Author Note: It's been awhile since I've written anything on here, and even longer since I've thought up an Resident Evil story, but recently an idea popped into my brain and I felt the need to share it with you all.
Please feel free to read and review. This will be a one shot - set in no particular part of the Resident Evil timeline.
Xo
B.
Down the Rabbit Hole
-Three Weeks Earlier -
Leaving was the easy part, staying was the hardest itch not to scratch.
Umbrella was making it to easy, lining up the undead like they were apart of a carnival game and their team leader calling over the megaphone "Step right up! Step right up! Put the undead to bed with a small piece of lead!" He would be waving a cane around and dressed in a brown pin stripped suit, a true relic of the 1930's. Of course the reality was just line after line of undead appearing before the roar of gunfire, the bodies sagging to the ground, while the next line soldiered on.
The whole operation worked like clock work until the ammo ran out, adding to the already heaping mound of decomposing flesh that rats and crows would never be able to keep. With ammo gone and an army still shuffling towards them, indoctrinating them into their oversize cult. That was Umbrella's plan all along, an endless supply of mutated soldiers to carry on their version of the 'final solution'.
No matter where you traveled, it was the same story; more undead, more Umbrella, more carnage. The group dwindled, with what was left of the human race either dying or parting ways to take their chances on their own. Soon it was only the core five left, staying together for the sake of being a family more than anything, waiting for either salvation or death, whichever came first.
-Present Day -
Jill Valentine, a veteran S.T.A.R.S. Agent from Raccoon City, and once brainwashed victim of Umbrella, cracked open the last can of beans she had squirreled away in her rucksack with the tip of her combat knife. She sat down at the cackling fire looking from one tired and grim face to the other. To her left were the Redfield siblings Chris and Claire. They reconnected numerous years after the outbreak began in Los Angeles where Chris was being held as a prisoner and Claire was recovering from a bout of amnesia. They were both cleaning what little arsenal of weapons they had.
To her right was K-Mart, who's real name has always been a bit of a mystery to Jill. She was picked up by Claire in her Nevada convoy years ago, held up in a K-Mart, hence the name. She was usually a typical, bubbly teen full of energy, a spitfire almost, the wear and tear of the constant fighting stripped that away, and now what was left was a scared girl. K-Mart reminded Jill of young Angela Ashford, a young girl who survived being locked in her school crawling with infected children in Raccoon City until rescue, herself infected with the T-Virus, but it did not turn her into those creatures that lurk in the shadows. Jill often wondered what happened to the young girl, but by now it was safe to assume she was dead.
K-Mart stopped taking inventory on what ammo was left and fished out a spoon from her satchel, digging into Jill's can of beans.
"Don't you have your own food?" Jill snapped, glaring at the teen as she wolfed down another helping of beans.
K-Mart shook her head, her spoon sticking out of her mouth, "I ate my last can two nights ago and I checked her bag and their was nothing to eat."
The word "her" referred to Alice, the one member of their close knit group that was not currently around the fire pit, and with good reason. Their base camp was three miles outside of an Umbrella facility. It looked to still be operational and if so it would be dangerous, albeit almost suicidal to even try to attack, but based on Alice's personal flare for danger and...unique...abilities, she was the perfect candidate for the job.
"Of course their isn't, she doesn't need food." Chris replied reloading his rifle.
"Grow up Chris," Claire sighed.
Chris gruffed, locking in the rounds with a satisfied click. H peered down the end of his scope, ignoring his sister. Jill remained silent, resisting the urge to punch him in the face. If it wasn't for Alice none of them would be here right now. She saved all of their asses, hell saved Jill's own ass twice, and asks for nothing in return. Instead Chris barks and disrespects her, most of the time to her face, completely forgetting that if it wasn't for Alice, he would have remained locked in that Prison cell in LA as a forbidden fruit to the undead.
"You don't ever plan to forgive her do you?" Jill stated, handing the can of bean over the K-Mart, her appetite suddenly gone.
Chris remained stone faced, staring intently at the fire. Of course he would never forgive her. She had lead their group to slaughter for her own personal obsession; having another showdown with Albert Wesker, the head of Umbrella Corporation. The five of them were fortunate to escape with their lives and every day they stayed with her was another one of their necks up on the chopping block.
