Down by the water • TWD

Wild Animals.

It happened so fast she barely had time to think at all. Ranger appeared out of nowhere. Not forward like before, but out, a sudden violent burst that ripped him from Avery's side and into the space between them.

The man with the machete barely turned before Ranger was on him. There was no hesitation in it. No warning, just impact. Ranger slammed into him hard enough to drive him backward, the machete slipping from his grip as he stumbled. He tried to fight back, tried to push him off, but Ranger was already latched in, teeth sinking in with brutal, final force.

Avery's breath caught sharply. "Ranger!" But he didn't stop.

The axe man reacted too late, stepping forward and raising his weapon, but Ranger released the first man only long enough to turn. In a flash, he was on the second one, crashing into him and forcing him back into the side of a house. The axe hit the ground with a heavy clatter, spinning uselessly across the pavement.

The man tried to shout, tried to shove him away, but Ranger's jaws closed again, and the struggle collapsed almost immediately after that. The sound of movement, of panic, of resistance—it all faded too quickly, swallowed by the stillness creeping back in.

Then...nothing. Ranger stepped back slowly. Chest rising and falling hard. Ears still alert, his body still angled forward, like he wasn't entirely convinced they were dead yet.

The two men lay lifelessly in the grass in front of them. Avery stood frozen in the middle of the street, her knife still half-raised without her realizing it, her mind completely unable to catch up with what her eyes had just seen.

It had been seconds, maybe less.

Her fingers loosened around the handle of her knife, shaking as she lowered it. "Ranger," she said, but it came out small. Uncertain. Like she didn't even know what she was saying.

She took a step forward, then stopped again, eyes flicking between him and the still forms on the ground.

"You just..." Her voice broke slightly, and she swallowed hard, forcing it back together. Her face hardened before speaking again. "Good boy."

Ranger turned toward her immediately at the sound of her voice, all focus shifting. The tension in his body didn't vanish, but it changed, no longer threat-driven, now anchored to her.

Avery exhaled shakily, her hands still trembling at her sides. But before she could say anything else a voice yelled for her in the distance.

"Avery!" She turned to see Carl standing on his porch with a gun in his hands, scanning the streets. "Get inside now!"

She wasted no time, turning on her heels and sprinting towards the familiar house without looking back. Once she reached the boy, she was gasping for air; the running mixed with the lingering fear from moments prior, just hitting her all at once.

Her head turned, waiting to hear the sounds of Ranger running after her...but it never came. He stood where she was seconds ago, his body tense and alert.

"Ranger!" She shouted, panic settling in. A scream rang through the air so sharp she could feel it in her core. Then without warning, Ranger sprinted after the shriek, not sparing a glance back to her. "No!"

Her eyes widened and she lunged forward in an attempt to go after him. Before she could get anywhere, Carl wrapped his free hand around her, pulling back.

"We need to get inside where it's safe," he whispered, scanning the road for anyone.

"I can't just leave him."

"You know him. He's going to help people." He dragged her into his house, looking back once to curse under his breath. "He'll make it out."

The moment Carl let her go, Avery rushed to the window to try and catch any sight of the dog. You better stay alive, you dumb dog, she thought. Backing away from the window, she was faced with Enid and Jackson.