The small rescue party made their way silently back through the tombs and into the cellblock; Michonne slipped through the corridor connecting C and D block to blend seamlessly into the shadows. The rest of them crept along, pressed close to the wall and waited for her all clear signal before they would risk crossing the open space into D block. Daryl caught sight of the glint on Michonne's Katana as she moved it up and down in a pre-arranged signal to indicate that it was all clear; he kept one hand pressed against the small of Carol's back needing that connection between them and they moved slowly forward to meet Michonne on the corner.
"Blake left four men – two of them are towers one and two, facing the front of the yard and the other two are working on the fence. If we hurry we can get our people free and all of us can just disappear." Michonne kept her voice low as the four of them made their way further into the connecting corridor. Although the Woodbury men were all currently occupied outside the prison walls, they all knew how sound carried throughout the walls. Daryl nodded in response and felt Carol's fingers creep in to curl around his palm; he squeezed lightly in response and felt her relax slightly at his side.
"Okay, you and Carol head over to C and give tha girls a heads up. Tell 'em we're coming over as soon as we find Rick and the others; and ta keep their traps shut in the meantime." Daryl knew that Michonne would keep his woman safe until he could be at her side once more and saw her nod solemnly in response. He turned to Carol and pressed a hard kiss against her mouth before pushing her gently over in Michonne's direction. "Stay safe, see you soon."
"Nine lives, Pookie." Carol whispered in response and straightened her shoulders as she got her knives out ready for action. Merle chuckled at the sight of his brother's meek and gentle woman turning into a warrior right before his eyes. Daryl punched him on the shoulder and edged him further along the corridor to the entrance of D block. The two brothers crept along the corridor, keeping close to the wall, Daryl turned back to get one more brief look at Carol's retreating figure before they slipped into D block out of sight.
Merle stepped in front of Daryl to take the lead position and flattened his hand in the air to indicate that Daryl should remain in position, out of sight, until he was able to confirm whether the block was clear of the Woodbury guards. Daryl nodded and Merle toed his boots off to leave them with Daryl so that he could move stealthily through the cellblock. Merle kept his footing sure by keeping his weight on each foot as he stepped slowly forward, gently letting his moving foot down toe first keeping his body's weight balanced on his rear leg with each step. As he stepped slowly forward he shifted his weight and balance onto his forward foot before moving his rear foot forward, taking evenly paced shorter steps just in case Blake had left any surprises along the way; having spent months in the man's company; Merle knew how fond the man was on laying traps such as trip wires and pressure mines and didn't want to cause any unnecessary harm to himself or any of the others.
"Rick? Ya hear me, man?" Merle hissed quietly as he approached the locked cells, peering into each dimly lit area trying to catch a glimpse of a familiar face. "Tyreese? Glenn? Somebody answer me fer cripes sake!"
"Merle? Is that you?" A quiet voice from the rear of the cell block had Merle hustling over with his lock pick; as he drew closer he almost didn't recognise the swollen and battered features of the slim young Asian man leaning wearily against the bars of the cell.
"Christ Almighty, lil' China! Yer took a beatin' didn't ya? Let's get ya outta there. Where's Rick and Tyreese hidin'?" Merle shook his head at the sorry sight of Glenn holding an arm against his ribs in an effort to remain upright. One eye was completely closed and he was sporting a split lip that was puffy with dried blood caking his chin. Merle made short work of picking the lock and stepped into the cell to wrap a beefy arm around the younger man's waist to support him as he escorted him out of the cell. "Prop yerself against the wall a moment ta catch yer breath. Now, tell me again where's Officer Friendly at?" Glenn leant against the wall, struggling to get his bearings; a sharp pang hit his chest as he took a deep breath and he knew that he could add a couple of cracked ribs to his injury tally. He raised his head finally and pointed to the last cells at the end of the block.
"They're both over there, the Governor's men beat them unconscious when they wouldn't give up Michonne or Carol…"
"Carol? Blake was after Carol, too? Fuck! Daryl's gonna shit a brick when he finds that little snippet out." Merle scratched his stubble and ran a hand over his weary face, looking back down the corridor where his brother was keeping watch. "I'm gonna get Daryl to give me a hand movin' Rick and Tyreese, you're in no condition to help out. Do you know the way through the tombs into the back yard?" Merle asked quietly, thinking that they needed to come up with a new plan and fast. If both Rick and Tyreese were out of action; then it made things all the more difficult for the rest of them. He and Daryl would need to take out all four of Blake's men on their own, possibly with Maggie's help if she was in a fit state; leaving Glenn to get Rick, Tyreese, Carol and Beth to the rear yard, and that didn't include the Asskicker or the Grimes kid either. Glenn could see the wheels turning in Merle's head as the older man silently paced back and forth before coming to rest in front of him.
