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Author's Note: This story incorporates the stories Dirt and The Weary Kind as canon - because they're so well written that they might as well be!
Chapter 1 - SARAH?!
"S-s-s-arah? Is that really you?"
"It is. Hey, Uncle Tommy. It's good to see you again."
Tommy had rubbed his eyes at least a dozen times to make sure he wasn't dreaming. This was real. Sarah was here, back from the dead - and wearing the same shirt and pajamas that she had been on the day she died.
Jesus fucking Christ.
"Listen, I'd love to catch up with you, Uncle Tommy, but there's a reason why I'm here."
It was only at that point that Tommy noticed she had a black book in her hands with the words "DEATH NOTE" written on it.
"I've been watching you and dad from the afterlife. I love you both so much, but…"
She paused.
"Let's be honest: he's a monster now. I don't hate him because he kept you both alive, but I really don't recognize him anymore."
"…you're right," he said after he had had a few minutes to process the fact that he was talking to SARAH! "I think a lot about whether it's worth it. Whether I should have died along with you."
"Don't say that, Uncle Tommy," she said firmly. "I'm glad you're alive. I've got a mission for you."
Tommy's head was spinning. This was Sarah - not just some twisted demon pretending to be her. Somehow, in his heart, he knew that.
But she had changed. Tommy realized that was because she had been dead for seven years - and obviously had gone through a lot of personal growth in the afterlife. She was Sarah, but she was not the same Sarah he knew.
"What kind of mission?" He asked. He was starting to calm down now.
"I've been watching you both from the afterlife, Uncle Tommy," she began. "I wouldn't ever give this to my dad. Not in a million years. But I think YOU can use it to make the world a better place."
She handed him the book, and he tentatively accepted it.
"It's called the Death Note. When you write's someone name in it with their face in your mind, they will die of a heart attack. Usually you can specify a cause of death as well, but generally speaking a heart attack should be all you need."
Tommy was speechless. He didn't think she was lying. If she was coming back from the afterlife, she could probably give him a book that could kill people as well.
"Sarah, honey…why would you give me this?"
"Why do you think?" She smiled. "You're a good person, Uncle Tommy. You joined the Fireflies because you want to make the world a better place. And I know you can use this to get humanity back on track."
She moved towards him and hugged him, and he quickly returned her embrace. It was the most wonderful thing that had happened to him since the outbreak started.
"I love you so much, Sarah," he said, as he began to start crying. "I miss you so much, and I know Joel misses you too."
"I miss you too, Uncle Tommy. But my time in this world is over. You, on the other hand, have a lot of things to do."
She stepped back from his embrace.
"Goodbye, Uncle Tommy. If I can manage it, I'll try my best to visit you again."
And then she was gone.
Tommy couldn't believe this had just happened to him. It was so, so wonderful to see Sarah again. More wonderful than he could possibly describe.
But…
Like she said, she hadn't just come to see him. She had given him a mission. And as he started to process what had just happened, he understood her logic perfectly.
He needed to take this to Marlene.
-tlour-
You haven't seen the last of Sarah. I think she can be a great recurring character, because she is (believe it or not) far wiser than Tommy. Seven years of talking to every human that has ever existed in the multiverse afterlife will do that to ya.
-tlour-
Chapter 2 - Sarah's New Assignment
"Marlene, I have somethin' very important I need to show you."
Her eyes narrowed. "And what might that be, Tommy? And why did you insist on total secrecy for this meeting?"
"You'll see." He took his old faded backpack off and pulled out the black book with the words "DEATH NOTE" written on it.
"What the fuck is this?" She asked. She was not amused.
"Marlene, do you remember the name of that asshole FEDRA guard at the main checkpoint?"
"Andrew Duran," she replied instantly.
He sighed. "Lord, forgive me for this. Marlene, do you have a pen?"
She reached into her drawer and gave one to him. Like all pre-outbreak items it was worn by years of use, but Marlene wouldn't have had if it didn't work anymore. She was still regarding him skeptically, and her expression seemed to say "You'd better explain yourself, and fast."
He quickly wrote the following into the Death Note:
Andrew Duran
"So what's writing his name gonna do?"
"He's gonna die in a few minutes," he replied.
Marlene stared. "Tommy, I do not find this joke amusing."
"Trust me when I say it ain't a joke. I'm leavin' this with you. I'll be at my apartment if you need me."
-tlour-
Less than half an hour later Marlene had burst into his apartment without warning and immediately pointed a gun to his head.
