It was chaotic, cacophonous, and overwhelming. For the Marines and N7's, at least. The N7's were doing their best to bring down the hulking Brute that roared with animalistic rage, the Marines scuttling about, picking off Husks. The Marine officers barked out orders, taking out Marauders and Cannibals in between bouts of taking cover. Even in the chaos, order prevailed to a degree.
Their sense of order in the midst of chaos was almost admirable. It was a shame they refused to join Cerberus, but that's why they were here. Specifically, they were there for the N7's- the Demolisher, the Paladin... and the other two that Leta Weyland and Kai Leng took personal offence to- the Shadow and the Slayer. The chaos weaving through the fragile order worked in their favour to take out their targets.
Leta crept close as the Shadow got up, having been knocked flat on her back from the sudden intrusion of the Brute. Once up, her N7 compatriots scattered to secure the perimeter, to keep the Reaper forces from entering the building. Exactly what she'd hoped for. A smirk, cold and cruel, curled her lips under her helmet, and she slid behind the Shadow with the undulating movements of oil in water. She noticed the Shadow was holding her blade in a forward grip, and derisive laughter pealed across the QEC at the woman's stance.
Not for the first time that evening, she lamented not being able to use her poisons on her blade, but she had to make quick clean kills anyway, on The Illusive Man's orders. The poison would only hinder autopsy processes, and wouldn't contribute to the death of the N7 agent. Still, she lunged forward like an invisible dart, her wrist flicking her sword from its backward grip at the last minute as she stabbed at the N7 agent. Leta felt an immense wash of pleasure as the Shadow let out a scream that tapered off into a gurgle as the Phantom's sword slid through her chest between rib and scapula, the mono molecular blade slicing through flesh and bone as though the Shadow were made of butter. The Phantom grinned behind her mask as the Shadow stared at the blade jutting from her chest.
'Amateurs. Pale imitations. Were you what you intended to mimic, you would have seen me coming,' She sneered, her words aimed at the Shadow, but echoing in the QEC- had she spoken aloud, the Phantom would have sounded unintelligible- not to mention would have drawn more attention to herself than she was about to when her cloak fell.
Phantom and Nemesis helmets garbled their spoken word into electronic chatter, meant to confuse enemies, as they couldn't understand orders and alerts being spoken to one another. A brilliant idea, and it kept enemies from being able to predict the movements of the sharp eyed snipers and the lithe Phantoms- a good thing when Leta and Nyx played "Phantom Bait" with Miu and Carmen: having the Snipers lure targets back to corners by feigning being by themselves, only to have the target come chest to blade with a Phantom was always a favourite tactic. Nemesis snipers were excellent shots, but lacked defences or offensive abilities in short range- a short coming covered by Phantoms and assault troopers, leaving the engineers and snipers safe to keep up their ranged attacks. A lone Nemesis was often too tempting for an enemy to try to get in a melee attack- something Leta had learned, and gleefully made a game out of it, and one Nyx had been all too quick to catch on to. It soon caught on, and "Phantom Bait" became a standard practice if too many troopers fell to enemy fire. The enemy soon caught on, but it did have a beneficial effect- snipers were no longer honed in on by melee forces.
Leng smirked, his nihilistic amusement radiating across the QEC to her as she withdrew from her kill, leaving the body to fall on the floor, and panic began spreading through the Alliance forces as they realized an invisible foe was amongst them. Reaper forces couldn't stealth, so who was attacking them? Leta's cloak shimmered off as she dove behind cover, and a Marine Lieutenant saw the flash of white armour and the glint of her bloody blade.
"PHANTOM!" She screamed.
Chaos and pandemonium ensued as the Marines tried to find a position where their backs weren't to the Reapers or the enemy that had infiltrated their ranks. Leng laughed, a low dark chuckle in Leta's mind, and she relished the sound of his amusement, pulling up her barriers as she skirted around a fallen column of mortar and brick, regrouping with him.
'I do love how they react to knowing that I am here,' she preened, flicking blood off her blade. Leng didn't look at her, too busy eyeing the Demolisher- the closest Alliance agent to them. He cloaked, disappearing from view.
