A/N: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF LAST OF US OR YU GI OH 5DS! ALL RIGHTS GO TO THE CREATORS OF BOTH!

Chapter 10: Towns

"That was a close on, huh?" Sam stated as they walked.

"Closer than you think," Jack stated.

"Yeah, not one of our finest moments. But we made it out," Henry stated. They ran out into a small town and he called pointing to a tower in the distance, "Hey, look at that! Yep. What'd I tell you, huh?"

"Before we go getting cocky, let's get to it," Yusei answered. "There's no telling what's in this town."

"Sounds like something the king Firefly would say," Henry stated as they walked down the streets.

"King Firefly?" Jack repeated.

"That's what everyone calls Yusei nowadays," Henry explained. "Marlene's the queen Firefly. Yusei is her second in command and the leader right next to Marlene. She looks to him for leading aid and any sort of leading positions possible. So people call him the king Firefly as a result."

"But he's only been here ten months," Akiza retorted.

"Marlene knows who she can trust most in her nest," Sam stated. "At least, that's what we've heard about her. I've never met her and Henry has only met Yusei. But no one does anything without her or Yusei's call."

"And honestly, I think she made the right choice by picking Yusei as her next up to lead the Fireflies," Henry added. "This man knows when to kill and when not to kill, he is a natural leader, he protects his own, and he can well take care of himself. It's no wonder why Marlene picked him, when you actually think about it."

"Why do you take such an interest in the Fireflies?" Luna asked.

"If we got the chance, we would join them," Henry stated.

"I'm not sure if you guys are ready for what it takes to be a Firefly," Yusei told the two people in front of them. "It isn't easy to become one. Yeah, you can kill and shoot, but it takes more than that to be one."

"Yeah, we know. But if we train with you guys, we'll gain what we need to be one," Sam responded.

"We'll see," Yusei responded.

"Really think they could become Fireflies?" Crow whispered to Yusei.

"If they truly wanted to and set their mind to it, probably," he answered. "But I don't think they understand just how hard training to be one is. For now, though, let's get out of here. We still need to get to a place to rest." They nodded. Yusei walked to catch up to Henry to talk a bit about where they were going.

Sam came by Luna and Leo. "So, that was intense, wasn't it?" he asked the twin.

"Oh yeah," Leo answered.

"My heart's still pounding from it," Luna followed.

"How did you guys meet Yusei?" Sam asked them.

"It's a long story," Luna answered. "We knew him before he became a Firefly and then he disappeared for ten months. We met him again outside a zone and have been with him heading to the next Fireflies base ever since."

"No wonder you seem to get along well," Sam stated. "He really knows how to protect you guys, doesn't he?"

"Yeah," Luna answered.

"He's good like that," Leo added.

"Oh, I almost forgot…" Sam ran up to Yusei and held out the Shorty to him. He whispered to the Firefly, "Thanks for the gun."

"Keep it until we reach the tower," Yusei told him also in a whisper. "We don't know what's here. If you're going to become a Firefly, you'll need to learn to defend yourself and hold your own. Just don't let your brother see it until you have to use it for defense. He won't like you having it anyway."

"Thanks," Sam responded and put it back in its pocket.

Luna came up with the others and asked Sam, "What do you think this place was like before the Infected?"

"I can't even imagine," he answered. "Since I'm so young, I haven't seen a world without Infected. I wish there was a cure or something. So this could all stop." The four Signers and Leo glanced down in worry. They were beginning to see how people felt about the pandemic and why Yusei was so determined to be okay sacrificing himself for this world. "Something wrong?"

"No, it's just a thought," Luna responded.

"What kind of thought?" Sam asked.

"If a person, a friend of yours had to be killed for a cure, would you allow it to happen?" Leo asked.

Sam looked up as if in thought, while Yusei was listening closely. The boy slowly answered, "I'm not sure. I mean, if you're sacrificing yourself for it, it would be like being a martyr or something for the entire world. But your friends who you know would probably be hurt for a long while of you being dead. Especially if they were close friends."

Yusei looked down for a moment. 'I don't want my friends to be like that. And there's the ones in New Domino who would never see me again and probably be upset that I died. But, what about this world? Should I really allow them to suffer this forever because of my personal problems?' he thought. 'No. My friends will find a way to get over my death and let life return to normal. This world will only get worse and more people will be killed if I don't do this. I have no choice.'

