The Walking DeadHershel's Farm, Georgia, USA – 2010
The survivor group needed to leave their little camp on the outside of the city. It was pointless to try to secure that area. The farm would be better for them.
Ben floated down from the sky holding another flatbed full of groceries and medical supplies. The Greene family came out to watch him in wonder.
"Thank you for not shooting me," Ben smiled at them.
Hershel stepped in front of his family, "who are you?"
"I am an Angel in service of one of the gods of this world," Ben explained keeping to his cover story. "Humans have cursed this world, I am here to help those that survive to continue to live."
One of the daughters, Maggie, pushed forward, "why isn't god here?"
"It's against the rules," Ben sighed. "If she stepped took direct action, then other sorts would be able to as well."
Hershel placed a hand on his daughters' shoulder, "we appreciate the gifts. Is there a price to be paid? Are we accepting an agreement by taking them?"
"No," Ben set a hand over his heart. "I swear on my mother that this is a gift given through goodwill and charity. My powers are bound and I am unable to do much, but this I will. There are others out there that are in need, and I will pay them a visit once I am finished here. Please, go through these supplies. Tell me if there is anything that you require. A list would be helpful." He turned his head sharply to look at the barn. "There is a gathering of dead in that building. This is a great danger to you and your family."
Hershel stepped closer, "we can't say they are lost."
"They are," Ben said softly. "They are dead. Bodies are animated through a virus like no other. They are hollow vessels. Their souls have already taken their next step."
Beth spoke up, "what do you mean, the next step?"
"When a being dies, their soul moves on and returns to the source," Ben explained. "The memories of their former lives fade away as they join the source. A piece of the source is then used in the creation of a new life. It is close to what some call reincarnation. The new soul is formed from the source." He paused. "It is not the entire person, but a piece of many. Many, many years may eventually combine to the pieces."
She wilted as he spoke, "oh."
"I am sorry, Beth Greene," Ben whispered. "There is life after death, though the truth is not as happily ever after as some like to say."
Hershel glared at him, "how do you know her name?"
"Hershel, Annette, Shawn, Maggie, and Beth Greene," Ben recited before turning to the boy standing near Beth. "Jimmy McCune." He paused once again to let them process. "You are a good man, Hershel, but I need to destroy the dead in that barn, and I will do so with or without your permission."
Ben moved faster than their eyes could track. He entered through the loft portion, disposed of the undead, and returned before they could react.
"It is done," Ben tried to sound as imposing as he could. "I will return shortly. Please write a list of items you would like."
He moved around the farm in a spiral, widening his patrol with each pass. There weren't nearly as many as there were in the city, but they were sneaky. Hopefully, it would help their chances of survival. He continued on until the spiral was rather wide. The migrating horde hadn't arrived yet.
After an hour, he returned to the farm. The flatbed cart had been moved, which he took as a good sign. Maggie waited on the porch holding a notebook.
"Dad wasn't happy about the barn," Maggie said walking up to him. "Are you truly an angel?"
Ben nodded, "my power is bound and my form has been altered to reduce panic. I find this body rather strange. The lack of eyes was a harsh adjustment."
"Eyes?" Maggie squeaked.
Ben nodded again, "we did not have gender or have a shape like this. Celestial stone rings orbiting an orb of essence, innumerable eyes along my wings." He smiled. "The hands were a nice change."
"Wow," Maggie whispered. "You mean the guy with wings in a white robe was a lie?"
Ben smiled, "there was a reason most interactions started with BE NOT AFRAID." He looked at the notebook. "Is that the list?"
"If it's not too much," she nodded, holding it out to him.
Ben held his smile, "I would not have offered."
He took the notebook and vanished. It was for the awe factor rather than necessity. Ben floated up a bit and reclined while he read the list. It wasn't anything crazy. He could probably find the stuff in the same dimension rather than having to travel. His stash of cash wasn't in danger of running out, but the extra bit of wonder was fun. There were plenty of banks to clean out rather than hit up the bank from Jumper again. Ben tried to figure out how long he had spent in The Walking Dead.
