Index – Brand and Content
Fungi or mushrooms; this physiological class is responsible for the apocalypse in the world of The Last of Us. “Candida, ergot, cordyceps, aspergillus: all of them are capable of burrowing into our brains and taking over not millions, but billions,” an epidemiologist told his audience in the episode of the first series. The winner of the not-so-confidence-inspiring competition a species of parasitic fungus called Cordyceps which belongs to the mushroom genus.
The parasites have successfully adapted to the increase in average temperature, so unlike before, they can develop even in our pleasant body temperature. In the series adaptation of creator Neil Druckmann’s game written for PlayStation, twenty years have passed since the appearance of the first infected. Since then, the undead, whining in a chirping throaty voice, have been walking among us to deliver their neighbors to the attack of the fungal filaments by biting them.
According to their current knowledge, there is no vaccine for the fungal attack. In the series, the pandemic was tested on the basis of the “bomb on fungus” principle, including the Boston in the story, and this somewhat slowed down the spread of the infection. At the same time, living conditions deteriorated dramatically, and wild nature took over the ever-destroying urban environment. In society, a militaristic autocratic organization, FEDRA, is currently in power, against them are the Firebugs, who fight for civilization and freedom with partisan means.
Joel and Ellie, the protagonists of the series, are trying to find their place in this world; and following the example of their journey, we also play with the idea of what the world of The Last of Us would be like in Budapest, what would happen to the city, how we would live our everyday lives in a world affected by a fungal infection. Therefore, we invite our readers on an imaginary mission.
We cross Budapest to get from Óbuda’s fortunately intact blocks of flats to the Keleti railway station; our goal is to obtain medicine, clothing and food for the residents of the village house from the shipment from the outside world. Our route is well traveled, but you never know where another horde will attack us or an unstable ceiling will break.
In The Last of Us series, mushrooms are not infected by spores, but by biting the host. Therefore, our first stop is the Buda castle, from where we can look around the quay to see if the way is clear to the Szabadság bridge, the only intact link between Buda and Pest. The Fisherman’s Bastion has not survived the long years since the infection and lack of maintenance without a trace either, but we routinely climb the arm-like tendrils to the viewpoint. We have a slingshot and a tool bow hanging on our side, unfortunately our snack is not bacon, but there is still plenty of canned lentil meat left over from the past. (Photo: Shutterstock) (Photo: Brand and content)
We know of a funny “mushroom farm” in Gellért, so we sneak and hide at the foot of the mountain at the base of the stone fence in total silence. Although the infected become partially and then completely blind after a while due to the mutation, their hearing is sophisticated, and they also detect the vibrations transmitted by the mushroom threads that spread underground and weave for kilometers. A careless move or an ill-advised shout can send a whole horde after our unsuspecting team. We point with a laser towards the watchtower in Lágymány, where the radio operators nest and scan the countryside with binoculars from a height of 140 meters. Two flashes with the mirror: the road to the bridge is clear, we can start. (Photo: Shutterstock) (Photo: Brand and content)
Murphy’s laws sometimes apply doubly, from behind the door of one of the old trams, a breeding, lurking infected person jumps out, which makes us scream loudly. He gets between the eyes, but the creatures breeding in the bath, including the monster that makes terrifying clicking noises, are already chasing us. We split up to increase our chances, so we try to go to open ground, to higher ground. We meet at Deák tér, we climb onto the Ferris wheel at Erzsébet tér. It is already getting completely dark, they give up on our potting and we can move on among the ominous shadows of the lush vegetation, avoiding the completely full crater of the broken subway. We start running between narrow apartment buildings. (Photo: Shutterstock)
The moon is already high when we take the Király-Kazinczy-Dob utca route to Blaha Lujza tér. The stray campfires in the evening are still burning, so we decide to approach one to warm up. The infected don’t like fire, we feel somewhat protected, and we flirt with the idea of dragging out the rest of the darkness on the corner of the boulevard with a clear view. Now only twenty minutes have passed, shouting and gunfire can be heard from the ruins of the nearby department store. Perhaps the patrol found a resistance group or the horde emerging from Gellért broke free on the Pest side? We have no other choice, we light torches and venture underground, into the subway tunnel. When we descend between the tracks, we can only hope that the next one kilometer does not hold any unpleasant surprises. (Photo: Brand and content)
Our destination will not be tracks nine and three-quarters, but the single platform of the dilapidated railway station, where a freight train arrives once a month. If we’re lucky. We reach the surface when the rain has started and the sky promises a long storm. The journey home will be tough. (Photo: Shutterstock) (Photo: Brand and content)
New episodes of The Last of Us arrive on Mondays with Hungarian dubbing and subtitles on HBO Max and the HBO channel.
Graphic works: Dániel Csorba/Dialogue Creatives
The article is a Brand and Content made by it HBO Max commissioned, not by the editors of the Index. About what sponsor content is, you can read in more detail here .