And this is it. In a few days I'll post the epilogue and then I can call this one complete. I know how hard it was for those of you that actually stuck around for this. I took so long with updates and so much happened in my life during the process of writing this. But I'll get into all of that in the last chapter. Thank you, you have no idea how much I thank you, for reading this and for sticking with it through the last year and a half.

Something Incredible

The sun breaking over the horizon painted the sky in vibrant shades of orange and pink. As the group topped the hill the grounds of the prison spread out before them, the structure itself looming in the distance, a silent testament to a thousand horrors that now would never come to be. There were fewer walkers now than the first time they had seen this place. Less time for walkers to take over the grounds. Daryl almost wished that they had stayed behind. If something happened and they didn't make it out of there then all of this was for nothing. If Carol was right, anyway. And the more he thought about it, the more sense it seemed to make. Him and Carol had to live.

Somehow, he was a piece of some kind of intricate puzzle. The two of them absolutely had to make it out of this. There was no choice. From the corner of his eye he saw her shift, holding the rifle more firmly in her hands. This time would be easier because they were prepared. They knew the layout of the prison like the back of their hands. Even the ones that had experienced no visions at all had some sort of sixth sense that guided them. Michonne was standing next to Rick. Tyreese and Sasha were there. T-dog and Glenn and Maggie. It had taken them a while to talk Hershel out of coming along but finally Annette had dragged him away, her calm about to crack under the stress of the mission.

The eight of them stood their in silence for a few long moments before Rick finally took the first step. All of them followed, eyes scanning the area for danger. There were walkers but it was nothing like when they had first found the prison. They had better guns, more ammunition. The only thing Daryl was truly worried about was how many survivors would be there and what were they suppose to do with them? Did they help a bunch of convicts escape? Sure, some of them were probably good men but there would be others. Men that would happily wreak havoc on the world if they were out. Men that could very well make their way to the farm eventually. He wished, not for the first time, that he knew exactly what to do here.

"We do what we came here to do. We get the men that we came for and then we leave," Carol said quietly.

He looked at her sharply. Had he been thinking out loud? "How do you know that's what I was thinkin' about, anyway?"

She gave him a tight smile. "Because I know you."

He snorted. "You just keep tellin' yourself that."

She bumped his shoulder with her own and they continued through the field in silence, staying close together. They entered the gate the same exact way they had the first time, making sure it was secure behind them. This time, however, no one needed to risk facing the walkers head on to get to the other gate. They could take them out from where they were and that was what they did, all of them more precise with their weapons than they had been before. Once the walkers were down they all waited. If there were any survivors inside their old cell block then maybe they would come out once the gunfire ceased. After a few silent minutes passed and no one came out they all made their way to the door.

Again, Rick jumped right back into the role of leader and Daryl slipped back into the role of second in command. Rick was up the steps first, nodding to Daryl. Once the door was pulled open Daryl was the first one inside, Rick only a fraction of a second behind him. It didn't look as bad as it had before. It was still in decent shape. They had been at the farm for weeks, however so the likelihood of any of the inmates being alive were slim. The ones that were trapped behind the bars anyway. The cell block was clear, just like they had found it before and just as he suspected, the only walkers they encountered were locked up. It was strange seeing them look so human. In his dreams the walkers had had more time to decay. These walkers hadn't been turned for long.

"What about guards?" Rick asked once they made it to the door leading to the tunnels.

Daryl shrugged. "Your call."

Rick seemed taken aback by this gesture and blinked, glancing up at the guard tower. "We help them if we find any alive but then they're on their own. At least then they have a shot."

Daryl nodded in agreement and none of the others protested. He took off up the stairs, pulling open the door to the room where he had found the keys on the guard that had offed himself. He thought maybe the man would be alive but he wasn't. It seemed as though they had only missed him by a few days. He hadn't been dead very long. He did have the keys on him though. It all seemed strange, finding himself in the exact same position he had been in on that first day they had made it inside the prison.

