The Last of Us

Chapter VII

Joel's POV

"So now what?" I ask.

"We go get our merchandise back." answer Tess and we start to walk away.

"How?"

"I don't know. We explain it to them." She looks at me. "Look, let's go find a Firefly."

"You won't have to look very far." I hear a woman say and Tess and I turn our heads and see someone coming around the corner of a brick wall.

"There you go - queen Firefly." I say. Marlene.

"Why are you here?" Asks Marlene.

"Business." Answers Tess nodding her head slightly. "You aren't looking so hot." Marlene looks down and I see her hand is on her side, covering either a gunshot or stab wound.

"Where's Robert?" Marlene looks around and Tess moves to the side using her arm to show Robert. Marlene looks down and then back up at us. "I needed him alive."

"The guns he gave you." Says Tess. "They weren't his to sell, I want them back."

"Doesn't work like that, Tess."

"The hell it doesn't."

"I paid for those guns." Marlene walks toward us. "You want 'em back? You're gonna have to earn 'em."

"How many cards are we talkin' about."

Marlene shakes her head.

"I don't give a damn about ration cards. I need something smuggled out of the city. You do that - I'll give you your guns back and then some." Tess look at me, I walk toward Marlene.

"How do we know you got 'em?" I ask. "Way I hear it, the military's been wiping you guys out."

"You're right about that." Marlene looks away then back at me, nodding slightly. "I'll show you the weapons."

"Search the area." I hear faint, like coming from a walkie talkie.

"Yes sir." Someone answers. We all look in the direction.

"I gotta move." Marlene says looking us over and then starting to back up. "What's it gonna be?" I look at Tess.

"I wanna see those guns." She answers and we go to Marlene.

"Follow me." Marlene says and we run. "We gotta get out of here, now."

"They locked it!" I hear another person say.

"You want this deal, we gotta move." Marlene adds, running up some stairs. I follow. "Through here." We turn into an alley way. "I know a way around this. C'mon." We keep running and I see a ladder. Marlene jumps up onto some boxes and pulls the ladder down. I get up after her and we start to climb the ladder. We keep running and go up another flight of stairs.

We're on a roof and I look ahead and see another explosion.

"Holy shit. Is that your people?" Tess asks.

"What's left of them." Answers Marlene. "Why do you think I'm turning to you guys?" She sighs. "This way." We walk on a roof and to another platform.

"So why now?" I question.

"We've been quiet. Been planning on leaving the city, but they need a scapegoat. They've been trying to rile us up." Marlene answers.

"Looks like they did."

"We're trying to defend ourselves." We keep walking and jump through a broken window into a building. I walk to a table and pick up some gears and scissors. Marlene walks to a big blue sliding door, making grunting noises as she tries to open it. She turns to me.