Jason had to wonder if he was looking at an angel. Granted his vision wasn't too focused, but Jason could see the outline of a dark-skinned face. He felt a warm leather cradle his left cheek gently. "Are you awake?" His angel whispered softly. Then just like that everything cleared and he realized that he was looking at Ajay.
"urg…" Was the only thing that could leave Jason's mouth as a shit ton of pain hit him all at once. Every limb hurt, his head was pounding, and he was ninety-five percent sure that his right shoulder might have been dislocated. "Fuck..." He groaned out, he was almost ready to start vomiting. Jason breathed in and out deeply before he focused on Ajay. Ajay had a look of concern on his face his eyes were almost abnormally soft as he looked at Jason before he gently continued to caress his left cheek with his thumb. Jason didn't mind it at all. "What happened?" Jason questioned he remembered being in a jeep and a golden path ambush, but after that is all blank.
Ajay sucked in a deep breath this time around and slowly picked at a loose string hanging on his jacket. "We fell into a river..." From there Ajay told Jason everything, the Jeep sinking, Liza and Riley abandoning them, and Ajay eventually getting them out and having to hoist Jason up on a stretcher to the old Ghale homestead.
"Have you lost your mind?" Jason asked at the end of it all. "You could have died."
"Well, I wasn't going to leave you to drown!" Ajay huffed in response.
Jason gave a sudden groan as a wave of pain hit his neck, "Doesn't matter, it sounds like I'm done for anyway. Pagan is going to kill me, I can feel it. It's my fault all of this happened anyway-"
"He won't kill you," Ajay whispered softly as he changed positions to sit beside Jason this time around. "I won't let him."
"Heh. C'mon, you can't like me that much, Ajay. I mean you can always get another bodyguard."
"Yeah, but I can't replace you."
There was a heavy silence that hung in the air between the two of them as Ajay suddenly placed his hand on top of Jason's forehead. The leather from Ajay's glove was warm and honestly a little welcoming "Where are Liza and Riley?" Jason questioned once he realized that they weren't there with them.
"I sent them to get some green plants for syringes."
"Those two British-"
"I told them to leave... I think they set up camp ten feet away from the house, to be honest."
Jason gave a slow chuckle. "So, it's just the two of us?"
"For the time being. You know Jason, being with Liza and Riley for a short while made me realize... I don't know all that much about you." Ajay stood up from his spot next to Jason and started to walk around the room. Jason kept his gaze upon the ceiling for a few short heartbeats before focusing back on Ajay. Ajay had a candle in his hand was currently trying to light it up. Jason watched as the lighter in Ajay's hand clicked a few times before finally sprouting a tiny orange flame.
"Heh, what's there to tell?"
"Surely there's more to your Rook Island story. Something you're not telling that is."
Jason frowned at Ajay as he placed the, now lit, candle down on the ground. "How do you know?"
"Jason, when we first met you summed up everything in twenty seconds flat."
"Good point."
"C'mon, man-" Ajay sat beside Jason again. "-You can tell me, I won't judge." His voice as soft and honestly convincing.
Maybe it was the look of interest Ajay was giving him, or maybe it was because Jason trusted Ajay, either way, he found himself actually speaking up. "... There was a woman... Citra. She was the sister to Vaas, a crazy ass pirate..." Jason started to go through the whole story to Ajay, how Citra was the leader of the resistance towards Vaas, how Jason was 'The warrior' the island craved, how he and Citra actually fell in love with each other. Ajay stayed quiet during the whole thing as he just listened to Jason practically vent. Then came the hard part. "...Citra wanted me to kill my friends..."
"Well... at least you chose the right thing in the end-"
"-I almost didn't. I was actually... hesitant about it. In the end, yes, I untied them, but at that very moment I almost... I... it doesn't matter. I tied them down and Dennis made an attempt to kill me because I defied Citra's wishes. Citra protected me and died... then... I was no longer 'The warrior of Rook Island' I was rejected by everyone. We ran to the boat and got out of there as fast as possible..."
"Wow... just like that-"
"-Just like that everything was stripped away from me. Hell... even though I chose them, Oliver, Daisy, and Keith don't talk to me anymore. They do everything they can to avoid me actually. Only Liza and Riley bother to give me the time of day..."
"That's why you wanted to be my bodyguard... to gain back some semblance of Rook Island? To be 'The warrior' again?" Ajay softly asked Jason.
