"Shawn!"
Seeing that Chinese face, Merle suddenly perked up.
He strained to poke his head out: "I knew you'd come looking for us!"
Whoosh—!
Whoosh—!
As Merle spoke, Shawn 'thumped' a few more times, taking down two Walkers.
The remaining Walkers gradually surrounded him. Shawn took advantage of a gap to look at the two men sprawled on the convenience store roof.
"Still got strength? If you do, come help me!"
"Don't just stand there staring, didn't you see my hand is inconvenient?"
With that, Shawn tossed up a black bag.
Daryl caught it, and he and Merle opened it to look.
Whoa—!
It was two automatic rifles, plus seven or eight fully loaded magazines!
Daryl raised his head and glanced at Merle, who was also looking at him at that moment.
Both seemed to see something special in each other's eyes.
"Damn it, let's do this!"
With firearms in hand, Merle reverted to his old, obnoxious self.
He grabbed an automatic rifle with one hand and loaded a magazine with the other, the whole process incredibly smooth!
Daryl, realizing what was happening, was not to be outdone. He loaded a magazine and coordinated with Merle, firing from the high ground.
The root of all fear is insufficient firepower!
When you have weapons in hand, even dozens of Walkers are no big deal in front of them.
However, because this was a gas station, they were extremely careful when firing, fearing that an accidental shot could trigger a huge explosion.
And so it was.
Shawn hammered the Walkers in the center of the gas station at close range below, while the two above picked off Walkers at the edges of the gas station.
The three worked together, almost crushing the remaining horde of Walkers.
The dozens of Walkers left at the gas station didn't even last five minutes.
Thud—
Daryl and Merle both collapsed onto the high platform at the same time.
And beneath their feet, there was an entire carpet of Walker corpses.
"Hoo—"
"Hoo—"
"I can't go on, I'm at my limit."
"Shawn, hurry up and send some food up, man!"
Merle called out, his voice hoarse and weak.
Shawn climbed onto the convenience store platform, carrying a bag of high-calorie food and water, which he tossed at their feet.
Seeing the supplies, a burning light simultaneously erupted in both their eyes.
They didn't even have time to greet Shawn, scrambling up from the ground and devouring the food, bite after bite.
Shawn watched them with a smile from the side, waiting until they had eaten most of the food before speaking again.
"So, was I on time?"
"On time, you were perfectly on time," Merle said, nodding repeatedly as he ate.
Aside from Daryl, no one understood the satisfaction of being full and hydrated at that moment better than him.
"How did you find us?"
Daryl looked at Shawn, a touch of color finally returning to his pale, drawn face.
"Originally, I didn't see you guys, I came to get gas," Shawn said, pointing behind him.
"But when I saw the horde, I also saw the car you left, so I figured you were probably here."
Daryl nodded, seemingly wanting to ask more questions, but Shawn cut him off directly.
"Alright, alright, whatever you have to say, say it on the road. Now, hurry up and fill up the tank, I can't guarantee those Walkers won't decide to come back."
Hearing the latter half of Shawn's sentence, both men simultaneously sat up from the ground, grabbing their automatic rifles and slinging them over their backs.
By the time Shawn had filled the car with gas, the two were already on their motorcycles on the road, looking back this way.
After the three rode their motorcycles, roaring away from the gas station,
Daryl and Merle visibly exhaled in relief.
"Merle, your taste is quite good," Shawn said with a laugh.
That flag made of shorts was too flashy earlier.
"So, do you need a bed-warming service?"
"Get lost!"
"Our radio was off, how are Rick and the others?!"
Against the howling wind, Daryl shouted to Shawn.
"I don't know!"
"I haven't gone back since I came out to find you guys!"
"But I guess they've probably already left!"
Hearing Shawn's words, Daryl nodded.
However, after a brief discussion, the three still decided to return to the highway where they had originally separated.
If the convoy hadn't left, then they could all go to the Prison together.
If they had all left, following the main road wouldn't be wrong either.
It had just rained, and the vehicle wheels from the convoy would leave muddy tracks, and by following those tracks, they would surely find the direction the group had taken.
...
As evening approached.
Three motorcycles slowly pulled over to the side of the road.
"Looks like they've left. Let's find a place to rest tonight; traveling at night is too risky."
Shawn got off his motorcycle, and while pouring gasoline into his motorcycle with a portable fuel can, he spoke to the two on the motorcycles beside him.
"Fuck, they really left us behind!"
Merle got off his motorcycle and kicked at the scattered paper bags on the ground, grumbling unhappily.
Daryl frowned, looking at his older brother.
If Rick and the others hadn't gone far, Merle's personality would surely lead him to chase after them and cause trouble.
"When we first left, we saw a wooden cabin near here. We can rest there for a night before setting off."
"They've only been gone for at most a day and two nights. This isn't far from the Prison. With the motorcycles, we can reach it tomorrow in a single day."
Hearing Daryl's suggestion, Shawn nodded.
The three continued along the road ahead.
After driving less than two kilometers, the three turned off the highway onto a small path into the forest and found the wooden cabin Daryl had mentioned.
There were Walkers wandering nearby, but thankfully, the cabin's doors and windows were only dusty, and overall, it looked very well-preserved.
After dealing with a single Walker inside the cabin, the three locked the doors and windows tightly and settled into the second floor of the forest cabin.
"What are you doing?"
Daryl was sprawled on the ground, tinkering with something, and Shawn asked curiously.
"A tripwire," Daryl said, his rough fingers gently sliding along a nearly transparent thin line.
This transparent thin line connected one end to the stair railing and the other end to Daryl's prized crossbow bolt.
Daryl tilted the crossbow bolt's angle slightly upward, then carefully stepped back two paces.
"Alright," Daryl clapped his hands. "If anyone passes through here and triggers the tripwire, they'll be shot full of holes."
He looked at Shawn: "We have the rifles you brought, and the crossbow can help us stand guard, so everyone can get some good rest."
This display by Daryl made Shawn click his tongue in admiration.
Indeed, professional matters should be handled by professionals.
When it came to tracking, counter-tracking, and traps, Daryl was among the foremost of all the survivors currently.
Daryl was born for the wilderness.
"Good night, little brother, good night, Shawn."
When Shawn and Daryl turned around, they found Merle already asleep, leaning against the wall, his body turned inward.
"We were trapped at the gas station, and Merle was worried and didn't sleep at all."
Daryl looked at Shawn and suddenly spoke.
"Even though he never said it, I know that scoundrel also gets scared."
"I tried to imagine, maybe we wouldn't be able to escape..."
Daryl pursed his lips, his eyes like black gemstones in the darkness, reflecting the moonlight streaming in through the skylight.
At this point, Daryl suddenly sighed, raising a hand to pat Shawn's shoulder.
"Anyway, thanks, Shawn, you saved us... Thanks."
After speaking, Daryl turned and lightly jumped onto the counter extending from the window.
The counter wasn't wide, but it was just enough to accommodate Daryl's body.
Merle was leaning against the wall, his body turned inward.
Daryl, however, had his back to the inside, his front facing the window.
Perhaps for him, this angle allowed him to observe outside at the first moment.
...It could also serve as a temporary refuge for social avoidance after he had spoken intimately.