Chapter 10: Morituri te Salutamus

~Daryl~

I watch as Ezekiel climbs out of one of the trucks they took outside the gates, followed by Benjamin and Morgan. Ezekiel walks off after a conversation with Benjamin, beckoning Jerry after him. Jerry pats Benjamin's shoulder as he passes, complimenting, "You're sick with the stick, man."

"Jerry!" Ezekiel calls. Benjamin chuckles as Jerry follows after the King, his laughter fading as he asks Morgan something.

"Hey!" I call, and they turn at the sound of my voice. "Where'd you go in them trucks?"

"I need to speak to Daryl alone," Morgan tells Benjamin. "That okay?"

"Yeah," Benjamin says with a nod. "I'll get you something for that cut."

Benjamin walks off, while I meet Morgan at the bottom of the steps. "You went to see them, right?" I question, and Morgan nods. "Part of your deal?" He doesn't answer. "What the hell's wrong with you? You're bleeding."

Morgan touches his ear, looking down when his hand comes away bloody.

"They did that to you," I continue. "You know what they are."

"I do," Morgan says with a nod.

"You know, if Carol were here, she saw all that… if she knew about Abraham, Glenn… she'd be leading us right to 'em, ready to kill 'em all."

Morgan nods in agreement. "She would. And that's why she left, man."

I shake my head at him, realizing how little help he'll be when the battles start. I find Richard practicing his archery skills (he needs a lot of work), and I notice a crossbow sitting on the table. "I'm practicing," he says when he sees me watching him. "Gonna have to start using these more. The Saviors are smart enough to know I shouldn't have a gun around them." Richard turns away, putting his bow down. "Morgan said you're a bowman. Saw your sister's bow. Run in the family, huh?"

Richard picks up the crossbow on the table, offering it to me. I take it, questioning, "Why?"

"'Cause we want the same things," Richard says. "I need your help."

He goes back to practicing with a bow and arrow, while I aim my new crossbow down at the table to get a feel for it. I close my eyes when I feel the familiar pressure against my shoulder. It's not the same as my old one, the one that Dwight took. I like this new one, but I can't help but want my old one because it was a gift from Clary. But I have to smile because goddamn, I missed this. Watch out Negan. The Archer's back.

"The Saviors, they ride this road," Richard tells me as we step off of it, walking around to the other side of a trailer. "If we see cars, it's them. They've been coming in packs of two or three lately. That's why I need you. I can't take them alone." We put our bags and guns down, Richard being careful with the Molotovs in his bag. "We're gonna hit 'em with the guns first, and then the Molotovs. Then back to the guns until they're dead."

"Why the fire?" I question.

"Needs to look bad. The Saviors who discover what's left... we want them to be angry."

"'Anger makes you stupid,'" I say, remembering Michonne's words to Tyreese. "'Stupid gets you killed.'"

"Exactly," Richard agrees. "I left a trail from here to the weapons cache I planted, to the cabin of someone that Ezekiel cares about."

"Who's that?" I question, not wanting any innocent people to die in this war. Maybe I can get them out, save them.

"It's just some loner he met. Sometimes he brings food."

It's starting to sound like Carol, and I'm starting to not like this plan. "Why don't they live in the Kingdom?"

"I don't know. She lives out there, she'll die out there."

"It's a woman?"

"What does that matter? She's got more balls than you and me." Now it definitely sounds like Carol. "She's gonna die either way. When the Saviors come and find their buddies dead, if they know their elbow from their asshole and can follow an obvious spoor, they're gonna go to the weapons cache and then to the cabin, and they're gonna attack this woman."

I demand, "What's her name?"

"Maybe they kill her, maybe they don't, but it's gonna show Ezekiel what he needs to do."

"Her name," I repeat. "What is it?"

"She's tough," Richard continues, denying me the information I so desperately want to know. "Maybe she'll live."

"Say her damn name!" I bark.

Richard sighs. "Carol. I hoped you didn't know her, but I didn't think you'd care 'cause you know what needs to happen."

I shake my head, starting past him. "Fuck. No. Not her."

"Maybe she'll live," Richard repeats, trying to get me to continue on with him. But he blew that chance the moment he even thought of threatening Carol. "Look, this is how this could happen. This is how we could get rid of the Saviors, how we all can have a future."

