Arthur sped up his ride after leaving the farm. Just as he was about to turn toward the school, the convoy appeared, with Daryl leading the way. Arthur pulled over, and Daryl and the convoy stopped beside him.
"Where are ya going?" Daryl asked, pulling up next to the bike.
"Go after Shane and Otis," Arthur replied, glancing at the convoy.
"Want me to come with ya?" Daryl offered.
"Nah, no need. I'll bring Glenn and T-Dog with me, though," Arthur said, signaling T-Dog, who was driving the truck with Glenn in the passenger seat.
"Aight. Is everything good back there?" Daryl acknowledged, staring at the sniper rifle strapped to Arthur's back.
"Yeah, the place is good, and the people are alright. Just be alert, though. Rick is not in a good state," Arthur warned, looking toward T-Dog and Glenn as they pulled up.
Daryl nodded. "What's up, man?" T-Dog said, leaning out the truck window.
"You two will be coming with me to fetch Shane and Otis," Arthur said, giving them a quick rundown of what had happened. "Alright, we have to move now. An unstable man and a fat guy raiding an overrun place? I wouldn't be surprised if only one of them gets back," Arthur muttered, then nodded at Daryl and Dale, who was driving the RV.
Arthur slowly released the clutch and gave the throttle power. The bike started moving. He heard the convoy give him a horn beep, and the two groups separated. The convoy headed toward the farm, while Arthur, with T-Dog and Glenn following in the truck, went the opposite way.
---
As they proceeded, T-Dog pulled the truck next to Arthur's bike, matching his speed. "What do you mean by unstable man?" T-Dog slightly raised his voice so Arthur could hear. Arthur glanced at their curious faces.
Arthur chuckled and replied, "What do you think? Whenever Shane looks at Rick, it always looks like he's staring at the man who stole his favorite toy."
Glenn answered from the passenger seat. "Well, Lori and Shane were in a relationship before Rick arrived. The two of them would sneak out into the woods and come back drenched in sweat and with their clothes messed up. I always thought it was normal, but now Rick is here, it seems like Shane was forced to back off."
Arthur laughed out loud, complimenting Glenn. "Good observation. Keep that; it will help you survive and think properly in case you're in a troublesome situation."
"Looks like we're gonna arrive at night," T-Dog said, looking at the sunset.
-----
Bang! Bang! Moonlight shone down on a fenced area as the growls of accumulating walkers echoed. Some were slow, while others were showing signs of running, all heading toward the gunshots.
"Ha... ha..." Deep breathing could be heard as Shane, carrying two heavy bags, checked his gun's magazine. He looked up and saw four walkers approaching. Bang! Bang! He shot two down, then slowly lifted the heavy bags again. Just as he was about to shoot the other two, bang! bang! A loud rifle shot echoed, shattering the heads of the two walkers.
Otis stood there, aiming while breathing heavily. He rushed to Shane and grabbed one of the bags. "We have to hurry. I'm already low on ammo," Otis said, supporting Shane.
"My leg is busted from the drop; it'll slow us down," Shane admitted, holding Otis's shoulder for support.
Shane and Otis began walking, supporting each other. "How many bullets are left on you?" Shane asked.
"Six. What about you?" Shane replied. The nearby fence collapsed under the weight of too many walkers pushing against it. "Only about four," Otis said, looking back to see many walkers pouring in, slowly but surely getting closer.
Shane also looked back and saw that some of the walkers could run. "Shoot the one who can run!" Bang! The running zombie dropped.
"Shit, we called them walkers because they're slow. How the fuck do they become fast now?" Shane cursed, shooting another fast one.
Otis also shot, targeting those nearest them.
After shooting some of the fast ones and those close by, Otis shouted, "Fuck, I'm out!"
Shane turned to Otis, knowing he had only one bullet left. He began contemplating. He heard the zombies getting closer. He mumbled, "I'm sorry," as he slowly aimed his gun at Otis's leg.
Just as he was about to pull the trigger, everything in his vision slowed. Shane could hear his heart beat, Otis's heavy breathing, and the growl of a running zombie right behind them. His trigger finger moved, but then a loud gunshot brought him back.
Crack! The shot hit the zombie that had nearly lunged at them, splattering its head, and spraying blood onto Shane's face. He looked up and saw T-Dog and Glenn in the truck.
"Hurry up, we don't have all day!" T-Dog shouted, banging the truck's door. Glenn, in the truck bed, hopped off and grabbed the heavy bags from Shane and Otis. Gunshots still echoed as the closest walkers dropped.
Just as they climbed onto the back of the truck, a revving engine sounded. Arthur drifted behind the truck and plunged the muzzle of his Magnum 500 into the mouth of a fast zombie. He pulled the trigger—bang!—and shouted, "Let's go!"
The truck sped up as Arthur rode alongside it.
"That's so cool," Glenn commented. T-Dog agreed, "Indeed, man looks like he's in an action movie."
Otis and Shane breathed heavily. Shane noticed Arthur looking at him and grinning, as if saying, 'I know what you were about to do.' He quickly avoided Arthur's gaze and looked down, overwhelmed by guilt.
They sped toward the farm to deliver the respirator.
----
"If they don't get back in time, we might have to perform the surgery now. If we don't, the internal bleeding will kill Carl," Hershel said to Rick, who was already pale from blood loss due to the constant blood infusion for Carl.
"How risky is it, Hershel?" Rick asked hesitantly.
"Risky enough that Carl might die," Hershel replied, clearly troubled. Carl's condition couldn't wait any longer. Shane and Otis hadn't returned, and waiting was dangerous.
Rick thought for a moment, holding Lori's hand. He glanced at her, then made his decision. "Alright, do it." Hershel nodded. He knew how difficult the choice was, but they had no alternative.
Patricia came inside with a stretcher. "Help me put Carl here, Rick," Hershel said, holding Carl on one side. Rick quickly helped, and they carefully moved the boy. Patricia prepared the surgery tools.
"I'm about to start," Hershel said, staring at Rick. Rick nodded.
Just as Hershel was about to put on his gloves, the distinct sounds of a truck and a motorcycle echoed in the distance. Rick hurried to the window and saw that it was them.
Arthur parked his Tenere in front of the house. Glenn and T-Dog hopped out of the truck, grabbing the bag with the equipment and supplies, and quickly handed it to Hershel. Shane and Otis also got off the truck.
Rick approached Shane and hugged him. "Thank you, man," he said. Shane hesitated before reciprocating. Rick then looked at Arthur and nodded in gratitude. Arthur just smiled and walked back to where the rest of the group was staying.