Curative
The ride was tense, everyone was on edge and ready for this to end. So much had happened, people died. If it didn't end now, they all feared it might never stop.
Some were concerned they had adjusted to it too well, killing other people had become easier than before. They knew what they had to do to survive and were now on their way to do it again. There was no other path for them but bloodshed.
Laura, especially, struggled to see a way through. After everything these people did, all she wanted was violence. But she couldn't see it ending anything even if Woodbury burned to the ground. All it would do is buy them time before something else happened.
Nevertheless, she was riding with them to Woodbury to do just that. Kill them all, burn it down, buy more time; no matter what came of it.
Every time she thought about it, her head began to ache. The rage and ferocity she exuded had taken its toll. Her health had been diminishing for a long time, though she wondered if this wound to her head might've been the final blow.
Her body had sustained so much damage, too much for the average person to survive. But due to her altered state of living, Laura remained standing. Not truly what she wanted, but she knew she didn't want to die either. Even through it all, Laura wanted to live.
There was no reason she could give, no great purpose to stay alive. Just that death, something she had vaguely experienced once, was the most terrifying thing she had ever felt. Not how she died, not even the excruciating pain of dying, but rather knowing it was happening.
Laura had been bitten and, predictably, died from the infection. Those final moments were delirium, full of hallucinations and abject terror unlike anything she ever experienced before or after.
She didn't want to die, but she didn't want to live like this.
Laura looked back into the car, taking only quick glances at the people occupying it with her. The SUV was full, everyone they brought were ready to fight and kill for their new home. Rick drove with Michonne in the front passenger, she had become one of the group so quickly, yet so naturally. In the back with Laura was Red and Merle. Unlike Michonne, Merle had not blended seamlessly into the group, despite being an original member.
Merle, like Red, was a volatile man with a score to settle. Only it was impossible to predict who Merle wanted to settle that score with. A score that was most often created by Merle's own actions, earning himself consequences he deemed unfair.
Laura thought he was the most intolerant person she'd ever come across. Knowing Merle was a misfortune for her and the others. Whatever it was to Daryl, she couldn't tell and didn't want to know.
Too much of what was said brought her to darker depths, like a whirlpool. Every time she thought about it, it would get worse. She desperately sought solitude so she could try to forget, but it wouldn't work. They were too stubborn to leave her be and she didn't want to let it go.
It didn't matter who Merle was to the group, to Daryl; after that day she wanted to kill him. She had the opportunity, she was willing, but Merle was perhaps the only person that could defend themselves against her. He knew how she worked and used every advantage he could, even if it meant putting himself at odds with his own brother.
Which it definitely had done.
Once the events were discussed, Daryl had not spoken to Merle unless necessary. He didn't know what was said or done exactly, only that both returned injured. Laura wouldn't even let him near her and Merle was talking too much, something he did when he felt guilty.
Michonne hadn't spoken about it, though people asked. She remained resolute that whatever happened was between them, but more importantly; whatever had affected Laura so deeply was her own business. She would talk when she was ready, or not if she never wanted to.
But Laura wasn't thinking about all this because she was trying to heal, there was no chance she would open up about it or be vulnerable again. The damage was too great, her feelings of safety compromised when she needed it most.
Looking back out the window, she surveyed a tall grass field at the end of the tree line. Her gaze falling upon an aimless walker alone in the field, it didn't move an inch. It had nothing to hunt and no herd to follow, lost.
She wasn't sure how to feel or what to think anymore. With so many drastic changes, could she possibly trust the people around her? Merle might have been talking out of his ass like he always does, but that didn't make him wrong.
Suddenly, the vehicle slowed down. They weren't near Woodbury yet. Laura raised her head from the window, observing Rick and Michonne in front.
Michonne's eyes squinted, "What is that?"
"It's them." Rick replied quietly, momentarily planning for an ambush.
"Rick-" Michonne turned her eyes from the obstruction ahead, "Those are fresh bodies."
A pause, Rick didn't react immediately. They all felt the tension grow as he decided what to do. "Yeah," He pulled the vehicle to the side, stopping behind the blocked section of road. "Let's take a look."
While Rick seemed to take this moment reluctantly, Michonne appeared far more concerned for what they had just come across. Rightfully so, as everyone stepped out of the vehicle and finally got a clear view. The backend of one of Woodbury's transports was visible with blood splatters and bullet holes. On the ground beside it, rows upon rows of bodies.
