RIP Tony Todd, who played the lead, Ben, in the 1990 remake of Night of the Living Dead. An underrated classic, IMO, as well as countless other horror classics. Condolences to his family. Thank you for the amazing films.

Dawn had broken over the Atlanta survivors' camp. It had been a sleepless night for everyone, Amy, Andrea and Clementine had stayed in the RV all night with Dale, exchanging many tears. Y/N meanwhile hadn't moved. He was still sat, leaning over his deceased grandmother, looking down at her crestfallen and stroking her face lovingly.

They had all hugged him, whispered to him when they came out at daybreak, but he hadn't answered, just stared down at his Nanna. His eyes were broken. As the three ladies sat behind him, about twenty feet away, they watched worriedly with Dale, Shane, Sophia and Carl as Lori walked over and knelt beside him.

"Y/N."

Y/N didn't look up or answer. Lori looked at him with tremendous sympathy.

"I'm so sorry. She's gone. You got to let us take her. We all cared about her and I promise we'll be as gentle as we can."

Y/N didn't respond, continuing to look like he was in another world. Lori understood, standing and gently touching his back, leaving him to his grief. She walked passed Daryl, who used a pickaxe on a dead member of camp, as Glenn and T-Dog carried the person away.

Lori sat next to Clementine who was hugging a crying Amy.

"Still not talking?" Clementine asked quietly. Lori shook her head and Clem was worried. She had never seen Y/N like this. Rick walked over to the group, his shirt still covered in blood and joined them at the fire they were sat at.

"He still won't move?" Rick asked.

"He won't even talk to us. He's been there all night. What do we do?" Lori replied.

Shane sighed. He knew how heartbroken his friend was, but at the same time Margaret would soon be a danger to them all. He said with a significant amount of empathy, at least for him:

"Can't just leave Margaret like that. We need to deal with it. Same as the others."

Rick said with a touch of arrogance:

"I'll tell him how it is."

Clementine glared at him, he seriously thought he could just tell Y/N how anything was? Y/N had kept them safe for a month. Rick just got there. As he walked over she counted to herself:

"Three... two... one..."

Rick got next to Y/N and stooped down.

"Y/N-"

Before another word could be spoken Y/N had snapped round, his gun in Rick's face, cocked.

"Fucking try it" Y/N snarled menacingly.

Fear broke out on Rick's face as he looked in Y/N's cold eyes and he suddenly realised just how comfortable Y/N was pointing a gun at a man's face. He raised his hands in submission, backing off slowly and saying quietly:

"All right. Okay. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Y/N clicked the safety again and put his gun away, turning back to his grandmother and stroking her face.

Rick got back to the others and said quietly:

"I don't think that was a bluff."

Daryl, who had joined the group while Rick was walking over, snapped:

"So what, leave them? Y'all can't be serious. Let that guy hamstring us? The dead woman's a time bomb."

"What do you suggest?" Rick shot back.

"Take the shot. Clean, in the brain from here. Hell, I can hit a turkey between the eyes from this distance."

"No. For God's sakes, let him be" Lori snapped. Clementine rubbed Amy's back and snapped as she looked in Daryl's eyes:

"You try, and see what happens."

Daryl glared at Clementine and scoffed, but walked off. He yelled as he did:

"You reap what you sow. Y'all left my brother for dead. You had this coming!"

Morales yelled to shut up but before anyone could react Y/N had stood, turned and thrown a punch. It was just one but it connected, dropping Dixon to the ground, blood flowing from his nose.

He looked up in shock as the others rushed over- Glenn, Morales, Rick and Shane rushing to get between the two. Y/N just glared down though, not saying a word, turning and returning to his grandmother's side.

--~--

Another half an hour passed, and once Daryl had sooked for a while he returned to work when his nose had stopped bleeding. He and Morales were carrying a corpse over when Glenn rushed over to them as they approached burning bodies:

"What are you guys doing? This is for geeks. Our people go over there."

"What's the difference? They're all infected" Daryl snapped.

"Our people go in that row over there" Glenn responded before he yelled, barely holding back tears: "We don't burn them! We bury them. Understand?"

Daryl sighed, but he and Morales dragged the body in the other direction where Glenn was pointing. The other men and women who were able to continued to work, except Y/N who was still prone next to Margaret, and the rest of his group who were worriedly watching him.

As they worked Jim walked over to help Jacqui with a body. She looked up to thank him when she noticed blood on his shirt. She backed up with fear in her eyes and asked:

Daryl and Morales start to pick the body back up, dragging it to where Glenn points.

"Are you bleeding?"

"I just got some on me from the bodies" Jim lied.

"That blood's fresh. Were you bit?"

"No. I got scratched during the attack."

"You got bit."

I'm fine."

"Then show me" Jacqui demanded.

Jim looked at her and whispered: "Don't tell, please."

Jacqui wasn't having it though, yelling to everyone: "A walker got him. A walker bit Jim."

Almost everyone stopped what they were doing and started to gather around. Jacqui backed away from Jim in fear as he muttered "I'm okay. I'm okay."

