The Sharpest Lives

Ace was pressed up the back of a building, her breathing hard and loud as she huffed and puffed. She had managed to get a good distance away from the biters, giving her a chance to hide out and listen to their moans pass.

She was trying to listen for any signs of someone living, preferably Merle, but nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard unexpected gun shots. ...Merle didn't have a gun?

She silently cursed under her breath as the gun fire caught the biters attention and started to send them in the direction Merle was at. Her plan was to circle back when they all passed, but that was as good as dead now.

She tightened the straps of her backpack so it wouldn't bounce around and then took off in a run.

More gun shots and sick growls echoed around her ears, even a few yells. She had no idea what was going on, but still didn't hesitate to put her ass on the line for Merle.

When Ace neared the spot she had been at with Merle, a loud screeching erupted and she looked up in time to see a large white van high tailing down the street away from her and a shit ton of biters following after. She also saw the wrench she gave Merle lying on the ground, which meant he was most likely in that van, gone.
She really was alone again.

Ace ran her hand through her hair and let out an agitated sigh, kicking the wrench on the ground, but the noticing all the biters coming again, hearing the gun shots. Yet again she broke out in a run, heading to the same back of the building she was just at, which seemed like the only acceptable place to go. And when she got there, she leaned against the wall, putting her hands on her knees and breathing hard, trying to catch her breath.

She was just getting used to being with another person, just until she left to look for Frankie again, but now he was gone. She couldn't save him. Or Frankie.

She doesn't think Frankie is still in the city, and if she is... Well, she's most likely dead. Ace wanted to know either way, for closure, but it was going to do no good to stick around here.

So she has to get out of the city.

Ace stood up straight, taking one more breath and then heading in the opposite direction behind the building. She spotted what looked like a train track yesterday morning that would lead her to out of the city, so she could just have to get over to that again. Shouldn't be too hard right?

Wrong.

She ended up having to walk at least a few miles, barely even having any food in her system, only a bag of chips, and also constantly getting lost on the way. When it did come in sight, she was more than relieved, but then remembered she has no idea where she's going. It's also going to be sunset soon so she will be in the middle of nowhere in the dark.. great.

Ace paused her walk and pulled her bag of her shoulders, setting it on the ground and crouching down next to it. She dug in it deep and pulled out her handgun, checking to see how many bullets were left in the magazine and then slamming it back in quickly. She had more than half a clip left inside, but she wanted it on her for emergencies now as she was heading a little further away from the city.

Before she stood back up she pulled out one of her water bottles and taking a quick drink. Taking her time standing up, stretching her achy back on the way to try and ease the tightness before throwing her backpack onto her shoulders again. As she started to walk again, she took her gun and slid it in the back waste band of her pants, sighing.

Ace had put her knife back in it's sheath earlier, letting her ears and eyes keep watch for her, but she wasn't comfortable with out having it in her hands while the sun was dropping.

The sun set was a very pretty one tonight, but everything about nature seemed off lately. Maybe that's why her back was acting up again? Because something was up with nature? Or maybe that's just an excuse so she doesn't have to admit to her self that she could possibly be getting her cancer back full on, most likely not going to survive it this time.. Who would give her the risky surgery she needed? Or the medicine's since chemo is out of the question? She didn't see the right drugs that would help keep the rapid growing cancer under control at all during her time in the city, so what was going to happen?

Her thoughts only got more and more depressing thinking about how she was going to die alone and sick even if she did survive the biters. She was questioning the point, but only let that thought stay for a few seconds, before completely banishing it away. She would adapt to this. She would adapt to this "sickness", doing everything she can in her own favor to stay alive. She wouldn't be afraid.

Ace knew that saying she won't be afraid was hard for someone to believe, but she wont be. She has a plan for keeping her fear at bay. It's part of her adapting. Every morning, or every time she's put in a crazy situation, she stops. Only for a moment. She lets herself feel it; all the fear, sadness, pain, anger, ect. She accepts it, only for a few seconds, and then "adapts" to it. It's almost like she sucks everything into a black hole, and then after a few seconds the hole closes. She focuses on surviving.. On getting things done.

