The Good Tenant(A Resident Evil SI/OC)

Chapter 41
    • Chapter 41

    I exhaled in relief as I put the truck into park, glad that the brakes had worked well enough for me to stop before I hit the young woman who was now quaking in fear on the ground in front of the idling truck.

    “I got her,” I said to Jill and Alice as I opened the truck door and accepted the medbag that had been in the back seat. “Miss, are you okay?” I asked as I held my hands out in a non-threatening manner. “I can treat you if you’re injured in any way.”

    Shaking, the woman just pointed at a nearby alleyway where it looked like someone was rifling through someone’s pockets.

    “Jill,” I called out as I stood up a bit. “Stay with her for a minute, it looks like there’s a mugging going on.”

    “Copy that,” Jill said as she got out of the truck and went over to the young woman of Asian descent. “Hey, I’m Jill, can you tell me your name?”

    Standing up, I moved forward to the alleyway, recoiling back as a smell hit me almost like a physical force. “Ugh,” I muttered as I walked toward the person that appeared to be going through someone’s pockets. “Hey! Step away!” I barked as I tried to reach over and grab the shoulder of the person before jumping back as it turned and faced me, part of the face covered in gore as the now-identified zombie lunged at me.

    Backing up, I kicked the undead creature back as I reached into the small of my back where my Sig was holstered, then lining up my sights, I pulled the trigger back until the round had left and there was a new hole in the zombie’s head.

    “What the hell is going on here?” Jill asked as she moved into the alley with her Samurai Edge drawn.

    “We have less time than I thought,” I muttered as I kicked the body of the zombie below me. “Get the girl and get in the truck. I don’t want to still be here when the RPD tries to investigate what happened here.”

    “Got it,” Jill said as we both backed up out of the alleyway and helped the girl now identified as Yoko into the truck.

    “Do you have a place to stay, Yoko?” Alice asked the still-frightened young woman.

    “I don’t remember,” Yoko said as she gripped the small backpack so hard that her knuckles started turning white.

    “That’s fine,” Alice spoke softly. “We’ll get you some food and a fresh change of clothes and then help you figure out your next step.”

    “We’ll make sure you get to wherever it is that you were headed,” I said as I buckled up and put the truck back into gear. “I’ve got some cash put aside I can let you have to help out as well if it’s needed.”

    –
    –

    “Here we are,” I said as I backed the truck up into a parking spot. “Do y’all need help with anything?”

    “I think we’re good,” Jill said as she showed Yoko where her apartment was while she also hefted the lone box with her personal effects in it. “The real question is, do you need help?”

    “I’m good,” I replied. “We may want to start getting our kit together tonight though. If there are already zombies in the city it may be too late to catch Umbrella in the act of anything.”

    “We’ll be over after dinner to help get our kit set up,” Jill replied. “We should also get our go-bags together, we’ll probably need them.”

    Grabbing the dolly out of the truck, I began loading the boxes with paperwork onto it and began wheeling it up the steps to my apartment, unlocking my door and opening it up to reveal that someone had gone through and ransacked most of it.

    “Fuck,” I muttered as I dropped the hand truck and began clearing my house with the handgun, being careful to make sure there weren’t any people lingering behind. “Let’s hope they didn’t get into the kit.” Reaching up to the string that hung down from the ceiling, I pulled down the ladder to the crawlspace and walked up the steps with a flashlight drawn in one hand and my weapon in the other, breathing a sigh of relief as I saw that the weapons that Rain and the others had left behind were still where I had left them.

    Climbing down the ladder, I went and finished unloading the truck before closing the door behind me and making my way to the fridge where I pulled the lone beer out of the fridge and cracked it open.

    “Looks like I’m not sleeping here tonight,” I muttered as I reached for the button on my voicemail recorder, the light showing that there were one or more messages waiting for me.

    “Hey Mark, It’s Enrico. I was calling to let you know that we’ve started releasing the data we had to various public entities. Turns out that Kaplan has a lot more files on Umbrella than anyone thought, and we managed to find some lawyers who were interested in covering us as well. But be aware, Umbrella has already started making moves to stop our story, so they may be sending some people over to mess with you and Jill as well.”

    “A bit late for that,” I muttered as I stopped the recording and took a sip of the beer. “At least they left my fridge alone,” I started dialing Jill’s apartment number from memory. “How’s your apartment looking?”

    “Everything is fine here,” Jill replied. “Why? Is something wrong in yours?”

    “You got the voicemail, right?” I asked. “Well, I’m pretty sure Umbrella already started with my house because I was probably listed in some of Wesker’s files.”

    “Alright,” Jill said with a sigh. “I’ve got mine and Alice’s go-bags packed, hotel for the night?”

    “That’s what my plan was,” I replied. “I’ll return the truck and we can take the Humvee over.”

    “Give us an hour or two,” Jill responded. “We’ll have to see if Yoko plans on coming with us or if she wants to head out on her own.”

    “Copy that,” I said as I glanced at the ladder that I had pulled down. “I’ll start prepping our kit.”
     
    • Chapter 42
    • Chapter 42

    “You good?” Jill asked as she walked into the suite I had reserved for the three of us.

    “Yeah,” I sighed as I put my Sig back together. “I’m just mad that my apartment is destroyed.”

    “At least you own yours,” Jill sat down next to me and passed me a beer. “I’m probably not getting my security deposit back.”

    “Yeah, I wouldn’t count on it,” I laughed.

    “We going to talk about the zombie?” Jill asked.

    “I figured it was probably one that made its way down from the mountains,” I said as I took a swig. “It was too decayed for it to have been a new zombie.”

    “But it is concerning that it was able to reach the city,” Alice chimed in as she overheard the last bit of the conversation. “Also concerning is that Umrella was willing to move and ransack your apartment so quickly.”

    “I don’t know for sure that it was Umbrella,” I replied as I drank some more of the beer. “Could have been someone looking for an easy mark and picked the wrong house,” I trailed off.

    “But it’s too close in timing for it to be a coincidence,” Jill agreed. “Considering the way Wesker hated you, it wouldn’t surprise me if they had some red flags in your personnel files.”

    “Agreed,” I said as I set the beer down and lay down on the floor, stretching my arms and back. “I think I’m gonna sleep here tonight. Y’all can have the beds.”

    “Yeah,” Jill snarked. “Because that’s comfy. Get up and get in the bed. We’re all getting some good rest tonight.”






    “You’re confident that this is where your contact wanted to meet?” Rain asked Chris as they sat at a small cafe in England.

    “If someone on an internet chat forum counts as a contact,” Chris muttered under his breath before speaking up. “Yeah, we’re looking for someone in a gray jacket with sunglasses on.”

    “I see him,” Rain nodded in the direction of someone who matched that description as she took a sip from her drink. “Your seven.”

    “Got it,” Chris said as he saw a reflection in the glass and noted the appearance matched that of the contact he had made. “I’ll go make contact, keep it dialed back but be ready to intervene if necessary.”

    “The weather here is pretty dismal,” Chris said the agreed-upon identification phrase.

    “You think it’s bad here? You should visit Greenland sometime,” a British accent met Chris’s ears as the other man spoke up. “Care to sit down and discuss the weather in Spain perchance?”

    “Sure,” Chris said as he gestured towards the table where Rain was seated. “We’d love to talk about what the rest of Europe is like.”






    “You’re sure that going loud was the best option?” Enrico asked J.D. as they sat in a safe house just outside of Washington D.C.

    “Didn’t say it was the fastest or the best way,” J.D. shrugged. “Just that it was the way that led to us having the best chances of survival. Now if they kill us it’ll be obvious that it was them and there’ll be an investigation.”

    “I hope you’re right about that,” Enrico said as he took a sip from his coffee mug. “Because I don’t think that Umbrella is going to go down quietly.”

    “They’re a pharmaceutical giant,” J.D. laughed. “Of course, they’re not going to go down quietly. They’re a part of big pharma, only they’ve moved far beyond making a profit off of selling fixes to symptoms and have now decided to engineer their own bioweapons for profit.”

    “You think they’ve got more of the kinds of things we encountered in the mansion and training facility?” Enrico asked.

    “You think they stopped at just one facility?” J.D. asked. “No, they’re not the kind of people who will let this sort of thing go, they’ve likely got facilities all over the world just like that one.”

    “But it was easier to get away with up in the mountains because they owned the land and most of the city,” Enrico grasped what J.D. meant.

    “Yeah, In fact, I bet they’ve transferred some of that work to labs inside of the city, and if their safety measures are anything like what you saw in the mountain facility instead of the HIVE,” J.D. shuddered.

    “The Red Queen actually almost succeeded at her job,” Kaplan said as he took a seat and joined the conversation. “If someone hadn’t tampered with her core code she’d have been able to help us out and I’d have been able to recover more data from her drives.”

    “You ever figure out who else had access?” Natalia asked.

    “No,” Kaplan said with a shake of his head. “And there are only a few programmers who worked on the project like I did. And, the altered code was trash, so I expect it was an amateur who had just gotten to copy some of the work the team did and modified it to do what they wanted.”

    “You almost sound sad that she’s gone,” Enrico said. “It was just a machine, and one that tried to kill you, at that.”

    “She didn’t have any choice in the matter,” Kaplan said with a sigh. “And I spent years helping in her development. So, yeah, I’m a bit sad that she’s gone. I might have to see what I can salvage from her code and try to rebuild her. She was effective at preventing an outbreak, and if Umbrella has more sites around the world then we’re going to have to have scientists studying this thing to find a cure or something. Which means that safety measures like the Red Queen are going to be more important than ever.”

    “Sounds like you’ve got your career planned out for once this business is finished,” J.D. smiled. “Just give me a heads up if you plan on implementing it on a site. I’ll need to know where not to go in the future.”

    “Very funny,” Kaplan snarked. “Jackass.”

    “You know you love me,” J.D. ribbed the slightly younger man. “Besides, you’d have been dead years ago if I hadn’t pulled your ass out of the fire a few times.”

    “Well, I’m off to bed,” Enrico stood up. “Have a good night. We’ve got another meeting with the lawyers in the morning.”

    “Ugh,” Natalia spat. “Lawyers.”

    “You said it,” Kaplan yawned. “I guess I should head off to bed too.”

    “I’ll take the first watch,” Natalia said as she pulled out her handgun and set it on the table. “You never know what may come for you in the night.”

    “I’ll take over from you after I wake up,” J.D. said as he leaned back in the recliner and shut his eyes. “Give me four hours of shuteye and I’ll take over from there. I’ve still got some favors saved up to call in any way.”
     
    • Chapter 43
    • Chapter 43

    Raccoon City, September 1st, 1998

    "Any luck?" I asked Alice as she climbed into the sedan we had rented for this stakeout.

    "This site probably isn't doing any testing," the woman replied with a sigh. "Honestly, this feels like a massive waste of time. Umbrella has labs all over the city and likely is only doing the research in a small handful of them. They're not idiots, and they likely predicted that people might try to gain access to their secret research. The fact that we only found stuff in the mountains means they've had decades to work in secrecy. It's looking like they're tightening security up after the Mansion incident."

    "You're probably right," I replied as I cranked the car over and began heading back to the hotel room. "But it's at least worth a shot to check some of the labs out."

    "So, got any more information out of your people in the RPD and hospital?" Alice asked as she accepted a bottle of water.

    "The RPD is scrambling to deal with a lack of funding right now," I replied. "Now that STARS is gone, the gangs decided to start acting up again, and a lot of cops have been pulled to work on that end of town."

    "Sounds like they're going to have issues later," Alice said as she took a sip of her water. "Any luck on the job front? I know you've been looking while Jill and I are working the Umbrella side of things."

    "Yeah, there's a school that's looking to hire some extra security and medics due to the crime wave," I replied. "I've got an interview later today."

    "You going to accept?" Alice asked. "Seems like we didn't manage to contain the virus if we encountered a zombie a couple of weeks ago. Might be better off just continuing to prep."

    "If and when things start going down, I'd rather have saved those I could. Especially the kids," I responded as I flowed through traffic. "Besides, when all hell breaks loose we can send the kids out on a school bus. I've got enough kit to give them some firepower for defending the kids after all."

    "I suppose that makes a certain degree of sense," Alice said as we rounded a corner on our way to pick up Jill. "I'm just worried that you may end up separated from us should something happen."

    "I've got some ideas about that," I said as we neared the fast food chain that Jill was seated in. "But It'll take some work to see if they'll work or not."

    "Well, let's hope that your ideas work," Alice said as Jill got in the car.

    "Well?" I asked.

    "I may have an in," Jill said with a small smirk. "Turns out there's a few nerds in there who don't keep up with the news, and one of them decided to try and ask me out. I figure I'll go out, see what kind of info I can pull while out drinking."

    "Just stay safe," I fixed the rearview mirror so that Jill could see my eyes as I glanced back. "I can be on standby if you need backup."

    "No offense," Alice said with a small laugh. "But you're not exactly unobtrusive. A six-foot-tall bearded man draws attention in this kind of place."

    "Urban America is the only place in the world where I wouldn't blend in," I replied with a sigh. "You have a point. Alice can be on standby then."

    "You're paranoid," Jill slugged me in the shoulder. "I can handle on nerd even if I happen to be drunk."

    "I guess that settles it then."

    –
    –
    September 3rd, 1998
    "So, is there a particular reason why you're hiring an armed guard now?" I asked the principal of Raccoon City Elementary school.