Once he retrieved the keys he knew that they were ready to break out the three inmates. They knew what they would encounter in the tombs so they were all ready. The first group of walkers that came towards them down the first corridor weren't a surprise. There were only five of them so no shots had to be fired. Rick and Daryl easily took them out with knives. Daryl knew that it wouldn't take long for Carol to figure out what he was doing. He was keeping himself between her and any danger they may encounter, alive, or dead. The way he saw it, the less dirty her hands were, the better. That didn't mean that she wasn't going to be pissed about it. She was strong and competent and she was going to feel like he just didn't think she could handle it. Hell, after everything they had been through there wasn't anything the woman couldn't handle. But he didn't want her to have to.

She stayed behind him for the most part as they made there way towards the mess hall where they knew a guard had put the inmates. They hadn't really discussed what they were going to do about Tomas and Andrew. They could just leave them locked up back there but he didn't know about it. They were definitely two very bad men that needed to be taken care of. Either of them would murder anyone in the group at the drop of a dime.

Before Daryl could unlock the door Carol grabbed his arm. "We need to figure out what to do about the other two before we go in there," she whispered, reading his mind again. "We can't afford any confusion. We need to know exactly what we're suppose to do."

Rick and Daryl shared a look over her head. She was right and they both knew it. They couldn't afford messing this up because of indecision. He knew that and the others knew that too. "We can't just leave them in there. If they make it out somehow, anybody they come in contact with is at risk," Daryl said, keeping his voice low.

Rick ran a hand through his hair, his eyes going to the door. "How do we do this? We haven't had to kill an actual person. Not in real life."

Daryl glanced at Carol, who met his eyes unflinchingly. He looked at Rick and swung his crossbow around, unlocking the door. Maybe Rick hadn't killed a man yet but Daryl had. He'd killed Ed right there in front of Carol. If it meant Carol and Sophia would stay safe then he would light the whole damn prison up without blinking, survivors be damned. He wouldn't risk them. Not for any reason. He just had to keep in mind that these weren't men. They were monsters that were more dangerous than the walkers because they were a lot smarter and a lot more cunning than the dead.

He opened the door, stepping in quickly, not hesitating before he went to the door to the kitchen where the inmates were locked away. From the corner of his eye he saw them in the window that looked out onto the room he was in but he didn't even glance their way. He unlocked the door and pulled it open. Instantly he was greeted with a gun in his face.

"I'd drop the gun asshole. We're here to get you five the hell outta here," he said, meeting the narrowed eyes of Tomas.

"What the hell is goin' on out there?" Tomas asked, not lowering the gun.

Daryl took in the others. Andrew was next to Tomas but Oscar, Tiny and Axel were standing off to themselves. "Bad things are happening out there. If you wanna live then you all need to follow us."

"Who are you folks?" Axel asked, craning his neck to see the other.

Daryl shrugged. "We're the ones that's gonna get you out of here unless your friend don't get that fuckin' gun outta my face."

Rick and Carol came in then and Daryl had to clench his jaw to keep from slamming his crossbow into Tomas's face when his gaze landed on Carol. He took his time looking her over and then he actually licked his lips, a predatory glint in his dark eyes.

As soon as he saw that look he was pretty sure he understood why Tomas was behind bars. He'd seen that look in the eyes of other men he had encountered and he didn't even want to imagine the things Tomas was thinking about doing to her. The things he would do if given half a chance. Without a second thought he squeezed the trigger, sending a bolt flying right through the mans head. He dropped before the other men had a chance to react.

Andrew had jumped back but once he realized what had happened he lunged for Daryl. He didn't get far. Rick was right there, the butt of his revolver cracking the man right between the eyes, sending him sprawling. Without missing a beat Daryl sent another bolt flying, stopping Andrew from his attempts at getting back up.

He paused, waiting to see if he was going to feel any kind of remorse over killing these men but he didn't. Andrew had killed Lori and T-dog and had nearly killed Carol when he had lured the walkers to the group and cut the locks on the gates. Tomas was most likely a sexual sadist or a murderer. Either way, the world was better without him.

He looked up and all three of the other men had their hands up. From the looks on their faces they assumed that they were next to go. Oscar looked stoic, like he had already come to terms with his own demise. The other two looked terrified. "You can put your hands down. Nobody else has to die today," he said, shouldering his bow and picking up the hand gun that Tomas had trained on him.

