The last of us : A brothers fate
I heard my brother say my name one last time before he turned . The tone in his voice made him sound scared and desperate despite the rage flashing in his wild eyes . I was staring at someone i barely recognised , hunched and bent over , his hands reaching for his brain , grasping frantically at the apparatus that caused him distress while i could only watch in horror as he called out for help in a tiny voice . My nerves were a bundle of wires that did not connect to their rightful sockets and the shock i was in kept me from screaming out in agony myself . All those years in the military where we learned to be fearless of losing and unwavering in our will to survive no matter the cost , all those moments lost on me seeing him this way now . All that training useless when met with a shock so traumatic that it reduces me to the little boy i used to be , scared of getting lost in the mall , scared of losing the people i love , forever .
And in that instant , i saw him jerk his head in a motion so fast , you would think he dislocated it . He was staring directly at me now , studying me for familiarity . He had an almost bird like quality to him , jerking his head sideways, up and down in quick , short motions .
" Jayce " , I whimpered " Buddy , whats wrong ? "
No sound , just movement . That bird like motion that sent shivers down my legs . I was as stiff as a dead horse , full of juices digesting its insides . And i couldnt stand it . Stuck in this trance , detached from reality , right on the verge of blacking out . Yet something kept me steady , something that pushed all my strength to the bottom of my soles , planting them in the ground of our dorm room floor , ready for hell to open up and swallow me whole .
And then he spoke . It was more of a wounded groan than human speech .
" Whats wrong ? " , he said , followed by a feminine laugh with beautifully arched lips that curved downward at the tips . He was looking at me with the expression of a man who had gone insane from despair .
" Whats wroooong ? " , he moaned again , mimicking my question , mocking me with the face of a sad clown .
And I was spooked . I was scared out of my wits as i cocked the revolver that was locked onto his head . My thoughts were non existent , only fear rushing through my bones , the anxiety finding every cravice my body had to offer up .
He was drooling heavily as he watched me intently , the guttaral noises coming from inside him burying their way into the pit of my stomach . The smell of blood and decay was ripe in the air , leaving a tingy after taste of zinc and copper on the back of my tongue .
As I watched on in my dazed stupor , a treacle of blood poured from between his chapped lips onto the linoleum floor , painting his feet with the crimson red of imminent death .
A twist of the neck and a crack as loud as a snapping twig was all it took to pull me out of my hypnotic daze . The creature shrieked and moaned like a banshee from hell as he lunged at me with effortless speed , rushing at me with his arms shaped into claws .
My heart lept as i jerked myself awake , my finger pressing down on the trigger as half of his face exploded in a firework of blood and teeth . He stopped in his track , still standing but visibly upset and restless from the hole that had appeared on the left side of his face . I could see the anger and hurt in his eyes . Inside that demon , was still my little brother and i could feel his pain and astonishment of my betrayal as I cocked the hammer again , sliding the next bullet in place as I aimed for his heart
He let out a grunt as if to say " Alright motherfucker , if this is what you want , I ll let you have it " .
The second lunge did not phase me as I blasted a shell right through his chest , ripping bone and tissue through a hole in his back . The sound of the gun shot ricocheted off the walls of the room as he rushed at me with a ferocious speed , despite the damage I had just delt him . Both of us screamed now in unison as he grabbed onto a mound of my flesh , slamming me against the wall with the strength of ten soldiers as he ripped at my face and body with clawed hands .
His mouth , a dark gaping hole of twisted knives , found its way to the nape of my neck where it took every ounce of strength I had to keep him from ripping my tendons out . A punch to the chest sent my hand shooting right out the flesh of his back , the hole in his chest widening to accomodate the size of my fist . He screamed , inches from my ear , the sound crashing through me in waves of thorns . He weakened at once as his wounds were realised , slumping and loosening his grip on my bruised flesh . My arm held him up by the collar bone while he hissed and growled in painful defiance , showing me his broken teeth , the mouth of an angry piranha , inches from mine . And as we stood there , facing each other , brother against brother , I couldnt help but feel , if only for a second , a great feeling of loss and saddness . It was as if my subconcious had already understood what i had done but kept that secret from finding me , lest I break down and give myself completely to death for my unforgivable sin .
His eyes were losing their wild animosity now , his eyelids getting heavier with each snarl he made , his body limp , arms flailing less and less as he slouched forward . I pulled my hand out and lept toward his falling body , cradling his head and torso , placing him gently beside me .
I mumbled " Fuck , what have you done ? What have you done Harry , what have you done ? " The tears streaming down my eyes , blurring his face , shaping his features back to what they used to be . The beautiful distortion however didnt last long as I blinked it away to find his face battered and destroyed , the lower half blown off completely , his tongue hanging out of the hole that used to be his left jaw .
I was completely numb , mumbling impossibilities . As if convincing myself of his survival would deceive my eyes and mind , would deceive god somehow and set everything back in place , back where it belongs . But nothing changed . Jayce looked at me with a face so feverish , it shined like the face of an angel . His groans and growls didnt bother me as I stroked his soft auburn hair , muddy and wet from the pool that lay around us .
" Shhhhhh " , I whispered , comforting him . " Its all going to be okay now buddy . Just go to sleep alright . You ' ll wake up to a better day and I ll be right here . I promise . " I reached down to kiss his forehead as he growled lightly beneath me , my tears rolling down his cheek . Jayce was gone , his body turning cold as soon as I layed my lips on him . The room was as silent as a cave . A dark , desolate cave where I had lost myself in , one that I did not have the courage to climb back out of . As I looked around me , watching the darkness take ahold , I reached out for the one thing that could set me free from this despicable nightmare , a torch in the darkest depths of sadness and sorrow . As I cocked the hammer one last time , I breathed in a sigh of releif . Looking at my brothers face now , I felt happiness , pure and simple yet blindingly bright through the chaos and doom . As I pulled the trigger , the gun placed on my temple , my body tense , shaking in anticipation of the explosion into nothingness . But nothing came . Only a click that seemed to echo for an eternity inside my skull . Looking at the barrel through the corner of my eye , I cocked the hammer again , pulling the trigger once more to the sound of an empty click .
They say it only takes one bad day to push a man over the edge . But i beg to differ . I think it takes one moment , one quiet little sound that pushes a man into the depths of ruin . One that he cannot climb out of no matter how hard he claws or how long he survives .
I pulled the trigger again and again and again to the sound of silence as the world grew heavy and my screams felt far and distant , the screams of hell echoing around me as i buried my face in my hands , a broken man , a cowardly brother . Alone in silent despair , cursed to live with regret for the rest of his pitiful days . And live I did . And survive I must , for take my word that the world shall know of my loss . That every last human on earth shall feel this pain I am in and every last human will know the rage that sets a man free of everything that holds him to the breast of life like a infant , pitiful and pathetic . I shall set them free for only I can set them free . That is my promise to you . That is my promise to human kind . That is my promise to us , little brother of mine . Dont you worry about a thing . Sleep now . The world shall know of a better peace ... a peace like you have .