"Are you guys doing okay right now?" Yusei checked in.

"Yeah," they answered.

"Don't worry. It's just a bit farther," Henry stated.

They walked by some houses that said things like: "I HAVE A GUN! U LOOT I SHOOT! Will shoot to kill" and another said, "Will shoot on sight".

"Lots of friendly people lived here," Sam commented reading it.

"First few months after the outbreak, they had a lot of lootin'," Henry explained. "Everyone got paranoid." He looked at Yusei. "Know about that, Yusei?"

"I've heard about it. Everyone barricaded themselves in their homes. Then supplies started running low," he replied. "That's when you saw what people are really capable of."

"You think a cure would stop all this killing?" Henry asked. "I heard Sam and your friends asking about that earlier."

"I'm not sure," Yusei answered. "The Fireflies, knowing them, would do all they could to help all those Infected make it. If the military had it, well, Fireflies would be goners and they would pick and choose who was better to be given the cure and who would be better to let die. But knowing them, they would only choose those in the military to save and let civilians get shot down and rot. If any gangs got the cure, well, there would be no reason for a cure to be made. After a cure would be made, I'm sure things would eventually go back into order. Depending who got the cure, at least. Maybe the military would eventually wisen up and help normal people instead of helping only themselves. Gangs might even eventually split up seeing much better options than to stay and kill others for food and supplies."

"That's the way I would think it would go. People get the cure, do what they can to help others who are Infected, stop so much murder over little things that don't need to happen, and eventually order would return," Henry stated. "Let's just hope one day that little miracle will come and save us all." That shot the others except for Sam, Yusei, and Henry again hard. They could feel a bit of guilt from wanting to keep Yusei alive while this world suffers.

"It will come," Yusei stated. "Hopefully soon."

'It feels like we're being selfish,' Luna thought. She noticed Leo touch his upper arm whatever was there was hidden by his sleeve. "Leo?"

Yusei looked at him subtly, hearing Luna's soft call. He noticed Leo let go of his arm and had a sinking feeling he knew what happened. 'He got bit, didn't he?' he thought worried.

They heard barking from a couple dogs. "Oh, dogs," Luna commented. She then noticed a couple further down the street.

"Stay away from those," Yusei stated. "They are like ones from New Domino or the zones. These are wild."

"I just realized. If the infected takes hold of people, why doesn't it take hold of dogs and other animals?" Sam asked.

"Because where Infected usually bite are places that'll kill animals before they can turn," Yusei answered bluntly. "If any animals get Infected, it'll be due to some other way of getting the virus. Probably from eating any of the fungus or an Infected's body. But I haven't seen any animals Infected."

"Let's just knock it down to that animals are a lot smarter than humans when it comes to safety," Henry stated. "They know what to eat and what not to eat, and they know what to stay away from and what to go after."

"Probably," Yusei agreed.

They walked into a house for a moment to gather any supplies. Yusei made another nail bomb, two shivs, and a couple molotovs. He carefully slid them into his bag. He walked towards the living room where the twins and Sam were playing darts. Luna was doing alright, Leo missed a couple times, and Sam was right behind Yusei.

"It's a tie between me and Sam," Luna stated.

"No, no, you clearly got destroyed," Sam teased.

"How did she get destroyed? That's practically a tie," Leo asked.

"Yeah, okay," Sam continued. He playfully punched the twins by their shoulders making all of them laugh a bit.

"You guys go find food if you can," Yusei told them. "I'm sure you need some."

They smiled and nodded before running off. Yusei turned as Henry stepped next to them. Three other eldest others were listening behind the wall as Henry said, "There'll come a day where kids can just be kids again."

"Yeah," Yusei answered. "One day. Now, let's go. It's getting dark and I don't want to be fighting Infected if there are any here in the night."

"Right," Henry agreed. They walked out to the kitchen to see the three kids had found a few granola bars to eat. The three were done quickly and the dark skinned man asked, "Better with food?"

"We haven't eaten too much in a while," Luna stated. "I guess we really did need a bit of food." Leo and Sam nodded.

Yusei grinned. "Come on, you guys," he called. "We need to get out of here and to a safe place to camp out while there's still light."

