Things we lost | c.g fanfic [heavily editing bc I suck]

Chapter 21

DARYLS POV

Music is screeching, drinks are being passed around. For once, I'm actually glad I'm still living.
"Rick, have you seen Zoe and Carl?" I ask Rick. He nods, smiling.
"Yeah, Carl wanted to give Zoe her gift in private." He must see the look on my face because he adds on at the end: "Oh Christ! Not that! It's a necklace, he has one too. He wanted it to be more...sentimental in private I guess. They're upstairs." He laughs as I relax.
"Okay." I say, relieved. "I'll leave em' be then." I grab a drink off the table and so does Rick.
"To-" he starts, but he's cut off as somebody scream from outside. I barely have time to grab my crossbow and run outside when I see him, firing randomly, inches away from knocking down our fences with a tank.
The Governor.

CARLS POV

"I'll get Judith and keep her with me, you go find out what's going on!" Zoe shouts as the gun shots start. I place my arm on hers and look sternly into her eyes.
"I love you."
"I love you too." She pushes my arm away carefully "Go. Be safe." She says as she pulls my crying sister our of her cradle and hold her in her arms.

I grab my gun and silencer and run down the stairs, almost instantly he comes into my view through the doorway. The governor and all his lackeys. New people have joined him too. He stops shooting as he sees my dad and I quickly run to Daryl.
"Don't shoot yet." He hisses through his teeth as I slide next to him. I nod, my eyes focused on the Governor. Walkers are creeping up behind him, but he doesn't care. I aim my gun, but don't fire.
"Ah, Rick." The governor says as my dad walks forward. "I say we have things to discuss, don't you?"
"Governor." Dad nods. "Why are you here?"
"You took someone we weren't finished with. We'll let you keep her, but the prison? It's ours." He says. "I say you give it over quietly and no guns need to be fired. No blood needs to be spilt. What do you say?" An eerie silence fills the fields, aside from the ongoing noise of the walkers; they sound like nothing more then radio static. Dad shakes his face, placing both hands in the air as if to surrender.
"I'm not leading anyone anymore. We work in a council. I can't decide anything!" Dad declares calmly. A sick smile spreads across the Governors face.

"Is Hershel in that council?" He says. "Is Michonne?" He beckons one of his men to do something and moments later he brings the spoken people out and forces them to their knees. He hops down from the top of the machine with ease, unsheathing Michonne's katana from his belt and holding it menacingly at Hershel's head. There's a gun at Michonne's. Held by none other then Caden. I hear Daryl hiss under his breath and I jump up.
"No!" I whisper. No matter how this turns out, I'll make sure it ends with Caden becoming a meal.
"Him," I hiss, pointing to Caden. "He's mine." Daryl stares at me, glaring, anger in its most prominent form; but he's not angry at me.
"Later, boy. Sit your ass down and wait this out with me."

"We can work something out!" Dad shouts quickly. "Your people can have their own cell block. We won't have to see eachother. We can all...live together peacefully. Nobody needs to get hurt." Not a single word is spoken and I let pit a gasp of air I didn't know I was holding. The Governor mulls this over and looks like he's about to except the offer. I breath a slight sigh of relief but quickly take it back.
"Liar."
I watch in awe as the blade collides with Hershel's neck.
"No!" Daryl yells. My hands cover my mouth, shocked and in denial. Maggie and Beth scream as Crimson liquid slowly stains the shirt of the man we all loved. He hits the ground, but attempts to crawl away. Thinking maybe there's hope for him.

And then all hell breaks loose.

"No!" Dad screams and bullets at fired. I can still hear Beth and Maggie's screams from behind me and I start firing.
"Hershel!" Zoe gasps. My head zips to the side.
"Zoe?" shout over the havoc. When did she get here? "Where's Ju-" she shakes her head, her knees roughly hitting the floor and scraping through her stone washed and bloodied jeans. Averting her gaze down, she's struggling to pull her pistol from her pocket as she replies.
"Tyreese took her and the other kids to the bus. You know, where they were told to go if things ever got bad." She tells me, aiming into the mess. I nod. All I can do is watch robotically as bullet after bullet hit people. I can't benign myself to grips with what I just witnessed.

Zoe, Daryl and I shoot at anyone and anything we think looks like a threat. Or bullet after the other, one life after the other as if it's nothing. We're robots, aiming to kill.
"Caden!" She yells, throwing herself to the floor as a bullet whizzes past her head. Recovering, she shoots at the person who shot it, hitting them instantly. "Of course he's here! Almost killing me didn't give him a big enough kick?"
"I'm going to kill him, Zoe. I swear-walker!" Her head instantly turns and she grunts as the walker grabs her hair. She kicks, foot colliding with its leg and its knees buckle. Forcefully, her boot presses on its spine; keeping it down. It takes her a second to shoot it down before she's back next to me.

ZOE'S POV

We each line up our weapons and shoot at the small army the Governor has acquired. Never missing, never feeling the pang of regret or horror that we should be. He comes into my view again, Caden. I should do it. I can't let that be on Carl, although I know he wants too. He says it's because he wants to reap him what he sew, but I know it's also because he doesn't want me to have to think about that. Have it on my conscience. Carl's still protecting me.

I watch again as the once evil boy with the pretty blue eyes lifts his gun. The dark scowl ruins it, ruins how perfectly fine and innocent he could be.
"Let me." I say. He scowls darker, not looking at me. I know what he's trying to do but I need to stop him before he goes to far.
"No."
"Carl don't." I yell. "Stop protecting me from him! Let me." A pleading tone on my voice causes him to lower his gun, staring at me incessantly.

Something similar to stage fright wells in the pit of my stomach. The silver barrel of my gun trains on Caden's neck through the rusted chain link. After what he's done to me, I'm not going to give him the easy way out.

I cry out quickly, a mix of fear and some sort of battle cry. His head turns in a second and he opens his mouth to scream.
And I shoot.