"Show it to us. Show it to us" Daryl yelled as the crowd whispered, tense and threatening. Jim grabbed a shovel to defend himself as everyone began calling out. T-Dog grabbed him from behind, disarming him and Daryl rushed in and lifted his shirt, showing a large bite mark on his stomach.

Daryl and T-Dog quickly let go of him as worried murmurs spread around the crowd. Jim muttered to himself:

"I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay."

--~--

Jim was sat at the rear of the R.V. while everyone else had a conference about what to do.

"I say we put a pickaxe in his head and the dead woman's and be done with it" Daryl snarled.

"Is that what you'd want if it were you?" Shane asked with disgust.

"Yeah, and I'd thank you while you did it."

"I hate to say it—I never thought I would but maybe Daryl's right" Dale added. Rick replied quickly, shocked:

"Jim's not a monster, Dale, or some rabid dog."

"I'm not suggesting-"

"He's sick. A sick man. We start down that road, where do we draw the line?"

"The line's pretty clear. Zero tolerance for walkers. Or them to be" Daryl answered aggressively.

"What if we can get him help? I heard the CDC. was working on a cure" Rick asked.

"We heard that too. Heard a lot of things before the world went to Hell" Clementine added. She had joined the conference on behalf of the sisters as they continued to monitor a still near catatonic Y/N.

"What if the CDC. is still up and running?" Rick asked again.

Shane chuckled: "Man, that is a stretch right there."

"Why? If there's any government left, any structure at all, they'd protect the CDC at all costs, wouldn't they? I think it's our best shot. Shelter, protection, rescue-"

"Okay, Rick, you want those things, all right? I do too. Okay? Now if they exist, they're at the army base. Fort Benning."

"That's a hundred miles in the opposite direction" Lori added, trying to diffuse the growing tension between the two men.

"That is right. But it's away from the hot zone. Now listen to me. If that place is operational, it'll be heavily armed. We'd be safe there" Shane argued.

"The military were on the front lines of this thing. They got overrun. We've all seen that. The CDC is our best choice and Jim's only chance" Rick replied fiercely as the two went back and forth.

Daryl scoffed:

"You go looking for aspirin; do what you need to do. Someone needs to have some balls to take care of this damn problem!"

Daryl rushed toward Jim and raised his pick axe.

"Hey hey hey!" Shane yelled as Rick ran up behind him and put his cocked revolver to Daryl's head:

"We don't kill the living."

Shane took a stand between Daryl and Jim. Daryl lowered the pick axe and turned, glaring at Rick:

"That's funny coming from a man who just put a gun to my head."

"We may disagree on some things, not on this one. You put it down. Go on" Shane said with his shotgun in his hand.

Daryl slammed the pick axe down and grunted angrily before storming off. Rick walked straight over and grabbed Jim's arm, saying:

"Come with me."

"Where are you taking me?" Jim asked fearfully.

"Somewhere safe."

--~--

Dale walked over to Y/N and Margaret, Andrea and Amy following him hugging.

Y/N looked up slowly as Dale said calmly:

"I came to pay my respects."

Y/N didn't react, or pull his gun, so Dale interpreted that as a sign it was OK to continue, and sat down on the ground beside Y/N.

"Did I ever mention how I lost my wife?" he asked. Y/N responded after twenty or so seconds, the first time he had spoken since Margaret had died:

"Cancer, wasn't it?"

"Yeah. I dragged he to every doctor, every test. And after all the surgeries and the chemos, she was ready. She accepted it, you know? But I never could. And I spent the last few years so angry. I felt so cheated. Since she passed, the three girls, you, your grandmother... you were the first people... that I cared anything for. I am so so sorry for Margaret's death, Y/N. She was so proud of you, of the man you are. How you became a leader here, so young, protecting all these people. Never forget that."

Y/N looked up and smiled at Dale tearfully, whispering "thank you."

--~--

Daryl was using the pick axe on more bodies. He was about to hit a particularly mangled corpse when Carol stopped him.

She looked down at the body. It's right leg had been torn off below the knee, it's abdomen was reduced to an empty ribcage and all the flesh was missing from it's face.

"I'll do it. He's my husband" Carol said as she wept. Daryl handed her the axe and she swung with everything she had, smashing him in the face. She cried, swinging again and again and again. She stopped only when what remained of his face had been obliterated, Daryl just watching as she sobbed even harder.

--~--

Y/N was still with Margaret, looking down at her with regret when a quiet moan started to emanate from his grandmother's lips. He looked down at his Nanna as her eyes flickered, her hand twitched and she began to reanimate.

"Oh no" Amy whispered as she watched on, breaking down again as Clementine hugged her and Andrea rubbed her back.

Y/N meanwhile fought back tears as he caressed her cheek lovingly, just as her eyes opened. They were milky and grey, devoid of any of the lustre or shine of life. This wasn't Margaret. Not any more.

"Nanna" he said gently as the walker that inhabited his grandmother's corpse looked at him.

"Nanna, I'm sorry."

