He was watching her. He was always watching her, he was always making sure she was safe. It was just the way it was. No one could explain it, no one really understood it but they accepted it. The piercing blue eyes would always seek her out, they would always stay on her until they were met then flicker away, darting around the room. She would smile at him and get back to her chores, and he would take his position on the stairs and watch her some more, listening to the conversation going on around him but not paying attention. That's just the way it was.
On this particular day though, Daryl was stationed in the guard tower, his eyes scanning the forest and surrounding area. He was sure he'd spotted something glinting in the sunlight, like a gun barrel poking through the grass. He'd tore his eyes off Carol, who was playing with Judith in the courtyard, the moment he'd glimpsed the reflection out the side of his eye. His crossbow was armed and ready, his foot tapping impatiently. He needed to get down there and investigate but didn't dare leave his post, his instincts keeping him in place. He was sure if he left that's when the person would strike, if there even was a person out there. His eyes might have deceived him but the sense of dread that had washed over him and settled in the pit of his stomach
Footsteps clunked up the stairs of the tower and Glenn finally arrived at the top, his rifle casually swung over his shoulder and a mug of instant coffee in his hand. He held it out to Daryl.
"Thought you could use something, like a caffiene boost." Glenn smiled, unaware of the thoughts pulsing through the man before him. Daryl shot him a look, it wasn't his usual cold glare but something that registered the kindness in the simple act and appreciated it. His eyes darted back to the fence, grip tightening on his crossbow.
"Keep watch for a minute. I need to check somethin' out." Daryl ordered, his voice a deep growl.
"But Maggie's waiting for me...We don't get much time together now a days." Glenn moaned but shut up when he caught the glare off Daryl.
"I wasn't askin', I was tellin'" Daryl snarled, pushing past Glenn and taking the stairs two at a time. When he reached the courtyard he pointed at Carol, "Get inside now!"
Carol didn't need to be told twice and did as she was told quickly, scooping up Judith and disappearing. Carl was standing at the gate, unsure whether to open it and let Daryl into a field of walkers' or keep it closed. Fortunately Daryl made up his mind for him.
"Open the gates, god dammit!" Carl obeyed, he always did when Daryl was riled, better to just go with it. It was like a tidal wave of rage, if you didn't do what it wanted or got out the way in time, it would just sweep you away. Daryl raced into the yard, ignoring the gaggle of walkers that shuffled towards him. Ever since the Governor had knocked down the gates the yard had been crawling with walkers. Daryl was fit and in good health but he realized he'd made a mistake when he'd ran into a field full of things desperate for human flesh. He kept his speed up and was soon out the gates. The walkers still ambled after him but he'd have some time before they caught up with him. He pushed forward to the spot that he'd glimpsed the light.
He skidded to a halt, panting slightly, as a figure popped up, took one look at Daryl and sprinted towards him, the assault rifle forgotten in the grass. Daryl recognised the face but had trouble putting a name to it.
The figure crashed into him, arms wrapping around his waist and tackled him to the ground. Daryl had let his guard down and now look where it had got him. In the mud with a stranger straddling him. Still, he never was one to go down without a fight. The face clicked with a name just as the assailant's fist smashed down towards Daryl's face.
Caesar Martinez. The Governor's right hand man.
Daryl moved his head as the fist smashed into the mud. Martinez yelled in pain as the bones in his fingers cracked. Daryl bucked his hips, throwing the man off him and rolled over, his fingers searching for his crossbow. Finding nothing, Daryl scrambled to his feet and threw a punch at Martinez, who had just managed to stagger to his feet. It connected with his nose, giving a satisfying crack. As Martinez staggered backwards, Daryl gripped his shoulder and smashed his fist into his stomach. Martinez doubled over, groaning in pain. Daryl took advantage of the position and his knee crashed into Martinez's face, throwing the smaller man backwards and into the dirt. Daryl's eyes landed on his crossbow and he lunged for it. Martinez grabbed his leg and twisted the ankle. Daryl's knee buckled under the strain and he landed in the mud. He kicked his foot free, hitting Martinez in the jaw. He crawled forward, his fingers wrapping around the sling of his crossbow.
He pulled it towards him and scrambled to his feet, aiming the crossbow at Martinez, ready to fire. Martinez kicked upwards, hittingt he bow and wrenching it from Daryl's grasp. Daryl lunged forward, grabbed Martinez by his shirt and dragged him to his feet. He pinned him to the fence, holding him in the air, his forearm pressing down on Martinez's windpipe, choking him. He threw a few punches, hitting Martinez in the face and head before gritting his teeth and pressing down even harder on Martinez's throat, allowing no air through at all.
"Where is the Governor? I'll kill the fucker!" Daryl snarled, anger the strongest component in his voice. He wasn't going to give up on his search for the Governor until he'd avenged Merle. Merle may have been many things and Daryl may have not got on with him a lot but he wasn't going to let his death slip by unnoticed and meaning nothing.
"Not...if he...kills you...first!" Martinez choked out, gripping Daryl's arms and throwing himself off the fence and towards the river, dragging Daryl with him. They landed in the river with a huge splash. Daryl went under, all noises around him fading out before breaking the surface and gulping in air. The cold water was a shock to his skin but it wasn't unpleasant, just different. He looked around, searching for Martinez but it seemed he'd disappeared. Just then a shot rang out and the bullet splashed into the water inches away from Daryl's face. A knife followed but this time he wasn't so lucky. The blade slashed through his left eyebrow and cheek, missing his eye by millimetres. Pain shot through him as blood ran into his eye. He dived under and swam down, holding his breath. There was another huge splash and Daryl saw legs kicking to the otherside. Martinez had jumped in which could only really mean one thing.
