Prologue
The rain pelted my hot skin like tiny needles, my chest constricting with every leap I took, trees passing by in short bursts as my heart pounded at what seemed like a hundred beats per second. Anxiety began to slither up my spine as soon as I picked up the sounds of wheels hitting dirt, voices of taunt echoing in the woods as gunfire bursted into the night air. I wasn't going as nearly as fast as I'd like, but the doe-brown eyes that tried to keep up with my quick steps was forcing me to slow down. I wanted to scream, I wanted to somehow gain all the strength I could muster and carry the weight that was dragging me down on my shoulders because we had to get away. My brain was rationalizing what I needed to do next, where I needed to go, how I needed to fight in case we could not escape - a troubling thought that burned in the back of my mind.
"Em... Em!" The little voice wheezed behind me, bringing me from my thoughts as my steps faltered. "You're going to fast..." She cracked into a soft sob, her hands shaking in fright and exhaustion. I stopped immediately and turned, looking down to rosy cheeks and tear drops that camouflaged against the rain. Behind my shoulder, headlights and footsteps were coming in close as I moved us farther away from their trail, heading into the long grass for coverage. Knelling into the dirt, I grabbed the water canister from my side and unlocked the lid, putting the opening to the tiny parched lips in front of me, allowing her to take the last drops. "Are they going away?"
"I'm not sure." I whispered, taking in a deep breath of fresh air as the coolness of the rain soaked into my heated skin. I carefully raised my head above the long grass, watching closely as the headlights shined brightly out into the forest. The mist in the air was thick, the number of men with guns unknown due to the lack of visibility - but they had lost us, the darkness of the night had become our savior. I contemplated my next move, watching as the truck slowed to a stop, new voices joining the others that searched the perimeters, their barrels pointed and their fingers ghosting the triggers. The mist cleared enough to reveal that the truck was located near the exit of the forest we needed to go, any other way we would run into other outposts who would be on the hunt for us. With the new visibility I was able to count eight men, my mind buzzing with my next move.
I knew it was now or never - I had the upper hand with stealth.
"Can we go?" The little voice asked, tugging on my ripped shirt. I knelt back to her eye level, gripping the Glock 42 that rested comfortably on my thigh holster as I removed the safety.
"Do you remember how to use this?" I whispered as her eyes widened, as she began shaking her head from side to side. "Do you remember?" I emphasized, taking her hand with my own and pressing it around the grip of the gun as hot tears rolled down her face. She let out a soft whimper, her chin dipping as she nodded her head. "I won't be gone for long. Stay low in the grass and if anything, a human or a biter, gets near you - you shoot." Her eyes adverted mine, her gaze locking on the mud beneath us. I gripped her small chin gently in between my pointer finger and thumb, forcing her eyes to me. "Anything that is not me - you don't hesitate. Do you understand?"
She nodded, the look she gave me causing my chest to constrict with a sadness that I had felt before. She was too young, too innocent for this world. My heart ached for the missed childhood years she would never experience, her life now on a constant battle to survive in a world that only wanted to eat her whole. I leaned forward to kiss her forehead, pushing her shoulders down to hide her deeper in the grass. Slowly, I stood in a crouch and lifted my recurve bow that had been resting between my chest and shoulder blades, bringing an arrow fourth as I made my way out of our hiding place, staying within the mist as a cover. Quietly, I stalked the truck as men circled back and spoke into their radios that were clutched on their shoulder.
"We are searching the area now, Sir. We are confident they are here." The low voice said, my eyes narrowing at the thin man and his balding head as he scratched at the scruff that adorned his neck. I felt my fingers grip my bow tightly, the target on his back growing bigger and bigger as I found a suitable place behind an old pine tree, hidden by the cover of darkness. Two men came rounding the corner of the truck, setting their AK-47's onto the hood as they looked at the map that sprawled over the shiny paint of the vehicle. "They couldn't have gotten far, we had them by their toes only minutes ago. I'm sure she and the kid are hiding in the forest."
"The forest?" The man on his side said, glancing sideways to the darkness that covered me. "She's got her bow and arrows."
"And a Glock." The other one mentioned.
