Daryl, Carl, and Oscar moved down the hall quietly in that order, Daryl taking the lead. Even though he has a ranged weapon in these close-quarters passages, he has the most experience and is the least likely to be unable to fight off a walker with his bare hands if he has to.
They moved quietly, their weapons held firmly and Oscar trying his best to imitate the silent step the two in front of him inexplicably have. He's noticed over the last few days that their entire group has this sort of light-foot but there's a few of them that seem to be inordinately good at it.
He's spent the least amount of time with and/or around that Eve woman, but these two, Randall, and Glenn in particular seem to almost revere the woman.
He saw the way the entire group completely relaxed the moment Daryl brought her and T-Dog back through that door. Everybody around here's got a lot of respect for her, even Rick seems to defer to her — he'd almost guess that they're related if they looked anything alike, but for once he's not inclined to question why she seems to have the position that she does. She's gotta be the most mysterious and aloof person he's ever met and he hasn't known her very long, but even he feels a little more relaxed with her presence. It's that same feeling when you're really nervous about doing something that needs to get done but you're not sure if you can do it, and then she showed up like a sure-fire backup plan incarnate.
It's a weird feeling to get from someone, especially from someone you don't even know and could kill you in a heartbeat. He's seen that girl in action and she survived a whole night down here in these tunnels without a flashlight and no idea where she was going (as far as he knows). He hasn't been dealing with these dead freaks for long so his comparison may be unfair but he's positive that not just anybody can do that. And yet, the entire group was sure she would, it was just a matter of time.
It makes him wonder how many times that's happened before.
Glenn told him a story late last night, when they were rotating their shifts to look for her down here, about one of the first times she scared the living daylights out of them and came back against all odds. When the Greene's farm was overrun and Eve was lost. How she saved Randall, twice, and was one of the only people who hadn't made it to the meeting spot on the highway, and just …
Oscar has a hard time even imagining just how many of these freaks they were surrounded by out in the open and what they must've had to push through to get to that spot, and then despite being separated from Randall, and then making it back at the very last second.
Oscar has met some tough people in his time, but that woman could mop the floor with all of them without breakin' a sweat.
Oscar shined his flashlight into a cell even though the ceiling skylights are enough to light the dim grey hallway and a smile instantly crawled across his face.
"Oh, dat's what I'm talkin' about."
Daryl and Carl turned around as he disappeared into a cell.
Daryl's eyebrows drew down together as he walked into the cell — Carl right behind him, watching Oscar crouch down at the back corner of it. "The Hell you need slippers for?"
"You know, end of the day, relaxin'." Oscar shrugged at him like it was obvious.
A growl behind them had all three aiming at the door in half a second and the lone walker that dared to creep up on them in this dead end hallway was immediately sprayed with bullets from Oscar and Carl (though Carl's were more accurate and less wasteful) and a crossbow bolt to the forehead.
Only when it fell backwards and hit the floor, did they relax.
This is routine for them now but the jump scares are the worst part because no matter how used to something you get, the spike of adrenaline from a jump scare makes it feel like you aren't used to it after all.
"Must've been in the cell at the end. We checked everywhere else" Oscar deduced as they all walked out of the cell slowly, just in case.
Daryl's eyes caught on something sticking out of the side of the walker's neck and knelt down, grabbing the black handle and slowly slid it out, blood spurting out as he released the wedged skin and arteries from the small blade.
"That's Carol's knife."
Daryl harshly wiped the knife clean on the walker's prison uniform.
How did— when did Carol's knife get stuck here?
Daryl stabbed the knife into the ground again, the tip sinking into the concrete less than a millimeter.
His head swirled with the tornado of thoughts running through his mind so fast he couldn't grab even a single one as they flitted around and around. He could barely tell the general theme as they spiraled, stirring up deep pools of frustration with every one he tried to grab and couldn't keep a hold of.
Each time he failed to grasp a thought, he stabbed. Each time he grew more frustrated, he stabbed. Each time he wanted to stop thinking but couldn't, stab. Each time that damn solitary door weakly pushed against the heavy walker corpse on the ground blocking it from opening, he stabbed especially hard.
The squeak of the door every few seconds is in no way helping him think and pouring lighter fluid on the embers of his last nerve.
He stabbed the concrete wall at his back at an especially loud squeak and glared at the offending rusty metal, and it was the last straw. He stabbed the wall again as he sprung to his feet and threw his foot against the door so hard that it slammed and if it had been a normal door made of wood it would've caved in, before he stormed away.
But he didn't get 20 feet down the hall before he was turning back, anger pumping through and bulging the veins on his neck and arms.
His breaths came in & out heavily as his boots scuffed the dusty floor, pacing back and forth in front of the door.
With all the calm of a kicked wasp nest, Daryl grabbed the body by the back of the shirt, dragged it backwards and ripped the door open with Carol's knife raised.
