September 1, 2013. It's only been a month since the terrible tragedy in Langshiang, China. Bioterrorism came dangerously close to throwing the world into complete chaos. China, combined with the outbreak and subsequent nuclear sterilization of Tall Oaks in the United States, has shown the world that a fate just like Raccoon City was not an isolated case. Even though the perpetrators were stopped from fully realizing their goals it came at a high price. Thousands of innocent people as well as a great number of soldiers in the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, or B.S.A.A., and even the President of the United States were slain just so people with delusions of godhood could achieve their goal of ruling the world. The latest in a line going back to Ozwell E. Spencer, the founder of the malevolent Umbrella Corporation, to his successor-turned-killer Albert Wesker who also nearly ruined the world but was stopped by his longtime nemeses Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine.
In the time since Raccoon City several more heroes have come to oppose those who would plunge the world into darkness like US Agent Leon S. Kennedy, Chris' sister Claire Redfield, and Sherry Birkin, a young woman once protected by Leon and Claire who now works to scrub out the viruses that destroyed her family as a child. Together with allies young and old, come and gone, they never stop in their pursuit of a world without the threat of bioweapons. Unfortunately, non-bioterrorists still flourish just as well in this world.
Organizations such as Shadaloo and S.I.N. are a constant threat across the globe. Different methods but their goals are still the same: nothing short of complete global domination. With this brand of evil comes a different set of heroes who stand ready to fight them. Now a joint Interpol/MI6 strike force moves in on a warehouse suspected of being a front for Shadaloo's operations on the waterfront of the River Thames in London, renowned agents and martial artists Chun-Li and Cammy White leading them.
In the back of an assault wagon they sit preparing themselves for action. Interpol Agent Chun-Li; hailing from Hong Kong and considered one of, if not the fastest, fighters in the world of martials arts. Her father taught her kung-fu when she was a child and tragically met his end thanks to M. Bison. Chun-Li has sworn to avenge her father and bring Bison to justice for his crimes. Across from her was MI6 operative and Delta Red member Cammy White whose personal history was usually best described in one word: complicated. All that was well-known to others was that she was once a brainwashed assassin under the control of Bison, along with eleven other women collectively dubbed "The Dolls." Together with their longtime friend and partner William Guile they've battled Bison and his forces wherever they should happen to show up. Sometimes the fight seemed never-ending but they would never stop fighting so long as evil went unchecked.
"This will be the fourth Shadaloo base of operations we've hit in the past month. I'm not saying I doubt our intelligence gathering, but this seems like too good of a lucky streak we've been on." said Chun-Li to her British compatriot.
Cammy looked up from the floor she had been staring at. "Don't worry. I've started wondering about things myself. Random tips that just happen to lead to successful raid? There's no way this isn't suspicious."
"Sounds like you've been thinking about that for awhile."
Cammy nodded once. "MI6 doesn't run on blind luck. One random tip that works out is a one in a million chance and therefore lucky. Two random tips which work is a red flag. When our Intelligence attempted to trace the sources they all led to networks of people who had been missing or dead for quite some time."
Chun-Li's face contorted to a more serious expression. "Not the work of an amateur."
The blonde nodded once more. "Yes, and certainly not something to take lightly. I was ordered by my superiors to be on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary on this raid. A part of me would be happy if we found nothing at all and this all turned out to be a sweep of Shadaloo's remaining forces."
Chun-Li reached out and took Cammy's hand. Its warmth matched Chun-Li's personality exactly. "Hey, that's what we're all working towards. The day when we can finally say we beat Bison and those just like him for good. That part of you? It's the part that keeps us going; the hope we carry." The serious look on her face from a moment ago was replaced by the soft smile she was known for along with being the emotional center of her friends.
Cammy couldn't help but smile back. "You're right. I just have to remember that I'm not only doing this for me."
