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Chapter Five: Cold Cells
Written By Indigo
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Karma Smith
Thursday, 4:56 AM
Karma awoke from his groggy state, his knees were brought up to his chest, and his neck hurt from looking down. The cell he was staying in wasn't too comfortable, the only thing in it was a small cot in the corner. He hadn't bothered to try it out yet, it hadn't even been twenty-four hours since he was put in there.
Right now karma couldn't see anything. The cell was almost entirely pitch black, only the moonlight shining in through the barred window. After karma was put in here, it only took him about three hours before he had fallen asleep, and he wasn't surprised.
At the sanctuary, the young smith never got much sleep. It was always work, work, work. He had become addicted to it. But now he was staring through the empty streets of Alexandria.
Well... mostly empty.
One of the many things he had seen that night, included the priest, walking quickly through the streets, a box clutched in his hands, and a large backpack on his back. Karma sat there and watched the man climb into one of the cars outside the doors of Alexandria, and left.
Karma didn't know who any of these people were. Not really. So when he saw this, he hoped that this wasn't something that would come to bite him in the ass later.
—————
Karma was able to get a bit more sleep, just enough to last him through the day. Which, he didn't even know what was going to hold. At the sanctuary, Karma works all day and makes sure everyone else is working. But now, he's in a prison cell awaiting his sentence.
Slowly, people began to exit their homes, starting their days. Some went to other houses, others prepared for work, and there were even children on bicycles.
The one thing, karma really noticed about those people was that they looked happy. And so so safe.
The noise from a nearby door caught Karmas' eye. The white door leading to Karma's cell was opened slowly by rick grimes. He didn't say anything as he walked over. He just sat a paper plate down in front of the cell door. On it, there was a sandwich of some kind, along with a fruit cup.
Karma looked up at the older man with a confounded look spread over his face. The man nodded to the plate on the ground.
"What the hell am I doing here?" Karma asked severely. Rick looked at the boy through his curly hair,
"Eat," He said simply, Walking back over to the door and leaving quickly. Karma frowned, but crawled over to the plate on the ground and picked up the sandwich. it seemed to be a normal pub&j. So against karmas normal thinking, he took a bite of it. And it was amazing.
Karma finished the sandwich off swiftly, washing it down with the peaches to the right of it. The food left Karma feeling refreshed and ready to start a day, but as he looked outside at all the others in the yard, he knew he wouldn't be having an actual day anytime soon.
So karma watched. It's what he did best.
He watched as everyone walked by. He counted how many steps a certain person took, how many times a group of people complimented another, and how long it took karma to hear an awkward dad joke. Not many people had even looked at Karma and those who did just walked away.
The teen hadn't even noticed that it was afternoon until he heard cars parking and the gate opening. Rick and the few others that followed him returned. They had been gone since noon. Karma had overheard that they went to go meet with someone at the hilltop.
Karma knew the people of hilltop very well. None of them were fighters, they all were simple friendly farmers. Karma was sure the saviors hadn't even posed a threat to them.
The arrangements with Hilltop were always straightforward. They would bang on the door, they would let them in. Gregory and began would talk while the rest of the saviors grabbed their things. Then they would all round up and leave. The exchange never took more than two hours. It was always a quick, in and out.
Gregory was a suck-up. Karma could sense it whenever he spoke,
"Can I get you something to drink?"
"you can take multiple if you would like"
"do you need help lifting that"
Most people would be furious when they took their things. But not hilltop.
In the distance, karma could just barely make out a vehicle, but he could hear it clearly. A motorcycle. Followed by a handful of cars. Cars that look too familiar.
Karma cursed under his breath while he watched Simon exit the car.
"I thought It would be longer," Rick said, walking closer to the henchmen. Began wasn't there.
"We're here for the boy, and Daryl if you got 'em" Simon answered. Karmas' hands wrapped round the bars in the window.
"Began taking both of them, didn't he? We're not his babysitter" Rick snapped back. Simon seemed angry, but entertained as well. He swept away Rick's demeanor and started looking for the two men.
Karma had a choice to make, one that he didn't feel he should be making. He could either, make himself seen and go home, or he could hide and wait for them to leave, and karma could continue living his boring days in his cell.
Karma kneeled a bit. Just enough where you could see his eyes if you looked. Karma would watch Simons' boats pass by once, twice, three times.
Not a single time did Simon notice Karmas presence. Karma didn't yell. He didn't ask for help. He just slowly, sunk down onto the small cot, pulling his knees up to his chest.
