The Darkest Storm

It has been two days since Andrea’s unexpected, and frankly, unwelcomed visit. It was as if she wasn’t apart of them anymore, the group. With her newfound home and lover, who just happened to be the Governor himself, this seems to be especially true. Michonne confided in Darcy what happened that day between the two friends. Andrea chose a warm bed over a friend. The saddest thing about betrayal is that it never comes from your enemies.

Nevertheless, Andrea has devised a plan for Rick and the Governor, or Philip, to meet face-to-face to talk things out once and for all. Although, in the hearts of them all, everyone knew it was going to lead nowhere. There was too much that had been done on either side to simply let things go.

Philip. The name was lodged deep in Darcy’s heart. When she heard the ring of the name fall from Andrea’s lips, Darcy’s world spun with curiosity and panic. The sudden smirk and daring eyes received from Merle as soon as it was said didn’t help her accusations that formed in her mind either. As she chews on her lip and taps her thumb on her thigh in anticipation to just catch a glimpse of this madman, she hopes it isn’t true.

The car stops within a small area of the abandoned town, and Rick gets out of the car to meet up with Daryl as he parks his bike. They are quiet as they give each other silent hand gestures and understood signals. Before Rick closes the door Darcy gets out from the back seat and instantly moves to the now vacant passenger side, grabbing her bow that lay next to her as she does.

Ah, the bow.

The previous day, Rick had gone on a run with Carl and Michonne into a local town. The purpose was to gather whatever they could use against another surprise attack. They didn’t only come back with what might as well been an entire armory, but Rick found something special as well; a bow that was very similar to her old one and that worked like a charm.

Yet, it was still difficult to shoot with her injured arm, but the new tactical axe that Carl found and decided to gift to her was just as fitting for the time being. She felt like a whole new woman ready for battle. She only was missing her truest companion to stand next to her.

Closing the door and sliding in next to Hershel, Darcy’s eyes glance up at the two scouters through the windshield. Daryl doesn’t hide his overwrought stare; he believes she shouldn’t even be here because of her injury. But nevertheless, here she was in all her pride and determination to keep her position in the group and help keep them safe.

It only happened after much arguing and stubbornness from Darcy and Daryl who both used Rick as a middleman since things still weren’t fixed between the two hunters. Darcy was allowed to come along only after pointing out that Hershel had no leg and he was still going. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees him adjust the duct-taped gun to his thigh.

“Does it still hurt?” She asks quietly.

Hershel sighs and rolls his pant leg down. “Sometimes. But I’d rather lose my leg than my life with my girls.” He gives a small nod and Darcy returns it before glancing out the window again.

“I know you’re still upset.” He tells her. “You just have to think if it’s worth it enough to ruin what you have.”

“I’m not angry anymore.” Darcy gives a small closed-mouth smile and looks over to him. “Well, sometimes I am. I’m working on it.”

Hershel scans her face for a moment before giving her a heavy nod. “We don’t have much time these days to dwell on things like this. Fix it. It’s not worth throwing away when you’ve both come so far.”

Darcy hastily opens her door and slides out of the car; this conversation is beginning to become daunting. “I’m gonna take a look around.” She tells him, pressing the door quietly closed and throwing her bow over her shoulder. Hershel doesn’t argue, but merely gives a nod she doesn’t see and watches her back as she leaves.

She weaves herself in and out between the metal pipes along the yard, hugging her back close to them as she grips her axe tightly in her right hand. The cement flooring makes it hard for her to tell which way Rick and Daryl have gone, but as soon as she reaches the tall grass, she can see the overturned and broken stems and quickly follows their trail.

Soon, Darcy comes to a gray building. A shed more or less. Her footsteps are silent as stone and slow, walking towards the back entry near the woods. Her heart races in her chest as she tries to peer around the corner in the darkness, but retreats when she notices that the two pairs of paths have split off in different directions.

Rick was inside, that much was certain. And since there was no sign of him turning around, it was most likely he had stayed in there. Darcy steps backwards towards the side of the shed to stay along Daryl’s tracks instead and through the dry straw that seemed to be thrown about by the wind throughout the lost year or so.

