Aug. 08 - Turn of Events
Title: Turn of Events
Author: 3am_moonlight
Crossover: BtVS / The Walking Dead (TV)
Rating: Gen / Teen.
Word Count: 2,111.
Timeline: Post-Chosen / TWD: S01. (01x04 - Vatos)
Disclaimer: The Buffyverse belongs to Joss and TWD belongs to whoever holds the copyright.
Summary: Hunting for dinner turns into rescuing a group of survivors from a herd of walkers.
Author's Note:
"This is stupid; we can't track wild animals." Faith walked between the trees and tried to avoid the worst of the underbrush, but not really bothering to be quiet. She didn't make much noise, footsteps excluded, but who knew who or what was hiding out here just waiting to catch them unaware.
"Not in the traditional way, no, but we have a heightened awareness of our surroundings if we just pay attention to our instincts. This allows us to sense if there's anything demonic or potentially dangerous in the area."
"We can't eat demons, B, or people." Buffy very deliberately didn't roll her eyes. It had been a while since they'd found something edible that wasn't crackers or something else that would only keep them going for a little while. Hence the hunting for deer or whatever else might be out there. The lack of food was getting to both of them, but all they needed was to find one house that hadn't already been searched top to bottom for food. Heck, even a can of cold peas sounded great about now.
Their car had run out of fuel a while back and without another car nearby, or a convenient gas station, they'd been forced to abandon it. The positive part was that walking took care of some of their restless energy as did the heavy packs they carried. Before leaving the car behind they had repacked their stuff, only bringing what was strictly necessary. Water, food, medicine, clothes, weapons, and a few reference books. Chances were they would have to ditch the books pretty soon, it was unlikely they would need them and they took up too much space to be worth it.
A few weeks into the apocalypse they'd caved and gathered a few handguns and shotguns, plus any ammunition they could find which didn't cut into their precious packing space. Their inner Slayer would rather use blades or blunt weaponry, but sometimes it just wasn't feasible. Shooting into a herd to thin it out was more effective and lessened the chance of them dying. The sound was an issue, but it was a choice they had to make each time they came across a large group. It didn't mean they liked the projectile weapons, but it was a matter of necessity and survival.
Each of them carried one gun in a thigh holster, stolen from fallen soldiers, a katana or a sword, extra ammunition, and a variety of knives and stakes. Some habits did die hard, even if they hadn't seen or sensed a single vampire since a week after civilization broke down completely. The stakes had a dual purpose though as they killed walkers just as easily as they had killed vampires before, just as long as they aimed for the head instead of the heart. Supernatural strength was great that way.
Bringing her wandering thoughts back to the present, Buffy replied, "No, but it should still work on predators, and where there are predators there should also be prey." Her fellow Slayer didn't respond, but her footsteps became lighter and she focused more on their surroundings. They walked in silence for a while as it got darker and darker around them.
Suddenly, in the distance in front of them, they heard the tell-tale sound of shuffling feet. Sharing a silent look they picked up the pace before they began flat-out running. Yes, it was late and they needed food, but they still needed the fight, and the fewer walkers there were the better for the remaining survivors out there.
When they reached the back of the herd they slowed down slightly so they were capable of chopping off the top of the head of the walkers they passed. Seeing that the group were rather widespread they separated with Buffy going to the left of it and Faith to the right. As they sliced their way through the not-entirely dead, Buffy began picking up a group of people laughing somewhere further in front of the herd. Thinking on her feet she sped up, chopping off heads as she ran past and by the time she reached the clearing she could hear a conversation about a watch of all random things. She could also see the light from a fire between the trees, along with the smell of cooked fish, probably that nights dinner. Her own stomach grumbled at her, reminding her of her own lack of proper nutrition.
