setting: episode 9 "The Suicide King"
Damnation
Chapter 32 - Gone
The shouting and cheering was slowly driving him insane. Not only because it scared him, but also because it was annoying and ridiculous. He could hear how the crowd kept yelling "Kill them! Kill them!" in all sorts of pitches, which made them sound even more insane. Especially the women around him were going crazy, blood thirst and aggression written all over their faces. One voice caught his attention then, because the pleas were so different and he actually recognized the voice.
"Let him go! He's my friend!" one woman shouted, and when Daryl turned his head in her direction he could see that it was Andrea.
What was going on in this place? First Merle, now Andrea, how many of his people were here for god's sakes? And most of all, why did he still feel so helpless?
"It's not up to me anymore. The people have spoken" the Governor answered and looked at the Dixon brothers.
Daryl had to keep looking at his brother, too. Because he still couldn't believe that Merle was really there.
Because he wanted, no because he needed him to do something, to get them out of this mess.
The Governor suddenly pointed at his brother.
"I asked you where your loyalties lie" he said and Daryl startled when he felt how one of the guards grabbed his arms again.
He tried to fight the man off, but after a couple of seconds he realized that he was actually freeing him off his cuffs. As soon as they were gone Daryl clenched his hands to tight fists and swung them around, relieved because he was finally free to move again. More or less. The younger Dixon adjusted his clothes and looked at the angry mob again, trying to make out some sort of exit. But it was hopeless. They were surrounded and trapped. He looked at the Governor again when the man went on with his speech.
"You said here. Well, prove it. Prove it to us all."
The hunter tensed when the leader of Woodbury stared right at him with his piercing remaining eye. He hated the guy, but at the same time he actually feared him. He knew what he was capable of, and how fucked up he really was. He had just seen it a couple of minutes ago when he had..Daryl gritted his teeth and tried not to think about it, but in the end he failed miserably. How was the stupid leprechaun right now? Where was he? Even if they managed to get out of this mess, how was he supposed to get Connor out of here as well? He didn't even really know where they had brought his friend, and most of all, what kind of condition he was in. The Irishman had been bit, and there had been a whole lot more blood than last time. He remembered that night, how quickly things had changed and how fast the infection had spread. In just a couple of hours it had knocked him out completely, and Connor hadn't been able to stay on his feet for days. Daryl still cursed himself for his stupid idea. Of course, he was happy to have found Merle again. Blood's blood after all. But this? He hadn't wanted it to go downside like this. The Governor spoke again and snapped him out of it.
"Brother against brother. Winner goes free" he said and the crowd got louder again.
"Fight. To the death!" the Governor yelled and Woodbury went crazy.
They were yelling at the Dixon brothers again, and it felt like Daryl's heart just stopped because of the surprise and shock. He could feel how Merle was looking at him, and maybe he was thinking the same, but the younger didn't really know. His brother had beaten him many times before, and he really could give him a proper beating. Daryl had always lost their fights, had always walked out with a whole bunch of bruises and in pain, so if they were really going to make them fight to the death then he just knew that he wouldn't stand a chance.
"No, please. Don't do this. Don't do this!" the hunter heard Andrea yell and looked at her for a second.
He still didn't get why she was here all of a sudden, and why she really thought that she could influence these bunch of crazies. Her pleas were ignored and Daryl looked at his brother again. Both Dixons looked at each other for a while, and the younger of the two ended up pleading the other with his eyes to get them out of this, but Merle just raised his hand and turned around to look at the crowd of people all around them.
"Y'all know me. I'm gonna do whatever I gotta do" he yelled and Daryl tensed.
"To prove ..."
The younger Dixon had expected the punch, but he still couldn't hold back a loud grunt. Merle had punched him hard in the stomach, and for a moment he couldn't breathe because all the air had left his lungs when his brother's fist connected with his belly. The incredible pain made the younger of the two men fall down. The hunter curled himself up on the dirty and dusty ground. When he could finally breathe again he sucked in all the air he could get, but just a second later Merle was on him again.
"That my loyalty" he yelled and kicked Daryl hard.
"Is to this town!" the older Dixon exclaimed and the crowd went wild.
The other man tried to roll away from the attacks, and for a second he almost passed out because of the lack of air and incredible pain in his ribs and stomach. The worst part wasn't even the pain, it were Merle's intentions that he was worried about, because he seriously couldn't tell what his brother was on about. Was Merle trying to buy them time by pleasing the crowds? Or was he really out to kill him? He couldn't really do that, could he? They were brothers after all. But then again, this wasn't the first time. He had been about to die before, when his father had almost killed him and Merle hadn't moved a single finger to help him because he had been too busy minding his own business. But could he seriously kill him to get his sorry ass out of here? The younger Dixon endured several of the punches and kicks as he tried to understand what was going on and how he was supposed to react. Part of him was reminded of that day when they had found Sophia dead and he had been punching and trying to kill Connor like this. How ironic it really was. Now he was the one being used as a punching bag. The only difference between him and the Irishman was that he sure as hell didn't want to get killed now. Daryl grunted hard as he tried to get up, and soon all of Merle's punches and kicks made him so angry that he had enough.
