A/N: Eek! I know this one was from a while ago, so hopefully the person who sent this is still out there. Apologies for such a long delay. Also, I know the prompt said the fight was meant to be more balanced, but I hope you don't mind me tweaking it just a bit.
Orders were simple enough. Get in there and take down every B.O.W. spotted, stop the research and set the self-destruct to ensure the building would be gone for good. Another standard mission for the B.S.A.A. like any other. The difference was, Chris had gone in alone. No teams, no back up, no help if he needed it. But that also meant no more worries, no more chances that more men would die, and that was a damn good thing.
High ceilings, far walls aligned with various tech; crates near the center and scattered along the sides of each passageway. The place was huge, not that it wasn't expected upon arrival. It almost bore a similar resemblance to the underwater facility. Chris shook the thought, now wasn't the time to think about that, distractions were the last thing he had needed.
Rounding a corner at the distant end of the room had proved to be a bad idea. The moment Chris proceeded into the next area, the doors had closed behind him. He slid into cover, narrowly avoiding a sniper shot from above as he took position and overheard several doors open long enough for the pitter-patter of footsteps to slip through before they fell closed again. Chris moved to the opposite side of the crate to peek around it, rifle raised with a spurt of fire that skittered to the upper deck where the sniper had him pinned, effectively riddling the soldier full of holes. Chris then rolled to the side, diving behind a small counter with various papers scattered atop it to get out of the range of gunfire as more soldiers approached on ground level. A handful of them were equipped with melee devices - as long as they didn't get too close, they could be left for last.
Two came around the side of the crate that he had previously been standing by, in clear view. Chris didn't pass up the opportunity, weapon already raised into position as he pulled the trigger. However, one of them seemed different than the others - movements more agile and well thought out. That one in particular had pushed his companion closer to the Captain while he rolled out of the way, effectively dodging the spray of bullets and leaving the other soldier to soak them up in his stead.
It was... Unexpected, and yet, Chris didn't think much of it. Not while in the heat of battle.
One of the soldiers approached the opposite side of the table that he was crouched behind, and Chris discarded his empty clip to the side with a clatter, distracting the soldier long enough for the Captain to reach out and pull him over the table top where he unsheathed his knife and brought it forward in a downward stab, cutting straight into the neck. The man squirmed in his arms, and when Chris withdrew the blade, a spray of blood oozed from the open wound. He was as good as dead.
Replacing the the used clip with a fresh one, the Captain shrugged the weapon over a shoulder. There were three left, all of them close ranged combatants that edged forward. One swung with a outstretched wrist blade that sought after a decapitation, and Chris easily ducked under the blow with a hand that shot out to grab the underside of his attacker's arm and twist it to the side, exposing him so the bloodied knife could sink into his midsection and twist. Chris tilted the arm in his grasp, using the blade attached to it to parry another soldier's with a sharp clang as metal collided with metal.
He raised the blade, forcing his opponent's in an upward position as well as he pulled his knife free and spun into a crouch that allowed him to relocate the blade into the other soldier's chest, roughly around where the heart should be. As Chris withdrew, both of his attackers dropped to the floor, defeated. There was only one left, but he was fast. Chris hadn't seen where he-
A kick to his back had the Captain diving forward where he recovered into a roll, spinning immediately with the knife at the ready only to have an arm parry against his wrist, preventing the slash from making any contact. Chris hadn't known it until they were up close, but the particular soldier that he was combating seemed to differentiate from the others. He certainly stood out in appearance from the common Neo-Umbrella soldiers. He was built better, but he was also much more fast on his feet. The Captain's opponent lifted a leg to strike two kicks in quick succession directed at first towards Chris' stomach, then his chest that had him stumble and withdraw.