And Ace let those few seconds start when she heard footsteps behind her. She knew they were too quiet to be biters, so she breathed in and out, letting the fear take it's course, before shutting it out and focusing. The sound of a gun cocking ignited her and in one swift movement, she pulled her gun out, already cocked, and spun towards the noise, stance as steady as a statue.

"Don't shoot! No one needs to get hurt here!" A calm and sturdy voice said, coming closer. She didn't move her stance or say a word, just let her eyes look over the few people coming to her. It was now a dark sky, but she could still make out that the one that spoke was wearing a sheriffs uniform, the hat included, did he not get the memo that there is no more law enforcement?.. There was also a meaty African American man, who only had an axe steady in his hand. To his left there was a scrawny Asian boy with a base ball cap, seeming nervous as he kept looking to the man who spoke while barely gripping onto his shot gun. Ace let her eyes can over to the last man holding a crossbow, cold shivers being sent immediately down her spine when she met his baby blue eyes, set hard and intense on her, making them both hesitate from their stances for a moment.

Ace quickly snapped her glance away, tightening her grip on her gun, looking at the man who first spoke, but only seeing the bag of guns on his back. "We aren't going to hurt you," the sheriff said, lowering his gun and signaling for the others to do the same. The Asian boy did right away, along with the African American man, but the guy with the crossbow kept it up when Ace didn't lower hers. "My name's Rick Grimes," the sheriff took a step and held out his hand, he seemed to not be well adjusted to this harsh world.

Ace didn't shake his hand, but she did lower her gun slightly, still keeping it tight in her grip and ready to be snapped back up in an instant. She wasn't trying to be rude by not shaking his hand, but was still to busy trying to figure these people out, and Rick noticed that so he let his hand fall slightly. "This is Glenn, T-Dog, and Daryl."

Her eyes wandered over the people again, stopping for a moment and the blue eyed man named Daryl who stood a little further behind the other people, not seeming to be friends with them. He was studying her as well, his crossbow still up. Ace noticed his sleeveless shirt, muscular arms, and dirty blonde hair. He looked rough around the edges, very intriguing. She also noticed that he- his blue eyes especially- looked oddly familiar, but she shook it off. "Are you alone?" Rick asked.

Ace was full of hesitation, her eyes squinting while she figured out what to do, but this man's voice seemed very truthful and trustworthy. She nodded slightly, just enough for the men to catch. "We have a camp not too far away.. you look like you could use some rest."

This fit into Ace's plan greatly. A place to catch up on some sleep and even possibly get some sustainable food before continuing on her journey for Frankie. "What's your name?" Rick asked.

"Ace."

"Ain't that a man's name?" Daryl added roughly and that's when it hit Ace. The familiarity. His blue eyes, rough-edged look, and voice were all to similar to her old "friend" Merle. He must have been the brother Merle talked about. She felt a twinge of guilt, knowing that she couldn't save him and reunite the two, but then realized that this meant that this was the group that left Merle to rot on the roof...

The coincidence was odd..

Daryl saw something, almost realization, that crossed across her face when he talked, confusing him, but before Ace could say anything, blood-curdling screams echoed out. The four men all looked at each other and then took off in a panicked sprint.

Ace debated just running away from them, not sure if she should go to the camp of these people who did what they did to Merle. But, then again they didn't seem like bad people and the screams had to be from their camp. "Shit," Ace hissed at herself and then started running after the men towards their camp. She was so busy arguing with herself in her head that the distance didn't seem long at all and soon enough they were at a small clearing with tents, a RV, screaming people, and biters.

Ace looked around, inspecting the people. Most of them seemed harmless and helpful, plus, they had woman and children that were being pushed to "safety." The men Ace had just met, ran up, pulling out guns and starting to shoot at the biters growling around. Ace having history with letting people get killed and wanting to save them, she couldn't help her self from pulling out her own gun and starting to shoot some of the biters. They weren't as bad to kill with a gun from a distance, but it still felt wrong deep inside Ace.

