The Last of Us: Surviving
The Last of Us belongs to Naughty Dog the only thing that belongs to me is the OC
Wow! I didn't expect to get any feedback for this story! I originally did this because I thought it sounded cool and was currently having problems of thinking of ideas for my other story that I'm currently doing. So I guess I'll be making this story a priority of mine! I hope you enjoy and have a happy New Year!
Chapter 2
Currently Tess, Joel, Ellie, and Ethan are going down an elevator
"So who's waitin' for us at the drop-off?" asked Tess
"She said there's some Fireflies that have traveled all the way from another city. Girl must be important. What is the deal with you? You some bigwig's daughter or something?" answered Tess
"Something like that. How long is this all gonna take?" said Ellie
"If everything goes as planned, we should get you to them in a few hours. Ellie, once we get out there, I need you to follow our lead and stay close." said Tess
"Yeah, of course." said Ellie
They make it to the Outskirts entrance
"Joel, climb up and check if the coast is clear." said Tess as Joel climbs up
"Now hold up. There's a patrol up ahead." said Joel
They all wait for the patrol to pass
"Alright, we're good. Come on up. C'mon, kids. Watch your step." said Joel to Ellie and Ethan
He then covers the passage and they begin making their way to the drop-off
"This rain isn't going to help us at all." muttered Ethan as pulled his hood up
"Holy shit, I'm actually outside." said Ellie in disbelief
"You mentioned that back at the apartment. Have you never been outside before?" asked Ethan
"Not really, Marlene never really let me go outside." answered Ellie
"It's lucky for you that I'm a great tour guide. As you can see to your left, there is a pile of rubble which happens to lie next to more rubble and who can possibly forget the deserted trailer up ahead." said Ethan which earned him a chuckle from Ellie
"Come on, up this way." said Joel as he took the lead and entered the trailer
Once they made it to the end, a guard goes up behind Joel and knocks him down with her gun
"Don't do anything stupid." said the female guard as she held a gun pointed at Ethan and Ellie
"Move." Said the male guard
"Turn around. On your knees. You scan 'em. I'll call it in." said the female guard
"Alright. Put your hands on your head." said the male guard to which they all complied
"This is Ramirez at Sector Twelve. Requesting pickup for three stragglers. Understood." said the female guard to her radio
"Look the other way. We can make this worth your while." Said Tess
"Shut up." said the male guard
The guard then started to scan them
"I'm getting tired of this shit." Said the male guard
"Mm-hmm." Said the female guard in agreement
"What's the ETA?" asked the male guard
"Couple a minutes." answered the female guard
"Oh man, oh man." muttered Ellie as the male guard came to her with the scanner
She then grabs the male guard's leg and stabs him with her switchblade
"Sorry!" said Ellie as she try to grab his gun but gets pushed back by him
Joel then tackles the male guard as the female guard points her gun at him but is shot in the side of the head by Ethan. Joel then finishes the male by shooting him with his own gun, Ethan drops his gun and then pukes
"Fuck! I just killed a person! I've killed infected but…" said Ethan
"Shh, the first time is never easy. But it does get easier over time." said Tess as she rubs his back
"Is that a good thing?" asked Ethan
"No… no it's not." answered Tess in a quiet voice
"It's like you said, no one stays a kid forever in this world." said Joel solemnly
Meanwhile Ellie is leaning on a crate with her head in her hands
"Oh… oh fuck. I thought we were just gonna hold them up or something." said Ellie as Ethan went and kneeled down by her to see if she's okay… physically anyway
"Oh, shit. Ethan come here right now." said Tess in a serious tone
"What's going on…" said Ethan but is interrupted as Tess grabs his arm and pulls him to her side
Tess then throws the infection scanner to Joel, which is flashing positive
"Jesus Christ! Marlene set us up? Why the hell are we smuggling an infected girl?" shouted Joel
