Carl Bitten. . . Again?
(this is centered in the universe of the Walking Dead but I pulled some characters from Z Nation into it just to see how they'd affect the story. Takes place in season 8)
"Carl." Michonne called as she waked over to him, "I've been looking for you. We're about to head out. What are you doing?"
"I'm helping someone." He admitted, "A traveler."
"In the sewer?" she asked having seen him placing the manhole cover back where it belonged. He took a deep breath ready to answer when there was suddenly a loud metallic clanging. Whatever it was sounded like it was hitting the main gate, once, twice, then three times.
"You may be wondering why your lookouts didn't sound the alarm." Negan's voice came over a megaphone. "See we are polite. I mean, I don't know when they're gonna wake up from that kinda shot but they should wake up. So let's just cut through the cow shit – you lose. It's over. So you're gonna line up in front of your little houses, and you're gonna work up some apologies and then the person with the lamest one is gonna get killed. Then I kill Rick in front of everybody and we move on. You have three minutes – count 'em, three minutes to open this gate, or we start bombing the shit out of you."
"They got out." Michonne whispered as Negan started whistling.
"Come on." Carl said moving the manhole cover again but she looked like she'd frozen up. "Michonne. Come on!"
"Michonne!" came another low urgent shout. They turned and saw Warren, Tara, Addy and Rosita running toward them. Warren, Addy and their group had shown up a few weeks ago. They'd been traveling and were on their last legs and needed some food and water. Warren had a group of six including herself and introduced herself as Lieutenant of the National Guard. His dad had intended on turning them away after explaining they weren't in a position to be giving out rations when they were getting ready for a war but instead she'd struck up a deal, they'd help Alexandria fight in exchange for food. Warren reminded Carl a lot of his dad, she had this leadership aura around her and she was stubborn and didn't back down easily. Knowing they needed as much help as they could get his dad had taken the deal.
"What's our play?" Warren asked but Michonne was still in shock that their plan had been foiled, in her hesitation Carl took charge.
"You need to make it look like we're escaping out the back. Get to the woods, halfway to the quarry, and cut the lights. Get enough of a lead on them, hit them and get away on foot. You know where we'll be. Just have to get the guns, get everyone else here, and we'll meet you there." Carl instructed as he loaded up supplies into a bag.
"Two minutes people!" Negan's voice shouted over the megaphone again. "Dig deep. I want these apologies to be memorable. Bonus points for creativity. Work up a poem, sing a song. I love that shit."
"Get going." Carl said. "There's going to be people in the infirmary. They're gonna need your help." Addy nodded and took off to help the injured escape.
"Look we've got guns, we can fight them." Tara said stepping forward.
"We will but not now, Carl's right." Rosita said defending his plan.
"Carl, we can't just let them have this place." Michonne all but growled.
"We can." Carl told her, "All you need to do is survive tonight. This is my show. You said it. This is my plan and you're gonna do it. You're all gonna do it."
He saw Warren with her hands on her hips nodding slightly like she approved of him taking charge. "He's right, as long as we survive we can always fight to take it all back. But if we make a stand here and die, then that's the end of everything."
He looked at her in appreciation and nodded, "So let's go!" he said leading them away. They all put his plan into action, but he needed to buy them more time before Negan got to the end of the clock. Carl ran for the platform by the gate and saw another figure already working his way up the ladder with a sniper rifle on his back.
"10K!" Carl called to him as quietly as he could. 10K was part of Warren's group and the best shot Carl had ever seen, he'd immediately liked the guy when they'd first met not just because they were both the youngest in their groups but because the guy had a sick goal. He'd nicknamed himself 10K because that was the number of walkers he wanted to kill, after hearing that Carl thought the guy was awesome, he was already on three thousand nine hundred and something and Carl was amazed he could keep track the way he did.
"Not here." he said when the sniper had climbed down the ladder, "That one." Carl pointed to the next guard's platform down the fence.
"One minute!" Negan counted, "One minute."
"I'd love to show him a thing or two about counting." 10K said through a clenched jaw as he cocked his rifle.
"I have a plan, if it doesn't work then you can start shooting." Carl told him and he nodded at him as he made his way to the next platform as Carl made his way up the ladder.
"Okey-dokey." Negan's voice echoed, "Brought this on yourself Rick. See, I was willing to work with you. All you had to do was follow a few very simple rules. But now, well now I see that you got to go. Scorched earth, you dick!"
"He's not home." Carl said standing on one of the guard's platforms.
"Oh-ho-holy shit! Everybody hold your fire, it's Carl." Negan said cheerfully. "Look at you. Answering the door like a big boy. I am so proud. Daddy's not home, huh? Well I guess he's gonna get back to a big old smoky surprise –"
"There's families in here. Kids. My little sister."
