CHAPTER SIX

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         THE MOMENT JOEL OPENED THE WINDOW THAT LED TO THE ROOF, LUCIA INHALED THE FRESH SUMMER AIR WITH A SHARP INTAKE. The dust that floated around the museum and the strong scent of death always made her feel somewhat claustrophobic.

The woman welcomed the sun as she stepped outside on the slanted roof, blinking away the bright rays. Tall buildings stood crooked, ready to collapse in heaps of dust and rubble. The cut on her head was still bleeding, head wounds always bled a lot even if the cuts were small and she wiped at her face with the back of her hand.

"Here," Joel nudged her shoulder and handed her a semi clean rag from the back of his jean pocket. Lucia took it gingerly and crumbled the material in her hand.

"Thanks," she muttered, pressing it against the cut.

Tess let out a huff when she clambered through the window after Ellie and sat down, holding onto her ankle. Joel was beside her a second later, helping her take off her shoe. Ellie peered down toward the concrete streets below and tapped the wooden plank that worked as a makeshift bridge to the other roof with her foot.

"Over there?" she wondered.

"Yeah," nodded Joel absentmindedly as he began to tape Tess' ankle. "I know it looks scary."

Ellie was already halfway over the thin plank and shook her head. "That was scary, this is wood."

"Wait there, don't wander off." said Lucia, crouching down and wetting the rag with the water from her bottle. The woman began to wipe off the crusted blood on her face before pressing it on the cut once more, rummaging through her bag in search of a butterfly bandage to keep the split skin together.

"There's probably more ahead." stated Joel, giving the area a quick once over 

"So, we'll deal with it then." said Tess, grimacing as he tightened the tape around her foot and she tried to take it out of his hands. "I got it, I got it."

Lucia cursed underneath her breath, unable to get the bandage directly onto the cut without a mirror and she flicked the ruined thing away. The woman crossed the plank with ease and jumped down on the other side. 

"Ellie," she gained the teens attention. "help me for a second."

The girl made her way toward Lucia with curiosity behind her dark eyes. Ellie winched when she got a proper look at her forehead and Lucia held out her hand to give her a new butterfly bandage. The teenager took off the plastic wrapper to reveal the sticky parts and gently placed it over the cut, chewing on her lower lip in concentration.

"Thanks, kid." smiled Lucia, which she happily returned.

The capitol building was visible from where they stood, like a star in the distance from the golden rooftop. The sun reflected a soft glow of golden light over the surrounding area and Ellie was looking at it in awe. Lucia joined her side, resting her elbows on the ledge and peered at the empty streets below.

"How are you holding up?" she asked, trying her best to start a decent conversation with the girl. Lucia wasn't the type to talk much, not unless necessary, but she had grown to somewhat like the girl in the short span of time she had come to know her. "Truly?"

"I don't know," she shrugged, tugging at her cuticles with her nails. "I guess the outside world is a little bit more scary than I thought it was going to be." Ellie was silent for a moment, turning her head to see Joel and Tess arguing before she glanced back at the brunette beside her. "Are you really going to go off on your own once we reach the capitol building."

"That is the plan." she confirmed, but if she was being honest, Lucia had no idea where she was going to go. As long as it was away from the quarantine zone, she'd figure out the rest later.

"You could come with us." tried Ellie, looking at her expectantly. "Safer in numbers, you know."

"I don't particularly like the Fireflies, Ellie." Lucia peered down at her. 

"I know that," grumbled the teen before confessing, "but i'd feel a lot more comfortable if you were there until we got to their camp or whatever. I won't know anyone there."

Lucia held her breath for a moment and blinked at Ellie, unsure how to respond to the revelation. Her eyes moved over the rooftops of the abandoned city and she was about to respond when Joel stalked his way to Ellie's other side, grim look on his face. The smuggler shot them a quick glimpse before setting his focus on the golden building in the distance.

"Is it everything you hoped for?" he asked, directed at the girl.

"Jury's still out." she shrugged. "But man ... you can't deny that view."

Joel silently agreed with her, rubbing his knuckles as he tried to sooth the pain in his broken hand. The bandage Lucia had given him was dirty, dried blood stark against the whiteness of it. He had to be more careful, or the bones wouldn't heal properly.

"C'mon," Tess glowered, walking past them toward the fire escape to climb down the building. "let's get there before it gets dark."

Joel watched her walk away, brows furrowed as she disappeared down the ladder. He let out a defeated sigh and nodded his head at Ellie to follow.

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LUCIA HAD NEVER BEEN TO THE CAPITOL BUILDING BEFORE, THERE WAS NOTHING WORTH TO LOOT. It was smaller than she had imagined and completely fenced in, apart from the steps that led to the front door. The street in front of them was flooded, cars corroded from the water damage.

"Uh ... just so it's out there." stammered Ellie as they approached the street. "I can't swim."

"Seriously?" said Joel, raising a single brow at her.

"What?" she defended, holding up her hands and giving him an incredulous look. "Do you think we have pools in the QZ?"

"No," scoffed Joel. "smart ass."

The smuggler rolled his eyes and stalked forwards and into the murky water, which only reached just below his hips. The water quickly soaked Lucia's socks as she sauntered after him, a tight grip on her gun as they were about to approach a group of Fireflies.

"I don't know how I was supposed to know that?" she muttered, following after them with a chagrin on her face. 

Lucia chortled and shook her head in amusement at the teen and she shot her a grin. Halfway down the street, and about twenty feet away from the staircase that led to the front doors, she caught something reflecting in the sun and she waddled her way through toward one of the cars. Her fingers brushed over the cold metal and she ripped the chain as she pulled it from the vehicle.