    "The RPD has refused to station a School Resource officer here for the last month and a half, citing "manpower issues" as the reason why we haven't had any armed security even though a gang shootout happened less than a block away from the school last week."

    "You're aware that there might be bad publicity associated with hiring me on?" I questioned further, wanting him to be certain about this decision.

    "Fuck them," the Principal swore. "I'm here to educate young minds in a safe environment, and I'm going to ensure that it remains safe in spite of whatever protests someone might raise."

    "I'm in, but I am aware that this position is temporary," I replied.

    "Do a good enough job and I'll see about making it permanent," John Paul stood up and firmly shook my hand.

    "I'll be here bright and early in the morning," I said as I shook the hand back. "I've already got a tac vest and everything except for a rifle."

    "I can't get you one of those, unfortunately," Principal Paul grimaced. "But I'm not going to kick up a fuss if you keep some extra firepower in your vehicle."

    –
    –
    September 4, 1998

    "Sherry, I've got your lunch packed," Annette Birkin said as she handed the young girl a lunch box. "I'm going to drop you off at school and then I'll be at work for the rest of the day. I've put dinner in the microwave if we don't make it home until late."

    "Okay mom," Sherry said as she gave her mother a hug.

    The duo made their way to the car and got in, Sherry buckling up in the back seat as they moved toward the Elementary School.

    "I love you, have a good day sweetie," Annette gave her daughter a kiss on the cheek as Sherry got out of the car and waved goodbye to her mother.

    "Love you too, mom!" Sherry yelled back as she began walking into the school.

    "You're new," she said as she saw a man in a vest that said 'Security' on the front of it.

    "Yes ma'am," the bearded man replied with a gentle smile as he knelt down. "I'm here to keep y'all safe."

    Sherry just smiled as she considered that before continuing on her way.
     
    • Chapter 44
    • Chapter 44

    September 5, 1998

    “So, what do you do in that lab all day?” Jill asked her date for the evening. “Surely there’s something exciting that goes on in the world of pharmaceuticals that would make someone like me interested?”

    “Well,” Mathew Barnes replied as he took a sip from his whiskey glass. “I’m not really supposed to talk about what goes on in the lab, but I suppose I could tell you a thing or two.”

    “Anything crazy?”

    “Not really,” Barnes shrugged. “Mostly it’s just using small samples of drugs on various cells to see if there’s any change in behavior or allergic reactions etc…”

    “No trying to cure famous diseases or anything like that?” Jill asked. An actual look of curiosity on her face.

    “I wish,” the man scoffed as he shotgunned the last of his whiskey before signaling to the bartender to pour some more. “There’s no money in cures, so we’re limited to treating symptoms of problems instead of the source. If we cured you then you wouldn’t be a repeat customer.”

    “That seems like something an accountant would say, not a scientist,” Jill pointed out.

    “Pharmaceutical companies aren’t owned by scientists anymore,” Barnes sighed. “If they were, then you’d have a lot more things cured.”

    “Wouldn’t that also lead to some potential issues?” Jill asked. “I mean, scientists have done lots of awful things in the name of research.”

    “Sure, the ones without common sense or ethics enough to recognize a bad idea or unethical research prospect need some sitting on. But most of us are here to help people.”

    “Well, Matthew, I don’t think this is going to work out, but I’ll cover your drink anyway,” Jill said with a sad smile as she pulled a wallet out of her jeans and paid for the drinks and meal with cash. “Have a great evening on me,” she gave him a kiss on the cheek as she left some extra cash on the table for further drinks before standing up and walking away.

    “No luck?” Alice asked as Jill entered her apartment.

    “No, seems I got someone who’s genuinely interested in the industry to help people as best he can,” Jill sighed.

    “I can’t imagine that there’s a lot of scientists willing to work on that sort of virus while knowing what it’s actually being used for,” Alice replied. “Odds are that they’ve seen it introduced into samples and just told that it’s something unique that they want to be analyzed for specific properties and such.”

    “So you keep most people in the dark and still get to experiment with it,” Jill understood what Alice was implying. “There has to be more to it than that though because Wesker and others graduated from an Umbrella school.”

    “Yeah, where Umbrella could groom and manipulate young minds to get exactly the kind of person they wanted to know about the true experiments they were running,” Alice said as she finished up the dishes she was washing.

    “We’re not going to be able to find anything in this city, are we?” Jill asked.

    “Likely not,” Alice said with a sad smile. “At least not anytime soon.”

    “Damn,” Jill said before laughing. “Well, if we’re not going to be productive, we might as well do something fun.”

    “Get drunk and go bug Mark?” Alice asked.

    “Yep,” Jill replied as she grabbed a bottle of liquor off of the shelf beside her fridge. “The guy’s too straight-laced for his own good anyway. He needs something to get him to loosen up every now and again.”

    —
    —

    “Nope,” I said as I closed the door in Jill’s face. “Come back when you’re sober!” I said through the door.

    “But Alice locked me out,” Jill whined as she staggered before using the wall to hold herself up. “ ‘Sides, ‘m sober enough to take you.”

    “Not unless you’re a drunken master in disguise,” I said as I opened the door and caught the woman as she nearly fell. “Come on then, we’ll get you over to the couch.”

    “Oh! You’re watching Top Gun!” Jill exclaimed as she made herself comfortable on my couch.

    “Yeah, I wasn't enjoying some peace and quiet before going back to work at the elementary school tomorrow,” I snarked as I handed the woman a popcorn bowl.

    —
    —

    “One day you’ll be the death of me,” I sighed as I sat Jill down in my guest bedroom’s bed, my apartment cleaned up from the destruction caused a few weeks ago.

    “No relationships until you make it out of Raccoon City,” I muttered as I gently closed the door on my friend. “Don’t want to start something when you might not make it out of the city.”

    “Looks like I’m not sleeping tonight,” I muttered as I glanced at the clock showing 2 in the morning. “Might as well be productive.”

    “You’re up early,” Jill yawned as she walked into my living room where I was doing my morning calisthenics.

    “Gotta be at work in an hour,” I muttered as I did weighted Russian twists with a twenty-pound weight. “Besides, gotta stay fit, I was stagnant for a bit too long.”

    “You had stitches on most of your side,” Jill pointed out. “That’s not called being stagnant, that’s called healing, idiot.”

    “Still gotta rework the muscle back into shape there,” I replied. “Too much of your core extends to your sides for me to ignore it.”

    “You’re out of cereal,” Jill said as she poured the last of my Cinnamon Toast Crunch into a bowl with some milk.

    “I take it the date didn’t go well,” I asked rhetorically as I moved from Russian Twists to Burpees.

    “What gave it away?” Jill snarked back.

    “You, being drunk last night,” I replied as I stood up, panting and slightly out of breath.

    “No shit, Sherlock,” Jill deadpanned. “Turns out my mark was one of those idealist types.”

    “We’ll find something eventually,” I said as I turned to enter my room. “Either we’ll find it, or it’ll find us, but we’ll get something one way or another. You just gotta have some faith.”
     
    • Chapter 45
    • Chapter 45

    September 7, 1998

    “How you been?” I asked Marvin Branagh as I sat in the diner with a cup of coffee in hand.

    “I’m good,” Marvin replied with a sigh as he rubbed his eyes. “It’s been hell this past few weeks though.”

    “I bet,” I replied as I took a sip of my coffee. “The city seems to have gone crazy after the mountain incident.”

    “You’re telling me,” Marvin grunted. “I’ve been pulling double shifts all week just to keep up with the paperwork. On top of that, we’ve Got Chief Irons ‘Not available’ at times when we need the chief to be present.”

    “Wish I was able to help,” I said as I accepted the plate of waffles and bacon from the waitress.

    “SWAT wishes you were there too,” Marvin said as he accepted his plate of toast, eggs, and sausage. “They’ve been run ragged all month trying to keep a lid on the gang violence that’s going on.”

    “Well, even if I don’t work with y’all anymore, you guys can still give me a call when you’re off if you need some off-the-books first aid.”

    “I’ll keep that in mind,” Marvin grunted as he began to eat. “The rest of STARS leave town or something?”

    “Yeah,” I replied. “I think it’s just Jill, Brad, and myself still in town.”

    “I don’t know what Chief Irons was thinking,” Marvin said as he scarfed down his food in between gulps of orange juice. “But we could have used all of you. As it is, we’re getting a bunch of fresh graduates from several police academies. We don’t need fresh officers here though, we need experienced cops ready to get shit squared away.”

    “Anything else new happening?” I asked, curious to see if things were moving as quickly as I suspected.
    “Nah,” Marvin shook his head. “Just a hectic week so far, and I’m ready to go on vacation already.”

    “You got the PTO for it?” I asked.

    “Nah,” Marvin shook his head. “I’ve already got Christmas and Thanksgiving scheduled off this year.”

    “Then I hope you get to enjoy them,” I said honestly as we both began chatting about the other things that were going on in the RPD currently.

    –
    –

    “Anything new out of the RPD?’ Jill asked.

    “Yeah,” I replied with an odd look on my face. “Chief Irons keeps disappearing from his office periodically and not even Deputy Chief Douglas knows where he is during those time periods.”

    “Should we take a look and see what we can find out?” Alice asked.

    “I mean,” I shrugged. “It could be related to Umbrella, so it may be worth a shot.”

    “We’ll have to work something out,” Jill said as she considered the idea. “We’ll start making plans tonight and move on from there.”

    “I’ll be continuing the prep work on the Humvee tomorrow,” I replied. “I’ve also got a couple of other things to work on.”

    “We’ll take care of investigating Chief Irons,” Jill said. “The cars being in working order is a big deal.”

    “Your Toyota needs more work than I can provide,” I said as I gestured toward the car that was in horrible shape. “I’ll see what I can do for your engine, but I’m not making any promises.”

    “Eh,” Jill shrugged. “It was a beater when I bought it in the first place.”

    “So y’all are going to investigate Irons starting tomorrow while I continue working at the school?” I double-checked.

    “Yep,” Alice said as she finished loading up the rest of her Beretta magazines. “But first, let’s finish this range time. It’s been a while and I need to make sure I’m up to speed.”

    “Alright,” I agreed as I stood up from the table at the outdoor range. “Want me to help walk you through some of the speed and accuracy drills that I use?”

    “Sure. I’ll bet Jill has some that’ll help too,” Alice said as she made sure her holster was secured.

    “I’ve got a few,” Jill replied. “We’ll work through all of them slowly though, don’t want to overwhelm you after all.”

    “Step one is to relax, the more stressed out you are about the shot the more fatigued your arms will get over time. A handgun might not be heavy at first, but after thirty minutes or more of practicing with a handgun the small muscles in your forearms and wrist will start getting worn out and you’ll start missing shots.”






    September 9, 1998

    “So, why is Chief Irons leaving out of a back exit?” Alice asked as the two women watched the heavyset man look around before vanishing into a side alley.

    “That is a very good question,” Jill said as she exited the car. “Let’s go see if we can find out.”

    “Right behind you,” Alice said as she made sure her boots were laced tight.

    Moving forward into the alleyway, they saw a small glimpse of the man as he disappeared down a manhole, the cover setting quietly down behind him as he climbed down with a flashlight held between his teeth.

    “Why go into the sewers?” Jill asked quietly. “What are you hiding down there?”

    “We should wait a few seconds before following him,” Alice whispered. “We don’t want to be heard by him and risk discovery.”

    “Agreed,” Jill replied. “You got the camera?”

    “In my backpack,” Alice said. “Don’t want to risk dropping it into sewer water right now, after all.”

    “Alright, let’s get this manhole cover up and start moving, I don’t want to lose Irons,” Jill said as she leaned down and began picking up the steel plate.

    “The ladder here is surprisingly sturdy,” Alice observed as she began climbing down.

    “It has to be if Irons wants his bulk to get down without any problems,” Jill responded as she slid down the ladder, her gloves working as a brake while she dropped.

    “Huh,” Alice said as she finished climbing down. “I’m surprised the lighting in here is as intact as it is.”

    “It’ll be enough for us to find Irons,” Jill said as she drew her Samurai Edge. “Let’s go find out what’s going on here.”
     
    • Chapter 46
    • Chapter 46 (Content warning: Prevented Rape in scene)

    Jill and Alice walked silently through the sewer, keeping Irons just at the edge of their vision so that if he tried to turn around they would be able to see and respond quickly enough.

    Turning a corner, they saw Irons changing clothes into something that made him look like a regular mechanic before climbing up another ladder.

    “You think he’ll be back down here?” Alice asked after the manhole cover had closed with a small sound.

    “He has to come back down here,” Jill confirmed as she moved close enough to see the duffel bag of clothing. “He’s got clothes down here.”

    “If he’s down here enough, he might have some sort of hideout,” Alice said as she wrinkled her nose at the way some of the clothes had blood stains on different parts of them.

    “Alright,” Jill agreed. “I don’t think splitting up is a good idea, so let’s go see if we can find out what else Chief Irons is hiding down here.”

    “It’s faint,” Alice said as she shined the light from her weapon-mounted flashlight on the ground. “But it looks like there are some small scuff marks on the ground heading that way.”

    “You lead,” Jill said as she turned to face the ladder. “I’ll cover your back.”






    “How does everything look today?” Principal Paul paused his walk to stop and ask me.

