Resident Evil Series Fan Fiction ❯ Tenebrae ❯ An Enforced Distance ( Chapter 8 )

The helicopters arrived in the dawn, disturbing the air with the steady chop of their blades. The familiar noise woke Leon from the first peaceful sleep he had been able to have in what felt like years, despite the entire gamut of events running merely a little more than two days. The whirring craft headed straight to the piers where Saddler had met his end, and Leon suspected he had something else to thank Ada for.

Stretching his legs with a fair amount of pain, Leon carefully extracted himself from Ashley’s arms, moving out from under the rock they had spent the night beneath huddling together from the cold. Reaching into one of the back cases on his tactical belt, he extracted a flare and ran to the center of the rock. Thumbing the cap, he ignited it and sent the first fireball shooting into the sky.

The screech of the flare shocked Ashley to wakefulness and she opened her eyes, confused and not yet fully awake. “Leon?†Her arms unconsciously felt the still warm space next to her. “Leon, where are you?â€

“Here,†He shouted. When she emerged from their makeshift sleeping area he pointed towards the twin choppers. “I think that’s our ride.â€

The way her face lit up made something inside him quiver, and parasites had nothing to do with it. With the morning breeze ruffling her hair and her eyes bright against the dawning sun he thought she had never looked more beautiful. The kiss- they hadn’t talked about it. But they would, he resolved. Whatever this was, he wasn’t willing to let it slip away.

The team of helicopters roared over their small spit of land, lashing the water with waves of disturbed air. One of them centered itself over the top, its side door sliding away while the other flew in a circular waiting pattern. Several men and a harness were quickly and efficiently lowered to the rocky soil, running to the two survivors with the dim rattle of equipment. From their uniforms Leon recognized them as Marines. He noticed they were wearing full body gear, including filter masks.

“Miss Graham,†The lead soldier shouted over the chopper blades, his voice muffled from the headgear. “Come with us please, this way.â€

Ashley reluctantly followed as the men formed up around her, swiftly moving her towards the waiting harness. She threw a worried look over her shoulder. “Wait, what about Leon?â€

As if remembering Leon’s presence the soldier turned to shout back at him. “The other chopper is for you Agent, you’ll be debriefed when we reach the carrier.â€

Leon nodded and waved them off, but Ashley stubbornly dug in her heels. “No he’s my bodyguard, he needs to go with us!â€

The soldier shook his head, firmly taking her arm again. “The other chopper is for him ma’am, we have orders to extract you immediately. Please get into the harness so we can take you up.â€

“But I need him to come with us-“

“Maâ€͐ 2;am you’re going to be transferred to Marine One on arrival, he won’t be going with you. Please, get in the harness.â€

“I am not going anywhere without Leon-“

Reaching forward the soldier grabbed her arms and pulled her towards the waiting harness. “Apologies ma’am but we need to hurry. Please get in the harness, now.â€

Ashley struggled against his implacable grip, trying to brace herself against the ground. “Leon!â€

The sight of her being dragged away coupled with her screaming, and instantly a thousand terrible images flashed through Leon’s mind of what was and what might have been. All rational thought was burned away by her cries for help.

Rushing forward Leon knocked the soldier away from her, pulling her back towards him. “Don’t you fucking touch her!â€

Immediately the surrounding troops shoved Leon away, some even bringing their weapons up uncertainly. The commander recovered and looked at Leon incredulously. “Step back Agent, I’m not going to warn you again-“

“No!â€< /i> Ashley screamed over all of them. She sat down, glaring at the men. “I am not moving from this spot unless Leon is going with me, and if you try to move me yourself you can be sure my father is going to hear about it!â€

Helplessly, the soldier in charge looked up to the hovering chopper door. The man in charge of the winch raised his arms in a ‘don’t know’ gesture, then pointed to his helmet comset and shook his head. The commander sighed. “Alright Miss Graham. Get in the harness and we’ll take him up next.â€

Still Ashley refused. “I don’t think so. You send him up first.â€

Jaw set in frustration the commander silently relented, motioning for Leon to strap himself into the harness. Leon stood, looking at Ashley questioningly. Uncharacteristically she revealed nothing, turning her head away. Now severely impatient, the troops pulled him over to the harness.

On his way up, Leon took opportunity of his altitude to survey the destruction of the island. Smoke still rose from some parts of it, the surrounding water churned muddy with rubble. Little was left of the plant that had once stood there.

Once Ashley was also safely onboard and the Marines were seated, the helicopter set off again, followed closely by the second one. Leon leaned forward, yelling a question to the commander. “What’s our destination?â€

“The USS Peregrine,†The Marine shouted back. “It’s currently stationed north of the Mar De Alboran, ETA two hours.â€

Leon nodded, settling back in his seat. Something heavy landed against his shoulder- when he looked down he discovered it was Ashley’s head, her blonde hair falling gently to cover him. Leaning down, he put his mouth close to her ear.

“What was that all about?†He asked her. She raised her head to meet his confused gaze. With a small smile, she shrugged, leaning close to his ear to answer.

“A little paranoid I guess. Hey, it’s not like I don’t have good reasons to be.â€

He had to give her that one. Resting her head back on his shoulder, Ashley fell silent. He followed suit, closing his eyes to the curious gazes of the Marines.