The voting poll is close. 2 people voted for Michael while Shane only got 1. But one reader wanted more of Shane in this chapter, so I've decided to put both in this chapter. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. With that said, here's chapter 22.
Chapter 22: Sick
Michael is sitting down at the table outside the cells, loading the magazine clips for his AR-18 gun. He then hears footsteps coming from the door leading into the tombs. He then sees Daryl unlock the door. Then Rick and Maggie come out pushing a bin with Hershel on top of it. And his right leg is cut off.
"He's losing too much blood." Maggie said.
"Open the door! It's Hershel! Carl! Come on." Rick said.
Carl opens the door, and lets everyone in. Everyone started doing what they can to save Hershel's life.
In the meantime in the other room, Daryl readies his crossbow, Michael with his Beretta and Shane pulls out his Glock. They aim there weapons at the entrance, waiting for the prisoners that Rick and the others found locked in a cafeteria to enter. One prisoner name Tomas peeks in.
"That's far enough." Daryl said to them.
"Cell Block C, Cell 4 thats mine gringos. Let me in." Tomas said to them.
"Today is your lucky day fellas, you've all been pardoned by the state of Georgia your free to go." Daryl said to him.
"What you got going on in there?" Tomas asked.
"It's none of your concern." Michael said back.
"Don't be telling me whats my concern." Tomas said while pulling out a Smith & Wesson Model 442 revolver.
Daryl tightens his grip on his crossbow, Michael cocks his gun.
"Chill, man. Dude's leg is messed up. Besides, we're free now. Why are we still in here?" Big Tiny said.
"The man's got a point." Daryl said.
"Yeah, and I gotta check on my old lady." Oscar said.
"A group of civilians breaking into a prison you got no business being in, got me thinking there ain't no place for us to go." Tomas said to them .
"Why don't you go find out?" Daryl said.
"Maybe we'll just be going now." Axel said.
"Hey, we ain't leaving!" Tomas said to them.
"You ain't coming in either." T-Dog said while drawing out his weapon.
"Just try it Asshole!" Shane yells to Tomas.
"Hey, this is my House, My rules. I go where I damn well please." Tomas said to them all.
They all start arguing, bad mouthing each other.
"There ain't nothing for you here. Why don't you go back to your own sandbox?" Daryl said as Rick walks in and breaks up the arguing.
"Hey, hey, hey, everyone relax. There's no need for this." Rick said to all of them.
"How many of you are in there?" Tomas asked.
"Too many for you to handle." Rick said to him.
"You guys rob a bank or something, why don't you take him to a hospital?" Tomas said to them.
"How long have you been locked in that cafeteria?" Rick asked them.
"Going on like 10 months." Tomas said.
"A riot broke out. Never seen anything like it." Big Tiny said.
"Attica on speed, man." Axel said.
"Ever heard about dudes going cannibal, dying, coming back to life? Crazy." Andrew said.
"One guard looked out for us, locked us up in the cafeteria. Told us sit tight, threw me this piece, said he'd be right back." Tomas said.
"Yeah, and that was 292 days ago." Oscar said .
"94 according to my calcula-" Axel said before Tomas interrupts him.
"Shut up!"
"We were thinking that the army or the national guard should be showing up any day now." Oscar said.
"There is no army." Rick said.
"What do you mean?" Tomas asked.
"There's no government, no hospitals, no police. It's all gone." Rick told them.
"For real?" Axel asked.
"I'm serious." Rick said.
"What about my moms?" Big Tiny asked.
"My kids? And my old lady? Yo, you got a cell phone or something that we can call our families?" Oscar asked.
"You just don't get it, do you?" Daryl said.
"No phones, no computers. As far as we can see, at leas half the population has been wiped out. Probably more." Rick said.
"Ain't no way." Tomas said.
"See for yourself." Rick said pointing at the entrance to outside.
(Outside of the prison)
The prisoners were thrilled to head outside and to feel the sun's rays, but they quickly took stock of the bodies that had yet to be moved.
"Damn the Sun feels good." Oscar said.
"Good lord. They're all dead." Axel said.
"Never thought I'd be so happy to see these fences." Tomas said.
"You never said- how the hell did you get in here in the first place?" Andrew asked.
"Cut a hole in that fence over there by that guard tower." Daryl told him.
"That easy, huh?"
"Where there's a will there's a way."
"Easy for you to say."
Big tiny pokes at a dead walker.