    “Perimeter looks good,” I replied as I took a gulp from the bottle of water that I had with me. “I’m not seeing or hearing anything that would make me concerned at the moment.”

    “That’s good to hear,” the other man replied. “I’m hoping that it remains that way.”

    “As do I,” I laughed. “The last thing I want is to have these kids be in any danger.”

    As we continued speaking, the bell rang and the kids broke out of their classrooms to head for the first lunch period of the day.

    “It’s you again,” a young blond walked up to me. “What’s that on your arm?” She pointed at the edge of the tattoo on my right arm that peeked out from underneath my polo shirt.

    “It’s my tattoo,” I replied with a smile as I sat down on the school’s steps next to the girl. “Wanna see what the rest of it looks like?” I asked.

    “Yes,” Sherry nodded as she opened up her lunch box and began eating the sandwich that had been packed for her.

    “What does that mean?” Sherry asked as she pointed at the Latin phrase on the tattoo.

    “I’ll explain when you’re older,” I said as I got a handful of glares from some teachers for showing the tattoo to an elementary student.

    “Okay,” Sherry mumbled happily as she continued eating her prepared lunch.

    “Now, I better go check on everything again,” I muttered to myself as I stood up and began walking the perimeter of the school again.”






    “This door is locked,” Alice muttered as they followed the marks to a darkly lit door marked ‘maintainence’.

    “I’ve got the solution to that,” Jill grinned as she stepped forward with her lockpicking set in hand, pushing the straight pin in and moving the tumbler’s up until she heard a faint click. Turning the handle, she eased the door open as Alice stepped forward and into the doorway, wanting to make sure that there wasn’t anyone waiting on them through the other side.

    “We’re clear,” Alice said as she turned and nearly threw up. “But I’m not sure that’s a good thing.”

    “Yeah,” Jill muttered as an eerie sense of calm spread over her as she saw the bodies of four dead women lying naked in the maintenance closet. “We should leave this as it is now,” Jill said as she relocked the door and made sure her gloves were properly on so that there weren’t any of her fingerprints on the door or door handle. “If Irons is the one behind this, then we need to catch him in the act, so let’s get back over to the manhole and see if he’s on his way back or not.”

    Alice just nodded, covering her mouth with her sleeve as she continued holding back the contents of her stomach.

    “Come on,” Jill said as she pulled the scientist along.

    –
    –

    “Let me go!” A blond woman screamed at the large man while he ripped at her clothes.

    “Go!” Alice said to Jill as they heard the screams. “I’m right behind you.”

    Jill sprinted forward, spotting Irons on top of a younger blond and trying to strangle her while ripping at her clothes.

    Slowing down, Jill drove her knee into the RPD Chief’s face, shattering his nose and driving him back in shock before he looked up and saw a pistol pointed at his face as blood leaked from his nose.

    “You’re not going anywhere, bastard,” Jill spat as she moved back a bit to maintain a good distance. “Actually, you know what, move, make my day.”

    “I got you,” Alice said as she comforted the other woman as she rubbed at her throat. “Let’s get you up and out of here, and we’ll call the police as well.”

    “Alright,” the blond coughed as she grabbed the scraps of her dress and held it over her nude form.

    “Alice, as soon as you get the RPD on their way I need you to come back here,” Jill said as she continued staring down her sights at the rapist and serial killer in front of her. “I want us to get all of the evidence gathered so it doesn’t disappear.”

    Irons held his nose, glaring at Jill for a moment while waiting for a moment in which her guard was down. When a light flickered in the distance and Jill’s eyes were taken off of him for a second, he lurched upward, eager to try and kill the ex-STARS member as a single shot rang out.

    “You shouldn’t have moved,” Jill muttered as the overweight man clutched at his chest, blood spreading out through his shirt, the knife that he had hidden in his hand falling to the floor as he fell to the ground.
     
    • Chapter 47
    • Chapter 47

    “Why are you arresting her?” the blond woman asked. “She’s the one that saved me from that, that monster.”

    “It’s protocol ma’am,” Lieutenant Marvin Branagh sighed. “We’ve got to investigate any signs of this for evidence that she didn’t just murder him after saving you.”

    “I know how this works, Marvin,” Jill said as she set her Samurai Edge down. “I’m not going to make it hard on you.”

    “Thank you,” Marvin said with a sigh as he signaled for Kevin Ryman to cuff the STARS member. “I promise I’ll see to it that this investigation is done right.”

    “There’s a maintenance room down that way,” Jill nodded her head down the sewer tunnels. “You might want to check out what’s in there as well.”

    “Noted,” Marvin replied as he actually pulled out a notebook and began writing details down. “I need CSI to get down here and start piecing the scene together. Ryman, I want you to take Jill down to the Precinct and ensure she gets a cell alone. I then want you to guard her until I relieve you personally. I don’t want anything to go missing or wrong here.”

    “Got you,” Ryman said as he escorted the woman to his patrol car. “I’ll make sure she gets out of here safe.”

    “I’ll let Mark know what happened here,” Alice told Jill as she got into the patrol car. “You want me to pass along a message?”

    “Nah,” Jill shook her head. “I’ll tell him myself when he posts bail.”






    “Alright detective,” Marvin said as he knelt down, gloves on his hands. “Walk me through what happened here.”

    “Looks like Valentine followed Irons down here,” the detective started. “I’ve got her bootprints in the dust over there. “They then walked down that way,” the detective indicated the scrape marks on the concrete. “And found the room that my partner is currently going through. They probably heard the struggle and prevented Irons from raping the blond. From there, it gets a bit fuzzy. Irons has a knife in his hand, and it looks like he tried to move while Valentine was holding him at gunpoint. She probably didn’t see the weapon, but given how much larger Irons is, it wouldn’t have mattered. She shot him once, center mass, no exit wound, so she was probably using hollow points. I’ll have to get forensics down here for a better picture of everything, but it doesn’t look like this favors the late Chief at all.”

    “I’ll get a judge to pull a warrant on the Chief’s home,” Marvin said as he sighed heavily. “If those bodies are any indication, it looks like we’ve found the source of the murders that started last month.”





    “I thought I said not to get into any trouble,” I said to Jill as I sat down across the glass from her.

    “What can I say?” Jill asked with a shrug and a smile. “It must be my magnetic personality.”

    “Must be,” I snarked back. “You’re going to have to spend a few nights in lockup while they sort out the case though.”

    “I know,” Jill replied. “Marvin’s had round-the-clock security on me just in case someone tries to do anything.”

    “Good,” I said with a smile. “Just make sure it’s people that you actually trust. I’m not sure some of the cops around here are trustworthy.”

    “Right now it’s rotating between Kevin and Aaron,” Jill said with a shrug. “I know those two at least are trustworthy enough to not try anything.”

    “Just keep your head on a swivel,” I said as one of the officers signaled that my time was up. “I don’t want to have to go and avenge your death or anything.”

    “Just make sure that they actually find the evidence that exonerates me,” Jill stated. “I don’t want to be stuck in here.”

    “I’ll do what I can,” I said as I stood up. “You be careful in there.”

    –
    –

    “Thanks for meeting me,” Acting Chief Douglas Raymond said as I entered his office. “I wanted to extend an offer to you now that Chief Irons is no longer able to prevent me from doing so.”

    “What’s the offer?” I asked, my arms crossed.

    “I want to offer you your job back, we’re in desperate need of people who know what they’re doing,” Douglas replied. “And we’re willing to offer an immediate bonus if you’re willing to step in and do the job.”

    “I’m currently guarding Raccoon City Elementary School,” I replied. “While I would like to accept the offer, I also don’t want to leave the kids unguarded.”

    “I’ll assign or hire a new guard myself,” Chief Raymond said. “I’ve freed up a large portion of our budget now that we’re not spending money on useless art projects or artifacts.”

    “I want someone who’s actually good at their job then,” I said firmly. “No one who’ll leave at the first opportunity to do something else.”

    “I’ll see what I can do,” Raymond sighed. “I’m offering a two grand bonus if you rejoin the department in the next few days, we’ve got SWAT operators who need their medic back on the job.”

    “Let me speak to the principal,” I said. “I’ll have a response for you tomorrow at the latest.”

    “Thank you,” Chief Raymond replied. “We’re trying to get things worked out in the Irons investigation ASAP so we can extend the same offer to Valentine,” the man looked exhausted for a moment. We’re drowning here, and Chief Irons seems to have been making things worse instead of working to improve them.”

    “I’ll head over and discuss things with the Principal now,” I replied. “I’ll have an answer for you tomorrow.”
     
    • Chapter 48
    • Chapter 48

    “But you just started working here,” Principal John Paul protested. “I know that the rest of the city is in a mess, but that’s why I hired you in the first place.”

    “I know,” I sighed. “Chief Raymond had promised to personally ensure that the school is secure at all times though. And I’ll also be on call for any emergencies. As in, I’ll drop everything to make it here if shit hits the fan.”

    “I want your word that this school will have armed security,” John met my eyes with a firm look. “These children are my responsibility and I’ll be damned before I allow harm to come to them.”

    “You have it,” I stated firmly. “I’ll do everything that I can to ensure their safety as well.”

    “Alright then,” the principal nodded. “I guess I’ll see you when I see you.”






    HUNK nodded to himself as he fired his sidearm at the targets at the range, his accuracy was acceptable.

    This team needed work though, their lack of communication when moving along with their lack of accuracy troubled him.

    “Damn! That’s a hell of a score!” Alpha 2 said as he tried to pat HUNK on the back, only for the USS operative to grab his wrist and break it.

    “Fuck, man! You broke my wrist!” Alpha 2 screamed as he cradled the hand.

    “No contact was authorized,” HUNK said as he tilted his helmeted head at the other USS operative. “A replacement Alpha 2 can be found.”

    –
    –

    “That was pretty nasty,” Goblin 1 said as she glanced at HUNK. “Was it really necessary?.”

    “Yes,” HUNK replied. “Alpha 2 behaved unprofessionally. And so needed to be educated in his errors.”

    “Well, we’re all set for the mission ahead,” Goblin 1 replied. “We’re just stuck here waiting for the brass to get transportation sorted.”

    “Successful extraction of virus samples will be contingent upon proper teamwork and accuracy,” HUNK said as he finished cleaning his sidearm before holstering it again. “Both of which Alpha 2 lacked.”

    “Alright,” Goblin 1 shrugged. “I’m not sure I get it, but I’ll have to roll with what you say. You are the team lead on this after all.”

    “Standard kit will be provided, we set out in five days,” HUNK turned and his mirrored helmet faced the woman. “Expect things to go wrong, and you will never be disappointed.”





    September 11, 1998

    “We need to accept the offer the feds have extended,” Annette said to her husband as they got ready for bed that night.

    “I know,” William said with a sigh as he buried his head in his hands. “I just need a little more time to finish my work and then I can accept the offer.”

    “We may not have that sort of time,” Annette responded as she sat down on the bed next to her husband. “Umbrella has been pushing for results that just aren’t there, and I’m concerned they may try something.”

    “We’ll make it work,” William said as he lay down. “I’ve paid off some of the UBCS members that are in the area to serve as bodyguards should anyone try something.”

    “And what precautions have you taken in regards to Sherry?” Annette asked.

    “She’s fine,” William said with a wave of his hand. “Her school is close to the RPD’s HQ and with that snake Irons gone there shouldn’t be any problems with ensuring her safety.”

    “She needs to see you more,” Annette sighed as she rolled over and faced away from the other scientist. “You know that we barely spend time with her as is, and lately you’ve been almost living out of the office. This is the first night we’ve had as a family in weeks.”

    “I know,” William replied as he pulled his wife close and kissed her on the cheek. “Once I finish my research I’ll start spending more time with you both. It’ll all work out in the end, you’ll see.”





    September 12, 1998

    “Why are you leaving?” Sherry asked me as we split a massive cookie on the steps of the school.

    “Because the police need my help,” I replied with a small smile. “And they’re going to be sending someone over to take my place tomorrow. I’ll show them how the job is done and they’ll be protecting you.”

    “I understand,” Sherry said as she finished her half of the cookie. “But the other kids might not.”

    “Well, if anything happens to the person sent to take my place, I want you to take the other kids and run as fast as you can to the police station,” I handed over the last of the cookie. “Work together and make it there and I’ll make sure that nothing bad happens.”

    “You promise?” the girl looked into my eyes.

    “I promise,” I chuckled as I ruffled her hair. “Better get back to class now,” I said as the bell rang. “I’ve got a few more rounds to make.”





    “Never thought I’d see this side of a cell after I went cop,” Jill remarked wryly to herself as she kept herself busy doing some small workouts.

    “Chief Douglas sent me to relieve you,” an RPD officer said to Ryman as he walked to the other side of the room. “You can go ahead and head out now.”

    “You’re not one of the authorized people,” Kevin said as he shifted his arm back toward his gunbelt. “I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

    “Shouldn’t have said that,” the other officer muttered as he stuck a stun gun into Kevin’s side, giving him an extra kick to the head once he was down.

    “We need backup in here!” Jill yelled out as the man moved into her cell with his gun drawn.

    “Shh, shh,” the man said as he pointed the Beretta at Jill’s face. “Don’t make this harder on yourself,” he said as he got closer to the woman.

    Lunging forward, Jill knocked the pistol out of the man’s hand and it went sliding across the ground and out of the cell.
    “Had to pick the hard way,” the man said as he elbowed Jill in the side, causing her to gasp in pain and fall back into the door of the cell, the door locking with a faint “click” as they both stood facing each other.