The Demolisher was kneeling, hastily trying to repair her supply pylon as Leng's blade drove between the base of her helmet and the collar of her armour, severing her spinal column between the vertebrae neatly. The engineer fell to the ground in a heap, convulsing once, then moved no more. His cloak fell, and a sharp cry rang out from the Alliance forces- panic would have ensued had they known who he was, but to them, he was another Phantom class agent, capable of cloaking and killing their forces with a single kill, which was enough. The Paladin swung his omni shield at him, attempting to throw a Snap Freeze his way, only hitting the wall as Leng rolled out of the way, taking cover behind a console. He fired his phase disruptor at the Paladin with the intent of keeping the N7's attention and leaving his back exposed. Luckily, the Slayer was distracted, the N7 fending off the claws of the still rampaging Brute.
'Leta,' he commanded, almost sounding bored as he ducked again to avoid another freeze. 'If you would be so kind?'
'With pleasure,' she purred, cloaking as her devices became ready.
She slid between Marines, dancing around them to avoid contact that would alert them to her presence as she circled around behind the Paladin. Bringing her sword to the ready, she brought it quickly across the back of his neck, slicing between the axis and C-1 vertebrae. She leapt back, avoiding the spray of blood, vaulting over the console as her cloak fell once more, taking cover next to Leng. A wave of approval rolled from him.
'I don't believe the Illusive Man could have asked for cleaner kills,' he declared, praising her work, which filled her with pride.
They both looked up as a roar resonated through the ruined room. The Marines and the Slayer had finally taken down the Brute, and were now splitting into teams- one filing out to push back the husks and Cannibals, the other combing the room for their invisible and organized foe. The Slayer led the team that was searching for the Cerberus agents, and Leta glanced at Leng. His lip was curled in the utmost distaste as he appraised the Slayer, cloaking once more.
'Last N7 in the fight. Once he is cut down, the Marines should be of little issue. We will handle the husks as we see fit. Take out whichever target you like, Leta. The Slayer is mine.'
Leta didn't argue as he vaulted the console- she'd felt nothing but satisfaction upon killing the Shadow, so saw no issue in letting Leng have the same fulfillment from killing his imitation.
'Of course,' she murmured as she turned her attention to the loudest Marine- the same one who'd alerted the troops to her presence. A female Lieutenant, firing a Vindicator at a Marauder as she trailed on the opposite side of the room from the Slayer.
Leta's lips curled into a smile as she drew a dagger from the holster on her thigh and sheathed her sword. The mono molecular dagger shone purple in the flickering light- the N7 could not have poison used on them, but regular Marines were fair game. Leta had coated the wickedly sharp dagger with her poison, a newly tweaked formula- she couldn't get lax with her poisons, lest antidotes be made that would counteract her hard work, her labour of love.
She cloaked and lightly launched herself over the console, trailing behind her in amusement, staying a few steps behind her. The woman was brave, Leta would give her that much. The rest of the search team had stayed by the wall, their backs to it to avoid being stabbed. They were simple grunts, the Slayer was not. The Lieutenant was not the same calibre as the Slayer, but she had guts, taking up the charge of searching the other side of the room. Once the woman had moved into a strategic position, her form blocked from the Marines' view by a pile of rubble, Leta leapt into action.
'Mine,' she crooned, leaping at the woman and stabbing the dagger under the woman's shoulder blade.
The Lieutenant screamed, her arm going slack and dropping the assault rifle. The Marines jolted, and the Slayer began rushing over to her location, but stopped as he caught the shimmer of Leng's cloak. He brought up his sword metal clashing on metal. Leng caught the hilt of the Slayer's sword with his own and with a twist, jerked the sword from the N7's grasp. The Slayer moved to slam a fist into Leng's face, stopping with a choking sound as Leng flicked his blade up and slid it into the man's chest, impaling his heart.
"You could never be comparable to me," he sneered aloud to the Slayer, whose eyes went wide as he realized the identity of the man that had impaled him.
Leng was less than neat with this particular kill, slicing his blade through the Slayer's ribcage instead of withdrawing it. Blood coated the blade, soaking the floor as the N7 fell to a heap at Leng's feet. The assassin stepped away from the rapidly growing pool of blood, avoiding getting blood on his boots. Leta barely had the attention span to admire his kill, despite seeing it in the back of her mind- he'd been unable to resist showing it to her as he did so.
