Previously on Among the Ruined...

A tense moment passed between the two groups. It was silent, everyone waiting on Abram to make a call. However, before he could say anything, Jace spoke up, asking, "Have I met you before?" He was looking at Samantha, squinting at her features. Tina gave him an annoyed look before giving the girl a closer look herself. She did look a little familiar, in fact--

"Are you Sam?" Caleb asked, confirming Tina's thoughts. The girl looked enough like Scarlett to be related to her, and that Scarlett had been looking for possibly meant that this was the one. "And the girl you're all looking for... is her name Scarlett?" Caleb added, connecting the dots further.

---

They were resting for the night...Tomorrow they would venture out and do something great. Soon indeed. They were hot on the tail. Soon they would find them and take Emma back. Well...Rescue.

Danny entering in cause Rob to put his feet on the ground. Danny rushing in never meant a good thing. Especially since as soon as he started to speak a explosion rang in his ears. And the building jumped like a frightened cat. Causing Rob to wack his head off the wall. Though the wall did make sure that he certainly kept his balance for the next explosion.

"Shit, Come on everyone!"

---

A deep bang and rumble shook the building, causing Danny to almost fall to his feet. A second occurred soon after, sending Shannon beside him falling to her knees. Before Danny could even understand what was happening, he realized he smelled smoke. "Fuck! Everyone out! We have to evacuate the building!"

---

Scarlett asked him to lower his head, so he did so obediently. He felt a flush rise up from his, heating his face and turning it red. Maybe Scarlett would think it was red from the hot water, or maybe she really would think he was drunk. Was he drunk? "Scarlett," he said, reaching up and gently taking one of her hands. "Just leave it, okay?"

Silence. Tyler's head was still lowered, even with Scarlett's. He wasn't sure if this was a right or wrong thing to do, but Tyler figured he hadn't cared about that for a long time now. Gently, ever so slowly, he leaned in to kiss her.

---

Her breath caught.
No....
It couldn't... be...
But it was. It was him.

Tears flooded her eyes. She opened her mouth but nothing came out. "Fl..." she stammered breathlessly, almost afraid to move in case this was a dream. After all this time... all the weeks and months of searching...
"Floyd..." she whispered.
Suddenly her heart burst in her chest. Pure joy erupted from inside of her, bubbling over in the tears that flooded down her cheeks. Ben let out a squeal just as she screamed.

"FLOYD!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Katie - Motel - Scarlett

Katie bounced happily towards Scarlett's room. She had practiced shooting the day before, and hated it. But it had made her daddy happy so she had done it for him. But that didn't mean she wouldn't try to avoid it in the future.

But right now she was going to have 'girl time' with Scarlett. It would be fun to be all girly for the first time in... a long time. She giggled excitedly at the thought of having her hair done. And with the new clothes that Scarlett had found things were looking very good now.
Was this place going to be their new home? She hoped so. She didn't want to move around anymore. Here they had rooms and bathrooms and no mean people or monsters, for now, but even if some appeared her daddy and Scarlett would make them go away.

She had her daddy, she had Scarlett, she had her kitten and a Liam and a George.
Life was good.

Skipping up to the door, Katie knocked. "Scarlett?" she called in a little girl sing-song voice, waiting with a big smile for when she opened the door.

---

Heather - Hell - Hank, Jennifer

They had been rejected. Half of their group had been taken from them, but they were the rejects. Her... Hank... Jennifer... they were being sent back to hell...

The monsters beat Hank until he stopped yelling. There was nothing she or Jennifer could do. The ride back was silent. Even though her blindfold was on, Heather could tell where Jennifer was by the sniffling, still heartbroken over her loss.
Shifting slowly, Heather tried to move towards Jennifer but ended up falling over when the truck hit a bump. Inching on her stomach, she managed to make her way towards her friend, laying her head on her legs to let her know she was there. Then Heather swung her own legs around til they were touching someone that had to be Hank. The physical contact wasn't much, but it showed what she couldn't say : that they were all still together, still connected.

Exhausted by her efforts, Heather could only lay there. Who knew what would happen to them now?
Well no... she knew what would happen to her and Jennifer...
And Hank... Hank would likely be put to work or beaten for these monster's sick pleasure. Mostly like both.

It was enough to make you wonder what the point was in living anymore. Surely life would be better as a mindless zombie then this. And Heather was already halfway there now.

Ricky - Airline Highway, Old Jefferson - Anyone

Ricky wandered along the road, his travelling, at this point, was mostly aimless. The highway was littered with abandoned cars here, people had tried, and failed, to flee the population centres, it would seem, and now their attempts would grace the earth for a few years until nature destroyed what humanity had carved from it. He'd broken into song a little while back, quietly working his way through Led Zeppelin IV. He kept his voice low, to avoid attracting attention to himself, but he had to do something to maintain his sanity. He started into "When The Levee Breaks" with a chuckle, realizing that the levees had doubtless already broken. He couldn't know for sure, having not made it terribly far into New Orleans before he gave up. There had been a rather large consortium of the undead barring his path, and the man just wasn't up to trying to negotiate a city so thoroughly infested by zombies. Instead he had quietly declared, "Fuck it, I'm going back to Canada." before turning around and heading back.

Unfortunately, he'd been unable to find anything that might be considered a motor vehicle, even the bicycles he'd been able to find were all destroyed, meaning that the trip back to his other home wouldn't be nearly as easy as the trip down. He had grumbled at first, but at least he was still alive and moving. Rather than worry about it, he continued singing to himself, trying to decide on his next musical selection as he found himself at the end of Led Zeppelin's fourth album. He sighed and decided to change things up, going for The Tragically Hip's "Up To Here". With Gordon Downie singing in his head, the chef picked up his pace, quietly drawing in his surroundings and wondering what he was going to do about this whole mess, but knew there wasn't much he could do, except see if he couldn't get back to the Maritimes. The rough weather was sure to be harsh on the undead, and he knew that at least a couple of his friends had to still be alive.

He was suddenly shocked from his thoughts by the sickening thump of a soft, decaying skull smacking into a window. He turned to his left and watched as an armless zombie headbutted the window again, trying to get at him. The third time, it put a good deal more effort into the attempt, and crushed its own skull against the glass. He chuckled and shook his head. "What a dumb cunt." he growled to himself, sneering at the monster. Even with this distraction, he'd spent enough time in the swamp to know how to pay attention to the world around him, and he spun effortlessly as another zombie lurched from cover toward him, intent on eating him. Of course, Richard couldn't, in good conscience, allow anyone to consume him without first cooking him first, being a chef and all. Knowing that the undead weren't into cooking, he wasn't about to let this one eat him. Instead, he drew the longer of his two knives ,and shoved the sharp point right through the left eye socket of the ghoul, twisting the blade viciously to send it dropping to the ground, quite dead.

"I don't see how people are afraid of these fuckers..." he muttered to himself. "Yeah, they can hurt you, but not if you're smart about it..." he shook his head and chuckled, moving along at a faster pace now. "They're like gators..." he offered to the air, "They are mostly sedentary, just kind of floating along, waiting for something to eat. And when they find it, they tend to swarm... Just gotta keep them out of the boat." he didn't bother to sheath his knife, instead he held onto it and continued his journey with the blade swinging happily by his side. He had forgotten his music in the surprise attack, an didn't bother to pick it up again. After the first time the boat gets hit, one can assume there will be a second and third time shortly. Sure enough, he spotted more of the undead trapped in cars, all of them hungry for the wanderer who was getting closer as he continued his north-bound journey.

Purposeful swings of the heavy blade he was toting severed the reaching limbs of his potential predators and Ricky proceeded down the road without any trouble. He continued weaving through the cars despite the risk, as he saw no reason to give any watchers something to look at. Sure, he wouldn't mind some company, but he wagered anyone scanning the highway would be more likely to be looking through a riflescope than a magical friendship telescope, and even if someone had gotten a hold of the latter, he wasn't prepared to trust someone naive enough to try something like that. Slit their throat instead. Watch the life fade from their eyes... he found himself thinking suddenly. Then I'll get soaked in blood. he thought back, scrabbling for the pill bottle in his left front pocket. Shoot them, then. Right between the eyes. his mind responded as he cracked the bottle open trying to get one of the pills out. That will attract more zombies. he insisted mentally as he crammed his medication into his mouth, swallowing hard and hoping it kicked in quickly. He hadn't eaten in a little while, so he was pretty sure he would be okay. You need a new gun, then. Or a crossbow. he supposed that was a good idea, but he didn't know the first thing about crossbows, and he could barely operate a revolver, he doubted he would be able to use anything he could suppress with any kind of skill. The voice faded as the medication kicked in, and he pulled off the highway to go look through what had once been someone's home. If he could avoid using up his meagre supplies, his journey would be a lot easier, but he wasn't hopeful, considering how close he was getting to Baton Rouge proper...

Danny - Confrontation

They filed out of the building, those of them already armed leading out in front, ready for the enemy that surely awaited them outside. Alex had spotted the group rushing to surround them, and everyone there knew that this was no doubt an ambush. With the side entrance drowned out in flames, Chris led the group in smashing through the front door of the building. He stopped in his tracks, his gun aimed ahead. Danny came in from behind him to assist, but felt his body freeze at the sight awaiting him-- Countless armed men and women aiming down on them from both across the street and in the building ahead. As the others followed, they became confused by Danny and Chris' responses, unsure if they should point their guns or just keep still.