Margaret's hand rose, seemingly caressing Y/N's cheek.

"I'm sorry I failed you. I'm sorry I let you down. I'm sorry I never told you how much I appreciated everything you had done for me, how much you meant to me. I love you Nanna. I love you."

The walker's hand moved from his cheek to his hair, grabbing a handful as it lifted itself up, trying to bite Y/N's face.

Shane and Rick noticed Margaret had reanimated and rushed over with their guns out, Y/N though easily overpowered the walker and held it back, whispering:

"I love you. I love you"

He pulled his knife from his belt, braced himself, and gently pushed it into his Nanna's temple, just behind the eyes. Her body went limp as Y/N placed her down and broke, Amy rushing over to console her fiancee.

--~--

Up on the hilltop Rick and Shane were digging more graves. Rick stopped and looked at his partner.

"Say it."

Shane stopped and leant on his shovel.

"Okay. I'm thinking if you'd of stayed here, if you'd have looked after your own—instead you went off you took half our manpower with you. I'm thinking maybe our losses wouldn't have been so bad."

"If we hadn't gone off and brought those guns back when we did, I think our losses would have been a lot worse. Maybe the entire camp."

They stopped as a pickup approached, backing up to the graves with a number of wrapped bodies in the boot. Shane exhaled but was far from convinced with Rick's arguments.

Daryl parked the pickup and got out, walking towards the two men.

"I still think it's a mistake not burning these bodies. It's what we said we'd do, right? Burn 'em all, wasn't that the idea?"

"At first" Shane replied.

"The Chinaman gets all emotional, says it's not the thing to do, we just follow him along? These people need to know who the Hell's in charge here, what the rules are."

"There are no rules" Rick fired back, as the others began to arrive, following the pickup uphill.

"Well, that's a problem" Lori replied to her husband as she arrived.

"We haven't had one minute to hold onto anything of our old selves. We need time to mourn and we need to bury our dead. It's what people do."

The three women arrived next, Y/N just behind them with Margaret's wrapped corpse in his arms. He hadn't allowed anyone else to touch her and had wrapped her himself.

--~--

Inside the R.V. Jim was lying on a sofa. He was topless, drenched in sweat, delirious.

"Oh no. No no no no. No, not this, please" Jim pleaded with nobody as he looked around, wiping the sweat off his face and seeing flashes of walkers in front of him. He groaned in pain.

--~--

Y/N lowered his grandmother into her grave. He looked completely broken as he lifted a shovel and began to bury. Rick walked over to pick up a second shovel but stopped at a single look from Y/N. The others- Andrea, Amy, Clementine and Lori- cried behind him.

--~--

The group were walking down the from the hilltop burial. Rick turned to Lori:

"Burying other people is bad enough. But the thought of one of us-"

"Shh" Lori chastised, too late as he was overheard. Y/N turned towards Rick with a look of murder on his face but stopped at a hand on his chest from Amy. He looked down into her eyes as she whispereď:

"Don't, please."

Y/N looked down at Amy, into her pain filled eyes, and forgot his grief for the first time. His anger turned to shame as his gaze went from Amy to Andrea and Clementine and then apologetically to Carl and Lori.

He turned without a word, lifting Amy bridal style and whispered to her:

"I'm so sorry. Happy birthday."

Amy's arms were wrapped around his neck as she leant lovingly into his chest. She looked up at him and smiled, whispering back:

"You've got nothing to be sorry for."

The Grimes family stayed where they stood, Rick sighing as Lori gave him a warning look to say 'you nearly had your ass kicked.'

"Are we safe now, Dad? Now that we're together?" Carl asked. His father knelt down to him:

"I won't leave again. I promise you that. Not for anything."

Carl nodded tearfully.

"Now give me a chance to discuss some things with your mom, okay?"

"Yeah." Carl nodded again, running ahead down to the camp. He rushed up to Y/N, who had just lowered Amy to her feet, and pulled on his shirt. Y/N turned and looked down with a guilty smile. Carl asked, with a slight fear in his eyes:

"Y/N, you weren't going to hit my dad, were you?"

Y/N sighed and leant down.

"I would never do anything to hurt you or your mom, Carl. You know that, right?"

Carl nodded, and overwhelmed with emotion following the death of his friends rushed into Y/N, his arms flying around Y/N's neck. Y/N squeezed back, reassuring Carl as the boy sobbed into his shoulder.

Rick and Lori watched the interaction.

"He's a good man, Rick. He's been good to Carl. Those early weeks after we first... lost you... he was an older brother to Carl, teaching him, helping him, supporting him. I'll be eternally grateful to him."

Rick smiled at his wife and replied:

"Well I will be too."

The smile slowly faded before Rick spoke again:

"Shane blames me for not being here. Do you?"

Rick looked into his wife's eyes. He didn't get the answer he was looking for. He exhaled, betrayed and looked away before explaining to his wife:

"We got guns now. We're stronger."

"And we have fewer people, that makes us weaker. You want me to say I think you were right? I understand that. All I can say is that neither one of you is entirely wrong. It's the best I can do right now."

