MAGGIE NEEDED MEDICAL attention urgently. Rick and Carl planned on taking her to Hilltop to see Dr. Carson and make sure she and the unborn baby were all right.

Y/N was going with them. He wanted to ensure the lady was all right and sought the health of her and his future niece or nephew. He started packing some things while in the living room, holstering his M1911 and sheathing his machete.

Mika went downstairs and was ready with a bag and her book in hand. She knew of Maggie's current state and wanted to go as well...but Y/N wasn't keen on the idea. He was honestly surprised to see her dressed and ready.

As he turned to her, he noticed she had a bracelet on her. She made it for herself the night before, which somewhat matched Y/N's. He didn't ask about it and instead questioned her immediate intentions.

"Mika, I'd rather you stay." He said.

"I want to go. I want to make sure Maggie's okay."

"We'll make sure of it. It's just..." He sighed. "The Saviors are still out there. It's not gonna be safe."

"And you're still going?"

"Rick knows the routes, and we'll be quick. They won't get the jump on us."

"So you have it handled. Let me come."

Y/N looked at her and stopped his packing process. He let out another breath as he touched his bracelet.

"No, Mika."

"But—"

"Just...stay." He interrupted. "Please."

The blonde girl stood quiet. Y/N looked to the side for a moment and leaned on the table.

"The trip will be quick. I'll be back by tonight, as will everyone else."

Mika wasn't sure if she believed that. Almost everyone she knew was either outside Alexandria or about to leave anyway.

"Then...we'll have a great day tomorrow. Celebrate the big 1-0. And I have a surprise for you."

She arched a brow. "Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"What...?"

"Nuh-uh. I can't tell you yet. Of course, I can't." He replied and smiled at her. "That's for tomorrow. So...can you do me a favor and just stay here."

There was a moment of silence before Mika ultimately agreed. The young man rubbed the top of her head before giving her a side hug.

"Take care of AJ for me. He's at Erica's, but still...he needs his big sister."

That was the first time he referred to Mika as AJ's sister, which made the girl happy. She parted from the hug.

"All right. Uh...be safe." She said, then stammered a bit. "Um, C—Can I go see him at Erica's now?"

He nodded. Y/N recently started letting her walk alone to Erica's, which was on the next block.

"Sure."

Mika immediately went to the door. Y/N called out.

"Uh...I—I'll see you tonight then."

She left the house without a word. Y/N arched a brow and found her sudden departure confusing.

"Hopefully." He added with a mutter.

Sometime later, Y/N, Rick, and Carl had Maggie in the RV and were ready to go. The men brought more bags to the RV and saw Sasha, Abraham, and Eugene walking by.

"Any change?" Sasha asked.

"She's getting worse." Rick answered.

"Good call on the transport." Abraham remarked.

"Figured she'd be more comfortable," Y/N replied. "Beats a four-seater."

"It also means you got room for more."

Y/N and Rick looked at Abraham. Before they can retort, the former army man interjected.

"They're out there, so I'm gonna be there with you." Abraham glanced at Sasha. "We are."

"Package deal." She added.

Rick nor Y/N had anything against it, and the two went into the RV. Eugene was right behind them.

"Uh, what she said."

This time, Rick wasn't sure. He felt like Eugene was biting off more than he could chew, especially after just having been shot the day before.

"Look, it's a long trip, and you're just getting over—"

Eugene spoke over the man.

"It's a superficial graze, proteins are binding, plus we need to discuss ammunition production and manufacture, so let's roll."

Abraham came out to grab some more things and overheard their exchange.

"I already tried." He said. "Give him an inch; he's taking a mile."

Eugene continued. "I'm only asking for 23, give or take, depending on the route. I know I can be of some help. Now's the time, and here's the place. Don't shine me. I'll be your anchorman. Yes, I damn will."

He grabbed a gas can from the floor and immediately went inside the RV. Rick just glanced at Y/N and put his hands on his hips. The young man shrugged but agreed with Eugene. The more, the merrier.

Afterward, they were checking the RV's tires and engine. Aaron came by and spoke with Rick who was inspecting the wheel well. He was adamant about joining them and being there for Maggie, but Rick preferred he stayed.

"We're ready to protect this place, and the Saviors know it. That's why they grabbed Eugene."

Rick immediately got up. "Look, it's not up for discussion."

Aaron looked down for a second to talk back to Rick calmly yet sternly.

"Then you're just gonna have to punch me in the face and tie me up again. 'Cause that's what it's gonna take to stop me."

Rick looked at Aaron. He felt like there was nothing else he could say that would change the man's mind. He ultimately relented.

"Go on." He mouthed as he motioned toward the RV.

Aaron went inside. Y/N finished checking the engine and closed the hood, walking back toward Rick. Father Gabriel, Spencer, and Beth came by at that moment, with the blonde girl packed and ready to be with her sister.

"We have 24-hour shifts set up on each of the watchtowers, each one of them fully supplied and ready," Gabriel told the men. "In the case that we're incurred upon, we have drivers assigned, evacuation and distraction, and the rendezvous we discussed. In the event of any emergency, my first priority is your children. I will not fail you."

The two men appreciated that the priest was willing to put his life on the line for Judith, AJ, and Mika.

"Are you comfortable leaving me in charge of Alexandria's defense?" Father Gabriel asked for reassurance.

Rick chuckled. It'd been some time since they first met in the woods when Gabriel was the timid coward who feared them. Now, he'd become a part of the group and gained their trust.

"Yes." He replied.

Rick nodded at the three before going inside. Y/N pat the priest on the shoulder.

"Say a prayer for us, Padre."

"I always do." He replied with a smirk.

Before Y/N went inside, Spencer spoke.

"Hey, Y/N. If the Saviors do show up...I don't know, I'm thinking, if it's not too late, should we try and make some kind of deal?"

Y/N looked back at Spencer. He found it unusual but also a bit galvanizing that he asked him instead of Rick. It was like the Alexandrians, like Spencer, saw him as Rick's equal and as a leader in the community.

"Tell them to wait for me," Y/N replied. "I got a deal they might like."

With that, he entered the RV and shut the door. They drove out of Alexandria with Father Gabriel on the platform, watching them leave.

They were on the road for over an hour already. Maggie was still bedridden but feeling better than she was initially. Beth sat nearby and held her sister's hand.

"You already got a name?" Beth asked.

Maggie smiled. "We had a couple in mind. If it's a boy...probably the same as daddy's."

"That's so sweet."

"And if it's a girl..." Maggie paused. "I was thinking Anne."

Beth heard the name and felt like crying. Anne was short for Annette, which was Beth's mom's name. She found it heartwarming that Maggie was willing to name her possible half-niece after her.

Soon, Rick came by. He nodded at Beth and knelt beside Maggie to speak with her.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"We're gonna get there." He reassured her. "The doctor at the Hilltop, he's gonna make things better."

Maggie held out hope, but there was still an inkling of doubt. She looked to the side, and Rick caught her reaction. He rubbed her hair.

"Hey."

"How do you know?" She asked with a sniffle.

"Everything we've done, we've done together. We got here together, and we're still here. Things have happened, but it's always worked out for us 'cause it's always been all of us. That's how I know. 'Cause as long as it's all of us, we can do anything."

Maggie didn't respond, but her face showed that she believed in Rick. Behind him, within the gap between the room and the front, stood Y/N and Carl. They heard what he said and also agreed.

"You thirsty, Mags?" Y/N asked with his arms crossed. "I'm at your beck and call."

She nodded. "Yeah."

"Okay."

He went over to a nearby closet and opened it.

"I think I remember having some water stored in—"

Y/N looked in and was caught off guard by the sight. Beside the crate of water was Mika, who had been hiding in the closet. Maggie, Beth, Rick, and Carl were also surprised.

"Mika?"

"Uh..." She awkwardly waved. "Hi."

The young man disappointedly shook his head and stepped aside, motioning her to get out. He leaned against the wall and crossed his arms.

"Mika?" Beth asked. "What are you doing here?"

"I—I wanted to come."

Rick spoke. "Honey, that wasn't smart. You should've stayed back in Alexandria. Had Gabriel or Erica watch you."

"I get that—"

Y/N chimed in a rather stern tone.

"Mika...I told you. I told you. You stay in Alexandria. You stay with AJ. You wait for us. It was simple."

"I know—"

"Why didn't you just listen to me?" Y/N interjected. "You can't just be doing this. Not now. Not with what's going on—"

"Everyone was leaving me!"

Mika finally got to speak and did so rather loudly. Everyone in the small space looked at her as she began to get her point across.