"I'm not infected." said Ellie in a panic
"No? So this is lying?" said Joel as he throws the scanner at her
"Guys, come on. Think about it why would Marlene send us with someone who's infected? It doesn't make any sense and I may not know Marlene as well as you two, but she doesn't seem like the type of person who would set us up." said Ethan as he stood in front of Ellie waving his arms franticly while Ellie is behind staring at him in disbelief
'He's defending me?' thought Ellie as she stared at Ethan
"Hey, I could use some back up here!" whispered Ethan nervous under the glares he was getting from Tess and Joel
"Look at this!" said Ellie as she rolled up her sleeve to reveal a bite mark on her arm
"I don't care how you got infected." said Joel
"Its three weeks old." said Ellie
"No. Everyone turns within two days, so you stop bullshitting." said Tess even Ethan was having a bit of a hard time believing her even though he's the one defending her
"It's three weeks. I swear. Ethan's right why would she set you up?" said Ellie as Tess and Joel calmed down a bit
"I ain't buying it." said Joel
A patrol SUV approaches
"Oh, shit." said Ellie
"Run. RUN!" shouted Joel
"Go! Go! Move!" said Tess as she pushed Ethan and Ellie in front of her and they went down the embankment
"Holy shit!" said a guard at the two dead guards
"I got two dead uniforms. I repeat, two casualties in Sector Twelve. Requesting immediate backup." said another into his radio
"We just talked to them a minute ago." said a guard in disbelief
"Those fuckin' stragglers are around here somewhere. Secure the area." said another in angered tone
"Yes, sir." said a guard
"Follow me. Quickly." said Tess
"Shit, they're going to be out in numbers." said Joel
"I know." said Tess as they all hid behind some debris
"Alright, Ellie, Ethan. When I give you the signal, we run." said Tess
"Sure." "Yeah." said Ellie and Ethan
After some stealth and some random sprints they managed to avoid the guards for a bit
"Man, too close." said Ellie
"You said it… holy shit." said Ethan
"You see anything?" said Joel
"Clear back here. How's it look up ahead?" said Tess
"So far, so good." said Joel
"Okay…" whispered Ellie
They make it through an old building
"Shh, shh, shh. I hear 'em up ahead." said Joel as he stopped dead in his tracks
"Ops said they took out a couple of our boys." said a guard
"It's gotta be those fucking Fireflies retaliating." said another guard
"We'll be done with them soon enough." said the other guard
"Go, go." Said Tess as
"Fuck it. Let the clickers get 'em." said the guard
The guards then left and they progressed a bit further till they stopped at a garage door
"We can get through here. Down through here." said Joel
"C'mon, Ellie." said Ethan as he went under with Ellie in toe
They pass through a garage into a military-filled ruin
"Yes, sergeant!" said a soldier
"Oh, shit. Another patrol. Everybody get down." said Tess
"C'mon. Follow my lead. You, check those buildings." order a soldier
"Roger." said another soldier
"Come on up, Joel." said Ethan
"I'm coming, I'm coming." said Joel
"There's so many of 'em out there. How are we supposed to get past 'em?" said Ellie
"They ain't spotted us yet, let's go around." said Joel
"How's it look?" asked Tess
"There's too many." answered Joel
They all move to a corner of the ruin
"Oh shit, they're in here with us." whispered Ellie
"See if you can distract 'em." whispered Tess
"Alright." whispered Joel as Ethan hands him a brick to throw
"Thanks." whispered Joel to Ethan
Joel throws the brick to get the squad off their trail
"I see more lights." said Ellie
"Shit." said Joel
"Up there." said Tess
"You think they're gonna follow us down here?" asked Ethan
"We ain't stickin' around to find out." answered Joel
"Stay low, keep quiet." said Tess
"That was too damn close, Tess." Said Joel as they escaped into a drainage area
"You better be worth it, kid. Tess, you got any idea which way?" said Joel
"Uh...it looks so different." said Tess
"Hang on. Let's see where this leads." said Joel as he entered a pipe that lead into a building
"Yeah, this looks right. Stay close." said Tess