"What about the CDC?"

"Rick-"

"We're at the ragged edge here. We need relief and we got a sick man who needs help. I don't know why people can't see that."

"Well, look at their faces. Look at mine. We're all terrified. If one of us suggested, based on a hunch that we head toward that city you'd have no part of it. Tell me something with certainty."

Rick looked at her thoughtfully, and answered with all he could

"I love you. That's all I got."

Lori smiled and cried, answering "I love you too" and the two hugged.

--~--

Carol was sat with Jim in the RV, cooling him off with a wet cloth, there was a knock at the door and Rick and Loro entered. Carol looked at them worriedly:

"His fever is worse."

"You need anything?" Lori asked.

"Uh... water. Could use more water" Jim replied, struggling to do so.

"I'll get some. Carol, you help me?" Lori asked. Carol nodded and the two women left, Rick sitting across from Jim.

"You save a grave for me?" Jim chuckled.

"Nobody wants that."

"It's not about what you want. That, uh- that sound you hear, that's God laughing while you make plans."

"What I want, Jim, if—If God allows, is to get you some help."

Jim groaned and coughed wildly. Rick patted his back and when the coughing fit ended he looked into Rick's eyes:

"Watch the mangroves. Their roots will gouge the whole boat."

Rick realised Jim was delirious with his fever.

"You know that, right? Margaret is there swimming. You'll watch the boat, right? You said you would."

Rick nodded:

"I'll watch the boat. Don't worry."

"Okay" Jim smiled, more a grimace than a smile though.

--~--

Y/N was sat at the central campfire. Amy was sat between his legs, her back against his stomach as she hugged his arms around her shoulders. Y/N had been staring at the bloodstain in front of the RV, where his Nanna had died. He suddenly looked up, his head turning to Andrea and Clementine, who were sat next to the couple.

"Andrea... did you?" Y/N asked, his head motioning down to Amy in front of him. Andrea shook her head and answered:

"I didn't want you to think... I didn't want to disrespect Margaret's memory."

Y/N gave her a look, one that said of course not and Andrea smiled, leaning over and pulling a small package, wrapped in red tissue paper, from her pocket.

"Amy" Andrea said. When Amy turned to her sister she smiled, then looked surprised at the small red package.

"Happy birthday, Amy. This is from Clem, Margaret and I" Andrea continued, her voice nearly breaking at Margaret's name. Amy looked at the package then back to her lover, who smiled at her in encouragement.

Amy smiled and thanked her sister and best friend, opening the package and gasping, her eyes watering at the Mermaid necklace. She thanked the two women sincerely, before Clementine smiled:

"Why don't you help her put it on, big guy?"

Y/N smiled, taking the necklace and gently laying it on Amy's chest, chuckling to himself as Amy shivered involuntarily at the contact as he closed the clip for her on the back of her neck.

"It's beautiful. Thank you" Amy smiled, looking at the pendent lovingly as she leant back further into her lover.

--~--

Lori sat in the doorway of the RV waiting for Rick. She began to doze off but snapped to attention when Shane approached. He didn't mince his words:

"I need you to help talk some sense into Rick."

Lori got up to walk away, but Shane continued:

"Look the CDC thing, Lori, it's a mistake."

Lori didn't look convinced and Shane scoffed.

"So you're backing him?"

"What else would I do? He's my husband."

"Look, it may be time for you to play the dutiful wife, but you can't tell me that fixing your marriage is worth putting people's lives at risk."

"I think folks around here can make up their minds without bringing my marriage into it. It's a habit you need to break."

"I guess I'll just add it to the list of habits that I'm breaking, whether I like it or not."

Rick emerged from the door, a cold look on his face as he asked, looking between the two:

"What habits?"

"Just talking about my need for a plan, man. So what is it? Are we leaving or not? Maybe y'all just want to stay here. We could hang some more tin cans" Shane replied quickly, and dishonestly.

"We can't stay here. We both know that" Rick said back coldly.

"Have either of you spoken to Y/N? You know he's a voice people listen to around here" Lori asked.

The two men shook their heads, Shane replying:

"No, with Margaret and everything I just-"

"Maybe you should" Lori replied, looking between the two fiercely. Shane nodded, Rick sighed uncertainly but the two walked over to the fire.

"Y/N, can we talk to you for a second" Y/N nodded, helping Amy to stand as he walked over to the two men. He looked at them, waiting for one to start, finally Shane did:

"How are you holding up man?"

Y/N looked over to Shane and asked.

"Did I ever tell you about my parents?"

"No, I don't think you did."

"They died in a car crash when I was a baby. Nanna took me in and raised me. Sacrificed everything for me. When she was diagnosed with leukaemia last year, I didn't even hesitate to give up my college scholarship to pay for her treatment. Everything she-"

Y/N stopped and composed himself.

"I failed her. I should have been qui-"

"You stop right there man. You start on that path you will never get that monkey off your back" Shane said firmly, Rick nodding in agreement. Y/N closed his eyes and stabilised himself, fighting back tears and asked:

"What did you guys need?"