They were all recent, the blood pooling on the ground around them still wet. Walkers had risen from the dead and came from the woods nearby, devouring the corpses, but it was clear none of them died to the walkers.
These people were gunned down and seemed to be fanned out around the abandoned convoy. Left where they dropped, trying to escape whoever opened fire on them.
Everyone worked through the distracted walkers with ease. Michonne's katana made quick work of walkers shambling towards them while Rick and the others investigated the vehicles for any signs of what happened. Laura remained with Michonne, cutting down any outside her range.
It only took a few seconds before they would find out. A loud bang from the large transport truck startled the group, with Daryl being the closest jumping back from the door with his knife out. Only to realize the source was a person, still alive, showing her hands. She looked scared and would be the answer they needed.
Once the door popped, she was pulled from the truck and Daryl checked the cabin behind her. She had no weapons on her, kept her hands up, and was shaking. Not exactly what they expected when chasing down the Governor.
Red gave her a quick pat down, ensuring she wasn't a treat to them. He shook his head to Rick, who approached with a suspicious look in his eye. "What happened here?" He gestured towards the scattered bodies around them.
"He-" She swallowed, her breathing labored. "He killed everyone, he shot them all."
Michonne came to stand beside Laura, the two women equally distrustful with good reason. It was hard to argue though with the evidence surrounding them.
"The Governor?" Daryl pressed her to explain more. As if she had some deeper explanation for them that would make sense of this massacre.
She nodded hastily. "He ordered the convoy to stop. We were angry, we didn't want to fight people. Fighting you at the prison was a mistake, we didn't know, but- we figured it out. I told him we weren't his soldiers, everyone started to leave to go back home and then-" Losing her breath, she stuttered. "He just shot them all. I pretended to be dead and he left."
Seeing how upset she was, how she fought back her tears, made it hard to call her a liar. However, they couldn't risk trusting her.
Rick was disturbed by this news, finding it plausible considering what they had stumbled across. He thought back to the prison, the effort it took to clear it, the people they found along the way. Red and his group, Tyreese and his own.
The people the Governor's soldiers had killed, all the bloodshed it took to get here. His righteous anger wanted to kill her, remove the risk entirely. She could be lying, there could be an ambush and letting her live could be part of it.
It didn't matter if he could see a way for that to happen, he had to keep his group safe. She was part of Woodbury, she was a risk.
Turning away from the woman, Rick grappled with the choice to either kill her to take her alive. Daryl remained beside him in case the word was given. It didn't come easily to Daryl, but he was willing to do what had to be done.
Whatever came over Rick that seemed to quell his warpath was just in time to spare this last Woodbury survivor. Rick came back to her, looking towards their vehicle. "You'll ride with us. Let's go." He walked away, with the woman being led by Red right behind him.
It was surprising to see, prompting Laura to give a questioning glance to Michonne. She had no answer, though wasn't bothered by an act of mercy. Especially since it was the same act of mercy that got her into the group.
With that, and a few more walkers put down, the group returned to their vehicles. Daryl led the way on his bike, carefully navigating the road littered with bodies. It was unpleasant, the occasional bump they tried to ignore as Rick attempted to avoid them.
Once back on the road, Laura gave a once over to the woman now riding beside her. She was visibly shaken, sweating, and struggling to understand the terror she had just survived. It was hard rationalizing everything that led to this moment, that she was seeking help from the people she had just attempted to kill.
Things were confusing for now, but with luck everything would clear up once they arrived at Woodbury.
No one seemed willing to discuss it for now. Laura and Red were quietly tasked with ensuring the woman doesn't suddenly attack or signal anything. The dark haired woman seemed completely incapable of anything like that.
Laura, shocked, looked around the vehicle again. Rick, Michonne, Red, and the Woodbury woman… She was confused, searching out the window behind her to see if she could spot their missing passenger. There was one more when they left, Where's Merle?
Not that she cared, he could stay lost. But upon seeing how unconcerned the others were, Laura leaned back in her seat and kept it to herself.
It wasn't much longer until Rick slowed down again, finally arriving on the last road to Woodbury. When they began to slow, Laura could recognize the street they were on. Less than ten minutes out if they didn't come across resistance. All seemed quiet though, no signs of anything. She figured they would do something to protect themselves.
"Did Andrea make it?"