"At least we're out of the rain." said Ethan as he pulled down his hood
"How's it look?" said Tess
"I think we can squeeze through here." said Joel indicating a hole in the wall which lead to another trench
"Charlie Squad, report." said a soldier
"Shit, shit. I got more soldiers." whispered Joel
"Target's still on the loose, sir!" said another soldier
"Break off pursuit and report back to Sector Eleven." said the other soldier
"I don't think they see us." said Ethan
"Acknowledged. Get to your vehicles!" said a soldier
"Stay in the shadows." said Joel
The soldiers withdraw and they make it to a ruined basement
"Alright." said Joel
"Are we safe?" asked Ellie
"No, they're still around. Look, take a moment to catch your breath. Joel, Ethan, see if there's anything we can use in here." said Tess
"Sure thing, boss." "Yes, Ma'am." Said Joel and Ethan
The duo look around and salvage anything of us
"Aunt Tess, up through here, through this pipe. I think we can make it through here." said Ethan
"Stay very close, Ellie." said Tess
"Okay." said Ellie
They can see military vehicles on the grate above their passage
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hang on, hang on. Jesus." said Joel
"Gather up, they're calling us back. We're returning to the wall!" said a soldier
"You heard the man. Load them up. Let's go! Let's go!" said another soldier
"Come on." said Joel
The group makes it out of the drainage trenches and they all stop to rest
"Alright, they're gone." said Joel
"Look, what was the plan? Let's say that we deliver you to the Fireflies, what then?" asked Tess
"Marlene… She said that they have their own little quarantine zone. With doctors there, still trying to find a cure." answered Ellie
"Yeah, we've heard that before, huh, Tess?" said Joel
"And that...whatever happened to me is the key to finding a vaccine." said Ellie
"Makes sense." said Ethan
"Oh, Jesus. You believe her?" said Joel
"Well… yeah. There must be something about her that makes her immune while others turn into those things." said Ethan
"It's what she said." said Ellie
"Oh, I'm sure she did." said Joel
"What's your deal Joel? She didn't ask for this." said Ethan getting a little tired of Joel and Tess picking on her
"What's your deal? Ever sense she showed up you've been sticking your neck out for her." said Joel accusingly
"I just don't like seeing people getting picked on." said Ethan
"He's my brother's son." said Tess coming to Ethan's aid and when Joel gave her a blank stare she continued
"Growing up my brother was always the nice one not me. Ethan got more from his father then he did his mother." said Tess in conformation while Ethan hides a look of sadness
"Whatever, I still don't believe her." said Joel
"What if it's true?" said Ethan
"I can't believe…" said Joel but is cut off by Tess
"What if, Joel? I mean we've come this far, let's just finish it." said Tess
"Do I need to remind you two what is out there?" said Joel
"We get it. This way. If we cut through downtown, we can hit the capitol building by sunrise." said Tess
"Let's hope." muttered Joel
They finally get a good look at the skyscrapers in the distance
"Holy crap. I guess this is what these buildings look like up close. They're so damn tall. So, what happened here?" said Ellie
"They bombed the surrounding areas to the quarantine zones, hoping to kill as much of the infected as possible. And it worked… for a little while at least." said Ethan
They hear a weird cry in the distance
"Uhhh, what the hell was that?" said Ellie
"Tess, do you hear that?" said Joel
"Yeah. Sounded pretty far away though." said Tess
"Shit." muttered Joel
"Are we safe?" asked Ellie
"For now. Come on." said Tess
The road ends at a giant bomb crater
"Damn. That's quite a drop." said Ellie
"No kidding." breathed Ethan looking down
Ellie grins and pushes him lightly towards the crater causing him to freak out
"Well, there's the capitol building." said Joel ignoring the argument between Ethan and Ellie
"Yeah, we need to get around this mess." said Tess
"I could've died!" said Ethan
"Well you're not dead are you?" said Ellie
"Over here." said Joel indicating a ruined building and interrupting the argument
"Hey!" said Joel
