A Brighter Future

The group are introduced to the community of Worthwood and try to adapt to the way of life there. Solomon begins to disapprove of Edward's brutal reign.

You can read the transcript here.

## **Synopsis**

On the second floor of a prestigious bank in Wichita, Edward Remar frantically wraps a bandage around his bleeding hand. Outside the bank, over twenty people step out of several armoured vehicles, Jadis Miller, Ethan Newport and Jimmy Stone among them. Jadis uses a megaphone to talk with Edward inside, stating that she "tried to offer you people an easy way out" but that the time was up for that option. Edward sighs, as he reaches for something in his pocket.

In his own lodge, William Reynes wakes up; it's the fourth day after the group made it to Worthwood. After throwing his clothes on, William finds Lloyd Waller in the kitchen, who's still being blown away by everything Worthwood has to offer. Though William has yet to be given a job, Lloyd will soon be off to school. Lloyd isn't nervous about school, though, he just wants Rebecca Dawson to wake up, and William is hoping so too. Making his way outside, William sees Jon Matthews on the front porch. Their neighbour, Barry Challis, greets them from across the yard. Jon remains unsatisfied with Worthwood, as he notes that the community is seriously undermanned, and ripe to be raided by other groups. However, he believes that it *could* work out with the right changes. William nods along, agreeing, and says that if anyone could fix this place, it'd be Kate Bloodstone.

Elsewhere in the community, Kate finishes dressing up in formal attire. She picks up a box and carries it out of the room with her, where Marcus Downes notices and teases her about her outfit. Kate warns him not to start, before she begins complaining about the amount of time it took for Worthwood's council to schedule a meeting with her. Marcus follows Kate through the house, still amused about Kate's outfit. He questions what's in the box she's carrying, and so Kate opens it. She sighs, laying eyes on a pair of high heels.

Two weeks after the demise of Kurt Klein, Elliott Rowe and Solomon Reed find themselves coming across a cabin deep in the woods. After peaking through the windows, they head inside, where they split up to search the house. Solomon discovers some spare ammunition in one of the rooms, as other goods and medicine in another room. Meanwhile, Elliott has no luck finding anything in the bathroom, and while searching the bedroom, a zombie lurches out from the closet. He yells for Solomon's help as he's backed into a corner, however, he's forced to try and kill the zombie himself. He succeeds, but this close call is too much for him, and he retreats out of the house to let Solomon finish the search.

At their campsite, Edward is seen smacking Patrick, a thief who broke into their camp, with his cane. Laying on the ground, Patrick begs to be let go, as he has people he needs to get back to. Edward has no plans on doing that, as he continues beating the man, chucking to himself. Eventually, Stanley Peck lifts Patrick up to his knees on Edward's orders. Looking at Patrick, Edward recounts how Patrick snuck into their camp and tried to steal from them. As Patrick desperately apologizes and begs to be freed, Elliott and Solomon enter the camp. After Patrick is finished with his pleading, Edward looks to the rest of his group, most of whom are looking at him in disgust, and tells them all that he cannot simply let thieves go if they want to survive. Solomon interrupts the speech to tell Edward that they should let Patrick go, pointing out that he isn't a threat anymore. Edward quickly disagrees, but Solomon persists, recalling how Edward once said that the only thing Badrick did right was *fear*, and Edward is now using that same tactic. "Get out of my sight." Edward tells Solomon, furious that he would compare him to Badrick. Solomon walks off to his tent, as Stanley drags Patrick away to tie him up.

Afterwards, Edward returns to his tent, an angered look on his face as Solomon's words roam in his mind. Nancy Warner suddenly appears in the doorway and steps in, and asks him what all *that* was. Edward states that what he did was a demonstration of what happens to thieves, and says that *if* they release Patrick, he needs to be fearful of returning. Nancy doesn't think that's enough justification, and briefly compares his actions to something Kurt would have done, which angers Edward for a moment. Nancy then asks Edward what he plans to do with Patrick, and Edward is thinking that he might let Patrick join them, which Nancy doesn't agree with. Edward shakes his head, ignoring her concerns, and so Nancy leaves.

