bullet in the head of the leader. Jeff thinks on Thomas. There was no social interaction with him anymore. Ever since Bree went missing, he hasn't been the same. He's staid up in his room.
Daniel, Daniel converses with a marine, talking about life outside the walls of Vegas. He later talks about farming & how tedious it was. The Private discusses what he thinks of walkers.
Jon, Megan sits at a table with her father, happily discussing things. I can overhear some of the things said such as a discussion about me, then it somehow leads up to Buck. She discusses the things Buck did, the expression on her father's face changes rapidly. He pales & holds her hand for comfort as she silently cry's. He quickly changes the subject & she announces her pregnancy. The father pauses & goes pale. Megan smiles & laughs, her dad, who looks shocked, expresses somewhat happiness. He looks to me with an expression of "Oh sh*t", which is funny.
Mason, Hunter, Helen, & Bree, Bree looks back to Hunter who looks to Mason. Mason stands confused. -"What'd you mean it's not safe, they've got protection, guns, food. Seems perfectly safe to me." Mason responds. -"No...It's an illusion put off by The General. He's hiding secrets, he crucifies people." Bree says with passion. Hunter looks sternly to Helen who is also confused. -"How'd you know? You haven't even lived in Vegas." Mason responds to Bree. -"Hunter showed me, he told me about the crucifixions. Now since you guys came, they crucify people at night, somewhere around two in the morning. They still do it!" Bree fights back. Mason looks on to Helen who shrugs. -"How can you trust this man? He's the guy who kidnapped you." Helen asks. -"Yeah, but he protects me, he's apologized for kidnapping me, but he's keeping me away from Vegas to keep me safe from The General." She responds, almost confusingly. Helen again looks to Mason.
-"Look, Bree, please just come back with us. It's safe, I promise." Mason responds.
-"What happened last week, that was a terrorist attack. Nothing more, nothing less. An improvised attack to scare our citizens into believing that our safety is compromised. But no, it isn't. The culprit of this violent act was wrong. We fixed the fences within two days, that shows strength. The fifty men & women who sacrificed their lives to protect us all will not have died in vein. Already, we have sent out our best men to find & bring this terrorist to justice. Once found, he will be punished, severely, for his crimes." Patrick addressed to the crowd of men, women, & children that gathered around the podium.
Several American flags stood half masked around the scene.
-"No, it was an improvised explosive, modeled after C4, that's as much as we know so far." Charles Yen said to Patrick.
Charles Yen was the explosives expert who had studied improvised explosives, bombs, missiles, etc. He was consulting Patrick on the matter of the bomb.
-"So this wasn't pre-made, he made it from raw materials." Patrick responds.
-"Essentially, yes. He had combined several explosive things, shotgun pellets, firecrackers, gunpowder, a ton of explosives." Charles says to Patrick.
-"Why shotgun pellets? He was trying to blow up the fence."
-"Well, I'm sure his goal, like every terrorist, was to create as much chaos as possible. Twelve men near the fencing died, three were wounded. The cause were either fragments or the bullets."
The Group,
7 days ago,
Everyone rushed through the corn fields. Jon sprinted towards the silo, searching for Megan. Fire was everywhere, exposing a ghastly smoke that arose over the farm.
-"MEGAN!" Jon calls out.
Several walkers begin to swarm around Jon. He fires in quick succession at them, but misses practically all of them. Jon runs, quickly around the farm.
-"MEGAN!" Jon yells again.
A large explosion erupts. The farm, silo, house, chicken feed, & crops erupt in flames. Metal pieces fly everywhere, the group watches in terror.
-"My farm!" Daniel yells; turning to the ruin.
A large cloud from the explosion arises over the farm. Megan was awakes in the back of the police cruiser to the explosion. Her breathing is heavy.
-"What!? What the f*ck! What's going on!" Megan yells in the cruiser.
-"Why am I handcuffed!? What the hell's going on!?"
