rag doll | TWD

[18] the suicide king

wanted dead or alive --- bon jovi

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[POV]

They had pitted Merle against Daryl. Brother versus brother. A fight to the death. 

"Kill 'em!" The surrounding crowd repeated in support of Merle. 

The walkers were closing in, and the crowd's chants grew louder. 

"You really think that asshole's gonna let you go?" Daryl had his hands around his neck, holding him off. 

"Just follow my lead, little brother." Merle gritted. "We're gettin' out of this. Right now."

The crowd's aggression turned to fear as JJ, Maggie, and Rick fired the first shots. Maggie took out the streetlights, plunging the area into darkness, while Rick shot and tossed smoke grenades that filled the air with thick, blinding clouds. 

JJ fired with precision, taking her time, unlike Maggie, with each shot- careful not to hit the ones of their own. The crowd's chants faltered, replaced by panicked shouts and the sound of running footsteps.

Rick flashed the light he had to get Daryl's attention. "Daryl- Let's go," he called out urgently.

They ran adjacent to the wall, taking cover behind the school buses the town used as reinforcements to keep people out.

"They're all at the arena. This way." Merle guided.

Rick stopped, "You're not going anywhere with us." 

"You really wanna do this now?"

Merle kicked in one of the panels on the gate. "Rick, come on. We've got to go." Daryl told him, following his brother through the broken fence. 

When the rest of the group climbed through, they found Merle fighting off walkers, "a little help would be nice!" The rest joined in. "We ain't got time for this."

"Let's go!" Daryl told them, running back to where Michonne and Glenn were waiting at the car.

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[JJ]

We trudged through the woods back to the car, Merle making the occasional snide comment

"Glenn." Rick calmed before he and Michonne could see Merle. "We got a problem here."

"Glenn," Rick called out, trying to keep his voice calm before he and Michonne could see Merle. "We got a problem here."

Michonne unsheathed her katana, and Glenn aimed his gun, his face a mix of anger and confusion. "What the hell is he doing here?" he demanded.

Rick and Daryl quickly moved between the tip of Michonne's katana and Merle, their stances defensive but firm. "Put it down," Rick urged, his voice steady but forceful, trying to defuse the situation before it could escalate further.

"He tried to kill me!" Michonne defended her actions. 

As the arguing broke out, Maggie switched sides and stood by Glenn, raising her gun.

"He helped us get out of there." Daryl defended. 

Rick huffed, "Yeah, right after he beat the shit out of you." 

Merle shrugged, "hey, we both took our licks, man."

"Jackass." 

"Hey, shut up." Merle told his brother. 

"Enough!"

"Get that thing out of my face!" Daryl shouted at Glenn. 

Merle laughed, "Man, looks like you've gone native, brother."