THE PRISON WAS entirely silent as the morning whirled by, with each member of the group snoozing soundly in their cells. Pale ripples of red and orange swam across the walls of the prison as tiny footsteps waddled across the dust-ridden floor. The breeze skimmed through the dust, twirling it behind the small feet as that trudged through the prison, leaving trails of fresh daisies behind them merrily. It had been Coda — the only member to be awake at such early hours of the morning. She had pledged to bring peace back to the prison, and that glorious August morning, she had concluded to adorn the prison with the flowers she had accumulated from the grassland with pride.
Coda swung the flowers over her small shoulders as she skipped cheerfully along, humming delicate songs she had heard her mother use to lull her to sleep, amplifying the beauty in all the chaos. The last cell along the row that belonged to the group had been provided to the stranger that had brought Ellie to the prison, and Coda was instructed to ignore the cell. Valiantly, she hopped along until she sighted the cell, and hesitantly crept up towards the door. The child stealthily curved around the corner, peeking inside to reveal the woman doing push-ups on the ground, despite her apparent leg wound.
"What you doing here, kid?" The stranger inquired, without bothering to raise their gaze to Coda, which only astonished her more. Coda gulped, and took a few steps back, until the stranger asserted, "You don't have to be afraid of me."
Coda placed her hands on her hips dauntlessly, and replied with nonchalance, "I'm not afraid of you. I was bringing flowers to everyone."
The woman smirked, identifying how the child had evidently been reproducing the bravery she'd observed from the group around her. She pushed herself from the ground, and elevated her hand above her head, stretching out her muscles. Coda simply observed as her muscles protruded as she stretched them, and couldn't help but stare in astonishment at her strength.
"Do you want to ask me something?" the woman investigated, still not establishing eye contact as she proceeded with her workout.
Coda cleared her throat, and boldly crumpled her arms across her chest, "What's your name?"
"Michonne," she stated plainly, swapping her left arm for her right arm, "What's yours?"
"Coda," the child responded, raising her eyebrow suspiciously as she glanced around the small cell, noticing her katana nearby, "Are you a warrior?"
Michonne released a slight nasal laugh as she paused her routine, but her frown immediately twinkled back onto her sullen face, "You could say that."
"Well," Coda began, and unexpectedly entered the room, and sunk down onto the mattress, "my mom told me I could be a warrior and a princess at the same time. You are one of those, and I want to be like you."
Michonne halted, rigid in her stance as the compassion of the child commenced an awakening of warmth she had lost deep in the chasm of her pain. She whirled to face the innocent child, her face softened entirely, "I'm not like that."
"You are!" Coda grinned, and leaned up to twirl Michonne's braids in her small fingers, "You remind me of my mom."
"Which one is your mom?" Michonne polled, her eyebrows raised with scepticism as she counted back the numerous group members.
Coda's rosy face beamed with pride, and gently tugged Michonne into the hallway, and gestured up towards the perch, "My mom is Ellie, my dad is Daryl."
"Dixon," Michonne growled, but shortly sighed in order not to frighten the child, although Coda remained unfazed, "Was Merle here before?"
Coda tilted her head to the side, and shrugged her shoulders up at Michonne, "What kind of name Merle?"
She hadn't remembered the name.
Michonne simply broadcasted another nasal laugh, before she kneeled down, facing Coda directly with a stiffened glare, "If you ever talk to someone with that name alone, you better run and find someone to look after you."
Coda gulped, her glistening sapphire eyes blinking repeatedly, "Is he a bad guy?"
Before Michonne could respond, Daryl immediately roared behind her; his knife clutched tightly in his left hand as he clasped Coda close with his right hand, "Nobody's a bad guy."
"Daddy," she grinned, and twisted her fingers around his hand, holding him close, "I was talking to Michonne. She's a warrior princess."
"Wouldn't be sure about that," he gritted, and crouched down beside his daughter slowly. He cupped her chin with his fingers, and declared, "You don't talk to her unless I'm here, you got that?"
Coda frowned, and merely shook her head in response as she glanced up at the perch. She then raised her head back up with pride, and asserted, "My mom would do it anyway, so that's what I'm going to do."
"Damn it, Eleanor," Daryl muttered under his breath, until he released a sigh of disappointment. He swerved to face Michonne as he glared daggers at her, and mumbled, "Get back in there; we'll come to you when it's time to go."
Michonne merely gawked at Daryl with hardened eyes, and intimidatingly remained staring deep into his eyes, until she faltered; scoffed and sauntered back inside her cell. She proceeded with her workout, leaving Daryl to spoon Coda into his arms, despite how heavy she had been, and hauled her back up towards the perch. He positioned her down gently next to Ellie on the mattress, allowing all of her perfectly selected flowers to flow from her hands. Daryl, naturally, encouraged her to jump on top of Ellie to awaken her from her deep slumber. Upon feeling the brutal gusts to her ribs from Coda, Ellie spluttered slightly as she stirred awake from her sleep.
"Good morning," Coda's laughs ricocheted off the walls as she woke her mother up unpleasantly as always, causing Ellie to nudge her off gently.
"I don't agree with the 'good' part," she snorted, sleepily kneading at her tired eyes as she regained consciousness. She bit at her lip as she manoeuvred her leg upwards, and gently stroked the wound, "It's better, but man, it hurts."
