"Luna, take these to the RV." Rick said. Luna nodded, picking up the bag full of ammo and starting outside. She could hear Carl's heavy footsteps behind her, and she already knew what he was about to say.
"You're not going." He said as she reached the RV. "You're staying here to help protect this place, protect Judy."
"And you're insane if you think I'm letting you walk out those gates without me." She said, shoving the bag onto the rv before turning around. "Don't give me that look, don't you dare."
"Luna-"
"No, Carl." She said firmly, stepping closer and putting her hand on his chest. "We have talked about this before. We are in this together."
"I'm not letting you die out there." He argued.
"And I'm not letting you die out there!" She fired back. "You die, I die asshole. So either we're both going, or neither. Take your pick." Carl stared down at her, sighing.
"If I tell you to run-"
"I'm not going anywhere without you." Her voice was firm, though she moved closer and wrapped her arms over his shoulders. "We fight together, we survive together, and we die together."
—————
Luna's hand rested over Carl's which was in it's usual spot on her knee. The drive was already feeling agonizingly long, and they hadn't even been on the road for more than a few hours. Rick was in the back with Maggie, so Abraham and Sasha were up front.
"What the bitch?" Abraham's voice drew everyone's attention, the RV slowing.
"What?" Rick asked, coming out from the back. Luna and Carl both stood up, and Luna could see the road block. Three cars in the road, with men-Saviors, by the look of them-standing in front of the cars, and a bloody man laying on the ground in front of the Saviors.
"Enemy close." Abraham said as they came to a stop in the road. "We doin' this?"
"No." Rick said after watching the Saviors in the road for a moment. Abraham nodded, turning off the RV. Everyone grabbed their guns, and followed Rick out into the road, Carl grabbing Luna's hand as they stepped outside. The Saviors stared them down as they walked in front of the RV.
"He's someone who was with a whole lot of someone's who didn't listen." One of the Saviors spoke.
"We can make a deal." Rick said. "Right here, right now.
"That's right, we can." The same Savior spoke. "Give us all your stuff. We'll probably have to kill one of you. That's just the way it is, but then we can start moving forward on business. All you have to do is listen."
"Yeah...that deal's not gonna work for us." Rick said. "Fact is, I was about to ask for all of your stuff, only I'm thinking I don't have to kill any of you. Any more of you." One of the other Saviors started shaking a spray paint can he had in his hands, stepping forward to the man lying on the ground and spraying a large 'X' on his chest.
"Sorry, my deal is the only deal." The main Savior spoke again. "We don't negotiate." Rick nodded, waving his hand over his shoulder.
"Me and my people are leaving." Rick said, taking a few steps back as everyone slowly moved to the RV, keeping eyes on the Saviors.
"Okay, friend." The main Savior spoke, waving his hand. "Plenty of ways to get to where you're going." Everyone climbed back inside the RV, except Rick.
"You wanna make today your last day on Earth?" He asked, turning back towards the Saviors.
"No." The main Savior said, looking up at the sky before back at Rick. "But that is a good thing to bring up. Think about it. What if it's the last day on Earth for you? For someone you love? What if that's true? Maybe you should be extra nice to those people in that RV, cause you never know..." He trailed off, snapping his fingers loudly. "Just like that. Be kind to each other. Like you said...like it was your last day on Earth."
"You do the same." Rick said before finally climbing into the RV. Luna and Carl had resumed their position on the couch by the time Abraham turned the RV back on and started to back up.
—————
They'd taken a break to figure out a new route, and were now back on the road. Carl had gone into the back with Aaron and Maggie, leaving Luna to sit on the couch and pick at her nails alone. Eventually he came forward again, moving her legs out of the way so he could sit on the couch. She scooted closer, leaning her head on his shoulder as he wrapped and arm around her. Absentmindedly, she took his hand and started swirling little patterns into his palm with the tips of her fingers, her eyes fixed to a random point on the ground. She didn't know how long they'd stayed like that, only coming out of her daze when she felt the RV slowing again.
