Season 01, Episode 05: "Lead Me Home"

*The scene opens up with Art's truck parked outside of a convenience store. We zoom up to the truck, Ash crying, laying on the floor as walkers start to approach the back windows. One walker, a female starts to push her bloody face against the glass, groaning, trying to get to Ash. Ash continues to cry, as Katniss starts to meow. Ash begins to cover herself with clothes that lay on the floor of the truck. The groans get louder and louder. Other walkers around the store start to take notice of the truck, as one starts to hobble over to join the other walker. Two walkers now on the driver's side of the truck begin to look through the window. One walker begins to drag her nails across the glass, as the other starts to pound on the window. The female walker begins to groan louder, pressing her bloody face even closer to the glass, blood dripping from her mouth, as the male walker is suddenly hit in the head with a baseball bat and falls to the floor. The female turns to look, only to suffer the same fate. Art swings away as Zero barks at oncoming walkers. More walkers start to approach the truck, and as each walker approaches, each one falls. Art grips the baseball bat in his hands and swings at their heads, knocking them down and destroying their brains. With his first kill under his belt Art now has no reservations about killing the undead. Art kills a few more walkers with his baseball bat, as Zero barks to alert him of any other oncoming walkers. After all is clear Art opens up the truck, throws the supplies in that he has collected from the convenience store, has Zero get in, and gets in himself, starts the truck, and at that very moment a walker sticks his upper body into the truck as Art tries to close the door. Art starts to hit the walker in the head with a Powerade bottle that he got from the store, until he reaches down and picks up the baseball bat, hitting the walker in the head with the handle. Art pushes the walker out of the truck, closes the door, and drives away, running over the walker's head with the back left tire of his truck, hitting and running over other walkers in the process.*



"I got Powerades and Poptarts," Art says, looking back at me, as if nothing just happened. He stares at me through the rear-view mirror, blood all over his shirt and face, as if expecting me to say something. I'm not sure if he wants me to thank him, or what. To be honest, I'm not very fond of him at this very moment. "So are you not going to talk to me for much longer, or what?"

Katniss meows, and I instantly grab her, holding her, covering myself in more clothes. I'm starving, but I'm too upset to eat right now. Art opens up a Poptart, feeding it to Zero as he pets him. "If you don't have any objections we have to make one more stop," Art says, looking in the rear-view mirror once again. "So...nothing? No objections? No thoughts at all?" I continue to look down at Katniss, too angry to even look at him. "Alright then," he says, feeding Zero the rest of the Poptart before grabbing a walkie talkie.

"Jace, do you copy? Jace, it's Art. Meet me at Bass Pro in 10 minutes." Art puts the walkie down, leaving it on as he looks back once again. We make eye contact for a second, then I look away. Art tosses me a box of Poptarts. "You're gonna need your energy. I can't leave you in the truck on this run, so you'll have to come with me."

We've hit up everything from clothes stores to gas stations, and every time I've stayed in the truck because Art was within shouting range. I never had to shout for him, he was always on top of it...but the idea of going out there, and inside of a building where there could be those things, those zombies, or walkers as Art likes to call them, I can't even begin to wrap my mind around it. Every time I see them I just think back to what happened to them, to my family, and how Art did what he did. I understand why he did it, but at the same time I don't know why he would come back for me.

"Are you going to eat up? I can't have you low on energy. We are running in, getting what we can, and running out. You need to be alert. You got that?" he asks, as if I'm some sort of child. I make a face as I open the Poptart, at that very second Katniss starts to nibble away at the exposed corner. Art turns around, focused on the road once again. "This run isn't going to be easy. We have to be alert, of everything. Not just the dead." At that very second a chill runs down my spine, because so far I have yet to see another living soul besides Art since he came and "rescued" me. I don't like the idea of going somewhere where there could be such potential danger, and I don't like the idea of being with Art and Jace, alone in this new world...but what other choice do I have? I guess I should be grateful, but I can't help but worry.



"We're here..." Art says, parking the truck, unlocking the doors and grabbing his baseball bat. I grab Katniss, looking at Art as he lowers the seat in order for me to get out. We start to make our way into the store, screams and gunshots filling the air. Art grabs a cart and looks back at me, "This has to be quick. Let's go. Whatever happens, if we get separated, keep running...no matter what."

My heart stops for a second, hoping to God that that won't be the case. We rush into the store, Art starts to fill the cart with supplies; camping stuff, guns, ammo, arrows, a crossbow. Zero stays on patrol, looking around. The store is in chaos, it's like a bad scene out of a movie, like it's Black Friday or something, but people are rushing, grabbing things, crying, screaming, dying. I look at isles across from us, seeing the dead feasting on the living. A man screaming as a walker bites through his neck, blood splattering all over the items on the shelves. Katniss meows in fear as I hold her close, trying to hold back the tears. I look behind us, seeing people fighting over weapons. I notice two guys pulling and tugging on a shotgun, as one slips, the gun goes off and shoots the other clear through the chest. He falls to the ground, eyes wide, coughing up blood as the other guy goes to him, crying, apologizing, as he takes the gun and runs. I can't begin to fathom the idea of people turning on each other, as my breathing starts to get heavy. I start to panic, reaching out, making sure that I'm within arms reach of Art. I turn around, trying to stay as close to Art as possible, but when I turn around I notice a gun pointed at Art's head.

