In the mad scramble people also ran the wrong directions and there was the sound of sloshing as someone’s foot caught on another wire and a bucket of some putrid smelling oily liquid spilled across the floor and caused several people to fall and slide.

As if that wasn’t enough, that’s when the screeching growls and a stampede of a different nature came from down the hall like an omen of horror and it rapidly grew closer, causing several people who had yet to run like startled deer to raise their guns — if they weren’t already.

The previously disorganized group descended into further chaos but regained at least a little bit of structure as people nearest to the impending threat formed makeshift staggered ranks as they all shuffled backwards trying to get out while the corridor behind them was clogged by chaos; most of them simply following whoever was directly in front of them to get out.

The Governor found himself amidst pure disarray. Despite shouting for people to hold their ground, few of them did and he gave up on trying to get this herd to stay put, focusing instead on getting ahead of them to bring them back under control.

However, even somehow managing to follow the flow, the group had already made it out and were starting to pour out the door.

Merle slammed the door behind him, blocking the few walkers that had come after him after he opened the gate in the tombs, and went to the back of the room and pushed the dusty industrial switch. As the switch was flipped, a loud obnoxious alarm blared through the prison and the banging on the door ceased as the walkers lost interest in him in favor of all the excitement and noise in the tunnels.

Everyone hidden outside the building tensed as the alarms flared, getting their weapons ready and not a moment later, their walkie talkies beeped to life and Merle’s voice rang through, “Get ready, they’re coming out!”

Seconds after the alert, the prison door slammed open and people poured out from the building.

The hidden gunmen stepped out of their hiding places almost in sync and sporadically fired at the ground in front of the crowd, raining bullets all around them to effectively control where they went and funneled them towards the front yard.

Bullets pelted the concrete in front of the group causing everyone in the front to violently flinch and abruptly stop, some even falling over as the group sporadically ran without even thinking about where they were headed, their only drive was to get away from the bullets.

Glenn’s angry voice came through the beat between the fray of bullets as he shouted, “Get the Hell out of here!”

Even if it came to mind there was nowhere to take cover from the bullets, and no one had any time to consider the fact that no one had actually been hit despite them all being out in the open.

The corralling was so effective that even without wasting more ammunition the people followed those who had already been scared into running the direction they wanted them to.

Eve and Daryl peered through their scopes scanning the haphazard crowd for the one person they were looking for, but Eve grit her teeth in frustration because there were too many people and she couldn’t tell one from the other. They were simultaneously too close together — clumping up — and too fast to even catch a glimpse of who was who and of those who weren’t running like headless chickens, there was no sign of the Governor.

The side prison alarm finally shut off and another one blared to life near the back of the prison and if one had a bird’s eye view they could see walkers pouring out of the holes in the back of the prison, the sound drawing them out of the building through the same places they had wandered —or been led— in through.

The people from Woodbury all ran for the cars at the bottom of the walker-infested front yard, seeing as it was the only path that wasn’t cut off by bullets but it was at that moment Eve knew it wasn’t gonna work.

The plan to take out the Governor in this chaos was a good idea but, none of them can take him out like this without killing more people from Woodbury than they could get away with.

There’s too much commotion, too many people running like rats, and too many heads — be it human or walker — in the way. They’d never hit their target.

Yes, they knew some would die but Eve could not in good conscience bring herself to slaughter an entire population of mostly innocent people and she wasn’t alone. No one was crazy about the idea, but they would do it if they had to, and that’s exactly why Eve wasn’t gonna let it happen. Even if it drags this fight out, she isn’t willing to let her friends carry the weight of something like that on their souls.

Some people have to die but the order she gave was to kill as few as possible while intimidating them enough that so long as they succeed in killing the Governor and his higher lieutenants, they won’t have the leadership or spirit to retaliate.

If they’re determined to stay here, they only have two options: End this here and now with as little bloodshed as they can manage to push for a truce; or wipe out Woodbury entirely.

Eve lifted her head from the rifle scope, staring at the people fleeing.

If there’s even the slimmest chance to end this without becoming mass murderers, she has to take it. Even if it may be foolish, she still has to try before resorting to a bloodbath.

Otherwise she’s afraid she’ll learn from this experience and become someone who kills first and asks questions later.

It doesn’t matter how obvious it is that killing all of them would be the easiest way to end this conflict, that’s not the example she wants to lead with, nor the ghosts she wants to live with for the rest of her life.