Daryl leaned down to her leg, and tracked his finger lightly across the stitches as softly as he could. He then cleared his throat loudly, "You ain't comin' then?"
Ellie laughed loudly in response to his remark, and propped herself up on her elbows, "I never said that. I'm definitely coming."
"'Course you are," he groaned, squeezing the bridge of his nose at her defiance. It occurred to him that the more he pressed on the issue of her safety, the more she needed to place herself in the arm's of peril.
Daryl couldn't understand how his questioning could result in offence. He simply wanted to protect her, and deep within her she recognised his comments as an indicator of his worrying, but was done sitting around. The entirety of her life she had been a side character in her own show; kept around for entertainment value, lacking in any substance. Ellie knew it was time to reclaim her life and to be the version of her that she would want to see as a leader.
"I spoke to Michonne," Coda clarified to her mother chirpily, beaming with pride.
Ellie froze, tilting her head to the side as she stared intently at her daughter, "Mi-chonne...?"
"The warrior princess that came here yesterday," Coda replied, staring up at Daryl with widened eyes of excitement, "Daddy spoke to her."
"I see," Ellie replied, creating uneasy eye contact with Daryl as he nodded at her, confirming that Coda had been with her alone. "Michonne..."
Without further commenting on the strange woman, Ellie proceeded to dress Coda into an appropriate outfit for the day, ensuring she would be comfortable despite the blistering sun above. When dressing themselves, Ellie and Daryl designed their outfits tactfully for the mission ahead of them. They hastily jogged down to the dining hall, and halted upon discovering Rick had gathered the small group to take along with him to Woodbury, with Michonne brooding by her lonesome in the background. She lingered like a shadow, only causing uneasiness to flare in the pit of Ellie's stomach. Ellie swivelled to face Rick as he connected his eyes anxiously with hers, until his unbroken concern wilted away when she smiled.
"How's the leg?" Hershel inquired as he glanced down at Ellie's leg, lifting his eyebrow at her unusually cheery behaviour.
She nodded, and peeked down at her wounded leg, revealing it to the medic, "It's feeling pretty good overall, I'll keep movement on it light."
"That's our girl," Shane beamed, shooting a nod of solace at her.
Ellie merely folded her arms over her chest, and clenched her jaw, connecting her with Michonne's dark eyes, "Let's go."
>>>
The crunching of leaves beneath the heaviness of feet was the only sound to be heard as the group trudged towards their entrance to Woodbury, with Michonne silently prowling ahead as she directed the way. Ellie sheepishly patted at her arm as she caught up to her, resulting in her flinching away in panic slightly. Michonne wasn't used to such a delicate touch — brutal fingers; scratching fingernails; fierce punches; deep slices from daggers was all Michonne had known, since the apocalypse. The sadism of humanity never ceased to horrify her, and yet, Ellie knew nothing of the upheaval Michonne had been subjected to. Ellie had lived an incredibly sheltered life, both before and after the apocalypse. Michonne was a warrior. Ellie was simply an ally to those strong enough to survive their adversities. Ellie retreated her hand apologetically, and cleared her throat through the awkward tension as she observed her nervous behaviour.
"Are you sure we can get in?" Ellie questioned, her tone soft and gentle, to ease Michonne's anxiety.
Monotonously, Michonne merely stated, "We'll get your people back."
Ellie nibbled at the skin on her thumb anxiously, pondering whether to boldly question Michonne on her life to pass the time. Ultimately, she inquired, "Do you have family?"
"I did," is all she said.
Ellie nodded, sighing slightly at her disclosure and allowed a silence of remembrance to fall between them. The wet slapping of leaves beneath their feet as they trotted along the path towards Woodbury served as an indication of the forthcoming death many of them would face upon infiltrating Woodbury. They had a bountiful supply of weaponry; heavier artillery than the prison could even imagine — it was a death trap. It didn't occur to any of them that it might have been the last time they could see or speak to one another, should their fates be death. They were not prepared.
"I know you do," she suddenly spoke, her tone had been gentle, with a slight undertone of jealousy, "I met your daughter, she's a firecracker. And your husband."
Ellie snorted, shaking her head repeatedly, "Daryl is not my husband, he's barely my boyfriend. We're just... partners."
Michonne nodded silently, bowing her head down slightly to conceal her gentle smile with her dreadlocks. Internally, she affirmed a certain magnificence in their partnership; it renounced all necessary romantic cliches, and simply allowed them to live together harmoniously to raise their daughter through the chaos, all the while knowing there had been love there, the entire time.
"The group is also my family now," Ellie stated, twinkling a toothy grin as she spoke of her allies, "We've been through so much together already..."
Slobbery snarls in the distance alerted the small group, disrupting Ellie and Michonne from their brief encounter. In unison, they each lifted their weapons; an array of guns cocking ringing out. The walkers moaned tirelessly for their next meal; endlessly greedy and desperate to fill the bottomless pits of their stomachs as they flung their chewed up hands and bleeding limbs around. Ellie yanked her knife from her holster, and hoisted it up in a quick flash, preparing for the walkers ahead.
"No guns, stay quiet," Rick asserted, gesturing towards his knife in his hand.
