AN: Wow, been a couple days. Twenty-one more days people! I am super duper looper excited! Can't wait! Hope you like this chapter. It's not long, but it ain't short either. It's Goldilocks.

Disclaimer: I own shit!

Chapter 26: the Shred of Humanity

"Let's gather up," Rick said bringing everyone in the house. Diana walked in to the living room and leaned against the wall with Carol. The woman looked at Diana and saw what she had around her neck.

"Is that Violet's locket?"

Diana looked down at it and nodded, "So she's always near my heart," Daryl smirked from where he was. Everyone was in the house now to discuss the fate of Randall.

Glenn started off the debate since no one else was about to speak up, "So how do we do this? Just take a vote?"

"Does it have to be unanimous?" Andrea asked.

Lori suggested, "How about majority rules?" Rick then tried to set up a plan, "Let's just see where everybody stands. Then we can talk through the options."

"Well, where I sit, there's only one way to move forward," Shane implied his obvious solution.

"Killing him," Dale said with frustration, "Right? I mean why even bother to even take a vote? It's clear which way the wind is blowing."

"Well, if people believe we should spare him, I wanna know," Rick tried to clarify.

"Well I can tell you it's a small group- Maybe just Diana, me and Glenn," Diana felt the stare from Daryl. He was a little surprised she wanted the boy to live. Glenn, however, was silent. He looked up at the voice of reason with doubt and Dale's face fell.

"Look I-I think you're pretty much right about everything, all the time, but this-," Glenn was trying to explain until Dale cut him off, "They've got you scared!"

"He's not one of us," Glenn pointed to the door, "And we've lost too many people already," he looked back at Diana and his eyes held on the locket.

Dale turned his attention to the Greene family, particularly Maggie, "How about you? Do you agree with this?

She tilted her head, thinking of something, "Couldn't you continue to keep him prisoner?"

"Just another mouth to fee," Daryl said.

"It may be a lean winter," Hershel pointed out. They need everything they can get to survive the cold. And having another unwanted person there will not help.

"We could ration better," Lori gave another suggestion.

"Well, he could be an asset," Dale tried, "Give him a chance to prove himself."

"Put him to work?" Glenn said.

Rick threw that idea out the window, "We're not letting him walk around."

"We could put an escort on him," Maggie told the room.

"Who wants to volunteer for that duty?" Shane mocked.

"We all know you won't," Diana spat, "At least she's trying here."

"I'll volunteer, I will," Dale spoke before things got out of hand.

"I don't think any of us should be walking around with this guy," Rick said to everyone. He wasn't about to let the stranger endanger one of his friends by escorting him around.

"He's right," Lori agreed, "I wouldn't feel safe unless he was tied up."

Andrea got a little annoyed with all these options, "We can't exactly put chains around his ankles, sentence him to hard labor."

Shane then took the floor, "Look, say we let him join us, right? Maybe he's helpful, maybe he's nice. We let our guard down and maybe he runs off, brings back his thirty men."

It's possible it could happen, but all Shane was seeing was "could". Dale wasn't letting that cloud his judgment, "So the answer is to kill him to prevent a crime that he may never even attempt?"

"That does sound pretty dumb," Diana thought to herself.

Dale continued, "If we do this, we're saying there's no hope. Rule of law is dead! There is no civilization."

Hershel then asked Rick a question, "Could you drive him further out? Leave him like you planned?"

Before Rick answered, Lori slowly shook her head, "You barely came back this time. There are walkers. You could break down. You could get lost."

"Or get ambushed," Daryl gave another reason why driving him was too risky.

"They're right. We should not put our own people at risk," Glenn said.

Patricia's curiosity got the best of her, "If you go through with it, how would you do it? Would he suffer?"

Shane shrugged, "We could hang him, right? Just snap his neck."

Rick looked around before answering the question, "I thought about that. Shooting may be more humane."

After a brief silence, T-Dog asked his question, "What about the body? Do we bury him."

Dale then waved his arms to stop this conversation, "Hold on, hold on! You're talking about this like it's already decided."

"You've been talking all day, going around in circles," everyone looked at Daryl, "You just wanna go around in circles again?"

"THIS IS A YOUNG MAN'S LIFE! And it is worth more than a five-minute conversation!" Everyone looked to Dale as he outburst, "Is this what it's come too? We kill somebody because we can't decide what else to do with him? You saved him and now look at us," he pointed in the direction of the shed.

"He's been tortured," Diana's eyes glanced over at Daryl, "He's gonna be executed," she glanced over at Shane. Dale was staring into Rick's eyes as he spoke.

"How are we any better than those people that we're so afraid of?" Diana could tell people around the room may start feeling a little guilty. She saw it in Glenn, Maggie, and Andrea.

"We all know what needs to be done," Shane said.

"No Dale's right," Rick told him, "We can't leave any stone unturned here. We have a responsibility-"

"So what's the other solution?" Andrea interrupted, "We haven't come up with a single viable option yet. I wish we could-."

"So let's work on it!" Dale's voice over powered.

