No Going Back

okay,

Nice job. So far so good.

Clementine clutched her glock and scanned the tree line as they walked alongside the river. Bonnie, who had gone deathly pale, was still holding her stomach while being supported by Luke and Kenny was leading the way. Luke turned his head towards Clementine "Hey, Clem, you did a good thing back there, you know?"

"Really?" She piped up.

"Yeah, it was better than leaving him."



"My friend Lee said that killing is bad no matter what" Clementine stated.

"Well, at least you can justify it" Bonnie chimed in.

Kenny grunted "I still say you should have left him for the walkers. The fucker didn't deserve your mercy" 



Kenny sighed and wandered over to the end corner of the church "It's going to be a long ass time before we get to Wellington" he muttered to himself. Bonnie watched Kenny before lowering her head and staring blankly at the ground.

Clementine wandered aimlessly around the church with no goal but to just explore her surroundings.

(o) Look at benches

"They had seats everyone, I guess" she muttered quietly before backing away and moving towards the altar.

(o) Look at stain glass windows

The windows were completely shattered with only bits of glass remaining in the frame "I wonder what they looked like before they got smashed up" she murmured curiously.

"Probably had images of Jesus" Kenny assumed, even though the question wasn't aimed at him.

(o) Look at Kenny

Kenny stood cradling the baby, the infant seemed to have calmed down since the shoot out and was being deathly silent. Kenny himself seemed fine, although his damaged eye was starting to affect him as everyone so often he would lift his hand and rub the bandage and then curse lightly.

(o) Talk to Kenny

"Hi, Kenny" Clementine greeted with a simple wave.

Kenny lifted his head and the corner of his mouth twitched into a small smile "Hey Clementine"



"How are you?" She asked.

"Could be better. Eye stings like hell and this side of my face hurts a bit but other than that, I'm fine. How are you?"



"Not so good, my shoulder hurts" she replied, lifting her hand and rubbing it.

"Well, that makes sense, I guess. I'm sure you'll be fine"



"How long do you think Luke will be?" She asked.

"No fucking clue. I wish he'd hurry the fuck up though, I don't really want to stay here"



"This is a nice place" Clementine commented, glancing around at the church.

"It is, considering..." His voice trailed off. "It's been a long time since I've been to church" he told her.

"You went to church?" Clementine asked curiously.

"I'm a Christian" he stated. "I can't help but think though, if there is a God, then why the fuck hasn't he stopped this? Why start it in the first place? I guess he just wants to teach us a lesson, but we'll die before we find out what it is". "What do you think, Clem? Do you really think the world will ever go back to the way it was? Cause I sure as shit don't. We've all changed. If it did stop, then things wouldn't exactly get any better. Sometimes when I look at myself, I think about what I've become and it scares me." The older man shuddered.



"I don't think things will ever get better, I did before but... This is who we are now, we just have to face it"

Kenny will remember that

"I guess you're right." He murmured in agreement. "But this baby is a beacon of hope, the only hope we got." He paused "You know, Walt used to go on about how the world would never get better but we, as in humanity, would find a way to evolve. Went on about some Steinbeck bullshit too. I ignored him a lot of them time but now... I sort of miss it" he murmured sadly.



"Speaking of the baby, how is he?" Clementine asked, trying to change the subject.

"He seems okay. Not crying as much. But he won't last long without a mother. We all need to chip in and help look after him if we want him to make it"



"I'll help you, I know I'm just a little kid, but I'll do all I can"

Kenny will remember that

"I know you will, Clem. You're going to be his big sister. You'll do just fine"

"I can take him off you for a while" she suggested, holding her arms out.

"No!" Kenny snapped suddenly, startling Clementine who dropped her hands by her sides. "I mean... I got it, alright?"

Clementine lowered her head sadly and turned to walk away "Bye, Kenny"

"Hold on a sec, Clem" Kenny told her. Clementine turned around as Kenny dug one hand into his pocket and pulled out a lighter. It was Clementine's lighter, since it had the same butterfly sticker. "I managed to swipe this after we escaped the pen back at Carver's place, thought you might want it" he said and handed it to her. "A lighter is never not useful. Unless of course you want tout out a fire and not start one"



"Thanks, Kenny" she replied gratefully.

"No problem"

Clementine tucked the lighter into her back pocket "I'm going to have a look around now" she stated simply.

"I'll let you get back to it then".

As Clementine was walking down the side of the benches she heard a thumping sound from below. The eleve-year-old scowled and stared at the wooden floor, tapping at it with her shoe.

(o) Listen to the floor

Clementine crouched down and pressed her ear against the floor.

(!) Right click on the ear icon and hold to listen for the strange noise

As Clementine listened closer the strange noise sounded more like movement, someone was shuffling around under their feet. "Clementine?" Bonnie called over to her "What are you doing?" She asked, her voice somewhat strained.