Ellie leapt forth with the wind streaming through the rivers of gold down her back, and in one swift movement, she'd thumped a walker down by its knee, and plunged her knife deep into its skull. Each member had a walker to handle, until it eventually proved an impossible feat. Rick whistled to the group to alert them towards the direction of a nearby shack, resulting in them all trudging in the same direction he had begun to sprint towards.
They huddled in a low crouch in a rush, and dove through the door once it was opened by Rick ahead. He sealed the door rapidly behind them, only each of them gagged and concealed their noses from the pungent stench encompassing them inside the shack. They each paced through the dusty room; their weapons raised to their disposal as they ensured the shack had been empty. Ellie froze upon observing the sight of a rotting fox corpse on the ground, its body chewed and half-eaten. A colony of ants had long occupied the corpse as they crawled hungrily across it, causing Ellie to choke once again.
"I guess Lassie went home," Daryl joked casually, resulting in the group each glaring daggers at the man, all while remaining silent.
Following the ructions between the walkers and the group, the surviving walkers had pursued them entirely up to the shack, flinging their mindless limbs across the doors and windows as they eagerly anticipated to get inside for their next meal. Ellie remained frozen in her protective stance, her gun aimed and ready for any feasible threats that could spill inward through the front door.
Alerting her from her position, Ellie heard muffled gasps from the bedroom. She stormed inside the bedroom, her gun aimed, ready at her disposal as she stood alongside Rick. Rick gradually peeled back a blanket from the bed, uncovering a seemingly startled man as his trembling hands held his shotgun aimed at the group, hovering particularly close to Rick's face.
"Hey, get out! Get out, or I'll call the cops!" the man threatened, holding it up to Rick's face shakily once again.
Ellie gulped at his statement, understanding the man had clearly remained indoors during the entirety of the apocalypse. His naïveté to the disaster surrounding him left the group stunned, proving only that he hadn't adapted to the new world that belonged to the dead the same way they had; he had simply barricaded himself into his own personal world, refusing to lose his grip on his past life. They each stared plainly at the man, simply blinking as they were uncertain on how to proceed, until Rick's sharp attention came into play.
"I'm a cop," Rick confessed assertively, remembering his ability to persuade and manipulate the way he needed to, as a member of the law enforcement.
Shane slowly stepped next to Rick, his chest rising and lowering rapidly as he nervously connected his eyes with his old friend. He then shot Rick a nod of reassurance, "As am I. We're partners."
Despite the mayhem, it had been a beautiful juncture for the group to witness; a unifying moment between former partners despite the hardships they endured from the moment Rick had returned. Shane had completely repented for his previous blunders, and it was unmistakable to Rick that he wished to be better than before. He had to give him his chance. Rick placed hand on Shane's arm, before the two shot the stranger a nod of consolation.
"Show me your badges," the man contended, keeping his gun aimed at the two officers.
"It's in my pocket, I'm going to reach down and get it slowly," Rick stated tactfully, evidently deceiving the man as he leaned down slowly.
In one swift movement, Rick thrust his palms upwards, thumping the gun rapidly from the man's hands, but he still succeeded to pull the trigger during the confrontation. The bullet whizzed past Daryl's head as he swooped out of the way, and shakily released a breath of relief upon discovering it had missed him. He immediately connected his eyes with Ellie's, and the two instantly felt safer for being in one another's presence — as it should be. Ellie shot him a brief nod, to demonstrate she had been proud of his courage, and Daryl merely reciprocated it with a slight nod.
Rick plummeted to the ground as Shane endeavoured to assist him, only the hostile stranger continued to battle against Rick, until eventually, it had manifested into a chaotic brawl. The two men grunted heavily as they combated against one another, with Shane chancing to leap in in intervals, only the man successfully wriggled out of Rick's clasp, and bolted towards the door.
"Don't open the door!" Rick exclaimed, pointing towards the door with his trembling index finger.
Instantly, Michonne yanked her katana out in one clean movement, and stabbed him directly through his chest. The commotion startled the group, causing them to gasp as they stared at the blood tricking out of his new chest wound. They each stood in shock, their eyes widened with a distinct uncertainty as she proceeded to remove the katana from his chest, and wipe the blood away from her trusty blade. The silence that fell between them had been woven from anxiety and disturbance, and Michonne had never felt more judged than by the that group.
Ellie's rigid arms softened at her sides as she connected her eyes with Michonne's — the only member to be staring directly at Michonne with pride. The woman had been a paragon of strength; she radiated absolutely everything Ellie so desperately wished she could be — strong. It stunned Ellie to see how judgemental the group had been of the woman; her unfiltered instincts are what kept them alive; they should have felt indebted to her. Ellie shot a scowl at Rick as his eyes of judgement ran cold across Michonne's face, leaving him to bow his head in shame.
Ellie boldly stepped forth, breaking the silence as she glanced down at the stranger. She then released a sigh, "We could use him as bait."
"Good thinkin'," Shane mumbled monotonously as he blinked down at the body, but simply shrugged.
Daryl, Oscar and Shane instantly shifted the man's bleeding corpse with all of their combined strength, and approached the door that had still been bombarded with walkers. Rick counted down silently, before he tore open the door, and the men threw his corpse nearby, allowing the walkers to approach him and commence to tear his body to tiny, hopeless pieces. As they trudged away fearfully, Ellie couldn't help but feel a certain guilt begin to corrode her heart, until her eyes welled with tears, and silently, she sobbed for the soul that had been sacrificed that day.
