Chapter 1

My Plague

"You're boyfriend's a real ass hole." I said, after the door had been shut and locked.

Matt ran over towards the door, and pulled on the handle as hard as he could, but it wouldn't give. "He shot the locking mechanism out!"

Spencer Parks had just left one of the laboratories, where the T-Virus had been, where the Antivirus should have been, sealing the door shut behind him.

"I can't believe the son-of-a-bitch going to get away with this!"

"I don't think so." Alice, Matt, and my attention instantly turned to the screen where the Red Queen's voice came out of. The once blank screen was now lit up with the Umbrella logo, with the child voice of the Red Queen emitting from it's built in speakers. "I've been a bad, bad girl."

The screen now showed an overhead security camera shot of the train, with Spence clutching a black duffle bag, witch he opened, pulling out a shinny, chrome briefcase, with circles in all four corners, and a keypad in the center of it. Upon punching in a four digit access code, all four circles turned counterclockwise, and the lid slid open.

Inside were eighteen viral cases, nine green nine blue.

The Antivirus.

The T-virus.

Spence took one of the green ones, shoving it into a hypo-gun. He then wrapped a thick, black strap around his arm, tapping the vain so it could reach the surface. Preparing the hypo-gun, he was about to inject it into himself when he stopped.

He had heard something.

That something fell from the ceiling, it was some sort of creature, and the skin was inside out, with ten fingers including the opposable thumb and toes, all with razor sharp claws. It had a long whip like tongue, and more sharp teeth than a piranha.

Those teeth pierced and tore at Spence, eating him alive. Then it turned its ugly eyeless face at the camera, slithering its tongue as if demonstrating how long its tongue really was.

"What-the fuck- is that!?" Matt said. The scene was gone but the Red Queen was speaking once again.

"One of the Hives early experiments, produced by injecting the T-virus directly into living tissue, the result was…unstable. It was being held in status until you cut the power to its storage unit. Now that it has fed in fresh DNA it will mutate, becoming a stronger, faster hunter."

As she spoke, the screen turned to a shot of the creature, that I had now basically called the licker. It's "flesh" was stretching, rippling and tearing, as its bones cracked and mended together again, as its body elongated and its height changed, dramatically. Its claws extended, as its head became more angular.

"Great," I muttered that was all we needed, a fucking ten foot long organism after us.

"If you knew it was loose, why didn't you warn us?" Matt asked the computer.

But Alice gave the answer. "Because she was saving it for us-isn't that right?"

The computer spoke matter-of-factly. "I didn't think any of you would make it this far-not without infection."

I turned my sweat drenched head towards the television. "Why didn't you tell us about the antivirus?"

"This long after infection, there's no grantee it would work."

"But there's a chance," I asked, my hopes, maybe a little too high. "Right?"

"I don't deal in chance."

'You little wench.' I thought. Then looking to my right, I saw a fire axe, laying next to me.

What the hell. I wasn't going to give up that god damned easily, I weakly grabbed the fire axe and approached the nearest glass window where I saw, five, little tiny holes in it. Suddenly, another dizzy spell hit me, and hard.

Somebody had already tried to escape from this hell.

"Fuck it." I whispered as I gave up slouching into the chair, next to me. 'I wouldn't even be able to break it anyway.' I thought, realizing that if a perfectly healthy person couldn't knock it down, then there was no hope of me doing it.

It was over.

I leaned against the Chair, defeated. We were all going to die in this hell and there was nothing we could do. I closed my eyes, breathing heavily, my time was running out and I could feel it coursing through my veins.

I glanced down at my watch, the L.C.D. screen reading that we only had nineteen more minutes left before the door's to the Red Queen sealed us shut inside this tomb for the rest of eternity, damned to a life with no end.

"No pressure guy's." I acknowledged sarcastically. Matt then ran towards one of the locked doors, where he worked vigorously at the door's keypad trying code after code, at, what seemed to be nearly, random to see if they would work.

"You require the four-digit access code." The Red Queen declared to Matt, and his expression read that he so badly wanted to say 'So Shit Sherlock' but didn't. "I can give you the code, but first you must do something for me."

"What do you want?" Alice asked.

"One of your group members is infected; I require her life for the code." I shrugged, it figured. I had been bitten, and was only slowing them down sense the utility tunnels, now it was only natural the fucking homicidal bitch wanted to kill me off as well.