    Darting to the side, Jill grabbed the first that sailed past her face and twisted the arm, driving her knee into the joint and nearly popping it before the man threw her over his shoulder with a pained grunt.

    Getting back up on her feet, Jill noted that the man was cradling his arm. Good, she had wounded him.

    It was clear this man wasn’t professionally trained in martial arts and had probably never been in a fight more important than a brawl as he recklessly pushed forward with a movement to tackle Jill. A move that Jill evaded as she snapped out with a side kick into the man’s knee. Considering the man’s bulk, her best option was to eliminate the joints and cripple him over time.

    Swinging wildly, the man got lucky as he backed Jill into a corner, and shoving her down, wrapped his hands around her throat.

    Bringing her arms down, Jill used her elbows to drive the forearms down, but couldn’t do enough damage to stop him, her vision growing darker as she slowly lost more and more oxygen.

    A sharp crack sounded and the arms around her throat loosened, leaving Jill gasping for breath as she shoved the weight off of her and sucked in air.

    “Stupid fucker,” Kevin said as he leaned back against the wall. “Should have made sure I was out for the count.”
     
    • Chapter 49
    • Chapter 49

    “What the hell just happened here?!” Lieutenant Branagh asked as he rushed into the room.

    “Officer Miller came in, claimed he had been sent to relieve me,” Kevin said as he didn’t even lift his head from where it was leaning back against the wall he was sitting with his back to. “He wasn’t on the authorized detail, so I told him to leave. He hit me with a stun gun and then went in to kill Valentine there,” Kevin inhaled a ragged breath as blood dripped down from where he had been kicked in the head. “I woke up and wasn’t able to move very well without being dizzy, so I got a good position and took the only shot I could.”

    “You good, Valentine?” Marvin asked the woman as she gently touched her neck.

    “Yeah,” her voice came out low and gravelly. “You should see the other guy.”

    “I think I do,” Marvin laughed a bit as he opened the cell door. “I’m going to have to get more cops in here, you want a new guard?”

    “Yeah,” Jill rasped out in a whispery voice. “I want Mark in here, Kevin needs a hospital, and I’m not sure who I trust right now.”

    “He’s on a SWAT detail right now, but I’ll see what I can do,” the dark-skinned man sighed. “Until I can get him in here, I’ll take care of guarding you myself.”

    –
    –

    “She’s in the conference room for now,” Marvin said as he opened the door. “We’re not locking her in anymore in case someone else decides to try and kill her.”

    “You green, Jill?” I asked as I entered the room where Jill was spinning around in an office chair lazily.

    “Sure, if you count sheer boredom as green,” Jill replied, her voice still recovering from the incident earlier.

    “Well, I’ve got a pack of cards in my medbag,” I glanced at Lieutenant Branagh and waited for a nod. “You can at least play some solitaire while we get things sorted out.”



    September 15, 1998

    “Man, this is disturbing,” Detective Peterson muttered as they looked at the late Chief Irons’ house, the size of the building making their own apartments feel small.

    “Tell me about it,” his partner Mike Evans agreed. “Think we’ll find anything here aside from creepy stuffed animals?”

    “No clue,” Peterson shrugged as he tossed his cigarette on the ground outside and smashed it under his boot. “But we’ve got a warrant and the Chief is dead, so let’s just see if there’s any clues that might point to more murders or anything else.”

    The two of them opened the door with gloves on, a key taken out of evidence working on the lock.

    “Seal it back up,” Evans told Peterson as he handed the other man the key before turning the handle and pushing the door open with a slight shove, the well-oiled hinges nary making a sound.

    “The door doesn’t squeak,” Peterson remarked as he rejoined his partner. “That’s a bit unusual.”

    “Irons made enough money that he could probably afford to do proper maintenance,” Evans shrugged. “Now, let’s see what secrets lie inside.”

    —
    —

    “Well, this was a bust,” Peterson sighed as he looked at the bookshelf in the home office. “Seems the Chief didn’t bring his extracurricular work home with him.”

    The detective glanced down at the bookshelf, actually looking at the book titles for a minute before turning to Evans.

    “Where does something like a hardcover copy of the Constitution fit in with books about Taxidermy?” Peterson asked as he tried to pull the book off the shelf, only for a click to sound behind the gas fireplace and it to slide behind another part of the wall.

    “I’d say it doesn’t seem to fit,” Evans said as he pulled a flashlight from his belt and clicked it on. “Let’s go see what lies behind the secret passageway, shall we?”

    Moving through the small hallway, the two detectives came across a room.

    “Oh fuck,” Peterson breathed as he stared at the blond woman on a pedestal in the room, another one laying on a table in various stages of being turned into a stuffed figure.

    “Move!” Evans said as he covered his mouth, despite the things he had seen people do at their worst, this one disgusted him on a level that nothing else had.

    “Go,” Peterson said. “There’s a trash can in the office, puke in it, we need to preserve this scene.”






    “I think this is enough to rule Jill’s case as self-defense,” Chief Raymond said as he looked at the new crime scene. “Irons doesn’t have any family pressing charges, and the Department certainly isn’t going to be trying.”

    “Well, the body that’s already on a pedestal has been here for at least five years,” Detective Peterson said as he closed the door behind them. “So that means he’s been doing this sort of thing since well before he became Chief of the RPD. And given he was chief, who knows how many investigations into his crimes he stonewalled and had us drop.”

    “Fuck man,” Evans sighed. “We had the kind of criminal we’ve been trying to put behind bars for years right in front of us the whole time.”

    “Don’t beat yourself up over it,” Raymond said as they walked out of the house, forensics and CSI moving in to take over the scene. “He fooled most of us. Now I’m going to have to go through the list of personnel he fired to try and find out why they were let go,” the new Chief sighed. “Maybe some of them will want their jobs back.”

    “Might want to look into calling the FBI too,” Detective Peterson remarked as he lit up a cigarette and puffed on it. “Irons was really close to Mayor Warren and they might have been working together to cover this sort of thing up. Irons was appointed by the Mayor, after all.”

    “You got another cigarette?” Chief Raymond looked at the detective.

    “Yeah, but I thought you didn’t smoke, boss.”

    “I think I’m going to pick up the habit,” the Chief accepted the cigarette and lighter and lit up, coughing a bit as he first inhaled but then relaxing as he got into the flow of it. “It’s that or drinking, and I’m not going to drink while working.”

    “We got your back chief,” Evans said as he leaned against the unmarked vehicle. “You gonna go back and let Valentine out of her cell now?”

    “She’s been moved to the Conference room for now,” Raymond sighed as he finished the cigarette before stamping it out. “Had someone try to kill her yesterday while the two of you were out investigating the sewers for more clues.”

    “Man, the people from STARS just can’t catch a break,” Peterson shook his head. “I’m glad I never tried to join up.”

    “Well, the three remaining STARS members in town are going to be rejoining the force,” the new Chief of the RPD moved towards his patrol car. “We need the manpower if nothing else, and they’re better than most of the department’s beat cops. Good work today, guys. Go get some rest and come back to HQ in the morning. I might need you two for something.”

    Author's Note: The bit about Irons' house isn't anything you'll find in canon, but it's something that I figured made sense given his history.
     
    • Chapter 50
    • Chapter 50

    September 17, 1998

    “It’s good to hear from the two of you,” Jill said into the phone in her apartment. “You did remember to call Claire and let her know that you’re not in Raccoon City anymore, right?”

    “I’ll get around to it eventually,” Chris replied. “How are things in the city?”

    “Irons is dead,” Jill said bluntly. “Turns out he was some sort of serial killer this whole time and Alice and I caught him in the act. Raymond Douglass is Chief for now until Mayor Warren appoints a new Police Chief. But the FBI has already made motions to send in a team to investigate.”

    Chris didn’t respond for a while, seemingly stunned at the news.

    “You there Chris?” Jill asked. “What’s going on over in Europe?”
    “Sorry,” Chris stammered a bit. “Got stuck on the bit where you said Irons was a serial killer.”

    “Trust me,” Jill said with disgust evident in her voice. “You don’t want to know the details.”

    “Anyway,” Chris said to change the subject. “We’re currently moving to investigate a subsidiary of Umbrella over here in the UK. Our contact has been fairly helpful so far.”

    “I’m still not sure this was a good idea, Chris,” Jill replied with a sigh. “We already split up part of the group to ensure that we were hitting Umbrella where it really hurt. Why did we need to send you and Rain over to Europe? It just feels like a wasted opportunity.”

    “Umbrella isn’t just active in the US, Jill,” Chris responded. “You know that. We can’t only focus on what’s happening there at the exclusion of everything else.”

    “We’ll just have to agree to disagree,” Jill replied, not wanting to debate right now. “I’ll give you a call if anything important happens.”

    “I may not be able to get any phone calls,” Chris shrugged. “We’re going to be moving around a lot here. I’ll see about giving you a call in about a week.”

    “Fine,” Jill sighed again. “Talk to you later Chris.

    “Everything okay?” Alice asked from where she was sitting on the couch in Jill’s Apartment.

    “Chris is being stubborn again,” Jill replied as she grabbed her bowl of cereal before moving to the counter to eat. “I’m heading over to the RPD to start getting back into the swing of things. You all set here?”

    “Yeah,” Alice said as she finished polishing the lever-action that she had purchased. “I’m probably going to head to the range and get a feel for this baby. I’ll swing by the RPD at some point though.”

    “Roger that,” Jill finished scarfing down her breakfast before grabbing her jacket and keys off of the hook. “I’ll see ya around, Alice.”






    September 16, 1998

    “What the hell is wrong with them?” Captain Welles asked as he was treated for a stab wound in the Emergency room.

    “Doc says the cannibal disease is spreading,” The nurse informed him. “We’ve had to strap down or sedate dozens of people by now.”

    “That’s terrifying,” Welles replied as he flexed to make sure the stitches wouldn’t mess with his range of movement. “I’ll ask the Chief if we can spare some extra officers to help you out with security.”

    “That might help,” the nurse sighed. “This has been the week from hell though. We’ve been scrambling to keep up with the needs of the city.”

    “It’s the same in the RPD right now,” Welles sighed. “Thanks for the help. I’ll try and get help and assistance sent over here if it’s possible.”

    “We’ll take what we can get.”





    September 18, 1998

    “We’re ready to hand G over to the Military,” William said to Annette as they got ready for bed. “I’m going to make the call tomorrow.”

    “Good,” Annette smiled. “I don’t want us to be left stranded here. Especially not with the way the city is devolving into chaos.”

    “Yes,” William said as he turned around to hide his nervousness. Not wanting Annette to know that he was partially responsible for the way that Raccoon City was turning into a madhouse. “It would be best to try and make our way out. I’ll collect the sample of the virus on Tuesday of next week. Best not to alarm Umbrella at this point. It would be best for us and everyone involved if they believe everything is normal”

    “Should I tell Sherry that we are going to be moving?” Annette asked. “She might be excited to hear about it.”

    “No,” William said bluntly. “We don’t want to alarm her or to have her give anything away.”





    September 20, 1998

    HUNK drove the rented van at a speed slightly faster than the allotted speed limit. They would arrive at Raccoon city in a little over two hours. After they arrived they would rest and then go over the plan one last time before executing their mission.

    “I hate to tell you this, boss,” Goblin 1 Informed HUNK. “But I’ve gotta use the restroom. And we should probably eat something.”

    Correction, it would be three hours before they arrived in Raccoon City. HUNK sighed as he simply handed the map over to his passenger. Trusting they would navigate to the quickest stops possible.






    “We need to start evacuating people,” I said to Chief Douglass as I finished up the paperwork for the day. “This city is going crazy, and it seems like there are only a few sane people left.”

    “The Cannibal disease might have already infected some of them though,” Chief Douglass replied. “For all we know, it could have already infected us.”

    “We should at least be trying to get kids out,” I stated bluntly. “And we need to start talking to the Governor or something. We don’t want any sort of viral outbreak spreading beyond Raccoon.”

    “You’re right,” the Chief sighed. “I’ll start making phone calls. You wanna handle the feds? They’re waiting in the main lobby.”

    “I’ll take care of it,” I sighed. “But you owe me one.”
     
    • Chapter 51
    • Chapter 51

    “Ahh, Mark!” Carole Sindermann greeted me with a smile. “The FBI agent is waiting for someone to meet her in the break room.”

    “I take it Chief Douglass radioed ahead?” I asked.

    “Yes,” Carole replied. “He said that you would handle briefing her on whatever was required.

    “Alright then,” I said with a sigh. “You’re armed, right?”

    “Yeah,” Carole laughed. “Got issued a Beretta a few days ago. I’m still not the best shot, but it’s better to have something to defend yourself with. Especially after what the Chief was doing.”

    “Good,” I said as I looked at the receptionist. “Keep it on you at all times. And you might want to see if we can find a vest for you. Things are starting to get hairy out there, and even if you’re not out on patrol you might still want the protection.”

    “I’ll see about asking Chief Douglass if we have any to spare,” Carole replied. “Now I think you should get to that FBI agent, she didn’t seem to be very patient.”

    “Fine,” I sighed. “I’ll get moving.”

    Grabbing a small cup of coffee on my way to the break room, I opened the door and was met by a stunning Asian woman in a red dress and work jacket.

