Before I Fade Away~ Daryl Dixon Fanfiction

Chapter 33~ Lost and insecure

 {Daryl's P.O.V}

        I can feel my world crashing down on me, and there's nothing I can do to stop it. Have you ever been so scared you forget to breathe? Yeah, that's me at this very moment. I love her more than anything, she keeps me from falling apart and I just can't lose her. Not now. 

"Let her go... Please" I mutter under my breath, while pointing my weapon through the fence links.

       Carl looks at me and says something about taking a shot, which I advise against. I want this to end as peacefully as possible. As much as I want to stay and try to get her back, Rick will just have to handle things. I have others that need to be protected, and I vow to get them out of here. Especially Athena. 

"Beth, psst." I say to the blonde. She turns around when I nudge her back with a gun.

"Go find Athena, get 'er and the other kids to the bus." I mumble. She nods and scurries off.

       I provide a weapon for those of us standing at the fence in case a war goes down. Inside my chest, my heart paces erratically and a lump forms up in my throat. The gun handle slips slightly from the sweat emitting from my palms. I look up, the white, fluffy, marshmallow-like clouds curtain the cobalt blue sky. This might be the last peaceful moment I get; So, sucking in a deep, shaky breath, I raise my gun once more and force the fear out.

"Liar" 

       Time stands still for seemingly eternity, but in reality it only took a few meager seconds for the Governor to slice Hershel's neck. The screams and cries are drowned out around me, as my main focus is on her. She looks so scared, and horrified all at once. 

"NO!!!!" Rick screams. Again I have to force the fear away, it's time for some assholes to die.

         Amidst the gunfire and chaos, I lose sight of Sylvie and the bastard holding her. I feel panic arise in my chest, but I refuse to let it take over. If she's out there, she'll try to escape and she'd find someone. Anyone.

       The fences that gave us protection for so long finally plummet to the ground as a large tank charges through. The Governor's army follows behind it, firing at us. I have to fall back and take cover. Somehow, I'll have to get the upper hand if I'm going to get out of here alive. And one thing is for certain, we can't stay at this prison any longer.

       I find myself ducked behind a filing cabinet, taking cover. Two men are approaching me and firing their guns. Behind me comes a dreaded growl, oh great. Just as it grabs onto my shoulders, I whip around and fight it to the death. Using it as a shield, I make my way across the courtyard.

"Daryl!" I hear a scared little voice yell to me. 

      I squint my eyes to see through the smoke, and there stands Athena, just inches away from the tank. I run over to her, all the while taking out a grenade and biting off the clip. I snatch her up and hurry away before the blast can get us.

"Stay behind me, don't ye' dare make a sound. Got it?" I hiss at her. She nods nervously. 

        I make my way back to the tank, where the operator of the military machine has climbed out and looks at his prized possession in despair. 

He makes an 'Oh shit' face as soon as he sees me. He knows this is the end, but he still tries to reason with me.

"Shield your eyes Thena'." I command the little girl. When I see her turned around with her hands over her eyes, I point my crossbow at his chest and pull the trigger. 

"Daryl! I can't find the kids!" Beth worries, running up to me. 

      I take one somber look at our home in ruins, I hate to leave, but we have no choice.

"We gotta go Beth... We gotta go." I sigh, jerking my head to signal her to follow. 

     I pick up Athena and we run away, not looking behind us. 

"Where's mommy?" Athena asks when we reach the fence.

"I don't know Thena'... We'll find her later. We gotta' get somewhere safe. Ye' hear?" I tell her. 

       For once she doesn't listen to me, she isn't calmed down by me. She starts bawling at the top of her lungs. She screams for mommy, and kicks and fights in my arms.

"MOMMY!!!" She lets out another howl, and this time it alerts walkers nearby. They turn around and limp towards us. 

       I wrap my arms around her and squeeze her tight, her face is pressed against my chest so it muffles her crying a little bit. This makes it somewhat easier to get away, rather than having an entire horde after us. 

     Once a ways in the woods, we stop for a rest. I set Athena down and let her cry. She just sits on the ground and hugs her knees. The poor child is covered with dirt from head to toe, and walker blood from my shirt got onto hers so she looks rough. The clothes she wore that were once bright and new, are now tattered and stained with who knows what. This apocalypse has taken its tole on the little girl who has become a daughter to me. 

"I miss yer' mom too, and I'm gonna get er' back if it's the last thing I do." I declare, grabbing her hand and staring straight into her tear stained, pastel blue eyes.

A/N- So my updates for this story are probably gonna be spread out every few weeks. I'm just too busy to be able to squeeze them in more than once a week. I hope you like it! Oh and thanks sooo much for all the votes, reads, and comments! In just a month, this story has gone from 10k reads to 18k!!!! y'all are amazing.