Gerald Roland makes his way into his own personal wing in Worthwood Castle, beginning to dig into breakfast. Before long, Katelyn Smart is seen exiting a chamber nearby, and tailing behind her is Fletcher Roland, dressed in a wrinkly shirt and boxers. Gerald notices, and makes them aware of his presence. Katelyn greets Gerald, before she hurries along, while Fletcher stays behind. When Katelyn is out of sight, Gerald turns to his son, expressing disapproval about Fletcher bringing guests into the castle for "indecent fantasies." Fletcher brushes off his father's words and tries to switch the topic, but Gerald insists that Fletcher needs to act more professional. Again, Fletcher is couldn't care less about what Gerald has to say. The conversation is halted when Allan White, the Chief Supply Runner, comes storming inside, enraged that Gerald has allowed an entire group of people into the community while he was absent. Gerald understands Allan's concerns, but assures him that things will work out. With his nerves somewhat calmed, Allan asks if there were any concerns from the interviews each member of William's group went through. Though Gerald admits it will be difficult to find a place for a few of them, everyone else is fine. Before leaving, Gerald informs Allan that he thinks a couple of the new people will be a good fit for supply runners, so he'll set up an appointment, which Allan is happy to hear.

Later that day, Kate is sitting in the castle's reception room. Behind the front desk, Heather Solis is tending to a mountain of paperwork. To pass time, Kate asks about what Heather does, and she tells Kate that she's a personal assistant for Gerald, and keeps track of all the departments. A few minutes later, Heather takes Kate to meet the council of Worthwood.

One short walk later, Kate finds herself in a luxurious chamber, where all five members of Worthwood's council are sitting around a table. Gerald sits at the middle, while Naomi Stafford and her husband Chester Stafford sit to his left. On the right, Richard Neuble and Justin Bennett sit quietly. Things quickly get off to an unpleasant start when Kate introduces herself, but is cut off by Justin numerous times. Chester attempts to personally welcome Kate to Worthwood, but he gets quieted by his wife, who questions why Kate was so eager to meet with them. Kate explains how there are some differences to work through. However, Richard speaks up, stating that there was nothing to discuss, as they've been perfectly fine so far. Kate politely disagrees, and says that there are some things that could be improved upon, and she's also hoping to ease some of the tension between them and her group. Naomi interrupts Kate before she can finish, appalled at the fact that Kate is coming in here and telling them how to do their jobs. After listening to the debate for a while, Gerald finally chimes in, and asks Kate what exactly the issues are that she wants to discuss. Kate explains that their is a lack of security, but Gerald and the rest of the council believe that they have enough security already. He suggests that Kate write down all of her complaints with the community, and that the council would get back to her within a few weeks. Kate keeps her cool, but is outraged that it would take "a few weeks" to get back to her. Naomi, tired of Kate's complaining, asks if the meeting is over. Leaning forward in his seat, Gerald tells Kate that they've done a generous thing taking in her group, and all he asks for is that she put some trust into the council. He repeats his suggestion of Kate writing a list of her complaints, and they'll get back to her in a couple of weeks. This time, Kate can't keep her outrage. As Kate yells at Gerald about it, Justin remarks about how this is looking like a public freakout video. Kate can't deal with the council any longer, and she goes to leave, yelling at Gerald that he should come to her when he's ready to talk. As Kate is leaving, she nearly trips on a carpet because of her heels, bringing about some stifled laugher from the council. She curses in anger, kicking off the shoes and storming out. Justin turns to Gerald, asking if he would really go and speak to Kate, but Gerald admits he probably won't.

Kate returns to her lodge fuming. She begins to tell Marcus about what she thinks about the council, and says that she regrets having snapped at them. Even with everything that just happened, Kate has no intentions of giving up yet, and is confident she'll eventually get the council to work with her.

Late in the evening, Edward and most of his group are enjoying dinner. Evelyn Nelson saunters up to Edward, informing him that Patrick's injuries have been treated, but that it'd be wise not to hit him any more. Across the camp, Solomon is eating his dinner next to Carson Burke. He abruptly asks Carson if he could have another plate of food, and without question, Carson goes to do that.

After dinner, Solomon quietly makes his way over to where Patrick is being held captive. Once there, Solomon hands him the extra plate of food, which Patrick is extremely grateful for. The two share names, and Solomon apologizes for what Edward did to him, and hopes that Edward will let him go. Before long, Patrick is finished his food, and Solomon says goodbye, promising that he'd make sure Patrick would be okay.

Late that night, Solomon is laying in his tent, unable to fall asleep. He's unable to shake the thought of Edward becoming more and more like Badrick. Eventually, Solomon stands up, throws on his shirt and leaves the tent.