Visible in the group on the ground was Jamie, one of the scouts who'd left with Enrique. Danny's blood ran cold as he imagined that the clue leading them to Baton Rouge had been a trap by Enrique all along. For that to be true, the man had to have acquired many more people during--

"Jamie!" Chris yelled, interrupting Danny's thoughts. He watched the bigger man roar with anger, forgetting all sense of logic as he ran across the street to confront the former scout. Danny could only watch, unable to speak, move, or do much of anything. His body felt numb and his senses had practically drained from his head. That he'd managed to land everyone in this situation was something he could barely comprehend.

A few of his group cried out as two shots were fired into Chris, one in his leg and the other in his shoulder. The big man crumpled to the ground, and Danny could hear his grunting over the fire raging behind him. "Drop your weapons!" Jamie yelled. "We have more explosives armed in the building behind you, and you all are still close enough to be caught in them!"

Danny stared, the rifle in his hands beginning to slip from his hands. He let it fall, and it clattered to the pavement below. During all of this, he hadn't been sure if he was supposed to be the leader of this group. He'd said a lot of words back at the cabin, but that's all they ever were-- words. He'd told them all this would be dangerous, but... what was this? Who were these people? Danny had never considered this to happen, but he knew he had let everyone down completely.

Shannon stepped up next to him, her own weapon gripped firmly in her hands. He felt her looking at him, looking down at the gun at his feet. He knew that his friend wanted to fight with every fiber of her being, but they both knew she couldn't. Not with James here and not with Danny having already given up.

Dropping her weapon next his own, Shannon raised her hands. "You next, James," she said.

---

Shannon - Cells - Rob/Alex/Zoe

She glared at the man sitting across from her, who glared back at her. They were sitting at opposite ends of a dusty grey cell, their bodies tired and worn out from being dragged about all day. Having been blindfolded on the way here, Shannon couldn't be entirely sure where she was, though she knew they couldn't have left the city. Judging by the cell, it was possible that they had been taken to a police station of sorts, though it was also possible Magnus and his group had installed the cell bars themselves.

Magnus. She had no idea who that was, but Jamie and the others that had captured them had mentioned the name. She figured he'd been there during the ambush, but the blindfold had been placed on her before anyone had spoken to him. Whoever he was, he'd been interested in keeping them relatively unharmed, for whatever it was worth. Aside from Chris being shot at-- Shannon had no idea if he was okay-- their captors had made an effort to treat them gently. At least until they were shoved into these cells. There were other ones they passed by, where most of Shannon's group had been placed. She'd lost sight of Danny and James as she was moved further into the facility, placed into this cell with this lone guy.

The guy in question moved his head now, seemingly examining her. He'd went from staring at her, to glaring at her, to pretending she didn't exist since she'd been here. Shannon didn't trust him, even if he was trapped here with her. It was just too bad for her he looked like he could easily take her with them both weaponless.

A sound from the hall caused them both to jump, Shannon moving to rise to her feet. Men and women in riot gear escorted Rob, Alex, and Zoe into the cell, crowding it. Shannon gave the trio a grim frown as she fell back into a sitting position, defeated. The stranger on the floor was giving Rob a look now, staring at him like he thought Rob was dangerous. It'd be foolish of him to try and attack Rob with all of them there, but who knew what this guy had been through. Shannon was ready for anything.

---

Tyler - Motel - Katie/Liam/Scarlett

Groggy from sleep, Tyler wearily splashed his face with water in the bathroom of his room. As the water dripped down into the sink, he looked himself in the mirror, unsure of who he was even looking at. It'd been a long time since he shaved, and it made him feel vulnerable now in a sort of way. Maybe that was why he did what he did the night before, and maybe that was why he hadn't been able to sleep last night. It certainly wasn't wrong of him to do, right? He'd wanted it-- he wasn't betraying Helen's memory. It's not like their marriage was the best, and he'd already betrayed her with Lynn if that was the case. No, what was bugging him was Scarlett's reaction. Even if Liam hadn't walked in on them, Tyler wasn't sure she would have liked to continue the moment any further. The woman was quite a bit younger than him, not to mention far more attractive. It was probably best if he didn't try that again, not for a long time anyway.

Finishing up in the bathroom, Tyler grabbed his knife before leaving the hotel room. Outside the door, he watched Katie knock on Scarlett's door across the balcony, and he smiled. Katie had mentioned something about 'girl time', which certainly meant no boys allowed. It'd be good for her to hang out with another girl. It had been a long time since Lauren was around.

George and Liam were supposed to be practicing-- It was Liam's insistence, even-- so Tyler decided he should be helping them out. He was sure George could teach the boy just well enough on his own, but Tyler wanted to supervise. It was probably the old him that made him feel that way, but he needed to be on top of everyone.

Moving down the stairs to the first floor of the motel, he turned toward the glass door separating the pool from the lobby, but stopped in his tracks at what he saw. Beyond the glass was George, being held by the intimidating man that had supervised the deal with Tina's group. He held a knife to George's throat. Beside him was Jon, who held Liam in his arms. He wasn't threatening the boy with a weapon, but he was armed nonetheless. Behind them were more men, and Tyler knew he'd not be able to take them on.

One of the men moved to open the glass door, and Tyler considered fleeing back up the stairs. He could possibly grab Katie and Scarlett in time to rush them to safety. George and Liam would be abandoned to these men, but was that really the worst thing that could happen? Better only two of them be captured than all of them, right? Whether he was being selfish or smart, Tyler didn't really care. Katie's safety came before all others, so he quickly moved to turn around and rush back up the stairs. He opened his mouth to shout Katie's name, but it turned into a wordless yell as he felt an unbelievable pain stab through his leg. He crumpled against the stairs, his face slamming against the metal steps. As he rolled down to the bottom, all Tyler could see were black spots dancing across his vision.

---

Tina - Apartment - Sam/Abram/Turisa

She shakily the fruit platter she'd prepared for the guests on the coffee table, her nerves shot to death. When Caleb brought up that they had met Scarlett, the group seemed interested in listening to them. Perhaps upset about the decision to kick Tyler and his friends out, Caleb insisted they take the group back with them to the apartment. He'd explained that, with them, they would be safer than they would be on their own. "We give Tremblay supplies so that they leave us alone," Caleb had explained. "With us, you'll be left alone as well."

Now, with everyone stuffed into the living room, Tina felt the awkward silence between both groups suffocating. Elyse was often a very talkative woman, but unfortunately she wasn't feeling well and couldn't join them. All Tina could do was smile and cut fruit. "So, uh..." Tina searched for something to say as she sat down on one of the couches next to Caleb. She looked toward the mural on the wall, sighing. "I like to paint... I wanted to do a portrait of your sister, you know... and her friends."

She nodded to the right side of the mural, which was mostly blank. What stood out were the crude paintings of people sitting amidst a flower field. Names were above their heads: Mommy, Dylan, Lauren, Bull, Daniel, Floyd, Emma. Above them were the sketchings of faces, these ones with their own names: Katie, Scarlett, Liam, Tyler, George, Jacob. "I wanted it to work out," Tina said, a tinge of sadness in her voice. "But they had to leave. I'm sorry you didn't run into her, Sam."

Alex - Cells - Rob/Shannon/Zoe

He looked at the others present here, ignoring the blood running from his nose. He feared it was broken from the hit he'd received on it, but he didn't really care in a strange way. After having given one of his captors a mean and agressive look, he had received a rifle butt against his face. Once he was jettisoned inside, leaving the cell crowded as fuck, he started feeling wether or not that had been the case. He wondered where they were, but judging on the short transportation time, they were not too far from where they were captured. Additionally, while he had originally feared they had been taken by Enrique and his people, he didn't recognize anyone at all except Jamie guy Chris had suicide charged. Because of this he refused to give up hope, but also because he couldn't really afford to do so. It'd mean his death. And then there was the lingering fear that these people led by this 'Magnus' guy could be even worse...

Scarlett - Motel - Katie/Tyler/Liam/Strangers

For the first time in weeks, maybe months, Scarlett had actually had a restful night. No dreams, really, just sleep. The only reason she had woken up was because Liam had gotten up before her and tripped. Did he trip? There was a loud thump. Knowing him, he probably did. She had sat on their make shift bed, staring out into space as the boy got ready.

"Have fun and be safe Leeyum!" She grinned as she turned to see him heading to the door. She always liked the name Liam. It was her friends name in high school and she'd always enunciate the word to annoy him. She stood up after he left the room and made her way to the bathroom that they had in the room. She cleaned herself up a bit until she heard a knock on the door, followed by a sing song voice from a little girl. Scarlett grinned and practically skipped to the door, opening it slowly before peeking through the small opening. "Who is it?" She smiled as she answered it in the same sing-song voice.

Scarlett let Katie in after she answered and left the door open as both of them walked over to the bed. "So I was wondering, maybe we could do a fish tail braid today?" Scarlett sat down and waited for Katie to sit before running her hand through the little girl's long hair and beginning to comb through it with the pink comb she had already sat down. "I think your dad will like it. It keeps the hair out of your face, so he can see your pretty eyes. And it isn't tight, so you won't get bothered by it." The young woman heard Katie out as she combed her hair. She would take the little girls opinions into consideration.

