Episode 57 (E2)

"Best Laid Plans" is the seventh episode of Season 6 of KeepOnKeepingOn's Walking Dead: Edition Two. It is the 57th episode overall. It premiered on September 2, 2018.

Synopsis
"A new plan is made."

Plot
It’s foggy the next morning, as Carlton leans against the side of one building. He looks around idly, hands in his pockets, before Brian emerges from the side door of the building. The man eyes his nephew and smirks a bit, chuckling as he tosses something.

“Here, catch.”

Carlton easily catches an apple in the palm of his hand. He looks at it, before brushing it on his shirt and taking a bite.

“Food is bound to dwindle, so savor it.” Brian says. “I know we’re well stocked, but Mike and I haven’t found anything these past few weeks. So for now, that’ll be the size of breakfast.”

The boy doesn’t respond, instead taking another bite of the apple as he walks past his uncle, silently climbing up the tank and disappearing into the hatch.

Brian watches, slightly amused, as Mike approaches him, staring at the tank in confusion. “No offense, but you’ve got a weird kid.”

“Curious is more like it.” Brian notes. “I’d say the child in him still hasn’t left, even at eighteen.”

“But most curious children are told to stay away from dangerous stuff like tanks.” Mike chuckles. “I know it doesn’t function… but yeah, I don’t get why he always wants to hide away in there.”

“Maybe it’s just not something adults are meant to understand.” After a moment, Brian’s smile fades. “... you gave Becca the bag of cookies, right?”

“Yeah, and you have Carl the apple?” Mike nods.

“Mhm… just…” Brian sighs, rubbing his temple. “For weeks, we’ve made people think we have enough supplies to last, despite these empty runs.”

Mike places a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “... neither of us have the heart to tell anyone that that apple was the last of all the food.”

“That wasn’t very reassuring.” Brian mutters, turning to look at the man. “What the fuck are we going to do?”

Silence encompasses the two for a moment, before Mike beckons for Brian to follow. The two head across the street to another old building, entering through the side door.

Mike strikes a match and lights a candle, dimly illuminating the room. It’s a small room with several shelves and one table in the center. The shelves are bare, once stocked with food gathered by the survivors over the course of the prior two years.

Brian watches as Mike rolls out a large piece of paper across the table; an old, tattered map of South Carolina. “Look, we’re stationed right here in Aiken, and the one spot we haven’t checked is this part of the woods in the northwest.”

“Do you really think there will be anything out there?” Brian’s eyes scour the map. “Is it worth the risk?”

“... well, ask yourself this; do we really have a choice?” Mike mutters. “I need you with me on this one, Brian. We’re gonna have to search the thick of it if we wanna find anything.”

“It’s the fucking woods, Mike. We’ll be lucky to find a rabbit that hasn’t had it’s stomach torn open.” Brian walks to the other side of the table, looking around the map. “At least consider the other possibility.”

“What, what other possibility is there. There’s nowhere left in Aiken to scavenge, so it’s time to go hunting.” Mike throws his arms in the air.

“Aha, exactly. Nowhere left in Aiken.” Brian notes. “I’m saying we should… at least consider relocation.”

Mike glances at Brian, rubbing the back of his head with a sigh. “... fuck, just… we have everything set up here and…”

“We live on an empty city block out in the open, with all of us crammed into a fire station.” Brian counters. “We have people, but we need a home. This is not it. We should go somewhere else.”

“Then where, okay? Where.” Mike points around the map. “Here? There? Any-fuckin’-where?”

“Mike, calm down. Look.” Brian points west of Aiken. “Graniteville. It’s right near Warrenville. We can settle in either of those places and raid the other.”

The man looks over the route from Aiken to Graniteville. Once again, they both go silent, as Mike is deep in thought. Mentally, he processes the trip, drawing a finger across the map down the outline of the road.

“... we can go on one condition.”

Brian looks up. “And that condition would be?”

Mike smirks. “We check the woods first.”

A couple of hours later, Mike fuels up one of their trucks with some gasoline, before setting the partially empty container aside. Brian shoves one bag full of tools and ammo into the back, before closing the compartment. A few of the other survivors walk over to them, watching.

Mike looks over and chuckles, closing the driver’s door of the truck. “Same time as always, Tina. You know that.”

“I know, I know.” Tina rolls her eyes, walking over to her husband and placing a kiss on his cheek. “Be safe, okay? Don’t get eaten.”

“Psh, I won’t. Don’t worry about it.” Mike shakes his head. “Becca sleeping in still?”

“Obviously.” Tina replies. “I think the lack of any kids around here just makes her wanna sleep more. I can’t tell if she’s bored or… lonely, or what.”

Mike looks down, trying to think of what to say. “... we’ll talk to her when we’re back, okay? Together. It’s just… urgent that Brian and I check these woods.”