And was met with nothing. He looked down and froze, until a pair of exhausted blue eyes weakly looked up.
Rick squinted as he walked down the gravel path towards the fence, eyes stuck on exactly one form as it was limping slowly towards the fence.
Rick stared through the fence as the woman with dark skin and dreadlocks covered in walker entrails and blood approached and grabbed the chain, staring directly at him. Firm eyes filled with suppressed pain and imploring him to open the gate and let her in.
Out of his periphery Rick looked at the red basket in her hand, filled with powdered baby formula. The pearl white katana on the woman's back was distinctly noticeable, standing out against everything around it. Gleaming and obviously used but looks clean and well taken care of.
The blade gives him the same feeling as Eve's knives. This strange woman radiates the ability to use it, like she could pull it in a half a second, and that alone is enough to make Rick extremely wary of her, but the formula pilled in the basket is enough to make him care more about why she's carrying such a thing and nothing else, and how she came here. It hasn't escaped him that a few certain people left earlier looking for exactly what's in that basket, and they've been gone just long enough that this timing is just a little too coincidental. He set his jaw, gritting his teeth as a dark instinct began clawing its way into the back of his mind.
He narrowed his eyes at her as she flinched suddenly, letting go of the fence to press her hand on her leg for a moment before bringing it back up, the palm of her brown leather finger-less glove now caked in fresh blood from the wound on her leg that must be causing the limp.
The woman dropped the basket and backpedaled as the walkers on the fence next to her started to smell the fresh blood and turned.
She hopped on her good leg, dragging the other as she stabbed the end of the katana straight through the forehead of one before dropping her backpack as the others started to come towards her.
"Should we help her?" Carl asked, from the gate.
Rick didn't answer, merely glanced at him and then made determined strides towards the gate, Hershel and Beth (with the baby) coming down the path behind him.
Carl watched her slice the head clean off of another walker and then fall backwards. She didn't trip or anything, she just fell over and laid there, even though 2 walkers were about to be right on top of her.
Two gunshots rang out as Rick got inside the entry gate with Carl glanced at his son as the boy lowered his gun.
"Carl" Rick called and Carl tossed him the keys to the gate.
"Shit" Rick cursed as he threw the newly unlocked gate open and took out his gun.
He and Carl pelted the incoming walkers with head shots as the two of them moved out. Carl ran to grab the basket and backpack, while Rick went to the stranger, kicking her sword away from her first even though she's fading in and out of consciousness and likely couldn't fight a wasp, much less a full grown man.
He knelt beside her and Hershel called out, "Is she bit?"
Rick checked her for obvious injuries and looked at where she's bleeding on her leg, recognizing the wound immediately and called back, "Gunshot."
Rick grabbed her arm and maneuvered her into a position where he could fireman carry her and headed back inside the gate before the walkers attracted by the gunshots can become a threat.
Carl stopped to grab the sword and sheath before running after his dad and making it back inside the gate.
As the collection of them reached the prison, Carl opened the door for his dad and ran inside, dropping the stuff as Rick & Hershel barked instructions to Beth and everyone to get this or that or to move out of the way as Rick dragged the half conscious woman inside their living space. Not inside the cell block, he's not bringing a stranger into the heart of their den, just to one of the cages in the corner of this big eating/living space; of which they still can't decide what to call.
"Here?" Carl rushed to help his dad put her down.
"She's not coming in the cell blocks." Rick nodded as he laid the woman down.
Beth handed him a bottle of water and Rick uncapped it, putting his finger over it so he could control the amount he sprinkled on her neck/chest.
"It's alright. It's alright. Hey hey, look at me." Rick tried to get her attention as she came to, a little more lucid and awake.
He waited until she was solidly staring at him, waiting for him to speak before he asked, "Who are you?"
She looked around, breathing heavy and clearly spooked before she spotted her sword near his foot. He was faster though and slid his foot out, knocking it away before she could get anywhere near it.
"We're not gonna hurt you, unless you try something stupid first, all right?"
"Rick."
Said man looked over to Daryl, just coming out of the cell blocks.
"Who the Hell is this?" Daryl asked, eyeing the stranger on the floor warily.
"You wanna tell us your name?" Rick asked the woman again, allowing her to use the cage beside her to help herself sit up, but she didn't answer.
Rick got her eyes to lock with his and whispered, "You wanna tell us your name?"
Again, no answer. At least not a verbal one. Fortunately Rick happens to be quite adept at communicating via eye contact thanks to a certain someone. Coincidentally, an entirely different silent blade-wielding warrior. And 'no, I'm not going to' is not a difficult one to decipher.
"Y'all come on in here." Daryl distracted them all, not caring that much about some injured stranger laying on the floor who won't even tell them her name.
"Everything all right?" Rick asked, standing up and side glancing at Daryl, not wanting to turn his back.