"We're comin'!" said Tess
They enter the Building, immediately finding a dead cop
"He's been ripped apart." said Tess
"Yeah…" said Joel
"Body's pretty fresh." said Tess
"Is that bad?" said Ellie
"Yeah, might be... Let's not stick around." said Joel
They find another corpse in the stairwell
"Another one. Shit." said Tess
"Looks like these guys died waiting for backup." said Joel
They find a weird infected corpse
"Goddammit. Clicker." said Joel
"Geez. What's wrong with its face?" said Ellie
"That's what years of infection will do to you." said Ethan
"So what, are they… blind?" asked Ellie
"Kind of, they see using sound. Like bats." answered Ethan
"If you hear one clicking, you gotta hide. That's how they spot you." added Tess
The building groans in the storm
"Shit." muttered Ellie
"Whole building feels like it's about to fall apart." said Joel
The building shakes again, shifting some of the furniture
"Totally cool. Everything is totally cool." said Ellie
"Ethan, gimme a hand with this." said Joel
Joel and Ethan push open a wedged door, alerting a clicker to their presence
"Joel!" screamed Ellie
Ethan pushes it off and kills it
"Thanks…" said Joel
"You alright?" asked Ethan
"It's nothin'." said Joel
"Let's search for supplies." said Tess
"Shit! Oh, that was so intense." said Ellie
"You said it. Here, patch yourself up." said Tess
"C'mon. Let's get the hell outta here." said Joel
"Up there, look." said Ethan indicating a ledge they can climb
"Yeesh..." said Ellie
"Just see if there's a way through." said Joel who gave Ethan a boast up the wall
"Okay... It's clear. C'mon, Ellie." said Ethan holding out his hand
"Alright, kid, you're up." said Joel who gave her a boast to Ethan's hand
"C'mon, you two. Gimme your hands." said Ethan to Tess and Joel
Ethan pulls up Tess and then they both pull up Joel, they then hear a particular noise
"Clickers?" asked Ellie
"Yep." answered Ethan
"Oh, shit. Go, go, go." said Tess
They quickly hide in a cafeteria
"That's our way out, over the scaffolding." said Tess and they escape
"I think that's it. Ellie, you okay?" asked Ethan
"Other than shitting my pants… I'm fine." answered Ellie
"Let's go." said Tess
"Gimme a second." said Joel as he clears the stairs
"Here you go, ladies and gentleman." said Joel
"All right, come on." said Tess
"The stairwells blocked. Should we go back up?" said Ellie
Tess climbs out the window onto a rusted window-washing rig
"Ahh, this is crazy. Just don't look down." said Tess as window-washing rig creaked
"Wha…? Are you serious?" said Ellie
"I'm with Ellie, that thing is not stable." said Ethan
"C'mon, you two don't be such babies." said Tess
"Yeah… Don't look down. Don't look down." muttered Ellie with Ethan doing something similar
"You're okay. We got a way through." said Tess
"Oh boy…" whispered Joel when he looked down
They pass back into a corner window and find more infected
"Runners." said Tess
"Ethan and I will go check it out. Stay with the girl." said Joel
Joel and Ethan systematically kills all the enemies below
"Alright. Come on down." said Tess
"I'm impressed, you two." said Tess
"Pssh. Let's just get outta here." said Joel
Joel clears door blockage
"Alright. Tess, go." said Joel
"Alright, hold on. Here… this'll work. Alright, gimme a hand, Ellie, Ethan." said Tess
"Yeah." said Ethan
They prop the door open for Joel
"Okay... Alright, that should do it." said Ellie
"There, see? We're doin' alright." said Tess
"Mm-hmm." affirmed Joel
They find a part of the building where the floors have caved in
"Whoa." said Ellie
"Down we go." said Ethan
"Let's get to it. We can get through here. Watch your back." said Joel as they descend
"You know, I was thinkin'… after we get back, we can take it easy for a little while." said Tess
"That sounds nice." said Ethan
"You want to take it easy?" said Joel ignoring Ethan last statement
"Hey, you're the one who's always going on about layin' low." said Tess
"And you always brushed me off." said Joel
"Well, I won't this time." said Tess
"I'll believe it when I see it. Through here." said Joel
"Joel, over here." said Tess indicating a subway
They reach the subway, they find a corpse nearby
"Look at his sleeve. Firefly." said Tess