Darcy lightly presses her fingertips to the wall and edges her self up on her tiptoes, trying to see anything on the inside but her mere forehead barely makes it to the windowsill. Steps to her right jolt her head to the side and she falters back from the building altogether.

“’Posed to stay ‘n the car.” Daryl tells her, squinting his eyes in thought as if he contemplates whether to walk over to her.

“Got a little cramped.” She keeps her hand on the wall unconsciously. The tone in his voice makes her spine shiver – it was bland, uncaring, totally hidden of all possible feelings in his words. He doesn’t keep her gaze for more than a few seconds at a time.

It has gotten somewhat callous between them as Daryl hides how much her avoidance has been affecting him realistically. In her mind though, it is enough torment to eat her alive. Quite honestly, she curses herself every second that passes that she doesn’t say something to fix it all.

Why the hell has she waited so long anyways? Was she waiting for the right moment? But then it dawns on her, Hershel’s words from the car. They didn’t have much time left these days for wait for those moments, and sometimes, the situation didn’t call for it to.

“C’mon.” Daryl bobs his head back to the front of the building where Hershel has moved the car. He doesn’t wait for Darcy to start walking, he moves without her consent or company.

“You were right.” Her words stop Daryl in his tracks and he turns slightly to face her.

“I knew why you had to go.” She shrugs and kicks the dirt under her feet. “Knew from the beginning. I just – just didn’t want you to. Everything was such a mess when you left it was so much easier to point the blame when there was none.”

Darcy picks at her fingers and shuffles her feet. She isn’t expecting a reply just yet. They are in a more dangerous situation that needed attention so she knows it’s not a top priority in Daryl’s mind right now. She just couldn’t wait any longer and the words were right there on the tip of her tongue.

After a few silent seconds, Daryl gives a heavy nod. “Well, le’s go then.” He bobs his head again to get Darcy moving but this time, he waits for her to catch up and walk next to him.

But as soon as their footsteps coincide, Darcy stops immediately. Her eyes have caught sight of someone that sends ripples through her stomach, and sends her senses on a whirlwind. The pieces were finally coming together, but they were not in her favor.

“What is it?” Daryl whispers, seeing the unexpected look of shock on her face.

“Darcy?”

The voice rings throughout her ears and the name leaves the man’s lips in slow motion as she watches them. Her vision grows fuzzy but she shakes her head to get rid of the oncoming force that would undoubtedly take her down if she’d let it.

Darcy takes a wary step towards the stranger, but yet at the same time, her old friend. “Milton?”

Her voice shows the same signs of disbelief as his. Milton starts to make his way towards her. They both are not sure if they should smile or put on callous faces like the rest – they were now fighting against each other after all.

“No way.” Darcy suddenly gets a grip on her upper arm and the hand pulls her backwards. Daryl stands in front of her and his crossbow is raised at him at the ready, but Darcy knows Milton couldn’t hurt a fly if he tried.

The other man whom Darcy doesn’t recognize also takes a few steps forward, swinging that bat he holds in his hands tauntingly as he slides his tongue across his bottom lip. The reality of the situation has hit Darcy full force. She can’t tear her eyes away from Milton who mirrors the same worried expression as her own.

“Ya’ll two know each other?” Daryl grows behind his bow. He tiptoes on his feet; particularly at the one man whom has yet to say anything but smirk at the situation.
When Darcy doesn’t answer, Daryl whirls around and drops the weapon to his side.

“How do ya know him, Darcy?” Daryl has taken a step forward due to the high tension and he accidentally raises his voice in demand of an answer. When she flinches slightly just as so he could only see, she swallows and hopes the look on her face will answer for her.

“She was with us, with our old group when the reanimation started.” Milton hesitantly speaks for her. Daryl rocks on his feet and shakes his head, annoyed with the man already.

Milton’s direction is focused back on Darcy, “You disappeared. Philip was devastated with Penny…gone and then we just assumed –“

Darcy lunges forward around Daryl and slaps him. Barely a second has passed and she was being lifted up by her waist and spun back around a few feet away. Martinez holds a hand up in between them as Daryl sets her down.