"Well that shit just breaks my heart. There's kids at the Sanctuary. You must've seen 'em. Even had a little baby at one of the outposts. I wonder what happened to her."
Negan paced along the wall looking up at Carl who met his gaze, there was a long moment of silence while they sized each other up.
"None of this shit's fair kid." Negan finally said, "Hell you know that. You had to kill your own mom. That is screwed up. Ergo, we need someone in charge who's willing to do whatever it takes to make sure that shit doesn't happen. Oh Wait. That's me."
"Bad stuff does happen." Carl said, "But we can figure this out. We can stop this."
"Oh now you want to talk? See, your dad had it that I died, no matter what. He gave my people a choice. Not me. Now we're gonna need a new understanding. Apologies, punish –"
"Kill me." He said and saw the shock cross Negan's face, even felt the shock in 10K's expression feeling the sniper staring at him too though Carl's eye was only on Negan.
"What did you say?" Negan asked softly.
"If you have to kill someone, if there has to be punishment, then kill me. I'm serious."
"You want to die?" Negan asked his voice cracking a bit, he sounded broken.
"No, I don't. But I will. It's gonna happen. And if – if me dying could stop this, if it can make things different – for us, for you, for all those other kids it'd be worth it. I mean, was this the plan? Was it supposed to be this way? Is this who you wanted to be?" he asked and Negan was silent and looked away for a second. Carl took the opportunity to glance at 10K who was looking through his scope, from where Carl stood he could see the sniper lining up his shot but from where Negan was they'd see nothing, 10K's black hair made the portion of his head above the wall blend in perfectly with the night, Carl just hoped he wouldn't have to fire that rifle.
Then there was a loud bang and Carl knew the others were making their move out the back. He quickly got down from the platform and 10K started to fire.
"Son of a bitch Carl!" he heard Negan shout when he realized he'd taken off. 10K quickly looked down at him and Carl waved him over as he got down from the platform too, "Was that just a play? I thought we were having a moment you little asshole! Bombs away!"
Carl grabbed the bag he'd left at the bottom of the ladder as 10K joined him.
"Okay, what the frack is –"
Then Negan's bombs landed and blew up causing fire to strike up everywhere, a few buildings were instantly annihilated and Alexandra was lit up in red and orange light. Carl started pulling out the smoke cans and pulling the pins dropping them by the gate. He and 10K made their way deeper into Alexandria as bombs started going off blowing up in their path making them have to backpedal and go around burning cars. Explosions kept going off and they could see the outlines of Negan's men with their guns as they moved through the smoke, 10K taking shots at them whenever he could. Two more houses blew up next to them on the street as they ran the force of the blast almost knocking them off their feet at they stumbled. They heard a crash and an engine cut off and knew Negan had driven a truck right into the place taking down a piece of the wall most likely.
Carl was slowing down as they worked their way further from Negan, 10K had slung his rifle over his shoulder and took Carl's arm over his back to help him walk. He didn't look injured but by his face the sniper knew he was in pain. They made it to a manhole cover and Carl stopped walking.
"Wait. Here." he said and 10K let go of him to move the cover and he and Carl climbed in. They could still hear the explosions in the distance as they moved through the tunnels passing others sitting on the ground until 10K found a place to sit Carl down. He looked like hell, his face sweaty and had dark circles under his eyes. A man that 10K didn't know, the traveler Carl had helped joined them and looked him over but Carl looked up at him and shook his head.
Then they heard footsteps approaching and 10K turned to see Warren with Murphy, Doc and Addy. With them was Rick, Michonne and a few more of their people. 10K stood and walked to his group who looked glad to see he was okay while Rick made his way over to Carl and crouched by him. Then Rick looked to the traveler suspiciously.
"I brought him here." Carl said, "That's how it happened."
Everyone turned to look at him as he pulled up his shirt revealing a patch of gauze, when he pulled it away they saw a bloody bite mark on his stomach. Michonne dropped to her knees by him and Rick looked broken. Then Murphy nudged his way through to look at the bite.
"I can help him." he said and Rick, Michonne and Carl turned to him confused. "My bite can help him."
Rick turned and looked down the tunnel at Warren, "Just a vitamin deficiency?" he asked referring to the reason she'd given as to why the man had blue tinted skin. Warren looked to Murphy.
"Show him." she said and Murphy began to unbutton his shirt. When he opened it they saw he had several bites on his torso and Michonne gasped as all their eyes widened.
"You're looking at the only person ever to be bitten and survive." Warren explained and by the looks on the members of her group she wasn't kidding. "We were taking him to the last CDC in California when we ran low on supplies and found your community."
Rick looked from her back to Murphy, "Will it work?"
Murphy looked him in the eye and nodded once. Rick turned back to Carl and the two shared a long stare before Carl looked to Murphy.
"Do it."