Angel With A Shotgun (Walking Dead Fanfic)

Chapter Twenty: Boxed up

Hey guys,
What did you think of the last chapter?
I know my friend loved it and started shipping Electra/Daryl or 'Dalectra' as they said it. Oh God. Just by typing that I realised that looks and sounds a lot more like a Dale/Electra couple name. O.O Erm...Darylectra...nope too long erm... Electryl?..........erm....I don't know, but anyway. Yep, they said they ship them together. I don't know about y'all but I found it pretty funny.
Then she went on to shipping Andrea/Electra. :)
But then she went on to shipping Lori/Electra....
No words for that one...
I just think it's really cool/weird that people are actually shipping people from my story, made me laugh a lot. 
You got any random or real ships you have to tell me and their couple names? For laughs or advice ;) (It's not really meant to be a romance but I'd like to know any suggestions if you think it'd improve the story.)
Thank y'all for commenting and reading by the way <3 
Love Tasha xox
(I should probably stop typing y'all.....I have an English accent....it would sound weird me saying it.)

_____________________________________________________________________________
Chapter Twenty


Boxed up


▬ First Person- Electra’s P.O.V ▬ 

     When I had finally managed to roll out of the comfort and warmth of being sandwiched in between the thick duvet covers and the thin canvas mattress I had slept on, I slowly made my way to the CDC’s cafeteria, careful not to enrage my already pounding head anymore.

     “Mornin’ y’all.” I greeted everyone with a gruff voice.

     To which I got a murmur of ‘Good Mornings’ thrown back at me from everyone occupying the room.  A groan erupted as I sank down on the seat next to Glenn who had taken to pressing his cheek up against the cool metal of the dining table. Grimacing out of my own pain, I scanned over his blank features.

     “You too?” I questioned him causing him to moan in response. I felt him. “Yeah…I thought so,” I nodded but even that slight movement caused me to wince out of pain before I pecked Glenn on the cheek in form of comfort. “Man….I haven’t had a hangover this bad since the day after my sixteenth birthday.” I shared before cradling my head in my hands.

     “You got drunk on your sixteenth?” Lori enquired causing me to groan. The last voice I wanted to hear was Lori Grimes’. I could practically smell the judgement radiating off of the bitch. “Not very responsible of you, is it?” she commented, sounding as if she had a knife stuck up her arse and if she didn’t, I would not mind making that her reality

     “Well….” I maneuvered my head in my hands so I could catch a glimpse of her face. Stacie was sitting on the seat beside Carl who was sitting on his mother’s right. She had done this to make me look irresponsible in front of them. Had she made this her life mission or something? I would be fine with just agreeing to disagree but it seemed as if she was not satisfied with this. “I have to hold your husband 100% responsible for that.” I told her with a sigh.

     “You hold me 100% responsible for what?” And right on cue Rick entered the room, looking quite rough himself as he took the left-hand seat beside Lori.

     “Getting me drunk on my sixteenth birthday.” I droned causing him to look at me with a ghost of a smile spreading across his features in reminiscence. That was one good party.  

     “Naw….” Rick denied shaking his head causing me to cock my head a little and my right eyebrow to dart upwards as I saw a grin forming on Lori’s face. “I’d say that I was about 115% responsible for that.” Rick corrected me causing Lori’s grin to disappear and for her to roll her eyes instead. “Why we talking about your sixteenth anyway?”

     “This hangover is just as bad.”

     “Are you hung over?” Carl interrogated Rick causing Rick to turn to him out of shock. “Mom said you’d be.” He added in explanation as I placed my head back into my hands so I was looking at the metal table.

     “Well…mom was right.”

     “Mom does have that habit.”    

     “You two look particularly joyful this morning.” A chipper voice entered my ears causing me to grunt whilst Glenn continued to moan. The voice was just that one pitch that pierced through my skull and disagreed with my ears.

   “Shut up Thea.”   

     “Good morning to you too Glenn.” Thea stated as I heard her plop down on the chair next to Stacie. “It’s not my fault that you two drank far too much.” She smiled as she placed down a book.

     “How come you’re not hung over?” Rick enquired sounding extremely curious, as was I. Thea sounded like she was the happiest girl on earth right now, something that I was unable to even pretend to be like.

     “I stuck to pop and soda like Shane advised the kids…..” Thea explained. “I don’t drink: never have, never will. I don’t want to go around acting like a fool and then regretting it the next morning…..” she elaborated further which sounded like a reasonable excuse. “Clearly y’all don’t have the same idea.” She stated pointedly at the hung over people in the room.

     “Eggs!” T-Dog called as he began to dish out eggs, starting with placing two egg onto the plate in front of Rick’s seat. “Powdered but I do ‘em good,” he told us putting an egg onto Stacie’s plate before heading over to serve Glenn and I. “Bet you can’t tell,” he smiled at Stacie. “Protein….helps the hang-over!” T-Dog raised his voice, clearly his point was directed at me and Glenn as he put two eggs on our plates. I could practically hear the smirk in his voice.

