Season one, Episode one
AUTUMN
THE METAL lining of the car bumper was scorching as the sun glared down on it. Audie's jeans offered some protection from the heat as she sat upon the car, her legs too tired to stand any longer.
Almost an hour had passed since the men had disappeared inside the sheriffs department. Early that morning they had headed back to Ricks house, grabbing the keys and driving down to the now abandoned building with the intent of having a hot shower. However, even with the world now in pieces, Audie still couldn't imagine anything worse than showering in-front of three men, one of which being a complete stranger, so had instead offered to wait outside by the car.
With her legs pressed tightly against her chest, she rested her chin on her knees, tossing the small pocket knife back and forth in her hands. Audie always found comfort in running her fingers over the intricate carvings on its handle.
The knife had been a gift from her father. Back when life had been normal, her father loved nothing more than taking her off through some hiking trail in an attempt to teach her to hunt. Audie hated killing the animals, and would often find herself pretending to miss a shot, purely to give the creature a chance to get away. Despite that, Audie still went out with him every weekend, finding no greater joy than that of the time spent with her father.
The sheriffs department door swung open, hitting against the wall with a hard thump. Audie's head shot up, realising she had become completely lost within her daydreams.
"Conserve your ammo," Rick was instructing the others as they walked up the slope towards her, "It goes faster than you think, especially at target practice." Having now showered, Rick had changed into a sheriffs uniform, a hat rested comfortably upon his head. Duane had a rather large duffle bag draped over his shoulder, and was struggling to heave it over to his car.
Pushing herself off the bumper of the car, Audie came up behind Morgan as Rick set about unlocking one of the police vehicles left abandoned in the parking lot. "Are you sure you won't come along?" Rick raised an eyebrow at Morgan.
Before he could reply, Audie had pushed forward curiously, "You're leaving already?"
"Heading into Atlanta, gonna try and find one of those refugee camps," Rick confirmed.
"And your not going?" She turned to Morgan.
"We'll be going in a few days, by then Duane will know how to shoot and I won't be so rusty."
Audie drew a deep breath, she knew there was a good possibility that if Rick left now they may never see him again. She also knew there was a good possibility it could be more than a few days before Morgan was ready to leave.
Time seemed to slow as she thought to herself. A large part of her wanted to stay with Morgan and Duane, stay where she knew it was safe, at least for the time being. But a feeling, like a small trickle of sand at the back of her brain, was screaming at her to step forward and say something, and for some reason, that's exactly what she did.
"I want to go with Rick," she blurted, looking up at the man in the uniform with a hint of admiration.
Everything was silent for a moment and her cheeks went red. Turning to Morgan she began to speak again, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean... You have been amazing, and gave me everything I needed... but..." She trailed off, looking down embarrassed.
The corners of Morgan's mouth turned up in a reassuring smile, "Kid, don't worry. Thats fine by me."
"Really?"
"Fine by me too," Rick called as he pulled something out of the front of the car, "You got everything you need?"
With a hard swallow, Audie nodded. Had she really just agreed to drive miles into a city in search of the family of a man she met yesterday? Slightly flustered, she glanced around the parking lot to see Duane standing over by his car waiting.
"Can I have a minute before we go?" She asked.
"Sure," Rick nodded towards her, more focused on the radio he was now holding out for Morgan to take.
While the two spoke, Audie slipped away, heading over to where the small boy stood. Duane and Audie had gotten along well over there time spent together. Neither child had been the most outgoing before the outbreak, and both had lost parents by some means around the same time, and as a result, there was a sense of understanding between the two.
"Hey," Duane beamed as she reached him.
Audie's smile faltered slightly as she tried to match his own.
"Everything okay?" The boy asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.
"I'm going to go with Rick," Audie said, looking at the boy apologetically, "I'm sorry."
Duanes smile faded momentarily at the thought of losing his friend, but as he saw Audie gazing back at him, her eyes wide with the worry of how he would react, he pushed those feelings down. "Don't worry. Me and my dad will be following you in a couple days. I'll find you again."
"You promise?"
Forcing a reassuring nod, Duane replied, "I promise."
"Autumn, you ready?" Ricks voice called from over by the car. With one final look at Duane, Audie gave him a small wave, dragging herself back across the parking lot.
"Ready," she tried to sound confident as she reached Rick. He pulled open the back door and she jumped inside, throwing her backpack down on the seat next to her.
Rick said a brief goodbye to Morgan and Duane while Audie waited inside the car, trying to stop her heart from pounding. A part of her still wanted to jump out of the car, to say she had made a mistake and she didn't want to go to Atlanta after all. But she couldn't shake the burning feeling that if she didn't leave now, she never would.
