-Gasp-
Yes, I know... Shy actually posting something other than Devil May Cry stories! -Double gasp- Typically to only be found lurking the DMC section, I could not resist testing the Resident Evil waters after playing RE5 continuously since it came out...lol Being a huge fan since the original game it was inevitable I would want to write something for this.
WARNING: RE5 spoilers! In both the below A/N and in the story. Read at your own risk!
So here is my first try with these characters. I wanted to explore the lost time between Jill's death and her reappearance later on. I've also always wanted to write something with Wesker in it since he is my favorite villain of any series. The man is just twisted and I adore him for it. :D I tried to keep him that way here.
On a side note, to my faithful readers, Comic-Con was awesome and I did get to talk with Reuben for a little bit...lol I even got to ask a question during the Capcom panel in regards to poor old Albert Wesker who, I'm sad to report, I was told won't be coming back in the series. I know... -sniff- But hey, I got Resident Evil: Darkside swag! So there's a plus. :D
So I hope you guys will enjoy this whether it be my regular readers or possibly some new ones. :)
Old Times
It was the last thing she recalled before she woke up. Chris's face, his wide eyed horror as Wesker aimed a hit at her partner's head with every intent to kill.
Something in Jill Valentine broke at this, to see her fearless partner in danger threatened something deep inside she vowed to always protect. That is what partner's do after all and for all they had been through together she would lay down her own life to save him.
So she did, by tackling Albert Wesker and pulling them both out the window to their deaths. Her life would not be in vain if she could die destroying the last remnant of Umbrella and in doing so saving countless others.
These had been her final thoughts as she plunged downward towards jagged rocks with Wesker, a man she had once trusted almost blindly. Somehow this ending seeming perfect. Jill knew in her heart that if Wesker died by Chris's hand that what was good in him might break with the deed. Chris and Wesker had been close once, the elder ex-S.T.A.R.S. member being like an older brother to Chris.
No, it should've been Jill who ended his life, because once in a moment of weakness she had cared for this man.
But to her great displeasure she woke only to find she was breathing in crisp, cool air. Her body feeling partly numbed with soreness on the edge of her consciousness. She was not dead as she originally intended which brought a horrid thought to the surface. If she wasn't dead then neither was he...
Jill opened her eyes slowly to look around at her surroundings. She recognized the room immediately as one of the labs she and Chris had come across while searching for Spencer in the Rockfort Island facility. Three floors above was the dining hall where she was supposed to have killed them both. Jill had no sense of time and was unsure just how long she had been asleep.
She tried to move only to find her arms were bound as were her legs. She struggled but found the bindings were made of solid metal. The table she was strapped to was in a standing position giving her a view of the room before her which seemed empty at first.
"You are awake then?"
Jill felt her blood run cold at the cultured voice that called out to her and turned her head to see Albert Wesker himself sitting in one of the office chairs just before a large computer to her right. His shirt was gone and to her disgust she saw he had a needle in one hand, while his other arm was tightly wrapped at the forearm causing the veins at the curve of his elbow to bulge.
"You didn't think I would be that easy to kill, did you?" He asked with a small smirk in her direction. When his eyes looked up she noted his typical sunglasses were gone and the snake-like orange eyes were staring at her almost intently.
Jill tried to speak but found her mouth dry as she tried to comprehend the situation. She was vulnerable before him and she hated it.
Wesker placed the tip of the needle to his vein, drawing his lips taut against his teeth as he injected himself with something she did not recognize. Jill turned away, not wanting to see it.
"I suppose I should thank you my dear."
She heard him stand and move towards her but she kept her eyes defiantly away from him.
"It is so hard to find test subjects of such strength in mind and body," he continued completely undeterred by her lack of attention. A hand took hold of her chin and painfully turned it to look at him.
His other hand moved to her neck and she flinched at his cold touch. Then she realized he was checking her pulse.
"What are you planning?" Jill finally asked.
"Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Wesker!"
"For one so eager to throw her life away you sure are curious about it now aren't you?" He replied as he tried to check the whites of her eyes. Jill jerked her face away before spitting at him. His mouth twitched into a bit of a sneer as his eyes closed. Then without warning he punched her hard in the stomach, his hand a mere blur with how quickly he managed it.
Jill gasped, retched a bit and slumped forward when the wind knocked out of her. He wiped at his face distastefully then his hand grabbed her bangs to force her to stare at him.
"You have no idea the seriousness of this situation do you Valentine?"
He let her go unceremoniously as he walked away from her to the computer. Jill glared at his bare back and thought she saw his muscles twitch irritably. He turned to look at her for a moment, then moved out of her line of sight returning a few moments later with what looked like a full length mirror.
