Daisy | The Walking Dead

18. Treasure Trove Ⅰ

~Day 19~                                               

There existed many words that could be used in the futile attempts of describing the horror that befell the world following the rise of the dead, but not one of them, not a single one, truly encapsulated the sheer desperation that gripped humanity's heart.

Yet, if one word were to stand closest to the precipice of understanding, it would be despair.

No longer bound by the chains of mortality, the deceased emerged from their eternal slumber, turning once familiar streets and neighborhoods into macabre graveyards brimming with grotesque creatures and tormented souls.

Once a vibrant hub of life, Atlanta now stood as a stark embodiment of this desolate wasteland, a haunting necropolis steeped in woe.

Edifices, once monuments of human achievement, now stood as hollow shells, their shattered windows staring out like empty, forlorn eyes. Boards of wood desperately clung to fractured entryways, a meager defense against the horrors that lurked both within and without. 

Their proud facades were crumbled, having become witnesses to the unforgiving tapestry of darkness that played out against their defiled surfaces.

Gone were the vivacious symphony of sounds that once echoed through the air—an orchestra of car horns blaring in chaotic harmony, fiery arguments clashing like thunderstorms, distant yells echoing through the streets, and the wailing sirens that pierced the night. 

In their absence, a disquieting stillness crept in, casting an unsettling void upon the desecrated city.

Those sounds, once taken for granted, now became fragments of memory, deeply yearned for. Hindsight, that cruel companion, revealed the folly of disregarding the hum of life as mere background noise, a luxury that humanity had never truly appreciated until it was ruthlessly snatched away.

Within this merciless realm, two weary survivors trudged forward, their feet dragging with exhaustion and hearts heavy with fear. Every step taken by Glenn and Daisy upon the forsaken streets resounded through the oppressive silence, the echoes of their footfalls reverberating with an unexpected loudness against the desolation that surrounded them.

At every twist and turn, lifeless bodies lay strewn across the city, grotesque in their transformation, a ghastly testament to the swift and unrelenting violence that had swept through the once-thriving thoroughfares, leaving only remnants of devastation in its wake.

Those who had managed to evade the clutches of death were now grotesque distortions of their former selves. Their feeble bodies shuffled aimlessly, their decaying limbs dragging heavily along the ground, while their once-vibrant skin withered away, leaving only rot and decay clinging to their skeletal frames.

Glenn, burdened by the weight of this harrowing reality, shielded Daisy's tender gaze from the worst of it—the haunting sight of undead and dead children, the haunting presence of undug mass graves. He covered her innocent eyes with his trembling hands in his desperate attempts to protect her from the abominable horrors that lurked within this treacherous landscape.

Every encounter with the undead carried an ominous aura, an ever-present threat that caused Glenn's senses to sharpen to an almost terrifying extreme. He was acutely aware that the smallest misstep, the tiniest lapse in vigilance, could seal their grisly fate.

Thus, he exerted a herculean effort, navigating their path through narrow alleyways and concealed side streets, deftly evading the ravenous creatures that roamed with relentless hunger, all the while shielding Daisy's delicate senses from the unspeakable sights that would forever etch themselves upon her innocent mind.