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🕑 Added 2025-06-14 06:47:52 +0000 UTCA New Beginning From the End of the World
Chapter 165 – The Questions
After showing a glimpse of what his people were capable of, right in front of all the residents of Alexandria, the large convoy came to a stop in a spacious square.
The two tanks and the Humvee equipped with machine guns made it safely to this refuge. There was still plenty of fuel, so moving these vehicles wouldn't be an issue for now.
Shortly after, a group of more than one hundred thirty people gathered on the street of this community, silently.
Only after the local refugees approached did they notice the kind of gear these strangers brought with them!
If the tanks weren’t impressive enough, there were large, modified vehicles. The people wore bulletproof vests, carried assault rifles, and had grenades strapped across their chests. Bright blood could still be seen on the tires of the vehicles. Just by looking at them, the idea of a bloody battle against walkers came to mind.
These people were armed from head to toe, and with the gleam of their rifles and their cold expressions… some of them were definitely seasoned soldiers.
Compared to the survivors in this place, the residents of the Alexandria community looked like stragglers. Not because of the weapons — which were not inferior to Jason’s group — but because of their weak demeanor.
Before long, everyone had gotten out of the vehicles, and not a single person lacked a cold and slightly dirty face, yet each one held a weapon.
Deanna could tell there were two groups of people: one smaller group, better equipped and armed, and a larger one, mostly made up of survivors.
After looking at them, she said, “Jason, it looks like you haven’t known each other for long, right?”
Hearing this, Jason nodded, pointed to Noah—who stood with one of the groups—and said, “That young man is Noah. He belonged to a community we passed through earlier. The other group comes from another community that was originally led by Ferdinand.”
After seeing both groups exchange greetings in their direction, Jason continued, “We met Noah in Atlanta after rescuing him. He said he wanted to travel to the shelter where his family was, so we took him there. It was a good place, not worse than this one, but we were attacked by a bad group of people, and Ravi, their previous leader, was killed.”
“With Ferdinand, things were a bit different. We found him and his group very close to this location. That’s where we got the tanks and vehicles with machine guns. His group decided to follow us after hearing we were heading to a much safer place.”
Deanna sighed after hearing such bitter news. She nodded in sympathy and said, “I’m sorry to hear about the losses.”
Jason smiled and said, “You should know I like saving people. I don’t care about numbers or anything like that. But I’ve come to realize that not everyone needs to be saved—I know that well.”
“Jason, Ravi chose to follow you, and all these people trusted you. You should be proud of your great victories—you brought this many people with you. They can all become part of our community.”
“But this place is different from surviving out there. Here, we all learn to carry the future differently. I hope you’ll agree to a simple meeting! I’ll ask Aaron to arrange a proper place for these people. I just hope they’ll cooperate and understand.”
Jason had expected this part and respected the owners of this place—after all, he was just a stranger now. Even if other concerns flooded his mind, he focused on what mattered.
Soon, a group of people moved the large vehicles to a secluded area, and everyone was gathered in some abandoned houses. Noah and his group were quite surprised, so they each chose a house.
Jason and his closest group—which kept growing with the most capable and loyal members—went to the modified RV. He didn’t need a house, but he still preferred to take one so the group could rest properly.
...
After separating from the group, Jason followed Aaron to the room Deanna had prepared. Although he couldn’t quite remember where Rick’s group had originally talked, it must have only differed in decoration.
Deanna sat on a chair in the middle of the room and placed a DVD.
“Do you mind if I record our conversation?”
“No, I don’t mind.”
Deanna nodded and sat across from Jason. She looked at him and said, “We haven’t met new people in a long time—let alone hundreds at once. This is going to be a long conversation.”
Once both sides were seated and ready, Deanna smiled slightly before asking, “Can you tell me what you used to do before?”
“You want me to tell you again?”
“Yes. You should know who I was before all this began. I originally wanted to go back to Ohio, but I never expected the military to stop us. Then the National Guard brought us here. The army was supposed to come later, but it never did.”
“We found a large construction site nearby, and my husband, an architecture professor, designed the outer walls. Our son helped a lot building it. With everyone’s help, we were able to create this shelter. So you should know that people’s former jobs matter when it comes to helping a community grow.”
Hearing these familiar words, Jason was a bit surprised. Without even thinking about it, his community had worked in a similar way—but much more sophisticated.
Jason smiled and said, “Years ago, I was a great soldier—one of the best the military could have. After leaving service, I learned about the virus and, surprisingly, ran into two scientists in Atlanta who offered me a job as a security guard at their facility.”
Deanna was clearly surprised. Recalling the words Jason had spoken earlier, she could tell he wasn’t lying.
“That’s amazing. I thought you were no older than thirty. Right now, it’s hard to guess your age.”
“Age never meant much to me. I could say I’m twenty or twenty-five—maybe even thirty. Right now, age has lost its value.”
...
The two spoke for about twenty minutes, and Deanna was surprised by nearly every word that came out of Jason’s mouth. Whenever it came to survival knowledge, the man in front of her seemed to know it all. But there were still many others to talk to, so she wrapped things up shortly afterward.
“Jason, I can now understand a little more about the people who followed you along the way. You have a different way of living through all this. I can say you do what’s necessary—but not just for your own benefit.”
“Haha, it’s not that big a deal. Now that I’m here, I hope you can trust me.”
“Of course—you’re very welcome here. I originally wanted to find a group of people who’d been out there to help us, but I never found the right ones.”
After that, Deanna immediately started talking with dozens of the survivors. The conversations lasted all day, until the evening, when she finally met the last person on the list.
“Michonne, I’m sorry for making you wait all day.”
“It’s alright. I was with my group and didn’t get bored at all,” Michonne replied calmly.
Deanna smiled and grabbed a notebook.
She glanced at it, then said slowly, “Michonne, you’re the last one for today, and I wanted to have a detailed conversation with you. First of all, I heard from your companion that you joined the original group not too long ago, and now you accompany Jason on missions. So I’d like to ask—as someone new to his group—what do you think about their community?”
Michonne nodded silently. Before coming here, Jason hadn’t told her much—he’d simply asked her to respond as she saw fit. She was grateful for that trust.
“I can say now it feels like a family. I remember the first time I met them—he invited me to join the community, but when we arrived, they examined us thoroughly, regardless of who we were before.”
“Compared to here, is there any difference?”
“I’m not lying when I say this, but there’s no real comparison.”
“Tell me what you think of Jason.”
Talking about Jason, Michonne relaxed and didn’t lie.
“Jason is a smart man. He doesn’t like to lose or make mistakes.”
Deanna smiled and replied with a touch of exaggeration, “Yes, I already know. He told me himself that he only tries to protect himself while looking after his group.”
Michonne couldn’t help but smile. “Yes, he’s exactly as you described. He’s always one step ahead—calculating and decisive. He protects the group from outsiders and always tries to make sure no one gets hurt.”
Deanna asked Michonne a few more questions before stopping. Now that she knew what she wanted to know, she said goodbye.