They walked down a hill and hit a dead up. On brick was a graffiti painting of a bug of some sort. "Fireflies were here," Henry stated.

"Yeah," Yusei agreed. "This is probably one of the routes they took from Boston."

"You know where to go, right? Like where's your first destination again?" Sam asked.

"I need to get to the University of Colorado. It's one of the bases of the Fireflies. We were moving out of it after we were done at the Boston QZ," Yusei explained. "I'm going to check how things went and then going to the Salt Lake City Hospital base. That's where those at the University were going to next."

"And you're okay with us coming with you?" Henry asked.

"Yeah. We need more than me and Jack and Crow to help us fight the Infected. Besides, if you really want to become Fireflies, you'll have to tag along for the ride," he answered.

Akiza walked up and whispered to Yusei, "Speaking of rides, why don't we just take Black Rose Dragon to the tower?"

"Because I don't want them knowing about your powers just yet," he answered. "Not until I know they are ready to learn about it. They don't even know about me being immune. If I don't trust them enough to tell them I'm immune, yet, I don't trust them enough to tell them you have powers that can summon deadly monsters if you use them in the wrong way."

"Right," she agreed.

"Let's go," Yusei told all of them. "The sun is getting lower."

"Come on, guys," Henry called.

They went behind another house and down some stairs before jumping off a ledge. Yusei going last. Something caught his eye, though. Something shimmering in a window of a house. 'Almost like…' he stopped and immediately yelled at the ones below him, "Get down and behind the car now!" He dropped and as soon as he hit the ground, a bullet shot passed him.

"How did you know about that?" Sam asked.

Yusei pointed to the window of the house where they saw the flash of light hitting glass. "It's a scope," he answered.

"Sniper," Henry stated angrily.

"You stay here," Yusei began.

"No…" Luna immediately began but Yusei cut her off.

"Before you guys start arguing- I need you to keep him busy," he told them. "I'm going to go around and try to get an angle on him."

"Okay," Jack agreed.

"Hey," Crow called before Yusei could step out. "Be careful." Yusei nodded and ran to another car just missing getting shot.

"Go on! Do it again!" the sniper called out. Yusei tensed before vaulting over the car and sliding behind a large stack of logs. A bullet graze his shoulder. "I fucking see you! Go back to where you fucking came from!"

Yusei looked at a house with no door. He calmed himself down and darted into the house, managing to disappear before the man could shoot. The others were worried when they couldn't see him and it didn't help when a gunshot went off.

Yusei, however, was fine and had just shot another thug. He ran through the house out the back door and hid behind a wall.

"I can still see you!" the man called as Yusei hid behind another pile of logs.

"Why isn't he shooting from there?" Sam asked quietly.

"The sniper has all his attention on him. If he tried shooting the sniper at this distance, he would get hit since he would have to aim. Even with a scope," Henry explained. "That's what a Firefly does. They wait for the right moment to attack and do so with skill."

"Like when Yusei had me hide for a bit while he took out those Stalkers in the sewers," Sam stated.

"You faced Stalkers while you were in there?" Henry questioned.

"Yusei took care of them pretty quickly. He had me hide in this hole underneath a pillar that went between two areas of the room while he killed them," Sam explained. "He made sure I didn't get bit."

"Like I said, he protects his own and those he feels he is responsible for," Henry stated. He smirked. "He gave you a gun just in case, didn't he?"

"Uh, maybe…" Sam responded.

"He probably thinks I'll rip his head off for giving you a gun," Henry stated. But he got tense as he saw Yusei get behind the stairway of a burned building.

"He's behind that burned down house!" the sniper stated.

"Does that mean he's got friends?" Luna asked nervously. It was answered though when three men came around near Yusei. He quickly shot them down and moved around back. They heard two shots and a man crying out.

Yusei held a bleeding shoulder than the man had managed to scrape pretty well with a bullet. He ignored the pain and hopped over a fence. They didn't seem to notice him and he snuck in through the back with ease. He grabbed a couple things while he was in the kitchen before crouching in an alcove between the living room and the kitchen that also led to the bathroom. Yusei listened carefully and noticed a man closing in on his location. He watched carefully before the man walking in unknowingly. Yusei grabbed in and silently strangled the man. Once he was dead he lightly set him on the ground and thought, 'I'm sorry. But I have to protect my friends and I, and you, your friends, and your sniper are not making that easy. If only there were a way around it.'