The trip to Dawsons Creek was a lot faster this time since he didn't have to borrow a hotel room to shower. He appeared on the porch of the Greene home about half an hour later with another flatbed cart of supplies.
"I told you he vanished in front of me," Maggie pointed to him. "It wasn't moving fast like the barn. He just vanished."
Ben smiled, "do you need anything more?"
"No, thank you," Maggie said before her father could answer. "Where are you going now?"
Ben waved his hand toward the horizon, "there are others that need assistance."
"Will you come back?" Maggie asked.
Ben nodded, "after some time. There may be visitors coming soon. They will have children among them and need a safe place to stay. Use your best judgement if they don't."
He vanished and appeared on the edge of Atlanta. A quick search later he found another bank. This one had already been cleared out, aside from the ATM. He stripped the mini-vault inside. A quick pop to the quick to drop it off then back to the city to search for another. Thankfully, it didn't take long to find another. This one had no signs of being touched in quite a while. He cleared out the vault and the teller stations then added it to his stash in his cube.
With that done he decided to check in on how Rick was progressing. He flew up high to stay out of sight, then trailed along the road. The intersection with the wrecked tank still had some scattered corpses with a few stragglers wondering around but lacking a horse corpse and gunfire. He may have miscalculated the timeline.
Ben drifted along the road until he heard the clip-clop of hooves. Rick didn't seem all that bothered by the multiple burned cars on the other side of the road. That was one of the more annoying things about the guy. He didn't seem to be able to put the obvious clues together. Rick comes across a clearly abandoned gas station that has turned into an impromptu camp. What does he do? Gets out of his car with his gas can and decides to check it out… walking by multiple cars that clearly didn't have any gas. He finds an abandoned farm and instead of looting the place. Does he pick up the visible shotgun on the floor? Does he search the house or see if the truck in the garage is working? Nope, he takes the horse which he gets killed later in the same day.
After a bit of thought, Ben drifted down to land in front of Rick. The horse bucked in shock while Rick tried to draw his sidearm. His luck didn't hold and the horse tossed him off. Ben sped over catching Rick before he could hit the ground. Lucky for him, the bag with the guns was on his shoulder and not the horse.
"Hello, Rick Grimes," Ben said in an even voice. "I bring you a message."
Rick managed to get the gun out and pointed it at Ben as the horse ran away, "who the hell are you? What the hell are you?"
"You can shoot me if it would make you feel better," Ben smiled. "I wouldn't recommend it. The noise would attract unwanted attention."
Rick didn't re-holster the gun. He didn't fire it either.
"I bring a message," Ben continued. "There is a group of survivors in Atlanta. Finding them will lead you to your wife and son. The government stations have been overrun, the city is lost, though there are small groups of the living holding out. Some valiant, others are more monsters than the dead."
Rick shifted in his grip, "you know where my family is?"
"Yes, Rick Grimes, I do," Ben answered. "Things have changed. They believed you to be dead. Times of danger draw people together."
Rick tensed, "what are you saying?"
"Your wife thought she was a widow," Ben set him down. "She had no intent to hurt you or betray her vows. You may have done the same had the situation been reversed. Your marriage was failing before the world changed, the tension if you were together through it all would have shattered it resulting in leaving your son orphaned."
Rick stared at him, "what are you saying?"
"You and Lori would have died, leaving Carl to fend for himself," Ben lied smoothly. "Forgive her if you wish. Hate her if you want. The life of your son is more important than you can imagine. Keep him alive, teach him to survive, and he will grow into a leader among the remains of the world."
Rick took a deep breath and let it out, "she thought I was dead. Who told her that?"
"The hospital was overrun; you were in a coma," Ben explained. "By all reason, you should be dead. Your IV had long since dried out and you were unable to move for far longer than healthy. It is against all odds that you are alive. Even if you were to survive, you should need weeks of recovery time to simply walk again."
Rick holstered his gun, "how am I alive then?"
"There is a path open to you that can help many people," Ben answered. "It is up to you to find it, I will help as much as I can, but my power is bound while I walk this world."
Rick sighed, "well, my horse is gone. I don't suppose you could give me a ride?"
"Well," Ben chuckled. "Well, indeed. Pardon me."
