"Sir, one of the survivors says that the place we are going to is strictly forbidden by the beavers' community!"
At that moment, Jason was silently observing the city. Behind him was George, who had approached to share the information he had obtained a short while ago. The place had been identified, and it was discovered that there were people there—a very well-hidden location, but not enough to keep the drones from identifying it.
"We have to go to that place, regardless of whether they are enemies or not…" He had certain reservations about judging the Fireflies for what they were, a group with an evil history and such impractical objectives.
Will everyone have the same mentality?
Jason didn't know, but they were now his enemies, and he was seriously considering taking South Carolina as a new city. After all, Alabama was about to become a completely safe place.
"Stop!" But at the same time, a warning shout was heard not far away, drawing the attention of the people around.
A woman with a scar on her face stepped forward, her face full of tears, and shouted, "Please, the Fireflies have my grandson… I know I'm being selfish, but I truly wish that you would help me rescue him."
Both the soldier who was stopping the woman and Jason, who was intrigued by what he was about to hear, listened, and when he learned that a family member was with the Fireflies, he had an idea about it.
"Let her come closer…"
When he saw the woman's eyes more closely, Jason nodded and said, "Of course, we are about to go to that lake, but first I want to ask you a question. Was your grandson taken by force, or did he join the Fireflies of his own free will?"
When the woman heard this question, she lowered her head and replied in a complicated manner, "He is a foolish child. He knows nothing about the world or what each and every one of his actions entails. Please, help him."
"Hopefully we haven't already killed him…" Daryl turned his head and looked toward the corpses in the distance. Some of them had been killed by his people, and others by the walkers.
But that wasn't important. Jason, who drew everyone's attention, said, "We have to visit the Fireflies, find out what they are plotting, and of course, rescue those who are with them against their will."
"Let's get moving!"
Jason signaled the group, and everyone got into the trucks and Humvees that were ready for combat. To be honest, the place was very far from Atlanta, so it was certain that they would spend several days away.
"Do you think they're a problem?" Daryl looked at Jason and asked.
"They're dangerous. From what it looks like, they're people who are willing to achieve their goals no matter who they hurt along the way. That kind of mentality damages everything we've built so far, so to answer your question, yes, they are dangerous."
Everyone along the way preferred to remain silent. After all, they were soldiers, and as such they only receive orders and carry out missions. There was nothing more they could do now. Eliminating enemies was only a small part of what they were willing to do. That was the purpose of their training, and they had achieved it.
…
After leaving the building, a long convoy headed toward the Fireflies' base without stopping. Jason, inside the vehicle, was deep in thought. He had shared his next plan, and everyone was calm.
The group drove for more than an hour, and finally they had arrived at the place where the Fireflies were hiding. But being smart, Jason decided not to get too close and instead positioned snipers to observe the surrounding area.
The trucks unloaded weapons. Daryl got off a motorcycle and, together with another group, headed toward another location. After that, a communication point was established with the central base, and drones flew over the group at all times.
However, what they didn't know was that the Fireflies, after what had happened today, had no intention of entering into conflict, since one person had managed to escape what had happened in the city with those giant walkers and Jason's group arriving.
Somewhere in South Carolina, there is a huge complex of buildings south of the beavers' community. This building is located on the outskirts of the city, with imposing buildings on one side and a large amount of open space on the other. At their intersection is the city avenue and an important stadium.
This enormous university stadium can easily accommodate more than 50,000 spectators and used to be an important stadium. And precisely because it was a stadium, the open space is extremely large and open. For the survivors, this place is more suitable for survival.
And that is the destination of several people. If Jason were here, he would discover that a man along with another companion were heading toward this refuge that belonged to the Fireflies.
In a short time, the two men arrived at an open space, and a group of people escorted the two individuals to the entrance of the stadium.
"Manny, why did you bring someone back? Where are the others?"
"They're all dead…"
"What?"
"Stop wasting my time, damn it. I have something important to report to the leader. Open the door quickly."
Seeing that Manny was not in the mood to talk, the gatekeeper shrugged and opened the door indifferently. Watching the duo enter, he soon saw that man with a cold expression walking alongside Manny.
"Who are you, friend?"
The man shook his head, looked at the man at the door, and said, "It's better if you don't know."
"Much better?"
The words that came out of the man's mouth went unnoticed, while the man beside Manny seemed to have no expression.
But he quickly realized that he was just a stranger, and his purpose in coming here was to look for someone, so it wasn't convenient for him to be so cold toward others.
A group of people passed through the obviously remodeled entrance and arrived inside the stadium. As soon as they entered, there was a huge lobby, but at that moment it was surrounded by sandbags, stacked like a low wall as a fortification, and the survivors were sitting behind the sandbags, watching the plaza outside the door.
There was no one within 30 meters on either side of the corridor, and the passage was blocked with various things. From the space, a dim light could be seen on the other side, and there were many people moving in the shadows.
He didn't have much time to look around, but the people behind the man following Manny saw him push the door through the corridor. As soon as he opened it, his view was blocked by an upward slope, but his vision immediately opened up after walking up the slope.
"This, this is!"
The open space in front of the stadium had already changed. A large area of crops filled the entire field, and many people were working in the fields.
The man following Manny seemed to have expected this reaction long ago, but he wasn't in the mood to explain anything, and the group walked toward a private room overlooking the courtyard.
There were two burly men standing at the door here, their bodies very muscular, as if warning that they should not cause trouble.
Manny put a smile on his originally expressionless face and greeted the two very politely.
"Bruno, where is Merlene?"
The big man looked at Manny, snorted through his nose, and answered. It seemed that his attitude was always the same. Manny's expression didn't change at all. He still nodded with a smile, then pushed the door and went in alone.
After more than ten minutes, the door opened, and Manny signaled to the man leaning against the wall, indicating for him to enter the room.
"Haha, my dear friend Tommy, welcome to the Fireflies!"