Last of Us(Equinoxsol)

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"Yeah, that's always a plus," Komeko agreed, seeming to perk up slightly. "Anyway, as far as how long we'll be staying..." she trailed off at this point, looking uncertain and casting a glance in Faulklin's direction.

Despite not looking at either of them, he seemed to catch the hint as he tossed out, "We're leaving this morning, as soon as I'm done loading Rebel's saddle. We don't have time to stick around here. If you have any problems with that, you can just stay behind." The last part obviously directed at Mari.
 
Mari shook her head. "No, it's fine. I'll go with you." She smiled wanely. "It's not like I have anywhere else to go." She looked back at Komeko before asking, "Any idea where we're going?"
 
"Sort of," Komeko hummed, looking thoughtful. "Before we left the quarantine zone where we lived and got seperated from my brother, we heard there was another secure place free from infected. It's some ways out, but it's our best bet at this point if we can reach it. They even have farmlands for growing plenty of food, or so goes the rumors at any rate."

She paused and cast a glance over her shoulder towards Faulklin.

"If my brother survived, we're sure that's probably where he's gone."
 
Mari nodded silently, deep in thought. A place free of infected...it sounded impossible. But, if the place was real, then maybe Mari could finally stay in one place for longer than a few days. "Sounds good," she said, hoping that she might be able to find a better pair of glasses on the way.
 
Without a word, having finished with what he was doing, he turned and made his way up the stairs again to the second story, glancing out the windows to the ground below. He didn't hear nor see any sign of infected and came back downstairs, heading to the far side of the garage and struggling to get it open, old metal screeching loudly against 20 year old hinges.

He visibly winced at the sound and kept a hand trained on the handle of his sword as he stepped out and glanced around, scanning the surrounding area with a critical eye. Still no signs of any immediate danger.

He grasped the reins of the horse and muttered a quick, "Let's get the Hell out of here," as he turned to lead.

Komeko smiled and nodded her agreement, glancing to Mari at this point and heaving a slight sigh.

"We've got a long road ahead of us," she mused aloud, starting to follow Faulklin.
 
Mari nodded, following Faulklin and Komeko silently into the quiet street, keeping her hand on the handle of her knife. Not only did she trust the silence, but she didn't trust Faulklin and his sword. He was like a loaded gun, and she was just waiting for him to go off.

Rolling her shoulders, she stretched and yawned, trying to ready herself for anything.
 
As they walked on, the silence of their surroundings continued. The clopping of equine hooves sounded shatteringly loud on old, cracked concrete with nothing but the wind to make even a hint of noise, Faulklin's single eye darting about the street and buildings in wariness.

If any infected came crawling out of the wood work and attacked them, he wasn't about to be caught unaware.

Komeko idly hummed under her breath as she gazed around, Faulklin's tense air somewhat contageous, but she supposed it was better to be hypervigilant.

"I wonder what this place used to be like, before the infection," she mused aloud. Many of the buildings were weathered and falling apart, but still mostly in tact. It was more the lack of living activity that was unnerving, even though the sight was common in the modern age. Of course she had seen more populated areas despite having been born after the infection started, so she wasn't as used to exactly how much the place seemed deserted.
 
Mari was silent, even as Komeko spoke. She recognized this place, but she didn't want to say anything. It was all familiar, from the cracks in the sidewalk to the way the grass browned in the summer heat. Swallowing thickly, she forced her gaze forward, trying to ignore the houses and how they quietly stared back at her.

When they passed a small house that was painted a light blue color, Mari stopped in her tracks, staring at it. Biting her bottom lip, she took a deep breath before calling to Komeko, "Uh...hey, can we stop here for a few minutes? "
 
"I don't mind, personally," Komeko answered immediately, looking both confused and curious.

"If you want to stay here, then do it on your own, I said we're going on if you slow us down," Faulklin tossed back, in his usual cold manner.

"Oh come on, Otouto, I'm sure we can spare a few minutes," Komeko insisted, Faulklin rolling his eye.

"A few minutes repeated eventually turns into days of delays, which we don't need." His frown deepened slightly as Komeko seemed to ignore his words, instead just giving Mari a nod.

"A few minutes won't kill us, it's fine."
 
As soon as she was given the okay, Mari went inside, listening for sounds of movements. Just the usual shuffling in the back room. Walking down the front hallway, she looked at the gallery doors, which were tied together with decaying bungee cord and barricaded with a sofa and a grand piano turned on its side.

Forcing down memories of tying the decayed monstrosities that were her parents to chairs so they couldn't move, she pushed the glasses back up her nose before ascending a flight of stairs. If either Komeko or Faulklin followed her inside, she would tell them, "Don't touch the blocked off room. Not even if you hear noises."

Once upstairs, she went to the first room on the left, the door creaking as she pushed it open. It was just as she had left it. A ragged old blanket strewn across a ratty mattress, a forlorn old teddy bear...elected representatives of a happier time. Sighing, Mari held the bear for a long while before heading back downstairs.

"I've got one more thing I've gotta do. It'll be like five minutes, promise, " she said before disappearing behind the house.
 
Faulklin was quickly growing impatient in the time that Mari headed inside and up the stairs, perpetual scowl deepening and the teen doing nothing to hide his displeasure from his face. Displeasure which, for the most part, went largely ignored by Komeko.

"I wonder what she could want with this place," she hummed idly as she waited, Faulklin rolling his single eye.

"Who gives a flying fuck what she wants? This is slowing us down," he scoffed.

"You need to learn some patience," Komeko teased lightly.

"Patience is a virtue I sorely lack and that's never something that'll change," he shot back with a grump. When Mari appeared again and announced she'd be another few minutes, he turned and made his way to where Komeko was standing just near the door, grumbling, "I say we just get the Hell out of here and leave her behind."

At this point, Rebel stopped following him and whickered in protest, tossing his head and dancing back somewhat, drawing Faulklin's attention. He gave a slight tug to the reigns but the horse snorted and stomped a hoof down hard, angling it's ears and refusing to move with nostrils flaring and the slightest show of whites in it's eyes, blatantly showing that it wasn't going to move even a little bit closer.

Faulklin stared at it for a minute in question before flicking his gaze back to the house, narrowing his blue hue in suspicion, his guard up.

After a moment he dropped the animal's reigns, briefly glancing at Komeko as he clutched his sheathed blade more tightly in one hand, ordering in a low tone, "Stay here. Something doesn't feel right."
 
Mari walked around to the back of the house, finding a large bay window. Prying it open, she took a deep breath before climbing inside, her feet landing quietly on the decaying beige carpet. Inside were two figures tied to high-backed chairs, struggling against their bonds. Beside them was another chair, this one empty.

Mari sat down in the empty chair, watching the remains of her parents silently. They fought against their bonds, but Mari knew that they couldn't get out. After she couldn't stand it anymore, Mari stood up, walking closer. As the smell hit her, she wrinkled her nose, but walked around to the back of one of the chairs, taking out her knife.

Wishing she had gloves, Mari placed her hand on the top of her father's head, forcing it to still. Licking her lips, she let out a breath before pressing the tip of her knife on the nape of his neck, forcing herself to not look at the decaying remains of his clothing.

"Sorry Dad," she said softly. With a sharp push, she pressed the knife into her father's spine, severing his brain stem. He died mercifully and silently, but all the same, Mari had tears in her eyes.
 
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