"We're at a loggerheads, Y/N. Rick feels the CDC is our best bet. I think Fort Benning."

Y/N looked between the two and asked calmly:

"Why don't we do both?"

They looked at him blankly.

"Why does it have to be either or? The CDC is what, ten miles in a wide circle around Atlanta? And Fort Benning is a hundred miles from here? The CDC is closer, and it's definitely worth checking out, but we go there with the knowledge that if it's a bust then we head for Fort Benning, scavenging any supplies we can on the way."

The two men looked at each other and Lori, who was stood with Dale just behind them said:

"It's a good plan."

They looked to her and saw Lori nodding and Dale smiling at Y/N.

"Yeah, something to think about. Thanks man" Shane smiled, reaching out shaking Y/N's hand.

"It's what we've done from the start isn't it, you and me, forming a consensus, how to keep these people safe" Y/N replied.

Shane nodded before turning to Rick and saying: "Let's go do our sweep."

They headed out, Dale following them as Y/N turned back to the girls and sat behind Amy again as she hugged into him.

"You're always the voice of reason, Y/N. Every call. Don't let anyone forget who the real leader of this group is" Clementine said loudly, everyone around hearing, including Lori who scowled.

In the woods Rick was leading, Shane a few feet behind him as he spoke:

"Tell you what, man. These people, man, they're not convinced. You know? You head to the C.D.C., you might be on your own, if people don't agree with Y/N's suggestion. You gotta really consider whether you want to put Lori and Carl in that kind of spot."

"I got to do what's best for my family" Rick replied.

"Best for your family? What's that? Exposing them to all kinds of risks?"

"As opposed to what? Crossing a hundred miles of hostile territory? If we're looking for a lifeline, I say swim toward the closest ship, not further out to sea. Why can't you back me up?"

"Look, I want to. It's just... I don't see it."

"Ah, if it was your family you'd feel differently."

Shane stopped dead, a cold expression of fury on his face. Rick turned around to see Shane storming towards him and got in his face.

"What did you say to me? I kept 'em safe, man. I looked after them like they were my own. That's what I did" Shane snapped in fury.

"Shane, I didn't mean it that way."

"Well, how'd you mean it? Go on, man. How'd you mean it?" Shane continued, amping himself up for a fight.

Rick sighed: "You're misinterpreting me, man. You're just hearing it wrong."

"Yeah?"

"Look, you know—you know I can never repay that debt, okay?" Rick pleaded before they heard a branch snap nearby snap. The two instantly raised their guns, Rick nodding to Shane as he moved forward into the forest.

Shane stayed where he was with his gun raised. As Rick continued walking further in Shane got him in his sights, and kept him there. Shane scowled, growling as his finger went to the trigger. He got an open shot at Rick's back and sighed, taking a deep breath and lowering the gun. He looked to his right to see Dale staring at him, wide eyed.

"Jesus" Dale muttered as Shane looked at him guiltily, knowing he had been caught. He tried to laugh it off and chuckled:

"I know. Gonna have to start wearing reflective vests out here."

He could see Dale didn't buy it and added "seriously" before he yelled out to Rick:

"Come on, man!"

Shane put on his cap on and acted as if nothing had happened. He chuckled again:

"Come on, man. Let's go. Nothing out here."

Dale followed Shane with his eyes, not blinking or taking his eyes off him.

--~--

Rick, Shane and Dale entered camp. Y/N was at the boot of the Impala, going over guns and ammo he had left. Amy was stood next to him with her arm around his waist, the other two on either side of them.

"You three are doing well with your 9mm training, but I want you to start learning these higher powered guns- the machine guns, shotguns and rifles. They're not doing much good in here. Maybe if we'd had them out..."

Y/N's voice trailed off as he looked down. Amy squeezed his waist as Clem said fiercely:

"Shane was right, it's not your fault what happened, Y/N. It's no-ones fault. It was just a horrible accident."

Amy and Andrea agreed as Shane called out, asking the others to gather. Y/N closed the boot and walked back, hand in hand with Amy as Shane began to speak.

"I've been, uh—I've been thinking about Rick's plan and Y/N's idea for a compromise. Now look, there are no—there are no guarantees either way. I'll be the first one to admit that. I've known Rick for a long time. I trust his instincts."

Lori looked at Shane with suspicion. Clementine noticed, her eyes narrowing. Shane continued:

"I say the most important thing here is we need to stay together. So those of you that agree, we leave first thing in the morning. Okay?"

Y/N looked down at Amy.

"Would it be ok with you love, if Clementine and Andrea slept with us tonight?"

Andrea and Clementine smirked at each other. Clementine replied:

"Well someone's got his confidence back."

Amy facepalmed and laughed. Y/N looked at them puzzled for a moment before it clicked in his mind.

"Shared the tent. If we're leaving first thing then it would be easier to just have one tent to take down in the morning."

Once the two girls had moved their stuff to Y/N and Amy's tent he began dismantling theirs, folding it up and placing it back in the boot. They moved everything they didn't need overnight and in the morning in as well, including Margaret's possessions. They packed it and stowed it in the boot.