The silence was uncomfortable, but somehow the stranger with them talking made it worse. Tense, but shocked to hear her name, Rick's eyes narrowed on the woman through the rear view. "What?"
She saw the confusion in his expression, in everyones. "Andrea ran off trying to reach the prison. She didn't want me to tell anyone and I didn't. I just want to know if she's alright."
Michonne, extremely concerned upon hearing this, looked to Rick for an answer. Unfortunately, he had none to offer. "No. We never saw her."
Disappointed, the woman realized that meant Andrea was missing. She didn't return to Woodbury and she didn't arrive at the prison as she planned. Wherever she was, she wouldn't have run off without a good reason.
Andrea, the one person they expected to have to deal with once they reached Woodbury, was not there. At least, she wasn't supposed to be. There was a somberness. Realizing one of their own was not only missing, but very likely dead.
The closer they got, the more uncomfortable Laura felt. Unsure if there was a trap at all, unsure about reentering Woodbury, her skin crawled as memories entered her mind.
Rick stopped the SUV and rested his hand on the steering wheel. Tense, he peered through the darkness down the road before them. "We walk from here." He popped his door and stepped out. Michonne followed close behind. A quiet attack was the best choice, they were still outnumbered.
Red grabbed the woman in the middle seat, dragging her with them. Rick opened the trunk, taking out his own rifle before handing out the others to the rest of the group. Everyone had to be fully armed for this, there was no telling what they'd encounter.
It was unusual for them to go anywhere with such heavy firepower, carrying the rifles meant something. They came here to kill. Without the others knowing though, Rick began to wonder if there was another way.
Laura hooked her clawed hands over the rifle, securing it in her arms before walking with the group. The road was clear, not a walker in sight. Woodbury handled any and all walkers within range of their walls the moment they were spotted.
As they made their way between the dilapidated cars and crumbling buildings, Laura could spot the occasional concerned glance her way. Daryl was ahead of her and kept his focus sharp. Every now and then, tension would build and he would look at her to try and figure out what she was thinking.
She was impossible to read, yet common sense told him returning to Woodbury was complicated for her. So he kept an eye on her, watching her reactions or lack thereof.
It irritated her a bit, she didn't want to be checked up on. Thanks to the events earlier in the day, she was certain there was no way to avoid it. She had been grazed, but she could've died. Not that anyone but Laura really knew the extent of it.
They moved between the kudzu covered outdoor area, just passing under a white gazebo when - BANG! A single gunshot rang in their ears. Instantly, everyone fired back to cover each other while they ducked behind a car. The single shot had burst a pot beside them, it was a good few feet away from them.
Once in cover, the group began to exchange fire. Spread out from the front to the back of the hollowed out sedan, everyone tried their shot in the dark. But wherever the gunshots came from, they couldn't see. Firing into the dark was useless, they wouldn't make any progress like this.
Laura stood up, aiming through the broken windows of the sedan. With her ability to see in low light, Laura was able to see the Woodbury wall had no one on top of it. They weren't out in the open shooting, they had a port to remain protected.
She crouched back down, getting a quick look from Rick before shaking her head. They were well hidden, there was no way to zero in on them without seeing their muzzle flash.
Rick tensed, trying to figure out a way forward before he was interrupted. The woman shook free of Red's grip while he was distracted, stepping out from behind the car. She raised her hands and searched the wall, "Tyreese! It's me, don't-"
Grabbing her arm, Rick dragged her back down behind the car. "Get down!" He wasn't sure if there was some kind of plan or not, but if she had been telling the truth he didn't want her getting shot. It was a brief moment of compassion, even though he had considered killing her earlier.
No gunshots followed her reveal, to their surprise, the guard at the gate held back. "Karen!" While they all heard the name she called out, they didn't think it was the same Tyreese as before. Hearing his voice now… It appeared to be. "Are you okay?"
Pulling away from Rick, Karen raised her hands and backed away from them. "I'm fine!"
"Where's the Governor?"
"He fired on everyone." Karen took a deep breath, "He killed them all."
There was a moment of silence, perhaps the news was more shocking to Woodbury than they thought. Whatever the Governor had done, even with Merle and Laura, there was no way to tell if anyone in the town truly knew what Philip was like. What Woodbury's leadership and its soldiers did in the name of providing for the people.
"Why're you with them?"
