Plot: After a series of tragic loss Joel Miller travels far and wide surviving on his wits and experience. Always moving forward despite the unforgiving environment he encounters because a quest keeps him going in his journey.
Note: From the game The Last of Us and the live action TV series.
Music: THE LAST OF US Part II Ambient Music 🎵 Road To Jackson (LoU 2 OST | Soundtrack) by z3n Pnk
A/N: To my sensei. Domo arigatou gozaimasu!
THE LAST JOURNEY
CHAPTER 4
ARMORY E
"This is Teddy or Theodore." She places a hand on top of the boy's head and gave it a shake. "And this is Matty or Matilda." She also gave the girl a shake on the head. "They're siblings." The children giggle when Maya tickles them in their necks. "The monsters!" Then the two kids began running around them; laughing, their arms out to their sides as if they're planes or birds.
"Oh. And these kids...?" Joel laughs as the two uses him as their tag pole, playing monsters, hands curl like talons. He raises the basket and his rifle above their heads.
"Patty's adopted children. Families adopt and raise them here."
"That's…great." Joel chuckles as Matty screams behind him. The girl grabs his backpack as Teddy 'stalks' his sister. "Did you adopt any of them?"
"Nope, but I help out in the education of those two."
"Whoa!" The two kids are 'shooting' at each other around him.
"Hey, don't scare our guest! Shoo! Bye vegetable monsters!" the kids went back in the vegetable garden shouting their goodbyes.
"Been a long time I've seen kids…even happy kids." The street he and Maya are walking on also have some food growing in the abandoned gardens of the houses.
"Don't let it fool you; those two saw their parents get killed on their way here. It took us a long time to make them smile like that."
He nods back to the mall beyond the wall where there are people walking on the roof. "What's wrong with that Carl kid?"
"Oh, a lot."
Joel saw the problem she and the others had when they were talking back inside that mall. Their faces and tone of voice says it all. "The boy is disturbed but why is he given weapons?"
"Weapon. He's only got the cudgel."
"Damn, not much of a weapon. No one trusts him, I take it?"
"He has anger issues. He had done this before with other people and that's why he's up there and not down here. It's his penance."
"Maya!"
"Oh, shit…" she said under her breath.
"Who's that?"
Maya turns to him lips barely moving. "Carl's cousin." She glances back. "And…Lee's new wife."
"Hmm." Joel regards the woman coming up the street with narrowed eyes. "Trouble?"
"We'll see." Maya turns to the woman. "Rina."
"What happened?"
"What do you mean?"
"Carl! What did he do?"
"He disobeyed my direct order, two times."
"Disobeyed? Why?"
"He attacked me and him." Joel looks on as Maya nods to his direction.
"Why?"
"Rina, Carl is getting worse. He needs help."
"But why was he angry? Why did he attack you?"
"Jerry got hurt and he was angry at Joel. Jerry is letting it pass but Carl wouldn't. He assumed I was going to execute Joel. When I told him no he attacked me twice so I had to detain him."
"Jerry got hurt? How?"
"There was a situation at the outpost last night. There was a fight and Jerry was shot" Maya gave Joel the gist of what she and the woman called Rina had talked about.
Rina acted as if she noticed Joel for the first time. "Oh! Who is he?"
"He's Joel. My friend sent him here. It was Joel who shot Jerry."
Joel held his hand out in apology. "It was a misunderstanding."
"He shot Jerry?" Rina turns to Maya. "Why isn't he in jail?"
"He was jailed overnight then Lee decided to free him. Joel is under my custody." Maya shrugs. "I agreed."
"I don't understand! Carl was defending his friend and he's in jail but this man is free? What?"
"You need to be more concerned about your cousin's mental condition. He's getting worse."
"My cousin is not crazy."
"People have been attacked by him and the council is worried about him. I'm sure you know that."
"If Carl is in jail then that man should be too! It's just fair! I'll talk to Lee about this!"
Maya stops herself from going after the distraught woman. "Rina…!"
