A/N: This is my first Daryl centric story, I have studied all I could about the character but feel free to PM or leave it in a review if you see anything that I'm doing wrong. The first chapter is just the intro and warning many character deaths. Rated M for graphic violence, hints of child abuse, and language. Story will contain dark material, hints of comfort but whumpage on both sides. Spitfire47

Disclaimer: I don't own The Walking Dead.

Milton looked through the slits of the grate. He took off his glasses trying to block out the horror but even with his blurred vision he saw hell. He felt his eyes water but Milton took in a shaky breath forcing himself to calm down. Milton put his glasses on wishing that Andrea would see this, wishing that she was here right now to see what sort of monster the Governor had turned out to be. He back away from the horror and pressed his back against the beam. His usual analytic mind was on hyper-drive trying to figure out why the man who brought nearly a hundred people together in a wreaked world, do something as hideous and sadistic as this.

The Governor sat comfortably in a wooden arm chair. His back resting and his bloodied hands limp, his clothes clung to him soaked to the grain with blood even splattered his face a little. The Governor's mind was calm in all matters, he thought about if he did anything right, did he mess anything up? Did he give away too much? His eye patch was off exposing the gouge still open on his right eye while his left eye fixated on what was before him.

Cuffed to a dentist's chair was what was left of Michonne, no one would be able to tell it was her now. Even though the damage to her was great, the Governor knew that she was still alive. Actually he wanted her to still be alive for the last part. The last part was the grand finale, the part he was giddy to perform.

In a pan at his feet was an eye, it was lying in a pool of blood and pee that covered the steel, bits of skin, some teeth and nails floated bobbing up and down. The instruments laid on the tray, each coated thick with blood and other solid matter.

With his final action in mind, the Governor finally rose from his seat and picked up the pan. He walked over to the beaten woman. Without a word he dumped the contents over her broken body, Michonne tense but every part of her body screamed – no – shrieked in pain. Her dislocated joints rubbed against her bruised muscles, her broken fingers shook from the shock and her mind cried for it to end. Michonne could feel the blood drip down her back like sweat, the piss burning into the large gouges and tears in her body, her nails and skin fell only to stop on different parts, and her eye falling to the ground and the pupil staring up at her as if begging for one thing that the Governor would never give; mercy.

"Despite my men screwing up, it had turned out to have its perks hasn't it?" the Governor spoke suddenly.

The once powerful woman tried to block out the Governor but she failed. She tried to speak but even that left her empty. She was done and she knew it. The Governor picked up a box then came back around to his chair and sat down.

"I'm going to start with that blonde twit Andrea," the Governor said slowly making sure that Michonne heard every word. "Then I'm going to kill the others, show Rick you – or what's left of you in order to see what he had done."

Michonne tried to move but her body failed her, her spirit was broken and what was left of her hope dwindled as she heard a gunshot echo from outside.

The Governor gave a dramatic sigh. "Wonder who tried to play hero this time."

Oh God… Michonne thought.

"Oh right, your parting gift."

The Governor got up from his seat and took two steps to Michonne, he opened the box and took out a water soaked Walker head by what was left of its hair. Michonne's remaining eye looked at it with horror wondering if that was the Walker head he tried to kill her with in the first place.

"Of course all the heads were destroyed during our fight," the Governor said as if reading her mind, "so we had to go back out, but since we had such a wide selection it was easy."

Her eye darkened and narrowed as much as possible but the bruises on her face made it difficult. Without a word the Governor pushed the Walker head literally in Michonne's face.

Its jaw opened and closed perfectly, it's teeth looked like they were sharpened for this specific reason. It took a large chunk out of Michonne's face tearing through her cheek and ear. Michonne gave a hoarse cry of pain her body gave a paroxysmal spasm. The Governor pulled the head back, the last sinew strands broke off and hung from the Walker's mouth.

The Governor looked at Michonne, she had stopped moving and he wouldn't be surprised if she was dead. But just to be sure, he pressed two fingers against her jugular – nothing. The Governor straightened waiting for the satisfied feeling to overwhelm him – nothing. He frowned, he looked at the broken woman in the chair before him hoping that the satisfaction will come but it didn't. The Governor scowled, what was he doing wrong? Another gunshot rang in the air and the Governor was starting to get peeved. He gave one final look at Michonne's destroyed body and then left.

XXXXXX

Outside Martinez shot again but missed as the figure darted through the trees disappearing into the dark. He cursed a loud for all to hear and then turned aiming his gun straight at Rick.

"You son of a bitch what did you tell him?" the enforcer screamed.

Rick remained silent holding his ground. He looked over to see the Governor coming forward and he pushed his way through the barrier.

"Dad!" Carl cried, Carol comforted the young child, tears continued to trail down her cheeks.

"You sick son of a-."

BANG!

Rick was blown off his feet, the shot burst out the back of his head spraying the ground with grey matter and blood. The Governor re-holstered his gun and stepped over his former rival. He looked at the group and then at the body lying a few feet away. He walked up to it and turned the body over; Glenn. The bullet had passed through his neck the Governor took out his gun again and fired a shot into the young man's skull. Ignoring the screams and curses coming from Maggie who was being held back by her father, the Governor looked back at his enforcers, he stared down Noah.

"You."

The young man flinched. "Uh…yes s-sir?"