"Not without Carol. She's family."

"She's living out there on her own, just waiting to die!"

"Nah!" I bark, taking my bag and starting to walk away.

"If we don't do anything, a hell of a lot more people are gonna die, people who want to live!"

I turn back to him, getting in his face as I threaten, "You stay the fuck away from Carol, you hear me?"

I put my bag down as I hear cars in the distance, knowing that I'm gonna have to stop Richard so he can't go through with his plan to kill Carol. Richard leans out around the trailer, checking the road before turning back to me. "It's them," he says. "Look, we can wait for things to go bad, we can lose people."

"I ain't losin' her."

"I'd rather choose our fate for ourselves, even if it is the hard thing."

"No," I repeat.

"Sorry," Richard lies, turning with his gun ready. I drop my crossbow, grabbing him and throwing him to the ground. I'm on top of him before he can get a chance to reach for his gun, determined to hold him down until the Saviors are gone. I start throwing punches when he keeps struggling, and he manages to reach his gun. He hits me with it, knocking me off of him, but the dumbass pushed me right to my crossbow. Sucks for him.

I'm on my feet and aiming my crossbow at him as he gets his gun, turning to aim it at me. "There'll be more," Richard says. "Or those, they're gonna ride back this way later. We'll have another chance."

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" I growl.

"We're running out of time," he continues. "If you and your people want to move against the Saviors, you need to do it soon, and you need the Kingdom. What we have to do requires sacrifice one way or another. Guys like us, we've already lost so much."

"You don't know me," I say.

"I know that Carol, living on her own like that… she might as well be dead right now."

I lower my crossbow, wanting Richard to see my face as I threaten, "If she gets hurt, she dies, if she catches a fever, if she's taken out by a walker… hell, if she gets hit by lightning… anything… if anything happens to her, I'll kill you."

Richard lowers his gun then, telling me, "I would die for the Kingdom."

I growl, "Then why don't you?"

~Clary~

I stay glued to Aaron's side as the new group takes us into the junkyard through a series of winding paths and shipping containers. Even if they look strong, I don't trust them yet. And even if I tried to pull away, Aaron, with his almost painful grip on my hand, wouldn't let me get far.

They take us into a clearing amongst the junk, forcing us all together while they circle around us. I'm reminded of a documentary I once saw, where the fish would be forced into a ball while sharks and other predatory fish darted in and picked them off. I don't like how these people are forcing us into a bait ball. I try to put myself in front of Aaron, but he keeps me behind him. A voice from within in the crowd questions, "Are you a collective or does one lead?"

One of the women shove Rick forward, and Aaron reluctantly allows me to step forward. The crowd parts to allow a woman through, the tips of her hair bleaches from before the apocalypse and her bangs cut incredibly short. She eyes Rick and I, giving me a look of doubt. "Hi, I'm Rick," he says. I step up beside him, staring down Haircut. "This is Clary."

"Rick and I are partners," I tell her. "Co-leaders. We lead together."

"We own your lives," Haircut says. Yup, don't think I like her. "You want to buy them back? Have anything?"

"Well, you have one of my people," Rick says. "Gabriel. I want to see him first. Then we can talk."

Haircut gives a nod, and a man and woman leave. A moment later, they return, the woman escorting Gabriel. It's only when I see how scared he is do I believe that he didn't steal and abandon us. Haircut says, "The boat things you took got taken. Saw them, so we took the rest. And then we took him."

"Then you know we have nothin' to buy our lives back with," I say. "That's what you'll have soon. Nothin'. Because me and my people already belong to that group who took those supplies from the boat. They're called the Saviors. Right now, they own our lives."

"And if you kill us," Rick adds, "you'll be takin' something from them. And they will come lookin'. You only have two options when it comes to the Saviors: either they kill you, or they own you."

"But there is a way out. If you join us. We want to fight the Saviors, and we need people. You have lots of people. You look tough. You look like you could hold your own in a fight. We need people like you. And we can win. I've led an attack against the Saviors, and I won. We can win, if you join us in fighting for freedom, for all of us."

Haircut pauses for a second, then says, "No."

