Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to season 2 of my story. As always, read and review! Enjoy.
Chapter 11: What Lies Ahead
Everybody was still uneasy from the day they left the CDC after the building exploded. So now they are heading for Fort Benning. They now have four vehicles now. Carol's car, Dale's RV, Merle and Michael's motorcycles. Rick and his family are driving in Carol's car with her and her daughter Sophia.
"I was just thinkin about our trip to the Grand Canyon with Carl." Lori said from the passenger seat with a smile on her face.
Rick looked over at her from the driver's seat as he let out a laugh, lightly slapping his hand on the wheel, remembering something just between the two of them.
"I don't remember that." Carl said, looking up at the two.
"No, you wouldn't. You were just a baby." Lori said as she turned her head to the side to speak to him. "And besides, we never made it past Fort Worth."
"No, you got sick. I never knew a baby could throw up so much." Rick said as he laughed again.
"Ick." Carl said as Sophia made a face.
"Yeah, ick." Lori laughed. "The doctor in Texas said you'd live. Then we turned around and drove home." She said, looking at Rick before returning her eyes to the back of the RV in front of them.
"Well that sucks." Carl said from the backseat.
"No, it was a good trip." Lori said as she reached across and patted Rick's thigh.
"The best." He said as he grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze before putting it back on the wheel. He glanced behind him at Carl with a smile.
"Can we go see it? The Grand Canyon?" He asked. "I'd like to."
"I would too." Sophia said. "Can we go?"
"We'd never go without you and your mom." Rick said, looking behind him. "That's a promise." Lori reached behind her and put her hand on Carol's knee. The older woman smiled and covered it with her own.
In the RV in front of them, Shane was sitting at the small table behind the driver's seat, cleaning his handgun while Andrea and Amy sat in front of him, curiously watching. He looked up, seeing them studying his hands.
"Looks complicated." Andrea said giving him a smile.
"The trick is gettin all these pieces back together the same way." He smiled. "I could clean yours, show you how." He looked at her again before leaning over to the gun bag next to him and pulling out her Smith & Wesson 3913 "Ladysmith" handgun. He pulled the barrel back, making sure the chamber was clear, before letting it slide back into place.
"Oh, yeah." He said, with a satisfied look on his face as he held it out in front of him, aiming down the small walkway to the back of the RV. He brought it back and looked down at it before looking to Andrea. "It's a sweet piece."
She put her elbows on the table, resting a hand against her neck and leaned forward. "It was a gift, from our father." She smiled. "He gave it to me just before Amy and I took off on our road trip. He said two girls on their own should be able to defend themselves."
"Smart man, your father." He said before looking back at the gun. He looks to his girlfriend, Amy. "I'll let you use one of the handguns to defend yourself with, Amy. I'll teach you how to use it and everything." He said smiling at her.
"I'd love that." Amy said smiling back.
Shane looks at Andrea's gun. "Your gun Andrea, it's a- it's a limited capacity. See? Only holds seven rounds." He said as he ejected the magazine and showed it to her.
"Oh, jeez." Dale said from the front, causing Shane to turn around.
"Aw, no." Glenn said from the passenger seat. Shane got up and turned around, leaning between the two men as they looked out of the front of the RV.
The road ahead of them was filled with abandoned cars on either side of the highway. Even the grassy median had cars and trucks in it.
Merle with Daryl sitting behind and Michael rode their bikes and stopped next to the driver's window of the RV.
"See a way through?" Dale shouted over the Triumph's engine.
Merle looked behind him over his shoulder before looking back to the old man. He nodded a little and jerked his head in the direction of the jammed cars before riding past him, around the RV, to get back in front of them. So did Michael.
Glenn looked at the map in front of them as Merle with Daryl and Michael made their way back to the front. "Uh, maybe we should just go back." He said as he looked at Dale before looking back down. "There's an interstate bypass-"
"We can't spare the fuel." Dale said.
They all looked on as Merle and Michael helped weave them through the cars they could fit past.
"Jeez." Glenn said as he looked around. Some of the cars were on their sides or completely flipped over. There were dead bodies in some of the cars they looked into as they drove past. "Can we get through here?"
He was answered when The RV's engine started sputtering and smoking. Just in time, too. Merle and Michael had stopped when the area ahead was too packed with cars for them to fit through. Everyone put their vehicles in park and got out when they all came to a stop.
"I said it. Didn't I say it?" Dale said as he walked out of the door, around to the front of the RV. "A thousand times. Dead in the water."
"Problem, Dale?" Shane asked as he made his way around the front with the rest of the group.
"Just a small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere with no hope of-" He stopped what he was about to say as he looked at where they were...surrounded by cars. "Okay, that was dumb." Surely they would be able to find what he needed somewhere on this highway. Daryl walked to the back of the car next to them and started picking through what he could from the open hatch.
"If you can't find a radiator hose here..." Shane said.
"There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find." Daryl said as he pulled a pink backpack out from the car and started looking through it.
"I can siphon more fuel from these cars for a start." T-Dog said.
"Maybe some water." Carol said as she held Sophia at her side, the girl still clutching her doll.
"Food." Glenn said as he turned and looked at her.
"This is a graveyard." Lori said, bringing everyone's attention to her. Daryl stopped reaching for another bag inside the car and looked back at her. "I don't know how I feel about this."
"All right, all right. Here we go." T-Dog said as he walked back towards the RV to grab the fuel cans.
