His own hands; a canvas of browns, faded purples, and stark, hot blood; fresh and dripping. The evidence of a war lies before them; and all Daryl can do is wipe his paws on a corpse.
His apathy cannot protect him from himself, however; as he turns; a weighted glance to Rick, turning into a painful stare. His words are enough to give Daryl nightmares; but he won’t think about that right now.
❝ Shh, ❞ he tells him; a reckless serenade in pallid moonlight; crooks to his knees causing him to crouch by his side. An arm drapes around his drooping shoulders; a bid to calm him.
This was it. The never ending war inside of the broken man’s mind. Oh, how his mind now forced him to realise he was not fighting in the noble war. That was enough to kill a man.
He stares ahead, gazing into red, until he realises his fellow soldier is by his side. Red slowly starts to disappear. Icy orbs look to the man, begging him to stop the misery and the cruelty that is constant inside his head. He just wants it to stop.
He doesn’t utter another word. Instead, he reaches out to paw at the man’s face, smudging red across his jaw line. He knows that he’s the only one that can make the m a d n e s s stop.