Daybreak (DD)

"Daybreak" is the eighth episode and mid-season premiere of Season 1 of Dark Days. It is the eighth episode overall. It premiered on March 26, 2019.

Synopsis
"Unknown."

Plot
“Okay, okay, so… fuck, marry, kill. Clark, Daniel, Parker.”

“Really? We’re switching again?” Dahlia chuckles, smiling at Caroline. “I’m starting to think you’re running out of ideas.”

“She totally is.” Melanie smirks, taking another bite out of her apple. The three walk slowly around the courtyard. “Then again, FMK is way better than mental UNO.”

“Well it’s not exactly easy to apply an eidetic memory to the end of the world.” Caroline shrugs, smiling. “I mean, coming up with a way to play UNO mentally is the most fun I’ve had in the last few months.”

“And fuck-marry-kill isn’t fun?” Dahlia taunts, bringing a finger to her chin. “Uhh… let’s see… I’ll marry Parker.”

“Shit, really?” Melanie looks over.

Caroline crosses her arms. “Lestrade won’t be happy about that.”

“She can go hump roadkill.” Dahlia snorts, shaking her head. “Kidding… I’ll marry Parker, I’ll… fuck Clark, and kill Daniel.”

“I feel like I should’ve expected this.” Melanie shakes her head with a smirk.

“That’s what you’re going with?” Caroline grins. “Final choices?”

“Duh, it’s not hard.” Dahlia smiles. “Parker knows how to get shit done. He’d be the best pick. I’d fuck Clark to get it over with, and I’d kill Daniel cause that’s a trainwreck waiting to happen.”

Caroline thinks for a moment, before looking ahead again as they continue to walk. “Oooookay, I think I see where you’re coming from.”

“Aw, you really aren’t gonna marry me?”

Dahlia rolls her eyes and turns, only to be pelted in the arm with something. “Gah!” She steps back. “What the--”

She notices a potato on the ground, and behind the three stand Warren and Raye, who holds the excess potatoes.

“I’m starting to think playing ‘fuck-marry-kill’ with you guys was a mistake.” Raye jokes.

Dahlia sighs with a grin. “You’re that bored? You threw a potato at me?”

“Not just any potato. These are the old ones nobody ever ate.” Warren walks over to the three. “If you’re gonna marry Principal Parker, consider that my wedding gift.”

The girl shakes her head, then glances to Melanie and Caroline. “Think you two could give us a bit?”

The two nod, and Caroline beckons Melanie to follow her. “See you guys later.”

Dahlia waves, then turns back to Warren. “You know you’re the only one for me.”

Warren chuckles softly, cheeks noticeably pink. “Ahyep… eheh, I’d hope so.”

The two gaze into each other’s eyes for a moment before Raye steps between them, grinning. “What am I, chopped liver?”

Dahlia grins and playfully shoves the two. “What did you two wanna see me for?”

“Parker sent us.” Raye responds. “He says he’s got something important to tell you.”

Dahlia blinks. “... seriously? He’s… actually got something to tell me?”

“Yeah, he and the other big wigs are in the lobby.” Warren points behind him with a thumb. “You should go see them ASAP.”

A thought crosses Dahlia’s mind, and she nods with a smile. “I, uh… yeah, I will. I’ve got a feeling I know what this is about. Thanks guys.”

She waves and hurries off, and the boys watch her go.

“Wanna go huck old potatoes at Clark?” Raye suggests.

Warren snorts and walks off with him. “You’re a dork.”

Dahlia pushes open both doors to the university, slowly stepping into the lobby. Across from her is the council, and Blaine Parker immediately turns to her, taking notice. He smiles softly, the rest of his council behind him. The girl can hear them muttering as she approaches.

“Are you sure this is a good idea…?” Timmons mutters. “I mean, Christ, Blaine, this is a child…”

“Young lady, actually.” Drake notes, adjusting his glasses. “We’ve all made our decision, learn to live with it…”

“I don’t live with bad decisions, because I don’t make them.” Timmons adds.

“Both of you stop talking, we’re not here to argue.” Parker huffs, glaring at the two over his shoulder. The moment he turns back to Dahlia, his warm smile returns, and he offers her a hand. “Ah, Ms. Dwelton. Thank you for joining us.”

Dahlia nods, smiling as she takes his hand and shakes it. “Thank you for having me, really.”

“I get the feeling you already know what this is about?” Parker asks.

“Well I have a pretty good idea.” Dahlia shrugs, feeling a bit unnerved. She exhales. “I mean, I get an application is pretty unorthodox, but…”

“It’s certainly a way to get the message across.” She turns to see Kate Gardens round the group and smile pleasantly at her. “Regardless of whether or not it’s orthodox… it certainly makes you stand out, Ms. Dwelton.”

Dahlia smiles and nods, almost finding herself bowing to the woman. “Th-Thank you, Ms. Gardens…”

“Well don’t thank me, Blaine was very adamant about having the meeting.” Gardens smiles at Parker, and the man nods in return.

“It’s a change of pace, and a welcome one at that.” He motions to the rest of the council. “And regardless of what anyone says, it’s a unanimous decision on your approval.”

Timmons opens his mouth to interject, but grumbles and hangs his head. “You’ve uh… you’ve been accepted to the watch team. Your first shift is today.”

The smile on Dahlia’s face only grows, and she half-gasps. “S-Seriously?”

“It’s hardly unexpected, I’d think.” Parker nods with a smile.

“I-I mean, I kinda… did expect it, but…” Dahlia laughs a little. “It’s just so weird to actually hear it, I mean.”

Blaine claps his hands together as Gardens gently pulls Dahlia into a hug. “Congratulations Ms. Dwelton, we’re so happy for you!”

“Okay, okay, let’s just… move on here.” Timmons steps forward. “Ms. Dwelton, you can meet with Officer Noire in the courtyard in an hour and he’ll get you set up. You’ll be doing a few hours today, followed by an all-day watch from dawn to dusk tomorrow. Is that something you can handle?”

Dahlia steps back, and she considers his words. She nods with a smile. “Yes, I believe I can. It’s time for me to step up.”

Parker nods in agreement. “Then let’s step up together.”

“The sight is a six-times scope, so you can see pretty far…” Daniel looks through the scope of the sniper rifle, before handing it off to Dahlia on the landing. “There’s a hell of a kick, but all you gotta do is aim precisely with the--”

“I got it, Officer. Thanks.” Dahlia nods, holding the rifle somewhat awkwardly. She adjusts it so it’s propped on the wall, and aims around to practice.

