The Woman at The End of The World. (Daryl Dixon)

fifty.

"You're wrong. When people have the chance to do the right thing, they usually step up. I mean, people just --" Tara voices.

"L-Let me stop you before you break into song, okay? And, by the way, who would train all this cannon fodder?"

"I will." Sasha offers.

Rosita smirks, "give me a week."

Kelly laughs, "give me a day and they will be just like Veronica." Grinning, clearly amused with using Gregory's name for me. "Trust me, she's a fucking weapon with her hands."

"Rhetorical, okay?" Gregory bellows, "I don't want to know. I never want to hear another word about any of it, ever. "

"Would we be better off without the Saviors, yes or no?" Rick cocks his head, glaring at the older man.

"Yeah. Sure. Okay."

"So, what will you do to fix the problem?" Michonne asks.

"I didn't say we had a problem. You did. And what happens outside of my purview is outside of my purview."

Daryl scoffs, "what the hell, man? You're either with us or ya ain't. You're sittin' over there talkin' out of both sides of your mouth."

Not wanting to hear any more of the bullshit pouring out of his mouth, I come to a resolve before I hand him his ass. "I'm done with this baby back fuckin' bitch. He doesn't deserve to lead these people." I wave my hand dismissively, stalking out angrily.

"She's not welcome here at Hilltop." I hear Gregory whine before I slam the door to the office behind me. The loud thud causes Enid's neck to snap in my direction. Fuming, I ignore her. I don't wait for everyone in the lobby, instead, I walk out of the door, finding several people milling outside of the Barrington house. My boots clacking every step of the way.

"Hey, you're Vanessa, right?" A male question. I nod, crossing my arms, "Jesus mentioned that you can fight. Can you teach us? We owe you guys, and want to help you fight."

I cock my head, feeling pride swell in my chest, "I can, but you'd be better off with the man who taught me. Because Daryl got free and is here, Negan will be searching for me and him. I'm already in his crosshairs. So, I need to return to Alexandria to protect him, so he can be here to help me raise our child." I hick my thumb towards the office, "Kelly's in there. I'll talk to him and get him to stay and train you." My eyes find everyone, "but he already offered to help, along with Sasha and Rosita. You all will be in good hands. But you all need to know, not all of us will walk away from this." I run a nervous hand through my hair, deciding to be honest, "there will be loss on both sides. Some of you will die. I could die. But we could also die walking outside that gate from a walker. You can't fear that or go in halfcocked. You cannot be afraid to take another life. In this world, it's them or us. There is no black and white, right or wrong. The saviors took so much from both of us. We need to fight-" The door swings open behind me; I glance over my shoulder seeing the calvary has decided to join me. I smile, knowing we might be getting exactly what we came for. I return my attention to the people of Hilltop, "we need to fight for our children, each other, and everyone else under this man's thumb. We need to avenge every person the Saviors killed. We need to avenge ourselves. If we fight side by side, we will become so much more than just trade partners. We will be fighting alongside family.  It's time to liberate ourselves from the boogeyman in a leather jacket with a fucked-up obsession with a bat." I take a step to position myself in the middle spreading my arms, "you cannot be just farmers. Not in this world. You've been held at a disadvantage and there's two men to blame for that - Gregory and Negan. Once upon a time, I was one of you. Though, I wasn't a farmer. I was weak and scared until I got thrown into this world. I was alone for two months before meeting Rick and Daryl." I gesture to the men, " soon, I became the woman that stands here before you. This world isn't nice to soft people. It's time to train and find the warrior inside every single one of you. Maggie, Rick, Daryl and most of the people standing here with me have faced down a war or two. I will be honest, in a war, battles will be lost, but that will not mean we lost the war. Negan will probably retaliate, but he will not win. Not against us. Negan is just another big bad with a God complex and I've met my fair share since the dead started walking. We've won before, and we will win, again."