"Daryl left. Michonne, Ramon, Rosita, and Glenn went after him. Carol is gone. Morgan is gone. Then you all started to leave. I didn't like that! It felt...scary! It—It felt like...like I was back in those woods right after the prison. I got the same scared feeling when those bad people were about to hurt me and Carl...when they were about to hurt you guys."

They all heard her. Y/N, Rick, and Carl empathized with her as they recalled that very day that the Claimers almost killed them. The encounter was traumatic for Mika...and they never really thought about how much it did for her.

"I'm so sorry I didn't listen. I'm sorry I left AJ. I was just so scared. I wasn't thinking." She began to sob. "It's just that leaving me with other people made me more scared...and I felt alone...I felt alone."

Y/N immediately crouched to the girl's level and hugged her, allowing her to cry on his shoulder. He rubbed her back and comforted Mika.

"It's okay...It's okay." He said softly. "You—You're right. I...I should've thought of that. I never really..."

He trailed off. It wasn't until now that Y/N realized the trauma Mika had endured. She was just like everyone...like him. But the fact that she was just about to turn 10 made it many times worse.

"You thinking of turning back?" Carl asked his father.

Rick glanced over at Maggie and then at Y/N. The young man shook his head amidst his embrace with Mika and told him what he thought. Rick agreed.

"No. We keep moving."

Mika parted and wiped her eyes, with Y/N helping rub some away. She looked over at Maggie on the bed.

"A—And I want to be there for you, Maggie. For the baby."

The pregnant lady appreciated the little girl. She reached out and held her hand.

"You're so caring, Mika. Thank you."

Mika softly smiled back.

Their drive continued for another half an hour. Aaron, Abraham, Eugene, and Sasha were told about Mika and got to see her. The ginger also commended her sneaky stealth skills, hiding in the closet for over an hour.

The man kept manning the RV down the road. Suddenly, something caught his eye.

"What the bitch?"

They ended up stopping ahead. Rick and Y/N went over and peeked out the front.

"What?" Rick asked.

"Enemy close."

A group of Saviors were on the road, blocking their path. Y/N gritted his teeth at the sight of them.

"We doing this?" Abraham asked.

Y/N took a breath out of his nose and glared out the window.

"No. But I got something for them."

He was the first to go out, grabbing his M1 Carbine from the seat. Rick grabbed his AK47 and walked out with him. Everyone else, minus Maggie, Beth, and Mika, followed them outside.

Y/N held his rifle in one hand as he raised his arms. He whispered to Rick, who was close behind.

"You want this, or should I?"

Rick held his gun. He looked to the side and whispered back.

"You already walking in front and got your hands up. Jus' show 'em we ain't messing around."

Y/N nodded. Once again, Rick trusted Y/N and allowed him to take the initiative. The two have been backing each other up throughout the entire Saviors business and that wasn't going to change.

Y/N kept walking forward before stopping. Rick stood a few feet behind him, along with the rest. One of the Savior lieutenants, who stood beside a beat-up man on the floor, called out to him.

"He's someone who was with a whole lot of someones who didn't listen."

"You wanna make a deal?" Y/N asked. "We can iron out the terms right here. Right now."

"That's right, we can. Give us all your stuff. We'll probably have to kill one of you. That's just the way it is, but then we can start moving forward on business. All you have to do is listen."

Y/N chuckled, dropping his arms and touching the side of his rifle.

"Hm. Trevor, right? Yeah, you look like a Trevor. But, that deal's not gonna work for us. No way." He replied. "Actually, I was about to ask for all of your stuff, only I'm thinking I don't have to kill any of you."

The Lieutenant and his colleagues were irritated by the young man's arrogance. Y/N paused for a moment and stared back at them.

"Well...any more of you. I mean, that outpost back there, it was pretty easy. Planned it myself." He put his hand on his heart. "I consider it a crowning achievement."

No words were exchanged for the next minute, but the Saviors would surely remember Y/N's words and the mockery he was making. A man spray painted the torso of their victim on the floor before the Lieutenant finally spoke.

"Sorry, my deal is the only deal. We don't negotiate."

Y/N nodded. He motioned at Rick and the rest to walk back to the RV.

"Then we're leaving. Nice chat."

They walked back to the RV. The Lieutenant grinned and called out.

"Okay, friend. Plenty of ways to get to where you're going."

Rick looked at them and decided to speak.

"You want to make today your last day on Earth?"

"No, but that is a good thing to bring up." He replied. "Think about it. What if it's the last day on Earth for you? For someone you love? What if that's true?"

Y/N stood by the door and stared at them. The Lieutenant continued speaking to the two of them, whom he saw as the central duo of the group.

"Maybe you should be extra nice to those people in that RV, 'cause you never know..." He snapped his fingers. "Just like that. Be kind to each other. Like you said...like it was your last day on Earth."

Rick smirked. "You do the same."

He went inside the RV. Y/N was the last to go in but got one last word in.

"Until never, Trevor."

Soon, the group drove in reverse and out of the area. The Savior Lieutenant playfully waved at them before beating the man on the floor, enjoying it as he did.

They needed to find another route to the Hilltop. With the help of Eugene and Sasha, they found one after scouring through a map.

Abraham continued driving. He spoke to Sasha, who sat beside him in the passenger's seat.

"Think we could do it?"

"What?"

"What they did. Glenn and Maggie. Barry Bonds back there." He added, also mentioning Y/N. "Just asking if you could do that."

Sasha wasn't sure how to respond. The man continued.

"If you're doing something as big as that...if that's living.

"Could you?" She asked.

"Yeah...I could. Now."

Sasha softly smiled. She was very touched that Abraham felt he could have a future with her. The man also seemed to have a lighter outlook on life now compared to how he was before.

"Just so you know." He added.

Abraham continued driving. His smile faded after seeing another blockade on the road containing a different group of Saviors.

"Bitch nuts."

He stopped the RV. Rick looked out the window and saw them, too.

"We making our stand?" Sasha asked.

Carl answered. "Yeah, we end it."

"They got a little over a dozen out there. Looks manageable." Y/N said. "We sure about this?"

This time, Rick disagreed. He didn't think now was the right time.

"No, not now. They've been waiting. They're ready. With one of us behind the wheel, that's 7 on 16. We're gonna play it our way, how we want it. Right?"

Carl ultimately agreed. "Right."

Y/N also trusted Rick. The former deputy told Abraham to back up. 

"All right, go slow."

As they went in reverse, the Saviors shot in the air, and the noise echoed through the woods.

BRAKAKA!

BRAKAKA!

BRAKAKA!

They continued doing so. Finally, Abraham made the turn, and they drove down the road they came from.

Y/N sat on the seat by the window, his rifle in hand, while his other arm was draped over the headrest.

Mika came out from Maggie's room. She knew about the last couple of stops but never got to ask about them until now.

"What's happening out there?"

Y/N kept looking out the window. He was starting to get a bit anxious and wanted to make sure there weren't any more Saviors on the side of the road.

"Nothing to worry about. It's just..." He began. "They're messing with us."

"Messing with us?"

"Pretty much it." He simply replied.

Mika sighed. Y/N looked back at her and leaned forward.

"We're getting to Hilltop no matter what. We'll find a way."

Suddenly, the RV was heading to stop once again. Abraham, Rick, and Sasha looked out the window and gazed upon what was before them.

"We can't go through it. Can't risk the RV." Rick said. "You stay behind the wheel, just in case."

Rick motioned the rest to follow him outside. Y/N told Mika to stay and grabbed his rifle before leaving. Y/N, Rick, Carl, Sasha, Aaron, and Eugene walked outside with their guns drawn.

Ahead was a barrier of chained-up walkers blocking the road. Y/N aimed his rifle toward the trees in case any Saviors were trying to get the jump on them.

"Putting together a red rover like that takes people," Eugene said. "A lot of them."

Rick eyed the walkers, seeing that the chains had been practically forced through their torsos. Still, he believed they could clear it.

"Come on, let's do this."

Carl looked at one of the walkers and noticed something. He called out to Rick.

"Dad."

Aaron also did. "That's Michonne's."

He looked at the walker in front of him, seeing that it was wearing the swordswoman's vest and had a dreadlock stuck to its head. The sight gave Rick a sudden feeling of dread.

"That's Daryl's." Sasha pointed out, seeing his jacket on a walker and an arrow in its chest.

Y/N looked over at another walker, seeing the shoes it was wearing. It looked out of place than the rest, and he recognized the beat-up sneakers.

"Those are Ramon's." He spoke. "He's the only one I know with those 1s."

Rick kept looking at the walker with Michonne's vest. He reached out and pulled the dreadlock from its head and held it. With gritted teeth, he raised his axe and was about to kill it.