Daniel sighs. “Yeah, yeah…” He walks past her and slowly descends the ladder, getting to the ground where Gina and Monica wait, Monica holding an old looking camera. “You might as well be on alert at all times. You’re not coming down ‘til we come get you.”

“I can live with that!” Dahlia calls back. She looks over the railing, but before she can continue, Monica snaps a picture.

“That’s one for the books!” She pulls the photograph out of the camera and smiles.

“Seriously?” Dahlia smirks. “More pictures?”

“I ran a bomb fuckin’ magazine, Dahlia. I got all the cool pictures of all the shit that goes down.” Monica smirks wryly. “I don’t miss a beat.”

“And how long ‘til you run outta film so I can throw that shit over the wall?”

Gina snorts and crosses her arms. “And how long ‘til you give up on life so we can throw you over the wall?”

Dahlia rolls her eyes and jokingly flips them off. “Fuck you.”

Gina smiles, walking off with Monica as they flip her off in return. “Fuck you too.”

Daniel just looks between them, somewhat confused and irritated. He shakes his head and walks back inside.

Dahlia smiles and turns back around, aiming and keeping watch, listening to the soft sounds of the wind, and the birds chirping in the distance.

“Nothing’s happening… I expected as much.” Dahlia sighs, looking along the treeline. A few straggling walkers emerge from the trees, but pose no immediate threat. “Let’s see what we can find…”

“HELP ME!!”

Dahlia looks up, snapping to attention. Her eyes widen as she watches a man sprint from the trees. He attracts the attention of the few walkers, but soon enough, a plethora of the undead pour out of the woods.

The girl looks on in horror. “What the--?!”

BANG!

The man turns around, firing a pistol at as many zombies as he can. He gets a few headshots, but mostly hits their chests in his panic. His gun clicks, and he attempts to reload it. However, it falls from his hands as a walker grabs his wrist.

“Sh-SHIT!!” He pulls away and makes distance, running towards the university gates. The man appears to have not noticed Dahlia yet. As he nears the metal bars, a nearby walker reaches for him. He tries to side-step, but it latches onto his wrist and pulls him.

Click

BANG!

Muck and blood sprays across the man’s face, as the lurker drops dead, a fresh bullet hole in its head.

“Move, MOVE!” Dahlia screams frantically, aiming with the rifle once more. She shoots another nearby walker, before dropping the gun and running for the gate latch.

The man wipes at the blood, smearing it across his face without meaning and rushes to the gates, pressing his back against the bars and staring in horror at the approaching herd. Dahlia wastes no time in unlatching the gate from atop the platform, and begins to pull them open with the rope. The man slips back as the bars move out from behind him, and he falls to the ground and scuttles back from the zombies into the courtyard.

Dahlia immediately lets go of the rope and reaches for the gate, trying to push it closed. She can barely reach it, and instead grabs the rifle and shoves it forward. The butt of the gun clashes against the gate and slowly pushes it closed, just as a few walkers get inside. Dahlia ties the rope around the latch again and hurries down from the landing.

The man stands up and draws a knife from his belt. He steps back a bit, readying his blade, before he grabs the closest walker by the chest of its shirt and drives the blade into its temple with a grunt. He rips the blade out, and it drops dead.

Dahlia reaches the bottom of the landing and swings the rifle, smashing the butt of it into the head of one walker. It stumbles back, and the girl frantically holds up the gun and fires. The kick knocks her back, and the misfire only hits the walker in the chest. However, before it can descend on her, the man charges it and stabs it through the chin.

The girl pants and stands up, grabbing her gun again. They see one final walker coming towards them. Dahlia holds her breath as she holds up the gun and aims, looking through the scope.

BANG!

The bullet hits it just above the right eye, and the final undead humanoid falls to the cobblestone in the courtyard.

Dahlia exhales, panting and dropping the gun. Her hands are on her knees, and she finally manages to relax for a moment, despite hearing the snarls of the wakers smashing against the gates, unable to tneter.

The man pants and wipes sweat from his face with his shirt sleeve. He walks up to Dahlia, who looks up at him. He nods. “Th-Thank you… you saved my life.”

He’s an African-American man, probably in his fifties. He’s tall and lean, and covered in mud. Dahlia nods and finally catches her breath. “A-Are you okay…?”

The man nods, and opens his mouth to speak, but they both hear another voice.

“Dahlia?”

The two turn to see a group of people; Parker, Gardens, Timmons, Holmes, Dent, and Drake. Daniel is there as well, pointing a gun at the stranger.

The man raises his arms up. “P-Please, I mean no harm.”

Parker frowns. “Dahlia… what have you done?”

Dahlia swallows nervously.

“Alright, alright, easy does it…”

Dahlia slowly helps Wilkes down the steps, deeper into the basement. The man reluctantly keeps his arm around her. “D-Dahlia please, I’m fine. It’s just a flesh wound…”

“Well it’s still a wound.” Dahlia huffs. “Dammit, Wilkes, what the hell did you do to get his attention?”

“I was stupid, okay? I thought… I could sneak upstairs and get shit myself.” Wilkes sighs, shaking his head. “I’m tired of sittin’ around on my old ass doing nothing, and Dr. Nole is running out of medicine.”

Dahlia sighs. “Shit.”

Various people smile at Dahlia as she arrives, as she walks by the tents and lanterns and strewn about sleeping bags. However, people take notice of Wilkes’ wound quickly, and begin to look at the two in horror. They’re followed near the back corner of the room, where a woman hurries up to the two.

“Shit, is he wounded?!” She exclaims, looking at Wilkes’ shoulder. “Dahlia, what happened to him?!”

“Phoebe, get Dr. Nole now.” Dahlia commands. “I’ll explain everything, we just need to get Wilkes treated”

The woman looks between the two for another moment, but she nods and hurries off. The girl turns and leads Wilkes over to a smaller tent by the wall, and sits him down on a cushion. Wilkes huffs a little, but sighs in relief as he’s able to relax.

He chuckles. “Back to sitting, I guess.”

Dahlia places a rag against the wound. “Just thank God it was the shoulder. Anywhere lower, and this coulda been worse…”

“... did you really need to do it?” Wilkes frowns at her. “Kill that boy?”

“Weren’t you going to?” Dahlia avoids eye contact now. “You’re the one who stabbed him.”

The man narrows his eyes. “I got scared, Dahlia.”