Hesitating, Karen wasn't sure exactly how to answer. "They… saved me." Whether that held up or not was unknown. For the time being, they didn't kill her when they had every reason to. She didn't want to be responsible for other people being killed by them, but the people had to know what the Governor did.
What violence this group brought to Woodbury's gates could be stopped in its tracks. Karen thought perhaps this could save some people.
At this moment, Rick realized he had the opportunity to end it before it got any worse. It seemed from what Tyreese asked Karen that the Governor had never returned to Woodbury. He should've been back by now, so he left Woodbury undefended.
They had the strength to roll through Woodbury, take out their anger on people none the wiser. Effectively, to murder innocent people to remove the small chance they would ever attack again.
It made no sense especially since it seemed the Governor was long gone. These people were not responsible for anything and, having struggled so much in the last few weeks, Rick decided enough was enough.
"We're coming out." Rick turned to see Michonne, Daryl, and Red all shocked and questioning his decision. The group expected to be gunned down the moment they showed their faces.
Regardless, Rick mustered the strength to stand up with his gun hanging behind his back and his hands up. "We're coming out." Everyone was reluctant to follow his lead, but they all fell in line.
As they approached the gates with their hands up, Karen beside them, the scrap gate made a loud clang before it swung open. Inside was Tyreese and Sasha, the people Rick had kicked out of the prison. Likely some bad blood remained, but it could wait.
"What're you doing here?" Tyreese took note of their condition. The group looked rough, but alive and fighting. Karen was also splattered with blood, which raised his concern for her.
Saying they came to kill everyone that attacked the prison was too harsh. Rick didn't want to give them the idea they were unreasonable. If the people that tried to kill them were already gone, then their plans needed to change.
"We were coming to finish this…" And all that implied was clear enough, "Until we saw what the Governor did." It had changed Rick's mind about what they came here to do, about the fight they were prepared to take on.
Woodbury would be reeling from so much loss. People who didn't know what was going on, people who got forced into it. It didn't matter why, just that the Governor slaughtered his own people.
"He… He killed them?" Tyreese and Sasha both felt their shoulders drop. Among that group was their friends, Allen and Ben. If the Governor killed everyone…
"Yeah."
Despite Allen's faults, he was their friend. They had survived so much together, hearing he was gunned down by the Governor was hard. And Ben was still only a kid that just lost his mother, he was angry and resentful. They were all betrayed.
"Karen told us Andrea hopped the wall, going for the prison." Rick continued, they had a new goal. "She never made it. She might be here."
This intrigued Tyreese and Sasha. The Governor was not the man they thought him to be, even though they had their doubts before, this was something else entirely. If the Governor was keeping someone in Woodbury, there was likely more to this story they had no idea about.
While Tyreese and Sasha were far more cautious than Allen and Ben, this was still shocking news to them. They realized now they had no idea about any of the people involved in this fight, but the fact that Rick came out willing to talk meant something.
Tyreese didn't know his way around Woodbury yet, so he wasn't able to offer much. "I don't know where she could be, but if she's here, we'll help you find her." He would give them access to Woodbury readily and Sasha nodded, she wanted to help.
When Rick turned to Karen for answers, before she could tell him she knew nothing; Laura stepped forward. "I know where."
Surprised to hear her voice, Rick searched her face. She was fairly confident she knew exactly where Andrea would be, if she was alive in Woodbury. Laura held his gaze before he gave her a single, slow nod. The tension between them was high, there were concerns Laura was not all there right now like she had been before.
But Andrea needed them, there was no time to waste.
"Alright." Rick gave his approval hesitantly and Laura stalked passed Tyreese and Sasha, straight into the open gate. Ensuring everyone was ready, the group made their way into Woodbury.
As Laura walked through familiar paths deeper into Woodbury, she led them through an alley between two brick buildings that kept up the pristine main street. Having to move through some storage remains and various left behind supplies.
Not much to look at considering in the backstreets none of the street lights worked. But they neared their destination without hindrance, something they all still struggled to believe. It really appeared as though the Governor had completely abandoned Woodbury, his pseudo-soldiers were nowhere to be seen.
After all the fighting, after their losses and grief, to learn that Philip just gave up, never to return… It was frustrating. Their priority was to stop the fighting of course, but they all wanted Philip to suffer the consequences of his horrendous actions.
They wouldn't get that satisfaction of putting an end to Philip and Woodbury. It was already over.