"... I think so... I just... wasn't ready to leave it all behind... does that make me pathetic?"
"I don't think so. It makes you... brave, very brave. Most people wouldn't dare try and go back to shooting guns in a war zone a second time," Ajay's eyes suddenly softened as he gently leaned down and pressed his forehead against Jason's "I'm sorry about Citra."
"Eh, don't be. I think looking back it was for the best. Something tells me I wouldn't like what she had prepared for me in the end... besides... I'm over her..." Ajay felt Jason's hand move to gently touch his own.
What happened next was just a spur of the moment decision for Ajay he didn't even hesitate he just gently planted his lips on top of Jason's. Jason kissed him back in return. For Ajay, everything just melted away as he focused on nothing else but Jason. Ajay is the adoptive son of the insane Pagan Min and rightful prince to the throne of Kyrat hasn't exactly had many moments like this. It felt nice and he couldn't be any more relieved that Jason accepted him for it as well. Finally, the two broke apart. "So, how long have you felt this way?" Jason asked with a bit of a smirk on his lips.
"Honestly? Earlier. I thought I had lost you in that crash and feared the worst then, just like that, it hit me... you?"
"A while ago... I hallucinated that you kissed me and... well... you aren't a skeleton right?"
Ajay chuckled softly. "Nope, I'm the real deal." To prove it Ajay gave Jason another kiss on the lips however, Jason let out a loud gasp of pain causing Ajay to back up.
"Shit! Sorry... My ribs..." Jason groaned in pain.
"Right... I need to go and check on Liza and Riley about those syringes!" Ajay quickly stood from his spot.
"Yes, please..." Jason gritted his teeth in pain. Ajay turned and got ready to walk out of the door, he was upstairs in his parent's old bedroom, he figured that would be the best place to place Jason as the downstairs was currently littered with old syringes by Yogi and Reggie. However, when Ajay opened the bedroom door and Immediately, as well as unexpectantly, kicked some green plants that were sitting in front of the door. He instantly got suspicious and raised an eyebrow. 'Who left these here?' Ajay thought as he bent down and grabbed the plants. 'More importantly... who was eavesdropping?' tsking his tongue against the roof of his mouth Ajay wanted to go and investigate, but... He turned his head towards Jason, who was still clearly in pain. 'Jason first...' He decided before shutting the door.
Liza gave a loud scream as she proceeded to chuck rocks off of the cliff. "Fucking... ass!" She yelled with each rock she threw, her voice echoed around the canyon no doubt scaring the local wildlife as several birds went flying from their spots in the trees. "I gave you everything! Why is it never enough!?" Liza screamed at the top of her lungs, her throat itched as her vocal cords stretched. She felt intense anger towards Jason.
"Liza?" Came Riley's voice from behind her. Liza didn't even look at him, no, she couldn't bring herself to look at him. Instead, she just looked out at the tall trees and beautiful landscape.
"Eh! Lass, are you trying to alert the Golden Path of our location?" Came Yogi's irritated voice.
"Liza, just tell me what's wrong, please?" Riley came up beside her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. Liza found herself shrugging it off with an angry huff.
"Your dumbass brother, that's what's wrong. I gave up so much for him, he couldn't even be happy for me when I got that acting tryout! I... I still love him! Of course, I still love him! I wouldn't have traveled to this third world country else wise!-" Liza put the palm of her hand against her head before squeezing her eyes shut and giving out a soft sob. "-But clearly... he doesn't feel the same way... not anymore..." She tried to blink the tears away, but they just kept coming falling from her eyes and on to her cheeks. Liza gave out another shuddered breath before shaking her head.
"What happened? What did he say?"
"He... it's not what he said... Riley... he kissed Ajay!"
"-The prince? Like we're talking about the same Ajay Ghale here, right?" Yogi asked currently interrupting their moment.
"Yeah!" Liza threw her hands up in the air irritably at Yogi.
"No, fuckin' way! That's... actually pretty insane! Whew! I reckon that bodyguard doesn't have much longer to live now!"
Liza and Riley looked at each before back at Yogi. "What do you mean?" Riley was the one to ask uneasily at the obvious ominous threat.
"Well, Ajay's father, the king, is insanely protective of Ajay-"
"-Insanely? Try more like borderline unhealthily protective of Ajay." Reggie suddenly came into the picture. "That's the whole reason we even agreed to help, you know? Ajay threatened to tell Pagan about us drugging him."