“And I did too, Wilkes.” She looks up at him. “But I made a choice. No going back now.”

Wilkes opens his mouth to reply, but an older man and a teenage boy hurry over. The man adjusts his glasses and sets a case down by Wilkes, taking a knee.

The boy runs frantically to Wilkes’ side. “Dad, dad! You’re hurt, what happened?!”

Wilkes shakes his head. “I’m fine, Trevor. Please.”

“I got woken up for this…?” The other man sighs, opening the case and pulling out alcohol and taking the rag from Dahlia.

The girl glares at him. “Don’t tell me you’re fucking stoned again.”

“I’m fine, mind your own business.” The man, Dr. Nole, pours alcohol on the rag and presses it against Wilkes’ wound, making the man wince and slam a fist against the ground. “Mind telling me what the hell happened to him?”

Dahlia begins to hear the murmurs of the people around them. She looks around at the frightened and concerned faces of the men, women, and even children who have come to see. Trying to find her words, Dahlia notices a woman step out of the crowd and comes towards them, smiling warmly.

The woman then turns to the others and speaks up. “Stop this, you’re overwhelming them. Don’t be so worried.”

She turns and crouches down, smiling at Dahlia. “Dahlia, my Dahlia… tell me what’s happened. Is everything okay?”

Dahlia exhales and manages a smile. “Ms. Lee, thanks… Wilkes got wounded.”

“I can see.” The woman, Natania Lee, nods. “And who wounded him?”

Dahlia’s smile drops, and she stands up. “Everyone, I have news.”

The murmurs stop. Everyone looks straight at Dahlia, awaiting her answer.

“We’ve been found out.” She quickly raises a hand to stop the expected gasps, and people quiet down again. “We were found out, and… Wilkes fought the finder. The finder fought back, Wilkes got stabbed, and I… made a difficult choice to protect you all.”

Phoebe emerges from the crowd and looks at the girl. “Dahlia… are we in danger?”

“No.” Dahlia answers quickly. “We’re fine, and we will continue to be fine. I’m sure of it.”

“How can you be sure?” Phoebe continues, as murmurs begin again in the crowd. “Someone found us out, and it’s only a matter of time before everyone else knows.”

“They won’t find out from the one who found us.” Dahlia replies. “Because… I killed him.”

This shocks the room into silence, and Phoebe is taken aback a bit, but she quickly finds her next words. “Then… they’re going to notice he’s gone. They’ll notice you’re gone and start searching. It will only be a matter of time before they come down here.”

“You don’t think I’ve thought of that?” The girl argues. “Look, do you trust me Phoebe? Do you all trust me?”

Silence, followed by murmurs and nods. Phoebe sighs. “Dahlia, I’m just… we have every right to be scared.”

“I know you do.” Dahlia nods. “I don’t doubt that, but I have a plan. I know what we’re going to do.”

“Then tell me what you need.” Phoebe says. “You know you can rely on me.”

Dahlia smiles. “I’m gonna check in with Wilkes for now, but since it’ll be a little bit before any of them notice people are missing, we have time to plan. I want you to find Cam and Barry, take them to the armory, and have them hold onto the guns.”

“But we only have three guns--” Phoebe blinks slowly. “... please don’t tell me you plan on killing everybody.”

Dahlia shakes her head. “No, no, we’re not killing anyone. Nobody else has to die.”

“Nobody else?”

Dahlia hesitates. “... there’s one person up there I wouldn’t mind dying. But… not even they need to die. Just trust me.”

Phoebe takes a second to process her orders, but she nods and walks off to find the aforementioned two. The people look at Dahlia one more time before dispersing about, some staying with Wilkes.

Dahlia kneels back down with Natania, Trevor, and Dr. Nole. “I hope you made progress while I was talking.”

Trevor is slowly using a needle to stitch up his father’s wound. He looks halfway done. “A-Almost… got it…”

Natania smiles. “You’ve taught him well, Percival.”

“Always wanted to be a doctor.” Trevor chuckles. “Dr. Nole’s taught me a whole lot.”

“Doctors typically aren’t slow, though, so you’ll have to work on that.” Nole wipes his hands on a clean rag with a sigh.

“Doctors typically don’t get stoned, though, so you’ll have to work on that.” Dahlia mutters under her breath. “Thanks for your help, doc.”

“Yeah, yeah. Try not to get stabbed anymore.” The man stands up and walks off, leaving Trevor to finish the suturing.

“Aaaaaand… done.” Trevor smiles as he cuts the remaining string, finally sealing Wilkes’ wound. “How’s it feel dad?”

Wilkes moves his arm and smirks. “Well, you’ve got a ways to go… but thank you.”

Trevor’s smile fades. “... dad? Are we gonna be safe?”

Wilkes thinks for a moment. “Well, I trust Dahlia, and I believe with her guidance, we’ll be safe.”

“She’s kept us safe so far.” Natania adds with a smile. “Anything she does, she does it good. And when she does it, it’s for us.”

“Damn right.” Dahlia smiles. “I haven’t been hauling ass for almost a year for nothing now. You people totally owe me.”

Wilkes laughs a little at that. “I owe you double. This is the second or third time you’ve saved my life, no?”

Dahlia smirks. “I’ve only got so many favors, old man. Don’t keep count.”

“Oh, uh… Ms. Dwelton?” Dahlia turns to see Trevor looking at her. “When we go up there, can we stay up there? I’m kinda tired of living in this dark ass basement.”

Dahlia glances at the door they had entered through, then up at the ceiling. “I hope…”

Walkers slam against the glass doors of the university’s foyer. Warren stands directly parallel, staring blankly at the undead force trying hard to get inside. His arms are crossed and he sighs as more murky blood and gunk stains coat the glass.

Kylie slowly walks up beside him. “... you’ve been standing here for a while.”

“Mhm.” Warren purses his lips.

Kylie fidgets a bit where she stands. “A-Are you okay?”

Warren breathes through his nose. “I’ve got a lot on my mind.”

“... do you wanna talk about it?” Kylie offers, voice going soft. Warren shrugs.

A walker slams against the glass hard with a loud snarl, startling the two. Kylie jolts back a couple steps. Warren stumbles a little, breathing quickly. However, it slows quickly.

“I’ve been wondering…” He speaks up, turning to her. “How’d you escape that herd?”

Kylie’s eyes drop, and she grimaces sadly before she shakes her head.