"You just killed Tomas and Andrew, Mister. I'm pretty sure that means that we're next."

Daryl rolled his eyes. He forgot how annoying Axel was. "Shut up, Axel. We came here to bust you out. You three ain't like these two here," Daryl nudged Andrews leg.

"How do you know my name?" Axel asked, looking more fearful now than he did before.

Daryl shrugged. "It's a long story. But you're Axel. You're in here because your dumb ass robbed a store with a toy gun," he pointed to the biggest man. "You're Big Tiny. I don't know your story and eventually you'll know why." His eyes finally landed on Oscar and he saw Oscar studying him. The others had came into the room now and he was staring at them just as hard. Daryl smiled slightly. "And you're Oscar. You're not a bad guy at all. Matter of fact, I think you know we ain't here to cause any harm to the three of you, don't you."

Oscar shook his head. "How do I know you?"

"Like I said, it's a long story, but you know you can trust us."

Axel tugged on his mustache. "You all do look familiar."

"Not to me," Tiny said, shaking his head.

Rick snorted. "You didn't live long enough I guess. We need to get the hell out of here now."

It didn't take much more than those words to get the three men moving. Now that they were at least half way sure they weren't going to get murdered they were eager to go. Rick took charge again, explaining to them what the world was like out there now.

~H~

Sophia paced in front of the gate while Carl sat in the grass, his back against the wall, watching her.

"They're fine. You know they're fine. We don't have to sit out here and wait for them," Carl said, squinting up at her.

"I never said you had to come out here and wait with me, now did I?" She snapped, her worry turning into annoyance at him for giving her a hard time about her worrying.

He sighed, rolling his eyes. "And here we go."

She put her hands on her hips. "And what exactly is that suppose to mean?"

He stood up, dusting off the seat of his pants. "Nothing, Sophia. Nothing at all." He sighed, which only made her even more angry.

"Are you trying to tell me that you aren't at least a little worried about your dad?" She asked hotly.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, shaking his head slightly. ""No, I'm not."

She snorted. He couldn't be serious. "You're full of crap, Carl Grimes. How could you not be worried knowing that they're out there?"

"Because I trust you," he said, finally looking at her and throwing his arms in the air in exasperation.

She opened her mouth, ready to say something but really, there wasn't anything she could say about that. He trusted her and she needed to trust herself. That was easier said that done though. She at least felt some of that anger towards Carl lift. "I'm sorry. I can't help but worry. We're in the home stretch here, remember? If something goes wrong now, I don't know what I would do."

The corner of his mouth lifted. "Nothing can go wrong."

She rolled her eyes but felt a smile of her own tug at her lips. "Okay. I'll listen for once. Lets go get something to eat."

He grabbed her hand, lacing their fingers together, taking advantage of Daryl being gone. She didn't mind though. It was comforting, having him close like this.

~H~

Merle saw them pull up over an hour ago but he hadn't felt much like going downstairs and listening as, once again, they explained the weird goings on that had been happening. He had done a head count, knew that they were all alive and well and that was all he needed to know. Not to mention he was sore as hell and in a bad mood. This was probably the last big ride that they were ever going to take and he had been stuck up here in his room because of a lousy gunshot wound. Now he would live out the rest of his days trying to be a respectable member of their small society.

"You look like you just bit into something rotten."

He turned at the sound of the voice. Sophia stood in the doorway, feet crossed at the ankles and a smile threatening at the corners of her mouth. He snorted and looked back out the window. "Wanderin' how long we're gonna be stuck here."

She walked further into the room and then he heard the sound of a chair being pulled away from the small table. He looked back over and she was sitting there, a thoughtful look in her eyes. "Being here is gonna be hard on you isn't it?" She asked, her voice melancholy.

That sad note almost made him feel guilty. "Nah, it probably won't be too bad. There's plenty around here to keep me busy. Tillin' fields, choppin' firewood, huntin' expeditions. You know, all sorts of pioneer shit."

She smiled mischievously. "Don't forget Andrea. She'll probably keep you busy too."

