A.N. As most of you will have seen this fiction is rated M, for mature themes. This is a super long chapter following season three episode seven When The Dead Come Knocking.

Marlou: thank you for reviewing, I'm not planning on putting her through more than what she has been, however there will be flashbacks to what she has endured.

quietsoul. Here is the update for you! enjoy!

cjwilight. I have been wanting someone to write something like this too, but I decided to take things into my own hands.

Tdcaryl: Thanks for the review! And here is a nice long chapter for you to read.

Disclaimer: I don't own The Walking Dead, though I wish I could act in it.

WARNING VIOLENCE!

Cracks.

~The Prison~

Something was wrong. Rick stared at the woman standing outside of the fence. Walkers to her left and right ignored her and he knew the reason. She was covered in guts, Walker guts; he could smell it from where he was standing. She was a black woman, with a slim build and dreadlocks tied out of her face with bandana, and a katana sword strapped to her back. In her hand was a red basket filled with baby formula. Somehow he knew, he just knew something bad had happened to Carol and Glenn as soon as he saw that basket.

Rick stayed motionless, stiller than a lion poised before the pounce, watching the woman's every move. Her hand went to a wound on her leg then back up to clasp at the fence. The Walker next to her smelt the fresh blood and turned it's attention to her. The Walker guts wouldn't protect her much longer. As if on cue she drew her katana and sliced through the walker's head, sending an arch of blood into the air. Other walkers started to notice her existence and began dragging their feet towards her. She dropped the red basket and stumbled back, her movement severely inhibited by the leg wound. She was clumsy and stumbled. Rick called hastily for Carl to give him the keys. The gate opened. Rick raised his revolver and fired on the closest Walker. Brains flew and the Walker fell. A quick sprint and he was hauling the strange woman back to her feet.

BANG BANG!

Rick heard Carl fire his gun and caught a glimpse of his son rushing to get the red basket. Together they managed to get back inside the fence and lock the gate.

~Glenn Carol~

Glenn ground his teeth, holding the broken piece of chair as his life line. He avoided the dead Walker on the floor, stepping round the pool of stale blood as he paced. He heard a commotion in the room next to his and tensed. Broken piece of chair raised at the ready. The door to his room opened. He charged. Guns raised and cocked. Merle sneered. There were two others with him.

"Whoa there,"

Glenn held still, waiting for the next move. A third man appeared and he dragged with him Carol; she was naked and just as badly beaten as Glenn was, perhaps even worse. Glenn dropped his makeshift weapon. A chill shivered through his body. This man was dangerous, the look in his eyes was pure cold. The man gripped Carol's arm harshly and pulled out a gun, leveling it at her head.

"Now one of you is going to tell me where your group are," he said slowly. He glanced between them both. Glenn remained still and looked into Carol's eyes, one of them was swollen shut like his was. However even looking like she did Carol's one good eye radiated defiance, and there was the most subtle shake of her head. Don't. Glenn listened and bit down on his tongue.

The man saw this and tried something else. The gun was now trained on Glenn.

"Come on now," he said. Glenn kept looking at Carol. I won't. The man grew tired. He shoved Carol roughly into the room, Glenn manged to catch her. As soon as his arms were supporting her he knew how weak she truly was. Her naked form shivered against him and as the three men and Marle all left, they both collapsed into a heap on the floor. Glenn was painfully aware of Carol's lack of clothing as he held her. He saw fresh wounds criss-crossing on her back, like she had been whipped with a belt. He also saw older scars, he chose to ignore these. Tugging his shirt off, he helped Carol regain some of her modesty. At least it covered her to her mid thigh. Glenn nearly hurled then and there when he saw the bruises on her upper legs.

"Carol..." He didn't know what to say. She had the strength to shake her head.

"Don't..." She winced "I'm okay." It was a lie, but a brave one for his benefit. He knew what she was doing and humoured her by leaving it be.

