Sorry for slowness... I can't think of a good excuse, so I'll just blame it on school. You know it sucks BIG TIME. Thanks to the people who were beautiful and reviewed.

Warnings: Kinda-sex, VERY SLIGHT blood play for you kinky buggers, gore gore gore, and general depressive-ness.

Enjoy!

Salazar continued to glare at Leon, leaving the decimated corpse of his lover to stride over to the table where the agent lay. Leon tried to get up, to move away from the malicious little man, but found that his entire body seemed to be paralyzed from the neck down. He tried unsuccessfully to move each of his limbs, rolling his head around in the hopes that they were simply asleep. Salazar stared down at him, smirking, his hands coming to rest on the side of the table.

"Mr. Kennedy. I trust you have healed well enough to listen to the rest of what I have to say, and your head is not too severely damaged for me to continue."

Leon gargled something that could have been 'yes', 'no' or possibly 'fuck off'. The ache in his head was slowly receding, and the light above him seemed dimmer. However, his arms and legs would still not move. Salazar chuckled devilishly, watching as Leon foolishly strained, the agent's face going red with effort.

"That's a little something we gave you to make you less...feisty. It should wear off in a couple of hours, but by then, we'll have everything we want from you."

Want from me...?

"What? What the hell do you want?" Leon choked, feeling panic begin to set in. Mendez' slumped and bloodied head was turned in his direction, the half-closed single eye gazing almost accusingly at him. Salazar smirked again, and Leon had a distinct impression that the Castallan was enjoying his ignorance. However, in a split-second, the smile vanished and a dark look crossed Salazar's face.

"Mr. Kennedy, do you have any idea of what your Plaga is capable of? Do you even know why the great Lord Saddler gave you it? Gave you it, instead of someone who understood and could use its powers properly?" Salazar snarled, and Leon wondered once again how someone so small and annoying could turn into a rather chilling authoritative figure that could make even a stoic man cringe. Yet, he decided to let the man know that he wasn't going to let himself be intimidated. Saddler would come for him, or something would turn up, it always did.

"Because he likes me? Do you really think that if those villagers and your...boyfriend hadn't started chasing me with axes and pitchforks, that I would have shot them anyway?" That question earned him a slap, and Salazar hissed in reply. He then composed himself, walking away from Leon towards Mendez. "You took something away from me Mr. Kennedy. Now I'll take something from you."

-------------------------------------------------------

Saddler was panicking. It had been about two hours since he left his bedchamber in the pursuit of Leon, and he had seen neither hide nor hair of the man. He had checked about half the castle, and, if all else failed, was not looking forward to venturing into the mines. Rounding a corner, he nearly walked straight into Luis, the researcher moodily trudging along with his eyes to the floor. When he saw Saddler, he started in terror for a brief moment, backing away a little. Saddler very nearly snarled at him, but managed to keep himself from doing anything that might scare Luis away. They stared at each other before Saddler coughed slightly.

"Do you know where Leon is?" He asked, trying not to sound like he despised the researcher too much. Luis gave him a disgusted look.

"Why? Too hard to keep track of your whore?"

Saddler blinked, on the verge of impaling Luis again for his audacity. He gritted his teeth, trying to restrain himself, and repeated the question. Luis just shrugged. "Eating, last time I saw him. Check the dining room." Saddler shook his head. "Already did..." Luis pushed past him, walking back the way Saddler had come. "Well, then I don't know where he is," he snarled over his shoulder. "I'm not his fucking maid."

The priest watched him go, wondering about the Spaniard's open hostility. Shaking his head, he entered a door to his left, the heavy metal creaking with age. He tutted, making a mental note to talk to Salazar about restoring the castle, although he doubted the younger man would agree. Salazar had never been too fond of change. Walking a little further down the corridor, the priest was so engrossed in his thoughts of Leon, that he failed to notice the blood on the floor until he almost slipped over in it.

"What...?"

He knelt down, touching a finger to a small, almost-dry puddle of the blood. There were similar pools on the floor nearby. Sniffing the congealing blood and then swiping it over his tongue, Saddler was sent reeling into a flashback.

