"But where are we going?" Shane asked.
Rick looked at everyone: "We can't just run around like headless chickens."
"Maybe... we can go find our friends in town, what do you think, Glenn?"
"Yeah!" Glenn's eyes lit up, "That nursing home!"
Andrea had some doubts. Although she had heard about what happened between the group and the nursing home, her impression of them was still stuck on being "kidnappers who aren't bad people."
"But they're having a hard time too, right? How can you be sure they'll take us in?"
Daryl and Merle rolled their eyes after hearing this.
They were just about to mention Rick's glorious deed of handing over half of the guns, but T-Dog beat them to it:
"They like Louis a lot; Louis saved one of their companions back then."
Louis nodded: "I did indeed cure a few people."
Now, everyone had no further doubts.
Rick turned to Dr. Jenner, his gaze firm: "We'll go to that nursing home from before to regroup, and maybe pick up another group of survivors."
He took a step forward, looking Jenner straight in the eye: "When we come back, I hope you'll open the door for us."
Dr. Jenner looked at Rick. After a long while, he slowly nodded, a faint glimmer of light reigniting in his eyes.
"If I'm still alive, and if this place still exists, I will."
He turned around, walked back to the console, and entered the highest authority credentials.
"Vi, open the main entrance."
Amidst a heavy rumbling sound, the outer shutter door that was supposed to be "permanently sealed" slowly rose again.
There was no time for sentimentality or goodbyes.
They first moved their limited diesel to the energy room; it was at least one more piece of hope.
Next, everyone began hurriedly moving supplies outside.
The supplies at the CDC were far beyond their imagination. They weren't sure if the doctor's plan would succeed, so they intended to take whatever they could carry.
To spread the risk on the road, Rick and Shane made a quick decision and found a few more functional cars in the parking garage.
While everyone was busy loading the cars, Dr. Jenner found Louis amidst the chaos, secretly handed him a compact pistol and several smoke grenades, and whispered for him to protect himself.
This scene was caught by Duane, who had followed them; his eyes were instantly filled with envy. After all, his parents didn't like him touching these "grown-up toys."
Louis looked at Duane's wide-eyed, expectant expression and felt a bit amused.
Thinking for a moment, he unfastened a steel spike from his waist and handed it over along with the rope.
"You can play with this for a while, but no hurting people!"
"No problem!" Duane took it as if it were a precious treasure and quickly hid it in his clothes.
With that little interlude handled, Louis didn't linger and turned to climb onto Dale's RV.
With all the supplies loaded, everyone gathered at the lobby entrance with food, water, and medical supplies far exceeding what they had arrived with, along with complex emotions.
At the last moment before Rick was about to step out the door, Dr. Jenner suddenly pulled him back.
He didn't look at Rick, but instead took a deep look at Louis, who was already being escorted toward the RV by Lori, and said in an indisputable tone:
"Rick, no matter what, you must protect the child. He... they are the future of humanity."
Rick was stunned for a moment, then nodded heavily.
The roar of engines sounded in the sunset as the convoy carrying this group of survivors set out once again on an unknown journey.
The massive shutter door slowly lowered behind them, letting out a dull, heavy thud.
Inside the main control center, Dr. Jenner stood alone before the giant countdown clock.
He looked at the "zone decontamination" start button lighting up on the screen, his eyes incredibly firm... Louis sat in the bumpy RV, looking through the rear window at the slowly closing doors of the CDC, his heart filled with mixed emotions.
"Doctor, you really have to succeed..." he muttered softly.
If Dr. Jenner could really successfully complete the zone decontamination and deactivate the self-destruct sequence before the energy ran out, it would undoubtedly be a good thing for them.
Louis couldn't help but complain in his heart. In the original plot of The Walking Dead, Rick's group was practically a "stronghold crusher."
Wherever they went, something would go wrong.
From the CDC to the Farm, to the prison, and then to the Alexandria Safe Zone, places that could have developed well for "farming" were always destroyed by various accidents and conflicts.
When watching the show, he certainly thought the plot was exciting, and it was satisfying to see them change maps and fight monsters along the way.
But now that it was his turn, Louis didn't want to replicate this plot of running around and being forced into a "group migration" at all.
The sooner he found a safe and stable stronghold to settle down in, the more he could "develop" in peace and improve his magic strength!
In fact, he had only tried to persuade the doctor this time with a "what if" mentality, and he hadn't expected that there really was a possibility of saving the CDC!
Neither the zone decontamination protocol nor the solar panels on the roof had appeared in the original work. But Louis thought about it carefully; this was actually more reasonable.
How could a top-tier biological research institution like the CDC not have a backup energy plan and a local emergency disinfection plan?
In the original work, it was likely because Dr. Jenner himself had a death wish, wholeheartedly believing that dying was the best option, so he didn't mention these at all.
But now, his own appearance had given Jenner a sliver of ethereal hope, giving him the motivation to struggle.
"I hope everything goes smoothly this time," Louis prayed silently in his heart.
In all fairness, the subsequent Farm and prison were actually not bad as strongholds.
Especially the prison; that place was practically a perfect fortress for the early apocalypse.
The towering walls and sturdy barbed wire could block the vast majority of the horde of Walkers; the internal space was huge, there was farmland to cultivate, and there was even an independent water supply system and an armory.
But the advantages of the CDC were also beyond what the prison could compare to!
The environment here was comfortable, there were ready-made rooms, complete equipment and resources, and even the AI, Vi, to help.
In terms of defense, although the outermost glass curtain wall couldn't withstand grenades, it was more than enough for bulletproofing and blocking Walkers on a daily basis.
And that was just the perimeter. After entering the internal area, those heavy explosion-proof doors were strong enough to even block rocket launchers!
Not to mention those top-tier laboratories and the massive amount of data!
As long as the energy problem could be solved, staying here would provide immeasurable benefits for him to learn magic, research potions, and even figure out the secrets of his own body.
As for the possibility that staying might cause him to miss those familiar plot characters later on... even though he liked those characters when watching the show, liking them was one thing, but it was nowhere near as important as his own safety and life.
Therefore, Louis didn't have much of a psychological burden regarding this kind of "missing out."
He considered his own strength limited; he had no obligation or ability to run around the world deliberately looking for anyone.
If a tragedy happened right before his eyes and could be changed with a little effort, Louis was naturally willing to help. If things weren't right in front of him, but it was beneficial to himself, he wouldn't mind taking some risks to achieve a win-win situation.
Beyond that, there was nothing he could do.
"Of course, if Dr. Jenner fails in the end and the CDC isn't saved..."
Louis calculated silently in his heart, "Then I can only consider the prison or the Farm again."
Just as his thoughts were racing, the speed of the convoy suddenly slowed down and finally came to a stop.
"What's wrong?" Andrea asked Dale in the driver's seat warily.
"Ahead... it looks like someone is being robbed." Dale's voice was somewhat solemn.