"So what is this like a disease?" Big tiny asked.
"Yeah, and we're all infected." Rick said.
"What do you mean infected? Like AIDS or something?" Axel asked.
"If I was to kill you, shoot an arrow in your chest, you'd come back as one of these things. It's gonna happen to all of us." Daryl said.
"Ain't no way this Robinhood casts responsible for killing all these freaks." Tomas said.
"Must be 50 bodies out here." Andrew said.
"Where'd you come from?" Tomas asked Rick.
"Atlanta." Rick said.
"Where are you headed?"
"For now, nowhere."
"I guess you can take that area down there near the water. Should be comfortable." Tomas said.
"We're using that field for crops." Rick said.
"We'll help you move your gear out."
"That won't be necessary. We took out these walkers. This prison is ours."
"Slow down, cowboy."
"You snatched the locks off our doors." Andrew said.
"We'll give you new locks, if that's how you want it." Rick said.
"This is our prison. We were here first." Tomas said.
"Locked in a broom closet? We took it, set you free. It's ours. We spilled blood." Rick said.
"We're moving back into our cell block." Tomas said.
"You'll have to get your own." Rick said.
"It is mine. I've still got personal artifacts in there. That's about as mine as it gets." Tomas said as he took out his gun.
Everyone who had a gun started aiming at Tomas and everyone else.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Maybe let's try to make this work out so everybody wins." Axel said.
"I don't see that happening." Tomas said.
"Neither do we." Rick said back.
"I ain't going back in that cafeteria for one more minute." Tomas said.
"There are other cell blocks." Axel said.
"You could leave. Try your luck out on the road." Daryl said still aiming his crossbow.
There all silent for a good ten seconds.
"If these Five Pussies, could do all this, the least we could do is take out another cell block." Tomas said everyone.
"With what?" Big tiny asked.
"Atlanta here will spot us some real weapons. Won't you, boss?" Tomas said.
"How stocked is that cafeteria? It must have plenty of food. Five guys lasting almost a year?" Rick said.
"It sure as hell don't look like anybody's been starving." Daryl said.
"There's only a little left." Tomas said.
"We'll take half. In exchange, we'll help clear out a cell block." Rick said.
"Didn't you hear him? There's only a little left." Andrew said.
"Bet you got more food than you got choices. You pay, we'll play. We'll clear out a block for you, then you keep to it." Rick said.
"All right." Tomas said.
"But let's be clear. If we see you out here anywhere near our people, if I so much as even catch a whiff of your scent, I will kill you." Rick told him.
"Deal." Tomas said.
( In the Cafeteria)
"Pantry's back here." Tomas said.
"You never tried to break out of here?" T-Dog asked the prisoners.
"Yeah, we tried to take the doors off. But if you make one peep in here, then those freaks'll be lined up outside the door growling, trying to get in. Windows got bars on there that he-man couldn't get through." Oscar said.
"Bigger than a 5x8." Axel said.
"You won't find me complaining. Doing 15. My left leg can barely fit on one of those bunks." Big Tiny said.
"Yeah, they don't call him Big Tiny for nothing." Oscar said.
"You done jerking each other off? Sick of waiting back here." Tomas said.
They all walk to the pantry and Rick puts his hand on his gun. Daryl, Rick, T-Dog, Shane and Michael inspect the food, there was a ton of it.
"This what you call a little bit of food?" Daryl asked Tomas.
"Goes fast." Tomas said.
"Mm-hmm."
"You can have a bag of corn, some tuna fish- Tomas was cut off.
"We said half. That's the deal." Rick said. "What's in there?" He asked pointing at the door that Michael was right by.
"Don't open that." Oscar said.
Rick opens it, Michael and Rick get a huge whiff of ten months worth of piss and poop smell.
"What the Fu-" Michael couldn't finish because of the stink.
"He wanted to know." Tomas said.
Michael and Rick slam the door shut.
"Can't wait for my own pot to piss in." Axel said.
(back in the cell)
Everybody else is tending to Hershel. All of them are doing what they can to save him.
Suddenly Rick, Michael and T-Dog came in with boxes of food.
"Food's here." T-Dog said.
"What you got?" Carl asked as he let them in.
"Canned beef, canned corn, canned cans. There's a lot more where this came from." T-Dog said.
"Any change?" Rick asked Lori.
"Bleeding is under control and no fever, but his breath is labored and his pulse is way down and he hasn't opened his eyes yet." Lori told him.