He contemplated leaving, begged Claire and Jill to do the same, but they refused. It seemed that their loyalty to her was more important than their own lives. He could leave, no one was forcing him to stay, but he would be damned if he'd loose what family he has left to a mutated parasite like Alice.
"It's suicide to stay and you know I'm right." Chris got up, towering over Jill, "Is your loyalty to that freak really more important than your own life? Think about it."
"She saved your life Chris, saved all of our lives!" Jill called after him as he walked towards the tent, "If your head's shoved so far up your ass you can't see that, then maybe you should reconsider your options."
Chris ignored her with a wave, disappearing into the tent as Jill sat down again, in no mood to fight. How could he be so inconsiderate? Yes, Jill admitted that Alice fucked up, and as a result lots of people died, but they knew the risks just as much as anyone. The world was never safe to begin with, Umbrella just upped the wager on survival with unleashing hell on earth. Alice was the one constant, the one thorn in Umbrella's side that couldn't be plucked no matter how hard they tried. If there was any chance this could end, it was Alice.
"I hate my brother sometimes, but he does have a point." Claire replied, catching Jill's eye, "Don't get me wrong I am grateful for everything she's done and I trust her, but she does have her own agenda."
Jill couldn't argue with logic. Alice was always twenty steps ahead with visions of grandeur, at times forgetting she was with a bunch of human meat bags and not genetically modified bio-weapons like herself. That was what Chris was so bent out of shape, in Boston, two weeks ago their group of thirty was led blindly into a trap set by Umbrella. It was a bloodbath for both the undead and their own, were wave after wave of bullets and teeth happened in what felt like seconds. Ten of them were able to find shelter and waited out the carnage in an abandoned shopping center. After waiting three days, five of the members decided to part on their own, no longer willing to follow their crazed leader. This left the five of them to continue on up state to an Umbrella facility Alice had found on a map in Boston, in the same lab where she injected herself with the T-Virus, turning herself into the monster that was needed to end this.
"And what agenda would that be?" Jill asked, stoking the fire with a stick to keep the flames alive.
Claire scowled, "You think just because we fuck I know her plan?"
"I thought love knows no bounds."
It was no secret Claire and Alice were romantically involved. It started a few months back as smiles and sideways glances and blossomed into much more. They kept it from the group, especially Chris at first, not wanting to jeopardize what thin layer of trust everyone had over their leader, but Jill caught them once evening getting hot and heavy under a sleeping bag and there was no more hiding. Claire was convinced this was what her brother was more upset over than the deaths of nameless combatants.
Claire cocked her shotgun anger glinting in her eye in the fire, "You're just jealous she didn't fall in love with you."
K-Mart cleared her throat in the hopes of changing the subject before someone lost their temper, "Shouldn't Alice be back by now?" She asked.
Claire and Jill looked at the teen who now stopped, spoon mid way to her lips filled with a mound of beans. The tension so thick it could be sliced with a sword. It had been a few hours since Alice went off to scope out the facility and K-Mart was right, she should be back by now.
When neither of them spoke K-Mart continued, "Someone should go and check it out, see if she's in trouble,"
"I'll go," they said in unison exchanging another scowl with one another.
"Why don't you both go. I'll stay here with Chris and if you're not back in an hour we'll come after you."
Jill knew it was pointless getting into a standoff with Claire and it would be a waste of time, especially if Alice was in trouble and needed their help. Jill nodded grabbing her gun as Claire slung the shotgun over her shoulder, placing a hand on the teens shoulder.
"We'll be back soon, if he gives you any trouble, put him in his place."
Claire followed Jill into the dark forest and away from the orange hue of the campfire.
-/-
The facility was quite large, but had sustained a fair amount of damage in the numerous attacks since the beginning of the outbreak. Over time most of the building had caved in and power seemed to be only working in the east wing of the facility. Alice only estimated this was true based on the security cameras, and roaming turret guns that were still operational. This had to be where Wesker and his army were hiding out. The perimeter had minimal security, and none surrounding the parts that were caved in. That was going to be their way into this facility, a sneak attack from behind.
