Abby Anderson

Despite this infection, the infected don't recognize her as one of their own, so they still try to kill her. It's assumed that if she were properly studied, some form of cure or countermeasure could be created. This is never clarified, however, as the study would result in her death, which Joel refused to allow. Ellie also mentioned that neither the infection nor the immunity can be transferred to others.

Appearance: Ellie is described as having red hair and standing at 5 feet 3 inches (1.60 m) by a deceased Firefly. However, her official height description in external materials lists her height as 5 feet 5 inches (1.65 m). Ellie has bright green eyes, fair skin with freckles, a scar splitting her right eyebrow, a thin build, and tends to wear red clothing. When asked in an interview about her eyebrow scar, Neil Druckmann states there is a story behind it, but says he won't share the story yet. She got the scar before American Dreams, Left Behind, and The Last of Us Part I took place. At the end of The Last of Us (or as a pre-order bonus), different outfit options for Ellie can be unlocked.

Ellie is romantically interested in women. She shares a kiss with Riley and is romantically involved with Dina, and prior to the events of the game, was with a girl named Cat. Joel was initially unaware of Ellie's interest in women, mistakenly believing she had a crush on Jesse, though he eventually learned (and supported) Ellie's affection for Dina. Years later, Ellie became more mature and less talkative, but still retained her sense of humor. However, witnessing Marlene's death at the hands of Abby's group proved to be a traumatic and damaging experience. In Seattle, Ellie was visibly more aggressive and violent, and her thirst for revenge began to cloud her judgment, culminating in her decision to continue hunting Abby instead of helping Tommy. However, upon finally having the chance to kill Abby, Ellie realized that her quest for revenge had driven away everyone she loved.

Skills: In April 2038, Ellie finally learned to swim, play the guitar, and sing. Ellie's main hobby is drawing, masterfully sketching various landmarks and other people's faces in her journal and bedroom. She is also a talented artist. Her firearms skills have greatly improved, and she can wield a wide variety of weapons with ease. She is physically stronger, allowing her to use human enemies as shields and can craft arrows, as well as wield larger melee weapons such as machetes and hammers, which she can also disarm her opponents with. However, her preferred short-range weapon is her pocketknife. She relies heavily on it, struggling to best Abby in hand-to-hand combat without the blade. Immunities: Ellie's most important and unique ability is her complete immunity to the fungus. Due to a strange mutation in her brain that developed after her initial infection, she became immune to the bites and spores of those infected.

Ellie grew up as an orphan in the Boston Quarantine Zone and attended a military preparatory school, where she met and befriended Riley Abel. When Ellie was fourteen, they were both infected with the Cordyceps brain infection, to which Ellie discovered she was immune. Marlene, a friend of her mother's and the leader of the Fireflies, believed she held the key to reverse-engineering a vaccine. Marlene tasked Joel Miller, a smuggler, with escorting Ellie out of the QZ. The simple delivery turned into a year-long journey across America, and the two eventually formed a close bond. Upon reaching the Fireflies in Salt Lake City, Joel discovered that euthanizing Ellie could create a cure. Refusing this, Marlene joined him and killed the chief surgeon before escaping with Ellie and Joel to settle in Jackson, her brother's community in Wyoming. For the next four years, Ellie resented Joel for depriving her of her life to pursue a purpose she believed in. In 2038, Abby Anderson, a former Firefly and the surgeon's daughter, found and killed Marlene. Ellie swore revenge and pursued Abby to Seattle. Her efforts were unsuccessful, leading her to retire to a farm with her girlfriend Dina and Dina's son, JJ. Unable to forgive Abby, Ellie abandoned her family and pursued her once again to Santa Barbara, only to spare Abby in the end, as her way of forgiving Marlene through Abby. She returned to the farm, accepting Marlene's death, only to leave again due to Dina's absence. After the fight with Abby, Ellie and Joel agreed to return with Abby, Yara, and Lev to Seattle.

