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“Over here!” Luis shouts as they burst through the doors to the laboratory, locking it behind him as Leon staggers towards the gleaming metal chair in the centre of the room, his breaths harsh and laboured from the parasite blooming in his chest. Luis grits his teeth, moving quickly over to the computer screen beside the device, several menacing metallic arms hovering overhead.
“Sit down,” he instructs, but Leon shakes his head, already in the process of laying Ashley’s limp form on the padded seat.
“Ashley first.” His voice is rasping and strained in the silent room. Dark veins cover his skin like some grotesque map, his face pale and sickly underneath. Luis wants to argue, a frown crossing his face as he takes in the way Leon’s knees are beginning to buckle, but there’s no time for deliberation.
“No,” Ashley protests weakly. Luis honestly didn’t realize she was still conscious. Leon takes her hand in his own with a murmured promise to keep her safe, and Luis doesn’t miss the way his fingers are trembling, sharp spasms that reach all the way up his forearm. This needs to happen fast if there’s any chance of stopping the parasite. Luis fires up the computer, the machine rotating with the hum of well-oiled metal as the arms begin to descend. Leon leans heavily on the edge of the chair, concern obvious in his glassy eyes.
“Try to relax,” Luis says, eyeing the arms as they begin to glow. “This will not be pleasant.” No sooner has he spoken when Ashley screams, clutching the grips attached to the chair with a jolt, her back arching away from the cracked leather. Leon winces, holding tight to her hand. Luis watches grimly as the girl writhes in the agony he knows she’s feeling, the screen at his side beeping steadily as the parasite is purged from her chest.
It feels like forever before the machine finally dies down.
Ashley slumps to the side, unconscious, and Luis feels relief as the computer chimes pleasantly. He knew his machine worked—had tested it himself—but some small part of him still worried that the effects would be inconsequential on someone so far into the process of infection. He glances up at Leon, who smiles faintly, looking between Luis and Ashley with a boyish triumph that Luis can’t help but to find endearing.
A split-second later, Leon’s eyes roll up into his head and he collapses, the Kevlar of his vest clicking against the metal grating.
“Leon!” Luis cries, leaping from his seat as he skirts the machine to kneel at Leon’s side. He’s unresponsive when Luis guides him onto his back, eyelids fluttering as Luis takes his pulse. It’s there, weak and thready; but it’s accompanied by a strange thrum somewhere deeper in his body, a buzzing current that sends electric adrenaline down Luis’s spine.
The parasite. It’s so close to taking him over.
With deft hands, Luis unstraps the bulletproof vest, cursing colorfully in Spanish as he feels the damp sweat soaking Leon’s shirt. He stands, stepping over Leon’s prone form to scoop Ashley up from her place on the chair. He takes her across the lab, placing her gently on the paper-strewn desktop as she stirs, ignoring her confused groan in favor of rushing back to Leon.
It takes more time than he’d like, to lift Leon into the medical chair, precious seconds sliding away with the effort Luis exerts. Leon is surprisingly light but still well-built, and Luis is panting as he settles his heavy limbs into place. The computer is already prepared and Luis all but slams the button, holding his breath as the procedure begins. His jacket feels suddenly too tight, and he pulls it off, tossing the worn leather over the back of his chair.
Leon remains unmoving the entire time. His hands hang limp over the sides of the chair, bloodied and dirty.
“Hang in there, Cowboy,” Luis mutters as the glow of the machine fades, pushing the arms to the side before they have time to fully pull back. He sweeps a strand of damp hair from the side of Leon’s face, cradling the agent’s lolling head as he feels for a pulse with his other hand. Leon’s skin is hot under his, slick with sweat, and for a moment Luis can’t find the beat of his heart. “No, no, no. Come on, Leon.”
Leon’s eyelids flutter, his eyes unfocused and dazed as they find Luis’s face.
“Ashley?” he manages, anxious.
“She’s alright, she’s here. How are you feeling?”
“Like a million bucks.” Leon’s voice is dry as his eyes slide shut, his hand lifting to clutch at Luis’s forearm. He tries to sit up, but Luis pushes him back down, gently pressing him against the padded seat.
“Easy. Let me get you something that will help to restore your strength.” Luis tests the heat of Leon's forehead with the back of a hand, pleased when Leon leans into his touch with a soft sigh. His body is much cooler, now, and Luis is relieved to see color returning to the pallor of his face. He crosses the room to find Ashley sitting up on the desk, eyes wide and blue as she swings her feet over the edge.
“Is he—?”
“He’ll be alright,” Luis promises, rummaging through a cupboard for the vials he needs. A few essential fluids and decent painkillers should be enough to keep Leon going until he can escape the island. Luis would give Ashley a pick-me-up, too, but judging by the way she throws herself across the room and into Leon’s arms, she’s already feeling a lot better. Luis finds an extra pair of glasses on the counter, slipping them on to better make out the tiny labels on the vials.
Leon glances up as Luis approaches, a weary smile on his face. Luis holds his syringe aloft, already siphoning clear liquid from one of the bottles into its barrel. Leon grimaces, holding out a willing forearm, the dark veins that once covered it now barely visible. Ashley sidles to the side as she catches sight of him, running one last hand down Leon's cheek before she flounces off towards the bulletin board in the corner. Leon looks after with a fondness that makes Luis's heart ache. He pushes the emotion to the side, amusement playing across his face as he swipes an alcohol pad over Leon's pale forearm. It comes away caked in dirt.
“I didn’t know you wore glasses,” Leon says, looking away as the needle enters his skin. Luis smirks, carefully depressing the plunger before removing the syringe to grab for another vial.
“I don’t, but I figured I’d want to know what I was injecting you with.” It might be a wry joke, considering the method used to insert the plagas parasite, but Leon still huffs out a laugh.
“Gee, thanks.”
Ashley wanders around the lab as Luis rounds out his cocktail of painkillers and antibiotics, lifting a piece of red-marked paper from the desk with curiosity.
“Is this the way out?”
“Sure is,” Luis says, pressing a small scrap of gauze over a spot on Leon’s arm that’s begun to bleed, turning away as Leon slowly rises from the chair. He tucks his glasses into a drawer under the computer, knowing he’ll never see them again but finding it necessary to keep his workspace organized. Leon’s already joined Ashley at the edge of the lab, glancing back with a soft smile that makes Luis’s heart pang.
“Alright, Americans,” he drawls, sliding his coat back on with a flourish. He grins. “Let’s go find out how to run away from this place. I've had more adventure than a knight can handle.”
Based on this art by @lulila-safu on tumblr! Thanks for reading!