"They're coming for us," he said.

"They don't even know we were taken,"

"They will know something's gone wrong and come looking," Glenn pressed, but even he wasn't so sure.

~The Prison ~

"Was she bit?" Hershel hastily asked, hurrying over as fast as he could on his crutches.

"No, gunshot," Rick replied. The woman lay passed out from exhaustion. Carl came in and placed the basket and its contents onto the table. The others were rushing to see what was happening.

"What's going on?" Maggie demanded.

"Where's Glenn an Carol?" Daryl's gruff voice cut straight to the heart of Rick's fears.

"I don't know," he looked up at them all gathering around him. "Something's not right. But we're gonna have to wait until she wakes up before we can have the full story." The woman on the floor moaned, her eyes fluttered open and instantly she grabbed for her sword. Rick quickly kicked it away.

"Hey. Hey," he pressed her back down with a firm hand on her shoulder, she was stronger than he thought. There was a the hostile glare in her eyes laced with the slightest traces of fear.

"No. We're not going to hurt you unless you try something stupid first, all right?" He pressed a little harder on her shoulder. "You wanna tell us your name?"

"Rick," Daryl shifted from foot to foot. Rick noticed the flicker in the hunter's eyes and new he had to talk about thingssoon Gettings feet he picked up the katana. "We'll keep this safe and sound," he pointed around the room, "The doors are all locked. You'll be safe here." He gestured to the wound on her leg, "And we can treat that."

He could feel Daryl and Maggie's eyes boring into the back of his head. He had to talk to them but first he needed to sort things out with their new arrival.

"I didn't ask for your help," she said lowly.

"Doesn't matter,"

"Rick," Daryl beckoned him again. Turning away from the woman and taking the sword, "Can't let you leave." He threw over his shoulder.

~Glenn Carol~

Both Carol and Glenn were dehydrated and exhausted. While Glenn was in no fit shape to be moving Carol was worse, so unfortunately, it fell on the young asian's shoulders to try and think of away out. Carol leaned heavily on his shoulder and he wondered how much more fight they both had left in them. For uncounted minutes Glenn looked around the room for a weapon of any kind. There were the broken pieces of chair but they were clumsy. Carol did a sudden intake of breath and opened her eyes. Looking more alert than he had seen her in a while.

"Hey, Carol?"

"Glenn?"

"I'm here,"

"How long?" She tried to push herself up but it was futile.

"Hey easy," Glenn supported her shoulder. "I don't know," he sighed, "I've been trying to think of a better weapon than a chair." He stared looking again.

"..Walker.." Carol wheezed.

"What?" Glenn panicked then remembered that the only walker in the room was the one he killed. "It's okay I took care of it."

"No," Carol tried again, her voice weak, "you... pull off the Walker's arm...use the Ulna and Radius as knives,"

It was -without a better word- disgusting, but way better than anything he could come up with. Lifting Carol's head off his shoulder he rested it against the wall. She really did look awful. Her left cheek was purple, her shoulder joint was at an odd angle, and her legs were black and blue, some of the bruises turning green at the esged. Going over to the Walker, Glenn gripped an arm, streadied his foot on the back and pulled. Up, twist, up again and pull. The arm came off with a sickening crunch and more blood pooled out onto the floor as tendons, ligaments and rotten muscle tore away. He began peeling the skin back. He couldn't help the thought that Darly would do a much better job of skinning the Walker. Maybe, if Darly had been on the run this never would have happened to them? Merle would not have taken them hostage. They wouldn't have been beaten, Carol wouldn't have been ra- don't think about that! Getting back to the grueling task and trying not to throw up was as good a distraction as any.

Carol started to move, shifting her weight forwards into a more upright position before wincing and leaning back, holding her left arm tightly to her chest.

