The Nemesis Syndrome

8. Leo

Breathe, something told him, you have to wake up, Leo.

It was soft, and with a jolt, Leo realised it was sister's voice urging him to wake.

Wake up, Leo, you need to walk up.

Softly, a beeping entered his ears, growing louder as if it were steadily approaching him. Vaguely, Leo remembered his mother in the hospital bed, a newborn Rommy in her arms and a soft, beeping machine hooked up to her. Was he in the hospital?

A pain, soft and barely there hung over his body, coating him and his every muscle. Leo's eyes felt heavy and he struggled to open them.

Wake up, Leo.

I'm trying, he wanted to shout, but his jaw was screwed shut.

A presence hovered above him - there was something soothing about it, but then a faint aroma filled his senses, a soft breathing matching it. His chest felt warmer and he realised someone was holding something, their hand maybe, over his heart. That kicked his body into gear, and out of instinct his hand whipped up to wrap around the soft flesh.

His brain caught up moments later and his eyes opened, and lips parted as he met familiar green eyes.

"I killed you."

She scowled, lips contorting in a way that looked odd on her face, "Clearly you didn't."

She snatched back her hand, striding over to the small table and throwing the scalpel down on it with a clatter. She was in different clothes, loose black clothing clung to her, and she pushed back her dark hair in frustration. Her skin was littered with bruises, and she kept one arm close to her body - the one Leo knew he had broken. Guilt shot up him and he frowned as he looked away, choosing to push his body up into a sitting position.

His own clothes had been changed, they were similar to the black clothing that Eliza wore. A chill went down his spine as he realised someone had changed his clothes whilst he was asleep. And a shock jolted him out of his bed as he realised they saw his names.

He glanced over to Eliza, eyes darting to her wrists where his name lay on both arms.

"Where are we?" He asked, glancing at the drip that was inserted in his arm. He knew it was dangerous to rip it out, but he wasn't going to be pumped with God-knows-what by people he didn't trust.

"Does it look like I know?" She snarked, watching as he slipped out the needle and the drugs began falling to the floor. "I woke up here, just like you."

The floor was cool against his feet and Leo hated that he didn't have shoes on. He felt more exposed somehow. "We shouldn't be alive. They kill those who don't fight." Leo muttered, hand going to his hair. His hair had been unbraided and he was sure it looked like a huge dark cloud on his head.

"We did fight..." Eliza turned to him, wariness and fear in her eyes, "they're not going to kill us..."

"You don't know that." Leo glanced across the room, eyes landing on anything but her. There were no windows in the white room, and two doors were the only ways out.

"Why would they have gone such an effort to save us, then?" She gestured to his drip.

"I don't know." Leo felt frustrated at the lack of answers, "We shouldn't be alive - and you definitely shouldn't be."

Eliza scoffed, turning on her heels and striding for the door. Her hand rested on the door and Leo felt both glad and guilty that she was leaving.

"You know what," She whipped to face him, "No. We were meant to be soulmates. Soulmates are meant to protect each other -"

"We are also meant to be enemies!" Leo interrupted,  "I don't know why, okay, you don't think I wish I had two different people?"

"But you didn't, okay you're-"

Suddenly, the lights blacked out, throwing them into darkness. A deep red hue filled the room, and he glanced up at the red light above the door that was flashing brightly. An alarm filled their ears, screaming it's warning.

Eliza stumbled back into Leo, and he instinctively steadied her, letting his hand drop from her when she glanced at him warily.

There was a click as the only doors out of the room locked shut and the pair looked at each other uneasily, the red light casting grotesque shadows on their face. The sounds of yells and thundering feet filled the corridor outside, odd sounds that they were unfamiliar with echoing in their ears.

Eliza rushed forward, turning the door handle and pulling at the door.

"It's locked." Leo sighed, eyes darting around the room, which was a lot emptier than he realised.

"No - we can't be locked - in - here."

"Eliza." It was as if a switch had been flicked and Eliza stopped rattling the door, a calmness taking over her as she backed away from the door. Leo shuffled, unnerved by her state as she took a seat on the bed. "What are you doing?"

"I'm -"

The thundering of feet ceased at his door, and Leo shuffled, glancing at both friend and foe.

When he looked at her, only one thought filled his mind:

I should have killed her.