Fandom Forbidden and Scarred Love { The Last of Us 1x1 with icedthemoon }

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

“Man, maybe that’s because we live in normal and they used to be weird.” Theo followed along behind Kai, also checking doors in case Kai was just weak or something. He bent down to look at some abandoned or fallen pipe or something. He picked it up, hefted it, and was just about to say something when he heard the screech. He had enough time to be alarmed and watch Kai drop it. “Hey, who said they were invited to the party? Think there’s more in the closed rooms? ‘Cause our training says clear it out, but it’s our day off so..”

Ezekiel too listened and searched. In finding no more, he nodded towards Alex who looked back for approval. He was learning quickly. He followed him out and sent an all clear whistle for the rest of the group to hear. He moved in close to Alex and whispered, “You handled your first encounter beautifully. I am very proud. Keep it up.” Then he nodded to the next building.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai had looked back at Theo, seeing him check the doors too and rolled his eyes. When he looked at the runner on the ground, he looked back at Theo and shrugged. "Apparently they just wanted to crash our party. And there could be, but do we want to try and open each door? I feel that might be a waste of time but we should, though who would know? We're the only ones that are even thinking of being out here."

Alex saw the nod and moved out of the building. He looked over at Ezekiel when he moved in close and smiled, pride filling his body at the words. "Oh.. thank you. I have to admit, that was a lot more terrifying than I thought it would be." Alex admitted quietly as he headed towards the next building with a smile on his face.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Theo peered at all of the locked doors and then turned back to the dead runner. “You know what? Nah.” He walked down the hall and slapped a hand on one of the doors. “Okay party people, it’s your lucky day. You get to keep partying, because I don’t feel like wasting my time killing you.” He turned back to Kai ecstatic. Let’s go find another fun place. Then he bounded down the hall towards the exit.

Demons could be frightening. At a later time, Ezekiel felt that he could share his first experience with Alex so that he felt that he was not alone. For now, knowing that he did well would have to be enough. They already spoke too much. Instead, he put a hand on Alex’s shoulder with an affirming squeeze and then continued on their way. He listened as a chorus of whistles told them that for now, all was well. Ezekiel walked through the tall grass of what was likely once a road, listening carefully. Out in the open were where the humans hid. So far, everything was fine.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai had to admit, he liked Theo’s enthusiasm. It was something that he’d been drawn to from a young age. Kaiden tended to be more reserved most of the time, except for being around his family. He merely chuckled as he followed his friend down the hall and paused at the first door. He pulled and this one opened up. Stairs? To where? “Theo.” Kai whispered, then pointed to the stairs. “Wanna go up?”

Alex ducked his head as he felt the squeeze to his shoulder. He heard the chorus of whistles as he followed Ezekiel through the tall grass. He ran his free hand along the top of the blades, enjoying the little calm they had. The wind blew gently over them as they moved, Alex’s eyes watching around them.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Theo backtracked slightly, walking literally backwards to Kaiden, and looked up the stairs. Stairs to the world beyond. “Stairs! Let’s do it.” He slipped by Kai and headed up the stairs. There was so much stuff just piled in the corners. Why was there always tuff everywhere? These people were terrible at housekeeping. Brian would absolutely hate them. He laughed a little, kind of wishing that he could have brought Brian along purely for the fun of watching him suffer a little. He moved up and found a door to the second floor. There were more stairs going up. He moved around to peer up. Ooh, more stuff so that way was blocked. “Wanna see what’s inside door number two?”

This was one of those areas that seemed to be free of the wolf infestation. It also seemed mostly free of all human life, which was likely why they found some demons. Though they tended to roam, it almost felt like they haunted the places that last they knew their humanity. Though this was a patrol route that Drake and his group may have done often, it would make sense that they did not clear it out. If the demons had been at rest, they may not have noticed them. He peered inside a building as he past, the doors and windows all open. There did not seem to be anything out of the ordinary with it. Good. He moved on to the next.
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kaiden followed Theo up, looking at the stuff in the corners. It was so strange to him that they just left things around. When they got to the second floor, Kai noticed Theo peer around the corner and then turned to the door. “After you man.” He said with a smile, grabbing the door handle and pulling it open for Theo.