"Take my cuffs, put them on him. I'm not taking any chances." Rick said to Glenn.
Glenn gets the cuff from Rick. Michael in the meantime went into Hershel's cell to check up on him.
Love "He's not doing to good, is he?" Michael asked Carol.
"Yeah, his breathing is faint and he lost a lot of blood. If, if we can't find any medicine or anything to help cover the wound soon, I don't think he will make it." Carol said.
Beth was starting to get a little worried when she said that.
Michael puts his back against the wall putting his hands in his pockets. Then he remember Carol mention medicine. He went to his cell and looked in his bag and pulled out the medicine case he found at the house. He went back to Carol.
"Hey, maybe this could help." Michael said giving Carol the Medicine case.
"Ibuprofen. Where did you find this?" Carol asked,
"I found it in the house that we were in a couple days ago." Michael said.
Carol opens it and puts a pill in Hershel's mouth. Beth gets up and gives Michael a hug.
"Thank you Michael. This will really help my dad, thank you." Beth said.
Michael walks out and back to his cell to get his sword.
In the Meantime Rick and Lori were talking about there situation about the prisoners.
Back with the prisoners Rick, T-Dog, Shane, Michael and Daryl explain to them on how to take out walkers and the plan on how to take the cell block, and not use guns in case of an emergency.
"You ain't got to tell us how to take out a man." Tomas said
"They aren't men. They're something else." T-Dog said.
"Just remember... to go for the brain." Rick said.
They all head out for the cell block.
(Different Cell Block)
Everyone was traversing carefully to not be spotted by walkers, as they were walking they found some walkers coming towards them. they all stay point and then suddenly the prisoners charge in attacking the walkers on the body, not even aiming for the head. Rick, Michael, T-Dog, Daryl, and Shane just stood there looking at them. Shane shook his head.
"Dumb asses." Shane said to himself.
After a while, Rick, Daryl, T-Dog, Michael and Shane finished off the walkers for them and then they kept walking forward.
"It's gotta be the brain. Not the stomach, not the heart- the brain." Daryl said as he killed a Walker.
"I hear you. The brain." Axel said.
Oscar hits one with his ax.
"Like that?" Oscar asked.
"Uh-huh." Daryl said.
Axel sticked a pipe into a walker's brain, and then it fell back.
Then Rick kills another Walker.
"Stay in tight formation. No more prison riot crap." Rick said to everyone.
A horde of walkers come and everyone does there best to hit them in the head. Big tiny slips away unnoticed. He then sees a walker handcuffed and pushes him away. He tries to take on another walker but as he was distracted, the walker that was hancuffed starts to pull his hands free, it gets one its arms free but at the cost of its hand, The walker than scratches walker with his broken hand. Rick comes in to help and takes out the walker, Tomas shoots the other one that was dangerously close of shooting him. Big tiny checks his shoulder and see blood on his hand.
"I'm tellin' you, I don't feel anything it's just a scratch." Big Tiny said, while Rick held a flashlight over on his scratch.
"I'm sorry, man." Rick sighed.
"I can keep fighting!" Big Tiny said.
"You cut that old guy's leg off to save his life." Andrew suggested.
"Look at where the bite is, genius." Michael said.
"Guys, I'm fine! Just- I'm fine. Look at me- I'm not changing into one of those things." Big Tiny said.
"Look, man, there has to be something we can do. We could just lock him up." Oscar said.
"Quarantine him." Axel said.
"We gotta do something!" Andrew said. "Why you just standing there, we gotta save him."
"There's nothing we can do." Rick shook his head.
"You son of a bitch." Andrew muttered.
"I'm all ri-" Big Tiny was about to say, but Tomas had smacked the back of his head and he fell over. Tomas then started beating Big Tiny's head in repeatedly. After he was finished, he looked at everyone and then just walks off. Rick And Michael were both staring at him with a cautious look on there faces.
Everyone is walking through the hallway. Rick, Michael and Daryl lagged behind a little bit to talk about Tomas.
"You see the look on his face?" Daryl whispered to Rick.
"He makes one move." Rick whispered back.
"Just give me a signal" Daryl said.
"I would like to see that son of a bitch try." Michael whispered.
They head into a laundry room They all go near a locked, Daryl tosses the keys to Tomas,
"I ain't opening that." Tomas said.
"Yes, you are. If you want this cell block, you're gonna open that door. Just the one, not both of them. Because we need to control this." Rick said.