"We should try popping that shoulder back in," Glenn said finally being able to pull some bone free from the dead arm. "I know Hershal's been teaching you things-,"

"I can tell you what to do," Carol licked her lips and panted. "Finish what you're doing first." Nodding, Glenn complied. Soon they had two pieces of bone knives. He approached Carol and took her shoulder gently into his hand, steadying her with the other. Slowly she took him through what he needed to do. Grabbing her arm at a right angle he started pulling away and lifting it u. There was a crunch. Carol screamed, doubling over.

"What did I do!" Glenn panicked.

"Not... You..." Carol gasped "ribs... Keep going almost.. Aghh!" Carol screamed again. Glenn felt bone rubbing on bone, then, a pop. Carol slumped forward onto him, unconscious. slowly, he lowered her to rest on the floor. Not knowing what to do other than wait. He gathered up the arm bones holding them at the ready while sitting by Carol shielding her with his body.

~The Prison~

"Where are Glenn and Carol?" Maggie came up on Rick with Daryl not far behind her.

"I don't know," he sighed running a hand down his face.

"Doesn't she know something?" Maggie pointed accusingly at the woman in the dining area of cell block C.

"Bet she does," Daryl said, "she had the formula an' stuff. Must'a seen somethin'," he glanced back.

"Alright," Rick licked his lips and nodded, "We ask her, get the information and send her on her way."

"What if she don't talk?"

"Then we get her to," Maggie said sternly.

"I don't us want to have to resort to that," Rick shut down. "But, if, and I say if it comes to that. There is only one of her and way more of us."

"I dunno man," Darly pointed to the sword in Rick's hand. "She seems to be able to handle herself."

"So what do we do?" Maggie scoffed "sit and wait? Well I'm not waiting here while Glenn and Carol are out there.

"Maggie's got a point," Daryl agreed, "don't feel right."

Rick ran a hand through his hair and took a step back while he digested the conversation. Looking at the sword in his hand then the woman in the other room. With a slight nod to himself he come to a decision.

"Okay," he muttered as he walked back to where Hershal and the others were watching the new arrival like hawks. The woman looked up as the door screeched open and Rick came to kneel before her.

"We can tend to that wound for you, give you a little food and water, and then send you on your way. But you're gonna have to tell us how you found us and why you were carrying formula." Rick stared into her beep brown eyes.

"The supplies were dropped by a young Asian guy with a woman with short hair." Well that was easier than Rick had expected.

"What happened? Rick kept eye contact, gauging what she was made off, "Were they attacked?"

"They were taken," she stared right back.

"Taken? By who?" Rick leaned in closer, she finally averted her gaze to look at the floor.

"By the same son of a bitch who shot me," she sneered. After a few seconds passed and she didn't say anything else Rick grabbed her leg and pressed his thumb into the bullet wound.

"Hey! These are our people. You tell us what happened now!" He growled. She lashed out at him in pain and shoved him back.

"Don't you ever touch me again!" She threatened. Two could play that game. And the other was already moving swifter than a cat.

"You'd better start talking. Or You're gonna have a much bigger problem than a gunshot wound."

Rick heard the cock of Daryl's crossbow. The woman turned her hostile eyes to the bolt aimed at her head. Then the steady hand holding it. The blue eyes daring her to try something, anything and he would queeze the trigger.

"Find 'em yourself," she snarled. Rick didn't want this to get out of hand, they still had to figure out what had happened to Glenn and Carol.

" Put it down," Rick gave Daryl a fleeting look. I know what you're feeling. It said. Slowly the redneck grudgingly lowered his weapon. Turning back the to warrior of a woman Rick said. "You came here for a reason," it wasn't a question. There were a few long moments of tense silence before she replied.

"There's a town. Woodbury. About seventy-five survivors." She looked at the others all standing on edge, hands on their weapons. "I think they were taken there," she finished. "A whole town?" Maggie didn't quite believe it.

"It's run by this guy who calls himself The Governor-- pretty boy, charming, Jim Jones type," the woman's expression darkened. Her lips pulled back in a snarl, as if she was imagining ripping out his throat with her teeth.