Personality: Having been raised in an environment where modern standards and values have deteriorated, Ellie is considerably rash, foul-mouthed, impulsive, and temperamental, and is not bothered by the notion of using violence as a means to an end or profanity as a way of expressing her feelings.

Joel rarely showed signs of happiness and was often cynical. Ellie notes that Joel stained his hands with innocent blood when he revealed to her that he had been "on both sides," thus knowing about a hunter ambush and anticipating it. This dark past contributed to his experience as a hardened survivor. Upon meeting Ellie, he initially had a difficult relationship with her. However, Joel later came to trust her and found her reliable most of the time, such as Ellie watching Joel or providing support. Over time, Joel established a father-daughter relationship with Ellie, who reminded him of his beloved daughter, Sarah. Throughout their journey, Joel became extremely devoted to Ellie, using any means possible to save her and keep her safe. He tortured two cannibals to discover Ellie's whereabouts and then killed the other prisoner after obtaining information about Ellie's whereabouts. Ellie also cared deeply for Joel, spending an entire winter feeding and protecting him when he was injured, just as Joel cared for and protected her throughout their journey. The two would form a strong father-daughter bond. Whether selfish or unwilling to lose another 'daughter' to another's whim again, he chose to save Ellie along with Marlene and try to start some semblance of a normal life again.

Appearance: Joel's appearance indicated he was in his 50s. He had a heavy, muscular build, with dark, graying hair and a beard. He was 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighed 200 pounds. Joel had numerous cuts and scars on his face and arms. After living in Jackson for a few years, Joel's hair and beard grew slightly longer, while his hair turned gray.

Joel was a survivor in a post-apocalyptic America ravaged by the Cordyceps brain infection. After losing his only daughter, Sarah, in the early stages of the outbreak, Joel became a ruthless and cynical smuggler, eventually tasked with smuggling and protecting Ellie Williams, an immune teenager who could create a vaccine to ensure humanity's survival. Joel eventually formed a strong father-daughter bond with her.

Personality: Described as being nearly 50 years old in the first game, Joel knew what the world was like before it was devastated. As time passed, Joel became less bound by morality and more driven to do whatever it took to survive. "What he wouldn't do in the past is almost a daily occurrence now," observes Bruce Straley, the game's director. Before the apocalypse, Joel was a caring father who worked hard to raise Sara alone. After the death of his beloved daughter Sara, Joel's personality became more sullen, damaged, apathetic, and ruthless. These dark traits led others to describe him as a "violent thug, a brutal killer, and a torturer." He demonstrated the ability to kill his enemies with remarkable brutality, earning him a vile reputation among those he encountered. David called him a "mad man." During the aftermath of the epidemic that struck the country, Joel initially became a hunter, robbing and killing innocent people to survive. His time as a hunter darkened him, the man torturing individuals in a way that gave his brother nightmares. This continued for several years, before he turned to black market trading and smuggling items or people of interest through quarantine zones or other designated areas. Because of this, he gained valuable knowledge about survival in the post-apocalyptic environment.

Background and early life: Yara was the firstborn daughter of a devout Seraphite woman, followed about three years later by Lev (then known as "Lily"). Although little is known about her childhood, Yara was chosen to be a warrior for her village around the age of thirteen to fight against the WLF. Yara was close to Lev growing up, but did not understand why Lev questioned the rules until Lev admitted to her that he identified as male. Yara told Lev to keep such feelings secret and hoped Lev would "recover." A turning point occurred in their lives when the elders arranged for Lev to marry an elder woman. Wanting to be a warrior like Yara, Lev shaved his head in an act of defiance, openly identifying as male. Yara initially reacted negatively, yelling at and hitting him. However, aware that the Seraphites would try to kill him for his choice, Yara helped Lev escape, leading the Seraphites to label the couple as apostates.

Personality: Yara cared deeply for her brother, risking herself and ultimately sacrificing her own life for him. She regretted not having supported him sooner regarding his gender identity. Yara was more worldly-aware than Lev: she recognized that faith did not make her immortal and was aware that her devout mother would not forgive her or her brother for their actions.