"Drop the baseball bat, and step away from the cart and the girl."

At that moment I see a burly man, holding a gunshot to Art's head, demanding that Art put down his baseball bat. The man isn't shaking, he isn't nervous, he is focused on getting what he wants.

"It doesn't have to be this way, man," Art says, placing the baseball bat in the cart. Zero starts to bark at the man with the gun as the man points the gun at Zero.

"Get that dog to shut up, otherwise he's getting a bullet to the head!" The man begins to place his finger on the trigger as Art pulls Zero back by the red bandanna around his neck.

"Stay." Art pets Zero on the head, making him sit. Zero begins to whine, looking back at Art. "Take what you want, just leave us alone."

"I want the cart, the dog, and the girl," the man says, now pointing the gun back at Art. Zero begins to growl. Art pets the back of his neck, calming him down.

"I can't do that. You can have the supplies."

"I want the cart, the dog, and the girl. You can either hand them over, or I can shoot you and take what I want."



Art looks around the store, motioning to the man to look. "You really want to contribute to this? Are you going to be okay knowing that you killed an innocent man for a cart of supplies, his dog, and a girl?"

The man cocks his gun, making a clicking noise, stepping closer to Art, looking through the viewfinder. "Do you really want me to answer that question?"

Art continues to try to reason with the man, but he isn't having it. I don't remember much of what was said, all I remember was moving up, and holding Zero by his bandanna, because I knew at any moment Zero could lose it and attack, and I didn't want him to get hurt.

I looked over at Art, he appeared calm, but I could tell that he was nervous by the bead of sweat that dropped down his forehead. "This isn't worth it. We can make this work out best for the both of us."

"ALL I WANT IS YOUR CART, YOUR DOG, AND YOUR GIRL!" The man begins to shake in rage. "I'm getting pretty tired of telling you. I'm not afraid of spending a shell on your sorry ass."

Art takes a step up, as the man repositions the gun. "Put the gun down. We don't have to do this."

"I swear if you don't back up I will put a casing through your fucking head!"

"You do that and all these walkers will be coming after you. Is that going to be worth it then?" Art says, standing his ground.

"I'll take my chances." The man says, motioning Art to step back.

Art takes a step back, gulps, and nods. "So be it. I guess I'll take my chances as well."



Art then rushes the guy, tackling him to the floor as the gun drops, right in front of me. Zero begins to bark as I instinctively pull on his bandanna, keeping him out of it. Art and the man begin to scuffle on the floor. The man punches Art, trying to keep him off of him. Art reaches for the gun as the man continues to punch him in the face. Art looks at me in fear, as if he wants me to help, but I'm too afraid to move. The man gets the gun and gets up, pointing it at Art.

"You should have just walked away, punk." At that very moment a gunshot rings through the air, and I instinctively close my eyes. I open my eyes to see the man fall, shot through the head as he drops his shotgun. Art grabs the gun, gets up, looks at me and says, "We need to go." We start to run out of the store, cart, supplies, and pets with us, rushing out as fast as we can.



*The scene shows Art & Ash fleeing Bass Pro, as a shadowy figure steps out of one of the isles, smoke coming out of the barrel of a gun, as the figure looks over at the man, laying there, shot in the head. The shadowy figure cocks his gun, then starts to walk out of the store.*

*Art & Ash pack everything up into the truck. Ash and Katniss get in the back seats as Zero sits in the front passenger seat. Art pushes a walker off of him and holds the gun up and takes a shot, shooting the walker clean in the head. Art places the baseball bat and the shotgun on the floor in front of Zero's seat, and slams the door shut.*

"What the hell?!" Art says, staring back at me. "Why didn't you grab the gun?" I stare at him, not able to say anything. "We could have died back there, Ash! And you just stood there. I told you, you need to be alert. That was reckless as shit. You could be with that guy right now--"

"Instead of being yelled at by you?" I say, shocked that I was even able to speak those words. "Just shut up, Art. No one asked you to come back for me. No one told you to do any of this. You decided to do this all on your own. So quit yelling at me! We made it out, didn't we?! Now quit wasting time and let's get the hell out of here!"

"And where do you suggest we go?" Art asks. Just as he asks that question a big explosion takes place, setting Bass Pro on fire.

I look over at the store, watching the flames get bigger and hotter. "Take me to my father's," I say to Art, no eye contact being made at all as I continue to stare at the fire.

"Are you serious? That's like 60 miles away. You really think we are going to find anything there?" I start to get up, gathering some things, as Art looks on. "Ash, what are you doing? Sit down."

"If you won't take me I'll go there myself." I start to move towards the front passenger seat.

"No, no you won't." Art says, trying to keep me in the truck. I push his arm away and begin to unlock the door. "You really think you're gonna make it walking there? You really think there is something out there for you to find?"