She raises her hand, twirling her finger in the air in a circular motion. The two that brought Gabriel out takes him away, and Rick and I go back to back, eyes on these scavengers. One grabs Rosita by her shoulders, and she immediately headbutts him, knocking another girl to the ground. "Rosita, don't!" Aaron tries.

The woman standing in front of him hits him with her spear. I abandon my post at Rick's side, tackling the girl that hit my dad to the ground. I toss her spear away, punching her when she tries to push me off of her. I hit her again, breaking her nose. "Everybody, stop!" Rick barks. "Just wait!"

I pause, breathing heavily with my fist pulled back, knuckles dripping with blood. Gabriel makes his move then, taking a knife and putting it to the neck of the woman beside him. He orders, "Let us go, or I will kill her!"

Haircut simply raises an eyebrow, saying, "Away from Tamiel now."

"The Saviors, they have other places, other communities," Gabriel bargains. "They have things. Food, weapons, vehicles, fuel. Whatever you want, the Saviors have it."

Haircut raises her hand, and the Scavengers lower their weapons. Aaron puts a hand on my back, and I get off of the one under me. She scrambles to her feet, a hand over her nose as she disappears behind the wall of other Scavengers. "Away from Tamiel," Haircut repeats.

Gabriel looks between Rick and I. I order, "Put it down, Gabriel."

Gabriel removes the knife from Tamiel's neck, stepping away and putting it on the ground. Haircut says, "Your words now."

Gabriel says, "If you join us and we beat them together, you can have much of what's theirs. Fighting with us, you'll be rewarded, more than you can imagine."

"Want something now."

"Rick can do anything. I've seen Clary do the impossible. This group, they found me, here, so far from our home. What do you need? Just tell us, we'll get it for you. We'll show you what we can do. Now."

"Tamiel, Brion," Haircut orders. "Show Rick and Clary Up Up Up."

The two that brought Gabriel, Tamiel and Brion, start towards us. Aaron wraps his hand around my wrist, shaking his head. "It's okay," I whisper. "I'll be back. I can do this."

"Be careful," Aaron murmurs.

"Always am, never are," I reply. He drops his hand from my wrist, and Rick and I follow Tamiel, Brion, and Haircut up until we reach the top of a junk heap. Rick and I hesitantly step closer to the edge, and I can see our people, along with the Scavengers, in the clearing below. I can make out Rosita placing a hand on Aaron's shoulder, pushing him back down when he tries to get to his feet.

"All of us, here since the change," Haircut says. "We take. We don't bother. Things grow harder. We open cans, sometimes inside's rotten. Time's passed. Things are changing again. So maybe we change. Maybe." She turns to Rick and I. "Need to know you're real with this, that you're worth it."

She suddenly shoves Rick over the edge, and I don't waste any time trying to help him. I reach out to grab him, but I feel a hand on my back, and the next thing I know, I'm falling. "Clary!" Aaron shouts. "No!"

Rick lets out a groan as I land on top of him, and I roll off, muttering, "Shit, sorry."

"What did you do?!" Michonne cries.

I get to my feet, looking around. We're at the bottom of a pit, and I can see empty holes in the side of the heap. I walk over, resting my hand on one. They're large metal cylinders, providing a window to the other side. I look through one, and I can see Rosita trying to drag Aaron back from the heap, barking, "Aaron, no! No!"

"Clary!" Aaron shouts. "Clary, goddammit, answer me!"

"Dad!" I shout, and Rosita releases him as they all rush to the heap, looking at Rick and I through the cylinders. "I'm okay! We both are!"

I step back as Rick steps forward to look at Michonne. I press my back against his, not knowing what's down here with us. I scan the walls of trash for a way out, sighing when I find none. "Well, morituri te salutamus."

"What?" Rick asks.

"'Those who are about to die salute you,'" I translate. I freeze when I see that walker covered in spikes stepping towards us. "Oh, shit."

Rebar protrudes from its body, a metal helmet covered in knives or rebar covers all of its head except for its mouth. I already know that this son of a bitch is going to be tough to kill, since they took our weapons when they first surrounded us. Plus, it's going to be nearly impossible to get close to the walker without hurting ourselves.

