After waking up, Dad and Uncle were busy talking with Rick and the others. As for me, I had my own matters to handle.
"Is there any reason you guys called me?"
Standing in front of me were the Priest, Michonne, and Molly.
"My lord," the Priest began, "we've been staying here for quite some time now, and the base was recently attacked. Given the situation, we believe we should return and take control before things get worse. We can't leave our responsibilities to our subordinates for much longer."
"I agree with him," Michonne added. "Three of the council leaders are here, along with the Supreme Leader. If the situation keeps deteriorating, we need to be there. We should move."
She glanced at me, then at the Priest. I shifted my gaze to Molly. She wore the same concerned expression as the other two, but unlike them, she stayed quiet.
I let that pass and looked back at the group.
"I hear your concerns. We'll head back to camp tomorrow."
All three nodded, satisfied.
Everything I needed to do here was almost finished.
Almost.
There was still the matter of the Savior I needed to kill. Something told me I'd be seeing them again soon. I just hoped they liked my present. It should've been delivered by now.
The thought alone brought a faint smile to my face.
Between the reunion with Dad and Uncle, Clementine, and everything else, I'd nearly let it slip my mind: the base had been attacked.
I wasn't going to let that go unanswered.
My expression hardened, and all three of them noticed instantly, their backs straightening in unison.
"Send word to every member of the alliance." My voice remained calm. There was no room for argument. "Tell them to prepare for war. Every weapon, every soldier, ready to move."
I paused.
"We're going to war soon as spring arrives."
The mood in the room shifted the second the words left my mouth. Faces fell. Nobody spoke right away. They just stared at me, waiting, the silence becoming almost suffocating.
Molly broke it first.
"Are you serious, Max?" Genuine concern filled her voice. "Even if we combine every alliance we have, our total population barely clears ten thousand. From what you've told us, the force we're going up against is at least fifty thousand strong."
She glanced around the room.
"They've got advanced military equipment, weapons, vehicles—everything. And we have almost nothing compared to that."
The other two exchanged an uneasy look, clearly thinking the same thing. Nobody said anything for a moment.
I simply looked at them.
Then I smiled.
Not because Molly was wrong. She wasn't. She was completely right.
We were outnumbered, outgunned, and, on paper, had almost no chance.
But they'd made one mistake.
They thought numbers were enough to guarantee a win.
"I hear you. But I'm not going to force anyone into a head-on fight. That'd be suicide." I smiled. "First, I need to destabilize their entire organization."
"And how exactly are we going to do that?" Michonne asked, her eyes fixed on me.
I reached into my coat and pulled out ten glass vials.
"With these."
The Priest's eyes went wide.
"My lord... if we release those, they could kill thousands. Most of them would be innocent—women, children, men who have nothing to do with any of this."
"When did you start worrying about non-believers?"
He lowered his gaze before answering.
"My lord, I only care about the potential. If even a third of that population converted, our numbers would triple. That's too much to waste."
I shook my head.
"Your thinking isn't wrong. But this is war."
My gaze hardened.
"And in war, the innocent always pay the heaviest price. They already have. They will again."
The Priest said nothing, keeping his head down.
I turned to Michonne. She was already frowning, clearly preparing to argue, but she caught herself, took a breath, and reined it in.
I understood exactly what she was wrestling with.
Even after we'd found a cure, we'd lost more than five people, with another ten infected. The virus had ripped through even our small group faster than anyone could contain it—cure or no cure.
Multiply that by thousands, and the math got ugly fast.
"Even if the infection keeps them occupied," she said, "destabilizing them won't be easy. We also have to think about what they'll do if they get desperate—burning infected people, isolating entire communities to stop the spread."
"That's why it has to be fast. Before they can organize. Kill their command center first."
She shook her head, glanced at Molly, and stepped forward slightly.
"But Max—moving thousands of people over that kind of distance takes months. We can't move fast."
"Molly." I looked at her. "You think I don't know that?"
She went quiet.
"And who said I'm taking our army with me?"
Both of them stared at me.
"I'm enough on my own to destroy their command center and spread the infection. The three of you prepare for war. As soon as I've finished at their command center and the infection has done its work weakening them, I'll signal you to finish the rest. Our forces can handle that part just fine."
Molly's eyes went wide.
I pulled out the map and laid it across the table.
"The only thing I'm worried about is our base getting hit by the CRM. Their bases are scattered all over the country. We know about this one, but I don't know where the rest are. Any of them could hit us while our forces are gone. Their allies could do the same."
I looked at all three of them.
"That's why I need all of you here. Prepare the camp. Strengthen the defenses. Be ready for anything."
"Are you crazy, Max?" Molly stared at me. "You're going alone?"
"Max." Michonne gripped my hand, her voice tight with nerves. "You're the leader of this group. Think about what happens if something happens to you. What happens to the camp? To Clementine? To your babies?"
She swallowed.
"You can't put everything at risk by going alone."
"My lord," the Priest said quietly, "I agree with them. Their forces are far too strong. Going alone isn't wise."
I looked at the three of them.
Nobody spoke.
Then I smiled.
"That's exactly why I'm going alone. I can't afford to lose anyone, and I won't be slowed down by having to look out for someone else. It's better this way."
I held up a hand before any of them could push back.
"I've made my decision. Go and prepare."
Before they could argue, I walked out of the room and headed toward Clementine and the others.
Clementine was outside, laughing as she talked with Diana and Sunny. Carefree, without a single worry on her mind. It made her exceptionally adorable to watch.
I didn't have the heart to tell her about my plan.
The hard part would be telling her.
