in a dark meadow | daryl dixon

highway to hell

word count: 6625

The low throttle of Daryl's motorcycle was oddly calming.

Sitting at the dinette within the motor home, Avery closed her eyes and leaned up against the window, letting the steady throttle soothe her as her mind teetered between sleep and wakefulness. 

Three of their vehicles had to be abandoned due to the limited amount of gas. The fuel from Daryl's pickup, T-dog's van, and Shane's jeep were swiftly siphoned and redistributed to the remaining running vehicles, forcing the majority of the group to pile into Dale's RV. Daryl unloaded his brother's motorcycle from the bed of his truck and opted to ride it out in front of the caravan.

The sound of a gun clattering on the dinette startled her, as Andrea shot Avery a sheepish look from across the table. Shane was seated next to her, a look of amusement on his face as Avery rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

"Morning, twitchy."

Avery's face went hot, feeling embarrassed that her nap had an audience. She sent him a weak glare before settling back in her seat, crossing her arms across her chest.

"God forbid someone tries to get some sleep around here..."

Shane smirked at her pouting before returning his attention to Andrea. He was carefully instructing her how to disassemble and reassemble her handgun for cleaning. The carbon steel pieces were spread out on the table and Avery eyed it like a complex 3D puzzle. 

Andrea looked enthralled in the process, absorbing Shane's words and moving the pieces in their appropriate positions as he spoke. Avery didn't care to know of any of it and closed her eyes again, this time just to rest.

The plan was to head east, leave Atlanta in their rear-view, and head for Fort Benning. 

Avery wasn't sure what they'd find after witnessing the abandoned base outside of the CDC. How could their military force, armed with missile launchers and armored battle tanks, be overtaken by a herd of rotted corpses? It unnerved her the more she thought about it.

The RV slowed down as they approached a cluttered section of the interstate. Avery stood up and moved to the front of the motor home, peering over Glenn's shoulder in the passenger seat.

Several dozen abandoned cars blocked the road. Doors were left open and passenger windows smashed in haste as their old owners sought to escape. An overturned vehicle had its front hood splintered, leaving sprays of glass on the concrete.

"See a way through?" Dale popped his head out the window as Daryl turned around on his bike. Daryl nodded, prompting the motor home to follow him through the gnarl of traffic. 

Glenn looked down at his map.

"Maybe we should just turn around."

Dale pursed his lips, eyes focused on weaving through the maze of cars. "Can't spare the fuel."

Before they could even make it a quarter of the way through, the RV shuddered and the engine hissed, forcing Dale to steer the RV to the side of the road. 

Everyone filed out of the motor home as Dale stared down at the smoking engine, frowning. Avery closed her eyes and bristled in the sun, quietly stretching her neck.

"Dead in the water."

"Problem, Dale?" Shane walked up beside him.

"Well, we're stuck in the middle of nowhere with no hope of-" He cut himself off as he gazed at the unlimited inventory of automobiles and parts that surrounded them. Daryl forced open the trunk of an abandoned SUV, searching its contents. "Okay, that was dumb."