A/N: I would like to take a moment and direct your attention to a good friend of mine. He is currently writing a Halo/Walking Dead Crossover called Second Wind. Go check him out and give him your support!
Disclaimer: I do not own Telltale's The Walking Dead, only my character.
Macon, Georgia
July 21st, 1826 Local Time, 2003
Kenny's blue truck slowly made its way around crashed vehicles and fallen debris that had cluttered the road. Its passengers looked surprised at how quick the devastation had affected the small town. As they made their way further into the town, the truck slowly crawled to a stop and let out one last fume before dying.
"Dammit, outta gas." Kenny informed the others. "Looks like we're walking."
As Kenny and his family exited the vehicle, Clementine grabbed Zoey's arm, stopping her from doing the same for a moment.
"Zoey, what are going to do now?" She nervously asked her caretaker.
Zoey gave her a reassuring smile. "We're going to try and look around for another car Clem, then we can keep driving. Don't worry, I'll be right next to you the entire time, ok?"
Clementine, although still nervous, grew slightly more optimistic about the situation. So long as she had Zoey, then they would be ok. Giving Zoey a nod, she released her arm allowing her to get out.
Zoey helped Clementine out of the truck before brandishing her M4, ready for anything. Closing the door, she and Clementine jogged the short distance between them and Kenny's family, quickly catching up.
"Alright here's the plan. Let's take a look around, see if we can find a working vehicle. If not, then we're just gonna have to walk." Kenny instructed the group.
"Remember, keep it quiet. We don't want to alert any walkers. If one does try to get you, just find somewhere to hide." Zoey added.
The group nodded in agreement at the plan. Although it was a simple short term plan, it was one they could commit to with ease. Walking down the road, they kept a firm look on their surroundings, making sure there were no walkers that could sneak up on them.
As they turned the corner onto the drug store, Katjaa motioned for them to come to her. When they did, they saw her point down the street towards what appeared to be a man crouching behind a car. Kenny took a step in his direction, but Zoey extended an arm to stop him. He was just about to ask what she was doing until she shook her head and pointed towards something else.
A few feet away from the car was a walker that was in the process of eating a corpse. Kenny, realizing what a big mistake he was about to make, nodded to Zoey in thanks. Just as Zoey was about to point in another direction that they would walk, the group saw the door to the drugstore open. Out stepped an Asian man with a ball cap and Caucasian woman wearing a dress.
The Caucasian woman waved them over and opened the gate blocking the door, allowing them inside. Once all five were through, she closed the gate and relocked it before reentering the store and shutting the door.
"What the hell were you thinking?! I told you NOT to open that door whatsoever!" A female voice yelled in a soft manner.
The woman in the dress scowled at her compatriot. "Oh yeah? So what should we have done, let them go on only to get killed later?" She countered.
The other female pointed an accusing finger at Zoey's group. "We don't know who the HELL these people are! For all we know, they could be bandits, or worse, murders!"
Zoey narrowed her eyes in disgust at the other woman. It had only been ten or so seconds and she was already starting to despise her. "Sorry to burst your bubble lady, but we're not killers! We have kids for god's sake!"
Another person by the front door, a tall, older, and more overweight man gave them an untrusting look. "So what? You think we can take care of you or something? You look like you're doing just fine as it is girly." He insulted.
The older man's demeaning comments made Zoey's blood boil. I guess not everyone will be so willing to accommodate. Even worse, their assholes about it. Zoey thought.
"Keep talking old man, I'm the one with the rifle." Zoey replied as she gripped her M4 even tighter.
The older man grit his teeth as he stared down the much younger female. What brought Zoey's attention away from the old man's aggressiveness was Clementine slipping her hand into hers. When Zoey looked down at her, she saw that Clementine had a slightly pained look on her face.
Deciding that her girl was more important than the stare down she was having, she ignored the bigger man for the time being.
"What is it Clem?" She asked the girl, her mood going from angry to calm instantaneously.
"I need to pee." She informed her. Zoey nodded before looking around and eventually spotting a door that marked the store's restroom.
"Ok, let's go then." She said before turning to Kenny. "I'm gonna take her to the restroom. Hold these buggers off for a sec, will ya?"
Kenny gave her a nod. "Will do. Be quick though." He replied.
With that settled, the two made their way to the restroom door. Clementine reached for the handle and was just about to open it before Zoey stopped her.
"Let's make sure there's nothing in there, yeah?" She confidently asked, making sure to not worry the girl. Seeing the caution behind her words, Clementine nodded and took a step back from the door. Zoey then gave the door a few knocks and waited for a reaction on the other side.