She had barely begun to weave the first strand of hair, while telling Katie a story about when she pranked Sam in Disney World, when she heard a strange yell. "What was that?" Scarlett turned towards the door and listened intently, cringing at the sound of sudden loud thumps, as if someone had fallen down the stairs. Scarlett stopped immediately and turned to Katie, putting a finger to her lips and making the Shhh sound. She gestured for Katie to stay put and walked quickly out of the door and towards the stairs. The voice sounded like Tyler's but at the same time it didn't. The octave was a bit higher and Tyler didn't shout or yell like that, did he?

Scarlett stopped at the top of the stairs, eyes wide and blood drained from her face as she saw Tyler at the foot of the stairs with a man standing over him. She was frozen in fear and shock as she watched the men drag him a bit ways from the stairs and more showed up. "Tyler...." Her voice was a quiet whisper as she tried to register what was going on. Unfortunately there wouldn't be much time for that. One of the men had looked up and made eye contact with her, sending Scarlett into panic mode as she quickly ran through a million thoughts. The main one being Tyler's voice shouting Katie's name. With a quick blink, Scarlett was already sprinting back towards the room before the men had even registered that she was up there.

With adrenaline coursing through her, Scarlett shut the door behind her and ran to Katie, picking her up and placing her in the corner of the room. There was no way out and they were on the second story. They wouldn't be able to jump. Scarlett wanted to cry but she would be strong for both herself and the child. "Katie, baby, I need you to listen and listen well. There are some men downstairs. Bad men. They have your dad and I think they might have Liam. There's no way out so I'm going to keep them off of you. Here." Scarlett pulled out a small pocket knife from her boot and placed it in Katie's hands. "Only for emergencies. We can't do anything too bad because they might hurt your dad. Please Katie. Let me handle this. Also, stay with me. At all times. I won't let them hurt you." The sound of footsteps broke her minute of silence with Katie, driving Scarlett to hug the little girl tightly and give her head a kiss before standing up and standing protectively in front of her. It didn't take the men long to find them. They had split up, probably, since after they had spotted them one of them shouted to the others and two more walked in. There was a total of four of them in the room and they bee lined straight to the Katie and herself. "Don't touch her. She stays with me." The men ignored Scarlett's warning, one of them grabbing her by the arm and pulling her harshly. Scarlett turned red and she immediately reached for the hand that was on her arm, grabbing it and forcing her thumb to slide in between and to his palm. She pressed down hard and reached up with her other hand, place the other thumb on the same spot and pressing with it as well.

'Thank god for self defense classes.'

Once her hands were placed fairly well on his hand, Scarlett twisted it backwards, earning herself a satisfactory yelp from the grown man. She kept going though, using the momentum to get him off of his feet and flip him so that he'd land on the floor on his back. Scarlett smirked and walked back again, keeping Katie close to her and to the wall. "I said, she stays with me" Scarlett practically growled at the other guy as she glared at him, her hand on her blade.

"Fine." Was all the bearded man said, taking out his own blade and gestured for them to move away from the wall. Scarlett kept her eyes on them but turned quickly to grab Katie and pick her up, huffing quietly as she lifted the little girl. The men had little patience and before Scarlett could grab anything else, they were already barking orders to get out of the room. Although livid, Scarlett complied and made her way out and down the stairs to where Liam and George were now with Tyler. She set down Katie gently and knelt down to check Tyler before looking up at the men holding them there. "What did you do to him?!" She turned back and held his face in her hands, trying to get him to wake up. "Fucking cunts" she muttered under her breath as she looked up from Tyler to Liam. He wasn't harmed but the poor boy looked scared half to death. Scarlett reached out to him with her arms to hug him close but didn't move from Tyler and Katie's side. There were too many of them for her to try anything and she had to think of the kids and what would be the best move for them. At the moment, it was to see what the men wanted and to make sure Tyler would be fine.

______________________________________________

Samantha - Apartment - Tina & friends/Abram/Turisa

Since the small group had ran into Tina and her companions, Samantha had felt something weird. Kind of like a nagging voice in the back of her head, but the moment that they mentioned Scarlett, everything else on her mind had completely become irrelevant and her undivided attention was on the an named Caleb, who seemed to be the only one willing to give up any details on Scarlett.

They found themselves in the apartment where Tina and her friends kept sheltered. It wasn't much but they seemed to be doing well off. "She's here?" She paid little attention to what Tina had said. Her mind was set on finding her sister and nothing more. "She's in Baton Rouge..." That was about all Samantha had said since they had gotten to the apartment. Tears had escaped her eyes here and there but it wasn't enough to draw attention. They were more from happiness than anything else. Scarlett was alive and she was with a group, which meant she was doing well.

"Wait... Why did they leave?" Finally, Sam broke out of her daze. The young woman glanced up from the hair in her face and looked at Tina and Caleb. She was suddenly on edge. 'Why would they leave the safety of this group.... The thugs won't bother them. That's stupid. "Do you know where they went? I've got to go find her. I don't care if I go alone...." By now, Samantha was blabbering. She was blabbering every thought that came to her mind in no specific order, "Why did you want it to work out? What didn't work out? What do you trade with this Tremblay person?" It was an all out interrogation now. Maybe staying in her dazed and shocked state was better than this. Her voice was getting louder and the octaves were getting higher. "I need to go find her." Her voice trailed off as she turned to look at Abram, who by now probably thought she was crazy or getting there. "Abe.... I have to go find her. Maybe she's still here! You can stay here if you want but I'm not going to miss out on an opportunity like this."

Hank

There was no going back, there was no reversing, no traveling back in time, it was already too late to act. A moment of hesitation could ruin the life of an individual and everyone he cared about. The past would always be poignant, despair and sorrow crawling back into the minds of its victims. Memories hurt, a painful ache in the mind that was difficult to forget and too easy to remember. In this new world, everyone had or would own such memories - haunting recollections that either broke apart the will to live, or reinforced it. It was a living nightmare, and there seemed no way of waking from it. So as the sun rays struck at the vehicle, wheels spun at thirty five miles an hour, the chosen two recalled those memories of despair as they traveled onward. The wind blew through the hair of both survivors, bright light burning the outer layer of their skin. The man wore a tank top, his arms revealed and now red from the mass amount of heat that day. His expression was blank, his eyes seemingly lost in thought. He stared at the ground - in this case, the bed of a truck - and remained motionless, surrounded by his new captors. He spoke nothing, remained silent just like the environment around him. His fist were clenched, veins popping at his wrist and moving up his forearms every time he dug his fingers deeper into his palm. He had promised it wouldn't happen again, but it did.....

----------------------------------------------------------------

Previous Day

A second gunshot echoed through the woods surrounding them, no hesitation from the shooter. Instead, he put on a smile of satisfaction as he bust a bullet through the head of his slave. Immediately, the slave tumbled to the ground, his body left dead with no opportunity to return as a soulless corpse. Hank's entire body went numb, his eyes preaching open alongside his mouth. A strain of saliva already connected from his bottom lip to his front teeth as his breath became colder. The redness in his eyes deciphered his emotions, his look defining the desperation and pain he was enduring. The man fell to his knees and forcefully crashed his own forehead into the hard road. He yelled desperately, eyelids clenching together as he let it all out. He couldn't even scream correctly as his chest became so full of hate and guilt. Tears were forced through the thin gaps in his eyes, leaving drops on the ground beneath him. He beat his forehead again and again, trying to stop the killing and end the suffering.

"Get him up!" Treis called out to his minions, the soldiers picking Hank off the ground by force. Hank couldn't even feel his legs anymore and was carried like rag doll. "See Jon, this happens when people like you and Tremblay don't follow protocol. We had a deal, but y'all broke it, so here are the consequences. Nonetheless, we expect to receive our share for these two. Seek to it" Richard Treis finished, signaling his members to give the other group the remaining slaves.

As he was carried by the shoulders, Hank had come to a halt on the grieving. Now he just felt weak and drained from that eruption of emotions. His body reestablished itself, giving him the ability to walk once more. Slowly as he was being passed to the soldiers of said other group, he started taking steps towards their vehicles. It was as though he had given up, or was it just an escape? Regardless, he continued to stare at the bodies behind him. The muscles in his neck were put in stress as they twisted right for Hank to look. Seth was gone. Aaliyah was gone. And the mourning wife of his best friend was killed before his eyes as well. All three were shot directly in the back of the head with no remorse. The sight of their blood gushing through the front of their skull could not be described in words. Like most of the horrors on this earth, words have become mere understatements and could not describe the reality of any situation. Some may say this place was hell, but one could survive in hell. As of now, it was he and Heather who were being traded to Tremblay - not Seth and Aaliyah who were the initial quarry. Last thing Hank heard from Richard was his desire to take Aaliyah and Seth's bodies back to hang among the ruined.

After being loaded onto the new trucks, Hank said his final goodies to his friends. He murmured under his own breath in apologies and then resumed his silence, the silence of a lost man who's world had seemingly become armageddon. It was now survival of the fittest. Man vs man, man vs nature, man vs society, and most important, man vs self.

Katie - Motel - Scarlett, Tyler, Liam, Bad Guys

Katie had been smiling but got scared when Scarlett got serious. There were bad men? No... not here... this was their home, this was supposed to be safe. She took the knife in shaky hands, terrified of what could happen but trusting that Scarlett would not let anyone hurt her. Daddy would come. He would save them. He would make the bad men go away.

