There are a million ways we should've died before today...and a million ways we can die before tomorrow. But we fight...for every second we get to spend with each other. Whether it's two minutes...or two days.
-The Last of Us: Left Behind
RWBY
The Last of Us
"Okay." Was all Ruby needed to say. Yang relaxed her stance, slumping her shoulders down and letting out a breath of relief. She licked her slightly chapped lips, thinking over the real game-plan. A muffled sound was breaking its way into the room, both Ruby and Yang looking at each other before quickly walking over to one of their boarded up windows. Ruby looked between two boards, the glass partially dusty and offering but a vague look at the outside. She was able to make out several FEDRA soldiers marching through the streets with an armored truck following close behind. Yang put her ear to the wall, trying to hear better. The loudspeakers outside were going off.
"Curfew is now in effect. Anyone caught outside without proper authorization will be arrested and prosecuted."
The loudspeaker repeated that same line three times before the person speaking hung it up, the sound of the phone hitting its dashboard echoing through the streets. Yang and Ruby looked at each other, slightly panicked and mostly confused. They both stepped back from the wall, gathering in the middle of the living room area.
"Why the hell are they calling for curfew already? Curfew isn't supposed to start for another two hours." Yang asked. The blonde made a sound of distaste, waving her arm at the window as she walked over to the counter tops in the kitchen.
Ruby brought her hand to her chin, thinking over several scenarios that would've caused this. While she thought, Yang was throwing various supplies into a small, brown leather backpack. The backpack was dirty and worn, one of the straps was broken and several sections around the front had small holes. When Yang had packed all of her things, she checked the front to make sure nothing would be falling out before slinging the single strap over her shoulder.
Ruby shook her head and sighed, letting her arm fall to her side. "It must be the fireflies. They're way too calm for it to be the infected." She turned her back to face Yang, looking at her quizzically.
"What are you doing?"
Yang pulled a pistol off the counter and tossed it to Ruby, who caught it gracefully. "We'll have to sneak out. Use that only if you have to." She said strictly, walking toward the front door with one arm on the strap of her bag and the other clasped around her pistol.
"I know the drill." Ruby sighed, loading a bullet in the chamber, hearing that all too familiar click before slipping it in the back of her pants. Ruby hesitated for a moment. "We can't really be sneaking out, can we? You know that, if we get caught, we'll be prosecuted and probably killed."
Yang stopped at the door, hand resting limply on the handle. She pondered the question for a moment. After thinking it through, she swung the door open, holding it for a second before she was sure it wouldn't smack against the wall and attract FEDRA's attention. The two hurried down the stairs of the apartment complex, ducking down by the boarded up windows at the bottom of the stairwell. Yang took a quick peek outside through the boards, looking for any signs of movement. When she didn't see any, she opened the door and Ruby followed suit.
The two kept to the shadows, keeping their eyes peeled for any sign of FEDRA movement. Ruby was surprised by how quiet it was for curfew. Normally, there would be several transport vehicles and droves of soldiers searching the streets for people like them. Ruby looked around at all the buildings. The entire quarantine zone seemed old and worn down. Most of the buildings were built from brick or concrete. The bricks were faded and chipped in many areas and stained all over. The concrete suffered the same fate, but was less chipped as the resource was harder and more solid. Nearly every window was either cracked, scratched, or broken, and all of them were incredibly dusty. The ground they were walking on was uneven and littered with garbage. This was downtown. The closer one got to the checkpoints and ration lines, the less filthy it became.
Yang stopped just in front of Ruby, crouching low to the ground and holding out her hand. "Hold up."
From around the corner, Ruby could see several FEDRA soldiers lining up a group of three civilians. Poor bastards hadn't gotten indoors before curfew and were about to be arrested. The soldiers pulled out the special machine for identifying infected individuals.
"On your knees and keep your hands on your heads." he ordered.
Each of the stragglers knelt down, holding their hands above their heads and awaited their fate. They placed the machine at each of their necks, eliciting the same beeping sound for each.
"They're clean." One of the soldiers said. The other two nodded and grabbed the group by their arms and hoisted them up.
"You load 'em up and I'll call it in."
The stragglers kept their hands behind their heads. The third soldier shoved his gun into a larger mans back. He said, "Get the fuck moving.", while motioning to the large vehicle. As each of them got into the vehicle, the first soldier gripped the strap of his bag that held his communicator.