To her credit, something began to bang on the other side of the door, occasionally letting out growls of hunger. "Bingo." She muttered to herself. "Clem, get back, I'll take care of this."
Once Clem was a safe distance from the door, Zoey slung her rifle and pulled out her bat. In one swift motion, she opened the door and immediately jumped back as a walker fell through the now open doorway. Without wasting another second, she swung her bat as hard as she could onto the fallen corpse, crushing its head. After a few extra swings, the walker's head had completely caved in and it ceased to move.
Although the stench on the creature was horrid, Zoey dragged the corpse out of the way giving Clementine the chance to use the restroom. Clementine stopped for a moment and looked at Zoey expectantly. Zoey playfully rolled her eyes and followed Clementine inside, mainly to make sure nothing happened whilst she was in there.
"Zoey, are they going to kick us out?" Clementine asked, worried about their current predicament.
Zoey shook her head at the idea. "No, they're not. And if they try, I won't let them. I promised I'd protect you Clem, and that's exactly what I intend to do." She said before muttering to herself. "Even if I have to go to hell and back to do so."
Clementine smiled joyfully at the response before entering one of the stalls. A few minutes later, the duo left the restroom only to be met with a worrying sight. The older man was on the ground clutching his chest in pain.
"What's going on?" Zoey said, catching everyone off guard.
"I- it's my dad! He's having a heart attack and we don't have anymore of his pills. We tried to get into the pharmacy but it's locked." The woman said before looking up and Kenny and Zoey. "Please, you have to help him!"
Both Kenny and Zoey seemed hesitant to move. "And why should we do that, huh? You two insulted us and didn't want us here in the first place, so why should we help you now?" She argued.
Kenny vocalized his support of Zoey's decision, which only made the woman furious. "If you don't fucking help him, I'll kill you." She darkly threatened.
At the same time, Katjaa voiced her own opinion. "Zoey, Kenny, please. I know they aren't the best of people, but we should help. It's the right thing to do."
With his wife's input on the situation, Kenny reluctantly changed his mind. "Fine, but you owe us, got it?" He told the woman, who quickly nodded her head. "Good. Before we get going, what's everyone's names?" He asked the drugstore group.
The dress lady introduced herself as Carly, whilst the short man nearby said his name was Doug. The Asian man stated that he was Glenn, and the woman on the ground said that she was Lilly and her father's name was Larry.
"Alright, so first things first, we need to find a way inside and I doubt the key is just laying about somewhere, so we'll have to take a look around. Doug, you and I will take a look around, see if we can find anything. Carly, you keep watch and let us know if you see anything." Kenny instructed. The survivors seemed to take well to Kenny's command, no doubt thankful for someone who's more calm and less bitchy.
"We're gonna need gas too." Glenn informed. "We can't exactly stay here forever, and we'll need as much fuel as possible in case we're stuck on the road."
Zoey looked at him curiously, intrigued by his suggestion. "Got any ideas on where we can find some? Because I don't think we're gonna find much out there." She said as she motioned outside with her head.
Glenn stopped and thought about what she said for a moment. "Actually, yeah. Not too far from here is a motel. I can head over there and back and siphon whatever gas may still be available. Hopefully it'll be enough."
Zoey nodded before looking back at Clementine. "Ok, I'll come with you then just in case something goes sideways."
"Alright then, we all have our tasks. Let's get this done and get outta here as soon as possible." Kenny said.
With that, the group put their plan into action with Kenny and Doug beginning their search. Glenn went over to the back door and waved for Zoey to follow, but she held up a hand. "Hand on a sec, I gotta do something." She said before walking over to Clementine.
Do you have to go?" She asked.
Zoey nodded and knelt down. "That's right, which means I need you to stay here, ok? Katjaa can look after you until I get back. Right?" She said, addressing the blonde woman.
"Right." Katjaa said, agreeing. Clementine seemed anxious at being left behind. It wasn't that she didn't like Katjaa, she just felt scared for Zoey, something she was quick to vocalize.
"But, what if you get hurt, or don't come back?" Clementine asked, frightened at the scenario that had played out in her mind.
Zoey's smile dropped and she adjusted her tone to be more serious. "We're coming back Clementine, you can count on that. After all, Glenn has me to protect him." She stated that last part slightly louder for Glenn to hear, which got a roll of the eyes from the man.
Clementine still seemed hesitant. "Promise?"