"Got muscle?" Daryl asked gruffly.

"Paramilitary wannabes," the top of her lips curled back even further into a sneer, "They have armed sentries on every wall."

"You know a way in?" Maggie hitched her rifle onto her shoulder, stepping closer into the conversation.

"The place is secure from walkers, but we could slip our way through," the woman said confidently. She was starting to look a little more relaxed. was it this Governor, whom had put her so on edge?

"How'd you know how to get here?" Rick stepped back into their conversation, keeping a close eye on her and his other senses on his friends.

"They mentioned a prison, said which direction it was in, that it was a straight shot." She replied without blinking. Whatever game she was playing Rick couldn't tell what it was just yet, or if she was playing one at all. He decided that the white flag of truce was the best way to go about things with this woman. For the moment at least.

"This is Hershel," Rick pointed to the veterinarian, "He'll take care of that." He pointed to her leg and left, "come on,' he called to Maggie and Daryl, "let's get the car loaded!"

"How do you know we can trust her?" Maggie asked throwing a hasty glance in the direction of the woman. They were all out in the yard with spring's late afternoon sun beating heavily down onto the cement.

"This is Carol and Glenn. Why are we even debating?" Daryl snapped as he whirled past, tossing the heavy bags he was carrying into the boot of the metalWith green Hyundia.

Rick watched the redneck hunter closely. There was a fliker in Daryl's blue eyes, the slight tremor of his strong hands as they loaded another bag into the car.

"We ain't," Rick assured Daryl. he took a slight step closer and gave his close friend a light pat on the arm. The bigger man nodded and walked away to fetch more bags.

"Well this place sounds pretty secure," Rick turned and saw Hershal hobbling up to them on his crutches. "You can't go alone just the three of you," he said warningly.

"We ain't," Rick said pulling out and checking his revolver. "This lady Michonne's showing us the way, and if she's any good with that sword of hers we should be fine."

"Even so," the farmer looked determined.

"I'll go," said a beep voice from behind them, Oscar stood there. Rick nodded and Maggie mouthed her thanks before giving her father a quick kiss on the cheek as a goodbye. The sollum silence was broken by Daryl's return.

"I got the flash bangs and I got the tear gas," he announced, ready for business. He turned and saw them all staring at him. "You never know what you're gonna need."

From a little ways way Carl approached the group out in the courtyard. The boy looked pale and tense as he stepped up to them. Daryl leaned down to look Carl in the eye. "Hey. Hey, don't you worry about your old man. I'm gonna keep my eye on him," Daryl gave Carl a solid pat on the shoulder before slamming the boot shut.

"Wasn't this place overrun?" The woman, Michonne -she had told them her name was- said, sword slung over her back. Rick hadn't heard her approach, and he wasn't sure it that was either a good or a bad thing.

"It was," he decided to reply.

"And you cleared it out all by yourselves? Just the few of you?" She raised an eyebrow, impressed, if quite sceptical.

"There were others," Rick left it at that. Feeling an iron hand clench round his heart. He saw Carl standing to on side. He needed to talk to his son about something before they left "Carl!"

~Daryl~

Daryl watched Rick and his son move off to one side, he could guess what they were talking about but his mind was elsewhere. On the outside he appeared relatively calm. But inside a whirlwind was raging. He only just managed to keep it under control. Fidgeting constantly he made it look like he was always doing something to disguise his shaking hands. Whenever his mind wondered to what could have happened to Carol a cold tingling sensation ran down his spine. he was sure that if he wasn't to keep his emotions in check he would be throwing up with how badly his stomach was churning.

~Rick Maggie Daryl Oscar Michonne~

On a road a little ways outside of Woodbury a car pulled over and Rick, the woman Michonne, Maggie, Daryl and Oscar piled out into the late Georgia sun. The sun was low on the horizon turning the sky from blue to red and orange. The small team of people armed with gun, crossbow and sword as well as a machine guns and flash bangs. They started walking cautiously, always keeping and eye out for the dead... And now the living too. Any sign of a threat and there was an unspoken understanding that it was shoot to kill.