Before she could make up her mind, Rick had already jumped inside the car, the engine switching on with a low splutter as they began to pull away from the sheriffs department. By pulling herself up in the seat and pressing her head close to the window, Audie could catch a glimpse of Morgans car turning off in the other direction.
As she watched the vehicle fade out of view, she clenched her hands into tight fists and she prayed it wouldn't be too long until she could see Duane and his father once again.
AFTER WHAT felt like hours of driving in complete silence, Rick picked up a radio, identical to the one he had given Morgan, from the seat next to him. Keeping one hand on the wheel he brought the radio up to his face, holding down the button as he began to speak, "Broadcasting on emergency channel. Will be approaching Atlanta on Highway 85. Anybody reads, please respond."
Now resting her head against the window, Audie watched as the empty road blurred together as the drove by. She found it almost funny that she was now sitting inside a police car, the man in front dressed in a full sheriffs uniform and talking into a radio. If only they could have the sirens blaring.
"Hello, hello," Rick continued, "Can anybody here my voice? Anybody out there? Anybody here's me please respond.
As she listened to him, Audie couldn't help but roll her eyes to herself. Did he really think there was a chance anybody was out there loud here him?"
But yet Rick still kept speaking, "Hello. Hello. Can anybody here my voice? Can you here my voice? If anybody ready please respond."
With a small sigh, Audie squeezed her eyes shut, attempting to block Rick out.
"Broadcasting on emergency channel. Will be approaching Atlanta on Highway 85. If anybody reads, please respond."
JAMES
————————
"ITS YOUR turn," James nudged his sister, who seemed to be more interested in watching the adults work than she was in playing the card game.
"Sorry," Sophia mumbled, pulling a three of hearts from the stack in her hand, placing it down on the pile in the middle.
With an approving nod James then turned to his left, "Carl, you're up."
Screwing up his face, Carl looked down at the cards in-front of him, "I don't understand this game."
The final of the group, Hazel, let out a loud sigh, "Me neither."
Hazel was the camps newest addition, a girl with thick, dirty blonde hair and enough energy to be shared among the four of them. James had liked her instantly.
"Come on guys it's simple, you just have to-" James began to explained for the third time that morning, only to be cut off by the loud crash of Amy Harrison dropping the pile of logs she had been carrying as she dashed quickly past them.
The four kids all turned to watch curiously as she reached the radio located to one side of the campfire. Through the static James could make out a voice, "Hello. Hello. Can anybody hear my voice?"
The radio had been set up on one of the first days of the camp and had been left on ever since, but this was the first time it had actually managed to pick up a signal. Amy had now practically flung herself down to pick up the speaker, clicking the button, "Hello?"
"Can anybody hear me?" The voice repeated.
"Yes, I can hear you. You're coming through. Over."
"If anybody reads, please respond."
"Where just outside the city," Amy pressed the button again, and this time she was only met by silence on the other end. "Damnit, hello? Hello?"
James glanced around at the rest of the campers, all having stopped their tasks to listen in. One of those people was Dale, presumably the oldest, and with out a doubt the wisest of the people, who was watching from his lawn-chair. "Try to raise him again, come on son, you know best how to work this thing."
Slamming his axe down into a nearby log, Shane made his way over to the radio, taking it from Amy. He had been the one to set it up in the first place, having been a cop before the outbreak. James often found himself looking to Shane with a sense of admiration. He was everything James wished he could be, confident, strong, smart.
"Hello, hello, this is Officer Shane Walsh, broadcasting to person unknown, please respond."
Nothing.
Shane sighed heavily, "He's gone."
"At least we know there are others," Carl's mother, Lori, called, "It's not just us."
"Yeah, we knew there would be, right, that's why we left the CB on," Shane had been rather opposed to the idea in the first place.
"Lot of good it's been doing. And I've been saying for a week, we ought to put signs up on 85 toward people away from the city."
"Folks got no idea what their getting into," Amy added. The city's were not a good place to be these days, Atlanta in particular.
"We don't have enough time," Shane attempted to brush Lori's statement off.
"I think we need to make time."
Shane scoffed, "Yeah, that's a luxury we can't afford. We are surviving here. We are day to day. And who the hell do you propose we send?"
"I'll go. Give me a vehicle," Lori folded her arms over her chest.
"I'll go too," James felt himself speak before he could think.