Yara is an Asian teenager with long black hair and brown eyes, two scars on each side of her mouth that run to her temple, just like her brother's. After Santa Bárbara, her hair became medium-length, her physique thinner and now slightly taller, but she lost her left forearm after being hit by a hammer and developed compartment syndrome.

Lev, in "The Last of Us," is a trans character born as "Lily" in a Seraphite community in Seattle, with an older sister named Yara. He questioned Seraphite traditions and, when assigned to marry an older man, decided to embrace his male identity at the age of 13, shaving his head and changing his name to Lev. This decision led to his expulsion from the community, along with his sister, who accompanied him in his escape. At 16, he returned to Seattle with Abby, Yara, Ellie, and Joel.

Personality: Lev is serious and pessimistic. Hardened by the cruel world he lives in, Lev is a capable fighter and killer. Despite this, Lev displays moments of wonder and innocence indicative of his age, such as stubbornly trying to get close to his mother despite Yara's warnings and convincing Abby not to kill the pregnant Dina. He is also protective of those he loves, seeing it as his duty to care for his family. Despite being ostracized by the Seraphites, Lev retains many elements of his culture: he avoids "Old World" technology whenever possible, refers to the infected as "demons," quotes many of their teachings, maintains his faith in his religion, and even prays before one of their shrines to his prophet while traveling with Abby. However, his faith is shaken by his mother's death. His knowledge of the outside world is limited by his upbringing, demonstrated by his ignorance of puns, slang, and backgammon, although he has begun to swear under Abby's influence.

Appearance: He is a transgender man who was born female but identifies as male. He is known to be an Asian teenager with black hair and brown eyes, and stands 5'4". Lev is a member of the Seraphites, but later joins Abby and becomes an ally of Ellie and Joel. His hair was shaved before Santa Barbara, but it eventually grew back. He has two scars on the side of his mouth that run to his temple.

She also struggles to defeat opponents when surprised, such as when she needed Lev to intervene when attacked by a knife-wielding Dina, when she was ambushed by Tommy and Yara came to her aid, and when she previously needed assistance when a Seraphite brute nearly strangled her to death in Haven. Furthermore, her time as a Rattler hostage caused much of her muscular physique and strength to degrade. However, even in her weakened state, she still held her own against a weakened Ellie and had enough strength to bite off parts of Ellie's fingers. Ultimately, Ellie managed to hold Abby underwater, but Abby only survived when an emotionally devastated Ellie decided to spare her.

Relationships: Lev: Because Abby and Lev were on opposite sides of the conflict between the WLF and the Seraphites, they were enemies without knowing each other personally. When Abby was about to be hanged by the Seraphites, Lev hesitated to help her, as she was a member of the WLF, but was convinced by his sister, Yara, to help, as both siblings were also being hunted by the Seraphites. Although no longer a concern to her, Abby took it upon herself to help Lev treat Yara, who had a broken forearm, and embarked on a journey to gather medical supplies to safely amputate the arm. During this time, Abby and Lev got to know each other and bonded over their shared fear of death, as Lev helped Abby overcome her fear of heights and Abby stopped calling him "Scar" and used the preferred term "Seraphite." Yara: Yara and Abby met under traumatic circumstances. Abby is grateful to Yara for saving her life. Initially on opposite sides of their warring factions, their friendship began with cautious trust, with Abby learning about the Seraphites through her. Abby later takes responsibility for Yara's well-being, seeking medical supplies to amputate her arm.