When the men came busting into the room Katie screamed. "Daddy!"
But it was no use. They tried to grab Katie and she screamed again, darting under the man's legs to get away and back to Scarlett. When one of them tried to grab Scarlett Katie nearly used her knife on him to protect her. No one hurt her Scarlett! But there was no need, Scarlett made him let go. They made them march down the stairs. Scarlett picked up Katie and the little girl held on tightly. What did these men want? Why were they doing this?

When the got downstairs Katie was horrified to see her daddy on the floor and not moving. "Daddy!" she screamed again and ran to him, shaking him a little. "Daddy wake up! Please wake up!" she glared at the men angrily. "Why did you hurt my daddy?! You're bad! I hope the monsters get you and you die!"

"Shut up you little bitch," one of them said and kicked her. Katie hugged Scarlett, crying in fear and worry for her daddy.
"Keep that brat quiet," another man ordered Scarlett.

Katie shook with terror. These men were bad and mean. Why? What had they done? Another scary thought occured to the already traumatized child : what if they took her daddy away? What if they took Scarlett away?
Thinking fast and in a line of reasoning only a child could, Katie hugged Scarlett tightly. "Mommy..." she whined loudly, loud enough for all of the men to hear. "Make them stop Mommy. They hurt Daddy."

Liam - Motel - Tyler/Scarlett/Katie/Intruders

He tried to break free but to no avail. If he tried again would they harm him? He just wanted everything to be normal. He was happy for one moment.

And they ruined it, the man holding him had ruined it. The people around him had ruined it, He wanted to fight and scream. But somewhere in him thought they would hurt Scarlett. So he laid still, shaking. Hoping somehow that he get free and they would all be free. Tears rolled down his cheeks. This couldn't be happening....

When Tyler came down Liam gasped..."R-Run" He mumbled out as Tyler did just that. He jumped as Tyler fell down wounded...oh god this was happening why was this happening.

He tried to kick out, but the man had a good gold on him and Liam couldn't move. Liam was feeling sick, His tears blurred his vision and he couldn't even see Tyler clearly anymore. Why was this happening. He wanted to break free and run as fast as his legs would go.

When Scarlett came down with Katie Liam let out a sob. His tears fell onto the man's arm and it was forming a neat little puddle. He wanted no harm to come to them but there was nothing he could do. He was just a weak little child.....

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Matt - Motel - Liam/Scarlett/Tyler/Katie/Jon/"Jackel"

Matt let out a small chuckle. He entered through the opened glass door. "I see that you apparently left the group you were in...that was certainly quick. Then again, I don't think many people can handle you for long can they." Matt crouched down to see Tyler's bloodied face. "You can't run forever...and it seems it's time that it has caught up to you" Matt looked at Tyler's leg.

"Ouch, That doesn't look good now does it? Well, I guess that's just how it is." Matt stood up and looked at Scarlett, he smirked before stepping on Tyler's wound.

"Wow you certainly are heroic aren't you. Well congrats...look at what it got you" Matt pressed his foot harder on Tyler's wound before turning over to the men. "The little's girl not going to shut up...no one has ever told her to shut up. Daddy's little girl and all" Matt chuckled before he glanced at Katie.

"It's sad you have such a pathetic father...But don't worry...No harm will come to you-" Matt stopped for a moment. "Aside from that kick I gave you but you were acting naughty and you should know not to do that" Matt looked back down to Tyler. " "However...I can't say too much for this guy" Matt laughed. He stepped off Tyler (Not before kicking him for good measure)

He frowned as he looked back up at Scarlett, "Don't try anything special...Katie would love to actually have a father till at least next morning...plus...he-" Matt pointed to Liam. "Well, He looks frightened...You wouldn't want him to feel alone...so just go quietly...You have a bright future ahead" Matt took a step back and smiled at Tyler.

Hatred fueled him at the moment, He knew he was acting somewhat of the monster. But he all just meant for Tyler to hear it. For Tyler to feel his life ripped right from his dead prying hands.

His colleagues knew it.....

"Well, Crying Mommy when she isn't...trying to get us to hesitate....Sneaky...I like it...but it isn't going to work" Matt gave jon a look as to say that he wasn't actually a monster.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Rob - Cell - Shannon/Alex/Zoe/Stranger

"WELL FUCK YOU TOO" Rob screamed as his captors walked off. He banged on the bars. Slowly he stopped and let his head rest against the cold bars. He sighed before turning around. His eyes drifted to Shannon, "Well this is shit isn't it. Who are these people!? Why the fuck have they jailed us?" Robs turned his head backwards to see the guard slightly away from the Cell.

"Ah....it doesn't matter does it. At least we're alive...that means something" Rob grimaced before he he shuffled over to Alex. "You alrigh', they definitely gave you a good knock..." Rob patted Alex's back. "There's shit people everywhere...and this "Jamie" guy who apparently was apart of Outpost and-"

Rob stopped talking as his eyes went to the Stranger. Who, in no other way could Rob explain it. Was giving him the death stare. "What?" Rob shuffled back to the cell bars. He certainly looked at him weirdly, maybe not a "death stare" but a look that made Rob think that perhaps he had done something wrong.

But something else nagged at him...For all his slightly concerning looks...he looked rather....like someone he had seen before. But he couldn't quite find it in his brain. "Do...I....know you?"

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Kerry - Cell - Aubrey

Kerry rushed down, this had to be good. They had done it and that was great but they needed this to go perfect. He found Aubrey and smiled. "None of them are too fighty are they?" Kerry leaned in and whispered. "You know how Magnus is...he likes them all to be quite docile. But I trust it's all good....You know me, I was never a people's person...well, you're at least better then I was." Kerry laughed nervously before looking in Aubrey's eyes.

"Look...I have to ask. Is there anyone who we need to talk to?...And this time I actually mean talk to. We need them in a good condition and all." Kerry kept leaning to side to side. His eyes were glancing to the cell next to Aubrey before returning back to her.

The door opened and Kerry flinched, He looked over to see Magnus entering. Though he seemed to stop to the cell at the closest part of the hall.

------------------------------------------

Magnus - Danny's and co cell

Magnus kept his smirk going as he watched the people in the cell. He turned to one of the men, According to Jamie his name was Rudy...Or Danny. One was a nickname apparently, though that didn't really click with Magnus. All he knew was that this guy acted somewhat like their leader.

"I hope these cells aren't too uncomfortable. We don't exactly have the space to give you all lavish beds." Magnus gave his somewhat soulless stare to Danny. "I just want to say that you were all brought here to help me....us to the future. And everyone's help with be greatly appreciated towards the effort we are making"

Aubrey - Cell - Kerry/Magnus

Aubrey had came in after one of the cells had already been mostly filled. The others had a few people in them but she was told to keep an eye on the one with the most people. It hadn't been too long after she had gotten there when about three more were brought in and thrown in. Like always, Aubrey was clueless as to why they were there or who they were or what exactly her part was in all of this. All she knew was that Magnus liked her 'no bullshit attitude' and her keen eye and dead aim when it came to shooting her bow. If it made him happy, then she was happy. At least here she was offered protection from others and a place to sleep. What she had to do to maintain her peace of mind and body didn't matter. She hadn't had to kill anyone by far. Just, somewhat, thoroughly injure a few.

The young woman hadn't been alone for too long when the sound of feet hitting the floor at a faster pace than walking echoed through the hall. Aubrey turned around and smiled a bit as she saw Kerry making his way over to her. "None of them have given me a reason to label them as 'fighty'. But why don't you go ahead and check them out? I'm sure they'd love for you to go question them." Every word Aubrey spoke was laced with heavy sarcasm as stretched out her arm to point at the cell with her bow.

She had been leaning on a wall as Kerry spoke to her, not bothering to budge as he began to lean in. She was big in personal space but made no attempt to show that she was backing off or being 'weak'. "You know..." Aubrey leaned in as well, looking at Kerry dead in the eyes, "There is such a thing as a personal bubble." The girl smiled kindly at Kerry before leaning back and pushing herself off of the wall, and as if on cue, the door opened. Magnus stood for a second and Aubrey playfully winked at Kerry as she walked to the farthest part of the room, reaching back and hooking her bow onto a small latch on her back.

______________________________

Scarlett - Motel - Katie/Liam/Tyler/Matt and his thugs

It seemed as if every single word that came out of the man's mouth lit a fire inside of Scarlett. What was his name agin? Matt? She for sure thought she heard a man call him Matt while they were being brought down stairs.

Yet, even though Matt seemed to like causing Tyler physical pain, the kick that Katie received had pushed her over the edge and Scarlett had taken a menacing step towards them before stopping as one of the men grabbed their gun. She hadn't noticed it, but her hand was already gripping the hilt of her blade. "You fucking cunt." She was seething, placing her hand back on Katie as the young girl cowered next to her. Although Scarlett wanted nothing more than to rip the man's throat out with her bare hands, he had a point. The kids were frightened, and their only chance at survival was if she was alive with them.

"Mommy!" Katie's words were like a dagger to Scarlett's heart. For a second, she felt the anger disappear and all she could feel were her heart strings being tugged on. It was a strong yet strange feeling, and just like the anger had left, it had came back. There was no way she was letting these men take the kids from her, but she couldn't let them take Tyler either. The petite woman could feel the tears begin to flow down her cheeks from the anger that she felt and the fear that was threatening to overcome her if they took Tyler. What would she do without him?

