Author's Note:

I decided to post a new chapter early! I know this probably isn't how it went down, but I wanted to create my own way of everyone from the camp meeting up. I hope you guys enjoy!

Chapter 3

Kida had finished first shift on watch around 2 in the morning when Shane took over. They hadn't really been prepared with camping equipment so everyone pretty much slept in their own cars. Charlie took the entire back seat on Kida's jeep and was snoring softly when she quietly opened the door. Adrienne had the passenger seat pushed all the way back over Charlie's legs and curled up on her side facing the window. There wasn't anywhere left for Kida to sleep without disturbing Charlie, so she opened the trunk of the jeep liberty and lay out on as much of the area she could. Sleep didn't come easily for her, that was for sure.

She awoke with her legs dangling over the opened trunk and the car shaking from the movement inside. The sun was already out and everyone was getting a start to the day. T-Dog was on watch on top of his van and Lori was by the fire making breakfast with Carol for everyone, except Shane who was still asleep and snoring loudly in his jeep. They had made it through a night without any incidents, which was a good sign. Maybe things weren't too bad after all and all of this shit wouldn't last so long.

A sleepy Charlie emerged from the car and stretched is lanky frame out. "That was the worst night of sleep. Ever," he grumbled.

"Couldn't tell from you taking up the entire fucking seat and snoring all night," Kida shot back at him, a playful tone in her voice.

"Shit. I could've moved if you woulda woken me up."

"Oh please. Waking you is like waking the dead… figuratively speaking of course," Adrienne said from behind him. She was right, once Charlie was asleep he was out until he woke up on his own or you literally shake him awake.

"We'll need tents, sleeping bags, blankets, pillows…" Lori began to list off. "If whatever is going on doesn't stop we'll be camping out quite a bit it seems."

"I've never been camping until now," Carl said quietly beside her. He hung his head in sadness and picked at the breakfast his mother had made.

"Well then you're in for a treat. Tonight we'll do camping the right way, alright?" Kida grinned at him to try and cheer him up. A small smile tugged at his lips and she took the opportunity to ruffle his hair. "Once Shane is up we'll make a plan for the day."

Morales took over watch for T-Dog after he had finished breakfast and Shane had awakened. There was a group meeting surrounding T-Dog's van to decide how the day would go and where they would move on to. Luckily, Ed Peletier had a map. Kida's inventory of guns and ammo was taken into account and it was decided that a small group of four would make a trip to a small nearby town with T-Dog's van and Kida's jeep to get camping gear and supplies for the group. Since Shane and Kida had the most extensive knowledge with weapons, it was decided that both would go. T-Dog and Morales knew how to use guns as well and they volunteered to accompany them as well.

"I'm fast. I think I should go. I can use a gun if I have to, but I think it's best to leave at least one person here that knows how to use a gun to protect the group. What if those things come through here?" Glenn suggested.

Kida nodded in agreement. She didn't want to leave defenseless people alone "Charlie knows how to use a gun. He's been shooting for years. He can protect the group. Morales, you up for sticking around and helping keep an eye out? Charlie can take watch awhile."

"Sounds good to me. I'm sure my wife would love it if I stayed behind anyway," he agreed.

"Alright then. T-Dog, Glenn, Shane, and I will go. T-Dog, you and Glenn take your van and follow Shane and I. We need to get a list of what we need," she told all of them.

Glenn left the circle to talk to Lori about making a list. Once she wrote what she, Shane, and Carl needed, the Peletier family was next. Ed decided to take charge and wrote mainly what he wanted down, making Glenn roll his eyes and write a few things down on his own for Carol and Sophia as well as what he and T-Dog needed. The Morales family gave their input and Glenn brought the list back to Kida to get what she, Adrienne, and Charlie needed. The list was already pretty long. They were going to have to make at least two trips.

"Alright guys, what do we need?" Kida asked the James siblings.

"A pillow," Charlie said immediately. Kida chuckled and wrote down camping and sleeping supplies.

"Water. We didn't think to bring any food or water. We got lucky that others did and were willing to share," Adrienne pointed out.

"That's good," Kida agreed. She wrote a few things she thought the group needed as whole before folding up the list and shoving it in the pocket of her uniform. "Listen guys, I'm going to a small town a few miles away with Shane, T-Dog, and Glenn. We'll be gone awhile and I need you guys to hang tight. Charlie, you and Morales are in charge of making sure the camp is safe. That gun I gave you yesterday, keep it on you at all times. Same goes for you Adrienne." They both nodded. "I love you guys. I will be back soon."