Warren’s gaze softens. “I… s-sorry, I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”

“I-It’s fine.” Kylie quickly replies, rubbing her arm a little. She shivers a bit, scratching her forearm lightly. “I-I thought I was bit, thought I was f-fucked… got lucky.”

The young man uncrosses his arms and nods. “Well, I’m really, really glad you’re alive.”

Kylie looks up at him, processing his words for a moment before she snorts and starts chuckling. “Really? I-I mean, I just left you guys in all the chaos… who’d miss a nobody like me?”

Warren raises an eyebrow. Something about this feels… off. “Kylie, of course we missed you. I missed you, you’re my friend.”

Kylie’s smirk quivers, and she finds herself struggling to make eye contact with him again. “... I saved nobody… things go wrong when I’m around. I… I got them all killed.”

Warren’s eyes widen, and he shakes his head quickly. “Hey hey hey, no. No, you didn’t do that. You guys had no clue a herd would show up. Don’t blame yourself.”

“Why not? Everyone else seems to blame me for this shit.” Kylie shrugs, staring at the floor. “N-Nobody really… wanted to talk to me after Timmons died. S-Some people said I was crazy for just… crushing his head in.”

“Is that why you left then?” Warren asks softly.

Kylie doesn’t respond, she simply meanders a bit where she stands, before she walks away in a hurry. He considers following, but he sighs and shakes his head, looking back out at the walkers.

Gina rounds the corner and leans against the wall, watching Kylie walk off before she looks at Warren. “You sure you don’t gotta piss? Or is staring lovingly at the dead way more engaging?”

Warren turns to her. “Shouldn’t you be fucking the principal?”

Gina scoffs and throws her hands in the air. “Jesus, who the hell rammed a stick up your ass?”

He shakes his head. “Sorry, I just… I’m fucking angry.”

“No shit.” Gina mutters, leaning against the wall. “Alright Dotson, talk to me.”

“Something tells me you won’t take ‘no’ for an answer.” Warren replies, to which Gina nods with a fraudulent smile. “Well… I’m pissed at Dahlia. She stole a gun.”

Gina’s eyes widen. “She stole a gun??”

He nods. “Don’t know where she got it, but she stole it, and we’re not supposed to have them. And nobody’s doing anything about it.”

“Are you really being uptight over rules right now?” Gina groans.

“No, it’s not that.” Warren walks up to her. “It’s just… I’ve been struggling to trust her lately, and this is just adding to it. I don’t know what, but… she’s hiding shit from me. I just know she is.”

“... but she loves you.” Gina mutters softly. “If she didn’t trust you… she would’ve kept hiding it. Think about it, when walkers are getting inside, what’s more important? The truth, or survival?”

The young man nods. “Yeah, fair point.”

The girl thinks for a moment, before she smirks and grabs his wrist, pulling him along across the foyer. “C’mon.”

“What the--” Warren stumbles a bit. “Hey, what’re you doing?!”

“I’m not gonna let you sulk.” Gina chuckles, heading towards Blaine Parker. “C’mon, you’re gonna hang with me and Parks whether you like it or not.” Warren sighs, not bothering to fight back.

A few students pass through the foyer, going down some of the halls. A couple people take notice, but nobody really bats an eye. Virgil watches them go and raises an eyebrow. “Jeez, they’re moving fast… wonder what’s gotten into them.”

He gets no response, so he turns to Oliver. “What do you th--”

The young man is looking away, staring at the zombies out the window.

Virgil follows his gaze. “... what’re you thinking about?”

“Kate.” Oliver replies, exhaling through his nose. “She deserved what she got, but… her body is getting ripped apart right now.”

“Don’t tell me you feel sorry for her.” The man says.”

“No, I don’t.” Oliver shakes his head, turning to face him. “Not in the slightest. But it’s like… not fair.”

Virgil processes his words for a moment, confused. “... what do you mean?”

“I keep thinking about Caroline and her group. They got eaten alive.” Oliver looks down. “And Kate got a bullet in the head that she didn’t deserve. She should’ve suffered.”

Virgil’s eyes widen. “No, don’t talk like that. Yeah she deserved to die, but nobody deserves to suffer. That’s sadistic.”

“So what?” Oliver retorts, but Virgil’s glare makes him backpedal. “... right, sorry, I… shouldn’t talk like that.”

Virgil crosses his arms, glaring once more at Oliver before looking down the hall. “I wonder how Pam’s doing with Alex.”

“Gah…” Oliver winces. “I hope the dude makes it… that bite was pretty fucked.”

Pam briskly paces back and forth across the infirmary, breathing in and out loudly, and rubbing sweat from her face. The blood from her hands coats her cheeks and forehead, and she finally takes a second to lean against the wall.

“Jesus Christ, what have I done…?” She looks up at the ceiling in worry. “What the fuck have I done?!”

She looks to the infirmary bed, blood sheets covering it in its entirety. She’d done that, that was all her. She felt sick.

A loud pound on the busted infirmary door startles her, and it swings open after a moment, several people storming in. They all appear to be students.

A tall and lean young man immediately locks onto her, storming over to her. “Anderson! Are you gonna fucking help us or not?!”

However, he backpedals, along with the rest, as they see her covered in blood. Pam stares at them with wide, worried eyes.

The boy before her collects himself and angrily pulls up his shirt sleeve, showing off his bloody arm, a huge bite mark on his wrist. “We’re gonna be fucked, and we heard you were cutting up that Michaels kid.”

Pam stares at the bite in horror, as more people begin to show their infected wounds. “Oh Jesus…”

“Ms. Anderson, please… we need help.” A girl says.

Pam sees one of the other boys show off his infected neck, and a commotion breaks out as the initial boy pulls him forward. “Well? What the hell are you gonna do about this?!”

The nurse slowly starts to shake her head, and she takes a step back. “I-I, I can’t…”

The neck-bite boy shakes his head. “M-Ms. Anderson, I don’t want to die.”

“I-I’m sorry, but infected places like the neck or the head…” Pam’s voice is soft and almost hoarse. “I can’t… help… too many of you…”

“You can’t help because there’s too many?!” The lead teen shouts, as the commotion continues. Angry students approach and start to surround Pam, and she looks over at the hospital bed again. “That’s bullshit, fucking HELP US!”

She snaps.

She glares at the teen and shoves him back, surprising him. The nurse reaches for the counter and grabs the bloody scalpel, and she screams as she charges the boy with the torn up neck.

His eyes widen as Pam thrusts the scalpel through his neck, and the angry commotion stops, and Pam screams once more as she rips the scalpel out, and swings it around and into his eye. The boy’s gurgles stop, and he falls to the floor dead as Pam yanks out the tool.