Leta was too busy having fun watching the woman bleed, the poison taking effect, being injected so close to her lungs. The convulsions and shortness of breath was already setting in, the woman falling to the floor. Leta straddled the woman's chest and sheathed her dagger. She tilted her head as she pulled out her sword, knowing the woman was staring in fear at the emotionless mask looking down at her. With a loud laugh that translated to little more than electronic chattering, she drove she blade home through the Lieutenant's sternum. The woman choked, coughed blood, and went still. Leta got up, ducking behind cover as the Marines, with no one else to command them, opened fire. Leng ducked beside her, and she sent a wave of admiration at him.
'So vicious,' she purred softly, flicking blood from her blade before popping back up to fire at one of the marines from her Phase Disruptor, then ducking back down. Leng ignored her praise, still angry and obviously not sated by his kill.
'If one is going to imitate something, one should do it well,' he hissed, his tone cold. 'Otherwise it is simply a brazen insult.'
Leta brushed off his cold tone, knowing it was not aimed at her- her attention was caught by another wave of husks rushing at the already distressed Marines.
'Shall we wait for the marines and husks to finish each other off, then collect the bodies of the N7's?' She inquired.
Leng brought up his directional barrier, throwing a pair of senbon needles at a Marine opening fire at him, and as an afterthought, threw one into the eye socket of a Husk. The Marine clutched at his throat, the needles embedded deeply in his hyoid, falling over.
'May as well finish them off. Though, there is little need for you and I to collect the bodies. I have already messaged a squad to take care-'
His thought cut off, and they both went rigid as a scream practically ripped the air around them. Leta paused, her blade embedded in the chest of a husk, and she yanked it out hurriedly, cloaking instantaneously. Leng cloaked, following after her, just as the Banshee came to the hole in the wall, claws wrapping around the edge of the broken bricks and mortar. The Banshee peered into the room, black eyes studying the interior as she screamed once more. The remaining Marines fled through the interior door, abandoning the pretense of defending the building from further invasion. Leta glanced in Leng's direction, worried- she could feel his stress radiating from him through the QEC. He was not reacting well to the monstrosity in the room.
'Leta. The ship,' he finally commanded. An order to retreat, and one she did not need to be told twice, skirting around cover and slinking for the door, hoping the Banshee wouldn't notice her movement. She paused by the door to make sure Leng was behind her- just in time to have her heart stop in horror.
The Banshee had seen the slight shimmer of his cloak, blinking in front of him in a flare of uncontrolled biotics amplified by Reaper mutation. Leng pulled back in time to avoid a swipe of her claws, but his barrier took a hit, and his cloak fell. He turned to dash away, but the monstrous Asari husk had longer reach than anticipated. The grotesque claws latched onto the chest plating of his armour, the withered arm lifting him with ease, bringing him to face level. Leta felt her blood turn to ice, feeling the resonating thrum of the Reaper calling to the both of them through the Banshee, through their implants. She couldn't move. Why wasn't he fighting back? Why wasn't he drawing his blade?
Then the Banshee drew back her arm, a low hiss rattling from between her jaws- jaws that were uneven, too widely open, crooked- Her claws were flashing in the low emergency lighting...
"NO!"
She barely recognized her own voice, the panicked, angry and horrified cry tearing her throat with its desperate ferocity, garbled into a loud electronic roar by her helmet. She felt disconnected from her own body as she leapt at the Banshee, sword flashing with the intent to cut the she-bitch's throat. She would KILL this thing, or be killed, before letting it kill Kai Leng, Cerberus' best agent, The Illusive Man's best and most trusted operative.
A strangled cry erupted from her throat and white hot pain flooded her body as the claws embedded in the left side of her chest. She let out a coughing, gagging breath, blood spattering the inside of her helmet. The Banshee let go of Leng, distracted with the target embedded on her claws, the other hand cradling Leta's head almost lovingly as black eyes stared at her. Another scream issued from her throat, claws running down the back of Leta's helmet. Leta had greyed out with the pain, but came to with the scream so close, and with a grunt, and immense teeth gritting effort, she attempted stabbing the Banshee with her sword. Blood pouring down her front made it hard to keep a grip, and instead, the blade went jamming into the bloated stomach of the mutated Asari.
