Surviving The New World (Book Six in the Surviving The Walking Dead Series)

Deployment

~BEGIN DREAM-~

The woods were dark, crickets chirped all around me, my heart was pounding as sweat dripped down my pallid face; I was white as a ghost, almost gasping for air as I ran for my life. A gun rested in my death grip, my hands trying to hold on as hard as I could while my sweaty palms threatened to let the gun slip away. Where are they?

I could hear them all around me, the quiet groans, the twigs snapping under their weight, the whispers. "Come to me," a whisper called out. "You can't escape us. We. Will. Kill." I skidded to a halt as a figure appeared before me in the dark, slowly trudging towards me.

"No," I whimpered. The figure growled lowly, reaching out towards me, it's torso covered in a bloody bullet proof vest, it's head topped with a familiar ridiculous man-bun. "Jesus...no."

"You can't run forever, Michaela," Jesus whispered.

I tried to run away, but stopped as another figure appeared at my side, his body singed, his tan button shirt tattered and covered in seeping blood at the bottom left of the torso, and a bloody, unkempt beard that jumped as the figure's jaw snapped at me with a snarl. "Rick..."

"We are everywhere," Rick whispered. "We are inevitable." A loud explosion in the background filled our ears as a bright orange light filled the distant woods. Jesus and Rick slowly turned to look at it, but I took the opportunity to get away. I ran in the opposite direction, dodging trees as fast as I could. A small light at the edge of the woods caught my attention; daylight was leading me to safety.

"Michaela," whispers called out. "We. Will. Find. We. Will. Win. We. Will. Kill." I was so close to the edge of the woods, just a few yards more. My legs aches with exhaustion, threatening to give out from underneath me. "Kill." Twigs snapped under my pounding feet. "Kill." Just a few more feet; I can see Alexandria's walls. The gate is open and a dark figure stood in the opening, holding their hand out to me, begging for me to hurry. "Kill." The woods fell silent. Everything around me fell still as my foot reached the outer edge of the tree line. "Now."

A massive hand gripped me by my hair and yanked me back into the woods. I let out a scream, but fell silent when my head collided with the solid ground. A massive figure climbed on top of me, holding a large knife in their free hand. I looked to Alexandria, the figure was gone, the gate had closed. I felt the blade drag along my jaw, but I felt no pain. I looked up as the figure pulled the knife away and tugged on my hair, pulling my face from my body and holding it above me as it dripped with blood.

"We. Are. Coming."

~END DREAM~

I quickly sat up in a panic, grabbing my hair with my hand as I frantically gasped for air; I felt like I had ran a mile. I could hear my heart beating in my head as I scanned the room. Harper was asleep beside me, un-phased by my nightmare. Negan was lying beside her, his eyes open, staring up at me with confusion.

"Michaela?" Negan softly spoke. "What is it?" I didn't answer, I just got up and quietly rushed out of the room, shutting myself in the bathroom. My hand rested on the sink, gripping it for dear life as I tried to control my breathing. Panic. I haven't felt this much panic since...since Rick.

Rick...is that what has become of him? Will I ever see him again? Will his face belong to a Whisperer? I looked up at myself, my hair a tangled mess; I could still feel the Whisperer's hand in my hair, gripping, pulling. I frantically searched the bathroom mirror, taking a pair off scissors into my hand. A gentle knock at the door filled the silence.

"Michaela?" Negan quietly called out. I lifted the scissors and put them to my scalp, cutting away at the hair that had grown over the years. "Michaela, what's wrong?"