She shivers a little, panting angrily as she slowly looks at the rest of them. They all begin to back up slowly. “If you want to fucking live, let me do my job and WAIT YOUR FUCKING TURN!”

The lead teen stumbles back a little, and he starts to push by people to go sit against the wall. Pam watches him angrily, before she goes to the bloody infirmary bed.

The boy looks at his bitten arm, and scratches lightly at the infected area, more and more sweat running down his face.

A young man at the back of the group looks over their heads, trying to catch a glimpse of Pam, or even a way into the infirmary, but the people are unmoving. He sighs, steps away, rubs the blood and fake bite marks off his arm, and hurries off down the hall.

The young man in question, William Knight, hurries away from the scene and arrives back at the foyer, walking away from everyone to a small group to the left, sitting partially into the next hall. A girl leans against the wall, and another boy sits on the floor, hugging his legs to his chest.

William glances at the boy and sighs. “Is he gonna be like that all day?”

“Cut him some slack, he’s got every reason to be terrified.” A second girl speaks up from the opposite wall.

“Can it, Melissa, if we’re in here and they’re out there, we’re fine. We don’t have to be scared.” William argues. “We can’t just bitch and bitch and bitch and whine and cowar. Jack needs to grow some balls.”

“Don’t be such a dick.” The girl beside Jack looks up, glaring at William. He ignores her.

Melissa sighs. “Did you get what you needed?”

“Nah, crowd’s too big.” William shakes his head. “Can’t get through.”

“Didn’t you try the bite trick?” Melissa continues.

The young man holds up his arm. “Wouldn’t have mattered anyways, crazy bitch killed Giro in an instant.”

The girl looks up, and Jack does as well. Melissa takes a step back. “... M-Ms. Anderson killed Giro?”

“He got bit on the neck and she went crazy. Marcus was up front and he probably woulda died too.” He shrugs. “Nothing we can do about it now.”

“P-People really are dying…?” Jack starts to shiver more.

The other girl puts an arm around him. “Hey, everything’s gonna be fine, alright?”

“No, face the facts Grace, things are only gonna get worse.” William says casually. “I’ve got a good feeling if we don’t starve to death, we’ll go crazy and start killing each other. Not to mention crazy bitch nurse lady is already snapping.”

“You’re such a pessimist, you know that?” Melissa spits.

“It’s what’s kept me alive so far.” William shrugs. “I’ll get what we need another time, the crowd is too crazy, and shit needs to calm down.” He turns to walk away, only to see Chad and Erika approaching him.

“Well there you are.” Chad crosses his arms. “You know, normally I’d be pissed you haven’t been with us, Will, but I guess you got lucky. Kate killed everyone.”

The others gasp and look to the two in surprise, but William shrugs. “Saw that coming a mile away.”

“Why the hell weren’t you with us?” Erika asks. “Maybe we could’ve taken out Parker, maybe you could’ve killed her when she went crazy. You’re more than capable.”

“It’s called playing the long game to stay alive.” William says. “I said ‘yes’ to her proposal so she’d go away, and so she wouldn’t kill me later on. I decided to disassociate myself, and look how it worked out?”

“Is being selfish the only thing you know?” Chad gets in his face. “I thought we were friends.”

William doesn’t respond outside of shrugging again and walking off, leaving the others in the hallway.

Candice and Rocky sit together near the front doors, as Virgil comes around with rations for everyone. They eat a few granola bars and sit in silence, until Daniel comes over and sits before them.

“Hey, um…” Daniel’s voice is soft. “Listen, I just… wanted to talk about a few things.”

Neither of the two respond; Rocky looks at him unsure, and Candice simply grimaces.

Daniel nods and evades eye contact. “I get it, I fucked up… but that’s what I want to apologize for. I’ve had my head up my ass, I haven’t been a good husband, and I haven’t been a good father. Letting my anger get the better of me is stupid, and I need to work on controlling my stress nowadays. You don’t have to forgive me, but I wanted to say this now, rather than not saying it at all.”

“And how do I know you mean that?” Candice responds with a question.

“You don’t.” Daniel admits. “I can’t prove it, you’ll just need to take my word for it.”

Candice sighs. “Take some time off from all the work you do and spend some time with us. Have someone else take your shifts. Maybe then I’ll consider forgiving you.”

Daniel chuckles and nods. “Fair enough. I’ll come home more. Not like I have a choice anyways.” He gestures to the undead horde outside.

Surprisingly to him, Candice smiles. “Thank you, Daniel. I’d appreciate the extra effort.”

The man smiles and looks to Rocky. “I’ll be around more, Roc. We can find weird new father-son things to do.”

The young man snorts and laughs a bit at that, smiling. “Thanks, dad. I’d… I’d like that a lot.”

“Oh hey, Rocky.” Daniel turns to see Kenny approaching them, pointing over his shoulder. “Some of us are playing cards. Wanna come join?”

Rocky starts to stand, and Daniel nods. “Go on, we can talk later.” Rocky smiles once more and walks off with Kenny.

Candice smiles and takes her husband’s hand. “There’s the man I fell in love with.”

Daniel smiles back. “Sorry, he was lost and stuck with a rod up his ass.”

Rocky and Kenny pass by Warren, Gina, and Parker, and they briefly stop. “Warren, Gina, either of you wanna join us for cards?” Rocky asks.

Warren looks up and lightly shakes his head. “Nah, sorry guys. I can’t focus right now. But thanks.”

“And I’d rather not be seen around a couple of jackoffs. But thanks.” Gina smiles fakely. Rocky and Kenny smile and nod, walking off chuckling with a wave. The girl looks to Parker and frowns. “Really? Nothing?”

“Hm? Did you say something, Gina?” Parker blinks and looks at her. “Sorry, I was thinking.”

Warren looks over. “Are you okay, Principal Parker…? You’ve been quiet for a little while.”

“Hasn’t it been quiet entirely?” Parker gestures to the partially vaccant foyer. “Where is everybody else?”

“A lot of them looked hurt.” Gina notes. “I think a bunch of them went to the infirmary, maybe.”

“That would explain why Pam’s still gone…” Parker mutters, remembering the situation with Alex Michaels. He slowly gets up from the floor. “Excuse me you two, I’m going to check it out.”

Neither of them respond as the man briskly walks off down the hall.

Parker’s quick walk halts the moment he rounds the corner, stepping into the hall leading to the infirmary. His heart skips a beat.