"Come on, y'all. Just look around, gather what you can." Shane said. Rick nodded to everyone as they disbanded. He put the bag of guns on the trunk of a car and pulled out one of the rifles, deciding he would be on look out while they looked around.
"Kids, don't look." Carol said as she, Jacqui, Sophia and Carl followed Lori and Michael who has his shotgun with him past a few cars, most having rotting corpses still inside.
Glenn walked back to the front of the RV after Dale had sent him inside to grab some screw drivers. "Hey. Which one?" He asked as he held out two to the man.
"The Flathead." Dale said, picking it up. "Radiator hose clamp is always a Flathead." He said, pointing to it with the screwdriver. "Here, you do it." He said, holding the screwdriver back out to Glenn. The young man took it and handed Dale the Phillips. He traded the young man the screwdriver for a dark blue bandana he was using as a rag. "Learn something." He said as he patted Glenn on the back before walking away. Glenn started unscrewing the clamp with a cough as the hot smoke blew in his face.
Ed just stood by the RV. Not helping out. Just being an asshole.
Rick looked around them through the binoculars as Dale came to him at the back of the RV. He handed them to Dale as the old man turned and climbed up the ladder to the top of the Winnebago.
Several yards away, Daryl put his bolt in his mouth to hold it while he used a crowbar to open the gas hatch of a truck for T-Dog. He set down one of the fuel cans and a hose as he started siphoning gas from the tank. Daryl loaded his bow and walked off in the direction of another car while Merle searches the cars for whatever he finds.
Carol was going through a suitcase in the back of a car when she held up a red sundress, smiling when she saw it was her size. She held it over herself and looked down at the fabric. She looked up to see Lori looking at her before she went back to the tape recorder she was holding, checking it for batteries.
"Ed never let me wear nice things like this." Carol said as she put the dress back down in the suitcase before closing it. "We're gonna need clothes." She said as she pulled it out.
Lori picked up a large flashlight she found as she walked past Carol, putting her hand on the woman's shoulder as she went by to get to the back of the car.
"Hey, Carl." Lori said, causing both kids to look at her. "Always within my sight, okay?" The boy nodded at her.
"You too, Sophia." Carol said looking at her daughter, earning the same response.
"I'll make sure I keep an eye on them." Michael said as the ladies nodded. Michael continued looking for supplies.
Shane had walked off with Glenn, going with him to find a matching radiator hose. Rick walked further in front of the RV, looking out at the group and all the cars as Andrea and Amy walked by him. They put their hands on their stomachs as they walked back to the RV, feeling sick seeing all the loss of life around them.
Rick looked behind him up to Dale on top of the RV. The man had the binoculars in his hand about to raise them to his eyes again. "It's all good." The old man said.
Andrea sat down at the table inside the RV, looking at the parts of Shane's gun laying across the table. "Okay." She breathed as she started picking up the parts. Trying to reassemble a gun would surely take her mind off of the things around her. "All right." Amy sat in the seat in front of her sister, watching her trying to reassemble Shane's gun.
"Come ooon." Glenn said as he was trying to unscrew a hose from a moving van he was at. Shane stood to the side of Glenn, facing behind them when he stopped and stared at the large truck in front of him. Lipsey Spring Water. He set his shotgun down, letting it rest against the back of the truck as he walked to the side of it. He grabbed the bottom of the side hatch and lifted it up, unveiling the crates inside that were filled with large, 5 gallon water jugs. Shane stepped back and took in the welcome sight.
"Glenn." He said as he looked at all of the jugs. The young man looked back at him. "Were we short on water?" He said as he stepped forward, quickly unscrewing the cap from one of the jugs. He pulled it off and threw it behind him as he let the cool water fall onto his head and down his back. Glenn and Shane both laughed.
"Hey, save me some!" Glenn said.
"It's like being baptized, man." Shane said as the water flowed down. He opened his mouth, drinking down the fresh water.
Dale smiled from the roof of his RV as he looked at the men. He turned around, continuing he and Rick's watch duty. He squinted his eyes a bit when he thought he saw movement off in the distance between the cars back behind the RV. He brought the binoculars to his eyes.
Rick, seeing the man looking, brought the rifle to his shoulder as he looked through the scope in the same direction. His sights landed on a single Walker. He took his eye off the scope as he pulled on the bolt handle, making sure there was a round in the chamber before putting it back down. He brought the scope back to his eye as he steadied the rifle against his shoulder and prepared for the shot. He took aim at the shambling corpse when another stepped out from the overturned van behind it. It's only two. He thought as he put his finger on the trigger. He was about to pull it when he and Dale both looked further behind them, seeing a large group of Walkers making their way through the cars. There had to have been at least 80, if not more.
"Oh, Christ." Rick said as he lowered the rifle. He spun around and ducked behind the flipped car he was next to as he crouched down and made his way towards the group. Dale dropped to his knees on top of the RV before laying down, getting as low as he could. Ed looked at what he was looking at and got under the RV,
Rick ran through the cars towards his wife. When she was within ear shot, he whispered to her as loudly as he could. "Lori, under the cars."
She spun around, looking at him from the back of the van she was going through.
"Carl, Sophia, get down now." Rick said, pointing to the ground as he ran to the car next to them. Both kids looked back, seeing the Walkers, and followed him.
"Mikey, get under the cars." Rick said to Michael, who looks towards the RV and sees the Walkers. "Oh shit." Michael said as he gets under the car.
"Carl and Sophia. Sophia." Carol was whispering to the kids, quickly coming up to Lori.