Alex kept quiet, watching and noticed Ezekiel peering inside a building. He kept walking, not sure what they were going to find. Alex was still learning but he was a fast learner. But even he was seeing nothing around.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Then nodded to his friend in thanks and stepped inside. He paused as he was just about to walk into the back of a clicker. He clamped his mouth shut before he could say anything stupid. Good thing it was looking away from them, otherwise, that could have been horrible. He reached for his switchblade, opened it up, and slowly stepped forward. He froze as it leaned forward to screech. Searching. He waited, controlled his breathing, and as soon as the clicker was back to normal, he inched forward again and leapt forward, shoving the knife into the side of the clicker’s head, and as it screeched, he pulled it out and did it again. He shoved that thing to the ground and practically laughed. He turned back to Kai with a smug smile. “I’m good.”

They passed that building and moved towards the next. A whistle of question. He listened to the sound of the negative responses. He loved the sound of the whistles like this. They signified a great team. They were their own ecosystem. Their own organism. Everything worked together as one unit. He looked to Alex. Would he like to answer this time?
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai held his breath as he saw the back of the clicker. He was thankful that his friend kept his mouth shut, and watched with bated breath as he stepped forward. The screeching of the clicker sent a chill down his spine. Once the clicker was down and Theo turned to look at him, Kai shook his head. “You’re lucky is what you are.” He said, stepping over the clicker and entering the second floor. He walked down and tried the first door. Locked. Hm. He tried the next door. Open. Kai stepped in quietly, looking around. There was an open window and not much else. “Theo.!” He called as he walked over to the window. It had a plank attached to it and that connected to the fire escape stairs of another building. “Wanna check it out?”

Alex heard the whistle of question and heard the negative responses. It had taken him ages to get the calls right. He looked at Ezekiel and smiled as he nodded. He absolutely wanted to answer. Alex let out a whistle of a negative respond and smiled as he continued the patrol with his leader and his friend.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Seeing a boring room with not a lot in it, Theo moved away from the room Kai searched and went to the next. Except not really, because the door was locked. He was going to grumble something when he heard his name. He jogged back into this supposedly boring and empty room when he saw it now that Kai was pointing it out. “Ah, look at that. Stroke of genius!” He hopped up onto the windowsill and moved in a crouch quickly across the plank. He looked below them to see mostly trash and grass. He jumped onto the fire escape stairs and waved Kai over. “Come on, man. We’re finally getting somewhere good!”

Watching Alex succeed like that made this trip worth it. Often, Ezekiel would forget the purpose of these patrolling times. They were meant to eradicate the world of the plague that was the demons and the vermin that was the wolves. He knew and understood this. However, he frequently found himself simply going through the motions. What was there for him other than going to find the next thing to kill? He was more like a butcher than anything else. Now, though, he smiled at his young friend. This was why he was here, at least today. He was here to provide purpose in someone else’s life. He gave another nod of approval and continued on towards the next building.
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai looked back as he saw Theo come into the room. He chuckled as he watched his friend jog back into the room and head to the window, hopping onto the sill and crouched as he walked to the fire escape stairs. Kai saw Theo wave him over and he laughed, climbing onto the plank and crouched as he walked over too. Once he got onto the stairs, he looked at Theo and grinned. “Let’s see what’s in here.” He said with a laugh, ducking into an open window and looking around the room. “Ooh! Look at this.” Kai said, stepping in and looking at some magazines on the table. “I wonder if this chemistry book is something Dad would like.” He said, showing Theo before he tucked it in his pack.