The hall is littered with bodies of students, most of them bunching up near the infirmary door.

The man hears a pained grunt of a woman; Pam. It comes from within the infirmary. He begins to walk down the hall again, looking at the bodies as he passes them and steps over them. The students are pale, their faces bloody from small stab wounds through their eyes and temples. As he nears the infirmary door, a loud, angry yell is heard, and he can briefly see the arms of Pam as she tosses another corpse out. Parker looks in horror at the young man.

“M-Marcus Turner…” He mutters under his breath. His eyes fall from the stab wound in his head to his rotten, bloody arm, with a disgusting walker bite covering a good part of it.

As he enters the room, Parker bears witness to the nurse crouched down in front of one final body. A girl, with a torn up, rotted ankle. She’s slumped against the wall. Pam grunts angrily and sadly as she thrusts a bloody scalpel through her forehead, putting her down before she can reanimate. The woman turns to try and pick her up when she sees Parker. The man looks at her uniform, stained in copious amounts of blood.

The woman drops the scalpel, and starts to sob as she collapses to her knees.

Parker rushes to her quickly and kneels by her, placing an arm on her shoulder. “Pam, what h-happened…?!”

Pam gasps a little and tries to speak through her sobs. “Th-There were s-so many, th-they just… k-kept coming…!” Pam returns to crying into her bloody palms.

“They were all… bitten?” Parker asks quietly, remaining by her side.

She nods slowly, and rubs her palms against her face, trying to wipe tears away. “They all… n-needed my help… and as usual, I-I couldn’t save a-anyone…!”

Parker stares at her somberly, as she returns to crying. The man gently pulls her close, hugging her as she sobs into his chest. “It’s not your fault, Pam… there was nothing you could do. There were so many, and with everything that happened, you can’t blame yourself...”

“I’m a fucking f-failure of a nurse, Blaine!” Pam looks up at him and glares, “I’ve done nothing but watch people die, when they expect me to help them!”

“Get a hold of yourself, Pam!” Parker shouts back. “Some people are just too far gone… Timmons was, as were these students. You can’t blame yourself for every death that happens. And besides, you’ve saved me in here twice. I’d hardly call you a failure.”

Pam’s gaze softens, and she sniffs again, unsure of how to respond.

“... what about Alex Michaels?” He asks. “What’s become of him?”

The woman looks him in the eyes and pulls back, standing up and briskly walking away. He stands and turns, following her to the infirmary bed. She pulls back the bloody sheets.

Alex lays there peacefully, chest slowly rising and falling, face slightly pale, but hardly unhealthy. His arm is almost entirely removed, only a stump left near the shoulder. The bandages are bloody, but copious enough to prevent any more blood loss.

“He’s stable…” Pam whispers. “He’s… the only one I was able to save. He’ll live.”

Parker stands beside her, and a smile slowly forms on his face. “Yet again, you were faced with an amputation… and now you’ve prevailed.”

She turns to look up at him, somewhat confused. “What… are you saying?”

He takes her hands and smiles. “Pam, I can’t let you beat yourself up like this… you’re a talented nurse, and the stress of this damn world has been beating you down every day. You made the decision to save a life… and you could only save one, with what’s happened. And the life you chose to save… you succeeded in saving. You saved me from death thrice over, I’d hope my words are being heard.”

She stares at him in silence for a while, and the two do not know what else to say. Yet, they find themselves growing closer, until their lips touch. They stand together for a few moments before Parker gently pulls back.

He smiles. “I care about you, Pam. I really do. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

Pam smiles back after a moment, and looks down at Alex. “... I-I, um… I suppose we should get Mr. Pence from the foyer, then? I’m sure he’d like to see Mr. Michaels.”

His smile fades. “... he’s not down there, I thought he had been up here the whole time.”

Pam’s smile falls as well, and the two look at each other with uncertainty.

“What the fuck are we gonna do?”

Rocky paces back and forth across the foyer, looking out at the walkers. Several others remain seated, and Daniel and Candice look on in worry. The young man rubs his head and sighs, continuing to briskly walk to and fro.

“Rocky, come on. Calm down.” Candice says. “You’re getting worked up.”

“Yeah Rocky, listen to your mom.” Kenny adds from a bench. “We can’t do anything right now.”

“Well when are we gonna do something then, huh?” Rocky snaps. “We can’t just sit here and starve to death, or wait for them to get inside. That door is glass. That shit won’t hold forever.”

“There’s nothing we can do right now, Rocky.” Daniel speaks up, scratching his head. “Just… we have to stay calm. I’m trying my best not to freak out about this… don’t get worked up.”

Rocky is about to respond, when Virgil cuts him off. “He’s right, Rocky. Not much we can do right now.”

“We’re good, right?” Oliver asks. “Let’s barricade the doors with furniture and stuff, and hell, we can move to higher ground if we need. There’s stairs everywhere.”

“We’ve got ways of handling the dead to a degree, should they get inside. But we’re gonna need everyone to do it.” Warren says, looking up at them.

As the silence ensues though, a thought crosses his mind. “... wait, where’s Raye?”

“Didn’t he go to the infirmary to check on Alex…?” Gina asks, raising an eyebrow. “Shit, now that I think about it… Monica’s still asleep. I should go wake her the fuck up.”

The girl stands and begins to head down the halls, but stops almost instantly as she sees a large group of strangers advancing towards them. She backpedals fast, eyes wide as she pulls out her knife. “Whoa whoa whoa, what the fuck.”

Warren looks up and instantly hops to his feet, stepping back anxiously. Rocky turns and loses all the irritation in him, eyes widening as he hurriedly stumbles backward towards the others. Daniel stands with Candice, keeping her behind him. He reaches for his pistol and keeps a hand on it, as Candice reaches for her own small handgun in her coat pocket.

Part of the crowd of strangers separates, so three can walk through, armed with rifles. A young man, an older man, and a younger woman. A fourth armed person steps out and walks down the center. A young girl holding a pistol.

Warren’s eyes widen as she steps in front of both Rocky and Gina. “... D-Dahlia??”

He walks towards her, but the group stops, and Dahlia points her pistol right at him. “Back up.”

The blond stops abruptly. “... Dahlia, what… what is this?”

She doesn’t respond to him, instead lowering her pistol and holstering it. Dahlia glances over her shoulders and nods. “Cam, Barry, Phoebe. On me.”

