"Name the place, pretty boy. You can't hold your breath forever."

Piers could feel the stream of water fall on his mouth and nose through the sack placed over his head as he tried with all his might to administrate the little air he retained on his lungs; at least 5 seconds passed before his body finally gave up and forced him to take a breath, immediately regretting that involuntary decision when he felt the water invade his mouth and nostrils, making him feel once again the awful sensation of being drowned and smothered as he tried to kicked the table he was strapped in in a futile attempt to break free of the tight grasp some thick ropes had on his legs and chest. The water suddenly came to a halt, making his body relax even the slightest as he coughed and spit into the clothing covering his head.

"Are you ready to talk now, soldier? Or perhaps you want to freshen up a little more?" A man's voice asked mockingly before laughing as Piers panted heavily. His heart was pounding erratically on his chest, making him feel anxious.

"Fuck you." He spat feebly, the water fell again on his face and he was aware that he wouldn't resist much at that rate. He tried to wriggle his hands with no avail as the plastic clamps kept his hands together acting as handcuffs; the water stopped pouring and Piers saw the light darken as one of his captors leaned closer. He spat on the sack placed on his head before droplets of water started moistening the clothed further.

"UK," Piers finally said, making the water stop flowing down. "They operate from the UK." He felt the ropes loosen and soon he was pushed out of the table, making him land hard on his back; he felt a familiar tingling sensation on his bare back before he was prompted on his feet and dragged to that narrow room, shoving him inside and making him hit his head against one of the walls. He gained balance and slowly lowered himself to the floor with a loud sigh, letting his back rest against the wall.

"What did they do to you?" Chris's concerned voice came from his left.

"Waterboarding," Answered Piers before coughing, he sighed and turned his head to the sound of the voice, he could barely make out shapes in light and since the room was dimly illuminated by the little cracks on the walls, it was useless to even bother doing that. "I gave them a piece of info to gain more time."

He heard movement from at his side before the sack over his head was removed swiftly, revealing the dirty and bloodied face of Chris. "We're going to get the hell out of here, Piers." Chris remained solemn as he used the thick laces that were on his boots to apply friction to the clamps to break them. Piers' boots and upper body clothing had been stripped of days ago after he challenged one of his captors; at least they had the decency to let him keep his pants. Piers thanked him as he rubbed his wrists that had obtained a reddish color as a consequence of the pressure involved.

"Are you hurt?" It was typical of Chris to put others first instead of himself, a trait that Piers respected immensely. He could see a blood stain on his superior's pants cause by the beating they had giving him to get information.

Piers shook his head. "How's your leg?"

"It's nothing, it'll heal," Chris answered. "Our priority is to get out of here and we need to bring them down one by one, starting by the one that will come tomorrow morning to continue the routine. I know we are not physically prepared for an assault but we need to concentrate if we want to get out of here alive."

"I think I have a better plan," Chris raised an eyebrow at that statement and allowed himself to smile as he saw the piece of glass that Piers pulled out from his underwear.

"How the hell did you get that?" Chris asked as he took the piece of glass and examined it on his hands, proud with the sense of survival of his partner.

"Those idiots left fragments of a broken plate on the floor; I took it when they threw me down" Chris patted his back with a small smile, now they only had to wait.

"That was worse than S.E.R.E. training," Chris said before popping more currants on his mouth, Piers nodded absently as he stared at the flames from the small bonfire they made in the middle of the woods to provide heat, the temperature had dropped significantly when nighttime arrived. Piers didn't deny that he felt uncomfortable using the bloodstained clothes that once belonged to his captors before they escaped, but it was all he had at the time and he had to suck it up. He tried to see the bright side of the situation; they were now the possessors of three data chips concerning information about black markets dealing with B.O.W.s.

"What would you have done with your life if you weren't here?"

Chris was surprised at such a sudden question and left the currants aside, focusing his attention on the man in front of him. "If the Raccoon City incident had never happened then I probably would continue to be a member of S.T.A.R.S.,"

It wasn't the answer Piers expected but he nodded anyways. "Why not go on with the Air Force? You were part of them, right?"

"I was discharged in '95," Piers raised his eyebrows in surprise making Chris smile slightly. "I didn't abide with the orders I disagreed with and that was my downfall," Chris explained, and then he shook his head. "I was in a rebellious phase back then, I suppose."