They’re not soldiers, they’re not even killers, they’re survivors. And that’s how it’s got to stay if they want to be able to live this life.

So, when they were all running for the cars, Eve grabbed the walkie talkie and all the receiving walkies bleeped and all gunfire stopped before her grainy clear voice rang through.

“Stand down. Plan C.”

---

Andrea finally rendezvoused with the group who were sent out of the prison to a secondary location for safety and ran straight to Carol for a hug.

She looked around the faces who weren’t taking part in the fight, Hershel, Judith, Beth, Randall, Tiny, Carl, Axel, etc and it finally felt like she could breathe again.

Being apart from them has been harder than she thought. She missed them all so much and their previous stressful and hostile reunion was not satisfying in the least. But this. This felt like she was home. She finally made it back where she belongs.

There was just enough time for hugs and reuniting before they heard rapid rustling and a boy came running through the woods — from the direction of the prison — and Carl pulled his gun on him in the blink of an eye; followed by everyone else present who had a gun.

“Wait wait wait!”

Andrea was quick to stop the near shoot off. “It’s ok, I know him.”

Andrea vouched for the kid, but the others didn’t lower their guns.

Andrea spoke calmly, motioning at the boy. “Put your gun down, Luca.”

Randall shared a look with Carl before nodding.

Luca wholeheartedly willing to hand the gun over but Randall stopped him quickly and said, “Put it on the ground. Nice and easy.”

Randall speaking unintentionally put Carl more at ease as the kid nodded vigorously, “Sure” cooperating as he slowly put the shotgun on the ground.

When the gun was down, Andrea picked it up and Hershel shuffled up and was eager to ask the question that’s been on all their minds.

“What happened at the prison?”

Luca filled them in on everything he knew but it was confusing, and it was apparent that at the very least, the strategy to disorientate and confuse was a complete and utter success.

He couldn’t be more than 16 or 17, just a few years older than Carl, and he knew Andrea. Not very closely but Andrea had been a prominent figure in Woodbury despite not having been there for long.

So, they accepted the kids surrender and Luca didn’t put up a fight in the slightest. He really didn’t want to die here today.

---

Back at the field, Eve and Daryl exchanged nods as the cars began to take off past them. The second they passed them, the two of them ran out of the underbrush, ditching their disguises and booked it for the prison.

Glenn and Maggie already had Daryl’s bike ready to go at the gate by the time they got there so all Daryl had to do was toss his rifle to Glenn and the pair hopped on without delay.

“Go, we’re right behind you!” Glenn shouted as the two of them sped off after the Governor’s forces.

A one minute lead may not seem like much but when the cars are flooring it, they had already put quite a distance between them while Eve & Daryl raced to catch up, the others still regrouping back at the prison before they’ll follow after them to finish this.

Eve tapped Daryl’s shoulder, and got close to his ear. “Don’t get too close. Head for the street right next to Woodbury, we’ll sneak in from the back and camp out on one of their rooftops inside the town until we see him.”

Daryl nodded but a second later Eve’s head slammed into his as the bike jerked suddenly. Daryl abruptly pulling the breaks almost made him shoulder-check her in the throat.

Eve didn’t have time to think about it though because the bike had already lurched to a stop and gunfire pierced the air.

Both of them stared down the road where all of the cars that just hightailed it from the prison were sitting still down the road, all of the people who had escaped lying in the field, with the Governor standing at the edge of the road, dropping a machine gun.

Martinez backed up against the truck, watching the Governor drop the machine gun and walk like he was in a daze towards the bodies, pulling out his handgun to start shooting heads.

He knew the Governor was psychotic, but this is— he just killed everybody. Over what? Refusing to go back and fight a losing battle?

Cold sweat dripped down the side of his face as he looked at the only other person the Governor hasn’t shot. They shared a look and a tacit agreement to get the Hell out of here passed between them before a loud gunshot split the air like a firecracker.

Both men whirled back towards the field just in time to see the hole clean through the Governor’s other eye before his body hit the ground.

“……”

The Governor.... is dead.

It took a long moment to process and even still, Martinez could scarcely believe it. A man who seemed like such a scourge...gone, the second he turned his eyes away.

Another gunshot cracked and the tire right beside Martinez’s leg burst with a loud enough ‘pop’ to make both jump.

The radio on Martinez’s waist made a noise before a smooth calm and unfamiliar rang through, clear as a bell.

“Toss your guns into the grass and don’t move.”