Chun-Li nodded in time for the vehicle to stop. A red light on the interior ceiling switched on indicating they had reached the area for the mission to start. Chun-Li put on her gloves as everyone else stood up. A few seconds later Cammy opened the door for everyone to file out. While they were usually known for wearing their signature qipao and leotard respectively, these raids called for them to wear standardized assault gear and armor that offered more protection. The two women led their team of six operatives down a couple of alleyways towards the target building. The team lined up against one of the adjacent buildings close by the warehouse. Cammy crouched down and scoped out the area using the ACOG scope of her assault rifle.
As she peeked around the corner she could see two men standing on both sides of the front door, which was very big to allow vehicle access. That in itself would not have been strange, however it was rather out of the ordinary to see regular security guards with silenced MP7 submachine guns. "Two sentries by the door. I suspect there are more around the back." she whispered. Aiming up at the roof of the large building she could see another armed sentry patrolling. "One on the roof as well."
"If the one on the roof sees one of his friends sleeping on the ground he'll blow the whistle. Think you can do something about that?" Chun-Li asked as she drew her Five-seveN handgun from its holster.
Her partner stood up and secured her rifle to her back. "Leave it to me. Just be ready to move in once I've made my signal." Chun-Li nodded in agreement. Next Cammy addressed her operatives. "Just like we've trained. You've brought your weapons but try to bring them in alive if possible. We need them for interrogation. Is that understood?" One by one they responded with a hushed "Yes, ma'am." Normally Cammy wouldn't be telling them their orders for a second time after their main mission briefing but MI6 was adamant that everything was to be flawless, especially with how suspicious they already were. Not to mention the location Shadaloo had chosen. Despite the mission taking place after dark they had to minimize the chance of civilian casualties as much as possible with it being in such a large city.
Now with everyone on the same page in how they were going to proceed, Cammy leaped up to the overhanging bar of an unworking street light, swung around the metal bar twice, and then vaulted off towards the building across the alley. There she planted her feet into the concrete before launching herself upwards between the buildings in a series of wall jumps until she somersaulted onto the roof. Watching Cammy always did leave Chun-Li amazed. She had a reputation for being fast but Cammy was always the master acrobat. It was no wonder at all how someone who was younger than Chun-Li herself by a few years was able to ascend to the rank she held.
Not that Chun-Li was the only one impressed by Cammy's moves. Standing next to her she could hear one of the operatives. "The commander sure is something. She's like a ninja from a video game," she said in a wondrous tone.
"Yeah, except ten times deadlier," responded her male squadmate in a very matter-of-fact sort of way. Cammy had undoubtedly built up quite a reputation among her peers. As much as she enjoyed fangirling over Cammy's abilities as a fighter it also made Chun-Li a little sad. All Cammy had known through her life was pain and hardship thanks to Shadaloo. While Chun-Li had lost her father when she was a little girl she at least got to have part of a happy childhood and would carry those wonderful memories with her as long as she lived. Cammy didn't get that choice aside from the bond she developed with her fellow Dolls, whom Cammy thought of as her sisters. It didn't take long for Chun-Li to decide that she would always do what she could to help her friend be happy and to make new memories she could be proud of.
"Alright, everyone. Cut the chatter." Chun-Li instructed. Everyone got quiet again and recomposed themselves to be ready for action.
On the roof Cammy ran across the tops of the buildings. They were pretty evenly spaced so it didn't take much to effortlessly clear the gaps for the super gymnast. A few crates sat stacked up around the warehouse allowing her a means of traversing the wide gap between the warehouse and surrounding buildings. She only needed to stop to duck behind cover whenever the rooftop sentry's field-of-vision swung her way. When he turned 'round she spared nary a second in vaulting over the cover and sprinting for her target. For the last gap she jumped forward while straightening her body out with both arms pulled in and started to spin like a bullet through the air. The whirring of the air made enough sound for the sentry to turn his head in time to see Cammy's Spiral Arrow come right at him and land squarely in his chest. The force of the hit launched the man off the walkway and onto the pavement below where there was a distinct thud from the impact. Now on the far end of the roof Cammy could see two more sentries on the backside of the warehouse. Just as she had suspected earlier, there were only two sentries guarding the area.