Leng had snapped out of whatever had held him in shock, bringing down his blade and slashing off the hand that had Leta impaled, slicing at its legs. The Banshee stumbled as Leta fell to the ground, sword clattering as it slipped from where it had impaled it. The Banshee wailed in furious indignation at losing its kill, swiping at Leng. He dodged, trying to draw her away from his wounded Phantom- bait the Banshee took, following him and slashing with its remaining claws. Lunging, he sliced her ribs, rending the flesh open to reveal bone and electronics. The Asari husk screamed and attempted another grab, but he was ready for it this time, sliding under her arm and bringing his sword up and across her throat. A burbling, choking keen issued from the Banshee, form blackening and turning to ash.
Leng immediately ignored the Banshee, reaching out to Leta across the QEC as he rushed over to her side. Leta reached out for him from where she had fallen, trying to get up and failing. Leng caught her, kneeling and supporting her as coughing wracked her ribs. She was unable to get anything across the QEC but white hot pain. Leng turned her carefully and extracted the Banshee's claws from her chest, immediately activating his omni tool and giving her a dose of medigel to the wounds. Once the bleeding had slowed, he could see the area of damage, but his omni tool was not equipped for medical scans. There wasn't much else he could do for her. He had to get her back to Cronos.
Leta coughed again as Leng curled his fingers under her chin, undoing the straps of her helmet, pulling it off. His gritted his teeth as he saw how pale she was, blood splattered over her face and dribbling down her chin. He picked up their swords and sheathed them both on his own back before sliding one arm under her knees, wrapping the other around her shoulders, bringing her close against his chest.
"Leta. Can you hear me?" He murmured, dipping his head to press his mouth to her ear. She nodded weakly, coughing again.
"I need you to cloak, Leta. We are not yet in the clear," he directed gently.
Leta closed her eyes, her cloak activating once more, shimmering and jolting- the claws had broken one of her devices. It would have to do for now. Leng cloaked as well, carrying her carefully, but quickly back to the roof where the Hei An waited. He climbed the ramp into the ship, taking her to the cockpit and set her gently in the copilot's seat.
'Leta,' he admonished softly, wiping blood from her face. Every splatter of blood he wiped away, he replaced with a worried kiss, pressing his mouth to her chin, along her jaw and on each of her pale cheeks.
'Leta. Leta. That was beyond foolish.'
Despite losing a lot of blood, a punctured lung- and who knew what else had been damaged- she was able to give him a weak smile.
'No. It was necessary. I told you. I am expendable. Not as-'
A coughing fit interrupted her thoughts, and pulling out a trauma kit, Leng gave her an injection of medigel to keep her alive until they reached Cronos. He frowned, his eyes hidden behind his visor as he waited for her coughing to fade, wincing as more blood sprayed from her mouth, coating her hand.
'I told you,' she finally said as he wiped her mouth with a clean cloth from the trauma kit. 'My life for the cause. For humanity... for you. I meant it.'
She gave a rattling sigh, closing her eyes.
'I'm glad you're okay.'
Leng clutched her hand tight before moving to his seat.
'I refuse to accept your life as payment for mine. I shall take personal offence.'
She laughed weakly, her head lolling slightly to the side in fatigue, coughing and wincing in pain as he primed the engines, the Hei An taking off from Terra Nova. She watched him setting coordinates, her electric blue eyes narrowed in exhaustion. He got up, letting auto pilot take over as he kneeled next to her chair, supporting her head.
'I'd hate for you to be mad at me,' she joked softly. He stroked her cheek with a thumb, his expression hidden behind his visor.
'You have no idea how angry I would be, Leta Weyland.'
She closed her eyes, a soft laugh sounding over the QEC, in too much pain to laugh out loud, but her breathing had become less laboured, the medigel starting to work into her system.
'Good thing I think I'll be okay, huh?'
Leng frowned.
'You seem to be extremely confident for someone who...,' he paused. '...knows something I do not?'
