In loving memory of my most favorite villain, Albert Wesker.

"In the arts of life man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery all the slaughter of plague, pestilence, and famine." - George Bernard Shaw

"Death is but a door. Time is but a window. I'll be back." - Vigo the Carpathian.

"Rani!"

Claire heard the girl's frightened scream and ran towards the sound. Something caught her arm and jerked her around. The Senator lay on the ground, clutching at her in an utterly pathetic way. He begged for help, but she shook him off sharply. This was all his fault anyway.

A sound caught her attention and she turned. Through the windows she saw the airplane barreling towards the terminal. She shielded her face and dove to the ground just as the plane crashed through the wall, glass and concrete spraying everywhere.

She stood up as the dust began to settle, and her heart skipped a beat at what she saw. Zombies spilled out of the wreck, one shambling monstrosity at a time, falling several feet to the ground then climbing back up to their feet.

"No...no way."

"Claire!"

Her eyes shot toward the scream. And there, among the shambling horde, was Rani. The girl was backed into a corner, and the zombies were inching ever closer. Without thinking, Claire charged forward.

"Rani!" On the run, she stooped, picking up a jagged length of pipe and swung at the first zombie she came near. She struck the thing across the face hard enough to turn it's head around, and it slumped down the floor, never to rise again.

She mowed through zombies like a madwoman, knocking the flesh hungry creatures down like nine pins. In a flurry of blows she made her way through them, only when the line of them broke did she stop to take stock.

Zombies lay motionless around her, no sound of hungry wails in the air, no shuffling steps. Shocked at herself, she dropped the pipe as though it burned her. The sound of crying turned her around. She had almost forgotten why she'd given in to such a wild rage; Rani.

But when she turned to the small child, it wasn't Rani's dark head, but a cap of blond. The girl was curled up, her face buried against her knees as she wept in fear, but Claire knew this girl. She new that blue and white sailor suit school uniform, and that bright red head band.

She inched closer and knelt down in front of the girl. How could it be her? After all this time... She reached out a hand, laying it gently on the girl's shoulder, slight pressure, urging her to sit up. "Sherry?"

Claire held her breath as the girl slowly sat up. She lifted her face last of all, and Claire's eyes shot wide. The face wasn't Sherry's, but was a softer version of her own, the child even had her deep blue eyes. A smirk spread the girl's lips slowly.

"Mother."

Claire sat up in bed with a deep gasp. Her heart raced, and she was coated in a thin sheen of sweat. But the phone just kept ringing, heedless of her poor night's sleep. She reached for it hastily, knocking off it's stand and onto the floor in her rush. She ended up half way off the bed and upside down before she managed to find it and click the talk button.

"Yes? Uh, hello, Claire Redfield speaking."

"Good morning. Claire," the pleasant female voice chirped. "I hope I didn't wake you."

"No, no," Claire awkwardly crawled forward with one hand, till her legs fell off the bed. "I was just getting up actually. What time is it?"

"You're a terrible liar, Claire," the voice chuckled. "How late were you up working on that report?"

"Three, maybe four, I don't really remember," She climbed to her knees and looked over at the other side of the bed, where her laptop rested. The screen was dark, but the lights on the keyboard told her that she'd fallen asleep at the wheel again.

"Are you sure you're up to do this inspection? After all, the....the incident at the airport was only a week ago."

"Mela, if you and Rani can get back into the swing of things, so can I." Using the bed as support she climbed to her feet. She went to her dresser and began riffling through it. "How's she holding up?"

"Better than you'd think," Mela answered with a low sigh. "She has a hard time sleeping some nights, and I have to turn the lights on for her, but...I suppose that's to be expected."

"Yeah..." Claire nodded, heedless of the fact that Mela couldn't see it. "She's young though. She'll bounce back."

"I know," Claire heard her friend clear her throat, a usual sign that she was about to change the subject. Claire would let her without a fight. Thinking about the outbreak at Hardvardville Airport was the last thing she wanted to do right now herself. Especially after last night. "Anyway, I called to tell you that the inspection was pushed back about two hours."

Claire tucked the phone between her ear and shoulder, flopping down to sit on her bed. "You're joking? How many times are they going to do this?"

"They volunteered for it, so we're trying to give them as much slack as possible."

"Yeah well, give an inch and they'll take a mile." Claire hiked up a leg and began muscling on a pair of black tights. Hose, she felt, were for women who didn't live a life where runs were a virtual guarantee. Tights still looked nice, but they were made of slightly sterner stuff. "So what's the excuse this time?"

"They said that one of they're CEO's had taken a personal interest and wanted to be there to aid the inspection." Mela paused, and Claire could faintly hear the sound of papers rustling. "A Miss Excella Gionne."

"And this Excella Gionne has an issue with being on time?" Claire stood up, adjusting the fit of the tights around her hips till they sat comfortably. "Some CEO."

"Apparently, she has a previous engagement at our original time."

"Sure," Claire put the phone away from her ear to tug off her night shirt, which was nothing more than a XXXL t-shirt with a picture of Freddy Mercury across the front. "Her busy schedule is iron clad, but ours is ever so flexible."

"It is irritating, but look at it as a gift. You won't be late now."

A smile spread her lips as she stopped debating over power-suit red, or professional blue, and lead against the door way of her closet. "Yeah, yeah, a blessing in disguise right?"

"Absolutely," Mela's voice was colored with humor. "And just to warn you, from what I hear she's a ladder climber as well as a bit of a fashion plate. Don't let her try to intimidate you."

"Don't worry, I won't. See you in a few hours, Mela." She hung up and gave the phone a toss toward the bed. Turning back to her closet she eyed her choices once more.

"Looks like red it is."

A/N: They never give a name for the "Aunt" in Degeneration, so I randomly picked a Hindu name (Mela), due to the way she was presented in the film.