Chapter 47: Daryl's Return - Part 1
POV: Glenn
The radio crackles at 1847 hours, Daryl's voice cutting through static with words Glenn's been hoping to hear for four days instead of two.
"Haven, this is Dixon. Ten minutes out. Got news."
"Four days. He was supposed to be back in two. Either the prison's further than we thought, or something delayed him, or he found something worth the extra risk."
Glenn keys the mic with hands that tremble slightly from relief rather than fear. "Copy, Dixon. Leadership's waiting. Welcome back."
Four days of watching that deadline blow past, Rick's jaw getting tighter each hour, Scott running probability calculations that grew grimmer by the day. Now Daryl's voice promises answers to questions that've been eating at them since he disappeared into Georgia's wilderness.
POV: Scott
Scott's on the wall when Daryl's motorcycle rumbles through the gates, the rider looking like he's been dragged behind the bike rather than sitting on it. Exhaustion hangs off him like wet clothing, but his eyes carry excitement that cuts through fatigue.
[DARYL DIXON: RETURNED]
[MISSION STATUS: SUCCESSFUL]
[INTELLIGENCE GATHERED: HIGH VALUE]
[PHYSICAL CONDITION: EXHAUSTED BUT FUNCTIONAL]
"Four days. He found something worth staying to observe, worth the risk of us thinking he was dead. That's either very good or very bad."
Rick reaches Daryl first, pulling him into embrace that's half greeting and half checking for injuries. "You're late."
"Prison's real," Daryl says without preamble, his words tumbling out rapid-fire like he's afraid of forgetting details. "Big. Intact. Occupied."
POV: Rick
Rick feels his chest tighten—not with fear, but with hope that's almost as dangerous. A prison. Real walls, real security, real infrastructure that could change everything about their strategic position.
"Occupied. That's the word that matters. Not 'empty,' not 'overrun,' but occupied. Means survivors, means potential allies or potential enemies, means complications we'll have to navigate."
"How many?" Rick asks, already thinking about force ratios and alliance mathematics.
"Twenty-three. Give or take."
POV: Andrea
Andrea arrives as Daryl's being ushered toward the meeting room, catching Scott's expression that mixes calculation with concern. Her husband's already three steps ahead, probability matrices running behind his eyes.
"Twenty-three people isn't enough to hold a prison against serious assault. They're vulnerable, desperate, exactly the kind of group that'll either embrace alliance or fight it out of paranoia."
"Did they see you?" Andrea asks, falling into step beside them.
Daryl shakes his head. "Stayed hidden. Watched for two days, mapped the perimeter, counted population. They're struggling—walkers getting through weak spots in the fence, supplies running low, defenses barely holding."
POV: Hershel
Hershel settles into his seat in what's become their war room, the farmhouse kitchen table transformed into command center through accumulated maps and documents. Daryl spreads hand-drawn schematics across the surface, his exhaustion forgotten in the urgency of his report.
"Twenty-three souls fighting to survive in a fortress they can't properly defend. We could help them. Question is whether helping them helps us, or just spreads our resources thinner when we can barely manage current commitments."
"The facility's massive," Daryl begins, his finger tracing perimeter lines. "Double fencing, guard towers every hundred yards, multiple cell blocks, central yard that's been converted to farmland. Infrastructure's sound—they got running water from a well, power from generators, medical facilities that're better than what we got here."
Scott leans forward, his attention locked on details that'll feed his System's analysis. "Leadership structure?"
POV: Daryl
Daryl pulls out more notes—observations from two days of watching survivors work, fight, and interact through his scope from concealed positions in the treeline.
"Guy named Thomas running things. Military bearing, organized mind, but he's carrying weight that's crushing him. Seen that look before—leader who knows his people are dying slowly and can't figure out how to stop it."
"Thomas Richards. Heard them call him that. Maybe fifty, acts like he's got military background. Runs things tight—patrol schedules, rationing, defensive drills. But they're losing ground. Watched a walker breach take them four hours to contain, and they lost someone in the process."
Carol enters with coffee, her presence still carrying yesterday's operational aftermath. She sets cups down with care that borders on ritualistic, then settles into listening.
POV: Scott
Scott's System processes Daryl's intelligence against knowledge from the show, mapping discrepancies and similarities that'll inform their approach.
[WEST GEORGIA CORRECTIONAL FACILITY]
[POPULATION: 23 SURVIVORS]
[LEADERSHIP: THOMAS RICHARDS (UNKNOWN TO CANON)]
[DEFENSIVE STATUS: DEGRADING]
[STRATEGIC VALUE: EXTREME]
[ALLIANCE PROBABILITY: 68%]
"Not the show's prison survivors. Different timeline, different people, different circumstances. Can't rely on canon knowledge here—have to assess based on actual intelligence rather than TV show memory."
"The signal?" Scott asks. "Why were they broadcasting?"
"Desperation," Daryl replies bluntly. "They can't handle walker hordes alone, were hoping to attract help. Stopped broadcasting three days ago—probably gave up hope anyone was listening."
POV: Rick
Rick studies the schematics, seeing not just a facility but possibilities that extend far beyond Haven's current limitations. A prison could shelter their entire coalition if Saviors forced evacuation. Could serve as fallback position, manufacturing center, agricultural hub.
"This changes everything. If we can secure alliance, we're not just scattered settlements hoping to avoid Negan's attention—we're a legitimate regional power with infrastructure to match ambition."
"We have to make contact," Rick states, his tone brooking no argument. "These people are dying, and we have resources to help. More than that—they have facility we need for long-term survival."
"Or we're opening ourselves to new enemies," Hershel counters gently. "We don't know these people, don't know if they're trustworthy, don't know if saving them brings problems that outweigh benefits."
