Fandom Tale of Two Survivors { The Last of Us 1x1 with icedthemoon }

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex looked at Nate then at Lev and Abby with a smile. Lev chuckled at the comment. "It's nice to meet you as well. As long as you take good care of him. He deserves it." Lev said as he looked at Nate. Then he looked at Alex with a sigh.

Abby glanced at Nate and nodded. "It's nice to meet you, and yes. We're heading to Santa Barbara." She told him. Meanwhile Lev placed a hand on Alex's shoulder. "I need to tell you something Alex." He said quietly. Alex tilted his head in curiosity as he looked at the serious face of his friend.

"It's about Yara. She was killed in the raid on our island last night." Lev told him and Alex froze. "No.." He said quietly, shaking his head. "I'm so sorry Lev. I.." Alex couldn't finish his words because he didn't know how to. He could feel the tears in his eyes as he swallowed hard. "I can't believe it."​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

Santa Barbara. “Oh, that’s probably better than Seattle.” Nate had not been there long, but he most certainly did not want to stay any longer. It was a horrible place. He could tell why his mama never wanted to take him to the bigger cities. Wherever they went, Nate was willing to stick to smaller places. Maybe somewhere with trees or big open fields. A farmhouse, yes. He was going to ask Abby what was in Santa Barbara when he felt the change in the air. Yara was dead. Nate never met Yara. Nate never met a lot of people, and yet, he still knew how utterly important she was to Alex. Without any hesitation, he whipped around and had his arm around Alex’s shoulder. He pressed his head against Alex’s cheek. “I’m so sorry.” With his free hand, he reached out to touch Lev’s. “I am so sorry about your sister. May you find peace where you go. Thank you for telling us.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex felt the arm around his shoulder and the head against his cheek. He looked at Lev, who felt the hand on his cheek and he smiled at Nate. "I appreciate that." He said, as Alex took Lev's hand and squeezed it. "We should keep moving out of the city." Abby suggested, turning towards the city's edge. Alex sighed, knowing that was a good idea and looked at Lev. "I guess this is goodbye?" Alex asked as Lev sighed. Alex pulled from Nate long enough to hug Lev before he returned to Nate's side. He looked at Nate then at Lev and Abby.

"Oh, before we split. Have you ever heard of a place called Jackson?" Alex asked. Abby immediately stiffened at the name but she nodded nonetheless. "It's a small community in Wyoming. That's all I know." She replied, and Alex narrowed his eyes but nodded. "Oh okay, thanks." He said, before he turned to Nate. "Ready to go?"​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

Jackson. Nate was not sure why Alex was asking about it or why these two seemed to know about it- Abby for sure had some opinions they weren’t getting right now. He wrapped his arm around Alex as soon as he returned to his side. Alex needed him. He smiled to the other two. “Take care of yourselves. We don’t need anymore losses.” He too turned to Alex, slipping his hand into his partner’s. “Come on, beautiful. A farmhouse calls our name.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Abby and Lev nodded, with the seraphite having a smile on his face. “You two. Bye Alex.” Lev said as Alex smiled. “Bye Lev.” He said before turning to Nate. He had a new destination in mind, Jackson. He squeezed Nate’s hand and turned them around. He pulled out the map, looked for Wyoming, and nodded. Putting the map away, Alex led them through a disused part of the city, past a theater, a hotel and into a bombed area of the city. Wide open field and destroyed buildings. “Wow. I can’t imagine what happened here.” He replied as he looked around the area. ​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

If these were his people, could Nate leave them like that? Could he walk away from being reunited to travel to some unknown destination that he could only hope was what they wanted? How could he guarantee that they were going to find this farmhouse? How could they guarantee they wouldn’t die during the journey? Nate thought about this as they parted ways and moved through the abandoned section of the city. He wondered if it was so much abandoned as it was unoccupied by some big, flashy group. He quietly contemplates until they found the destruction. “Oh.” How many lives were lost here? “That’s horrible.” Who thought this kind of destruction was the best course of action? This was why they had to leave the city.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex looked around, he had never seen this part of the city, and he wouldn’t know why it was bombed. “I have no idea what happened and I don’t want to know.” Alex admitted. He walked through the big field, looking at the destroyed bridges and the FEDRA van in the water. As he came to the other side, Alex came to a smaller area and a gate that was open. He ventured through and looked around. Cages lined one side, large cement barriers lined the road. He didn’t know it, but this was the original Seattle Quarantine Zone checkpoint. “I wonder what those cages were for?”​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

This place looked awful. Genuinely terrible. It was like the aftermath of something truly horrible. FEDRA. Oh. This was Seattle. Of course. He had been so distracted that he never let it click together where he was going. “Nothing good,” Nate answered. He pointed to the cages. “I’ve heard about those. That’s the remnants of a Quarantine Zone. That’s what FEDRA did to people. They shoved them in cages. There were these likes. It was…” Nate stepped closed and touched the bars of one. “I never saw this when it was active. But there’s a reason groups like those WLF people arose. It’s because of how awful FEDRA could get.” He let his hand slip away before walking on. “Kaleb’s Zone wasn’t like this. But his didn’t have as many infected cases either.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

