Chapter 10: Ch 10 Quarry Camp 3
The next day I get up early and noticed everyone still asleep so I get up mentally ask Cora for help in maintaining my combative abilities and how to improve myself faster and came up with a plan together. I put on some exercise clothes and get out of the truck and start my work out just as dawn was breaking. After an hour of jogging around the lake I swam for another hour. Then did pull ups, sit ups, push ups, and squats until muscle failure. Then crawled over to the lake to rinse off before I got up and went to the truck seeing everyone start to wake up groggy and sleepy still. I smile and wave at the as I passed by.
I get to my truck hop in and get dressed in my gear. I carry my spear out and carry a small bag with me and ask some of the kids around camp to bring me some empty cans to me as I pull out some steel wire and start tying it around the camp and certain spots as early warning signs and alarms. The camp notices what I'm doing and Merle comes over nodding in approval.
"I like what you doing soldier guy not bad." He says with genuine respect.
"Thanks Merle. I know you won't change your personality so I won't try hell no human alive can." We chuckle at that. "All I ask is to not do it on purpose unless it's someone like Ed fuck that guy. I already told him his only use in this life is as cannon fodder to help the rest of us escape." Merle smiles and thinks for a moment at my comment before talking again.
"You know." He starts. "No one really talked to me the way you did before let alone say they respected me." He says in an inquisitive tone.
I look at him. "My girls told me you saved them so I saved you in Atlanta the debts paid everything else is pure mutual." I tell him. "You're smart, strong, and a survivalist." I list off facts. "If it weren't for you and your brother this group would be worse off than they are now. Hell I even heard that Andrea and Amy bring in plenty of fish after their trips out on the water." He says with admiration.
Merle chuckles in response but doesn't interrupts. "Merle I apologize for our initial meetings it wasn't personal and I understand if you feel slighted in anyway all I knew was that I had to help save y'all and you weren't gonna make it easy so I knocked you out to save you. It wasn't out of disrespect but survival. Hope you can understand that and hope you do the same to me if I ever lose my shit as well and I won't hold it against you for it because I'm the end it's still pay back for that knock sucker punch haha saving me was just an after thought. Haha." We laugh as I finished my little speech.
"You know soldier guy I can get behind that. I like that idea I'll keep that in mind but yeah no hard feelings for now." He agrees and puts his arm forward and I grab his forearm instead in a 'warriors greeting, parting.' He likes this better. "Names Merle Dixon or Merle the Great." He smirks.
"Well Merle the Great. I'm Bjorn Lothbrok or The Viking. Considering my family is direct descendants of Odin himself or so the legends say." We slightly laughed together
We started working making traps to help delay any walkers that may come by and when they fall they'll hit the alarms system we made of cans and rocks. No need to hide them, they just go straight for a target l. Then after we set everything up all over camp we came to the gathering point were everyone was and were surprised at how close me and meteor were as we got closer I told him to follow me to my truck. I grab two Assualt packs and hand them over to him told him one was for him and the other for his brother and was surprised by the gesture.
"Are you sure you wanna give this to us I mean I love them don't get me wrong but this is high quality stuff man." He asks.
"Yeah well it'll keep you alive long enough to save my ass if need be. Besides you have a brother and something tells me there's a story behind that. A story for when we're at a better place. Anyway this is my way of making sure you know I need you to survive but you dont need me." I say truthfully bluntly and genuinely. "Look man I can't guarantee anything. But what I can do is help by providing you with the gear you need." then show him the armory section of the truck.
Bows, crossbows, combat knives, machetes, katanas, arrows, pistols, rifles, sub machine guns, snipers, fishing rods, shovels, farming hoes, pick axes, and lastly the electric bikes.
"When the reports came in I decided to prepare everything I needed for my girls and I to survive. This truck isn't the only one I have." I state plainly.
He whistles. "Damn Vinking that's some pretty heavy stuff. And smart." He says with respect. "I get what your saying man." He states. And then gives a a two finger salute in respect. I return the gesture with a smile and see the truck occupants stir awake.
"Good morning everyone hope y'all slept well. Come on down after you get dressed in your gear today I don't want you out of it at all until bed time ok. I know it's hot sometimes but this'll be your training for now until you get older ok." I instructed everyone including the kids.
I dress my baby girls in their own custom made military gear that cora made them. And they looked like true warriors now. Adorable yet deadly. They all filled their hydration systems and hopped out of the truck I bring out a bag of food for pancakes and let the women cook as I walk towards the RV spotting Andrea and wanting to talk to her.
"Hey Andrea got a minute?" He asks surprising her.
"Sure what's up? You sleep well?" She gives a slight mocking smile and a teasing tone.
"Yeah slept like a baby." I smirk catching her off guard a bit but I cut her off before she could speak. "Anyway I wanted to ask your permission to ask Amy to be my girlfriend." He asks a bit awkwardly, with a hopeful look.
She looks at him and pretends to think as she raises her finger to her chin. "Hmmmm let me think for a moment. Your strong, reliable, caring to strangers, ruthless to those that are danger, unconditional love for family." She sighs in mock exasperation. "What is an older sister supposed to do?" She asks teasingly and I respond immediately with a straight face. "You say yes so I can go over and kiss her already." I state as calmly as I can. She looks at me gives me a hug and tells me yes I can a smile brightly and run away to tell the news to the twins quickly.
After I pick up the twins we rush towards Amy and I ask her to be girl she just laughs and say yes so we hugged each other and went to have a late breakfast together with Andrea.
I see Rick come out of the tent as Lori gives him and Carl their own plate and they come sit next to us as Lori follows with her own plate.
"Damn moms next time take it easy on the old man don't need him more exhausted." I laugh as she blushes hard and Rick glares at me while the others chuckle at our antics.
"Shush kid. Eat your breakfast like a good boy maybe you'll get a treat later." Says Amy with a slight blush making me stop and blush harder and the others laugh in joy. Like they finally got something back.
I finish up my food and so did the twins I help clean their hands with wipes and put on their little gloves with reinforced knuckles and tell them to play by the RV while I work. I tell the camp about Cora being an AI I made and then showed them the extra parts we could use for the RV. Both dale and Jim thanked me for them and start right away on the repairs. Glenn looked a bit anxious and wanted to go do a run. I tell him to cool it for today we can go tomorrow morning just right before dawn.
I give him a katana, show him how to use basic slashes and stabs. How to move and use the surroundings.
As lunch comes around Daryl shows up and kills a walker that tries to eat his dear but couldn't because he was trapped in the wires but the alarm didn't go off because a squirrel had messed with it. So Merle, Daryl, and I check all the work I did this morning and made some adjustments.
After that was done the girls and I sat down together with Daryl and Merle. I give the twins snacks and they sat quietly looking at us skin the squirrels while Merle works on the deer. Out of nowhere Merle starts to explain why he does to the deer by showing them in detail. I allow it with a smile as they tell Merle where to cut next after he asks questions and breaks it down to them when need be. This surprises Daryl and makes fun of him. We laugh at their banter while we work. The others in the camp are surprised by this event. As I get up I take the girls to wash up at the lake. I nod to Merle and he gives the AP (assault pack which I'll just say packs or AP for short depending on the scene) to Daryl and he nods in gratitude. They talk amongst themselves as we walk calmly to the lake.
The twins and I just was our hands and clean our nails and head back to camp to rest for awhile.
AN heading to work right now will upload more after words or when I wake up if it's too late.