Karma listened with his head on his knees as his people drove off, not upset in the slightest that they couldn't find him.
—————
Shoes tapped on the concrete stairs as someone made their way closer to karma. The door swung open to reveal the samurai. Karma lifted his head slightly as the woman stepped closer to the boy. Karma involuntarily gripped his body tighter.
"One of our people is missing," She says quietly, very simply. "His name is Gabriel. Do you know him? She asks while watching the boy. Karma nods. The samurai huffs quietly, almost silently. "Did you see him leave this morning?" She asked. Karma lifted his eyes,
"He grabbed a box full of shit and ran," Karma said simply, placing his head back on his knees. Michones eyebrows raised.
"That's everything you saw?" she asked. Karma nodded his head once again. Michone did not reply and turned on her heel and walked to the door.
"Can someone tell me why the hell I'm here?" Karma asked. Michone paused at the door for a moment, the thoughts moving in her brain. She shook her head and opened the door and walked out of it. Karma sighed noisily, pressing his head against the concrete wall behind him.
—————
Karma Smith
Friday, 8:23 AM
Karma never was much of a deep sleeper.
He was therefore relatively surprised when he woke up the following morning, voices buzzing in front of his window, and a second sandwich on a plate. Karma groaned and wrapped himself in his trenchcoat, which he had now discarded and used as a blanket throughout the night. Karma pushed the plate away from himself, curling up further.
"Eat. " Karmas head snapped up, looking at the corner of the room. On the other side of the cell door, the Latina that Karma cut up, sat.
She was sharpening her blade in a rather threatening manner, but Karma just smiled at her and yawned.
"Is that all you people are going to say to me?" Karma asked jokingly, grabbing the sandwich and taking a bite out of it. Rosita looks up at the younger boy.
Can somebody tell me what I'm doing here? If you're going to kidnap somebody at least tell me why" Karma asked, mumbling the end to himself. Rosita set her knife down on the ground,
"Your dad's a sinister dickhead, and you seem to be the one thing he cares about"
Rosita started, picking up her knife, dragging it gently through the metal. "An eye for an eye," She says simply.
Karma huffs, leaning back on the cot behind him. Rosita was an interesting person, Karma found interest in her strength.
"Sorry about the whole..." Karma said, dragging a finger down his cheek where a faint line matched rositas face. She glared at him but nodded.
Rosita stayed there a little bit longer, just sharpening her knife, and glancing at karma every few minutes. Eventually, the dirty white door opened and a young cowboy stepped in.
Rosita sighed lightly, patting Carl's back as she walked out of the room. Carl closed the door behind her and sat down on the ground where the Latina once was.
The other boy didn't bring something to entertain himself as Rosita had. So Carl was sitting across from Karma against the wall, his hands, making a slight flutter on the concrete floor below them.
one-ee-and-uh, two-ee-and-uh, three-and-uh, four
"Didn't bring anything to entertain yourself, sheriff?" Karma asks, crossing his shattered arms over his chest. Carl glanced up at the boy but shook his head. Karma laughed lightly,
"No board games? We could play apples to apples" Karma entertains, "I fuck with apples to apples" He adds, pointing to emphasize his point. Carl holds back a smile.
Karma frowns and lays his head back down on the cot underneath them. Karma doesn't remember needing a babysitter, but knowing that Carl is watching Karma attempt to sleep right now, isn't as bad as he was assuming.
—————
The next time Karma woke up, it was around three.
Nobody was in his cell this time, with a bit of luck, it would stay that way.
Karma sat up and looked around. There wasn't anything new in the room except a different plate. This one held a couple of cut-up vegetables and another fruit cup. Karma snorted and grabbed a carrot, taking a firm bite.
The white door opened in the corner of his eyes, and rick grimes stepped in. His hand was bandaged and he looked tougher than usual.
"Damn, I was hoping for ten minutes without babysitting," Karma said quietly, but still loud enough that Rick could hear. Rick forced a small laugh, rubbing his palms together.
"I'm gonna tell you what the bottom line is here, okay?" Rick says, crouching down to be more level with Karma. Karma looks up at the grimes father, nodding.
Rick breathes out before he starts, "We've decided that keeping you here will not only allow us to use negans weakness against him. But also, gives us the advantage of having one leader down. " Rick finishes. Karma suppresses a laugh.
"He's queen bee. If you wanna hurt any of those jackasses, you need to hurt him. They couldn't give a damn about me" Karma said simply, popping another broccoli into his mouth. Rick runs a hand down his face.