Ben vanished and reappeared at the Greene Farm. He flew over to the well then removed the zombie that had fallen inside. The undead was laid to rest by a punch chop to the dome that pulped its skull.
He then appeared in front of Rick once more. The man was scanning the area with his sidearm, either searching for Ben or zombies. His gun snapped to the newly appeared man. Credit where it's due, he didn't fire.
Rick lowered his weapon, "neat trick."
"Thank you," Ben inclined his head.
Rick glared at him, "you're telling me my wife cheated on me, and I should just forgive and forget?"
"No," Ben shook his head. "I'm saying that your widow found eventually found comfort with a man that protected her and your son. They both thought you were dead. The bond was formed by mourning, friendship, and the reluctant acknowledgement of feeling. It would have never happened if they thought there was even the slightest chance you were still alive. Your return will tear them up inside."
Rick sighed, "who is it? Do I know them?"
"Do you truly want to know?" Ben asked.
Rick nodded.
"Shane Walsh," Ben answered.
A myriad of emotion flashed across his face. Slowly, the tension in his shoulders relaxed. Rick's eye clouded slightly, then wiped away the unshed tears.
Rick took a deep, steadying breath, "he kept them alive?"
"Yes," Ben nodded. "He nearly lost his life trying to rescue you from the hospital."
Rick wiped another tear away, "damn it. I can't hate them for that."
"Do you still want that ride?" Ben asked with a gentle smile.
Rick let out a rough laugh, "do I just hop on your back or something?"
Ben vanished then reappeared with a three-wheeled cargo bike. He opened the crate on the back to reveal stacks of MREs, medical kits, and some handguns with ammunition. Random supplies were starting to stack up in his cube. There were a few different sorts of bikes that he could distribute.
"It's quieter than a horse," Ben smiled.
Rick sighed, "fine."
"One moment, I just thought of something," Ben snapped his fingers.
Lifetime Christmas Romance Movie #253Small Town America, USA – 2020
There were a lot of dimensions Ben never planned to visit. The formulaic Christmas Romance movies were near the top of that list. Even if they held no interest to him, they still were fully realized worlds. The benefit to visiting them was that they were some of the most peaceful places because wars, riots, and world-spanning diseases didn't happen unless it was mentioned in the plot. It was yet another detail of his dimensional travel ability that sort of unlocked naturally as he continued to use it.
Ben didn't bother hiding his face. He stole a large truck that was on Main Street of some random small town. It wasn't much of a theft. The doors were unlocked and the keys were on the passenger seat. Its interior was top of the line complete with satellite radio, GPS, and parking cameras. The normal anti-theft device that could remotely shut off a vehicle and tract it was missing which was another nice bonus.
He used the GPS to search for the closest prison then hopped to his cube while still in the truck. Ben appeared in the parking lot of the prison when he returned. He ignored the shouts of warning as he strolled through and continued on into the staff area. The signs made the armory easy find. He pulled the door off its hinges then started to pile the suits of riot armor in the center of the room.
The Walking DeadAtlanta, Georgia, USA – 2010
Ben appeared in the lobby of the Retirement Home, set the Riot Armor down, waved, and then vanished once more.
Rick had started to pedal down the street. Ben flew over to land in front of him with the riot armor draped over his arm like a butler with a towel.
Rick rolled to a stop, "what is that?"
"Riot armor," Ben held it out to him.
Rick narrowed his eyes at him, "from where?"
"A prison," Ben replied. "You will be the only person to have put it on until you pass it to someone else."
Rick got off the bike and started to examine the armor, "thanks, I guess."
"Don't forget to hydrate," Ben waved before he flew away. "There are others that need my assistance."
He stopped once he was far enough to fade from view but continued following Rick. The man put on the armor then started to pedal on into the city. He wasn't sure how much the plot would shape the world. Hopefully, he would keep the guys at the Retirement Home alive. They did not deserve their fate. His hope was that since they were still alive when they were last on screen so his intervention would keep them that way.