Her most impressive physical feat is her ability to outmaneuver multiple pursuers, known for their swift movements and above-average strength, while defending Lev and Yara in the Seattle woods. She could also outmaneuver and defeat other WLF soldiers and easily subdue Ellie in hand-to-hand combat, despite Ellie stabbing her. Abby also managed to defeat Tommy Miller, an individual once infamous among the Fireflies for his fighting proficiency, in combat, albeit with the help of Yara, who prevented Tommy from pushing Abby over a pier when she was subdued by him. Abby also displayed skill in stealth, able to sneak up on Ellie and defeat her in a fight, despite possessing a shotgun, bow, pistol, and setting numerous traps while fighting her. She could also maneuver her way through the rubble to avoid Tommy as he attempted to shoot her and Manny Alvarez. Like Joel, she can perform fatal chokeholds by breaking enemies' necks and is proficient in the use of various combat styles and weapons of her own creation. She can use several firearms with skill. She is so skilled that Isaac made her one of his highest-ranking soldiers, entrusting her with leading the first wave of the attack on Seraphite Island. Her reaction time is lightning fast, allowing her to quickly shoot Jesse in the head as he ran into a room. Her most impressive feat in combat was her ability to single-handedly defeat an infected Rat King while trapped in the basement of the Seattle hospital. To date, she is the only known person capable of doing so and surviving. Despite her incredible strength and resilience, Abby can still be overwhelmed by many enemies and those possessing greater strength than her.

It is only after she befriends Lev that this dark exterior begins to fade and is replaced by a more compassionate side, demonstrated in how she restrained herself from nearly killing Dina when Ellie told her she was pregnant, ashamed of herself for nearly killing Dina in front of Lev. Months later, Abby no longer held a grudge against Ellie. Instead, she became humble and benevolent, prioritizing her goal of protecting Lev and fighting Ellie only when she threatened him.

Appearance: Before Santa Barbara Abby is a tall woman in her early twenties with dark blonde hair (which she kept braided in a fishtail for most of her youth and early adulthood), pale, freckled skin, and blue eyes. Although she had a fairly normal build during her time as Firefly, her thirst for revenge led her to develop a solid, muscular build while a soldier in the WLF, making her easily identifiable to others. After her second encounter with Ellie, Abby is left with a series of scars on her face and ears, given to her by Dina.

Appearance: After Santa Barbara After being captured and enduring months of slave labor at the hands of the Rattlers, Abby lost a lot of muscle mass, her hair was cut short, and her skin was severely sunburned.

Skills From a young age, the Fireflies and the WLF trained Abby to become a capable soldier. Her extensive training resulted in a muscular and toned physique that allowed her to perform incredible feats of strength, such as breaking bones and crushing skulls. She also demonstrated ferocious prowess in fistfights, to the point where she could take on multiple individuals at once and even knock her opponents unconscious with a few well-placed blows. She could even defeat individuals larger than herself in physical combat, notably knocking a sledgehammer-wielding Seraphite to the ground.

Abby is a hardened but emotionally conflicted young woman. After her father's death and the dissolution of the Fireflies, Abby distanced herself from her friends, such as Owen and Mel, to achieve her personal goal of murdering Marlene. She became a stoic and direct soldier to achieve this. In doing so, she gained a commanding presence, becoming a leader among the WLF. However, this also meant she became serious, rarely smiling and gaining a direct and rigid nature. She also exemplifies her more distorted perspectives in how she tortured and killed Seraphites because she saw them as immoral. She can also be quite hypocritical and self-righteous at times, berating Owen for wanting to abandon the WLF and go to Santa Barbara to find the Fireflies, only for Owen to call her out for doing the same thing, leaving and killing Marlene. Despite her cold nature, Abby is not devoid of humanity, as she has demonstrated dissatisfaction and guilt, especially when Lev and Yara question her about why she helped them, though she doesn't say why she feels guilty. When speaking with Owen, Abby laments that she is no longer who she believed herself to be, believing her kindness has been lost, with Owen reflecting that they both "stopped looking for the light" after leaving the Fireflies. Realizing she had abandoned her Firefly sense of morality by joining the WLF, she has another dream about her father, except that instead of entering the operating room and finding him dead as in her nightmares, she enters and finds him smiling at her, indicating that she has finally overcome her father's death, not by killing Marlene, but by helping those she cared about. Another example of her psychological improvement is her display of guilt over how her selfish actions fractured her relationship with Mel.

