They began the trek out of town, encountering a few Walkers, but nothing serious. Elliot walked alone on the left flank, still not sure whether he was okay with the adoption that had just taken place. The company was nice, for sure – at least, he could tell the other were enjoying it. Jonathan, Cas, and Claire were mingling with the new group, but he just couldn't warm up to strangers that quickly.
Think about it logically, he told himself. A larger group technically makes us safer. But we'll also be louder, so maybe not.
It's a little too late for second thoughts, he decided. Claire was right, we stick to the Code. We all made it together and it hadn't failed us yet, so I guess I'll have to trust it now. If we didn't have a code, we'd be just like all the people we've had to kill. He shuddered slightly.
"Watcha thinkin' about?" A voice spoke. Elliot jumped slightly and looked around. The angry man from earlier had snuck up on him. His crossbow was slung over his shoulder; Elliot tried not to look at it. He shrugged by way of answer, but his silence didn't deter the man.
"Elliot, right?" He asked. "I'm Daryl."
"Hm," Elliot replied, not really in the mood for conversation.
"What's that you've got there?" Daryl pointed to Elliot's crossbow, which was down at his side. Now, that wasn't something that Elliot minded chatting about.
"This is my baby," he said proudly, lifting it up and patting it gently. It was black with chrome trim, and the bolts in the quiver on his back had black shafts to match and synthetic feathers that were neon green. Daryl tried really hard to not look impressed. "Carbon steel, very lightweight, with a 130 draw weight that gives it about a 50 yard range at 300 fps."
"Where'd you get it?"
"It was at my house, but none of us ever used it. It was just for show, but when shit started going crazy, I figured it wouldn't hurt to learn." He paused, then added (because he felt obligated), "What about you?"
Daryl shrugged. "Life at home was kinda rough. My dad gave me this so that I could feed the family. It's still keepin' me alive, even after all this time."
They walked in silence for a while until Cas came up. "Hey Smelliot, Claire asked me to ask you if you want to take point since we're about to hit the town."
"Sure," he replied, asking Daryl, "Wanna come?"
"Why not?" The man kept up with Elliot as he trotted up in front of the group. When they were out of earshot, he asked, "Smelliot?"
Elliot shook his head. "I don't know."
"Fair enough."
The town was unusually quiet, which Elliot decided to take as a good sign. They made their way straight home, so it was only a few minutes before the school came into sight.
"That the place?" Daryl eyed the building.
"Yeah."
"It's big. How do you keep it safe?"
"Most of the pods that contain classrooms are blocked off, although they don't open to the outside. There are only two entrances that can be used. Everything else is sealed tight."
"How long have you been here?"
"Two, two and a half years. The other members of our group have been here the whole time, but they weren't doing so well when we showed up. We helped them out, and they allowed us to stay."
"And how long have you been with kids?" Daryl gestured over his shoulder.
"Since the beginning, almost. Cas and Claire were friends in the old world, and they found me a few months after everything fell apart. We picked Jonathan up about six months ago," he added.
They headed towards the side of the school, where there was a set of doors. Daryl noticed that Elliot started looking around suspiciously, mostly at the roof, but before he could ask why, a quiet pop sounded and a puff of dirt exploded at the young man's feet. He jumped slightly, then shook his head and chuckled.
"What was that?" Daryl hissed, drawing his knife.
"Don't worry, that was just our sniper. She likes to do that to me."
"Why?"
"Because she thinks it's funny. She's kind of a weird lady."
They reached the doors and waited for the rest of the group to catch up. Elliot stood by a panel that was glued to the wall that held a red button and a speaker; a wire ran from the panel through the doors. When everyone was standing around them, Elliot pressed the button and a voice came through the speaker.
"Coming in?" Someone who sounded very bored asked.
"Yup," Elliot responded.
"Who are all those people?"
"Just a group that need our help," Elliot replied. He figured describing Rick's people as "some strays we picked up" wouldn't go over with them very well.
"Okay, come on in, I guess." There was a quiet click as the door unlocked, and Elliot pulled it open.
"Well guys, welcome home."
…
Hello everyone! Thanks so much for reading. I thought an explanation of what's going on is probably long past due, so here you go. This story is a little project of mine that I decided to do because the mid-season finale of season 5 left me feeling a little empty. The characters that make up the Suicide Squad represent me and a few of my good friends. If they say anything that offends, I apologize, I'm just doing the best representation of them that I can. You'll understand what I mean better in the next chapter. I hope you enjoy, and please leave a review if you have a second. Thanks again!