"You're gonna wanna see this." Daryl answered vaguely.
"Go ahead. Carl, get the bag." Rick instructed. Carl did as told and the others immediately departed into the cell block.
"We'll keep this safe and sound." Rick held up her sword as he stared her down, making sure she didn't make a move.
"The doors are all locked. You'll be safe here. And we can treat that." Rick motioned at her leg.
"I didn't ask for your help." She bitterly hissed but it didn't have much bite to it, given her current state.
"Doesn't matter." Rick shook his head and walked away. "Can't let you leave."
He moved past Daryl into the cell block and Daryl closed the gate behind them, locking it before he led all of them to a cell near the back.
Daryl led them to the cell where he'd laid her down and leaned against the wall outside it with his arms crossed. A smile fighting it's way onto his face as he watched the moment Rick laid eyes on the little mouse they thought they lost in the maze, Carol.
Carol staggered to her feet and all but collapsed into Rick's arms, wrapping him a weak hug but tight as she could manage.
"Thank god, thank god." Rick squeezed her back, sharing his second reunion like this in less than 24 hours. Only this time it's even more unbelievable because they all thought she was dead. They weren't even looking for her because they found her head scarf soaked in blood and—… they had no hope she was even alive.
"How?" Hershel asked in utter disbelief and as relieved as the day is long, as Rick moved away to let two of them hug.
"Solitary." Carol answered as she wrapped her arms tight around the old man who has become like a father to them all.
"Poor thing fought her way into a cell. Must'a passed out. Dehydrated." Daryl chimed in from outside.
Carol released Hershel as she finally looked over his shoulder at Beth, holding a newborn baby sleeping in her arms.
She didn't even need to ask after a moment of pure happiness as she just looked around and realized Lori didn't make it.
She whimpered as she covered her mouth and turned to Rick, who was looking down. She put her hands on his cheeks, motherly instinct taking over to comfort and whispered a truly remorseful, "I'm sorry."
The moment passed quickly, and Carol got to hold the baby for a moment while Rick exited the cell and allowed T-Dog in so he and Carol could have their reunion and talk about what happened after they got separated but it wasn't much of a story, it didn't differ too much from his own. It seems all three of them (he, Carol, and Eve) had been forced into very much the same position, with slight exceptions and differences in luck.
Rick motioned at Hershel and Daryl to follow while Randall and Carl and Beth finished up the reunions with a few more hugs and Randall explained to Carol where the others were; either on the run or keeping watch or dealing with other stuff that's gotta be done while they all came to see her.
Meanwhile Rick brought Daryl to the side specifically because he's gotta tell him something, and he's not gonna like it. Especially not after last night.
"So what's goin' on? Who is that?" Daryl jerked his chin towards the gate separating them from the stranger in the other room.
"We're about to find out. Grab your bow." Rick grit his teeth for a moment, taking a deep breath through his nose. He doesn't want to speculate to Daryl about what he thinks — what he fears may be going on, but if he's right, Daryl's gonna flip his lid just like he did when they first met and he told him they'd left his brother to die on a rooftop.
Daryl grabbed his crossbow and the three of them went to find out what this is all about.
Alright, with everybody freaking out about the Corona virus, I just wanna take a minute to help reassure you guys. Corona has caused a unique sort of panic in the masses because of misinformation incorrectly handled by authorities and media, which has turned the situation into a pandemic.
Let me be clear, as it stands right now (May 16th 2020) the panic has caused more problems than the actual virus. Hop online and keep up to date with what's going on from reputable sources such as the CDC and W.H.O, not the media. Stay home as much as possible, clean surfaces like door knobs and things that get regularly touched, take proper precautions like keeping your hands clean and avoid touching your face, and follow instructions for your area if they're issued.
If you must go out, keep a safe distance from other people in public, keep physical contact to a minimum i.e skip handshakes and hugs. And try to stay calm. If you know people who are old or immune compromised, take extra precautions because it's more dangerous for them than a healthy individual.
Be alert, don't panic. If you're having trouble staying calm, connect to your social network (digitally) and find some emotional support, to help dissuade your anxiety, hop on the internet and keep up to date. Distractions can be useful at this time, so I also suggest whipping out your favorite movies, books, and TV series, catch up on that series you've been watching or finish that book you wanted to read, play a video game and hang out with your friends over a video chat instead of in-person.
Try to keep your routine as much as possible. Your day to day rituals will help keep you stable.
If you can, inform those around you of what's going on and help keep everyone calm.
So far the only people who have died from corona are the old, those who are immune compromised, and people with preexisting conditions. Healthy people will catch it, fight it off, and create antibodies, just like you would if you caught the flu.
Stay informed, be cautious and aware but don't panic. Stay safe and take care to protect those around you, everybody.
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed your escape from reality, and I'll see you next chp! Don't forget to Favorite, Review, and Follow for more!
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