He lunged out and punched his brother's face hard and just as mercilessly. The older Dixon stumbled away and held his jaw in surprise, and Daryl used the opportunity to get back up on his feet again. This was when both brothers finally realized that the guards had brought several of their walkers on sticks, and they were slowly closing in on them. Daryl identified one of the walkers as the one that had bit his friend, and he was even more shocked when he saw that there was still blood all over his mouth and throat from this very attack. The younger Dixon clenched his fits even tighter because this made him extremely angry. He needed to get out of here. He needed to find this stupid asshole.
When the hunter turned around he could see that his brother was still busy staring at the walkers, so he didn't waste a second and ran for him to attack him. Right then Merle decided to turn around again and had no trouble tackling his younger half to the ground, and before Daryl knew what was going on he could feel how a very strong hand was placed on his throat and squeezed tight. The hunter grew desperate because of the lack of air and all the walkers that were coming closer and closer, so he did the only thing he could think of in this moment, and that was getting back to reasoning with his brother.
"You really think this asshole's gonna let you go?!" he grunted and stared Merle straight in his eyes.
Stop it. Killing me won't change a thing. I ain't gonna die today.
He put both his hands on Merle's throat and squeezed even tighter than the other man, having an obvious advantage with his two hands.
"Just follow my lead, little brother. We're getting out of this" Merle answered although he could hardly breathe and Daryl finally had the answer.
His brother didn't want to kill him. He was really trying to buy them time, which they certainly needed with all those undead around them.
"Right now!" the older Dixon suddenly yelled and pulled his brother back up so they could face the other enemies back to back.
They didn't have any weapons, no knives, no guns, no crossbow, and that made the whole thing even more terrifying than it already was. Three walkers were shoved in their direction, and once again Daryl thought it was incredibly ironic that he was now facing the walker that had bit Connor. The Dixon brothers started shoving, punching and kicking the undead that were trying to attack them, and especially the hunter was extremely fierce. He welcomed the idea that he finally got the chance to let the rotten bastard suffer for what he had done to his friend, so he kept punching and kicking as hard as he could.
Part of him felt disgusted whenever his fists connected with the rotten and infected flesh, but the other part of him seriously didn't even care anymore. This was life and death, this was brutality and fighting. Daryl let out an angry cry as he shoved the walker back towards the crowd, hoping that he would attack someone just like he had attacked the Irishman. Even though he knew that he was probably gonna die any second now he actually enjoyed that he was getting some sort of revenge, and he certainly wouldn't go down without one hell of a fight.
He and his brother were really getting into the whole thing when a loud gunshot startled everyone and made one of the walkers fall to the ground. The cheering ended and changed into a collection of loud and terrified screams, then more gunshots rained down on them. Now not only the walkers and guards were falling to the ground, but also members of the crowd. Both Daryl and Merle ducked down, driven by instinct, and although the younger of the two was scared that he might get hit himself he couldn't help but let out a happy snort.
Maybe this was Connor? Maybe he had managed to get out and maybe he was trying to get him out of this mess as well? It had to be one of his group, and he was pretty sure that it was the Irishman because he was the only one who knew that he was here in this arena. Several of the floodlights went out with a loud bang and sparks of light were raining down on them. Daryl was a bit confused when he saw how a flashbang exploded behind the crowd, and the whole arena was filled with smoke in a matter of seconds.
Smoke and the sound of automatic rifles told him that it had to be Rick and the others, which was also a good sign, but did it also mean that Connor was there?
Daryl looked around and searched their surroundings to see what was going on and who was shooting, but he couldn't see a damn thing.
"Come on, little brother! Stay close!" he heard Merle yell and tried to do as he was told, but then he heard how someone in the crowd was yelling his name. At first he thought that it was his friend, but then he realized that the voice was too high to be Connor's. It was a woman's voice, so he suspected that it was Andrea. He didn't exactly have time for her right now, and he didn't even know if they could trust her anymore. Merle was busy killing a walker behind him, and he used the metal stump on his arm like an expert to crush his skull. People were running about all around them, and the younger Dixon knew that they needed to use this sort of chaos and all the smoke around them for their escape.
"Merle! Come on!" he demanded and made his brother stop.
Both Dixons started running without really knowing where they were supposed to run, because the smoke was so thick that they could hardly see a thing.
Daryl nudged his brother when he saw the repeated movement of a flashlight to their left, and he just knew that it had to be his group.
"This way!"
They had almost reached the exit when Daryl caught glimpse of his own crossbow, which a large African-American was holding and using to shoot the escaped walkers. The hunter couldn't believe that someone even dared to touch his beloved weapon, so he ran for the man and grabbed it, using the element of surprise to throw him to the ground with a hard shove. Merle did the rest of the job, as he approached the guard and punched him hard in the face to knock him out. His younger brother turned around and couldn't fight a pleased smirk, but when he saw that the smoke was fading he decided to keep running, especially now that they were so close to the exit.