The three take their positions, as the university survivors find themselves surrounded and pushed back. The strangers, as many as there are, take up the halls, blocking them and pushing back the remaining survivors towards the exit. Candice grimaces and looks over her shoulder nervously as she winds up almost back against the front doors, as walkers slam against them.

“Everyone, please remain calm, we mean you know harm.” The woman known as Phoebe speaks up, her voice bold yet non-threatening. She does not point her rifle towards anyone and simply holds it pointed down. “We simply would like to talk.”

“She’s right.” Dahlia nods, looking around. “I’d like to start all this from the beginning. In case any of you don’t know, my name is Dahlia Dwelton. And these… these are all people in need.”

There’s silence. Nobody is sure of what’s happening or what to say.

Warren clears his throat. “Ahm, uh… l-like invalids…?”

Dahlia stares at him, unimpressed. “Homeless. Elderly. The bottom of society. The people that were forgotten along with the world. The people who nobody bothered to look after.”

Phoebe steps forward. “My name is Phoebe. I began as a lawyer, but… I lost my job over a scandal. I lost my home the month after. And the world went to hell the month after that. But Dahlia has given me asylum. She’s given us asylum.”

She stops just as Dahlia raises a hand. “I’ve been taking care of these people in secret. They’ve been living in our basement for a year now.”

There’s a sudden outburst of gasps and murmurs, but Warren clears his throat very loudly and very awkwardly. “... e-everyone, please let her talk.”

Dahlia takes a moment, but she nods. “We’ve been non-existent… until now. Our secret has been found out. And now, desperate times call for desperate measures.”

“This is how we must live.” Phoebe adds. “We’ve decided to approach you all, and we would like to live among you.”

“There are whole families. Parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren.” Dahlia says. “We have doctors, teachers, former officers… people who had lost their jobs and suffered, but now have a chance to start anew. And this is how--”

“H-How’d you get found out.” Warren interrupts, catching Dahla off-guard. “Who, um… who found you out.”

The silence that follows is agonizingly long, as Dahlia forces herself to maintain eye contact with her boyfriend. “... Raye Pence.”

Murmurs return, and Warren feels one solitary bead of sweat trickle down his face. “... a-and where is he.” There is a pit in his stomach.

Dahlia’s emotionless expression doesn’t waver, and she looks him dead in the eye. “... I killed him.”

A brief silence.

Gasps, murmurs, and sudden commotion. Warren’s world almost stops, and he stares in disbelief at his girlfriend. His brain circles around itself, and he doesn’t realize he’s starting to shake his head.

“N… N-No…” He mutters lightly. “No, you… h-he’s…”

“I killed Raye Pence to protect them.” Dahlia explains to everyone, ignoring Warren. “I made that choice, circumstances called for it! But nobody else has to die, if you just heed us out!”

“Everyone, please calm down! Please!” Phoebe proclaims. “If you can just hear us out, we can--”

She cries out in agony as a gunshot fires, and Phoebe falls to the ground with a bullet wound in her chest.

Dahlia whirls around in shock to see Phoebe bleeding out on the floor, hearing two more gunshots. Cam and Barry collapse as well. The girl screams and drops to the ground beside Phoebe, trying to hold the woman and put pressure on her wound.

“Ph-Phoebe, shit, NO!” She screams. “Y-You’ll be fine, STAY WITH ME!”

Phoebe takes a gasp, blood pooling from her chest. She tries to speak, but coughs once. The woman manages one smile at the girl, before her face stills into non-emotion, and her body no longer moves.

Dahlia lifts her hands up and stares at the fresh blood coating her palms, Phoebe’s lifeless corpse just inches from her own person. She instantly turns to the other victims. “CAM! BARRY!”

She witnesses the older male coughing and hacking with a brutal neck wound, and the younger male spasming and holding his chest.

Tears already begin to roll down Dahlia’s face, as she stands up slowly, her look of shock and despair turning to anger as she faces the assailant.

From the back of the crowd comes Daniel, who points his pistol right at the girl. His face is red, and his expression screams infuriation.

“DANIEL, STOP THIS!!”

“DAD, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

“Is this the game you wanna play then?! HUH?!” He screams, voice cracking. He gets no response from Dahlia. “What the FUCK kinda shit is this, you bitch?!”

There are screams and shouts from some of the strangers. Commotion rises, but people are afraid to get too loud as Daniel’s screams continue.

Dahlia still glares.

“Still think you’re TOUGH SHIT?! HUH?! Is this the BITCH who can’t get shit done?? IS THIS REALLY WHAT YOU WANNA DO!?” He shrieks in absolute rage. “Fucking TALK to me bitch! Talk to me! TALK TO ME--!”

CLANG

Everyone goes silent.

Daniel drops his pistol, arms dropping to his sides. His expression of anger softens to a blank stare. Blood begins pouring down his face from his scalp. The officer wobbles forward, and drops to his knees, before falling face first to the floor, unmoving, blood puddling around him.

A large man with a disfigured face stands tall behind the body of the officer. He holds a bloody pry bar. “He was too loud.”

Dahlia’s expression softens, and she stares down at Daniel’s corpse. Sweat begins to run down her face.

Candice stutters her breaths as she chokes out a sob, and rushes towards Daniel, but Rocky struggles to hold her back. “D-Daniel, DANIEL!”

“Mom, NO!” Rocky shouts, tears running down his own face as he stares at his deceased paternal figure. “J-Just don’t look…! DON’T LOOK!”

Candice continues to scream Daniel’s name in despair, before she collapses to her knees sobbing. Rocky drops next to her and embraces her tight.

Everyone else simply stares in shock.

“Dammit Bob…” Dahlia mumbles, feeling anger rise once more. She wipes away her remaining tears. “Okay then. Initiate plan B.”

The tall man, Bob, picks up a rifle and turns, aiming at people. A couple of other people pick up the remaining rifles and start to herd everyone into corners.

Dahlia raises a hand. “No, before we do anything… I want you three.” She points right at Chad, Erika, and Oliver.

The couple glares at her from the crowd, trying to stay hidden behind people, but Virgil steps in front of Oliver. “What the fuck do you want, you crazy bitch.”

“Bob, I’d like you to round everyone up and take them downstairs.” Dahlia commands. “Jesse, take those three to the boiler room, keep them separate. And lastly…” She points her pistol at Kylie, having spotted her. The girl gasps. “You’re coming with me. I’ve got questions for you.”

“DAMMIT!” Chad punches at two men grabbing him and Erika, and the girl shrieks as they’re forcefully taken down and pulled away into the crowd.

