Disclaimer: I do not own anything of The Walking Dead.
This first chapter was written in collaboration with my friend. Enjoy!
1: Misguided Ghosts
A gray sky covered the dense woods casting an ominous mood across them. The sound of footsteps was the only thing heard as they moved their way towards whatever shelter they could find next. Melanie Snow and Charlotte Levi, Charlie for short, had been friends since before the outbreak that started the epidemic of flesh-eating growlers; traveling together through it all, along with Charlie's dog Nelson.
"We need to find shelter soon, it's getting late." Melanie said.
"I know, why can't we just stumble upon a random shed or something." Charlie replied sarcastically. "Although I'm pretty sure only a murderer would have a shed this deep in the forest."
Charlie wished they could just travel along the road, it was easier. They were able to keep a better sense of direction there and more likely to run across shelter. But after what happened with the last group they were a part of, avoiding other humans was the best course of action.
A familiar feeling of dread hung over her, maybe it's the weather, she reasoned with herself hoping that was the case.
The wooded area seemed endless with no shelter in sight, only running into growlers every other moment. Luckily their numbers were not overwhelming.
"We need to rest Charlie, it's been two days since we've gotten any sleep." Melanie stopped, forcing Charlie to look at her. She knew Melanie was right, they had to conserve their energy as the long days of heat would eventually catch up with them. Their supply of water was often slim.
They came upon a large oak tree, throwing down their things. Both leaned on the trunk for support, it was the best comfort they could find in the outdoors. Melanie let out a loud sigh, Charlie turned around looking at her. She had her eyes shut and head leaned back against the tree. She could see the bags under her eyes and dark circles growing.
"I'll take first watch." Charlie said, pulling her bow off her back and placing it at her side.
Melanie smiled appreciatively at her friend, peeling herself from the tree, unrolling the sleeping bag from her backpack. Nelson moved over to curl up at her side. While Melanie settled into the sleeping bag Charlie slowly circled the tree, scoping the area for any growlers that could happen upon them, or even worse, other people.
So far just a couple of squirrels scampered by quickly. She readied her bow as quickly as she could, missing both. She cursed silently to herself, stretching her hand just in front of her. There was the slightest tremble in her hands.
"Don't worry, we still have some food, you should eat something Charlie." Melanie who was nestled comfortably inside her sleeping bag, sat up to retrieve her canister of water. She rolled it over to her friend who began to put up a fight. Charlie knew Melanie was in a weaker state mentally. She had to keep her going with food and anything that kept her endorphins as high as she had not yet recovered from the trauma that forced them out of their last group.
"I get what you're doing but I'll be okay, at least finish my water," Melanie stayed upright just staring at Charlie, "we have a few more bottles."
Charlie sighed, reaching down for the water. Melanie didn't lay back down until she saw her drink from it, but not without giving her a look of exasperation.
"Happy?" Charlie poked at Melanie, even though the water felt electrifying going into her dehydrated body. She wouldn't admit just how much needed it. Melanie rolled her eyes with a smile, burrowing back into her sleeping bag. It was only a few minutes after did Charlie heard her friend's light snores.
The night seemed to drag on slowly, she knew she needed sleep but she couldn't bring herself to wake her friend. Charlie watched their surroundings carefully looking for any signs of trouble. There were sounds of trees moving and branches snapping but it was mostly small animals and the evening wind. She looked up at the sky, the starry night peeking through the branches. She had always appreciated the night sky even before everything fell apart. It was odd how everything could turn so ugly but the stars remained as beautiful as ever up in the sky.
She was pulled out of her thoughts as she heard the familiar sound of growlers groaning, two maybe three she thought. She stood up, hatchet at the ready pulling her flashlight off her belt, making quick work of the growlers. She looked over her shoulder to find Melanie sound asleep. It was an exhausting day of travel for the pair. She breathed a sigh of relief turning the light off not wanting to waste the battery.
She moved back towards the tree. Suddenly a pair of hands grabbed onto her lunging her forward, she let out a scream of fright as she turned around to push the growler off of her. She fell to the ground struggling, the large oak tree obstructing her sight from the light of the moon. She grabbed her hatchet off her belt and began chopping, chopping at it until it went limp.
"Charlotte?!" she heard Melanie's concerned voice as Nelson moved to her side licking her face in concern. Melanie was out of the sleeping bag, her knife out and ready.