“Need to learn to control your people.” Martinez spat. “It’s what got you folks in trouble in the first place.”

Daryl immediately lets Darcy go from his grasp and steps into Martinez, but Darcy is too caught up to focus on them. Hershel tries to break them up, but does little.

“I left you ignorant asshole. You saw what he did – what he’s…” She looks towards the barn. “Is it him? Is he in there?”

Darcy breathes heavily and sends a shivering glare into Milton’s eyes. She’s pointing a firm finger at the barn and her voice shrieks when she raises it. He nods slowly, and she doubles over and holds herself shakily on her knees as her world starts to spin. Christ, she couldn’t catch a break.

“We don’t need this.” Hershel stands tall, leaning against the side of the car while he holds his assault rifle in in hands. “If all goes south in there, we’ll be at each other’s throats soon enough.”

Milton holds his cheek where the scarlet handprint was marked clear as day. He doesn’t appear to be as shocked as one who had just got slapped would be, but instead tries to see the best in the situation.

“You can stop this, you know. Darcy?” He rushes his words, worried as though something would stop him from saying them. “You can stop this.” Darcy looks up, strands of hair fallen over her face. “He won’t want to take this any further knowing you were the one he’s putting at risk.”

“You know better.” Darcy grits her teeth. She stands up and Daryl is by her side again, but faces the opposite direction of the road. They suddenly hear footsteps from inside growing closer towards them, but Darcy doesn’t advert her gaze until she sees the knowing and shameful look resembled on Milton’s face.

It’s Andrea who exits the building, but she doesn’t say anything as all the anxious faces look towards her for some sign of what was going on inside. She avoids them and lets out an embarrassed sign, stepping off to the side and sitting on a wooden bench against the shed.

Darcy takes the opportunity and walks to the side of the car closest to the building and slides her back against it and down to the ground, staying out of the hot zone for at least a few minutes. It doesn’t take that long, however, for Daryl to walk over to her and crouch in front of her.

“Penny?” He asks in a low tone, the words come out hoarse; this was his attempt at an altruistic interrogation.

Darcy holds her hair tightly along her scalp. “My cousin.” She hears him moan internally and his feet shift, this always happens when he’s uncomfortable. He’s hesitant on his next inquiry.

“And the Go –“

The racket of metal fences clanging and scraping of rotten nails against it cuts Daryl’s knowing question off instantaneously. The growls grow closer and as they do, Darcy brings herself to her feet and takes her bow in her hands like she’s greeting an old friend.

The four abled bodies: Daryl, Darcy, Martinez, and Andrea - who has stopped sulking long enough to recognize the real danger – pinpoint the sounds coming from across the way and at once disregard all tension between themselves and stand together.

Well, in a sense.

Daryl is first in the pack with Martinez just behind him. Darcy and Andrea watch them both carefully as they suddenly stop at the few walkers reaching their mangled arms out towards them.

Daryl suddenly lets his crossbow down at his side and waves his arm with a clenched shut jaw at Martinez. “After you.”

The man snickers and shakes his head. “No way.” He points with his bat. “You first.”

With the two men too high up on their pride to attack, Darcy lets the first bolt go with a silent twang. She stands tall, and as the two continue to glare at each other and completely take no notice of the arrow go straight between their bodies, she looks to Andrea who rolls her eyes and charge at the next oncoming flesh-eater.

Martinez casually takes a step back from Daryl, “Pussy.” He calls out, barreling his wooden bat into the skull of one of the roamers and leaves no trace of it as it smashes into the side of the metal container. He looks back, smirking, challenging Daryl to a friendly competition.

Darcy rolls her eyes, “Oh my God.”

Daryl moves forward then, firing his crossbow dead center in the forehead of a biter. He steps aside, watches Martinez already swinging his bat against another skull, taking it down with no sweat. It is until Daryl has cut off Martinez entirely with a perfectly thrown hunting knife that Martinez steps back, looking at Daryl who undoubtedly wears a proud smirk back at him. They nod, accepting one another, and both back down.

“Look what he’s got.” Daryl holds up the pack of cigarettes from the last walker taken down. He lets one hang casually from his mouth as he offers one to Darcy, who shakes her head and then to Martinez, who also declines.