He focused again and noticed another thug dangerously close to him. The man came around the corner and noticed the first dead man without noticing Yusei. Yusei did the same thing with the man until he was dead and set him down. He listened again and saw that there were a couple in the room to his right.

He reached into his back and brought out a nail bomb. Yusei emotionlessly threw the bomb and the two men walked to it. As soon as one of the thugs touched the bomb, it exploded, killing them instantly.

Yusei focused again and thought slightly relieved, 'That's all of them other than the sniper. He should be easy to handle, though.' He looked up the stairs and silently crept up them. He went to the third floor. As he entered the room of the sniper, he didn't see anyone from just behind the doorway. He slowly stood up and listened to see the man waiting on the other side of the door with a knife in hand. 'I'm not going to get out of fighting him in close combat.'

"You know, if you wanted to fight hand to hand," Yusei called, "you shouldn't have chosen a Firefly to do it with." He stepped around the corner and grabbed the man who tried to slice him with the knife.

"You ain't no Firefly," he stated. "Unless… y-you're the king Firefly, aren't you?" Yusei pinned the knife arm to the wall with an shiv pressed against his throat. "Kill me if you want. I got nothing better to live for."

"I don't want to kill you," Yusei told him. "The Fireflies aren't like that. But I do kill Infected and thugs who try to kill other Fireflies and my friends. I'm sorry." He then sliced the man's throat who fell dead against the wall. "Rest well. I'm sorry."

Yusei heard gunshots and knew exactly what that meant. He ran to the sniper rifle and look through the scope. He saw his friends running from some more thugs. Henry, Jack, and Crow trying their best to fight them off.

Yusei aimed his new gun at a thug closest to them and shot the thug down in a second. "Nice gun," he stated as he popped out the last bullet and recocked it. He shot another thug down and his friends looked at where the shots were coming from. "Get over here, now!" Yusei ordered. Of course, they were immediately pinned down behind a couple cars. Yusei shot the thugs with ease and they made their way back again. They were quickly killed. That's when Yusei saw it and growled in frustration and worry. It was the gang from the city, he would know that humvee with a military turret anywhere.

"Thought you could get away from us?!" a gang member yelled from the humvee.

"We're back, motherfucker!" another yelled.

More gang members came out on foot trying to shoot them while the turret continued to fire at them. Yusei quickly brought the ground members down. That's when the humvee moved forward but stopped firing. Its top lid popped out and a man threw a bomb towards a car. Yusei was happy to see his friends weren't by it.

Yusei aimed his gun at the lid where the man would pop out to throw another bomb. As the man came out, Yusei pulled the trigger and it hit the guy square in the chest. The man and the bomb both fell into the humvee again. The bomb exploded inside and the humvee got on fire with the a final man jumping out burning alive while the humvee crashed into a house.

His friends came out from where they were hiding and Crow said, "That was intense."

"Are you guys okay?" Yusei called.

"We're fine!" they called back.

"Thanks for the save!" Henry called. "You're not too bad with a sniper rifle."

"Just get in here. I have a bad feeling this isn't over," Yusei told them. Suddenly, three Runners came and attacked Luna, Sam, and Henry. Yusei shot the Infected off of the two youngest while Henry toss his Infected off and shot it.

"Are you okay?" Henry asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered.

"You sure?" Henry checked.

"I said I'm fine," Sam replied.

They heard screaming of other Infected. "Come on!" Luna called and they ran.

Yusei shot a few, including Clickers, to cover them and heard his friends slam the door to the house closed behind them. He watched to see more and more Infected rushing in, too many to handle even if he had Akiza use her powers.

Yusei hurried down the steps and met with his friends as they watched the door as it was banged on.

"You're okay," Luna stated. She then noticed the bullet scrap on his shoulder. "What happened?"

"Nothing. Don't worry about me," he told her. "Right now, we just need to get to safer ground."

"Right," Henry agreed. "There's a board in the fence behind the house that is out of place. And it leads straight to the tower. Follow me." They didn't wait a second to follow him to a part of the fence that was loosened and out of place. He opened it just a bit further and the five new ones to the planet got through first before Sam and Henry followed. Yusei quickly followed him.

They hurried and followed him to the tower.