"You want to know my plans? Have your fill then."
He turned the mirror around to the reflective side and Jill let out a gasp at what she saw...
It would've been bad enough that she was naked from the hips up. Her lower half wrapped in a bandage like gauze just enough to cover her shame, but continuing down her left thigh where a slight stain of blood still remained.
The horror was not fully realized until she saw a bright red jewel embedded between her breasts, glowing with a mechanical light that made her shiver. How could she have not felt it earlier? What did it mean? What did it make her?
"What did you do to me?" She demanded as she tried to remain in control of her emotions.
"Improved you," he said simply when he leaned back against the desk, one long leg crossed over the other as he eyed her like she was a work of art. His masterpiece. He must've seen the question in her eyes because he answered it without fail. "I did not inject you if that is what you are thinking. Very few can survive such a thing without mutation or death. You should be grateful I could not bring myself to mar your pretty face."
"I'm going to kill you," she growled dangerously as she struggled against her bindings.
"Oh yes, since you have proved so masterful at it previous. Come now Jill," he said as he pushed himself away from the desk and swaggered towards her. Jill flinched back as he reached a hand out to her. "You will be a thing of true beauty. The perfect killer and protégé under my wing. It will be... like old times."
Old times? What the hell was he talking about?
"I'd rather die." Jill said in retaliation. "I'd rather do anything than stand by your side again!"
He frowned, something flashing in his inhuman eyes as his hand dropped. Then they narrowed before a small breath of a laugh escaped his thin lips.
"Killing you now would bring me no satisfaction. I won't let you off so easily."
Wesker moved even closer to her, his face so close their noses were practically touching. She was repulsed by his eyes which she had once thought the color of the sky. Once so clear and blue that nothing seemed to cloud them even in the face of danger. Now they blazed with a fire no man had ever managed to create and there was nothing calm or clear about them.
"I remember well the first day you came to the training facilities," he began as his eyes never faltered. "At first glance you seemed to carry small town girl qualities. You looked unsure of your place, being one of the first women who actually made it that far. The other men gave you looks of doubt, some sneered and snickered at your small frame. You never cracked though and when it came time to show your skills you blew them all away... Myself included."
Jill remembered what he was referring to. She had been jeered at a lot when she originally began training and while she had been nervous she learned early on how to mask it well. It was the first time she met the man who would become her Captain and the other man who would become her partner.
"You were so determined to prove them all wrong. Coming to me at the end of the session and requesting any additional work I could throw at you. It did amuse me to no end..." Wesker continued before leaning in just a bit and opening his mouth. Then he paused, stepped back and smiled at her. It wasn't an enjoyable one at all.
"I admit in my weakened human days I admired your spirit. Not many women can capture my attention the way you did. How I wanted to mold you into the very thing you wished to be. The truth was I took Chris under my wing to get closer to you."
"What?" Jill asked.
"I heard of how he stood by you like a doting puppy early on and of how you two formed a close friendship. I could not approach you directly considering my position, but through Chris I could keep a close eye on you."
Wesker turned his head to look at her again and this time the amusement was gone from his face. She didn't like the way he was looking at her now.
"You two use to hang on my every word and I admit I lavished attention on you that I had not anyone else previously. All in hopes that I could earn your respect and admiration in return." Wesker said as he slowly began to move closer, inching his way towards her as if he didn't trust himself to move any faster.
"After you two graduated we all went out to celebrate, do you remember?"
Jill did not answer because honestly both she and Chris had drank far too much that night. She remembered bits and feared she knew what he was going to bring up.
"I accompanied you back to your dorm and made my move. You were not yet assigned to my hands, but no longer under my guidance. I'll never forget the dazed look of lust in your eyes..."
"Shut up," she growled.
"You wanted me then, don't deny it." Wesker said arrogantly as he finally came to stand before her. "Yet you turned me down in the end. Declined my request to remain by my side and instead chose that idiot Redfield as your partner."
His eyes were angry as he said this, bitter even. Jill had received her orders to partner with Wesker, but had told them that personal conflicts of interest existed between them. She had not gone into details but made it clear their intentions were different. In the end she won out and instead was partnered with Chris.
"I had made myself weak for you," he seemed to sneer as he wrapped a hand softly at the base of her throat. "I let you mar my perfect record within the department. You betrayed me Jill and so when the option came to join Umbrella and choose guinea pigs for the Arklay experiment... I knew the perfect ones."
"You evil bastard...", she whispered as her eyes watered a bit. "You killed all those people to spite me?"