Alex saw the nod of approval and his body felt a swell of pride at it. He moved onwards to the next building and stepped inside, looking around. He froze hearing something loud. Alex backed up as the thumping got louder. He caught Ezekiel’s eye and gestured inside then shook his head. Something big was in there and he didn’t want to whistle and alert it.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Theo followed in after and stood beside Kai. He peered over his shoulder as he looked at the magazine. “Dude, how did you find an actual thing called Chemistry and Biology?” He laughed and pointed to the next one. “Oh hey, what’s this?” Obviously, it was still a science magazine. “Look, there was a thing called the American Chemical Society. There was a society of science nerds like your dad? Do you think he was part of that when the world wasn’t like this?” He pointed to the man on the front. He was a much older man with white hair and a beard that probably covered a bunch of his wrinkles. “Like this old guy.” He moved away from the table and scanned the rest of the room.

Ezekiel followed Alex’s lead, trying to find the balance of being the leader and being a partner. He kept close as they moved inside. He too froze at the loud sound. His immediate reaction was to whistle with an alert, but he didn’t. How close was this thing? He gestured for Alex to back out of the building with him. This was not a fight that they were equipped to handle. He did not know what was in there, but he assumed it was something they did not want to face. When they were far enough away, they could alert the others.
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai shrugged as he looked at Theo and chuckled softly. “I don’t know how I found it. I just did.” Kai said as he glanced at the magazine and snorted a laugh. “Maybe. I wouldn’t be surprised.” He said snagging that magazine and putting it in his pack too. Kai moved further into the room and headed towards the door. He poked his head out into the hall and looked around. “Clear.” Kai said softly as he stepped out into the hall. He moved further down, checking doors as he went. A few rooms had some ammo and he even snagged a can of beans before he made it to the end, and stepped out onto the fire escape stairs there. Heading deeper into unknown territory.

Alex backed up with Ezekiel, not wanting to fight whatever was making that sound. His body shook a little at the thought of how big the thing had to be to make those loud noises. Back on the street, Alex looked for guidance as to how far they should go before they alerted the others.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Theo followed him out of the room as soon as Kai gave the all clear. He checked other rooms, some which were locked or blocked by various furniture. One opened up and had only a mess of crumbling building. No bueno. He also found some ammo and wondered if this was leftover from when FEDRA was in charge. Eventually he too made his way to the fire escape stairs. “Up?” He asked. Because why not go further up? What was the harm in going up? They could always come back down.

Ezekiel was not certain what was in there or what it could do. He moved quickly back into the street and towards a building on the other side. He debated. As long as it was a short whistle that did not linger, they should be fine. He whistled to everyone the quickest alert. He caught the eye of a pair and shook his head as he gestured to the building. They should take a wide berth instead. He moved to Alex and nodded down the path in continuation of their route. They could hope that nothing brought whatever that was out here.
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai looked back at Theo and shrugged. “Sure.” He said, turning to go up the stairs when a creak echoed around them. “Uh. Maybe we should either go down or get off this. It seems a little unstable.” Kai commented as he felt the thing shift and move. He didn’t like that at all. It made him nervous and unsure of the situation.

Alex followed Ezekiel to the other side of the street. He kept one eye on the other building as he heard the quickest alert whistle from his leader. Alex eyed it for another moment before he nodded heading to continue their patrol route.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Theo paused at the creak and then took another step. He didn’t hear anything. He took an additional step and it did creak but it wasn’t wobbling or anything. He didn’t think. “I mean, yeah we could get off. But then we’d just be going back to where we came from…” As he considered this, he shifted his weight without thinking, and that was when the wobbling started. “Okay, maybe you’re right. Back inside and hope there are some inside stairs?”

From somewhere else came another alert whistle. Another building with something unsavory? He turned his head but could not tell exactly where it came from. Somewhere up ahead. He did not like that there were so many places around here with dangers. He quickened his pace to move ahead.
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai looked at Theo, watched him take another step. This one was silent but then a shift in weight caused it to wobble. “We could go back inside or we can race down these stairs and see if we make it before it collapses.” Kai said with a grin, sure it was dangerous but wasn’t that why they were doing this in the first place?

