Chapter 76

**- Xenon -**

"Does smashing walkers really brings you that much joy?" Amy said with a giggle, as she handed me a bottle of water. I can't blame her, I was wearing a shit-eating grin when she met me. She was on front gate guard duty, apparently, and she was the one who opened the door for me, ergo the reason for our meeting.

"Thanks." I took the bottle from her and took several gulps to satisfy my thirst. "It's unrelated to the walkers, truly. I was just thinking of happy times..."

"Waw, you really need to work on your excuses..." She rolled her eyes at me. "Alright then, keep your secrets...." I looked at her dumbfounded for a moment, before she started giggling again. "Glad you got that one..." A bit difficult to miss such a famous internet meme...

"How's the situation inside?" I suddenly asked her.

"Not so great..." Amy sighed. "There is some divide over what to do with the two moles... And..." She gave me an uncertain look.

"Just say it..." I nodded encouragingly at her. "I already know what to expect, don't worry."

"Well... Some people aren't very fond of your methods..." Amy couldn't look me in the eye saying that, ashamed for some reason.

"Are you one of those people?" I asked her calmly.

"No!" She shook her head. "I believe you did what was best for us..." We were silent for a moment, then she continued after gathering her thoughts. "Some believe that you are a bit... unstable. Especially after what happened with Randall..."

"Sounds a lot like Dale..." I remarked.

"Dale wasn't alone... Hershel was with him on this one too, even though he wasn't there with us... Even Rick is undecided..."

"What about the others?"

"Shane argued with them over it." Amy confirmed my thoughts. "He told them you were just acting the part, which most of us believe is true..." She was looking at me for confirmation.

"I draw no pleasure from inflicting pain upon others..." I shook my head. "But I will do what is necessary for our safety."

"That's what my sister and I told them!" She beamed at me. "You don't have to worry about anything they say, most of us are with you either way."

"Thanks, that means a lot." I nodded at her with a smile, which she returned shyly. We spent some time together, talking about random things as neither of us had anything to do.

Soon it was time for lunch. The cafeteria was quite full, yet there was a dreadful aura around it, no matter how much everybody tried to ignore it. I don't know why they are like this, but I certainly do not appreciate the looks certain people were giving me. Namely Dale, Hershel, Otis, and Maggie. They are the only people I would mention since they are the only truly active members of the group. The looks I received from Lori and Alice were of no consequence to me. It wasn't as though they were outright glaring at me, rather it was fleeting looks I received every now and then, yet I could sense there were hidden negative feelings behind them. I don't know when I started noticing so much from people, but I do remember I was not that observant in my past life.

Discussions were going around, obviously, doing their best to ignore the atmosphere, especially for the children's sake. Beth and Jimmy were talking about joining the guard duty, though Hershel was trying to prevent them from doing so. His over-protectiveness will be the end of them.

As the meal ended, I saw Rick whisper something to his wife, and her doing the same for Alice and Carol. They dragged the kids out, and reluctant Beth and Jimmy.

"Beth and Jimmy will be eighteen in two years, dad." Maggie said with a frown.

"That's two more years they have to spend with no worries." Hershel shook his head. "Until then, they are our responsibility."

"I think it's time we talked about the issue at hand." Shane suddenly said. "We have a group of hostiles outside these walls planning to take us down at any moment. A threat we should deal with as soon as possible."

"Let's get something down first." Jim said grimly. "They ought to be eliminated. There is no conceivable way for a peaceful resolution."

"I second that." Andrea nodded in agreement. "Maybe if their goal was finding a place for their people, as it was ours not so long ago, I would be the first to propose we come to an agreement with them. But I think it's plenty clear that Xenon's fears were true, and I believe we do not give him enough credit." She directed the latest part at those who had spoken against me before.

"How come he didn't doubt Axel and Oscar," Theodore said thoughtfully. "Yet the moment those two came to us, he was on their case."

"That's right." Shane nodded. "Going by the way he usually speaks, I wouldn't expect him to trust you two so easily. Isn't that right?" He looked at me questioningly.

"I trust my instincts and judgment." I said with conviction. "It has served me well for so long. The attack on the camp, the CDC, Hershel's farm... Empirical evidence speaks for itself. Axel and Oscar were unaware of the happenings in the world before we met them, and Oscar was only concerned about his 'old lady' when we met them. He displayed no malice towards us from the moment we met him, and neither did Axel. In fact, I'm surprised he is in prison at all." I shrugged. "Those two though... Everything about them screamed sketchy to me... And they were the ones that came for us..."

"I'm ashamed to admit I trusted them for a while..." Shane confessed.

"We're all very grateful for what you've done." Theodore nodded at me. "Now how do we deal with them?"

"They wanted to suffer the least amount of casualties." Jim reasoned. "That's why they had those two infiltrate us. Maybe we can use that against them."

"Lure them into a false sense of security." Rick nodded in agreement. "We can ask Randall how they planned to organize that attack. The element of surprise should play in our favor."

"Randall must have some way to contact them." I suggested. "We can have him give them the green light. Our machine guns should make short work of them once they are in shooting distance."

"What about Randall and Dave?" Dale suddenly asked. Nobody said anything to answer the question, as none of them wanted to take responsibility. Even Shane was considering how to break it to them.

"What about them, Dale?" I asked him calmly. "They belong to the very same group of murderers and rapists. They should meet the very same end."

"They are captives now." Dale remarked, trying to go the logical route. "Murderers and criminals have been brought to justice for years, and it wasn't by executing them. Maybe we can have them do some labor? As prisoners, they'll have limited freedom, and we would only benefit from that arrangement. Dead, they serve us no purpose."

"You're delusional, old man!" Daryl snarled at him.

"I would be the first to agree with you, Dale, if that plan of action didn't have a glaring hole in it." I shook my head calmly. "Letting them live is the same as allowing them to try escaping. The longer they stay with us, the more that chance increases. As far as I am concerned, it's only a matter of time before they made their escape and found another group and lead them here in turn. I'd rather not take that kind of risk."

"It's a good thing it's not your decision to make then." He interrupted stubbornly.

"And it's definitely not your call either." Shane scoffed at him.

"Let's vote then." I raised an eyebrow at Dale challengingly. "Show of hand. Those in favor of whatever nonsense Dale just said?" I was surprised, not even Hershel seemed to agree with him anymore.

"You see, Dale, the numbers speak for you." I smirked at him after a while. "Or rather, lack thereof. We can beat around the bush all you want, but the fact that they are threats to be eliminated is undeniable. Otherwise, you will never feel safe sleeping at night, knowing someone out there is biding their time to kill you."

"Let's move on then." Shane interrupted whatever argument was about to sprout. "So, are we all agreed on luring them here?" Everyone expressed their agreement. "It's decided then."

- End of Chapter -

AN: Sorry to put an note here, I'm not sure how many people read "Author's Thoughts". Going forward, do you guys have any suggestions about how the group should operate? I do have a plan for them, but I'm still thinking things over to be honest with you. And I'm finding it difficult to simulate it since the group has quite a few members who could contribute with different ideas.