FEDRA locked people in cages? He looked at Nate, listening to him as he walked over to one. "I can't imagine.. well. I guess I could because the WLF wasn't any better in the end. Just instead of infected in cages, they put my people instead." Alex said, looking around as he shuddered. "This.. is awful. Wait. How much about the Zone's do you know?" Alex asked curiously, head tilted as he heard that last comment from Nate. "Because I'd never even heard of Denver until we met Kaleb. So how many other Zones were there?"​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

FEDRA and the Quarantine Zones were not things that Nate liked to talk about. They weren’t secrets but they also weren’t things he liked to publicize. Being part of the Fireflies did mean that at some point, his people were also probably part of FEDRA. “Um, I’m not exactly sure how many, but maybe somewhere around twenty? I can’t remember all of them, but they are scattered all over the continent.” This was the part where he really needed to talk about the past. He probably should have done this before taking so many people with him to what he hoped was the Fireflies. “The Fireflies started as people who refused to let FEDRA continue to run us. Some were part of FEDRA and rebelled. Some were citizens of the Zone who couldn’t live like that anymore.” He thought of the soldiers who died for this. “They were a militia group that worked to take down the people who thought those cages were the answer.” He shrugged. “That,” he pointed behind them to that destructive area, “is why I struggled with Kaleb at the beginning. But this wasn’t his fault.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Twenty. Twenty of these places with cages and men who thought that they could treat people like the WLF treated his people. He turned to look at Nate, hearing him and sighed softly. He listened, and nodded, eyes looking at the destruction behind them and it was starting to make sense as to why he struggled with Kaleb. "So your people tried to take down FEDRA? But it didn't work?" Alex asked as he stood there. "Is that why you were heading west?"​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

“They’re not all active anymore, the FEDRA Quarantine Zones. Like this one. Lots of groups were formed to take their local ZEDRA down.” Nate looked away. It was hard to remember. “No, we didn’t succeed. You remember how I told you we lost my mama? Well, she was one of a whole lotta people who were murdered by a guy who was trying to save this girl. They said she was immune to the infection, and she was key to the cure.” A cure to all of this mess. If they had succeeded, he could only imagine what the world would be like. They wouldn’t need people like FEDRA or the WLF. “He killed so many of our people. That’s when the Fireflies disbanded. I’ve heard they were going to before that. There are rumors Marlene, the one in charge, decided it before we even found this girl, but with such a devastating blow to us, there really wasn’t anything else to do. Without hope, there was no way to save the world.” He looked at the ground, his feet, as they walked. “I was heading West because we heard that the Fireflies were taken in by some group. I guess that was these guys. But they aren’t what I thought they would be.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Not all active. Okay. Though, Alex wasn't sure if these groups were any better, especially considering the WLF. It made him wonder about the other Zones. What other groups had taken down the local FEDRA and were they any better? If he'd asked Kaleb that before they lost him, he'd say no. He'd tell them about Pittsburgh but he hadn't asked. It hadn't even crossed his mind. Alex listened to Nate, heard what actually killed his mama and he frowned. "All over one girl?" A girl that was immune? A cure for this infection? He noticed Nate look at his feet as they walked away from the checkpoint. He squeezed his hand gently. "Well. Selfishly, I'm glad you were headed west. Because if you hadn't been, I wonder if we'd ever have met. I'm sorry about your mama, about your people though. I know.. I know how you feel." Alex said, thinking about the island raid. If Yara, a skilled warrior like him, didn't make it then he could only imagine the state of his island. Of his home. He wondered if his parents survived, his brother. Alex went quiet as they entered the forest ahead of them.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

“I mean, I’m not super certain about all the details,” Nate qualifies as they left the city behind. “But yeah, I think some girl was immune, and they were going to make a cure. That didn’t happen. So instead we continue to live like this.” He sighed, not because he hated every part of his life but because he could see how much better it would be. After they entered the forest, stepping away from everything that hurt them, he pulled Alex into his arms for a hug that spoke so many different things. “I’m glad you found me. I don’t know where I’d be without you.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex looked at him as he spoke, and sighed. Live like this. If they had found the cure, would he have met Nate? Would they have met Carlos and Kaleb still? Would they still be alive? So many lives lost that shouldn't have been. Their family torn apart by a bite and a fall, and all because a cure was taken away from humanity by one man. As they entered the forest he felt Nate pull him into his arms. Alex wrapped his arms around Nate tight and rested his chin on his shoulder. "I am too. I love you Nate, so much. I can't imagine not being here with you."​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

