Terminus

"Sanctuary for all. Community for all. Those who arrive survive."

- Terminus' broadcast

"You're the butcher or you're the cattle."

- Terminus' motto

Terminus is a location in Season 4 and Season 5 of AMC's The Walking Dead. The group that occupied it, led by Gareth, served as the secondary antagonists of the second half of Season 4 and the primary antagonists of the first half of Season 5.

Foundation & Occupation
"The signs... they were real. It was a sanctuary. People came and took this place. And they raped. And they killed. And they laughed! Over weeks... but we got out. And we fought and we got it back and we heard the message! You're the butcher... or you're the cattle."

- Mary regarding the Terminus' occupation

The occupation of Terminus was a period that occurred long before Rick and his group came to Terminus. It is revealed that after Mary and the other original residents put up the signs directing people to Terminus in hopes of creating a sanctuary, a group of bandits saw the signs, came and took over the town. For unspecified reasons, they then herded the people into train cars and kept them there as prisoners before killing some of them, also raping the women. However, after weeks of occupation, the people of Terminus managed to escape and overpower their captors, retaking the facility. They managed to capture the bandit leader and imprisoned him permanently in a train car as revenge, leading him to go insane and mutter "We're the same" over and over (referencing how the Terminants and the bandits are now the same kind of monster). The occupation convinced the Terminants that there was no good left in the world and by trying to be good they were making themselves easy targets. The Terminants adopted a new ideology built on the idea of taking advantage of trusting people so that they themselves can survive. This is evident in their motto: "You're the butcher or you're the cattle." After rebuilding their community, the signs were kept up and the Terminants would ask new arrivals if they were willing to accept cannibalism as their way of survival in the community. Those who rejected the notion were then captured, killed, and eaten.

After their victory over the bandits and the end of the occupation the Terminants built a shrine to those who had been killed during the occupation in a building. It was lit with candles and had the victims' names and lifespans written on the floor along with personal effects. On the wall is written: "Never Again. Never Trust. We First, Always." This shows how Terminus devolved from a sanctuary to a place that thinks of itself first.

Pre-Prison Attack
While on a supply run, Daryl Dixon, Michonne, Bob Stookey, and Tyreese Williams hear a scrambled broadcast mentioning Terminus. It is soon interrupted by Daryl dodging a walker in the middle of the road, which eventually leads to them fighting off a large herd of walkers.

Post-Prison
"Sanctuary for all. Community for all. Those who arrive survive."

- The phrase written on the sign that Tyreese, Carol Peletier, and Lizzie and Mika Samuels encounter while on the tracks

Michonne, Rick Grimes, his son Carl, Maggie Greene, Bob, Sasha Williams, Glenn Rhee and the Claimers discover a similar sign attached to a railway freight carriage and a map.

The maps show railway lines through different counties that lead to Terminus. Each railroad route intermittently has signs along it leading the way to Terminus. Based on the railroad map marking out its location, its location seems to be Macon, Georgia, in Bibb County. (See Gallery)

Terminus appears physically for the first time in the episode "Us", as Abraham Ford, Bob, Eugene Porter, Glenn, Tara Chambler, Rosita Espinosa, Maggie, and Sasha finally reach it, where they are greeted by Mary, one of the residents who offers them a bite to eat and welcomes them to Terminus.

It appears to be an abandoned railroad yard termination complex for maintenance of trains.

The leaders of Terminus appear to be Mary and Gareth, Mary's son. They indicate the sanctuary has been in existing since the beginning of the apocalypse. Members of this community are called "Terminants".

Terminus is hinted to be the home of a cannibalistic cult. It is seen in the episode that Mary is always cooking an unknown meat product at all her appearances. As the group is running from gunfire, human remains could be spotted in a courtyard for a brief period, muffled cries for help can be heard from nearby railway containers, which raises even more questions, and finally the desire to keep humans captive may mean that they are keeping them as a food supply for basic survival. It is also referenced in the beginning of the episode "A" when Rick teaches Carl how to catch a rabbit by directing it into a trap to get food, his lesson is similar to the whole chase sequences when the group is being directed by gunfire to possibly trap them and obtain a proper food source.