Laura was tense and desperate to not be in this town. Like the others, she wanted Philip and Woodbury's soldiers to pay for what they had done. Their cruelty, the suffering Laura survived, was meant to be repaid. The thought that she would never get the chance was shattering.
Though revenge wasn't the only thing on Laura's mind.
Approaching a small building, Laura stood in front of the door and paused. The first thing she ever saw in Woodbury, the feeling of terror as she was dragged into this room. Her eyes fluttered as old memories screamed at her not to go inside. It was too much, too quickly.
She struggled even to lift her hand and turn the doorknob. The door squealed as it slowly swung open, revealing a mostly dark space with only a few makeshift lights scattered around. Just the sounds the building made as it settled reminded her of being stuck in that room, locked away and tortured.
Knowing she couldn't muster the strength to enter and lead them to the basement, Laura stepped out of the way. She was completely locked out, she couldn't pass the barrier in her head. "Follow the string lights into the basement. The rooms he built down there are where he kept us."
Rick nodded as he entered the building, his gun drawn and checking the room with the others. They were going to search properly, no mistakes. Either they would find Andrea here or they would search all of Woodbury to find her.
There was no telling where she could be, but Andrea was a capable survivor. A trip to the prison wasn't a challenge for her, she would not have died to walkers along the way.
As they checked the room, Rick and Michonne were the first to do as Laura said and followed the lights. Aiming a gun down the staircase, he could see the beginnings of scrap metal walls. That was their makeshift prison where Philip kept and tortured people.
Before they headed down, Rick took stock of his group with Tyreese and Sasha now accompanying them. But one person lagged behind just for a moment; Daryl.
He had noticed that while everyone cleared the room and began moving deeper, that Laura did not stay with them. She remained just outside the door, not even willing to look inside if she could help it.
Concerned and trying to keep the group together, Daryl returned to her. The uncomfortable air around Laura was palpable and Daryl had to push through, trying to talk to her after what happened at the prison seemed wrong.
She made it perfectly clear she didn't want to speak to anyone, she didn't want them around her. Still, their situation was different right now. "Hey," His voice was low, as if being too loud would anger her. Laura's eyes flashed in his direction, but she didn't respond. "Come on."
Leaning against the outside wall, Laura shook her head. "I'm not going in there." And for her, it was non-negotiable.
Shifting on his feet, unsure what to say, Daryl couldn't think of a way to convince her to do anything. But he did understand why she didn't want to go in. He knew he couldn't get her inside with the group and if he tried to stay outside with her, she would likely be more angry.
It seemed impossible, though Daryl didn't have much of a choice. Woodbury was seemingly left behind, its people abandoned. At least if someone was at the door, they would have a lookout.
He didn't say any of this of course, Laura would hear none of it anyways. So he just accepted that he would have to leave her here while they searched. "You'll be okay out here?"
Laura couldn't help but feel a sharp twinge of guilt. To put his mind at ease, she turned her head to him and nodded. "I'll be fine." A small, almost unnoticeable smile meant to assure him was enough. Just that small positive interaction helped him tremendously.
With that, he took a few steps back into the building and left Laura outside. Once Daryl rejoined the group, they all continued deeper without a word. Their footsteps grew fainter by the second until finally, Laura couldn't hear them anymore.
They were searching the cells, one of them they would pass through and not even know Laura had spent months locked inside of. She felt selfish for not going down with the others to search for Andrea, that not being able to brave that place meant she was doing something abhorrent.
No matter how she tried to think of it, Laura couldn't stop the flood of trauma that hit her when she arrived here. She tried to push it down, ignore it, and work through it. Every step inside Woodbury's walls was like walking on glass, it got worse every second.
Her skin was crawling, she felt hands touching her body, and restraints holding her down as a hot iron was pressed into her. Laura pushed off from the wall, shaking her shoulders and head, trying to get rid of the disgusting thoughts that overwhelmed her.
Being in this vile place was its own special form of torture.
Laura paced, rotated her shoulders, tapped her foot on the ground. Anxiety grew exponentially, building up in her until she felt like bursting. Her eyes screwed shut and snapped open, she looked around Woodbury and saw soldiers patrolling the unlit street.
A vehicle drove passed her, heading for the back gate out before it faded out entirely. She could hear their voices, their footsteps, feel the tension in her chest rising as they opened the door to her cell.
