Red ~ TWD (Daryl Dixon)

The Key To A Future

"He killed them all, all of them except Jadis."

Rick's report on the Garbage Pail Kids was gruesome, another community wiped out of existence by The Saviors. While awful, I was downright pissed Rick had gone there in the first place. He said it was for "closure", but the look on Carl and Deadpool's face told an entirely different story. If I wasn't so happy they'd made it to Hilltop unscathed I'd kick his ass.

"Where's Jadis now?" Glenn asked.

Better question, who gives a fuck?

Deadpool crossed her arms, "Still there."

"Oh, well, uh." Glenn was a bleeding heart and I loved him for it, most days. Today wasn't most days. Resident Evil deserved what was coming to her and then some. That bitch had betrayed us not once, but twice, so screw her.

"Negan's coming," Maggie interjected, eyes calculating, "We need a plan."

Manpower was our biggest issue. The Kingdom was all but gone, only a handful of survivors taking refuge at Hilltop. Hilltop itself only had a few fighters, the rest dead weight that would do more harm than good if armed during the fight. I wasn't sure how many people made it out of Alexandria, but it wasn't near enough to take on The Saviors.

Resting my elbows on my knees I cradled my head in my hands, thinking through our limited options.

We couldn't run with this many people, not quickly or with any stealth. If we tried The Saviors would track us down within a few days and slaughter us. Even if we somehow managed to avoid them we had no destination in mind, and most of these people had never lived on the road. Out there with no protection, no food, and the constant threat of death they'd fold like a cheap suit.

Staying put was our best option, but this place was far from a defensive stronghold. Yes, it had walls and infrastructure, but we didn't have the people or the weapons to cover the vast expanse of land. Even if we could The Saviors could simply surround us and wait until we starved to death or batter us with their superior firepower until our walls crumbled.

"We need to set up lookouts," Rick stated, "If we spread out we can cover more area. If anyone spots The Saviors coming they use the car horn or air horn, set of a string of warnings until it gets back here."

"What do we do when they get here? We're no match for them, and they know it. Negan won't hold back this time. He'll attack with everything he's got," Beth chimed in, sitting next to her sister.

Everyone started talking at once, the loud murmur of voices like a persistent buzzing in the back of my mind. Something Beth said struck a chord. Negan was beyond pissed. He wanted retribution, and he wanted it now. The quicker things returned to "normal" the quicker he could return to his cushy life.

"He'll attack with everything he's got," I whispered to myself.

Simon had murdered the Garbage Pail Kids. Whether on Negan's order or simply to fulfill his own sadistic desires he'd still killed them. The Saviors were desperate to tip the scales in their favor, return to the status-quo. Their single-minded focus made them blind to the possible ramifications.

I shot to my feet, the chair scraping across the hardwood floor. "He'll attack with everything he's got." The conversation ground to a halt, all eyes on me. "He'll attack with everything he's got."

"You said that already...twice."

Ignoring Tara I paced the small office space that once belonged to Gregory. Biting my lip my thoughts raced, weighing risk versus reward. It was risky, but it could work. The only advantage we had was Hilltop, the walls, our protection, and Negan knew it. He'd expect us to stay hunkered down.