"Bitch nuts." Abraham sighed from the drivers seat. Luna looked up, seeing another mass of Saviors blocking the road. The RV came to a stop and Rick moved to the front, leaning on the seats as he looked ahead at the Saviors.
"We makin' our stand?" Sasha asked. Carl got up, moving to stand behind his dad.
"Yeah, we end it." He spoke.
"No...not now." Rick said after a few moments. "They've been waiting, they're ready. With one of us behind the wheel, that's six on 16. We're gonna play it our way, how we want it. Right?" He looked back at Carl.
"Right." Carl nodded lightly.
"Alright, go slow." Rick told Abraham, who nodded and put the RV in reverse.
—————
Carl's leg was bouncing nervously, and he had both of his hands wrapped around both of Luna's. She could feel the nerves coming off him, even if he didn't want to say it. Though, she couldn't blame him, and she knew they all generally felt the same. Luna wasn't paying attention as Rick, Sasha and Abraham talked, but she perked up when Abraham hit the breaks again. She stood after Carl did, expecting to see more Saviors, but she couldn't help but feel shocked by what she did see.
"Can't go through it." Rick said. "Can't risk the RV. You stay behind the wheel, just in case. We'll clear it." Luna had a hard time taking her eyes off the scene in front of her as she grabbed her rifle and followed Carl off the RV. There was a line of walkers blocking the road, a chain tied around-and even through some of-them to keep them in place.
"Putting together a red rover like that takes people." Eugene commented. "A lot of them."
"Come on, let's do this." Rick said, putting his rifle on his back.
"Dad..." Carl said, staying back.
"That's Michonne's." Aaron nodded to one walker, which was wearing Michonne's shirt, vest, and even had a few of Michonne's dreads stuck to the side of it's head.
"That's Daryl's." Sasha pointed out another walker who was wearing Daryl's jacket. Rick looked at the walkers for a moment before reaching forward, grabbing Michonne's dreads. He looked at them before raising his machete, getting ready to swing when gunfire started to ring out around them.
"Get back to the RV, now!" Rick yelled over the shots. Luna was whipping around, her rifle pointed ahead of her as she moved towards the RV, though she couldn't see anyone in the treeline. Finally she locked onto one, so she pulled the trigger a few times, seeing them fly backwards. Rick got the road cleared, and everyone started running back towards the RV. They all piled on, and Abraham floored it.
—————
"What's that sound?" Sasha asked, referring to the squeaking.
"Undercarriage could've caught a bullet." Eugene said. "Or could be transmission. It could be nothing."
"They were firing at our feet." Rick said. "They blocked the road, but they weren't trying to stop us. They want us in this direction."
"Barton Road takes us North, but they gotta know we wanna go North." Sasha said, looking up from the map.
"Meadows." Eugene pointed out. "Could take us East a piece, but we can get back on track on Mayhew."
"We're down to a third of a tank." Sasha stated. "We can refill at the next stop, but no refills after that."
"Alright." Rick nodded. Aaron came out from the back, worry painted across his face.
"She's burning up." He said, glancing back and forth from Maggie to Rick.
"Rick." Abraham said loudly after a few moments, the RV starting to slow once again. Luna looked up, her heart dropping when she saw what was ahead of them. What had to be thirty or more Saviors, all standing on cars or in the road, waiting. The RV came to a stop quickly.
"Go back." Rick said.
"Where?" Abraham asked.
—————
Logs, piled higher than the RV, and tracks in front of them from some kind of heavy machinery. They were still on the path the Saviors wanted them to be on.
"These tracks..." Eugene started. "They would indicate that they not only have people, but some big-ass toys and capabilities."
"What it indicates is we are neck-deep up shit creek with our mouths wide open." Abraham said. Before Rick could say anything, the sound of someone screaming and a loud chain clanging made them all whip around. The man from earlier, with the large 'X' sprayed on his chest, was now hanging from the bridge by the neck, his hands clutching at the chain as he struggled. Aaron raised his rifle, aiming up.