She kept feeling eyes on her, especially from the redneck, Daryl, almost the whole time, but soon the gun shoots all slowed to a stop.

People's screams of terror were not as loud any more and Ace watched as Rick Grimes ran over to a little boy and a pretty woman, yelling out "Carl," as they all cried. It was heart wrenching to see all the people dead over the ground, especially the girl who had another blonde girl over top of her, crying in agony.

Ace was standing still, face emotionless, but insides filled with emotion. She didn't know what to do now and her heart reached out to these people, but she stayed back.

The tears of the people here was the only thing that made noise in her ears between the shocked silence for a while, until Rick got up and came over to her. No words were said as he reached his hand out again, looking into her eyes with his trust worthy, stern, and a seemingly thankful look for helping their camp. Ace this time grabbed his hand, giving him a nod while she shook it.

"Rick, who is this?" A strong and dark haired man strode over, clutching his shot gun by his legs. Ace squinted her eyes at him, something she does when she's observing or thinking hard.

"This is Ace, we met her on our way back. She's going to stay here, at least for the night," Rick was being stern and Ace could feel some tension coming off the two.

"You sure about that, man?" The dark, curly haired guy asked, shifting the hand he used to grip his gun.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Rick put his hands on his hips.

"We don't even know her, Rick. We can't trust to keep this girl at our camp. We've lost enough."

Everyone was watching them diligently, but Ace was the only one to notice a lone biter that had snuck out of the forest, sneaking it's way behind the man who was arguing with Rick. Ace took this chance, pulling her gun up. This caught the dark haired man's attention immediately, and she could tell he was about to pounce in anger at her, but she pulled the trigger fast enough, lowering it right after the shot rang out. Most people looked at her shocked, the dark haired man most of all when he found no bullet wounds in himself and then turned to see the dead biter behind him.

"She can stay," Rick repeated and then walked off to what she assumed was his family.

The other man stalked off, running a hand through his hair and a older man walked over to her. "Dale," he put his hand out and Ace hesitantly shook it. "You can sleep in the RV tonight," he gave her the best smile he could and Ace just nodded, following after him when he signaled her to. Multiple pairs of eyes were on her and Ace was looking forward to being away from them, into the RV she was being led to.

Before she walked all the way in, Ace took a glimpse at the two blonde girls- one dead, who looked like sisters and she could only think about Frankie at the time..

"A few others will be sleeping in here, but there is a spot open on the floor and the bench that's open," Dale turned once inside and spoke kindly to her. She nodded and set her bag down on the bench he pointed to, looking around the RV quickly. It was warm and home-like, filled with appliances, dishes, and little nick-nacks.

Dale was about to start walking, but Ace's sharp in take of breath signaled she wanted to say something. "You haven't..." She bit her lip, "you haven't seen any buses or children around here have you?" Her voice was quiet, but still above a whisper. Socializing wasn't her specialty, even more so now that the world was ended.

"Not that I know of.. You have a child?" Dale looked at her with sympathetic eyes.

"Baby sister. She was with the -uh, foster care center down town, but no one was there and the buses were gone.." Ace had the habit of fiddling with her pockets when she talked.

"I'm sure she's out there somewhere. The buses possibly went out to Fort Benning, maybe even the CDC," Dale gave her a small smile and she just nodded, thinking about everything that he just said, like usual. Dale gave her a light pat on the shoulder then started to walk out, getting to the door before Ace spoke up again. "Thank you," she spit out, remembering her manners.

Dale once again smiled warmly at her before hoping out of the RV, leaving her to her lonesome.

Ace sat down on the bench that was next to a white table with a few dishes on it, letting her mind and body take in her surroundings. She scooted so her back was against the wall, legs on the bench, and bag on the floor. Her mind was going over every thing that happened today, down to looks she got or words that were said. Over analyzing everything until she started to wear herself out. But, even then there was still a lot for her to think about. Like; who are these people? They seem nice, too nice to have chained someone to a roof. And Merle... Where is he? And what's up with his interesting brother? How long should she stay here? How long was she welcomed here? Would Frankie really possibly be at the CDC? Fort Benning? Why was her back hurting so much?