"Tommy Miller," she began. "You have made the correct decision bringing this to me. But if you ever tell anyone about this, I will hunt you down and kill you myself. Understood?"
"Understood." He didn't hesitate.
"Good. Keep your fucking mouth shut."
She left as quickly as she came.
"Jesus, she needs to smoke a fucking joint, am I right?"
He turned around and was delighted to see Sarah on his couch.
"Sarah! You're back!" He really needed to see her.
"Yep! And I've got some good news." She grinned. "I'm on an extended vacation!"
"That's fantastic!" Tommy was ecstatic. He thought he would never get to see Sarah again, ever, and now she was here all the time!
He sensed something, though.
"…you don't want me to tell Joel, do you?"
"No," she replied instantly. "Not yet. I promise I'll meet him at some point. But to be blunt, I need him as a monster right now."
Tommy shook his head. "Jesus, Sarah, you are nothing like I fuckin' remember."
"Is that surprising?" She laughed. "Uncle Tommy, I've spent the last seven years talking to every single person that has ever existed across countless universes. No offense, but I'm ten times wiser than you." She grinned. "I still love the Halican Drops, though!"
Her expression suddenly darkened.
"Pour me a shot of that disgusting rot-gut you call liquor, will you? We've got a LOT to talk about."
-tlour-
"So…you saw everything we did? All of it."
"Yes." She smiled. "I'm not judging you. I never had to deal with what you did. But, the way dad turned into a murderous piece of shit…it absolutely broke my heart."
Tommy hugged Sarah. "I tried to get him to leave the Family after-"
"Don't bring that up!" She suddenly pushed him away. "I still am haunted by what I saw in 2016. NEVER bring it up again."
"Ok, sure, I'm sorry. Let's change the subject. What are you hoping to accomplish?"
"What do you think? Uncle Tommy, I just can't stand seeing you people live like this anymore. It's way too brutal. I had to BEG a Shinigami for a Death Note."
She smiled again.
"And…if we can build the world back up…maybe dad can find himself again."
Tommy was touched. Sarah was right - she was incredibly wise, far wiser than him. He was SO glad she was here.
"So, what happens next?" He asked as he downed a shot.
"In one week, every single member of FEDRA in the quarantine zone will immediately drop dead."
His eyes widened. "WHAT THE FUCK, SARAH?!"
"Don't give me that. Dad went way too far, but he was always willing to do things that you weren't. You've always been a little bit too soft for the apocalypse."
Tommy couldn't really deny that.
"I know it's brutal, Tommy, but brutality is part of escaping the apocalypse. Once we're done, we WILL have a better world."
Tommy held his hand out. "I'm in, Sarah."
Sarah happily shook it. "Fantastic!"
-tlour-
Chapter 3 - The Conquest of Boston
It was really hard for Tommy to wrap his head around the concept, but slowly he was beginning to understand:
Sarah was not a child.
She looked like a child. She sounded like a child. She dressed like a child. Hell, oftentimes she even acted like a child.
But she was a fucking genius compared to him. And she knew EVERYTHING about him and Joel since the outbreak. Every private moment, every bitter fight. Everything.
He would NOT underestimate her.
But he was going to have to work with her. That's why they were on the rooftop of Tommy's apartment, smoking some excellent marijuana that Sarah had somehow managed to acquire. He had no idea how; all weed was shitty skunk nowadays. But he wasn't going to question it!
That was another thing that was really weird to him. Sarah loved drinking and smoking pot. She'd made it clear that almost everyone in the afterlife did: even the most stoic puritan got bored after 500 years.
But it didn't her affect her intelligence. That was yet ANOTHER weird thing to him. She could down 30 shots and still be completely lucid. It was really, really hard for him to wrap his head around.
But he was certain of one thing: he WAS glad she was here.
"It's a beautiful day, ain't it, Tommy?"
He shuddered. "You're pretty brutal, Sarah."
"Maybe to you, but death is pretty meaningless once you find out about the afterlife. Hell, I joke about getting shot by that soldier all the time!"
"You DO?" He was shocked.
"Of course! And you're not gonna believe this, but he and I actually became good friends. He apologized about a thousand times and I finally just told him to shut the fuck up and smoke a joint with me."
"…Sarah, this is fucking insane," he finally said.
She laughed. "I can't wait until you come!"
-tlour-
It was a sudden, instant moment. Shocking more than anything else. One minute FEDRA soldiers were closely guarding their every move, and then they all died of heart attacks in less than 10 seconds.
Everyone simply stared in stunned silence for 10 minutes.