Tomas picks up the keys and looks at Andrew, Tomas goes to the door and unlocks it.
"You bitches ready?" Tomas said. He tugs on the door two times,
"I got this this." Tomas quickly opens both doors on the third tug.
"I SAID ONE DOOR!" Rick yelled,
"Shit Happens!" He retorted. The ten of them fought all of the walkers that came into the room. During the fight Tomas dangerously swings his weapon towards Rick, Rick dodges it just in time, then Tomas through a walker in his direction. Rick fell back, struggling to get the walker off him.
"T, Shane, Mikey - mind the gap!" Daryl ordered, killing the walker that was on Rick. He then pulled it off and pulled Rick back up. The walkers were cleared out and Rick stared at Tomas.
"It was coming at me, bro." Tomas said.
"Yeah, I get it. I get it. Shit Happens." Rick said. The two stared at each other, with Rick giving him a threatening look while Tomas just looked at him unsure of what he was going to do. Andrew looked in nervously. Rick quickly pulled up his machete, spiking Tomas in the head.
"No!" Yelled Andrew. Rick then kicked off Tomas's corpse as Andrew lunged in to hit him with the baseball bat, but Michael kicked him.
"Easy now." Daryl warned Andrew. Andrew then ran off, running down the halls.
"I got him". Rick said chasing after Andrew.
"Man, get down on your knees." Daryl said as he, Shane, T-Dog and Michael aim there weapons at the Axel and Oscar, they both drop their weapons and go on there knees.
"We don't have no affiliation to what just happened... tell him, Oscar." Axel said.
"Stop talking, man." Oscar muttered. Rick kept chasing Andrew through the hallways. Andrew opened the door to something outside and Rick caught up to him. Andrew ran back, learning that the area was full of walkers. Rick closed the gate before he could get in.
"Let me back in, man. Let me back in! Open it up, man! Open up! Open up." Andrew said.
"You better run." Rick said. Andrew then ran through, pushed through walker - Rick then shut the door and heard the screams of Andrew.
(Back in the Other Cell block)
"We had nothing to with that." Oscar said.
"You didn't know? You knew." Rick warned, pointing his gun at Oscar's head.
"Daryl, let's end this NOW." Rick yelled, moving the gun to Axel.
"Sir, please, please, listen to me! It was them that was bad. It wasn't us." Axel said.
"Oh, that's convenient!" Rick said.
"You saw what he did to Tiny... he was my friend! Please, we ain't like that, I like my Pharmaceuticals but I'm no killer! Oscar here he' & E and he ain't good at it neither. We ain't the violent kind, they were! Please, I swear to God! I wanna live!" Axel yelled. Rick then pointed the gun back to Oscar.
"What about you?" He asked.
"I ain't never pleaded for my life. And I ain't about to start now. So you do what you gotta do." Oscar said.
Daryl opens up a new cell block for Oscar and Axel. There was dead bodies all around.
"Oh, man..." Axel sighed. "I knew these guys...They were good men."
"Let's go." Rick said to Daryl, T-Dog, Shane and Michael.
"So you just gonna leave us in here!? Man, this is sick!" Oscar questioned.
"We're locking down the cell block - from now on this part of the prison is yours. Take it or leave it, that was the deal." Rick said while walking off.
"You think this is sick, you don't want to know whats outside." Daryl said to them.
"Consider yourselves the lucky ones." Rick said to them both.
"Sorry about your friends, man." Daryl said to the two prisoners.
They all walk out of the cell block.
"Word of advice... take those bodies outside and burn them." T-Dog said to the prisoners.
They leave to go to there cell block.
(Cell block C)
Everyone goes back to there Cell block to check on Hershel. Rick goes up to him and then after a minute Hershel opens his eyes.
"Daddy?" Maggie said, he starts blinking
"Daddy." Beth said giving Hershel a Hug,
Rick takes the handcuffs off of him. Hershel lifts his hand up to Rick and he grabs it holding it for reassuring. everyone was all relieved, Maggie and Beth start crying knowing that there dad is all right.
Hershel was alive. It was good news to everyone, he was alive. It was going to be hard for him to walk with one leg and all, but he'll pull through.
That does it for this chapter! Next chapter will probably be short, but it will introduce Michonne and the return of two survivors. If you seen season 3's third episode you know what happens, but I will throw some twists you never saw coming. So look forward to that and vote on my next poll. I enjoy lots of good reviews. So keep them coming and May The Force Be With You!