     “Thanks.” I mumbled deciding to follow his advice before Glenn grunted a little. “I think that translates as another ‘Thanks’.” I told T-Dog as I reached for the cutlery. As I picked a fork up it banged against the plate causing a ‘clink’ sound which caused Glenn to groan more. “Sorry.” I apologized sheepishly as I began to cut my egg.

     “Where’s all this come from?”

     “Jenner….” Andrea’s voice chimed in as she took the seat opposite me. “We thought we could use some…..” Andrea stated causing me too look up at her, wondering what they were talking about. “You look as bad as I feel.” Andrea commented as I caught her eye.

     “I look not nearly half as bad as I feel….” I moaned in response, leaning my head on one hand now as I ran the other through my hair and stuffed a bit of egg into my mouth with my fork in my left hand.

     “Ouch.” Andrea frowned. “Here,” Andrea proceeded to pop two pills out of a packet. “You two could use these.” She held out two pills to me and Glenn.

     “Thank you.” I moaned gratefully, but couldn’t manage to sound grateful at all as I popped the pill in my mouth and washed it down with the water she had offered me.

     “Don’t ever ever ever let me drink again.”

     “Yes.” I jerked my thumb in Glenn’s direction nearly poking out his eye in the process as my aim was a little off. “What he said.” I nodded in agreement before proceeding to cut a little piece of the egg and eat it. T-Dog was right, you could not tell these eggs were powdered at all.

     "Hey," I heard Rick say to someone, raising my eye line I locked it onto Shane who breezed right through the canteen. Awkwardly, Shane didn’t glance away from the pot that he was headed towards, poured himself some coffee and fixed himself a plate. “Feel as bad as I do?”

     “Worse.” Shane stated as he placed down his plate down in the space beside me before giving me a once over and sighed as he headed back over to the pot and returned with another cup of coffee. “Here ya go.” He said as he placed the cup of coffee in front of me. Without a word, I brought it up to my lips and took a sip, closing my eyes as I appreciated the familiar taste.  

     “What the hell happened to you?” T-Dog questioned, unsure of who he was talking to I opened my eyes to find that it was Shane. Giving Shane a once over and not picking up on anything, I began to squint at T-Dog along with Shane. “Your neck man!” T-Dog pointed out causing me to inspect his neck to find nothing. Turning his head, I discovered scratched running down the other side of his neck.

     “Must have….” Shane squirmed out of my hold, turning his head to face forward once more. “Must have done it in my sleep.” He claimed, shrugging it off casually.

     “Never seen you do that before.”

     “Me either,” Shane agreed with Rick. “Not like me at all.” Shane stated as he took a swig off his coffee, eyeing Lori as she kept her head down. Too hung-over to care, I slammed my head down into the crook of his shoulder and groaned.

     “Ellie….” It was Rick’s voice now that caused me to groan. “What the hell is that on your shoulder?” he questioned me.

     Groaning, I straightened back up too meet Shane’s toffee eyes which were glued to my shoulder. Darting my eyes around the room made me aware that now everyone was staring at my shoulder. Following their glances I found a huge hickey.

     I had forgotten all about the whole having-sex-with-Daryl thing but the hickey had reminded me of it all and had me wanting to bang my head straight into the table.

     Oh God.

     What had I done?

     What had he done?

     What had we done?

     What if he thought I had feelings for him?

     Oh God. I didn’t have feelings for Daryl of all people. I didn’t have feelings for anyone. Well… I didn’t have any feelings that I could act on. I was attracted to Rick, perhaps even loved him. All the feelings I had buried down for years of knowing him had rushed to the surface as soon as we had reunited, like it was life’s sick joke. Then again, if I were to have feelings for anyone, Rick was the perfect person because he would never give me the time of day.  

     It was the apocalypse.

     I wasn’t looking for love….I was looking for a way to survive.    

     “Woah.”

     “Woah!” I exclaimed after being snapped out of my thoughts, hoping that I portrayed being shocked well to the rest of the group, no doubt they knew what it was and it had risen suspicion amongst them. I acted as if I had been searching for it whilst I was thinking, acting as if I had no clue what it was and how it got there. Hopefully my acting was good enough to fool them all.

     “What is that?”

     “Is that a….” Glenn started. “Is that a love bite?” Questioned Glenn as he shot up out of his seat causing me to make a sound of disbelief.
 
    God dammit.

     Hopefully Daryl had forgotten about the whole event, I mean I didn’t remember anything before I woke up but the evidence proved enough but I had left before Daryl had been provided with that evidence. For all he knew, he had had sex with anyone, or not even had sex at all.

     Oh who was I kidding?

     He knew he had sex.

     But not with me.

     All I could hope now is that Daryl didn’t remember a thing and that I could make up a convincing lie to fool everybody else about the stupid hickey. 

 “That is a love bit….right?” Glenn asked no one in particularly causing me to snap out of my thoughts just as he was leaning in too get a closer look at my neck. Instinctively and uncomfortably, I leant away from him and found myself leaning into Shane.

     “Dude.” Shane statement was directed at Glenn with what I guessed was a stern/scary/protective look warning him to back off causing Glenn to lean away from me and remain in the normal seating position with a worried look on his face.

     “Sorry.” Glenn apologized sheepishly, looking very worried. I was unsure of whether he was apologizing to me or Shane. Damn. Shane could be a scary bastard if he wanted too.