"Promise." Zoey said before pulling Clementine into a short hug. Letting her ago, Zoey waved the girl goodbye and jogged over to where Glenn was waiting.
"Let's do this."
Travelier Motel, Macon, Georgia
July 21st, 1913 Local Time, 2003
"I thought you said this motel wasn't too far. We've been driving for over half an hour at this point." Zoey complained as they continued down the dark, but well lit street. Like usual, crashed and abandoned cars were left scattered about, one of which would occasionally have a walker behind the steering wheel.
"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize that I was trying to avoid all the crap in the road so we don't crash and die." Glenn quickly retorted with an eyeroll.
Zoey let out a short laugh at his sarcastic remark. "You know, you could make it up to me when we get back."
"Oh? How so?" Glenn inquired.
Zoey shrugged. "Oh I don't know. Perhaps a nice warm cup of hot coco would do the trick."
Glenn once more rolled his eyes at her antics. "Oh, I'll be sure to do that then. Just tell me where to find marshmallows and I'll be right on it." He sarcastically joked.
Zoey tried to contain her laughter but failed to do so. It felt good to have a genuine laugh, as it broke then tensity that came with the apocalypse. Glenn quickly joined in as well, both careful to not make it too loud should they attract walkers.
"Hahaha, oh man, you have no idea how long it's been since I've had a good laugh. Thanks for that." Zoey complimented.
"No problem." Glenn said. Afterwards, a peaceful silence befell them as the motel came into sight. "Hey, I just wanna ask…" Glenn began to say, breaking the short silence. "How did you and Clem meet? That is, if you don't mind me asking."
Zoey shook her head, indicating she was fine with it. "We first met back in my home neighborhood. I had found my M4 at the local PD about an hour or two prior and was searching for more supplies. I was going house to house trying to get in, and you guessed it, no luck. At least, until I found Clem. Long story short, I killed a walker in her house, we met face to face, and we've been together ever since." She explained.
Before Glenn could give his thoughts on what Zoey had just told him, her radio crackled to life and Clementine's voice came through.
"Zoey? Are you there?" She asked.
Zoey took the radio from its place on her pants and pressed the button on the side. "Yeah, I'm here Clem, what's up?" She casually replied.
"Not much. I just wanted to see if you were ok." She told her.
"Yeah, we're alright. We're actually coming up on the motel now. Has Kenny found the key yet?" Zoey then asked.
There was a momentary silence on the radio, which she put on as Clementine going to check in with Kenny. After some seconds went by, Clementine's voice came back through. "He says he and Doug think they found who had it, but now they just have to get to it." She relayed.
"Ok. Tell them I said good luck, we'll be back soon." Zoey said before clipping the radio back onto her pants.
Arriving at the motel, the two disembarked from Glenn's car and were able to see for themselves just how far it had gone into disarray. An RV along with a few other vehicles were displaced over the entire parking lot. The second floor has a few broken windows, and one room looked as if it were barricaded. As for walkers, it looked like their lucky day as one walker was sitting against the RV while the other was aimlessly walking around.
Looks can be deceiving, but either way it's our lucky day. Zoey thought as they took cover behind the wall outside the motel.
"Alright here's the plan." Zoey said as she equipped her bat. "I'll take out the one that's moving. You get the attention of lazy over there and keep him distracted for me."
Glenn nodded in agreement. "Sounds good. Ready when you are."
With his approval, Zoey quietly snuck around the wall and began trailing the moving walker. At the same time, Glenn did as planned and whispered to the walker sitting down, getting its attention. As she got closer to the walker, she stood tall and readied her bat. One heavy swing later, the walker was dead on the ground with a large crater in its head. Having finished that one off, Zoey went over and quickly took out the other walker with ease, using the RV to do extra damage.
"Damn you're good. How'd you learn all this?" Glenn praised. The sudden question caught Zoey off guard, but she quickly looked to the ground with a saddened look on her face. Seeing this, Glenn went quiet and gave her a sympathetic look. "Touchy subject, got it. For what it's worth, I'm sorry."
"Let's just keep looking." Zoey said. Glenn kept his mouth shut and gave her a soft nod. Although he was curious about what happened, he was not about to invade someone's personal life unless they willingly told him.
Glenn silently took the siphoning pump and began the process of collecting any excess gas. Zoey on the other hand started walking around looking for any spare supplies. For the next few minutes, she went on and searched inside each car. In one, she managed to find a utility knife and a half empty bottle of painkillers that were nearing their expiration date.