During the gunfire chase, Rick, Daryl, Carl, and Michonne run into a memorial room full of candles, with names ages and possibly where they were from written on the floor with personal effects.

Once they reach an open courtyard, the group is surrounded, and Gareth instructs each of them individually to walk over to a train car and enter. Inside they meet Glenn, Maggie, Sasha, Bob, Tara, Eugene, Abraham, and Rosita already inside. Rick then states that they are "screwing with the wrong people".

Season 5
It is shown in a flashback that, after the original residents put the signs up leading to Terminus, a group of bandits came and attacked Terminus, imprisoning some in the train carts - raping some of the women - and killing others, leading Terminus to become a distraught place, where they do not trust any who arrive.

It is later confirmed that Terminus is a cannibalistic group, where they kill then carve up any new arrivals to Terminus that refuse to join them or prove to be a threat. Rick and the group are taken to the slaughter house, ready to be bled out. The compound is attacked by Carol in an attempt to free her friends after witnessing them being dragged out of a train car to be slaughtered. She explodes a large tank of flammable gas and allows a large herd of walkers to enter. The walkers overrun Terminus and many of the residents are killed. The group escapes, leaving Terminus behind in flames. Unbeknownst to them, Gareth and several other Terminants manage to survive, and begin tracking down Rick's group.

Residents

 * Gareth - the leader of Terminus; brother of Alex; son of Mary
 * Mary - mother of Gareth and Alex
 * Alex - brother of Gareth; son of Mary
 * Albert
 * Mike
 * Greg
 * Theresa
 * Martin
 * Cynthia
 * Chuck
 * Kaylee
 * Terminus Butcher
 * Terminus Butcher
 * Broadcasting Woman
 * Terminus Guard
 * Terminus Resident
 * Terminus Resident
 * Several unnamed residents

Captives

 * Crazed Man - man who took over Terminus and held the residents captive
 * Sam
 * Glenn Rhee
 * Maggie Greene
 * Sasha Williams
 * Bob Stookey
 * Tara Chambler
 * Abraham Ford
 * Eugene Porter
 * Rosita Espinosa
 * Rick Grimes
 * Daryl Dixon
 * Carl Grimes
 * Michonne
 * At least 3 unnamed captives

Deaths

 * Alex - accidentally shot by a Terminus resident
 * Sam - throat slit by one of the butchers
 * Crazed Man - bitten by a walker
 * Mary - shot in the leg by Carol and left for walkers
 * Terminus Butcher - Killed by Rick
 * Terminus Butcher 2 - Killed by Rick
 * Numerous Terminus residents
 * Numerous captives

Season 4

 * "Us"
 * "A"

Season 5

 * "No Sanctuary"

Trivia

 * "Terminus", translates to "the end of the line", is the original name of Atlanta. In the 1830's it was the name of a settlement at the end of the Western and Atlantic Railroad line.
 * "Terminus" is the Roman God who protected boundary markings. "Terminus" is also Latin for "Border."
 * The Terminus scenes are not far from where the series pilot was filmed in Atlanta. The skyline and topography around the building have been digitally altered to remove recognizable landmarks and the city skyline behind it in some angles.
 * The frequency from which Terminus' radio message was broadcasted in "Isolation" is 97.1 FM, in reality this station belongs to the station WSRV, based in Gainesville, Georgia.
 * There is a deleted scene from "A" in which Rick and Michonne see zombies attached to chains and remains on the floor.
 * Rick, Daryl, Carl, and Michonne enter Terminus through the "map room".
 * Ultimately all of Rick's group (at the time) ended up at Terminus except for Tyreese, Judith, and Beth.
 * The church with the candles is where the community honors fallen Terminants, with the names and belongings of members of their community who have died. The following is painted on the walls: "first always" "never again" "never trust" "we first always".
 * Terminus is the TV series adaptation of The Hunters from the comic series.