     “Don’t try to tell me you did that in your sleep.” Laughs T-Dog causing everyone else to break out into laughter apart from Lori, Rick and Shane who were intently staring at me now. My eyes darted around the room nervously, looking for the nearest exit to run out of.

     “Seriously though….” I started pulling down my shirt a bit to go along with the act. “What the hell is that?” I questioned, narrowing my eyes as I examined the obvious hickey. Still with hope to fool everyone, who definitely were not fooled.  

     “Poison Ivy.”

     A low gruff echoed around the room as someone else took a seat down the table. That was the gruff I had been dreading hearing the whole morning and I did not need to look up to acknowledge who the owner of the gruff was.  

     “Ran into some in the forest, must have gotten a rash of some sort.” Daryl stated not looking particularly at anyone as I looked up for a brief moment. Poison ivy, pretty believable stuff from Daryl Dixon just there. I felt a hand pull back the edge of my shirt around my shoulder causing me to flinch out of my skin before looking down myself at a great rash that I had encountered before.

     A huge poison ivy rash.

      My throat was dry and I was unable to speak as I looked up in Daryl’s direction before shamefully looking back down to the rash. That statement had confirmed my greatest fear.

     He remembered last night….

     “I think I got something for that,” Jenner stated as he came into the kitchen causing everyone to straighten up and turn their heads in his direction. “Morning.” He nodded to which he got a reply of mumbles, wishing him good morning as he searched through a cabinet and retrieved an ointment of some kind. “Here you go.” He passed the box to me.

     “Here, give it me.” Shane bossed me about like the older brother he was as be began to apply the ointment to my shoulder gently with his rough man hands.

     “Doc,” Dale drew everyone’s attention away from mine. “I don’t mean to slam you with questions first thing but-” Dale began.

     “But you will anyway?”

     “We didn’t come here for the eggs.”     


►►►


▬ Third Person- No one’s P.O.V ▬       


     “Give me play back of TS-19.”

     “Playback of TS-19.”

     Jenner had leaded the group back into the control room or presentation room as he called it in order to answers Dale’s question and their own suspicions. At Doctor Jenner’s command Vi has  pulled up brain scans of TS-19 which everyone began to squint at out of confusion except Electra to stood, leaning against a work station with crossed arms looking at the screen.

     “Few people ever got the chance to see this…..” Doctor Jenner explained to the group who were still studying the screen intently. “Very few.” His eyes landed on Electra who was to busy analysing the brain scan in silence with Stacie standing beside her looking up at her for explanation.

     “Is that a brain?” Stacie questioned Electra, but her question came out a little louder than intended causing everyone to turn to Electra.

     “An extraordinary one.” Jenner bent down to answer Stacie’s question. “Not that it matters in the end.” He spoke grimly as he straightened back up again. “Take us in Vi.” He commanded causing the scan to be enlarged for everyone.

     “Enhanced internal view.”

     Blue lights began to zoom all over the brain scan causing everyone to gasp in delight, it did look pretty and in confusion.

     “What are those lights?” Shane questioned, again looking at his sister for an answer but her eyes were still scanning all that the brain scan had to offer.

     “It’s a person’s life.” Jenner answered. “Experiences….memories….It’s everything.” Jenner spoke in riddles. “Somewhere in all that organic wiring, all those ripples of light is…..you,” he said in a form of explanation, jerking his thumb towards the screen. “The thing that makes you unique and human.” He put emphasis on the adjectives he used. 
    
     “You gonna make sense?” Daryl asked Jenner with his arms crossed against his chest. “Ever?” he interrogated rudely.

     “The ripples of blue light?” Electra glanced down at Stacie but spoke loudly so that everyone could hear her. “Those things are called synapses.” She explained simply crouching down so become Stacie’s height pointing at one in particular. “Synapses are junctions between two nerve cells, consisting of a minute gap across which impulses pass by diffusion of a neurotransmitter.” She regurgitated her knowledge to the adults before realising they too were confused by her words. “Pulses in the brain that carry all the messages. They determine everything a person says, does or thinks. Like right now, they are determining what I am saying.” She simplified it down for everyone. “They do this all the way from the moment of birth to the moment of-”

     “Death.” Jenner finished for Electra causing her to straighten back up again and resume the position she was in before.

     “Death?” Rick enquired whether he had heard right. “That’s what the is? A visual?” he queried Jenner approaching him.

     “Yes.” Jenner confirmed with a nod. “Or rather the….the…..the playback of the visual.” He corrected himself with a stammer.

     “This person died?” Andrea asked closing in the space in-between herself and the screen. “Who?” Andrea demanded turning back to look at Jenner.

     “Test subject nineteen.” Jenner informed her. “Someone who was bitten and infected….” He took a pause for breath. “And volunteered to have us record the process.” Judging by his tone of voice, Electra guessed the person was more than ‘test subject nineteen’ to him. “Vi.” He turned away from Andrea’s eyes. “Scan forward to the first event.” He ordered.

     “Scanning to the first event.”

     “What the hell is that?”    