GRATATATA!

Suddenly, there was gunfire, and bullets hit the ground near them. The Saviors continued shooting while Y/N and the rest aimed toward the treeline and fired back.

BRAKAKAKA!

GRATATATA! GRATATATA!

BRAKA! BRAKAKA!

GRATATATATATATA!

As the firefight continued, Rick used his hatchet to cut the hand of one of the walkers, splitting the barrier and opening up the road.

SVISH!

They shot the walkers down while also firing at the Saviors up on the hill.

BRAKAKA!

GRATA! GRATA!

BRAKAKAKAKA!

"Back to the RV!" Y/N exclaimed. "Let's go!"

The group ran into the vehicle, and Abraham started it up immediately. They then sped down the road as the gunfire suddenly quelled...as if the Saviors expected them to go through.

Rick leaned against the wall as he held the dreadlock between his fingers. All he could think about was Michonne and what could've happened to her.

Y/N looked over from his seat and saw the state he was in. The psychological games they were playing started getting to them, and Y/N didn't like it.

There was a sudden squeal beneath the RV that got their attention. Sasha questioned it.

"What's that sound?"

"Undercarriage could've caught a bullet." Eugene assumed. "Or could be transmission. It could be nothing."

"They were firing at our feet," Rick spoke abruptly. "They blocked the road, but they weren't trying to stop us. They want us in this direction."

Sasha looked over the map with Eugene.

"Barton Road takes us north, but they gotta know we wanna go north." She said.

"Meadows." Eugene pointed. "Could take us east a piece, but we can get back on track on Mayhew."

"We're down to a third of a tank. We could top off at the next stop, but no refills after that."

Y/N got up and saw what they were looking at. He nodded and agreed with the plan but was starting to get nervous.

"All right. Only forward from here."

Aaron came out of the back room where Maggie was. He had a worried look as he spoke to them.

"She's burning up."

Both Y/N and Rick began to worry. The more time they spent on the road evading the Saviors and being rerouted meant she had less time before something horrible happened.

Y/N swallowed and rubbed his face. He wasn't sure what to do. He now hoped there wouldn't be any trouble heading toward Meadows.

"Shit." Abraham suddenly cursed.

The brakes squealed as the RV came to a slow stop. The rest looked out the window and saw a large group of armed Saviors standing on the road and on top of their cars, blocking the path.

Rick eyed them. There wasn't anything they could do but reroute.

"Go back." He said.

Abraham scoffed as he looked ahead at the blockade. He turned to Rick.

"Where?"

They continued their travels and ended up stopping at another blocked bath. The road had a stack of logs about a story high. Y/N gripped the handle of his rifle in frustration as he shook his head.

"These tracks..." Eugene spoke as he looked down. "They would indicate they not only have people, but some big-ass toys and capabilities."

"What it indicates is we are neck-deep up shit creek with our mouths wide open." Abraham added.

Y/N exhaled. "They have the numbers. They have the tools. Shit, what the hell—?"

There was a sudden scream that got their attention. They aimed their guns up at the overpass and saw a bloodied man being hung with a chain. He gagged and was choking.

Aaron aimed his sniper rifle upward. He wanted to free the man and save him.

"Don't." Abraham said.

"I can try and break the chain." He butted.

"It won't work."

"I can try."

"It won't do any good." Y/N cut in, coldly looking at the man who was choking to death. "And we need the ammo."

The man ended up dying soon after, and they shamefully watched as he did. Y/N looked over at the RV and saw Mika at the window, who likely saw the entire thing happen.

Suddenly, the logs behind them lit on fire. They looked back at them when a voice began to speak from behind the stack. It was the Lieutenant.

"You're treating your people good, right? Like it was your last day on Earth? Or maybe one of theirs?"

Y/N seethed his teeth. The man continued.

"You better go. It's gonna get hot. You go get where you're going."

Rick ordered the rest. "Go, go."

They all returned to the RV and went in reverse before turning around and leaving the area.

A little ways away from the overpass, they stopped their RV to devise a plan.

"So, what's the play?"

Y/N rubbed his hair as he looked over at Maggie in the room. He was getting perturbed about her well-being and the health of the baby.

"She needs a doctor." He spoke, the stress evident on his face. "L—Like right now."

"There are two more routes north from here." Sasha said as she pointed at the map.

Aaron replied. "They're probably waiting for us right now."

Rick stood by and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He was also getting more and more nervous.

Eugene shook his head and sighed. He thought of a plan to allow them to transport Maggie to Hilltop.

"So, they're ahead of us, probably behind us. But they're not waiting on us, per se, they're waiting on this rust bucket. And they don't know the moment-to-moment occupancy of said rust bucket. And the sun sets soon."

Abraham knew what he was getting at and nodded. He glanced at Rick.

Although the plan was risky, he felt he had no other option. He ultimately agreed with a simple, weary nod.

IN THE MIDDLE of the night, the group enacted their plan. Eugene would drive the RV and allow himself to be the Saviors' target while the rest moved Maggie by foot to Hilltop.

Rick filled the vehicle with the last of the gas, and Eugene gave the man handwritten instructions on how to build bullets. The man was taken aback and appreciative.

"Thank you for this. For all of it. We're lucky you're here."

Eugene nodded. "I won't argue with that."

Rick chuckled and patted his arm before going back inside. Abraham came out to speak to him.

"You go steady on the pedal. You don't make that thing gulp."

There was a beat as Eugene stared at him.

"How come you never let me drive the truck?" He asked.

Abraham looked to the side, taking a moment before responding.

"I didn't think you could do it. I was wrong. You're a survivor. You always were. We just didn't know it."

"Me and you both."

Abraham held out his hand for a handshake. Instead, Eugene hugged him. The army man patted his back.

Soon, the rest came out of the RV carrying Maggie on a makeshift stretcher. She looked up at Eugene.

"Thank you." She said weakly.

He simply nodded. Before they left, Mika wanted to speak to Eugene, too.

"You're brave, Eugene. You should know that."

Her compliment honestly touched him. He gave her a nod.

"Appreciate the kind words, missy. And I'd like to wish you a happy birthday."

Since it was the very early hours of May 3rd, it was, in fact, Mika's birthday. She was surprised he even knew.

"How'd you know?"

"Got a peek at your journal as you were writing when I was sitting beside you a few hours ago. Apologies."

She chuckled. "It's okay. But thanks."

Eugene stood there as she walked away with the rest. He quickly went back into the RV and soon drove off.

It was somewhat foggy throughout their trek through the woods. Carl, Sasha, Aaron, and even Mika were in front dealing with any walkers in their way while Rick, Y/N, Abraham, and Beth carried the stretcher Maggie was on.

"Just—just let me walk it," Maggie muttered to the young man. "Y/N, please."

"Just relax for me, Mags." He told her. "A few more miles, and that's it."

Beth reassured her. "Rest, Maggie. We're almost there."

They kept moving. Carl trotted beside his dad.

"I heard what you told her when we were leaving. We can do anything 'cause we'll do anything we need to do. We have, and we will." He said. "What happened to Denise, I'm not gonna let anybody die like that again."

"Son..."

Suddenly, they heard whistling and stopped in their tracks.

It didn't come from just one direction. Many more whistles came from their right, left, and straight ahead. Y/N darted his eyes around and saw people within the tree line. The whistling continued.

"Let's go..." Y/N spoke lowly, then got louder. "Go!"

They made a right into the forest. As they ran, they still heard the eerie whistling. It was as if it came from every direction. It followed them no matter where they turned.

Out of nowhere, a bright light from a truck's high beams blinded them and stopped them in their tracks. Y/N opened his eyes and saw where they were: an open area within the woods and many Saviors surrounding them.

He broke away from Rick and Abraham carrying Maggie and drew his rifle, aiming at the armed men. Sasha, Beth, Aaron, and Carl held their guns and frantically aimed. Mika gripped her pistol, too, but her hands were trembling.

Dozens upon dozens of Saviors surrounded them. They were finally cornered and at the mercy of the group. There was nowhere else to go.

The men continued whistling. Y/N began to sweat as he darted his eyes around at the armed men. The feeling of dread quickly overwhelmed him.

Nearby, a bruised-up Eugene was on his knees. They even saw the RV parked ahead. The man did not go far before ultimately being captured by the Saviors.

"You made it."

The Savior Lieutenant from before walked up to the group and grinned.

"Welcome to where you're going. We'll take your weapons. Now."

Rick, shaken and scared as Y/N, stammered as he pleaded with him.

"We can talk about—"

"We're done talking." He interjected. "Time to listen."

