"Commander, these are the data that were hidden in the leader's office of this settlement!"
Just after Dominic finished dealing with the survivors who had mental and common sense issues but still wanted to keep living, Glenn also emerged from one of the buildings, carrying a bag, and handed it over with a smile.
After taking the bag, Dominic looked down and discovered that it only contained some firearms and a few medicines, and there was nothing particularly unusual. He asked, "Is there anything else?"
"This letter—it seems it wasn't opened, so I hope it has something important!" Glenn said, pulling a letter from his pocket and handing it to Dominic after dusting it off.
Then Ian turned to one side and looked at the original buildings of this place and the surrounding things and said, "I suppose this really was an outpost of that cult they mentioned. At least the prisoners said something true. The dumbest thing was that those people who attacked us returned to their refuge, and if they hadn't, it would have been difficult to find this place."
"Alright..." Seeing that there was indeed nothing more than a letter, Dominic didn't bother much further. Actually, it's a good thing that this was completed faster than expected. Now they are just waiting for news from Daniel's group, which also attacked another refugee of this same organization.
While Dominic read the letter, Morgan, Kenn, Carley, and others who were in the basement cell also helped their wounded companions and came out one after another.
Seeing those who emerged, Dominic, maintaining a somber expression, handed the bag back to Glenn and put the letter in his pocket before saying, "Make sure those people are treated, especially a man named Dung."
"Alright, Commander!"
Seeing this, Ian was slightly surprised that Dominic wanted to save these people, who would evidently be left disabled, but he didn't share his thoughts and approached. He placed the injured people, with the help of others, in a clean spot and crouched down to treat their wounds.
Directing his gaze to a building wall, he saw the same phrase as the title of the letter, 'The end is the beginning,' and a drawing of what looked like an elongated tube that Dominic could infer was a missile. When he realized this, he read the title's phrase once more and remembered that he had taken it from a cult; he more or less knew what it was about.
Although this cult seems not to mind associating with bloodthirsty groups like the Vultures or Cannibals, this advance group that tortured dozens of people and the survivors they killed is lamentable. But what purpose did they torture survivors for in that way?
After analyzing all the information, guessing what the cult's purpose was, where their phrase is 'The end is the beginning,' seeing the submarine drawn with some words below the letter about some coordinates and an encrypted message only a member of this organization would know how to decipher, Dominic knew they were missing something, and the survivors in the basement of this place were important.
Thinking about it, though he had a vague idea of what this meant, Dung also seemed well-informed when he said those lunatics, the people of this place, wanted to destroy the world. Dominic opened his eyes and looked at Stuart, who was approaching, and said, "These people apparently have a sinister idea to eliminate all walkers and us along with them. Search the entire place and look for a key to open this."
Stuart, who saw the drawing, widened his eyes, and a sinister idea formed in his mind. He said, "We won't leave this place until we find the key."
After Ian and Stuart nodded in response, they led dozens of people toward the building where the basement cell was located.
"A key to destroying everything..."
After the injured crowd was moved to another place, Dominic turned his head and found Morgan, who was ensuring his companions' safety. He stepped forward, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Come with me; I have something to tell you."
After finishing speaking, without waiting for the other party to respond, he turned around and walked toward a relatively empty spot.
Morgan watched Dominic's back as he left, then looked at Carley, who was caring for Dung. It seemed important to talk to this man, so after speaking with everyone, he turned and followed Dominic alone.
After reaching the place, Dominic casually found a raised stone from a fallen building structure and sat down. He looked at the old man named Kenny, who was following Morgan, but didn't mind. He looked around and said, "Find a place to sit; you might as well stand."
"You called me here; what's going on?"
Seeing Dominic with a happy face, Morgan frowned. Now that his companions' lives or deaths were uncertain, he wasn't in the mood to chat with him here, so he got straight to the point.
Seeing the other party was so unattractive, Dominic couldn't help but twist the corners of his mouth but still said, "I'm here to tell you three things. The first is that your group is very important and apparently hides a key; this key is the reason your companions are almost dead."
"A key?" Hearing this, Morgan shook his head and pointed out, "Are you playing with us? They didn't kill most of our group and torture others that way for a key. Who the hell is looking for a key nowadays?"
"And if that key opens the possibility of accessing nuclear warheads?"
Knowing the other party would have this reaction, Dominic continued, "I'm not here to steal resources. This group, with the phrase 'The end is the beginning,' used a group of survivors as hunting dogs and attacked a helicopter from my organization by fate. The plan was to kill them all and thus let them cause more problems, but now the problem has escalated to superhuman levels, and that has also involved you."
Morgan looked at Dominic, trying to see traces of lies on the other's face, but he knew the other party had no reason to lie to them. Thinking of his friends who died tragically in the cell, he clenched his fists tightly as if he were about to punch someone.
"Son of a bitch!"
Dominic was surprised to hear a girl's voice and soon saw a girl hiding behind a wall. This girl was with Morgan's group, so he hadn't paid attention to her until now. "That's new; I've never been called that before."
"Clementine, don't say anything!" said Morgan, who was thinking about what Dominic had shared.
Realizing Clementine's action, Dominic looked at her with great interest. This girl shouldn't be here. He discovered that this little girl seemed very different. Not only did she shoot good arrows, but she also knew how to contain her steps to avoid being caught. Things came to his head, and she could be as good or even better than Carl as a child. Although still a bit immature, she could become a good tool for his organization's future.
After seeing both had calmed down, he continued, "Don't misunderstand, I just want to know if you know anything about that damn key that could fry our asses without us noticing. Do you know what that means? Though I have many sources to get information from, I want to know if you know anything about it. But seeing things, it doesn't seem like you understand what I'm telling you."
"We don't know. Dung's group was heading to the military base south of our place to see if they were still receiving survivors, but from what we saw in that cell, many things could have happened," said Kenny with a complicated look.
"Yes, that's what you're thinking now."
Seeing what the other party was thinking at a glance, Dominic showed an indifferent expression and said, "We have no complaints with these people. Normally we help those who want to survive and kill the rest who cause us problems, but this is something bigger where I need to act with extreme caution."
"Do you have a refuge nearby?" Kenny was interested in this man's words. It didn't really matter that he had killed all these evil people.
Hearing that question, Dominic looked at Kenny and nodded. "We took the military base. I should introduce myself properly. I'm Dominic, a former military officer and General Commander of the New Dawn Unification organization, with a population of millions of people. Now, seeing the nature of the problem, I must consult information until your friend wakes up."
Saying this, Dominic took the radio and reported, "Stuart, let's not waste any more time and return. We need to get information from the prisoners as soon as possible."
"Understood, sir!"