Thomas had disappeared from the cruiser, he was searching around for Bree, the horse had run off into the crops. Aaron watched in horror.
-"Did anyone see if Jon came back?!" Aaron calls out to the group.
-"No, I saw him run off into the crops." Jeff responds.
Aaron looks off towards the barn. His heart leaped & he pushed back tears. The group stands & looks off towards the farm.
Megan struggles in the cruiser, trying to free her hand from the cuffs. A lone walker courses towards the cruiser, the side door is askew. The walker finds its way into the cruiser.
"No, no, no!" Megan screams, struggling with handcuffs.
Overlooking the remnants of the farm, the group morns the loss of Jon to the explosion.
-"He always was trying to make people laugh." Aaron announces.
-"Whether it was intentional or not, he always could bring a smile to someone's face." Mason chimes in.
-"He was carefree, never intended to hurt anyone." Jeff says.
-"& he was the most awesome guy in the world." A manly voice announces.
The group turns to the man who stood behind them. His clothing was slightly charred & he had a little amount of ash on his face. Jesse starts to laugh & Helen bolts to him, hugging him.
-"You lucky *******." Aaron says with a laugh & smile.
-"Well-
A loud scream cuts off the groups short lived reunion. It's distinct & is coming from the police cruiser. Thomas returns from the crops, Bree in his arms.
-"Where did the scream come from?" Thomas says; scared.
-"HELP!" A voice calls out from the cruiser.
-"MEGAN!" Jon screams as he notices her from the back window of the cruiser.
Jon rushes over to the cruiser, Megan struggles, handcuffed in the backseats. A lone walker meanders it's way into the cruiser. Jon rushes to the cruiser & pulls the walker out. Jon bashes the corpses head in with the butt of his handgun. The walker lashes out at Jon, gripping his arm & pulling it close to it's broken mouth. Jon thrusts the walker to the floor where he stomps it's head in. Blood & brain fragments trail up Jon's jeans. His breathing is heavy & sweat trickles from his brow. He turns & looks in at Megan who is panting in fear. Jon hurriedly opens the cruisers door & grabs her hand.
-"J-Jon, I'm handcuffed." She says as Jon tries to pull her out.
-"Wh-What? Why the hell are you handcuffed?" Jon responds; confused.
-"I thought she was an unknown, couldn't take any chances." Thomas responds.
-"What the f*ck! She nearly died because of you." Jon lashes out.
-"Jon, stop, it's done with." Megan intervenes.
Jon glares at Thomas for a minute before lessening up.
-"I'm sorry, It's just... You know." Jon says to Thomas.
-"Yeah, I understand, sorry." Thomas responds.
"Can someone please uncuff me?" Megan says out of the blue.
Thomas nods & pulls the key for the handcuffs from his utility belt. He undo's the handcuffs & Megan feels her marked wrist.
-"Thanks."
Three weeks later...
The group ventures on through Oklahoma, Colorado, & Utah, reaching Nevada. The supplies dwindled over the weeks, but there was enough to last for at the most, a month. The maps used for direction were often times unclear & brought the group into Kansas for two days. The warm desert was a major change the climate that the group was used to. The group was approximately five hours from Las Vegas. Everyone was excited, especially Jesse who loved Vegas with a passion. On the way, Megan's baby bump became more distinguished, despite her small frame. Jon became more defensive of Megan, making sure she was at comfort at all times.
In the distance, the group spots the buildings, lit up like the Christmas.
Henry,
Henry inspects the decomposing tissue of an unfortunate soldier. The subject strapped to the steel table was Mr. Pines, a soldier who died during the attack. Henry sighs when the chemical compound shows no effect on the tissue. Henry uses tweezers to place the tissue in a contamination bag & toss it down the chute leading the crematory. A man walks into the room, the atmosphere in the room changes, as though evil had entered the room. A man with a police like mustache, graying black hair, & a blue military suit with distinguished medals stood before Henry, his hands behind his back. He clears his throat.