Very lax security for a Shadaloo operation. Cammy thought.
Silently she hopped up on the railing above one of the guards. She was like a cat ready to pounce upon her prey. She quietly waited for him to get in position directly below her before she leaped off and performed a knee drop on the man's shoulders, which knocked him out instantly. Unfortunately it wasn't quiet enough to keep his partner from hearing the commotion. "What the-" was all he was able to say before Cammy was back up on her feet and then twirled into a Quick Spin Knuckle. The force of the blow knocked him into a crate where he then slid down on his ass. A crate stacked above him became dislodged from the impact and, like a cartoon, landed on his head to perform the knock-out blow. With all but the two guards in front taken care of she tapped the earpiece of her radio.
"Area secured. Everyone move in." Cammy started sneaking around the front where she could already hear the sounds of hand-to-hand combat. She turned around the corner to find Chun-Li and a couple of the operatives already dispatching the remaining guards with martial arts.
"You were taking too long." said the Chinese fighter after kicking her foe to the ground. "What happened?"
"I, uh…" Cammy laughed nervously, "I may have gotten a bit excited and taken out the others as well."
To most people it would be weird to find a moment like this heartwarming, but Chun-Li delighted in seeing Cammy smile. It made it very hard to be mad at her for straying from regulations. "Just make sure to check in next time, OK?" Chun-Li beamed a smile back at her, letting her know everything was alright.
Cammy gave her a reassuring smile as well. "Right. Shall we proceed?"
Chun-Li nodded. Everyone stacked up into teams of four on both sides of the door. Chun-Li slid the door open to make a large enough crack to see through. What she saw inside was a face most familiar to her. A woman wearing a black suit and gloves with a long braid of red hair. "Viper," she muttered through gritted teeth.
Crimson Viper. One of S.I.N.'s top agents, Chun-Li's rival, and unknown to the Interpol agent, an undercover agent working for the American CIA. No one knew where she came from or even what her real name was. Just that she had no real fighting style of her own. Every bit of fighting prowess stemmed from the experimental Battle Suit she always wore. Many of the top fighters Viper encountered often made it very clear that they don't respect her as a real fighter. Not that it mattered to Viper, of course. She had a job to do and wouldn't let anyone stand in her way. To her there was no right way of winning as long as she completed her mission. It was as simple as that.
Viper was talking on her cell phone in the manager's overhanging office while a dozen of Shadaloo's faceless goons loaded three delivery trucks with small crates through a series of winding roller belts. "I wonder what it is they're loading into the lorries," said Cammy inquisitively.
"Weapons. Drugs. Parts for a Nissan Skyline. It's always something illegal. All that matters is that they don't get the chance to drive out of here," Chun-Li said. She looked at everyone else. "You ready for this?" Cammy and their operatives gave a very serious nod. It was all she needed before throwing the door completely open. The Shadaloo soldiers were taken enough by surprise that they didn't start shooting until the entire team was able to take cover in front of the trucks. Bullets flew past all around them, whizzing by inches from their faces.
Viper's only reaction was to sigh and cross her arms in annoyance. "Looks like I'll have to call you back. A few annoying ants just raided the picnic. No, I don't need you to come by. I'll handle it." She closed the flip-phone and placed it in her jacket's inside pocket. Through the office window she could make out Chun-Li's hair buns behind one of the trucks. "Dammit, Interpol. Always mucking everything up. Now I have no choice but to get rid of you for good," she cursed under her breath.