Two days prior to Kate's meeting with the council, Randall Forster is being interviewed by Gerald in Worthwood Castle. Before the interview can officially begin, Randall digs into some cupcakes placed on the table in front of him, and Gerald hands him a napkin to clean up. Once Randall is finished with the food, Gerald starts by asking Randall to elaborate on his career as a police officer, something he'd mentioned to Gerald earlier on. Randall says that he'd wanted to be a rapper for the longest time, but in reality that would never work out, and so when his family moved from London to the US, he'd decided on becoming a police officer. Gerald continues with his questioning, asking him about his experiences on the road. Randall responds by admitting that he'd always been a bit of a jokester in his group, but that he was always looking out for his friends, and wanted to do the same thing here - to protect the community.

In the present day, Randall finds himself entering a large lodge that was used as the police department. He is greeted by Paul Baird, the Chief of Police. Paul begins to give Randall a tour of the place, explaining that he, like Randall, worked in law enforcement pre-apocalypse. Entering the main room, Kevin Norton and Cody Wakefield are seen playing pool, however they end their game when they notice Randall and Paul. The two of them approach Randall, both giving an aggressive handshake. While questioning what it is the police force does here, he asks about perimeter checks, which Kevin and Cody have a chuckle about. Paul explains to Randall that their job deals with internal affairs within the community. Randall is a bit confused, but before he can ask any questions, Paul tells him to stop, and they'd discuss more about it in his office. The Chief proceeds to call over Trent Colins, a young intern. Paul asks the boy to fetch some cookies and put them in his office. As Trent runs off, Paul turns to Cody, ordering him to go over to Worthwood Castle and investigate a complaint from Naomi Stafford about heels being dug into an expensive carpet. Cody follows the order and heads out.

Randall is taken into Paul's office, and is immediately bewildered by all of the old movie posters and movie memorabilia covering the room. The two men take their seats, but before they can begin, Trent bursts into the room, cookies in hand. He sets them down, and is sent away by Paul. As Paul chews on a cookie, Randall tells him that it doesn't seem like there's any real policing happening, and he's confused by it. Paul asks him what exactly there is to police, and Randall tells him that a dangerous group could break in here any day, and they aren't ready for it. Paul understands where Randall is coming from, but his response is to simply point out that nobody has gotten through their walls yet. "Has anyone ever *tried*?" Randall questions, which Paul awkwardly tells him no. With that, Randall asks Paul that he and the rest of the police force needs to double down and ensure safety of the community. However, Paul simply tells Randall that he needs to relax, and to not worry about things like that. He gets up and pats Randall on the shoulder, officially welcoming him to the force, before he exits the room.

Early in the morning, Stanley makes his way over to where Patrick is - only to have his jaw drop when he sees the prisoner missing.

Stanley reports this to Edward immediately, and he is furious about it. Edward yells out, waking up the whole camp. As everyone steps out of their tent in a groggy state, Edward begins ranting to them about Patrick being missing. Immediately, Edward suspects Solomon, and he's proven right when Solomon admits he did it. Edward scolds him, calling out Solomon as being weak-willed for releasing a man who tried stealing from them. Realizing that Patrick could very well be coming back here with a large group of people, he orders everyone to begin packing up, as they'd have to move camps. Edward then calls over Elliott and asks to see his map.

Edward and Elliott head into one of the tents, where Edward finds a good looking spot on the map, but says that he'll need to scout it first, and he wants Elliott to come along. Elliott isn't sure he'll be very useful, but Edward tells him that he needs the practice. Suddenly, Nancy enters the tent, angry with Edward for his tantrum back there with Solomon. Edward remains firm that what Solomon did was stupid, and starts to becoming irritated with Nancy questioning his decisions. Out of nowhere, a voice belonging to Damerae Badrick appears in Edward's mind, mocking him for caving in under pressure. Badrick laughs, taunting Edward for not being made for this. Edward looks around the room frantically, telling Badrick to shut up, while Nancy and Elliott look on, startled. Nancy frowns, telling Edward that he doesn't need to do everything on his own, as it's clearly making him paranoid. "That's how I keep us safe." Edward says. "That's how I keep us alive."

Genevieve Brohem stops outside of William's lodge and knocks on the door. When he answers, Genna says that she's here to see how his group is setting into the community. William tells her that it'll take some getting used to. He takes the chance to apologize to her for how he acted, and he's grateful that they still gave him the opportunity to come here. As Genna is leaving, Kate makes her way up the stone path, greeting Genna before she enters William's lodge to speak with him.