Pushing her hunger down, she ran into the open area of the camp, startling everyone, including a blonde woman in her early twenties who was on her way to the bathroom if the last part of the conversation she'd overheard was true. "Get up and grab your weapons! There's a herd coming straight for the camp!" Then she turned around and ran back the same way she'd arrived. Behind her, several women screamed and the men began yelling, but the walking corpses had almost reached the camp. The ones who had been on their way to walk past the camp immediately changed direction and headed towards the loud noise. Right after stabbing a walker in the head with a knife she heard a man scream, followed by flesh being ripped off some poor fool.
The next fifteen minutes were filled with screaming and gunshots. Somewhere in the chaos she and Faith were back to fighting side-by-side again, and once that happened it was smooth sailing - or rather an easy killing. Not long after another group of people joined the fight, someone who had come from the road on foot. Judging by one of the men yelling "Carl!" into the crowded camp and a child answering him, they were obviously a part of the group. There was no clear leader in this group, no rules, or even plans for situations like this. Everyone just seemed to panic and make as much noise as they could, instead of being quiet and hiding so as not to attract attention.
One of the new arrivals, the man who had called for the child, appeared to have some kind of leadership, but another man, one of the ones remaining in the camp, seemed to be challenging him for it. Or perhaps it was the other way around. Either way, the newcomer managed to calm down the survivors. While he tried to talk them down and comfort others, she and Faith went from body-to-body and stabbed it in the head with a knife or sword.
"What are you doing?" Another blonde woman, this time in her early- or mid-thirties, had moved to intercept them so they couldn't get to the next body. She was holding the arm of the other blonde Buffy had seen earlier.
"Making sure they don't get back up and start eating anyone." Faith's reply was curt as she easily side-stepped the new arrivals and plunged her knife into a downed woman's forehead. Her face and clothes showed she'd been one of the people who had been camping in the quarry they were in, rather than one of the walkers.
Anger showed on the woman's face, "They're already dead! They need to have been bitten or scratched first, then they can be turned into one of those... Things!"
"We're all infected," Buffy interrupted while the brunette kept moving to the next body. "It doesn't matter how we die unless the brain is destroyed we'll come back as one of them." Then she added, "She's dead after the herd attacked, that means she was bitten even if we can't see the wound."
It was one of the few things the Council had been sure of before they'd lost contact. Whatever caused the dead to rise was an airborne virus and they were all either already infected or they would be soon. Death meant turning into a flesh-eating corpse, and they'd been sternly told to stab anyone who had died in the head to make sure they would stay properly dead. The same applied to those who had already risen.
The last phone call between Buffy and the Council had been a somber one; Giles had been bitten and had then been put into isolation for observation in an attempt to learn more, and Xander was already dead along with at least 400 Slayers around the world who had tried to stop the dead from attacking. No one had managed to get into contact with Willow and Kennedy, who had been in New York City visiting Kennedy's family. It didn't mean they were dead, but in a city that large...
Dawn was in Tibet visiting Oz and his family. Buffy had insisted she take two Slayers with her, and Vi and a girl Dawn's age had volunteered. They'd seen it as a working vacation and even Dawn hadn't complained when she'd seem who would accompany her. It had made her happy to know there was someone there to protect her sister when she herself couldn't, and now she just prayed they were all safe there in the lesser populated area. Dawn wasn't a child anymore, but she wasn't a Slayer either. Hopefully, they'd had fun before everything came crashing down.
The Slayer Activation Spell had given 1000 girls the powers of a Slayer, but not all of them had survived in the intertwining years. 300 girls and young women had been killed before the apocalypse had hit, and with the 400 they knew had lost their lives to walkers there were maybe 300 Slayers left. Neither she nor Faith knew who were still alive and where they were located, all they knew for certain was that the two of them were alive and they intended to stay that way. Although both of them had had Slayer Dreams were they saw their sisters get killed by this new kind of undead, it hadn't been anyone either of them had known.
As Buffy was distracting the blonde women and Faith kept securing the quarry, a man wearing a sheriff's hat and full uniform came over and joined them. "Did you just say we're all infected with whatever this is? How do you know?"