    “Special Agent Ada Wong of the FBI,” the woman extended her hand. “And you are?”

    “SWAT Medic Mark Hall,” I replied as I firmly shook the offered hand. “The Chief or another officer would be meeting with you, but they’re currently all busy performing other tasks at the moment.”

    “What could be more important than a Federal Investigation?” Ada frowned.

    “We’re pretty sure there’s some sort of contagion present in the city,” I informed her, knowing why she was here and understanding how I had to approach the situation. “And we’re trying to coordinate an evacuation and quarantine of the city with the current governor.”

    Understanding seemed to dawn in the woman’s eyes as she eased back and thought for a moment. “Is there any way I can be shown to the records of the RPD?” Ada asked. “I would like to examine them for any potential connection between the Late Chief Irons, Mayor Warren, or anything else.”

    “You’re remarkably informed,” I said as I crossed my arms. “I’ll have to check with Chief Douglass on the record's front though.”
    “I assume you have other places to be?” Ada raised an eyebrow. “Otherwise you would not be in your tactical gear.”

    “Honestly,” I replied with a shrug, the M-4 slung over my shoulder rising and falling with the movement. “I haven’t been able to get out of my gear in the last day and a half. So I forgot I had it on.”

    “Well, if you’ll point me in the right direction, I’ll get started on my investigation,” Ada said as she moved forward.

    “I’ll get you started,” I replied. “I assume you’re armed?”

    “Should I be?”

    “Yes,” I said bluntly. “Raccoon City is a madhouse on the verge of falling into anarchy. At the moment, the RPD is the only thing standing in the gap and preventing that,” I met the woman’s eyes, seeing no sign of deception even though I knew it was present. “I hope you don’t get caught up in all of it.”



    2300 hours, September 21, 1998



    HUNK glanced over at Alpha 2, confident in the fact that both Alpha and Goblin teams were prepared and ready to complete their objective.

    “This is a lot of firepower for one scientist,” Goblin 3 observed as he gave his gear one more check. “But, better to have it, I guess.”

    HUNK nodded approvingly, Goblin seemed to understand that when it came to the job there was always the need to be prepared for more than might be considered necessary.

    “Move,” HUNK ordered, the Grim Reaper himself taking his place at the front of the group of twelve as they entered the elevator, screwing suppressors onto their submachine guns and sidearms as the elevator began its descent into the depths of the laboratory that their target was located in.

    “Ensure that you are ready,” HUNK stated coldly. “Goblin will remain behind to ensure that we have an exit, Alpha, you are to move with me and ensure that our target cooperates.”

    “Copy,” Alpha 2 replied, the rest of Alpha moving to the front of the elevator.

    “Target is Doctor William Birkin, he possesses samples of a virus that Umbrella has ordered that he hand over. Should he comply, there will be no need for violence. Should he refuse to comply, we will not hesitate to ensure that we secure samples of the virus and return it to our superiors.”

    As HUNK finished speaking, the elevator doors slid open, allowing Alpha team to push out, HUNK taking the lead as Goblin remained behind as both backup and to ensure that the exit remained secure.

    Walking through the corridor, HUNK noted that there were more than a few UBCS mercenaries on standby, most equipped with nothing more than handguns, but he noted that there were a few with rifles and submachine guns and he slightly shifted his right hand to draw his sidearm if needed.

    “Haven’t seen you guys around in a while,” a UBCS mercenary stepped forward to check their clearance levels. “Someone from up top must have something important they want done.”

    Hunk just grunted as he handed over the key card he had been given, not willing to bandy words with someone who he might have to kill in a moment.

    “Everything checks out,” the UBCS merc smiled as the door behind him slid open to reveal just the man that HUNK and his team were looking for.

    “Doctor Birkin, you are ordered to hand over all of your research,” HUNK looked through his helmet at the clearly shaken doctor. “Comply or we will force you to do so.”

    Birkin looked at HUNK and the rest of the team with him before nodding quietly and gesturing behind him through the door.

    “Follow me,” Birkin muttered. “I have what you need in there.”

    Grunting, HUNK and the remainder of Alpha team walked through the sealed doors, followed by a similar amount of UBCS members.

    “I’m afraid that I’ll not be handing over any of my research,” Birkin stated once he was somewhat safely hidden behind the UBCS members and his desk, a briefcase clutched in his off-hand as his dominant one held a pistol. “Kill them, and make sure that there aren’t any survivors, we don’t want the higher-ups knowing what happened here.”

    HUNK just sighed behind his helmet, it seemed that it was a day for others to make poor decisions after all.
     
    • Chapter 52
    • Chapter 52

    HUNK just sighed behind his helmet, it seemed that it was a day for others to make poor decisions after all. Then, casually moving his hand slowly, he moved his left hand up as if to surrender with the MP5 held up while his right hand dropped down to the Beretta 93R that he had used for the last decade, the well-loved handgun snapping up as he killed the first two guards with precise bursts as Alpha 2 and 3 went down to a series of shots from the UBCS guards that Birkin had hired.

    “Kill them! Kill them now!” Birkin screamed as he took cover behind his desk, holding the pistol over the desk and squeezing the trigger in rapid succession without paying attention to where he was aiming.

    One of the UBCS mercenaries fell over in surprise as the pistol rounds hit him in the back, the successive rounds penetrating the body armor he was wearing.

    Alpha 4 and 5 immediately took notice of this and unleashed a hellish crossfire into two of the UBCS mercenaries while HUNK killed the other three, standing up from his concealment to go collect the briefcase with samples of the G-Virus as Alpha 1, 2, and 3, lay on the ground dying.

    “Dr. Birkin,” HUNK spoke clearly through his helmet. “You have violated your contract with Umbrella Corporation with your refusal to turn over samples of your work,” HUNK grabbed the briefcase from the shaking scientist. “As such, your employment has now been terminated.”

    Hunk fired two shots into the chest of Dr. Birkin and one to the head before securing the briefcase into a backpack that he slung over his back.

    “Alpha’s 4, 5, and 6, we need to leave,” HUNK said as the trio of USS agents seemed to stand up straighter. “Our evac point is across town and we have a mission to complete.”

    “Copy that sir,” Alpha 4 replied. “But what about them?” He indicated the gurgling Alpha 1 on the ground, blood oozing out of the holes in the tactical vest.

    “If we take them with us they will only be a liability,” HUNK said with a shrug. “We will regroup with Goblin and leave this facility.”

    –
    –

    As HUNK, and Alpha team began to leave the dead and dying behind, a handful of drops of liquid escaped from the desk above the dead scientist. The drops striking the late William Birkin in the eye and eventually following the crevices of his face down to the other orifices as more drops flowed down his face.

    “Hell of a fight, wasn’t it?” Goblin 1 asked as she laughed, a UBCS merc going down to a burst of fire from her rifle.

    “We need to leave,” HUNK stated. “Our objectives have been completed.”

    “Hear that Cole?’ Goblin 1 glanced at Goblin 2. “We’re getting out of here. Wanna leave a surprise behind?”

    “You got it,” Goblin 2 replied with a grin behind his helmet as he began rigging up a trip wire that would trip up and kill whoever tried to follow them.

    “Where are you going?” Alpha 6 asked HUNK, the fear evident in her voice as she watched him begin to head for the stairwell.

    “I’m taking the stairs,” HUNK said bluntly. “We do not have time to wait for the elevator.”

    “I’m with you,” the remainder of Alpha team began the trek to the stairwell, closely following behind the silent agent.

    As the four of them reached the entrance to the stairwell, a roar sounded in the distance and what sounded like an elephant marching through echoed in the building.

    “What the hell is that?!” Goblin 1 yelled, the fear in her voice able to be heard all the way across the room.

    “I don’t care what it is!” Goblin 2 responded as he opened fire with his submachine gun, the pistol caliber rounds simply bouncing off of the armored carapace.

    With a screech, the monster grabbed Goblin 2 and threw him into Goblin 1, a sickening “snap” sounded as Goblin 2’s head fell the wrong way after striking the wall.

    “Kill it!” the rest of the team poured fire into the creature as it seemed to fall back for a moment, the bullets having sunk into the flesh instead of the armored portions of the creature’s body.

    Snarling, the creature rushed at the rest of Goblin team, tripping the explosives that Goblin 2 had set and shrugging them off as he ripped the team into shreds, the creature seemingly pausing for breath as it seemingly tried to locate someone specific.

    With a growl, the creature surveyed the rest of the destruction as its instincts screamed at it, the body mutating as it spied the still-living Goblin 1 as she tried to crawl away.

    Grabbing the woman, the creature held her and went back into the office, it would see if this one was a suitable mate.

    –
    –

    “Holy shit,” Alpha 4 breathed as the sounds of combat tapered off while they continued climbing the stairwell. “What do you think that was?”

    “Doctor Birkin was responsible for many of Umbrella’s experiments and breakthroughs,” HUNK replied as he cleared the next flight of stairs with his weapon before moving up again. “While I killed him, it would be unprofessional to believe that he did not have any backup plans in place. I suspect that several experiments have been released into this facility and that we will have to fight our way out.”

    HUNK coughed a bit, not used to speaking this much in a single sentence.

    “Got it,” Alpha 5 said as he moved up behind HUNK, making sure that his six was always clear. “We should probably increase our pace then, right?”

    “We are moving at the most optimum pace for safety,” HUNK replied, not moving any faster than he already was. “Any faster and we will be unable to react to any potential threats.”

    “Got it,” Alpha 5 gulped. “We’ll just follow you then.”






    “Alice, I want you to gather up all of my gear and bring the Hummer over here,” I said over the landline. “Everything should already be packed into go bags and tucked into the right spots.”

    “Is something wrong?” Alice asked.

    “I think that we’re about to have to get our hands dirty, there’s a lot of chaos in the streets right now and SWAT is about to be deployed to what we think is a riot,” I said as I loaded magazines with ammo and tucked them into my pouches, the 10mm Glock sitting in a holster on my chest rig while my Sig Sauer was at my hip.

    “You don’t think it’s a riot,” Alice replied. “Do you?”

    “No,” I stated. “Jill should still be at the station when you get here, I’m leaving things up to you two if I don’t manage to get myself and as many others as possible back to the station.”

    “Got it,” Alice sighed. “I’ll see you around.”

    “Yep,” I responded. “I’ll see you soon.”
     
    • Chapter 53
    • Chapter 53

    "Go go go!" Captain Welles yelled as the armored truck stopped, SWAT Team Alpha threw the doors open as we disembarked, the few of us with riot shields were in front while the rest of us were behind them with weapons at the ready.

    "Captain, that's not a riot!" I yelled over the sound of people screaming as zombies chased them down and began eating them. "It looks like the creatures we encountered in the mansion."

    "What d you recommend we do?" Welles asked as he shouldered his rifle, the fear evident in his eyes.

    "Get the loudspeaker and start loading civilians into the trucks," I said as I put a handful of rounds into some zombies' heads, watching the undead drop to the ground. "We're not equipped to deal with this situation right now."

    "Hall, you're in charge of Alpha Team," Captain Welles ordered. "I'll take Bravo and start evacing the civilians, you hold the line here."

    "Copy that," I responded as I shifted my fire. "I want handguns out," I ordered the SWAT Team members with the riot shields. "Get your SMGs ready and concentrate fire on anything or anyone who isn't one of those things."

    The eight-man group shifted closer together under my direction, the 9mm leaving their SMGs and impacting the zombies that came close. While at the same time, Captain Welles and Bravo team continued to load up civilians into the trucks.

    "We're about full up!" Captain Welles yelled out over the sounds of modern combat, barely audible over the noise. "I'm sending the trucks back to HQ, we'll escort whoever we can back on foot."

    "Have the truck's radio ahead for the civvies to be checked for bitemarks or scratch marks!" I yelled back. "We don't know how this thing spreads, but it's better to be safe than sorry."


    –
    –

    "Chief Douglass, we've got to figure out what to do with the Civilians that are here," Jill said as she adjusted her tactical vest. Alice behind her with her lever action slung behind her, a small belt of bullets around her gun belt with the AK-74U held in her hand.

    "Phone lines just cut out," the exhausted man said as he stood up from his desk. "I'm going to have Dispatch start calling in all of our officers, and we're going to be deputizing anyone with military or previous law enforcement experience. If what you've been telling me about the mansion incident is correct, we're going to have to fight our way out of Raccoon City."

    "Umbrella is up to some nasty shit," Alice agreed. "If what they were working on got into the water supply then anyone relying on the city's water alone has likely been exposed to the virus. If Mark was right, then the riot that SWAT went to put down was full of zombies. And God only knows what other experiments might be unleashed on the city."

    "Toss me that MP5," Douglass ordered Jill. "Let's get some defensive positions set up while we still can. Then we can start working on getting out of here."






    "Come on, this way!" I yelled as the twelve men that were left of SWAT Teams Alpha and Bravo followed behind me, Captain Welles having gone ahead of us in the armored trucks.

    Moving quickly, we ducked into an alleyway and began heading in the direction of the river, needing to get across to make it back to the RPD's HQ.

    "Should we head to the South Precinct?" Sergeant Darrin Lloyd asked. "They'll need to be warned about what's coming for them."

    "Yeah, we probably should," I sighed as I glanced down at the small map of Raccoon City that I had pulled out of my pocket to check our route. "You think y'all can get back to the HQ on your own?"