She knew she needed to turn back, to tell the other's what she had found and formulate a plan, but her body was moving forward, towards to the facility. Alice knew they were so close to ending this for good, she could taste the sweetness of victory on the tip of her tongue, but that was not what was compelling her towards the facility. She was not in control of her motions, The programming installed by Umbrella that lay dormant inside of her for so long, that was brought to the surface with the T-Virus was taking control. She now knew how Alice felt when she fell down the rabbit's hole and into Wonderland.
Stop fighting it Alice, it will only make it worse the young voice echoed in her head. She recognized that voice, the same voice that was in The Hive years ago; the Red Queen.
"Shut up," Alice spat behind gritted teeth fighting every step, her bones feeling like they would snap like twigs.
Suite yourself...With that a high pitched ringing sound echoed in her ears, bringing her to her knees screaming in agony. Alice clawed at her ears, begging for the sound to stop as blood flowed from her nose. After fifteen seconds the deafening sound ended, leaving her gasping for breath.
Please co-operate Alice The Red Queen asked.
Alice coughed, eyes stinging with tears as she looked up at the night sky. The stars were bright but no clouds or moon. This would be a perfect night for star gazing, if the world was still full of such luxuries.
"Fuck you," Alice spat, wiping the blood from her upper lip, preparing herself for the next wave of pain.
There it was, firing through her body as she screamed into the forest, digging her hands into the dirt. She felt every bone, every muscle in her body lock, one after another. The pain was torture, worse than anything she'd experienced before. If it lasted any longer, she was sure to die. She should have stayed with the others, waited until the morning to go as a group and check it out. She was stupid, allowing her personal vendetta to cloud her judgement and walk straight into a trap.
Maybe Chris was right, maybe she was suicidal, a liability. She was going to get them all killed.
-/-
Claire followed Jill further into the deep underbrush of the woods. With how dark it was, their flashlights only did so much and Alice could have taken any path towards the facility. She was smart, she knew how to cover her tracks, which made finding her now even more of a difficult.
"We could be going in circles out here, everything looks the same," Jill muttered, slapping at a black fly that was coming in for a bite of her shoulder.
"Maybe we should have waited until sun up, dawn is in less than two hours." Claire replied.
It was then they heard a loud shriek West of their location. It was hard to tell if it was Alice or not, but it definitely belonged to a female. Either way, someone was in trouble. Jill broke into a sprint with Claire right on her heels, her heart pounding in her ears. It wasn't until then that she was worried for Alice's safety. There was no gun fire, , no groans from the undead at the sound of their dinner bell ringing. All Claire could hear was the crunch of branches under their army boots and the rustling of leaves as Jill pushed branches out of their way, running full tilt towards the sound.
"Do you think that's Alice?" Claire huffed, her flashlight bouncing across the ground in strobe light fashion.
"I don't know, but who ever it is they need help." Jill replied.
Suddenly the outline of a figure convulsing on the forest ground appeared on the horizon. Jill stopped so abruptly Claire almost ran full tilt into her. They were about five feet away, watching as this figure flailed on the ground, groaning and grunting like a wild animal. Jill looked at Claire as she raised her pistol, not taking any chances. Claire shined the flashlight on the figure in front of them. The light glistened on the short blonde hair and chiseled jaw line, both women instantly recognizing the woman flopping around like a fish in a boat.
"Shit," Jill muttered as she lowered her weapon, Claire already bounding over towards Alice, trying to stop her from convulsing.
"Alice, Alice, can you hear me?!" Claire yelled, attempting to steady the woman in her arms.
If you want her to live let her go The Red Queen echoed in Alice's skull.
Alice didn't want to hurt Claire or Jill, but there was no telling what was going to happen if she gave into the Red Queen's demands. Resisting Umbrella's control was exhausting. She did it for years after leaving Raccoon City and as soon as she let her guard down the homicidal computer program pounced, killing numerous innocent lives. The pain began to subside as she could feel some sense of control back, enough to warn them to stay away.
"S-stay b-back," Alice gritted between her clenched teeth, saliva dripping from her chin like a rabid animal.
Jill had never seen Alice like this before, but she was well aware of what Umbrella was capable of. She had seen too many innocent people die, and those who tended to survive were those who followed Alice's orders. Jill pulled at Claire, seeing the fire in the redhead's eyes.