Inside, Kate tells William and Jon about her rather unpleasant meeting with the council, but that she wasn't giving up. As Kate finishes, Jon asks if she really wants to waste her energy putting up with the snobby members of the council when they can just take the place over. He proposes that they give it one week, and if the council continues to ignore their concerns, then they take the place over... as peacefully as possible. But that's not something he wants. When Jon mentions that he and William are still yet to be given jobs, Kate asks him if he's told Gerald about what he did before, and Jon quickly says that he has, and hopes the council fear him. Trying to remain optimistic, Kate hopes that everyone else has had a better start here than they have.

Edward departs from camp with Elliott and Kyori Hyoteki, and the three of them walk through the woods. After dealing with a zombie, Kyori, who's English is improving, asks Edward what exactly they're doing out here. He does his best to tell her, but she has a difficult time understanding. Edward then takes Elliott aside, reminding the man that he greatly appreciates his loyalty and assistance. Edward stammers, reassuring Edward that he's still with him, but it's obvious that Elliott is keeping his real thoughts to himself. Edward notices this, and proceeds to tell Elliott that he's doing what's best for them, and he's not a bad guy for doing it. Elliott understands his approach, but hopes that if another 'Patrick situation' happens, it can be handled differently.

Soon, the trio come to an open field, and stand in the tree line to observe it. Suddenly, a silenced gunshot hits the tree next to Elliott, and he hits the ground, hiding behind a tree log while freaking out. Edward, however, remains standing, and another gunshot hits the tree beside him. Without hesitation, he then begins walking out into the open field, raising his hands and calling out to the shooter for missing them on purpose. Leona Holloway steps out from behind a tree, lowering her sniper rifle, and walks into the field, remarking how brave Edward was. She confirms that she didn't hit them on purpose, prompting Edward to signal over Elliott and Kyori. The two of them approach warily. Edward goes on to question what Leona was doing, and she tells him that she's tracking someone who stole from her, someone that sounds awfully familiar to Patrick. Edward describes to her who and what Patrick did, and then lies, claiming that they were out here tracking him. He asks about joining Leona to track Patrick, but she's hesitant to do so. Their conversation leads into Edward asking what it was Patrick stole from her, and she says it was a backpack, but doesn't elaborate on what's inside it. Leona urges Edward and his companions to leave her to track Patrick alone, but Edward insists on tagging along with her, so that he could confirm that Patrick's been dealt with and won't need to worry about him. Sighing, Leona agrees to this, and all four of them begin walking off.

In another interview, Daniel Rockwell is seen seated across from Gerald, looking rather uninterested. As Gerald explains how nice it is to meet him, Daniel points up to a dollar bill on the wall, wondering why it's there, to which Gerald says it's a symbol representing everything that he's striving for in his community. After a brief exchange in which Gerald compares Daniel's attitude to that of a teenager, Daniel asks if they use money here. Gerald says that they don't, and that they have a system where everybody is treated equal and given what they need. Daniel scoffs at the word "equal". Gerald now understands that Daniel has a problem with the social structure of the community, and his response is to tell Daniel to look outside at how happy everybody is. "I think this is all for show. The life you're trying to live cannot truly be achieved again." Daniel tells the leader.

In the present, Daniel and Lolida Windfield are standing next to a large lodge used to store the community's supplies. Allan White is in the middle of explaining everything there is to know about scavenging. He aggressively lets them know that *he* is the one in charge, and what he says goes. He expects the both of them to be like his best scavenger, Jordan Gatlon. After his long explanation, Sebastian Dominguez and Tyson Lysaght are seen approaching, briefly stopping to meet Daniel and Lolida and to give them some advice about being careful around Allan before he's had his morning coffee. The two men then head out for their own supply run. Suddenly, as Allan is leaving, another man is seen swaggering over to them - the previously mentioned Jordan Gatlon. Jordan quickly begins to mock Daniel and Lolida for their appearance. An annoyed Daniel steps forward to confront him, which Jordan finds greatly disrespectful. He tells Daniel that he is a VIP, something Daniel would never be. Already frustrated, Daniel says that he won't be going on any supply runs with Jordan, as he takes another step forward. Jordan fumbles back, intimidated by the man, and warns Daniel to stay back. After Daniel gives him a shove, Jordan pulls out what he thinks is pepper spray, but quickly realizes that it's a flash. Daniel scoffs, grinning, before punching Jordan. Lolida rushes in to stop Daniel from attacking him any further. Shielding his face, Jordan screams out that he's being assaulted, before he gets to his feet, telling Daniel that his father used to be on the council, and he would be punished for this. As Jordan darts away, and Daniel calms down, Lolida remarks, "At least there's coffee here, right?"

