The next day,
A "meeting" was held in what was technically called the conference room of the island—though calling it that was generous.
It was really just an empty space with a large table, mismatched chairs, and a bunch of half-repaired equipment pushed to the corners.
The room had no official atmosphere; it looked more like a storage room someone decided was good enough for discussion.
At the center of the table sat Luke, completely relaxed, eating a cup of instant ramen with chopsticks. Steam rose from the cup as he slurped noodles, clearly unconcerned about the supposed importance of the meeting.
Around the table sat the people who actually ran the island—Selene, Alice, Jill, Peyton, and Charles Ashford.
"So," he said between bites, "what's today's agenda again?"
Selene gave him a look. "You're the one who called this meeting, remember?"
Luke paused, noodles halfway to his mouth. "Right… I did, didn't I?"
He put the cup down, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "There's something important I need to say," he began — his tone unexpectedly serious. For a second, the room went quiet.
Then he burped. Loudly.
The sound echoed off the walls.
Selene's eyebrow twitched. Alice covered her mouth, trying not to laugh. Jill gave him that look — the one halfway between disbelief and irritation.
Luke blinked, then cleared his throat. "...Sorry for that. Anyway," he continued, pretending it never happened, "the important matter — I'll be leaving soon. For a long trip."
That immediately changed the mood. The light teasing in the air vanished.
Peyton frowned. "Wait, didn't you just come back yesterday? From that trip to Vegas?"
Luke leaned back in his chair, resting his elbows on the armrests, eyes distant. "Yeah," he said quietly. "But this one's different."
The group exchanged uneasy looks. They all knew what that meant. Luke didn't call things "different" unless it involved real danger — the kind that made him prepare quietly instead of bragging.
"How long?"
He hesitated. "Can't say yet. Maybe a few weeks. Maybe longer."
Silence.
Even Ashford stopped fiddling with his notes. The old scientist looked up, adjusting his glasses. "Luke, you realize what your absence would mean for the island," he said gently.
And he was right. Luke couldn't just leave whenever he wanted anymore. He wasn't simply their leader; to the survivors, he had become something else. A living symbol.
The man who had turned chaos into a haven. Who could fight monsters, lift collapsed buildings, bring back medicine when no one else dared to leave.
To them, Luke wasn't just powerful — he was proof that humanity still had a chance. Some even whispered he'd been sent by God. A savior in a world that had forgotten miracles.
Luke hated that idea. He never asked to be anyone's messiah. But whether he liked it or not, the people believed in it.
And if he was gone too long… that faith could start to crack.
"It's important," Luke continued. "And honestly, I'm not doing much here anyway. Most days I'm just sitting in this chair while you all do the real work — running reports, counting supplies, dealing with logistics."
He looked around at them with a faint grin. "While I just sit here and…?" he asked, waiting for someone to fill in the blank.
Alice raised an eyebrow, a smirk tugging at her lips. "That's called being responsible. You should try it sometime."
Luke gave her a flat stare. "Then take the seat. And my responsibilities. You can be leader."
That earned a few small chuckles around the table. The laughter faded quickly, though, when Jill's calm but firm voice cut through the air.
"It's not about the chair, Luke," she said. Her tone was soft but carried weight. "You're the only one who can do the impossible — flying across half the country, lifting equipment no one else can move, bringing back resources when everything's gone. Without you, this place would've fallen apart long ago."
Her words lingered in the quiet that followed. Everyone knew she was right.
Luke sighed, resting his elbows on the table. "Yeah, I know some things here can't run without me," he admitted quietly.
"But that's exactly why I have to go. We can't hide here forever. I've found a way — something that could counter the T-Virus. If it works, it could wipe out most of the infected."
The reaction was instant.
Alice straightened. Jill froze mid-breath. Peyton's eyes widened, and even Ashford's usually composed face showed shock. The idea of something that could end the T-Virus was beyond belief.
After all, the infection had spread across the entire world — cities, continents, oceans. It wasn't just a plague anymore; it was the planet's new reality.
Alice was the first to recover. "What is it?" she asked sharply.
Luke shook his head. "For now, it's better if you don't know," he said, voice calm but resolute. "But for it to work, Umbrella needs to be wiped out — completely. Every lab, every branch, every last trace of them. That's why I'm leaving. This trip… it's an expedition."
The room fell silent again. No one doubted Luke — not after everything he'd done. If he said he could fix this, then there was at least a chance it could be true.
"Without you, we can keep things running for about six months," Selene said. "After that, we'll start running into real problems — supplies, organization, morale."
Jill nodded in agreement. "Yeah. Six months is probably the limit before things get messy. We'll manage, but… we'll need you back after that."
Luke nodded slowly, thoughtful. "Six months," he repeated. "That's the window I'll have, then."