Y/N spent the rest of the night helping Daryl load Merle's motorbike on the back of one of the dead men's pickups and strap it down. The damn thing weighed a tonne, but fortunately Y/N was a man mountain.

--~--

The following morning the whole group were packed and standing around Y/N, Rick and Shane. Y/N was addressing the others, Amy smiling at him proudly.

"Everybody listen up. Those of you with C.B.s, we're gonna be on Channel 40. Let's keep the chatter down, okay? Now you got a problem, don't have a C.B., can't get a signal or anything at all, you're gonna hit your horn one time. That'll stop the caravan. Any questions?"

Morales looked around and said with some trepidation: "We're, uh...we're- we're not going."

His wife Eliza added: "We have family in Birmingham. We want to be with our people."

"You go you're on your own. You won't have anyone to watch your back" Shane replied. Morales answered firmly: "We'll take the chance. I got to do what's best for my family."

"You sure?" Y/N asked.

Morales nodded.

"We talked about it. We're sure."

"Come with me" Y/N answered, leading his to his boot. He opened it and pulled out a glock and a box of bullets.

"Here, be careful, man. They go quickly."

Morales smiled and thanked his friend, the two hugging.

It was a tearful goodbye for the Morales family, at the main road from the quarry they turned right and beeped, waving goodbye as the others turned left.

The RV was in the lead, Dale driving, Glenn navigating and Jacqui caring for Jim in the back.

Behind them Y/N was driving his Impala, Amy next to him and Clementine and Andrea in the back. His sighed, the missing person was weighing on him heavily.

Rick was next, driving Carol's Jeep Cherokee. Lori was in the front next to him, Sophie, Carol and Carl in the back seat.

T-Dog was next in his church van, Daryl behind him in the pickup and finally Shane at the back, in his open jeep.

They drove through several settlements, Y/N insisting on stopping at each one. Shane and Daryl were getting quite shifty at the constant stops, before, on the third check, they came across a convenience store that had barely been looted. They were able to get a lot of food, drinks and miscellaneous supplies, and the botching and whining stopped. They continued driving until. After about three hours, there was a pop and a lot of steam from the front of the RV.

--~--

The convoy had stopped, the front grill open on the RV as steam continued to pour out. Dale looked at Rick.

"I told you we'd never get far on that hose. I said I needed the one from the cube van."

"Can you jury-rig it?"

"That's all it's been so far. It's more duct tape than hose. And I'm out of duct tape."

Meanwhile, Shane was looking through his binoculars. Daryl, T-Dog and Y/N were standing on guard.

"I see something up ahead. A gas station if we're lucky" Shane said.

Jacqui ran out of the RV, yelling to the others:

"Y'all, Jim- it's bad. I don't think he can take anymore."

Shane looked back: Hey, Rick, Y/N, you want to hold down the fort? I'll drive ahead, see what I can bring back.

"Nah, I'll come along too and I'll watch your back" Y/N said.

"Y'all keep your eyes open now. We'll be right back" Shane said after nodding to Y/N in appreciation. Y/N looked to his fiancee and Clem:

"You two know how to use them, I'll be back soon."

Clem nodded, Amy rushed up to Y/N and kissed him, telling him to:

"Come back safe."

Shane and Y/N drove off and Rick disappeared inside the RV. Amy and Clementine were sat on the hood of the Impala, watching around for walkers when Dale approached them with Andrea, and a worried look on his face.

"Everything ok?" Amy asked. Dale looked around and leant in, whispering to the three of them:

"When we get going again, I need you to tell Y/N that I need to speak to him, about something extremely serious, and Shane can't know."

--~--

Shane and Y/N pulled up at a gas station, and the store was locked. They looked in the window and noticed the shelves were full of food.

"Somehow no one's been here" Shane said happily, looking at all the food and beverages that the group could use.

"Power's out, but if we can get the key from inside we can fill up the vehicles" Y/N said happily as he looked around and then smashed the door near the lock.

"You sure?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, I had to use the same type of pumps as these with my old job, my boss had a private supply, see the twin arms up top" Y/N said, pointing to the top of the pumps. Shane nodded.

"These models are powered by air pumps that are down by the reservoir. They're designed to last for a decade without power, in case of national emergency" Y/N said calmly, reaching up and unlocking the door.

"You serious?" Shane asked as he looked at Y/N in disbelief.

Y/N nodded, opening the door and walking into the gas station. There was a single walker behind the counter, closed in by a flimsy looking security door. Y/N grabbed the walker through the holes in the safety glass around the register and stabbed it in the head before leaning back and kicking the door to the register open.

He walked in and quickly found the emergency key, walking out to the main pump and yelling at Shane to pull in. Shane did so, parking his jeep next to the pump as Y/N used the key to open the pump, flicked a switch and the whole thing came to life.

"You never told me, Y/N. What the fuck kind of job did you have?" Shane asked in disbelief.

"I was a fixer" Y/N replied, opening Shane's gas tank and beginning to pump.