>>>
Stealthily, the group huddled behind the sharp bushes behind the wall of the town Woodbury, as they finally arrived at their destination. Surrounding the walls had been a select and scattered few as they observed the perimeter, evidently on watch for that evening, as they had anticipated. Ellie's heart thumped rapidly against her chest, and clenched her jaw as she glanced over at Daryl, who had already been staring at her with concern. He peeked down at her leg with suspicion as he had noticed she had been holding it tightly for the entirety of their quest. Ellie merely released her grip, attempting to cover up that she had indeed been in pain with her leg, but Daryl knew better.
Without a warning, Michonne crawled astray by herself silently, but had proven to be too quick for any of the group members to catch up to her, leaving Rick to groan slightly from frustration. Michonne had proven to be a thorn in his side since the very moment she had arrived, and his patience was beginning to bubble.
"Goddamn it," Rick muttered in annoyance, "We can't let her go."
"How many guards?" Oscar asked nervously, glancing up at the wall as he contemplated whether he would return safely to the prison.
Ellie shakily peeked out of the bushes, to glare up at the guards on duty, before she leaned back to announce, "Three, I think."
Cracking leaves behind them alerted the group, causing them all raise their weapons in one swift movement. Michonne materialised from behind the bushes, motioning for the group to follow after her, although she remained silent. Ellie could only release a sigh of relief, for she had desperately wanted to trust Michonne, regardless of whether she had been a stranger. She had saved Ellie's life. The group proceeded forth as they trailed after Michonne, only Daryl attempted to shield Ellie with all his strength.
"Daryl," she hissed, causing him to scowl at her, "stop it. I'm here for a reason."
"Your leg ain't doin' too good," he growled back, shooting his glance down at her leg as she had been clutching it once again.
Ellie cleared her throat awkwardly as she attempted to devise a lie, and settled upon, "I'm just being cautious."
Daryl squinted his eyes in disbelief at the woman, but trusted her judgement enough to remain silent in their endeavours. Michonne led the group through a backdoor silently, which led into an unadorned, tenebrous storage room. Ellie leaned against the wall, releasing slight pants as she rested her sore leg. Daryl leaned against the same wall as a Ellie, virtually clinging to her side the entirety of their stay in the room.
"This is where you were held, then?" Ellie inquired, breathing out harshly as she sunk down, clutching her leg.
"I was questioned," she mumbled, explaining eventually what the purpose of this room was.
"Where else could they be?" Rick challenged irritatedly upon noticing the Governor had not been in the room.
Daryl scowled as he peeked through the dusty window, turning back to face Michonne in anger, "Thought you said there was a curfew?"
Michonne tautly responded, while thinking back to her brief stay at Woodbury, "The street is packed during the day. Those are stragglers."
With a slight nod, Rick peeked through the window, observing the number of people he'd potentially have to dispose of. He announced briefly, "We've gotta move."
Ellie glanced up from her leg as she had been stroking it gently to soothe the burn, and directed a nod in Michonne's direction, "Where to?"
"I'm doing the best I can. I'll check his apartment," Michonne stated, her voice low and monotonous, with a slight undertone of determination.
"I'll join you," Ellie announced, which instantly resulted in a slight hurricane to form in the pit of Daryl's stomach. He couldn't let go of her in such strange territory. He had to protect her. "I trust Michonne."
Daryl cleared his throat, his eyes dropping to the ground sheepishly, "Do you have to go?"
Ellie smiled at his query, acknowledging how he hadn't ordered her to stay as he had previously done. She simply laced her fingers with his, grinning widely, "I'll be back before you know it."
Daryl nodded, but clenched his jaw to stifle the anger that dared escape from his lips. He bowed his head to plant a kiss on her forehead, and mumbled against her head, "Stay safe. I'll see you later."
"She better come back in one piece," Rick growled to Michonne, highlighting his disregard for her.
Michonne crouched instantaneously upon hearing Rick's command, and gestured for Ellie to follow suit. She slowly ducked down, mimicking Michonne's evident skills in stealth and tact. Before the two could embark on their mission, the door suddenly begun to open, and Ellie immediately felt a pair of rough hands cupping at her wrists as they yanked her behind them. Ellie scoffed as she recognised Daryl's scent of distant cigarettes and the purest of earthy scents. It was her favourite.
"I know you're in here," a deep, male voice echoed through the room as the stranger entered through the door.
The stranger edged towards Rick's hiding spot, prompting Rick to instantly smash the man against the wall, aiming his gun directly between his eyes. Rick held his gun up, unfazed by the commotion, and ordered, "Down on your knees, hands behind your back!"
Rick had been the mirror image of who had once been — the remnants of his previous career still lingered heavily when it came to his assertiveness. He had carried all the right skills with him, and that is what enabled him to carry the air of a born leader. He was everything that was right with the group.
"Where are our people?" Ellie demanded as she limped to her feet, aiming her own weapon down at the man, despite his evident fear.
"I don't know!" he screeched, panic corroding his body with each breath that he took.
"You're holding some of our people, where are they?" Rick inquired forcefully, his teeth gritted.
The man simply continued to shake his head in defeat, scrambling over his words as he cried repetitively, "I don't know!"