Alice was outraged. She pointed at the monitor witch now showed what was left of Spencer's carcass, next to the case he'd stolen from this very room. "The Antivirus is right there on that platform! It's right there!"

"I'm sorry but that is a risk I cannot take."

Before Alice could holler again I spoke.

"She's right," I tossed the axe I was holding to Alice, who caught it, extremely accurately.

"It's the only way; you're going to have to kill me."

"No." Alice said faintly as Matt shook his head.

"Otherwise we all die down here."

A sudden noise grabbed our attention, the "Hunter" that had killed Spence was now throwing it's self against the window, the sudden blare of noise caused me, now half blind, to fall off of the chair I was sitting on, and into Matt and Alice's hands. But the glass didn't shatter, it just hairline cracked.

"The glass is reinforced, but it won't hold forever."

I tried to move and managed to get myself out of there grasp and into the water. With difficulty I got down in the calf high water, and leaned forward, like I was a French revolutionary waiting for King Luis to take my head….Or maybe a samurai about to commit seppuku.

"Do it." I commanded.

"No. Get up!"

"Just do it!"

"Rain, please get up, we can-"

"Do it!" Alice shifted in the water.

"You don't have long to decide."

"You have to get up, please."

"You have no choice."

"Kill her!"

"Rain, you don't have to do this." Matt said as he put a gentle hand on my shoulder, but I just shook him off.

"Get off of me." He still continued to persist, by putting his hand on me. "I said get the fuck offa me!"

"Kill her now. The creature smashed into the window. "You don't have any choice."

"Just do it now!"

"I can't just do it!" She yelled down at me.

"Kill her now."

"Please." I gasped over the commotion.

"Do it. Kill her!"

"Just do it!" God I was so, so weak, I could hardly stand, and hunching over like this took so much out of me.

"Kill her now."

"JUST DO IT, NOW!"

I saw her shadow on the water, she had lifted the axe up high, and I closed my eyes waiting for the final strike to come, still shrieking the plea.

"Kill her!" and then I heard the sound of shattering glass. I opened my eyes and looked up; Alice had broken the screen, breathing heavily. At the same time, the lights went out, and the few systems working powered down.

Emergency lights came initiated a few moments later.

We all stood there, on edge, then a clicking sound came from the door made Matt and the rest of us look in that direction, only to see it open, with a figure in the door frame. Even though I was weak and my eyes where blurry, I could just make out the silhouette in the door frame.

"Kap?" I was the one who asked the question. I never thought that I'd be so happy to see the computer geek in my whole life! And he was alive!

He managed a smile. "Bitch wouldn't open the door, so I had to fry her."

Just then the window smashed, the creature flying through it. Matt grabbed me up in his arms bridal-style as Alice raised the axe instinctively.

Like that was gonna be any help.

We all ran past Kaplan. When he shut the door, the licker ran into it, leaving a vast dent, he stared at it in awe.

"What the fuck was that!?"

"It's a long story!" Alice said as we all ran, well I was carried by Matt, for the train station that would lead us home, away from this hell.

On the way there, Matt filled Kaplan in on what had happened.

He told him about the Antivirus. About the conflict between Alice and Spence, then he told him about his death.

"Serves him right." I heard Kaplan say.

Kaplan hobbled behind us, and Alice was in front, armed with the fire Axe. Hell that was now our only weapon against the Licker. I tried not to think about what would happen if it reached us.

Looking around, with my blurred vision I swore I saw something sink into the shadows, but I wasn't too positive.

Once again, we had made it this far, out of five hundred people, we were still alive, against all odds.

Alice picked up the fallen Colt, and handed it back to me. "Kaplan, get the train started." Alice ordered. I looked at my watch; we had little than ten minuets to spare. He opened the door, then limped inside first and disappeared into the driver's car, Matt and I flowing close behind.

Matt gently set me down against the wall of the train, looking up at him, I tried to say, "Where's Alice?" but it only came out as, "Alice?"
Matt looked back down at me, smiling warmly, as if he knew the question before I even had asked. "She's coming. Hang tight Rain. She'll have the antidote for you; you're going to be alright."
I nodded smiling up at him, I didn't care if she had the antidote or not. I just wanted to make sure she escaped with us. Matt went to join Kaplan up in the driver's car.

Four long minutes passed as I watched the doors, needing to see Alice enter, then I faintly heard the sound of Alice's voice. "I'm missing you already."