"Shhh, shhh." Lori said, covering the woman's mouth with her hand. "Get under." She said as pushed the woman down and ushered her under the van with her.
Jacqui was already under a car.
Rick got to the ground as he scooted himself under a car. He saw Carl and Sophia crawl under the two vehicles across from him.
Glenn who was still working on unscrewing the radiator hose was stopped when Shane yanked on his arm, pulling him and tossing him to the ground behind the van.
"Ow." The young man said as he hit the asphalt. He moved underneath the van as Shane knelt to the ground and rolled under the van, pushing himself right up next to him. "What?" Glenn asked.
"Shhh." Shane said as he looked ahead of him. Glenn finally seeing the dozens and dozens of feet coming at them.
Andrea and Amy are still inside the RV messing around with Shane's gun as the smell of death suddenly came wafting through the open windows of the RV. They looked up, seeing all of the Walkers make their way past the Winnebago. "Oh, God." Andrea gasped as she and Amy ducked down, getting off their seats at the table and onto the floor.
Carol looked over to the car her daughter was beneath as Sophia started to cry, bringing on her mother's own tears. Carol put her hand over her mouth.
"Shh, shh." Lori said as she put her arm over Carol, resting her hands on top of hers. Lori looked straight ahead of her, towards Rick. He was looking back at her with his hand raised, as if to say stay quiet. "It's okay." He mouthed back to her.
Merle saw the Walkers and got under a car himself.
The Walkers were yards away now as T-Dog finally saw them. He was crouching down but not sure which way to go as he made his way to a car in front of him. He wrapped his hands around the open car door as he ducked down, trying to use it as cover as a Walker came closer. The corpse looked in his direction and he panicked, quickly ducking down. In his rush, he sliced his forearm open on the jagged glass of the broken out window of the car door he'd been holding on to. He brought his other hand up to put pressure on the wound as blood squirted out of his arm, onto his shirt. The Walkers were getting closer. He got up, running to a car further away and ducking behind it.
By now, the Walkers were at the cars Rick and the children were under as they walked past, not knowing dinner was just at their feet. Carl scooted more to the middle of the truck he was under as they shambled past. Rick put his hand up as the boy looked at his father across from him. Rick brought his index finger to his lips, looking between his son and the little girl under the car next to Carl's.
Andrea and Amy, still on the floor of the RV, was startled when they saw a decomposing hand reach up through the open door of the RV and take a hold of the wall. Andrea quickly grabbed the rag and gun parts she had been fumbling around with and scooted to the Winnebago's bathroom along with Amy as the Walker pulled itself into the RV. Andrea pulled the flimsy, fold-away door of the bathroom closed as the Walker looked around the front of the RV before turning towards the small walkway.
In the RV bathroom, Andrea continued to fumble with the different pieces, trying to put the handgun back together. Amy urges her to put the gun back together. The Walker was starting to make it's way down the small walkway that separated the front part of the RV to the small room in the back. And bridging the gap, the bathroom Andrea and Amy are hiding in. They could hear the Walker right outside the door, snarling and moaning as it crept past, checking the back room for a meal. It looked around, not seeing any promise of food and turned around, starting back down the walkway. It would've quietly made it's way back out of the RV, had Andrea not just dropped a part of the gun on the tile floor of the RV's bathroom.
"Shit." She whispered as she closed her eyes.
At the sound of the gun metal hitting the floor, the Walker, that was now at the door about to walk back outside, turned back around. It began growling at the sound it had just heard, looking around the RV again.
Outside, T-Dog staggered to another car, trying to escape the Walkers that were slowly coming closer. He was getting woozy from the blood-loss as he made his way around another car, leaving a trail of fresh blood in his wake.
Andrea and Amy could hear the Walker outside of the bathroom door again. Sitting on the ground in the tiny bathroom, Andrea put her feet up on the folding door, holding it in place. The Walker looked the door up and down. There had been a noise behind this wall. It brought it's hands up and started banging against the door, pushing it in. Andrea started screaming as the thin material the door was made out of started folding at its joint. She pushed her legs out farther trying to keep the door shut as the Walker kept fighting it's way in. No matter how hard she pushed against the door, it still opened slightly with the force from the undead body trying to get in. And now, with the Walker's arm reaching through the gap, it wasn't going to close again. Amy covered her own mouth to stay quiet.
Dale, who was still on the top of the RV, heard Andrea's screams. He crawled the couple feet to the small open window that was on the roof of the RV, right above the bathroom. He looked down at her and Amy through the screen, seeing the predicament they are in. The window was much too small to pull them up through, it served only as ventilation in the small bathroom. There wouldn't have been time for that anyway with the Walker being so close and the door not having any sort of lock. Andrea looked up at Dale through the window. He dug in his pocket for the screwdriver Glenn had handed back to him earlier. Pulling it out of his pocket, he jabbed at the screen over the window, slicing through it. He held the Phillips out to Andrea, who held her hand up. Dale dropped it the couple inches into her open palm. She quickly adjusted how she was holding it, now as a weapon, while she tried to keep the Walker at bay.
T-Dog made his way around another car but was stopped as a lone Walker cut off his path. Drawn in by the fresh blood the man was covered in, it began shambling towards him. T-Dog was backing up, keeping his eyes on the Walker, though that was a mistake. Not paying attention to where he was stepping, he tripped over a bag behind him and landed on his back. He scooted away from the Walker with the strength he had left, before his back hit the truck behind him. This is it. He thought as he watched the corpse come closer.