Saddler clutched Leon to his chest desperately. It was strange how the human could have such a profound effect on him. Fingers wound through his hair, pulling his head until his lips were pressed against the skin of that gorgeous, bared neck. He bit down, breaking through skin and sucking on the warm blood that welled from the wound, listening to the moans and gasps that the agent was so good at making. The liquid was sweet and metallic, exactly the thing that Leon knew brought out the predator in Saddler. He pushed the priest away, bringing a hand to his bloody neck and trailing it down his own stomach, watching as Saddler eagerly followed with his mouth.

Saddler stood up, eyes glinting. This was Leon's blood. Something had happened, something bad. The blood trail was smeared on the floor, whoever did this not bothering to cover their tracks. Saddler growled with rage, and began following the trail, vowing that when he found the person who had hurt Leon, he would make them suffer in the worst way he could possibly think of...

-------------------------------------------------------

Ada swooped elegantly through the open window, terrifying Luis who had the impression of a sharp(and completely inappropriate for the situation) high-heeled shoe almost connecting with his head. He ducked, watching as the fluttering red dress fell back around the woman's legs, obstructing his view of he thighs. He gave a disappointed sign, nothing seemed to be going his way today. At least, not yet.

"Señorita," he greeted her, trademark cocky smile pasted on his face. She seemed unimpressed, holstering her grapple gun and taking a small case out of her pocket.

"Mr. Cool." Luis grinned. He liked that. "So, what have you got for me?" Ada opened the small case, revealing a syringe and several small vials of the liquid that Luis had collected earlier. "A vaccine?"

"A cure." She watched as the Spaniard studied the substance curiously. "More effective and less painful than your electric chair. This will cure a host of any Las Plagas in their system, but we only have a limited amount. So the top two Luis. And just to make sure they don't try anything again-" she held out a concealed handgun to the researcher. "Shoot them. Saddler and the short guy." Luis took the gun apprehensively.

"And Leon?"

She turned to the window, grappling gun at the ready. "Leave him to me. Wesker's orders." Luis glared at the case in his hand. "Just how am I supposed to get close enough to use this?" Ada sighed.

"No idea. Run up to them and give them a cuddle? That stuff works pretty fast, so they should be human before they realise what's going on."

"And should the worst happen?" Ada didn't look at him, just adjusted the angle on the grappling gun. She fired, hitting an opposite wall. "Then I'll be back one last time, with a shiny red button at my disposal."

Before Luis could reply, Ada was gone; sailing through the window and into the dark like a red moth. She flipped onto the roof, dress flapping, and then disappeared. Luis snorted quietly at the theatrics.

"Women..." He glanced at the case again, and then looked back to the way he had come. "All right Saddler, let's see you get out of this one."

-------------------------------------------------------

Oh shit.

As soon as Salazar turned around, Leon's attention was immediately directed to the surgeon's scalpel held in one of his pale hands. The small man had a wicked smile on his face, and he traced his lips lightly with the blade. He then bent over Leon, running the scalpel down a cheek and drawing a thin line of blood. The American suppressed a cry of pain, glaring at Salazar, his tongue held still by his teeth.

"You are lucky I am so considerate Mr. Kennedy," Salazar breathed. "I could have just tied you down and let you feel everything. But, as generous as I am, I have decided that your last moments should be without pain. A generosity that you didn't show him." He jerked his head towards Mendez. Leon had no choice but to watch as the sharp blade descended, slicing through the shirt he was wearing and

some of the skin underneath. But, as Salazar promised, he felt nothing. Seeing the red line on his chest, the agent's breathing quickened with panic.

"Listen, I-I'm sorry, ok? But if I hadn't killed him, he-he would have killed me!" The smaller man ignored him, and began a deeper cut, the blood slowly seeping down his side. "Look, this isn't fucking fair! You can't expect me to just stand there and not defend myself against someone who was trying to choke me to death!" Leon's voice rose hysterically, he could now see the glistening exposed muscle and a blunt white object, smeared with red, that looked horribly like a rib. "Stop! STOP IT!"

Surprisingly, Salazar did stop. He stooped beside Leon's head, grabbing a fistful of hair in a small hand. His lips were right beside the agent's ear, and all Leon could see was his chest partially dissected like some kind of fucked-up school biology project. His eyes went wide even as Salazar whispered into his ear, teeth gritted as he tried to make the American understand.

"He made me happy." Salazar's voice was almost a sob, and he resumed slicing into Leon's chest more forcefully.

