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[ season three, episode two ]
Outside, the prisoners congregated around the iridescent patch of sun-balmed ground like moths to a flame.
They hadn't seen the sun, or felt the heat of it upon their ashen skin, for months. Marley pitied them for that — though, admittedly not for much else. It was their own fault for landing themselves in a prison Before, after all. On those grounds, she couldn't sympathise. Especially with Tomas, who was constantly snarling like a rabid, vicious dog ravenous for bloodshed. Marley distrusted him, and she really didn't like him.
She gripped her machete handle a little tighter as the prisoners bathed in the baking sun, watching Tomas as if he were her prey.
"Maybe we should just lock the door and be done with them all." Marley muttered to T-Dog. "They're only gonna cause us problems that we don't need — not on top of everything else already on our plate."
T-Dog hummed, though she could not tell if it was in agreement, disagreement, or a neutral repose to yet another bold statement made by a withering survivor lacking strong moral-ground. His only words were, "Yeah. They're gonna cause us some problems, alright."
They sauntered towards Rick, each of them watching the prisoners intensely — of whom Marley had quickly placed names to, from what she had overheard. Big Tiny extended both of his enormous arms either side of his body like an eagle taking flight, lifting his head sunflower-style toward the burning globe suspended above. Axel stared at the minefield of bodies behind the chain-link, dumbstruck. Tomas and Oscar wandered aimlessly, taking in everything all at once.
The smaller man — Andrew — was not interested in the outside world anymore; he regarded it with a lack of interest. He turned to Rick instead, brows furrowed, "How the hell did you get in here?"
"Cut a hole in that fence over there by that guard tower." Daryl said, pointing out the area of interest with a sluggish arm-raise.
'Big Tiny' sheepishly poked a body on the ground, using the end of a mangled pipe. The bloodied flesh squelched beneath the pressure, and the burly man grimaced, taking a cautious step back.
"What is this," he pondered. "like, some disease?"
"Yeah." Rick nodded. He made the mistake of not telling the group about the circumstances of the viral outbreak immediately after Jenner's warning. They would not speak to him for weeks afterward. Rest assured, Rick was not going to make that mistake again, no matter who it was on the receiving end of the stick. "And we're all infected."