"So, do ya know yer way through the tombs or not?" Merle asked Glenn again and the younger man nodded, wincing a little as his head ached with the sudden movement.
"Yeah, I can get remember the way through. You head on over and get Daryl and I'll see if I can get the Sleeping Beauties to wake up. What about Carl and Maggie? They're both pretty good with a pistol or a rifle?"
"Jest what I was thinkin'; Michonne's taken Carol over to C to start gathering supplies, focusing on shit for the baby. I'll unlock Rick's cell and then head back for Daryl; if you can get them awake enough to move start heading down to the tombs; if not Daryl will help you get them out. Everyone needs to meet in the generator room before we head out. I'll send Beth, Hershel and the baby along as soon as I've got them free." Merle gave Glenn one more look over to make sure that the younger man wasn't going to pass out on him and then slipped away when Glenn nodded that he was okay. Merle headed over the block to where Rick and Tyreese were sprawled unconscious on the damp concrete floor. He twisted his thin picks in the lock and murmured a quick prayer of thanks when the door swung open in near silence. Merle knelt down next to the crumpled figures on the floor and pressed his fingers to their neck, feeling for a pulse. Satisfied that they were alive, he quickly rose to his feet and gestured for Glenn to enter the cell.
"Keep tryin' ta bring 'em round and I'll head back to grab Daryl." Merle whispered softly to Glenn and without another word made his way back to the corridor to fetch his brother.
"Slight change of plan, lil' brother. Glenn's on his feet but both Rick and Tyreese are out cold. Gonna need yer help getting' 'em both out the back. You head on in and give Glenn a hand and I'll slip over and free the ladies. We'll have to hope that Maggie and Carl are calm enough to help us take out Blake's men in the yard." Merle kept his voice soft and low as he filled Daryl in on the state of play whilst slipping his boots back on. Daryl nodded in approval and shifted his crossbow around to his back.
"Good idea Merle, if Carol has finished loading Ass Kicker's stuff get her to cover the yard with a pistol. She's better at that than with a long range rifle. Send Hershel, Beth and the baby out to the tombs, Sasha is more than capable of covering their asses and more to the point, she knows her way out of the tombs. Leave Carol, Carl and Maggie as our backup out in the yard. I'll help Glenn get Rick and Tyreese out of the back and then head back to take care of Blake's men in the yard. Glenn can help Sasha cover the back and get everyone into the cars." Daryl gnawed on a piece of loose skin against the side of his thumb as he thought things through quickly, Merle bumped his shoulder and the brothers parted ways; Daryl toward Glenn and the men and Merle to the other cell block and the ladies.
Merle kept to the shadows as he made his way swiftly but silently along the dim corridor separating the two cell blocks; he could hear sounds of the Woodbury men calling out to each other in the yard and the softer sounds of the baby whimpering in the cells with Beth crooning softly to her in an attempt to quieten her sobs. He headed straight for the cell containing Beth and the softly whimpering Judith; he held a finger up to his lips and pointed to the lock and then the dark corridor behind him. Beth's eyes widened and she nodded as she clasped the baby closer to her chest and held a hand protectively over her head. He snicked the lock open and Beth, Hershel and Carl stepped out of the cell.
"Carl, stay where you are for a moment; Beth, you take the baby and Hershel and wait just inside the corridor for a bit." Hershel nodded in agreement and swung his crutches into position; nudging Beth to follow the elder Dixon's instructions. Merle stepped over to work at the lock of the cell where Maggie and Sasha were imprisoned and keeping his voice low gave them an update.
"Sasha, you're gonna get Beth, Hershel and the baby out of the tombs; Glenn will be waiting for you at the other end with Rick and Tyreese. Maggie, you and Carl will give me a hand taking out the garbage in the yard. Either of you seen Carol or Michonne?"
"They headed on up to the top cells to grab a few things out of Carol's cell and then they started getting things together for Judith." Sasha whispered back quietly, as the two women stepped out of the cell to join Merle and Carl near the metal steps. Maggie looked over at where her younger sister was trying to placate the sobbing Judith with the help of their father but the baby's cries were growing louder in the otherwise silent cell block. Suddenly Judith let out a stream of unintelligible babble and Merle turned around to see Daryl approaching from the corridor of the tombs. Judith leant forward out of Beth's arms, stretching out her little limbs in an attempt to reach her favourite person; sobbing at the sight of her uncle Daryl; knowing that he was always the person to make her feel better.