"These guys aren't doin' too well in or out of the city. Let's hope there's someone alive to meet us at the drop-off." said Joel as he finds a map
"They're from the quarantine zone." observed Ethan
"See… they're not our guys." said Tess
"Over there, see it?" said Joel pointing out the clickers
"Shit. God, we're almost out. Okay, Joel, Ethan, you two take point. I'll watch the rear. Ellie, no matter what, you stay right on Ethan's heels." ordered Tess
"Sure." said Ellie
The group avoids/kills the clickers
"This way. We're almost out. C'mon." said Joel
"Yeah, go over there. Quick, before it comes back." said Tess
"Alright. C'mon." said Joel as he lifts Tess to grab a ladder which she drops down
They all exit the abandoned subway area into the downtown proper
"Holy shit. We actually made it." said Ellie
"Everyone okay?" said Joel
"Peachy." said Ethan
"Let's move." said Tess
"You guys are pretty good at this stuff." pointed out Ellie
"It's called luck, and it is gonna run out." said Joel
"Way to be optimistic…" muttered Ethan
"Which way we goin', Tess?" asked Joel
"Uh… capitol building's in this direction. How do we get up over this truck? Let's see what we can find." said Tess
Joel fetches a dresser after dealing with some recently infected soldiers
"Climb on up." said Joel
The four walk little ways down till they find a garage
"Maybe we can cut through here." said Joel as he begins pulling the chains
"Yeah, that worked out great last time. Sorry… I'm just sayin'." said Ellie when she got glared at by Joel
They try entering the garage and hear noisy cry in the distance
"Shhh-shh." said Tess
"What? I don't hear anything." said Joel
"Okay, double time." said Tess when they heard another cry which Joel did hear
"Oh, shit…" muttered Joel as he was pulling the chains faster
"Oh… they're coming." said Ellie
"I know." said Joel
"They're getting closer." said Ethan
"I know!" said Joel
"Okay, that's good, that's good. Go." said Tess when the garage was high enough
"Okay, Joel." said Ellie when they were holding the garage for him
"Drop it!" said Joel when he was inside and one had grabbed his leg
"Oh… you got something on your shoe." said Ellie to Joel indicating the arm still attached to his leg which he just kicks off
"Gross." said Ellie
"Okay. How do we get out of this place?" said Joel
"Let's find out." said Tess and they start looking around
"So Marlene thinks your immune?" asked Tess
"Well, that's what she believes." answered Ellie
"Well, how were you bitten? I mean you must've been somewhere you shouldn't to find an infected in the zone." said Tess
"Yeah, I'd sneak out. I was in this military boarding school." said Ellie as Joel started working on his gear on a workstation
"You'd sneak out?" said Ethan
"You know, explore the city. I was in the mall when I ran into infected." said Ellie
"That place is completely off-limits. How the hell did you get in there?" said Tess
"I… had my ways. Anyways, one of those… what you guys call runners bit me. And that was that." said Ellie
"Were you with Marlene when you were bitten?" asked Ethan
"No. I went to her for help afterwards." answered Ellie
"Knowing her, I'm surprised she didn't shoot you." said Tess
"She almost did. Hope she's alright." said Ellie
"I told you. She's gonna be fine, Ethan's a better doctor then fighter after all." said Tess
"Hey! I can fight… kind of…" said Ethan
"Your shooting kind of sucks too." said Joel as he was upgrading his stuff
"Oh come on! Not you too!" said Ethan
"You're good at sneaking and strangling people though." offered Joel
"Thanks… I think." muttered Ethan
"Sorry, but it's the truth. After all you went to medical boarding school (don't know If that even exists in The Last of Us, but let's pretend that it does) not military boarding school." said Tess
"You went to medical boarding school?" asked Ellie
"Yeah, for a little while. But I stopped going." said Ethan as Joel stopped working on his stuff and group resumed walking
"How come?" asked Ellie
"It just got boring after a while. I mean it was cool when they taught us how to remove bullets and stich people up, but after a while it just got repetitive." answered Ethan
