There are four stages of infection; discover the details behind each one of them!
‘The Last of Us’, the HBO series that adapts the story of the game of the same name created in 2013 by Bruce Straley and Neil Druckmannfollows the cold-blooded smuggler, Joel, after being recruited to escort Ellie out of the military quarantine zone, since the girl is the only human who was exposed to the zombie parasite and survived, thus being able to contribute to the cure of the fungus mutation Cordyceps that infected the earth 20 years ago.
Mysteriously, two decades ago Cordyceps transformed a large part of the population into its hosts, as those infected by the fungus act violently and become transmission agents that pass the parasite from one body to another through bites — or even for a kiss, as shown in the second episode of the series.
Still, there are different stages of the infection that transform the host’s body, hone its abilities, and define it as a threat to human life. For this reason, we have listed and explained below each of the phases in which the body becomes infected by the fungus that transforms the infected into zombies.
Runners
Runners are those who have had the fungus on their body for a day or two. The newly infected still have a human appearance and as the name already explains, this phase of the infection makes the hosts extremely fast, although they are easy to eliminate, since a shot in the head is enough to kill them.
Stalkers
The second level of infection corresponds to Persecutors, the humans that host Cordyceps for a maximum of one year. Here, the infected are more agile and lie in wait, usually hiding in dark places before attacking their victims.
Clickers
After a year, those infected pass to the third stage of infection, where they are called Clickers. At this stage, the fungus has already spread to a good part of the body, even expanding outside the host’s head, which in this way loses sight. However, their hearing is improved and through echolocation they move around places and find their victims.
In addition, due to the level of fungal exposure, Clickers are resistant to melee combat and simple firearms, making them the main threats present in the universe of ‘The Last of Us’.
Puffer fish
Introduced as the final stage of the infection in the first game, Puffers are the ones that have had the fungus so long that their bodies swell. Here, the hosts move with greater difficulty, however, their body produces infectious spore bombs that can be launched at their enemies and which also serve as armor, since they do not allow the bullets to pierce the skin.
In addition, the fungi that cover the entire body of the infected make them vulnerable to fire, that is, to defeat the Pufferfish, Molotov cocktails, nails and flamethrowers must be used.
Source: Recreio