He thought he saw Shane stifle a laugh as he shook his head, which hurt slightly, "You're staying right where you are buddy. And Lori, nobody goes anywhere alone, you know that."
"Yes sir," Lori seemed to clench her teeth as she brushed past him, heading back towards the tents. Carl instinctively jumped up to follow her, but Shane grabbed his arm.
"Hey, hey, hey, go sit back down with your friends, go on take a seat."
Listening to Shane's orders, Carl slightly reluctantly slumped back down onto the log. James sighed as he watched Shane follow after Lori. Sometimes he wished Shane looked out for him like he did for Carl.
Sometimes he wished anyone looked out for him.
AUTUMN
————————
THE CAR rolled to a halt outside a rather large farmhouse, which appeared completely walker free.
"We're almost out of gas," Rick explained as he turned around to look at Audie, "Imma see if we can find anything here."
"Can I come with you?" Audie asked, shivering at the idea of being left in the back of the car alone.
Jumping out of the drivers seat before walking round and pulling open Audie's door, Rick nodded, "Sure, but we gotta be quiet, Alright?"
"Right," Audie agreed, stepping out and trying to tread carefully as they headed up the gravel path towards the house.
As they reached the steps, Rick knocked gently against the wooden door, "Hello? Police officer out here. Can I borrow some gas?"
Silence.
"Hello? Anybody home?" After another moment with no answer, Rick turned to Audie, "Stay here."
Audie did as she was told, watching Rick disappear around the side of the house in search of a window, before she turned her attention to the left. A small crow sat, clinging to the porch bannister, watching her. Audie's eyes lit up as she watched it tilt its head to the side slightly, its coat a mix of black and a thick blue in the dull fall sun.
"Time to go," Rick came back around the corner, his voice startling her and causing the crow to spread its wings, disappearing into the sky.
"Did you see anything, is anyone home?" Audie asked, confused by his sudden hurry.
Rick shook his head slightly, "No one there." His face seemed paler than before, and she could see small beads of sweat forming on his forehead, but she decided not to push it any further.
"What now, do we have enough fuel to get into the city?"
Rick swallowed hard, glancing around, "No, I don't think..."
He trailed off and Audie gave him a confused glance, "What?"
"Change of plans, you ever gone horse riding?"
Audie had most certainly never gone horse riding, but she allowed Rick to lead her across the farmhouse drive and over to a nearby field. Brushing a branch out of the way and looking out, she realised what Rick had been talking about.
Amongst the slightly overgrown grass, scraping the mud with its hooves, stood a horse. It's mane handing over the large white patch on its muzzle, standing out against the otherwise chestnut brown coat.
Audie froze in her tracks, there was no way she was going anywhere near that thing let alone getting on its back. No longer hearing her next to him, Rick turned around, almost smiling when he saw her terrified face. "You comin'?"
"I'm good here," She called back, nervously biting her tongue.
"Not a big horse fan?"
"Not really."
Still smiling, Rick beckoned her towards him, "It's this or spending the night in the car."
Admittedly, that sounded slightly worse than horse riding. Clenching her fists, Audie forced herself to take a few steps forward, slightly embarrassed as she felt Ricks eyes on her.
Satisfied that she was following him again, Rick turned his attention back to the horse, approaching it slowly, his hand out. "Easy now, easy. I'm not gonna hurt you, nothing like that." Audie had caught up to him now, taking great caution to stand out of the horses kicking proximity as Rick continued, "More like a proposal. Atlanta's just down the road ways. It's safe there. Food, shelter, other horses too, I bet. How's that sound?"
Audie couldn't help but snort slightly at Ricks comments, but they appeared effective as he was able to slip the harness on with ease. He turns around as Audie gave him an impressed nod.
"Ready?" He asked.
Drawing a deep breath, Audie took a step forwards, "Yep."
"Alright," He smiled reassuringly, "You're up first." Rick bent down with one knee out, placing his hands on top to form a makeshift step.
Using every drop of courage she could muster not to run away, Audie stepped up, Rick holding her steadily as she swung a shaky leg up and over the horses torso, managing to sit down less gracefully than intended. Squeezing her eyes shut, she waited for the horse to buck upwards and throw her off, but nothing happened.
Slowly opening her eyes, Audie came to realise that she had successfully gotten on top of the horse, and Rick was beaming up at her. She let out a breathy laugh as she felt its soft coat beneath her fingertips, "I did it!"
"Sure did," Rick nodded, pulling himself up, sitting in front of her as he took hold of the railings.
The horse swayed slightly with the weight and she clung tightly to Ricks arm in fear of toppling over. "There we go," Rick reached out to stroke the horses head, "Good boy, good boy. Now come with me."