"She wants me back in jail." Joel was a little concerned. "She doesn't like you."
"Yep. The feeling's mutual." Maya made a sound of weariness. "Let's go. I don't wanna spoil that pork. I'm fucking hungry. Let's walk faster."
Well, Joel wouldn't argue with that. "Will I go back in jail?" Their brisk walk became a fast trot which covered faster ground.
"Don't worry about that. That kid has a rap sheet as long as my katana. Assaulting a superior officer is a major offence. Lee has pardoned you so you're clear."
"I used to be a police officer before this."
"You don't say." Maya quickly looks back where they came from.
"Highway patrol officer."
"Awesome!" Maya took a last peek before they turn the corner. "Good. So far no one's coming out from that gate."
"But after that I became someone else…"
"Same here. I was a trainer at a call center. We're almost there." She points. "See the blue gate?"
"It's a big ass house." Joel looks up the house as Maya pulls a set of keys on a black lanyard from her neck. Maya pushes the wide gate open after removing the big padlock and the deadbolt slid back.
"First rule: make sure the gate is always locked and never let anyone in, except my daughter."
"No problem."
"I used to rent a room here but when the shit happened…"
"Which one?"
"Oh! The first pandemic virus shit."
Joel made a rude sound. "That fucking virus started it all."
"So, this was my rental with six other people."
"What happened to them?"
"A few went back to their hometown and the rest got sick, taken to the hospital and never came back…including the caretaker." Maya let out a noisy sigh then shook her head to clear it. "Ah…you can wash up there. I'll give you the tour later but I want us to cook right now."
"That's a good idea…" He places his bag beside hers on the folding table. She has various containers filled with water at the garage. There's even an earthen jar, one of the biggest he's ever seen covered with a tarp and tied on the lid with a string. He thanked Maya for filling a plastic bowl from one of the plastic drums beside the sink. The soap was homemade and a little strong but it lathered well. The cool water made him sigh in relief. Getting clean feels like a luxury treat.
"You can take a bath after we have the food simmering. There's a bathroom here and three upstairs. By the way, did you get the shots?"
One of his old undershirts helped dried him up. "Yeah, lined up for it."
"I didn't. I've been okay. Nothing happened to me."
"Fuck…" An immune girl…
"I've never been vaccinated in my entire life." Maya stops and looks back at Joel. "What?
"I…uh…nothing. Ah, let me…" he tried to take back the bowl when Maya began to clean it.
"No problem. Just make sure you clean up after you next time, okay?"
"Will do. What do you want me to do with the vegetables?" he asks while he takes out two potatoes, a big white onion and a small head of cabbage from the basket.
"Wash, peel and quarter." She fills an aluminum bowl with water and nods to him.
"Yes, ma'am." She's now cutting the pork in uniform squares after washing it in the sink. A pot of water is waiting to boil in the stove on the covered side of the garage.
"What do we cook?" He picks up one of the knives Maya put on the table and began preparing the veggies.
"A simple local dish." Maya carefully drops the cut pieces of meat in the boiling pot "The name sounds better in my language than in English. I boil the meat first then I add the rest when the meat is halfway tender. Uh, where are the two bananas?" she asks after approving Joel's cut of the vegetables.
"Here." Joel pushes the two pieces of fruit forward. He watches as Maya cut the bottom of the bananas, peel them and cut them in fours. "They go in the dish too?'
"Yeah. They add flavor and sweetness."
"Are these plantains?" He took the peel and smells them.
"Yep. We use them in various snacks, desserts and dishes."
"Interesting."
"After I skim the water we can go upstairs. I'll show you your room." Maya said as Joel returns to his seat on the long bench. "What's this?" the man held out something he took from his backpack.
"Picture of me and Rick a month before he died."
"Yeah, that's Rick." Maya taps the image of her friend from New York. "His apartment?" Joel nods. Rick and Joel did an awkward selfie. On the same paper there's a picture of herself and Rick. She smiled but her eyes were sad. "This was the coffee shop on the day I left…"
"He went through a lot of trouble to have this printed from his old equipment. He said its proof. He didn't want me to get turned away."