They enter the adjoining museum with Ellie knocking something over
"Ow. Shit. Sorry, sorry. That was me." said Ellie as she accidently knocked down a vase
"Tess." said Joel
"Sorry!" said Ellie again
"C'mon. Stay close to me." said Tess
"What is this place?" asked Ellie
"It's an old museum, some of stuff in the display cases are hundreds of years old." answered Ethan
"Really? Wow." said Ellie
Joel and Ethan lift up debris for the girls to pass under
"Alright, watch your head. Hurry. Go, go, go. Shit...sonofa..." said Joel as the debris breaks and separates Joel and Ethan from Tess and Ellie
"Joel!" "Ethan!" said Tess and Ellie in panic
"We're alive. We'll make our way around to you." said Joel
"Oh… Look they're here!" said Ellie
"Tess?" "Ellie?" asked Joel and Ethan
"Run. Run!" said Tess
"Shit." said Joel as the clickers chase the girls off
"Holy shit! Joel we need to get to them!" said
"No shit! Come on!" said Joel as they move upstairs killing clickers on the way
They find an infected beating on a door and hear Tess inside
"Ellie, stay back!" shouted Tess
They burst into a room where Tess is fighting off an infected
"Tess!" shouted Joel as he ran up to her
"I'm fine." said Tess as she kills the infected
"Guys, get in here!" shouted Ellie
"Ellie!" shouted Ethan as he ran to her
"The girl!" said Tess
"Shit." said Joel
Joel and Tess run into the room to see Ethan tackle the infected to ground, but the tables turn when the infected flips them over and is about to bite Ethan when Joel kicks it off and shots it in the head
"Thanks." said Ethan as he gets up and starts helping Joel and Tess take out infected while staying close to Ellie
"That was too damn close." said Joel as they finished off the rest of the infected
"Oh shit." said Tess as she catches her breath
"Tess, how're you holdin' up?" asked Joel
"Just a bit winded. This way. This'll get us to the roof." said Tess as she and Joel starting climbing the stairs
"Are you okay Ellie?" asked Ethan
"Define okay." said Ellie
"Are you still breathing?" asked Ethan
"Do small, panicked breaths count?" replied Ellie
"Yeah, they count." said Ethan with a small smile
"Alright. Then I'm okay." said Ellie also with a small smile
They meet Tess and Joel on the rooftop
"We gotta find a way across. There she is. That's our building." said Tess
"You fucking serious?" muttered Ethan looking at how far away it looks
"It's looks farther then it is and watch the language." said Tess
"Seriously? You bring that up now?" said Ethan meanwhile Joel finds and places a plank to cross the buildings
"Alright. Now watch your step as you goin' up 'cause it's gonna be a little…" said Joel to Ellie but is ignored
"Pssh." said Ellie and Joel scoffs
Joel, Tess, and Ethan follow after her
"Is it everything you hoped for?" asked Ethan indicating the capitol building in the distance
"Jury's still out. But, man… you can't deny that view." replied Ellie which Ethan agreed
"C'mon. This way. Hey! Pick it up. Look, we're almost done. Stay focused." said Tess
"Yes, ma'am." "Yes, ma'am." said Joel and Ethan at the same time as they began their descent
"It's right around this corner. C'mon." said Tess
"Let's keep moving, kids." said Joel
Joel finds a dead firefly
"Look at this." said Joel
"There's a firefly logo on his arm. What if we get there and they're all dead?" said Ellie
"They won't be." said Tess
"But… how do you know?" asked Ellie
"I just do… look everything's gonna be fine." said Tess
"Okay." said Ellie
"It has to be." whispered Tess
They cross a hurdle and move to a swampy street nearby
"There we go. Home stretch, Tess." said Joel
"Um… just so it's out there. I can't swim." said Ellie
"Look, it looks like it's shallow on the right side. Follow me." said Tess
"I'm glad Marlene hired you guys." said Ellie
"What do you mean?" asked Tess
"I know you guys are getting paid for this… but I'm trying to say thanks." said Ellie
"Don't worry about it and for the record I would've helped you for free." said Ethan
"I'm glad I met you Ethan. Look we might not see each other again after this… but friends?" asked Ellie
"That even a question? Of course we're friends." said Ethan with a smile and sticking his fist out which Ellie bumps with a smile of her own