Ben's gaze snapped toward the distance as a helicopter approached. He had completely forgotten about it. Rick hadn't seen it yet. Ben sighed as he watched the helicopter. He would risk crashing it if he tried to interfere with its route. The sound of increased pedaling brought his attention back to Rick.
He watched from above as the scene from the first episode started to repeat itself.
Rick crashed on the tank. The street wasn't as packed as it had been, but there was still plenty to cause him to panic. Rick started shooting, calling even more zombies toward him. He crawled under the tank to escape. A muffled gunshot told him that Rick had found the zombie inside there as well. The only positive change was that the guys from the Retirement Home didn't grab the bag of weapons.
Ben pinched the bridge of his nose. Should he intervene again? Either the plot had quite a bit of sway, or it was pure dumb luck. He sighed. Ben would be stuck with this dimension if he kept stepping in. There as only one other thing he could think that could positively impact the world.
A Kill List.
There were plenty of characters that did horrible things that led to a lot of people dying. Killing them would change how things go quite a lot. It could also create a power-vacuum where someone worse could step in. He had given the people the tools to increase their survival and wasn't going to spend the rest of his life here. There was a meta-side of things too. Would the people still become who they were without the experiences.
Well, there were a few people that he could get rid of that wouldn't change things all that much. He'd probably fill a couple of plot holes that he could fill.
Ben hadn't actually killed a living person before and wasn't under the illusion that they weren't real people. They weren't characters on a page or actors on the screen. His meta-knowledge wouldn't be accurate for much longer. The other issue being that he didn't actually know where they were located, but that could be rectified.
In truth, there were a lot of people that he thought should die across the dimensions. It would be hypocritical to complain that the locals couldn't or didn't kill someone if he did the same.
A quick trip to a library in The Circle Dimension gave him the locations of the prison, the hospital where Beth died (spoilers), and a few other places. Minor villains that caused issues that served no purpose other than bringing in viewers.
His first stop though was closer than the others.
The Walking DeadSurvivor Camp, Georgia, USA – 2010
Ben floated down into the center of the camp. Shane had a gun trained on him while the others stared in awe.
"Who are you?" Shane barked.
Ben looked at the gun, "please don't fire that. I still need to clear out the nearby dead."
"What are you doing here?" Dale asked to break the tension.
Ben scanned the crowd until he found the man he was looking for. He didn't remember the name of Carol's husband, but he knew the man needed to die.
"I have a message," Ben said turning back to face Lori and Shane. "Rick Grimes is alive and will be here soon. I've spoken with him to explain the situation. Be true to yourselves, do not hide your deeds, and speak from the heart. He knows you thought he was dead, he knows you both mourned him."
Lori and Shane started back at him.
"There are two other messages," Ben turned his attention to Carol. "You are stronger than you think. You simply need to be freed from your bindings."
Carol looked from her husband to Ben, then back again. The poor excuse for a man started to say something. Ben moved faster than their eyes could track. He grabbed the guy, rocketed into the sky. The process of leaving atmosphere turned the man into a husk before it flaked away.
This served a few different purposes. One, he wanted his first kill to be something that he had to face rather something he could distance himself from. Two, he wanted to know if he could break atmosphere. Three, it took care of the clean-up on its own. Ben stopped once he reached space. He didn't feel uncomfortable in the least. Even breathing was fine. The only issue was that his clothes had burned away along with the corpse.
Ben sped back to the ground with a quite detour to a clothing store to replace his outfit. The entire process took about two minutes. It was just enough time for some chaos to settle in on the survivors.
"My third message," Ben said as he landed. "This place is not good to stay. There is a farm along the road that is a better option. Greene's farm is owned by Hershel Greene. I have told him to expect visitors soon. They are good people and it is safer than here or the city."
Shane racked his shotgun before aiming at him again, "what did you do to him?"
"I killed him," Ben answered simply. "The dead are more human than he was."
Carol stared at him in shock.
"I do not know when I will return," Ben said. "The world is a big place and there are others out there that need help."
Ben vanished. He made a few quick stops at the Retirement Home, the CDC, and the farm to let them know that he would be leaving. There was something he was forgetting but couldn't figure out what it was. Even after killing the bastards that were on his list.
He'd figure it out eventually.