I look down as my foot hits something, finding a human skull below me. I back into Rick as he backs up, and he turns trying to scramble up the walls while I back the other way. Rick grabs a keyboard, hitting the walker over the head with it. The keyboard breaks apart, and the walker's still coming. Rick puts an arm in front of me, trying to push me backwards, but there's nowhere for us to go. He tries to shove the walker away, putting his hand on the walkers head. I wince as I see that one of the pieces of rebar has gone through Rick's hand. But he manages to push the walker away, and I try to pull him back. He pushes me back again, kicking the walker away. He cries out, falling back, and I see a cut in his leg.

"Rick, climb!" I order. "Get out of here!"

Rick doesn't argue, trying to climb out of the pit as I step forward to face the walker. I place my hands where there isn't rebar, trying to hold it off until Rick is far enough up that I can follow. I can feel a piece pressing into my stomach, crying out when I feel it cut me. I shove the walker away, the shrapnel slicing my stomach. I drop to my knees, a hand on my stomach, but I scramble to my feet when I see it coming back for round two. Rick can't get out, falling to the ground behind me.

We get up, backing up again. "The walls!" Michonne shouts. "Use them!"

Rick and I look at each other, and I pull an old computer out of the wall. It sends an avalanche of bags and cushions down, landing on the walker and forcing Rick and I back. Rick pulls another bag, and more trash comes down, burying the walker. Rick wraps a piece of shrapnel in a cloth, using it to cut the walker's head off. The walker still snarls, but it's beheaded. I pull a piece of rebar out of the walkers body, driving it up through the walker's head from the spot where Rick cut it off. It stops snarling, dead for good.

"Are you not entertained?" I shout, holding up my walker head on a stick. "You know what, lady? FUCK YOU!"

With that, I drive the rebar into the ground, impaling it in the ground like the Lord of the Flies. Rick demands, "You believe us now?! Just tell us what you want and we'll get it!"

Our response is a rope being thrown down, our exit out of the pit. "Go," I tell Rick. "You hurt your leg and your hand. I'll be right behind you. I'll catch you if you fall."

Rick climbs up first, and I follow behind him. I find myself reminded of the ravine at Hershel's farm, and it seems so long ago. I follow Rick, ready to catch him, just like Daryl was ready to catch me. As I near the top, I pause, one hand wrapped around the rope, I look back down at the pit. I smirk, looking down in pride at Rick and I's work. I climb onto the top of the pile behind Rick, glaring at Haircut.

"Guns," Haircut says. "A lot. And then we fight your fight." Rick and I look at each other, sharing a smile because we've secured another alliance. We follow the Scavengers down, pausing at the bottom of the heap. "You know we will win?"

"Oh, I know it," Rick says.

"After, we get half of what's won," Haircut tries.

"A third," I argue. "And we're takin' back what you stole from us."

"Half."

"A third."

"Half."

"A third."

"A third, and we keep what we stole." I shake my head. "Half of the jars, the ones we took. One time, this time. Yes? Say yes."

Rick and I share a look before saying in unison, "Yes."

"And the guns."

Rick sighs, saying, "And the guns."

Haircut shakes my hand, then goes to shake Rick's before pausing when she realizes that it's bloodied. She shakes his other hand, telling us, "Waited by the boat a long time. Want something for it. So it's this. Jars and guns, guns and jars."

"You waited for someone to get the supplies off the boat for you?" Rick questions.

"Long time," Haircut confirms. "We take. We don't bother."

"You had that thing down there for someone to prove themselves?" I question. "I saw a skull down there."

"No," she says. "His name was Winslow."

"What were you gonna do with Gabriel?"

"Go. Deal expires. Soon."

She turns to walk away, and Rick calls, "What's your name?"

Haircut pauses, turning to look back at us. "Jadis."

She turns and walks away, followed by her people. Rick and I are left by ourselves, Rick nearly falling when he tries to take a step. I catch him, wrapping my arm around his waist. "I got you," I tell him. "I got you."

Rick nods, wrapping his arm around my shoulder as I press my other hand to my stomach. Together, we limp back to the ground, both my blood and Rick's smearing onto my shirt. "I'm sorry," Rick apologizes, seeing the blood on my shirt. "I'm bleeding on you."

I reply, "As long as you ain't dead, I don't care. Don't die on me, Rick. We got a war to lead together."

~Aaron~

"Well, I made another deal," Clary calls, and we all turn at the sound of her voice. She and Rick limp towards us, Rick's bloody arm wrapped around her shoulders as he leans against her for support. She keeps one arm around his waist, her other hand on her stomach. "Let's hope this one works out."

