"Love is willing to become the villain so that the one who you love can stay a hero." Josephine Angelini
A wide puddle stretched across the forest floor, leaves strewn across its surface. The warm glow of the morning's sunlight reflected off of it.
Ripples disturbed the puddle's surface as a doe crouched down beside it, dipping its neck as it stopped to drink.
From the cover of the dense undergrowth, the figure stalked their next meal. Their footsteps were silent as they glided over the forest floor, gentle, placing one leg in front of the other.
The man narrowed his eyes and drew in a silent breath, about to release a bolt when the sudden snapping of nearby twigs interrupted him.
The deer lifted its head, neck craning towards the noise. The creature's nostrils and the tip of its tail twitched in flighty anticipation, eyes wide as they locked in on the approaching walker. The deer immediately fled, bounding through the brush and disappearing into the thicket.
The man cursed under his breath before sending his bolt flying through the corpse's skull.
"Y'know, you're not the only one that's gotta eat," he muttered as he picked the bolt from the creature's head and returned it to its rightful place.
The man continued through the forest, following the broken twigs and snapped branches the deer had left in its wake.
He had travelled a considerable distance from the community, pushing miles out of the way into uncharted lands. The last thing he wanted was to cross over the border with the Whisperers, and risk an encounter with the looming threat of a horde on the other side.
The man thought briefly of how the past few months had played out and he frowned, thinking of what his friend Rick would have done if he were here right now.
He knew he'd be thinking of a way to eliminate the threat without bringing about the total annihilation of his communities. He knew he would try to remain one step ahead of the problem.
The man also considered what his ex girlfriend Eleanor would have done.
He narrowed his eyes as he stepped over some stones and crossed over the babbling creek below with ease.
He knew she was already probably in the midst of scheming something to vanquish the horde, and that her efforts and the methods she used to accomplish them had the potential to harm a lot of people.
The man sighed at the thought of the woman, ultimately unable to make a final assessment of her, even after everything they'd been through together.
She was right about a lot of things.
She was also wrong about a lot of other things.
In the end, he knew he still loved her. That part would never change.
The man looked down at the bank beside the stream, noting the hoof prints in the mud. He was on the right track, inching closer towards his prey.
A sudden scream pulled the man from his thoughts and he changed course like it was a reflex, veering towards the noise.
The man slowed as the trees in the area began to thin out. He narrowed his eyes and crouched low when he noticed the tips of the trees in the areas around him. They hadn't been thinned out, the trees had all been snapped and had been forcefully knocked over by something huge.
The distinct sound of moans and snarls came from up ahead, along with the continuous screams.
The man pushed on, feeling apprehensive about what sight would await him.
YOU ARE READING
Outcast (A TWD Fanfiction)
Horror(DarylxOCxNegan) A medium prior to the apocalypse, aggressive outsider Eleanor has always had an abnormal connection with the dead. But in this new world, Ellen is forced to rely on her survival skills and nerve to withstand another monster entirely...