"Listening" she replied simply.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious" Bonnie replied sarcastically. Clementine smiled at Bonnie's sarcasm and got to her feet.

(o) Look at Bonnie

Bonnie's face was flushed of all colour. The only thing that stood out like a sore thumb was the bright red bruise on the side of her face which she had gotten after a run in with a walker in the museum. There were some dark black bags under her eyes as well. Her shirt and jacket were socked in her own blood along with her right hand.

(o) Talk to Bonnie

"You okay, Bonnie?" Clementine asked as she walked up to her.

"I've been worse." She replied weakly.



"You don't look okay" Clementine commented on her earlier sentence.

"Well, I'm not as healthy as you, that's for certain" she commented, her eyes falling upon the bullet wound "I took a bullet to the shoulder once" Bonnie told her. Clementine said nothing, instead she stared intrigued "It was before I went to Carver's place. A friend of mine stole some stuff from this other group, so I ended up taking a bullet for her. She's dead now" she said with a grimace "But I got through it and I'm sure you will too. It's not so bad"



"This is my good hand, will I still be able to do all the stuff I used to?" She asked.

"Of course. It's not like you got your hand shot off or anything. It's just your shoulder."



"When do you think Luke will get back?" Clementine questioned.

"I don't know. It depends really. I hope he finds some meds, I could really use them right now" she murmured, glancing down at her bleeding stomach.

"What will we do if we can't find stitches?" Clementine asked.

Bonnie paused, lost in thought "I saw Kenny giving you a lighter" she muttered "We could use that to seal up the wound" she suggested.

"How?"

"By cauterising it" Bonnie told her.

"What's cauterising?"

"Where you burned flesh so that it blisters and seals the wound" Bonnie told her. "Carlos showed me once when I brought one of our guards into the sickbay" she murmured sadly "I wish he was here. I wish-" she paused "I wish nobody had to die"



"I'm sorry about what happened to Mike. It wasn't fair on him... On any of us." Clementine said apoplectically. "I noticed that you... Kind of liked him."

Bonnie choked up "Yeah... I sort of did." She replied with a half laugh. "Don't dwell on it, Clementine, it's fine. I'm..." She paused, closing her eyes and inhaling deeply "I'm fine. I have to be strong."



"I heard a noise earlier, that's why I had my ear to the floor" Clementine told her.

"You heard a noise from underneath the church?"

Clementine nodded in response.

"I heard it too" Kenny said whilst approaching them.

"Well, what do you think it is?" Bonnie asked "Do you think there's a cellar down there?"



"It sounds like shuffling. I think there might be a walker that got trapped down there."

"Or someone died down there" Kenny muttered.

"Maybe there's a way to get down there" Bonnie commented. "People might have used this place as a base and they might have kept supplies in the cellar. They might have left something behind"

"It's worth a shot" Kenny replied.

"Let's search for a way down" Clementine suggested.

Kenny scouted around the church while Bonnie remain where she was as she was unfit to move. Clementine walked round until the noise got increasingly louder and she came across a lump in the carpet.

(o) Move carpet

Clementine pulled the carpet up to reveal a trap door, with a pad lock on the latch "I found something!" She declared. Kenny came rushing over, and even Bonnie moved from where she sat.

"Shit! It's locked" Kenny cursed angrily.

"Maybe I could..." Clementine reached into her pocket and pulled out the nail file Jane had given her "I could pick the lock" she said, inserting the nail file into the key hole.

"A nail file?" Bonnie questioned.

"Versatility is not overrated" Clementine stated, repeating the words Jane had told her. Kenny raised an eyebrow but decided not to question it.

"Isn't there a better way? We could always shoot it or break it with Clem's hatchet or my crowbar...."

"That will make a lot of noise, just let Clem do her thing" Bonnie insisted.

(!) Right click the nail file icon and move the mouse to the indicated direction to help Clementine pick the lock

Clementine twisted the nail file inside the lock in an attempt to open it. She had never tried this before but she was confident that she could do it. A few minutes later there was a click an the pad lock came off. "I did it!" She exclaimed triumphantly, removing the padlock and throwing open the trap door. The cellar below was dark and damp and not touched by any light. Hardly anything was visible, not even the walker that lurked within the shadows.



"I'll deal with the walker first" she told them, withdrawing her screwdriver.

"Good luck" Bonnie told her.

Clementine clambered down the ladder into the cellar and quickly pulled out her lighter and held it in her left hand, while holding the screwdriver in her right. She felt the bullet within herself rolling around in her joint, causing intense shooting pains to rush down her arms. She winced in pain and flicked the lighter on, allowing the flame to give the area a bright orange glow.

The smell of rotting flesh wafted up her nostrils and Clementine turned away in disgust. You never get used to that smell. A walker lunged from the darkness towards her, snapping it's jaw hungrily as it reached out with prying hands. Clementine backed up towards the ladder, holding up her lighter and straining her eyes to see the oncoming threat.

