97 Chapter 97

- Xenon -

As much as I didn't want to interrupt the brother's emotional meeting, we had better things to do than hear them catch up, and it's been a long day.

"Merle, drop your gun and come out. Nothing's gonna happen to you, you have my word." I informed him calmly, though the look he was giving me was getting on my nerves.

"You, giving me your word? What's your word worth, boy?" He looked at me condescendingly, and I was a bit surprised I didn't feel the need to insult him back. I just stared at him with the same deadpan expression as nobody bothered answering him.

"Merle, stop being a dumbass and get your ugly ass out here!" Daryl snarled at him. Merle looked at Daryl in confusion, but he shrugged and did as told. He adopted a carefree attitude, not one a prisoner ought to have, and came out like he owned the place, looking around his, ignoring the various guns pointed at his face and 'Tsk'ing away. His blatant disrespect didn't go unnoticed, as the others who never met him before were ready to tear him a new one.

It was at that moment the other cars came back, led by Shane who appeared to be shocked at what his eyes were seeing. 'None' of us thought we'd meet Daryl's brother, definitely not under such circumstances.

"Merle, you're not dead yet?" Shane said bluntly, making Daryl smirk.

"It's gonna take a lot more than a chopped hand to kill me, I'll tell you that." Merle shook his head in disappointment. "Where's that Sheriff at? He and I got a beef to settle if you know what I mean." He pointed to his hand.

"Really?" I raised an eyebrow at his words. "You realize you were shooting bullets at us a few minutes back?"

"Yeah yeah, shit happens." Merle waved his hands dismissively, making a vein nearly pop in my temple.

"You want to tell us why did your people attack us?" I asked him, changing the subject. I know a lot of them wanted to shoot him where he stood, but Daryl and I are what's preventing them from going through with it.

"I ain't tell you shit, kid. What's with all your fucking questions? You were shooting at us, we shot back." He snapped, waving his knife arm wildly around. Silence ensued his words, as none expected him to be dumb enough to say that, least of all to my fucking face. It seems as if he doesn't truly understand the position he's in…

I walked up to him with the same calm expression I always wore, though it wasn't very visible through the mask. I stood to the same height as him, 1m85, as I have done some growing in the recent months.

"I've always thought you were a dumbass, and you keep proving me right." I looked at him up and down. "You seem too stupid to grasp the situation you're in, so let me make it crystal clear to you. We have a take no prisoners policy. That means everyone you see around you is more than eager to waste you." I stopped for a bit to catch my breath, and also to let the words sink in.

"The only thing standing between your and death is me, and I ain't doing it out of the goodness of my heart. Your brother has been an instrumental asset to the group, and I am inclined to do him this favor in exchange for everything he's done for us. But make no mistake, that's as far as my goodwill goes. I am your judge, jury, and executioner. And right now, you're getting on my nerves. So you better start talking, or I'll shoot you myself. Do you understand?" He seemed visibly shaken by my speech, but I'm going to attribute the credits to my [Domineering Presence], as it can have that effect, especially on a fragile target. And as much as Merle wants to hide it, I know how fearful he is of dying. And he knows I truly hold the power I am advertising.

"Let's start over then, shall we?" I said condescendingly. "Why did your people attack us?"

"Answer the damn question, Merle!" Daryl slapped his back to get his mind back online.

"'Cuz you had hardware we wanted with you." He finally answered.

"Good." I nodded in satisfaction. "So your group does not draw the line at stealing?"

"Nah." He shook his head, trying to go back to his carefree attitude, but finding it difficult to do so as he had already been destabilized. "We could care less about that."

"That's what I thought." I nodded again, before narrowing my eyes. "I wonder… where do they draw the line?" I subtly used my presence skill again, concentrating it on him. "Is it killing? Raping?" He gave no answers for a while. "I see. We'll talk about this later then. Daryl, Shane, keep your eyes on him. The rest, we start loading the hardware onto the trucks. There is a big horde nearby, and the noise should've attracted them by now. We need to get this done quickly."

- Dale -

It was his greatest regret that he had to stab the group in the back by going against their unanimous decision, but he was glad he did so. The people of Woodbury were very friendly, displaying an enormous amount of kindness despite the hellish state of this world. They didn't let the negativity get to them, as they've let their children lead normal lives, while the men sheltered them from harm. They had a school everybody was required to go to, with real teachers, contrary to the prison. And most importantly, they had a real doctor on board, with equipment and everything.

"You are good to go." The doctor told him with a smile, having done a few tests on him, a procedure every arrival at Woodbury passes through at least once, something he could understand. They couldn't afford to deal with an epidemic of all things, brought by a carrier from outside of their walls.

He was introduced to the governor, a very decent man, who seemed set to create a better environment for his people, just like Xenon in that sense. Everyone held him in great esteem, which was understandable as he was the one who took the lead to create their community as it was right now. But if he was being completely objective, the previous group was ten times more prepared to face the world than this one.

Although they had a doctor and teachers, they still had no plans for the future when it concerns food. They didn't have any way to deal with big hordes of walkers, contrary to Xenon's group, who had anti-walker masks, a strategy to survive amidst thousands of walkers, and even ways to lead them. And their ammunition was very limited compared to the arrows they were manufacturing back at the prison.

But that's where the issue lies. If Xenon accepted that they could bring the two groups together, and establish an alliance of some sorts, they could join their strength and resources to complete each other, to give each other better lives, better protection from the walkers, a better future for their children. And as long as Xenon refused to deal with other groups, to give them a chance to prove to him that they were not the people he thinks they are, the group was doomed to be nothing more than frogs at the bottom of a well, unable to see but a tiny fraction of a sky seen by many others in different forms.

He intends to correct that. He intends to spend some time with these people, a week at least, judge them himself to testify in their favor when he introduces them to the others. He knows that previous experiences influenced heavily Xenon's ability to accept others, and all he needed was one example to eliminate all prejudice and fear he held within his heart.