-"Henry." He says sternly.
-"Yes sir?" Henry addresses the man without facing him.
-"Do you have the compound complete?" He asks.
-"Which one?" Henry responds.
-"The acid."
-"You mean your torture chemical?"
-"It's not torture Henry, It's punishment."
-"No, it's disgusting."
-"Maybe one day you'll see things like me." The man says with a distinguished smile.
-"Only if I become sick & twisted."
The man slowly approaches Henry.
-"Do you need to be taught some manners like the last time, Henry?" The man says, placing his hand on Henry's shoulder & gripping firmly.
Henry remembers the punishment he received for disobeying Patrick's commands.
-"N-no sir." Henry responds.
-"Good man, now, hand over the chemical."
Warm water runs over the cutting board. Victoria washes the vegetables & meat off the board & down the sink. She hums a song while her son Zach enters the room. He's listening to his IPod & reaches into the stainless steel fridge & grabs the milk carton. Instead of pouring the milk into a glass, he drinks from the gallon.
-"Hey, no, don't do that." Victoria snaps at Zach.
-"Why?" Zach responds, setting the carton back in the fridge.
-"Because it's disgusting, leaves bacteria & other gross things." Victoria responds.
-"Whatever." Zach responds, walking away.
-"Don't talk to me like that Zachery."
-"My names Zach Mom." Zach responds, leaving for his room.
Victoria sighs & continues cleaning the dishes.
The caravan of cars trail closer & closer to Vegas.
-"Hey... Do you guys see that?" Helen says; pointing out towards the fencing surrounding Vegas.
-"It has fencing, Jesus, Aaron was right, this place must be heavily fortified." Jesse responds.
Megan leans closer to the front window of the truck, peering at the fencing. Several soldiers patrol the fencing, & walkers line practically everywhere around it. The outskirts of Vegas consists of mostly destroyed buildings & a small crappy town. The town looked less dense with walkers.
-"If we continue on this route, we're bound to be trapped by the horde, might as well go through that town over there." Megan says softly.
-"Right." Jon responds; turning the truck,
The convoy speeds through the streets of the old town. Megan's eyes are focused on Vegas, Jon keeps his steady hands on the steering wheel. Up ahead, Megan spots a grayish black lump lying in the middle of the road. She dismisses it for a random piece of trash. The truck runs over the piece, there's a distinguishable click. A large explosion follows the click & the truck is flipped from the back. The truck slowly raises from behind until it crashes upside down on the road. The UPS truck skids to a stop, but not before crashing into the back of the military truck, squishing the large cover & breaking the rear. The armored truck crashes into the UPS truck & the entire convoy comes to a complete stop.
The sound of an explosion sounds in the distance. Patrick's head bolts up from the book he was reading.
-"What was that?" Patrick asks hurriedly.
Several soldiers look around the room, Hardings peers through the window & looks towards the fencing.
-"Not an inner explosion sir, want me to send some troops out to investigate?" Hardings says, looking back towards Patrick.
-"Yes, let's see if we can track it back to the terrorist." Patrick says, standing now.
The troops file to the door.
-"Squads Alpha, Omega, report to the gates, we've got an explosion." Hardings announces over his comm radio.
-"Let's go." Hardings orders the immediate troops.
Hardings leads his troops out to the front gates, there, they team up with Alpha & Omega. In the distance, the group can see the mild smoke trail from where the explosion most likely occurred.
The man disappears through the smoke & confusion. Thomas screams in disorientation, firing off shots in the direction of the man's truck, screaming Bree's name. He collapses to his knees, places his hands on his face & begins to cry. Jesse hobbles out of the military truck, violently coughing & swinging his machete, disoriented. He does so before he collapses & falls unconscious. In a daze, Jon slowly awakes on the side of the road, pulled out from the truck by the men armed with weapon's & dressed in uniform. Laying beside him is Megan, Raychelle, & Jesse, all unconscious. Jon notices something off about the way he hears things. He realizes his hearing is lost in his left ear. He nervously smacks at his left ear, trying to tell if his hearing was truly lost. Jon turns his attention to Megan who is coughing, but her eyes are still closed. He watches her breathing become slow. Jon frantically checks for her pulse on her neck then looks for signs of breathing. He gives CPR, hurriedly pushing two sets of air in her mouth. After a few compression's, she regains consciousness, but her skin is very cold & she shivers violently. A soldier with a first aid badge on his shoulder crouches at her side.