Daryl, with his Busse in hand, peeked out around the truck the Walker had just passed on his way to T-Dog. He had seen the bleeding man trying to get away from his position. He crouched down and snuck up behind the Walker. He quickly set his crossbow down on the hood of the car next to them as he wrapped his now free hand around the Walkers neck, holding its head in place. He jammed his Busse into the back of the Walker's skull and fell to the ground with it in front of T-Dog. Daryl looked up at the man across from him as he yanked the blade from the corpse's head. T-Dog looked back at him with wide eyes as he took deep breaths.
In the RV, Andrea decided to stand up at the same time the Walker slammed itself into the door one more time. She quickly got to her feet and put a hand on the Walker's shoulder. She raised the screwdriver and let out a scream as she pushed the corpse back into the wall, sending the point of the Phillips through it's eye socket. Blood splattered on her face and chest. She stabbed it a few more times before letting it fall to the floor of the walkway, her on top of it. She stabbed it again, leaving the screwdriver there as she scooted into the back room and cried, blood dripping down her face and neck.
"Shh." Daryl said as he put his finger to his lips. The Walkers that were leading the larger group were closer to them now. He got up and grabbed T-Dog by the legs, pulling the man towards him so he was lying down. T-Dog, who was too weak to protest, let the man do whatever he was going to. Daryl let T-Dog's legs go and turned to grab the Walker he had just killed. He picked it up and laid it on top of T, covering his body. He crouched down and walked to the car T-Dog had been propped up against. Leaning into the open driver's side door, he grabbed the dead body that was there and pulled it out of the car, letting it fall on top of his body and he positioned it over himself. And not a moment too soon, as the large group of Walkers approached. They began walking right past the hidden men, not being able to smell them over the stench of the rotting corpses, just like them.
Rick kept his eyes on the children next to him as the last few Walkers at the back of the group made their way past the cars they were under, as they mindlessly followed the ones in front. Everyone stayed where they were for a couple minutes, waiting until they didn't hear or see any more walking corpses.
Daryl threw the rotting body off of himself as he got to his hands and knees. He leaned over and pushed the Walker he'd placed on T-Dog off to the side of the man. He grabbed T by his shirt and pulled him into a sitting position. He grabbed the red handkerchief hanging from his back pocket and threw it in the man's hand, urging him to press it to the wound on his arm, that was trickling blood.
Sophia was about to crawl out from under the truck she was under when a Walker appeared from around the overturned car behind a truck. She let out a shriek as it growled at her and she scooted back under the car. But the Walker had seen her, heard her, and knew where she was. It dropped to the ground and started to crawl under the car as she scooted to the other side.
Carol started to sob under her's and Lori's hands as she watched the Walker get closer and closer to her daughter.
"Shh, shh." Lori said.
Sophia started to scream as the Walker reached it's hand out toward her.
Rick was about to go save her when Michael under the car said to him, "Rick. Stay there. I'll get her."
"Okay." Rick said.
Sophia made her way out from her hiding spot as her screams drew in another Walker. She scooted under the guard rail and made her way down the steep hill on the other side as the Walker got up from the ground and made it's way around the car with the other. The two corpses crawled over the rail and started after her as she ran into the woods.
Michael got out from under the car, left his shotgun behind, hopped over the rail and took off in the direction the little girl had gone with the two Walkers on her heels.
"Lori." Carol sobbed as she got out from under the van. Lori had made her way to Carl already and was walking towards the guard rail with him when Carol ran to her. "There's two Walkers after my baby." She sobbed.
"Shh, shh." Lori said trying to calm her, as the woman ran to the rail. Lori wrapped her arms around the woman's shoulders as she came up behind her and covered her mouth, trying to keep her quiet. The rest of the group had come out of their hiding places and were gathering around.
"Don't worry, Carol. Knowing Mikey, he'll save her." Rick said looking in the direction Michael ran into.
Michael was further into the forest now and could hear Sophia's sobs as he came up on them, seeing the two corpses running after her as fast as they could. He could see the direction she was going in and decided he would cut her off as he continued. And he ran.
Weaving through the trees, Michael could see the two Walkers as he ran a few yards away. He looked in the direction they were still going, knowing the little girl wouldn't be far. He pushed himself faster, towards a small open area. Sophia had just reached the area he was aiming for as she turned to look at the Walkers a few yards behind her. She tripped over the root of a tree and fell to the ground. She quickly got to her feet and launched herself into a sprint again, but ran into Michael as he grabbed her. She gasped at the sudden contact.
"Shh, shh!" Michael said as he held her. He knelt down and held her back from him as he quickly looked her over. "It's okay, sweetie. I got you. I got you. Are you all right? Are you okay?" He asked her as she nodded.
"Shoot them!" She said, leaning over and reaching for his Beretta 92FS handgun in the holster hanging at his hip.
Michael pushed her back, "No. No! Those walkers on the road would hear it. Then it wouldn't be just two, it'd be hundreds. Listen to me, sweetie. I won't let them get you. But I need you to stay behind me. I'll kill those two Walkers but I need you to do as I say, alright? Do you trust me, Sophia?" He said and asked her as she nodded. "Okay. Get behind me now." He said as she got behind him. He then stood up.