"We are," everyone was about to talk at once until Carol said what was on her mind, "Stop it! Just stop it. I'm sick of everybody arguing and fighting. I didn't ask for this. You can't ask us to decide something like this. Please decide - either of you, both of you- but leave me out."

"Not speaking out," Dale said to her, "Or killing him yourself- there's no difference."

"Alright, that's enough," Rick was getting things back under control, "Anybody wants the floor before we make a final decision has the chance."

It was silent. Diana looked around and sighed, "This boy, this kid," everyone was looking at her, "He's no older than me. He has a life like all of you do. And who are we to just rob him of that? Yeah he shot at you, but he was just looking out for his group. If it was me in his position I'd want the people who captured me to have a discussion about how to keep my life. And I'm pretty sure other people out there now don't even have the shred of humanity that I know we have."

No one said a word. They were all in their own thoughts about the matter, "I'm done. Anyone else have any words?"

When no one spoke, Dale held his hand to Rick, "You once said that we don't kill the living."

"Well, that before the living tried to kill us."

"But don't you see, if we do this, the people that we were- the world that we knew is dead! And this new world is ugly. It's… harsh," the word came up with disgust, "It's survival of the fittest! And that's a world I don't want to live in," he looked to everyone else, "And I don't believe any of you do. I can't."

"Please," Dale's eyes got glossy as he begged, "Let's just do what's right." Diana made her way over to Dale, "Isn't there anyone else who's gonna stand with us?"

People looked at one another to see who else would go, "He's right," Dale's face had no words when Andrea agreed with him, "We should try to find another way."

"Anybody else?" Rick asked. Silence filled the room, it still was not enough people. Rick looked to Dale with an apologetic look. Dale couldn't have been more disappointed with everyone, "Are ya'll gonna watch too?" he mocked, "No, you'll go hide your head in your tents and try to forget that we're slaughtering a human being," he shook his head, "Whoa," letting out all of his anger, "I won't be a party to it," he started to walk out of the room, but stopped when he reached Daryl.

He placed a hand on his shoulder, "This group is broken."

With that, Dale was out of the house leaving everyone to wallow in their own guilt. Diana rubbed her eyes then looked at everyone, shaking her head. She stormed past Daryl and sat out on the porch.

Night's cold, dark blanket fell over everything. Diana could see Daryl, Rick, and Shane taking Randall to the barn. She shook her head and walked to sit by Andrea and Lori at the fire.

"Can't believe this," she said throwing a rock in the fire.

"It was a choice everyone agreed with," Lori told her.

"Yeah, it was a dumb choice," Everyone looked up and saw Rick return but he had Carl with him. They wanted to know why they haven't heard a gunshot.

"We're keeping him in custody for now," Rick said. Diana smiled a little, "I'm gonna find Dale," she told Andrea.

"I'll join you," they walked into the dark.

As they walked a blood curdling yell ripped through the night, "What is that!" Diana got scared.

"It sounds like Dale!" They both ran to where the yell came from. The screams continued as they were running in the knee high grass field.

"Dale!" Andrea yelled when everyone else was running with them. Another scream was heard, this one was more painful. The first one there was Daryl as he took the walker off of Dale and killed it with his knife.

"HELP! OVER HERE!" he waved his arms so everyone could see him. As everyone came together Diana tried to look past everyone.

"Oh my God!" she cried. Dale's stomach was open letting all of his guts hang out as he laid there. Everyone was sobbing as they looked at the, basically, grandfather of the group. Dale was coughing and moaning. Rick was trying to get Dale to stay focused on his voice until they could get help.

"Hang on Dale!" Andrea was kneeling down next to him. He looked at her but was not able to make words, just pant. Diana grabbed on to Sophia sobbing, "Don't look!" Sophia was crying into her chest. Hershel finally was there.

"What can we do?!" Rick asked the veterinarian, "Can we move him?"

"He won't make the trip," Hershel's voice was filled with despair.

"You have to do the operation here!"

"Rick," Hershel shook his head. That wasn't going to happen. There is no way to save Dale's life. Rick yelled, "NO!"

Carl looked over to see the dead walker and then at Dale, he started to sob and Lori grabbed him.

"He's suffering," Andrea said. Dale looked up at many people's eyes. When he looked at Diana's she snapped, "Somebody do something!"

Only one thing was left to do. Rick took out his gun, holding it up. Looking down, people knew this had to be done no matter how much they didn't want it to happen. Rick thought back to all he has to hold for as a leader.

Rick held the gun there, but found himself not being able to hold the trigger. A hand then reached out and gently took the gun. That hand was Daryl's. Rick shouldn't have to burden so much. He can't hold the entire world on his shoulders.

Daryl aimed the gun at Dale's head. He cocked it once as he stared into the dying man's eyes, "Sorry, Brother."

BLAM!

AN: I hate that part. I actually cried the first time I saw that scene because I was so pissed off they killed Dale so early, when he dies later in the comics. Let me know ye thoughts on what thou think of tis chapter.

Okay you jokers! The poll is tied for boy and girl right now. I need more votes so I can start writing. Also! You will hate me, but I'm not gonna update until Saturday or Sunday due to my Mid-Term exams.

So see you guys then! Have a great day and thank you for reading!