A Path Of Blood And Brains

Everyone glanced between Arthur and Sean, a mix of surprise and curiosity in their expressions.

"Well, look who it is! You're here too, Arthur?!" Sean exclaimed, grinning ear to ear, as he hurried toward Arthur with an eagerness that felt infectious.

"Yeah... just like your dumb self. You runnin' with these folks?" Arthur chuckled lightly, giving Sean a friendly pat on the back. Seeing the Irishman again felt like a breath of fresh air; he was like an annoying little brother Arthur never knew he needed. He had never thought he'd lay eyes on him again.

"You two know each other?" the fat man, Tony, interjected, raising an eyebrow.

"Ah, of course we know each other! We're like brothers, we are!" Sean replied, his charming Irish accent brightening the mood in the tense bar.

"Yeah," Arthur snorted, nodding in agreement.

"Well, shit." The skinny man, Dave, smiled broadly. "Then to celebrate this reunion, let's get a drink, shall we?" He plopped down at a table, and Glenn poured drinks for everyone, leaving the bottle on the table. "I'm Dave," he introduced himself. "He's Tony," he pointed to the fat man, "and the Irish lad there is Sean." He gestured with a grin. "We met on I-95 coming out of Philly. Damn shit show that was."

"I'm Glenn," the younger man said with a warm smile. "It's nice to meet some new folks."

"Rick Grimes," Rick introduced himself, pointing to each of them in turn. "This here is Hershel, and that's Arthur." He nodded toward Arthur, who was standing close to Sean near the exit. "We've lost quite a lot today."

"I'm truly sorry to hear that. To better days and new friends!" Dave raised his glass in a toast. Everyone joined in, except for Hershel, who remained silent. Dave then pulled out his gun and placed it on the table. "Not bad, huh? I got it off a cop."

"I'm a cop," Rick said flatly.

"This one was already dead," Dave replied, shrugging off the tension.

Silence fell over the group for a moment. Rick cleared his throat, trying to steer the conversation back to safer waters. "You fellas are a long way from Philadelphia. What drove you south?"

"Ah, let me tell ya, it ain't the bloody weather. I'm sweatin' like a right fool!" Sean quipped, his straightforwardness eliciting a chuckle from Dave.

"First, it was D.C.," Dave continued. "Heard there might be some kind of refugee camp, but the roads were so jammed, we never even got close. After that, we caught wind of a safe spot in Nebraska. Low population, lots of guns. How about you guys?"

"Fort Benning eventually," Rick replied, a hint of weariness in his voice.

"I hate to piss in your cornflakes, officer, but we ran across a grunt who was stationed at Benning. He said the place was overrun by lamebrains," Dave warned, clearing his throat. "Yeah, it doesn't look like you guys are hangin' your hats here. You holed up somewhere else?"

"We're with a larger group. Out scouting, thought we could use a drink," Herhsel said, interrupting Rick.

"Y'all on the outskirts? Trailer park? A farm?" Tony stood up, wandering to a corner to relieve himself. "We got some buddies back at camp, been having a real hard time. I was hoping we could stay at your farm."

"We ain't never claimed we had a farm," Arthur said in a no-nonsense tone, his hand instinctively drifting closer to his shotgun as he took a seat where Tony had just vacated. Sean noticed the shift in Arthur's demeanor and the way his hand hovered near his weapon. Despite having been with Dave, Tony, and the rest, Sean didn't feel any loyalty toward them; he had been using them to survive. If Arthur decided to act, he wouldn't hesitate to lend a hand. "On top of that, we got more folks than we can handle already," Arthur added.

"Fuck you!" Tony shouted, his face contorting with anger. "I'll shoot all four of you and take your damn farm!"

"Calm down. No one is shooting anyone. Right, Rick?" Dave climbed over the bar, reaching for a bottle of whiskey. "We need somewhere to stay."

"You'll have to find somewhere else. I'm sorry," Rick replied firmly.

"Where do you suggest we go?" Dave countered, his tone growing sharper.

"I don't know. I hear Nebraska's nice," Rick said, his expression implacable.

Dave chuckled at the suggestion, then reached for his pistol. But Sean was quicker; he put a bullet in Dave's skull before he could react. In the same moment, Arthur raised his shotgun and blew Tony's head apart at point-blank range, the blast echoing in the bar and showering the area with gore.

Rick pointed his Python at Sean, but hesitated when he noticed Arthur training his shotgun on him in response. "Arthur?" Rick's voice was a mixture of confusion and concern.

"He's not with them. He's with me," Arthur declared, standing protectively in front of Sean. The shock on Sean's face was evident; he had never seen Arthur take such a stand for him, despite the times Arthur had saved him in the past.

Rick sighed, lowering his weapon as Arthur did the same, the tension hanging thick in the air.

"Dave?! Tony?! Sean?!" a voice called from outside, causing Arthur, Rick, Glenn, Hershel, and Sean to instinctively take cover. "Where are you fellas at?!"

They huddled tightly against the door, listening intently as three men outside called for their friends.

