At dawn, inside Arthur's tent, his eyelids fluttered open. He felt something heavy clinging to his body. Glancing down, he saw it was Hermione, sleeping in nothing but her lingerie. He couldn't help but let out a soft whistle at the sight of her body.
Hermione woke up from the sound. Her voice was sleepy as she smiled. "Like what you see?" Arthur noticed her ears turning red.
He smiled. "I did enjoy the morning view. Did I disturb your sleep?" He hugged her, not planning to get up just yet.
"Not really, I should be the one asking that," Hermione replied, giggling as Arthur pulled her closer. Soon, soft kisses and light giggling could be heard inside the tent.
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Arthur opened the tent flap, and Hermione strode out. Everyone looked at the pair with a smile. Jacqui teased, "Looks like someone was enjoying last night." Hermione heard that, and her ears slowly turned red. "We didn't do anything," she protested.
"Yeah, yeah, both of you didn't 'do' anything," Andrea chimed in. Everyone burst into laughter, except for Amy, who looked even sadder.
Arthur clapped his hands, and the laughter stopped as everyone turned to him. Shane limped his way over to Arthur's side. "Alright, just like we planned last night, everyone must undergo training, especially the girls."
Arthur saw Carol raise her hand and nodded at her. Carol spoke, voicing her concern. "Is it really necessary to train? I mean, we can just avoid the walkers, right? They're slow; we can just kill them at a distance."
"To be honest, 'walker' isn't really the right term to call them anymore," Arthur paused. "Some of them can run. It's as if the virus is preventing them from decaying further, so let's expect from now on that there will be a mix of walkers and runners, not to mention the Variants."
Each person looked at the others nervously. Shane confirmed Arthur's words. "I can assure you that those damn runners would've bit us if Arthur, Glenn, and T-Dog didn't arrive on time," he said, remembering the knowing look Arthur had given him the night before.
"Don't worry, we will start with light training. We will focus on physical and stamina training while I make the obstacle course for you guys to train with," Arthur said with a cheerful voice.
Andrea raised her hand. "What's the use for the obstacle course thing?"
"Its use, you ask?" Arthur repeated, slowly turning to look at her, then sweeping his gaze across the whole group. His smile widened into something cold and challenging.
"The use is this, Andrea: right now, if a real Variant gets within five feet of you, you're dead. End of story. You're simply not fast enough to escape or strong enough to fight them off."
He paused, his eyes holding hers. "This obstacle course? It's not about winning. It's about training your soft, slow bodies to last long enough so when you finally find yourself alone, face-to-face with something that actually runs, you can maybe, maybe buy yourself thirty extra seconds to scream for help before it chews your throat out. Consider it a slightly delayed death sentence. A fighting chance to not immediately turn into lunch."
Everyone recoiled at the thought of encountering a Variant, especially remembering the volatile from the CDC that didn't die easily, even with all the fighters of the group working together.
Arthur clapped his hands sharply, his intense smile instantly switching back to a cheerful, genuine grin. His voice was playful, cutting the tension. "Hey! Come on, folks, a little faith!" He chuckled brightly. "Unless you're like me, then yeah, you'll be able to survive anytime and kill the Volatile without breaking a sweat!"
He gave them a confident wink and added a bit of provocation. "But since you're not a highly trained, disgustingly handsome, and efficient Hunter like myself... we'll get you up to speed. Think of me as the extreme example you're aiming for. It's totally achievable! Just, you know, not for another ten years of never gonna happen."
Rick, Lori, and Daryl arrived, having heard the end of the conversation. "Arrogant motherfucker," Daryl muttered loud enough for the group to hear.
Rick and Lori let out a chuckle as Arthur replied, "Well, admit it, Daryl, I'm just that good of a Hunter," flashing a teasing smirk at him.
"Alright, guys, as Arthur said, we'd have to begin your physical training now," Rick said, looking at Arthur and nodding. Soon, everyone followed Rick and Shane, including Hermione. The group began warming up, and once they were ready, they started following Rick's instructions, beginning with a jog around the farm.
The Georgia sun was already hot, making the air thick and hard to breathe as the training started. Everyone felt slow and clumsy compared to the guy watching them from a tree.
Arthur lay stretched out on a large branch, his massive gun catching the bright sun. He looked relaxed, like a big cat watching a field of slow, struggling mice.
Down below, T-Dog, breathing hard during the run, looked up. "How did he even get up there?" he grumbled, wiping sweat off his face.
Glenn, pushing his legs, gasped. "Don't know, man. Just keep running."
The first part was a tough, long run around the dusty edges of Hershel's farm. It was designed to build the speed and stamina they would need for a real chase. Rick and Shane led the way, running hard and steady. The rest of the group looked rough.
Lori's face was red and strained, her breath coming in painful gasps, but she forced herself to stay near Rick. Carol looked quiet but determined, her eyes fixed on the ground, pushing through the ache in her legs.
Daryl moved differently. He didn't run like he was exercising; he moved fast and quietly, like he was tracking prey. He never seemed to tire.
Hermione ran with a neat, organized energy. She wasn't the fastest, but her running form was perfect, as if she had logically studied the most efficient way to run.
After the running, they moved to strength training using the farm equipment. The group took turns flipping a big tractor tire, a job that made every muscle shake. T-Dog yelled as he put all his weight into lifting and rolling the heavy rubber.
They did exercises like squats and lunges while carrying heavy bags of animal feed on their shoulders. Then came the pull-ups on the rough barn rafters. Andrea and a couple of others managed a few repetitions, their arms burning with effort.
Arthur, still watching from his tree perch, occasionally shouted down a sarcastic comment. "Lori! Pretend a runner is biting your shoes! You'll stop dragging your feet!"
As evening approached, they paired up to practice fighting and moving quietly. Shane worked with Rick on how to draw a gun fast and aim quickly. Daryl showed Carol simple ways to fight with a knife—quick, short thrusts to get away, not to stay and fight. Glenn and Hermione practiced moving quietly, as Arthur instructed, sneaking through the trees, trying not to to make a sound, whispering to stay in sync.
The sun went down, leaving the group exhausted and covered in dust, their bodies aching from the hard work. Arthur finally dropped down from the tree, landing silently. He didn't look at the group. He just walked toward their camp area, leaving the survivors to feel the deep ache in their muscles and wonder just how much they had actually improved.