Walkers had arrived.
Daryl pushed himself to the surface and saw Martinez disappearing into the woods, limping heavily with blood streaming down his face. Daryl felt satisfied with the damage he had caused to the man but was disappointed that Martinez had still managed to escape. Next time Daryl saw that man, he would make it the last time he ever saw him, that was a promise that Daryl intended to keep. He glanced at the bank closest to the fence. Walkers were congregating towards the sound of the gunshot, ambling out the yard and from the nearby forest. Daryl swam to the bank, making as little noise as possible which is hard when you're in a river and somehow managed to pull himself out the river, wiping blood from his face and away from his eye. He spotted his crossbow a couple of metres from where he lay in the grass and slowly shuffled forward.
A walker must have saw spotted the wet, bloody figure crawling through the grass because it snarled and lunged for him. Unfortunately for Daryl it landed on him and he only just managed to catch it by the throat before his own throat was chewed open. He struggled to hold it up with one arm while trying to free his knife from his belt, with blood trickling into his eye. The walker's snarls and moans of pleasure were attracting the others and hunger moans filled the air. Daryl finally freed his knife and stabbed it down in the back of the walker's skull. He pushed the corpse off himself and scrambled to his feet, scooping his crossbow up as he did so. He took a fighters stance, the crossbow still armed in one hand, knife in the other. He took in the walkers' ambling towards him and realized he'd bitten off more than he could chew. The odds of him winning this fight were little to none. Daryl glanced at the guard tower and hoped that Glenn was still there, keeping watch or at least trying to signal for help. When no one came Daryl knew he had no choice. He shot one walker in the eye and ran in the opposite direction, hoping the corpse would cause some sort of distraction.
Daryl never thought he'd run away from a fight, he never had before in his life so why did he start now? It wasn't like he would even care if he died but something held him back. He wasn't living for himself anymore, he was living for the group. They were his family and he was part of theirs. The lone wolf had joined a pack. Merle had often called him a lone wolf, except for the few times Merle was actually there. Daryl stopped for breath, panting heavily. The way back to the gate was blocked with walkers munching on the corpses that Daryl had left behind. He could go the long way around the prison but the front was overrun by walkers so that way was useless too. Daryl dragged his hand across his face, smearing blood over his face. He looked at the fence, trying to formulate a plan. He couldn't get around it, he couldn't go over it but maybe he could go over it.
He could climb the fence! He glanced at the barbs atop the chain link fence and frowned slightly. They were sharp but he had climbed worse. He tentatively grabbed the fence, pulling himself up by the links, his boots too big to fit in the links. His fingers hurt and he thought he was going to fall off but somehow he made it to the top. He paused when he got close up to the barbs. They were razor sharp and didn't make you want to climb over them.
"Stop being a pussy! I ain't no pussy!" He growled to himself, pysching himself up. He threw one leg over the barb, keeping it light as air and sat atop the barbs. They cut into his thighs and hands, drawing blood. He winced as they tore at his skin. He scrambled down the otherside of the fence and into the dog run. He sprinted until he got to the broken gate before racing up the yard, wiping blood out his eye as he ran. Carl got the gate open as he drew near and Daryl sailed right through before crashing into the concrete ground, his legs giving way to pain and pure exhaustion. He lay there for a moment before sitting up to find Carl watching him.
"What was out there?" Carl asked, a spark of curiosity in his lifeless eye. The innocence that had once belonged there was long gone and had now given way to pure hatred and anger. Carl was usually always simmering away now, rarely talking, just shooting daggers, especially at the Woodbury residents or Rick.
"Martinez. We need to prepare this place for an attack."
Herschel finished stitching Daryl's eyebrow and cheek. It was a deep cut but it would heal well. Daryl also had lots of little cuts on his legs and hands but he refused to let Herschel treat them. He claimed it was unnecessary. Rick was pacing back and forth, his eyes trained on Daryl, turning the story over in his head.
"Why was he here? That's what I don't get." Glenn finally said, breaking the silence. The group were in the common area, the orginal prison group. Tyreese and Sasha were with them.
"He was scoutin'. He was tryin' to get information on the mechanics of the place, like who's on guard at what time, who opens the gates, who runs things. He was collectin' stuff for the Governor, at least that's what I'd do if it were me." Daryl shrugged, leaning against the stairs. After Herschel had stitched his face, he'd gone to his usual perch on the stairs. Carol kept shooting him worried looks. No doubt he'd get a visit later.
"So what do we do?" Tyreese asked, "We got a lotta people to look after. That ain't gonna be easy if he knows how this place is ran."
"We need t'get ready for an attack. Plain and simple. We need to fix the gates, then we dig ditches along the fences so walkers fall into them. We set up more spikes and traps in the yard, grow some plants and stuff. A sustainable food source is a good idea. Possibly dig a trench from the river into the yard, that way we got plenty fresh water. If we get stuck in this hole, we'll have food and water. Then we train the men and younger ones. Then we gon smoke the sons a bitches." Daryl shrugged.
"This ain't Woodbury. We ain't creatin' an army! I agree with you on most of what you just said but we aren't creatin' an army. We'll train them to protect themselves, but I ain't trainin' them for an army." Rick yelled. He'd been stewing for a few minutes and when he heard Daryl's plan, lost his cool. Daryl was talking about a war, he was talking about sending people to kill others. Daryl glanced at Rick, unperturbed and stood up, flewing his arms. He stared Rick down who was glaring back at him, grey eyes fierce.
"This ain't an army."