Oliver looks around frantically before he’s grabbed by a few men. “SHIT-- Virgil, VIRGIL!”

“NO! You leave him alone, DON’T TOUCH HIM!” Virgil tries to run after Oliver, but the young man is dragged off with Chad and Erika as a few other strangers hold the man back.

Kylie trembles as Dahlia’s pistol presses against her temple. “You’re coming. With me.”

“W-Why do you--” Kylie shuts up as soon as Dahlia clicks the trigger, pushing harder into her. The girl obliges and turns her back on the others, following Dahlia.

The girl grumbles angrily. “I thought daybreak would be better…”

Warren can only stare in disbelief.

An older man is crouched by Daniel’s body with medical equipment.

His friends are being grabbed and taken away, and those who are armed are taken by force.

The tall man, Bob, grabs his arm and yanks him ahead, pulling him down the hall against his will. But Warren doesn’t fight back.

His mind repeatedly wanders to the fact that his best friend, Raye Pence, is dead.

Daniel kicks open the door to Parker’s office and bring the man in quickly, angrily yanking him along by the arm as the council follows, Dahlia in tow.

“Dammit, sit down!” The officer shoves the stranger into a seat and draws his pistol, aiming it at him. “Start fucking talking.”

“D-Don’t shoot!” The man pleads.

“Daniel.” Parker says. “Calm.”

Daniel looks over at him, then sighs and holsters his gun. “Who are you and why the hell are you here.”

The man looks up at Daniel, then glances to Dahlia. The girl nervously nods, fidgeting where she stands. He sighs. “Okay, um… my name is Roger. Roger Mulligan. I’m just… a guy, trying to survive, I found the university while running from the dead. Didn’t think I was even going this way.”

“Yeah, well, you shoulda gone elsewhere.” Daniel mutters. “We can’t trust outsiders.”

“Mr. Noire, please--” Dahlia is cut off by Daniel’s palm being put in front of her.

The man glares. “Stay out of this, you’re the reason we’re all worked up in the first place.”

Dahlia opens her mouth to continue, but her nerves overtake her, and she goes silent again. Daniel looks over to the council, who remain silent.

“C’mon, it’s pretty damn obvious what we gotta do here.” The officer says.

“It’s up to us to decide, as a council.” Parker says calmly. “We’ll take a vote--”

“Fuck the vote, Blaine!” Daniel argues. “There’s no question here, we trusted this bitch on watch, and she already brought someone inside. We gotta focus on us, fuck everyone else!”

Before Parker can respond, Daniel shoves his pistol into Dahlia’s hand, and forces her to point it right at Roger’s head. The man leans back in fear.

“Go on then, your problem, you solve it.” Daniel mutters. “Shoot him.”

Parker steps forward. “Daniel, this is--!”

“This is MY CALL Blaine!” Daniel shouts. “Go on, girl, shoot him in the face.”

Dahlia’s hand trembles, her finger resting on the trigger. She looks right into Roger’s eyes. “... I-I’m sorry.” Her arm lowers. “I can’t… I can’t kill someone. Killing people isn’t me.”

Roger exhales a sigh of relief. “... i-it’s okay, I get the message. I’ll leave, I mean it.”

There’s another bout of silence, before Daniel motions for Dahlia to return his gun. She eyes him wearily and places it back in his palm. He adjusts it in his hand, before pointing it and firing a round into Roger’s skull.

Dahlia shrieks as blood blows out the man’s head, and his body falls to the side. She’s too focused on the man’s corpse to hear what Parker is shouting, as he confronts Daniel. She hears the shouting but not what they’re saying, she watches as Timmons and Gardens begin to move the body, both looking shocked and unsure, and a blood stain to be forever etched into the carpet remains damp on the floor.

Other Cast
Special Guest Stars
 * Don Cheadle as Roger Mulligan
 * Nathan Kress as Raye Pence
 * Christina Applegate as Kate Gardens
 * Michelle Ang as Caroline
 * Sarah Bolger as Melanie
 * Jack Colebern as Victor Timmons
 * Hugo Armstrong as Peter Holmes

Co-Stars

 * Rekha Sharma as Pam Anderson
 * Camryn Manheim as Candice Noire
 * Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Kenneth Jameson
 * Eve Harlow as Grace Grimmett
 * Jennifer Carpenter as Melissa Brooke
 * Dalton Gray as Jack
 * RJ Cyler as Trevor
 * John Rubenstein as Percival Nole
 * Leonard Roberts as Bob
 * Jackson Pace as Marcus Turner
 * Kelley Mack as Anna Belle
 * Joe Ando Hirsch as Giro Welsch
 * Dallas Roberts as Colton Drake

Uncredited

 * Thomas Crawford as Barry
 * John Bain as Cam
 * Unknown as Jesse
 * Tiffany Morgan as Olivia Dent

Deaths

 * Giro Welsch
 * Marcus Turner
 * Anna Belle
 * Phoebe
 * Barry
 * Cam
 * Daniel Noire
 * Roger Mulligan (Flashback, Confirmed Fate)
 * Numerous unnamed university survivors.

Trivia

 * First appearance of Natania Lee.
 * First appearance of Percival Nole.
 * First appearance of Trevor.
 * First appearance of William Knight.
 * First appearance of Grace Grimmett.
 * First appearance of Jack.
 * First appearance of Melissa Brooke.
 * Melissa was auditioned by JtheAlphabetBoy, making her the third instance of a character created by another user making an appearance in the series.
 * First appearance of Bob.
 * First appearance of Jesse.
 * First (and last) appearance of Roger Mulligan. (Flashback)
 * First (and last) appearance of Phoebe.
 * First (and last) appearance of Marcus Turner.
 * First (and last) appearance of Anna Belle.
 * First (and last) appearance of Giro Welsch.
 * First (and last) appearance of Barry.
 * First (and last) appearance of Cam.
 * Last appearance of Caroline. (Flashback)
 * Last appearance of Melanie. (Flashback)
 * Last appearance of Raye Pence. (Flashback)
 * Last appearance of Kate Gardens. (Flashback)
 * Last appearance of Victor Timmons. (Flashback)
 * Last appearance of Peter Holmes. (Flashback)
 * Last appearance of Daniel Noire.
 * Daniel is the second main character to die.
 * This was an extended episode.
 * The title of this episode refers to Dahlia's quote after the Homeless are forced to take everyone hostage, "I thought daybreak would be better".