Two members of the strike team had already been killed before the rest of the team was able push the remaining six enemy soldiers back to the office area. Just to make sure no one got any ideas about leaving, Cammy emptied a magazine of bullets into the trucks' tires before ordering everyone else to cautiously move up. Much to everyone's surprise the Shadaloo forces suddenly ceased fire. Both Chun-Li and Cammy could only figure that meant one of two things - they were either out of bullets or were ordered to stop. Chun-Li was about to slowly move closer to the office when Viper crashed through the window in a blaze, landing in a small impact crater on the concrete below.
"I would say it's a pleasure to see you again, Viper, but I don't enjoy lying!" exclaimed Chun-Li.
"You're under arrest, Viper. Surrender now!" Cammy ordered. She used the break in the action to reload her Heckler & Koch G36C, the tried-and-true weapon of the British SAS.
Viper still had that look of great annoyance on her face and made sure to throw it Chun-Li's way. "How many times have I told you stay out of my business? This is no concern of Interpol's. Now scurry back home before you get hurt."
Chun-Li leaped from her crouched position and landed a few feet away from Viper. Cammy motioned for the rest of the team to form up behind them as she joined her partner. "I'll tell you what I've told all of Bison's stooges. If you stand to gain from hurting others, you make it my concern. We won't let evil go unchecked!" In the heat of the moment Chun-Li aimed her pistol straight at Viper.
"Fine," responded Viper. "Have it your way." In an instant she snapped her fingers. The remaining Shadaloo men calmly stood up and lowered their weapons. As much as Cammy wanted to believe that this was an order to surrender, she knew better than to let her guard down. This intuition paid off when all six of them pulled out syringes from their belt pouches and proceeded to inject them into their necks.
Chun-Li didn't have time to react before they started convulsing violently. A couple of them grabbed their heads and fell to the floor in agonizing pain while others turned their screams skyward. Without warning their skin began to break off and fall to the floor in many places, some growing armor plates as a replacement of the lost skin. Viper stood in place with no reaction whatsoever to the chaos erupting around her. As if the disgusting display in front of her wasn't bad enough, Viper's stoicism and totally nonchalant attitude made it seem like she was taunting Chun-Li. When they finally stopped transforming the once-human monsters leaped greatly at the strike team.
"Open fire!" shouted Cammy. She took aim at one of the monsters and squeezed off a few rounds into its chest as it was in midair. It unfortunately wasn't enough to put it down before getting right in her personal space, hissing and taking wild swipes in retaliation with hands resembling sickles. Natural training kicked in immediately. She reflexively dropped her gun to opt for her knife. Her body arched back into a backflip which allowed her boot to catch what she assumed was the monster's jaw. The runner's stance she assumed upon landing, combined with the monster's stunned state, provided the perfect opening for her rush forward with a lightning-fast swipe at its neck with the blade of her knife. The creature stumbled back, shrieking the entire time, until it collapsed in a pool of blood.
Her team wasn't having such luck. Despite being special forces operatives they clearly weren't trained to handle monsters like these. At least two more of their people were ripped open before Cammy managed to coordinate an attack that put down the remaining creatures. Now only three remained of their original strike team, and one of them was bleeding out. There was no doubt that he wouldn't make it to a hospital. It made Cammy furious inside. She'd handled death before. She was used to seeing Bison throw lives away in his crackpot dream of ruling the world, but having his own men willingly turn themselves into these monsters? There was no justifying such crude and inhumane tactics. Looking around at all of the corpses around her, especially the mutated Shadaloo troopers, she swore that she would make Bison and everyone involved pay for this. For now all she could do was sit with her dying comrade. He tried to speak but Cammy put her hand over his mouth.
"Don't speak. Just relax, my friend. I'll get whoever did this. I promise," she said softly as the two held hands. He could only nod before closing his eyes and slipping away to the world beyond. Cammy wasn't one to lash out when something was bothering her, preferring to keep her problems to herself if her friends weren't around, but she felt like taking her gun and blasting the dead monsters until there was nothing left. Instead she sat in the back of one of the trucks and resumed staring at the floor just as she did before the mission started.