Darcy sees Daryl then, shuffling through his pockets, clearly looking for his lighter but he can’t find it. She knows why. Darcy steps forward and gives a small whistle that grabs his attention. In her hands is his lighter, the one he had given to her when they first claimed the prison and the same one that she’d had thrown at him in a desperate attempt to show her hurt that one miserable night.

Daryl squints at it, then her. “How long ya had it?”

“Couldn’t bring myself to let it go.” She shrugs, the hidden meaning tugging at her whispered words. Daryl takes it softly from her grasp and gives her a nod, he understands.

“You know this is a joke right?” Martinez brings them out of their small trance. He chuckles in spite of him being there. “They ain’t gonna work anything out. Sure, they’ll do their little dance and tomorrow, the next day… they’ll give the word.”

“We know.” Daryl lets the small puff of smoke emit from his mouth and Darcy clutches her bow at her side. She looks worriedly between the two men.

“Let’s head back.” Darcy mumbles, avoiding the gazes of the two and leading them back through the pipelines. She rubs her mouth and brings the bottom edge of her black, razorback tank top to her eyes.

What is she going to do when she sees him? When she sees the man responsible for all the torment and death the group had endured and suffered through…was her own uncle?

Darcy believes the absolute worst was knowing that there was no stopping him. The effort to prevent any more deaths by discussing the possibility of a peace treaty seemed foolish and childish now that she knows whom they were dealing with.

Whatever he wants, he’s going to go to great lengths to take it. It didn’t matter if Darcy stands in the way or not, he would take her down too if it meant obtaining whatever it was he desires. She has to warn Rick before it is too late.

The heart-jolting sound of the door being pried open brings the hunter to a halt. The others, who stand up from their leaning positions focus on the being emerging from the dark shadows from within, and Darcy can only pick up the sound of Daryl’s footsteps from behind her. They have quickened to reach her when they see exactly who it is.

Darcy stands dead center between the two vehicles by accident. She is overcome by the shameful emotion that she used to look up to this man, this man who had become a monster worse than the ones they run from everyday.

Their eyes lock, and the whole world seems to stop.

He says nothing, but she catches the mere falter he has in his footsteps. Darcy swallows hard and clenches her jaw shut, keeping her eyes secure on his as he continues to pass her to reach his truck. She feels her knuckles turn white from the grip on her bow, and her throat tightens.

Darcy sees his mouth twitch into a menacing smile when he passes. He shakes his head. She turns to her side, letting the silent wind catch her waves and she narrows her eyes at the form climbing into the truck.

His eyes taunt her like a beast, and would continue to from that moment into every hour. She will soon find the remembrance of his presence in the midst of darkness. It will saunter along in the hallways, creeping and presenting itself in the cells like thick poison. It will constantly be a rainy day, a gray sky without purpose or hope of lifting. The beast will present a constant fight, wrapping herself around her throat and beating its trickery into the folds of her mind knowing simply, because it has before.

Her eyes flicker to the silhouette of the man who had saved her from that place many times before. Daryl. He stands alert, not tearing his watchful and protective stare away from her figure. He gives a small nod that only she can see, and she blinks, nodding in return that he would not let it happen again.

A trigger goes off. Once she is far from this place, she will sacrifice everything in order to make sure the beast is gone for good. There will be no more running, no more deaths, no more destruction at his hand. He will have nothing to latch onto, nothing to wrap himself around and con with his alluring words. Until that day, she will not let him destroy what she’s trying to build - what her group was trying to build.

He’ll only deter future building until she makes it so.

“C’mon.”

Darcy feels the familiar arm wrap around her shoulder and pull her in the opposite direction of the Governor and his small group. They part, both alive, hopefully for the last time.

Darcy is lead towards the Honda. She hears the rumbling of the engine behind her. She tries to get one last glimpse, as if the image would suddenly change, but it doesn’t. When she faces forward again, Rick is standing in front of them, irises ablaze.

He grabs her arm and rips her from Daryl’s grasp. She is spun around, back hitting the front of the Honda in such a force. “You wanna tell me what that was all about?”