"I have to go there. I was texting him before the signals all dropped. I promised I'd go." I look at Art, the expression on his face changing as he looks down, then to Zero.

"Alright. Sit down. We'll go," he says, not looking at me at all.


"Lead Me Home" by Jamie N Commons

Art turns the truck on and puts it in drive, as we start to drive away from the fiery scene. Art grabs the walkie, once again trying to reach Jace. "Jace, it's Art again. If you can hear me, we are going to Antioch. Walkie me as soon as you can."

Art looks around, I imagine to see if Jace is around. He sighs, and starts to drive faster. The truck starting to pick up speed as we start getting on the back roads. I want to hang on to hope, but I don't know what we'll find out there, or even if we'll find anything at all. All I know is that I made a promise, and I intend to keep it. At the very least, I'm not doing this alone. And even though I am very much angry at him, part of me is glad he came back. Even if we don't find anything there, at least we'll have each other...right?

*The scene ends with Ash grabbing a Poptart and eating it. Art looks at Ash through the rear-view mirror and smiles, his eye swelling up from the fight. We see the truck hitting the back roads, as we get a shot of Bass Pro burning. The shadowy figure is seen again from behind, watching as the store continues to burn, until he finally walks out of the shot.*

Music From This Episode:

"Lead Me Home"

Jamie N Commons

The Walking Dead (AMC's Original Soundtrack), Vol. 1

Season 01, Episode 04: "Everything Changes"

I don't know if it was the rush of adrenaline, the fear of dying before I could see her again, the fear of her dying before I could see her again, or just plain stupid love, but I knew I needed to get to her...as fast as I could.

*The scene opens with Art's truck screeching to a halt in front of Ash's house. Leaves are everywhere, with walkers a good ten yards away in each direction. Ash's neighbors are seen trying to fight them off, while others aren't as lucky, fallen as their former neighbors and loved ones feast on their lifeless bodies. Art locks up the truck, taking Zero with him.*

I don't know what I expected to see when I got there. The sight of her neighbors fighting off zombies both successfully and unsuccessfully sent a chill down my spine. I knocked on the door, only to hear Ash's screams.

"Ash!" is all I could mutter, realizing that if I yelled any louder the walkers would hear me, making this mission a lot more complicated than I needed it to be. With my baseball bat in hand I started to swing away at the doorknob. A few good swings and a few pieces of metal falling to the ground later and I was in the house in a heartbeat.

"Ash, where are you?" I whispered, trying to find her. Zero was way ahead of me, pushing the door to her room open, scratching at the closet door. I slid the door open to find Ash cowering, crying. I check her for bites or scratches, seeing none. "Let's get out of here," I say, turning around only to have Ash pull me back. Not a word is said, she just looks me in the eyes, then looks out her window. Her stepfather, now a walker, lurking outside of her window. Then I hear a noise inside of the house. Ash's whimpers grow louder as she covers her face. I get up and start to walk out towards the hallway.

"Don't..." is all Ash can say. My baseball bat gripped in my hand, as I start to realize what is going on. I hear tiny dragged footsteps coming towards me from the kitchen. The sound of footsteps on tile, then on wood, dragging along with the distinct sound of walkers breathing. But this time it was different. It wasn't as deep, or as loud; it was paced, and quiet, and meek.

I walked back into the room, closed the blinds so that Ash wouldn't have to see the turned form of her stepfather. I petted Zero, "Stay...both of you," I say, as I look at both Zero and Ash. I slowly closed the door behind me and walked into the hallway.



I knew what was coming, but I didn't want to believe it. I wanted there to be a mistake, or for them to be alright, but as the sunlight shined through the blinds, revealing the dead faces of the two in the kitchen, I realized that what I thought might happen was true.

It was Ash's siblings, a boy and a girl. Bite marks lined their small arms and necks. They had turned, and I knew at that moment that if I hadn't had shown up Ash may have suffered the same fate. The two looked at me, with their lifeless eyes, as I tried to hold my composure. All I could think about were the times I was over here, playing with them. Battleship, watching Spiderman, taking them to the park. I wanted so badly to go back to those times, but unfortunately now, in this world, everything changes. I could hear Zero whining, scratching at the door, as their tiny feet inched them closer to me. My bottom lip quivered as I knew what I had to do next.

I gripped my baseball bat a little tighter, a tear running down my face. "God, forgive me for what I'm about to do." As soon as I muttered those words I could hear Ash scream from her room, a very loud "NOOOOOOO!" as her closet door closed. I took a step forward, baseball bat in hand, wiped the tear from my face, and swung away.


"Serpents (Basement)" by Sharon Van Etten

*The scene quickly changes to Ash's room, Ash in her closet, covering her ears as she screams and cries. The zombie of her stepfather breaks through the window, making his way into the room. He gets his the upper half of his body into the room before Zero starts barking, then jumps and attacks him. Art rushes back in and beats him over the head with his baseball bat as Ash slowly opens the closet door. Ash rushes up to Art and tries to get him to stop, blood splattering all over the both of them. Ash finally pulls Art off of her stepfather, and falls down to the ground crying. Ash's cat, Katniss, walks into the room, Ash grabs the cat and holds her, still crying.*

"We have to go, Ash," is all I can figure to say. "I'm sorry, but we have to go." I look at Zero and motion for him to leave the room. I walk up to Ash and pick her up, holding her hand as we leave the room. "Don't look," I tell her, as we run past the corpses of her once siblings. Ash looks down, seeing their bodies laying on the wooden floor, as she begins to cry. She pulls away from me, and goes to her siblings, holding each of them and crying. "We have to go," I say again, grabbing her hand and pulling her away as gently as possible.