"Oh, Please. He can't be that protective of Ajay. I mean... He wouldn't kill Jason over... he couldn't... he hired Jason!" Liza gave an uneasy laugh at the two.
Reggie gave a shrug, "You really don't know much about Pagan Min, do you?"
"Shouldn't it be Pagan Ghale?" Riley suddenly asked almost cutting Reggie off. Reggie and Yogi looked at each other before giving out loud laughs.
"Oh, boy, Chav! You shouldn't be saying that out loud! That'll get you shot by Pagan himself!" Yogi slapped his own knee, he had a big ol' grin on his face. "Pagan Ghale! Can you believe it, Reggie!" Reggie, however, stopped laughing once he realized they weren't laughing with them. Instead, he just nudged Yogi.
"Mate... I don't think they know..."
Both of them then mirrored each other movements with their hands on their chins as they looked at Liza and Riley's still confused faces. "Don't know what?" Liza slowly pried them for more information.
"Ajay isn't Pagan's real son. Pagan adopted him-"
"-What... what did he find him as an orphan?" Liza pried more but she was only met with shrugs from the duo.
"Well, we dunno the whole story-" Yogi started but Reggie quickly finished his sentence.
"-But we do know that Ajay's real father was the one who started and lead the resistance against Pagan Min."
Once again Liza and Riley looked at each other both shared a look of befuddled confusion when Yogi and Reggie looked ready to walk away Riley was the one to ask. "Wait, what resistance is that?"
Yogi was the one to laugh cruelly at Riley in turn. "Are you daft? The Golden Path of course!"
"The people who were trying to kill us earlier?"
"Ya. Ajay turned them down and now Sabal wants Ajay's head on a platter."
"So, let me get this straight... Ajay is the adoptive son of Pagan, but the biological son of the man that clearly hated Pagan min? How did that work out?"
"Mate. I don't know every detail of Kyrat. I only know what I know from Noore." Yogi finished up the conversation with before walking away with Reggie.
"Oh, God... we have to stop Jason! He's going to die if he stays with Ajay!" Riley yelled quickly. "If Pagan is as insane as we've been told, oh god-"
"-No!" Liza turned her head away from Riley in a bitter fashion. "Jason clearly knows what he's getting into! He's the one who accepted the job from that psychopath, he knew the risks!"
"Liza... I know you're upset, hell,I'm upset! Jason's just being... he's just being his normal stupid Jason self right now. We have to stop him and bring him home-" Riley watched as Liza just kept her head turned towards the cliff with her nose up in the air. "-You want to know what I think? I don't think he truly likes Ajay. I think he still into Citra, and Ajay is the next best thing to him, but he needs to see that for himself."
Liza's turned just a bit at that, "You think?"
"Think about it. Citra was like... a princess, I think... right? Ajay's a prince, both are dark skinned and in need of some... 'warrior' to protect them and help fight off some opposing enemy. Only now? I think Jason might be on the wrong side-maybe-I don't know, but most 'Kings' don't get a large resistance like The Golden Path for no damn reason. From what I'm getting Pagan is a dictator and Jason blindly accepted a job."
"... What can we do?"
"I don't know, I'll think of something, I lost one brother and I really don't want to lose another."
Jason gave a low sigh of relief as Ajay stabbed him in the arm with a freshly made syringe. "Don't worry, I grabbed the needle with the least amount of blood on it." Ajay gave a half laugh at his joke.
"Haha." Jason sarcastically laughed at Ajay. Then after a few seconds, he was able to sit up and lean against the wall with no effort at all. "So, I wasn't dreaming earlier, right? You did kiss me?"
"Well, Mr. Brody..." Ajay gave a low grunt as he sat next to Jason against the wall on the floor. "I think these past days I've come to realize that I was having... actual feelings for you. I mean... I never thought I'd see the day I would stay in a drowning car or nearly fall off of a cliff for anyone but my father, or aunt Yuma. I just... " Ajay paused as he tried to find the right words, but nothing was coming to mind at that moment. Jason reached over and touched Ajay's knee.
"... I realized I was having some... feelings towards you as well, Ajay. It just happened so suddenly and out of nowhere that it actually caught me off guard so badly that I was almost ready to start avoiding you."