POV: Andrea
Andrea watches the debate unfold, recognizing familiar pattern—Rick's moral imperative against Hershel's pragmatic caution, with Scott somewhere in between calculating optimal approach.
"Rick sees people who need help. Hershel sees resource drain we can't afford. Scott sees strategic asset with acquisition costs that need careful management. All three are right, which means someone has to decide which 'right' matters most."
"What about Saviors?" Andrea asks, cutting through the philosophical debate with tactical reality. "Does Thomas's group know about Negan?"
Daryl shakes his head. "Isolated. Haven't encountered them yet. Means if we make contact, we're bringing Savior problems to people who don't know they exist."
POV: Scott
Scott weighs options with System assistance, calculating probability trees that branch into dozens of potential futures depending on choices made in the next minutes.
"Ignore them: morally questionable, strategically short-sighted, eliminates major asset. Absorb them forcibly: ethically wrong, logistically complicated, pisses off Thomas. Ally diplomatically: risky but potentially transformative if executed properly."
"Middle path," Scott proposes, his words cutting through escalating debate. "We make first contact. Offer coalition membership—same terms as our other settlements. Mutual support, shared intelligence, coordinated defense, but they maintain autonomy under Thomas's leadership. If they accept, we integrate them carefully. If they refuse, we back off and they remain independent."
The room falls silent as everyone processes the compromise. It satisfies neither Rick's urgency nor Hershel's caution completely, which paradoxically makes it acceptable to both.
POV: Carol
Carol refills coffee while listening to consensus form, her mind already working through logistical implications of expanding coalition by another twenty-three souls.
"More mouths to feed until their farm produces surplus. More fighters who need training in our coordination protocols. More personalities who might clash with existing leadership. But also more hands for work, more eyes for security, more strength when Negan finally pushes too hard."
"Who goes?" Carol asks practically. "You'll need delegation that represents authority without looking like invasion."
POV: Rick
Rick volunteers immediately. "I'll lead. This is diplomatic first contact—needs visible leadership."
"I'm going," Scott adds. "System tactical assessment" his mind supplies, but aloud he says, "Strategic evaluation. Need to assess compatibility and integration costs."
Andrea's next. "Character judgment. Someone has to read Thomas and determine if he's trustworthy."
Daryl finishes without asking. "Guide. Can't find the place without me."
POV: Glenn
Glenn provides radio equipment while the delegation prepares, modified transceivers that'll maintain contact even at twenty miles if atmospheric conditions cooperate.
"Four people going into unknown situation with strangers who might be hostile. Smart? Probably not. Necessary? Absolutely. This is how civilizations rebuild—risky contact leading to cooperation or conflict."
"Check-in every two hours," Glenn instructs, demonstrating the frequency hopping sequence that provides basic encryption. "If you miss a window without prior notice, we assume trouble and respond accordingly."
"Respond how?" Andrea asks, the question carrying weight about what Haven would actually do if their leadership disappeared.
Glenn's expression hardens. "However we have to."
POV: Scott
That night, Scott lies awake reviewing System data while Andrea sleeps fitfully beside him. The prison represents opportunity that feels simultaneously inevitable and terrifying.
[QUEST INITIATED: PRISON DIPLOMACY]
[OBJECTIVE: ESTABLISH FIRST CONTACT]
[OBJECTIVE: ASSESS COMPATIBILITY]
[OBJECTIVE: PROPOSE ALLIANCE]
[SUCCESS PROBABILITY: 68%]
[COMPLICATIONS: LIKELY]
"Sixty-eight percent. Better than even odds but far from certain. Thomas could refuse, could be hostile, could agree then betray us to Saviors for protection. Or he could become our strongest ally, giving coalition the fortress we need to actually resist Negan effectively."
Andrea stirs, her hand finding his in the darkness. "You're thinking too loud."
"Tomorrow we find out if we're making allies or creating problems."
"That's every day in the apocalypse," she replies, her voice carrying exhaustion. "At least this time we're choosing the problems instead of just reacting to them."
POV: Daryl
Daryl prepares his gear with methodical attention, triple-checking weapons and supplies for tomorrow's journey. Four days of reconnaissance left him intimate with the route—knows which roads are clear, which bridges are compromised, which intersections hide walker herds.
"Leading them into unknown. Thomas could shoot us on sight, or welcome us like saviors. Either way, I'm responsible for getting them there safely and back alive if things go sideways."
His crossbow rests against the wall, cleaned and loaded. Tomorrow it might save lives or take them, depending on how Thomas responds to strangers bearing gifts and asking for trust in a world where both are usually traps.
POV: Rick
Rick stands watch that final night, his mind working through opening statements and negotiating positions for tomorrow's contact. Thomas is military veteran according to Daryl—means he'll respond to strength and clarity, not soft diplomacy that could read as weakness.
"We're offering partnership, not charity. Make that clear from the first words. We need what they have as much as they need what we offer. Mutual benefit, not rescue operation. That's how you build alliances that last."
Below him, Haven sleeps with usual collection of sounds—generators humming, guards changing shifts, children crying in distant quarters. Twenty miles away, a prison full of desperate survivors broadcasts silence into the night, their automatic message finally ended after weeks of hoping someone listened.
Tomorrow, someone answers.
Around Rick, Georgia's darkness presses close. In twelve hours, they'll reach the prison and discover whether the apocalypse still allows for trust between strangers, or if that died with the world they used to know.
The delegation's packed. The route is planned. The words are ready.
Now comes the part where they discover if hope was justified or if they're about to make catastrophic mistake that dooms everyone involved.
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