"Let's go!" he yelled and Merle finally followed him.
"Daryl!"they could hear Rick yell and a second later he could see him and Maggie, who was hiding behind one of the large dumpsters by the exit.
The hunter had been happy and relieved first because this was their escape, but then his face fell when he saw that it were just the two of them.
Daryl came to an abrupt halt and stared at them.
"Where are the others? That weirdo woman? Glenn? Connor?"
"We haven't got time for this! Let's go! Let's go!" the former policeman urged him and started running as well.
Merle was far ahead.
"Daryl!" he yelled again and the younger Dixon turned his head in shock, trying to scan the area for his friend.
"Where's that stupid leprechaun? He was with me when they caught us and then they took him outta there and dragged me here! Did he come back?"
"Let's get out of here first!" Rick hissed and eyed their surroundings with a worried look on his face.
Most of the Woodbury citizens had disappeared by now, and the chaos and smoke was fading.
They needed to leave or they could get caught any second now.
"Did he come back?" Daryl yelled and the former policeman finally paid attention to what the hunter was actually saying.
"No. Listen, Daryl. We gotta get out of here first. We'll talk later."
Daryl turned around to search the surrounding area once more, but neither Connor nor Andrea were anywhere in sight.
"I ain't leaving without him, we gotta go back. 's all my fault he got stuck in here."
He bit his lip and looked in the general direction of the main street.
"You leave. I'm going back."
"Y'all gonna have cake and coffee now? Move your asses you buncha pussies! We ain't got time and I sure ain't going back in there!" they heard Merle yell and turned their heads to look at him. This was when Daryl remembered what they had said when they had taken his friend away, and since they didn't have time he tried to explain things to Rick as fast as possible.
"They caught us and questioned us in the room where they put Glenn in. I told 'em about the immunity thing. They made a walker bite him, said they wanted to take him to some sorta lab to run a few tests and take blood samples" he explained so fast that the man opposite him could hardly understand him.
"How do you know that he's still alive?" Maggie asked and Daryl frowned angrily.
"We can't just leave him here! Yah came back for me, didn'tcha? We gotta go back, man."
Merle ran back to them to see what was going on. One could sense that he was extremely pissed.
"Come on!"
Both Rick and Daryl looked at each other for a second longer, then they both turned their heads and looked at the older Dixon brother.
"You know where their lab is?"
They entered the corridor as quietly and carefully as possible. Well, Daryl, Rick and Maggie did so at least. Merle wouldn't stop cursing and calling them names as they made their way to the room which this strange Milton guy used as his personal office and laboratory. Rick and Maggie were trying to shut Merle up. Daryl would have done it himself because only he knew how to control his brother, but right now he couldn't even speak because he didn't know what to feel like. What was waiting inside this room? Was his friend still alive or had he really died this time? Had they killed him? Had they strapped him to some freak bed and cut him open like a lab rat? He prepared himself for the worst, because he had experienced what those crazy town people were capable of. He knew that he was probably going to lose it in a couple of minutes, and part of him didn't even want to go in there.
He knew that they needed to leave, and he knew that they were relying on borrowed time here. Perhaps it would have been best to just turn their backs on Woodbury. Connor was lost anyway, wasn't he? The guy sure had lost a lot of blood by now. And the infection was probably frying his insides right now. Perhaps it would have been better for both of them to just leave him here. The Irishman could finally die and get some peace, and he would try to remember him the way he had last seen him before this ugly bite. He didn't even want to go through that whole thing all over again. The waiting, the watching his friend suffer, the hoping that he would survive. Besides. What was the point? He had Merle now, didn't he? So why was he doing this to himself now? The answer was simple. Because he owed Connor. Because it was his fault, and because he still didn't want to let him go. Merle there or not. So the hunter kept walking and lead the small group to the other side of the corridor, where a dark and old door was waiting to be opened, waiting to reveal something that might tear him apart all over again.
The closer he got the slower he walked because he still wasn't really prepared for what could happen next, but the others behind him wouldn't give him a chance. They urged him to keep going. Daryl startled when he was suddenly showed out of the way and his brother darted forward to kick the door open. He didn't have any time for the whole worrying luxury, so the hunter grabbed his crossbow to be ready to shoot anyone that got in their way. All the more did it surprise him when the group entered the room and found...nothing.
Milton, the professor-like man Daryl had met earlier, was lying on the ground right next to the bed, his glasses crooked and broken. He was either dead or unconscious, and more importantly: all on his own. It was obvious that there had been a fight going on in here. Some lamps and medical instruments had been knocked over and fallen to the ground. The sheets on the bed next to him were a complete mess and bloody, and the bed was empty. There was a lot of blood on the ground and Milton was the only one in the room.
Connor was gone.