Firefly

Thirty-One

Five Hours Later

"Come on, Ellie, time to get up!" I nudged her with the toe of my boot." She swatted at my leg and sat up. "Alright, I'm up. I'm up!" Joel and I had already packed everything up. We agreed to let Ellie sleep until we were done. "Roll your sleeping bag up and put it in the back of the truck, please."

Once we got everything packed and ready we left. Joel pulled back out onto the road after filling the gas tank up.  "How long will it take us to get there?" Ellie asked twenty minutes into the ride. "To get to Pittsburg or to Wyoming?" I asked her. "Both. How long will this ride be? It's so boring!" I heard Joel let out an annoyed sigh. "Only like a little over an hour left to get to Pittsburgh. And it depends on roadblocks, traffic jams, there's a lot that can play into it."

We were just outside the city when we hit the traffic jam. Cars blocking the road that leads to the Pittsburgh QZ. "We could go around. Go through downtown?" I looked over at Joel who took a minute before nodding. "Yeah, we can try that." He backed up and turned around to take a different way in. The Pittsburgh QZ was one of many zones that had fallen.

When food and supplies started to dwindle and rations weren't being handed out, people got mad. People started getting sick and tired of being told what to do. People got tired of FEDRA being in control of everything. Riots broke out and FEDRA was overrun. Raiders and hunters took over killing the innocent and those who were able to get away either traveled to another QZ or found a safe enough place to hold up in and take care of themselves.

Joel drove slowly through the empty streets. Well, they aren't empty really. There are abandoned cars that have been sitting in the same spot for twenty years lining the curbs, trash littered that ground, mother nature was taking over everything. Some streets were blocked off with buses, road blocks, or anything people could use. We could see the QZ just up ahead. Which we would need to go through or find a way around. But then a man came fumbling out onto the street, yelling for help.

"Are we going to help him?" Ellie asked. "No. He isn't hurt," I told her. Joel hit the gas, the guy jumping out of the way before he could hit him. He made turns here and there whenever he needed to until our tires were shot out. Joel tried to keep control of the truck but we ended up crashing into an old store. Before I could even register what happened everything went black. I woke up to someone shaking me. "Come on, darlin', wake up! Ellie, you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good!" I blinked my eyes open, groaning at the throwing in my head. "We gotta get out of here, now!" Before any of us could even move the driver's side door swung open and a guy was grabbing Joel, pulling him out of the truck. Then the back door opened and Ellie was yanked out by another guy. "Joel! Yn!" She yelled. "Get your fuckijg hands off her!" Joel hissed at them. "Ellie!" I went to reach behind me but my door was next to be pried open.

"Get your hands off me you fucker!" I yelled, trying to swing my fist at the guy who had his hands all over me. "Feisty. I like 'em feisty." I watched as Joel was dragged over to the empty coolers where the drinks would go, slamming his head into one, breaking the glass. "Joel!" Ellie and I both called out. The guy tried to shove him down towards a hugged piece of glass, failing miserably, and ended up being the one with the shred being forcefully pushed into his neck.

The man that had Ellie tried to lift her more so he could take off with her but she bit down on his arm. "Ah! You little bitch!" He yelled, back handing her. He took the opportunity to straddle her and wrapped his hands around her neck. "Joel!" I yelled, getting his attention while I elbowed the guy behind me in the face.

Joel ran towards Ellie, kicking the guy on top of her in the side of the head. He pulled him up off the floor, dragged him over to a counter, and slammed his face into the edge of it until he was dead. I pulled my knife from my belt when the guy behind me let go. I spent on my heel and stabbed him in the throat, slicing into the flesh and pulling it across to the other side.

Joel helped Ellie up and I started grabbing our bags. "We need to get out of here!" I threw Ellie her bag and she stood up. "Fucker!" She said, taking her bag. I handed Joel his and out mine on. "Joel, watch out!" Ellie yelled. We ducked down, hiding behind the truck as someone from outside shot at us. Joel and I both pulled out guns and started to shoot back. "Ellie, I need you to stay hidden! Do you understand?" She nodded and stayed ducked down.

I looked over the counter I was behind and shot at one of the hunters out on the street, hitting him in the chest. I quickly ducked back down when another one shot towards me. It went on like that for a good five minutes until Joel and I were able to take them all down. "We gotta go. There will be more coming," Joel said. We headed outside across the street to an old garage. Joel and I lifted the door enough for Ellie to crawl underneath it.

"Look for something to prop it up with," I told her. She crawled underneath the door. "Oh man, there's some pretty gnarly stuff in here!" She called. "Ellie!" Joel called as we struggled to hold the door up. "Right!" We heard a chain being pulled and the door opened more. Joel nodded his head, helping Ellie keep the door open. "Go." I knelt down and ducked under the door then held it up so he could crawl under.

When I turned around I sighed. "What happened here?" Ellie asked. "Hunters," Joel answered simply. There were dead bodies on top of tables, clothing and shoes were piled in those bins that are for hotel laundry. "Let's go," Joel said, walking through another door. We climbed the stairs to the second floor and went through another door. And down the hall to the door that led outside.