Happy both about the continued distraction and that someone finally asked intelligent questions, she replied, "Before the world fell apart I worked for an organization that kept track of strange happenings around the world, and the dead coming back to eat the living definitely counts as 'interesting' to us. We studied the people who were bitten or scratched and those who weren't. Several people who hadn't been in contact with the walkers died and still turned into one of them. One was killed by other means and one by a car accident, they both came back and they both tried to bite those near them."
It was close enough to the truth. Their work had been deemed highly classified by every government who knew about their organization, and as long as they didn't meet any vampires or demons it would stay that way. The survivors didn't need anything else to keep them awake at night.
The man's brown eyes stared into hers for several long seconds and then he held out his hand, "I'm Rick Grimes, and this is Andrea and Amy Harrison."
Buffy shook his hand, carefully not applying too much pressure. "Buffy Summers."
"And your friend?" He indicated Faith with his head. She'd managed to get over to the other side of camp and just past the treeline. Beside them, Andrea was getting upset all over again.
"Faith Lehane. We were in Atlanta checking on the situation when the electricity went down and people began panicking in earnest."
Amy managed to beat the others to the next question, and Buffy smiled slightly. "So she's just a co-worker?"
"We work together, but we've been friends for a long time." Apparently, the younger sister didn't share her older sister's opinion on making sure the dead really stayed dead.
"Not to be abrupt, but we need to deal with the dead and then you guys need to move somewhere else. This place is compromised and dangerous. You have nothing to keep the walkers out, or hostile for that matter. It isn't safe."
That had the other potential leader coming over and start arguing. Rick introduced him as Shane Walsh, a fellow sheriff. As the discussion wore on, more and more people got involved until finally, Rick managed to break it up by insisting everyone got some shut-eye and they would continue in the morning when everyone had gotten some rest.
The two Slayers agreed verbally but silently communicated to each other that they would keep watch over everyone for the rest of the night.
Author: 3am_moonlight
Crossover: BtVS / The Walking Dead (TV)
Rating: Gen / Teen.
Word Count: 2,111.
Timeline: Post-Chosen / TWD: S01. (01x04 - Vatos)
Disclaimer: The Buffyverse belongs to Joss and TWD belongs to whoever holds the copyright.
Summary: Hunting for dinner turns into rescuing a group of survivors from a herd of walkers.
Author's Note:
"This is stupid; we can't track wild animals." Faith walked between the trees and tried to avoid the worst of the underbrush, but not really bothering to be quiet. She didn't make much noise, footsteps excluded, but who knew who or what was hiding out here just waiting to catch them unaware.
"Not in the traditional way, no, but we have a heightened awareness of our surroundings if we just pay attention to our instincts. This allows us to sense if there's anything demonic or potentially dangerous in the area."
"We can't eat demons, B, or people." Buffy very deliberately didn't roll her eyes. It had been a while since they'd found something edible that wasn't crackers or something else that would only keep them going for a little while. Hence the hunting for deer or whatever else might be out there. The lack of food was getting to both of them, but all they needed was to find one house that hadn't already been searched top to bottom for food. Heck, even a can of cold peas sounded great about now.
Their car had run out of fuel a while back and without another car nearby, or a convenient gas station, they'd been forced to abandon it. The positive part was that walking took care of some of their restless energy as did the heavy packs they carried. Before leaving the car behind they had repacked their stuff, only bringing what was strictly necessary. Water, food, medicine, clothes, weapons, and a few reference books. Chances were they would have to ditch the books pretty soon, it was unlikely they would need them and they took up too much space to be worth it.
A few weeks into the apocalypse they'd caved and gathered a few handguns and shotguns, plus any ammunition they could find which didn't cut into their precious packing space. Their inner Slayer would rather use blades or blunt weaponry, but sometimes it just wasn't feasible. Shooting into a herd to thin it out was more effective and lessened the chance of them dying. The sound was an issue, but it was a choice they had to make each time they came across a large group. It didn't mean they liked the projectile weapons, but it was a matter of necessity and survival.
