THE END IS NEAR. ➳ ELLIE WILLIAMS.

1/THE APARTMENTS

It had been relentless days of thick, green forest before Ellie managed to make her way into the suburbs of the city. She had not long left Jackson, a month maybe. Admittedly she hadn't been great at keeping track of the days since her departure.
A couple weeks ago the snowy mountains had melted away, leaving her footsteps muddy brown as supposed to sunken white, making her journey a whole lot easier to navigate and to endure. She liked the snow fine enough but it got cold and lonely way too fast. She desperately missed the orange warmth of the commune she had left behind, the busy streets, the friendly people, the chalet basement, the blood, the golf club,
the blood.

She kept pushing forward, mounting cars and debris to make her way towards the tall buildings in the distance, hoping to find some temporary shelter in one of the abandoned apartments ahead.
Ellie was aware of the danger that the city bought, being unfamiliar with the area was enough of a disadvantage. She just had to hope the WLF didn't travel this area often.
After the highway, she made her way towards a hopeful looking building. Keeping low and silent to avoid possible enemies of all kinds, her gun gripped tightly in her hands.

"If I made it all this way to get killed by some clicker landlord, that would be so fucking embarrassing"

She muttered to herself as she cleared the ground floor of the building, pressing cautiously forward to the stairs. She walked upwards until her legs felt like they were giving out, it was almost sundown now and she was in desperate need of a rest, and maybe something to eat if she happened to get lucky in one of the rented kitchens.
Before entering one of the apartments, she holstered her gun and instead pulled out her trusty switch blade, knowing that whilst she may not always overpower her enemies, she could sure stealth kill them, and a gun was useless for that.

Ellie pushed open the door with her foot, keeping her hearing focused, listening out for any sign of infected or WLF. Upon hearing nothing, she silently made her way inside, keeping her back against the walls as she checked each room. It wasn't the nicest of places but it would work. Overgrown, neglected and clearly ransacked at some point in the last twenty years, but most places were.

She made her way into the bedroom and threw her backpack on the mattress, finally hoping to get some rest on something that wasn't a dirt floor.

She heard a gun cock.

"Drop your fucking knife."

A voice said behind her. Ellie's heart dropped, she started to turn around slowly, keeping her switchblade in her hand against instruction.

"I said drop it."

The female voice repeated.
As Ellie turned she saw her, a girl about her age she could take down easy.

"Yeah I'm not gonna do that"

Ellie replied, confident in her own ability to fight. She hadn't made it this far by dropping her knife for anyone that just asked.

"I'll give you one more chance or I blow your brains in."

The mystery girl was walking towards her now, keeping her gun aimed right between Ellie's eyes. Unwavering.

"Okay. Fine"

Ellie threw the blade onto the mattress now behind her as the other girl closed the gap between them. She wasn't giving up, but for some reason she didn't think the girl was bluffing.

"Where's Owen? Tell me where he is and I will let you live"

The girl said. Holding her gun up to Ellie's head.

"Now who the fuck is Owen?"

Ellie replied, testing her luck with the tone. Did she know an Owen? The name rang a bell but she couldn't think of anyone, especially not with a gun to her temple.

"Don't play stupid, I've heard your people talking about him, I know he's around. So where is he?"

The girl pushed her this time. Hard. Ellie fell back onto the mattress, crawling backwards, trying to find with her hands where her knife might've fell. 'Your people' must mean WLF she thought, and if this stranger wasn't with them, who the fuck was she?

"I'm not WLF, I don't fucking know an 'Owen'"

Ellie protested as the girl now climbed on top of her, putting a leg either side of Ellie's hips, the gun still pushed firmly against her skull.

"Don't lie to me. I'll give you three seconds then I shoot."

The girl above said, adjusting the gun slightly. Ellie scrambled desperately behind her to find her switchblade.

"1"

"I don't know Owen, get the fuck off of me!"

"2"

"I'm looking for Abby, that's all I'm here for! I swear I'm not WLF."

She shouted, her hand finally closing around the comforting wooden grip of her knife.

"Wait you know Abby she's-"

but before the girl could finish talking, Ellie plunged the blade deep into her assailant's thigh.

"Did you just stab me in the fucking leg what the fuck?"

She cried out, looking down at the blood dying her blue denim red.
Ellie watched the as the girls faced flooded with anger, pain, and was that a... smile? Before she could push her off, the girl clamped a hand over Ellie's mouth, pushing her down flat on the bed and this time pointing her gun at the door, instead of her forehead.
Ellie squirmed violently under her, trying her best to fight back.

"Shut the fuck up I hear someone."