    "Aye," Lloyd replied. "We've got this."

    "I'll head to the south Precinct then," I said as I handed the map over and double-checked the magazine in my rifle, finding it half full. "I'll see you guys back at HQ."






    Annette Birkin grabbed Sherry as soon as she saw her and picked her up into her arms, giving her a tight squeeze as she ran back to her car, the black sedan having a lone UBCS operative as security for the scientist.

    "Where's dad?" Sherry asked as she strapped in.

    "He's not responding to my pages, and his office isn't answering the phone," Annette said as the UBCS began driving to the RPD HQ. "We're going to the police HQ, there should be people there who can help keep us safe."

    "Safe from what?" Sherry asked.

    "I don't know yet," Annette replied as she opened up the glove box of the sedan and pulled out a Beretta Cougar, chambering a round before tucking an extra magazine into her suit jacket's pocket.

    As Annette hid the handgun in a small holster, the car began swerving as the UBCS operative began twisting the wheel to avoid hitting pedestrians that were running on the streets.

    "Watch where you're driving!" Annette snapped as the man turned the wheel hard to avoid a curb, the sedan spinning out of control before a small bump sounded and the car began to flip end over end.

    –
    –

    Sherry blinked away the darkness from her vision, her head pounding as the blood rushed to it from where she was suspended upside down in the back of the car seat.

    "Mom," she called out as she struggled to unbuckle herself, the belt not loosening at all while she tried to reach the latch plate.

    Seeing that her arms were too short, Sherry began looking around the car, her mom was snoring away while upside down, but the security guard was dead, a piece of metal from a roadsign having punched through his chest and into the back seat.

    Seeing something shiny, Sherry saw a knife sticking out of the roof of the car, the blade having been ejected from its sheath during the accident.

    Stretching her arm, Sherry found that her fingertips could reach the end of the knife's handle, but only barely.

    "Come on," Sherry breathed, stretching out one more time and grabbing onto the handle, pulling the knife to her with a slight cheer. Then she took the knife and cut the strap holding her in place, grunting in pain as she fell onto the roof of the car.

    "Mom," Sherry began shaking Annette. "Mom, wake up!"

    Author's Note: Welcome to the inevitable car crash scene. This time Leon isn't responsible, but we still have time for him to crash more vehicles...
     
    • Chapter 54
    • Chapter 54

    "Well, looks like I'm not going this way," I muttered as I looked at the small foot bridge that led across the river before looking down at the water. "Might be safer just to swim it."

    I looked around and spotted a car, the passenger door opening with a quick tug.

    "Should've locked your doors buddy," I said as I opened the glove box, hoping that what I needed was in there. Grabbing the box of condoms, I opened one and put it over the barrel of my M4, sighing as I tied it off before exiting the car and looking down at the river.

    "Fuck I hate this shit," I muttered as I looked across the moderately long river. "Probably best to just take the plunge now."

    Making sure that all of my gear was secured as tightly as it could be, I took a deep breath and then dove into the river.

    Grunting, I began swimming, the current pushing me past the bridge as I tried to maintain a straight line, and eventually gave up, just focusing on reaching the other side of the river. As I swam, I felt like something was watching or following me, so when I reached the other side and climbed out onto the shore I tore the condom off of my rifle and pointed it at the water, anticipating something to jump out at me. After a few minutes of nothing happening, I sighed and turned around, my body still prepared for something to happen.

    And I was right, as soon as my back was turned, I heard a large splash as a creature similar to the ones we had fought in the mansion landed on the bank, instead of a mouthful of teeth, a long tongue shot out and tried to grab me and bring me into its claws, the webbed feet seemingly the way it moved through the water.

    Squeezing the trigger on my M4, I fired a burst into the chest of the creature, the skin easily giving way to the armor-piercing rounds that I had loaded into the rifle earlier.

    The monster screamed, the noise drawing in some other creatures of the same type as it collapse in a pool of its own blood.

    Turning to sprint further up the bank, I ran until I reached a concrete barrier that I could use as cover, these things' tongues weren't the only long-range weapon they seemed to possess. I noted as a glob of some sort of slime hit the ground behind me.

    Darting out from behind the concrete barrier, I repeated what I had done to the earlier creature with a few short pulls of my trigger before pulling the magazine out of my rifle as the bolt locked itself back.

    "Changing mags," I called out to the air out of habit as I tucked my empty magazine into an empty pouch while grabbing another full one and slamming it into the magazine well, slapping the bolt release as I pulled back out from cover and killed the last of the monsters.

    "Four magazines left," I said as I did a quick count of how much ammunition I had left for my primary weapon. "And that was my only magazine of AP rounds," I sighed as I began the trek back to the precinct on this side of the city.






    Annette Birkin slowly opened her eyes, he head pounding as if she had been out drinking all night.

    "Mom," a voice was heard through her muddied senses as she tried to piece together what was happening.

    "Mom, wake up!" the voice got a bit louder, triggering something in her instincts as her brain seemed to pull itself together, her vision snapping back into focus at the same time her hearing seemed to do the same.

    "Sherry," Annette said as she realized exactly who was trying to wake her up. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?" She asked as she hung upside down while suspended by the seatbelt.

    "I'm okay mom," Sherry replied, the elementary student looking at her mother. "But you're bleeding," she pointed at the trickle of blood that came from somewhere in her hair.

    "I'm okay," Annette replied as she fiddled with the seatbelt's latch, fumbling around until it released her. "Come here," Annette brought her daughter into her arms and hugged her, allowing the younger blond to shed her tears into her shoulder.

    After Sherry was done crying the two of them pulled themselves out of the car, the shattered glass tearing into Annette's tailored suit until they were out of the upside-down vehicle.

    "Sherry, I'm going to get whatever the Security guard had that might be useful," Annette crouched down and pulled out the Beretta Cougar, and handed it to her daughter. "I need you to keep an eye out for anything."

    Moving around the car with Sherry following close behind, Annette began going through her bodyguard's gear, pulling out a handgun and several magazines before tucking them into the waistband of her pants

    "I'll hold on to this," Annette smiled at her daughter as she took her handgun back. "Now, we've got to get to the Police HQ."

    The duo quietly crept away from the car, leaving the dead and dying to their fates, ignoring the screams and sounds of zombies as they avoided anything that would be in their path.

    –
    –

    "Get in," A police officer opened the gates to the compound. "Before any of those things follow you. There's a tent set up outside of the main HQ, you'll go in there to get cleared before you can enter the main building. We don't want anyone who's been infected to get inside."

    "Perfectly understandable," Annette replied. "I would just ask that I not be separated from my daughter."

    "I'm sure they won't ask you to split up from each other," the officer replied with a kind smile. "In fact, I've got something that should cheer her up a bit."

    The older man pulled out a pack of Werther's originals and grabbing a small handful gave them to Sherry. "You remind me of my granddaughter, remember to not eat them all at once, you'll get cavities."

    The older police officer ruffled Sherry's hair with a small smile on his face before turning back to watching the gates, allowing Sherry and Annette to move on to the medical tent to be checked on.
     
    • Chapter 55
    • Chapter 55

    “Oh, fuck,” I muttered as I saw a handful of Lickers vanish into an alleyway in front of me. “Looks like I’m going to have to take a detour.”

    I shivered as the air continued to dry off my wet clothing, my fingers stiffening up before I cracked them against my hip and returned them to my rifle.

    Moving out of the back alleys, I navigate the main street, avoiding the zombies that were ripping into the flesh of the dead that littered the ground, eventually making a right and continuing toward the precinct HQ that was on this side of the river.

    As I neared the HQ, a door opened and a figure with a rifle in hand beckoned for me to come in, his finger covering his mouth to indicate that I should remain silent.

    “You’re SWAT?” the man asked as he closed the door quietly behind me. “I thought all of the officers in this precinct were dead.”

    “SWAT medic Mark Hall,” I introduced myself to the man and the others that were grouped up and hiding in this apartment complex, about thirty people in all. “Can you tell me what happened here?”

    “The Police fought off the zombies without any issues,” the leader of this group began whispering. “But then there were some other kinds of monsters that came and the zombies got through the fence. We haven’t heard anything from the precinct in an hour or so.”

    “Damn,” I shook my head. “How many of you are armed?” I asked.

    “I’ve got this,” the man shrugged as he indicated the Ruger Mini 14 that was in his hands. “And we’ve got a few handguns to go around, but most of us aren’t armed.”

    “We’ll have to fix that,” I said as I peered out the window. “Who would you trust to head into the precinct with you?” I asked as I pulled a fresh magazine from my pouch and swapped it out for the half empty one in my weapon.

    “There’s two guys here who are vets,” the man shrugged. “Louis and Ed are keeping an eye on the other entrances right now.”

    “Go get them,” I said. “We’re going to go into the precinct to gather what we can find. Might even be able to find one of the armored SWAT vans there. We’ll load up what we can get and then come pick up everyone before heading back across the river.”

    “I’ll go get them,” the man nodded. “I hope that you’ve got a plan for whatever monsters took over the station though.”

    “I’ve got one,” I smirked as I patted the pistol that was holstered on my chest. “We’ll just have to hope that the monsters don’t know how to operate heavy weaponry.”






    “Valentine, we’ve got groups of survivors coming in with extra weapons and ammunition,” Chief Douglass said as he looked at the map of the city. “We’ve managed to establish contact with the National Guard units that are quarantining the city and as long as we can screen people and get them to the checkpoints they’ll allow people to be evacuated.”

    “We’ve got the basics set up here,” Jill said as she gestured at the tent they had set up and the defenses that were in place. “What we need is a clear lane to get these people out through.”

    “The elementary school down the street should still have some buses available,” Douglass replied. “I want you to take some people and bring those buses here. I want this station to be the main bastion of defense while we get as many people to safety as possible.”

    “I’ll grab some people who I know can drive,” Jill responded as she looked at the map that Chief Douglass had laid out. “Any news from the other precincts?”

    “Negative,” Douglass shook his head. “Mark was supposed to check on the south precinct. But we haven’t had any communications from them in hours.”

    “Well, let’s hope that he makes it out of that side of the city alive then,” Jill said as she checked to make sure she had a round in the chamber. “I’ll be back with however many buses we can get from the elementary school. You find a way to get the road clear to the checkpoints.”

    –
    –

    “Alright, the path looks relatively clear for now,” Alice muttered as she peered down the street, the other four members of the team that Jill had put together following close behind. “We should move now while we’re still able to.”

    The group of six then moved down the street as an unusual fog seemed to descend down on the city, blanketing the city and making it so they couldn’t see further than ten feet in any direction.

    “Stick together,” Jill ordered, Kevin Ryman, Alice, and the other three moving into a closer formation. “We don’t know what sort of experiments are lurking around in the fog.”

    Alice nodded, the AK-74U in her hands steady as she scanned the fog around them.

    “So, three of us know how to drive buses,” Kevin said as they walked down the street. “What are the rest of us here for?”

    “To make sure that the drivers stay alive,” Jill replied. “Can’t exactly get these buses back to the HQ if the ones who know how to drive them properly are dead. And while I’m sure that Alice, you, or I could figure it out. I’d much rather not have to attempt that.”

    “Fair enough,” Kevin chuckled as they neared the gates to the Elementary School, the gates that normally looked warm and welcoming seeming ominous in the fog. “Did we ever manage to evac the kids?” he asked.

    “Yes,” Jill nodded. “They were some of the first people out of the city.”

    “Then why are the lights all on?” Alice asked as she raised the AK’s sights up. “Because I’m pretty sure that most of these lights were shut off when we left.”

    “Keep your eyes sharp,” Jill said as she squeezed her MP5 tighter. “We don’t know who set up shop here now that the kids are gone. And I’m not sure that we even want to find out.”

    “Bus ramp is on the east side of the building,” one of the drivers reported. “We’ll have to make sure they’re fuelled up and ready to go before we leave.”

    “Sneak around the not so abandoned school,” Jill muttered under her breath. “This doesn’t scream death or dismemberment to any of us, not at all.”
     
    • Chapter 56
    • Chapter 56

    “Where’d you serve?” I asked as I reloaded a couple of my M4 magazines trying to make conversation and get to know the two people that would be going into a potential BOW nest.

    “I served in Vietnam,” Ed replied with a shrug, the old man holding onto his SKS like it was his lifeline. “Didn’t expect nothing like this to go down but I did have this old girl as a trophy from the war, and she still works just fine.”

    “I was Navy,” Louis chuckled a bit. “Did my four years and got out after Desert Storm. I just picked up on a few things while I was an MP,” the stocky middle-aged man gestured with his handgun. “You got a plan to get into that facility? Because there’s a bunch of good reasons we didn’t go over there.”

    “Yep,” I reached into my back and pulled out a suppressor that the Kendo Brothers had made on request and in secret. “We’re going in quiet,” I took a small armorer wrench out and unscrewed the flash suppressor, and began screwing on the new one that also reduced sound. “I only have the one for my rifle and for my handgun, so I’ll take point. Try to avoid going loud if at all possible. I don’t want to bring down the entire neighborhood on us.”

    “Lead the way then,” Ed said as he shouldered his rifle, the bayonet swung outward so he could stab a zombie if it came too close. “I’m ready to go if you are.”

    Standing up and slinging my resealed pack back up and onto my back, I slung my rifle and made sure that I had rounds chambered before heading back to the way I had come into the apartment complex.

