This is Not the Last of Us

Chapter 15

Ace had been fast asleep, enjoying the warmth of his husband, when he heard the door clicking open. There was a set of heavy footsteps entering the room, and then they slowly came to a stop in front of Seth and Ace's bed. Ace didn't move for a moment, waiting to see what would happen. He heard the rustling of fabric as someone's hand moved above his body. Ace opened his eyes quickly and grabbed the man's wrist. Ace immediately pulled himself out of their shared bed and flung the man over his shoulder. The man ended up with his face in the tile and his arm behind his back.

Ace hadn't realized it was just a young Firefly soldier until he looked a little more closely. Ace twisted his shoulder more intensely and the man howled out in pain.

"What the hell?" Ace rubbed his eyes with his free hand and scowled, "Who are you?"

Seth and his daughter were seated on their beds, groggily staring at the man.

"Sir! I'm Gerald Phillips, sir!"

"Uh-huh?" Ace said in a snide tone of annoyance. "And what are you here for?"

"I was asked to escort Dr. Lancaster-Ramirez to the operating room, sir!"

Seth seemed surprised by that. "The operating room?"

"Yes, Marlene is requesting your attendance, sir!" The man shouted and squirmed against Ace's vice grip.

Ace hesitated before he finally let go of the man's arm, "Ah, I see."

Ace and Seth exchanged a look of unease. Seth had very vocally been against the surgery, so them requesting him wasn't something he expected. Were they expecting him to operate on Ellie regardless of his beliefs? In theory, that's what doctors were supposed to do, but something about that just felt morally wrong to Seth.

However, a request from Marlene wasn't one you could just ignore. Even if he declined, he was certain she'd just keep sending people until Seth caved. Or worse, she'd threaten him. Marlene had never been above threats.

Seth exhaled and rubbed his eyes to fight off the sleep, "I guess I'll just start early today. Mr. Phillips, please lead the way."

"Dad?" (Y/N) whispered and looked up at him.

"Don't worry," he assured her and kissed her forehead, "I'll take care of it."

She didn't seem to believe him, but she still offered him a tiny nod and smile. "Well, then, have a good day."

Ace and (Y/N) watched Seth walk out of the room and down the hall. He glanced back at them once to offer a tiny smile and wave.

They both waved back reluctantly.

Ace and (Y/N) went to meet up with Joel and to get some breakfast together. The three ate, but they couldn't help but feel like some key members of their group were missing. Without Ellie and Seth, there were no jokes being made, and no silly hypotheticals just waiting for someone to talk about.

Ace couldn't find a good time to talk about what they planned to do to Ellie out in the open. Joel didn't seem to know what they intended to do, and they wholly believed he deserved to know. But they also knew if they told him out in the open, he may freak out.

Ace had Joel come to their room and he filled them in on the game plan.

"The scientists here are pushing to remove the fungus from Ellie." Ace said and leaned forward. "Seth tried to convince them against it, but they weren't having it."

"But it grows all over the brain." Joel's eyes widened. "It'll kill her."

Ace nodded grimly, "Seth is doing everything he can—."

"— Tell them to find someone else."

"Seth said the odds of finding someone else who's immune is astronomical. There is no one else, Joel." Ace sighed.

"But... We can't just let them!" (Y/N) yelled in argument.

Ace's eyes widened for a moment. It was very rarely that (Y/N) yelled, much less at Ace or Seth. She looked at him in horror.

Joel frowned, "I ain't gonna let them kill my baby girl."

"She's not your daughter, Joel." Ace said argumentatively. "You said that yourself in Jackson."

"Things change." Joel said. "I'm sure you understand that more than anyone."

Ace remained silent for a moment. He slumped forward and rubbed his temples after a long sigh.

"You two are impossible, you know that?" He muttered. "I've done some thinking since last night, and I think there's a way we can all get out of here. Ellie included."

"You do?" Joel asked. "Well, shoot. What is it?"

"It's a bit complicated, but I think we can do it. We've gotten this far, right?"

(Y/N) and Joel looked up at Ace and nodded in an eager agreement.

"There's a garage underground that holds a shit ton of cars. All of them are working, and they leave the keys in them in case they have to leave in a hurry. (Y/N) and I will go down there and pick a car. You'll go to the operating room and collect Ellie and Seth. When you use the elevator to get down to the garage, we'll pick you up and we run."

"You think Seth will come with?" Joel asked.

"He doesn't want to hurt Ellie. He's of the same opinion as you and the little lady over here."

"And this plan...," Joel paused, "It's pretty dependent on me."

"I think it's the best if you do it." Ace said simply. "Are you opposed?"

Joel was quiet for a moment before he nodded grimly, "I can do it."

"Then you just need to get to the O.R. and get those two. Don't forget to take the elevator. You can slip out through a door in the back of the room. There's an elevator at the end of the hall."

"And how do you know all this?" Joel asked.

"Last night I asked around and the people around here answered."

"What if they're lying?" Joel countered.

"I double-checked. It's not hard to move around when they know you."

"I see." Joel nodded.

"Then, I'll leave the rest to you —."

The three stopped talking the moment they heard footsteps close to the door. There was a soft knock and Ace inhaled and nodded at the two others in the room.

"Come in!" He confirmed.

Marlene stepped into the room alongside a guard, "Joel. I appreciate everything you've done. Everything you had to do to bring Ellie here. That being said, you're not a Firefly. We have to ask you to leave."

Ace looked up at her and offered a playful smile, "Are you sure, Marlene? He's a damn fine smuggler. We can always use one."

Marlene shook her head tightly. "No offense, Joel, but smugglers tend to bite the hand that feeds them."

Joel raised a brow, but simply stood and nodded. He offered no counter, simply following behind Marlene and the soldier with a curt nod. He glanced back at (Y/N) and Ace who offered him a firm nod. Joel nodded and gave back the same nod.