"Don't take him away..... Please?" Her voice was more docile but still cold, something that she didn't think was possible to do. "Take anything you want or need from here. Take me, take George for fucks sake but leave the kids and Tyler alone! What did he do to you?!"

______________________________

Samantha - Baton Rouge

Samantha hadn't wasted time on waiting for answers from Tina or for any protests from Abram and the others. As much as she had bonded with the man, Sam needed her sister more. She had a plan. Somewhat; Find Scar, bring her back to Tina's. They'd be safe there

"If Tina wanted it to work out, I'm sure she's understand." Samantha muttered to herself as she walked away from the apartment. She was probably half a block away with a hunting knife in one hand and her beretta in her strong hand. There was t a thing in the world that would stop her from looking and, or, finding her sister.

Floyd / Alison - Infirmary

Everyone had a job, or so it was told by their leader Tremblay. It was a system of responsibility, all citizens having to work to remain in the community. It was a small price to pay for future safety, outside the blockades was a murderous world. It was different and not everyone could survive, especially the civilized and the weak. Many had been in Baton Rogue since the beginning, helping build the faction and provide many with security and well-being. People of different races, ethnicity, and cultures all coming together to ensure their survival. It became like a brotherhood or sisterhood. There was education, there was religion, but it didn't separate the people, it united them. It gave them a sense of what the world used to be and not what it had actually become. Unlike other groups settled in the capital, Tremblay's group seemed to be the only 'normal' ones. All those others were brutal human beings who have experienced the outside and been there too long - far too long. It was said that by living outside the walls, the person would be destined to lose themselves. They call people hidden from reality weak and unworthy of living, but for a lot of the residents, it was the opposite. It was always dangerous to bring in outsiders because they were unpredictable. A lot had irrational ways of doing things, prepared to kill or hurt whoever stood in their way. So Tremblay's act of kindness could be their downfall.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The community's physical therapist opened the door to one of private rooms and looked onto the newcomers who had just stepped into her facility. There were three of them, two males, one female. The young PT squinted her eyes at the sight of all of them. They looked beat, not only physically, but mentally as well. They had that look in their eye, that blank facial feature that tore them from reality. These were the ones that really had to fight for their survival, and it was noted. Alison Irving was the name of the doctor who would be treating their bruises and near-broken bodies that morning. She unstrapped her walkie from her belt and called for backup. Backup in reference to guards - she became afraid at the sight of her patients, fearing their animal urgency to attack. Her job was to overlook any injuries from the townspeople, be they original members, tenants, newcomers and what not. So after the guards arrived, she signaled to them that she would begin the inspection. The guards - two of them - stood motionless by the door holding their weapons to their chests. Protocol called upon fearful persuasion rather than brutal action, so they weren't supposed to fire unless the situation became violent. But it was obvious that these three did not want to be there - it seemed like instinct was telling them to flee.

To begin, Alison stood by the door and called upon Aiden with a gesture from her hand. "Come on in, there's nothing to fear" she stated, letting him walk into the room first. He didn't seem as rigid or tense as the other two, as though he didn't belong with the other two. The file said they were in a group together, but who knew, nowadays, what did together really mean? Anyway, Alison closed the door behind her after they were both inside, no sound emitting from the room to the outside hall. Floyd sat in the chair in what seemed like a waiting room, full of nothing but chairs and old empty vending machines. Imogen sat a seat in the seat right to him, the girl looking as rough as Floyd. The man repeatedly tapped his foot against the ground, recollecting on what he had seen about twelve hours ago. He couldn't get his mind off of it......

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12 Hours Ago

Walking into the large community guarded by armed men and blockades in every gap of the town, Floyd's beady little eyes looked around curiously. He was searching for a possible escape route, his desire to return for Hank and the others erupting inside him. When he slowed down, the guard behind him would push him to hurry up as though they were rushing for some reason. Luckily, they weren't being targeted by automatic rifles or anything, a step up from their last captors for sure. But still Floyd wasn't pleased, he wasn't happy or overjoyed by their new 'home', he was just tired of it all. He was sweating profusely and his lower back hurt from all the walking he'd done. All he wanted was to call it a day and rest. Therefore, knowing he was being transported somewhere, he hoped it was a quiet room he could hit the hay in. But suddenly he heard a faint sound, his name being called from a distance. His eyes opened a bit more and his chin turned up to help his head look around. Left and right he turned in attempt to pinpoint the calling, but he couldn't see anything, the sun blinding him in nearly every direction.

He stopped in his tracks and turned to his left as the yelling grew louder. "Hank?" Floyd thought, his eyes peering so he could see who it was. Just then, as his eyes clearly revealed the person, the world just seemed to stop spinning on its axis. The guards didn't seem to be moving, leaves falling off trees in slow motion and never reaching the ground. Even the wind became silent, clouds above disappearing from sight as though a gift was provided by the heavens. Floyd watched but couldn't believe, the possibility didn't seem real. He tilted his head to the right a little, questioning the truth of actuality. Light pierced on the woman rushing in his direction, creating an angelical aura around her. Floyd then tried to speak, but words wouldn't come out, his throat was dry and sore. But finally, he swallowed and the glands in his mouth replenished the absent saliva. "Je-" he started before being interrupted by a pushing guard.

Snapping, Floyd turned around and punched the brute dead in the face, his knuckles bruising red immediately. The guard dropped in that single shot, giving Floyd an opening to run to a person he thought was lost. He ran to the girl, pants torn at the knees, shoes tied to his ankles by laces. "Jess!" he yelled as other guards ran after him. Her small figure ran towards him too, her dark hair flowing through the now insistent wind. Suddenly, Floyd saw her become apprehended by someone so he sped up. Before he was able to reach her, a guard caught him by the shirt and threw him on the ground, he spun and landed on his back. Floyd grunted at his fall, hitting the back of his head when he came down. The other soldier reached him too, landing on him with a hard right knee to lock him still. They twisted his arms and once again put on the shackles from before. Forcing him up, they escorted him away. Floyd looked into Jess' eyes all the way to his chambers still in disbelief for their reunion was not what he'd hope it would be - like always, it had all happened so fast.

---------------------------------------------------------------

After about thirty minutes or so, the door to Alison's private room opened up. Aiden was let out by the physician then resumed his seat between Floyd and Imogen. "Thank you Aiden" Alison said, learning his name by the conversation they had in the room. Floyd turned to Aiden wondering what he had told her and what the woman had asked. Was she not a doctor? Why ask questions? He became hesitant knowing he would soon be going in there. He had it in his mind that he wouldn't say a damn thing, keep quiet and just get heeled like it was supposed to go down. Then he would leave and let that be that. He didn't plan on cooperating, these weren't his people.

The PT then signaled Floyd to enter the room. She stepped to the side to let him walk in first just like she had done with Aiden. At first Floyd didn't stand, just sat there looking at her with those eyes of his. He wanted to nod and say he wasn't gonna go in, but the guards seemed to have stepped closer when he wasn't listening. "I don't bite" Alison joked, giving Floyd a smile in attempts to calm his nerves. Turning to the other two, Floyd pushed against the chair to help himself up. For a second he just stood there, trying to diagnose her and the staring into the room. He couldn't see anything that stood out really nor notice any weapons on the woman. He wasn't Aiden and going to just trust her and give away anything. But to survive for now, he decided to walk passed her and enter the private room which was shut closed behind him.

"Sit please" Alison said, offering Floyd a seat as she took one herself. But Floyd did't take advantage of her hospitality and remained standing. He walked side to side, looking through the windows of the room and at all the doctor stuff he couldn't name. He picked up a little test tube with some liquid in it and brought it to his nose, smelling the substance. "What's this?" he said, turning to Alison, but not making eye contact with the girl. "So he CAN talk!" she said as though discovering a miraculous wonder. She then leaned to her left and picked a file off the counter, also making sure to pull the pen out of one of her pockets. "So now that we know you can talk, can you tell me your name?" she asked, ready to write in the file. It was used to keep a tab on everyone in the community in addition for Alison to know what she treated if anything. But Floyd didn't budge, just put the test tube back where it was then returned to gazing out of the window in hopes to see Jess.

The PT puffed at Floyd's inability to cope with her. She was becoming frustrated and it showed all over her face - after all, she was just doing her job. She stood from her chair and opened up drawer from the counter. Floyd froze and was prepared to strike, thinking she was pulling something out to hurt him or even kill him. "Calm down" the doctor said, noticing his uneasiness. "It's just Vaseline.....for you face. Yeah, you have bruises that need to be treated. I'd also like to do a full body check-up, so if you can undress please"

Floyd raised one of his brows, "I ain't takin nuthin off" he said under his breath. Alison chuckled to herself as she got closer to Floyd. She opened the can of Vaseline and dug two of her fingers to get a decent quantity. She then raised her hands near his face where he backed away a little, his face crumbling on itself. Putting the can down, she let her free hand gently climb to his arm. "It's okay, just sit" she said in a whisper. Floyd swallowed hard as he finally turned to look her in the eye. He bit his bottom lip and sat down, letting the doctor start applying the ointment swiftly through his bruises. "Floyd" the redneck murmured. When he spoke the girl seemed surprised and her eyes widened. Then a sweet smile formed on her face. "It's nice to meet you Floyd. I'm Alison Irving. Welcome to paradise"

Abram - Near Tina's Apartment - Samantha
((please ignore any mistakes. I wrote this on my phone. /me cries.))