However, her ex-boyfriend, Owen, disappears during an investigation into the group known as the Seraphites, a fanatical cult at war with the WLF, beginning a new journey for Abby. During her search, Abby is captured and forced to witness Yara, a young woman who escaped the Seraphites cult, being tortured. Eventually, Yara manages to escape with her brother Lev, freeing Abby in the process. Abby then finds Owen and learns that he plans to travel to Santa Barbara, California, to be part of the Fireflies' regrouping. She decides to return to Yara and Lev, seeking medical supplies to treat Yara's arm, which unfortunately requires amputation. When the WLF attack the Seraphite village just as Lev went to talk to his mother, his mother is killed when Lev tries to defend himself from her attacks, falling and hitting his head on the corner of the table. After being found by Abby and Yara, Yara ends up killing Isaac, the WLF leader, while they flee the island. When they return to the aquarium, Abby finds Owen dead alongside his current girlfriend—who was pregnant—Mel. Seeking revenge once again, she finds the camp of Ellie and the other perpetrators of this crime. Abby seriously injures Tommy and Joel, and finds Jesse, but spares Dina when she discovers she is pregnant. Abby flees with Lev and Yara to Santa Barbara in search of the Fireflies, but encounters the Rattlers, a criminal group that has been capturing and enslaving the survivors.

After many months of torture, a weakened Abby is freed by Ellie and Joel, who still wants revenge. Abby no longer has the strength to do so, so Ellie decides to threaten to kill Lev and Yara to force her enemy into the fight. As expected, Abby is defeated, but Ellie and Joel decide to spare her from death in the final moments. But before Abby leaves, she offers to help Ellie and Joel. In the end, Ellie, Joel, Abby, Lev, and Yara return to Seattle.

The three arrive back at the barracks, and the remaining WLF soldiers secure their position from the infected. Tommy, Marlene, and Joel thank the soldiers for their hospitality and introduce themselves, but the tone quickly changes. Abby suddenly shoots Marlene in the leg with a shotgun, and the other soldiers subdue Tommy and Joel. Marlene asks Abby what she wanted, and Abby tells her to guess, but Marlene refuses, telling her to just say whatever she wants and get it over with, much to her anger. Abby orders Mel to put a tourniquet on Marlene's leg, while she grabs a golf club and starts beating Marlene with it, telling her she can't hasten her death. Eventually, Ellie arrives, but the others quickly subdue her. Owen, worried about the entire town coming after them, tells Abby to get it over with so they can retreat. Ignoring Ellie's pleas, Abby looks at the severely beaten Marlene and hits her head with the golf club, killing her. While the others debate whether to let Ellie live or not, Owen decides to spare her because she wasn't involved, and Abby watches as Ellie is knocked unconscious. With Marlene dead and Ellie, Joel, and Tommy unconscious, the WLF soldiers leave the barracks before reinforcements arrive. Despite her successful revenge, she still suffers from constant nightmares about her father and her overwhelming guilt over killing Marlene out of revenge. Her relationship with Owen and Mel also deteriorates, as Moore distances herself from them while Mel is still shaken by her participation in Marlene's torture. Weeks later, she is awakened by Manny in the library. Manny reveals that WLF leader Isaac wants the pair to go to the WLF's Forward Operating Base (FOB) to discuss their next attack plan. Abby then got up and followed Manny to the WLF cafeteria. Manny asked her to get the food while he checked with his father.