-"Stay back, she's going into shock." He commands Jon who watches in bewilderment.
The man lay's Megan on her side & quickly removes his military jacket & places it around her torso. The shivering has lowered & large trucks begin to approach the wreckage. Thomas cries as he looks around for any signs of Bree. Jeff attempts to calm Thomas down but is shoved away. Aaron checks up on everyone before approaching a man who was helping Megan, Jesse, & Raychelle onto stretch beds.
-"Who are you guys?" Aaron asks.
The soldier doesn't pay attention at first, loading the supply crates from the military truck into their military truck which was significantly bigger in size. Aaron stops the soldier who quickly turns to him.
-"Make it quick, we've got to get your people to an infirmary." Said the man who is labeled on his jacket as Hardings.
-"Who are you guys?" Aaron asks again.
Hardings hands a crate to a soldier inside the truck & looks to Aaron.
-"You don't know?" Hardings asks, confused.
Aaron shakes his head.
-"We're the last of the U.S. Army, we're the Martyrs."
Aaron looks onto Hardings, his eyes slightly widened.
-"So you're the last of the U.S. Government." Aaron says slowly.
-"Yes sir, & it appears you are too." Hardings responds, pointing to the secret service badge on Aaron's dress jacket.
Aaron's eyes look down at the badge & he nods.
-"If I might ask, what are you doing outside of Vegas if your a government official? Were you just a random agent?" Hardings asks Aaron.
A soldier hurriedly grabs the last supply crate & motions for them to get in the truck. Hardings nods & waves Aaron over to the truck. The two of them get in, sitting across from each other.
-"So, to answer that earlier question..." Hardings says.
-"I was a secret service agent originally working under the president. I was among the best agents, graduated top of my class, anyway, instead of protecting the president, for some reason, I was supposed to protect a scientific genius, Dr. James Hendrick. He supposedly had the ingredients to make the cure & was being transferred to Las Vegas after New York City fell. We got into a plane crash down in Tennessee, everyone died in the crash except me, & well, the rest is pretty self explanatory." Aaron responds.
-"Damn..." Hardings responds.
-"Well...Wait! Do you have anything Hendrick might've left, any notes, files, anything we can go on?"
-"No, unfortunately...Why?" Aaron responds.
-"Because, we have some brilliant scientists back at the city who've been hard at work on the cure."
-"Sorry friend, all I have is memories."
The truck slows to a stop at what appears to be some fencing. Several soldiers line the gates & two help open the gates for the truck. Aaron looks out & notices the crosses with several walkers nailed to them.
-"Hey, why'd you crucify those walkers." Aaron asks Hardings, pointing to the crosses.
Hardings looks up to the crosses.
-"Well..." Hardings looks to a man labeled as Miller who shakes his head.
-"W-Well you'd have to ask The General." Hardings responds.
-"Is he in charge of all this?" Aaron asks.
-"I guess you can say that."
-"What about the President?" Aaron asks now.
-"What do you mean 'President'." Hardings responds with a strained laugh.
Aaron looks at Hardings like he's mad.
-"You know, the guy who runs the U.S."
-"Oh him, he's dead."
-"What?" Aaron asks, surprised.
-"Yeah, he didn't get out of D.C. in time."
-"So you take orders from a General? What about the Vice President or the rest of the cabinet?"