"Alright. If anything we can get some information from you. " Rick says in a quiet way, a reminder to himself more than anything. Karma nods and with that, Rick stands up and walks out of the door.
Karma watches as Rick meets up with his son outside. The two say goodbye as Rick slips into a truck and leaves. Carl watches his father leave before descending the concrete stairs.
Karma shudders lightly when the door opens. Carl walks in, sliding down the wall again and sitting down flat. This time he looked like he was carrying a notebook and a pen. Karmas is too far away to see everything that he wrote or had already written, so Karma sits down and watches.
"Take my advice?" Karma asks, a toothy grin on his face. Carl doesn't even spare a glance. Karma frowns and crosses his arms, looking at the young boy scribbling in the notebook.
From time to time, Carl leaned the bottom of the pen against his lower lip, his eyes spreading out on the ground. And other times, he lowered the notebook completely and looked at karma or left the cellar for a few minutes, to return a moment later.
Night fell sooner than anticipated. While a truck stopped at Alexandria's entrance, Carl closed his notebook and got up.
"Night Grimes," Karma said, eyes not facing cells. Carl didn't say anything, just looked at Karma staring for one second, then opened the door and left.
That night Karma didn't sleep well. Less than usual. He started to get the impression that something was about to happen. And he had absolutely no time to prepare.
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Karma Smith
Saturday, 7:45 AM
Karma woke up sluggishly. His arms were wet with sweat and his fringe was stuck to his forehead. He wiped it off and removed his sweater. Beneath that was a black tank top. Karma shuddered slightly, but the fresh air was nice on his damp skin.
"It's hot as hell out there today" Karma looked to the corner. Rosita sat in a corner with her eyes fixed on the teenager in front of her. No threatening knife today. That's a plus. Karma laughed,
"I bet. Summers a bitch" Karma said simply, using his hand to fan himself off. Rosita had the memo way before karma. She was wearing a white shirt, combined with green jean shorts and boots. And her hair was tied up, as per usual.
While Karma, on the other hand, was rocking a Black tank top, black, distressed jeans, and brown combat boots. All three causing Karma to burn alive. Even worse, his dark curls began sticking to his neck, and it was all so heavy.
Rosita watched the teenager struggle to cool off before finally settling on the ground, his stomach and face plastered on the cool concrete floor. Karma spent half an hour like that. He turned his cheeks back and forth from time to time to ensure that the temperature of his face was even.
The white door swung open, and Carl walked inside. He stopped abruptly when seeing the youngest smith lying on the ground. Rosita giggled in Carl's face, giving him another supporting pat on the back. Carl rolled his eyes and took a seat on the ground across from Karma.
Carl received the memo as well. The boy was wearing a white tank top, with a red flannel worn on it, brown shorts, and a pair of black tennis shoes to match. His hair was always down, which Karma saw as self-sabotage because he would do anything to put his hair up now.
Karma attempted to start a conversation with the grimes boy multiple times, but he ignored every single remark the other made. But karma never got upset when the boy ignored him, he would just frown and watch him write. He didn't have a clue what the other guy was writing. It might have been anything.
Carl had been writing for three minutes, without pause, just pen strokes. Carl looked at Karma for the slightest moment. Almost minuscule. But it seemed to be enough. Carl groaned as he held his head in his hands. He ripped the paper out of the notebook, crumpling it up, and tossing it into the corner Rosita had sat in earlier that morning.
"Did you screw up?" Karma asked. Carl glared at the other boy. He knew he wanted to speak, but he stayed back. Karma wanted to know though. The only thing stronger than Karmas will power is his curiosity.
Karma sits up completely with his legs crossed. Carl's eyebrows tremble, but he can't move his eyes to meet Karmas.
"I thought we were cool? What happened? " Karma wondered. Carl ignored him, continuing to write his page. "We had a dinner date and everything" Karma joked. Carl closes the notebook and discards it to his right.
"Oh my god. Yeah. We were fine, I was okay with you. But then you killed Olivia... Right in front of everyone."
Carl fell apart trying to find Karma's answer. "And don't forget about how you're the main enemy's number one guy,"
Karma felt like getting slapped in the face. He had hoped and prayed that this was all a fever dream. But when Carl confronted him, that means this was real. Karma killed her.
Karma winced, gently rubbing her arm. He tried to project his mind away, but he kept returning. All reminded him of the way Olivia's eyes shone with fear when Karma killed her.
Rosita's scar, Carl's bandages, Karmas Father.