"Don't." Abraham warned.
"I can try and break the chain." Aaron said.
"It won't work." Abraham said.
"I can try!" Aaron argued back.
"It won't work." Rick asserted. "And we need the bullets." Aaron looked at Rick before lowering his rifle. The group stood there watching, Luna averting her eyes so she wouldn't have to see. The only sound around them, though, was the sound of the man chocking to death, so not looking didn't do much. Finally, the sound stopped, and the group all stood there, no one speaking or moving. A crack behind them made Luna turn around, and her light gasp made everyone else turn. The large wood pile was on fire, the blaze only growing by the second.
"You're treatin' your people good, right?" The Savior from earlier in the day called from the other side of the pile. "Like it was your last day on Earth? Or maybe on of theirs? You better go. It's gonna get hot. You go get where you're going."
"Go." Rick said, though no one moved. "Go!" Everyone turned, jogging back to the RV and climbing in quickly. Abraham quickly started the engine and began backing up.
—————
It was nearing dark, when they'd finally stopped, Abraham satisfied that they were far enough away to stop and regroup.
"So what's the play?" Abraham asked as he sat down at the table.
"She needs a doctor." Rick said, coming out of the back where Maggie was.
"There are two more routes North from here." Sasha said, her fingers trailing across the map.
"They're probably waiting for us right now." Aaron stated.
"So they're ahead of us, probably behind us." Eugene started. "But they're not waiting on us, per se, they're waiting on this rust bucket. And they don't know the moment-to-moment occupancy of said rust bucket. And the sun sets soon." Eugene looked at Abraham, who nodded along. Abraham then looked up at Rick, who considered for a moment before nodding as well.
—————
Luna shook her hands out in front of her, trying and failing to expel her nerves. Eugene was going to stay behind alone and drive to the Saviors while the rest of them would make a break through the woods, carrying Maggie on a makeshift stretcher. It was fully dark by the time they all stepped outside the RV, Rick, Aaron, Sasha and Abraham were carrying Maggie while Luna and Carl would be on either side, taking care of any walkers they ran into. As they were moving Maggie out of the back, Luna and Carl were already waiting outside.
"We can do this." He said lightly, his hands resting on the sides of her face. Her hands were wrapped around his wrists, and they were both shaking lightly. "We can do this."
"And we will." She nodded. He pulled her in for a kiss, leaning his forehead against hers when they pulled away. "I love you."
"I love you, too." They pulled away as the others came out, and soon they were off into the woods. The thick tree cover didn't allow for much light, but they were managing fine enough. As they moved along, there was a walker on Carl's side so he jogged forward to kill it before falling back with the group. "I heard what you told her, when we were leaving." Carl spoke to Rick. "We can do anything, cause we'll do anything we need to do. We have, and we will. What happened to Denise, I'm not gonna let anybody die like that again."
"Son..." Rick started.
"What?" Carl looked over at Rick. Before Rick could speak, they heard a loud whistle come from their right side. They all turned, the whistles beginning to echo from around them. Luna whipped around, and she was just able to make out a few figures moving in the trees. They were shadowed, but it was obvious they were humans and not walkers.
"Go! Go!" Rick said, nodding towards the only direction the whistling wasn't coming from. Everyone took off running, moving as fast as they could. The whistles were getting louder and louder as they ran on, figures moving in their periphery. Finally they came out into a clearing, and bright lights switching on made them all stop. The whistling was so loud now that it was overwhelming, echos screaming in the forest around them as Saviors closed in from all sides. Motorcycles and cars lined the sides of the clearing where they hadn't run in from, their lights casting brightly onto the group. Carl grabbed Luna's hand, pulling her flush to his side as they all looked around, realizing there was no way out. At the other end of the clearing sat the RV, with a beaten up Eugene on his knees in front of it. Suddenly the whistling cut off, and a Savior stepped forward near Eugene.
