salvation → g. rhee

seed

Rick kicked open the door to the abandoned house, and he and T-Dog took out the two walkers in the foyer, before Carl and Aubrey ran in, their silenced guns pointed at the floor.

Aubrey gently pushed a bedroom door open, and stepped inside. A walker stood with it's back to her, turning lazily at the creaking of the door. She raised her gun, but thought better of it, and unsheathed her knife. The walker crumpled to floor, foul blood leaking from the knife wound in it's forehead. She heard footsteps going up the stairs and left the room to see Daryl, with his crossbow positioned in front of him, and T-Dog making their way up.

Daryl descended the stairs, pulling feathers from an owl as Aubrey finished her part of the sweep. Glenn had come in while she was investigating. Rick stood in the open doors and whistled, stepping back as Carol and Beth made their way in with supplies, followed by a very pregnant Lori and Hershel.

"No fucking way," Aubrey said, announcing her presence as she leaned against the kitchen door frame, watching Carl pull two cans of dog food from the otherwise empty cupboards.

Carl shrugged, shoved them in his bag, and ran off to where they were pooling their supplies and stuff they'd found. Aubrey sighed, pushing off the doorframe and following after the boy. Glenn looked up and smiled as she entered, before his attention was grabbed by a grinding sound. Lori watched Carl disdainfully as he opened the can of dog food with a manual can opener.

They were all watching him now, Rick being the last to join the audience as he turned away from the covered window. He crossed the room and took the can, looking at it with disgust before he chucked it into a corner.

Daryl paused his plucking at the clatter, his cagey eyes darting from the corner to Rick. Nobody said a word as Rick looked at them all. Aubrey avoided his eyes immediately, turning her gaze to the window, taking in the figures that approached.
She made a sound to catch their attention, nodding at the window. T-Dog picked up his fire poker and stood up.

They left out the back, as quickly and as quietly as they could, unseen by the walkers. Glenn yanked open the trunk of the Hyundai and they threw their stuff inside. Aubrey ran to the firewood pile stacked up against the side of the house and snatched the axe leaning against it, as a walker turned the corner in front of her, snarling. She ignored it and tossed the axe into the trunk as Hershel slammed it closed and they both jumped in. The walker slammed into the back end as they drove off.

〄

They stopped on a back road and got out, some with backpacks, all with weapons. Carl ran up as Rick surveyed the surrounding woods.

"Fifteen. You're on point," Rick said, nodding to his son and back tracking as Hershel spread the map out on the SUV's hood. They all crowded around it.

"We got no place left to go," Hershel began.

"When this herd meets up with this one, we'll be cut off," Aubrey said, spreading her hands over the map to keep it flat. "We'll never make it south."

"What would you say, that was a hundred fifty head?" Daryl asked, addressing Rick.

"That was last week. It could be twice that by now," Glenn answered.

"This river could have delayed them," Hershel piped up. "If we move fast, we might have a shot to tear right through there."

"Yeah, but if this group joins with that one, they could spill out this way," T-Dog pointed out.

"So we're blocked," Aubrey sighed.

"Only thing to do is double back at twenty-seven and swing towards Greenville," Rick said, leaning over her shoulder to look at the map.