"He did the right thing. Can I have this?"
"Sure. He wants you to have it. Maya, he wants me to say that he wishes he had reached out after you left. He loved your talks." Maya looks subdued when she carefully folds the printed picture. It went somewhere inside the fold of her outfit.
"Same here. I'm bad at making and keeping connections." She gathered the cut veggies and dumped it all in the boiling pot. A wooden spoon to prop open the pot cover will stop it from overflowing as it simmers. "Let's go up! The stew's gonna be almost ready when we come down."
Joel stands and gathers his things like Maya. "Lead the way."
"This is what we call Armory E. Welcome."
"Armory E?"
"Yeah." Maya leads him into the dark interior. Five locked doors are found on the ground floor.
"Is it okay to ask what's in there?"
"Weapons. Supplies. Food. Hardware." The creaky stairs led them up to the second floor. "I'm the quartermaster." Maya stops in the middle of the hallway. "So, I'm here." she points to a padlocked door behind her. "This is the dining area slash second kitchen." She gestures at the middle area. "This balcony is the roof of the garage downstairs.
"Why don't you cook up here?"
"Uh, I do but just light stuff."
Joel nods at the small camping stove. "Something got burned."
Maya snort-laughs. "Yes. My breakfast." She nods to something behind Joel which is near the top of the stairs. "That's your room."
"Alright." Joel looks around at the blue room with a wooden bed and a wardrobe beside the bathroom.
"It has its own bath and the door that connects to the balcony." Maya follows him inside.
"Looks good."
Maya waves him out and walks towards her door and points up to another staircase. "There's an attic room." She waves him up. "It's bigger but there are more stuff in there."
Joel looks up. "No, you sold the balcony room. I'm there."
Maya shrugs and follows as Joel re-enters the blue room. "When you've unpacked follow me downstairs."
xXXx
"Itadakimasu!" she whispers. Maya closes her eyes and put her hands together.
"What's that?"
"It's to thank the food."
"Hm! Like saying grace. Sounds Japanese?"
"It is. Habit." Maya lifts the bowl to her lips as the warm broth warms her insides.
"Whoa! I take it back! I wasn't sure the bananas would work. That's good!" Joel savors the flavor of the cooked plantain.
"One of the few dishes I can cook without burning the whole house down."
"I can rustle up some good food on my own. Just a little out of practice." Joel took another spoonful of the tender pork. He follows the way she uses the spoon and fork. She would take the meat out of the bowl and set it on her plate and use the utensils to pull apart the food. "The meat is so tender. It's almost melting in my mouth. Compliments to the chef."
"And to the sous chef."
"I wanna ask. Did you go to Japan? Is that where you learned your samurai skills?"
"It's called Iaido*. It's the name of the martial arts. I studied it when I was living in the capital."
"How long did you study that?"
"Since I was in high school up the time things went haywire."
"No wonder you use that blade like it's a part of you."
"My sensei, my teacher I mean, would be happy to hear that. I won this blade in New York city." Maya nods when Joel's face did an 'Aha!' as he put the pieces together.
"Wow. Maya, is it okay to see the katana?"
Maya looks up him. "Sure. A moment." Maya stands and releases the 'sageo' or the cords that's around her waist. When the katana has been freed she pulls the whole weapon out of her belt. She wraps and ties the cords around the scabbard and held it out to Joel both hands. "Stand up. Take it from me the same way." She bends a little as she hands her primary weapon to him.
Joel rubs his hands on his shirt before taking the sword, feeling solemn. It's a big thing that she did. She didn't even hesitate. It's Maya's way of showing her trust. Either that or she's showing him that he's not really a big of a threat to her. "Whoa. I've never held a real one before." The shine of a few inches of the exposed blade made him smile as he sees his own reflection in it. "It's beautiful but it's a lethal weapon."