*The scene changes to see Ash, Art, Zero, and Ash's cat, Katniss, getting into the truck, closing the doors and driving away. Ash sits in the back seats of the truck, holding her cat, crying. Zero sits in the front passenger seat, as Art places the baseball bat in front of him. Ash looks at the bat, then back at the house, letting out a loud scream as the two drive away. Ash, covered in the blood of her family, continues to cry and holds Katniss close. Art wipes the blood off of his face, tears running down his eyes as he looks in the rear view mirror to see Ash, as Art thinks these next words in his head:

"I want to believe that it was love that made me do it...but I'm not so sure. All I know is that I needed to see her again. I know I can't do this alone, and now neither can she. We are stuck together. Whatever happened in our past doesn't matter now, because everything has changed. Now it's about where we go from here, and I haven't the faintest idea what the fuck to do now, except to do the one thing I said I was going to do."

*The scene ends with the truck driving away down the road, as the scene pans out to see the truck heading towards Bass Pro Shop.*

Music From This Episode:

 

"Serpents (Basement)"

Sharon Van Etten

Serpents (Basement) [From "The Walking Dead"] Single

Dedicated In Memory Of Liz

Season 01, Episode 03: "Clean-Up On Isle Six"

"Antarctica" by The Bled

*The scene opens with Art and his dog Zero driving down the road, leaves being kicked up behind the worn-out back tires of his black pickup truck, walkers and flipped over cars lining sidewalks and busy streets. Art's cell phone sits in the cup-holder, his eyes glaring down at it from time to time, waiting for a response, as the two make their way to Bass Pro.*

A few months ago, if you had asked me I would have told you that if you love somebody you let them go. Thinking about it now, when the end is staring you right in the face, it makes you realize how precious time is. You never know when it'll be your time to go, you never know what'll be right around the corner; plain and simple, you just never know. I mean, we never really knew what the future had in store for us, but more so now than ever, with our humanity being challenged, and that which we hold dear being ripped from our hands, it's about survival, it's about whatever can get you through this, and for me, it's always been one hundred percent, undoubtedly, love, and why the hell would I let that go now?

I don't think people wasted too much time. Stores were being hit up while the news was breaking. Driving down main street felt like being in a third world country now. I noticed more killings of the living than I did of the undead. I had played this scenario in my head so many times, thinking that a catastrophic event like this would bring us all closer together, but instead it was what everyone expected, but what no one wanted to admit to, we are greedy, horrible people, and instead of helping each other, when we are presented with such a horrible situation, we are trying our hardest to survive, by any means necessary, even if it means to kill to survive.

It's hard to drive with all of the undead in the streets. I can't even remember how many cars I drove by with the undead still strapped into their seat-belts. I watched as a man opened a car, saving what appeared to be an abandoned baby, until that thing latched onto his neck. I hit the gas and drove away as fast as I could. It was almost reassuring to see a glimpse of hope, but then it was dashed away when I saw the most animalistic of urges displayed by an infant that had obviously turned.

Zero barked through rolled up windows, spinning around in his seat, whining and barking at anything that was not in a car. I hit a hard left turn, skidding on the road as I tried another route to Bass Pro. I braced myself as I drove through debris and walkers. I have decided to refer to them as walkers...it's The Walking Dead's fault. At least I'm not carrying a crossbow or wearing an eye patch.

I noticed a fire on the road en route to my current destination. I made a detour and somehow ended up in front of a Home Depot. For some odd reason I decided that this should be the first stop. I leashed up Zero and ran through the parking lot, baseball bat in hand. I ran through the entrance, the old man that usually greets the customers was still sitting in his seat. He looks up at me and smiles. "Welcome to Home Depot," he says, smiling at me. I'm not sure if he realizes what is going on, or if he even cares. "There is a special on shovels on isle six." I don't know if he is being condescending, or if he really thinks he's still working.

"Thanks," is all I can seem to mutter as I start to run through the isles.

I grab a shopping cart and lift up Zero and put him in it. We start to storm through the store, picking up shovels, pick axes, and any food that was left over. Someone bumps into me and I crash into a shelf of spray paint. "I'm sorry." I get picked up, apologized to, as a big, bearded man in a red plaid shirt dusts me off.

"It's okay," is all I can mutter, surprised at the act of courtesy.

The man smiles at me and says, "Clean-up on isle six!" He laughs and hands me a can of black spray paint, and says, "I think you dropped this." I don't know why, but I figured it would be a good idea to take it.

"Thank you," again is all I could say, placing the paint in the cart, continuing on.