Leta coughed again, wincing only a little this time.
'You didn't know, with all the prying you've done in my head?' She inquired. Leng made a face, even though she had her eyes closed. He sent her a mental nudge that she should open them and not fall asleep, feeling relief as she opened them again.
'It's easiest if I know what I'm looking for. ...And "Prying" isn't the term I would use,' he retorted, sounding offended. Leta let out a shaky chuckle.
'I'm coughing up blood, cut me some slack for my choice of words. You know I don't mind you in here,' she assured him as she weakly fumbled with her armour, trying to undo the chest plating. 'Give me your hand.'
He removed his blood soaked gauntlets and assisted her with her armour; she needed to get the blood soaked pieces off anyway, or the wet cold would give her chills. She could go into shock at any moment, and needed to be warm. He took his time getting her armour off, but it was out of care rather than difficulty- he was long used to removing her armour by now, though it was usually preceding a tangle of limbs. Once she was sufficiently stripped of her soaked armour, he pulled a blanket from storage and wrapped her in it before offering her a hand like she'd requested.
Instead of squeezing it for assurance like he'd expected, she placed his hand on her chest, to the right side of her sternum. He frowned, then blinked as he felt her heart beating under his fingers- in the right side of her chest. The wrong side of her chest, but as far as he could tell, it was beating properly, if not erratically from stress and shock, but not from injury.
'Your...heart. What was the name of that condition?'
Leta wordlessly answered him by pushing it at him over the QEC, showing him images, scenes from when during the testing for biotic potential, the doctors first discovered the oddity that was her visceral placement- heart on the left, liver on the left... all organs mirrored inside her. A rare, but non-threatening condition, a genetic anomaly occurring from having older parents, the doctors said.
'Situs Inversus. Surprised I did not discover this sooner,' he murmured, referring to the many times she'd curled up against him, his hand splayed over her back, feeling her pulse. Such a small thing, the placement of a heart, in every day situations, but now, it literally had meant life or death, and had saved her- and by extension, him.
Leta covered his hand with hers, enjoying the warmth of his skin on hers.
'It normally isn't anything of consequence, but it's why I did what I did... better a punctured lung than claws in your heart.'
Relief and lingering concern flooded her mind as he sat on his heels next to her chair, wrapping an arm around her and drawing a line down her throat with his mouth.
'Never do it again,' he ordered.
Leta lifted a shaking hand, laying it on his head heavily, fingers running though his hair as she rested her cheek on the top of his head.
'I can't promise that.'
He paused in the middle of pressing his mouth to her clavicle and sighed in resignation, her words ringing true.
'No. Of course you can't.'
She coughed again- the bleeding had long stopped, but at that point, she still had blood to clear out of her lung. She kept stroking his hair, taking comfort in the thick strands between her fingers and under her cheek, relishing his breath on her neck.
'I... would only do that for two people, Kai Leng. You, and the Illusive Man. I wouldn't put the investment Cerberus put in me and my implants to waste. Not for anything or anyone less than you or the Illusive man. Not Nyx, not Miu, or Carmen. Everyone else, including myself, is secondary.'
She hesitated, wanting to say more, but taking example from him, she cut off her thoughts to him, akin to slamming a door shut, closing off any further thoughts or feelings she almost conveyed to him. She continued idly stroking his hair, taking a long but shaky and painful breath to steady herself.
Leng pulled away, sitting back on his heels, fixing her with a look she couldn't read, his eyes hidden behind his visor.
'Leta. The only individual in Cerberus who is not expendable, replaceable or secondary, is the Illusive Man,' he stated firmly.
'There's- I...," Leta scratched at dried blood on her chin as she struggled to find the words to say what she wanted to express, but failed.
'There would be no Tianshi Cell without you,' she finished lamely.
'I will concede that point,' He leaned forward again, pressing his lips to hers. 'Though, it would also be very wrong without you.'
Leta sighed against his mouth with no small measure of desperate relief, tangling fingers in his hair. He ran hands down her back, then removed his chest armour, setting it aside. She looked up at him questioningly before he leaned over, scooping her up. She made a sound of surprise as he stood, sitting in his chair and arranging her in his lap, pulling her against him. She reached out, fingers curling in the fabric of his under armour as she snuggled against his chest, grateful he'd removed the cold, unyielding plating. She drank in his warmth, and he kissed the top of her head.
