Chapter 7- The CDC

Lights flashed through Avery's eye lids as his body started to wake up. He could tell that he was laying on a soft surface. 'A bed maybe?' He tried to open his eyes, lift a hand, move a finger, anything, but his body felt like lead. He knew someone was holding his hand. 'Probably Daryl.' He thought and inwardly sighed. He was so tired. His body refused to listen to him as his mind drifted in and out of consciousness. 'That's right... I'm in the RV with Eren and Daryl...'

"How's he doin'?" A deep drawl drifted through the RV. Daryl looked up from Avery's face to Ricks.

Daryl sighed and shook his head. "Hasn't moved an inch since we left the quarry. Still no fever."

Rick nodded as he leaned against the bathroom door. "We are almost to the CDC. Bout five minutes."

Daryl nodded. "Everyone doin' alright?"

"Yeah. It's Avery we're all worked about." Rick looked out of the window at the trees as they passed by. "No one's really upset. They understand why we haven't done anything yet. There could still be hope. Well... Everyone's happy minus Shane."

"Good." Daryl said as he laid his head down. He gave Avery's hand a small squeeze before turning his gaze to Rick. "Anything new happen since Avery was attacked?"

Rick nodded. "Jim was bit. We stopped a while ago when you were sleeping. He wanted us to just leave him. We respected his wish."

Daryl looked away, a deep frown on his face. "How many did we lose? Who's left?"

"You, me, Avery, Lori, Carl, Jaquie, Andrea, Amy, Shane, T-Dog, Dale, Glenn, Eren, Sophia and Carol."

"So we did lose a lot." Daryl mumbled to himself.

Rick ran his hand through his hair. "We got plenty of vehicles. Amy is driving Avery's jeep with Andrea, Glenn has Merle's truck with your motorcycle in the back, Shane has his jeep, Carol has her car, and Dale has the RV."

"Eren with Lori and Carl?" Daryl asked.

Rick nodded. "Ya."

Daryl nodded slowly as he closed his eyes.

As the RV pulled to a stop, Daryl woke Avery up and with his help, they slowly stepped out of the RV as they got the rest of the group huddled together for safety. Avery was dizzy and could barely even hold himself up right.

"We shouldn't be this close to the city near night fall." Lori whispered to Rick as they got closer to the CDC. Avery nodded in agreement, tightening his weak grip on Daryl's arm, watching as Carl and Eren held hands as they were sandwiched between their parents.

Rick looked at his wife. "I know, but we don't have much of a choice." He told her as they came up to the doors of the CDC. Glenn and Shane stood in the back, killing off and any stragglers while Rick tried to open the shutters that covered the doors. Rick noticed the camera on the building move a little and started to scream at it.

"I know your in there! Please, open up! We have women and children!"

Lori tried to pull him back as everyone started to head back to the vehicles. "Rick, there's no body in there!"

Rick screamed out in anger and broke away from his wife. "Your killing us! Your killing us!"

The children started to panic, and the parents tried to shush them. After a fer seconds, Shane managed to pull Rick away from the doors. "There are walkers everywhere. We need to go. Now!"

Just as Rick gave in and turned to head back with the group, the doors to the CDC went up and opened. A bright light shone from within and a man stepped in the doorway with an AK47 in his arms.

"What do you want?" The man asked as he pointed the gun at them. Daryl moved his body to cover his husbands smaller frame, turning slightly in case the man fired the gun. He'd rather get shot than for Avery to and Lori did the same with Carl and Eren.

Rick turned towards the man. "A chance. Just a chance."

The man nodded slowly. "That's asking an awful lot these days. Has anyone been bit?"

Rick nodded. "Two. One didn't make it."

The man stepped forward and everyone could see his face. He was middle aged man around Andrea's age, with graying orange hair and green eyes. "And the other?"

Daryl turned towards the man. "He's right here. But he ain't seem to be turning. Don't even have a fever." His accent deep and thick. "Jus' weak from blood loss and pain."

The man looked at him weirdly. "What do you mean?"

Daryl sighed. "He was bit last night and still no fever. No signs of infection. Just looks bad. Why wouldn't it though? Teeth tore into his flesh. Other than that, he seems fine."

Avery hid weakly behind Daryl as he looked up at the strange man.

The man looked shocked. He seemed to pause as he contemplated this in his head. "You will all need to take a blood test. That is my price for admission. And I'll have to take a look at the boy."