The harder part would be convincing her.
I wasn't going to ruin this moment for that.
Not yet.
Off to the side, Dad and Uncle were talking with Rick Grimes like old friends.
Come to think of it, they were.
It was almost unsettling how peaceful everything felt.
Life had never once been this kind to me.
Hell, I didn't care.
I'd burn down anything that came near it.
This was my peace, and I knew exactly how to protect it.
"Max, what are you doing over there? Come sit with us."
Clementine waved me over, a small smile tugging at her lips.
I sat beside her.
{Diana, you should stay away from this pervert. Look what he did to this poor lady,} Sunny signed, pointing at Clementine's pregnant belly.
{That's scary. Is this what happens if he touches you?} Diana asked, staring at the belly like it might go off.
Sunny nodded, dead serious.
{Yes. It's very painful, so never let any guy touch you—especially him. He already victimized the sister, and also—}
Before she could feed Diana any more nonsense, I grabbed her ear and pulled.
"OW! OW! OW!"
"What kind of nonsense are you feeding Diana? And what did you call me—pervert? I think it's time to teach you a little lesson, young girl."
I pulled a little harder.
She grabbed my hand with both of hers, trying to stop me.
"How the fuck did you understand that?"
She stared at me like I'd grown a second head.
"I learned sign language."
"What the hell? When?"
Even Diana was looking at me with newfound curiosity.
"Last night. Prison library."
"Don't you fucking lie to me, you pervert. You must have known beforehand. It took me almost two years to learn it. How'd you do it in one night? Do I look like I was born yesterday?"
"I don't care whether you believe me or not. Get ready for your punishment."
"Fuck—fine, I'll listen. But you still haven't paid me for my broken gun. Give me a new one as compensation. You're indebted to me."
She folded her arms, glaring at me.
Stubborn as ever.
Lucky for me, I knew her weak spot.
"You'll carry water buckets inside the prison. All day."
"And what if I don't, huh? What's the big, scary pervert gonna do?"
Still defiant.
I let the silence sit for a second.
"Then Diana doesn't eat until you finish."
Her eyes went wide with fury.
"You monster! She has nothing to do with this!"
I patted her hair, smiling.
"I'm a monster. That's exactly why I can do it. Now go, before I make it two days."
With a huff and a full-body sulk, she stomped off to start hauling buckets from the well.
"She's stubborn, but cute," Clementine said, handing Diana some bread.
"Very stubborn. Somebody needs to teach her to control that temper."
I sat down next to Clementine and watched Sunny lug water back and forth into the prison, muttering the whole way. She shot me a look that could kill a man twice over before disappearing inside.
"She reminds me of an angry little cat that my neighbor used to have."
Clementine pulled Diana onto her lap, her maternal instincts overflowing through every gesture. The way she was feeding her, the girl would get fat quickly. Good. She was basically skin and bone.
"You know, sometimes you remind me of a cat too."
Clementine looked at me for a beat, then turned back to Diana without answering.
Annoyed, or just amused? Impossible to tell.
The longer I looked at her, the more beautiful she seemed to become. And with her belly growing the way it was—God, she was something else.
Haha. When did I start talking like a lovesick idiot?
"Max, what should I name our babies?" she asked, a bright smile on her face.
"I don't know, Clem. I'm not good at naming things."
"Just try."
"How about Sun and Moon?"
Her smile widened.
Did she actually like it?
"You're right. You're terrible at naming things."
She laughed to herself while fixing Diana's hair.
"Told you. Anyway, I need to give you something."
"What is it?"
Her eyes lit up expectantly.
"Your birthday gift."
She glanced at my empty hands.
"You have nothing in your hand. And isn't my birthday tomorrow?"
"Early gift. We're heading to the base camp tomorrow, so we might not have time."
Diana, quiet on Clementine's lap, suddenly looked up at both of us.
{Are you going to leave us?}
There was genuine fear in her eyes.
"Now, who told you we were leaving? We're taking you with us."
That brought a small smile to her face, right before she pointed at Sunny.
{I will not leave without her.}
"No, no. She's too much for me to handle. We're leaving her behind."
Diana's face crumpled instantly, going into full sad-puppy mode.
"Don't worry, he's just joking," Clementine said gently, shooting me a look as she tried to reassure the girl.
Diana turned those innocent eyes on me, and I couldn't help laughing.
This kid was way too easy to wind up.
"Yeah, I was messing with you. Sorry."
She didn't answer. She simply buried herself against Clementine, avoiding me entirely, while Clementine smiled and patted her back.
"So, where's the gift? Or did you forget?"
I pulled it out of my coat without making her wait any longer.
Her eyes lit up the second she saw it.
"That gold cat bracelet is beautiful. Did you make it?"
"Yeah. Took me a few days. You like it?"
She nodded quickly, practically vibrating with excitement.
"I love it. Put it on me?"
She held out her wrist, and I fastened the bracelet around it.
Clementine stared down at her own hand like she'd never seen it before.
"On my birthday, you gave me a lucky cat. Figured I'd give you a lucky cat bracelet in return. Hope you love it."
She threw her arms around me and kissed me before I could form a coherent thought.
I wasn't about to waste the opportunity. I kissed her back, right up until Diana wrenched us apart by bolting away, completely mortified.
"Hey, you perverts! Do that outside!"
Sunny stood there with a water bucket in hand, glaring daggers at both of us.
Diana had her face turned away as well.
We finally broke apart, and Clementine gave the girls a sheepish, shy look.
After spending a while longer with her, my father pulled me aside. He needed to talk to me in private.