They enter the capitol building and find the Fireflies dead
"No. No, no." said Tess
"What happens now?" asked Ellie
Tess frantically searches a corpse's pockets
"What are you doing, Aunt Tess?" asked Ethan
"Oh, god. Maybe they, ah, maybe they had a map or something to tell us where they were going." answered Tess
"How far are we gonna take this?" asked Joel
"As far as it needs to go. Where was this lab of theirs?" answered and asked Tess
"She never said. She only mentioned it was someplace out west." replied Ellie
"What are we doing here? This is not us." said Joel gesturing to him and Tess
"What do you know about us? About me?" said Tess
"I know that you are smarter than this." said Joel
"Really? Guess what, we're shitty people, Joel. It's been that way for a long time. The only decent person here is Ethan!" said Tess forgetting Ellie was there
"No, we are survivors!" said Joel
"This is our chance…" said Tess
"It is over, Tess! Now we tried. Let's just go home." said Joel
"I'm not… I'm not going anywhere. This is my last stop." said Tess
"What?" said Joel
"Our luck had to run out sooner or later." said Tess
"What are you going on about…" said Joel as he reached for Tess
"No! Don't… don't touch me." said Tess
"Holy shit. She's infected." said Ellie with realization on her face
Joel takes a step back and Ethan stays absolutely still
"Joel… Ethan…" said Tess
"Let me see it." said Joel
"Not in front of…" said Tess but is interrupted
"Show it to me." said Joel raising his voice
She pulls back her collar to reveal a fresh bite wound
"Oh, Christ." said Joel and Ethan paled
"Oops, right? Give me your arm." said Tess to Ellie
She rolls up Ellie's sleeve to where her bite mark is
"This was three weeks. I was bitten an hour ago and it's already worse. This is fucking real, Joel. You've got to get this girl to Tommy's. He used to run with this crew. He'll know where to go." said Tess
"No, no, no, that was your crusade. I am not doin' that." reasoned Joel
"Yes you are. Look, there's enough here that you have to feel some sort of obligation to me. So you get her to Tommy's." said Tess
"But most of all. Take care of Ethan for me…" said Tess
"I can't…" said Joel
"Yes, you can! He's a good kid he sure as hell didn't get that from me… he'll listen to you… just please take care of him…" said Tess
"Okay, I'll do it…" said Joel but is interrupted
"NO! Aunt Tess you need to stop now!" shouted Ethan with Ellie and Joel looking surprised at him
"Ethan…" said Tess in a soft voice
"Stop it! This is isn't funny! Just get rid of that makeup and lets go." said Ethan practically begging for it not to be true
"This is the end… I'm sorry. I didn't get to fulfil my promise to Tyler (Ethan's dad/Tess's brother) in the end after all…" said Tess in a sad tone
"But… you can't… not you too…" said Ethan accepting what's happing and breaks down with Tess holding and crying as well
They hear a noise outside
"Shit." muttered Ellie
"Oh…" said Tess as she let go of Ethan and ran to the window which shows a military vehicle pulling up
"Watch the exit!" yelled a guard
"They're here." said Tess
"Dammit." said Joel
"I can buy you some time, but you have to run." said Tess
"Aunt Tess! NO!" begged Ethan
"We can't just leave you here!" said Ellie
"Yes. You will." said Tess
"There is no way that…" said Joel but is interrupted once more
"I will not turn into one of those things. Come on. Make this easy for me." said Tess
"We can fight…" said Joel as he moves foward but is pushed back by Tess
"No, just go! Just fucking go." said Tess about to break down again
"Aunt Tess… please." begged Ethan once more
"I'm so sorry Ethan. I love you, you be good and listen to Joel okay? Promise me." said Tess
"I… promise." said Ethan as Joel starts leading them away
Joel, Ethan, and Ellie move out, leaving Tess behind
"We know you're in there! Drop your weapons and come out with your hands up!" yelled the guard from outside as Tess stands back and raises her gun
Meanwhile, Joel locks the door into room Tess is in
"What the fuck! I can't believe we did that." said Ellie
"Stop." said Joel