"Are you stocking up on supplies as well?" the man asks, picking up some spray paint for himself, then shifting himself closer to my cart.

"I am," I say, trying to avoid any further conversation. I start to push my cart and move on to the next isle, but the man repositions himself in front of me again.

The man looks at me and smiles, a drop of sweat running down his brow. "It's dangerous out there. You all alone?" The man now looks visibly worried, awaiting an answer.

"Yes. Yes, I'm alone. But I'm actually on my way to try to meet up with some people, and find a place, or something."

"Hehe; something. Well that's good! Get what you can now from here. Make sure you stock up on a lot of supplies. Weapons especially, and bandages and wraps. Those things bite really hard." The man stands there smiling, his face starting to grow pale, more sweat dripping down his face.

"Yeah, that's what they seem to do," I say, as if I had already encountered any of them. I pick up a few more cans of spray paint and place them into my cart. I start to push the cart, trying to get away.

The man smiles again, finally moving out of my way, gulps, and says, "Well...good luck! I hope you find your friends, or your 'something', or whatever it is you are looking for."

"Thank you. Good luck to you too." I say, trying to get in and out of this store as quickly as possible. I felt bad about brushing him off, but to be honest I knew what I had come in here to do, and unfortunately for him befriending a rather large and bearded man in a plaid shirt was not it.

The cart, now half way filled with pick axes and other useful tools starts to get heavier as I push through different isles. The store is unbelievably quiet, as soft rock plays quietly over the speakers. I look around corners, carefully as to not bump into anything, or to bring any attention to myself or Zero. I continue to whisper to Zero, trying to keep him calm as his tail stands on end. I start to get a terrible feeling about this, as my phone goes off.

"Shit!" I yell, more worried about the noise of my phone attracting walkers, not thinking that my own exclamation probably did more harm than my phone did. I look down at my phone, a missed call from Ashley. I had tried to call her several times on the way over, but to no avail. I was starting to get worried. I start to call back, waiting patiently as I get her voice-mail. I hang up, and try again. By this point Zero is growing anxious, spinning around, knocking the things in the cart around, making more noise. His whines start to grow louder and louder, until suddenly they become barks. I yell at Zero, telling him to be quiet as I get Ashley's voice-mail once again.



"Ashley! It's Art. Please call me back as soon as you can. I just want to make sure you're alright. I know you probably don't want to hear from me, but I just want to make sure you are safe. Please call me and let me know that you are fine. I'm on my way to--" but before I can finish my sentence I am struck frozen by fear as I notice what is on it's way towards me from the end of isle six.



I see the old man looking at me, his orange vest glaring in the sunlight. Zero continues to bark, putting his front paws out of the cart. I stand there, phone gripped in my hand as the voice-mail continues to record, and start to back up a little bit. My heart racing as I notice the man's posture. He begins to walk towards me, very slowly, as his figure starts to lurk out of the shadows, the sunlight finally hits his face to reveal blood dripping from his neck and his mouth. He lets out a loud groan as he starts to chase me.

I immediately turn around, bumping into the bearded gentleman in the red plaid shirt from earlier. I am taken over by a brief moment of relief, until I look into his eyes. His eyes have turned grey and red, his skin pale, as blood drips out of his mouth as well. I look down at his arm, blood soaked through bandages that cover most of his left forearm. He cocks his head to the side and makes a loud groan, sticking his arms out as he starts to come towards me.

"You've got to be shitting me!" I yell, as Zero jumps out of the cart and onto the plaid-clad walker, knocking him down, immediately running off, his leash dragging behind him. I push the cart and start to run through the isles as the old man in the orange vest chases me.

I chase Zero to the outside of the store, avoiding other walkers as I start to realize that the store is starting to get filled with them. The orange vest walker gets dangerously close to us, as I can feel him start to breathe down my neck. I push the cart off of the sidewalk, running through the parking lot. I see my truck, but realize that the orange vest walker is too close for me to be able to make an escape.

I try to grab my baseball bat, but the walker grabs my arm, my phone falling to the ground. I try my hardest to turn around to fight the walker off of me. He opens his mouth, trying to bite me as I push him back in a fit of rage, and at that very second he is hit by a speeding car. The momentum of pushing the walker back and the car nearly hitting me knocks me on my back.

The car continues to veer off, the orange vest walker now on the floor, crawling towards me. Zero barks at me, I get up, trying to get to my phone before noticing that the old man in the orange vest has crawled very close to me, now laying on top of my phone. I pick up my baseball bat, lifting it above my head, ready to smash this pain in the head before I hear Ashley's ringtone go off.



I hesitate, looking at my phone, seeing Ashley's name and picture flash upon the screen as the old man sneers at me. Zero begins to bark, calling my attention. I turn around to see a hoard of walkers coming towards the truck. I sigh, frustrated because I know I'm not going to have enough time to get my phone back.

"You fucking suck, zombie!" I yell, right before I kick the old man in the head and run off, grabbing the cart and putting as much as I can into the back of my truck. I push the cart into the hoard of oncoming walkers, unlock my truck, let Zero in, get in myself, and slam my door closed. I stare off into the distance, annoyed that my phone will probably stay behind, but I know that it's only a matter of time before all reception is down anyway. I turn my truck on and drive away, supplies in the back of the truck, and Zero and I safely leaving this scene.


