The escape chopper rose into the sky as night died and day rose anew. Unfortunately for Jill Valentine, a new day would not begin for so many of her friends and comrades. She thought back to all of them, like Richard, Enrico, and Kenneth. All of them had died that night in the Spencer mansion, torn apart by inhuman monsters. All of them had died playing Wesker's sick game.
Wesker. Albert Wesker. She remembered her first real encounter with him. It was 1997, in the heat of July. The Raccoon City bank had been assaulted by a gang of thieves looking for one big score. The police blocked them off before they could escape, so the robbers took hostages.
The city called in its finest, its S.T.A.R.S. Jill remembered how nervous she was in the combat van. A successful army career had done nothing to make her less frightened A calmer Barry Burton told her "relax, it's going to be fine." That didn't stop her nerves, but she seemed to sweat a little less. She told him thanks, in a shaky, quiet tone. He started to fiddle with his revolver, reminding Jill to do the same thing. She checked her rifle to make sure it was loaded, and unsheathed her combat knife, one of her few relics from her army days. Its spotless blade acted as a crude sort of mirror, and Jill shuddered when seeing her reflection.
Jill remembered how Chris Redfield, who she was just starting to maybe have a crush on, seemed just as nervous. Chris kept flicking his lighter on and off, and his right leg was shaking, making his M16 vibrate. Joseph Frost was even more so. Unlike Chris or Jill, Joseph translated his nervousness into loud chatter. Jill always knew Joseph was freaked out if he was talking too much.
And then there was Albert Wesker, calm, cold, and emotionless. Jill looked right at him, but his sunglasses made it impossible for her to know if he was looking back. Wesker didn't seem to have any sort of a rifle, only carrying his custom handgun. The van stopped in front of the bank, in the middle of a network of police tape and hastily erected barricades.
"Alright, everyone out. Redfield and Valentine, you'll move in first. Frost will cover you. Burton and I will enter through the rear." he had said in his calm, yet strangely menacing voice. Jill nodded, trying to convince herself she was ready. Chris said "let's take position", and the two of them moved up to the door. Joseph was a few steps behind them, and he raised his rifle as he scanned the door.
Then, there was a gunshot, and Jill, had looked back and saw blood pouring out of Joseph's arm. She remembered Wesker yelling "move in!", as she and Chris burst through the door. It was the first time she had heard him raise his voice.
The next part was hazy, but Jill remembered how she calmly raised her rifle and fired off a round or two to silence the shooter, who had been standing by the entrance. She remembered how three more of the robbers rushed in, but Chris and her mowed them down. And then she just stood there, cold and sweating and watching her rifle smoke as she gazed at the bodies of the men she had killed. The floor was littered with bullet casings and the firearms the thieves had used.
More gunshots were heard, along with a few shouts. Jill was still shaking. Wesker had walked into the main room through another door. and gave a curt sort of thanks, "good job Valentine" and smiled this small kind of smile which she remembered made her skin crawl. All she could think about was the blood that was slowly spreading out on the floor in a crimson puddle, staining her boots. Chris put a hand on her shoulder, and she walked out the door. The day was over.
As she looked out of the helicopter and over the forest, she wondered where this one was headed. Somehow, it seemed to her that the real nightmares were just beginning.