-"Well, a few cabinet members made it, the Vice didn't, & I guess well, we needed a strong leader with experience & none of the members of the cabinet wanted anything to do with it, or atleast that's what The General says. Although one of the cabinet members, I think William Bently, wanted the position, but he died two dates before the election could even commence. Cause of death is still unknown." Hardings responds.
Aaron looks at Hardings then to the now appearing Vegas casino's & buildings, all lit up.
-"How'd you stabilize power?" Aaron asks.
-"Well, mostly because we installed five backup generators the moment we arrived, but we have daily help from the scientists. Alot of solar panels were installed & we only power the electric fences for a certain amount of time. But other than that, we use electricity efficiently. We're only on the first generator." Hardings responds.
-"This is amazing." Jon says randomly, peering out the truck.
-"It truly is." Miller responds.
-"Welcome to Las Vegas." Hardings says warmly.
Aaron stands before the four infirmary beds, Jon is awake, he is watching Megan silently while answering questions from a soldier with a clipboard.
-"All I know is, we were driving down the road to Vegas, Megan & I spot this thing in the middle of the road. We ignore it as a dead animal or piece of trash. Next thing I know, bam, there's this explosion, the truck is flipped & I fall unconscious." Jon replies to the soldiers question.
-"Thank you for the information Jon, we'll file it & investigate." The man says, exiting the infirmary.
Jon sighs & looks up at Aaron who stood & listened to the conversation.
-"Persistent aren't they?" Jon says with a frown.
-"Well, their intentions are good." Aaron responds.
-"Yeah, but you'd think they'd know when to not bother someone, especially after they got into an explosion."
Aaron nods a little.
-My only question, why have a bomb in the middle of the road?" Jon asks.
-"It'd probably serve as a trap for walkers." Aaron responds.
-"Yeah, but wouldn't they need to get in & out of Vegas? Why put it in the middle of the road."
-"I don't think the soldiers did it Jon, I don't know if you saw, but this man came running in to the wreckage, he took Bree."
-"What?" Jon asks surprised.
-"When did that happen?"
-"You weren't fully aware, I didn't expect you to be, but yeah, this man just came in, took Bree, then left."
Jon frowns. A man in a lab coat enters the room, he's carrying a clipboard & four bottles of water. He looks suave, clean, professional.
-"Hello, my name is Dr. Henry Osborne, I was assigned as the physician." Henry announces, shaking Jon & Aaron's hand.
Henry places the water bottles on a small coffee table before returning with one. He hands one to Jon & looks down at his clipboard.
-"Let me see, Jesse or Jon?" Henry asks Jon.
-"Jon." Jon responds, opening the water bottle & taking a drink from it.
-"I'd introduce myself to these three but unfortunately, their unconscious." Henry says looking to Aaron.
Henry looks to Aaron's badge & smiles.
-"So your name's Aaron, okay, that's a start. Secret Service aye?" Henry says.
-"Fifteen years." Aaron responds with a smile.
-"Nice."
-"What about you?" Aaron asks Henry.
-"I-Uh, I was a scientist at the Institute of Scientific Pursuits in Virginia. & before that... an Army Medic." Henry hesitates.
-"How many years in the army?" Jon asks.
-"Three." Henry responds quickly, his eyes drift to his clipboard.
-"Right, so, let's see, Jon, I'm going to give you a standardized check up." Henry announces.
-"Okay." Jon responds.
Over the past few days in the infirmary, me, Megan, Raychelle, Jesse, & Helen were treated for our injuries. Raychelle had it easy, breaking her pinky, the hearing in my left ear has been damaged & I fractured my thumb, Megan well, thank god the crash didn't injure the baby, but she did break her wrist. Jesse fractured his shoulder, & Helen fractured her hand. Everyone was treated for & Henry more than delivered with his medical knowledge. He even gave Megan an ultrasound. The baby was growing healthily in her, & we'll be able to know the gender in three weeks. We were released two days later.
-"How are you feeling?" I ask Megan who walks with me.
-"I'm feeling okay, a little tired, but yeah." Megan responds.