 "Civilian" by Wye Oak

I look back for a second, seeing the large bearded man walking over in my direction, his eyes still glazed over, spray cans still in his pockets. I stare at his bandage-clad arm, and sigh. Again, I feel a little bad for him, but in reality there is nothing I could have done, and I know that now. I guess they do bite hard.

I drive off, pale look on my face as I pull the walkie out of my bag. I turn it on and begin to call for Jace. "Jace, do you copy? Jace! Dammit! Jace, it's Art. If you can hear me, it's a no go to Bass Pro." I pause for a bit, looking down at my gear shift, noticing the hair band that has been wrapped around it for months. I know deep down what I want to do, and I know what I should do, but for some reason I can't let this go. "Walkie me as soon as you can. Again, I'm not going to Bass Pro...I've got something else I need to do."

Like I said before, if you had asked me a few months ago I would have told you to let it go, because if you truly love something, and it's meant to be, it'll come back. You just have to give it time, and now, in this world, time is nothing but a myth. Only the strong survive, and if you want something you better damn go after it.

I quickly turn the truck around and begin to drive off as fast as I can, towards Ashley's house...

*The scene ends with Art's truck driving down the road, cutting back to the parking lot in front of Home Depot. Art's phone continuing to ring, Ashley's picture flashing on screen, as we fade to black*

Music From This Episode:

"Antarctica"

The Bled

Found In The Flood

"Civilian"

Wye Oak

Civilian

Season 01, Episode 02: "Welcome To The End"

"I've Got A Name" by Jim Croce

It was like any other Thursday. I was hanging out with my best friend, Jace, who was messing around with my iPod as we drove back from breakfast, on our way to pop into the office where I worked to drop off some paperwork before I forgot.

"Why the hell do you always insist on changing what I'm listening to in my truck?" I asked, giving him a dirty glance then going back to keeping an eye on the road.

"Art, dude, no offense, but not everyone likes My Chemical Romance," he sneered, scrolling through my iPod looking for the next song to play. "Besides, man, this song is fucking awesome."

"It's old." I replied.

"It's on the soundtrack--"

"To one of the best films ever made, I know, I know." I say, finishing his sentence, shaking my head.

"If I recall you liked that movie! You even quote it. Don't you greet your girlfriend by saying 'hey little troublemaker'?" The question sent a chill down my spine. I was trying my best to forget about all that, but in that instant I was brought back to a happier time in my life.

"Ex girlfriend. And I used to. She never liked it though. She thought it was corny." I said, the expression on my face changing, looking ahead at the road, not turning to look at Jace for anything.

Jace's expression changed as well, as if he realized what he had said. He shrugged it off, smiled, and said, "Well it is kind of corny, you little troublemaker." We both glanced at each other, Jace smiling at me, trying to break the awkward tension. "C'mon, man! You gotta be all serious all the damn time?"

I let out a sigh, then smile. I glance over at Jace just to make sure he sees it. "There. Better?"

"Not really, but it's a start." Jace's attention is quickly shifted, looking ahead and saying, "Oh shit..." My heart drops as I realize what Jace was worried about. There she was, my ex, Ashley. She was getting into her car. Unfortunately we worked together, but I guess we dodged a bullet since she was going home.

We tried to get out of the truck as quietly as possible to remain unnoticed, but my damn breaks gave us away. They were always so damn squeaky, and I never did a thing about it.

Ashley glanced up and realized it was us. She put the rest of her stuff in her car then closed her door, turning and walking up to us. "So Jace, you work here now? Or are you just keeping your boyfriend company?" Ashley looks at me and gives me a dirty look.

"He's not my boyfriend." I reply, getting out of my truck, letting the motor and the song run.

"Babe, I got this." Jace says, getting out of the truck, and walking over to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. "I'm just supportive. You wouldn't know anything about that now would you, Ashley?"

"Jace, I swear, if you were any gayer you'd explode into a cloud of glitter and Golden Girls DVDs." Ashley says, as she whips her hair back, smiling an evil smile.

I try not to laugh, a smile forming across my face as I turn away. Jace smiles a condescending smile until he sees me trying not to laugh. His facial expression changes from cocky to irritated. "Really, dude?"

"I'm sorry, man. That was just too good."

"You two have fun. I have stuff to do. Art, you might want to go talk to Omar. Apparently we have today off. The schools sent all the kids home early due to an attack in some school in Orange County." She says, getting into her car and closing the door. I glance at Jace, a worried look forming, confused as anything. Ashley drives by and rolls down her window. "He's gonna tell you guys to go home. I don't know whats going on, but I'd advise you two to stay out of trouble."

"You know what, Ashley, you're such a bitch that...if you were any bitchier you'd--" Jace starts to say as Ashley rolls up her window.

"Better luck next time, idiot. Bye, Art." She says before driving away.

"Bye, little troublemaker." I say, under my breath, hoping that Jace didn't hear it, turning off the engine in my car, killing the noise emitting through my speakers.