"They have patrols, we're better off on foot," Michonne explained as they walked. She took them into the trees and off the road. There was a small path she lead them down. Maggie cast a glance at the woman's back but kept her tongue.

"How far?" Rick asked looking up at the darkening sky, "Night's coming." He didn't want to be caught out in the woods at night so close to an enemy camp.

"It's a mile, maybe two." Michonne replied her face a mask of stoic determination. Rick nodded pulling back to where Daryl was scanning the trees, squinting his eyes. If Rick didn't know Daryl he would have said he looked collected and focused. However he did know the redneck hunter, and he saw the white knuckles as he clenched his crossbow in a death grip. Maggie silently moved away to give them privacy.

"You know," Rick broke the silence again, feeling the need to draw Daryl out of his own thoughts, "what you did for me, for my baby, while I was... working things out-- thank you." Rick looked up at Daryl, he had stopped walking, adjusted his hold on his crossbow and gave the slightest of shrugs relaxing his posture.

"It's what we do." Rick twitched the corner of his mouth up in appreciation.

"Rick!" Oscar called in a whisper.

"Down!" Maggie growled. A Walker come wondering out of the trees, then another and another. It wasn't the biggest herd they had faced but the risk of gunfire was too much so close to hostile territory. The stream of walkers increased so much that they had to make a run for it. Daryl took point, leaping through the undergrowth like a stag while the others followed just as swiftly but less gracefully behind.

"This way!" Daryl called back dodging a tree and making a B-line for what looked like a cabin. "Through there. Come on!" Daryl jumped up the steps, loosed a bolt into the head of a walker too close to Rick. Shouldering the door open he quickly ushered them all inside. Michonne sliced through any Walker unlucky enough to get close to her and her sword.

"Get the door!" Oscar and Michonne slammed their shoulders into it and Daryl added his weight to it while they barricaded it. "Keep it down. Keep it down." Rick hushed. "The smell. What the hell is that?" Maggie gagged covering her mouth and nose. Daryl on the other hand with Walkers hammering on the door and the pungent fumes of decaying flesh looked unfazed. "It's got to be a fox or what's left of one," he said pulling a torch out and bringing it into life. He shone the beam of light around the interior, a small log stove, an old beaten dusty chair. Finally the beam landed on the carcass of a long dead dog. "guess Lassie went home." He muttered. Daryl's ears twitched and he hoisted up his bow, he pulled away from the door, Maggie taking his place. He did a wide sweep. Rick pulled out his revolver from its holster and followed. It might have been nothing but you could never be sure in this world now. They approached the rickety bed and the lump underneath the covers. The two men exchanged a nod before Rick inched closer and tugged back the moth eaten duvet.

"Ah!" A wild looking man jumped up and brandished a shotgun at them. All five of them raised their weapons in response. "Who the hell are you?" The man demanded panicked eyes blazing over his beard. Rick had to somehow defuse the situation otherwise the Walkers outside would get even more riled up and attract more with the noise.

"We don't mean any harm," he tried to sound reassuring.

"Get outta my house!" He shouted, a manic look come over him.

"Okay, okay, okay. We will, but we can't right now." Rick tried to explain, the clammer of the dead outside getting louder.

"Now!" The man yelled.

"Shut him up!" Michonne hissed anxiously watching the Walkers fingers tugging at the boarded up windows.

"Get out right now!"

"There are Walkers outside," Rick was trying desperately to calm the man. Did he even know what was happening outside? Had he been locked up so long that he had gone mad? Quite possibly.

"I'll call the cops!" He raised his shotgun and Rick raised his hands in as none menacing manner as possible.