A group of Saviors took their packs and weapons from each of them. The Lieutenant personally took Y/N's pistol and machete and then noticed the panicked state he was in.

"What? No witty remark? No joke?" He snickered. "Trevor. It's Simon, dickhead."

Y/N didn't say a word. Nearby, a Savior took Mika's gun, knife, and bag. He curiously checked its contents, saw the journal, and scoffed.

"Tonight's gonna be quite an entry, darlin'." He remarked.

Simon backed away and spoke.

"Okay. Let's get her down and get you all on your knees. Lots to cover."

Abraham, Rick, Sasha, and Aaron brought Maggie down and helped her to her feet. Rick and Abraham slowly put her on her knees as everyone else started to do so as well.

Y/N stood there, still trying to process what was happening. He wanted to try and figure a way out, but there was nothing he could do. For the first time since those days on the road, before Alexandria, he felt helpless.

"Gonna need you on your knees." Simon told Y/N.

Y/N let out a shuddered breath as he looked around. Rick was also in a state of panic as he feared for the group's well-being. Mika stood between Rick and Sasha and looked back at Y/N with anxious eyes.

He swallowed and ended up kneeling where he stood, which was beside Abraham and Maggie. Soon, everyone else got on their knees.

"David!" Simon called out. "Chop-chop."

The other Lieutenant opened the doors to the nearby van. He and a few other Saviors forcefully brought out an injured Daryl, a beat-up Ramon, Glenn, Michonne, and Rosita.

Beth looked on in shock, seeing Ramon. The Latino was forced to his knees beside Daryl and looked back at her, his eyes wide.

Glenn also saw his ill wife and was shaken at the sight of her.

"Maggie?"

"On your knees!" David scolded as he forced Glenn into position.

Y/N glanced at Michonne, who knelt beside him. They locked eyes for a moment before the young man brought his head down and stared at the ground.

He was panicking.

All the anger from before was gone. It was now replaced with fear.

Everyone who knew and cared about was there with him and at the mercy of the Saviors. He didn't know what was going to happen.

He was scared.

"All right! We got a full boat." Simon walked back to the RV in front of them. "Let's meet the man."

He knocked on the door and walked away. Everyone was either looking ahead with anxiety or gazing down in terror. Y/N was still doing the latter.

He feared what was going to happen. He feared what he was going to see. There was no denying what was to come.

Finally, the door opened. A rather tall bearded man in a leather jacket holding a barbed wire bat came out and smiled.

"Pissing our pants yet? Boy, do I have a feeling we're getting close."

It was immediate. The dread fully overcame him. He heard the voice and knew who it was. He didn't even have to look up to know.

"Yep. It's gonna be pee-pee pants city here real soon." The leader paced around and eyed each one of them. "Which one of you pricks is the leader?"

"Looks like we got a co-captain situation," Simon said, pointing at Rick and Y/N. "It's this one right here and the one by the black chick."

The leader nodded. Since he was in front of Rick, he spoke to him first.

"Hi. You're Rick, right?"

The man looked up and didn't respond. The Saviors snickered.

"Yeah, I heard about you."

He then moved to Y/N, who still had his head down and facing the floor. The lead Savior found it quite funny.

"Camera shy? You know what? I bet you're like...the 1B to Rick's 1A. Come on, look at me. I'm not scary looking. I'm actually quite handsome."

Y/N took in another breath. Finally, he slowly looked up and got a good look at the man. The sight of him was all he needed to know for sure...

It was Negan.

The older Smith brother got a good look at Y/N, too. For a second, a slight second, there was a genuine surprised reaction...as if the man was relieved to see his younger brother alive and well. But...it was soon replaced with a cheeky grin.

"Well, I'll...be...damned."

Everybody was a bit taken aback by his reaction. Negan let out a chuckle and clicked his tongue.

"How's it hanging, Junior?"

Y/N wasn't sure what to say. He just kept looking at Negan with the same panicked look. The lead Savior then spoke to everyone and cleared the air.

"Everybody! We have a living legend in our presence. It's the one and only Y/N L/N! MLB first-round pick, World Series Champion for the Yankees, and...my little brother."

That came as a surprise, especially to Y/N's own group. Y/N let out shallowed breaths as he looked to the side toward his friends.

"It's been what? Five years? Well...not including the couple since shit went down." Negan remarked. "Man, time really flies, don't it?"

Still, Y/N was quiet. Negan scoffed and crouched down to his level.

"Come on, Junior. Say something to your dear old brother. How about....you just say my name? Remind these kind folk who the fuck I am."

The young man swallowed. Finally, he muttered.

"...Negan."

"What was that? I don't think they heard ya."

"Negan." He said more clearly.

He smirked. "That's right."

Negan stood back up, resting the top of his bat on his shoulder. He eyed Rick, who was looking right at him.

Originally, Negan would go straight for Rick and give him the rundown on how things would be. But with the reappearance of Y/N, he now had another thing in mind. He thought it'd benefit both him and his younger brother, although the methods might be a bit extreme.

"So..." Negan spoke to Rick. "You say you're the leader. Or...at least one of them?"

Rick was unresponsive, but Negan already knew the answer and just gave him a plain look. He wasn't dumb. He knew that Rick was likely the main guy they all looked to, even Y/N.

"Well...that's going to change."

They weren't sure what he meant. Negan paced around with his bat and continued.

"Breaking news for you guys, but from now on, while I'm in the picture, Y/N is in charge. So all that shit before with Rick at the helm..." He whistled and made a cut-it-out gesture. "Take that shit to the garbage. That's fucking over with."

Negan pointed at Y/N.

"You see, our old man always made it a point to make sure my little brother had the cojones and be the big dog. Like he was. Like yours truly. So...now he has the opportunity...and I'm going to make sure he makes fucking good of it."

Y/N just stared back at Negan with the same panicked look. The more he spoke, and the more he talked...the more he started to see his father.

This was Negan's plan: to force Y/N to hold the responsibility and lives of the entire group on his shoulders. It came as a shock, but that's exactly what he wanted.

And to the Saviors, this showed them that, despite their blood relation, Negan wasn't going to show weakness and was still going to punish Y/N like another other person who had crossed them.

"Lookie here, Junior, now newly designated boss-man," Negan said with a snicker. "What you did at the outpost...I'm not too fond of that. I do not appreciate you killing my men."

Y/N continued staring at him and breathed shallowly. Negan continued.

"Also, when I sent my people to kill your people for killing my people, you killed more of my people. Not cool. Not fucking cool. You have no fucking idea how not fucking cool that shit is. But I think you're gonna be up to speed here shortly."

Negan nodded.

"Yeah. You are so gonna regret crossing me in a few minutes." He smirked. "Fuck yeah, you are."

Y/N stayed silent.

"You see, Junior, whatever you do, no matter fucking what, you don't mess with the new world order. And the new world order is this, and it's really very simple. So, even if you're fucking stupid, which I reckon your goofy ass still very may well be, you can understand it. You ready? Here goes. Pay attention."

Negan lowered his bat and brought it by Y/N's face. He leaned in and spoke threateningly but also had a smile.

"Give me your shit...or I will kill you."

Y/N kept gazing back at his brother. Everyone else looked on and listened to what he had to say. Negan began to pace around and speak to everyone but also made sure the point was driven further for Y/N.

"Today was career day. We invested a lot so you would know who I am and what I can do. You work for me now. You have shit, you give it to me. That's your job. Now, I know that is a mighty big, nasty pill to swallow, but swallow it you most certainly motherfucking will."

Negan pointed his bat at Y/N. He kept speaking to him as if he were the group's sole leader, which would be the case now. He barely gave Rick any attention.

"You ruled the roost with these people. You built something. You thought you were safe. I get it. But the word is out. You are not safe. Not even fucking close. In fact, you are fucked, more fucked if you don't do what I want. And what I want is half your shit. And if that's too much, you can go make, find, or steal more, and it'll even out sooner or later."

He opened his arms and paced around.

"This is your way of life now. The more you fight back, the harder it will be. So, if someone knocks on your door...you fucking let us in. We own that fucking door. You try to fucking stop us, and we will fucking knock that fucker down. You understand?"

Y/N was still speechless. Lots of things were still going through his mind, and the fact that his older brother was still alive in front of him was only one of them.

Negan leaned in and cupped his ear.

"What, no answer?" He laughed and rubbed his chin. "Come on, little brother, you don't really think that you were gonna get through this without being punished, now, did you?"

Y/N looked down. Negan continued.