"Sgt. Rowes in sector I-13. We've got three stragglers caught out after curfew. Bringing them in for prosecution...understood. ETA is about five minutes."
Yang and Ruby watched as the soldiers got in the large vehicle. The engine roared and the vehicle hissed as it began moving forward. Yang shook her head and kept moving. Even though Ruby followed her, her eyes didn't leave where she saw that group. She felt bad, knowing what was about to be their fate. It could have been them. Ruby somewhat felt jealous, knowing that they would be released from this hell hole they called a world.
The two made it to another old, worn down building. This building used to be a school, but was now nothing more than a large box of rusted metal and broken windows. Yang approached a red, metal door. She knocked three times, the sound of the banging metal filling the once quiet air. When nothing happened after a minute, Ruby cringed as Yang kicked the door.
"God damnit, Sun! Open the fucking door!" Yang yelled, forgetting that they were supposed to be inconspicuous. Ruby looked around, making sure that nobody was around to hear them. Just like always, they had only gotten lucky as no one seemed to hear them.
Ruby brought her attention back to the door, as it slowly slid open, crunching as it shifted along the cement ground. Yang and Ruby quickly shuffled inside, making sure to slide it back shut. It was pitch black inside, as Ruby couldn't even see the hand in front of her face. With how long they had been in this quarantine zone, Ruby had only ever been in here twice. It was a safe house for people like them. Stragglers who would bounce from place to place, not trusting the FEDRA's rule, or other 'camps' that promised salvation.
Ruby brought her hand to her face as a bright light suddenly came on, followed by a slight buzzing sound. She could see everything that decorated the room. From the grime and stained tables littered with various papers, to the various shelves that had everything from old clothes, to bins of various supplies. There were also various bunk beds around, either just covered in filthy blankets or occupied by an exhausted straggler.
"Well look who it is! I thought I'd see you two here today." came a rather amused voice.
A boy, no older than Yang approached them. He had wild, blonde hair and wore nothing but a pair of blue jeans and a white sweater. The sweater was unzipped, showing off his well maintained abs and had various, unidentifiable stains that made it almost look grey. His blue jeans were way too long for him, so he had them rolled up to just below his knees.
"What the hell were you guys doing in the dark?" Yang asked, walking over to one of the shelves and looking through the bins.
Sun nearly deadpanned, bringing his hand up to his forehead. "Uh, sleeping?"
Ruby shook her head and walked over to the shelf behind Sun, mimicking Yang and going through the bins for anything useful. Sun quickly joined her, grabbing various materials and supplies. A small amount of bandages, a half filled water bottle, a box of screws, and a nearly depleted roll of duct tape. Ruby watched him take the materials and approach the table in the middle of the room. Throwing the supplies on it, he pulled out a backpack that had been carelessly placed underneath it and started packing up everything he had grabbed.
"You guys getting ready to head out again?" Yang asked, examining a few bullets she had found.
Most of the bullets seemed to be used, and she scowled as she tossed them back on the shelf. She never knew why people would save the empty shells and just mix them with their inventory. Out of the five bullets she found, only two of them were still unused and good to be used. She pocketed the bullets and turned her head slightly when she didn't get a reply, seeing Sun zipping up the backpack.
"Yup. Most of us, at least. Leaving a few behind." Sun said, walking up to another shelf and grabbing a rolled up piece of parchment. "They're either too worn down to continue, which will just drag us down, or just don't have the will to keep moving."
Ruby stopped rummaging and joined Yang by her side. "So you're abandoning them?" she said, clearly not looking too pleased.
Sun turned his head in her direction, but didn't look her in the eyes, instead focusing on the floor. Part of him felt ashamed, but this was what their world had come to. If you weren't useful, or didn't have the strength to make it on your own, you were left behind to fend for yourself. When every second is a struggle to survive, you couldn't worry about useless baggage.
"We don't have a choice, red.." Sun whispered. He turned to completely look at them and approached the table, unfolding the parchment. He reached under the table and grabbed two bins, setting them down on the left and right sides of the parchment. Yang looked at the contents, then at Sun, confused.
"The hell is this, Sun?"
The blonde haired boy gave her a cheeky grin. "Uh, a map?" He joked.
Yang leaned in dangerously close to him from her side of the table. "I see that." She growled.