Tina narrows her eyes, glancing briefly at Brian, before crossing her arms. “If you say so…”

“C’mon Tina, don’t give him a hard time.” Grant chuckles as he walks up beside her, before pounding Mike’s fist. “Take care man, we’ll see you tonight.”

“You know it.” Mike smirks. “Hopefully we’ll find a shit load of stuff and get back before then.”

“Well we can’t get back early if we don’t leave now.” Brian chuckles. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

Mike waves goodbye as he climbs into the driver’s seat. Brian opens the passenger door and looks around. He spots Carlton sitting atop the tank, and waves to him. The boy stares silently, before waving back.

Brian smiles and gets into the passenger’s seat, closing his door as the truck starts and drives off down the road.

Grant and Tina watch as they drive off, before they turn and see two others come out of a nearby building; Abbie and Silva. The two laugh a bit as they walk and talk.

“Look, I’m just saying bears kick ass.” Silva grins.

“Shut up, a bear would totally lose against a lion.” Abbie jokingly counters. “You don’t know what you’re going on about.”

“Hey, big man, you ready?” Grant interrupts the two with a smirk. “I know you two lovebirds wanna chill, but if you wanna be ready to take care of this place Silva, you better get your skinny ass up onto the tank to keep watch.”

Silva and Abbie look at each other silently, blushing a bit. “Um… right, yeah. Sorry Abbs, I’m just… distracted and stuff.”

Abbie snorts a bit. “Pft, you’re fine, I shouldn’t be--”

“P-Please…”

Everyone turns, going on alert, as Grant silences everyone with a hand motion, pulling out his handgun. The unfamiliar voice comes from behind a nearby building.

Grant moves forward first, the others keeping a safe distance, as they round the corner.

A man crawls weakly along the ground, coughing. He looks up at Grant and reaches for him.

“P-Please… so hungry… th-thirsty…”

The truck slows down as it enters the woods, though it still keeps a steady pace down the forest path. Brian looks out the window, trying to see beyond the trees.

“You better not get us lost.” He mutters.

“Trust me, I know this path.” Mike replies. “It leads to an old campsite. We used to take Becca there for girl scout meetings. There should be a big cabin.”

“... but if you knew this place, wouldn’t you have already raided it?” Brian asks.

“We tried to, years ago, but that was when things were still beginning. So many people… we just kinda left it alone.” Mike shrugs. “Honestly, I forgot about it until this morning.”

Brian looks ahead. “... is that it?”

Mike squints through the fog, slowing the truck down in front of what looks like a stone ring; a campfire. In front of them, a large, old cabin sits, completely abandoned.

He chuckles. “Shit, it’s still here. Honestly, I figured somebody might’ve burned it down.”

The thought of burning down a building made Brian shudder. He didn’t want to remember that. Not right now.

Mike stops the truck completely and turns it off, exiting quietly and shutting the door. “C’mon, get your gun. Let’s see if there’s anything in there. Anything at all.”

Brian exits the truck and readies his pistol. “I could go for a couple of thin-mints…”

Upon reaching the door to the cabin, Mike pulls on the handle. When it doesn’t budge, he readies himself, then kicks the door open, shining a flashlight into the dark abyss.

The plaza is bare, save for dust and overturned chairs. Mike steps in, keeping his flashlight on as he looks around. He finds a small table laying on its side, and he stands it back up. Setting down his backpack, he pulls out a candle and match, and lights the candle, before setting it on the table.

The room began to illuminate.

Brian smiles at the light, before his eyes widen as he aims his pistol. “Behind you!”

Mike turns as a walker suddenly appears, growling and snarling. It lunges at him and he calls out in surprise, pushing back against the undead beast. As Brian struggles to get a clear shot, Mike charges the walker through a door frame and into a dusty, empty kitchen.

Slamming the undead against the fridge, the man kicks its legs, tripping it as he side-steps towards the counter. As the toppled walker crawls for its prey, Mike pulls a knife out of its sheath on his belt, and stabs it in the head.

He pants as Brian enters the room. “Are you alright?! I couldn’t risk shooting you…”

Mike nods, putting his knife away. “Yeah… yeah, I’m fine. Just took me by surprise.”

Brian nods at his companion, before he uses his boot to slide the corpse aside so he can open the fridge.

The two are met with a putrid smell as Brian instantly slams the fridge shut. “Fuck… there’s nothing in there that isn’t spoiled.”

Mike shudders at the scent, before he opens as many cabinets as he can. “... and these are all empty… fuck!”

“Whoever was last here… must’ve left after emptying the place.” Brian sighs, looking down at the singular corpse. “... or, they ran out of food, and starved to death.”

Mike runs a hand through his hair, feeling himself getting more and more irritated.

However, then he notices something.

He quickly moves to the counter beside the fridge, moving a dusty jar aside to pick up a yellow sheet of paper.

Brian raises an eyebrow. “... what is that?”