"The hell is that? Like a maintenance man?"

Y/N chuckled.

"No, it means when my boss needed something handled, I fixed it for him. If it was a debt that needed collecting, security that needed performing, snitches that needed whacking... that kind of thing."

Shane stood and stared at Y/N, his mouth dropping momentarily before he grinned and then laughed.

"Fuck off... you nearly had me there. You keep your secrets, I'm just glad you know what you know."

Y/N chuckled dryly in reply.

--~--

Shane and Y/N returned to the group overjoyed with their find. Shane called out to the others:

"You won't believe what we found, all thanks to Macgyver over here."

"What?" T-Dog asked, shocked to see Shane so happy.

"A whole gas station untouched, and this smart son of a bitch even knew how to operate the pumps without power, so we can fill all the vehicles up" Shane smiled. Amy looked at Y/N proudly as Rick exited the RV with a nauseous expression on his face.

--~--

"It's what he says he wants" Rick explained.

"And he's lucid?" Carol asked.

"He seems to be. I would say yes."

"Back in the camp when I said Daryl might be right and you shut me down, you misunderstood. I would never go along with callously killing a man. I was just gonna suggest that we ask Jim what he wants and I think we have an answer" Dale said, looking down and smiling as Andrea wrapped her arms round his.

"We just leave him here? We take off? Man, I'm not sure I could live with that" Shane said looking between Y/N and Rick.

"I know what you mean, Shane, but it's Jim's dying wish man. Don't we all get the dignity to at least decide how we pass?" Y/N asked.

Lori smiled at Y/N and nodded: "Y/N's right. It's not your call, either one of you" she concluded looking at Rick and then Shane.

Rick and Shane attempted to get Jim's 6'2" 200lbs dead weight frame out of the RV but struggled. He moaned in pain as they tried when Y/N stood at the doorway.

"For the love of God, let me do it" he said exasperated at their efforts.

He directed Shane to put Jim's arm over his shoulder and proceeded to lift Jim's body bridal style and carried the weak man towards a shady tree.

"He felt like a ton of bricks, and that big son of a bitch is carrying him like a newborn" Rick said, puffed out and shaking his head.

"Yeah, probably not a good idea to piss him off" Shane replied.

"You two have no idea how true that is" Clementine chuckled from the side of them.

Y/N leant Jim against the tree gently, lowering down.

"I'm sorry this happened to you, Jim"

"I'm sorry I hit you with that shovel" Jim chuckled before coughing. He then asked:

"Any message for Margaret, if I see her?"

Y/N looked at him sadly and just replied:

"Tell her I love her, and I'm sorry."

The others said their sad goodbyes, most leaving in tears as they looked at him one last time and headed to the gas station.

--~--

Pink letters appeared on a black screen reading WILDFIRE MSB3417 ACTIVE. BEGIN TRANSMISSION.

A middle aged man in a shirt sat in a darkened room. He spoke into the camera and talked to persons unknown.

"Dr Edwin Jenner here. It's day 194 since Wildfire was declared and 63 days since the disease abruptly went global. There's no clinical progress to report."

The video broke in and out.

"Item—I finally got the scrubbers in the east sector shut down to save power. Wish I could have done it a month ago, but it took me that long to figure it out. Too bad I never studied engineering, could have saved a lot of amps."

The video broke in and out again.

"Item—I'm still not sleeping well. Can't seem to keep regular hours. Living underground doesn't help, not knowing if it's day or night. I'm just feeling very off-kilter these days."

Again the black screen with the message WILDFIRE MSB3417 ACTIVE shows, but this time the screen says END TRANSMISSION

--~--

Jenner, in a blue protective suit, walked through a set of security doors and into an airlock.

He walked through another set of doors into a laboratory. He turned on a few monitors mounted into the walls. One computer monitor showed a 3-D image of a human skull.

Jenner clicked on the keyboard and removed a tissue sample labeled TS-19 from a cold storage locker. He cuts open the package, removing a sliver and inserted it into a vial.

Using a dropper he added a caustic liquid to it and placed it into a centrifuge. He dozed off before jumping awake at the centrifuge beeping to say it was done.

Jenner smeared a drop of liquid onto a glass slide. He placed it under a microscope and focused the lense. He reached forward for something and inadvertently knocked over the beaker of caustic liquid. It fell onto the tissue sample and bubbled over onto the table top.

A deafening alarm rang out, a computer voice repeating

"Alert status. Air qualifiers indicate corrosive fumes."

Jenner rushed for the door.

"All personnel must clear the room. Corrosive element is deemed poisonous if inhaled."

Jenner hit a button and water sprayed down on him. He turned around, getting thoroughly wet and decontaminated and the door slid open and he rushed through. The door slid shut behind him, more water sprays from both sides as he removes the protective suite and all his clothing. He lets the water completely rinse him off.

"All personnel clear. Full decontamination in effect."

Jenner turned round horrified, screaming "NO!" but to no use as the lab was incinerated.

"Full decontamination complete."

