𝙝𝙖𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 ━ 𝙟. 𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧

cures

C U R E S

Iris woke up curled up next to Joel on a small bed, he hasn't woken up yet, but she quickly shoots up and looks around the room. A woman sitting in a chair in the corner of the room, other guards were next to her, carrying a range of guns. "Who the hell are you?" Iris asks, "my name's Marlene. Who are you?" She squints her eyes at the older woman.

Iris hesitates before answering, "Iris." Before the women could continue their conversation, Joel wakes up from his slumber, "welcome to the fireflies. Sorry about the... They didn't know who you two were." Marlene explains.

"And Ellie?" Joel asks, "she's alright. They brought her back. You came all this way... How'd you do it?" The firefly questioned, "it was her, she fought like hell to be here. Maybe it was meant to be." Joel whispers, Iris helps him up from the bed he was on so he could face Marlene.

Marlene stands from her chair, "I lost half my crew crossing the country, I pretty much lost everything. And then you show up, and we find you just in time to save her. Maybe it was meant to be." Iris clears her throat and demands, "take us to her."

"You don't have to worry about her anymore. We'll take care of-" Marlene says, "We worry. Just let us see her. Please." Joel begs her, the firefly cross her arms, "you can't. She's being prepped for surgery." Joel and Iris stand closer to her and growl, "the hell you mean surgery?"

"The doctors tell me that the cordyceps, the growth inside her, has somehow mutated. It's why she's immune. Once they remove it, they'll be able to reverse engineer a vaccine." Marlene explains, "a vaccine." She lets out a laugh of relief. "But it grows all over the brain." Joel responds.

"It does." She whispers, Iris and Joel realise that this meant if they removed the cordyceps, it would kill Ellie, so they protest, "find someone else." Marlene argues, "there is no one else." Joel steps forward, "listen. You are gonna to show me where-" he was cut off by the guard kicking his knees out, causing him to drop to fall, the guard raises his gun as Iris rushes to stand between them, "don't fucking touch him." She threatens as Marlene orders, "stop."

"I get it. But whatever it is you think you're going through right now is nothing to what I have been through. I knew her since she was born. I promised her mother I would look after her." She continues, "then why are you letting this happen?" Joel asks desperately.

"Because this isn't about me. Or even her. There is no other choice here." The duo scoff as Joel sits down, "yeah... you keep telling yourself that bullshit."

Marlene glares at both of them, "March them out of here, if they try anything. Shoot them. Don't waste this gift, guys." She exits the room and the guard orders, "get up." They don't move, so he raises his gun once again, "I said, get up."

Joel picks himself off of the floor and moves Iris in front of him, "go on, move." The guard demands. They slow to a stop and the firefly pushes them, "I said, move." But they just glare at him over their shoulders, "give me an excuse."

"Which way?" He motions the gun to left, they follow his directions until they see their backpacks on the counter, they glance at each other and subtly nod, they stop walking and the guard nudges Iris's back with his gun, "the fuck you doing? Keep walking. I said keep walking." He pushes her forward.

Joel knocks the gun upwards, making guard fire a bullet and pinned him to the wall, he grabbed the gun and began to threaten him, "where is the operating room?" He didn't reply and Joel shot the man in the abdomen, "We ain't got time for this. Where?" He shoots again and yells, "where?"