Rick made brief eye contact with Shane as the two stared down at the shaken man, until Shane shot Rick the nod approval he had been seeking. Rick simply leaned down, his voice monotonous as he ordered, "Open your mouth."
The stranger shook his head fearfully, earning a kick from Daryl into his side. As he groaned, his mouth swung open, prompting Rick to swiftly insert a cloth into his mouth to muffle his sobs. Daryl instantly knocked the stranger out cold, allowing his body to crumple in a heap on the ground. After nodding towards the group, Rick opened the door in a single swift movement, and in single file, the group flooded outward. Each were crouched with their weapon raised at their disposal as Rick led them deeper into the town.
Halfway through their journey, Michonne clutched at Ellie's arm in silence, and yanked her towards a large building. She held her index finger up to her mouth, shaking her head slowly to inform Ellie she couldn't tell Daryl where she had gone. Ellie frowned at Michonne's secretiveness, and shook her head back. Daryl was already afraid of losing her, and sneaking off with strange women was the lowest possible mission on her list. The woman simply continued towards the building, shortly prompting Ellie to groan, and to creep after her upon realising she had to choose between following Michonne, or attempting to catch up to Rick.
Ellie darted for Michonne, who had held her arm out to halt the woman in her position. She leaned in to whisper, "Stay quiet. We've got this. Don't make any sudden movements."
The two huddled together up the steps that led to the Governor's apartment, and Michonne quickly curled her hand around the doorknob, attempting to open it — to no avail. Ellie raised her eyebrows at the Governor's safety precautions, shaking her head at his caution. She gestured for Michonne to stand back with her, allowing the two to simply stare at the door with bewilderment.
"I have an idea," Ellie muttered, and gestured towards the door with her hands, "If we can both kick it down, we can get in." Michonne's emotionless eyes travelled down to Ellie's wound; the two of them were more than aware that Ellie had been in more pain than she had been letting on, "I'll obviously use the other leg, Michonne."
Michonne simply rolled her eyes at her defiance, but inhaled deeply to prepare her body for the impact. Ellie whispered as she commenced a countdown, and once the timer was up, the two plunged their body weight into the door, allowing it to fall instantaneously to the ground. Dust particles flew freely through the air as the door met the ground, leaving the two to cough quietly through the haze of dust.
Upon entering the apartment, Ellie's eyes widened after observing his picturesque home. It appeared to be as perfect as homes once were in their past lives; how unscathed it appeared to be. It was pristine, and Ellie couldn't help but wonder how he had succeeded to create such an actively successful town by himself. Michonne strolled silently towards a door at the centre of the apartment, allowing her head to tilt slightly as she pondered what monstrosity could be hiding behind it. She placed herself gently on a nearby armchair, simply preparing herself for the contents of the room behind the door as she held her katana in both hands in preparedness.
Michonne remained silent. Shortly, she swiftly stood to her feet, and blasted through the door with all the composure she could muster. To her left, the horror that greeted her left her legs shaky and unstable; her dark eyes simply widened with disgust upon observing fish-tanks upon fish-tanks filled with walker-fied heads that filled the entirety of the shelves on the wall. Directly ahead of them had been a rather small cage, seemingly harmless, but Michonne knew better. Ellie entered the room shortly after Michonne, and instantaneously gasped as her eyes landed upon the fish-tanks. Her bottom lip quivered uncontrollably as her widened eyes refused to move from the disaster before her.
"What the fuck?" she whispered, and gently trailed her finger across the stained glass of the nearest tank. She flinched upon noticing the walker heads still attempted to bite at her, "What the hell is wrong with this guy?"
"You tell me," Michonne merely muttered, glancing around the cage as she pondered whether to open it.
Ellie released a sigh, and kneeled down as gently as she could to avoid the pain in her leg, and simply released a sigh, "Should we open this?"
Michonne clenched her jaw, remaining silent in their encounter. In silence, she simply outstretched her arm with hesitance, her other hand gripped tightly on her katana. She released the cage door, allowing a young, female child to stumble outward. She had been chained to the cage, decorated with a straw bag covering her head, despite her beautiful attire. Ellie gulped as the child could not have been much older than Coda, leaving her maternal instincts to immediately overwhelm her.
"We can't leave her here, it's not safe," Ellie whispered, shaking her head in disbelief her eyes remained glued to the child.
"Come on, I won't hurt you," Michonne stated to the child, her voice had been gentle and soft — something Ellie had been unaccustomed to with the woman.
Ellie's sparkling orbs widened as the child gently edged closer to Michonne, until finally she sunk into her arms, as Michonne had desperately hoped she would. She instantly detached the chains, sporting a wobbly smile as she removed the bag from her head, with hands as gentle as a butterfly. The two women gasped loudly upon discovering the girl had been a walker, resulting in them both leaping backwards, keeping the child at bay.
"A walker!" Ellie panted, gulping slightly as she connected her eyes with Michonne's, "I know she's a child... we have to put her out of her misery."
Michonne bit at her lip. The commotion had anguished her heart, taking her thoughts back to her own family she had desperately attempting to bury in the back of her mind. If death had been their fate, she wished for nothing more than the eternal peace they had been met with. Just a chance to breathe freely; to close her eyes without seeing their bodies; to be free from the tomb of grief she had succumbed to. She would have given absolutely anything to have them in her arms once again. There was only one thing to do.