     Now the scan of the brain was much different. Now, those electric blue swirls that Electra had called impulses had been beginning to be replaced with a growing group of swirls coloured black.

     “It invades the brain….like meningitis.” Jenner made the comparison to get everyone to identify his words. Realising that he had to simplify everything for the group. “The adrenal glands haemorrhage.” Again, the group was full of blank expressions. “The brain goes into shut down, then the major organs then…..death.” he continued on as they gradually got the idea. “Everything you were and everything you will ever be is gone.” He stated.

     Obviously thinking back to Amy, Andrea looked down from the screen to the floor. Thea too, thinking back to Aaron, all the memories flooding back to her. The only person here who knew that she had lost someone was Electra, T-Dog and Glenn whereas everyone knew Andrea’s story.

     “Is that what happened to Jim?” Little Sophia questioned ignorantly, still clutching her mother’s hand in her own.

     “Yes.”

     Tears formed in Andrea’s blue eyes causing Jenner to look around in confusion before focussing his eyes back onto Andrea.

     “She lost somebody….two days ago.” Lori explained to Jenner causing Jenner to look in her direction. “Her sister.”

     “I lost somebody too.” Jenner informed Andrea, his sad eyes scanning over her face. “I know how devastating it is.” He identified with her before looking away, not wanting to get emotional himself. “Vi, scan to the second event.” He commanded.

     “Scanning to second event.”

     “The resurrection times vary widely,” Jenner informed them all. “We’ve had reports of it happening as in little as three minutes.”

     This struck horror into Electra’s mind, she could imagine people cradling a dead bitten loved one in their arms in devastation and being bitten by them before they could even get there mind around what was happening. For all she knew, Jem could have been a walker stalking her before Thea came to her rescue back in the early days of it all.

     “The longest we’ve heard of it taking is eight hours.” Jenner went on, Amy’s reanimation time was closer to eight hours. “In the case of this patient it was two hours, one minute…..seven seconds.” He recited, knowing it all too well. Suddenly, Vi sopped fast-forwarding and went at normal speed and a red spark appearing at the brain stem. 

     “It restarts the brain?”

     “No.”

     “The behaviour displayed from the walker’s I’ve seen suggests that their brain is restarted partly…and this video confirms that.” She looked at Jenner.

     “Just the brain stem.” He nodded at Electra, proving her theory to be right. “Basically it gets them up and moving.” He elaborated, as the patient on the screen began to move.

     “They’re not alive?” 

     “Depends how you classify alive.” Electra shot in Rick’s direction, for he was the one who had asked the question.

     “I classify it as breathing in and out.” Rick defined simply as if it were common knowledge. “What do you classify it as?”

     “Sure, breathing in and out is a sign of life…but in my interpretation it’s not living.” She retorted causing Rick to cock an eyebrow at her, expecting her to go on. “Living….to me….is thinking, speaking, feeling. Walkers don’t do that…..well not really….” Electra shook her head.   

     “You tell me.” Jenner said to Rick, gesturing at the screen. “Describe what you see to us all….” Jenner ordered Rick.
    
     “Well…..” Rick shook his head, growing close to the screen. For him Electra had just answered his question for them. Her words made sense. They weren’t living. “It’s nothing like before.” He stated. “Most of that brain is dark.” He observed.

     “Dark, lifeless….dead.” Jenner added adjectives to describe the brain scan they were all watching. “The frontal lobes, the neocortex, the human part?  That doesn’t come back. The ‘you’ part.”  He explained. “Just a shell, occupied by mindless instinct.”

     Suddenly, a line shot through the brain and test subject nineteen was now still. A bullet had flown through their brain.

     “God!” Carol exclaimed in reaction. “What was that?” She asked Jenner, not understanding along with the rest of the group.

     “He shot his patient in the head.” Andrea stated as she remembered Amy, whom she, too, had to shoot in the head. “Didn’t you?”

     “Vi!” Jenner called, not answering Andrea’s question. “Power down the main screen and the work stations.” He ordered.

     “Powering down the main screen and work stations.” ‘Vi’ took the order and there was a surging sound as the screen switched off.

     “You have no idea what this is….” Electra pointed out to Jenner with a look of disbelief on her face. “Do you?” she demanded.

     “Well….it could be-”

     Microbial.” Electra ticked off a finger, interrupting Jenner as he began. “Viral, hereditic, fungal.” She ticked off all the possibilities off on the list and showed them on her finhers. “That….” She turned and pointed to the blank screen. “Narrows down nothing.” She stated with gritted teeth. “Not a damn thing.” She attacked Jenner a little out of her frustration.

     “You missed the wrath of God.” Jacqui told Electra whilst she breathed heavily causing Electra’s head to turn in Jacqui’s direction.

     “There is that.” Jenner said from his seat.

     “Somebody must know something. Somebody has to know something.” Electra snapped quickly. “Somebody. Somewhere.” She said reasonably.  

     “There are others…..” Thea spoke up. “Right?” she put her enquiry to nobody in particular. “Other facilities?” It was logical.

     “There may be some…..” Jenner agreed. “People like me.”

     “You don’t…..know?” Rick squinted at Jenner, moving closer to him. “How can you not know?” he sounded disgusted by the idea.