"You have no idea. It's been created especially for me. Here." Joel returns the weapon to her the same way. "This," she shows him the handle, "is the 'tsuba' or hand guard. See the two fish?"
"Like Pisces?"
"Right. My sensei gifted the tsuba to me on my birthday. Sadly he got the virus. He didn't make it." Joel nods to her to take the weapon back.
"On my way here I went inside a convenience store to get out of the rain. I found this."
"Cinnamon!" Maya looks back at Joel with bright eyes. "Oh, that smell!"
"It's yours. My gift. I'm glad you're my defender."
Maya shakes her head. "We all need a defender in our lives."
"Who's yours?"
"My daughter." Her eyes darkens a little. "I fought for this place. I helped build this for her. I'll do everything to keep her alive." She went back to her food missing the stricken look on the man's face.
Joel feels like a weight is pushing onto his chest. "I know what you feel." Maya looks up at his voice. "Anyone in your family infected?"
"Not by the fungus but the virus." She looks away. "My two younger sisters. My brother in law called me. They were living in one of the islands nearby. This is the main island. I invited him here. He said he's gonna bring my niece over…I didn't hear anything from him again."
"What about your other sister?"
"She was working in another country. She didn't answer her phone."
"Fuck." Joel whispers.
"Did you lose anyone?"
"I did. My daughter, Sarah, when the spores happened."
"Did she turn?"
"No, we were escaping the chaos of the first wave. We were with my brother when a soldier fired on us. She bled to death."
"Shit. I'm sorry…" Maya stands up, wiping her eyes as someone knocks on the gate. "Who is it?"
"Me." Patty used her own key to open the gate. "Hellow mother! Hi, Joel!" she stops. "Uh…you guys okay?"
"Yeah, just trading sob stories." Joel took a drink from his cup.
Patty sighs in relief when Maya waves her in. "Okay. Oh, that smells nice!"
"Wanna have some?" Maya pushes her bowl to her daughter. "I lost appetite."
"You sure? Okay, I'll eat your leftover."
"Wait, let me add some more soup."
"Bad news?" Joel asks Patty.
"What bad news?" Patty blinks, looking back and forth at her mother and Joel.
"He's worried he's gonna go back to jail."
"Oh! Relax Joel. I'm not here for that. Mom, it's about the therapist…." Patty sits straddling the long bench.
"What about?"
"Remember the university? They have their own village fort just like ours and some of the professors are still there."
"Who told you? Do they have an effing therapist there?" Maya brings back the bowl with hot broth.
"Hm! This is good, mom! Uh, not sure but one of the guys, Fred, said he has an uncle living there."
"Living there? He's sure?" Joel asks, surprised.
"Yeah, that's what he said."
"So what's the plan? Bring one of them over?" Joel asks Patty. Maya is glad that Joel seems to be more relaxed after knowing he's free.
Maya spreads her hands out. "Why do we need to worry about that? What did Lee say?"
"Uh, don't get angry okay? Dad's on his way here."
"Why?"
Patty inclines her head, listening. "That's him." She gets up and opens the gate.
Maya threw the mittens on the table. "Shit! Why did I fucking suggest that idea!"
"Hey." Lee nods to Maya and Joel. The man stops as he takes in the cozy domestic scene of his ex-wife, Joel and his daughter and feels that twitch in his gut.
"No."
"What? I haven't said anything!"
"No."
"Maya listen…."
"You want to send one of my men to look for a fucking doctor at the university. Am I right or wrong?"
"No."
"No? What do you mean?"
"Someone will have to go to the university."
Maya swore under her breath. "I have a bad feeling about this."
"They want you and Joel to go there."
xXXx
A/N:
Iaido /ih-yay-dow/- Iaido is a martial art that involves the use of Japanese long sword: the Katana.
Itadakimasu- is actually the polite and humble form of the verb "to receive", so in a literal sense, it means, "I humbly receive"
Sageo /sah-ge-yoh/-is a hanging cord made of silk, cotton or leather that is passed through the hole of a Japanese sword's saya.