A tall man accompanied by another wearing ragged clothing walk down the sidewalk. Megan stops walking & stares to the man walking with the tall man.
-"Hey, what's-
-"My-my Dad, that's my Dad!" Megan interrupts hurriedly.
Megan quickly runs to the man she claimed was her father. She forces a hug on him & he looks confused at first. Megan is in tears, hugging him tightly.
-"Daddy, daddy!" She says, crying.
-"I...Who are you?" The man ask, his arm raised, confused.
-"Daddy, It's me Megan, don't you remember." Megan says stepping away.
The man looks onto Megan, at first confused, then his eyes widen.
-"M-Megan, oh my god Megan!" He yells.
The man lifts & hugs her profusely, he kisses her cheek several times & cries.
Victoria,
Victoria hears the commotion outside, it disturbed her Zumba lessons. She looks out the glass to a man who looked like Dr. Calder & a young girl. Her gaze drifts to The General then to a handsome man standing alone, watching the apparent reunion. Victoria's eyes are glued to the man, she had to have him.
Jesse,
Jesse lays conscious on the infirmary bed, taking drinks from his water bottle & observing the doctor work. The doctor was checking up on Jesse before he was allowed to leave.
-"So...Jesse, it appears that you've got a minor shoulder fracture, I wouldn't move it too much, you might have to stay a couple of days before it fully heals." Henry says, placing the clipboard down on a tray.
The earlier reunion between the girl & her father had Patrick thinking. As far as he could remember, that girl didn't belong in Vegas, neither did her friend. Patrick had source checked the name Megan, there were two Megan's, non of which looked like her. Patrick takes a drink from his whiskey before there's a knock at his door.
-"Come in." Patrick announces.
A man in uniform enters the room. Patrick swivels the leather chair around to face the man. He salutes
-"At ease Private." Patrick says.
The man releases himself from the salute.
-"Sir, one of the outsiders would like to speak with you." The Private announces.
-"Outsiders? I figured, that girl wasn't familiar. When did we get outsiders?" Patrick asks.
-"Wednesday Sir." The Private responds.
-"Wednesday, how come nobody informed me?" Patrick asks.
-"Well sir, Henry had us keep them in the infirmary, checking up on them for any bites, scratches, infections, or viruses."
The brown sack covering Bree's head was removed as Hunter brought her to the edge of town, where they could see the front gates.
-"P-Please let me go." Bree begs Hunter.
Hunter tugs the back of her ponytail & shushes her.
-"Keep it down girl or they'll find us." Hunter responds under clenched teeth.
-"What are you talking about!?" Bree asks.
Hunter smacks his hand over Bree's mouth & pulls her back into the town.
-"Shut up!" Hunter whispers loudly.
Bree groans through Hunters hand & struggles with the rope bindings on her hands.
-"You see those." Hunter says; pointing to large wooden crosses near the entrance.
Bree nods in compliance.
-"Do you want that to happen to you?" Hunter asks Bree.
Bree shakes her head again in compliance.
-"Then shut up." Hunter whispers aggressively.
Hunter releases his hand from her mouth.
-"This is what 'The General' does to people." Hunter says.
-"W-why?" Bree responds.
-"From what I've eavesdropped on, he crucifies people who've committed a sin, hypocritical in itself, but he's to twisted to see that."
-"Why's he twisted?"
-"I don't know, probably corrupted with power." Hunter responds.
-"Maybe he's doing the right thing, I mean, he's getting rid of people who've sinned."
-"No, there's no distinction from right & wrong with him. He just enjoy's murdering people. It's like a hobby to him. He doesn't rid the world of evil, he pollutes the world with it."
Aaron,
Aaron enters the well decorated office, the smell of cigars & leather fill his nose. Aaron looks to a man staring out the window in a large leather swivel chair. He can hear the distinct clanking of ice in a glass & the exaggerated "Ah" released from the man's mouth.
-"Take a seat." The man says.