“Rick, calm down – “ Daryl is pushed away instantly, Rick’s eyes not leaving Darcy’s shocked features. Daryl steps back, pacing to cool himself down after his friend’s sudden outburst, and to prepare himself to get Darcy out of there if things go south.

“Who is he to you?” Rick asks, raising his voice. She sees his hand flinch towards his gun. “How do you know him?”

“He’s my Uncle.” Darcy responds, narrowing her eyes in wonderment if Rick was really contemplating shooting her.

“Oh, well, that’s convenient huh? Him knowing everythin’ about us but we know nothing about him?” Rick snarls.

“Rick, you serious?” Daryl asks. “Darcy’s been with us the whole time since day one, ya really ought a think ‘bout what your sayin’.”

“He’s gone inside your head, Rick.” Hershel’s calming voice speaks up. “This is what he wants, for us to turn against each other.”

“So you’re telling me, you didn’t know?” Rick steps into Darcy and pins her completely against the truck. He seems to be completely ignorant of what the other two where trying to tell him.

“I didn’t know.” Darcy says flatly.

Rick stands back and places his hands on his hips. He stares at her, still glaring and clenching his jaw. His breath is hitched in his throat, and Darcy has never been more concerned about what was going through his head.

“When we get back, you and I are gonna sit down and have a fun chat. You’re tellin’ me everything.” He snaps, pointing aggressively at her.

“She said she didn’ know anything about this.” Daryl finally steps between them, “Get yourself together brother, before ya do somethin’ stupid.”

“Let’s head back, there’s no need for this here.” Hershel shouts, climbing in the car. Rick steps backwards, wary about the situation. The Governor had riled him up, that much was certain. He needs to look at every aspect. He was being stupid. Darcy? She has gone to great lengths to protect and serve the group.

Rick rubs his face and climbs in the car ashamed, yet still on edge. Darcy is once again lead away by Daryl. The two climb on his bike, and follow the car back to the prison. Darcy can only imagine what would happen once they got back.

-

“You knew didn’t you?”

Darcy stomps threateningly towards Merle who leans up against the fenced cage. His smirk and the sudden tongue running across his lips told her he already knew what this was regarding.

“Knew what?” Carl asks, getting the attention of the others as they made their way into the prison.

“Hell yeah I knew. Shoot, had that damn family photo glued to his dresser.” He teased, stepping back in a somewhat faltered manner as she shoves him.

Daryl grabs Darcy’s arm and separates them. “Ya couldn’ give us a heads up?!” He yells, stepping in between his brother and Darcy.

“Don’ see what the big deal is.” Merle shrugs carelessly.

“We were completely blindsided.” Rick shouts, gritting his teeth.

“Well, what did he want?“ Glenn asks.

“Sat with him for quite a while.” Rick nods. “He wants the prison. He wants us gone. Dead. He wants us dead. For what we did to Woodbury.”

Rick catches something out of the corner of his eye. He points to Darcy forcefully as she tries to walk away to the cellblock; she’s heard this before. “You and I, we’re not done yet!”

Darcy spins around, “We are!” She shouts. The echoes bring everyone to a halt and stand completely silent.

“After everything I’ve done, what we’ve been through –“ She takes aggressive steps towards her leader, “ – You’re going to stand there and accuse me of what? Sneaking off to Woodbury and scheming with them to attack and take the prison? Are you fucking kidding me?”

“Everybody needs to calm – “ Hershel’s words are cut off instantly as if they aren’t even heard.

“You want to know about him?” Darcy points at a now taken aback Rick. She knows that he’s caught off guard by their meeting and that her Uncle had a manipulative ay with words and twisting people’s minds. She knows this isn’t Rick, her friend. But knowing that doesn’t help make her any more offended by what he was essentially charging her with.

“He’s asked you for something. That’s how he works. He doesn’t just want the prison, it’s too obvious. Whatever he’s agreed to do, whatever he’s asking from you – he’s lying.” Darcy shakes her head and bites her lip, looking down to the cement floors beneath her feet.

“He’s going to kill you, me, and everybody here once he gets what he wants and even then he won’t be satisfied.”