With hesitance painted across her grief-stricken face, she gently pulled back her katana for force, preparing to plow the blade through the girl, until a loud, male voice boomed from behind them, "No!"
Ellie instantly spun on her heels, her gun aimed within seconds at the strange man, whom she had dubbed the Governor, "Drop the gun!"
"Please don't hurt her," he pleaded with Michonne, simply ignoring Ellie's weapon that dangled so closely next to his face.
There stood the Governor — a tall authoritarian with darkened, cold eyes to match. His essence stunk of evil, leaving Ellie to stare him down as intensely as she could, with not even a sliver of mercy at her disposal. He held a powerful air to him, indicating to Ellie he undoubtedly obtained his power through manipulation. He fed off the fear of those too weak to fend for themselves, and that is how he had built Woodbury from the ground. Ellie cautiously manoeuvred her finger closer to the trigger, and held her gaze intensely in his eyesight.
"D-don't hurt her," he repeated to Michonne, his eyes desperately lingering between the two women.
The Governor faltered, slowly surrendering to Ellie as he held his weapon upwards, and then gradually placed it in his holster. He released shaky breaths as his eyes intently stared down at his Michonne, silently begging her to show mercy. Ellie merely stood back, away in the sidelines as she observed the overwhelming heat of hatred spark between the two. She kept her gun aimed directly at the Governor's skull, but remained far enough to be outside of the conflict.
"It's me you want, don't let her suffer," he contended, shaking his head repeatedly.
"She doesn't have needs," Michonne growled in response, her dark eyes swirling with a merciless burn.
The Governor edged closer towards Michonne, taking the tiniest of steps as he called out, his voice breaking slightly, " Don't hurt my little girl."
"Michonne..."
"Don't!" Michonne silenced Ellie, furrowing her brows as she kept her eyes directly upon the Governor's pleading eyes.
"Michonne, listen to me—"
Michonne's glare instantly turned to Ellie, her eyes burning holes into Ellie's as they connected their eyes. Through gritted teeth, Michonne simply replied, "This is my battle, Ellie."
The Governor allowed her name to sweetly roll down the back of his throat, tasting as sweet as honey. He smirked ever so slightly, all the while he connected his tearful eyes with Ellie's, shifting his pleading to her. Ellie simply clenched her jaw, desperately attempting to remain silent, despite his eyes mercilessly begging her.
"A man chooses," Ellie begun, her voice low and gentle as she breathed quietly between words, simply connecting her eyes with Michonne's, "a slave obeys."
Michonne tilted her head upward, her eyes widening involuntarily as she understood Ellie's cryptic message to be a message of support. She had been encouraging her to make the right decision, regardless of what the outcome were to be. Without a moments hesitation, Michonne plunged the katana deep into the girl, resulting in Ellie to clench her eyed shut as she emptied the life from the corpse as she removed the blade.
"No!" The Governor screamed, and instantly farted towards her with his knife at hand.
Before Ellie could reach the commotion, the Governor fearlessly pounded Michonne against the wall, and repeatedly plowed at her body with his fists. Michonne's body crumpled to the ground as he proceeded to battle with her, leaving Ellie to stand nearby, her gun aimed directly at the back of the Governor's head. Ellie boldly begged the Governor to cease his punches, but he continued to ignore her voice.
Ellie nervously glanced around at the doorway, observing as it had been left wide open for an easy escape. Perfect. She stealthily dropped her stance to a crouch, and instantly kicked the Governor's leg, causing him to crumple to the ground in a heap. She attempted to leap towards Michonne, only to feel her wounded leg clasped in both of the Governor's strong hands. He simply yanked her body down onto the ground, tearing open her stitches in the process. A soft whimper rolled from her cherry lips, but she persisted with the battle at hand.
Ellie kicked ferociously as the Governor held both her and Michonne down, with his body applying everlasting pressure to Ellie's legs to pin her down. Through panicked yelps, she persisted with her kicking until her right leg had wriggled free, and she was able to kick the Governor directly in his devilishly rugged face. With as much force as her small frame could muster, Ellie gripped at her gun as she picked it up from the ground, and instantly peeled her body free from his grip, uncurling her body from the ground. In one quick movement, her gun was aimed at his face once again, and his instantly battles faltered.
"I know you loved your daughter, but this isn't right!" Ellie pleaded, panting through her words as she shakily held the gun between his eyes. "This world is cruel. The path of the righteous is not easy, but you know it isn't right to prolong the world's pain with her existence. With each walker we allow to remain alive, the further we get from claiming this world back as our own."
The Governor's grip on Michonne loosened within a sudden moment, his fingers uncurling from her arm as he had twisted it behind him. His mouth remained open ajar slightly, and yet, there was no sound but their own breaths surrounding them. His eyes trailed upward towards Ellie's gun, and simply stayed in his position as she continued to speak.
"The good people always go first," she continued, her eyes pooling with tears as her memories of all the people they had lost along the way had flooded back, "They're always too good for what the world has become. We have to let them go; the sanctity of their souls leaves us with a courage we aren't born with. We can only make it by letting them go. Something I had to learn the hard way."