"I'm okay!" Charlie shouted back. "I just almost died, it's fine." Melanie let out a frustrated sigh as she helped pull the growler off of her.
"You should have woken me up." Melanie scolded her.
"It's all over, we're good." she replied nonchalantly. As she finished that sentence they heard more growling and shuffling through leaves.
"Spoke to soon." They turned and Charlie pulled out the flashlight tossing it to Melanie. She shined it on the surrounding trees only to show growler after growler closing in on them. They looked at each other in panic. Charlie moved to grab her bow knocking an arrow and releasing it into the head of the one closest to them. Melanie grabbed the pistol at her side taking aim at them. Charlie looked behind her only to see more approaching.
"Melanie." She heard Charlie say in a low voice, looking over at the group that was closing in on them. Melanie could only give her a look of worry.
Charlie turned around just as one lunged for her, pushing her to the ground. She wrestled to get it off while Melanie executed as many as she could. Nelson whimpered, dodging every single one that reached for him. All of a sudden Charlie felt her belly turn as the ground beneath her disappeared.
"No, no, no!" she screamed. Before she knew it she was falling and tumbling, a scream of horror coming out of her.
"Charlotte!" Melanie yelled after her, her friend's voice falling farther away from her.
With a loud crack the falling stopped, everything hurt and her head spun. Charlie struggled to keep consciousness when suddenly she felt the heavy weight of a growler. The sound of its snapping teeth filled her with terror, this is it, was all she could think as she felt herself drift into darkness.
Melanie looked over to where she last saw Charlie, seeing neither her or Nelson. Her heart dropped as she looked over the steep hill. It was one big trap with twisted vines and limbs from the old oak trees; hidden snake holes, and small ditches. Nelson's barking filled the air, echoing downwards and away from where she stood.
"Charlotte?!" Her hands shook uncontrollably, failing to get her weapons steady. A growler darts for her but she hits him with the butt of her knife to put room between them before plunging the blade into his head.
She takes a few steps back, trying to avert her eyes in every direction. Growlers appear from every which way when she sees a small clearing. Melanie darts for it, sliding between two growlers.
She falls down the hill, feeling a sharp thing, most likely a broken branch, rip into her skin on her forearm. Immediately the sensation of warm blood drips down. She reaches out for anything to grab onto before a tangle of roots stop her, the abrupt stop sends a shock of pain through in her ankles. Her heart races a mile a minute, growlers begin to fall to the left and right of her. She bares her feet onto anything that will hold her as she makes the climb down, her arm pulsing with pain. What was probably only a minute felt like an eternity before she makes it to the bottom.
Nelson runs to her barking, snapping at growlers. Their already dead limbs in a tangle, broken off from the fall. Melanie looks up the hill, maybe 20 feet or more, at the top are more growlers, the glow of the moon behind them.
"Charlie?" Melanie struggles to call out for her friend, reaching for her flashlight. She hits the side of it trying to make the light brighter when it flashes over Charlotte, about a yard away from her, laying limp with a dead growler splayed across her legs. Nelson yaps and cries relentlessly. His distress only aggravating and attracting more growlers as they continue to surround the area. Creeping from behind the large trees; a mass of the dead things is in their midst. Melanie makes a swift motion to get over to her friend.
She kneels over her, Charlotte's covered in cuts and nicks. Her ankle looks to be swelling up. Melanie looks over her, the fresh blood seeping through her friend's shirt sends a chill down her spine. Nelson's barking rings her attention before she realizes it's moving farther away. She calls out to him with no success, his tail falls in her sight as he runs away from them.
Melanie grabs her head, feeling it spin in her hands. She is unsure if her friend has suffered any other injuries like one to her head or back. Even worse, she's not sure if her friend has been bitten.
Think Melanie.
Behind her she hears thud after thud as the growlers continue to follow her path down the hill, most lose their ability to walk but not enough.
A pained groan comes faintly from Charlotte's throat.
"Go."
Melanie frowns looking down at her, shaking her head fervently against her command. "I'm not leaving you here." Melanie wraps her hand around the back of Charlotte's head, the motion alone causes her to cry out.
"Run Mel." Her tone is demanding through the layer of pain she's surely feeling.
"I can move you, we can hide until they pass."
All of a sudden voices that are not their own permeate the air, forcing Melanie into a frantic search, looking for anything to get the two of them out.