Each of them carried one gun in a thigh holster, stolen from fallen soldiers, a katana or a sword, extra ammunition, and a variety of knives and stakes. Some habits did die hard, even if they hadn't seen or sensed a single vampire since a week after civilization broke down completely. The stakes had a dual purpose though as they killed walkers just as easily as they had killed vampires before, just as long as they aimed for the head instead of the heart. Supernatural strength was great that way.
Bringing her wandering thoughts back to the present, Buffy replied, "No, but it should still work on predators, and where there are predators there should also be prey." Her fellow Slayer didn't respond, but her footsteps became lighter and she focused more on their surroundings. They walked in silence for a while as it got darker and darker around them.
Suddenly, in the distance in front of them, they heard the tell-tale sound of shuffling feet. Sharing a silent look they picked up the pace before they began flat-out running. Yes, it was late and they needed food, but they still needed the fight, and the fewer walkers there were the better for the remaining survivors out there.
When they reached the back of the herd they slowed down slightly so they were capable of chopping off the top of the head of the walkers they passed. Seeing that the group were rather widespread they separated with Buffy going to the left of it and Faith to the right. As they sliced their way through the not-entirely dead, Buffy began picking up a group of people laughing somewhere further in front of the herd. Thinking on her feet she sped up, chopping off heads as she ran past and by the time she reached the clearing she could hear a conversation about a watch of all random things. She could also see the light from a fire between the trees, along with the smell of cooked fish, probably that nights dinner. Her own stomach grumbled at her, reminding her of her own lack of proper nutrition.
Pushing her hunger down, she ran into the open area of the camp, startling everyone, including a blonde woman in her early twenties who was on her way to the bathroom if the last part of the conversation she'd overheard was true. "Get up and grab your weapons! There's a herd coming straight for the camp!" Then she turned around and ran back the same way she'd arrived. Behind her, several women screamed and the men began yelling, but the walking corpses had almost reached the camp. The ones who had been on their way to walk past the camp immediately changed direction and headed towards the loud noise. Right after stabbing a walker in the head with a knife she heard a man scream, followed by flesh being ripped off some poor fool.
The next fifteen minutes were filled with screaming and gunshots. Somewhere in the chaos she and Faith were back to fighting side-by-side again, and once that happened it was smooth sailing - or rather an easy killing. Not long after another group of people joined the fight, someone who had come from the road on foot. Judging by one of the men yelling "Carl!" into the crowded camp and a child answering him, they were obviously a part of the group. There was no clear leader in this group, no rules, or even plans for situations like this. Everyone just seemed to panic and make as much noise as they could, instead of being quiet and hiding so as not to attract attention.
One of the new arrivals, the man who had called for the child, appeared to have some kind of leadership, but another man, one of the ones remaining in the camp, seemed to be challenging him for it. Or perhaps it was the other way around. Either way, the newcomer managed to calm down the survivors. While he tried to talk them down and comfort others, she and Faith went from body-to-body and stabbed it in the head with a knife or sword.
"What are you doing?" Another blonde woman, this time in her early- or mid-thirties, had moved to intercept them so they couldn't get to the next body. She was holding the arm of the other blonde Buffy had seen earlier.
"Making sure they don't get back up and start eating anyone." Faith's reply was curt as she easily side-stepped the new arrivals and plunged her knife into a downed woman's forehead. Her face and clothes showed she'd been one of the people who had been camping in the quarry they were in, rather than one of the walkers.
Anger showed on the woman's face, "They're already dead! They need to have been bitten or scratched first, then they can be turned into one of those... Things!"
