NOTE: This story contains graphic depictions of blood/gore, violence and language. May not be suitable for all ages.
DISCLAIMER: The creatures and settings within belong to Capcom. Characters are original creations by me.
**Please review if you want another chapter.**
Raccoon City was once a bustling town built under the watchful eye of Umbrella Incorporated. Umbrella was the leading pharmaceutical company in the world. They specialized in everyday items, such as medicines, cleaners, and other household items. But unbeknownst to its employees and citizens, Umbrealla had a special devision named White Umbrella, that specialized in bioweapon research and development. These bioweapons were kept under strict containment, and would result in an outbreak of epic proportions if any escaped. Little did Umbrella know that this nightmare would become all too real.
***
The Spencer Estate on the outskirts on Raccoon City was a disaster. First, the viral outbreak of the T-Virus infected all of the employees within, causing them to turn into zombie-like creatures. The laboratories concealed underneath the mansion must have not been sealed enough to prevent the leak. The various bioweapons got loose and haunted the mansion and the labs underneath. Reports of giant, mutated animals got to the top executives, and they needed to destroy the evidence of this inhumane experimentation. Raccoon City's Special Tactics and Rescue Squadron (S.T.A.R.S.) was sent in two waves to investigate the bizzare occurances of Raccoon Forest. Reports of people being attacked and killed by vicious canines swept the city, creating a widespread panic. While the workers of the Spencer Estate tryed to contain the last of the virus, the test dogs ran wild in the forest. Some of the workers escaped the mansion, but they were also infected with the virus. These workers and test animals were the same that were eating the unfortunate civilians of Raccoon City. The STARS, led by Captain Albert Wesker, discovered what Umbrella was really doing in the bowels of the mansion. Wesker turned out to be a traitor, leading them into the mansion was his plan, so he could collect combat data on the BOWs (Bio-Organic Weapons). But the STARS successfully destroyed the evidence, along with the mansion and the area around it. But the virus had already spread into the city by dogs, zombies, crows, and rats. Raccoon City was doomed from the beginning, ever since Umbrella started to play God.
***
The noise was unbearable. The screaming of the helpless civilians, explosions from car pile-ups, groans from the undead, and occasional gunfire was all that could be heard in the streets of Raccoon City. Jason McAlister had been in hiding since yesterday, and heard all that went on in his city. Not knowing what those creatures were, and not even caring, he tryed to find a place to survive until help came. His mind told him there was a reasonable explanation for what was going on, but his heart told him he was stuck in the middle of a horror movie, surrounded by monsters. Zombies.
He had seen many of the people in the streets die by the hands of these creatures. They were walking corpses, and hunted for fresh human blood. The blood stained streets told a story. A tragic story of innocent people being devoured by their own neighbors. These neighbors were now the undead, chewing the flesh and spilling the blood of helpless victims. Jason knew he had to survive, to tell his story and try to bring some understanding the the chaos that he was sure the government was going through.
*But what if help never comes? What if I'm stuck here in this God-forsaken town amongst the living dead and nightmarish creatures that are too unreal to believe?*
There were far worse things than zombies. From his hiding spot on top of his apartment complex, he watched the streets and alleyways for signs of life. Just someone to talk to, even if he didn't know them. He was lonely, and craved company, a sign that there was still some life around. The screaming had stopped a while ago, but every now and then, one more poor individual would give up their life to a creature that found their hiding place.
He cowered on the corner of the rooftop, dreading the moment that he would have to set off for help. Summing up what was left of his strength, he stood up and peered over the edge of his building. About thirty feet below was a dark alley, filled with garbage and debris. In the corner, against a pile of haphazard garbage cans, lay the ravaged body of a young girl. Doubled over, she had bled to death by various gaping wounds. Jason could see part of her scalp missing, shiny bone underneath glistening in the moonlight. Suddenly the trash around her began to rustle. Jason thought something or someone was hiding underneath her the whole time, when he noticed that there was nothing around her to create the movement. SHE was moving. Slowly standing up, she caught her balance, and started to limp away. She had become one of those undead creatures. Losing the image of someone he could help and talk to, he just watched as the young girl walked out of the alley into the street.
*SQUEEAAKK...*
From the same alley, a door in one of the walls opened. The rust-covered door, stained with blood, crept open slowly. Out poked the head of a young man, about in his twenties. He looked terrified, but that was understandable. His blonde hair was dirty and messed up, his blue t-shirt had a tear down the side of it, exposing smooth white skin. His jeans were also ravaged, with holes and stains all over them. Looking back and forth quickly, he stepped out into the alley. He sat down on the small step outside the door, and looked as though he was pondering his escape. He didn't appear to be armed, so Jason figured he better try to help him.