Aaron moves to the two leather chairs before the large wooden desk covered in documents, whiskey bottles, an ash tray, & a Desert Eagle. The man swivels around in the chair until he fully faces Aaron. Shadows cover his face, but Aaron can see the glare from his cigar & the grey smoke trail. The man leans forward slightly, his face becomes visible in the table lamps light. He sets down his glass of what looked like whiskey & places the cigar in the ash tray.
-"So... You're the outsider I've been hearing about." The man says.
-"Yes." Aaron responds sternly.
-"Well, I'm 'The General', I run this place."
-"The General? So you must be a former military general." Aaron responds.
-"Yes, ten years." He responds.
Aaron nods. The General's eyes glance down to Aaron's badge.
-"So you were in the Secret Service, Aaron." The General asks.
-"Yes sir." Aaron responds.
-"Who were you told to protect?" The General asks, taking a drink from his whiskey.
-"Some major scientist who supposedly found the cure for this virus."
The General raises his eyebrows.
-"Which scientist?" He asks.
-"Dr. James Hendrick." Aaron responds.
"Wasn't he that famous genius?"
-"Yeah."
-"So is he dead, or is he among your group?" The General asks.
-"He's dead, unfortunately, died in the plane crash."
The General nods & takes another drink from his whiskey.
-"So, do you have any left over documents that we can go on? We have scientists that could probably use those notes to make the cure."
-"Again, unfortunately, the documents were lost in the crash."
Henry inspects the blood cells of the outsiders. Each of the cells contained the virus, which was expected, but these were fresh samples. Henry was only allowed to give blood transfusions & donations, any blood that was studied was considered a violation of privacy, which didn't make sense to Henry. Henry puts a small dose on the serum he had been working on for the past week, the virus attacked the serum & destroyed it.
-"Goddamnit." Henry says under his breath.
The General,
-"Well Aaron, have you considered staying in Vegas?" Patrick asks, taking a prolonged drink from his whiskey.
Aaron looks to the glass of whiskey then scratches his stubble.
-"Yeah, we had been planning on coming here since Missouri." Aaron responds.
Patrick nods slowly.
-"Missouri." Patrick says.
-"Yeah, we had been driving from Bardstown, Kentucky. Before that, Chicago, & before that, well I had crashed down in Tennessee." Patrick thinks on Bardstown, he remembers an earlier conversation revolving around the rumors of Buck's death at Bardstown. Patrick puts on a deceptive smile.
-"You didn't, per say, come across a man named Buck, did you?" Patrick asks lightly.
Aaron pauses at the question. He remembers Buck as the cruel man he was.
-"Yes...We did. But not in Kentucky, we met him in Chicago, offered us to come with him, said we would not live past a week if we didn't join him." Aaron finally responds.
-"So why'd you leave him?" Patrick interrogates.
-"Well, let's see, he nearly killed Jesse, played a twisted game of duck, duck, goose that was basically Russian Roulette, killed a fourteen year old, shot Jon & tortured us, then raped Raychelle, then ripped the eyeballs from Stephen's face & left him to die. The things he did were terrible."
Patrick's eyes widen & his brows raised. The information swelled around his head.
-"Did you kill him?" Patrick asks.
-"No, but we left him for the walkers."
-"So you essentially killed him." Patrick finally asks.
-"You can say that." Aaron responds.
Patrick nods.
-"You sinned." Patrick says.
-"In this new world, who hasn't?" Aaron responds.
Patrick slowly nods.
-"I see your point, & though I disagree with your groups actions, you did a public service, ridding the world of his evil." Patrick responds.
-"Yeah, he got what was coming to him."
Patrick took a drink from his whiskey. He thought over the words spoken.
-"Well, I'd be more than happy to let your group stay in Vegas, we need more people like you." Patrick says with a warm smile.
-"Thanks, have you got anywhere for us to stay?" Aaron asks.
-"Of course, we have several rooms to choose from in Vegas, all from the casino's of course."
