{Again though I know you guys are tired of hearing it, I am so very sorry for the delay in this chapter. Between real life family issues, health and work not to mention a horrible case of writers block, I just simply couldn't get to this. For those of you still hanging with me you will never know how much your support means and to those of you who maybe new I hope that you enjoy! Thanks so much to HaloHunter89 for giving me the simple advice needed to get this chapter out!

Also I know some of you will read the part with Rick and Phillip going –this is straight cannon…well you're right it is. This is the moment where my story completely breaks away from that of the Cannon Timeline and Events so just bare with me lol}

They moved like wraiths through the shadow of the forests, their movements seemingly apart of the darkness reaching out suddenly to the sound of a death rattle. They didn't think about the blood being fresh and warm, didn't care about the fact that these men were living just seconds before their knives sunk into the soft part of their skulls and stole that life from them. What did it matter to them that they were taking these men's lives. They had come with their own intentions after all.

Daryl didn't hesitate, not one second as he moved silently amongst the forest floor, distributing his weight so that he gave no warning to his intentions before he would suddenly spring forward. His rough hand would wrap around the man's mouth as he dragged the heavy body down thrusting his blade up sinking it home deep and swift.

He would hear what sounded like a whip-poor-will and turned his head in the direction it came from seeing his brother making his way from the left with Michonne stepping out onto his right as they met on either side of him.

"You don't think there are any more of them out here do you? Maybe Martinez could have heard wrong," Michonne began only to be interrupted by Merle's scoff.

"Aint no one heard nothin wrong, sides, I didn't see no other footprints but for ol one eye did you lil brother?"

"Nah, aint no one else out here but Martinez and the fucker he's takin out." When Michonne still seemed to worry over the thought he would give her a nudge until Daryl had her full attention. "I mean it, I looked high and low, aint no one else here."

Michonne would give a reluctant nod of her head, trusting Daryl far more than she trusted Merle and it didn't go past the older Dixon's notice.

"Aint that what I just said, how come you all for listenin to Darlena here and not me?"

Daryl would shake his head and probably would have rubbed at the tension pressing at the back of his eyes if it wasn't for the fact that he was keeping his gaze trained on the woods on the opposite side of the clearing, waiting to see the flash of light that would be Martinez's signal that all was clear on his end.

They didn't have time for this shit, the two could bicker and argue all they wanted once they were back at the prison and Daryl was sure that they were finally safe from this assholes threat. Unfortunately for him Michonne didn't seem to be in the sullen frame of mind today and was actually giving in to Merle's bullshit.

"I listen to DARYL because he has genuine care for the man in the building. You on the other hand would like nothing more than to see Rick get taken out."

"Yea, aint gonna argue with ya there but lookit sugartits, aint no one takin out officer friendly but ol Merle you can bet your sweet dark ass on that." Merle smirked and blew the woman a kiss.

Before Michonne could say something snarky in response, which Daryl knew she was just itching to do, he saw the light reflecting from the broken mirror piece they'd given Martinez and lifted his hand to call for silence.

Without another word they would slip from the forests and make their way towards the building housing Rick and Phillip. As they neared the worn out structure they could hear the muffled sound of men talking though it seemed like Phillip was the one doing most of it.

Martinez would give a quick nod of his head before easing the wood door open at the back of the building just enough to let them in one at a time before they were once more swallowed up by the darkness.

"You're the town drunk who knocked over my fence and ripped up my yard, nothing more." Daryl heard Rick's gruff but quiet words and motioned for the others to hold up their movements while they listened for a moment more.

He would feel a touch at his arm and turned his head to watch as Martinez motioned that him and Merle were gonna circle around to the left. He gave a silent nod and motioned for Michonne to follow him. He wasn't nervous having the woman at his back, he hadn't known her long but she'd already proven herself damn capable and besides; he hadn't done nothin to piss her off.

No, truth was he actually liked the woman. She was tough as nails and didn't take no shit from anyone, especially not Merle. While the others either looked at his brother like the scum he showed them he could be or like an errant child that just needed a long time out and not the man he was, Michonne didn't. She talked to him with the perfect mixture of annoyance, skepticism and believe it or not respect for the knowledge and skills she knew he had.

She wasn't Carol or Maggie but somehow she was a little bit of both plus something entirely new. She was a woman to respect and was an addition to the group at large rather than just another mouth to feed and back to worry for.

"You know the truth is, I didn't want any of this," The Governors voice drew Daryl's thoughts back to where they belonged and he listened attentively just as the others did to the man who didn't know he was already dead.

"They chose me cause there was nobody else around." Phillip began to explain as he left the table he had been sitting at with Rick and rubbed his hands together. "And they still think I'm the man that can keep them safe." The smile on Phillip's face was that of almost mocking amusement and it grated on Daryl's nerves just like it did Rick's, he could tell by the way Rick shifted in his seat.

"They still think I know what I'm doin." Phillip held his hands out almost in a helpless fashion but the growing amusement was hard to ignore on his face and Daryl wondered how long it would be before one of them had to wipe that look off it. Daryl watched as he moved to one of the posts and tensed as he watched him pull his gun belt down. Didn't matter how armed he made himself, he wasn't leaving this barn alive.

"I know you got guns," Phillip began again as he started to put the belt on. "That was quite a stash you brought back the other day. Now my people aren't combat tested like yours are but… I got more of them." He smirked as he made his way back to the table and back to the still seated Rick. "This fight will go down to the last man. So let's end it. Today, let's not do this, we can walk away. You have something that I want. One thing that makes this all alright."