(o) Kick walker's leg

Clementine kicked the walker's knee. It's leg buckled and it collapsed to the ground. Clementine lifted the screwdriver and stabbed it in the back of it's head, killing it instantly. Breathing heavily, she stepped over the body and glanced around the cellar, her eyes falling upon a trunk.

"Everything okay down there?" Bonnie called down.

"Everything's fine!" Clementine called back. She knelt down in front of the trunk and attempted to open it. It was sealed shut. "Hmph" she grunted, lifting the screwdriver.

(o) Unscrew screws

The eleven-year-old removed all of the screws on the lid of the trunk. Once she was done she was able to remove the lid completely and examine the contents of the trunk. Inside the trunk was a large stash of medicine with both amazed and stunned Clementine.

(o) Pick up medicine

Clementine scooped up as much medicine as she could and carried it up the ladder and into the church.

"Goddamn..." Kenny breathed in disbelief when he saw the amount of medicine Clementine was carrying. "This is enough for all of us"

"And to think Luke is out there right now when we had all this under our noses" Bonnie said with a small chuckle which turned into a splutter of coughs. Clementine stared worryingly at the young woman. Bonnie's eyelids were fluttering and she seemed to be swaying.

| Maybe you should sit down |

"Maybe you should sit down" Clementine suggested as she placed the medicine down on the ground and moved towards her.

"Yeah... Maybe I.... Should". Bonnie staggered towards the benches and collapsed halfway there.

"Bonnie!" Clementine cried and ran to her aid.

"Fuck..." Kenny exhaled "Is she...?"

Clementine quickly checked her pulse "She's still alive. I think she fainted."

"I'm not surprised, she lost a lot of blood" he said, glancing at the bullet wound. "We can't wait for Luke any longer. We have the meds we need, we can deal with it now"



"I agree, we have to save her. She could die if we don't" she replied, glancing at Bonnie's unconscious body "But I'll need your help"

Kenny nodded and quickly placed the baby on one of the benches. "Alright, what do we do?"

"We remove the bullet I guess"

"With what?" Kenny asked, gesturing around the empty church.

Clementine pulled out the nail file "Maybe I could use this" she murmured.

"Come on, Clem, there's no way!"

"We have to try!" She cried, turning towards Bonnie and lifting up her shirt to reveal the bullet wound, prodding at the hole with the nail file. After a few failed attempts, Clementine managed to work the bullet out of the hole, luckily it wasn't that deep.

"I guess versatility really ISN'T overrated" Kenny commented in disbelief. "So, how do you want to go about doing this, you know, sealing he wound, we might have some stitches around"

"I could cauterise it" Clementine suggested.

"Your call"



Clementine took out her lighter and removed the top "I'm going to cauterise it" she told him.

You chose to cauterise Bonnie's wound

Clementine flicked the lighter on and lowered the bright orange flame down towards Bonnie wound.

(!) Click and hold the lighter icon and scroll to cauterise the wound

The smell of burning flesh drifted through the church, the scent causing Kenny to turn his nose up in disgust. A moment later a thick layer of scorched flesh covered Bonnie's bullet wound, stopping the bleeding. Clementine turned off the lighter and tucked it away in her back pocket. She then picked up some bandages and wrapped it around Bonnie's waist.

Kenny placed his hand on Clementine's shoulder "You did good, Clem. You did good"

LOADING

The sky was tinted orange and gold as evening turned into night. The church doors opened and Luke rushed in "This town is picked clean. I couldn't find anything, it was a waste of-" he was cut off when he saw Bonnie laid out on one of the benches. "What- what happened?!"

"We did a little surgery" Kenny replied.

"Is she okay?" He asked.

"She'll be fine, don't worry. So what were you saying?"

Luke stared at Bonnie in disbelief "I didn't realise she had gotten so bad so quickly" he murmured.

"Luke!" Kenny yelled, trying to grab the young mans attention.

"Sorry" Luke said, quickly turning his attention back to Kenny "This town has been picked clean. There's not a single place that hasn't been raided" he informed him.

"That's funny. We found a shitload of meds right under our feet"

"Shit, really?!"

"Yeah" Clementine chimed in.

"Well, you got lucky, cause I couldn't find anything."

"Then there's no use staying here if there's nothing we can salvage. We should move on, get to Wellington, it's our best, and only shot." Kenny said, somewhat determined.

"We should wait until Bonnie wakes up before we go anywhere" Luke stated.

"I know, I know. Look, on the way out of town we'll scout around, find anything you missed and then we'll set up camp on the outskirts once nightfall comes"



"That's a good plan, Kenny" Clementine told him confidently.

"Well, lets rest until then" Luke suggested. "We have a long way to go"

This is nice, keep up the good work.

Hey guys, guess what... HUBS.

NEXT CHAPTER. NOW.

Must... Finish... Chapter... 2.... Before... The... End... Of.... The.... Day....