"Kinda hard when you're a bodyguard there, Jason."
The two of them laughed before Ajay suddenly rested his head against the crook of Jason's neck. "When you wouldn't wake up in the car, or even when we put you on the stretcher. I actually feared the worse. I was constantly checking your breathing... Jason... I... was never really able to feel this way towards another person before."
"You weren't?"
"I love my father, but you know how he gets. If anyone so much as looked at me in an interesting manner that person would just... go missing. I remember when I was nineteen there was this younger soldier, no older than myself, that expressed interested in me. Like, I'm talking a lot of interest. One day, in secret, the soldier went as far as to give me flowers I just remembered being so baffled by the gift that... I told my dad..."
"What happened?" Jason asked after a couple of seconds.
"I never saw him again. Dad said that the soldier was moved more towards the south, but I know now... My dad was so afraid of me getting hurt... he probably had the poor soldier shot."
"Jesus..."
"Like I said. My father is no saint..." Ajay gave a weak chuckle before suddenly shaking his head. "If you want to run now, you can."
"Nah, I'm not leaving you that easily, Ajay." Jason then wrapped his arm around Ajay's shoulder and actually pulled him in close. Jason felt Ajay tense at the sudden touch, but the prince quickly relaxed and just continued to rest his head on Jason's shoulder.
"Jason... we still have to save Bhadra..."
"I know, but... just a few more seconds like this, okay?" Jason whispered as he then rested his cheek against the top of Ajay's head. Honestly, Ajay and Jason could have stayed like that for hours. That would be if it weren't for a low humming coming their way, it made Ajay jump once he recognized the sound. "Helicopter..." Jason was the one to respond as he looked up at the roof. Ajay slowly stood from his spot on the floor before grabbing his gun.
"We only have AK's... we can't shoot down a helicopter-" That was when a familiar voice cut through the air.
"Ajay! Darling! It's your father!"
"Dad!"
Ajay didn't even think he just ran out of the room. Jason went rushing after Ajay the two of them raced down the steps and ran out of the house as fast as they could. By the time they were outside the helicopter had landed, Pagan and several soldiers, along with Yuma were already outside. Liza and Riley were keeping their distance from the helicopter, probably a smart move, Jason decided to hang back with them while Ajay ran to Pagan. The two of them shared a quick hug.
"How'd you find us?!" Ajay inquired loudly.
"We heard about the palace attack from the mountains and raced back as quickly as possible, by the time we got there you were already gone, some fat American was there, however. He explained that you were at the airport-"
"-but when we got there you were already gone." Yuma cut Pagan off as she glanced down at her fingernails with boredom.
"-And... oh, Ajay, I'm not going to lie to you." Pagan cupped Ajay's face in his hands lovingly. "I panicked and just started looking everywhere for you, this was just on the list of places to look." Pagan frowned before placing his forehead against Ajay's.
"Well, I'm fine, everyone is-"
Pagan's head popped away from Ajay's as he turned to look at Jason, Liza, and Riley. "Yes... who are these two people?"
Jason let out a shaky breath before responding. "Your Majesty, I apologize but... they're with me. That's my little brother Riley, and my... friend Liza. They came to check in on me, I had no idea-"
"Jason..." Jason cringed at Pagan's voice and expected the worse, but he got a bit of surprise. "Why didn't you just say something? I would have personally made sure they would have had a convoy straight to the palace! You didn't have to go through all this trouble!" Pagan tsked his tongue dramatically before shaking his head. "It seems like we'll have two more than expected... hm..." Pagan seemed to be thinking about something else before he just waved his hand and turned around towards the helicopter. "No matter. Let's go back to the palace! Where it's safe."
"Dad... Bhadra, we have to get her back!" Ajay quickly spoke up to Pagan before looking back at Jason.
Pagan paused, his back still turned to Ajay before turning around to face his son. "Ajay... I know she meant a lot to you, but... I feel like I should tell you... she's the one who told the Golden Path where she was... she wasn't kidnapped, she willingly left with Sabal. I feared something like this would happen, but I thought... oh, I'm so sorry..." Jason knew exactly what Ajay was feeling because he was feeling the exact same thing. Betrayal. All Jason could do was just pat Ajay's shoulder comfortingly, Ajay didn't respond, but Jason could see that he was confused as his brow remained furrowed. "Anyway, we should probably get going! Dinner will be cold! I'll have to tell the maid to make two more plates, I hope you guys like Panipuri."