     “Everything went down: communications, directives, all of it.” He explained. “I’ve been in the dark for almost a month now.”

     “So it’s not just here?” Andrea questioned. “There’s nothing left anywhere?” she enquired. “Nothing?” she went on to ask. “That’s what you’re really saying, right?” she interrogated.

     “Jesus.” Jacqui exclaimed as Electra ran a hand through her hair pacing up and down, unknowing of how to react to something like that.

     “Man.” Daryl was pacing too with hands placed on his head. “I’m goin’ to get shit-faced drunk….again.” he stated.

     “Doctor Jenner,” Dale spoke up now. “I know this had been taxing for you and I hate to ask one more question…but…” Dale trailed off before turning and pointing to a digital clock. “That clock is counting down, that happens when it reaches zero?” he questioned.

     “The…..the basement generators…..they run out of fuel….”

     “And then?” Rick wished for him to continue but Jenner walked away. “Vi!” he yelled. “What happens when the power runs out?” he demanded.

     “When the power runs out, facility decontamination will occur.”

     “Okay….” Electra shouted above everyone muttering. “Shane, Rick, Glenn, T-Dog?” she asked for their attention and the four of them nodded. “You go locate those generators.” She told them, taking control of the situation. “Everyone else, just return to your rooms and stay calm. We’re going to figure this out.” She nodded, everyone stared at her. “Now!” she yelled at them causing them all to disperse. “Come on Stacie.” Electra took Stacie’s hand and returned back to their room.

     Electra plopped back down onto the sofa that Stacie had slept on last night and passed the girl Rory as she sat down beside her. Stacie looked to Electra for words of explanation or comfort or reassurance but she was not provided with any. The pair just sat there in silence until the lights shut off all of a sudden. Flooding the pair in silence causing Electra to close her eyes and take a deep breath.

     “Electra?????” Stacie’s voice was high and small causing Electra to open her eyes again and breath out in a sigh.

     “I’m here sweetheart.” Electra grabbed hold of Stacie’s little hand. “Come on, let’s go find out what’s going on.” She said, pulling her towards the doorway, poking her head out to see that everyone else along the corridor had done the same.

     “Why’s the air off?”

     “And the lights in our room?”

     “What’s goin’ on?” Daryl poked his head out of his room whilst Electra caught sight of Jenner walking down the corridor. “Why’d everything turn off?” he questioned before Jenner stole the bottle of liquor Daryl had in his hand.

     “Maybe you should prioritise.” Jenner advised Daryl causing everyone to stare at him as he took a swig out of the bottle.

     “There isn’t a priority?” Dale squinted at him from his doorway. “And what?” he questioned as Jenner said something no one could hear.

     “It’s not up to me: Zone five is shutting itself down.” Jenner continued down the corridor into the control room causing the group to trail after him.

     “Hey!” Daryl called but Jenner ignored him. “Hey!” he barked. “What the hells that mean?” he demanded, but gained no response, not even a turn of head. “Hey man! I’m talking to you!” he growled at Jenner. “What do you mean it’s shutting itself down? How can a building do anything?”

     “You’d be surprised.” Jenner stated as he began to walk down the stairs. Lori leaned over the barrier to see T-Dog, Glenn, Rick and Shane running back into the control room down below.

     “Rick?!” Lori searched for his help as everyone followed Jenner down the stairs to question him and re-join Rick, T, Glenn and Shane.  

     “Jenner.” Rick said sternly, walking up next to the man. “What’s happening?” he demanded as everyone followed him like lost sheep.

     “Oh God.” Electra called out, finally making the realisation causing everyone’s eyes to land on her as she looked forward blankly. Expressionlessly, she slid down next to a work station and hugged her knees, staring outwards. She was now as white as a sheet and it scared the hell out of everyone.

     “Ellie?” Shane came to her aid, crouching down beside her. “Ellie?” No response. “Ellie, what’s wrong?” Shane questioned her desperately.

     “She knows what’s happening.” Daryl was the one to make this realisation, staring at Electra wide eyed. “Tell us what’s happening.” He ordered as he stood right in front of her. When she continued to look forward, through his legs, Daryl grabbed her by the shoulder. “Tell us what’s happening!” he yelled at her whilst being pushed off of her by Shane who stood up right in front of Daryl, begging him to make another move so he could beat his arse.

     “The system is dropping all non-essential uses of power.” Jenner told them before Daryl could do anything. “It’s designed to keep the computers running till the last possible second....has to as we approach the half house mark.” Jenner glanced at the red numbers of the digital clock which read ’31:28’. “Right on schedule…” Jenner stopped walking and offered the bottle to Daryl who snatched it straight out of his hand. “It was the French.” Jenner said.

     “What?”

     “They were the last ones to hold out as far as I know.” He explained. “While out people were bolting out the doors and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in their labs till the end. They thought they were close to a solution.” Jenner continued.

     “What happened?” Jacqui asked.

     “Same thing that’s happening here.”  He stated. “A power rid, ran out of juice.” He elaborated. “The world runs on fossil fuels. I mean, how stupid is that?!” he questioned no one in particular.