"No! I'm not leaving her!" Claire yelled, pushing Jill away as she looked at Alice, "I'm not leaving you Alice, we can help you."
"Claire now is not the time to be stubborn. Umbrella is behind this and no good can come of that." Jill replied.
As Jill and Claire were bickering, Alice could feel her loose control of her body once more. She watched her hand move down her pant leg to the hunting knife she kept sheathed around her ankle. She tried to scream out, to warn them, but it was no use, the Red Queen was going to make good on her threat.
I told you to let her go The Red Queen taunted as Alice swung, swiping the knife at Claire and instead nicking Jill in the shoulder.
Jill screamed, heat radiating from the open wound. Claire shoved Jill out of the way as Alice took another swing, missing them both. Claire shined the flashlight on Alice's face watching the Umbrella logo's danced in her pupils; she was now in their complete control.
"Alice, stop, I know you're in there. I know you can hear me, fight it." Claire said as she dodged more swings from the knife.
Let's show her the real Alice, The Red Queen echoed as Alice lunged at Jill.
Jill screamed, dazed as her head bounced off the ground like a yo-yo. Alice had her pinned to the ground, the Umbrella logo dancing in what used to her blue eyes, her grip the strength of ten men, arms as strong as metal, as her knee pressed on her chest, strangling her. Jill kicked and coughed looking to Claire who was crying, but had a gun pointed at the back of Alice's head.
"Sh-shoot her," Jill gasped.
"I-I can't," Claire replied, her arms shaking. What the hell was going on? Why was this happening to them?
"C-Claire...p-please." Jill begged, her vision starting to blur.
Claire closed her eyes, refusing to look at the woman she loved, the woman she shared a bed with, the woman she trusted with her life. "I-I'm so sorry," She whispered and pulled the trigger, the shot echoing in the empty forest.
-/-
Chris snapped to attention on his cot. It sounded like it came from the direction Alice had ventured off towards hours ago. He grabbed his rifle, slinging it over his shoulder and stalked back out to the campfire seeing the worry in K-Mart's eyes.
"Where the hell are Jill and Claire?!" He demanded.
"T-they went after Alice," K-Mart replied.
"How long ago?"
"About twenty minutes. If they didn't return in an hour then we were to go after them."
Chris was fuming, as he clenched and unclenched his fists, hoping there was something he could beat into a pulp. How could his sister and Jill be so stupid? Alice had blinded them both, Claire with love, and Jill with jealousy, and now she had potentially gotten what family he had left in this shithole of a world, killed.
"Come on," He gruffed as K-Mart grabbed her pistol and followed Chris into the dark woods in the direction Jill and Claire ventured.
-/-
Wesker sat at his desk, tapped into one of the many cameras he had installed in the forest, watching the stand off between Claire and Alice happen on his computer screen. His pet doberman was at his side, flesh rotted his cheek and throat from the T-Virus coursing through it's bloodstream.
His smile widened as Alice, his one true enemy slumped to the ground, letting go of her grip on his disappointment of a protegee, Jill Valentine. His eyes glowed red from behind his black shades as Claire dropped the pistol and fell to her knees, sobbing at what she had just done.
"Thank-you Miss Redfield," He uttered as his loyal companion raised it's head, acknowledging it's master.
The holographic projection of the Red Queen materialized in front of him. The girl, no older than seven, looked almost sad at the news she was about to give. The doberman began to growl, his canines showing through the holes in his cheek, ready to pounce.
"Project Alice has been successfully terminated," She announced.
"Release the bio weapons. Let us bring the extinction of the human race to it's climatic conclusion." Wesker replied, looking at the computer screen noticing that Chris Redfield and a young woman have joined Jill and Claire.
"Bio weapons have been activated," The Red Queen announced.
Wesker reached for his microphone, turning it on, "I must thank-you Miss Redfield for eliminating the remaining threat to my plan." He paused, watching them look around, wondering where his voice was coming from, guns drawn once more. "I suggest you make haste."
He turned the microphone off as a loud roar erupted outside, shaking the walls to what was left of his Umbrella hide out.
I'm not one for killing one of my favourite characters, but sometimes it needs to be done. I hope you enjoyed and please leave a review if you so chose :)
Fin.