"How many?"

Noah swallowed. "M-many sir?"

"Escaped, how many escaped?"

Noah's fingers drummed against his shotgun. "Two sir."

"The Dixon brothers?"

"Yes sir."

The Governor was slightly surprised that the two managed to escape under such fire power, but perhaps the group had an escape plan all along in case things went south. He eyed the group again and found what he was looking for. He walked up and grabbed the back of Carl's shirt.

"No please!" Carol begged, she held firmly to Carl's wrist whom in turn held on. Seeing what was happening other enforcers jump in to help their leader. An enforcer drew back his gun and cracked it against Carol's skull knocking her out. Others jumped up but twenty guns were on the remaining two; Hershel and Maggie.

"Is that it?" the Governor asked slightly amused, he still had Carl by the back of shirt, "that's all that the great Rick could muster up?"

Both remained silent, the Governor raised his gun and shot Hershel in the other leg. Maggie screamed in horror as her father fell to the ground.

"Where are the Dixon brothers headed off to?" the Governor asked.

"You can go to hell," Maggie spat angrily protecting her father.

The Governor chuckled. "Might I remind you what happened the last time you mentioned hell."

Maggie's eyes widened. The Governor raised his gun for the killing shot but Carl grabbed the gun and pulled the trigger hitting an enforcer on the wall.

"Go!" Carl screamed, "Run!"

Maggie looked down at her father, then back at Carl who was losing badly to the Governor.

"I…I ca-can…can't…."

"Maggie," he father spoke in a gentle tone despite the gruesome environment. Carl lost grip and the Governor slapped him on the side of the face. The leader shoved the boy in Noah's direction who at first seemed a little weary but with a defeated sigh grabbed the boy's arms and pinned them behind his back.

"Where are the Dixon brothers going?"

Maggie kept her eyes closed, her forehead touching her father's silent tears trailed down her face and her body suddenly jerked then a sudden chill rushed through her. Her muscles felt oddly heavy like they didn't belong in her body and her mind started to shut down.

The Governor took another shot this time shooting through Maggie's brain and then Hershel's. He turned back to the youngest survivor and walked up to the traumatized child.

"Where are they going?" the Governor asked quietly.

Carl didn't speak, tears trailed continuously down his face as he looked past the Governor to the bodies of his friends and family. The Governor grabbed him by the nap of the neck and steered him towards his apartment.

"Clean up the bodies," the Governor commanded, "I want this place cleaned up by morning."

Martinez looked at the unconscious Carol. "What about her? Do we kill her?"

The Governor pondered. "Send her to Milton.

Martinez nodded and started to give orders.

XXXXXX

The Dixon brothers rushed through the bushes, Merle had his shotgun and hunting knife taped to his brace while Daryl had his crossbow and a rifle. They continued non-stop, they had a single flashlight on them which they kept to the ground so it wouldn't attract any unwanted attention.

"What about the prison?" Daryl asked his older brother.

"Don't worry baby brother," Merle replied.

Daryl didn't get it but he didn't question. Instead he kept focused.

They came to the prison in under an hour killing Walkers on either side. Both out of breath but still alive and filled with adrenaline, they continued through the field continuing to take out Walkers.

"Reminds me of them good ol' days!" Merle shouted.

Daryl snorted as he got to the locked inner gate. "Yeah well yer can remind me when you figure a way to get inside."

Merle tossed the set of keys to his brother who caught them with a shocked expression.

"Ya want me to start from the very beginning?" Merle asked giving a half-hearted laugh. He covered Daryl as he opened the door.

"Come on let's go!" Merle didn't need any encouragement as he slipped through and quickly stabbed a Walker just before Daryl closed and locked the gate shut.

XXXXXX

The Governor led Carl to his apartment inside he unlocked the secret room and then shoved the boy inside. Once inside Carl made a desperate attempt to escape but the Governor grabbed a handful of the boy's hair and tossed him aside like a rag doll.

"Stupid," the Governor hissed, "she had double the brains you did boy!"

Carl didn't understand, the Governor grabbed him by the front of the shirt and dragged the boy to the cage at the very back. It smelled of death, rotting skin and stale blood. At the end of the wall was a leash and collar. Before Carl had time to react the Governor grabbed his wrists in one hand and quickly did up the collar with the other.

"Let me go!" the boy screamed, "let me go!"

The Governor looked down at Carl and thought, this will take a little while. But he was determined even though Carl was a boy and with his hardened personality, it would work all the Governor had to do was find a way to strip that away. He zip-tied Carl's wrists together then threw the bag over his head. Without a single word the Governor left, closing the cage door and locking it tight.

XXXXXX

Merle and Daryl ran into Cell Block both completely out of breath. They heard footsteps and immediately went alert, they held their readied weapons in front of them but clicked the safety when Beth stepped into view with Judith in one hand and a gun in the other. Seeing the condition the brothers were in, Beth put down the gun and walked over.

"What happened?" Beth demanded, seeing the blood on Merle and Daryl's clothes made her start to panic, "where are the others? Are they stuck? Why are you covered in blood?"

"Whoa," Merle interrupted, "hold yer horses their Girly."

Beth looked around, her eyes wide and sad. "Where is dad?"

No one spoke, the silence was loud enough. And for the first time in Beth's arms, Judith started to cry.