"We're all infected," Buffy interrupted while the brunette kept moving to the next body. "It doesn't matter how we die unless the brain is destroyed we'll come back as one of them." Then she added, "She's dead after the herd attacked, that means she was bitten even if we can't see the wound."
It was one of the few things the Council had been sure of before they'd lost contact. Whatever caused the dead to rise was an airborne virus and they were all either already infected or they would be soon. Death meant turning into a flesh-eating corpse, and they'd been sternly told to stab anyone who had died in the head to make sure they would stay properly dead. The same applied to those who had already risen.
The last phone call between Buffy and the Council had been a somber one; Giles had been bitten and had then been put into isolation for observation in an attempt to learn more, and Xander was already dead along with at least 400 Slayers around the world who had tried to stop the dead from attacking. No one had managed to get into contact with Willow and Kennedy, who had been in New York City visiting Kennedy's family. It didn't mean they were dead, but in a city that large...
Dawn was in Tibet visiting Oz and his family. Buffy had insisted she take two Slayers with her, and Vi and a girl Dawn's age had volunteered. They'd seen it as a working vacation and even Dawn hadn't complained when she'd seem who would accompany her. It had made her happy to know there was someone there to protect her sister when she herself couldn't, and now she just prayed they were all safe there in the lesser populated area. Dawn wasn't a child anymore, but she wasn't a Slayer either. Hopefully, they'd had fun before everything came crashing down.
The Slayer Activation Spell had given 1000 girls the powers of a Slayer, but not all of them had survived in the intertwining years. 300 girls and young women had been killed before the apocalypse had hit, and with the 400 they knew had lost their lives to walkers there were maybe 300 Slayers left. Neither she nor Faith knew who were still alive and where they were located, all they knew for certain was that the two of them were alive and they intended to stay that way. Although both of them had had Slayer Dreams were they saw their sisters get killed by this new kind of undead, it hadn't been anyone either of them had known.
As Buffy was distracting the blonde women and Faith kept securing the quarry, a man wearing a sheriff's hat and full uniform came over and joined them. "Did you just say we're all infected with whatever this is? How do you know?"
Happy both about the continued distraction and that someone finally asked intelligent questions, she replied, "Before the world fell apart I worked for an organization that kept track of strange happenings around the world, and the dead coming back to eat the living definitely counts as 'interesting' to us. We studied the people who were bitten or scratched and those who weren't. Several people who hadn't been in contact with the walkers died and still turned into one of them. One was killed by other means and one by a car accident, they both came back and they both tried to bite those near them."
It was close enough to the truth. Their work had been deemed highly classified by every government who knew about their organization, and as long as they didn't meet any vampires or demons it would stay that way. The survivors didn't need anything else to keep them awake at night.
The man's brown eyes stared into hers for several long seconds and then he held out his hand, "I'm Rick Grimes, and this is Andrea and Amy Harrison."
Buffy shook his hand, carefully not applying too much pressure. "Buffy Summers."
"And your friend?" He indicated Faith with his head. She'd managed to get over to the other side of camp and just past the treeline. Beside them, Andrea was getting upset all over again.
"Faith Lehane. We were in Atlanta checking on the situation when the electricity went down and people began panicking in earnest."
Amy managed to beat the others to the next question, and Buffy smiled slightly. "So she's just a co-worker?"
"We work together, but we've been friends for a long time." Apparently, the younger sister didn't share her older sister's opinion on making sure the dead really stayed dead.
"Not to be abrupt, but we need to deal with the dead and then you guys need to move somewhere else. This place is compromised and dangerous. You have nothing to keep the walkers out, or hostile for that matter. It isn't safe."
That had the other potential leader coming over and start arguing. Rick introduced him as Shane Walsh, a fellow sheriff. As the discussion wore on, more and more people got involved until finally, Rick managed to break it up by insisting everyone got some shut-eye and they would continue in the morning when everyone had gotten some rest.
The two Slayers agreed verbally but silently communicated to each other that they would keep watch over everyone for the rest of the night.