He chuckled. "Little girl, you let Daryl hear you talkin' like that and he'll have both our asses strung up."

She nodded in agreement as she stared off out the window. He sat down across from her, sensing that she needed to get something off her chest. He could wait her out. It wasn't like he had anything better to do. Eventually she looked up. "As crazy as it sounds, I think I might miss it just a little."

He watched her but she didn't look at him. Her eyes stayed on the view. "Miss what?" She couldn't be talking about those crazy visions, or whatever the hell they were.

"We did something... incredible, Merle. Me and you, somehow we saved the world and only a hand full of people even know it. I think I might miss feeling so important. Because we were. For a little while we were the most important people on earth."

The weight of her words were crushing. "Nothin' important about the hand I played in it. I was just along for the ride."

She shook her head and finally looked at him, her eyes intense. "That isn't true and you know it. You just don't like feeling like you are a lot more special than you ever thought you were. You're always with me. You protect me. You're like my guardian... asshole."

He barked out a laugh. "Make sure that gets put on my headstone. Here lies Merle Dixon. Savior, Brother, Worlds Greatest Lover, And little Sophia's Guardian Asshole."

She laughed but there was so much affection in her eyes for him that he had to look away. He wasn't sure if he deserved the look. He wanted to think he did, but he wasn't used to the emotions the look stirred in him. It almost made him want to keep trying to be a better man.

"I'll definitely remember to have that inscribed," she said, still grinning.

They sat there in silence for a while before he finally spoke. "It's really over, ain't it?"

She nodded, leaning further back into her chair. "It really is."

She eventually talked him into going downstairs to get some food. The conversation, laughter and friendly nods didn't get under his skin as bad as it usually did. He even let a few friendly pats on the back slide, since Sophia and Andrea were both watching him closely. The atmosphere was almost contagious. As much as he hated to admit it.

~H~

Everyone ended up taking their food outside. There was a celebratory air about the place and for good reason. It had been such a strange journey and the relief that everyone felt was evident in the smiles on the faces of the people around her. Carol sat on a blanket that her and Daryl had spread out under one of the big trees in the front yard. Daryl had his back to the truck and she was nestled comfortably between his legs, her back resting against his chest. He wasn't a bit embarrassed at the public display of affection. Another Daryl certainly would have been, but not this one. This one was actually having an extremely hard time keeping his hands to himself.

She moved his hands away from the hem of her shirt, smiling when she heard him sigh heavily into her ear. "You're impatient," she quietly admonished.

He grunted and kissed the side of her neck. "It's been a rough couple of days. I'm allowed to be impatient."

"It really has been rough, hasn't it?" She turned so she could look at him but it gave him the perfect opportunity to kiss her, which he did. It was the kind of kiss that had her melting against him, even though they were outside, in broad daylight, in plain sight of anyone that happened to glance over.

When he finally pulled away he met her eyes. "We've been through shit a lot more rough than this. We need to remember that."

She nodded, sobering a little at the memories. Being back there at the prison today had brought all of those old memories back. The grief and the suffering and the loss. She could almost smell it in that place. She could feel the coldness of the cell and the hunger and the loneliness. She could feel the underlying desperation that had seemed to fill everyone there.

She looked away from him, towards the big house. She watched as the children huddled together, intently hashing out rules for a new game they had come up with. Hershel and Annette sat on the swing on the porch and she kept slapping his hand as he stole food off her plate, smiling the whole time.

"We do need to remember that. If we remember that then we'll never lose our appreciation for what we have here," she said, closing her eyes and leaning the back of her head against his shoulder.

His arms tightened around her then. "Not a chance in hell of that happening. Ever."

I'm sure that I've left loose ends. I'm sure that I wasn't able to answer all the questions that needed to be answered. Sometimes I think that's the point. There needs to be more mystery out there and that was one of the main reasons I wanted to write this. Of course, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Some days I regretted ever starting this story. But I'm really glad I did. I'm really lucky that you guys hopped along for the ride too. This one has been rather bumpy. Give me a few days and I'll post the epilogue. Its gonna be... different from the way I end most stories.