"Shit lil' brother; ya'd better git on over there and give 'er what she wants; otherwise none of us are gonna get outta here in one piece." Daryl plucked the baby out of Beth's arms and she immediately nestled into his shoulder, grabbing on to the edge of his leather vest and snuggling her head under his chin. He ran a hand up and down her back and murmured softly into her hair and Judith finally quietened down.
"Rick and Tyreese are awake and heading for the cars, anyone seen Carol?" Daryl asked quietly, worry colouring his tone.
"Worried about me already, Pookie? I haven't even been gone ten minutes…" Carol's quietly amused tone came out of nowhere and even Merle was surprised to see that she had slipped back into the cell block without being seen or heard by anyone, not even his brother.
"Where ya left the Amazon, little warrior?" Merle asked, looking around for Michonne and not seeing her behind Carol.
"She's having a little fun out in the yard. Here, I picked up a few toys for us all out of my cell." Carol stepped forward and started to hand out the weapons that she and Daryl had stored under her mattress for occasions such as this. She handed over a handgun to Carl and Sasha, and gave Maggie and Merle the rifles that she had slung over her shoulder.
"Have I told you how much I love you, Carol?" Merle exclaimed quietly as he swiftly checked over the rifle that he had been given, chuckling softly when Carol dipped into her hobo bag to pull out spare boxes of ammunition which she also passed around. Daryl had only told her to gather what she needed for Judith and anything else she deemed as necessary; the woman would make a perfect Dixon as she considered weaponry over food and clothing as necessary items.
"Git yer own woman, Merle. This one's taken!" Daryl growled softly as he accepted a bundle of spare arrows that Carol had also pulled from her everlasting bag of tricks, smirking a little as he saw his spare crossbow strapped across Carol's back and her handgun tucked in front of her shirt in the small of her back.
"Boys, boys settle down." Carol stepped in between the two brothers and placed a hand on each of their chests pushing them both back slightly. "Now, I've put a couple of rucksacks of Judith's things just down the corridor a little ways, along with a couple of bags of food. I suggest that you give Judy back to Beth so that they can get started. Carl, you stay this side of the fence and keep an eye out for anyone trying to enter the courtyard." The young boy nodded and made his way silently to the front entrance. Carol turned around to pluck Judith out of Daryl's arms and headed over to where Beth and Hershel were waiting near the entrance to the tombs. She handed Judith over to Beth and pressed a gentle kiss against the baby's soft cheek and ran a hand over the teenager's hair; before gesturing for them to get a move on. Sasha bent down to help Hershel on with one of the rucksacks, doing the same for Beth and picked up the two remaining bags of food herself. The three of them spared a quick glance at the rest of the group and then slipped through the large doors into the darkened corridor.
Carol turned around to face the stunned faces of Maggie, Merle and Daryl. They had remained silent all the way through her take charge attitude and so Carol decided to just continue. "Maggie, you head on over to tower one; I think you'll find that Michonne has emptied it out for you; which only leaves one in tower two and two on the fence for the rest of us to take care of." Carol whirled around and swung her crossbow around to the front and notched a bolt into position, she looked over her shoulder and winked over at Daryl.
"Are you coming, Pookie?"
"Hell, yeah!" Daryl stepped into place behind his woman; it was a massive turn on to see her take charge so decisively and there was no way in Hell that he was gonna miss this show down. Merle snickered as he crossed over to Daryl's side and nudged his brother's shoulder playfully. He was just about to open his mouth to say something about Daryl being Carol's little plaything when one look from Carol had him closing his mouth with a snap. How in the Hell had she known? Damn, that woman had eyes in the back of her head! Merle straightened his shoulders a little as he narrowed his eyes at the once meek and mild woman striding in front of them looking like she owned the world.
"And get your eyes off my ass, Merle Dixon! Don't think I don't know what you're thinking…" Everyone chuckled at the low hiss that came from between Carol's clenched teeth, as she felt his hot stare burning into her backside. It was Daryl's turn to cuff his older brother around the head, and he accompanied it with a stern reminder to concentrate on the task ahead rather than eyeing up Carol.
"Git yer brain outta yer pants, Merle! I told ya already, she ain't on the market no more, dipshit. Now try and concentrate before ya git us all killed!"
"Sorry, lil' brother. She's so…." Merle shook his head to try and clear it, the transformation of Carol clearly knocking him for a loop.
"Yeah I know…" Daryl smirked over at his brother and then gently caressed his crossbow, narrowing his eyes in warning. "But she's all mine so git yer head back in the game, before I knock it back fer ya." He left Merle staring after him in amazement as he quickened his pace to join his woman leading their party out into battle.