     “Let me, uh,” Shane rose from Electra’s side and headed towards Jenner with his hand out. “Let me tell you something-” he growled.

     “The hell with this Shane,” Rick held Shane back. “I don’t even care.” He stated before turning back to Lori. “Lori, grab our things.” He told her. “Everybody get your stud, we’re getting out of here now!” Rick commanded in a raised voice.

     Beep, beep, beep.

     An alarm blared.

     “What’s that?” Shane questioned looking around at everyone as he offered his sister his hand and pulled her to her feet.

     “Thirty minutes to decontamination.”

     “What’s going on here, Doc?” Shane demanded, when Jenner did not answer him he turned to his sister who had a new found sense of hope. “Everybody. Y’all heard Rick! Grab your stuff!” he ordered. “Grab your stuff and let’s go! Go now” he urged them. Electra, along with everyone began to sprint to their rooms unbeknownst of Jenner’s actions as he tapped in a code. Suddenly, the doors started to close around the survivors so that they were boxed in the room.
 
     “Did he just lock us in?!” Glenn turned and questioned everyone before realising that the doors had all locked. “He just locked us in!” he yelled, his voice cracking in worry as Jenner took a seat down on his chair and switched on the recording device.

     “Within the thirty minute window, I am recording.” Jenner spoke to the camera as the group, yet again, broke out into terror.

    “Carl?”

     “Mom!”

     “Electra?” Stacie questioned before catching sight of Electra who was now sat on the floor yet again, hugging her knees. Sitting down beside her, Stacie squeezed her hand.

     “You son of a bitch!” Daryl yelled at Jenner as he turned away from the doors. Enraged, Daryl began to run for Jenner. “You locked us in here!”

     “Shane! Shane!” Rick shouted pointing at Daryl. Springing into action, Shane grabbed Daryl before he could completely push Jenner off of his chair and cause any harm to him.

     “No! No! No! No!” T-Dog yelled, pushing Daryl back along with Shane until Daryl had calmed down and gave up.

     “Jenner. Open that door now.”

     “There’s no point.” Jenner snapped at Rick. “Everything top side is locked down, the emergency exits are sealed.” He claimed.

     “Open the damn things!”

     “That’s not something I control.” Jenner shot back at Daryl. “The computers do.” He spat. “I told you: Once that front door closes it wouldn’t open again.” He reminded Rick, as he span to look at him. “You heard me say that.” Rick and everyone was stunned into silence. “It’s better this way.” Jenner claimed, in an attempt to comfort them all. Electra had sunken down to the work station right next to Jenner.

     “What is?” Rick questioned him. “What happens in twenty eight minutes?” Jenner ignored Rick and turned back to his computer. Turning to Shane, Rick nodded causing Shane to push Jenner’s chair around for him to give out an answer.  “What happens in twenty eight minutes?!”

     “You know!” Jenner yelled causing the frightened survivors to jump out of shock. “You know what this is!” he continued to yell as he shot up to his feet. “We’ve protected the public from very nasty stuff!” Jenner roared in Shane’s face, but Shane did not flinch. “Weaponised small pox!” he shouted turning away from Shane. “Ebola strains could wipe out half the country!” he roared at all of them. “Stuff you don’t want getting out ever!” The shouting completely went over Electra’s head as Stacie cocooned herself in her side whilst Jenner sat back down. “In the event of a catastrophic power failure….a terrorist attack for example.” Jenner calmed down. “H.I.T’s are deployed to prevent any organisms from getting out.”

     “H.I.T’s?”

     “Vi! Define!”

     “High-impulse thermobaric fuel-air explosive consists of a two-stage aerosol ignition which produces a blast wave of significantly greater power and duration than any other known explosive except nuclear. The vacuum-pressure effect ignites the oxygen between 5,000 and 6,000 degrees.”

     Everyone lost it and began to break down. Rick, Lori and Carl clung onto each other as Shane glanced at Electra who was beginning to sob uncontrollably. A sob that unintentionally begged for him to save her where she had given up.

     “Set’s fire to the air.” Jenner stated softly. “No pain.” He assured them all. “An end to sorrow, grief, regret.” He promised.

     “Open that damn door!” Daryl roared at him, throwing the glass bottle at the door out of rage. He wasn’t prepared to die.

     “Out of my way!” Shane yelled himself, he had torn his eyes away from Electra and had them set on the axe which he grabbed from the wall and slammed it into the door with all his might. T-Dog tore another axe from the door and passed it to Daryl who joined in.

     “Should have left, I would have been left alone. It would have been so much easier.”

     “Easier for who?” Lori growled at him, grabbing onto Carl tightly.

     “All of you. You know what’s out there. A short brutal life and agonising death.” He reminded them. “Y-y-your sister, what’s her name?” he looked to Andrea.

     “Amy.”

     “Amy.” He said clearly, looking into Andrea’s eyes. “We know what this does, you’ve seen it.” He spat before whirling around to turn to Rick. “Is that what you really want for your wife and child?” he questioned him, hoping that he would wake up and smell the coffee.

     “I don’t want this!”

     “I.” Shane breathed heavily, having given up on the door and re-joined the group around the centre monitor once again. “Can’t make a dent.” He breathed.