"I don't want to kill you people. Just want to make that clear from the get-go. I want you to work for me. You can't do that if you're fucking dead, now, can you? I'm not growing a garden. But you killed my people, a whole fuckload of them. More than I'm comfortable with. And for that, for that, you're gonna fucking pay."

Negan looked to the side and saw Daryl and Ramon, both still bleeding and bruised. He looked back at the rest of them.

"So, now...I'm gonna beat the holy fuck fucking fuckity fuck outta one of you."

Negan twirled his bat around and showed it to them, mainly to Y/N. He held it in a rather caring manner.

"This—this is Lucille. You remember her, right?" He asked Y/N. "How beautiful she was. Still is."

Y/N glanced at the barbed wire bat before looking to the side. He did remember his sister-in-law and can recall when Negan first met her. In fact, he was with him that very day. Since he had a weapon named after, that told Y/N all he needed to know of her true fate.

"All this, all this is just so we can pick out which one of you gets the honor."

Negan inhaled sharply as he walked around and looked at each person in the lineup. He stopped before Abraham, who stood up straight and looked directly into his eyes.

"Huh." Negan rubbed his own beard. "Ugh, I gotta shave this shit."

He moved on. Negan eyed Carl next.

"You got one of our guns." Negan knelt in front of him. "Whoa. Yeah. You got a lot of our guns."

Carl didn't say anything and glared at Negan. Like Abraham, he wasn't fazed by the lead Savior. At least not yet.

"Shit, kid, lighten up," Negan said. "At least cry a little."

Negan smirked and chuckled before getting up again. He adjusted the hem of his jacket and cleared his throat, pacing confidently. He stopped in front of Maggie.

"Jesus. You look fucking shitty." He remarked, then held up his bat. "I should just put you out of your misery right now."

Immediately, Glenn shouted and leaped forward.

"No! No!"

David grabbed him and pushed him to the ground, punching him a few times. Maggie cried out.

"Stop it!"

Glenn grunted. Negan scratched the top of his lip and sighed.

"Nope. Nope, get him back in line."

David dragged him back to his spot as Glenn continued to struggle. He forced back on his knees, sobbing and letting out a frustrated yell.

"Don't." He pleaded. "Don't."

Negan looked back at the Korean and chuckled. He then spoke to everybody else.

"All right, listen. Don't any of you fucking do that again. I will shut that shit down, no exceptions." He pointed at Glenn. "First one's free. It's an emotional moment, I get it."

Y/N looked down as he began to shake and panted heavily. He wasn't sure how to feel. Unlike before, he didn't feel strong. There was no rage he could tap into. He was just filled with fear.

"Sucks, don't it?" Negan asked Y/N. "The moment you realize you don't know shit."

Negan kept pacing. He looked at Rick as he passed by and then eyed Carl again. He put two and two together fairly quickly.

"This is your kid?" He laughed. "This is definitely your kid."

For the first time, the man yelled.

"Just stop this!"

"Hey!" Negan shouted back, immediately quelling him. "Did I fucking say you can speak? Sorry, the only one that can is the big boss Yankee fucking doodle over there. You're nothing right now, Rick. You're like...the bottom tier in the echelon of shit."

Rick was left speechless. Negan let out a snicker and shook his head, continuing to pace.

He then eyed Mika, who knelt in between Rick and Sasha. Like Carl, he studied her closely and saw the DIY bracelet on her wrist. He glanced over at Y/N, seeing the same one of his.

"Huh." He rubbed his chin and spoke to her. "You...you got something special going on with Junior over there? Shit...if you got him to wear that ugly fucking thing instead of a Rolex, you definitely did something."

Mika didn't respond and only let out a couple of shallow breaths. Y/N looked over and observed their conversation.

"Let me just tell you, honeybun, if you got some fake ass brother-sister or father-daughter thing going on with him, you could do a lot better than that asshole. Trust me. Much better role models out there. Shit, I'd rather take Fat Joey."

He smirked at her. Negan stepped back and eyed everyone as he eerily whistled.

"Man, I really gotta pick somebody. Everybody's at the table waiting for me to order, but I simply cannot fucking decide."

He turned around and rubbed his temples. Finally, he came up with what to do.

"I got an idea."

The man chuckled as he stepped forward. He got in front of Y/N and started with him. He pointed his bat toward him.

"Eenie..."

He moved to Abraham.

"...meenie..."

Then Maggie.

"...miney..."

Then Rick.

"mo..."

He pointed at each person as he recited the rhyme, which lasted longer than usual. Y/N continued trembling as he darted his eyes wherever Negan stopped.

"...catch...a tiger... by... his toe."

"If... he hollers...let him go."

"My mother...told me..."

"...to pick the very best one..."

"...and you..."

"...are..."

"...it."

Negan had stopped in front of Abraham. Negan smiled slightly as everyone else began to dread what was to come. Y/N glanced over at the man beside him and let out a troubled breath.

"Anybody moves, anybody says anything, cut the boy's other eye out and feed it to his father, and then we'll start."

Abraham kept looking directly at Negan. He discreetly held up a peace sign that Sasha saw, and she began to sob.

Negan continued. He began to say a line that Y/N wholeheartedly remembered. A mantra that his father instilled in the two Smiths.

"You can breathe, you can blink, you can cry." Negan gripped his bat. "Hell, you're all gonna be doing that."

With a hard swing down, Negan brought the bat to the top of Abraham's head.

CRACK!

Rosita yelped nearby, and Y/N jumped, a tear rolling down his cheek. Abraham fell forward but was still able to get back up, albeit in a daze.  

"Ho! Ho! Look at that." Negan chuckled. "Taking it like a fucking champ!"

Abraham muttered. "Suck...my...nuts."

Negan hit him again with the bat, bringing him to the floor. He finished him off with a few more blows.

CRACK!

WHACK!

WHAM!

BRACK!

Negan panted as he held his bloodied bat. He chuckled.

"Did you hear that? He said, Suck my nuts. Fuck. Phew."

Negan continued pummeling Abraham's head, which was already exposed with brains and flesh all over the floor. Mika looked on in horror while Negan was having the time of his life.

WHACK!

WHAM!

CRACK!

Negan laughed as he looked at his bat.

"Oh, my goodness! Look at this!"

With a twirl of Lucille, Abraham's blood from the bat splattered right onto Y/N's face. Y/N just stayed still as it dropped down his cheek.

"You guys, look at my dirty girl!" Negan exclaimed.

Beside Michonne, Rosita looked down in shock and was crying. Negan looked over at her and noticed.

"Sweetheart..." He held the bloodied bat to her face. "Lay your eyes on this."

Rosita was still speechless. Negan glanced over at Abraham's body and then back at her.

"Oh, damn. Were you—Were you together? That fucking sucks. But if you were, you should know there was a reason for all this. Red—and hell, he was, is, and will ever be fucking red. He just took one or six or seven for the team!"

He said the last part louder to emphasize it further to the rest of the lineup. Negan continued to taunt Rosita and kept the bloody bat close to her face.

"So take...a fucking look."

Rosita still didn't, looking down and panting heavily. Negan began to shout.

"Take a fucking look!"

Daryl grit his teeth in anger. But, before he can decide to act, Ramon, who was closer, did so himself.

"Argh!"

Ramon got up and landed a quick punch across Negan's face. He stumbled back, and Ramon was about to grab him but was quickly brought down by a couple of Saviors.

He grunted as they landed a few blows and pinned him to the floor. Beth looked on and wailed at the sight.

"Ramon!"

That was not all. Daryl, angered by the taunts toward Rosita and seeing his friend getting beat, acted like he originally was. He leaped forward and tried grabbing David, putting him in a chokehold.

"Rah!"

David, who had army training, elbowed him and got out of the hold. The already injured Daryl couldn't fight back and was brought down as well. A Savior came by and pinned him down with Ramon.

Negan, now a bit angrier, held his bat forward and shouted.

"No! Oh, no. That? Oh, my!" He chuckled and crouched down beside the two. "That...is a no-no. The whole thing—not one bit of that fucking shit flies here."

Y/N glanced across the line and saw everyone distressed or crying. Mika was there, a blank look on her face, finding it hard to display everything she felt.

David went up, holding Daryl's crossbow right over Ramon's face.

Daryl was also being held down. The Savior had his pistol cocked and awaited his orders just like David.

"Do you want us to do it?" David asked. "Right here."

Negan shook his head, gripping Ramon's hair and holding his head up. The Latino panted heavily.

"No. No, you don't kill them...not until you try a little."

David followed orders and dragged Ramon back to his spot. The other Savior did the same to Daryl. Negan stood up straight and adjusted his pants.