The three of them joined in a group hug and Kida pulled the bag of guns from her trunk. She handed Morales a shot gun while Shane gave Lori a small handgun to protect her and Carl and with if something were to happen. Off to the side, Ed Peletier huffed and rolled his eyes. They all agreed to keep the guns away from him, he seemed way too unstable. She took the bag of guns back to her car and distributed a few to the group that would be traveling. She had her own gun holstered on her hip and her favorite rifle in the front seat of her jeep. Shane had his own gun as well and took a rifle that had been from the bag he had brought along. They all agreed it would be best to keep all weapons together. Kida rummaged through the bag and handed T-Dog his own gun and a shot gun to Glenn.

"We all have knives on us. If there is only one, we take them out with a knife. Noise attracts more," Shane reminded them.

A half an hour later they arrived in the town. It was quiet, small, and looked relatively untouched. They parked their cars toward the entrance of the town and decided to split up into two groups, one for food and other necessities and the other for camping and other supplies. It was ultimately decided that Kida take Glenn for food while Shane and T-Dog went for the larger and heavier supplies. Since Glenn couldn't use a gun well, they stayed close together the entire time.

"Hey, look!" he whispered after a few minutes of walking. He had spotted a convenience store.

"Shit! Good looking out Glenn. They will have food, water, feminine shit, and even gas! I have a gas can in my trunk somewhere," she said with a large grin. The place looked like no one had even touched it.

Kida looked around quickly to make sure everything was all clear and saw only one walker near the store. She snuck up behind it and stabbed it before they approached the store. The automatic doors slid open and they stepped inside. The lights were all still on and it was completely empty. This entire town was too quiet. She stepped quietly behind the counter and peaked in the backroom, where she spotted a door slightly open. She tried to stealthily creep toward it, but Glenn kicked over a glass bottle nearby. A sound stirred from behind the door and one of those monsters made its way toward them.

"Holy shit!" Glenn whispered, pointing his shot gun and the approaching beast.

"STOP!" Kida called before running up to the monster.

It lunged forward and took her down to the ground, it falling with her. She struggled for a moment before she managed to get the upper hand on it. She rolled on top of it, making sure to pin the arms down with her knees. The guttural sounds that emerged from its mouth disgusted her. It snapped and tried to bite her, but she had grabbed her knife just in time to plunge it into the monster's head. She'd learned when it all started that they don't go down without a headshot. When she stood up, Glenn stared at her with amazement. It was clear he hadn't had to kill one of the things yet.

"Holy shit," he said again.

"Holy shit is right. Never shoot unless you have to. Sound draws more, and then we'd be stuck in here," she told him. His expression turned grim at the thought of more of those things around. "It's ok Glenn, it was just one. We're ok."

"What are those things?" he asked, quietly staring at the corpse.

"I don't know," she sighed.

"It doesn't feel right calling them monsters. I mean, I know that's what they are now. Whatever they are… but they were people 24 hour ago. No different than us. Hell, we could be them right now if we hadn't been so lucky," he told her sadly. He was right, she had been thinking the exact same thing when she and Shane took down one of those things in the woods before they set up camp.

"Maybe we should give them a name," Kida suggested. She hated calling them monsters too and Glenn's revelation made her realize that.

"Zombies?"

"Too unoriginal."

"Flesh-eaters?"

"May as well be calling those fuckers monsters."

"What about… Walkers? They are literally dead people walking," he suggested. The name couldn't have been more perfect.

"Walkers. Like the walking dead. Sounds perfect to me," she reassured him. She watched him smile to himself at this new accomplishment and couldn't help but grin herself. "Now let's go get some supplies before Shane and T-Dog find us and we're empty handed. If you find spaghetti-o's or teriyaki jerky, they're mine"

Kida, Glenn, Shane, and T-Dog loaded up the supplies into the separate cars and celebrated their win. They had gotten even more than they had anticipated and even managed to snag some extra stuff from empty stores nearby. They had plenty of camping equipment for every family loaded up in T-Dog's van, tons of supplies and cooking ware in Kida's jeep, and they managed to snag some gas for the two gas cans they had after filling up their own vehicles.

Their celebration, however, came to a halt when they heard the loud roar of a motorcycle and other vehicles coming toward them. They closed the doors to their cars and stood in front of them as a group, ready to defend themselves and the supplies if needed. The motorcycle stopped a few feet away from them and was followed by a pickup truck, RV, and two other cars. The man on the motorcycle turned the engine off and dismounted it, taking his sunglasses off and approaching them slowly.

"Well, well, well. What do we got here?" he said with a large, toothy grin. His southern accent was thick and he towered at least a foot over her. She saw Shane twitch next to her and slowly move his hand toward his gun.

"Mr. Dixon," a voice called out behind the man riding the motorcycle. The door to the RV opened and an older man stepped out followed by two blonde women. He had a salt and pepper speckled beard and hair hidden under a fisherman hat. A kind smile was spread across his face. "Don't be rude, we found survivors!"

Everything is starting to come together! A friendship is beginning to form between Kida and Glenn and some familiar faces are showing up now. Please review and let me know what you think! Reviews will help me out tremendously and motivate me more to pump out new chapters sooner.