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Chapter 233 - The End is the Beginning
"Captain! These are the documents that were hidden in the settlement leader's office!"
Just after Jason finished dealing with the survivors who were struggling to find a reason to keep living, Ian Dietrich came out of one of the buildings holding a blood bag in his hand and handed it over with a smile.
After taking the bag, Jason looked down and found only a few firearms and some medical supplies inside. There was nothing particularly unusual, so he asked, "Is there anything else?"
"This letter, sir! It seems it wasn't opened, so I hope it has something important inside," Ian said, pulling a letter from his pocket and handing it to Jason.
Then Ian turned to the side and looked at the original buildings of the place and the surrounding area. He said, "I guess this really was an outpost for that cult you mentioned. At least the prisoners told the truth about that. The stupidest thing was that those people who attacked us returned to their hideout. If they hadn't, it would've been difficult to find this place."
"All right..." Seeing that there was nothing else of value besides the letter, Jason didn't concern himself further. In fact, it was a good thing this mission had been completed faster than expected. They were just waiting for news from Shane's team, who was also attacking another shelter run by the same organization.
While Jason read the letter, Lee, Kenn, Carley, and the others who had been held in the basement cell were helping their injured companions and exited one by one.
Seeing them coming out, Jason, who kept a grim expression, handed the bag back to Ian and placed the letter in his satchel before saying, "Make sure those people get treated, especially a man named Dung."
"Understood, Commander!"
Ian was slightly surprised to see that Jason wanted to save these people—who were clearly going to be left disabled—but he didn't voice his thoughts. He stepped forward, helped move the wounded to a clean area, and knelt to begin treating their injuries.
He glanced toward the wall of a building, where the same phrase as the letter's title was written: "The end is the beginning," alongside a drawing that looked like an elongated tube. Jason quickly deduced that it was a submarine. He read the phrase again and remembered it came from a cult. He had a rough idea of what it meant, but not all the details.
Although this cult had no issue working with violent groups like the Vultures or the Cannibals, this particular outpost had tortured dozens of people, and the survivors they killed were tragic losses. But what was the purpose of torturing the survivors in such a way?
After analyzing all the information, guessing the cult's intentions—whose mantra was "The end is the beginning"—and seeing the submarine drawing along with a few words under the letter mentioning coordinates and an encrypted message that only a member of the organization would understand, Jason knew something was missing and that the survivors held in the basement were important.
Thinking about it, even though he had a vague idea of what it all meant, Dung also seemed well-informed when he said those lunatics from this place wanted to destroy the world. Jason's eyes widened, and he looked at Sam, who was approaching, and said, "These people apparently have a twisted plan to wipe out all the walkers… and take us with them. Search the entire place and find the key to open this."
Sam, who saw the drawing, opened his eyes wide, and a dark idea formed in his mind. He said, "We're not leaving this place until we find that key."
After Ian and Sam nodded in agreement, they led the dozens of survivors to the building with the basement cell.
"A key to destroy everything..."
Once the wounded had been moved elsewhere, Jason turned and found Lee, who was checking on his companions' safety. He stepped forward, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Come with me. I have something to tell you."
Without waiting for a response, Jason turned and walked toward a relatively empty area.
Lee Everett looked at Jason's retreating back and then glanced at Carley, who was tending to Dung. It seemed important to talk to this man, so after speaking briefly with the others, he turned and followed Jason.
After waiting in place, Jason casually found a raised stone from a collapsed structure and sat on it. He saw the old man named Kenny following Lee but didn't mind. He glanced around and said, "Find somewhere to sit—or you can stand if you prefer."
"You called me here. What's going on?"
Seeing Jason with a cheerful expression, Lee frowned. With his companions' lives still uncertain, he wasn't in the mood for small talk, so he got straight to the point.
Seeing how blunt he was, Jason couldn't help but smirk slightly but still said, "I'm here to tell you three things. First, your group is very important, and it seems they're hiding a key. That key is the reason your friends are nearly dead."
"A key?" Lee shook his head and pointed out, "Are you messing with us? No one would kill most of our group or torture the rest just for a key. Who the hell is after a key these days?"
"What if that key opens access to nuclear warheads?"
Knowing Lee would react that way, Jason continued, "I'm not here to steal resources. This group, the one with the slogan 'The end is the beginning', used a band of survivors like hunting dogs and attacked—by sheer chance—a helicopter from my organization. The original plan was to eliminate them all and prevent further problems, but now the issue has escalated beyond human proportions."
Lee looked at Jason, trying to detect any sign of a lie in his face, but he knew there was no reason for him to lie. Thinking about his friends who had died tragically in the cell, he clenched his fists tightly, as if ready to punch someone.
"Son of a bitch!"
Jason was surprised to hear a young girl's voice and soon saw a little girl hiding behind a wall. She had come with Lee's group, so he hadn't paid attention to her until now. "That's a new one. No one's ever called me that before."
"Clementine, don't say anything!" Lee shouted, still focused on what Jason had just shared.
Noticing Clementine's attitude, Jason looked at her with great interest. He realized this little girl was very different. She not only shot arrows well, but also knew how to hide her emotions to avoid being caught. She was quick-thinking, and she might even be better than Carl was at her age. Though still a bit immature, she could become a valuable asset to his organization in the future.
Once both of them calmed down, he continued, "Don't get me wrong—I just want to know if you know anything about that damn key that could fry us all before we even realize it. Do you understand what that means? I have other sources of information, but I want to know if you know something. Though from the looks of it, you don't seem to grasp what I'm telling you."
"We don't know. Dung's group was heading to the military base south of our area to see if they were still accepting survivors. But based on what we saw in that cell… a lot could've happened," Kenny said with a conflicted look.
"Yeah, that's what you're thinking now."
Seeing their reaction, Jason kept a neutral expression and said, "We don't hold anything against these people. Normally, we help those who want to survive and kill the rest who cause trouble—but this is something bigger. I need to proceed with extreme caution."
"Do you have a shelter nearby?" Kenny asked, interested in this man's words. He didn't really care that Jason had killed all those wicked people.
When Jason heard the question, he looked at Kenny and nodded. "We took the military base. I should properly introduce myself—I'm Jason, former military, and leader of a shelter with thousands of people. Now, given the nature of this issue, I need to consult some info while we wait for your friend to wake up."
Saying this, Jason picked up the radio and reported: "Sam, let's not waste any more time. We're heading back. We need to get the information out of the prisoners as soon as possible."
"Understood, sir!"