If the Fireflies were able to make that cure, FEDRA would have fallen. He didn’t know how, but he couldn’t feel that. They would not need to keep people locked away or quarantined. It probably wouldn’t have been able to save the people who were already infected, but it may have been able to save the people who weren’t yet. That was worth the fight. It was over, though. It was time for Nate to let that dream die, because he had a new dream. That dream was right there in his arms. “Maybe you would have found your way to Florida where I would be wandering around aimlessly still. It probably would have worked out.” He pulled away to grasp Alex’s cheeks and kiss him. “My guiding light. I love you more than anything else. And I loved my mama a whole lot,” he teased. “Now, where are you going to take me, Monkey Man? Where do we go now? I’ll follow you anywhere.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex listened to Nate and chuckled, a smile on his face as he felt Nate pull away to grasp his cheeks and kiss him. "I would've traveled the entire continent to find you, be it in North Dakota, Florida or even Maine." He said, smiling when he heard the tease. "I feel very honored to be loved that much, and we're going to Wyoming. A small community in Jackson. It feels right to me." Alex told him. "Maybe we can find our farmhouse dream there."​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

Jackson. There was that place again. He hoped it would be better than this one. As long as it was a small community, that was probably fine. “Jackson, Wyoming,” he repeated. “Okay. No big cities. I don’t want to do this again. Wyoming probably has plenty of farmhouses we can commandeer. I’ve been there before when I traveled with my mama. Lots of open spaces. Lots of abandoned little towns too. We didn’t stay long though. We had to get back with intel I think. I don’t remember much.” He touched a tree as he moved by them. “I liked it I think. I’ll like it better with you.” He smiled and laughed at himself. He was getting to be just as sappy as Carlos.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex looked at Nate and smiled, shaking his head. "No more big cities. We see one and we go around it." Alex agreed and then his smile widened. "I'm sure we can find a farmhouse there." He said, then tilted his head a little. "How much of this country have you traveled?" Alex asked curiously before he heard his comment, as they walked. "I think you were around Carlos too long. You're becoming a sap my love." Alex said warmly, squeezing Nate's hand, but instead of a sad tone when he thought of Carlos, he smiled softly. It still hurt, but those were memories that he would cherish forever.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

How much had he traveled? “Um much? My mama scouted for the Fireflies. We went all over the country to mostly do recon on FEDRA. That’s why I know about the different Zones. We found out a lot. I don’t remember it all, and she didn’t tell me all of it, but we went a lot of places.” He swung their clasped hands slightly. He was feeling better now. It was not easy. He was still struggling. But seeing that little bit of hope with Lev was good. And Abby. Abby who looked familiar. He wasn’t sure about that. He was struggling to keep his mind together. “What can I say? He left an impression,” Nate laughed at the memory. A good one. They both did.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex listened to Nate as they walked, feeling their hands swing slightly. "I guess you did. That sounds like a lot of traveling." Alex commented as they walked. He pulled out the map and looked at it with his free hand. So they would go straight into Oregon, then travel east through Idaho to Wyoming. Got it. He tucked the map back as he heard Nate's comment and laugh. "He certainly did. They both did." Alex agreed. They should make it to the Oregon border by the end of the day, and they could make camp there.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

Nate peered over at the map, but he knew better than to even try to decipher anything about it. “Figured out our path?” He asked as Alex put it away. He trusted Alex absolutely with this. He trusted Alex in probably all ways. That part would make his mama roll in her grave. She trusted very few people and not because she thought they were bad people. It was just hard to trust anyone out there. To a point she was right. Some guy they trusted to get this girl to the hospital to figure out the cure turned on everyone and slaughtered them all. So, apparently it was hard to trust people.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex looked over at Nate when he asked and nodded. "I did. We're going to head straight to Oregon, should be there by the end of the day, and then head east. We have to make it through Idaho then Wyoming's on the other side." Alex said, as he turned his attention straight ahead. There was so much he wanted to talk about, the feelings he buried but he had just gotten a little bit of Nate back and he was absolutely not going to lose him again. He'd hold it on his own. It was easier that way. "It would be nice to find a small town on the border to rest in for the night." Alex commented as they walked.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Nathaniel Matthews
Former Firefly| 21 | Current location ;; Washington

Though he listened as well as he could, they both knew he would not retain that. “I’m going to pretend like all of those words you just said make sense and I will most definitely not get us horrendously lost if it were up to me.” He kissed Alex’s cheek before actually moving in a forward direction and not impeding their forward progress anymore. He tried not to think about as funny as it was, it was another thing he didn’t do well on a long list of personal failings. He tried not to think about how lost he had been after his brothers died. He tried not to think about how getting them lost before felt like the reason they ended up where they were when they were attacked. When he lost everything. He blinked away the pain and he smiled. He could keep smiling. He had to keep smiling or he would forget how to smile. Again.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Alexander Brennan
Former Seraphite | 19 | Current location ;; Washington

Alex smiled at the kiss on his cheek and he knew that Nate listened, but that he wouldn't retain it. As they continued moving forward, he bit his lip. Silence fell between them and Alex didn't know what to say, what to do to fill it. "What was your favorite place that you've seen when you were traveling?" Alex asked, curious about Nate's prior traveling. Of course, the last month was the most Alex had ever traveled across the country so he didn't know much about it and he was curious.​