The Governor's body slumped, his efforts slowly began to melt away as he allowed the fear of losing his daughter to escape the confinements of his body. Ellie gently kneeled down, her gun remained aimed at his face, despite her gentle hand outstretching to reach his own hand. She wasn't sure what her own intentions were, even if they were only attempts to pacify him, she had to try. Ignoring Ellie's attempt, Michonne instantly gripped at her katana, and flung it around the Governor's neck as she proceeded to strangle the man, causing his leg to instinctively kick outward, in Ellie's direction.
His powerful kick knocked Ellie's gun to the ground once again, causing her to stumble backwards fearfully as the commotion commenced once again. The Governor tactfully wriggled from her hold, and his large hands curled around her head as he prepared to smash her head against the wall. Repeatedly, he pounded her face against the fish-tanks, splattering pieces of glass and murky water across themselves and the floor surrounding them. Their battle continued despite the chaotic mess surrounding them as Michonne gripped at two fish-tanks with her bare hands, yanking them down to the ground with her as her body crumpled to the ground.
Ellie shakily clung onto the wall, holding herself up as she idly stood by during the commotion below. She longingly eyed up the open door, and instantly whirled around to leave, until Michonne's calls of desperation alerted her from her exit.
"Ellie!" she released a strenuous scream, drawing Ellie's eyes back to the mess they had created around them.
Ellie repeatedly shook her head through perturbed pants, attempting to stand as far away as she could, "You did this to yourselves! I offered you both a way out, but this sickness you both have — it's called trauma. Look at what it's doing to you!"
Grunts continued to fill Ellie's ears as the two squirmed through the murky water and shards of glass decorating the floor. Michonne's hand shakily outstretched upon observing the pieces of glass surrounding her, and instantly she curled her hands tightly around a shard, causing her own hand to seep with blood. Her dark eyes connected with Ellie's momentarily, resulting in Ellie to kneel down beside her as she attempted to peel the two away from one another again. It was too late.
Michonne gained her composure, relaxing her body as much as she could before she took the chance to plunge the shard deep into the Governor's eye. He released an earth-shattering wail as the glass pierced his eyes, leaving him blinded entirely in his eye as the agony spread throughout his entire face.
The Governor crumpled up into a small ball as he sobbed loudly through the agony, with both Michonne and Ellie panting heavily across the room from one another as the commotion settled down. With anger plastered heavily across Ellie's face, she pushed herself from the ground, ignoring the searing pain in her leg, and scowled down at the two of them.
"You can both stay here in this piece of shit hamlet, but I'm out," Ellie growled, shaking her head repetitively as she limped towards the door.
Ellie remained stoic in her decision to leave, her face remained curled into a scowl as she slammed the door shut behind her, muttering profanities under her breath as she limped outwards. Once the cool air of the evening hit her skin, she clenched her eyes shut, tilting her head backwards as she prayed to return safely to the prison, back to her daughter. Uneven footsteps from behind her instantly alerted her, and she whirled around on her heels as quickly as she could, with her gun aimed directly at who appeared to be Michonne.
She simply sniffed, and wiped the blood away from her face as Ellie stared intently at her, awaiting her speech. She kept her eyes down, avoiding Ellie's eye contact, "We need to get out of here."
Ellie scoffed, shaking her head in disbelief at the woman, "We don't need to do anything! I need to find Daryl."
"He probably got out, let's get over the wall and find him," she negotiated, her tone soft and gentle, which had been foreign for Michonne when conversing with the group, "I know the safe way out."
Ellie clenched her jaw, remaining silent as she stared Michonne down intently. Her eyes seemingly proved truthful, leaving Ellie to sigh, "I'm not leaving without him. We're coming straight back if he's not there."
Michonne's eyes twinkled with gratitude as she gently tugged Ellie along the way towards a wall, where she held her hand out to lift Ellie up. Ellie ignored her attempts to aid her as she simply hauled her body upwards by herself, and remained hovering above in order to help Michonne over due to her injuries. The two stealthily crouched through the bushes, with Ellie leading ahead as she circled back to their original meeting point before entering Woodbury. Ellie's eyes instantly caught a glimpse of Rick nearby, whose eyes widened upon observing her wounded face in the distance.
Ellie immediately unfolded herself from the ground, and ran directly into Rick's arms, feeling the warmth of his arms encapsulate her. She clung onto him with as much strength as she could muster, with Rick cupping her head, feeling only relief and gratitude that she had made it back safely. From beside them, Ellie felt her arm being tugged gently by a strange force, which materialised to be a worn-down looking Maggie at her side, with a grin of relief painted across her reddened face.
Ellie instantly yanked the woman into an embrace, holding her as closely as she possibly could, before whispering as she cupped her face, "You're safe."
"Thanks to you guys," Maggie replied as she sniffled tearfully, glancing around the group with gratitude.
Ellie frowned as she observed Maggie's unfamiliar attire, scanning the clean clothes that evidently belonged to Woodbury. She peeled herself from their embrace, and sternly questioned, "Did they hurt you?"
Maggie remained silent. Her head simply bowed down as she stood back, revealing Glenn behind her. The entirety of his face had been licked with a fresh coat of bruises, instantly resulting in Ellie to pant as the air had been knocked from her lungs. Her tearful eyes connected with Glenn's as she gently leaned up to trail her finger across his bruised face, and sniffled as he glanced down at the ground, avoiding her eye contact.