Michael hears the Walkers coming. He stays where he is standing with Sophia behind him. The Walkers getting closer and closer to where they are. Michael sees the Walkers in his sight. Sophia get frighten when she saw the Walkers. She then sees Michael moving his arm to to his waist. Michael lifts the waist area of his shirt on the right side a little, unbuttoned the strap of the holster that is holding the hilt and grips the hilt of his dagger. The Walkers almost got near them when suddenly, Michael spin kicks the Walker on the right, knocking it to the ground, pulls out his dagger and impales it into the head of the other Walker, killing it. He pulls his dagger out of it skull and kills the other. Both Walkers are now dead. He walks towards Sophia.
"It's okay, sweetie. They can't hurt you anymore." Michael said as Sophia hugs him for protecting her. "Come on. Let's get you back to your mom. I'll give you a piggy back ride." He said as he kneels down for her to climb onto him. He stands up as Sophia holds onto him tight and walks towards the highway and back to the others.
Lori and Jacqui are sitting on top of the trunk of a car, Carol standing in front of was rubbing their hands across Carol's back, soothing her. Rick, Shane and Daryl had climbed up on a couple cars and were standing atop the higher vantage points keeping watch. Waiting for Michael to come back.
"I can't believe that you let our only daughter get chased by corpses, you stupid bitch!" Ed shouted at his wife.
"Hey! Don't make me come down there and fuck you up again, Ed!" Daryl shouted.
"Mind your own business, Dixon!" Ed shouted back.
"Why don't you come over here and make me?!" Daryl shouted back.
"Enough! Both of you! Daryl, calm down and Ed, you shut up! Mikey will be back with Sophia!" Rick shouted.
"You little brother probably got to her too late!" Ed shouted back.
"Hey guys!" They heard Michael's voice. They turn around and saw him. "I'm back. And look who I brought back with me unharmed." Michael said as he shows everyone he is carrying Sophia on his back. They grasps as they see Michael brought Sophia back safe. Michael kneels down so Sophia can climb off him.
"Sophia!" Carol shouted as she runs to her daughter.
"Mommy!" Sophia shouted as she runs to her.
They caught each other and embrace. Everybody expect Ed huddle around them. Michael walks towards them. Carol looks him with tears in her eyes and say, "Thank you, Mikey. For saving my daughter."
Michael smiles at her and said, "I'd do it again in a heartbeat."
As Carol released Sophia, Carl pelted towards her and grabbed her in a hug of his own. He then turned to everyone giving them a 'that's cute' stare.
"Hey, I missed her." said Carl with red cheeks.
The group just laughs.
"Mikey, how did you take out those Walkers without using your gun?" Shane asked.
"I have my dagger with me. Remember?" Michael said as he shows his dagger, still with Walker blood on it.
"Oh duh." Shane said slapping his forehead as the others laugh.
"Shane think about it. If I fired my gun, wouldn't the other Walkers that passed us would have heard it and head to where I found Sophia or back here?" Michael asked.
Shane knew Michael has a point. All of them would have been dead if Michael fired his gun. "You're right, Mikey. You're right." Shane said.
"When is it that I'm ever wrong?" Michael asked.
Shane smiles. "Not always." He said. Then he, Michael, Rick, Lori and Carl started laughing. The others looked at them and looked confused.
"Oh, that never gets old." Michael said as he and the others stopped laughing.
"What never gets old are you talking about, Mikey?" Andrea asked.
"Oh. It's just something I came up with back then. I would make my point when I explain something that I'm right about, they would say I'm right and then I would asked, "When is it that I'm ever wrong?". And the answer should always be, "Not always." It's kinda like my motto. So all of y'all will be hearing it once in awhile." Michael said as everybody nodded and then Michael looked at his dagger that still has blood on it. "This dagger saved Amy and it was used to protect Sophia. I'm keeping it on or near me 24/7." He said as he cleans the blood off with a rag and puts it back in it's holster.
"So, now that Sophia is back and safe, what now?" Andrea asked.
Before anybody can say anything, a church bell starts ringing in the distance, the group turns as one and stares at the forest of trees in front of them, trying to discern the direction of the noise.
"Which way is that coming from?" Asks Shane.
"That way" said Rick pointing to the left.
"That sounds like a church bell. Rick, Shane, I'm think we should hold up here for tonight. We move some of these cars out of the way so we can clear a path and keep searching around these cars for more supplies. Then in the morning, we find that church. There could be more survivors." Michael said.
"I think it's a good idea. More survivors, more help. " Shane said.
"Alright. Y'all heard what Mikey said. Let's get to it." Rick said as some of the group helped move some of the cars while others search for supplies.
Michael and Carl were walking around in the cars, looking for anything useful. Carl came up to a truck and looked inside the passenger window. He saw a bag sitting on the seat, tucked under the arm of a dead body. He could see the head of a hatchet sticking out of the bag. He jumped down from the step on the truck and made his way around to the driver's side. He got to the door and just stared at it for a second. Carl slowly reaching his hand up to the handle of the door. Finding it unlocked, he quickly pulled it open. The dead body's arm, that was propped up against the door, limply hung down. Carl kept his eyes on the body as he slowly walked closer. He reached into the truck, over the body and grabbed at the bag. It was heavier than he expected. He reached his other hand over the body and took the bag in both hands as he yanked against it. Still not enough leverage. He looked at the body again before he stepped up onto the truck. Being in a higher position, he could lift the bag easier now. He reached over the body again, taking the bag with both his hands. He pulled it across the dead man's lap, the heavy bag pulling the body closer to him with every tug. With a final yank, he brought the bag to his chest, at the same time the body nearly came off the seat. With a shriek, Carl jumped, falling from the truck and landing on his back on the ground. At the movement, Michael had his dagger out in a flash, saw Carl on the ground and looks at the body inside the truck. It wasn't a live one. The force Carl had used, coupled with the heavy bag had pulled the body out of the truck. It was hanging slightly out of the door, but still held in place because of the seat-belt holding it to the seat.