And then the Fireflies moved in, and a new era began.
-tlour-
The Multiverse Afterlife is my tentative attempt to connect my disparate stories as one universe. For now, here are a few things I've decided about it:
- Even though you can do and imagine almost anything you want, EVERYONE gets bored, so EVERYONE drinks and does drugs. Even Carrie Nation is a drunk at this point.
- You talk. A LOT. With not just people from your world, but every world that has ever existed. It doesn't take you long to become a genius compared to a mortal.
- Everyone really fucking hates Stephanie Wong. She's a pariah with no friends. Expect Sarah to casually go "Fucking Stephanie Wong…" every now and then. Time heals all wounds, but she was particularly horrible, so it's probably gonna take around 5,000-10,000 years before people speak to her again.
-tlour-
Chapter 4 - The New Quarantine Zone
Marlene never thought there would be any circumstances under which she would respect FEDRA.
But three months into the Firefly's rule of the Boston Quarantine Zone, she had to grudgingly admire their administrative capabilities, for one simple reason:
Running a quarantine zone was fucking HARD.
She mentally went down the list in her head:
The Infected - A constant, unending menace. Even with the resources of all of Boston at their disposal, they simply never stopped coming. There were fucking billions of them, after all.
The Food Supply - Boston's weather was abysmal for growing crops. That meant dangerous excursions into downtown to searched for canned food and glass water. Not plastic bottled water, though - that was all poison by now.
Order - Because of the above two, it would be impossible to maintain without the Death Note. She really felt guilty for how often she had to use it.
Rebuilding - She didn't just want to survive here, she wanted to spruce this place up a bit. But that was a MONUMENTAL task, and took time and resources they didn't have.
The Wall - Maintaining it was a neverending task, and she sure as hell wasn't going to let it degrade.
Democracy - She wanted it, badly. But they weren't ready yet. People were still too scarred from the last seven years. So with great reluctance, she was essentially ruling as the dictator of Boston.
Corruption - She was worried - terrified, really - of the Fireflies becoming a second FEDRA. She had ruled with a light a hand as possible - people had to work a certain amount of hours, but beyond that they could do what they wanted as long as they didn't bring the infection in or question the authority of the Fireflies. It was working, sort of.
She sighed, and poured herself another shot of the Tito's Handmake Vodka she had found on one of the excursions.
She could do this. But it was NOT going to be easy.
-tlour-
Congratulations, Fireflies. You won. Now comes the REALLY hard part, am I right? :p
-tlour-
Chapter 5 - A Long Overdue Reunion
4 Months Later…
"Uncle Tommy, the Zone is stable enough. I think I'm ready to meet dad."
"Fair enough." He thought Boston was doing OK too. "How do you want to do it?"
"Well, I know him, and I don't want him to die of shock or attack you for not telling him sooner."
She smiled.
"So I'll write him a letter."
-tlour-
Hey Dad,
It's me. Sarah.
Me and Marlene have been working together over the past seven months to take over Boston. I love and miss you, and I can't wait to see you again. But please bear in mind that I am not the daughter you knew. I spent seven years in the afterlife. I am not exaggerating when I say I am far, far, wiser than you.
Treat me like an adult, not a child. I'll look the same, but believe me when I say looks can be deceiving.
I watched you dad. Over the course of seven years I watched you slowly lose your soul. And one of the main reasons I'm doing this is to help you find it again.
Before you ask: yes, Uncle Tommy knew I was here. DO NOT GET MAD AT HIM. I ordered him not to tell you. We needed to wait until things were more stable in the Zone.
Let's meet in a week, on the rooftop of your apartment. We have a lot to talk about.
Love,
Sarah
-tlour-
Joel stared at the letter for six hours.
He KNEW it was real. This was his baby girl. But…
She was older. Wiser. Wiser than him, it seemed.
He couldn't NOT meet her.
But he was very glad she had given him a week to prepare. She really was wise.
-tlour-
They met just as the sun was setting, which seemed wonderfully poetic.
Joel was more composed than he thought he would be. He had relentlessly interrogated Tommy about Sarah's arrival, barely giving him any time to sleep.
And what he'd learned astonished him.
Sarah was a genius. Nobody but Tommy knew she existed, but she had relayed advice to Tommy (who then relayed that advice to Marlene) that was always sound. She was probably the biggest reason the Zone was not only surviving, but practically thriving.
It had completely shaken his worldview. There was more than survival now. Grudgingly, he was forced to admit that Tommy had been right all along.
