philophobia → the walking dead ³

twnety-one.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE,
the start of the great big,
scary new word.

The group returned to Alexandria. The people were informed to meet in the church after an hour passed.

That hour passed.

"And we can work with the Hilltop. Maggie hammered out a deal. We get food- eggs, butter, fresh vegetables. But they're not just giving it away. These Saviors, they almost killed Sasha, Daryl, and Abraham on the road. Now, sooner or later they would've found us, just like those Wolves did, just like Jesus did. They woulda killed someone or some of us. And then they would try to own us. And we would try to stop them. But by then, in that kind of fight, low on food, we could lose. This is the only way to be sure, as sure as we can get, that we win. And we have to win. We do this for the Hilltop, it's how we keep this place. It's how we feed this place. This needs to be a group decision. If anybody objects here's your chance to say your piece." Rick stated.

Everyone turned when they heard someone stand. Aiden looked and saw that it was Morgan who stood. "You're sure we can do it? We can beat 'em?"

"What this group has done, what we've learned,  what we've become, all of us- yes, I'm sure." Rick replied.

"Then all we have to do is just tell them that." Morgan said and Aiden furrowed her eyebrows.

"Well, they don't compromise." Rick said to him.

"This isn't a compromise. It's a choice you give them. It's a way out, for them and for us." Morgan spoke.

"We try and talk to the Saviors, we give up our advantage, our safety. No, we have to come for them before they come for us. We can't leave them alive." Rick tried to tell the man.

"Where there's life, there's possibility."

The man just wasn't listening.

"Of them hitting us." Rick said loudly and firmly.

"We're not trapped in this. None of you are trapped in this." Morgan said.

"Morgan... they always come back." Rick said.

"Come back when they're dead, too."

"Yeah, we'll stop them. We have before." Rick responded.

"I'm not talking about the walkers." Morgan said. Aiden sighed and turned back around in her seat and played with her fingers. He's not wrong, is he? A voice whispered in her head. It was only Shane, not Dalton.

"Morgan wants to talk to them first. I think that would be a mistake, but it's not up to me. I'll talk to the people still at home. I'll discuss it with the people on gauged now, too, but who else wants to approach the Saviors, talk to them first?" Rick asked the church.

Aaron stood, "what happened here, we won't let that happen again. I won't." The man said and nodded at Rick before sitting back down.

"Looks like it's settled. We know exactly what this is. We don't shy from it, we live. We kill them all. We don't all have to kill. But if people are gonna stay here... they do have to accept it." Rick said and walked out of the church.