I take off, pushing around Michonne as she starts over to meet Rick. I pull Clary away from him, wrapping my arms around her. I send a glare Rick's way, but it goes unseen. Clary's unwavering loyalty to him pisses me off, even though I know there's nothing that can be done about it. But it's because of that loyalty that Clary was nearly killed today, and she was nearly killed a multitude of other times. As I hug her, I turn my back to the others, as if I can shield her from everyone. I lean back just enough to look her over, checking for bites. "Hey," Clary whispers, and I pause, looking down at her. "I did it."

"Are you okay? You bit?" I question, and she shakes her head. "Don't you ever, and I mean ever, do anything like that again! Do you understand me, Cheyenne?!"

Clary looks up at me with a tired smile. "I never knew you cared this much."

It's the same thing I said on the boat. I hold Clary against my chest, my arms wrapped tightly around her. "Ow, Aaron, ow," Clary hisses. "Dad, I can't breathe."

"Sorry," I say, loosening my hold on her. I still an arm around her shoulders, holding her close. Tara gives us a small smile, resting her hand on Clary's arm before she faces us and Rosita.

"We shouldn't be going back to Alexandria," Rosita says. "We need to stay out and look for the guns for the deal."

Tara argues, "Rick is hurt, Clary is hurt. Aaron is hurt."

"It's a scratch, Tara," Clary says. "I'm fine."

"I'm more worried about what Eric will say when he sees us," I add.

Clary chuckles, knowing it's true. "Yeah, he got worried when he saw my shoulder earlier."

"Your shoulder?" I repeat, looking down at her. "Did something happen?"

"Oh, you weren't supposed to know about that," Clary mutters, glancing away.

"Cheyenne Clarissa Dixon."

Clary reaches up, pulling aside her jacket and shirt collar to show a bruise on her left shoulder. "It was a walker," Clary tells me. "Tried to bite me. The leather stopped it from breaking the skin. I'd be dead if I wasn't wearing this jacket."

"You were nearly bitten and you didn't tell me?" I scold.

"I didn't want you to worry."

"What else are you not telling me?"

Clary wraps her arms around me, standing on her tiptoes to whisper, "That I love you."

My heart melts, and I can't stay mad at her for not telling me. I wrap an arm around her, whispering, "I love you, too, Clary. But you gotta tell me when you nearly die."

Clary lets out a small laugh, nodding against my chest. She turns back to Rostia, telling her, "Tara's right, you know. People back home, they need this food."

"Rick wants to bring supplies back, and we regroup, so that's what we're doing," Tara adds.

Rosita shakes her head, looking at Clary with a look of betrayal. "Then I'll go on my own. Damn, Clary, I thought you were with me."

Clary freezes, something in Rosita's words reminding her of something. Tara says, "We are together. We are sticking together, and that's it."

"What is your problem?"

"What is your problem, Rose?" Clary questions. "Fuck, I thought Carl was the one with the moody bullshit! Look, we all lost someone we loved to the Saviors, alright? But that don't mean we have to pick a fight right now! Get your shit together, Rosita!"

"We're not fighting right now," Tara adds.

"It's always a fight, Tara," Rosita snaps. "I'm not letting anyone get in the way or slow us down. If we gotta stop people from taking from us or we gotta take from other people, I don't care. We win. Grow up."

With that, Rosita walks off, and Tara turns to Clary and I. "What the fuck was that?" Tara whispers.

"That was someone losing their shit. That was someone gettin' angry," Clary says. "That was anger making you stupid. And stupid gets you killed."

~Daryl~

I don't know who's more shocked when Carol opens the door. She stops, her jaw dropping open. I could cry just seeing her again, seeing her alive. I shift on my feet, not sure how to start, and Carol sighs. She starts blinking back tears, then starts forward, wrapping me in a hug. I hold her, not wanting to let her go. But I do, pulling back so I can get a good look at her. I tell her, "Jesus took us to the Kingdom. Morgan said you just left. I was out here. I saw you. I had to see you." I can't keep my voice from breaking as I question, "Why'd you go?"

"I had to," Carol whispers. "I had to."