Riley and Liza seemed a little cautious as they slowly stepped forwards towards the helicopter, surprisingly Ajay hasn't moved, it wasn't until Jason gently tugged on Ajay's jacket did Ajay snap his head up to look at Jason. "C'mon..." Jason ushered him towards the chopper as he placed his hand on Ajay's shoulder, Ajay responded by bringing his own hand up to squeeze Jason's in response. Ajay quickly let go of Jason's when he saw Yuma turn her head to look at them. Jason hopped into the helicopter first, the helicopter had no doors, so it made it pretty easy for everyone to just hop on in. After everyone got in, along with two armed guards they all quickly found seats and strapped themselves in.
Ajay took the seat next to the window, Jason beside him, Pagan next to Jason, then Yuma, Liza, and Riley took the seat next to the pilot. The only ones who didn't have seats were the armed guards, no they stood beside the doors with their guns at the ready. Jason clicked his seatbelt together when Pagan suddenly spoke: "Jason, just a small warning that seatbelt sticks."
"Oh?" Jason hit the red button and tried to take the straps out, but sure enough, they wouldn't budge. Jason's lips frowned as he started to struggle with it now. "C'mon!" He snapped angerly, his face now scrunched as he made an attempt to undo the stubborn seatbelt he twisted and pulled but it made no difference. Ajay's hands then came into his vision and all Ajay pushed the button down for Jason.
"Now wiggle it," Ajay told him, Jason did as he was told and wiggled the buckle, the buckle moved inch by inch out of the belt. Jason nearly punched himself in the face as the buckle suddenly became free and Jason's own fist with flying back at him, thankfully he didn't punch himself, that apparently didn't stop Ajay from laughing at him. Jason's eyes darted over to Ajay. Ajay had his hand over his mouth as he chuckled at Jason. Jason just gave him a pity chuckle in return before relaxing in his seat. The blades to the helicopter suddenly roared to life Jason moved his head up a little to get a good look out the window. The grass and nearby trees started to wildly move with the heavy gusts of the helicopter blades, then before he knew it they were up in the air.
Now, Jason wasn't airsick, thank goodness, but the moment he saw Ajay undo his seatbelt and walk over to the edge of the helicopter he felt his heart jump and his stomach churn. "W-What are you doing?"
"Enjoying the view," Ajay shrugged nonchalantly, Jason turned to Pagan, who was currently busy looking at his phone playing Candy Crush to be more exact. Jason just sucked in a deep breath before slowly standing and walking over to the door. Out of everything Jason ever had to endure on Rook Island heights was something he never found himself too fond of particularly when he's falling or being pushed. So, he didn't really bother looking out the helicopter, instead, he focused his eyes on the ceiling. "Can't exactly enjoy the view if you don't look at it," Ajay commented.
"I mean... what's to really enjoy? A bloodbath between two parties?" Jason shrugged.
"Jason... look," Ajay spoke simply, the helicopter rocked slightly and Jason shut his eyes before letting out a big breath. He turned his head and reopened his eyes so he'd have no choice but to look at the view, and when he saw it, he honestly felt awestruck. The view from above was actually something that Jason couldn't believe he missed out on before.
Yeah, it was a pretty view, but the upcoming sunset seemed to make Kyrat from a bird's eye view almost magical. The way the sunset bounced off of the many mountain tops and cascaded the entire land in a golden red glow just made it... beautiful. "Jesus..."
"Yeah..." Ajay placed a hand on Jason's shoulder and gave it a bit of a squeeze. Both of them unaware of Yuma nudging Pagan to look at them at that moment. "It's beautiful, and it shows that it's more than just bloodbath between two parties. It's a beautiful land that needs to be protected."