"I'm not givin up the prison." Rick was quick to reply making the Governor chuckle as he took a seat once more.

"No I uh, I don't want your prison that doesn't sound safe at all. I mean you lost your wife and another man."

"We're not movin on."

"What good would that do me? Best you stay where I can keep my one good eye on ya." The Governor would grow quiet then and it took a moment of studying his movements for Daryl to realize that he was pulling the patch from over his head.

Daryl could feel Michonne tensing beside her, could hear the quiet sound of her air being swiftly pushed from her chest as if she knew what was going to be said next.

"I want Michonne. Turn her over and this all goes away. She worth it? One woman worth all those lives in your prison. Is she?"

Suddenly there was movement and for once Daryl didn't try to stop the events from unfolding. He had thought that they would come all together to let the Governor see just how foolish a choice he'd made by attempting this little coo of his but in the split second he had to think about it he realized that this was how it was always going to end.

Without a single sound Michonne would drive forward, the only sound for several heartbeats was the sickening sound of blood dripping from the end of a sword. Daryl watched as the Governor slowly looked down and saw the end of the Katana sticking from his body painted red with his blood.

"She is." Rick would say calmly with a smile causing the Governor's head to jerk up and meet his gaze. He tried to say something, his lips moving though no sound but that same death rattle could be heard before the man fell over onto the table, blood leaking from his lips as his eyes went cold and empty.

"Well shit…this was a bit anticlimactic don'tcha think? I at least wanted to look the bastard in the eye and give him a kick in the balls for leaving me up there on that cliff." Merle complained taking the offered cigarette from Martinez.

"Nah, this way is better. This all was between those two anyway. He wanted the prison, aint sayin that, but he wanted her dead somethin bad. What did you do anyway, well besides take his eye." Martinez laughed as he lit the end of his smoke with the lighter that Merle passed him.

"I put his walker daughter down." Michonne said without a hint of emotion in her gaze or her tone as she began cleaning her katana but Daryl wasn't fooled. Even the toughest son of a bitch had trouble putting down a kid, dead or alive. He should know and one look at Rick said he was thinking the same.

"So whata we do now officer friendly? I mean it's all well and good that that prick is dead, but what happens when his people get the memo that we took out their Savior?" Merle asked passing both smokes and lighter now over to Daryl.

"Aint our problem." Daryl said gruffly as he lit up and took a deep drag before handing them back to Martinez who was eying Rick.

"Could be," Michonne tried to reason. "They think we did this out of cold blood they could come looking for a fight. He was right about some things. They have the greater man power and the bigger weapons."

Finally Martinez would break his silence after blowing out the smoke he'd been savoring while thinking. "What if some of your people come over, we send some of ours to you. We're not that far apart for trade to establish if there is trust."

"Those fuckers tried to kill me! Tried to make me battle my own brother!" Daryl growled out advancing on the man only to have Merle step between them keeping his little brother from doing something without thinking.

"Those fuckers were told by that dead fucker over there that they were the ones attacked. You know how many of those people aint seen a damn thing outside those town walls since this whole thing started? They're sheep who had a fucked up Sheppard leading them."

"Those same sheep the ones that raped all them women or have you forgotten already?" Daryl growled causing Rick to turn his head swiftly towards the arguing brothers.

"What the hell ya'll talkin about?"

"It's the reason we made the call to come here today to handle this shit. Bastard would go out with his group and take anything they came across that they wanted including little girls and women. Made their men watch, killed a pregnant girl and let the baby kill her from the inside after rapin her for days. So anyone who thinks I'm letting any of those motherfuckers near any of mine ya'll better be prepared to kill me cause I'll take each one down before they cross through the gate."

"Now just get those panties out of a twist lil brother, you think I'd let any of those men near Mouse and them kids? I'm the one that told you about all this shit 'member? Just cause they're some bad apples in the bunch don't mean ya throw out the whole fuckin barrel. There is women and kids there too. We get rid of the ones we need and help the rest."

"And if the people of Woodbury don't like the fact that we're killing off their men who they believe are innocent, what do you think would happen then?" Michonne broke in, listening to both men's points equally. She wasn't too keen on mingling with Woodbury, not yet but she could see how it would benefit them in the future too.

"I will explain everything to them, they trust me. Merle…though I hate to say it, is right. They are not all bad. We have many elderly, single families, young people. They should not be held accountable for what Phillip and his men did. This could work." Martinez offered.

Daryl would slowly simmer down though still glaring at his brother but it was Rick that finally came to some sort of decision. "Merle and Martinez are familiar to them, you two and Andrea go back, take care of the threat within and explain to them what's really going on. If they want to set up trade then we will, as a group, decide if we are open to it, if not then they stick to their territory we stick to ours."

"If Andrea goes then I go." Michonne would state firmly letting them know there would be no arguments.

"Fine with me sugartits, I figured you wouldn't want to be away from ol Merle too long anyway." He winked, his blue eyes bright as he pushed a kiss towards the katana wielding badass.

"Enough of this shit, I'm headin back. Merle, don't make her have to kill you." He warned before simply turning and heading out of the abandoned building. He still wasn't thrilled with letting any of those people near his family but he also had to admit he saw his brother's point too.

Fuck all this day was the weirdest day in his goddamn life. Now Merle was even making sense and talkin logical. He had to be dreaming or some shit.