Once A Dixon, Always A Dixon (Daryl Dixon)

HITs

Setting: The CDC, Season One

I woke up from a peaceful slumber to a horrible banging in my head. I rolled off the bed and moaned. I am never drinking again.

Daryl shot up. "Are you okay?" He asked.

"Hangover," I yelled and groaned loudly while clutching my temples.

Daryl sighed, put on his sleeveless shirt, and gestured for me to hop on his back. I did so, since there was probably no way I was getting to the dining room myself. He held tightly onto my thighs and made his way down.

When we reached the dining room, practically everyone was staring at us. Glenn was sitting and rubbing his temples. "Don't ever let me drink again," He moaned.

Daryl set me down on a chair. T-Dog walked over with a pan of eggs. "Protein helps the hangover!" He said. "They're powdered but I do 'em good."

Shane walked in. 

"You feel as bad as I do?" Rick asked.

"Worse," Shane mumbled. That's when I noticed the strange cuts on his neck. 

"What happened to your neck?" T-Dog asked.

"Must've done it in my sleep," Shane doesn't meet our gazes.

"That's not like you," Rick pointed out.

"Not like me at all," Shane stole a glance at Lori. Something happened between them.

Dale walked over to Jenner. "Jenner, I hate to bombard you with questions first thing in the morning but..."

"You will anyway," Jenner said.

"We didn't come here for the eggs," Andrea said.

---

We were back in the big room where we took our blood tests.

"VI, bring up the playback of TS-19," Jenner instructed. An x-ray image of a human brain filled the screen.

"Is that a brain?" Carl asked.

"An extraordinary one. Not that it matters in the end," Jenner said grimly. He went on to explain how the walker disease worked.

"It invades the brain like meningitis," He explained. "The adrenal glands hemorrhage, then brain slowly shuts down, then the vital organs, then death. Everything that you were, or ever will be, gone in a matter of seconds," The image of the brain went black.

"Is that what happened to Jim?" Sophia asked. Carol nodded.

"So this is a vigil?" Rick asked.

"More like a playback of the vigil," Jenner said. Then, red dots started appearing in the base of the brain. The body became animate and a gash appeared through the brain.

"What the hell was that?" I asked.

"He shot it, didn't you?" Andrea asked. 

"Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you, and I hate to ask more questions, but that clock- its counting down. What happens at zero?" Dale asked.

I'm not sure if it was just me, but Jenner seemed to get paler. "The basement generators- they run out of fuel," He said in a rush.

"Okay, what happens when they run out of fuel?" Rick asked.

"When there is no fuel left, facility-wide decontamination will occur."

No. Dear God no. I held my head. Everyone noticed. "Nico? Are you alright?" Lori asked.