*I have to get his attention somehow.*
Jason quietly hissed, trying to get the boy to hear him. After a few tries, he quietly shouted. "hey."
The boy looked up and saw Jason, a wide grin forming on his face. He seemed to be just as happy to see another person as Jason was. He knew the boy would wait, who wouldn't? So he carefully and quietly climbed over the edge onto the emergency ladder, which was already out and waiting. Cautiously descending, he felt something warm and sticky on his hand. He lifted his right hand up, and saw blood on it. The middle of the ladder, and even the brick wall to the sides of it, was soaked in blood.
*How did this get up here? Those zombies are too stupid to climb.*
Ignoring the thought and the blood, he put his hand back on the ladder and climbed the rest of the way down. He had to drop about five feet to reach the ground, and luckily there was nothing to impede his progress, or to create a noise that could attract any creature. Brushing his bloody hand on his shirt, Jason walked over to the young man.
"It's so nice to see a face that's still intact and human." Jason said.
"Tell me about it. My name's Jesse."
"I'm Jason, nice to meet ya. We need to get out of this hellhole."
Jesse nodded and smiled. Jason felt sorry for the kid, even though he was old enough to take care of himself. Jason was 27, and had guessed Jesse was about 22 or 23. He pulled out a combat knife and handed it over to Jesse. Jesse gave a quiet thank you, and a smile that seemed to be depressed and unfortunate.
"I lost my family out there, but I'm staying strong." Jesse said.
"That's good, because only the strong survive..." Jason replied, but trailed off when he saw the look on Jesse's face turn into sheer terror. His eyes widened, and all the color in his face left him. He was staring right over Jason's shoulder, and Jason almost felt like crying, thinking what was behind him. All of this flashed through his mind in an instant. The kid's eyes were too high to be fixed on a zombie, so what could it be?
Spinning around on his heels, Jason saw what had scared Jesse so bad. A spider, no, some sort of bug. Mutated. Huge. Crawling on the side of the building, it's insectoid legs clung to the brick with sharp talons. Its eyes glimmering in the moonlight. One large extension from what would be its mouth. He had seen these before, and what they do.
*Brainsuckers.*
The creature looked at the two men, and started running along the wall. It covered ten feet in a second, and was only about five feet away now. Turning back to Jesse, Jason yelled for him to run. Jesse snapped out of his stupor, and tore for the end of the alley. Jason figured if he could distract the abomination for long enough, Jesse could get away. But his plan backfired. The brainsucker darted past Jason, and went after Jesse.
*Oh shit. It must like to chase its prey. Maybe it can't see stationary objects.*
Jason knew he couldn't do anything for the boy, so he just watched as the only person he'd spoken to in a day was hunted like an animal. The brainsucker leapt off the wall, and onto the back of the helpless boy. He screamed as the sharp claws dug into his back, pinning him to the ground. Two of the creature's front legs grabbed Jesse by the side of the head, and pulled it up so he was looking straight ahead. Jason knew he couldn't do anything, but hated himself for telling the boy to run.
The sharp extension, the sucker, of the beast sprang out of its "mouth", and aimed at the top of the boy's head. In an instant, the demon jammed it through the skull of his victim. Jesse's legs twitched involuntarily as the creature on top of him sucked his brains out through the top of his head. The disgusting slurp echoed in the alley, and another one of the brainsuckers, from somewhere nearby, cried out. The screech was like nails on a chalkboard, with some noise like tires skidding to a stop on pavement, and the scream of bats.
The boy tryed to scream as his brains were withdrawn, but he couldn't. The creature had finished its meal, and pulled its prong out of his head. The lifeless body layed there on the dirty alley floor, leaking traces of body fluids out of the gaping cavity in his head. The creature must have forgotten about Jason, because it jumped onto the wall, and climbed out of sight. He sighed with relief, but was devastated at the same time. He slowly walked over to the corpse of his would-be friend, wondering if he would come back as a zombie.
*Impossible. The brain controls the entire body, even if it's dead. No way he's coming back.*
Staring down at the young boy, his stomach knotted, and he felt vomit lurching up his throat. He turned to the side, and let loose all over the wall and ground. Wrecthing his guts out, he felt like he could die any minute now. But he heard soemthing to his side. Turning his head, wiping his mouth with his hand, he saw the very same female zombie that he saw before limp into the alleyway and over to Jesse's body. She dropped to her knees, and plunged her rotting, skeletal hands into the remainder of the head before her. Not wanting to see what would happen next, Jason set off for the other end of the alley.
*Nowhere to go but from where he came from.*
Jason opened the rusty door embedded into the alley's wall, and started down the dark staircase that smelled like old clothes, but no smell of rot or decay. He hoped there would be something down here he could use to his advantage, or a way out of this town, but he'd just have to see...