On the last question she sighed and sat up so she could rub her hands into her back, trying to smooth out the pain. She did let her hands fall when she heard feet come up the steps and then the door to the RV open. A little girl and who Ace assumed was her mom walked in, along with T-dog, Glenn, and Dale following shortly behind.

The little girl who clung onto her mother as she walked by gave Ace a small smile, which she easily returned. She had always loved children and had a soft spot for them. Glenn and Dale gave her a nod and a small smile before going further into the RV for their sleeping spots, but T-dog came over to her to sit on the other bench across the table. "You from around here?" He asked, getting comfortable.

Ace gnawed on her cheek and nodded, only giving him a small glance before keeping her eyes down at her fidgeting hands. "You don't talk much do you?" T-dog chuckled to himself a little. Ace just nodded. "Yeah, I noticed that, but hey, no problems here," he held his hands up in the air and the scooted back. "You stayin here long?"

"Just for tonight," she mumbled and T-dog nodded.

"Looks like you're good with a weapon, we could use some more strong people after tonight.. You should think about staying for a little bit."

Ace looked up at him quickly. "Of course we'd have to make sure we can trust you first, but still.." Ace saw kindness on his face, and nodding slightly, even though she was planning on leaving tomorrow, if not first thing. She had to move on. "Feel free to kick me if I start to snore," T-dog said and then laid down on the bench, positioning himself in the most comfortable spot. Ace chuckled lightly and soon did the same, hoping her mind would be running so fast that it would knock her out.

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Nightmare.

That's normally how the nights go for Ace.

The cushions of the bench and warmth and safety of the RV provided her with a reasonably good sleep, much better than what she's gotten lately, but she still couldn't escape the horrors of her mind.

Sometimes the nightmares were about her old life, her sister, her failures as a Marine, and last night it was Merle... They always seem to be centered around her guilt.

Ace cursed her inner demons as she stepped out of the RV.
Since she was an early riser, it was still dark out, but light enough that she could see her surroundings. Ace debated if she wanted to leave right now, but decided she would at least go down to the quarry that she saw was near by. She loved to swim, and that would be the closest thing she would have for a bath. Plus, she wants to wait until at least Rick is up to thank him.

Ace silently sat up and slid off the bench, grabbing her bag and using her quietest footsteps to sneak out and not wake anyone up. When she got outside, the air was still full of the stench of dead biters, making her bite her tongue in disgust. She knew some one was on top of the RV taking watch, but when she walked by and no one said anything, she noticed that the angry man from last night was up there, and happened to be asleep. She scoffed, if they were dumb enough to fall asleep then she's not gona be dumb enough to help him.

Ace started to walk over to the quarry, positioning her gun in the back of her pants as she did so. When she got down there, she took a moment to look at how pretty it was. The air was now fresh and the light ripples of the waves were the only things that sounded out. There were large rocks and hills near by, but the quarry was mostly surrounded by trees. It was odd to see something so beautiful during the end of the world.

Ace sighed and set her bag down on the near by rock, then put her gun and knife next to it. She certainly didn't think any biters would be alive down in the water. Ace then stripped down to just her underwear, feeling the cold metal of her dog tags around her neck. She sighed, twirling it between her fingers, the guilt still prominent. A lot of guilt at that, not just for what happened back in Germany.

Hell, she even felt guilty for the biters she had to kill, knowing that they didn't deserve what the got and used to have lives. She knew in the back of her head that she wasn't supposed to feel guilt for that, but she had always been an expert at being guilty.

Her eyes then started to look down at her body, noticing the substantial amount of dirt and weight loss that has accumulated along with scraps, bruises, and scars. Maybe she looked as bad as she felt..

Ace let her mind snap out of her thoughts and become happy to be able to swim again. The lightest of smiles danced across her face and she fast-walked into the quarry, the cold water making her shiver with delight. And soon enough she was deep enough to dive under, the water cascading around her, feeling oddly safe for once as she swam deeper and deeper, not knowing she had company.