"Don't fall asleep, Leta. Stay with me," he implored out loud. She tilted her head back and kissed the underside of his jaw before nuzzling under his chin, curling up in his lap.
'If I ever leave you, it will not be because I willed it, Kai Leng,' she vowed. Again, the words she wanted to say caught in her throat, and she slammed them behind another mental wall.
They were both silent on the way back to Cronos, watching the stars as they flew past them- they both enjoyed the silence that would be overrun by the fussing that would happen once they arrived- the medical staff took no shortcuts with the higher ranked operatives, and with Leta being in the Tianshi Cell, they would spare no expense to get her back to full health.
He was right- once the Hei An came within view of the station and Leng sent out the reports, a medical team was waiting at the docks. they swarmed about like angry birds. Leng refused to hand her over, laying her down on the gurney himself and latching onto her hand, only letting go when they reached the operating room. He would have stayed, pacing outside the doors, but had to give his reports to the Illusive Man.
It didn't take long, and he was back just in time to see the doctors pushing her gurney into her own room in the med ward. One of the doctors praised him- his quick applications of medigel had stopped the bleeding, and made a temporary patch on the wounds. Minor invasive surgery to drain and patch her punctured lung, along with binding a few cracked ribs was all that was needed.
"Can I see her?"
Doctor Gaalad approached him. Leng eyed the elder Drell carefully- the Drell was responsible for the technology and innovation behind the QEC, but he was still an alien, and Leng was always apprehensive around him. It was hard to trust the father of the Asari that had assaulted him- the reason behind his lockdown when the Banshee had appeared. Gaalad paid no heed to Leng's bristling, or didn't notice it.
"Phantom number 42963857A2 is stable and will be fully r-"
"Leta Weyland," Leng snapped. "Her name is Leta Weyland."
"-fully recovered in at least a day or so," Gaalad continued as though he hadn't been interrupted. "The surgical team had to remove tissue from her chest to ensure that there was no lingering corruption or contamination from the Banshee's talons. There will be heavy scarring unless she elects to have it corrected once the wound is healed. She has been given an expectorant to clear out any remaining fluid, and as such, will be coughing for twelve hours, give or take. Other than that, she is fine."
"Why are you involved?" Leng asked, folding arms over his chest.
"To get readings from her regarding the QEC. I will need to get readings from you, as well," he explained as he pointed to a chair just outside Leta's room.
A flicker of annoyance crossed his face, but he complied and sat down, pulling his hair away from the back of his neck. Gaalad pulled out a needle with an electronic reader on the end, similar to the devices used to do readings on biotics. With quick precision, the Drell inserted the needle between the C-1 and C-2 vertebrae. Leng didn't even flinch, ignoring the stab. The reading took only a few seconds before Gaalad removed the needle, tucking it into a tube.
"Thank you, Kai Leng," he muttered, already activating his omni tool as he walked away.
Leng rubbed the back of his neck and entered Leta's room. She was laying on her back, propped up on pillows, and looked to be asleep- and only hooked up to a standard IV and vitals monitor. Silently, he moved across the room and leaned over her to kiss her forehead. She mumbled and stirred, opening her eyes groggily. A small smile spread across her lips, and he was quick to kiss her smile, stroking her cheek.
'You're okay.'
A small laugh sounded in her throat.
'Told you,' she chuckled, brushing his mind with hers gently, happy to see him.
He sat on the edge of the bed and tugged at her blanket, pulling it down. She relented and let him. She had no shirt on, her entire upper torso and left shoulder wrapped in crisp white bandages. Against his better judgement, he tugged at the edge of her bandages and looked at the wound underneath. His stomach roiled in guilt- the wound was closed, the medigel and procedures of Cerberus technology already setting to healing the wounds, but the scar it would leave behind would be ugly. The wound was about the size of his hand, reaching from the top of her breast to the underside of her clavicle and spanning from her shoulder to just to the left edge of her sternum.
