Decimation (Ianthony Apocalypse AU)

night fifty-two

chompers seen: maybe around like seven hundred and seventy-five

chompers killed: 6

near-death experiences: 7

human deaths witnessed: 5

friends left behind: 6

camps infiltrated: 2

dead friends: 2

"We're gonna have to go in," Aaron said, tapping the handle of his knife against the ground. "We got almost nothing left."

We all sat by the stream, planning as the sun slowly descended behind us. We'd have to hurry to get this done before night fell.

"That's the worst idea I've ever heard," Anthony disagreed, furrowing his eyebrows.

"You got a better one?" 

Anthony looked down. He sat close to me, his side pressed into mine. "I guess not. It just sounds like a death wish."

"I think it might be his stupidest idea yet, but if we don't go for this now, who knows the next time we'll get the chance? There could be nothing for miles and miles. Plus, we don't have a vehicle anymore." Jonah stood up.

"I don't want Lizzy to go," Henry said, looking hard at Aaron. "I mean it."

I prepared for her evident protests, but none came. I was thoroughly surprised.

"I'll stay with her," Rico said, then sunk back down after realizing his cowardice. "I mean, if that's alright. I just don't want her to have to be alone."

"You wanna stay, too?" Aaron asked Jenna. She shook her head.

I felt Anthony looking at me. I nodded, not meeting his gaze, because I knew if I did I'd realize what I was about to get myself into. But I couldn't back down. I had to do this for the group.

"I want you two on the road. Hide in the woods on the other side if you'd feel safer. Just look out for us. And if anything at all happens, you need to run. Don't think about us. Just save yourselves." Aaron looked between both Rico and Lizzy. "You got that?"

"Don't worry, I'll take care of her," Rico said, smiling at her.

"Please." Lizzy scoffed. "Like you'd be able to save me from a fly."

I chuckled. There was definitely something brewing there. It was confirmed by the look Rico gave me immediately after.

~

We all took our places around the edge of the field. Anthony was supposed to be a few feet away from me, but he stood right next to me, grasping his knife tight in his hand. I held onto his other arm, my breath shaking on the way out.

"Just stay in my sight," he whispered, his breath hot against my ear. "Run fast and be careful. We'll be fine."

I nodded, taking a deep breath. Looking out into the field was like staring straight into a nightmare. If anything, the chomper count had only increased from the morning. There were hundreds, all in a tightly packed group. Nonetheless, water bottles and cans of food and packs and tents were still scattered everywhere, just waiting for us to get our hands on.

He squeezed my hand, still whispering. "I love you."

"I love you, too." I smiled at him and was just leaning in to kiss him when Aaron's gunshot went off in the distance. 

My breath caught and I watched with careful eyes as the crowd of chompers rushed toward the sound, a few tripping over piles of firewood and tents. They shuffled toward the sound like cattle being herded, and just as I braced myself to run, I saw a shadow dash into the field, and knew that was my cue.

I took off, not even thinking about the consequences. The shadow had, sure enough, been Jonah, and Jenna was on the other end of the field, grabbing whatever she could hold, and Henry appeared a little farther down seconds later.

For a brief moment, I found myself frozen in place. Nearly all the chompers were too distracted to notice us, but a few had turned and were heading straight toward me.

I ran toward the road, grabbing whatever I could get my hands on. A backpack, a blanket, a sleeping bag, a water bottle... and heard a chomper directly behind me. I spun around, driving my knife straight into its skull, before continuing the other way. 

I spotted Anthony as I spun around. He had an armful of an abundance of supplies. We both ran toward the road, and I heard Henry behind us and watched Jenna and Jonah in front. I could tell a few chompers were following us, but for the most part, very few of them had noticed our motives.

I reached the road, squinting through the almost-darkness to make out Jonah's silhouette sprinting down the road. I waited for Anthony, then we ran that way together, adrenaline forcing me to forget about the pain in my legs and the begging in my lungs. 

We ran for a while, almost missing the rest of the group huddled on the side of the road. Rico and Lizzy were safely piling all the supplies into a tower, and Aaron must've just reached the rest of them, because Jenna was hugging him and panting.

I spun around after stopping, assessing the damage behind us. Five chompers, it looked like, were thirty or forty feet away, but other than that, we seemed pretty safe. Aaron and Jonah were already running to take care of them.

"I have no idea what the hell I just grabbed," Jenna said, chuckling a little through her heavy breathing. "Whatever I could find."

"Me, too," Anthony admitted, and I laughed a little.

"Looks like some useful stuff," Lizzy said, squinting at a can to see what its contents held before setting it in the pile. "You all didn't do half-bad."

Aaron and Jonah returned a moment later, with Henry. He caught his breath, setting down an armful of junk.

"There were a few tents still packed up by the road," he wheezed. "I got a few."

"Nice." Jonah clapped him on the back.

"We shouldn't stay here for the night," Aaron said, bending down next to the supplies. "How many backpacks did we find? We should pack all this up and go a little farther. We'll figure out our next move in the morning."

~

It looked like we were on a long stretch of interstate. Woods stretched to our left and right, and the road ahead seemed to go on for miles. But, we still had to be in the urban part of California. We couldn't go too much longer without seeing a building.

It was fully dark. I held on tight to Anthony's arm, refusing his hand. I wanted him to be able to hold onto his knife. If nothing else, it'd make him feel a little safer.

We walked on and on, each noise in the night startling me out of my wits. I knew we were close to what was civilization at one point, though. We had to be.

We rounded a turn, and I held my breath, hoping for a miracle, but there was nothing but the long road ahead.

Aaron stopped, sighing. 

"We really need to set up camp somewhere. We can't keep going all night."

Luckily, the tents Henry had snagged weren't too difficult to put up, even in the dark of the night. Just a few minutes later, we all crowded into two tents, feeling somewhat secure for a few hours.

I huddled under the blanket I'd found with Anthony, my had against his shoulder. His hand ran through my hair.

He kissed my head gently, whispering against it:

"We're almost home."

I smiled, snuggling closer into him. He was right. We'd almost made it. Hopefully, in just a few short days, we'd be back in Sacramento. We'd be home. And maybe, just maybe, this would all end someday.