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| “ | Apparently, there's no way to extricate the parasite without eliminating the host. Fancy way of saying we gotta kill the fucking kid. And now they're asking for my go ahead. The tests just keep getting harder and harder, don't they? I'm so tired. I'm exhausted and I just want this to end... so be it. Oh I miss you Anna. Your daughter will be with you soon.
―Marlene's insight on Ellie's surgery
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Marlene is a character who appears in The Last of Us. She is the leader of the Fireflies and a survivor of the Cordyceps unilateralis outbreak. A friend of Ellie’s mother, Anna, Marlene looked after Ellie after Anna died and raised her as her own. She is voiced and mo-capped by Merle Dandridge.[1]
Biography
Background
As a Firefly, Marlene fights against the totalitarian rule of the military within the quarantine zones to restore a form of functional government. The Fireflies have been successful in overthrowing military rule in several quarantine zones, but their efforts have not always followed with desired results. Despite her and her organization's attempts to restore order, their numbers begin to dwindle as the military begins to push back and kill members found within the zones.
She was once close with Joel’s brother, Tommy when he was a member of the Fireflies. After a while, however, Tommy gave up on the cause and decided to leave. Before he left, he tells Marlene that if she ever needed anything, she could count on Joel to help her.
Sometime after Ellie and Riley were bitten by one of the Infected during a firefight in the mall between the Fireflies and the military, Marlene took the girl back under her wing. When Ellie failed to succumb to the Cordyceps parasite as her friend did, Marlene realized that she was immune.
Events of The Last of Us
Looking to keep up the morale of the Fireflies, Marlene makes a deal with a smuggler named Robert and purchases a cache of guns. She goes to close the deal and, during events unseen, she is badly injured. When she finally locates Robert, Tess and Joel have killed him. Tess demands her guns from Marlene, who refuses to give them up at first. Marlene decides to concede when she asks them to smuggle something out of the city for her[2]. Tess agrees on the basis that she is allowed to see the weapons before committing entirely.
Marlene guides them through the docks and around the military patrols still searching for the Fireflies that attacked the checkpoint within the city. Marlene explains that the Fireflies have attempted to leave the city, but the military mean to use the Fireflies as scapegoats by inciting violence. As a result, the Fireflies have fought to defend themselves.
Marlene successfully leads them back to her hideout as she collapses. Assuming Marlene is in danger, Ellie tries to attack Joel from behind with a switchblade, but Tess stops her. Marlene assures her friend she will recover, but she cannot come with her. Ellie wants to stay with her, but Marlene reminds her that this may be their only chance to get her out of the city. Marlene asks Joel to watch over Ellie during their journey to the capital building, an idea Ellie objects to. Marlene assures her that she can trust Joel. Once Ellie is safe with Joel, Marlene takes Tess to verify the weapons. Once Marlene recovered from her injuries, she and the rest of her men left Boston and moved to join up with the rest of the Fireflies in Salt Lake City. Along the way, she and her men were attacked by the Infected. Marlene barely made to the city with the rest of her men intact.
Reunited with Ellie, the doctor’s tell Marlene that the Cordyceps infection’s unique mutation within Ellie may make it possible for them to reverse-engineer a vaccine. However, the doctors cannot operate on her friend’s brain without killing her. The doctors ask for her “permission” to go ahead with the procedure, a formality Marlene assumes is done merely on principal as she does not think she could stop the operation regardless. She decides to make the choice and allows them to proceed. The decision is hard on her. She records two ruminations to Anna over the choice she is about to make, but remains firm that it needs to be done.
When Joel comes to, Marlene thanks him for looking after her, grateful they both survived the ordeal to get to the hospital. When she tells him of Ellie’s situation and the possibility of a vaccine, he objects to the idea. Marlene, sympathetic to his turmoil, tells him that Ellie’s death is necessary and far more important than anything either of them may feel for her as surrogate parents. She tells the fellow Firefly next to her to lead him out but shoot him should he attempt to stop the operation. Other Fireflies suggest to Marlene that she just kill Joel, but she refuses to kill the one person who understands what she’s going through.
Her decision to keep him alive allows Joel to stop the operation and take Ellie from the doctors. Marlene waits for Joel in the parking lot of the hospital and tries to stop him at gunpoint. She tries to intimidate him with terrible scenarios that could happen to Ellie; death at the hands of Clickers, sexual assault or murder committed by thugs. Marlene tells him that Ellie would want to help the world and that he can still do the right thing. She lowers her gun and raises her hands in a show of peace. Joel then shoots her in the side and places the unconscious Ellie inside a car. Bleeding out, Marlene begs Joel to let her live. He appears to hesitate, but kills her anyway, knowing she would try to find Ellie if he let her live.
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