"Glenn," she breathed out, shaking her head repeatedly as she scanned every inch of his face, "What the fuck did they do to you? Who did this? I'll kill all of them!"
"Interrogated me," Glenn spat back bitterly, "Endlessly."
Ellie bit her lip to stifle the cry that dared escape her throat. She simply spun around on her heels, searching through the group members as she attempted to find Daryl, but with each person she saw, none had been Daryl. With each person that proved not to be Daryl, she felt the air slowly becoming heavier and heavier in her chest as she panted heavily, the worst outcomes playing mercilessly through her mind.
"Where's Daryl?" she gritted, staring directly ahead at Rick as he avoided her intense eye contact.
Rick simply released a sigh, shaking his head gently, "Ellie, you need to listen to me..."
"He better not be dead," she warned, her voice low and quiet as she stared directly at her feet to avoid the sympathetic glances above her, "If he's dead, I swear—"
Rick released an elongated sigh, before he simply shrugged his shoulders , "He didn't come back, so we couldn't say."
Without allowing Rick, nor anyone else to interject, she cocked her gun, ensuring she had plenty of ammo at her disposal as she glanced up at the wall nearby. The pain in her chest at the idea of losing Daryl weighed her down heavily, leaving her entire body to ache with the concept of losing him. She could not lose him. With a scowl on her face, she felt the determination swimming proudly through her veins as she stood ahead of the group — as a leader.
"We're going back in," Ellie announced to members of the group who would stay back, excluding Maggie and Glenn as they had endured enough during their interrogations. "Keep a look out. Our signal for danger is two shots, five seconds between each. You got that?"
The group simply nodded, unsure of how else to respond to her authoritative statement. The members of the group who would return to Woodbury simply stood proud, replenishing their weapons with ammo before turning to Ellie for their orders. After finalising a countdown, Ellie led the group back into the arm's of danger, all to discover where Daryl had been taken. They entered the small hamlet once again, with Ellie leading upfront, and Rick directly at her left the entirety of their sneaking.
Spotted in the distance had been a large circle of the citizens of Woodbury, surrounded by cheers and yells by the people encircling the Governor. He took his place directly in the centre of what appeared to be an arena, decorating with flames to contribute to the deadly atmosphere. The Governor paraded around the arena proudly as he communicated with his following, his voice booming throughout the town as he guided them with his sugar-coated words. Ellie quietly whistled to her group, drawing them closer to a hiding spot as they attempted to draw themselves nearer to the commotion ahead.
Once they had been in earshot, Ellie instantly stumbled backwards as her blood ran cold, upon observing the one and only Merle Dixon standing emotionlessly in the centre of the arena. He had remained identical to the last time she had seen him, which only unsettled her more. Next to him had been none other than Daryl, who stared intently at his brother once the bag had been removed from his head. The Governor paraded the brothers around as he boomed words of encouragement to his disciples, despite the fearful look painted on Daryl's face.
Through pants of fear, Ellie's natural instinct had been to scream, but luckily Rick had already curled his hand around her mouth to stifle her fears. His lips curled into a frown as he observed how frantic she had been in his arms, but he knew, too, that the Governor knew no bounds when it came to interrogating for answers.
Rick dropped his sparkling eyes down to Ellie's, and cupped her face in his hands, "We can't leave them there. You know what we have to do."
Ellie simply froze in her stance, shaking her head at Rick as she knew his plan had been to attack from afar, while she had other ideas. She sighed, before she mumbled against his hand, "I'm so sorry," and proceeded to bite down onto his skin as hard she could. With all the strength her body could muster, she attempted to dart towards the centre of the arena, only to be held back by four strong arms as they picked her up from the ground.
"Ellie," Shane warned, his voice low and authoritative as he placed her back on the ground. His dark eyes pierced hers with a defeating assertiveness, causing her to melt slightly in her stance. "We'll have to find another way."
Ellie instantly shoved his grip off her arm, shaking her head as the tears built up in her eyes, "I'm not leaving him to deal with this shit alone! We do everything together because we're a fucking team!"
Rick simply connected his eyes with Shane's as the two contemplated her words, proceeding to then glance around at the arena as they scoped out the difficulty of their mission. Rick then gestured for the two to copy his stance as he crouched down low behind an array of bushes neatly planted around the town. He gestured for the trio to scamper further towards the arena, and gestured for the remainder of the group to hold back and protect them from the way they had arrived.
In preparation, they cocked their guns and slipped the safety off, prepared to take down any enemy that dared get close enough to bring them harm.
Emerging from the bustling crowd came a flow of golden, blonde locks, betokening Ellie to an ally they had lost along the way. Her hair bounced pleasantly on her shoulders as she battled through the excited crowd, and halted her movement next to the Governor. She called out as loudly as she could despite the cheering of the crowd, her hoarse voice running silent in defeat. She finally sunk backwards, glancing around the area fearfully as she searched for someone to aid her in her quest to stop the madness. Her blue eyes trailed gently over each person as she searched for someone great, until they stopped directly on Ellie, swallowing her whole as she connected her eyes with the woman who earned herself the title of an infiltrator.
Ellie felt her breath hitch in her throat as the two remained with their eyes connected. A past life echoed loudly around them.
Andrea.