Some time has passed, and the group heads to Jackson. They're sleeping inside a cabin, and Abby wakes to find Owen looking out the window. Owen tells her to follow him, as he has something to show her, and the two head to a higher position on the mountain. Owen shows Abby a clear view of Jackson's settlement, and she's surprised her trail has gone through. Abby is determined to interrogate the townspeople to discover Marlene's location, but Owen is uneasy about the others possibly wanting to return and Mel's pregnancy. After Owen returns to the cabin, hoping Abby will find him there, Abby decides to take the initiative and head towards one of the outposts. After being attacked by waves of Infected hiding in the snow, Abby stumbles upon horse tracks and begins tracking them. While following the horse tracks, Abby encounters a large number of Runners. Severely outnumbered, Abby desperately flees the pursuing Infected, but eventually finds herself surrounded. As she struggles with a runner, she is saved by Joel, Marlene, and Tommy, who are patrolling, and the three prepare to fight off waves of infected as they try to escape. Once they catch their breath, Tommy and Joel introduce themselves, and Abby does the same, but Marlene remains silent, and Abby simply looks at her with disgust, realizing she's hit the target of her revenge. Tommy, Marlene, and Joel realize they can't outrun the infected back to Jackson, but Abby mentions the barracks where her comrades are staying. Tommy, Marlene, and Joel agree to head there on their horses. The four arrive back at the barracks, and the remaining WLF soldiers secure their position from the infected. Tommy, Marlene, and Joel thank the soldiers for their hospitality and introduce themselves, but the tone quickly changes. Abby suddenly shoots Marlene in the leg with a shotgun, and the other soldiers subdue Tommy and Joel.

She then reveals that she's found the location of Joel's brother Tommy, a settlement in Jackson County near Wyoming. Abby wants to see the clue pass, but Owen tries to convince her that the clue might be useless. She manages to convince the others to go along; she also gets the approval of leader Isaac Dixon to send so many people out of the base, much to Owen's surprise. They then look at the Ferris wheel in the distance as the screen fades to black.

It's revealed that Owen survived the jump and found "something incredible." She then follows him to what he found. It turns out to be an aquarium. They swim a little further and explore their surroundings, making several observations. They find a "fish theater" and a makeshift dock made from a sailboat. They go inside and find some drawings made by a child. The two then continue exploring the aquarium and find a large room filled with replicas of sea animals. They climb the stairs and meet the boat's captain, now a skeleton holding a letter. It's revealed that the children ran away to join the Seraphites, leaving their father to die. Owen finds the boat's keys, and they finally find a large room surrounded by sea animals that are still alive. Abby and Owen then kiss before stopping. She is still filled with hatred towards Marlene, who helped Joel save Ellie and who killed her father, and they tell her that all her leads are dead. Some time later, Abby returned to the aquarium to find Owen there, and the aquarium was filled with lights and music. They continued walking around until Abby found a purple hoop. Owen gave her the hoop and a time limit to take down ten targets. She managed to take them all down, and Abby convinced Owen to write her name on the board because he was afraid Mel would find out he was with her. They headed to a large room filled with Christmas decorations and a beautiful view of the city. They sat on the couch and had a drink before Abby found some stockings nearby.

Past During the events of the first game, Ellie is already at St. Mary's Hospital, where members of the Fireflies are testing her. Meanwhile, Abby is searching for her father, Jerry, where she finds a zebra caught in a wire. While Jerry and Owen restrain the zebra, Abby releases the zebra. The zebra runs away to reunite with its calf. Owen informs Jerry that they have captured Ellie.

While Jerry and Marlene debate whether or not to kill Ellie to cure the infected, Abby enters with food for her father. After Jerry agrees to kill Ellie, Abby presents him with a scenario if she were in Ellie's place. Later, alarms sound in the hospital, and Abby watches, armed with a gun. Abby rushes to the operating room where her father is. To her dismay, Abby sees her father lying on the floor, bleeding to death. Owen comforts Abby when she breaks down at the sight of her deceased father.

Seattle Two years later, Abby has managed to overcome her father's death with Owen's help. However, she can't let go of everything and wants to avenge her father at some point in her life. Owen tries to maintain Abby's humanity by making her happy and diverting her mind from her quest for revenge, but he can never get it out of her head. Owen brings Abby to a Seattle aquarium after the now-defunct Fireflies form the Washington Liberation Front and establish their headquarters in the city's stadium. Owen is able to keep Abby happy during her time at the aquarium, even sharing a kiss during their bonding time.

The Last of Us Part II Months later, Owen and Abby are on a Ferris wheel in Seattle. Owen rocks the cabin, and Abby begs him to stop. She doesn't want to look at the view near the edge of the cabin. She makes excuses about why she doesn't want to sit near the edge, but ends with Owen telling her he's always loved her and jumping off the cabin into the water.