     “Those doors are designed to reside a rocket launcher.” Jenner informed him, which Daryl overheard who still hadn’t given up. Slowly, he turned.

     “Well your head aint!” Daryl roared, running for Jenner yet again. This time hoping to do some damage, aiming the axe at Jenner’s head.

     “Daryl!” Rick yelled pushing Daryl back once more, but this time it was more than a one man job. T-Dog and Glenn along with some others managed to shove him backwards and remove the axe out of the hand of the crazed man.  “Back up!”

     “You do want this.” Jenner disagreed with Rick. “Last night, you said….you said you knew it was just a matter of time before everybody you loved was dead.” Jenner reminded him causing Rick to look around the room to see all the groups reactions. These words did not pass over Electra’s head but she was still motionless apart from the tears running from her eyes, despite the fact that she was being held by her brother.

     “What? You really said that?” Shane questioned Rick, hoping that he would tell everyone that Jenner was lying…but he didn’t. “All you’ve been is talk?” Shane called Rick out.

     “I had to keep hope alive, didn’t I?”

     “There is not hope, there never was.” Jenner denied.
 
     “There is hope.” Rick rebuked him. “Maybe it might not be you, maybe it might not be here….but somebody, somewhere.” Rick preached.

     “What part of everything is gone do you not understand?” Andrea asked him in an aggressive tone, shocking everyone.

     “Listen to your friend.” Jenner advised everyone, but mostly Rick. “She gets it.” He nodded. “This is what takes us down.” He preached his side. “This is our extinction event.” He voiced.

     “This isn’t right!” Electra yelled at Jenner, her voice raw and cracking. “You can’t just….you can’t just keep us here!” she barked, fierce tears running down her face, burning at her eyes.

     “One tiny moment,” Jenner assured her, as if that was what she was worried about. “A millisecond,” he reasoned with her, looking into her teary mismatched eyes. “No pain.”

     “I know!” Electra roared at him, beginning to sob now. “The kids don’t deserve to die like this! These people don’t deserve to die like this! I don’t deserve to die like this!” Electra roared causing an enraged Shane to shoot up from her side and walk off.

     “Wouldn’t it be kinder?” Jenner attempted to convince Electra that this was her fate, and not a bad one. “More compassionate to just hold your loved one and just wait until the clock ticks down?” he reasoned with her.

     “You have no right to choose that for us!” Electra roared in his face, Rick noticing that she was getting worked up opened his mouth but a cock of a gun caused him to spin around instead. Shane held his automatic and it was aimed for Jenner.

     “Get out of my way Rick!” Shane commanded as Rick was pushing him back. “Get out of my way!” Shane shoved Rick backwards and pointed his automatic right in Jenner’s defeated and unaffected face. “Open that door…or I’m a blow your damn head off!” he stated. “Do ya hear me?!” he yelled at Jenner, trying to get it through his thick skull.

     “SHANE!” Electra shouted at him from her spot on the floor, she tried to stand up but found herself unable too. “SHANE DON’T!” she screamed.

     “Brother, brother?” Rick stood beside Shane, trying to get his attention. “This is not the way you do this, then we’ll never get out of here.” He tried to reason with him.

     “SHANE!”

     “Shane.” Lori spoke up from her spot. “You listen to him.” She commanded. “If not him, you listen to her.” She jerked her thumb in Electra’s direction.

     “He dies, we all die.”

     “Please.” Electra’s voice cracked, she had stretched out her arm, waiting for him to take her hand and sit down beside her and do what Jenner had suggested. Looking in her eyes, Shane saw the fear and this angered him even further.

     Out of rage, frustration and pure fear, the three most powerful emotions known to man, Shane screamed at the top of his throat. Rick urged him to stop but he turned to the CDC’s computers and began to shoot at it in rage. The bullets tear away at the work station and rip the wires into shreds as everyone shouts and crouches down. But Electra was still screaming for her brother to stop. Managing to get the automatic in his hands, Rick hit Shane with it causing him to go to the floor. To ensure he did not shoot up again, Rick stood over Shane with the automatic, ready to hit him with it again.

     “You done now?!” Rick questioned him in a raised voice, enraged himself at Shane’s behaviour and it’s effect on Electra who was just sobbing. “You done?!” he yelled.

     “Yes.” Rick walked over Shane allowing the man to sit up and shuffle over to his sister with open arms. Willingly, Electra shuffled into his arms and cried into his chest whilst he pretended to be strong for her and rubbed her back soothingly, sniffing in the scent of her soft-to-the-touch waves. He could feel her heart jumping out of her chest and the tears formed in his own eyes, but she was crying enough for the both of them at the moment.

     “I think your lying.”

     “What?”

     “You’re lying.” Rick said to Jenner, continuing his theory causing Electra to back out of the hug and watch him as she held onto Shane’s side. “About no hope.” He elaborated. “If that were true, you would have bolted with the rest and taken the easy way out.” He stated. “You didn’t. You chose the hard path. Why?”

     “It doesn’t matter.”

     “It doesn’t matter?” Rick nearly chuckled despite of the situation, he now had a hand on the chair that Jenner was sitting on and was speaking to him literally face to face. “It always matters.” He told him. “You stayed when others ran: Why?”