Abram found that Samantha did exactly what he thought she would. The others had gone to sleep by the time she'd walked out, so she probably thought she was being sneaky. Abrams bag was almost fully packed when he heard the door open and close.

Just as he was about to walk out, fully armed, he heard a small voice behind him. "Abram?" He turned around to see Leah, her own backpack hanging by the strap from her hand. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"How's your leg?" He asked. She smiled, satisfied.

"Well enough. Let's go before she gets to far." Leah proposed, earning a nod from Abram. He opened the door, putting a hand her back and following her of the door. He shut it quietly before continuing down the hallway.

Samantha was in sight a minute later, at the end of the road ahead of them. Leah notified him of a Walker about 20 yards back, but he dismissed it. Their brisk pace caught them up to Sam in decent time. Abram stepped to her right, matching her pace, Leah doing the same on her left. "So which way are we headed?"

Jessalyn - Room - Tremblay

12 hours earlier

"Floyd!" she screamed as she was held back roughly. "Let me go! NO! Floyd!"
Jess cried and screamed, Ben joining her as she watched helplessly as the man she had been searching for fo so long was once again ripped away from her. "Please! Please let me go!" she begged the man holding her back but he wouldn't budge. She looked towards Becca pleadingly but apparently she wasn't going to help, or wasn't able to.

Jess was forceably taken to a room and locked inside while she cried and screamed to be let out with Ben screaming his lungs out as well at his mother's distress. Jessalyn finally collapsed in the chair and sobbed, begging whoever might be listening to let her out, but either no one was around or no one cared. She screamed for Tremblay, for Becca, for anyone who might help her. She had to get to him. She HAD to!

Finally she had grown so hoarse she couldn't scream anymore. Ben wore himself out and fell asleep as Jess sobbed. There was a bed in the room and Jess curled up on it with Ben laying on a pillow beside her. She prayed and cried herself to sleep.

~

-Present-

Jess woke to Ben whimpering, knowing instinctively by the sound of it that he was hungry. She fed and burped him, then just waited. They couldn't keep her in here forever. Tremblay would have to come eventually. Or someone would open the door and she would get by them somehow. She didn't care if she had to throw the chair at them. No one was keeping her from Floyd this time. Not when she knew he was alive and somewhere close.

It seemed to take a while but the door finally opened. Food was pushed into the room and the door shut again before she could move. Jess didn't even look at the food. She refused to eat until they let her out. She glared at the door, waiting for Tremblay to walk in. She had an earful for him. She was going to scream at him til he went deaf in one ear. How DARE he do this?! He had to have heard her the day before and he had ignored her?! Kept her away from the man she had TOLD him she had been searching for?!
Tremblay better pray there were no sharp objects within her reach when he finally showed his face...

Alex Clark - Cells - Danny, Rob, Zoe, Stranger, Magnus

Of course his fucking nose was broken. It hurt like hell when he felt it up, finally having some time to do so. He flinched as he touched it, glad at least the bleeding seemed to have stopped, mostly that was. His mouth was still overwhelmed by the metallic taste of blood and he couldn't smell anything else either. Given his surroundings, he wasn't entirely sure wether or not that was truly negative...

"Bloody hell, he broke my nose." He cursed in response to Rob.He didn't have much time to think nor talk about it though, as moments later an intimidating figure appeared before their cell door. The man quickly began to speak to Danny, correctly recognizing that he was the leader figure of their group.

As the man spoke about them being dragged here to help, he couldn't help a cynical snort. Of fucking course they had been captured to be this guy's working slaves. Way to fucking go. He knew that it would do little good to draw the attention onto him however, given their current situation, and Alex hid his reaction by trying to wipe away the blood from his nose.

Monica - Abandoned Building - Emma

She entered the bedroom to find Emma peacefully sleeping away. Having patched her up two nights before, the girl had mostly rested during her time here. It wasn't a very big place-- barely a house, really-- but the pair of them had managed to make up another bed in the small second room. Though the place was cold and dilapidated, Emma had managed to make herself comfortable, and for that Monica was grateful.

She knelt down next to the young girl and gently shook her awake. Smiling, Monica said, "I've made some food. You should eat." She moved to stand, but Monica paused in her movement, worry creasing her face. "And something's gone terribly wrong. We can talk over breakfast." With that, Monica swiftly left the room.

---

Jon - Motel - Liam/Scarlett/Katie

The man in Jackson's arms, George, made a strangled noise at Scarlett's suggestion of taking just them. Jon would have found it funny, if he wasn't in such a foul mood. After the absolute mess that had been yesterday's deal with Treis' men, Jon wouldn't have minded wringing the neck of the kid he had gripped in his hands. After he'd told Tremblay what happened, the man had adamantly wanted this Tyler guy captured as soon as possible. He'd never said that he wanted the others with him-- Jon imagined Tremblay would rather they just leave Baton Rouge altogether.

"Jesus Christ," he muttered, shaking the kid a little. "Can you all just shut up?" He looked between Scarlett and Katie, his face glaring at the two of them. "It might have been okay for you if you stayed with Tina, but on your own, that's not allowed. We're taking this guy for compensation." He looked down at Tyler, who had seemingly passed out after groaning over the kick Matt gave him. His leg was bleeding profusely now, but that was far from an immediate concern. "The rest of you can fuck off. Get out of Baton Rouge and never come back. Do you understand?" He let go of Liam now, shoving the sobbing kid toward the females. Jackson did the same with a grunt, shoving his captive away. A few of the men moved to lift Tyler so that they could carry him to the truck out front.

"You can come with, if you'd like, but I wouldn't suggest it. We don't need you, and it would be in your best interest to forget all about this man and this city."

---

KK - Furniture Store Bedroom - Jessalyn

It wasn't Tremblay that came to meet Jess, but the woman she had been supposed to talk to earlier. She was known as KK, and as her large frame entered the bedroom, she affixed Jess with a none-too-impressed stare. "Wipe that sour look off your face," she said haughtily, picking the untouched food off the floor and placing it on the desk next to the bed. Hands on her hips, KK's eyes went to Ben. "So this is our new little darling." Her mood did a U-turn as she looked at the child in Jessalyn's arms. "I only wish we had another his age. It's too bad."

Frowning again, the woman shrugged and pointed to the food. "Eat. How can you take care of anyone if you're acting so childish? Your friend is okay, but he caused an incident, and you're not acting much better! You're in here until your attitude can improve."



---

Danny - Cells - Magnus/Trey/Andrew/Alex/Zoe

He didn't answer the man at first, staring distantly ahead at the opposite wall. He looked briefly at Trey, a man he recognized to be a former scout. It didn't necessarily mean Enrique had been captured as well, but it was obvious Enrique and his crew were mixed up in all of this as well. What did that mean for Emma? Danny had wanted to ask the man about her, but an icy silence had stretched on between everyone in the cell. No one could muster the motivation to speak.

Danny was still ignoring the man who was probably Magnus, so Luke took it upon himself to speak to the man. Standing and walking to the front of the cell so that he was facing the man, Luke let out a deep breath. "Are you Magnus?" he asked, though Danny could hear the strain in his voice. "I'd like to hear more about this future, but, I want to know what you did with our friend. I know he's still alive--"

Spurned by Luke's question, Richard practically leaped from spot on the floor and banged at the bars of the cell. "And where's my brother?! Where's Elliot?" His hands balled into fists as he irrationally slammed his shoulder into the bars. "Fuck you!"

Luke shook his head, stepping away from Richard. "That's not helping," he said. Richard only glared at him in response. Danny could only sigh and bury his face in his arm.

---

Shannon - Cells - Rob

Watching Luke talk to the man with feigned interest, Shannon turned back to Rob and the unknown man staring at him. The man licked his lips, pushing his back against the wall until he was standing on his feet. He shook his head as if he couldn't believe his eyes. "I remember you. You were a strange one." The man moved away from the wall and mimed pulling a sword from a nonexistent scabbard attached to his back. "I lost Lucretia a while back, and these people took Penelope away from me. I bet if I had them, you'd remember me."

Though the man recognized Rob, he still seemed wary of him. Shannon imagined they hadn't exactly been friends. "We don't want any trouble," Shannon interjected. "We're all in the same situation."

The man shrugged at that. "I guess so. The name's Damian, if you were wondering." Shannon glanced toward Rob, making sure he actually knew who this guy was now.

Katie - Motel - NO!

Katie stayed quiet like they told her to, not wanting to get kicked again. She even managed to not scream when they kicked her daddy and hurt him. She cried but she didn't scream.
But when they started to take him away, when they said they were leaving the others behind and taking her daddy away, that she should forget about him and leave, she couldn't take it anymore. Something inside of her snapped and the seven year old let loose with all of the rage in her small body.

"NO!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "Daddy!"
Pulling out the small knife that Scarlett had given her, since the men hadn't bothered to search a small child, Katie lunged at the men. No one was taking her daddy away.
No one.