"I am a cop. Now I need you to lower the gun. Don't do anything rash. Everything's fine. Let's just-- let's just take this nice and slow, okay? Look at me. Hey, hey." The mans eyes darted around wildly.

"Show me your badge," he finally demanded.

"All right. It's in my pocket. It's in my pocket. Now, I'm just gonna reach down nice and slow." Daryl and Oscar lunged grabbing the man and his gun.

"Let go!" He shouted fighting a to get free," Let of me! I'll kill you, you-- let go of me!"

"Shut up! Shut up!" Rick hissed. The man didn't listen, fighting back he got a luckily shot in and made a mad dash for the door as Daryl's hold loosened. "Ah! Help!" He screamed They found me! Help me!"

"Don't open that door!" Rick shouted, pulling out his gun ready to...

"Hel--" the man's cries were cut short by a sword. Maggie gasped. Michonne pulled her sword free and the man fell to the floor. There was stunned silence then the din was broken by the uproar outside, all the noise and riled the Walkers up good. Now they smashed and ripped at the cabin, desperately trying to get to the juicy living things inside. Rick looked at the dead man then Michonne, then the Walkers.

"Remember the Alamo?" He asked Daryl as he lifted the body under the arm pits. Daryl nodded "Help me with the door," the former cop and redneck started dragging the body up and Daryl braced the door, hand on the handle ready for the signal.

"You've gotta be kidding," Oscar said sounding sick.

"He's dead," Rick said stone faced with determination "Check the back."

"It's clear!" Came Maggie's voice.

Rick nodded to Daryl and Oscar, who looked away, his dark skin looking pale.

"One, two, three!" The door was flung open and the man's dead body flung out into the mass of Walkers outside. They fell on the fresh meat avidly begining to gorge and rip into the body of the man. While the Walkers were distracted the five of them slipped out of the back and started running again, with Daryl's keen eyes and ears leading them as safe as could be through the trees.

~Glenn Carol~

It was impossible to tell what time it was, there were no windows so no sunlight, but somehow Glenn knew it was night. Probably because Carol seemed to know what time it was. They had all been spending more time out with Daryl, and that man just seemed to know everything. He knew plants, tracks, where rivers were, where they had been even if the others were too disoriented from turning back on themselves hundreds of times, Daryl just knew. Glenn looked over to where Carol was now sitting weakly against the wall next to him. The effort of just holding herself up causing a sweat to breakout over her skin. She looked pale and paler by the second as she shuddered in painful breaths.

"It's night," Carol had announced out of the blue earlier.

"How can you tell?" Glenn had asked. Carol smiled then couched, clearing her throat she blinked languidly.

"The smell," she said quietly, her voice sounding weaker by the minute. "Night smells different, colder."

Now that Glenn focused he could smell it too, the slight chill in the air stinging the back of his throat. Carol's head lolled to the side dangerously.

"Hey, hey!" Glenn touched her shoulder, "stay awake. Stay with me."

Carol's eyes opened heavily and she canted her head slightly in a nod.

"I'm okay," she couched again. Glenn's fist clenched around the makeshift bone knife he was holding. "We're gonna get out of this," he assured her. "We will. Come on, stand up, that's it. Steady." Glenn helped her to her feet and walked her to the side of the room where the door was. He was as mindful of her raw back and broken ribs as he could be, but there was nothing he could do for the trembling in her legs. He propped her against the wall and gripped her hand holding her own bone weapon. He looked into her eyes, trying to give her as much strength as he could. He didn't have much left himself, the beatings from Merle, lack of food, water, and that Walker. He was running on empty. They stood by the door and waited...

Why was this chapter sooooo long? Well it had to be in order for me to get the timeline and the story where I wanted it without giving you chapter after chapter of filler when I could get it all out of the way in one go. Next chapter picks up the pace.

I have a question for you readers, I couldn't decide whether to relate Daryl to a wolf or a stag, but I went with stag in the end, what do you guys think?