Alex heard the second alert whistle and his body tensed up. He held his bow at the ready, it wouldn’t take much to nock an arrow and let it fly. Alex moved quickly as well, trying to match Ezekiel’s pace and see just what had alerted their group.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Theo really didn’t want to backtrack inside where they had already been. That would probably end up being a whole lot of the same they already did before they got somewhere new. So much wasted time. So, down the stairs? Oh yes. “I’ll race you to the bottom!” And he was off. He grabbed the rail and bounded down several steps in one leap in the hopes that this made him go faster. The entire stairwell started to shake definitely dangerously.

Ezekiel kept both hammers out as they moved. Another pair was close by, giving a wide berth to another building. He gestured away from it to Alex. If others were avoiding it, then there was likely a reason. He did not want to go there either then.
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai laughed and ran after Theo, but the stairs were already shaking dangerously before he moved. As Kai hit the third step down, the whole thing shook and rattled. “Theo! Run!” He yelled as he made it down to the first floor and vaulted off the railing, tucking and rolling into the ground as the whole thing shook, rattled then collapsed loudly. Kai was panting heavily as he looked at the collapsed metal stairwell. “That was close.”

Alex nodded at the gesture before a loud banging sounded near them. A short sharp whistle and nod to Ezekiel. He pointed with his free hand to go check it out. Alex moved in that direction, curiosity pulling at him.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Was this their smartest idea? Nope. Not at all. It was in fact probably one of their stupider ideas. He had bounded down about half of the first flight when Kai started running. As it began to collapse, Theo was turning the corner to run down the last set. He wasn’t sure if he was going to make it. It wasn’t that far down, so he too vaulted over the side of the railing and ducked and rolled, scrambling to quickly get up and move in case the crashing stairs decided to crash into him. Breathing heavily as the sounds and dust cleared away, Theo rolled onto his back and laughed so hard that it hurt his chest. “Close yes, but bro that was awesome!” He gave himself a moment to breathe again before getting up.

Ezekiel whipped his attention around to the loud sound. Crashing? Something bad was happening. He turned his attention back to the several buildings that they were avoiding. Hopefully this noise did not attract whatever was in there. He whistled to summon the group together as Alex moved forward. With hand commands, facial expressions and whispers, he instructed them to continue to avoid the buildings and to be on extra high alert. He and Alex would go see what made all that sound with another pair close by. The rest would continue on the scheduled path but would not continued further than they could hear whistles. Then he joined Alex to figure out what was going on.
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai looked at his best friend and brother and shook his head. “I think.. if I keep hanging out with you, I’m going to end up dead.” Kai said as he stood up and brushed the dirt off himself. Kai had caught his breath and grabbed his pack from where it had fallen off during the roll onto the ground. His head came up as he looked around. “Did you hear something?” He asked.

Alex ducked through an alley but paused as he waited for Ezekiel to catch up. Once he saw his leader behind him, the younger one moved further down and came out the other side. His eyes widened as he drew his bow, pointing it at two wolves a little older than himself. “Stop. Don’t move.” Alex tried to keep a steady voice as he looked back at Ezekiel for further instructions on dealing with these two. Kai froze, looking at the scar who had his bow aimed at them. Then his heart flipped, dropped and raced at the one who was with him. The same scar from yesterday.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Theo rolled his arm as he considered that. “You have no sense of whimsy.” He stretched out his leg, shaking out the parts that felt a little less nice than they had, and eventually was standing up straight again. “Yeah, I heard the stairs falling, which was crazy, but I think we could’ve-“ his words cut short as he heard the other voice. He turned and froze as someone was pointing a bow right at them. Not just someone a scar.