"Don't flatter yourself. I had something to gain from my research as you can now see. I'm stronger, faster, and better than I once was. I will father a new world... with your help."
"I will never help you... You make me sick." Jill said before trying to spit at him again, but this time he was prepared and caught her chin before she could even make to do so.
"Before this night is over I will make you a lot more than sick," he whispered in a low hiss. They stared at one another, his fingers digging into her chin as he watched her. She saw him swallow between breaths, his Adam's apple twitching slightly.
Jill didn't know why but she felt her face burn, her own breath becoming shallow the longer he stared at her. Then again, perhaps she did know why...
Wesker had tried to seduce her that night and under normal circumstances she would've let him. Yet she was torn between her heart and her duty as a new S.T.A.R.S. member. She had worked so hard to earn that title and sleeping with her potential Captain spelled trouble. If things went sour between them, if anyone found out... Being so young she could not jeopardize all she had worked for and so she declined his offer and closed the door on that life.
Things were tense between them after her rejection, with her never realizing that he knew of her request to be partnered with someone else. It made her stomach hurt to remember him as he was and what she might've done to him. Her strong confidant who had spent endless after hours training with her.
All those late evening sessions where they trained in hand to hand combat and how she tried so hard not to let him see her blush whenever he let his gaze linger in the times he managed to pin her to the mat. Yes, she had wanted him every time he did it but never spoke those feelings aloud, hoping he would never know. Yet he did now, when it was impossible for her to feel anything for him but hurt and anger.
Wesker's fingers moved upward to touch her lips and she squeezed her eyes tightly together when she shivered.
"Don't touch me," she whispered. He stepped closer into her and she felt his lips against the side of her cheek. He chuckled against her skin causing her to break out into goose bumps. "Stop."
He moved in just as she closed her eyes tightly and waited for something to happen. Yet nothing did until she heard him laugh mockingly. Jill opened her eyes to see him standing before her and examining, if not relishing, the fear in her face.
"Like a marionette you are. Pull the right strings and watch you dance." Wesker said coldly with some mirth mixed in. His grip on her chin tightened and she let out a painful yelp. "I'm not that man anymore and now my dear Valentine... I want nothing from you except abject humiliation and absolute control until I've bled you dry and discarded you when you are no longer of any use to me."
Wesker continued to watch her suffering as she realized this time she might not make it.
"To the world Jill Valentine is dead. Died in the line of duty only to be reborn as a villain. Before this is over I will give you the pleasure of killing Chris and this world you hold so very dear."
"Monster!" Jill yelled defiantly as she struggled in vain against him and her bindings. "I swear to God--," she continued before suddenly feeling a pin prick on the side of her neck. The words died in her mouth as she suddenly felt very weak.
"Swear to me Jill," he said quietly before he gave her a mock kiss on the mouth and her eyes saw him lowering a needle out of the corner of her eyes,.
"Albert?"
An accented female voice came from the doorway and for a moment Wesker looked annoyed at having his triumphant moment interrupted. But in typical fashion his voice turned pleasant.
"Excella," he said cordially.
"I came as soon as you called," the woman said before appearing within Jill's eyesight. The tall, exotic looking brunette came around staring seductively at Wesker until her eyes caught sight of Jill. "If I had known it was for such a thing I would've declined the offer."
"Jealous?" Wesker asked in an insulting tone that made Excella frown.
"Of her? Why would I wish to be the lamb tied to the stake when I can be the Lioness?" Excella responded as she placed a hand on Wesker's shoulder, her ice blue eyes surveying his profile much like that of a hungry lioness. Wesker shrugged her hand off.
"She is to be part of the experiment. Have someone take her to the incubation area, and see she is unharmed. If all goes well the research she brings in will be invaluable. Once she's ready we'll move on to the next phase," he said in a tone of business once he'd turned.
"What makes you think she'll even make it that far when so many others have been failures? She could die just like the rest." Excella asked turning to look at him with her arms crossed.
He turned back to look at Jill over his shoulder and all she could do was stare at him wordlessly, unable to move or react as an evil grin twisted his once handsome features.
"If she dies... Oh well. Another body for the incinerator."
Jill wanted to scream. To lash out and fight but she could do neither as tears leaked from her eyes. The only indication of what was going on within.
Wesker slid on his sunglasses, covering those beastly eyes as he turned to leave the two women. He walked towards the doorway and paused for only a moment with his back still to them.
"Goodbye sweet Valentine."
With that he left the room, closing the door behind him with a cruel and hollow clink of metal on metal. The last thing Jill would see with her own eyes as they slowly began closing. Hearing nothing but her own voice as she desperately whispered before her vision faded...
"Chris... forgive me."