"Are you okay?" Michael asked as he looked down at Carl. Carl nodded and looked down at the bag laying on top of him before he got up. Michael put his dagger away as they both ran back towards the group.
"Shane!" Carl shouted as he saw the man.
"Carl, what happened?" Lori ran over, hearing her son's scream only seconds before.
"Mom, w-we found something cool." He said as he ran with Michael to the front of the car Shane was working on. Lori shoulder's dropped and she rolled her eyes.
Shane stopped working on the car and looks at him. "What you found there, bud?" Shane asked.
"Shane, check it out." Carl said as he laid the bag on the floor and opened it up. "It's an arsenal." He smiled. It was a Gerber Apocalypse Kit.
"That's cool, bud. You found us some weapons." Shane said.
"Check this one out." Carl said as he leaned over to pick up the Camp Axe from the bag. "Whoa, it's a hatchet." He said as he held it up with both hands in front of him.
"Be careful. Don't play with those." Lori said, walking up to her son.
"They're really sharp."
"What did I just say?"
"Can I keep one?"
"Are you crazy?" She said as she held out her hand for the weapon.
"No way." The boy shook his head as she took the axe from him. "Shane. Shane, tell her to let me keep one." He said as he looked at the man. Lori leaned down to put the axe back into the bag.
"Sorry buddy, but I don't think that's okay. But why don't you, you're Mom and Mikey go show your dad what you found?" Shane said.
"Okay." Carl said as Lori handed him the bag. Shane continues working on the car he is working on.
"Why are yoy working on the car Shane?" Michael asked.
"If we find more survivors, we may need another car." Shane said.
"Oh." Michael said as he, Lori and Carl went to go find Rick. Amy walks passed them heading towards her lover.
"Hey. Needs some help?" Amy asked as Shane looks at her with smile.
"Absolutely." Shane said as they work on the Hyundai Tucson's engine.
Everyone kept searching for supplies until it got dark and everybody went to sleep after.
Rick threw the Gerber bag onto the hood of Carol's Cherokee as everyone gathered around. It was early in the morning when he and Shane had woken everyone up and telling them where to meet after they all had a chance to change their clothes and do what they needed to. Rick opened the bag, revealing the different Gerber goodies.
"Everybody takes a weapon." He said as he looked around, grabbing his sheriff's hat off the hood. He had put his cop's attire back on. Daryl and Merle are standing next to him looked over the bag.
Lori stepped up and grabbed the Parang machete. Glenn picked up the Gator Machete Pro with a smile on his face. Amy takes the Gator Machete. Andrea took the LMF 2 Infantry knife. Carol picks up the Camp Axe 2.
Michael walks towards the group. He hands Merle his crossbow again. He has his guns with him but now has a katana strapped to his waist belt.
"I see you got your sword out, Mikey." Rick said.
"First time being used in a long time." Michael said as he addresses everyone who is going with him to find the church. "Now everybody listen. We are going to go find that church and see if there are any survivors."
"Stay quiet and stay sharp." Rick said. "Keep space between you but always within sight of each other."
"Everybody assemble your packs." Shane said, causing everyone to grab their things.
"Dale, keep on those repairs." Rick said as he walked over to the old man, who was sitting on the steps of the open door to the Winnebago. "We've gotta get this RV ready to move."
Dale stood up. "We won't stay here a minute longer than we have to. Good luck out there."
"Keep an eye on Carl and Sophia while we're gone." Rick said, patting his son's shoulder.
"Rick, I don't think that's a good idea. Ed (who is leaning on the side of the car) over there might do something to them while we're gone searching. I don't want to take any chances. Their safer with us. Plus more help." Michael said as Rick knew he had a point.
"Well, they have all of you to look after them. I'd say their in good hands." Dale said.
"Okay. Okay. But always within our sight, no exceptions." He said as he walked past his son and Sophia to go grab his stuff.
Everyone is set. Rick picks up the Epic knife from the Gerber bag. He is about to give it to his son for protection, but addresses him first. "I'm giving this to you for protection only. It's not a toy. Use it when you really need to. Understood?" He said as Carl nodded. "Okay." He gives him the knife.
"Rick, I feel safe if Sophia has protection too." Carol said as Michael walks towards her.
"I got her something to use." Michael said as he reaches in his pocket.
Ed walks towards them angry. "You not giving her anything!" He shouted.
Ed was about to do something when suddenly, Michael pulls out of his pocket a switchblade(the switchblade that was used by the leader of The Punks from the 1979 movie The Warriors). He points it at Ed. Ed stops walking towards them. "Just try it, Ed. I dare you." Michael said as Ed backs away. Michael then shows the switchblade to Sophia. "Be careful when you switch the blade out and when you close it. It's really sharp. Use it only when you really need to. Okay?" He said as Sophia nodded. Michael then shows her how to put the blade back in carefully and gives it to her. "Aright. Let's head out." Michael said as everyone heads into the forest.