Everything seemed so blurry, but she could see it vividly. She felt the hope she had her first days here, how she was willing to do anything to escape. No opportunity came, there was no chance of leaving without being caught.
Yet she'd still try. Once and then she was tackled to the ground in the mud, her injuries burned as a knee dug into her back, rain making it hard to see or hear. Then again, held at gunpoint and brought back. Again and again. But there was no way out.
Things began to fade in and out. In one moment the street was populated with soldiers, the next it was back to being dark and empty. Laura struggled to see one and not the other, some part of her fearing she was imagining everything. After all she endured, her hopes of escape shattered, Laura feared she had begun to lose touch with reality. Her frustrations and anger grew, a feral growl emanated from her throat as she threw her arm back, the metal claws scratching the concrete wall.
Her eyes blinked rapidly to clear the visions, she looked down the street towards the back gate entrance. There, not far from the rubble of Woodbury's destroyed armory, was the converted police precinct.
There was a light on inside.
Laura came to end the fight with Woodbury, just like the others did. Unbeknownst to the others, she had her own reasons as well. And that light barely flickering through the windows of the precinct reignited something deep inside her.
Looking back to Woodbury's prison, she hesitated to leave. They would be fine, Woodbury's soldiers weren't coming back. Now was the best chance she would get, perhaps the only one.
As she turned to cross the street, she saw another car come rolling through. Laura recoiled from the road, letting it pass without hitting her. After a second, she shook her head and crossed anyway. The vehicle was not really there, no one was back here but Rick and the others.
All the people she saw moving around weren't here, they weren't real. They would fade in and out, disappearing into the cold night and her sight would come back into focus. No soldier from Woodbury was going to grab her and she knew that, but still she felt the need to hide around corners.
She felt a sense of urgency to reach the precinct, as if she would get caught at any second. Hurrying to the door, Laura reached for the handle and froze.
Inside was her cell, the operating room, and everything that came with it. She was struck with a whirlwind of rage, sadness, and guilt. Laura came here for a purpose and she had to see it through, even if the others wouldn't understand.
The hallucinations kept fading in and out, a threat to her delicately balanced sanity. What came of her actions next were potentially the only thing between her and the infection inside her.
Laura clicked the door handle and let it open on its own, the door creaking as it slowly revealed her to the occupant inside.
Predictably, the only person inside was the man that had experimented on her. He turned, startled, towards the door and he struggled to make out the silhouette. At first he thought it was Philip, returning from their attack on the prison.
But as he raised the oil lamp in his hand, the familiar dull shine and unnatural edges of the gauntlets presented itself. Long hair, sharp claws; this was not Philip.
He straightened up, neatening his jacket as he finally understood what had come to his door.
"You're back." Just his voice made her angry, knowing he was alive and well royally pissed her off. There was no doubt he was concerned about her arrival, if she had been brought back she would likely be escorted here. With no one else in sight, no lights outside to denote the soldiers, he came to a swift conclusion.
Philip attacked the prison and lost. Laura returned to Woodbury to kill him. He had run out of time and resources to complete his work.
He, perhaps more than anyone else, knew exactly what Laura was capable of. If she wanted him dead there was not much he could do about it. Without a gun and experienced aim, he would not be able to stop her.
Instead of fighting or begging for his life, he moved a few steps behind him to sit on a wooden chair. He had a large bruise on his forehead, accompanied by an abrasion from when Daryl knocked him unconscious. It was a minor wound and he had been found not long after by Woodbury's soldiers. Once freed, he relayed what he knew about the attack. It wasn't much of course, he had no idea who they were beyond what Philip had mentioned.
But what he did understand from that attack is the group's attachment to his test subject; Laura. From what was said, they not only knew her but regarded her as part of their survivor pack. Despite her evident undead status.
It interested him somewhat and now it appeared Philip lost the fight, Woodbury was likely already overtaken if she had made it all the way into the precinct without gunfire.
"I suppose this was bound to happen," He sighed deeply, frustrated with Woodbury's many issues. "Philip was a con man at best, he wasn't suited to be a leader. His men were always causing problems, acting outside acceptable parameters. He was a poor leader and an even worse judge of character. He truly thought your people would surrender given the chance."
Laura did not respond, not daring to utter a word. Her figure cast in shadow, only the crack of old floorboards announced she had entered the room.
