No Matter What... | The Last of Us | Joel Miller x Oc

Chapter 6: Jackson - part II.

A I quickly try to analyze my situation but the beats of my racing heart against my tightening chest somehow feel louder than my thoughts and my brain is heavy under the fear that is weighting all over my shivering body.

"Come on, Charlie... You wanted to show how capable you are..." I think, but my idea of climbing alone through a huge metal fence behind which the complete unknown is awaiting me, feels the dumbest thing ever now. Still, I don't want to hear any of the brothers saying how they told me so - so I am finally starting to take huge breaths to calm myself down, to cool my thoughts and to slow down the rate of my heartbeat a bit. I look around myself as I crouch as low and slow as physically possible but I only use my eyes to do that.

Behind me there's the gate, the sliding lock is just a foot away from me, almost within the reach of my trembling arm, but I also see several buildings with opened doors and missing windows, all looking straight at my direction. Sleepy noises of constant clicking can be heard all around me, making every single hair on my body reach towards the grey sky as my eyes dig deep into the shadow of the buildings. One single, wrong movement and god knows how many infected will throw themselves at me.

I consider sneaking closer and trying to get them while they're "sleeping" but I quickly shoo this idea away - opening the door and getting the brothers' help seems the most reasonable thing to do here since I only have 12 arrows plus a knife with me and nothing with which I could ignite anything; no weapons that could be fired quickly...

I don't know if I have ever felt this vulnerable in my life before as I am stepping one step behind me, as slow as possible, reaching my arms out to grab the lock. When my sweating hand touches the cold, rough handle of the lock I am silently thanking God but then I pull it... Or at least I'm trying to.

It feels stuck. Very, very stuck. I have to put a little more force into the action and after two or three tries the piece of metal finally gives itself in and slides back half an inch under my fingers - but I can hear the loudest creak of my life immediately and I can't stop it soon enough. The unpleasant noise is echoing through the silent landscape all around me, feeling painfully loud in the dead silence.

Fucking god damn it!

I immediately hear the hungry screams howl up all around me, coming from almost every direction and I am not motionless anymore. My stomach is clenching in fear but in my mind trying to count how many opponents I will be facing just in a few seconds, based on the amount of sounds I can hear, but I give up quite soon. The proper answer is just simply 'too many' anyway. I quickly slid my knife into my right boot to free both of my hands and the left is already on the grip of my bow. I pull it off of my body in one single movement, reaching for an arrow with my right at the same time.

I kick the lock on the door one more time and I can see it moving back slightly but rust has been eating it for such a long time probably, it barely slides half an inch again only and the gate is still left closed. Leaving me facing god knows how many infected completely on my own...

I see the first clicker running towards me from my right side, blindly sawing the air with its half rotten arms and I draw my first arrow right away. By the time it hits through its deformed head, two new clickers are appearing in my peripherical vision again, this time coming from my left.

Another kick on the lock - another half inch back - before I shot my second arrow, right through where the poor bastard's forehead once used to be. As the lifeless body of the infected hits the ground my hand is drawing the string again but I miss the second clicker only a few inches and I can hear one from behind me already.

Damn... I either hit the head or it's gonna be over soon.

Since the one clicker I missed is still around ten feet away I turn back to check the other and it is so close already that I only have time to raise my bow up and push it against its neck, trying to keep its face as far from mine as possible. I push it with all the strength I got, I can even see the back of my weapon damaging the soft tissue covering its throat, but since it is nothing but a mindless infected anymore, probably feeling no pain at all, it won't stop.