"She doesn't have shit on us," The thin man said, glaring at the other two. "Lucille has already taken care of the ones who were in charge of the armory." He gave a devilish smirk, my stomach twisting in painful knots as I gripped my bow tighter, my fingers itching to notch my arrow. "She knows the safest way out is up that hill. And we are blockin' her exit. She'll be here soon. If she isn't already..."
Snap...
My body turned instantly, my eyes glaring at the solider who held his gun to his chest - eyes wide with surprise that he had stumbled upon me. He began to lift the AK, his mouth opening to yell a warning, but I was faster. I notched my arrow, drawing back my bowstring and let go. The arrow whistled in the night, lodging deeply into his throat as red began pooling down his white neck, his mouth opening but no words producing as blood poured from his lips. His body fell with a thud and I quickly pressed myself into the tree, awaiting for the others to come towards the sound. But then... Nothing. I turned to peak from behind the tree to see the two men grab their guns and head in the opposite direction, the thin man staying behind as he continued to look at the map. Turning my body, still slightly hidden by the tree, the thin man was alone - his mind distracted elsewhere as I notched another arrow onto my bow and brought back the bowstring.
I closed my eyes, taking in the deepest breath I could - In and out. In and out.
I imagined the arrow penetrating his skull before I had even let go of the string, taking in how good it will feel to see his body fall to the floor - but before I could do anything, a sound had forced me to drop my bow completely, my head turning as my skin paled at the sound. The sounds of a little voice screaming, snarls ripping through the air as gun shots rang out like boulders crashing into each other. I grabbed my bow and stood up, ignoring the yelling behind me as I dashed out from behind the tree and back towards the long grass.
"Em! Em! Help me!"
"There she is! There she is! Cut her off!" The thin man yelled behind me, a man flagging at my side and ready to tackle. I drew the arrow I had saved for the thin man, my running throwing my aim off guard as the arrow penetrated his shoulder rather than his chest. This still seemed to slow him, my eyes focused on the decaying biters that clawed at the doe eyed girl who dropped the gun and ran out of the tall grass. I notched another arrow, sending it flying right into the skull of the male biter. Small arms had reached me, tugging onto my middle as I pushed her behind me to use my body as a shield, swinging my bow just as a female biter came within arms lengths, crushing her skull open as she fell to the floor.
More came out of the deeper parts of the forest and I placed my bow over my head, resting it between my shoulder and chest as I reached down in my boot for my mini bowie knife. I ran towards the decaying biters, their eyes sunken in, their arms nearly gone of skin as their fingers reached out to grab me. I brought my arm up to the first, placing it on its chest as I rammed my knife into it's skull, turning in just enough time to slit my bowie up the chin of the one coming at my right. The bodies dropped as I continued my assault, kicking one back and away as its teeth chattered in anticipation for flesh. It fell to the floor, my boot smashing down as its skull crushed into pieces, the gunk of its brains spilling into the grass.
A gun cocked behind me and I had my bow back out, my arrow notched as I turned behind seeing the thin man with his parade of soldiers at his side. His smirk was painted with his yellow teeth, his eyes coated with a malicious intent - but they were not alone.
"Put it down, darlin'." He said, his hand clutching on the small figure he held in front of him. Her eyes were round, coated with tears as she shook under the hands of a man who didn't deserve to touch her. "I said - Put. It. Down." He growled as he brought his pistol out from his pocket, shoving the barrel against the temple of the small fragile child in front of him, my arm immediately bringing the bowstring forward as I dropped it and my arrow to the floor. "The bowie, too." He said as I threw the knife down next to my other weapons. "Good girl." His head tilted as a signal for the men to come towards me, my body instinctively stepping back as they gripped my arms and moved me forward. We walked as a group to the truck, one of the men tying my hands around my back with a zip tie and walked me to the front, the headlights blinding me as he pushed me to my knees.
"You don't have to tie her up." I called out, watching as the men tied the small wrists together, clasping it tightly as she let out an uncomfortable groan.
"Oh, you've proven that to be very false." The thin man laughed as they brought my brown eyed girl down on her knees next to me.
"Are you okay?" I asked as she nodded, tears streaking down her dirt-stained face. I looked around and over my shoulder at the men with their guns, their eyes trained directly on me as I narrowed my eyes at the thin man, watching as he took a swig of tequila just before handing it in front of me.