"I'll kill you!" she screamed, jumping on one man's back and driving the small knife into the side of his face, right at his cheek. "You're not taking my daddy away!"
"Get this crazy little bitch off of me!" the injured man yelled as she stabbed his face again. Moving backwards, he slammed her against the wall but she didn't let go. She was too crazed with anger and fear to feel the pain at that moment.
Everyone was shouting then, : the bad guys, Scarlett, Liam and George. One of the men even shot at Katie, but missed and hit the injured man in the shoulder, which caused him to fall forward and the momentum caused Katie to flip over and land on her back. Before she could roll away another man slammed his foot down onto her small chest, cracking one of her ribs. Katie screamed again, this time in pain.
"I'll cut you up and feed you to the Walkers you little shit!" he snarled, pointing a gun at her head.
"I don't care!" she screamd back. "Don't take my daddy away!"

Her eyes were not the eyes of a frightened child. They were filled with tears but enraged, like she was possesed. The little girl would fight to the death for her father. That was the depth of her love for him. If they took her daddy away from her, if they were seperated again, it would be like killing her.
She plunged the small knife into his ankle, the blade breaking off in the flesh as it hit the bone. In reflex the man pulled the trigger...

For a second Katie thought she was dead, but the pain didn't go away so she guessed she was still alive. The shot had missed, the bullet grazing her head. Blood spilled from it although it wasn't that deep. But the shot had dazed the little girl, making everything seem to go in slow motion for a minute or two. The weight of the man was gone from her and she started crawling towards Tyler, cuddling against him. Her eyes were unfocused, the knife handled still clenched in her fist. She was in shock and likely had a concussion at this point along with the broken rib that made her whimper in pain with every breath.

They couldn't take him away...
She couldn't lose him... not again...

---

Jessalyn - Bedroom - KK

Jess turned her face away from the woman stubbornly. "It wouldn't have happened if they hadn't tried to keep us apart," she countered. "I have been searching for him for months now, since before my baby was born. I was terrified that he was dead..."

Her voice broke a bit as she looked back at the heavy set woman with a glare.
"Floyd is not my 'friend'. He is far more then that. I love that man. Do you hear me? I love him. And now that I know he is here and alive, nothing is going to keep us apart. And if none of you people can understand that then get the fuck away from me. I have nothing to say to any of you until you take me to Floyd."

With that she turned completely away from the woman. No matter who came in now, Tremblay, Becca, any of them, Jess was not going to speak to anyone until her demands were met.

Scarlett - Motel - Fucking shit Katie what the hell

"Fuck off?" Scarlett sounded appalled as she repeated the man. "I don't think....."

"I'll kill you!" Katie's screaming suddenly cut off everyone that had either been talking or mumbling and Scarlett could feel the blood in her veins turn into ice. She watched, pale faced, as the child went after her victim.

"Katie!!! No!!!" Scarlett's voice was filled with fear and panic as she practically shrieked for the girl to stop. 'We're all dead' Scarlett thought to herself as she saw the little girl sink the pocket knife into the man's face. What had she done?

It took Scarlett a full second to acknowledge that what was happening was reality, and another full second to react to it all. She snapped into action when the man had begun yelling, ignoring the gun shot that rang through the empty motel halls. It pained her to see Katie being tossed and thrown, and she did everything in her power to push past Matt and the others to get to the man that was know stepping on Katie.

"Get the fuck off of her!" Katie's pain filled scream rang loud and clear in Scarlett's ears and Scarlett lunged. She didn't care if the man had a gun and Scarlett would probably be shot. She needed to save the girl. The blow was harder than Scarlett had thought it would be. She hit the man hard with her left shoulder and sent them both on the ground, Scarlett sliding a bit a ways from him after hitting the floor.

"Katie? Katie!" Scarlett looked up from the floor and scrambled to get to her feet. Her mouth dropped open at the sight of blood on Katie's head, nearly pushing Scarlett over the edge. An involuntary scream escaped her lips as she fell to her knees next to the little girl, her eyes letting the tears stream down. "Katie, baby.... Katie wake up." Scarlett let out small sobs as she checked the little girl for vital signs. She was alive. The woman proceeded to check the wound and sighed of relief when she saw it was just a graze. "Oh thank god!" She reached down and wrapped her arms around Katie, gently picking her up as to not jostle her too much.

"We're going with you." Scarlett turned to face Jon and Matt, "I'm not separating Katie from her father and I'm not leaving Katie's side." Her glare was hard and cold as she spoke to them, giving them the look that promised blood and gore if they objected. After a moment of hesitation, they had seemed to agree although it seemed as if they would have rather just left them there. Even after all the mess, they still barked orders at Scarlett while she carried Katie. She didn't listen to them. Instead, she made her way over to Liam and bent down a bit to give him a quick kiss on the cheek, "I'll find you again. Stay with George... or go back with Tina. Stay safe and alive." With that being said, Scarlett looked up and gave George a warning glare as she walked off with the group of men towards their trucks.

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Samantha - Baton Rouge - Abram/Leah

Samantha had been more than happy to see that Abram and Leah had tagged along with her. For once, she wasn't even mad that they had completely ignored her when she had said to stay behind. She had actually found a group that she liked, and hopefully with a lot of luck, they'd find Scarlett and have the perfect group. A girl could dream.

"Not really a plan at the moment," Sam spoke as she peered through windows and scanned the streets. "I guess just find Scarlett and come back to Tina's? They seem like a fairly good group... She even wanted to paint Scarlett, did you see that?" Samantha smiled up at Abram for a brief moment before turning her attention back to the road ahead of her. She hadn't noticed it while she was talking, but the sound of a rumbling engine was beginning to become a bit more pronounced as they neared the corner of the street.

"Do you guys heat that?" Sam asked quietly, picking up her pace and speed walking towards the corner. "There's trucks over there.... At that hotel." Samantha stayed half hidden as she told Abram and Leah what she saw. "There are a ton of men... They're getting on the trucks... They're carrying one in.... I think that might have been from the gun shot we heard not too long ago." She squinted her eyes to be able to see better. She recognized none of the men, which she was partly grateful for.

Samantha kept watching, narrating every now and then to Abram and Leah, up until she saw a familiar blonde head in between the group of men that were walking out of the building. Samantha's heart stopped for the slightest fraction of a second before kick starting back up into over drive. "Scarlett...." She came out from behind the building and stood there, mouth gaping as she tried to get a better look at the blonde haired person. The men split up to either get onto the other side of the truck and the bed of the truck and that's where she got to have a good, full look at the petite, blonde haired woman that seemed to be carrying a child.

"It's Scarlett!" Sam's voice was filled with joy and something else that she couldn't quite place her finger on.

"Scarlett!"

Samantha began to shout and threw herself into a sprint at her full speed. "Scar!" Even at her fastest speed, Samantha still wasn't fast enough. Scarlett had turned to see her. She was sure of it. Not only had they made eye contact, but her face said it all. Scarlett had been crying and there was a bit of blood on her, but she didn't stop. She didn't stop to come greet her. Why? Why wasn't she stopping?

"Scarlett?" Her sprint slowed to a steady run as she neared the trucks and Scarlett began to cry again. Her leaving wasn't voluntary.

Samantha hissed as she ran at full speed once again, watching the doors close and the trucks take off, leaving her behind at the entrance of the motel. "Come back! Scarlett! Give her back to me!" When she slowed to a complete stop, Samantha took out her gun and aimed, closing one eye to try and shoot the trucks. They were taking her sister and here she was, hands shaking uncontrollably and her vision blurring due to the tears now falling from her face.

"They took her...." Sam's voice broke as she choked up near the end. The woman put her weapon's safety back on and practically threw it on the ground as she let herself fall to her knees.

She hadn't noticed, but she had felt, the presence of others around her. At the moment, she didn't care, but once Abram and Leah reached her she finally looked up. There at the entrance, stood a man and a young boy, both with the same look of fear and desperation that she felt.

Abram - Hotel - Samantha/Leah

Abram followed Sams gaze as she described the sight before them. He took his rifle from his shoulder and observed the hotel. He saw a ton of men, one of which he could sworn he'd seen before. He could see a couple people loading into a truck, spotting a blonde he would've sworn were Samantha, had he not known better.

The person that caught his attention the most, however was the little girl beside the blonde - whom he recognized instantly. Katie Salem. It explained why he thought he knew he man beside her - It was Tyler. Abram's first reaction would've been to put a bullet into Tyler's head. It was what he wanted to do so badly.

Tyler Salem had murdered his best friend, and left a little girl scarred, broken, and orphaned. He stopped himself from squeezing the trigger, as he saw the furious look on Tyler's face. Before he could say anything, Sam screamed and ran for the trucks.

Abram wrapped his around around the whole of her arm, but she slipped from his grip. "Sam, no!" He shouted. By the time Sam reached the hotel entrance, the truck was gone - Tyler and Katie with it.

Samantha fired a poorly aimed shot and dropped her gun, collapsing on the ground in tears. Abram knelt by Samantha and place a large hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, kid... I promise you, we'll find her."

Matt - Motel - Scarlett/Tyler/Liam/Psycho Katie/Jon/Jackel

"Oh that's harsh" Matt moved his head to George. "You're just nominating him. You're cold...." Matt snickered as he pretended to shiver.

Matt began to move to the truck, but quickly turned around as Katie screamed. Matt just stood there as he saw something he thought he'd never see. A little girl was trying to kill them. He cocked his head to the side as the situation played itself out. With it ending with two men being stabbed and the girl's head nearly blown off.