In the forest
The group walked in a line with Daryl and Merle at the front, leading them. After a few more minutes of walking, a tent came into view in the trees ahead. Daryl and Merle held up their hands to Rick and pointed towards the tent as they crouched down. Rick turned around to look at them as he, Michael, Carol, Amy and Andrea did the same. Glenn and Shane came up behind them.
"What could be there?" Shane asked as he looked ahead at the tent.
"Could be a whole bunch a things in there." Daryl whispered as he stood up and started walking towards the tent. Everyone started to follow before Rick turned around, raising his hand to the others, telling them to stay put as he, Michael, Merle and Shane followed Daryl. He had his crossbow raised and scanned the area ahead of them as they got closer to the tent.
As they walked even closer to the tent, Daryl held his hand up behind him as they stopped. He pointed to them, then to himself. Telling them to stay put and just look out for him. He reached down to his hip and grabbed his knife.
Rick, Shane, Merle and Michael stayed put as Daryl walked closer to the tent. He set his Horton down a few feet in front of the tent. He had his knife raised as he got closer to the tent flap. He tried to peek inside the small opening the door made but couldn't see anything, so he backed away. Going around to the side of the tent to the window, he tried to do the same, but the flap was covering the window, blocking his view. He walked back around to the front, shrugging his shoulders at them and holding his hands out.
Shane held his hand up to everyone else, silently telling them to fall back. Daryl stood at the tent's opening, knife still raised and ready to pounce if anything stepped out. Daryl then nodded. He was going in. He reached for the zipper at the bottom of the tent, it was already half undone. Shane stepped forward, raised his shotgun as Rick raised his Colt, Merle with the pump-action crossbow raised and Michael raised his SPAS-12 shotgun. Daryl looked up at Merle and Rick as they got closer and he slowly pulled back the zipper more, making enough room so that he would be able to fit inside. He pulled the flap back as he, Rick and Merle looked inside. Rick and Merle both raised their weapons but lowered them slightly at the horrible stench coming from inside. Daryl, being closest, turned his head and coughed as he brought his hand he held his Busse in to his mouth for a minute. He slowly stepped inside, letting the flap fall closed behind him. Rick pulled it back to look inside before letting it fall and coughing.
Inside, the tent was splattered with dried blood. There was a man sitting in a camp chair, the bottom half of his face completely gone from the Colt Detective Special revolver he'd put in his mouth. Daryl looked around.
Rick, Merle, Michael and Shane were standing outside the tent coughing and trying not to puke. Lori came up behind Carol and put her hands on her shoulders. "Daryl?" Carol softly called out. He didn't answer. "Daryl?"
Inside the tent, Daryl saw the revolver the man had blown his face off with hanging from his hand. Daryl grabbed the revolver and tucked it into the back of his pants. He stood up and turned around, pulling the tent flap back as he stepped out. "Ain't nothin."
"What's in there?" Andrea asked.
Daryl bent over and picked up his Horton before putting his Busse back in it's sheath. "Some guy. Did what Jenner said. Opted out." He said as he slung his bow over his shoulder. "Ain't that what he called it?"
They all looked up at the sound of church bells ringing in the distance. The five in the lead took off around the tent, followed by the rest of the group. They all ran through the woods for a few minutes as the bells slowly got louder.
"There goes those church bells." Michael said.
"What direction?" Shane said as they came to a stop in an open area.
"I think that way. I'm pretty sure." He said, pointing ahead of them.
"Damn, it's hard to tell out here." Shane said as he stepped up onto a fallen tree, trying to get a better view.
"Someone's ringing those bells, maybe calling others." Glen said as they continued walking.
They kept running in the direction they thought they bells were in. The ringing had stopped a few minutes before, so were just running forward based on a hunch. But soon, a white church came into view beyond the tree line. Everyone stepped out from the trees looking at the building. They would have to pass through a graveyard on the hill leading down from the woods to get to it.
"That can't be it. Got no steeple, no bells." Shane said as they looked ahead. Rick started going forward. "Rick."
He started running to the building, making everyone chase after him as he ran through the large graveyard. They all ran until they made their way around the front of the building. Rick ran up the steps to the large, red double doors. He took his Colt Python out of it's holster and stood next to one of the doors as Michael ran up to the other. Rick held his hand up to his mouth, silencing everyone. He looked at Michael as they each put one of their hands on a door and slowly pushed them open.
The creaking sound at the back made the three walkers inside turn around. They were all sitting down in the pews that served as their final resting place. Rick, Michael and Shane stepped into the building, looking around as the group came up behind them. The three Walkers stood up, snarling and growling at the three people closest to them. Rick holstered his gun and reached behind him. Lori stepped up and handed him the machete she'd been carrying. Amy handed her machete to Shane. Michael handed his shotgun to Andrea to hold and unsheathed his katana. The three of them started walking forward, picking out their targets.
Rick walked to the left of the room as Shane walked forward, while Michael went to the right. Rick walked down the pew to the Walker he'd chosen and brought the Parang down on it's head. It fell to the ground, but Rick hit it a couple more times for good measure. Shane walked down the aisle and up to the Walker in front of him. He grabbed a hold of it by it's shirt and pushed the Gator machete through it's eye socket, letting it fall to the ground in front of him. The female Walker Shane had went past was focused on him as it tried to crawl over the pew to get to him, although he was a good several feet away. Michael made his way behind it and made a couple kissing noises to get it's attention. It turned around at the noise and Michael swung his katana across it's face making it fall towards him. Rick and Shane were both beating at the Walkers they had hit several more times.
Rick stood up, looking to the Jesus statue at the front of the church. "Hello? Anybody here?" He yelled.