I then heard a yell. 'Was it Alice?' I couldn't tell as the noise of the train sprang to life.

"We're leaving!" he called.

Kaplan had gotten it started. Normally I would have yelled back to him some smart ass remark, but I was starting to worry, and tried to get up. Another wave of queasiness passed through me and I hunched over, coughing, and nearing vomiting again. Jesus Christ! This wasn't looking good. Perhaps I should have just committed suicide right there; after all, I did still have my Colt on me once again. But no I had to see that Alice made it safely.
I heard the doors opening.
I looked up quickly, aiming my gun at the doors. Alice entered, her face blank of any emotion, carrying a bloody briefcase in one hand, a Hypo-gun in the other, I smiled up at her as I lowered my gun. She shut the doors behind her and looked over at me. She smiled warmly and moved over to me, kneeling down and setting the briefcase aside, she opened it, looking over the contents then looked at the Hypo-gun. There was a green vial inside; Spencer didn't have the chance to use it.

Matt walked over to us all of a sudden, and handed Alice some blue bandages. They were his shirt, but he ripped it to shreds for Kaplan and I. "Here." He then turned, and began to walk back inside to Kaplan and then we were moving I leaned back against the train wall, watching Alice stick a vial into another Hypo-gun.

"Heads up!" She tossed the Hypo-gun to Matt, who caught it in his hands. Matt nodded, disappearing back into the driver's car; he clearly knew who it was for.

She met my gaze then, and gently grabbed one of my arms; I braced myself as she shoved the needle into me. Pulling the trigger, the green solution slithered into my body, and I felt a tingling sensation travel all the way up my arm. She then grabbed pieces of the cloth, and began to wrap my wounds. The Antivirus had already begun to do its job, because for the first time since I was originally bitten, the bites stopped bleeding.

But I couldn't be too positive.

"I don't want to become one of those things, walking around with out a soul..."
Alice looked at me stunned, she shook her head, "You won't." But I kept talking.

"When the time comes, you'll take care of it." I peered at her with a soft gaze, 'it wasn't a question' I told her silently with mine.

"Hey. No one else is going to die," She said reassuringly, stroking my chin comfortingly. "Okay?"

I removed my watch from my wrist and handed it to her, it was programmed to tell me how much time before the Hive was to be sealed shut, the whole team had one just like it. With the exception that we all had our names engraved on them. "Here. I want you to take it; I have no further use for it."

Alice closed the briefcase and then looked at me. "I bet you're feeling pretty shitty right now." She smiled a bright glow in her bluish eyes.
I chuckled. "What I would give to have a cold margarita in my hand, sitting on a beach in L.A." I said, smiling back at her tenderly.

I wanted to embrace her and I tried to but I was too weak to pull her into my arms. She seemed to understand what I wanted however and leaned in. I wrapped my arms around her tightly, hugging her close to me. She wrapped her arms around me in turn. She felt so warm, her skin soft, the feel of her body pleasant to the touch, my eyes half closed as I leaned into her.
"We made it Rain. I knew we would." Alice said softly, rubbing my back with one of her hands.
"Thank you." I was replying. "I wouldn't have gotten this far without you. I'm glad we escaped together." I kissed her cheek, I wasn't sure if the antidote worked yet so that was the best I could do for now, though I really wanted to give her more. I was relieved and happy. Matt and Alice survived, Kaplan and I had the antidote and we would survive as well. After all that shit I struggled to survive I had finally made it out of the Hell Hold that Umbrella called the Hive.
I pulled back, trying to fight off the nausea that had, once again consumed me.

We fell silent as the train roared down the tracks. The only sound was of metal bending, the pipes that where hanging above the hatch, where rocking gently back and forth, back and forth.

Letting my head fall, I closed my heavy eye lids. God, I was so fucking tired, my head still hurt a little, I felt like I was gonna puke if I sat up any longer, and I still felt pretty weak, the green antidote was working, I could feel it moving throughout my weakened body fighting off the blue T-virus, but it hadn't fully kicked in yet. I faintly caught Alice's voice, calling my name, once, twice, then a third time. Silence, before there was scrapping of metal, and then I heard a click, which sounded a lot like that of my gun's safety lock. Opening my eyes, my head still down as I peeked up at her through the peak of my vision. Alice was peering at me, her face quivering in a way I never thought I would see her do, the gun aimed at me, her hand was trembling.
I reached up and grabbed the barrel of the gun, Alice gasped as she saw me move, I looked up into her eyes, smirking, "I'm not dead yet." Alice breathed a sigh of relief and smiled warmly at me. "I think I'll have that back."