Mike’s eyes scan across the paper. He nods. He nods faster. A smile grows on his face. Brian looks confused, before the man shows him the paper. “Read it and fuckin’ weep.”

He takes the paper from his friend and reads the message.

'In case of no food: extra stash in Montmorenci. Check lumber factory.'

Brian smiles and laughs a bit, high-fiving Mike. “This guy has a backup stash!”

“This is our lucky fucking day, holy shit.” Mike shakes his head in disbelief. “Jesus… we gotta check it out, most people don’t have backup stashes hidden away.”

Brian’s smile fades quickly. “... wait, but who’s to say it’s not already empty?”

Mike shrugs. “Hey, we came here for food, and we might’ve found food. We won’t know unless we go. And we don’t have many more options.”

Brian looks at the paper again, and he smiles, heading for the door. “Let’s pack up and move out. We’ve got quite the drive ahead.”

“Who the fuck is this guy?”

“Is he alone?”

“Where did he come from?”

“Is he dying??”

“Shush!” Grant commands, silencing the others behind him. He keeps his gun trained right on the crawling man’s forehead, taking a step back. “Sir, can you stand?”

The man coughs. “P-Please…”

“Sir, can you stand?” He tightens his grip on the handgun. “I’m not asking again.”

“... n-no.” Once again, the man coughs a bit, arms struggling to push off the ground so he can rise. He collapses to the side and leans against the building.

Grant quickly kneels down and helps sit the weakened man up against the wall. “Abbie, canteen. Now.”

“Oh… r-right.” Abbie steps forward and pulls her canteen from her backpack, handing it off to Grant, who uncaps it and hands it to the man, helping him hold it.

The exhausted man hastily reaches for the canteen with shaky hands, putting it to his lips and trying to drink as much water as he can. After a few moments though, Grant pulls the canteen away. “That’s enough.”

The man exhales, breathing more steadily now. “Th-Thank you… thank you…”

“Now, tell us your name, and where you’re from.” Grant trains the gun on him again. “And why you’re here.”

The man takes a moment to breathe, before he speaks. “... Terry… Travers. Terry Travers… I got… separated from… my group…”

Grant nods, listening. “... Silva, go get him some food from the pantry. Something small. One can.”

Silva looks around, unsure. “... you sure?”

“Yes, now go.” Grant glares at him from over his shoulder, and the young man nods quickly and hurries off. He turns back to the man known as Terry. “You say you got separated from a group?”

“Yes, I…” Terry coughs again, a growl being heard. “F-Fuck… so hungry…”

Tina backs up a bit before she bumps into someone. Surprised, she turns around; it’s Carlton. “Oh, Carlton… listen, could you go check on Rebecca? I don’t have a good feeling about this and… well, I want someone I trust to watch her. I don’t know if she’s still sleeping or not, but…”

Carlton stares, before shrugging with a nod, turning and heading off to another building and entering the door, which leads to a set of stairs heading up.

Tina turns back around and kneels by Grant. “So… what are we going to do with him?”

“Figure out how he got here, and where to send him. Or something like that.” Grant shrugs. “Strangers are typically bad news now, so whatever happens, we gotta make sure it doesn’t fuck us over.”

“Should we wait for Mike and Brian to get back?” Abbie asks. “I mean… we can’t really make a decision without them, right?”

“''Guys! GUYS!''”

Suddenly, Silva rushes back over, stumbling across the pavement as he pants, catching everyone’s attention.

“Silva, fucking christ, keep your voice down!” Grant stands up and angrily walks over, shoving the young man in the chest. “What the fuck is the matter with you?”

Silva’s words then turn the mood on its head, shocking everyone around.

“The food pantry is empty.”

Carlton walks down a darkened hall, with the only light coming in from the windows at the opposing ends. There’s one room nearby with an open door frame, no real door to speak of. Some light from a candle comes out of the door.

The teenage boy enters, and before him is a young girl, scribbling in a coloring book with her back to him.

He knocks on the doorframe. “Hey.”

The girl turns to look and smiles. “Carls!”

Carlton slowly walks over and sits beside her. “What’re you up to, Becs?”

“Just colorin’.” Rebecca responds, picking up the book. “Thanks again for finding me all these supplies. I was getting bored.”

“Well, I used to color sometimes.” Carlton shrugs. “It’s a good hobby, and it kills time.”

“You found TONS of princess coloring books though.” Rebecca smiles at him. “Did you have any sisters?”

Carlton shakes his head. “Nope, never. Just two brothers.”

“... well since my dad and your uncle are friends, maybe we can be brother and sister?” The girl suggests.

Carlton nods silently. “... go on kid, enjoy your coloring book.”

“‘Kay!” Rebecca giggles and resumes coloring.

Carlton simply puts a hand on her shoulder.

Deaths

 * None

Trivia

 * First appearance of Terry Travers.
 * First appearance of Rebecca Andrews.

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