"And anyway...that's not how it works. Now, I already told you people—first one's free, then—what'd I say? I said I would shut that fucking shit down! No exceptions."

Negan paced around and stopped, facing everyone before him. He continued.

"Now, I don't know what kind of lying assholes you've been dealing with...but I'm a man of my word. First impressions are so fucking important. I need you to know me."

They all listened. Negan glanced at Y/N and then at the people near him.

"So..." He held Lucille with both hands and looked at her. "...back to it."

CRACK!

Negan brought the bat down on Glenn, who was behind him. Everyone looked on in horror as Negan landed another hit while he was on the ground.

WHACK!

Maggie gasped and sobbed. "N—No!"

Glenn slowly got up, groaning and gasping as he bled profusely from an open dent on his head. His left eyeball was exposed and on the verge of falling out.

"Buddy, you still there?" Negan asked with hands behind his back. "I just don't know. It seems like you're trying to speak, but you just took a fucking hell of a hit. I just popped your skull so fucking hard, your eyeball just popped out, and it is gross as shit!"

Glenn, still groaning and sputtering, spoke to his wife nearby.

"M—Maggie, I'll...find you."

Rick looked over and was on the verge of tears. Y/N was in utter shock seeing the state that his good friend was in. Mika teared up and was terrified at what she witnessed.

"Oh. Oh, hell." Negan spoke to the rest, not caring that Glenn was behind him, still in agony. "I can see this is hard on you guys. I am sorry. I truly am. But I did say it. I fucking did. No exceptions!"

Negan swung at Glenn once again, sending him to the floor.

WHACK!

Negan landed more blows, popping the man's head right open and exposing the fleshy material within. Everyone sobbed and watched the atrocity happen.

CRACK!

WHAM!

WHACK!

BRACK!

"You bunch of fucking pussies."

CRACK!

BRAM!

"I'm just getting started."

CRACK!

WHACK!

SQUELCH!

Negan landed one last blow. He twirled his bloodied weapon around and laughed.

"Lucille is thirsty. She is a vampire bat!"

Negan walked over to Y/N, who was looking down at the ground with his mouth slightly open as he breathed heavily. The older man smirked.

"What? Was the joke that bad?"

Y/N kept his gaze down but finally looked up at him. For the first time since he uttered his name, the young man spoke.

"I'm gonna kill you."

Negan raised a brow. He heard but played coy and questioned him, wanting to hear the words again.

"What?" He crouched in front of him. "I didn't quite catch that, little brother. You're gonna have to speak up."

Y/N sniffled. He swallowed and looked directly at him.

"Not today...not tomorrow...but I'm gonna kill you."

He did not care about their blood ties anymore. The Negan before him, his older brother, was dead to him. He wasn't the person he grew up with.

Negan inhaled sharply. He was honestly impressed that Y/N could finally look him in the eye and take some initiative. Still, he couldn't let that fly. He needed Y/N to learn. To understand.

"Jesus." He chuckled softly. "Simon...what did he have, a knife?"

"Uh, he had a machete."

Negan looked over at Simon. "A machete?"

"Yup."

Negan chuckled. He spoke to Y/N.

"Simon's my right-hand man. Having one of those is important. I mean, what do you have left without them? A whole lot of work. I'm sure you and Rick had something like that going on. Maybe even with some of these people still breathing. Oh. Or did I..."

He clicked his tongue, mimicking the sound of a bat. Y/N kept looking at him. The fear was seemingly dissipating, and was now beginning to feel unbridled rage. He didn't need to hear or see the apparition of their father to do so.

Negan looked back at him. He sighed and spoke to Simon.

"Sure. Yeah. Give me his fucking machete."

The Lieutenant brought the blade to him. Negan held it close to Y/N's face before getting up and sheathing it on his belt.

"I'll be right back." Negan told his people, grabbing Y/N by the collar of his jacket and dragging him."Gonna have some good ol' fucking family time with Y/N. Maybe he'll still be with me when I do. And if not, well, we can just turn these people inside out, won't we?"

Negan dragged him across the dirt and forced him into the RV.

"I mean...the ones that are left."

Negan went inside and shut the door. Inside, Negan forcefully pulled Y/N from the floor and shoved him to the wall, where he still fell. He took out the machete and stabbed it down the table before walking to the driver's seat.

"Let's go for a ride."

The engine sputtered as he tried turning it on. Negan sighed.

"Wow. What a piece of shit."

Behind him, Y/N was still on the floor. Negan looked at him through the rearview mirror.

"I'm gonna kill you." He mocked him and chuckled. "You grew a pair of steel balls on you, Junior. I'll give you that."

Y/N stayed quiet and continued glaring.

"Your best chance...is to stand up, grab that machete, and drive it through the back of my head. See how you do. Keep actin' tough. Go ahead. Grab the fucking machete."

Y/N immediately got up and took the blade out of the table. He ran toward Negan, but the man got up and held an assault rifle at him. Y/N froze, and Negan chuckled.

"Drop it."

Ultimately, Y/N did. Negan retaliated by driving the butt of the gun into Y/N's stomach, knocking the wind out of him and sending him to the floor.

"Don't make me get up again."

Y/N grunted and let out a breath from the ground. Negan looked out of the window and saw a bit of light coming.

"Well, look at that. Dawn is breakin'. It's a brand-new day, Y/N." He sat back down behind the wheel. "I want you to think about what could have happened...think about what happened, and think about what can still happen."

Negan drove the RV through the fog. Y/N sat on the sofa, looking down at his hands and being silent. All he could think about was what he had witnessed before...seeing Abraham and Glenn snuffed out so brutally.

By his own brother, no less.

Negan ended up running over a walker, and its brain matter splattered all over the windshield. Negan reacted gleefully.

"Boom!" He glanced back and laughed. "That remind you of anybody you know?"

Soon, the RV came to a stop. Negan shut off the engine and sat beside him, picking up the machete from the floor.

"You are mine. The people back there—they are mine." He brandished the blade. "This...This is mine."

Negan got up and opened the door. A walker neared, but he knocked it back with his bat.

WHACK!

Negan then tossed the machete outside. He smirked at Y/N.

"Hey, Junior...go get my machete. Let's repair this fucked up sibling bond of ours."

Y/N didn't get up and kept looking down at his hands. Negan started to get angry and glared. He leaned in and pointed the bloody Lucille right at his face.

"Get my machete." He demanded.

For a second, he thought he heard their father. Negan had the exact same tone and malice in his voice. And just like then, something in him forced him to obey.

Y/N swallowed and got up. Negan grabbed him and forced him out of the RV, where Y/N landed on the floor. Negan shut the door and let him fend for himself on the foggy, walker-filled road.

Y/N got up and could see the walkers through the fog. One neared him and growled, but he ended up pushing it away. He ran ahead.

As he evaded incoming walkers, flashes of those he loved filled his mind. He thought of Mika, Carl, Michonne, Rick, Maggie, Rosita, and everyone with the Saviors.

Memories of his time with Glenn resurfaced, from their moments at the prison to their time in Alexandria. Then, there was Abraham, where the two grew to respect each other and formed a friendship.

Now, they were gone.

A few more walkers tried grabbing him, but Y/N successfully got them off. He ran over to the ladder beside the RV and started to climb it, kicking away any walkers who tried grabbing his feet.

Y/N got on top of the RV. He took a breath and looked through the fog...but it wasn't actually fog. It was smoke. Smoke that came from the burning stack of logs the Saviors had used as a blockade the evening before.

Y/N heard growling and turned around, seeing the reanimated corpse of the man who was hung on the overpass. That was just a sliver of the brutality the Saviors were capable of...and Y/N felt foolish for underestimating them.

He dropped to his knees and laid on the RV's roof. He looked up at the sky, thinking of everyone that he let down. It was a rare feeling...but now, he felt stuck.

From inside the RV, Negan spoke. Y/N could hear him through the vents.

"Bet you thought you were all gonna grow old together, sittin' around the table at Sunday dinner and the happily ever after. No. Doesn't work like that, Junior. Not anymore. Think about what happened."

That was what he did. As he looked up into the sky, he recalled what happened earlier. Every horrible detail.

The crack of their skulls.

The sobbing of the women.

The look of utter shock on everyone's face.

The trauma that Mika had to endure again. But this time...Y/N couldn't do anything about it.

He was now in the next stage...

Depression.

Y/N started to cry. He covered his mouth, deafening the sobs further than what the growling of walkers below already was. He was defeated. He didn't know what to do.

"People died, Y/N. It's what happened. Doesn't mean the rest of them have to." Negan spoke. "Now, get me my machete. Get me...my...machete!"