Alice chuckled; as she leaned in. "I could kiss you, you bitch!" and I smiled warmly at her, and honestly thought that for a moment she would. That's when the train rocked with such a force it knocked me and Alice over.

"Fucking, Shit!" I said as I fell over.

"What the hell, is going on back there!?" Kaplan yelled from the front.

"Get us the fuck to of here!" Matt shouted back to him.

"Any faster and where going to come off the rails!" That's when I felt something strike the back of my head, and then it was dark.

I heard faint voices, yells, my eyes slowly fluttered open, as I started to look around. I then spotted Matt on the floor with the door not to far from him and I had an idea of what had happened.

Alice was yelling again and then firing, the bullets of the gun I handed her tearing into the creature's rotting flesh with sickening squishing noises, mutilating its body even more then it already was, that was Ass Kicking Alice for you. I thought as I Helplessly watched Matt climb to his feet.

Enough of this bullshit!

I had to fight off the drowsiness, sickness and dead weight I had become. I wasn't going to just sit here and watch any longer. I somehow found the strength inside me to onto my hands and knees, just barely crawling out of the way, of the pipes that had clashed onto the ground where I had been only seconds before. My hand gripped the corner of the wall, and I desperately tried to pull myself up, that where I felt an anger in me rising, why was I still so damn week! Hand over hand, I moved to the furthest wall, right by the pilot's cabin.

"Open the doors!" I faintly heard Alice's Cry over the commotion that surrounded me. "Open the doors now!" She pleaded. I looked to my left and saw a switch. Then with one last look at the monster I noticed that she had managed to stab its tongue with a broken pipe, skewering it to the grate, and then I met where its eyes should have been.

"Looks like stronger, faster, hunters, aren't all that much better!" Whispering I slammed the button controlling the Cargo Door. The creature fell through opened hatch, were flame, and heat engulfed the creature, bringing an unpleasant stench. I had once driven past a crematorium, when I lived in L.A. and that place smelled bad, but nothing compared to that of the lickers stench being burned alive. I soon regained awareness after the blast of heat and disgusting odor; I closed the hatch again, severing its tongue leavening the ball of fire behind us.

Alice turned around and saw me standing hunched over with my hand on the hatch release button. "You looked like you could use some help," I smiled weakly. Alice was peering at me, as they revealed rush of relief I shifted, my eyes turning downcast. What the fuck was wrong with me? Why did she make me feel like this?

It was those eyes.

Her beautiful aqua eyes that seemed to penetrate my very soul, like open doors. She seemed to be seeing me inside and out. She had had a worried expression on her face; as if she was truly concerned about me it felt…..nice.

"We don't have much time left, Matt can you control this thing?"

"Yeah, I'll get right on it." He opened the door, leading to the controls, leaving Alice and me alone.

"You need to sit and regain your strength." She said softly, as she helped me sit on the floor. I looked back up at her, I did not reply, my attention was on her eyes, the smooth features of her face, the way she looked at me, much like she did back in the sewer system. She gazed at me with the same encouragement as if still silently telling me not to give up.

"I won't give up Alice, I promise." I said to her.

"I never said you had to."

I had the sudden urge to lean in and kiss her.
In addition, unconsciously I was doing so; she seemed to draw in closer to me, our eyes locked on each other. For that moment the others were forgotten, there was just Alice and me, we were so close...

"We've reached the station!" Matt yelled as we pulled up to the platform. Fuck what a way to ruin a moment. I watched Matt grab her hand, "Alice! Come on! We have to hurry!"

With a fleeting look, she snatched up the briefcase as Matt pulled me off the train. We had destroyed the Hunter, but still I glanced over the train to make sure nothing else had unknowingly followed us. Then all of a sudden, it hit me.

"Kaplan! Where's Kaplan?!" I was saying, but by Matt's grim expression I knew in that, instant we had lost him too. Fuck!!!!! My whole fucking team was gone! I was the only one remaining on One's elite team. He had hand picked all of us, he hand trained us further in the combat skills that we already knew, and more. And now he, and the rest had lost there lives in just under an hour.