"We just left her to die." whispered Ethan
"Stop, both of you. You all stay close to me. We need to move." said Joel
They can hear Tess fighting nearby and Ethan stops
"Oh man…" whispered Ellie as she grabs Ethan and pulls him along
"Just keep pushing forward." said Joel as they navigated the staircase
From the balcony, they can see Tess' body
"Oh my god. Tess…" whispered Ellie
"Target neutralized. She took out two of my men. Copy that. You, take out that door. You, with me." said a guard
"Yes, sir." said another guard
"Those motherfuckers!" whispered Ethan and is about to get up and shot them but is pulled down by Joel
"Don't let her sacrifice be in vain. Come on." said Joel
They continue their frantic escape into a new wing
"We're through." said a guard
"Proceed with caution, there's at least three more in here." said another guard
"This hallway is clear." said another guard
"What do we do? Joel?" asked Ellie as Joel picks up a hunting rifle
"We got this." said Joel as he and Ethan proceed to kill the entire squad and move to the ground floor
"What're we doing? How're we gonna get outta here?" said Ellie
"Alright. We're gonna have to go through that hall." said Joel
"They had to come through here. Search the area." said a guard
"Stay down. I don't know how many more there are." said Joel
"They still haven't found the last three." said a guard
"I heard two of 'em are kids." said another guard
"Does it matter? They took out a bunch of our guys." said the previous guard
"Jesus. Well hey, after today this whole Firefly bullshit will be behind us." said the other guard
Joel and Ethan proceed to kill all the guards
"There's the exit." said Ellie
"I see it." said Joel as they leave the capitol building
"There's stairs over there." said Ellie pointing at a subway tunnel
"Stay low." said Joel
They enter an abandoned subway
"They're going into the subway! Stop 'em!" shouted a guard
"Shit." said Joel
"They're following us!" said Ellie
"Goddammit." said Joel as Ellie runs ahead with Ethan following her
Joel follows them into a spore-filled area and they pull him down behind cover
"No target. I repeat, no target." said a guard
"There's a soldier over there." said Ellie
"Understood. Hold your position and wait for reinforcements." said the guard's radio
"Copy that. Holding position." said the guard
"How the hell are you breathin' in this stuff?" said Joel
"I wasn't lying to you." said Ellie as another guard runs in
"Did you spot 'em?" said the guard that showed up
"No, place is empty." said the other guard
"Let's find them and get the hell out of here before clickers show up." said the guard
Joel kills 'em and the three of them move onto a submerged portion
"Hey, uh, I can't swim." said Ellie
"I can give you a piggy-back ride." recommended Ethan
"Will you be able carry me?" asked Ellie which is answered when Ethan picks her up and they're in the water
"Whoa!" said Ellie
"You got a good grip?" asked Ethan
"Yeah, I'm good just please hurry." answered Ellie
They swim around and find the exit, which leads back into fresh air so Ethan and Joel take off their gas masks
"Hey, look, um… about Tess… I don't even know what to…" said Ellie but is interrupted by Joel
"Here's how this thing's gonna play out. You don't bring up Tess… ever. Matter of fact, we can just keep our histories to ourselves. Secondly, don't tell anybody about your condition. They'll think you're crazy or they'll try to kill you. And lastly, you do what I say, when I say it. We clear?" said Joel
"Sure." said Ellie
"Repeat it." said Joel
"What you say, goes." said Ellie
"You too." said Joel to Ethan
"What you say, goes." said Ethan
"Good. Now, there's a town a few miles north of here. There's a fella there that owes me some favors. Good chance he can get us a car." said Joel
"Okay." said Ellie
"Let's get a move on." said Joel and they begin walking
"Look… I know Joel just said this… but I'm sorry about Tess. I know you cared about her, a lot. And if you don't want to talk to me either I understand." said Ellie to Ethan
"Thanks, I'm sorry too. And we can talk… just give me some time." said Ethan
"Okay." said Ellie as she puts her arm around Ethan
End of Chapter 2