He could worry about all that later, though. Right now he only focus on the single most wonderful thing he had ever seen: the sight of his long-dead baby girl smiling at him above the streets of Boston.
"Dad!"
"Baby Girl!"
They could talk later. They would talk tomorrow, probably. But for tonight they would enjoy a moment that neither thought would ever come.
-tlour-
Yay!
-tlour-
Chapter 6 - A Difficult Conversation
"Alright, dad. Now that we've had our wonderful reunion, I need to have a serious discussion with you."
He winced.
He had been overjoyed at Sarah's return. He obviously still was. But he grew more uncomfortable when it was clear she wanted to interrogate him about his past actions and hold him accountable.
He'd let her do it, but he was going to HATE it.
"The Family. Let's talk about it."
"Sarah, I-"
"Don't. You're not getting around this. If you want me as your baby girl, I am holding you accountable for your sins."
This was bizarre. It was almost like being scolded by his mother.
"So. The Family. Why do you think it was slowly corrupted?"
"Judge dying, obviously."
"Right, but why didn't you stand up to Troy?" She kept pressing him. "He turned you into monsters at Judge's funeral, but you didn't have to let him. You did it because it was easy."
"She's right, Joel," Tommy chimed in. This was SO uncomfortable. "I tried to get you to leave once we started killing like a pack. I kept telling you over and over I was so sick with what I did I couldn't keep anything down."
"And you didn't listen to him."
"I'm sorry, okay!" He was starting to cry. "What the fuck do you want from me?"
"To make peace with your sins, move on and become a better person," Sarah replied. "What else?"
Joel was silent for a moment.
"Okay."
"Joel, you know we need talk about this," Tommy said. "It took one of my best friends from Huntersville getting gunned down in front of me before I finally snapped and left. We should have much, much sooner."
"Yep," Sarah agreed.
Joel said nothing. Words failed him.
"There's one another thing, dad. And this might be a difficult question for you to answer."
"What is it, baby girl?"
"Why didn't you ever talk about me?"
He was stunned into silence.
"You wore my watch. Thanks for that, by the way. But you never said a word and you SNAPPED at Tommy if my name was brought up."
"…it was too painful," he finally said.
"Well, the pain stops now." She smiled. "Tommy told you about the afterlife, right?"
His eyes widened. "Wait, you're actually fucking friends with the asshole that shot you?"
"Could you not?" She snapped, annoyed. "Joshua apologized to me hundreds of times. He cried over and over again and said he would do anything to take back shooting me. I forgave him, Dad. I forgave him years ago."
Joel couldn't believe any of this was happening.
"You need to forgive yourself, and make a resolution to be a better person. We are building a better world, and we need you as an enforcer AND a family member. Can you do that?"
He was silent for a few moments.
"…I can."
"Great!" She said, smiling. "Today is a new day."
-tlour-
Chapter 7 - The Eradication Campaign
CITIZENS OF THE BOSTON QUARANTINE ZONE!
THE FIREFLIES NEED YOUR HELP!
Fellow citizens,
Over the last year we have done our best to care for you and build a better future. Now are asking you to return the favor.
Beginning next week, will begin THE ERADICATION CAMPAIGN! All who stand before us - FEDRA, the Infected, the Hunters - will be destroyed as we lead the way towards a new future.
You will always be welcome in the Boston Quarantine Zone. But we ask that you be brave, and do what is right.
LOOK FOR THE LIGHT!
BELIEVE IN THE FIREFLIES!
-tlour-
The call to arms was taken up enthusiastically.
VERY enthusiastically.
Which was a really fucking annoying problem for Bill.
This was his town. He'd lived here all his life, he'd fought for it, and he killed anyone who dared intrude on it. And now this fucking army was taking it from him like it was nothing!
He wanted to go down shooting so badly. But he did not survive the apocalypse for seven years without being intelligent. It was clear the Fireflies were turning the tide on the infection, and he couldn't just hide from the world anymore.
He sighed.
Well, it was good while it lasted.
-tlour-
"Best decision you ever made." Joel greeted Bill with a triumphant grin as he walked towards the Firefly convoy with his hands up.
"Fuck you assholes. This is my town."
"The apocalypse is coming to an end, Bill. Better get used to civilization."
Bill scowled. "Fine. The fuck do I do now?"
"We're gonna be generous, Bill. You lived here for years, and you surrendered to us. So we're gonna let you keep the whole church to yourself. We ain't gonna need it."
Bill's eyes widened with surprise. "No fooling?" Then he smiled. "Well, shit, I can work with that! You leave me alone, I leave you alone."