Y/N continued lying there in his sorrows. Negan continued.

"I want you to be the guy, little brother. You need to keep taking initiative. I mean, you surely did when you attacked one of my bases. I need you to have that same energy working with me."

Y/N slowly got on his knees.

"We'll give it one more go. Now, I really want you to try this time. Last fucking chance. Bring me my machete!"

BRAKA! BRAKA! BRAKA! BRAKA!

He started shooting through the roof of the RV. Y/N immediately ran forward, grabbing the machete and jumping off. He grabbed onto the hanging walker. He bear-hugged it and held on as a horde of walkers tried to catch him from below.

"Argh!" He grunted.

Soon, the hanging walker's neck started to extend and rip. Y/N continued holding on but knew he'd fall in mere moments. The walkers below tried grabbing him and growled.

BRAKAKAKA!

BRAKA! BRAKAKA!

Negan aimed his rifle out the window and mowed down the group of undead beneath Y/N. He was able to fall safely, and the older man grinned.

"Gotcho' back, little brother. Just like old times." He snickered. "Clock is ticking, though!"

Negan shut the window. Y/N lay on the pile of walkers and panted.

"Think about what can still happen." Negan said from within.

Immediately, Y/N pictured Michonne being hit with the barbed wire bat.

Y/N frantically crawled toward the grass. He was on his hands and knees as he tried to look for the machete he was forced to throw aside when jumping off the RV.

Then, a vision of Daryl, Carl, and Maggie being hit by Lucille popped up in his head.

Y/N saw the machete ahead. He grabbed it and immediately swung it at a walker that was growling behind him.

SVASH!

He then thought of Rosita, Ramon, and Rick being killed by Negan. He gritted his teeth as he killed the next two walkers ahead of him.

SVISH!

SULK!

Negan honked the horn. Y/N moved ahead and took down more of the undead.

SVISH!

SVAASH!

Y/N thought of Sasha, Beth, Eugene, and Aaron being bludgeoned to death. He seethed and brought the machete down on another walker by the RV.

SULK!

He panted. As he did, one final thought of a possible atrocity popped into his head. The one thing that would likely end him and take away every sense of his will...

Mika being hit over the head with Lucille...and Negan laughing as he did.

He was filled with dread and rage. Y/N killed a walker and pushed another back. He drove the blade through its head.

SVAASH!

SULK!

More walkers started to come toward him. Fortunately, the door opened, and Negan mowed down the incoming horse with his rifle.

BRAKAKA! BRAKAKAKAKA!

BRAKAKAKAKAKA!

Y/N ran inside and shut the door. Negan walked back toward the front of the RV but looked back to face his younger brother. Y/N was sweating, and his hands were caked in blood.

Negan reached out his hand, asking for the machete. Y/N gave it to him, and the Savior grinned.

"Attaboy!"

Negan once again slammed the bloody machete down onto the table. He returned behind the wheel, leaving Y/N sitting there as he breathed heavily.

Soon, Negan turned on the engine and started driving.

They eventually made it back. Negan stopped the vehicle and joined Y/N at the table. He towered over him.

"We're here, fucker."

Y/N looked up from his hands and at Negan with a glare. Negan stared back, biting the inside of his cheek. He still had the same look as before...and he wasn't having it. Negan scoffed.

"This must be hard for you, right? I mean, you have been King shit for so long. Before and after people started fucking eating each other."

Negan checked the overhead cabinets for something. The older man continued.

"Losin' two of your own like..." He snapped his fingers. "Gettin' 'em clipped like that, one nut, then the other, and in front of the kids? The little blondie with the matching bracelet? That is some fucked up shit!"

Negan walked over to another cabinet and looked into it. He found what he was looking for.

"Ah. Goody."

He unscrewed the cap off the bottle of alcohol and tossed it on the table. He picked up the bloody machete from the table.

"You had this thing going...trying to be a tough guy while hiding behind other people. Not shouldering real responsibilities." Negan smeared some blood from the blade across Y/N's shoulder. "But, now...you have that responsibility. You can actually lead. Lead a nice, productive life producing for me."

Negan finished cleaning off the machete. He sat across the table and faced Y/N, handing him the machete.

"I think you're gonna need it." Negan cheesily smiled. "I just got a feelin'."

Y/N still had the same look as before, glaring at Negan. The older Smith's grin disappeared and instead gave a stern look.

"So fucking take it." He demanded.

Y/N sniffled a bit and gritted his teeth. Ultimately, he grabbed the machete by the handle and got up. Before he could go for the door, Negan grabbed him by the back of his jacket and threw him out.

Everyone in the lineup saw Y/N land on the floor. Negan grabbed him again, dragging him closer to the line and plopping him before them.

"Here we are. Let me ask you something, Y/N—do you even know what that little trip was about?"

Y/N stayed quiet, looking at his friends in front of him. He let out shuddered breaths.

"Speak when you're spoken to," Negan said. "You know Dad never fucking liked that quiet shit."

Y/N gulped. He nodded and spoke lowly.

"Okay. Okay."

"That trip was about the way that you looked at me. I wanted to change that. I wanted you to understand. But you're still looking at me the same fucking way...like I fucked one of your celebrity girlfriends, and that's not gonna work."

Y/N looked around aimlessly. Negan crouched beside him and held his bat.

"So...do I give you another chance?"

Y/N breathed raggedly. He thought of the visions from before of the people in his group being killed and feared that happening. He sniffled.

"Yeah. Y—Yes. Yes."

Negan patted his back and stood up. He rubbed his scratched his nose.

"Okay. All right. And here it is—the grand prize game. What you do next will decide whether your fucked day becomes everyone's last fucked day or just another fucked day."

Negan then ordered his men.

"Get some guns to the back of their heads."

Some Saviors walked up and cocked their guns, aiming at the back of each group member's head. Y/N looked on dreadfully.

"Good. Now...level with their noses, so if you have to fire..." Negan imitated an explosion. "It'll be a real fucking mess."

Y/N panicked. He felt weak. He felt like he couldn't do anything. So, shockingly, he tried calling out to one person who gave him the strength he needed during times like these.

"Dad..." He muttered. "W-Where—where are you?"

Negan looked over at the line of people. His gaze landed on Mika, and he smirked.

"Goldilocks." He called out and beckoned her over. "Right here."

Mika just stared at him. She wasn't crying or had a horrified look anymore.

"Come on," Negan demanded. "Don't make me ask again."

Ultimately, Mika obeyed and got up. Y/N watched as she came over, and his mind started to race. Negan removed his belt.

"Which do you use more?" He asked.

"What?"

"When you hand write. Throw a ball. Braid hair. You use your left or right?"

"My right."

"Okay."

Negan started to tighten the belt around her forearm. Rick and Michonne looked on in terror as they knew why the man was doing so. Y/N watched, and his heart began to drop.

"That hurt?" He asked Mika.

She replied rather sternly. "No."

"Should. It's supposed to." He smirked and finished. "All right. Get down on the ground, honeybun, next to Junior. Spread them wings."

Mika slowly did so as Negan brought her further down. She lay on her stomach beside Y/N.

"Simon...you got a pen?" Negan asked.

He nodded. "Yeah."

Simon tossed him a marker. Negan took the cap off with his mouth and bent down.

"Sorry, kid." He started making a line across her wrist, near her bracelet. "This is gonna be as cold as a warlock's ballsack, just like he was hanging his ballsack above you and dragging it right across the forearm. I'm sure you know what a warlock is. If not, then this just sounds fucking weird, but whatever."

Negan finished drawing the line. Y/N spoke lowly and pleaded with him.

"Please. Please. Please don't. Please don't."

"Me?" Negan chuckled. "I ain't doing shit."

He stood up, letting out a sigh as he stretched a bit. Negan spoke to Y/N.

"Y/N, I want you to take your machete...cut the girl's left hand off, right where her bracelet is. Now, I know—I know. You're gonna have to process that for a second. That makes sense. Still, though, I'm gonna need you to fucking do it, or all these people are gonna die. Then the girl dies, then the people back home die...and then you, eventually. I'm gonna keep you breathing for a few years, just so you can stew on it."

"You—You don't have to do this." Michonne pleaded. "We understand. We understand."

"You understand. Yeah." Negan pointed at Y/N. "I'm not sure that Y/N does."

His mind was racing. He couldn't comprehend what was being asked of him. Suddenly, Rick, who was as shaken and traumatized as the young man, spoke.

"Please. Don't—Don't do this. Y—You can—"

"Aht! Aht!" Negan held up a finger and stopped him. "What'd I say about speaking, not-the-boss-man?"

