I'll Take The Pain (A Daryl Dixon Story)

Somethings Gotta Give

The next morning I was woken up by what sounded like gunshots. Daryl had already left my cell and I saw him run by. I jumped up and slipped on my boots, grabbing my gun and knife  as I ran behind him, "What happened?"

"Walkers," He replied. Sasha and Tyreese soon joined and we ran out just as I heard Glenn yell, "Walkers in D!"

"What about C?" asked Rick to which Sasha answered, "Clear. We locked the gates to the tombs. Hershel's on guard."

"It ain't a breach," Daryl added as we ran towards D block. Sasha then said, "We followed the plan."

We all ran into D block just as an old guy shot his shotgun, making Daryl gran it and say, "Move!"

"Daryl!" Rick yelled behind him and the redneck tossed him the shotgun as he asked, "Are you bit?"

I ran in and stabbed the closest walker, following behind Daryl. I then shot another walker that was going after some kids. Daryl then picked one up and handed him over to Karen, telling her to lock her cell. Merle soon ran in and started killing the walkers and I nodded at him. I kept killing walkers as Rick and Carol either got those who were alive in cells or out of the cellblock. Soon, Rick asked, "Are we clear down here? Are we safe?"

"Yeah, yeah," Sasha answered. Daryl and I then made our way upstairs. He walked by a woman who was bit and not conscious so I stabbed her in the head, walking towards the cells. Glenn was already up there and had a walker lunge at him. Daryl quickly turned around and yelled, "Get down!" 

Glenn and I quickly ducked as Daryl shot a bolt into the walkers head Daryl then walked over as Rick helped Glenn up. I stood up and looked at the walker as Daryl said, "Oh, it's Patrick."

I looked over the edge at the dead walkers on the bottom floor and said, "That's all of them."

Rick then looked at Daryl, seeing a woman who was bit and Daryl walked in whispering "I got it."

I sighed and walked down the catwalk, seeing another person who was bit and no longer conscious. I walked in and stabbed my knife into their head before walking back out, making eye contact with Daryl. I saw Rick go into a cell with his flip knife and walk out a little later with blood on the knife and I sighed. I ran my hand through my hair and looked around as I heard a walker. I went over, standing behind Daryl as Rick stabbed the walker in the head. Hershel and Dr. S soon came up to inspect their body as Rick said, "No bites. No wounds. I think he just died."

"Horribly, too. Pleurisy aspiration," Dr. S said. Hershel then said it in human words, "Chocked to death on his own blood. Caused those trails down his face."

"I've seen them before," Rick said, looking up at Hershel, "on a walker outside the fences."

"I saw 'em on Patrick, too," Daryl said. Dr. S then went on, "They're from the internal lung pressure building up- like if you shake a soda can and pop the top. Only imagine your eyes, ears, nose, and throat are the top."

"Oh. Pleasant," I said, leaning against the wall of the cell. Bob had joined us now and asked, "It's a sickness from the walkers?"

"No, these things happened before they were around," Dr. S explained, "Could be pneumococcal. Most likely an aggressive flu strain."

"Someone locked him in just in time," Hershel said. Daryl just shook his head and said, "No, man. Charlie used to sleepwalk. Locked himself in. Hell, he was just eating barbecue yesterday. How can somebody die in a day just from a cold?"

"I had a sick pig," Rick said, "It died quick. Saw a sick boar in the woods."

"Pigs and birds," Hershel said, "That's how these things spread in the past. We need to do something about those hogs."