"Obedience is everything in this kind of job."

"You won't get far with that mentality,"

Piers drifted his attention from the fire to Chris, who was reproaching his words with a shook of his head. Piers opened his mouth to give a further comment but Chris held a hand up, making him close him mouth and sigh. "Life is not just about following orders," Chris started. "Is about taking decisions that you consider appropriate for a common good, even if it means defying authorities." He paused and let his gaze linger at the fire as Piers twisted a small twig on his fingers. Chris had no intention of brainwashing the young soldier, it was merely a piece of advice that he had learned along the way, sometimes in the most unpleasant situations. Almost as if reading Piers' thoughts Chris spoke up again. "When I was discharged they told me I would never succeed because of the authority issues I had and look at me now."

Piers said nothing as he threw the twig in the fire and placed his hands on his lap; the only sound they could hear now was the constant crackling the fire made and the leaves brushing against each other in the tree branches. Chris thought he had hit a rough spot until he saw Piers' expression softened before he looked up at him with the ghost of a smile on his lips. "Thanks."

"See that? We'll be outta here in no time."

Pies nodded and leaned his head back against the metal wall as Chris typed something in the electric panels beside the escape pods trying to get them to open; the pain on his arm was unbearable and it hit him in strong waves as the mutated flesh pulsed trying to make the electricity inside find any method of release. He looked away to the hallway they just walked through, gritting his teeth in pain and trying hard not to stare at his mutated arm.

"Come on…" Chris muttered beside him as he tapped the machine's side with force. "Got it!" He said triumphantly and stared at the pod, waiting for it to open. He sighed out of relief as the doors opened with a whooshing sound; this was their one way ticket out of that hellhole.

Chris walked over to Piers slumped form and held out his arm. "Here we go, Piers, we're getting out of here." Piers stared at Chris's outstretched hand for a second before he grasped it tightly and swiftly got on his feet, involuntarily clenching Chris' hand forcefully to somehow ease his pain; Chris made no comment about it as they slowly walked towards the escape pod. Piers' hand loose his grip on Chris' as he yanked it back with force, leaving the older man staring at his hand in confusion before turning his attention to him; Piers took that moment to push him with all his might, making him land on the padded floor of the escape pod before he pressed one of the buttons beside him, closing the doors and leaving Chris alone in the white pod. Chris quickly got on his feet, missing the open door by mere seconds and standing helpless as his hands tried to find anything to make them open from the inside.

"Piers! No, don't do this! Open the door!" He shouted as Piers panted and stared at his agitated form from the outside.

"Goddam it listen to me!" Chris watched as water and debris fell from the ceiling, the structure wasn't going to last much in its damaged state and he only had one shot to try to reason with the younger man. "We can still both get out of here! There's still time!"

Piers stared at the ground and slowly started to make his way towards the lever, fighting back the urge to just stop and try to find a way to make the pain go away.

"What are you doing?" Chris asked and received no response; he let out a shaky breath before shouting again. "No, Piers, don't! You can still make it out!" He looked around and found him nowhere in sight, he growled and pounded at the glass with his fists. "Goddamit, Piers!"

Piers pushed the level, activating the mechanism and letting an alarm sound loudly while the remaining red lights flickered in the ceiling, he ignored Chris' shouts as he gained enough courage to walk over to the little circular window on the escape pod with his head low.

"Piers! Open the goddamned door, that's an order!" Chris said, this time more softly as fear started to sink in, this was his last resort; Piers was always following orders and even if it sounded ridiculous at the time it was the only thing that could probably knock some sense into him. He couldn't allow himself to leave behind the man who risked away his well-being and sanity to keep him alive.

"Life is not just about following orders, is about taking decisions that you consider appropriate for a common good, even if it means defying authorities." Piers managed to say weakly, his voice came muffled to Chris' ears as he watched his friend in disbelief with his heart pounding on his chest and the sensation of fear sinking on his stomach.

"No…"

Piers shook his head and smiled for the first time in the last days before the capsule launched itself into the ocean as debris started to fall down behind him, leaving Chris screaming his name until his air ran out.

Chris' hands dropped at his side as he stood powerless and alone; unaware that he was holding tightly Piers' bloody BSAA badge on his right hand, his last memento of the man that saved his life.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it.

Resident Evil and its characters belong to Capcom.