The transport area seemed dark and eerie, Umbrella marked crates stocked high, a musky smell filling my nostrils, the cold air summoning Goosebumps from my arms. I gritted my teeth to try to fight back the tears that threatened to fall, but the grief seemed overwhelming, all our struggles had been for naught.

Matt carried me through the lab entrance and up the stairs as it closed behind us, sealing up the Hive and zombies, sealing my team inside.

We had tried so hard.
We rushed up another flight of stairs, my heart feeling heavy, ignoring the Raccoon City chill that touched the bare skin on my arms. Soon we had burst through the door into the mansion, Matt and Alice's feet thumping against the metal floorboards, the eeriness still hovered over this place as well, I do not understand how she had managed to live here and keep her sanity.
We entered the living room, I was weary and faltering, and battling grief and exhaustion, but it was lost.

One...Chad Kaplan... Olga Danilova… J.D Hawkins….Vance Drew…Alfonso Warner…

Matt set me down at my request. I sunk to my knees, Matt and Alice turned and looked at me as I bent my head down, the tears I fought to hold back stung my eyes.

"We failed." I shivered, biting my lower lip. We had lost against Umbrella, J.D. and the rest of the Umbrella team was dead. They had been taken out by the company we had served so loyally. It hurt so much to think of all of them, in addition to that, all the people who had died.
I felt defeated.
"We failed." I said again, or more like I had failed. I had tried so hard for them, my team, but it had not been hard enough. A tear streaked down my cheek. "I couldn't save them, I..."

"You're wrong," Alice had dropped the case that held the viral and anti-viral samples, and now was kneeling down next to me. As Matt began to gently grasp my shoulder, "We didn't fail. It was not your fault what happened, Rain. The Umbrella corporation is the one guilty here not you!"

"And now we finally have the evidence to expose them. We can get them back for all the lives they took. But we can stop them from taking more." Matt added.

"This is our chance, our chance to take a stand and defeat them. We cannot give up. Not now. Not after all we have seen."

I nodded, they where right. "God, I can't wait to get back to civilization," I said, trying to enlighten the mood.

"You and me both. I guess you're gonna go out and get laid like you said you wanted to huh?" the blonde in front of me asked.

I chuckled at her straightforwardness. "Yeah. The only problem is who am I going to get to do the job?"

Alice responded, "I'm not sure, but I would like to help if I can."

"Maybe you can," I said with a devious smile over my lips. "After all, you still owe me a kiss."

Alice was shocked. "You heard that?"

"Oh yeah," I nodded.

I looked at the two of them. They were right, we now had the means to take out Umbrella, get back those bastards for killing the others. Matt smiled at me reassuringly, and he was kinda uncomfortable, and I nodded, but then he slumped down suddenly, a pained groan escaping his lips. I immediately knew what it was.

"You're infected, but your going to be ok! We're not losing you too!" I heard Alice say, but my eyes were locked on the tear in Matt's arm. I had noticed it before but my mind had been thinking of the other's deaths, I had not realized that it was...

"Hold on!" She opened the case and grabbed the Hypo-gun, shoving one of the green vials into it. Matt gripped his arm in pain, sinking down further on the floor; she reached out to grab his arm...

When someone snatched her wrist, she cried out in shock as the Hypo-gun clattered to the floor, as she was pulled to her feet.

Umbrella...
Umbrellas clean up team.
They had come.
I cried out in frustration, kicking at the covered figures that grabbed at me, my anger of all Umbrellas wrongdoing was coming out in a flurry of fists and punches. I saw them grab Matt, he tried his best to struggle against him, and I gasped in horror as I saw the black tips of what looked like tentacles coming out of his arm.

"NO!" Alice yelled fighting her captors, trying desperately to reach Matt, but they were strapping him down and hauling him off, away from us.

"He's mutating. I want him in the Nemesis program..." I heard someone say. I yelled again, kicking and punching, Calling Matt's name. But he was gone, and we had lost the samples.

I had lost the fight.
Tears spilled down my cheek. No. This can't be happening! I can't let it end this way! I can't let Matt and Alice be taken!!!!

They began to hull off Alice, one of the thugs had stuck her with some ort of sedation, as tried desperately to attack them, but there were to God-damned many and I was still too week, I strained against them as they fought to hold me in check, my sobs mingled with my frustrated yells.
Damn you Umbrella! Damn you!
I felt them strike the back of my head.
Then, once again it was dark.