Zadison one shots

make up your mind

Prompt: Zoe and Madison meet in the apocalypse. Title taken from the song written by Florence + the machine.

| Part 1 of 2 |

Growing up, Zoe Benson had always been told that the world would end in fire, burning down everything in its path and consuming the planet they once inhabited. She was afraid of that happening, but her mother always assured her that she would live a long and happy life and that she would be safe, but little did her mother know that not even 10 years after she uttered the words to her 8 year old daughter, the world would end, but it would not be the way that had been predicted. Destruction came in the form of rotting flesh and snapping teeth, and the fire she had once feared so deeply felt like nothing compared to how the world burned down around her, even without the fire. She had been in Louisiana, on a class trip, when the world descended into chaos, and she never got to say goodbye to her parents and youngest sibling Clara, but she desperately hoped they managed alright or that their deaths were quick and painless. Zoe was only 18 and she knew little to nothing about the world that receded quietly around her, but she knew one thing and that one thing was very useful to survive; she knew how to fight.

DAY 705

The scorching sun beat down on the back of 18 year old Zoe Benson, a coat of sweat soaking into the nape of her neck. She had caught wind of a compound with potential resources she needed to survive, so she jumped at the idea of going out alone at the expense of the rest of her small group of survivors, ranging in declining states of health. But a bright eyed young teenager named Emilia had volunteered to travel with her as some sort of backup, and she reluctantly accepted after much pleading and fussing from the young girl. She felt a lump form in her throat as she looked at the 15 year old girl, a replica of her one and only young sibling Clara, who she knew now had to be dead just like her parents. The older girl wasn't a stranger to loss, it was like death followed her wherever she went(both figuratively and literally). Everyone she had ever crossed paths with died at her expense; Kyle, the sweet barista turned zombie hunter. Mallory, the strategical and badass girl who she was sure would outlive everyone. Cordelia, an older woman who reminded her so much of her mother that it hurt. Countless people she had grown close to, and now all of them were dead.

"There's nothing Zoe, I think we wasted our time here." Emilia said dejectedly as she came up behind her, looking at the carnage the undead left behind in their feast of who once called this space home. She nodded, still distracted by her thoughts, until a loud scream broke the semi serene silence around them. The two women burst into action, with Zoe leading the charge and the young redhead on her heels, katana out and ready to slice into anyone or anything that got in her way. It didn't take long to find out what the source of the screaming was, and she almost let out a gasp of surprise as she saw a small woman fighting off a group of the undead in vain. The brunette knew their attempts would be futile, but she still lunged forward and together, her and her young companion made quick work of the decaying bodies, the ground beneath them now littered with splats of blood and various body parts.

"You okay?" Emilia asked softly as she approached the woman, who visibly flinched away from her. She held up her hands, palms up, to show that she was a friend and not an enemy, and some of the tension left the blonde's hunched shoulders. Zoe watched the stranger's movements from a distance, not as trusting as her young friend was, but trusting enough to stay close if anything else were to go awry.

"M-My family.. We have to go back for them." The woman finally said, tripping over her words as she looked in the direction of the treeline, which she presumed is the way she came from. Emilia and Zoe shared an inquisitive look, but before they could speak, the blonde darted back into the treeline, leaving them in the dust.