Dead Man Walking | Rick Grimes

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The laughter that surrounded us made me jittery and anxious. As Rick had said previously, Terminus was quiet when we approached. I'm sure the prison was silent when we lived there, too. Aaron walked in front of us, his arm wrapped around Eric so he could help him walk. The large metal gate squeaked and came to life, slowly opening for us. With my gun in hand, I paused just a few feet from the entrance and watched Aaron and Eric walk inside the community. Behind me, Judith babbled as Rick slowly approached, staying next to his son in the back. A trash can next to us fell over, startling all of us and prompting us to draw our weapons. Daryl fired a bolt, and an animal made a noise as it died. Daryl lifted the animal, a possum, up by the tail and turned his attention to the front. I turned and stood tall as a man stood at the entrance, his eyes full of questions as he watched my rugged best friend.

"We brought dinner," Daryl said, holding the possum by the tail. The man looked clean and well-groomed—a good sign—but he still looked at us as if we were aliens.

"It's okay," Aaron finally spoke, his arm extending to invite us in, "Come on in, guys." I was the first to move, leading the group into this unknown community. Some part of me was ecstatic that it was here and Aaron had told the truth, but another part was wary. Just because he told the truth doesn't mean these people aren't monsters. Once Abraham walked in, tailing the group, the gate groaned to life and started to squeak as it shut behind us. I turned to face the unknown man and waited to see if he would speak.

"Before we take this any further, I need you all to turn over your weapons," The man looked us over, "Stay, you hand them over." Rick slowly joined me in the front, Judith in his arms as he studied the man who spoke to us.

"We don't know if we want to stay," I had to agree with him there. We thought Terminus was a good deal, and when we stuck around and saw it, it wasn't what we thought it would be. I pushed us to at least check this place out, and now that's what we're doing. It doesn't mean we'll stay.

"It's fine, Nicholas," Aaron nodded at the man, Nicholas. I took a single step forward, tucking my gun into its holster.

"We would've already unloaded if we were gonna use them," I said, showing my empty hands.

"Let them talk to Deanna first," Aaron said, focusing on the cautious man in front of us.

"Who's Deanna?" Abraham asked from his place in the rear. Aaron turned to us and shifted his weight on his feet.

"She knows everything you'd want to know about this place," Aaron looked at Rick and me, his lips pursing, "Rick or June, why don't one of you start?" I turned to Rick and shrugged, not minding if I was the first to speak to this Deanna woman. We can get a good read on this place by talking to the leader. Suddenly, a growl came from behind us, forcing Rick and me to turn.

"Sasha," We both said, giving her the all-clear to take it out. She aimed and landed a headshot through the first barred gate as the second steel gate started shutting. Rick and I both turned to the men, a look of awe on Nicholas's face.

"It's a good thing we're here," Rick said as he started to walk forward, following Aaron as he led us through the community. It was a town like Woodbury but with better gates. The sidewalks were lined with brick, and the buildings ranged from old to new. Aaron led us deeper into the community, waving at a few people and children with curious looks as they walked by us. Buildings were dense and appeared to have been shops and boutiques from before, bringing forth a sense of normalcy. Finally, Aaron stopped in front of a large white colonial Georgian building that stood tall before us, with elegant windows lining the front in neat rows. The paneled door sat in the center, topped with rectangular windows—it was gorgeous. Aaron climbed the stairs to the building and held open the door for us, pointing at the sofas lining the well-decorated living area.