Do or Die || Glenn Rhee

twσ

"I'm Amara."

Rick cracked a hopeful smile and offered a hand which she took carefully and squeezed lightly. She can't remember the last time when she had a peaceful interaction with another human. She swallowed at the thought.

"I heard that Atlanta offers shelter and safety, I'm heading that way." Rick says and he drags a hand through his cropped hair.

Amara bit her lips, knowing he was offering her to come with. She couldn't be sure if she was ready to put her trust in someone else again. But maybe she needed this.

He just watched her as the internal battle raged inside her head.

She took in a deep breath and looked at the man in front of her. "I'm heading that way too."

He nodded and pursed his lips. "I don't think you've got any gas?"

She shook her head but her eyes fell onto the rickety pickup truck that sat in the front of the house, and she immediately remembered the keys splayed on the table that she picked up.

"No, but I've got these." She pulled them out of her pocket and pointed to the truck.

They walked over to the car and she pulled the creaky door open. Rick eyed her from the passenger side as she went to stick in the keys.

She held her breath and they slid in.

She turned the key. Nothing.

She let out a noise of frustration and tried again. The car suddenly rumbled to life and she let a thankful murmur. She threw her pack in the backseat and sat in the drivers seat, looking at Rick expectedly. No way she was letting this stranger drive.

~

Amara noticed the gas meter was drastically low twenty minutes into the drive. She tapped her finger tips on the steering wheel and hoped the car would chug a little farther.

It was only a couple more minutes before the car coughed and spluttered before making a complete stop.

"Damn it." She hushed under her breath and rested her head on the seat in exasperation.

"Out of gas." She explained to Rick and he frowned in return and looked at the map in his hands.

"It's okay. The city isn't that far away, we can walk." He decided and opened the door, lugging out his pack that she now realized held multiple guns.

Her eyes widened at all the weapons and she grasped her katana tighter before following him out the car.

Right when she stepped out, the sun immediately turned its scorching blaze on her. She just wiped her hairline and continued to walk with Rick, sword out and ready for trouble.

As they walked, they came up to a highway and she grimaced at the sight. There were hundreds of cars lined up and blocking one side of the road. She didn't want to think about how many cranks would be over there.

Rick followed her eyes and turned away, focusing on the road before them.

It was eerily quiet as they continued towards the city. The buildings loomed over them, windows broken and dirty.

"It's here, right?" Amara asks, doubt filling her voice.

Rick doesn't spare her a look but nods. "Yeah. It's here."

They were well into the city now. It was still quiet, there wasn't even the sound of birds chirping. The absence of noise made her stomach knot.

Fire damaged cars and buildings littered the roads, graffiti painted on the broken buses.

Her heart jumped as the groaning of a crank beside her met her ears. She raised her katana and looked to see two cranks stumbling out of the burnt bus.

"Nothing we can't handle." Rick muttered and she swiftly stabbed each undead through the head, wiping off the goo as they fell to the ground.

Rick set a heavy hand on her shoulder and she looked at him quickly and they continued to walk down the barren road.

"What are we looking for?" Amara asks as they pass by a couple abandoned tanks.

"A sign?" Rick speaks. Just then, a loud rumbling fills the air, they both look around in confusion.

"What the fuck?" She mumbles, but then, they see it.

A helicopter roars above, blades swishing in the air and it quickly moves past them.

"Go!" Rick screams and takes off after the helicopter, and she's follows not far behind.

Too focused on the rumbling of the helicopter, they don't take notice to the moans and groans nearby. That was their first big mistake.

As they both rounded the corner, they stopped. Amara's throat swelled in absolute terror, her face twisted and a sharp cry left her.

There, hundreds of cranks stood. Their loud groaning tripled in noise as they spotted the pair.

She felt her legs tremble and she spun around and ran as fast as she could. She felt the wind blow through her hair and sting her eyes.

The noise grew and so did the thunder of dead feet slapping the pavement in hurry.

With Rick right beside her, they went to turn another corner, but only to be stopped by twenty or so more cranks standing in front of them.

Amara clenched onto Rick's arm as they were slowly surrounded with no where to go. She whimpered and held onto him more tightly.

Suddenly, he moved forward and jammed himself under a nearby tank, calling after her.

She followed in suit and crawled under the small space, her back being scrapped as she wiggled further under. 

She laid next to him and pulled out her gun once the cranks started to follow them. She let out a couple rounds and the blasts echoed in her ears.

Soon, the gun clicked, a telltale sign of the clip being empty. She turned to Rick to see he was looking back at her with such pain. Tears pricked her eyes and a loud sob crashed from her mouth. She was going to die.

She felt the crank's hands try and rip into her pants and all she could do was kick them away and scream.

Suddenly, a grunt came from Rick and he lifted himself up and she looked to see a open crawl space into the tank above them. Her eyes widened and she scrabbled to hoist herself up too.

She slid inside and immediately slammed the trap door shut. She looked to Rick and saw him scooting back against the wall, sweat trickling down his face and a crazed look in his eyes.

Amara felt her eyelids flutter shut as she heard the hundreds of cranks moan from outside the tank, and she let out a breathy laugh. She might have escaped being eaten alive, but now she was trapped and going to die in this tank.

Her head turned towards Rick when a gasp left his mouth. Turns out the crank they'd thought was dead, wasn't.  It opened its decaying mouth and started to move.

Then, a booming noise echoed inside the metal tank. Her ears screamed and ringed. Her vision blurred and she squeezed her eyes shut.

It took a couple of minutes, but soon she could actually hear again. Rick sat in front of her, head rested on his hands and gun by his feet.

They sat in silence for a moment before a cracking filled the tank.

"Hey you," both of their heads whipped to the radio on the side that was buzzing.

"- dumbasses, yeah you guys in the tank. Cozy in there?"

Votes and comments are appreciated, love Nicolee💕