Although the agent couldn't feel any pain, he was aware that his harsh breathing was nothing to do with the fact that he was scared. Salazar must be near a lung, he supposed. Ribs were broken as the Castallan searched for something, white hands stained with sticky blood. The snapping noises made Leon groan, and he looked up as he heard Salazar make a small exclamation. Poking out of the hole was a tendril, a small tentacle. His Plaga.

The tendril wriggled, lashing out at Salazar. The shorter man merely giggled and clucked his tongue reprovingly. "Now now," he murmured softly, "I control you. You don't deserve to be inside this worthless human, do you?" The Plaga continued to whip its tentacle around, and Leon felt a slight pulling in his chest. It was attached to his heart in a powerful grip, digging in with spines. Removing the Plaga would mean...

Whoop-dee-fucking-do.

However, Leon still had a faint hope that Saddler would come. Something'll turn up...I didn't survive Raccoon city and all that shit to end up dying at the hands of a crazy midget...

Salazar gave a tug on the back of the parasite, and Leon screamed. Not just because he could feel the harsh pull, not because he felt the Plaga cling harder, but because now he was truly terrified. His breath wheezed as the scream trailed off, and he finally realised something.

I am going to die. He is going to rip my heart out and give it to Mendez. I won't see Saddler again...

His heart beat rapidly, and he closed his eyes, tears leaking out. It was better like this, he couldn't see the wound or feel any pain, all he could do was remember. An image flashed in font of him, Ada was standing before him, a hand on her hip, and Leon heard himself talk.

"Running off like that was stupid and reckless!"

Heh, I guess your life really does flash in front of your eyes...

Krauser now, the first time they met in training...

Hi. My name's Leon."

Leon was wide-eyed with innocence, a smile on his face. It was his first day training at the academy, and he was trying to make as many friends as possible. He was feeling rather intimidated by the muscular and beefy man training alongside him, so he was determined to get to know him before he let his fear keep him from approaching the guy in the future.

The man nodded, and Leon wondered how he kept the red beret from sliding off his head. Wisps of blonde hair peeked out from under it.

"Krauser."

Leon got the impression that the man didn't talk much. But he could respect that. For a second he stood nervously, neither of them saying anything. The bigger man finally broke the silence. "Couple of the guys are going for a drink after training. You want to come, kid?"

Leon smiled enthusiastically and nodded. He was going to like it here...

"Heh, Krauser..." He slurred aloud, the lack of blood starting to affect his brain. "Krauser! I'm sorry." Salazar gave him a strange look, and Leon sobered up slightly, watching as more tendrils were drawn from his wound.

"Didn't...not this way...I don't want to die!" He rasped, more tears flashing down his face. Salazar kept his eyes down. "Neither did Bitores," he murmured.

Leon felt a grasping pain, the Plaga refusing to leave its host. Leon closed his eyes again, slowly, and Salazar paused. "Still with me?" he asked, feigned sympathy in his voice. Leon struggled to breath, the smell of blood suddenly very noticeable. "Hurts," came the whimpered reply. Salazar just grunted impatiently, swatting away the rebellious Plaga's tentacles.

"Please...it hurts..." Leon gasped, pointlessly addressing his Plaga in a crazed panic. "Let go...stop..." The Plaga squirmed reluctantly as Salazar picked a pair of forceps off a nearby table and dug them roughly into Leon's numb wound. The resulting pain in his heart was too much and Leon moaned, wishing that someone would come and stop his agony. Everything began to fade, even when he opened his eyes, all the dim colours of the room melting into each other, creating a blurred world.

He felt he should apologise. He wasn't quite sure who to, Salazar, Saddler...himself, but he needed to say it. He cracked his lips open with effort, and managed a croaked apology. "I'm sorry. Wish I could make...make it right." A flash of pain shot through his head and he bit his tongue to stop himself from crying out.

I'm sorry love...so sorry.

He turned his eyes upwards, the cold stone ceiling consuming his view.

So sorry.

He couldn't feel any more, couldn't hear Salazar's inane chatter or the noises of flesh being stripped from his body.

So sorry.

Didn't see the door burst open.

I love you...

Ok, so I was talking out of my hat. I have no idea what would happen physically if someone had their chest cut open, because I have never had my chest cut open whilst awake.

Bit depressing though, hmm?

Anyway, please review, or I'll make you all even more depressed! I have the power! Thanks for reading.