    “Remember to stay quiet,” I told the man who seemed to have taken charge of the building. “If you see a SWAT van drive by then you’ll know that we made it out, and you can start getting ready to leave.”

    “And if you don’t come back?” He asked.

    “Then you leave in four hours,” I replied. “I’m pretty certain that the HQ across the river is still in a defensible position, and you should be able to evacuate from there. But make sure that you take things slow and steady, and try and find routes off of the main path that is clear, the last thing anyone wants to do is draw a horde of these things to the areas that we’re depending on to stay clear.”

    “Okay,” the man nodded. “Let’s hope you come back with the armored van.”

    “Agreed,” I said as I opened the door and moved outside, the other two men following close behind me.

    –
    –

    “The gates are still closed,” I whispered to the other two men. “And the power is still on, but it’ll make noise if we try to get in through here.”

    “Are there any side entrances?” Ed asked; his own voice a gentle whisper.

    “Yes, follow me,” I shifted to the left and began making my way down the side of the precinct. Eventually finding a small door in the fence. “Let me see if my keys work for this building, if not, we’ll have to go over the fence or see if there are any bolt cutters around.”

    “You don’t have any bolt cutters?” Louis asked.

    “SWAT Medic,” I replied as I pulled out the keys that had been taped to the inside of my vest in a way that they wouldn’t jingle. “I’m not the breacher, or I would have already gotten this door open.”

    I tried several keys until one finally slid into the lock, then giving it a sharp twist, the lock snapped open and I pushed the door open with a small squeak.

    “Now, let’s see what monsters lie inside,” I muttered as I brought my rifle up and entered the compound.






    The group of six walked outside of the elementary school, Alice and Kevy bringing up the rear while Jill took point, there was some noise coming from the school, and it sounded like someone was throwing a big party or something, music and shouting could be heard clearly even through the concrete walls.

    “What do you think is going on in there?” Kevin asked.

    “It’s probably one of the gangs,” Jill said from her spot up front. “We had to turn away some of their people on account of them refusing to let us check if they were infected or not and they got pissed off and left.”
    “We going to do anything about them?” Alice asked.

    “No,” Jill shook her head. “We can’t afford to lose any of the people we have now, much less have them get into a firefight that might drag more zombies out.”

    “And, to point out the numbers game, every zombie that’s attracted to the school is one less that’s impeding us at the police station,” Alice said with a sigh. “We can’t save everyone, and they chose to come back here rather than leave without their infected.”

    The group rounded the corner, nearing the bus ramps as they saw a small group of gang members smoking cigarettes and talking.

    “We’re going to have to sneak past them,” Jill said as she pointed toward the buses that were on the other side of them. “How loud are the fuel pumps?”

    “Not any louder than someone pumping gas,” one of the drivers offered. “But once we crank the buses up they’ll know we’re here.”

    “Kevin, Alice, you two take the drivers and head on that way,” Jill pointed in a direction that led to the buses but was just out of sight. “I’ll keep an eye on the gang members and take them out if it seems like they’re going to notice you.”

    Kevin and Alice nodded as they took the drivers and began moving in the direction that Jill had indicated, sticking close to walls and other obstacles that blocked the gang member’s line of sight.

    When they reached the bus ramp, the drivers immediately climbed into the buses that were parked there, trying to gauge the fuel levels to see if they needed to be fuelled up before moving to the HQ or if they could just be filled up via the pumps at the HQ.

    “Fuel levels look good,” the head driver reported. “If one of you wants to go get Valentine we can go ahead and get out of here.”

    “On it,” Alice said as she ducked out of the bus and took the route they had used to come to the buses, coming to a stop when a gang member got really close and began taking a piss on the tree she was hiding behind.

    “Hey Luke!” another gang member’s voice called out. “How long does it take to piss? We want to go get some joints and join the party, we’ve been out here for long enough!”

    “I’m finishing up now!” the man yelled back as he zipped up and turned to head back to the school. “Don’t start without me,” the man tucked his handgun into his waistband but wasn’t paying enough attention to where his finger was as he pulled the trigger while trying to set it in place, shooting himself in the ass as he did so with a scream.

    “Fuck,” Alice muttered as she backed off, spotting Jill making her way around as Alice had before.

    “We need to move,” Jill barked as she began running. “Now.”

    “On it,” Alice replied as they both broke into sprints for the buses, using hand gestures to get the drivers to begin starting them up.

    “Everyone grab a bus,” Jill commanded. “We’re getting out of here now.”

    The trio of school buses roared to life and the drivers closed the doors as they began moving out of the bus ramp, trying to get out of the school before the gang realized what had happened.

    “Gate is closed,” the lead driver reported.

    “You’re in a bus,” Alice said with a scoff. “Go through it.”

    The bus plowed through the gate, sending it flying off as the bus turned the corner and began heading for the Police HQ as fast as it could safely do so.

    “Get HQ on the radio and let them know we’re incoming,” Jill ordered. “We need those gates closed behind us ASAP if we alerted any serious crowds of zombies.”

    “Copy that ma’am, letting HQ know now.”
     
    • Chapter 57
    • Chapter 57

    “Stay low and stay quiet,” I whispered back as I pushed forward, the setting sun setting the background for the task ahead. “We’re going to bypass any closed doors, so just clear the ones that are open.”

    “Copy,” Ed responded as he moved in behind me. “On your six.”

    We moved down the side of the building and opened the door that led into the precinct proper, moving inside and clearing as we went.

    “That’s a lot of blood,” Louis observed via the light of my flashlight. “But where are the bodies?”

    “I think that is a question that’s about to be answered,” I replied as I pointed my flashlight up to the ceiling where some sort of new creature was perched.

    “What the hell is that thing?” Ed asked.

    “No clue,” I replied. “But it seems dormant for now, so let’s not wake it up.”

    “If the thing’s nocturnal then it could be waiting for the sun to set fully,” Louis said as he glanced at the monster.

    “Then we need to move now,” I responded as I glanced down at my watch. “We’ve got maybe thirty minutes before the sun sets, and I don’t want to be anywhere near one of these things when it does.”

    “On you then, lead,” Louis nodded.

    Turning, I began navigating us toward the motor pool, hoping that we would make it in time.

    “Fuck, we’ve got zekes,” Ed whispered as he pointed down the hallway to our right.

    “We won’t be able to push past them without that one alerting the rest of ‘em,” Louis whispered back.

    “Grab my Sig,” I told Ed. “It’s suppressed and has a mag of subsonic ammo in it, use it on the zombie that is most likely to give us away.”

    “Copy,” Ed slung the SKS and grabbed my sidearm out of the holster on my right thigh, bringing it around so he could aim at the closest zombie’s head.

    “Zeke down,” Ed reported. “We’re clear to move.”

    “Taking point,” I replied as we moved past the hallway filled with dead police officers. “Louis, strip the weapon and magazines off of the zeke as we pass, we might need the extra weapon.”

    “Aye,” Louis paused to grab the extra magazines for the Beretta 92F that had been clutched in the zombies’ hand. “Weapon secured.”

    “Motor pool should be on the other side of the next couple of rooms,” I replied. “We might have to make some noise to get the vans out though.”

    “Weren’t we planning on hitting the armory?” Ed asked.
    “We were,” I sighed. “But that was before we saw that it looked like Shelob’s lair in there.”

    “The people back there might want to have the extra weapons,” Louis replied. “I’d certainly like to have more than a shitty pistol in my hands.”

    “There is an evidence locker that we’re going to pass by,” I replied. “There might be something we can use in there, but the armory is on the other side of the building, and I don’t want any of us to get trapped in here.”

    “This is your party,” Ed shrugged. “You know where to go, we’re guests here.”

    “Then I might as well make you welcome,” I snarked, pushing through the next few hallways, checking the corners before pushing on.”

    “Motor pool’s behind this door,” I told the two veterans. “You two go in and get the vans ready to go. I’ll head to the evidence locker and grab whatever looks useful.”

    “You might want this back then,” Ed handed me my Sig.

    “Thanks, try not to die while I’m getting some extra firepower,” I told the two of them.

    “Don’t get caught by spiders,” Louis snarked back. “I’d hate to have to pull a Samwise Gamgee for someone I don’t even know.”

    “If you hear grenades going off, go ahead and take the vans and leave,” I ordered. “I’ll make my own way out if it comes to it.”





    “Buses are here and ready to go,” Jill told Chief Douglass. “But we brought a small crowd of Zombies with us in the process.”

    “We’ll handle the zombies,” Douglass dismissed Jill’s worries. “I need you to supervise loading up the civilians into the buses, we’re going to have some SWAT Vans escorting them on their way out.”

    “Copy that,” Jill replied. “Children first?”

    “Yeah,” Douglass sighed. “If the parents are with them send them out too. The last thing we want is to separate families and have kids disappear on us in the process.”

    “Got it,” Jill replied. “I’ll get on it,” Jill turned to leave but paused before she left the room. “And Chief, you might want to get some rest. It’s going to be a long night if my hunch is correct.”





    “Come on sweetie,” Annette told Sherry as they were loaded onto the bus, the space crammed with as many people as could possibly fit. “We’re getting out of here.”

    “What about dad?” the younger blond turned her head to look into her mom’s eyes.

    “Hopefully he manages to make it out of the city,” Annette said with a sad smile. “But he would want us safe and away from the city anyway,” The older scientist laid a kiss on her daughter’s head. “Now try and get some rest, we’re going to get out of here and go spend some time with your grandparents.”





    Underground Lab in Raccoon City

    The monster stirred, now awake after having rested for a short time. Then, looking down at the naked form of Goblin 1, he roared. This mate was not compatible!

    Sniffing the air, the creature looked around, it could smell something, there might be someone who was fertile still in this area.

    Standing up, the creature growled in pain as it began to shift, a giant eye appearing in one shoulder as the arms began to grow, the mutations coming more rapidly now that the creature was fully awake.

    Moving around, the creature began to follow the scent of the fertile one, maybe this one would be a compatible mate.
     
    • Chapter 58
    • Chapter 58

    "Evidence room or armory?" I questioned after I shut the door behind me. "I'll flip for it, I guess," I muttered as I pulled a quarter out and flipped it, catching it out of the air and slapping it down on my wrist before letting out a heavy sigh. "Looks like we're going heavy on this one."

    Letting my M4 dangle from its sling, I drew my Sig and moved forward through the precinct, the suppressed weapon giving me confidence in not alerting more than one or two zombies at once.

    Shifting so that the rifle hung behind me, I moved slowly through the building, some of the lights flickering and giving the quiet an eerie aura.

    A shuffling skip step made a sound and I froze, remembering to breathe as I watched a group of zombies slowly walk by and into the webs that covered the area to my left.

    Shuddering, I moved past them as they continued to shift into the webs, getting stuck in the massive spider silk threads as they did so.

    Shuddering at the thought of the spider webs, I moved past the now-trapped zombies, hoping that they would keep the giant spiders busy for a little while.

    –
    –

    "You think he's going to be okay in there?" Louis asked Ed as they fuelled up the armored SWAT van and searched for any useful supplies in the area.

    "If he went in there alone he's probably going to be able to handle it himself," the gray-haired combat veteran from Vietnam replied as he put a box of 9mm that he found inside the van.

    "And if you're wrong?" Louis asked.

    "Then we're still alive because he told us to grab the van and get those people back to the HQ across the river," Ed shrugged. "Either way, we've got our job to do, and he has his. So let's not waste time bantering about it."

    The two men split up and began searching through the entire garage, hoping to find something more useful than just a box of ammunition.

    "Louis, you might want to see this," Ed called out from the office.

    "What's up?" Louis asked as he walked in.

    "We've got to have a key to open the garage doors," Ed said with a sigh. "And I have no fuckin' clue where it is."

    "Well shit," Louis replied. "Guess we're going to have to search every nook and cranny of the garage then."

    "That or we break the doors down with one van and use the other two to get the others out," Ed shrugged. "Either might work, but it depends on what the doors are made out of."

    "I'll get to work on fuelling up another van then," Louis said with a sigh. "You wanna look for the key?"

    "Yeah," Ed replied. "I'll look for the key."

    –
    –

    Turning the corner to the armory, I swore as I realized that the door was blocked by one of the massive spiders that had taken over this precinct.

    Taking aim with my Sidearm, I squeezed the trigger a handful of times and watched as the spider woke up and screeched, the sound echoing through the building and causing a gentle roar to start as zombies and small spiders woke up.

    "Guess it's time to go loud," I muttered as I holstered the suppressed pistol and drew my 10mm from the holster on my chest, the heavy rounds dropping the spider from the ceiling as it tried to attack me and opening the path to the door.

    "Come on, Mark," I muttered to myself as I pulled out my keycard and ran it through the scanner for the armory.

    "Fuck!" I slammed my fist into the door when the light flashed red for a moment. "Work you stupid machine!" I ran my card again and pushed the door open as the light flashed green before swiftly closing it behind me.

    "Well, what do we have here?" I smiled as I took in the still mostly full armory. "Looks like it's time to get some party favors."





    September 21, 1998, Raccoon City
    "First group of civilians are en route to the National Guard roadblocks," Jill said as she entered the main lobby where Chief Douglass was. "We should probably try and get in touch with the Kendo brothers and others that might still be in the city. "While we've got a decent amount of supplies here, there's no guarantee that they'll hold out."