"The docs say it will be a nasty scar, since they had to cut tissue out to prevent any contamination issues from happening," she murmured aloud, swatting his hand away from the bandages before taking it in her own. "I can get it corrected with cosmetic procedures once it's healed, though."
"I wouldn't think your appearance marred by a scar, Leta," he assured her, leaning down and kissing her again. She sighed happily, curling her free hand in his hair, mindful of her IV.
'I didn't think that. I just... wasn't sure if you would like looking at a reminder of that every time I took my clothes off,' she admitted silently. 'I would hate to have a scar that would kill the mood, and to be honest, Kai Leng, I would hate to stop having sex with you, your talent at it and all other things considered.'
The small joke made him chuckle, but only half heartedly so. She pulled back and cupped the side of his face in her hand, eyes locking with his.
"Don't take this out on yourself. I mean it," she whispered, pressing her nose against his before raising her voice to a normal level. "It's part of my duty to you as a Tianshi Phantom."
He kissed her again, and she let him press her into the pillows, tangling a hand in his hair again.
'I don't want to be in here anymore, Kai,' she whined, gasping as he nipped at her bottom lip- the man's audacity never failed to amaze her. Hooked up to an IV and he was riling her up- a state made all too obvious by the increase in her heart rate displayed on the monitor.
'No? Where do you want to be, Leta?' He teased, moving to kiss her ear, tongue flicking the outer edge of the soft skin there. She whimpered, and the heart monitor rose in speed and pitch as he agitated her further. A nurse came in to see if Leta was alright and made a most disapproving face. Leng looked up at the nurse and lifted a brow.
"When will she be cleared for discharge from the med ward?" He asked lightly. "Due to the unique nature of the QEC, she sleeps better with me. She can't get better if she doesn't sleep well."
The nurse eyed the readouts from the monitors, then glanced at Leta, who was doing her best not to look pathetically pitiful. She sighed.
"Medically, I see no reason not to keep her here. Just... be careful with her shoulder, Leng," she groused as she disconnected the monitor and removed the IV from Leta's hand, applying a quick daub of medigel to the injection site.
"Of course. I am nothing, if not gentle with my Phantoms when needed to be," Leng grinned, scooping Leta up, one arm around her ribs, the other under her knees. "I won't even make her walk. I shall carry her the entire way."
Without waiting to hear the nurse's reply or protests, he carried Leta to his room, kissing her neck the entire way, her soft laughter echoing in the corridor. Once he reached his room- their room, he corrected himself, as he couldn't see himself sleeping without her next to him anymore- he laid her out on the bed, settling down next to her. She instantly curled against him, rolling onto her right side to favour her injury. Kai ran a hand down her arm, pulling her to him so her back rested against his chest. He kissed a trail down her upper arm, wrapping his arm around her waist.
'This is so much better than the med ward,' she sighed, resting her hand over his hand that rested on her belly. 'I really can't sleep without you anymore, and I've gotten too used to how comfy your bed is.'
He nuzzled the back of her neck, burying his face in her hair and inhaling her scent- violet, lilac and vetiver laced over the warm musk of her skin and the tang of ozone from her biotics.
'I have become too accustomed to your warmth and your scent to sleep without you, either,' he confessed, his face still pressed into her thick long tresses. 'Never mind the fact that your proximity seems to act as a buffer against the dreams.'
Leta stretched a bit, mindful of her shoulder, sighing contentedly.
'Hard to tell which makes me happier- this, or on the field killing Alliance,' she purred as he stroked her side. He chuckled.
'Can it not be both? Both is good.'
She yawned, tongue curling, and he laughed softly, propping himself up on an elbow to kiss her cheek.
"Go to sleep, my pretty little Phantom. I will be right here when you wake," he murmured, his voice black velvet in her ears. She curled her fingers in his.
"Promise?" She asked. He replied by leaning over and pressing his lips to hers.
'I promise. You took a Banshee's claws in my place to make sure of that.'
'And I'd do it again,' she mumbled, not letting go of his hand as she finally succumbed to the light sedatives from the IV filtering through her systems. Leng frowned as he pulled her to him.
"I know, and that's what worries me, Leta," he whispered to her, watching her sleep for some time before finally sliding into an uneasy sleep, never unwrapping his arms from around her waist.