"Bye, little troublemaker? And I'm the gay one? Dude, you're such a pussy. When are you gonna tell her how you feel?" Jace says, as he shrugs it off, shaking his head at me.

"Hey, I'm not a pussy. And she already knows. And I don't appreciate you calling her a bitch. It's not cool." I say, grabbing the paperwork and making my way to the office door.

"Whatever. She is one though. She wasn't there for you, man. Why do you still even care?"

"Drop it! I don't want to talk about this right now, besides, she didn't need to be there for me, I needed to be there for myself. I needed to do this alone."

"You weren't alone though, man. I was there, your family was there, your friends were there. She wasn't."

"Just drop it. Please?" I say, walking into the office, noticing my boss, Omar, watching a news clip on his computer screen. "What's going on, sir?"

"Arthur, the kids were sent home. There was an attack in Orange County. I don't know what's going on, but everyone in OC was told to stay indoors. The army is over there now. There are a bunch of different news reports. Apparently this isn't the only place that this has happened. The President is going to do an announcement in a little bit."

I stand there, watching part of the news reports on the computer as Omar turns on the TV and wheels it out to an open space in the office, and begins to change through channels.


"The Beginning/28 Theme (Party Poison's Zombie Apocalypse Remix)" by John Murphy

"It's on every channel. Something is going on, and they aren't saying what it is. The scary part, there were reports that this was going on in London as well." Omar says, looking very pale.

"You don't think--" Jace says.

"Dude, no. Don't even say it." I say, looking at him with an irritated look.

"It could happen, man. It's in religious texts. They've talked about it. Chemical warfare, the wrath of God, it's possible, dude."

"It's not happening. If it did it wouldn't be this calm of an outbreak. It would hit harder than this...right?" I say, trying to convince myself that this isn't real.

"This is real life man." Jace says, smiling.

"Then what is all of this? What's going on?" I say, starting to get worried. I feel a vibration go off in my pocket. I pull my phone out and read a text from my mother that reads:

"Your father and I are stuck at work. They are making everyone stay inside. Lock-downs are now in effect. Please take care of your brothers. I called Glenn. He and Noelle are alright. Please call them if you can. I don't get very good reception in here. Stay safe. I love you."

I show Jace the text, a worried look now takes us both over. "What the fuck is going on?" I ask, my legs starting to shake.

"Dude, don't lose it on me," Jace says, looking more worried than I am.

Omar continues to change the channels until he stands up and yells, "Shh...here it is!" Omar says, turning the volume up on the TV as we listen in to a report from London.

"We're in Notting Hill, a part of London. Who knows if this report will ever be transmitted. Uh, communication is at best limited. The city, it seems is being overrun with man-eating creatures, and--" the reporter is cut off by a woman running away, yelling "They're coming!" At this point the reporter looks worried, looking at the cameraman yelling, "Run!" Then you see it, a swarm of these undead creatures, running after the living.

The feed is cut off, and Omar immediately changes the channel to the middle of another report. It's a doctor saying, "What I'm trying to tell you is, the dead are walking. That's all I can say."

"The dead are walking?!" Jace says. His jaw drops as we stand and watch more of the report.

I begin to text my mother back, asking her if she knows what is going on. My mind starts to race as I watch more of the reports, not blinking, afraid that I might miss something. Jace steps back, away from the TV, his hand over his mouth. He bumps into a container full of walkie talkies. Immediately Jace grabs two walkies and two chargers.

"You two need to go home, now. Go!" Omar says. We rush out of the office, stumbling out hearing sirens around us. We get into the truck and immediately lock the doors. Jace turns on the radio as the broadcasts continue. We begin to drive home, listening quietly as a report is cut off in order to air the White House Press Room Announcement.

I begin to drive off, watching as traffic begins to go crazy. People are running red lights, breaking speed limits. I sit, stunned, as I see a school bus hit a man on a motorcycle, going at least 80 miles per hour, rushing away, swerving into oncoming traffic. Jace and I look at each other, worried looks on both of our faces. "Just take me home, man," he says. "I think I need to be home right now."

Somehow we make it back to his house. Jace hands me a walkie and a charger. "Keep this with you. Charge it as soon as you get home. Turn it on if we lose cellphone signal. Channel 13. I know, corny, but just do it. Let me know what's going on and how you are holding up." Jace rushes into his house and immediately closes the door. I hear a sound I haven't heard from his house in forever, the locking of the door. I begin to drive off, listening to the rest of the news reports.

I continue to drive home, tears rolling down my face as I see people running. I drive by gas stations, all which are being looted. People with shopping carts full of goods, cars on sidewalks, accidents on every block. It starts to hit me, this is real life. This is really happening. I get home and run into the house. I turn on the TV and yell for my brothers. I realize that I'm home alone, and that the two of them have already left for school. I get text messages from the both of them almost simultaneously telling me that they are alright, and that they are on lock-down at school. I turn the volume up and go around the house, making sure that everything is locked. I go into the backyard and let my dog, Zero, inside.