     “Not because I wanted too!” Jenner vowed as he shot up out of his seat once more, Electra braced herself for more shouting. “I made a promise.” Jenner claimed in a whisper causing Electra to breath out.

     “To who?”

     “To her.” Electra spoke up causing Shane to look at her with wide eyes. “Test subject nineteen, to his wife- Candice Jenner.” She stated causing even Jenner to look at her out of shock of how she knew this information. “The woman who wanted me to come and work here, she was the reason I flew out to Georgia from England.” She explained, finally putting the pieces together.

     “She begged me to keep on going for as long as I could and how could I say no?” he asked Rick. “She was dying.” He said. “It should have been me on that table. It wouldn’t have mattered to anybody.” Jenner pointed at himself, on the verge of tears. “She was a loss to the world!” he raised his voice. “Hell! She ran this place. I just worked here.” He informed them all. “In our field she was an Einstein, me? I’m just Edwin Jenner. She could have done something about this, not me…..her.” he told them grimly.

     “Your wife didn’t have a choice.” Rick told him, reminding him. “You do.” He stated. “That’s all we want: A choice, a chance.” Rick made his case. “Let us keep trying for as long as we can.” Rick pleaded and Jenner headed over to his computer once more.

     “I told you: Top sides locked down.” He reminded Rick, expressionlessly. “I can’t open those.” Jenner said causing everyone to give a sigh of no hope. Tapping in a number to the keypad, one of the doors opened as a result causing everyone to perk up.

     “Come on!”

     “Let’s get out of here!”

     “Let’s go!”

     Everybody began to dart towards the newly opened door and rushed on to the other side, so Jenner could not change his mind and lock them in again.

     “There’s your chance.” Jenner pointed out to the motionless Rick. “Take it.” He urged him but Rick still stood there.

     “I’m grateful.” Rick told Jenner.

     “The day will come when you won’t be.” Jenner counters and takes Rick’s hand to shake it but he brings him in to whisper something in his ear instead.

     “We’ve got four minutes left- come on!” Glenn shouted at Rick, holding onto Carl who was stood in front of him waiting for his father.       

     Jenner released Rick and he started for the door but the group stopped yet again when T-Dog tried to drag Jacqui along with us causing everyone to freeze up when she wouldn’t budge.

     “No.” Jacqui shrugged off T-Dog. “I’m staying.” She vowed, squirming out of his grip. “I’m staying sweetie.” She told T-Dog.

     “But that’s insane.”

     “No.” Jacqui shook her head. “It’s completely sane- for the first time in a long time.” She had bought Jenner’s logic. “I’m not ending up like Jim or Amy.” She voiced. “There’s no time to argue and no point, not if y’all want to get out.” Her eyes travelled amongst the rest of the group and found Electra’s. “Get out.” She told her. “Get out!” she shouted at them all.

     “Come on. Come on. Come on.” Rick said to them all as Electra stood motionless. “Let’s go!” he grabbed her hand and began to pull her along to the entrance before she could even object.

     When they reached the front doors we were all stopped when T-Dog attempted to open the doors and force them open but failed, realising Jenner had told the truth. They were locked. Helplessly, Electra joined in on banging into the door and on the windows.

     “Ellie get down!” Shane yelled cocking his gun causing everyone to follow his orders and back away from the window. To no avail, he shoots the automatic at the glass.

     “Rick!” Carol got his attention. “I think I have something that might help.” She stated, fumbling in her purse for something.

     “I don’t think a nail files gonna do it.” Shane cracks at her cruelly out of frustration, causing Electra to scowl at him and shove him. Silently scorning him.

     “Your first morning at camp,” Carol ignores Shane to Electra’s delight. “When I washed your uniform? I found this in your pocket.” She pulled out the hand grenade that Rick had found back in the tank out of her bag causing Electra to grin.

     “Everyone!” Rick yelled as he took the grenade out of Carol’s hands. “Take cover! Get back! Now!” he roared at them. Everyone took cover on the other side of the lobby and fell down to the floor.

     Nervously, Rick detonated the grenade and ran back for cover for himself, successfully blasting out one of the windows with mere minutes to spare.

     “COME ON!” Electra yelled at the top of her lungs, feeling drunk off of the happiness. “LET’S GO! LET’S GO!” she urged as she began to run for the window. The survivors ran to the vehicles, shooting walkers with no mercy as they go. They pile into their cars, Daryl into the Ford, Rick, Lori, Carl, Glenn and Electra into the R.V, Shane into the jeep, Thea and Stacie into the Dodge Ram Wagon, T-Dog, Carol and Sophia into the Jeep Cheroke with no time to argue or decide who went where. Just time to jump into the nearest vehicle. They all got ready to drive off when, from inside the R.V, Lori sees Dale and Andrea emerge from the building.

     The CDC erupted into a fiery explosion and Dale and Andrea take cover behind one of the military blockades. Andrea appears to be numb, which she is, but followed easily as Glenn desperately beckoned them to the R.V.

     Shaken, Rick started the engine and the R.V drives away from the smouldering rubble, thick black smoke rising up behind them.