Viper used the ensuing chaos inside the warehouse to break for her escape. While Cammy and her people were dealing with the monsters she made her way to the roof. When the coast was clear she pulled out her phone to send out a text for someone to pick her up. As soon as she clicked Send a familiar voice rang through the darkness.
"Hold it right there, Viper!" shouted Chun-Li, her gun once again aimed right at the redhead's beautiful face.
Now Viper seemed mildly amused by the situation. Her lips even seemed to form a playful smile. "You going to shoot me, detective?" She slowly put her hands in the air that only seemed to mock Chun-Li even more. "You wouldn't shoot an unarmed opponent. You're a police officer. There are rules for police officers," she said in a very arrogant and cocky tone of voice.
Chun-Li kept her weapon trained on the spy. "We both know you're far from 'unarmed.' Besides, in this case I might make an exception." She refused to give Viper the satisfaction of knowing she had riled the detective up despite a part of her shaking up over what had happened only moments ago.
Viper couldn't help but laugh. "If you were going to you would've done it already. I'm starting to think you simply enjoy seeing my face." Her expression flashed to one of annoyance in the span of only a few seconds along with her voice matching the emotion again. "Unfortunately I'm far too busy to keep playing these games. You must be the only detective on Earth who so utterly fails at taking such obvious hints. So let me give you one that's completely unavoidable." Viper quickly crouched down and placed her fingers on the side of her glasses. A finely tuned laser shot out of her glasses and hit Chun-Li's gun. The Chinese detective was barely able to throw it away before it exploded in her hands but the blast was still strong enough to disorient her and give Viper an opportunity to speed in with one of her Thunder Knuckle punches to the stomach. The body armor she was wearing absorbed most the electric shock, however the suddenness of the surprise attack caught her off-guard and put her down on her back.
Viper strutted up to where she lay, crouching down beside her so she could could give her a message. "Now for the last time, Interpol. Stay away from me and this case if you know what's good for you. Next time we have to meet like this, I can't guarantee your safety." In the distance and closing in the two of them could hear a loud engine sound. Now the redhead changed back to her default mode of sounding like an arrogant jerk. "Sounds like my ride's here. I really do hope you take my message to heart and give this up."
Chun-Li tried to sit up but Viper held her down. "You know the only way that's happening is if you kill me right now," said the defiant detective..
"I had a feeling you'd say that." Suddenly the femme fatale pressed her lips square on her rival's. Naturally Chun-Li's reaction was one of shock and utter confusion as her eyes flew wide open. The kiss lasted only a second yet was enough to work its dark magic. "My least favorite tool, but one that never fails."
Chun-Li's eyes were growing heavy suddenly. Her knowledge as a detective told her it was some kind of sleeping powder mixed in with Viper's lipstick. It wasn't long before her whole body started to feel heavy and unresponsive. The last thing she saw before falling unconscious was Viper flying off via her jetboots to a waiting helicopter where she blew the detective a mocking kiss before closing the door and flying off.
Dammit. Wasn't...good enough… she thought before her eyes finally closed for good.
It was only a few minutes before someone came by to collect her and the entire area was swarming with emergency vehicles and personnel, including a man wearing a leather jacket instead of a uniform. He met Cammy downstairs. She was being tended to by a couple of EMTs now. It took the medics finishing up and leaving for her to notice the stranger who didn't seem to belong on the scene standing next to her.
"Excuse me. I'd like to ask you a few questions. Are you Cammy White from British Intelligence?" he asked very calmly but also urgently.
"I am, but tell me why I should be talking to you," Cammy answered coldly.
"Because I'm someone with a very keen interest in the events that took place here and I believe we can help each other," said the stranger.
"Help each other? You still haven't even told me who you are, Stranger."
The man chuckled as he searched his jacket and produced his ID. "Stranger. Haven't been called that in a while." He held up his ID for Cammy to read. "I'm with the US Government. Agent Leon S. Kennedy of the DSO. May we talk now?"