Negan looked back at Y/N, who was breathing raggedly still. He looked at Mika's hand.

"I'm gonna need a clean cut. Look, I'm being a bit gracious here. It's just from the wrist up. Shouldn't be messy, just a quick chop. We got a great doctor. The kid'll be fine. Probably."

Y/N was still not listening. Negan breathed through his nose and crouched beside his brother.

"Junior...this needs to happen now—chop, chop—or I will crush blondie's skull myself."

Finally, Y/N spoke in stammers.

"It can—It can—It can be me. It can be me. W—W—" He sniffled. "Y—You can do it to me. I c—I can go w—with you."

"No. This is the only way." Negan butted and got up. "Y/N...pick up the machete."

He still wasn't doing so. Negan got more serious.

"Not making a decision is a big fucking decision. You really want to see all these people die? You will. You will see every fucking ugly thing."

Still, Y/N did nothing and only let out a groan of panic. Negan scoffed.

"Oh, my fucking God. Are you gonna make me count? Okay, Junior. You win. I am fucking counting. Three!"

Immediately, Y/N began to wail. It started to dawn on him what he had to do and what the consequences were if he didn't.

"Please." He sobbed and gasped. "Please. It can be me. Please!"

Negan crouched down. He ignored his pleas and kept counting.

"Two!"

Y/N sobbed. "Please, don't do—"

Negan slapped him and forcefully grabbed his face. He made him look into his eyes as the young man kept sobbing.

"This is it."

Negan let go. Y/N let out a yell of panic and agony. Negan kept counting.

"One!"

Y/N reached for the machete. He aimlessly held Mika's hand and cried. Surprisingly, the ten-year-old was calm and had accepted what had to happen.

"Y/N...just do it." She muttered. "It's okay. Just do it."

Even with her go-ahead, Y/N felt shame at what he had to do. He sobbed and yelled as he held the machete over his head and tried mustering the will to bring it down on Mika's hand.

"Junior...." Negan stopped Y/N and crouched beside him. "Junior."

Y/N looked over and panted. He continued breathing heavily as Negan spoke.

"You answer to me. You provide for me. You belong to me. Right?"

Y/N dropped the machete, nodding as he looked down at the ground. His non-verbal answer made Negan furious, so he grabbed his face and forced Y/N to look at him.

"Speak when you're spoken to!"

It was as if Y/N was back at home with his father. It seemed like he was transported back in time and was a kid again. His mind was there at that very moment.

"Y-Yes, sir," Y/N replied, just like he would to his dad.

"You answer to me," Negan shouted. "You provide for me."

"Provide for you, sir."

"You belong to me, right?!"

Y/N swallowed. "Right. Sorry, sir. I'm sorry..."

"Right."

Negan eyed Y/N and was content with what he saw. He knew that his younger brother now fully understood the terms.

"That...is the look I wanted to see."

Negan stood up. Everyone stayed quiet but was shaken from the entire ordeal. Y/N panted as he gazed down at the gravel.

"We did it...all of us, together...even the dead guys on the ground. Fuck, they get the spirit award, for sure." Negan exclaimed. "Today was a productive damn day!"

He sighed.

"Now, I hope, for all your sake...that you get it now...that you understand how things work. Things have changed. Whatever you had going for you...that is fucking over now."

Negan saw that everyone was compliant. He looked over at Ramon and Daryl and pointed at him with his bat.

"Ah. David...load them up."

The Lieutenant grabbed Ramon and dragged him to the van. Beth, eyes red from crying, could only sob as she watched.

Daryl was also grabbed and thrown into the back of the vehicle with the Latino. They shut the doors. Negan crouched beside Y/N.

"Those guys got guts—not a little fucking bitch like someone I know. I like them. They're mine now. But you still want to try something? Not today, not tomorrow. Not today, not tomorrow? I will fucking cut pieces off of..."

Negan paused a moment.

"Hell's their names?"

"Ramon." Simon replied. "Daryl."

"Huh. The Mexican looked like a Joaquin to me, honestly." Negan remarked then spoke to Y/N. "I will cut pieces off of Ramon and Daryl and put them on your fucking doorstep—or, better yet, I will bring them to you and have you do it for me."

Y/N didn't respond, and he didn't have to. Negan patted his shoulder.

"This was some great brother bonding, Junior. Looking forward to many more of these fine experiences."

He got to his feet and stretched a bit. Negan called out to the rest rather cheerfully.

"Ah! Welcome to a brand-new beginning, you sorry fucks! I'm gonna leave you a truck. Keep it. Use it to cart all the crap you're gonna find me."

He began to walk away. Soon, his people began to disperse and went to their cars.

"We'll be back for our first offering in one week. Until then..." He tossed the machete on the floor. "Ta-ta."

As the Saviors returned to their vehicles, the group remained on their knees and bottoms. They paid them no mind, not showing any remorse for what they all had to endure. One Savior even snapped photos of Glenn and Abraham's bodies before leaving.

Y/N looked ahead, seeing Negan enter one of his trucks. Beside him, leaning against the car, was their father. He just shook his head, as if he was disappointed.

Once again, the older Smith brother was the real man and prevailed when he should've, leaving Y/N as the weakling and the loser...like Y/N Senior always believed.

A Savior passed in front of Y/N and the apparition of his father vanished. Y/N gulped and looked back down at the floor.

Eventually, they all left, and they were just in the middle of the woods. They were all exhausted, in grief, and defeated. Y/N sat down and kept looking down at the floor.

Maggie was the first to get up. She stumbled a bit as Rick called out.

"Maggie. Maggie. Maggie...you need to sit down. Maggie."

"No." The ill and now heartbroken widow butted.

Y/N looked up at her. He took in a breath and got to his feet.

"Maggie, we gotta get you to the Hilltop."

"You need to go get ready." Maggie retorted.

"For what?"

"To fight them."

No one had an immediate reply. Mika sat down and held her knee close to her chest as she looked at Maggie.

"They have Ramon. Daryl. They have an army." Y/N said. "We would die—all of us."

Maggie breathed heavily.

"Go home. Take everybody with you." Her voice broke. "I can get there by myself."

"You can barely stand up." Rick said.

"I need to go. You need to go to Alexandria. You were ou—out here for me."

"We still are."

Maggie cried as he looked over at Glenn's body. She felt like it was her fault that they were out there in the first place and blamed herself for her husband's death.

"I can make it now. I need you to go back. I can't have you out here. I can't have you all out here anymore. I need you to go back."

"Maggie...we're not letting you go," Michonne said. "Okay?"

"You have to."

Y/N spoke. "It's not gonna happen."

Sasha got up. He walked over to Maggie and the rest.

"I'm taking her. I'm gonna get her there. I'm gonna keep her safe." She turned to Maggie. "I'm not giving you a choice."

Sasha then went over to Rosita, who was by Abraham's body. Eugene joined them soon after.

Maggie knelt beside Glenn's corpse. She sobbed and breathed raggedly. Y/N got beside her and touched her shoulder.

"I need to do this." She said. "Please."

"We need to help you."

"I got it." Carl comforted her. "I got it."

"No....No."

"Pl—Pl—Please let us." Rick stuttered. "He—He's our family, t—He's our family, too."

Maggie got up and turned to Carl, hugging him as she cried.

Y/N, Aaron, Rick, and Michonne carried Glenn's body to the RV while Rosita, Sasha, and Eugene carried Abraham's. Beth stayed back and comforted her sister as she looked at the blood stains on the ground.

Soon, they all settled back in the RV. Y/N sat at the table, not paying attention to whoever was there with him. Nearby, Mika stared blankly ahead...holding the journal that was surprisingly left in her pack.

Y/N thought about what Negan told him earlier...about the future he had hoped to have with his loved ones. A future that now seemed impossible.

Bet you thought you were all gonna grow old together, sitting around the table at Sunday dinner and living happily ever after. No. Doesn't work like that, Y/N. Not anymore.

Rick operated the vehicle, and they drove out of the forest. Y/N looked out the dirty window, seeing the trees pass by. The sounds of Maggie crying and sobs from Rosita started to get muffled as Y/N continued looking out.

This was how it was now. There was nothing he could do. His brother was back. Negan was back. And...he was there to stay.

It was a new beginning for all of them, and they had to endure it. They needed to in order to keep themselves safe. They needed to so they could live. To survive.

This was the final stage for Y/N...

Acceptance.

Mika had a lot on her mind. She hadn't spoken to anyone during the trip, mostly staring ahead or looking at previous entries in her journal. Some of which...gave her a sour taste.

After some time, she finally decided to write.

May 3 2012

Negan has to die.

END OF PART 2: FEAR