"Why'd you have to go?" I ask, watching Carol as she sits by the fireplace.

"I couldn't lose anyone," Carol answers, not looking back to me. "I couldn't lose any of them. I couldn't lose Clary. I couldn't lose you." She looks back at me, meeting my eyes. "I couldn't kill them." She sighs. "I could. I would. If they hurt any of our people… any more of them… and that's what I would do." She looks back at the fire. "And there wouldn't be anything left of me after that. The Saviors, did they come?"

"Yeah," I answer.

Carol turns away from the fire as I look down, unable to meet her eyes. "Did anyone get hurt? Is everybody okay?"

"Only Clary and I," I tell her. "Shot us. Same shoulder and everythin'. We're okay, though."

"You were shot?"

"It's me and Clary. We did stupid shit, got shot for it." I push the collar of my shirt aside so she can see the bandage on my shoulder. "We probably had it coming. We're okay."

"Did the Saviors…" Carol has to stop, choking back tears. "Is everybody back home okay? Daryl…"

I see it, then. I see why Carol had to leave. I understand why she couldn't take it anymore. She really can't kill anymore, or she won't be Carol anymore. That's when I realize that I have to lie to her.

I tell her, "They came. We got 'em all. Made a deal with the rest of 'em, like Ezekiel." Carol lets out a sigh of relief, tears still rolling down her cheeks. "Everyone's alright. Everyone's alright." I push myself out of my chair, kneeling beside Carol and hugging her again. "Everyone's alright. You didn't miss much."

"'Miss much'?" Carol questions. "What happened?"

"Uh, well, Clary and I live with Aaron and Eric now," I tell her, because I think that as soon as I can return to Alexandria, I'm moving in, too. "Mostly 'cause Clary broke up with Carl."

"What?" Carol asks, eyes wide.

"Yeah. They had this big fight about the Saviors the day you left. So she walked out."

"I can't believe it." Carol shakes her head. "I thought they'd always be together."

"We all did," I say, pulling away to look down at her. "So, uh, we gonna eat?" I grin at her, teasing, "Or do I gotta be a king or something to get food around here?"

Carol laughs, returning as she always does, "Shut up."

Shiva growls at me from the other side of her cage as I take a seat by the bars. She sniffs the air as she walks over, and she stops growling when she smells me. "You know, I wasn't expecting to see you down here," Morgan remarks, and I look up to find him standing by the door.

"I was down here the other night with Clary," I tell him. "I went looking for her. Kinda figured she'd be with the tiger."

Morgan chuckles. "You're good with her. Ezekiel will be impressed."

"Clary's good with her, too. She's better with animals than most people." Morgan chuckles, both of us knowing that it's true. "We both kinda figured a dude with a pet tiger can't be bad. She thought he'd say yes, he'd join us. Clary must be pissed."

"Or disappointed."

"That Benjamin kid, he wants to fight?" Morgan nods. "He cool?"

"He's with you. I don't like it, but he's ready to fight." Morgan shifts on his feet, adding, almost as an afterthought, "Though… I think you might want to watch him and Clary."

"What? Why?"

"That shirt she was wearing," Morgan says. "It's Benjamin's."

"Benjamin!" I shout, seeing him by the gate.

Benjamin pauses when he sees me walking over, greeting, "Um, Daryl, hi."

"We need to talk," I say, crossing my arms over my chest.

Benjamin closes his eyes, swallowing before looking at me. "So, uh, Clary told you?"

"Morgan," I say. "He knew that shirt she was wearing was yours."

"Daryl, I'm really sorry. It happened all of the sudden."

"You hurt my sister, I stomp your ass," I threaten, jabbing my finger in his chest.

Benjamin nods quickly, rushing, "I-I-I got it. But I wouldn't. I wouldn't do anything to hurt Clary. I really like her."

I pause at that, remembering how happy Clary seemed. She seemed to like Benjamin, and I know she definitely approves of him. And from the other conversations I've had with him, I like Benjamin, too. I say, "Benjamin."

"Um, yes?" he questions.

"I approve of you, kid," I tell him.

"Uh, thank you, Daryl," Benjamin says, grinning. He looks at the bag on my shoulder. "Where are you going?"

"The Hilltop," I answer. "I'm going to get ready. There's a war coming, and we need to be ready."