The sound of sirens continues to fill the background, gunshots now start to ring out. I sit and watch more and more reports. I turn the TV off and run upstairs with Zero now on a leash. I turn the TV on upstairs and sit on the couch patiently. Zero, pacing back and forth, panting loudly. I sit and watch, my gaze not breaking away for a second. I sit and watch as the information gets fed to me. My heartbeat gets faster and faster as I get up and look under my bed. I grab the baseball bat that has sat there for years. I grab a roll of athletic tape, saving it for later. I empty out my work backpack and begin to pack things into it.

"We can't stay here." I say to Zero. I begin to grab what I can, packing it away into my backpack. I know exactly what I'm going to do, and where I am going to go. I grab my phone and text my family that I'm alright, but that I'm not staying at home. I tell them where to meet me. I then send another text to Jace, letting him know as well. Then I pause, do a double take, and start to text Ashley.

I pack up what I can into my truck. I come back in and watch the rest of the news report. There are more and more reports that the President will make his announcement. I look out my window and see fighter jets fly by, very closely. I continue to look around the house, gathering anything that could be useful. I rush and pack up more into my truck. I come back in and freeze, as the President begins his announcement.

"My fellow American's, this republic faces a crisis like no other in it's history. While the lights across this great land dim and the darkness of an uncertain future descends, let us not forget the words that led our country through another great challenge, 'We have nothing to fear but fear itself.' We will endure, we will rebuild, we will drive away the night and warm our children in the dawn of a new day.' God bless you all. And God bless the United States Of America."

As the news reporter signs off, and the channel goes to the Emergency Broadcasting System, I leave, TV still on, driving away as fast as I can, Zero in the front seat. I look down at my phone and finish off the text to Ashley:

"Please let me know that you are alright. I'm going to Bass Pro Shop. If you need a ride there let me know or meet me there if you can. Just let me know that you're alright."

Music From This Episode:

"I Got A Name"

Jim Croce

Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Season 01, Episode 01: "A Dog, A Cat, A Boy, & A Girl"

"I Had Me A Girl" by The Civil Wars

I honestly don't know what the fuck possessed me. I guess your true feelings start to come out when you realize that you are losing everything around you. When you panic you try to grasp at anything that will comfort you; anything that will remind you of any kind of solace or peace of mind. Watching as everything fell around me I guess I jumped at the next best thing. I just hope I don't regret it.

The wind blows through the rolled down windows as the dirt and sand gets kicked behind us. I sit in a black truck running on two good front tires, and two back ones that could give out at any moment. No air conditioning, a dog in the front seat with a name that could very well represent how much of a chance any of us have in this time of trial and tribulation, a cat that won't shut the fuck up, and my bloody ex-girlfriend. Now, I don't mean bloody in the sense that those Brits do, but bloody as in covered in blood.

She sits in the back, holding her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth as the sound of My Chemical Romance rings through my speakers. I have told her at least three times to put on her fucking seat belt, but I guess even mass death and destruction can't make her less stubborn; besides, it's not like we are likely to crash into anyone now, unless there is another human being alive that has the bright idea to drive 60 miles in search of a lost cause.

All kinds of emotions are running through my mind. I'm mad at myself mostly for giving a shit, but what the hell else was I supposed to do? Honestly, I can't do this alone...and neither can she. On one hand, I feel as if she could at least say thank you, but I can only imagine what is going through her mind right now. On the other hand, I want nothing more than to drop her and her annoying ass cat off on the side of the road, wish them luck, and leave them with some food and water, but I know I can't and won't do that.

I speed up, enough to get away from the runners, but slow enough not to aggravate the back tires, long enough for us to find a new means of transportation, or to find a shop and a way to put new tires on this thing. I knew I shouldn't have waited so long to do this. She continues to rock back and forth, knocking over bottles of Powerade and PopTarts, the few things I could salvage from the convenience store...what was left of it at least.

So many thoughts running through my mind: "What will happen to us? Is this all worth it? Will we even find what we are looking for?" I stare at my gun, amazed at how quickly I learned to use it, and ashamed of how I came across it. My baseball bat, grip wrapped in athletic tape, chipped and covered in blood. Luckily I stole a bottle of black spray paint from the home improvement store before that place was overrun. I see her staring at it, still rocking back and forth. I can't blame her; I'm not proud of what I've done with it. Hopefully the black paint will cover up the reminders of the unfortunate choices I've had to make. Hopefully blood won't stain black as much as it can normal colored wood.

The sun starts to set on this first day, but even the calming of night won't help this new world. If anything the darkness will be our biggest rival. I'm just glad this happened during the day.

I look in my rear-view mirror once more, her posture has turned from clutched to embrace as she holds her cat. Tears start to run down her face as she starts to whimper. I guess it has finally hit her. Neither of us are all too happy to be in this place, but unfortunately now we are all that we have. A dog, a cat, a boy, and a girl, roaming through dirt roads in search of something that we may never find. What the hell am I doing here you ask? I guess it would be better if I started off at the beginning...right?

WELCOME TO

THE END
 

Music From This Episode:

"I Had Me A Girl"

The Civil Wars

The Civil Wars