Sun ignored her and pointed to a spot on the map, somewhere to the far eastern side. "This is where we're heading. I heard from a few old buddies of mine that there's a new settlement out east. Supposed to be a fresh start for humanity."
Yang scoffed and shook her head, pushing away from the table and pacing about. "Are you fucking kidding me? Do you know how many of these 'fresh starts' there have been? Every single one of them is either a failure, or some hunter trap that ends in rape and murder."
Sun put up his hand, trying to calm her down. "I know, I know, but...this might actually be the real deal. I've heard that they're doing pretty good out there. They've got livestock, food, water..even power. Power, Yang. I think that's worth checking out."
Yang stayed silent, thinking over the information he gave her. "Why are you telling me this?" she said, carefully.
"I thought you might want to come with us." Sun said, honestly. He pushed the bins over and off the map, rolling it back up and removing it from the table.
Yang didn't waste anytime in shaking her and walking completely away, taking an interest in another shelf of supplies. "No way. Not happening."
Sun held out his arms. "Come on, Yang. Don't you want to find a place you can actually call home? To keep Ruby safe?"
Sun had to duck to avoid a bottle that Yang hurled at his head. The resounding crash made Ruby flinch, and startled several sleeping occupants. They each jumped out of their sleep, immediately jumping to their feet and scrambling for weapons. Yang and Sun ignored them.
Yang held up a single finger, giving him a cold glare. "Don't. Ever. Tell me how to keep my sister safe. You hear me?"
Sun put his hands up in defense, Ruby walking over and placing her hands on Yang's shoulders. The younger girl gave her a reassuring look, whispering to her to calm down. When Yang's hand fell back to her side, cold glare still directed at Sun, Ruby continued for her.
"We're looking for the fireflies. We need a lot more supplies and they're the only ones who can get them for us. After that, we'll be heading west to the next quarantine zone." Ruby told him, removing her hands from her older sisters shoulders.
"And since you used to be friends with a couple of them, I figured that you'd be able to tell us where one is." Yang said.
Sun turned around, away from Yang and Ruby, taking a few steps forward and scratching the back of his head. Finally, he shook his head, hand falling back to his side. He turned to face the two girls, looking rather apologetic.
"I knew one, and she isn't-"
"But you know one." Yang said, cutting off the blonde.
Sun just nodded. "Yeah, but she isn't a firefly anymore. I don't know how useful she'll be."
Before Yang could respond, he grabbed the backpack from earlier, tossing the bag over to Ruby. It landed in her arms with a soft thud and the sounds of clanging screws. "But if you really want to try, I'll tell you where she is. Unfortunately, she isn't exactly in this quarantine zone."
Sun beckoned for both Yang and Ruby to join him around the table as he flattened out his map once again. When Ruby and Yang joined him, he pointed at a landmass located someplace west of there. It was marked with a skull and cross bones, as were many other areas on the map. "Last I saw of her, she was here in Valence. You get there, you find her and maybe, she might be able to help you out."
Yang took the map, rolling it up and placing it in the left side pocket of her backpack.
"I put enough supplies in that bag to last you guys a week. That should be enough time for you to get there if you're careful." Sun explained. Yang nodded. The two of them thanked Sun for his help, and quickly left the warehouse, being mindful of the FEDRA soldiers.
With enough supplies to get them to Valence, the two began the long journey to Valence, hoping that this wasn't just a waste of time. Yang looked at her younger sister, keeping in mind that she had someone to protect. Even if Sun's friend couldn't help them, Yang planned on doing everything she could to keep Ruby alive and well. She always had, ever since Summer died. She'd done some really crummy things, screwed over so many people. Some, if not most of them, probably had families, or similar situations to her own. She'd be lying if that didn't haunt her everyday of her life. Even so, she'd gladly do it over and over, as long as it meant Ruby was safe. The younger girl was her reason for existing in this crummy world.
Nothing will ever hurt her as long as she draws breath.
So I hope this chapter is just as good as the last. I've already apologized for the wait, but I'll say it again. I'm sorry. Working on my big project, plus work and home life, made updating hard for a while. But now that I've got a good handle on things, I believe that updates can start coming out again. Princess and the Orphan will either be next, or after my next one shot, as I'm still getting used to writing again. As always, read, follow, favorite, and review, and don't be shy to send me PM's with any questions you guys may have.