What Ezekiel expected to find was evidence of an old building crumbling. That happened sometimes, especially since this was the area that had long since been abandoned. What he was not expecting was for Alex to have found people. As he emerged as well, hammers at the ready, a number of thoughts went through his mind. Wolves out here? They weren’t normally out this far were they? Perhaps because this was a new route, he was not oriented appropriately. Now they had to deal with wolves, and the last time he dealt with a wolf was yesterday when- He froze behind Alex as he saw the second of the two men in front of them. Oh. It was him. Without meaning to, his arms dropped slightly, the weapons dropping away from his chest. He knitted his eyebrows together as he looked at only that same man from before. Why was he here? What was he supposed to do about that?
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai had heard Theo’s words but he didn’t have a chance to say anything back to him. His breath caught as he raised his hands up. “Look. We aren’t.. here to hurt you. We’re just taking a walk. Can we move on?” Kai asked, trying to get both him and Theo away from here without getting either of them killed. Kai did not want to be strung up like so many of his friends.

Alex looked back at Ezekiel and then at the wolves. “What do we do?” He asked, confusion in his words and voice. The wolves didn’t seem like they wanted to hurt them, in fact they seemed like they wanted to leave them alone. It was confusing, and weird and Alex was quite lost.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

Theo looked from one scar to the other, specifically because the younger one seemed really confused. In fact, the younger one would be pretty easy to get away from as long as he was still looking at the older one. Of course, that may be pushing his luck. So he too raised his hands.

“Taking a walk?” Ezekiel repeated. He glanced at the remains of the stairs and then back at them. He scanned the area quickly as he spoke. That was an awful lot of noise. He turned back and listened. The whistle of alert. No, the whistle of attack. His head turned to the side as he heard something from somewhere close. Inside this nearest building? There was a window close, and it did not have its glass still. Yes, he could hear the echoes of the screeches. “Demons,” he warned Alex and gestured for him to move. This was the worst position to be in. “I did not know that ‘taking a walk’ meant mass destruction loud enough to summon our enemies to our location,” he snapped specifically at the wolf from before. This was the second bad situation Ezekiel found himself in with this man at the center.
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[EquineGurl23]

Kaiden Lachlan and Alexander Brennan (along with the Smith Clan)
WLF Member, Young Seraphite Warrior | 23, 16 | Current location ;; Washington

Kai felt a flush across his face, a combination of embarrassment and anger. “I didn’t know those stupid stairs would fall.” Kai huffed out as he heard whistles faintly, and the echoing of infected. “Why don’t you go back to your people and help them. We’ll just be going.” Kai said, eyes remaining on the youngest scar as he moved slowly to the side. He wanted to get away from here. Then his eyes widened as the sound of an arrow whizzed by his ear and then a thud. Kai whipped around to see a runner dead. He looked over at the scar in disbelief. Alex narrowed his eyes and focused on Ezekiel. “What now? Do we bring them back with us?” Alex asked.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Ezekiel Finch and Theophilus Sharpe (and also the Smith Clan)
Seraphite Warrior, WLF Member | 26, 22 | Current location ;; Washington

This should not have been so hard. They should kill the wolves as as they were taught. Or perhaps they should knock them out and drag them back to somewhere where they could perform the ritual cleansing of their bodies. Only Ezekiel certainly did not want to do that, and he was pretty sure that Alex was feeling the same way. He watched the demon drop, and he wasn’t sure what exactly he needed to do. They could turned around and go back to help the rest of the group, but that would be leaving these two behind. That was exactly against everything that they were told since the beginning of this infuriating war. And then another demon came running towards them. No two. No a third. Out from the buildings and from around. The fallen stairs finally caught up to them. They should never have come this way. Ezekiel pushed past the wolf from before, moving him out of the way and swinging his large hammer into the first demon’s face. It dropped. Swinging it with the same momentum into the second. It dropped. “We survive.” He threw the large hammer into the third that came close, and as he began to turn, he eyed the man’s rifle. “Pray that works this time,” he said gravely as he ran to grab his weapon once more.
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