"Good." It was the Savior from earlier in the day, the one that had also been at the wood pile. "You made it. Welcome to where you're going." He stepped out in front of them, his arms outstretched with a smile on his face. "We'll take your weapons." He reached back, pulling out a pistol and pointing it towards Luna and Carl. Carl pushed Luna behind him quickly. "Now."
"We can talk about-" Rick started.
"We're done talking." The Savior said. "Time to listen." A few Saviors came forward, taking their guns and knives. The main Savior came towards Carl. Luna and Carl were back to back now, and Luna couldn't help but recoil back against him as one of the Saviors took her knife from her, his hand brushing her leg. They were all quickly stripped of their guns, the Saviors that took them backing away. The main Savior pulled Carl's gun from it's holster, inspecting it.
"That's yours, right?" He asked, holding up the gun. He leaned down, leveling his eyeline with Carl. "Yeah, it's yours." He flicked the brim of Carl's hat, holding eye contact for a few more seconds before straightening up. "Okay. Let's get her down and get you all on your knees. Lots to cover." A few Saviors came forward, coming towards Maggie.
"Hold up." Abraham said. "We got it."
"Sure, sure." The main Savior waved his hand, then turning his attention back to Luna and Carl. Luna had now moved to Carl's side, her arms wrapped around one of his and their hands clutched tightly together. "Ah, ah, ah." He said, stepping over. Again, Carl instinctively moved in front of Luna, making the Savior chuckle. "Your girl, right? I mean, you sure as shit don't look related so...yeah, must be your girl." He chuckled. "Cute, gotta admit it. Warms my heart but uh...there are rules to this shit. And one of those rules is no touching during the line up, huh? So uh...disconnect." Luna and Carl shared a look, Carl nodding at her before she finally let go. They were still shoulder to shoulder though, so the Savior sighed and walked over, putting his hands on Luna's shoulders and moving her over.
"Hey, don't touch her!" Carl snapped, and the Savior laughed, taking out his gun and pressing it against Luna's chest.
"You wanna keep talking back?" He asked. Carl didn't say anything, he just glared at the Savior who laughed again. "That's what I thought." He waited another moment before putting his gun away and stepping back. Luna and Carl shared another look, Luna unable to help the tears pooling in her eyes, before she turned her attention to Maggie. Abraham and Rick had helped her out of her makeshift bed, and were now helping her kneel down. Rick stood back up and the group moved in closer, Eugene being grabbed and moved over to them before being forced back on his knees. Rick looked at Eugene before back the Savior, who'd now stepped up to Rick.
"Gonna need you on your knees." He said. Rick looked at him for a minute, before around at the group, before finally kneeling down. Everyone else followed suit, slowly sinking down to their knees in the gravel. Luna was between Eugene and Carl, though she couldn't help but keep her eyes on Maggie at the other end of the line. "Dwight!" The Savior called.
"Yeah." Another Savior said, stepping forward from the crowd. Luna noticed right away that he had Daryl's crossbow and vest.
"Chop-chop." The main survivor said. Dwight nodded, walking over to a van which two other Saviors pulled the back doors of open.
"Come on." Dwight said. "You got people to meet." Dwight reached in, pulling out a bloody Daryl from the back of the van. Michonne, Rosita and Glenn were all also pulled out and forced onto their knees at the other end of the line. Glenn was last, falling onto his hands and knees. When he looked up, his eyes fixed on Maggie.
"Maggie?" He said lightly, slowly moving forward. Dwight grabbed him, pushing him down before pulling him back in line.
"On your knees!" Dwight ordered. Glenn shook him off, already beginning to cry as he looked at Maggie.
"Alright!" The main Savior called, standing in front of the group. He started walking backwards towards the RV. "We've got a full boat. Let's meet the man." He knocked on the RV door before moving away, falling in line with the rest of the Saviors. As he passed Carl, he tossed the gun he'd taken from him onto the ground in front of Carl. For a moment, it was silent, and the the RV door swung open.