Chapter One

Humans cannot fight against the government's right to execute a wrongdoer when God himself has instituted capital punishment in His Word. Humans may institute laws and legislations that forbid the act of execution but, as international law states, not all nations are required to vote for the General Assembly resolutions. The implementation of an execution, on the basis of an execution ruling that is not legally effective, can be carried out before the execution becomes effective. However, in an apocalyptic society, an execution can also be society's way to tell the reprobate 'fuck you'.

Though for some, it was a war yet to be won.

"Arielle Holmes, your wilful commission of crimes against the crown and our nation are far too extensive and sinister in nature for you to keep on living. What you initiated was a crime against humanity - an odious offence in which a serious attack on human dignity or grave humiliation has occurred. As such, your participation in the creation of a biological warfare as well as contributing to attempted murder, manslaughter and treason will result in death. May God have mercy on your soul and therefore rid us of your abyss."

I could only chuckle as I stood, back pressed against the barrel of a gun. "There were seven."

The public silenced their rejoice.

"Seven leading scientists, twenty-four assistants and another thirty-two undergraduates from Harvard University. So why, is it, that out of sixty-three, only one is facing execution? I may have taken credit for the work of sixty-two but surely ones execution does not match the satisfaction you would feel if all sixty-three of us were sharing the same fate."

Whispers echoed amongst the crowd. "You don't believe me? Take a look behind you. Their waiting"

I took this as an opportunity to turn and face my Caucasian-American counterpart. He smirked and lowered his weapon, placing a firm hand on my lower back before jumping off the makeshift podium and onto the pavement below. We started off sprinting, heading north, before clambering into his truck and continuing north-west.

He was the first to break the silence. "I thought I was going to get out of this debt."

"And why is that?" I rolled down the window.

"Didn't think you'd recognise me," He shrugged his shoulder. "Hell, I thought you had forgotten about me."

I chuckled softly as I glanced over my shoulder. The town was becoming distant. "Sorry to disappoint. It's not every day I have someone l begging me for marijuana on my way home from work. Made quite the impression, you did."

"Jess Collins never fails to make an impression," His laughter joined my own as he rubbed a hand against his stubble. "I was lucky though. Never thought of asking a scientist. They probably just hand you the shit like its candy. Too bad we don't have any on us now. Probably would be a nice kick to our evening."

"More of a drag, I reckon" He snorted as I glanced over at Jess. "Ever try the stuff?"

He shook his head. "Was helping Merle. Messed with the wrong people, he did. Owed them a shit ton of money. Said they would forget the money if he could get his hands on the stuff. Though at the time, he was in his fifth … or sixth, juvenile conviction. Thought I would lend him a hand. His father didn't care much and I wasn't about to ask his brother."

"Merle?"

"He's my nephew … or half-nephew, really," I gripped onto the dashboard as he swerved to the right, narrowly missing the infected. "Sorry. He's the son of my brother Will and one of his whores. Don't remember her name. Never paid much attention. Between her smoking and his drinking, I would often take Merle and his brother hunting for a few days. Gave them temporary salvation, I guess. Will wasn't always the nicest to be around. But I loved them all, nonetheless. I was always on missions. Retired from the military after four to five years of heavy aircraft weaponry experience, you see. Thought that maybe if I got a job closer to home, things would be better."

"And was it?"

"Not in the slightest," He removed his baseball cap, exposing his bald cut. "The house was beyond ruins. Their mother had fallen asleep one night and lit the house on fire. Thankfully, both Merle and Daryl weren't inside. Will blamed them, though. For her death. Said that it was because of them that his life was ruined. Things only continued to get worse. Merle would only ever speak to me if he needed help. Daryl was often out in the woods. I spent majority of my time either trying to stop my brother from drinking or was working so I could help pay the bills."

He kept his eyes forward as he made a left turn. "Look. I don't want to have to tell you this but Will isn't going to be pleased to see you. Not because of what you've done. He would probably thank you if you told him. Just … don't take it personally if he tries to hit on you. I won't let him do anything to you so don't worry about that. I'll help you come up with a plan and you can be on your way, alright?"

I nodded. "What about you? Are you going to stay here?"

"Don't know. Haven't given it much thought, to be honest," He sighed. "I guess I should go look for Merle and Daryl."

"What if they…?"

He killed the engine. "Nothing can kill a Dixon but a Dixon, got it?"

"That's not wh-"

"Yes it was," He opened the door and jumped out. "Come on. We're here."

Sorry that it has taken quite some time for me to update. I hate writing the first chapter. I loathe writing them.

I'm pretty happy at how it turned out though. I wanted it to be longer but I think its alright. I should mention though (for those of you who may not know) that Jess Collins appears in the video game Survival Instinct. He is the half-brother of Daryl and Merle's father, Will. I have yet to play the game, but I've seen some gameplay prior to writing this and thought it would be a fantastic idea to bring those characters into my story.

What do you think? I like it. I think it adds more depth into the story and the other characters.

Anyways, enough ramblings.

Don't forget to hit that review button !