chapter 52
disclaimer: I OWN nothing, any resemblance to existing stories is unintended.
Cold sweat trickled down the side of Charlotte's face as she slowly opened the door to the first landing she had come to. She breathed a sigh of relief when the only things that met her were a rush of damp, stale air and darkness.
She took a deep breath and crept forward, allowing her eye to adjust to the newfound darkness. She slowly made her way down the hall, peering in every door as she went. Finally, when she got to the last door, a slew of weapons greeted her, the light from the door's small window gleaming off their barrels.
Suddenly, about ten or so impacts hit the door, causing her to jump back in fear. 'Shit!' she cursed under her breath, there looked to be about twenty or so walkers locked in the armory. They must have been attacked trying to grab the weapons.
Then, she had an idea, she tried the door and found it unlocked, she gripped the handle, and with all her strength, flung the door open, hiding herself behind it and flung the broken chair leg down the hallway. With a collective groan, the walker herd started down after it.
It seemed like an eternity until they were far enough away to allow her to slip into the armory. She stood there for a moment, allowing her eye to adjust to the darkness. Her hard leapt as a small arsenal of weapons met her gaze. Rifles, pistols, bullets, knives, axes, anything a person could think of or want was here. She grabbed a large duffle bag and started piling shit into it.
Daryl went first, dropping lightly down into the upper layers of the underground compound. The smell of death and blood hung heavy in the stale, damp air and his innards sank with dread. He hoped like hell that Charlotte hadn't been one of the casualties, he didn't know what he would do if she was.
He could feel himself panicking at the very thought of it, something very unlike him … Daryl Dixon, the hunter, the survivalist, with nerves of steel. He sighed inwardly, it was time he face it. When it came to her he was putty in her hands and he wouldn't admit it to anyone but himself ... but he was starting to like it that way. He couldn't even remember how his life was before she came into it, but one thing he did know is that he sure as hell didn't want to go back either.
After loading as many weapons and ammo as she would be able to carry, and after finding her own weapons, Charlotte cautiously cracked the door open and peeked out. Her eye was used to the dim light now and she didn't see anything, so, with machetes at the ready, she set out up the stairs, hopefully to freedom.
She reached the top and was met with a door … the only problem was that this door had no window, so there was no way to know what lay on the other side. So there she stood, wondering what she should do. She could throw open the door and hide behind … but she had nothing left to throw and the stairway would act like a bottle neck for any walkers. She didn't know if she could stay hidden long enough for them all to file down the stairs if there were too many of them.
She stayed there for what seemed like an eternity, weighing her options, then as if deciding for her, she heard them before she could see them, a herd of walkers was coming up the stairs after her. They must have followed her scent, gathering numbers as they went. She had no choice now, it was either try the door or stay and be walker chow. So, after taking a deep breath and saying a quick prayer, she wrenched open the door and slipped through.
There were a few walkers in the upper level, but nothing she couldn't dispatch easily with her machetes. She had to be quick, the heavy bag was starting to weigh her down, she could feel herself start to fatigue. As she approached the last corner, she stopped and rested her head against the cool stone wall, her legs were on fire and she was sweating profusely despite the damp chilly air of the underground facility.
She was so close! She had to push herself just a little more, she was almost out! Then, dread filled her, she heard footsteps echoing down the hallway, but they weren't walkers … they were something much, much worse … living people.
Author's Note: Hello all, I hope everyone had a blessed and happy thanksgiving, I am sorry in taking so long to post this … but since I will be home for a few days, I am going to try to give you guys another two-fer : )