And that company was standing behind a tree, waiting for her to pop back up. He didn't know why he followed her, or why he pretended to be sleeping when she left the RV, but now, standing here, he was excited to see her dripping wet, unclothed. But, he grew confused when she hadn't reappeared from the water for a while, not knowing of the skill she picked up to hold her breath for a long time. He started to stalk forward, eyeing the water carefully and trying not to make any sticks crack under his feet.

When he got to the edge of the quarry, water nearly brushing against his feet, his eyes grew tired from trying to see any commotion under water where she had to be.. but there was none. Maybe she drowned.. He shrugged and turned around, starting to walk back, this time not caring about how loud he was. Until the click of a gun being cocked behind him echoed out, causing him to freeze.

Ace almost laughed at the irony of how only last night she had a gun cocked behind her, but this man wasn't fast or smart enough to turn around fast with his shot gun raised, having it dragging at his side right now. She hadn't yet learned his name, but knew he was hot tempered and seemed to have a lot of tension with other group members, which mostly means bad news. Especially if he was out here trying to creep on her, not knowing she was so much better at sneaking around. Hence how she's the one with the gun pointed to the back of his head.

He chuckled dryly and slowly turned around, playfully putting his hands in the air while taking a once over of her wet body, freezing momentarily at her odd, but intense eyes. "You're quiet.. Snuck up on me," The man said, trying to give her a threatening glance, but she didn't budge, he thought it unfair because her eyes were able to send sharp, threatening chills down his spine. They even made him hesitate for a moment until he started to eye the gun in her hands instead, rubbing a hand over his head with an amused look on his face. Ace was honestly surprised no one had said anything about them yet.. "You gona shoot me?.. I knew we shouldn't have let you in the camp, I mean look, the first chance ya get you're tryin' to kill someone," He knew he could switch this up, make a story out of it to get her gone. Ace knew this too, but stayed quiet. She wansn't planing on staying anyways and wasn't going to give this man the satisfaction. "Gona kill me yet? Kill my group? You know what?.. Maybe I should just get you gone now.."

"I'll be gone by tonight," she finally stated, cutting him off before he could make a move and then turning around and going back to the rock, agitated. If she had only been here a night and was already getting threats and tension started up, then she sure as hell wasn't going to stay. She hadn't been here long, but she could tell this group wasn't a sturdy one. They're broken. Only going to end up getting her killed.

Ace only had one shirt left so she buttoned it back on, it being her gray plaid one, having lost all her other ones or they got too disgusting. She had really planned on changing her underwear, but not when she still felt his presence behind her, so she just pulled out a pair of shorts, sliding them on. She had just gotten her shoes back on when a strong hand grasped her upper arm, spinning her around harshly. "Na, I think I want you gone now," he hissed. What's the difference between now and in a few hours?

He went to grab at her, trying to get his hand around her neck, waist, wrists, or even breast, but she was fast. Her knife had still been pocketed in the sheath on her pants, so she quickly squirmed out of his arms with a duck and yanked it out. He was taken by surprise when she managed to get them both turned around, so he now was leaning against the rock, her knife at his through. "How..?" He thought out loud, no one had ever gotten the upper hand on him before, and he made her out to just be another woman. Only having skills to do laundry and cook food. "You want me out now?" Ace asked, breathing deeply to stay calm. "Fine," she hissed. "I don't want to be with you and your broken group anyways, don't need to be killed today... But, you could have at least asked," this was the most words she had said since she got here, but she planned for them to be the last.

Ace yanked her knife away from his throat, him being shocked for long enough for her to also grab her gun and bag and start to walk away, this time in the direction that goes deeper into the forest. "HEY!" He called over to her, finally getting his head back on straight. He started stomping over to her, making Ace sigh so she could try and not get agitated. "What the hell was that?" He was angry now, not liking being made out to look like a fool, even if no one saw.

Ace didn't say anything, just eyed the man with sharp eyes. She didn't even know his name, but just by his demeanor and the things he said and way he spoke she could tell a lot about him. She was good at reading people, and she honestly felt bad for him. She would bet a whole can of beans that he used to be a nice guy before all this started. That he possibly lost a lot or got screwed over, most likely with Rick, the sheriff, since she had notice a lot of tension between them last night. "What you mean our groups broken?" He put his hands on his hips, trying to read what she meant out of her expression, but got nothing, so yet again got even more angry.