"Want some?" He laughed as I looked away. "Ahh, you're no fun." He leaned up against the truck, watching me with amusement just before taking another swig. "If you couldn't tell, you're little field trip in the woods on the way to Grandma's house is over." He taunted. "Which is a shame, because I really... Really... Liked you. And now? You're going to be just another picture on the wall."
"Screw you!" I yelled, his smile contorting to a frown as he moved closer, his eyes blazing with a fury as he quickly raised his hand, it swinging with full force across my cheek. My eyes closed tightly as a scream began ringing next to me. Before I even had time to comprehend what was happening, grubby fingers gripped my chin and forced me to look.
"I would love to do nothing more than cut that fire-spittin' tongue right out of that pretty little mouth of yours." He snarled, gripping my cheeks tighter.
"Let go of her!" The voice next to me screamed in fright. I tried to look at her, tried to calm her - let her know I was okay.
"Look at me!" He screamed as my eyes blazed back to him. "You are truly in for it tonight. I hope you realize that." He tilted my head back, bringing himself forward as his lips grazed my ear, "I hope he kills you slowly." His whisper had trigged a reaction, my head leaning back and moving forward to connect with his, his body reeling back as the men began moving to help. "Stop, stop! I'm fine!" he growled, standing on his feet as he moved towards me like a snake. But without question, he stopped - looking over my head as more headlights appeared. He took in a deep breath and stepped away, the cut on his forehead beginning to drip with blood.
The rain had let up, the sunrise peaking ever so slightly in the corner of the forest as I heard an engine behind me cut off, a door opening and slamming behind. I looked to my left, watching as my doe-eyed girl cried tears of fear, her sobs resonating deep within my chest as I heard something drop to the floor. My body jumped at the sound, listening as a prolonged scraping dragged across the floor, it cutting in the night air life a knife. I didn't have to open my eyes to know what would be in front of me - I already knew he was there.
His deep chuckle caused a mixture of anger and fear to run through my veins, his brown eyes boring into mine as his smirk was nearly penetrating. He watched me intently, gripping his bat tighter to make sure I knew it was there - to make sure I knew who was in charge. I looked away, over at the smaller figure at my side whose eyes were widened by the weapon the man who proudly showed off, the barbed wires gleaming in the headlights in front of us. I began to maneuver my wrists, attempting to free myself for one last escape - I was afraid I would try anything at this point. I knew what this outcome was - trying to escape was punishable by death, but staying was just as risky - and my clock was ticking. He knelt down in front of me, his bat moving to rest across his chest as he continued to smile, which would be deceiving to others who were not aware of the atrocities and vileness that lurked behind this man. Slowly he reached his palms up together, his loud claps echoing through the forest as his men began chuckling.
"I have to hand it to you... You really know how to keep things interesting." He laughed, reaching forward to cup my swollen cheek. I turned quickly, disgusted by his cold touch as he inspected the wound, turning back to the thin man with a glare. "I'm sorry he did this to you, sweetheart. You know how Simon can get." He shrugged as I looked back to him with narrowed eyes. "Though, between you and me - It looks like you returned the favor by tenfold." He laughed, looking back to Simon and the cut that welded on his forehead from my blunt head hit. "Oh, sweetheart - I really did think I lost you... My little storm... Why would you want to leave me? I mean... I know your living conditions have been less than favorable but how many times do I have to tell you that if you had just consented... You would have been living like goddamn royalty."
"Take her back." I ignored his speech, grinding the words out between my clenched teeth.
"Excuse me?" He asked, his smile still evident.
"Take her back. She had nothing to do with this." My voice was strong, my wrists still working on a way to escape the holds it had me locked in. He was silent for a moment - still playing with that smirk on his lips - as he then let out a throaty laugh, the men behind him joining in as I glowered, wanting nothing more than to see several of my arrows penetrate his chest.
"Sweetheart," His leather jacket began crunching as he leaned forward, my heart skipping beats as my palms became sweaty - his nose nearly an inch of mine as I took in full gaze of the almost-black eyes staring at me, "I don't think you are in such a position to be making those sort of demands." He pulled away, his eyes roaming down my body as he reached forward to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. I instinctively reeled back, my chin dipping as I gulped hard, looking back to him with a glare. "You know the rules, my little storm. And still - you broke them." He moved away completely, standing from his crouching stance as he gently swung his bat to the opposite side, lifting it in the air as he looked to the crowd who stood among us.