It reminds Karma of how quickly he killed Olivia like it was nothing. Karma raised a shaky hand to push some hair out of his face,
"If I didn't do it... he would kill me," Karma said quietly. Carl almost asked him to say it again, but it registered. The boy scoffed.
"Really?" Carl asked. He talks as if he knew he was on the right path. Karma nodded. And Carl's hard eyes turned soft for a moment. "What?" questioned Carl.
Karma looked up at the boy, his eyes bristling with tears. He was chuckling, wiping his eyes with the back of his hands.
"It's no big deal, I... It's nothing" Karma said, giving his most believable smile. Carl appeared guilty, but he shook his head.
He got up in a hurry, took his notebook, and left. He reached the door quickly.
"I'll see you around," Carl said quietly. Karma nodded, as he could not bear to look the boy in her eyes.
——————
Karma Smith
Sunday, 8:23 AM
That night, Karma didn't sleep.
The words, everybody was talking about him whirling around in his head like they were flushed. His thoughts sat on his tongue like honey, and he begged someone could help him explain how his brain works.
If you do something bad at the Sanctuary, they punish you, and everyone walks it off. But everywhere else. Grudges last. And they're strong as hell.
Karma was awake by the time Rosita arrived at his cell that morning. It was around 5:33 when she began her journey down the stairs.
"Oh," She said as she opened the door, Seeing the lump of a teen boy in the corner. "You're awake," she remarks. The boy nods. Rosita seems to want to push it, but she won't.
Today Rositas brought her handgun with her. She dismantles it and reconstructs it. Looks like she's timing himself a certain way. Karma turns his head to the girl, watching her put the pieces together quickly, and watching her curse under her breath when she fumbles with her hands.
She continues doing this for about an hour. Disassembling it and setting it up again quickly. She's putting it together right every time, but it seems she just wants to skill, getting it on time.
Once, she puts them in front of her and takes a deep breath before attempting again. She's taking it slow to make sure it's right. Quality, not quantity. When she's finished putting it together, she aims at the wall,
"Fifty-five seconds," Karma expresses. Rosita looks to the younger one.
"So what?" She snaps back. Karma laughs lightly, a smile spreading his lips.
"That was your fastest yet," He announces. Rosita looks down at her hands, a smile forms. "Nice work," adds Karma. Rosita smiles back at the boy.
—————
When a call comes to swap for his shift, he brings a second plate of food and puts it facing karma gently. On it, it has a ziplock of potato chips, a small fruit cup, and even a small mason jar of yellow lemonade. Karma looks at it with a smile. Carl points to the jar, his other hand scratching the back of his neck.
"We had some lemonade that was gonna go bad soon, so..." He says, letting his sentence die out. Karma mutters a quiet thank you and digs into his lunch. And it's really good. Karma's had no good food since the spaghetti Negan made a couple of days ago.
As Karma is eating his food, Carl is watching him awkwardly. Karma holds one hand above his mouth while he chews.
"What?" he asked, looking at the boy. Carl shakes his head,
"Nothing, I just... I wanted to ask you something. Kind of personal, I guess," asks Carl, watching karma carefully. Karma signals for him to continue. "So, um... yesterday you said your father would kill you if you didn't... y'know" Carl starts, his hands speaking more than his words. "Could you elaborate on that?"
Karmas throat tightens up thinking about it. Carl shakes his hands out in front of him, "If you don't want to say it's good, I was just curious, that's all," he said, his hands finding their way back to his knees. Karma swallows his meal and watches the other boy. He takes a deep breath before proceeding,
"My dad is... a very bad person" Karma begins, his voice trembles like his hands. "Even before the apocalypse" Karma goes on, "He would scream and be violent, and cheat and do all sorts of other shit. Bullshit a kid shouldn't see" Carl shakes his head, his eyes staring at Karmas intently.
Karma stops for a minute, dropping his head into his hands. "God, why am I telling you all of this?, I barely know you" Karma sighs, a hint of laughter in his voice. Carl is tapping on his knee nervously for one second,
"Okay, uh... let me go first." Carl starts, clearing his throat. Karma turns a blind eye to the boy, "My mom and dad didn't have the most amazing relationship." Carl began, his eyes never encountering karmas. "But even at an early age, I knew they loved each other... but the outbreak changed a lot," he continued.
'There was a lot of miscommunication and in the end... my mom had an affair. It wasn't a big problem at the time, my father wasn't angry, but... then she got pregnant. " Karma nodded,
She had the baby and died as a result. I was the one who had to shoot her so she didn't... you know. " Karmas face softened, a pitiful glance through his eyes.