"I swear I heard shots," one of them insisted, his voice filled with urgency.

"I saw roamers two streets over. There might be more around here," another added, a hint of panic creeping into his tone.

"Dave! Tony! Sean!" A loud smack echoed from outside, likely the sound of a palm hitting a wall in frustration.

"Shut up, you idiot! You wanna attract them? Stick close. We're gonna find them," a third voice reassured, though the anxiety was palpable.

Arthur exchanged a glance with Sean, tension radiating between them. He reloaded his shotgun, the metal click echoing ominously in the dimly lit bar. They knew they needed to move; the longer they stayed, the more likely they were to draw attention.

The bar was unnaturally quiet, save for the occasional creak of wood as the structure shifted in the wind. Blood dripped slowly from the walls, pooling onto the wooden floor, a stark reminder of the violence that had just unfolded.

Rick cautiously rose to his feet and peered out through a grimy window, scanning the street beyond. "It's clear," he whispered, crouching back down beside Arthur, Sean, and Glenn. "We can't sit here any longer. Let's head out the back and make a run for the car." They all stood up, ready to move, but immediately dropped back down when two gunshots rang out not too far from them.

"Roamers. I dealt with them," one of the men outside waved off his friend's concern, though the bravado in his voice didn't quite mask the underlying fear. "I cleared those buildings. You guys get this one?" His companions all shook their heads, and the leader tutted in frustration. "We're looking for Dave and Tony, and no one checks the fucking bar?" They approached the door, ready to push it open, but Glenn slid in front of it, slamming it shut again.

"Someone's in here," the man said, taking a deep breath. "We don't want any trouble. Just looking for our friends. If something happened, tell us."

"They were in here!" Arthur called out, his voice steady, though he was lying through his teeth. "Heard some ruckus by the tree line, and they ain't been back in over an hour!" Rick nodded approvingly at Arthur's quick thinking.

"Randall, you stay here. We're going to look for 'em," the leader ordered, and two of the men dashed off, leaving only one at the door.

Arthur turned to Sean, a glint of determination in his eyes. "Go take him out." Sean hesitated for just a moment but then nodded, steeling himself for what needed to be done.

Rick opened his mouth to protest, but Sean was already standing up and making his way to the back door. He waited a few seconds, heart pounding, before slowly opening it and stepping outside. He peered around the corner and spotted Randall, who was also holding a shotgun and approaching cautiously.

"Oh, Sean!" Randall exclaimed, relief flooding his voice. "Where's Tony and Dave?"

Sean didn't answer. Instead, he closed the distance between them in an instant, drawing his knife in one swift motion and plunging it deep into Randall's neck. The boy, who was roughly Sean's age, gasped in shock as he crumpled to the ground, blood spraying across the pavement. Sean stood over him for a moment, adrenaline coursing through his veins, before rushing back to the bar.

He flung open the door and gestured urgently for the others. "Go! To the car!" Rick whispered sharply, and they all sprang into action, sprinting toward the vehicle.

"There they are!" a voice shouted from behind them, followed by the crack of a gunshot. The bullet whizzed past, narrowly missing a terrified Glenn. They all jumped into the car and sped away.

———

*Sean's Flashback*

"This seem legit to you, Bill?" Arthur asked, skepticism etched on his face.

"Sure," Bill replied plainly, a hint of confidence in his tone.

"Dutch said we were to keep dealing with them until we find the gold," Micah chimed in, his eyes glinting with ambition.

"Can we trust them?" Sean questioned, his brow furrowing with concern.

"Let's just see what they have to say," Micah suggested, shrugging off Sean's doubts.

"They said there was some big misunderstanding about them horses," Bill remarked, trying to soothe the tension in the air.

Sean shook his head, unease settling in his stomach. "And what about burning their fields?"

"They don't know it was us," Micah whispered, a conspiratorial smirk on his face.

Arthur scoffed, shaking his head. "That so?"

Bill turned to Arthur, his expression serious. "Listen, I know these Gray boys a bit now. This is on the level."

"We're stuck in the middle of some ancient feud, but instead of playing both sides, we're being used by both of them," Arthur said, frustration creeping into his voice.

Bill started to respond, "They were saying that Catharine Braithwaite—" but he was cut off by Arthur.

"This don't feel right..." Arthur's voice trailed off, a deep instinct urging caution.

"Now it don't feel right?" Sean smirked, turning around to face Arthur. "I could have told you th—" But before he could finish his thought, a gunshot rang out.

The world around Sean slowed to a surreal crawl. He felt the sharp crack of the bullet as it tore through his skull, a sudden, blinding pain that surged through his body. It was as if time had momentarily suspended, and in that split second, he experienced an overwhelming clarity—a realization of life slipping away and an eerie sense of detachment from his own body. Then, darkness enveloped him.

When he awoke, it was in the backyard of a house, disoriented and confused. He stumbled to his feet, the harsh reality of the world crashing down upon him. He learned about the walkers, figured out how to kill them, and began to navigate this new, merciless existence. It was during this journey that he found Dave and Tony's group.