Edward, Elliott, Kyori and their newly found companion, Leona, are silently walking through the woods, though Edward is constantly breaking the quiet with questions to Leona about her tracking skills. She responds to them all, explaining to Edward that they were closing in on somebody--a human. When Leona asks Edward why he even wants to see Patrick dealt with, he says that it's to weed out a potential threat to his group. People need to know that they can't cross him and walk away free. Taking a look at Edward and Elliott, she mocks them about not looking like they can handle themselves - except for Kyori. Edward then begins a rant, explaining to Leona that she can say all she wants, but she'd be underestimating him. He tells her about his goal to make something of himself in the world, and how nobody in his way could stop him. "You're ambitious." is all Leona has to say, before they go back to silence.

Eventually, Leona leads the group to an old stony structure in the middle of the woods. She confirms that the foot prints she's been tracking lead to here, and they're fresh. Leona begins to go around the back of the building, instructing the other three to to go in through the front. As they sneak up to the building, Edward hands Elliott a gun, telling him to go in first. Elliott is nervous, as he's never used a gun before, but Edward pressures him into hurrying up. Right as Elliott enters, Patrick leaps out from the side, knocking the gun away and holding a knife to Elliott's throat. Edward demands that he let Elliott go, but a desperate Patrick refuses, knowing that he'll be killed if he does as instructed. Before Patrick can slice open Elliott's throat, Leona sneaks up behind him, sinking her own knife into the back of Patrick's throat. Patrick splutters up blood, before collapsing and dying. Elliott stumbles free from Patrick's grasp, freaking about almost being killed, but Edward and Leona calm him down. Edward thanks Leona, reaching out a hand. After wiping Patrick's blood off her knife, Leona shakes his hand.

Late in the day, while resting at home, Kate receives a knock at the door. When she goes to open it, Heather, Gerald's assistant, is standing there with a letter from the council. After Kate takes it, Heather swiftly walks off. Kate opens the letter, and sees that it's a formal apology from the council, and they want to have another meeting. Kate, smirking, scrunches up the paper and tosses it into the trash can.

William enters Gerald's office in Worthwood Council after being called in by the man. Gerald quickly gets to the point of why he called William here: he wants William to be a teacher in Worthwood. William worries that it might not be the best considering he's been on the road for so long, but Gerald knows that William will make a good teacher. Thinking about it some more, William agrees to it.

After, William makes his way over to the community's infirmary, where he meets with Joslyn Larkin, a doctor. She takes Will over to where Rebecca is, and says that she hasn't changed, and there's no telling when she'll wake up. William takes Rebecca's hand, thanking the doctor for her hard work. As Doctor Larkin leaves, William looks up to the ceiling, and lets out a sigh.

## **Cast**

#### **Starring**

* William Reynes
* Lloyd Waller
* Jon Matthews
* Kate Bloodstone
* Marcus Downes
* Randall Forster
* Gerald Roland
* Daniel Rockwell
* Rebecca Dawson
* Edward Remar
* Solomon Reed

#### **Also Starring**

* Lolida Windfield
* Genevieve Brohem
* Allan White
* Naomi Stafford
* Justin Bennett
* Elliott Rowe
* Nancy Warner
* Leona Holloway

#### **Guest Starring**

* Paul Baird
* Jordan Gatlon
* Fletcher Roland
* Chester Stafford
* Richard Neuble
* Heather Solis
* Bonnie Harrell
* Carson Burke
* Stanley Peck
* Kyori Hyoteki
* Jadis Miller
* Jimmy Stone
* Ethan Newport

#### **Co-Starring**

* Sebastian Dominguez
* Tyson Lysaght
* Kevin Norton
* Cody Wakefield
* Barry Challis
* Katelyn Smart
* Trent Colins
* Joslyn Larkin
* Waita Mathani
* Seth Haynes
* Evelyn Nelson
* Patrick
* Damerae Badrick *(Hallucination, Voice Only)*