"Almost like you-your palace!" Jason quickly corrected himself, not exactly ready to make his affections public in front of Pagan of all people, before rubbing the back of his head nervously. Ajay snorted at Jason before looking back out at Kyrat, Ajay's hand slipped away from Jason's shoulder after a couple heartbeats. For a few passing minutes, nothing was said between anybody, everything was dead silent. Though that made Jason realize that someone was watching him. Swiveling his head around he caught both Pagan and Liza quickly look away from him. Liza didn't scare him, but Pagan... oh, boy. 'Maybe... I should go back-to-'
Jason never did get to finish that thought. A loud gunshot rang through the helicopter and within only a matter of seconds everything went to chaos. Jason didn't know what exactly happened, but he did know that the whole helicopter swerved violently to it's right and if Jason weren't next to Ajay at that moment he would have lost him. Ajay swung his arms wildly in circles to keep his balance but it didn't stop him and he fell back over the edge. Jason quickly grabbed Ajay's shirt and pulled him back in. He quickly held Ajay close to his chest in an attempt to keep him close and away from the edge and made a mad rush for their seats. Jason just couldn't comprehend what happened next. First, they were going for their seats, then they were violently thrown up against the ceiling of the helicopter before being thrown right back down again.
Jason's head hit the ground hard enough to knock him out, but Ajay was still conscious. Liza was screaming bloody murder, Pagan was screaming for Ajay, Yuma seemed to be knocked out, one of the two soldiers wasn't even in the helicopter anymore, and by the yelling from the front Riley had taken control of the helicopter. Riley must have straightened the helicopter out for the time being. Ajay forced himself up to his feet. "Ajay! Ajay! Get into your seat!" Pagan demanded. Ajay wasn't even listening to his father as he grabbed Jason's arms and started to drag him towards his seat.
"Dammit, Brody..." Ajay hissed bitterly. Jason's seat felt like it was a million miles away to Ajay as his father was still yelling at him to get back into his own seat, and with Liza's own scared screaming. Still, Ajay managed to get Jason's limp body into the seat and quickly fumbled for the seatbelt.
All Jason heard was the loud clicking at his seatbelt, then he heard the screaming and yelling. Opening his eyes sleepily he felt confused before it all hit him at once that the helicopter was going down and fast. He found himself actually snapping at Ajay "Are you crazy!? Strap yourself in first!" He demanded Ajay, but it was too late. There was a deafening boom! and before Jason knew it they were spinning out of control.
Ajay went flying and thought for sure he was going to meet his end. He actually felt completely weightless for a few good seconds as he went back. His hand was out in an attempt to grab Jason's own hand but all that happened was their fingertips just barely gazed each other in passing. Ajay screamed loudly as he was thrown out of the helicopter for the second time. Ajay hit the helicopter floor first and dug his hands into the floor in a feeble attempt to hang on for dear life. Ajay felt his whole body move back inch by inch he knew he was only seconds from certain death.
Jason tried his hardest to get out of the seat but his stupid seatbelt wouldn't release him! "Fucking let go!" He violently twisted and yanked the belt but it just wouldn't release. He watched hopelessly as Ajay was sliding inch by inch out of the helicopter. Jason hadn't even noticed that Pagan had been knocked unconscious or that Riley was trying desperately to straighten the falling helicopter, however; he did notice the one remaining soldier come to Ajay's rescue. The soldier that had been knocked out for only a few seconds had run to Ajay and quickly grabbed his hands.
"I got you, your Majesty!" The soldier cried loudly and pulled Ajay to his feet. Before Ajay could say or do anything the soldier pushed him into his seat, which probably saved Ajay's life as at that moment that exact side hit a tree spinning the helicopter to the other side and sending the man out. Jason probably would have mourned, but at that moment he was more focused on Ajay. Quickly Ajay strapped himself into his seat, Jason then looked out the helicopter windshield once Ajay was safe in his seat. Jason only saw them going towards the earth below. Kyrat didn't look so beautiful now, not when he was barreling towards the earth in a metal death trap. Yet, when Ajay grabbed his hand Jason felt a little more at peace.
It was honestly a little hard for Riley to believe that the whole crash had taken place in just little under a minute, but it had. Riley witnessed it all. The pilot had gotten shot by a sniper and his body leaned against the steering wheel before falling off causing the helicopter to twist to the right. Riley had managed to reach the wheel without leaving his seat, he wanted to make it straight so he could get to the pilot seat more easily, well that caused the whole helicopter to a barrel roll, but thankfully it straightened itself out afterward. He could hear Pagan and Liza screaming as he unbuckled himself to take control, but then the tail was blown out and from there everything was out of Riley's hands. The most he could do was try and slow the helicopter down, but he still hit the ground hard enough to knock himself out along with everyone else.