"I don't hear any dog just a damn herd closing in." They both hear a man yell to someone.
Charlie grunts in anger, "get out."
Her fighting words seem to take everything out of her. Everything begins to move in slow motion all the while Melanie's mind is racing for an escape plan.
A growler comes up behind her, she stands up pushing him down, aiming a bullet through his head. A few more stagger towards them, the only clear light is the flash that follows with each shot of her gun. The voice of one man seems to quiet as he hears shots fire from Melanie's gun. She looks around, unable to see where he is.
The amount of growlers is too much to control in time for her to get Charlotte to safety, the voices have moved away from the herd but neither can be sure where the man has gone. Melanie wipes away the hot tears that trickle down her cheeks.
She feels a thump at her ankle, she looks down and sees Charlotte using all her might to ball up her fist, pushing it against her.
"Leave!" She tries to yell.
Another growler reaches for Melanie, she beats its head with the end of her flashlight until he falls before another runs to her, she shoots it. Melanie throws what dead ones she can over Charlotte, smearing their blood over her friend's cheeks and clothes in an attempt to mask her from the others who have seemed to take shelter amidst the dark wooded area.
She stares at Charlotte for another second before forcing herself to her feet. Charlotte looks at Melanie, screaming on the inside for her to go though the fear of being alone draws tears out of her own eyes.
"Hey!" One of the men yells angrily.
Before she can comprehend a direction her legs begin to move, everything around her blurs into one picture. Suddenly a loud pop goes off and a bullet penetrates the ground just feet away from Melanie. She looks in the direction of a shadowed man. She keeps running, hearing the hollowed popping of a gun but his bullets miss her.
Trees begin to blend together, the starry sky above her moves with long streaks of white as she runs faster, weaving her way outside of the herd. She looks back and watches growlers follow, some continue towards the man, others disperse.
She makes a hard right, sighting a small burrow, hidden mostly by branches and other dead foliage. She readies to hide herself in the small area when the voices of several people pierce her ear.
"Don't let her outta your sight!" One demands. She looks back and two of them are gaining on her. Melanie does her best not to panic, her footsteps pressed hard into the ground as she tries to speed up. A growler appears from behind a tree and Melanie ducks under his outstretched arm, pushing it towards the pair. It latches onto one of them and his screams are sent into the night air. Birds flee a nearby tree from the sudden sound.
Just lose the other guy. Melanie thinks to herself. She feels him at the heel of her feet when he's able to reach for her shoulder, whipping her around.
Melanie spins on the heels of her feet and they land on the ground, she falls into his lap. She turns around with her arm around his neck and shoves the palm of her hand upwards against his nose, the sound of his yell mimics that of his comrade. She fumbles away from him, reaching for her gun. He laughs maniacally as he watches her shaking hands struggle to hold it steady, clicking the safety off. Blood gushes from his nose staining his teeth and chin.
"You already got one of us, you kill me too he'll never stop lookin' for you." Melanie shakes her head, the sound of her own ragged breathing booms inside of her ears, her head spins as she struggles with her inner self.
"My family." Melanie breathes out. The man laughs, Melanie blinks her unfocused eyes.
"D.J.!" A third voice yells at them. Her instinct takes over and Melanie bolts, continuing away from them.
"You can't hide from him!" The man who was called D.J., threatened. She ignored him, waiting to feel the third man just on her tail. Melanie didn't dare look back, she made the quick decision to change her direction, sliding down a smaller hill continuing to run as long she could. She isn't sure how far she's run when she spots a fallen tree trunk acting as some sort of wall. Making the quick decision to move behind it, she nestles herself under it as far as she can, lying flat on her stomach. Small puffs of dust form above the dirt ground as she breathes in and out of her nose. She feels the terrible shake in her hand, pressing it tightly over her mouth.
Minutes turn into an hour or so she can only assume. She listened desperately for voices, fear churning deep in her stomach with every crack of a twig or rustle in the foliage near by. Her uneven breathing regulates as time continues on into the thick of the night. The familiar sounds from creatures of the night and evening breeze live around her. Charlotte fills her mind and Melanie could only imagine the agony those men would in sue if they found her.
Melanie sits up, leaning her back against the rough bark, bringing her knees tightly to her chest and burying her face into them. The once alarming feelings dissipate as her cries begin to fill the open air, the strain pulling at her vocal chords.