-"That'd be great." Aaron responds with a smile.
-"We have energy, water, safety, & most importantly, control."
-"This place sounds perfect." Aaron responds.
-"It is."
Aaron thinks back to the crosses with walkers nailed to them.
-"Hey, before I go, can you please answer one question?" Aaron asks.
-"Sure." Patrick responds.
-"Why do you have crosses outside the gates?"
Patrick pauses, then thinks of a way to avoid the question, but he might as well attempt to deceive him.
-"It serves as a scent hider, you see, walkers would normally be attracted to us because we don't smell like them, so we use the walkers to hide our scent." Patrick try's to deceive.
Aaron looks at Patrick then thinks over the response, it didn't make sense, but it was best not to push the subject.
-"Makes sense." Aaron responds.
Jesse rests in the Penthouse room he was granted. He had taken a shower, which was an invigorating experience. He smelled fresh & he felt good. Jesse takes a bight out of the bagel that he found in the mini fridge. He enjoyed the honey-like flavor that filled his mouth as he slowly chewed & savored the moment. As he eats the bagel, he overlooks Vegas, it was a stunning view. He could see the mountains in the background of the city of lights. It was days since the crash, Jesse had forgotten that it happened, but the shoulder aches quickly reminded him. Jesse thinks back on the earlier conversation with Helen, who had decided to live with Jesse. It revolved around searching for Bree.
Jeff,
Sitting solemnly at a table waiting for breakfast, Jeff thinks back to Adam & his wife. It felt like years ago since Adam died, centuries since his wife. Jeff forces the emotions that swell in his throat away. The waitress brings him a glass of water & asks if he's ready to order.
-"I would like the 'Omelette you can't refuse' with a side of cinnamon toast." Jeff orders.
-"Okay, your order will be out in a few minutes." The waitress responds with a warm smile.
Everything about this place seemed off, everybody was too friendly, too caring. This community seemed like a lie, or maybe it was just the pre-conceived feelings Jeff had for strangers. Ever since Buck, Jeff didn't trust strangers so easily. Within the month that Buck died, the group had met another group of strangers. In the end, Jeff was forced to put a bullet in the head of the leader. Jeff thinks on Thomas. There was no social interaction with him anymore. Ever since Bree went missing, he hasn't been the same. He's staid up in his room.
Daniel,
Daniel converses with a marine, talking about life outside the walls of Vegas. He later talks about farming & how tedious it was. The Private discusses what he thinks of walkers.
Jon,
Megan sits at a table with her father, happily discussing things. I can overhear some of the things said such as a discussion about me, then it somehow leads up to Buck. She discusses the things Buck did, the expression on her father's face changes rapidly. He pales & holds her hand for comfort as she silently cry's. He quickly changes the subject & she announces her pregnancy. The father pauses & goes pale. Megan smiles & laughs, her dad, who looks shocked, expresses somewhat happiness. He looks to me with an expression of "Oh sh*t", which is funny.
Bree looks back to Hunter who looks to Mason. Mason stands confused.
-"What'd you mean it's not safe, they've got protection, guns, food. Seems perfectly safe to me." Mason responds.
-"No...It's an illusion put off by The General. He's hiding secrets, he crucifies people." Bree says with passion.
Hunter looks sternly to Helen who is also confused.
-"How'd you know? You haven't even lived in Vegas." Mason responds to Bree.
-"Hunter showed me, he told me about the crucifixions. Now since you guys came, they crucify people at night, somewhere around two in the morning. They still do it!" Bree fights back.
Mason looks on to Helen who shrugs.
-"How can you trust this man? He's the guy who kidnapped you." Helen asks.
-"Yeah, but he protects me, he's apologized for kidnapping me, but he's keeping me away from Vegas to keep me safe from The General." She responds, almost confusingly.
Helen again looks to Mason.
-"Look, Bree, please just come back with us. It's safe, I promise." Mason responds.