Avery sweat dropped. 'Boy? How young does this guy think I am?'

Rick nodded in agreement. "As long as one of us is there when you look at him."

The man nodded. "Done. My name is Dr. Jenner. Grab your things now. Once these doors are closed, they will not be reopened."

They took an elevator down and took the blood tests. Andrea nearly passed out from the lack of food when her blood was taken. Then it was Avery's turn.

He let the man look at his bite before taking his blood.

"Bite looks good. Should be healed in a week or two. It'll leave a pretty nasty scar." He finished wrapping it and drew some of his blood. "I'll take a quick look at it. I'll look at the others afterwards. My name is Edwin Jenner."

He placed Avery's blood on a piece of glass, the younger man noted, as Jenner looked at it through a microscope. Daryl stood by his side as Jenner did his work.

"Interesting... There is no sign of the infection. Nothing at all."

Daryl let out a sigh. "So he's gonna be okay?"

Jenner nodded. "Seems like it. I want to take a sample of blood straight from the bite while the others take showers, just to make sure. Then you all can eat."

Glenn smiled in delight. "Showers!?"

T-Dog let out a small whoop. "That's what the man said!"

Jenner showed everyone where the rooms they would be staying in were, and then motioned for Rick, Avery and Daryl to follow him.

He led them to a lab and had Daryl place Avery on the table. He took a blood sample from the bite and looked at the blood through a microscope again.

"Oh my..." He whispered as he looked at the cells react fiercely to the infection. They were killing it off at an alarming rate.

"What?" Daryl asked in panic.

"His cells are bonding with each other and killing off the virus." He looked up at the two. "He seems to be immune to it. The virus isn't spreading through his blood, that's why I didn't see any from the blood I took from his vein in the crease of his elbow."

"Then why the hell was he in so much pain if he is immune?" Daryl growled.

"His body was most likely not prepared. It was doing everything it could to stop the virus from spreading too far. It just didn't start until it was almost too late. They were activated once the infection set in. Which is why there was no fever. It didn't get the chance to start changing him. also, his flesh was torn into, of course he would be in pain."

"Will it be like that every time when he gets bit?" Rick asked.

"I have no clue." Jenner said as he cleaned up the blood around the bite on Avery's shoulder. "You're already healing." He told him as Avery stared at him in shock. "Miraculous." Jenner whispered to himself.

"So he'll be okay?" Daryl asked quietly again.

"Other than a small infection from other bacteria in the walker's mouth, he seems just fine. Antibiotics will fix that right up, but yes, he will be fine." He smiled at the couple. "Are you his brother?"

Daryl frowned before grabbing Avery's hand tightly. "I'm 'is husband." He answered gruffly.

"Husband?" Jenner questioned and Daryl nodded once. "My apologies. And the boy, he yours or your husbands here?"

Avery frowned and gave Daryl's hand a squeeze and spoke up. "That is none of your business."

He smiled and squeezed Daryl's hand again as Daryl helped him up.

"My apologies. Take him to a room, let him rest. You can bring him some food after he showers. He needs it. You all do." Jenner spoke to Avery and Daryl before making his way back to the microscope.

Daryl nodded and scooped Avery up into his arms again. He paused at the door and turned his head back to Jenner. "Thanks."

Jenner nodded his head and smiled softly at Daryl.

With that, Daryl took off down the hall looking for a vacant room.

Jenner turned to Rick. "He always like that?"

Rick nodded. "Yeah. He's been better since he found his husband and child though. He's had it rough. He lost his brother not too long ago."

As Rick and Jenner walked into the main room of the CDC, which could be considered the living room with lots of computer monitors and sofas, Lori emerged from the kitchen.

"Do you mind if a couple of girls and I prepare a meal for us all after we all have cleaned up? We want to thank you."

Jenner smiled at her and nodded. "Be my guest. Help yourself to the pantry and kitchen."

Lori smiled widely and grabbed Ricks hand, dragging him towards the hallway with the rooms. "Come on, let's go shower."

Rick looked back at Jenner and shouted, "Thank you!"

Edwin Jenner nodded with a soft smile on his face as he watched the two disappear down the hall. "Vi, we aren't alone anymore. There are others still out there, and that boy and his child might be the only chance this world has for a cure. He must survive this hell. Him and the child both."