Daryl walked up to the front, past Michael and came to a stop in front of the statue at the end of the isle and looked up at it. "Yo, JC, you takin requests?"
"I'm tellin you, it's the wrong church." Shane said as he walked back to the doors the rest of the group were still at. Rick had walked back over and Michael and Daryl were making their way towards them. "It's got no steeple, Rick. There's no steeple."
Just then, the loud ringing started up again, right outside the building. Michael was the first out the door, running around to the side of the building where the noise was coming from, everyone following him. As they got to the side of the building, they looked up to where they loud ringing was. There was a speaker positioned at the top of the building. Glenn who had ran out right behind Michael, ran over to the power box that operated the speaker. He opened the box and ripped out the wiring, silencing the loud bells immediately.
"Timer." Michael said, pointing his katana in the air towards the speaker, breathing heavily. "It's on a timer." Michael sheathed his katana and Andrea hands him his shotgun. "Let's rest for a little while everyone." He said as everybody went inside the church to rest.
After a couple of minutes of rest, the group is standing outside under a tree waiting for instruction.
"You're call, Mikey. What do we do now?" Shane asked.
"We found a dead guy in the tent. There may be other campers but let's split up to make sure. Daryl, you're in charge of your group." Michael said as he came to a stop in front of them. Rick and Shane walked up to his side. "Me, Shane and Rick, we're just gonna hang back, search this area another hour or so just to be thorough."
"You're splittin us up?" Daryl asked from the back. "You sure?"
"Yeah, we'll catch up to you." Michael said.
"I want to stay, too." Carl said, looking at his father. He took a few steps towards him, away from Lori's side.
Shane and Rick looked at each other. Rick didn't know what to say again. Shane looked to the ground with a smile. Michael knew they could use more help.
Lori, seeing her husband struggling with his fatherly duties, stepped forward to Carl. "Just be careful, okay?"
Carl turned around to look up at her. "I will." He nodded his head.
She put her hands on his cheeks and looked at him before she pulled him to her for a hug. "When did you start growin up?" She kissed the top of his head as Rick walked over. She let go of Carl as Rick got to her and gave him a quick kiss on the lips before hugging him, too.
"I'll be along soon enough." He said to her before he let go.
Amy walks towards Shane and hugs him. "Please be careful, Shane. I love you." She said.
"I will, Amy. And I love you, too." Shane said as he kisses Amy.
Andrea walks towards Michael and hugs him. "Be safe, Mikey." She said.
"I will, Andrea." Michael said as Andrea kissed him on the cheek.
"And you still own me that date." Andrea said smiling.
Michael smiles. "I know." He said.
Lori started walking away with the others when Rick stopped her. "Here, take this." He pulled his Colt Python out of it's holster and held it out to her as she stepped away. "Remember how to use it?"
She looked back at him. "I'm not taking your gun and leavin ya unarmed."
Daryl walked over to the two, handing her the small revolver he'd snagged from the dead man in the tent. "Here, got a spare. Take it."
She took it from him as he nodded at Rick before walking to the front of the larger group. The group started walking as Lori looked at Rick, Carl, Michael and Shane. She tucked the revolver in her back pocket and started after the rest of them. Rick, Shane, Michael and Carl started walking in the other direction.
Rick, Shane, Michael and Carl were quietly making their way through the forest around the church, looking for any sign of more survivors when they heard a branch snap. Rick raised his hand in the air, causing them to stop as he listened for the direction the noise was coming from. Shane put his hand on Carl's chest as he pulled the boy back a little, wanting him behind him in case something dangerous was up ahead. Rick pointed ahead and slightly to their left through the trees. He held his Python up as Shane did the same with his Mossberg and Michael with his SPAS as the three slowly started walking towards the sound of rustling leaves.
They could see a deer through the branches as they got closer. They lowered their weapons. The three of them stopped as they watched the deer walk out of the trees and into the small clearing several yards from them.
Shane raised his Mossberg to his shoulder, ready to aim at the buck's chest. It would've made a good supper when they brought it back to the highway for everyone to eat that night.
"Shane." Rick whispered to his friend. He nodded his head at Carl who was taking slow steps towards the deer. Shane looked at Carl as he lowered his gun. The three of them smiled as they watched the boy.
Carl walked closer and closer to the buck. He was several feet from it when he turned around, looking back at Rick, Michael and Shane with a smile on his face. He couldn't believe he was this close. The deer he'd seen in his life were always so skittish. Shane nodded his head at the boy with a smile as Carl turned back around and started walking further.
The buck raised it's head, looking around the area. Carl's foot broke a twig with another step that caused the deer to turn and look right at him, but he didn't run away. He just stared at the boy, still coming closer. If he kept walking for a few more seconds he would be able to touch it if it didn't take off. Rick, Michael and Shane stood back and watched, bewildered at the sight, waiting for the deer to bolt out of there.
It happened so fast, Rick wasn't sure what he was looking at at first. There was a loud bang, then Carl and the deer both fell to the ground at the same time.
"Oh, no. No. No, no, no, no! Carl!" Rick yelled as he, Michael and Shane ran to Carl, who was now laying on the ground. Eyes shut and not moving. He ran to his son and knelt down over him, seeing the blood seeping through his shirt. Shane came and stood next to Rick, Michael and the boy, Mossberg raised into the forest in front of them.
That ends the first chapter to begin season 2. Hope you like it. As always, read and review! Thank you.