He knew he wasn't out long, and he knew if he wanted to get Jason and Liza to safety then he knew he needed to act fast. Riley unbuckled himself before looking back at the remains of the helicopter. Everyone was still in their seats but all were completely knocked out. Ajay's head was against Jason's neck while the two of them were obviously holding hands, hell, their hands were still intertwined. Riley didn't bother on Jason just yet, no he turned and ran to Liza. Liza had her head against the wall and quietly Riley shook her. "Liza, wake up..." he whispered to her as he shook her shoulders. Liza's eyes opened sleepily. She was taking in everything before she focused on Riley. "Wha-"
"Sh!" Riley definitely heard something off in the distance. He covered her mouth and the two stayed quiet for a good minute. Riley knew he wasn't crazy and figured that it was probably the Golden Path coming for them. "Help me get Jason and let's get out of this warzone!" He whispered harshly before releasing Liza from her seat. Liza scrambled to her feet. Together the two of them worked to get Jason out of his seat. The seatbelt really didn't want to give and after a few long seconds of trying, Riley gave a loud curse. "Fuck, stupid seatbelt!"
"Didn't Ajay say something about wiggling it?" Liza suggested. Riley looked ready to retort but quickly ducked down.
"Shit... look," He pointed out the helicopter and Liza turned her head to see what he was looking at. At first, she saw nothing and was starting to put Riley's sanity into question until she noticed that off in the darkness she could see lights coming towards them. Riley quickly started to pat Pagan down in an attempt to find some sort of pocket knife. 'C'mon evil dictator you have to have some sort of knife!' Riley padded down Pagan's front pockets and found nothing, not even a wallet, then he went up towards Pagan's shirt pocket and felt something large quickly he thought maybe his luck was turning around, However, when all he did was pull out a pen he just tsked and threw the pen out of the helicopter in his short-tempered rage. "Dammit!"
"Keep quiet!" Liza whispered harshly at Riley. Riley noticed that she was indeed trying to wiggle the seatbelt out of its buckle frantically. Riley looked up to see the lights coming closer now and he could safely identify them as flashlights.
"-Remember! Sabal said to keep the King and Ajay alive!" He heard a voice yell loudly through the forest.
"Hurry, Liza!"
"Got it!" Liza's hand went flying back as the seatbelt finally released. Without the seatbelt holding him up, Jason plummeted down on to the ground. The oddest thing was that his hand didn't let go of Ajay's, but because of the sudden movement it wasn't much of an issue as Ajay's glove actually came off in Jason's hand, it even showed that Jason was still alive as he crumpled the glove in his hand.
"Grab his legs, let's get out of here!" He ordered in a hushed whisper to Liza. Liza clearly didn't need to be told twice as she ran over and grabbed Jason's knees with both of her arms. Riley grabbed Jason under his arms. "On three... One... two... three!" Together they both managed to hoist Jason up. Riley quickly backed out of the helicopter while Liza walked forward. "I'm going to need you to be my eyes, Babe."
"Don't call me, Babe," Liza grunted at Riley as together they walked away from the helicopter crash with Jason in their arms. It probably looked as clumpy as it felt for them. Riley had to stop every few minutes to readjust Jason's shoulders in his arms while Liza constantly felt herself tripping over something, be it an uprooted tree or some stick on the ground."What about Ajay? We're just going to leave them to be killed or executed?" Liza broke the silence after a good long while.
Riley had honestly wondered the same thing, yeah those people wanted him alive, but for what? 'To torture him probably.' Riley thought to himself before shuttering at the idea. 'You left him to be tortured, you know first hand what its like and you're just going to leave him. He's no older than Jason..' Riley wanted nothing more than to get these thoughts out of his head. "I'm sorry, it's Jason or Ajay in this situation. I'm choosing Jason every time. Besides, we don't belong here who are we to stop this? It's clear that this rebellion has been going on for a long time and it's obvious that they want a change. If you ask me, Ajay probably should have stayed with his biological dad's wishes. I mean... did you see how fearful Jason was around him?"
"Hm," Liza grunted loudly as she paused just briefly to readjust Jason's legs before continuing on. "Let's just find a car and get to the airport ASAP."
Riley looked up, the helicopter crash was no longer in their field of vision but he knew the helicopter was found by the bright green flare suddenly flying up into the air. A part of him did feel a little bad, but he knew that family always came first, especially when it came to some weird psychopaths. "Agreed, let's get the hell out of dodge."