Can't get picky in an apocalypse. She thought as she stuffed the items into her backpack. With nothing else of value left in the cars, she made her way over to the RV and, after a few rough tugs on its door, managed to get inside
There was nothing spectacular about the RV at first glance, its green carpeted floor, couch, and table being the main attraction. To its credit however, there were quite a few cabinets for her to dig into. Each cabinet that she checked came up either empty or with useless items. A check look in the minifridge also came up empty handed.
Zoey let out a huff of disappointment. Come on you stupid RV, you gotta have something in you! She bitterly thought as she went to the front seats. When she opened the glovebox, she picked up a red object that, to her, was worth just as much as gold.
Zoey smirked as she put the shotgun shell into her pocket. Now all we need is a shotgun.
Leaving the RV and closing the door behind her, she saw a fire axe still in its emergency container. Going over to it, she took it out through the already smashed glass.
"Hey Glenn, come here for a sec." She called out.
"What's up?" He asked as he got closer to her. She then held out the axe towards him, which made his face light up. "OH, why thank you milady. How kind of you." He joked.
That earned him a facepalm from Zoey. "Just tell me if you have enough gas already Glenn, I don't want to stay away from Clem any longer than I have to."
"Gee, tough crowd. Yes, I got the gas and it's way more than enough."
"Good, then let's get a move on. We've already been gone for too long as is." She sternly stated. Glenn nodded and followed her as she began walking to the car.
When Zoey and Glenn neared the street, the muffled sound of what they believed to be crying could be heard, stopping them in their tracks. Glenn quickly determined that the noise was coming from the second floor.
"If there's someone still alive, we need to help them." He reasoned.
Zoey looked towards the source of the crying and saw that the room had been boarded up. The sight made her slightly reluctant about the idea. "Look, the room's barricaded. Let's just head back and tell the others, then we can come back."
"But what if it were you who were in there? Or Clementine? Wouldn't you want someone to help you?" Glenn said.
Zoey opened her mouth to reply, but after a moment of nothing let out a sigh. "Look Glenn, I'm sorry, but we simply can't, not right now at least. I'm not saying we outright shouldn't, but we can't stick around for much longer. Like I said, we can always come back with the others."
Glenn, seeing that Zoey wasn't going to budge on her decision, finally agreed with her. Even though Zoey hadn't found anything of too much use, at least they weren't coming back empty handed. Zoey couldn't make much of a complaint about it, as their goal here was to obtain gas, which they had succeeded in doing.
Now all that's left is to get back to the others, get Larry his pills, and get the hell out of Macon. Zoey thought. Don't worry Clem, I'm coming.
Peachtree Road, Macon, Georgia
July 21st, 1940 Local Time, 2003
Zoey rested her head on her fist and blankly stared outside the window. The ride on the way back was quiet, neither party willing to look at each other after their short discussion back at the motel. She had radioed to Clementine a few minutes ago about them arriving soon, that way neither she nor Glenn would get shot.
Zoey knew that what she had just strained the new friendship that she had grown with Glenn, but she remained convinced that what they had done was for the best. After all, it's not like she suggested that they completely abandon the girl that was in that room. She did want to help, but first she had to help that piece of shit Larry. It was the better option, the safer option. And now, it felt like it didn't even matter.
Dammit, I hate this crap. I just want life to go back to normal. I want to go home and sit on the couch with dad and watch a movie. I want this all to be one big nightmare. Zoey thought as she wiped new tears from her eyes.
Glenn glanced over at the sudden change in position and saw what she was doing. Seeing the younger girl cry made him feel worried for her. In the short timespan that he had known her, it seemed completely out of place for Zoey to just suddenly start crying.
"Hey, you ok?" He gently said, breaking the silence. He made sure to keep his eyes on the road, but he would glance over to her to make sure she was ok.
Zoey wiped away the last of the tears and quickly recollected herself. "Y- yeah, I'm fine." She answered.
Glenn let a few seconds pass to make sure was telling the truth before continuing. "You wanna talk about it?"
Zoey let out a deep breath and collected her thoughts before nodding. "It's my dad. He uh, he died a few days ago when this whole thing started. I was just thinking about him is all." She vaguely told him. She wasn't ready to tell him everything, not right now at least.
"Damn, I'm sorry. I can't even begin to believe how hard that must've been." He replied in a comforting manner.
Now calmed down, all Zoey could think about was Clementine. If her parents were ok, then they should have contacted her radio by now, right? "Thanks. I just wanna get back to the others now, if that's ok with you." She told him before sinking slightly into a seat.