"Her name's Judith. My sister. you met her once,"
Karma nods, recalling the girl, her father found in the nursery.
"Judith has grown up and we will all continue to live without knowing if she is really my dad's child" Carl finished. Karma smiles at the end, giving a small round of applause.
Carl giggled and gave a false bow, "Okay, okay, your turn." He said pointing towards the other boy.
Oh, right. His turn.
Karma takes a deep breath and starts again,
"As I said, my parents hated each other from day one. My dad was harsh and noisy and my mom was furious and quiet. A bad pair if you ask me, "Karma begins, his voice trembles. "But it really went wrong when my mother got her cancer results." Karma continued. Carl's eyes widened slightly. "I know right... But she was a badass, she wasn't gonna let cancer beat her" Karma complimented.
Carl smiled, watching Karma gush about his mom. "She, uh... she had planned to kill my father the night she got the results. She found out he had been cheating the same day... the worst luck ever huh? " Karma said, his eyes beginning to water slightly.
She ended up, allowing him to leave because he promised to help her overcome cancer and end his affair. And he did. He stopped it immediately and opened up a bank loan for her treatment. " Karma said, rubbing his hands together nervously.
"That was only a month before the outbreak." Karma recalled, "once the outbreak began, they became the world's most amazing couple. I can't figure out how they did it. I mean... they couldn't stand each other. " Carl nodded.
"I had the most incredible family in the world for seven months... but one night when the electricity went out. All my mom's treatments melted down and they were useless. " Karma said, wiping a tear that began on his cheek. "And my father decided to go out to get more," said Karma laughing, tears flowed into his eyes.
"He said he needed to keep her alive... he said he had no one but her. I was right there. He had me. " Karma said harshly, Ignoring all the tears that fell on his pale face. "Yet he went out anyway." I don't know what happened, and I don't really care. " Karma began, wiping his eyes.
"All I know is that that dickhead wasn't here. She begged him not to leave. She begged him to spend her final moments with her, but he insisted on saving her. " Carl frowned, trying to figure out how to comfort the teenage boy through the gate.
"My mom held me tight in her arms all day. Telling me how amazing I would become, and how she would be so proud of me" Karma cried. "Then she locked me in the bathroom and killed herself in the other room" Carl's eyes widened, unexpectedly. Karma nodded.
"I know. I was like eleven. She killed herself with her 11-year-old son in the other room," Karma went on, anger rising through him. "When dad got home, he couldn't bring himself to kill her, even though she asked." Karma took another deep breath,
"Then he took a few things and set the house ablaze." He didn't even let me out of the bathroom until right before he left. I do not doubt that he would have let me burn with the house if I had let him" Carl winced at the idea.
"We met up with the guys who tried to give my mom treatment. My dad killed someone for the first time that night. And... he wasn't affected at all," Karma remembers. "He pretended as if nothing had happened."
Carl scooted towards the gate, wrapping his hands around one of the bars. "He began to form a group... and raise me to be a weapon," said Karma, eyes closing again. "He wanted a weapon. Someone who just knew how to kill, survive and support himself. " Carl frowned. "He got his weapon. But he lost his son while he was at it. Because now... I don't have any remorse for him. " Karma admitted, Passing a hand through his curls.
"Has he never... punished you?" Like the iron thing? " Carl asked. Karma nodded, turning back and raising her tank top. On Karma's back, there were lots of marks and scars on his body. Carl winced. Karma nodded.
"Yeah... he did it until I turned 16," Karma admitted.
"I'm so sorry," Carl murmured, watching Karma as if he was going to break in front of him. Tears fell from karma's cheeks and on the concrete beneath them.
"It's all right..." Karma said. Carl continued to look at the boy as though he were the most valuable thing on earth.
Karma wanted a break from the conversation. He didn't want to think about this anymore,
"Can I possibly... help, Alexandria?" asked Karma with weariness. Carl tilted his head,
"Like a job?" He asked. Karma nodded,
"Exactly. It doesn't have to be something super important. I just hate being stuck down there all the time. I know this is supposed to be a punishment of sorts, but- I'm not quite sure how it's supposed to work" Karma shrugs.
The gears work in Carl's brain before he looks out the barred window, and then back at Karma.
"I'll ask my dad"
A/N:
IS NATE FINALLY WRITING ANOTHER CHAPTER OF ASHAMED? YOU KNOW IT BABY, GET READY FOR MORE COMING <3