Young and Young at Heart (The Rewrite of The Walking Dead Game: S2) [TWDG/TWD]

39. Just a Thing

"What you just heard was your first lesson," dictated Byron. "Guns are loud. And as I'm sure you've already learned, loud noises draw zombies. So that's why we're up here on a roof where they can't reach us and where we won't draw them towards the yard."

"All right, we finally get to do something good," said Bridget. "I get to go first, right?"

"Before we get started, we're going to review the tenets of gun safety," stated Byron. "Maybe some of you think you already know them, maybe you actually do. I know a few of you have at least held guns before." Clem couldn't help notice that Byron was looking at her and Sarah.

"Regardless of your prior experience, these rules are important enough to bear repeating. And if you have questions about any of them, ask me now, because it's imperative you understand these rules before handling a gun.

"Rule number one, the gun is always loaded, always. So anytime you're holding a gun, you're to assume it's loaded because guns don't kill people, people kill people, which means if you pull a trigger on what you thought was an unloaded gun, and someone dies, you killed them, not the gun."

"What if we're shooting at creeps and we run out of bullets? Should we just keep pulling the trigger because the gun is always loaded?" asked Matt in a derisive tone.

"In your specific case, yeah, that sounds like a good idea." Bridget laughed as Matt crossed his arms.

"Rule two, never point a gun at something you don't intend to kill. Ever," dictated Byron.

"So if I aim at a tree, it's because I'm going to kill it?" mocked Matt.

"Do you have any moral reservations about killing a tree?" asked Byron.

"Uhh—"

"What about if you just wanted to scare someone?" asked Sarah in an uneasy voice. "But you didn't actually want to shoot them?"

"You don't point guns at something you're not willing to kill," repeated Byron in a stern tone, which caused Sarah to hang her head in shame. "Even if you don't actually shoot your target, you are threatening them with lethal force, and as such you shouldn't point a gun at someone unless you're also willing to shoot them.

"This is not just for their safety, but your own as well, because someone watching you point a gun at someone else will likely not consider the possibility that you're simply trying to scare them." Clementine thought back to Omid's death, and how she aimed her gun at Nick in anger after he lowered his, feeling ashamed of herself.

"Yeah, what about shooting people in the legs, and stuff like that?" asked Mick. "I mean, you don't always have to kill them."

"There is no safe place to shoot someone," explained Byron. "Your arms and legs contain major arteries, and bones which can fragment when shot, which, potentially lethal in itself, is made worse by the fact that we don't have access to hospitals anymore."

"But not everyone who gets shot dies," argued Bridget. "What if you just wing someone?"

"I can personally attest to the fact that yes, people can survive gunshots, sometimes to even normally fatal areas. I'm also confident in saying you will not know if a shot will be fatal before you pull the trigger, especially if you're involved in a life or death situation. So, with that in mind, if you're going to aim a gun at a person, you also must be willing to possibility do what?"

"Kill them," mumbled Adam in a quiet voice.

"I want to hear it from the rest of you," prodded Byron. "If you aim a gun at someone, it's because you're willing to do what?"