"Who would I be if I let the child go?" He proclaimed, "I'd be a liar - that is who I would be. She is guilty by association! Should I let her go back and sleep on a damn cot, let her eat the food that my men and women work so hard to get every day? No... I said it once and I will say it again - no one gets away with breaking the rules."
"She didn't do anything you prick!" The scream left my lips before I had time to even process them in my brain. Without hesitation, without a second thought - the dirt kicked up from his boots and I was soon face to face with his weapon wrapped in barbed wire. The air was filled with a stoic silence besides the sobs that rang next to me, my eyes connecting with his as we said nothing for what felt like hours. His jaw was taut with an anger that itched deep in his soul, his eyes blazing with the fury of my words. He was in complete control - and I was submissive to it.
"I do not appreciate you interrupting me. Not a damn bit." He snarled, "And if you know what is good for you, you will keep those pretty lips shut until I make a decision on what your punishment will be." I shut my mouth, the fear that coursed through my veins never slowing, not even after the bat was away from my face. I looked to the dusty ground, my wrists still working a way at the zip tie as I tried to concentrate, tried to wrap my brain on what I would do if I were to get myself out of my restraints. He continued his rant, speaking to the crowd about those who defied him, about punishments - I tuned him out, seeing an opening between two of the men, a straight line back into the forest.
I could try - I could grab the little one next to me and try. What else did we have?
I realized, though, trying to remove the zip tie from my wrists - our chances getting out of this was damn near impossible. I could already see the bullets penetrating our backs before we even had the chance to make it off the road. I had come to terms that it could not be both of us - it could only be one. And I knew it would be me to succumb to his bat. Because no matter how cold he was, no matter how much evil burrowed deeply within his soul - he was not deranged enough to kill a child. And with the strikes already rallied against me, I knew I was standing on my last leg. But, the bigger part of me didn't even need to process my demise because as long as my doe-eyed girl was okay, nothing else truly mattered. My body calmed, even as he turned to me - the bat not far as his eyes gleamed with a wonderment of pure corruption. Despite my realization and acceptance, my heart still pounded deep within my chest, my eyes watering as I choked them back, refusing to let him see that he was chipping away my hard exterior.
"It's okay to cry, sweetheart. You can lighten up." His venomous smile sparked an infuriated reaction as I spit down at his shoes, my glare meeting his faltered smile.
"Fuck. You." I enunciated.
He sucked on his bottom lip, hiding back the rage that I knew he wanted to cave into - his grip tightening around the bat as he released a dark laugh, his head shaking. "You've got some big cajones." His words were clipped, his eyes narrowing on me as he stepped closer. "You have committed a crime - one that I just can't let go unnoticed without punishment. I mean, shit, you took out several of my men and I have to say, that really hurt. They were good men, good fighters, good providers. And above it all - this is the thanks that I get for helping you out?" He stepped away, kicking dust behind him as I turned, closing my eyes to avoid irritation. "And you have the nerve... You had the audacity to say fuck you? To me? Well..." He ended back up in front of the two of us, my chin dipping down as I awaited for the force of the barbed wire to dig into my skull. "I can't let this go unnoticed, Emory. My little storm." He went silent, my fingernails digging into my palms as I awaited for the inevitable moment of pure darkness. "But... I just can't seem to let you go just yet."
My eyes opened in confusion, my heart skipping a beat as I realized his plan. The monster lifted his weapon next to me, my doe eyed girl looking up to him with fear coursing through her as her face drained of all color. "NO!" I screamed as the bat came down with a loud thwack and the only thing I could remember was the red...
There was nothing but red.
AN: Firstly, welcome new readers! I am extremely excited to start my first TWD story. This storyline has been playing in my head for several months now and I finally decided to sit down and write a prologue. This story takes place during Alexandria, right in-between season 6 and 7 and will carry on into season 8. So if you want to avoid spoilers, I suggest you get up to date! As of right now I do not have a beta, however, I am definitely open for one! I do not have a timeframe of when I will be updating, so someone with a flexible schedule would be preferable! This story is an OCxDaryl story and I am really hoping to dive into this character and I hope you love her as much as I do.
Please leave your comments below so I know how I am doing! Again, thank you for reading! Until next time...