It was impossible to remain completely stoic in the face of death, though he did what he could to remain calm. If death was truly coming for him, he wouldn't be caught sniveling and weeping, begging for his life.
His gaze fell to the floor, looking over his hands and his faintly stained jacket. "I did all I could to bring my daughter back. She was brilliant, she surpassed the accomplishments I made at her age. There's no doubt in my mind that had she survived long enough, given the tools, she could have figured out a way to beat the virus."
His hand began to fidget and shake involuntarily, so he clenched it into a fist, trying to steel himself the closer she got. "But she never got the chance, did she? My daughter died while I did everything I could to save her life…" He met the reflecting gaze of the undead woman slowly stalking towards him, his expression firm. "You took her from me."
Laura stood only a few feet away, unblinking, unmoving. She held his stern gaze, but made no attempts to rebuke him.
"You are not my daughter. You are the infection that killed her and stole her identity." The vicious sneer on his face, the grit in his voice; he spoke with such violent conviction. This was his genuine belief. "You only think you're Laura because you are trapped in her brain, reusing her hippocampus, her frontal lobe. You don't create anything for yourself, you can't remake a brain that's already matured."
His breath quickened, his throat tightened. In the corner of his eye he could see her clawed hand splay out, as if prepared to strike at any moment. His time was ending, his life would be cut here and now. If he had to die, he would do all he could to ensure this thing's illusion was broken.
It was terrifying facing down perhaps the most dangerous thing he had ever seen. The undead outside were dangerous, but he saw something else in this undead creature. A sentient undead capable of forethought, which made it wholly unpredictable.
At least, that's what it was to him. Nothing more than an aimless walker that used his daughter's face, her name, her thoughts.
But no slash of her metal claws came, they stood there staring at each other. Hate and anger radiated from them like a furnace.
To his shock, Laura turned away from him and began to walk into the operating room. Many things had been packed away, stored in easy to transport containers. This was unexpected as it was clear all Philip and her father wanted was to continue their experiments.
Observing the state of the room, the missing documents and tools likely stored in the suitcase resting on the operating table, Laura's brow twitched. "You were leaving."
While he didn't dare try to run for his life, knowing she would always be able to catch him, he nodded. "I planned to leave long before Philip returned. I suspected he would return to Woodbury on a spree. The man is a violent wretch, he would have killed me and destroyed my work because I refused to tell him I already had the serum."
With that, her ears perked. "You still have it? What you used on me?"
"Yes, I had only one vial after you… ran off." He chose to ignore the events that separated them. Laura agreed. "Since I have only one, I couldn't just give it to him to bring back his dead child. Penny was far too gone by the time I was brought here. She was well into decomposition, giving her the serum would've been a waste."
Laura nodded mutely, feeling sorry for the little girl that died so young. Her father was right not to give the cure to Penny, but only because she would have suffered terribly with her septic body.
"I listened to you, you know?" She rested a hand on the operating chair, the metal on her gauntlets clicking against the bare steel. "I know you can't create another cure from me. I know what'll happen if you do. I know I can't cure anyone anymore."
She piqued his interest, "Anymore?"
Choosing not to mention Sophia, Laura glossed over his question. "There's something wrong with me." Her teeth began to grind, her mouth twitched. "I see things that aren't there. I hear things that aren't there. I can't think, it's like there's this perpetual fog in my brain. I feel like I'm regressing."
Unsurprised by this, he just shrugged and shook his head. "You are the infection inhabiting a corpse. There was always going to be an… expiration date. It couldn't last forever. Eventually, the infection would overpower whatever senses you regained."
"I don't understand how this works, I never fully understood how you made me like this." She faced him again, twinges of her own sadness breaking through the rage she felt. "I need to know. I need to fix this."
As she expected, he completely dismissed the thought. "There's nothing I can do to fix you. This is it!" He held his arms out, gesturing to their surroundings. "This is the culmination of my best work, this is where it got us. A shithole police station! I didn't have time to figure it out. I didn't have the tools I needed!" Aggressively, he stepped forward, snarling at her audacity to question him.
The slowly crumbling precinct was filled with endless heaps of useless supplies. Many possibilities never fully realized, that weren't even worth the boxes they were stored in. All those experiments she suffered, the agony she endured all amounted to nothing.
"I don't have a way to correct my greatest mistake," He stood in front of her again, disgust evident on his face. "You."