Glenn nodded understandingly and dropped the conversation. The silence that filled the car this time was less tense, but more sorrowful.
I promise you dad, I'll keep Clementine safe, just as you did for me for all those years…
Drugstore, Macon, Georgia
July 21st, 1944 Local Time, 2003
Zoey pushed open the back door leading outside. Almost immediately, a little blur ran towards her shouting her name in excitement. "You're back!"
Zoey smiled and crouched down to hug Clementine. "Yeah, we are." She replied before standing up and meeting Kenny's gaze. "And we got the gas."
Kenny smirked and put a firm hand on her shoulder. "You two did a damn good job tonight. Now we'll be able to leave this god forsaken town."
"Any luck in getting Larry's pills?" Glenn asked as he walked up behind Zoey.
Kenny glanced between the two before motioning his head towards the front of the store. "Yeah, but there's just one problem." Kenny informed them before opening the front door. "We got a bunch of walkers in between us and the keys. On top of that, nobody knows the combination for the lock on the front gate."
"Just what happened while we were gone?" Zoey asked as she and Glenn followed him.
Kenny shrugged and shook his head. "People came through the area with guns and helicopters, woke up every damn thing in a five mile radius. We had to lock the gate with a random lock we found to make sure nothing came bursting through the front door." Kenny stated as he opened the front door. He then pointed across the street towards a walker that had gotten crushed by a telephone pole. "We think that walker has the keys, but we have nothing to distract them with. Doug managed to get those T.V's on over there, but with this gate in the way, we can't throw anything at the window." He explained.
If Zoey was going to be honest with herself, she wasn't surprised at the amount of progress Kenny had made in opening the pharmacy. He had everyone working on certain tasks and seemed to be keeping them focused without getting angry with anyone.
He makes one helluva leader. Zoey thought. Those are gonna become invaluable.
"We might just have the key to your lock Kenny." Zoey cryptically told him.
Kenny, confused at what she meant, was about to ask. That was, until she stepped out of the way of an axe carrying Glenn.
"Oh, that's what you mean. Well go on then, open this sucker up." Kenny said.
"With pleasure." Glenn swung the axe down with just enough force to break the lock and not get the walker's attention. With the lock now gone, Kenny pushed the gate open to reach for a small chunk of debris and threw it at the window, smashing it and drawing the walker's attention.
With the walker's distracted, Kenny motioned for Glenn to follow him. Zoey watched as Glenn killed the trapped walker with ease and Kenny took the key. Now that they had it, Zoey waved them back over. Moving quickly, the duo got back inside the drugstore and Zoey closed the door, saving them from being seen by any of the undead.
Once inside, Kenny let out a breath that he didn't realize he was holding. "Holy crap, we actually did it!" He happily exclaimed as he raised the key high.
'You did?! Oh thank god, you're a lifesaver!" Lilly praised.
Zoey flashed Lilly a look of revulsion. Oh yeah, be nice to us now that you're dad is fucking dying. You're so swell! Zoey bitterly thought.
Kenny went to the back room with Lilly. Zoey saw the door swing open from her side of the pharmacy and flashed Kenny a grin and nod. The happy mood swiftly changed to that of fear and worry, as the store's alarm system went off.
"Shit! Kenny, get that medicine now! Glenn, go get Kenny's truck! It's just down the street, keys should still be in the ignition! Doug, get to the back door and hold off anything that tries to come through! Katjaa, stay near Doug with Clem and Duck! Carley, you're with me! We're gonna keep the fuckers off us long enough for everyone else to get out! C'mon, move it!" Zoey commanded with extreme authority. No one complained about their job as the dead continued to grow in numbers just outside the drugstore.
"Carley, help me barricade the door!" Zoey shouted as she began pushing the shelves towards the door. Carley quickly joined her and helped relieve her of some of the effort, hastening the process. With an ample enough barricade set up, Zoey and Carley ran over towards Katjaa and Doug. Zoey pulled out her pistol and took aim at the doors and windows, with Carley doing the same.
Suddenly, two of the windows broke and walkers slowly trickled in. Under the two female's combined fire, they managed to successfully keep the walker's at bay long enough for Glenn to burst through the back door.
"Truck's ready, we're good to go!" He shouted before darting back outside.
Zoey waved for everyone to run outside with her taking the rear. Once she confirmed that everyone had made it, she turned, grabbed the doorknob, and slammed the door shut.