"T'hell's goin on?" A new, rough voice called out from behind Ace. And she recognized it immediately as the man she met last night named Daryl. His voice was more raspy and unique than the others, along with his personality. Also, he was Merle's brother. It was hard to forget that. The guilt wouldn't let her.

Ace watched out of her peripheral vision as Daryl came over, holding onto his crossbow tight and in yet another sleeveless shirt. This was the first time Ace was really able to see him, now that it was daylight. She tried not to look at him for too long, but his whole appearance was pulling her eyes over. "Shane?" Daryl said, his voice not happy and his eyes narrowing at the man. And Ace finally new his name. Shane.

"Ain't nothin goin on, man. She was just leavin," Shane shifted his weight onto another leg, still eyeing Ace oddly. Daryl seemed to sense that something was going on, not only because Shane was just an all around douche bag, but because he could see Ace gripping tight onto her knife and had a colder look in her eyes.

"I think ya just leavin," Daryl took a step forward towards Shane, copying his words and an angry scowl on his face. Ace watched as Daryl and Shane had a small stare down, it being obvious that Daryl just really wasn't a fan of Shane. It wasn't until Shane scoffed, switching the hand he held onto his gun with and then turned away, angrily amused and finding the situation not worth it.

Once he left Daryl's sight, Ace watched as Daryl started fixing something on his belt. She was confused what he was doing until she leaned over and saw multiple squirrels on a string and a few tucked under his belt. When Daryl looked up she quickly pretended like she was looking at her feet the whole time, feeling his eyes on her and that same angry scowl still in place. "Th-" she started to mumble her thanks for getting Shane away, but Daryl cut her off. "Come on, don't got all day," he snapped, starting to head back, but Ace stayed in her place. She was planning on leaving, she didn't need to stay here. Especially now that she had made bad terms with Shane and found this group to be a threatening mess.

Daryl noticed she wasn't coming and stopped turning around to face her. "Ya comin or what?" He growled. Ace didn't like the sound of his voice angry, but she guessed that he was like that a lot. She hadn't heard him be nice once yet, even if she has only been here for a night. Ace yet again didn't respond, just let her eyes focus on her hand that was flexing and unflexing around her knife.

Daryl wanted to know what the hell she was doing or what was going on in her head, but it only made him more angrier knowing he couldn't. "Ya comin or what?" He repeated, taking a few steps towards her, that same agitated voice. "Fine. Suit yaself, stupid bitch. Next time ya can take care of ya own ass when some horny douche bag comes by ya," his voice was harsh and he was angrily swinging his crossbow by his side. "Stupid bitch," he mumbled again in more of a hiss at her, but this time Ace's head snapped up, making Daryl take a hesitant step back. He hadn't actually seen her eyes yet and they even made chills go down his spine, which was odd. They seemed to be clouded with anger, which gave Daryl satisfaction, but that's not the main thing he noticed. He had never seen eyes like hers before; two different colors. Two different pale, intimidating, but yet amazing colors.

Ace was now very agitated, more so at her self. She had never let someone's hurtful comments or just asshole-ness get to her, but for some reason his just did. His whole angry demeanor and the way he talked to her like she was an insect made her feel more hurt and pissed inside then she meant to happen. She did nothing to get him to be an asshole out of nowhere to her, she even helped his group and his brother! Even if he didn't know she helped his brother, he doesn't need to just be so rude. And it was even worse that Daryl enjoyed how she got angry. But, now that she had him hesitating, her eyes like her own weapon, she wasn't going to give him another lick of satisfaction. Which, also caused her to be more angry at herself. She wasn't planning on staying and didn't even want to, but all because of him she had to make herself go back. If he didn't want her to come back, then she would go back.

She made sure she had everything she brought down here and started to storm past Daryl, not breaking her angry eye contact until she couldn't crane her neck back anymore.

Well, here we go...