The Walking Dead: What Rests Ahead

Chapter 3:

The walkers didn't hesitate, coming at me with their limbs half falling apart. I got my axe ready to strike. I didn't know if I could take on all of them by myself. There were so many. One moaned near my ear and I swung quickly, nailing the creature directly in the face. The next few came at me faster than the first and there were tons more after that. Unsure of my abilities, I stumbled back a step into the store and slammed the door shut as hard as I could. My legs began to pump as I ran out the front. About seven stood near where I was, but I ignored them and ran. The dead followed me, the moaning was just the symphony of the undead . I rounded a corner on Main Street and spied a forest behind a dilapidated post office.

Sprinting, I headed into the woods hoping to loose the stray walkers behind me. One glance back I knew that if I stopped running, I was doomed.

The trees were more like hands, reaching up and tangling me in them. I charged ahead and looked back once more. I smiled. I was far ahead of them. To be safe, I kept running for about an hour. My feet hit the forest floor softly like I was trained to do at the beginning of the end of the world.

Finally, I stopped to catch my breath. Before all of this, I was horribly out of shape because I prefered reading to being physical, but nowadays it's be fit or be bit. I choose the fit part. However, constant sprinting wears a person out and my heart beat in tiny explosions in my chest.

I wiped a bead of sweat on the back of my hand and began to walk at a slower pace. The sun shone through the cracks of the canopy above me, casting crooked shadows on the forest floor. Fallen leaves crunched under my toes and a chill ran up my spine. The air was cooler than it had been in months, a sign that autumn was approaching. After autumn came the dreaded winter, so I tried to ignore the seasons and focus on the present.

After walking about two hours, the forest stopped and a large building stood before me. I closed my eyes and opened it in semi-disbelief. The brown bricks of the enormous building were covered by letters that stood out amidst it's surroundings. T. E. R. M. I. N. U. S.

Terminus? What the heck does that mean? I was wary of the fenced-in place before me. It could be a survival sanctuary. Then again, it could be a trap. I've been living in this messed up world long enough to know not to trust anyone or anything too soon. I plopped down on the edge of the forest, hidden by one large tree. If there was anyone there, I didn't want them to see me yet. Gingerly, I pulled out a can of what used to be baked beans and started to eat. It tasted awful, but it was better than starving. Without any utensils, I feasted and smiled. It had been too long since I'd last ate.

After every last bite had been consumed, I stood, never taking my eyes off of Terminus. There seemed to be no one around, but you never know. I bent down and grabbed my axe from where it rested on the damp grass. Slowly and carefully, I made my way up to the fence and peered inside. I snuck around the side and walked for a while, still near the forest just in case. There, just a few feet ahead, was a hole in the fence. It was obvious that someone had tried to keep it shut with rope to tie it together, but anyone could've figured out how to untie it and slip inside, which I did. The air was still as I crept around, passing a...box car? That's weird. Why is that here? I went around the back of it warily, keeping my eyes peeled for signs of people.

Just about ten feet away, stood another one of those odd box cars. This one was different because I began to hear noises inside. I raised my axe higher. I could just make out a man's voice, gruff and clearly southern. Then, someone else replied...possibly a boy? About my age?

Something sounded behind me. I jumped and hid behind the box car, hardly breathing. I peeked out slowly to see a man with dark brown hair and the slightest hint of a mustache. He wore a lighter brown jacket with a forest green button up. He stood next to a woman who looked about in her fourties with auburn hair in a side braid. The man said, "Another two groups came in today."

I heard the woman laugh. "That's good. I was beginning to worry. The people of Terminus have been restless with the lack of supplies. How many?"

"Eight and then four more."

"Perfect," the woman said, her voice softer than before and more distant. I saw their feet underneath the box car and watched them disappear as they walked further away. When the coast was clear, I snuck to the front of the car and thought. I didn't quite trust these people, but curiousity was always my downfall. I needed to know who was in this box car and why. I needed to know what I was getting myself into. Besides, I'd be safer in the box car than out in the open.

With a silent nod, I swung my axe at the lock on the door and walked inside quickly, shutting it behind me.

That's when I saw them.