    "I trust you know how to get in touch with them?" Douglass asked.

    "I've got the frequency of the short wave that they've got," Jill nodded. "Shouldn't take long before we can get ahold of them."

    "SWAT is escorting civilians, and everyone else is either rotating the guard or assisting with inspecting the civilians we get in," Douglass said with a sigh. "I can't send anyone with you if you decide to go grab some more supplies or personnel."

    "I'll grab Alice and the Hummer we brought," Jill replied with a shrug. "It wouldn't be the first time we've had to deal with Umbrella's experiments."

    "Good luck, Valentine," Douglass said with a sad smile. "I'll try to keep the hatches battened down, you focus on surviving to make it back here."

    "I'll do my best," Jill smiled. "See ya later chief."

    –
    –

    "Alright, we've got a handful of places to go, starting with the Kendo Brother's shop," Jill said as she slapped the charging handle of her MP5. "I'll get them on the radio while you get us there."

    "You got it," Alice said as she slid her lever action off of her back and into the space between the driver and passenger seats. "Hey! We're heading out for supplies, open the gates for a minute."

    "Let us clear it out for a moment!" the officer on guard responded as he signaled to the people up on the roof and in the small tower that they had built out of the back of a truck to shoot over the fence.

    The sound of gunshots echoed as the officers killed the zombies on the other side of the fence, opening the way out.

    "Alright, you're clear to go!" the officer yelled back. "Try to give us a heads up before you return, we're expecting to have to clear more of them out as the days go by."

    "We'll let you know if we're able to!" Jill yelled back as Alice pulled out of the museum-turned-police station. "Stay safe boys!"
     
    • Chapter 59
    • Chapter 59

    “What to grab?” I asked myself as I looked at the racks of weapons, trying to decide what I would be able to carry while still capable of fighting.

    “Ooh,” I said as I felt a childlike sense of glee fill me. “I think I’ll keep this one for me,” I said as I grabbed the lone P90 that was sitting on the weapon racks and clipped it to my combat vest, letting it hang down while I began filling up the duffle bag with MP5s, shotguns, and handguns.

    “This is going to suck,” I groaned as I hefted the duffle bag once I had loaded it up with ammunition for the weapons I had placed in it. Then, with a grunt, I slung it over my back and tightened it up, trying to get the weight properly distributed.

    Grabbing a box of extra grenades, I sorted them out before slotting them in the correct places on my vest.

    “Those spiders are probably extremely vulnerable to these,” I muttered as I tossed a flashbang up and down in my hands. “And I don’t need to stick around to fight, I really need to just hump it back to the garage as fast as possible.”

    Moving back to the armory door, I grabbed one flashbang in my hand and my 10mm in the other. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door a crack and chucked the primed flashbang through the door before closing it shut and counting to three in my head.

    Shoving the door open, I felt something get flung into the wall as I pushed past what appeared to be a slightly smaller version of the giant spider that I had killed earlier, the dog-sized spider now a streak of green blood against the opposite wall.

    Grunting, I pushed past the corpse and continued running past the group of stunned spiders, not wanting to get bogged down in a fight.

    Making my way back through the corridors that I had come through earlier, I dodged a handful of zombies and spiders before running into something that I had hoped to never see in this or any life.

    “Well fuck me,” I muttered as I dodged a massive fist. “Looks like I’m going to have to make my own way out after all.”

    –
    –

    “That’s time,” Ed said to Louis. “As soon as we’ve finished figuring out this stupid puzzle lock to get the key we need to leave.”

    “Give me a minute,” Louis replied. “I think I’ve got a note here that tells us how to unlock it.”

    “Give me that,” Ed responded, the frustration evident in his voice as he grabbed the note and then facepalmed. “I should have known that it’d be some sort of stupid color-based lock.”

    “Yeah, we’ve got to line up the primary colors with their opposites or something like that,” Louis replied with a heavy sigh. “Think we should just break down the door?”

    “No, that’ll cause unnecessary noise,” Ed shook his head. “Let’s finish this stupid puzzle lock and get the hell out of here.”

    “Hopefully this does it then,” Louis said as he spun the lock and a small noise sounded before the garage door started moving.

    “Well, I’ll be damned,” Ed smiled. “I didn’t think that actually was the lock, I thought that it just hid the key.”

    “We should get into the vans,” Louis said as the doors continued to open. “The guys back at the apartment are counting on us to be back in time.”

    “Yeah, let’s go,” Ed looked back at the door that led back into the precinct proper. “Shame about Mark though.”

    “He’ll either make it out, or he won’t, but we’ve got our own asses to worry about,” Louis said as he pulled the older veteran to the vans. “Now let’s go.”






    “Hey, Robert! Joseph! Open up!” Jill called out as she banged on the door to the Kendo Brother’s gunshop. “We’re here to help you evacuate!”

    “Valentine, that you?” Robert asked as his face appeared in the barred window.

    “Yeah,” Valentine smiled at the face of her friend. “You wanna let us in?”

    “Yeah, give me a second,” Robert said as his face disappeared for a second, the sound of a deadbolt and other locks being disengaged sounding behind the door. “Jill, Alice,” the older brother greeted the two of them as he held a shotgun in one hand while his brother was behind the counter with a rifle. “What can we do for you?”
    “We’re here to take your family to the Police HQ,” Jill said as she looked at the Kendo brothers and their families. “We’re evacuating what civilians we can with escorts, and we’d like to get you out as well.”

    “You got a vehicle out there?” Joseph asked.

    “Got a Hummer,” Jill replied. “It’ll be a bit of a squeeze, but we can get everyone squeezed in.”

    “Let us grab whatever we can load up first,” Robert said as he turned and looked at the guns and ammunition that they had left. “I figure y’all might need some extra firepower.”

    “Probably, a good idea,” Jill replied. “We’ll help load up what we can and then we’ll get moving back to the HQ.”

    The Kendo brothers began opening the cases with guns and ammo before passing them over so they could begin loading them up into the Hummer.

    “Here,” Joseph handed a belt of .357 ammo to Alice. “You might want this.”

    “Thanks,” Alice slung the belt around her tac vest and secured it so it wasn’t in the way of anything. “I’ll put it to good use.”

    “We don’t have a lot of stuff left,” Robert said with a sigh as he loaded the last bit of ammo into the Hummer. “We handed a lot of it out to folks that were trying to survive.”

    “Every little bit helps,” Jill reassured the two gun store owners. “Now let’s get you and your families to safety.”

    “I’ve got my supplies,” Joseph said once they packed into the vehicle. “I can help make some modifications to whatever you need when we get back to the HQ.”

    “That’ll be up to Chief Douglass and the armorers,” Jill replied as she backed up and began moving back down the road. “Now hold on tight, we might have to deal with some stragglers, it’s been a while since we left.”





    Meanwhile…

    Lisa Trevor continued to mimic the one she was following, it had been some time since she regained most of her mind, but she still was relearning many things, and this was the way she would one day be able to take on the Hated One and get her revenge on those who did this to her and her family.

    As Lisa moved out of the shadows, her body morphed into that of another woman, one that she had glimpsed as she moved through the city. Soon, she would find what she was looking for, and then she would be willing to act.
     
    • Chaper 60
    • Chapter 60

    Spinning after I dodged the fist, I snapped my 10mm up and snapped a shot off, the fast heavy round slowing the Tyrant down a bit as I moved further away.

    “Didn’t expect one of you to show up for a few days,” I muttered. “Guess the party started a bit earlier than expected.”

    Raising the pistol to eye level, I emptied the rest of the magazine into the Tyrant, all thirteen rounds causing it to stagger for a minute before it roared, a small armor plate with some dents showing underneath the massive coat that the creature wore as a spider jumped on top of the Tyrant, ripping the jacket apart with its legs as it tried to eat the much bigger creature.

    Still glaring at me with its red eyes while I reloaded the 10mm, the Tyrant grabbed the massive spider, tore it into two pieces, and threw them at me, following it up by beginning to charge.

    “Shit,” I swore as I turned and ran as fast as I could, turning a corner before putting the 10mm into the holster on my chest while grabbing the rifle that was slung behind me.

    The footsteps thudded into the ground behind me, the sound echoing through the empty precinct.

    “Door,” I spotted a door that would be out of sight of the corner and ducked inside, stilling my breathing as I looked at the dark office.

    The heavy steps continued down the hall and then stopped, causing me to hold my breath as they neared the door office I was in and then continued again. Then a Screech echoed in the distance as one of the spiders began signaling that there was prey. The Tyrant, hearing this, began to run towards the screech, leaving me alone to catch my breath.

    “Fuck,” I muttered as I flicked on the flashlight on my M4, trying to see where I was in the precinct. “Decided not to stay alive long enough to help, buddy?” I asked the corpse that was seated in the swivel chair at the desk. “Not like I could have used another hand right now or anything.” I began searching the dead officer and sighed as I found a keycard labeled ‘Armory’. “You know, would have been nice if you had a key that I didn’t already have, but I guess I’ll leave this here in case somebody else ends up needing it,” I sighed.

    Satisfied that I was alone, I took the time to look through the duffle bag that I had stuffed full of weapons, trying to see if there was anything that I could use against the massive BOW that was loose in the precinct.

    I grinned as I found an M203 grenade launcher in the bottom of the bag, then sighed and facepalmed as I realized that it was meant for use with an AR-15 or M16 with a much longer barrel than my M4.

    Placing everything back into the bag, I zipped it up and slung it back onto my back while shouldering my M4 again and turning off my flashlight. Waiting a few minutes for my eyes to adjust, I eased the door open and peeked out, making sure that the Tyrant wasn’t waiting before I pushed the door the rest of the way open and stepped out into the hallway.

    Looking up at the name on the office plaque, I figured out where I was relative to the motor pool and began moving.

    “They left already,” I muttered as I glanced down at my watch and saw that it had been nearly an hour. “But there might be a vehicle left for me to use.”

    “Moving down the corridor, I slowed my pace as I heard the footsteps of the Tyrant moving through the halls again, shoving myself into a cleaning closet and cracking open the door as the giant moved through where I had been a few seconds before.

    Holding my breath again, I waited for the giant to continue on its path before I eased the closet door open and began moving quietly through the precinct again.

    Looking at the pathway to the motor pool, I picked my way through the bodies of dead spiders, not sure if they would cause me to mutate if I were scratched or bit by one, but confident that I wouldn’t be turning into Spider-Man anytime soon if I did end up infected.

    The Tyrant had been busy, I realized as I walked by what must have been the queen, a giant spider nearly six feet tall and twice as wide when you included the legs. The giant body still twitched as I walked by as what was left of its nervous system tried to keep it alive.

    After what felt like hours of silent movement and quiet breathing, I reached the door to the motor pool and sagged in relief as the well-oiled door opened smoothly and quietly, safety was nearly mine.

    Then I heard footsteps, the Tyrant was running toward me, so I bolted through the door and slammed it closed, the thin sheet of steel providing some needed moral support as the Tyrant slipped on some arachnid’s blood and hit the door like it was a gong.

    “Oh, fuck!” I realized this wasn’t as safe as I once thought while the door frame began giving way to the massive creature.

    “What will work?” I muttered as I thought desperately of a solution to my problem, my eyes eventually settling on the nozzles for the refueling station. “Kill it with fire, that normally works,” I said to myself as I ran to the nozzles and locked them open, spewing a mix of diesel fuel and gasoline onto the floor as I ran and got behind the wheel of one of the armored vans and cranked it up, throwing the vehicle into drive and placing one of the shotguns in the duffle bag onto the accelerator while I jumped out.

    The armored van sped toward the door and hit the Tyrant as it threw the door open with a roar, the creature bouncing back a bit before it roared and seized the vehicle, stopping it in its tracks before it began to tilt due to the force exerted on it, the van tipping over as it completely lost its momentum.

    I then peered through the holographic sight on my M4 and waited for the Tyrant to step into the pool of liquid, waiting for the right moment to squeeze the trigger as the Tyrant hunted for me.

    The Tyrant roared its victory over the van as it stepped into the middle of the puddle of gasoline and diesel, the massive creature scanning the motor pool for where I was hiding.

    “Die, motherfucker,” I squeezed the trigger and watched as the sparks from where the round hit the concrete set the fuel on fire in an explosion of hot air, the fire spreading throughout the garage.

    Opening the driver door of the Crown Victoria that I was hiding behind, I climbed in and cranked the engine, shifting into reverse as I spun the car around before shifting to park and gunning the engine, the V6 providing me with enough horsepower to get out as the Tyrant writhed on the floor of the motor pool.

    “Damn!” I swore as a secondary explosion caved in the entrance to the motor pool, the flames continuing to climb as the fuel was added, eventually reaching the gas tank of the armored van that I had used against the Tyrant and causing it to explode as well, sending shrapnel through the garage.

    Flipping the lights on in the police vehicle, I drove back toward the apartment complex where Ed and Louis were supposed to pick up the rest of the civilians. They might still be there waiting for me, but if not, I had a ride that I could use.






    “Should be arriving at the HQ in a few minutes,” Jill said to the Kendo family.

    “Got it!” Robert replied with a thumbs up.

    A missile streamed from the sky, hitting the Humvee, the explosion sending the vehicle flipping end over end, coming to rest on its side as a giant stood on a rooftop.

    “STAAAARS!” The Creature roared as it tossed the rocket launcher to the side and jumped down to the street.
     
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