Jenner was videotaping his thoughts again. He looked tired and was drinking wine.

"The TS19 samples are gone. The tragedy of their loss cannot be overstated. They were our freshest samples by far. None of the other samples we gathered even came close. Those are necrotic, useless dead flesh. I don't even know why I'm talking to you."

He leant in to the screen.

"I bet there isn't a single son of a bitch out there still listening, is there? Is there?"

He sighed.

"I think tomorrow I'm gonna blow my brains out. I haven't decided. But tonight, I'm getting drunk."

--~--

The vehicles pulled up and parked in the street along the front of the CDC building. The group climbed out.

Corpses littered the ground everywhere, military and civilians. It looked like there had been a hell of a battle out there. Sand bag barricades had been constructed to reinforce security at the entrance. Tanks even sat disused across the CDC's large open courtyard entrance.

"All right, everybody. Keep moving. Go on. Stay quiet. Let's go" Y/N whispered to the others. The group covered their mouths, trying to lessen the stench of the bodies as they headed towards the CDC doors.

"Okay, keep moving. Stay together. Keep moving. Come on" Shane added.

The group began to panic as Rick shushed them.

--~--

Inside the CDC an alarm started beeping. Jenner looked at a schematic of the building, alarms lighting up at the entrance. Jenner saw the group through a security feed.

"No" He whispered to himself.

--~--

Outside the group got closer to the doors. Everyone tried not to retch at the smells. Amy didn't succeed and vomited on the ground. Y/N rubbed her back and as Shane was about to chastise her he thought better of it.

Y/N helped Amy get to the roller shuttered doors Rick was banging on and Shane was trying to lift.

"Guys, walkers" Glenn said in a panic. The group raised their guns but Y/N whispered fiercely:

"No guns!"

He turned to Daryl as he pulled his hunting knife.

"You and me, Dixon."

Daryl nodded and Clementine grabbed Amy's arm as Y/N walked towards the half a dozen walkers that headed towards them.

"Baby no" Amy began to cry as Y/N stabbed the first in the head, Daryl shooting with his crossbow.

The light was failing, Y/N and Daryl put down the half dozen but ten more began to approach as the evening light faded quickly.

"There's nobody here" T-Dog snapped.

"Then why are these shutters down?" Rick argued.

"BABY!" Amy screamed as Y/N was grabbed from behind while he stabbed a walker. It dropped from an arrow and he looked back and nodded at Daryl. Daryl nodded back before looking back to Rick

"You led us into a graveyard!"

"He made a call" Dale argued.

"It was the wrong damn call! And I'm running out of arrows."

Shane got in Daryl's face, pointing his finger: "Just shut up. You hear me? Shut up. Shut up! Rick this is a dead end" he concluded turning to Rick.

"Y/N fall back" Glenn yelled as more walkers got up from the floor. Y/N had taken down a dozen, but they kept coming.

"Where are we gonna go?" Carol panicked as Amy cried, watching Y/N slowly back up and kick walkers away. He had an AK over his shoulder but if he used that it could wake up hundreds of them. Shane continued talking to Rick:

"Do you hear me? No blame."

"Carol's right. We can't be here, this close to the city after dark" Lori added.

"Fort Benning, Rick- still an option" Shane said pleadingly.

"That's a hundred miles" Andrea snapped.

"125. I checked the map" Glenn added.

"Forget Fort Benning. We need answers tonight. Now" Lori snapped.

"We'll think of something" Rick said delusionally as he banged on the shutters. Y/N meanwhile stepped back, close to two dozen walkers within twenty feet of him.

"Fuck, guys we need to make a stand!" He yelled, sheathing his knife and bringing up the AK. He set it to single shot firing and lifted it to his sight, walking back slowly and taking down walkers as quick as he could.

"We need to get out of here" Shane yelled, trying to get Rick's attention. Y/N stopped directly in front of Amy and changed to short, three shot firing bursts, trying to take down as many as possible as fast as he could as the others who were carrying also opened fire.

"We've got an opening now. Move!" Y/N yelled, leading the others forward as Rick yelled:

"The camera- it moved."

"Rick, it's dead, man. It's an automated device. It's gears, okay? They're just winding down. Now come on" Shane snapped trying to drag him away.

--~--

Jenner watched them from inside, his heart racing in fear as they looked like they were about to be killed.

"No, just go away." He whispered. He heard Shane yelling through the feed:

"Man, just listen to me. Look around this place. It's dead, okay? It's dead. You need to let it go, Rick. Rick, there's nobody there."

Rick fought past Shane though and smashed on the door.

"I know you're in there. I know you can hear me."

"Everybody get back to the cars now!" Y/N yelled, opening fire once more.

--~--

Back outside Rick still spoke to the camera

"Please, we're desperate. Please help us. We have women, children!"

Lori ran up to Rick: "Rick, there's nobody here."

"If you don't let us in, you're killing us! You're killing us! You're killing us! You're killing us!"

"WALSH LAST CHANCE NOW!!!" Y/N roared, Shane finally getting Rick away as the door opened, blinding light emanating from inside.