With a gently tug of the reins, Rick began to lead the horse out of the field. Audie shut her eyes again, not enjoying the feeling of the horse moving back and forth along with the echoing noise of its hooves against the ground.
It's okay, she tried to reassure herself, they were going to be in Atlanta soon, they were going to be safe.
THE RIDE into the city was shorted than Audie had excepted, and just as she had began to grow more comfortable with their means of travel, the horse was trotting up the empty outstretched of road leading into Atlanta.
The other side of the road, the lane leading away from the city, was completely lined with vehicles. Cars were left with trunks or doors hanging open, belongings sprawled across the concrete. Clinging tighter to Ricks shirt, Audie tried to shake the feeling of panic that had now seemed to linger in the air, mixing with the thick city smell of diesel. What the hell had happened here?
The buildings seemed to tower over her as they rode across the bridge and into the city. Nothing about this felt real - the only sound seemingly for miles around was the steady clacking of the horses hooves, and apart from the crows circling overhead, life seemed nonexistent.
Rick slowed the horse, leading them more gradually down a trash covered street, peering in each window as they passed. A rust coated bus lay abandoned to one side of the road, and as they passed, Audie could make out two figures in the back, two walkers. Both lifted their heads and began to stagger down the aisle, seemingly awoken by the sound of the hooves.
This agitated the horse, who began to sway its head back and forth as if trying to break free from Ricks grasp. "It's okay," he whispered, tightening his hold on the reigns "Only a few, nothing we cant outrun."
With a nervous glance back, they turned the corner, heading down another street and coming face to face with a tank. Audie had never seen a real tank before, nor imagined she would, and her mouth slightly agape as she peered over Ricks shoulder. A body was sprawled across the roof of the tank, the head hanging over the edge as crows pecked through the torn clothes on its back.
Biting her tongue to try and avoid any possibility of vomit building up in her mouth, Audie turned away. Then all of a sudden, the bubble of silence which seemed to surround the city was broken as a loud humming tore through the air. It was a helicopter, Audie could make out the large body of the object as it glided through the air.
With a hard tug of the reigns, Rick sent the horse racing after it.
Riding past a large brick building, they turned the corner only to be met by a large herd of walkers less than a few meters away, arms outstretched as they tried to stumbled towards the horse. Rick swiftly turned the other way, picking up speed as he tried to get away from the dead. They managed to slip down another road, riding for only a few seconds before they come into contacts with another herd, the previous one still hot on their tail.
They were trapped.
Terrified, the horse kicked its front legs, bucking upward. Audie's grip loosened from Ricks shirt, and she found herself falling back and slamming into the hard pavement. Without hesitation, Rick too jumped from the horse, landing more gracefully than Audie, the bag of guns slipping from his shoulder as the dead began to swarm around them.
Rick grabbed the hood of Audie's jacket, pulling her to her feet and half dragging her away from the groping hands that now surrounded the horse. Audie managed to glance backwards, only to see the horses guts spilling out over the pavement, the walkers faces now smeared dark red with its blood.
Ducking downwards, Audie followed Rick as he scrambled under the tank, shooting the heads of the dead that managed to get ahold of her trainers as she pulled herself under. The shots Rick fired didn't even begin to make a dent in the herd of walkers than now swarmed the tanks, many beginning to claw their way under.
"What do we do, what do we do?" Audie was on the verge of tears now, looking desperately towards Rick.
He could only stare bleakly back at the girl, "I don't..."
The walkers were crawling in from all directions now, using their blood covered nails to drag themselves closer towards the pair. Completely defeated, Rick took a second to flop back, resting his head against the ground. As he did so, he looked up at the body of the tank for the first time. There, nestled between the metal lining, was the tank entrance, which as if by some miracle, had been left open.
"Autumn!" He hissed at the girl trembling next to him, gesturing towards the entrance. Brushing away the hair that clung to her tear soaked face, Audie followed his glance and without hesitation dove forwards, pulling herself up into the tank.
Making sure she was safely inside, Rick followed her up, heaving the large door behind them as he backed away into the corner.
Audie was panting hard, and she flopped down against the cool tank floor, trying to catch her breath. They were alive, trapped as well, sure, but they were alive, and right now that was all Audie cared about.
AUTHORS NOTE
This took way longer than expected because I wrote the first few paragraphs then kept putting off writing the rest, but I finally finished.
(I apologise on James behalf for his positive views on Shane)
If you made it this far ILY, and votes/comments are very much appreciated <3