"Well...." Matt shrugged. "Like Father like daughter....it seems she has picked up the monster inside...that's a shame" Matt mumbled grimly as he walked around the Father-Daughter duo on the floor...a bloody mess.

"Well, now that we're done with the batshit insane here I think we'll be off...Though whoever decided to give that girl a knife has some great parenting skills" Matt laughed mischievously.

"Now we'll really be keeping an eye out now....great effort though....for an eight year old.....why any of you guys had any trouble with a little whiny brat I wouldn't know..." Matt led the group to the trucks. "You're gonna love it...it's full of candy!" Matt taunted before he entered one of the trucks.



Liam - All Alone

Liam raised his hand to Scarlett as she was leaving "Please.....don't go" Liam cried out as Scarlett left with Katie. The men dragged Tyler along and Liam dropped to his knee's. "No!" Liam screamed out. His eyes were red with tears and he crawled into a ball.

Sure, George was someone he knew. But barely....

He had people he trusted and once again they were torn away from him. Liam was silent aside from the few sobs that seeped out every now and again.

He tried to remember his mother...they could still be alive. It hurt like a knife in his stomach to try and remember but he had to. Somewhere out there perhaps his mother was still alive. He should of stayed where he was....he shouldn't of looked oh god he shouldn't of looked. If he had just stayed where he was-

His tear soaked eyes opened as he heard someone shout Scarlett's name. He looked around to see a woman and a man. The woman looked distressed and very familiar looking. The gears in bis brain spun and it clicked that somehow Liam knew this women's name. Without even meeting her.

"Are-" Liam voice was bleak and hard to understand but he stood up. "A-Are you sam?"



Rob- Cell - Shannon/Damian

Rob's face turned to confusing to a wary look. "No way..." Rob twisted his head to the side. "You're the guy with the swords on the rooftop!" Rob eyes glanced to Shannon. Giving her a look to tell her to just be a little nervous around this guy.

"We got separated by the hoard...well....Its good to know that you're alive I guess." Rob looked down gloomily.

"Do you know where holly is?" Rob responded. "She was nice...wanted to clear the whole city out....heh" Rob laughed wistfully before turning back to Damien. "Well...I can't really be the strange one when you're the one with swords- look nevermind..." Rob pondered for a second to what he should ask. But the questioned came out of his mouth when he remembered where exactly they were.

"How long have you been here?...and why do they want us?" Rob's could hear "Magnus" close enough but he spoke in a whisper. "What do they actually want"



Magnus - Cell - Danny/Luke/Richard/Trey and co

Magnus let them talk and in Richard's case...lashing out.

Magnus soul-searching eyes turned to Luke. "Yes...I am Magnus. You may call me the leader of the men and women here" Magnus spoke clearly, His face showing nothing but a smirk. His voice giving a sense of a doctor speaking to children. But with a hint of directness.

"As for your wounded friend...He is....getting treatment. Don't worry, he is fine. But you will most likely not see him for quite a while....and-" Magnus eyes drifted to Richard. "If you are talking about the deaf man, then he is an other cell. Do not worry, he will come to no harm as long as he cooperates. Which I'm sure he will. We have people who can sign, including me in fact" Magnus said proudly before his face turned back to Luke.

"Ah, you ask the right questions. You are all here to help us. To fix things...Every one of you is pivotal to this journey...I do hope you all understand"



Kerry - Cells - Aubrey

Kerry's face snarled as Aubrey winked at him, he followed Aubrey. Passing Magnus. He made sure to gently move Aubrey slightly away from Magnus.

"We have people here locked up, I'm kinda the one who did that. I can't exactly ask them to calm down!" Kerry hissed quietly. His eyes looked directly into Aubrey before he took a step back.

"Sorry...It's..." Kerry moved his head to signal out Magnus. "We need to convince him to get him and tremblay to get their total forces to completely wipe out Richard's group..." Kerry's expression turned sour. "They're monsters Aubrey...They killed my friends and family. Jesus christ they're neo-nazis! Did you hear what happened!? They executed two of the people they were gonna trade just because they could. For fuck sake we could destroy them if we wanted to and yet we idle by and do nothing!" Kerry voice was extremely quiet yet you could still hear the urgency in his voice.

"After this...we need to do something..."

Samantha - Hotel - Abram/Leah/Liam/George

"I lost her..." Samantha repeated the words over and over to herself like a chant as she began to sob, her hands balled into fists on her lap. She wasn't quite expecting it, but at the feel of Abram's large hand on her shoulder, Samantha lost it, letting all of her frustration and grief out in tears. The young woman turned instinctively towards the man and curled up close to him, her hands covering her face as she cried uncontrollably on his shoulder.

She wasn't aware of how long the moment had taken, or when they had stood up, all she knew was that there was the quiet voice of a young boy stating her name. Sam looked up from Abram and nodded towards the boy, wiping her tears away. "Yes... That's me... Was Scarlett looking for me?!" Sam walked over a bit attentively towards the young boy and crouched down to make eye contact with him. "What's your name sweetie? Are you hurt?" Sam waited until he answered her and she confirmed that he wasn't suffering from any physical injuries. She sighed of relief and turned to the man that was standing next to him. A grown man. Not a scratch on him. He didn't even look phased. Anger exploded in Samantha's body and spread like wildfire as she looked at the man. "Why didn't you stop them!? Why didn't you try to stop them!? They took my sister! They took a little girl! Why didn't you!!"

In the moment of her fury, Sam had barely noticed that her own hand was balled up and that she was stalking over towards him, preparing to lunge the fist and punch him dead in the face. If it weren't for a set of hands that had held her arm down and pulled her back, she would have gone for it. She wouldn't have felt bad for it either.

After taking a deep breath to calm herself, she turned to Abram and frowned, "We should go back to Tina's.... It's the safest place.. I need time for myself too." The young woman really did need time to think everything through. Probably cry herself to sleep. That was sometimes helpful.

Sam turned back to the young boy and bit her lip, wondering what he even thought of them. "You.... You were at Tina's before right? I think I saw your name... or heard your name there before.... Do you want to go back there with us? It's the only safe place we know of."

_____________________________________________________________

Aubrey - Cells - Kerry

Aubrey was having a bit of fun making Kerry exasperated. It was her own personal hobby to make him annoyed.

The girl looked up at Kerry and gave him a rather smug and sarcastic smile as he hissed at her. She sighed and nodded in acknowledgement as Kerry began to actually explain what he was trying to do. Aubrey saw nothing wrong with his goals so she agreed to help him. "Okay... After this though."

The girl couldn't leave Magnus' side at the moment. The people in the cell, mainly a few of the men were becoming a little agitated as Magnus spoke to them. By now, Aubrey had grabbed her bow once again and brought out an arrow, setting it and bringing it up to aim at someone when she thought they'd get too angry or become a threat to anyone around them.

Ellieneighborhood streetAnyone

Ellie walked for hours, and hours, looking through house after house. All seemed to be empty, and every single one had at least one walker inside them. Lucky enough for the young 15 year old, he managed to sneak up to most of them, sliding a blade into their skull, dropping them. It was only this last house he had trouble with, he checked the windows, all but the second bedroom could be seen through, suggesting nothing to be inside besides a walker in the kitchen, but the young teen knew better then to believe his eyes. He slowly walked to the back door, opening the white paint peeling door, and peeked his head inside. Three walkers sat inside by a large sofa in the living room, while the same walker that Ellie seen was in the kitchen, all four staring blankly at the air above or in front of them. Ellie managed to open to the door just enough to slip inside, and slowly and quietly sneak into the kitchen. As he did so, the walker was looking out the kitchen window, his back turned to Ellis. Ellis quickly walked behind him, he was no longer crouching, but instead stood as he drove his survival knife through the skull of the walker. He then returned his survival knife to his pocket.

"I'm sorry." mumbled Ellis as he heard the walker drop to the hard floor, causing a thud! to ego through the house. Moans and groans were heard as the three walkers in the living room drew closer, the sound of their shuffling feet hitting his eyes like poison to Romeo. Ellis quickly drew his nail baseball bat from his tent bag strapped to his back, and readied a swig at the corner of the kitchen. As a female walker turned the corner, Ellis's swig priced her skull with such force the bat be came stick in the skull of the walker as she fell dead. With two more walkers turning the corner, Ellis took four steps back, grabbing his survival knife from his pocket, lunging it into the bottom of jaw of the male walker as he neared, the weight of the undead being pushed the semi heavy boy back, as he struggled to push the knife deeper, so it could reach the undead's skull, he kicked his knees, not only breaking his legs, but causing him to fall to ground, but not before Ellis grabbed him be his hair, forcing the blade fully through the jaw and into the brain, killing him. As the battle was over, the final walker grabbed his arm, snapping his jaw as he was a mere inch away from biting him. Thinking quick, Ellis did what he had just done, and kicked the undead man's knee's, breaking them like he did to the previous walker. Only as the undead man fell, Ellis ran, slamming the back door behind him. He walked for another hour, only a small bag of cheezits and half a bottle of water left for his supplies. He was about to enter another house before he saw movement inside, expecting it to be another walker, he hid behind a tree, peeking out just in time to catch a glimpse of two women. Their people, more human beings... thought Ellis as he hid behind the tree for a moment, until deciding to take a chance and approach the two. He slowly walked towards the house, hoping for the best.