"What is it?" asked Tess, halting her steps to look back at her.

"It's nothing," said Lucia, wondering how one of those things got into the car. It was dented and probably old and she pulled a face at the sight of it. God, you really were viewed as an object once you joined them. "just one of those pendants the Fireflies use."

Melinda Davidson, 000214

Lucia let go of it, the broken chain sliding from her fingers as it disappeared underneath the surface. Joel was already halfway up the steps when the three woman began to ascend. Water dripped down her jeans with each step, water sloshing within her boots as she kicked them against the stone to get rid of most of it.

"Wait," Joel held up his hand once they joined him. "be on your guard."

Ellie was hovered behind Lucia, trying to get a look around her shoulder as the smuggler pushed the doors open. The scent of metal hit her nostrils and she clenched her jaw, finger lightly pressing on the trigger of her weapon. Lucia couldn't see why Tess began to curse as she walked inside in desperation, Joel was in the way.

"No," Tess panicked. "no, no, no."

"Jesus Christ." uttered Joel, finally stepping inside and clearing the path for Lucia and Ellie to enter the building. 

There was no time to shield the girl from the sight before them. The small group of Fireflies that were supposed to meet them were covered in blood, sprawled out on the tiled floors. Lucia kneeled down beside on of them, lifting up his shirt slightly to see that the blood was still wet, like it had just happened.

"Who killed them? FEDRA?" wondered Ellie, solemnly.

"No," said Lucia. "they don't bother with this area. It must have been others."

"What are you doing Tess?" inquired Joel, confused.

The woman was searching through their pockets as if her life depended on it and Lucia got back to her feet, glancing around the hall. Ellie still stood by the front door, bouncing in the balls of her feet in discomfort.

"Maybe, uh, maybe they had a map or something." Tess tried, feeling down their clothes for anything she could use. "Something to tell us where they were going."

"How far are we going to take this?" sighed Joel, rubbing his salt and pepper beard.

"As far as it needs to go!" she stated before glancing up at Ellie in desperation. "Where was this lab of theirs?"

"Oh, Marlene never said." confessed Ellie, tearing at her cuticles again as she tried not to look at the deceased group of Fireflies. "She only mentioned that it was some place out west."

Joel rested his weight on his right leg as he looked down at his companion. He had never seen her act so desperate and it confused him. "What are we doing? This is not us."

"What do you know about us?" Tess accused, standing up. "About me?"

"I know that you are smarter than this." 

"Really?" she scoffed, shaking his head in denial as she began to pace around. Her fingers moved toward her neck and she scratched at the skin underneath her top. "Guess what, Joel? We're shitty people. It's been that way for a long time. This is our chance -"

"It is over, Tess!" he thundered, eyes dark with anger. "Now, we tried. Let's just go home."

"I'm not ... i'm not going anywhere." she revealed, clenching her jaw tightly as she tried to take in a deep breath through her nose. It didn't work and Lucia watched as her lip trembled in attempt to keep her emotions under control. "This is my last stop."

"What?" Joel frowned.

"Our luck had to run out sooner or later."

"What are you -" Joel laid his hand on her shoulder to turn her around, but she shook him off with a glare and he took a cautious step back, confused.

"Holy shit," muttered Ellie, eyes wide as she looked toward Lucia. "she's infected."

Joel tore his gaze away from the teen and snapped his head toward his fellow smuggler, a scoff escaping from between his lips. His eyes raked over the exposed skin he could see before demanding, "Let me see."

"I didn't mean for this -"

"Show it to me." Tess took hold of her top and pulled it aside, giving the three of them a clear view of the raw red mark on the side of her neck. It was already infected, liquid oozing from the wound and she put her shirt back in place. "Oh, Christ."

"Oops, right?" she laughed humourlessly. Tess wiped away a droplet of sweat from her forehead, fever already kicking in as she stalked toward Ellie, grabbing her by the sleeve of her shirt. "Give me your arm." The healed over scar was pink on her pale skin and Tess held it up toward Joel. "This was three weeks. I was bitten an hour ago and it's already worse. This is fucking real, Joel. You've got to get this girl to Tommy's. He used the run with this crew. He'll know what to do."

"No, no, no." Joel shook his head, seeming to snap back to the present. "That was your crusade. I am not doin' that."

"Yes, you are!" Tess stated, taking a step toward him after she let Ellie go. "Look, there's enough here that you have to have some sort of obligation to me. So you get her to Tommy's."

"Guys," Lucia alerted, having heard a truck approaching and she peered out the window. It wasn't FEDRA, probably a bandit group that was passing through the city and they were heavily armed. "we have to go. We've got company."

"Joel," Tess said, eyes meeting his. "you have to run. I can buy you some time."

"We're not leaving you." protested Ellie, eyes wide as she looked at the older woman.

"I will not turn into one of those things."

"I can fight -" Joel tried.

"No! Just go." Tess pushed at his chest and he staggered backward. Lucia made her way toward them, ready to tell them they had to go now or they'd be dead. Joel kept shaking his head, hands balled into fists at his side.

"Safe who you can safe." she breathed.

Joel kept his eyes on her another moment, grinding his teeth together as he stood there rigidly. Lucia didn't have time to register what was happening when he seized Ellie's wrist tightly and began to drag her toward the back of the building. The teen was trying to fight him off, screaming about not wanting to leave Tess behind but he was having none of it and continued his way. 

Lucia had already taken a few steps to follow after them before she turned back to Tess. "I'm really sorry this happened."

The woman laughed softly, sadness overtaking her features as she inclined her head at her. There was banging on the front doors and Lucia gave her one last look before she took off after Ellie and Joel and disappeared down the hall. 

And that's when the shooting began.