Last One Fighting ~ Negan Fanfic

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Hello friends! I really hope you enjoy the update. Things are both simultaneously winding down and totally ramping up as we near the end of this story! From this point on I have diverged from canon, so I really hope you like it. 

Happy Reading!

><><

Jo

I stood in the middle of the factory floor as Negan stalked out of sight. The soldiers were in a frenzy over his victory. Their cheering and stomping echoed through the steel and glass building as Simon's blood flowed out onto the cement floor not two feet from where Merle had been torn to pieces. One found themselves on this floor from absolute betrayal, the other from absolute loyalty, but both were dead just the same. I tried not to let my mind go down that path, but it was difficult as the smell of blood and the clattering of bodies surrounded me in this place. 

Once Negan was out of sight the cheering soldiers turned to me. The mob was looking to me now to see what it was supposed to do. I needed to go after Negan, but I also needed to take care of this. The mob was a fickle mistress, it always had been regardless of the status of the world. The blood frenzy and triumphant energy following Negan's victory couldn't go to waste, it needed a direction or we risked losing every inch we gained today. Negan's theatrical exit had been necessary, we needed him to appear larger than life, but so was the directions that followed after.

I waited patiently for them to wear themselves out. They needed this. There were so few victories in our lives anymore, it was important to let them have the important ones. It felt strange standing before them without Negan as they screamed and stomped, but I felt better knowing Dwight and Arat were flanking me.

Dwight wasn't as patient as I was. He glanced towards me questioningly and when I didn't stop him he stepped out towards the front. "Hey shut up!" Dwight yelled.

The room immediately fell dead quiet. I stalked out into the middle of the circle, making it a point to completely disregard the blood I had to step in. I wasn't squeamish, but it was disrespectful. I couldn't let them misinterpret any of my actions in this moment however. I had to put on a show; just like Negan. I didn't like being the center of attention, but it had to be taken care of, it couldn't wait.

I cleared my throat and drew in a deep breath. The room was so quiet I could hear my own heartbeat pounding in my ears. "What happened today..." I began turning in a slow circle so I could see everyone.

For my own self-control I needed to watch everyone's body language. The fight was too close for me to truly trust them. I had managed to hold it together during the fight, but the adrenaline was still coursing through my body. My hands tightened as my muscles coiled. Every part of me demanded release, but I had to be more than just a fighter now. Negan needed me to be a different kind of weapon, and I wasn't going to let him down. We had given up too much for this. We needed to know for a fact that Simon's betrayal had ended with his death.

"What happened will never happen again," I told them. "Simon endangered not only our lives but the lives of everyone under the Sanctuary's protection, not just soldiers, but also women and children...innocents," I added. I took a breath and waited a beat before continuing. My voice dropped to a warning growl. "That is unacceptable," I snarled. "I will not stand by and let that go unanswered ever again," I promised them. 

The men surrounding me shifted their weight uncomfortably, their triumphant joy stilling as they realized I was not celebrating as they expected. My fierce protectiveness had caught them all off guard. Good. I needed them to fear my threat more than they had ever feared anything. I wasn't bluffing. I had stood by and watched Negan fight to the death once, I wouldn't do it again. I couldn't. They might believe that they could still challenge him for leadership sometime in the future, but I would never let it get to that. They would meet the end of my blade in one of the lonely hallways before I let it happen again. Rules be damned.