What made things even more curious was that as Chris recovered, he made note of the fact that the soldier he fought was carrying a gun, but made no move to reach for it yet. His opponent stepped closer, and Chris was instantly on guard again as he balled his left hand into a fist and struck, his right one still armed with his knife. The soldier parried the blow by knocking the arm away with one of his own that slammed into it at the bend, expertly ducking under the following slash from the blade. Chris, much faster than he looked, managed to grasp a hold of the soldier's forearm and spin his foe as he pulled him inward, successfully planting his opponent's back against the span of his front, with his arm wrapped tight around the soldier's chest to keep him in place.
What the Captain hadn't expected was the immediate reaction as his enemy jabbed an elbow backward, hammering it in repeated blows against his side. Chris could feel the pressure even under his protective gear, and a final blow was targeted toward the side of his head unexpectedly. The knife fell from his grip and his opposite arm lessened its hold; the movement alone allowed the soldier to slip free, but not before Chris latched a hold over his foe's vest to keep him from stepping too far out of reach. The soldier made a grab for his gun, and Chris used his other hand to direct a blow toward the mask, which managed to dislodge itself from its wearer as he spun away.
Chris made a move to charge and disarm his opponent, only to freeze up the moment they faced one another again. Brown eyes had found themselves widened as he breathed, staring down the barrel of a gun toward it's owner; a man he never in his life expected to see again. The recent fight and the adrenaline that flooded through his veins, none of it mattered anymore as his gaze settled on mismatched eyes that held firm as they looked down the sight of his weapon.
The Captain swallowed, brow furrowed in confusion. "Piers?" It couldn't be... Not after the explosion of the underwater facility.
Yet, his eyes told no lies of the image before him.
Plump lips curled at their edges in the form of a smile, even as the weapon remained pointed toward Chris. Piers eyed the older man who had stiffened the longer the gun remained leveled on him, and with a suddenness, Piers jerked the weapon sideways, allowing the butt of it to smack Chris in the jaw. The older man stumbled to the side, and Piers kicked out a foot that collided with the back of his Captain's knees which forced his legs to collapse under his own weight. In a daze, Chris wasn't sure how to react until fingers tugged through his hair and tilted his head back, where a familiar pair of lips crashed over his own.
Despite the throbbing in each place that had been hit, Chris couldn't stop himself from responding as a tongue pried for entry that was soon granted, and slick muscles flicked against each other in an slippery dance. Chris felt the fingers that twined in his hair relax their hold, instead resigned to massaging his scalp soothingly. Chris lifted an arm to cup the younger man by the back of his neck and pull him closer, deepening the kiss as they hungrily devoured one another's oral cavity.
Chris couldn't believe it. Piers was there, alive and well. To say the Captain was overjoyed would be an understatement. His heart pulsed pleasantly for the sniper, and his skin tingled with an excitement at having Piers so close after such a long time. He'd missed him to an extent that no words could ever describe.
It was the ace who had parted them only when air was required, but their mouths still hovered near one another. Piers playfully nipped his Captain's lower lip, and Chris made no attempt to prevent the smile that graced over his features. "Was there really a point to all of that?"
Piers shrugged a shoulder, "If you want to get technical, Captain... You shot at me first." The ace reluctantly pulled himself away with a hand extended to assist the older man in returning to his feet, even if it wasn't a necessity.
Chris clasped the offered palm with his own and climbed back to his feet. "Piers... Why are you here? How did you even survive?" He couldn't help it, the questions were large in number.
"It's a long story, Captain." Piers responded with a thoughtful look, "But I can tell you about it after we finish up here and make it home."
It was like something directly from a dream. Unreal, but not unwanted. Chris would have liked to know more, to know everything that Piers could tell him. How he was there, what happened to the infection, why he was with Neo-Umbrella in the first place. As much as he thirsted for answers, he couldn't deny the sense of joy he had at seeing Piers again. Chris took a step forward to steal another quick kiss; those pouted lips always acted like an unhealthy addiction, and the Captain never could get enough of them. "I'll expect you to keep that promise."
Chris didn't know how or why, but somehow the two of them were reunited and he would make damn sure that the time they shared was never taken for granted again. Confused as he was, Chris was just happy to have his lover right back where he should be.