"Sounds good to us," Tommy interrupted. "Now if you'll excuse us, we gotta country to rebuild."
-tlour-
Joel was having the time of his life.
He had never enjoyed killing infected before. It was work, necessary to stay alive. But now he LOVED it, and he was very good at it. He realized why:
He now killed with purpose. And not just infected, either. He still grinned when he remembered the pitiless extermination campaign they had carried out against the Pittsburgh Hunters.
They were turning the tide. The apocalypse was coming to an end. It would have been inconceivable without the might of Sarah, but here they were!
Something still bothered him, though.
Sarah's presence explained a lot. But not everything. The FEDRA Massacre stood out as a giant question mark in his mind. He knew Sarah was smart, but he didn't think she had the ability to do that, even if she made it clear that death was meaningless to her.
So who did it?
He supposed it didn't really matter, and there were more important things to worry about. But it nagged at his mind still.
-tlour-
Chapter 8 - The Second American Republic
It was the most wonderful day in the history of the quarantine zone.
The walls were coming down! They weren't needed anymore.
At long last, the rebuilding process had begun in earnest. Everyone was the happiest they'd been since before the outbreak. They were drinking, doing drugs, and fucking with wild abandon. They had survived hand-to-mouth for seven years, and they had FUCKING EARNED IT.
Marlene, however, had more important things on her mind.
Once the party had finally stopped a few days later, she stepped on top of what had once been a FEDRA military checkpoint and gave the most important speech of her life.
"CITIZENS OF BOSTON!" She proclaimed. "TODAY, WE CELEBRATE OUR TRIUMPH OVER THE INFECTION!"
The cheering lasted for five minutes. Nobody had ever thought this was possible. Nobody dared even believe this could be possible. But here it was. It was happening.
IT WAS A FUCKING DREAM COME TRUE!
"I encourage to enjoy yourselves over the next few weeks. You've definitely earned it." Her expression turned serious. "But we've still got a lot of work to do. After all, building new country isn't easy, now is it?"
They all seemed surprised by that last sentence, and she grinned triumphantly as she made the pronouncement she had been waiting to make since she had founded the Fireflies.
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I HEREBY DECLARE THE FOUNDATION OF THE SECOND AMERICAN REPUBLIC!"
They cheered.
And cheered, and cheered, and cheered.
It was a new dawn for all of humanity.
-tlour-
Chapter 9 - The Treaty of Seattle
Isaac, I've only got two things to say to two:
1. No, I'm going to tell you how we do it, so don't ask.
2. Everything east of the Mississippi is ours, and everything west of it is yours.
If that sounds reasonable to you, we'll be sending an ambassador in a week.
…
Done. Make sure they're here.
-tlour-
Eugene Linden didn't think he'd ever be back at CenturyLink Stadium again. He still had fond memories of the Seahawks game he went to a year before the outbreak. Obviously, though, this was much more important.
"So we're in agreement?" Isaac said. "West of the Mississippi is the Republic of the Wolves, and you help us clear it out. In exchange, we recognize the Second American Republic as the legal successor of the former United States."
"That sounds about right," Eugene replied.
"Then let's sign the treaty."
They did, and the former United States saw governance again once more.
-tlour-
Yeah, I switched the fake stadium with the real one. Not like I have to worry about trademark infringement…
-tlour-
Epilogue - 2050
It was a beautiful day for the Fireflies (the common identifier for those east of the Mississippi, in the same way that they had once been Americans). The Fireflies, AND the Wolves.
New York City had been retaken!
It was a monumental task. The Second American Republic had sealed it off rather than try to take it over. But after firebombing about 60% of the city and throwing all of the resources at it, they had finally taken it back.
Finally!
-tlour-
And unfortunately, Joel was having the worst fucking day of his life.
"I'm gonna miss you so much, my sweet baby girl."
"I know dad. But you know it's time for leave. We've done everything we wanted to do."
Joel was an old man, now. He hadn't fought in years. But he was a respected leader of the Second American Republic, which is why he had gotten an apartment at the very top of what was once One World Trade Center. It seemed like a nice play to say goodbye.
But it was also really, really hard.
"Like Dr. Seuss says dad…don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."
They both started crying. Long, and hard. They held each other for a long time, and looked out over the beautiful view of the city that was finally being rebuilt.
Finally, Sarah stepped out her dad's embrace, and smiled warmly at him once last time.
"Until we meet again, dad."
And then she was gone.
-tlour-
I poured my fucking HEART out writing this. I hope you like it.