While the entrance into the cave had been abrupt and reckless, they spent the rest of the trip down moving cautiously and occasionally looking over their shoulders. Nothing happened for an achingly long time until they came across a pair of bodies. One being that of a uniformed man. A bat like creature's corpse lay on top of the body and Leon rolled it off as he knelt beside the downed member of Alpha team. "Looks like we need to watch out for these bat-things." He muttered looking at the new B.O.W. The top half was clearly that of a bat but the mid section split into several prehensile tails that came to a curved claw at the tip. "Yeah, no kidding..." His partner replied softly, eyeing the bullet holes in the bat corpse.
The team had stopped to close the man's eyes but it was Leon who grabbed the dog tags around the deceased's neck. 'Nick Sniver. It's too bad...' Tucking the tags away safely he stood and they continued down the path. They came across no more bodies and the tunnel opened up into a large space. A dimly lit elevator waited on the far side of the cavern. A low thrumming hum filled the area and though Leon had a good idea what might be causing it he had to check the ceiling anyway. Hundreds of bodies hung from the ceiling and Leon motioned for Helena to move as quietly as was possible. If they were asleep, good. If they weren't blind, they would have attacked. So far so good. The trip to the elevator was the longest in their lives and it was the very machine that ended up betraying them in the end.
Ding!
The call for the elevator rang loudly and there was an immediate reaction from the monsters over head. Soft clicking cries sounded from everywhere as the bat creatures swooped down all over the place. Both agents had their guns at the ready but it wasn't until one swooped down at them did they start firing and the hoard turned on them in a flurry. With so many targets about the size of a child falling at them both had traded out to sub-machine guns and were firing bullet after bullet at the monsters. Bodies fell out of the air and stayed down. "Come on... Come on." Leon mumbled, listening for the sound of doors opening, he couldn't risk looking away.
Helena had just dodged a bat to the face when the doors slid open and they rushed inside, panickedly pressed the down buttons while showing the little monsters how trigger happy they could be. "Crap, I'm out." Leon called, moving to reload. Helena tried to fend them off while the doors slid closed but one seemed determined to get in the elevator and stuck it's head through the closing doors. The frightening sound of click, click, click came from Helena's gun finally and Leon took it upon himself to kick the beast in the face before the doors finally shut and they were on their way down. "I can see getting out is going to be a piece of cake." He said sarcastically. Leon finished reloading while Helena followed suit before they both traded over to their favored handguns.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
Both agents reached up to their ears and turned their ear pieces on,"Leon? Helena?" Hunnigan's voice spoke over the air ways to them. She wasn't coming in clear but they could understand. "We read you, Hunnigan. What's the news?" Leon replied, listening to the soft static. "I've been informed that Alpha team isn't responding. You two need to take extra caution when you get down there... ...reported the T-virus... ...the facility." Helena scowled, "What? Hunnigan, you aren't coming in clear." She didn't respond and the thick nest of static made it obvious now they were either too low below ground or a blocker was in place.
Leon shared a knowing look with Helena a moment before they turned to the opening doors, they'd heard enough to guess Alpha team was down and a full on outbreak was waiting for them. He didn't know what he was expecting but the clean, empty hallway was not it. Leon took point as he exited the elevator, nothing on the ceiling, no noises, nothing was out of place. "Where are they..?" He mumbled as his partner joined him. The chalky orange walls looked almost innocent as they moved through the facility.
A vent down the hall as they took a corner was hanging open, it's cover dangling by one last screw. This was where things became once again familiar for Leon. A skinless humanoid B.O.W. clung to the ceiling as they stopped down the hall. Giving a signal to follow after a moment of thought, Leon inched them down the hallway. They couldn't see and from his experience with them they didn't pay him much mind if he didn't actively run for his life. As they drew closer the nasty monster let out it's long exhaling breath, mouth opening wide as it's whip-like tongue came into view.
Helena was noticeably on edge as it fell from the ceiling in front of them and clicked along the floor in the opposite direction. Leon put his hand out in front of his partner as he watched it move about, they seemed to hear best while on the move. When the Licker crouched into a ball like form, he dropped his arm and they moved to catch up with the B.O.W. 'Little more, little more. Move your ass you killing machine.' Leon grumbled, freezing with Helena as the Licker dropped down and started crawling once more.
As it came to another crouching stop, Leon grabbed the handle of the door it had just passed and carefully opened the door. The room beyond looked to be an office for a higher up but thankfully it was empty. He waved Helena inside before glancing down both directions then pulled his L. Hawk from it's holster and took aim at the Licker's exposed brain. It hit the ground with a slick plop as the loud blast went off and then Leon ducked inside and closed the door. There was no telling what had heard him fire but both were sure it would come looking if anything had heard the magnum.
Helena turned toward the finely decorated room,"Think we'll find anything of use in here?" She wondered aloud before moving to the desk and rummaging through it. "We can only hope." Leon replied as he waited near the door. A few notes about the facility were in the desk and after picking the lock off a safe they found a couple of packs of handgun ammo along with a H&K P8 handgun. The gun wasn't exactly needed so they decided to leave it behind as they returned to the hall.
Nothing had gathered but as Leon peered down the way he spotted a dark figure rounding the corner. "This way." He called and followed after the vaguely human looking figure. Though it wasn't likely it could have been a member of Alpha team and that was what took them down the hall and peeking around the corner. A man was striding away from them but it was no one from Alpha team, the body wasn't clothed. Actually it looked pretty badly burnt. "'The hell is that?" He mumbled, bewildered.
The man shaped thing stopped as if it had heard him and turned it's head, a single red-orange eye looking back at them. A chill Leon wasn't accustomed to ran down his spine and he swore he hadn't blinked but the figure was now gone. "Where-?" He rounded and took in the sight of the blackened male dangling his partner in the air like a rag doll by her neck. He fired at the obvious B.O.W. but it vanished and the bullets dug into the plaster of the wall. Helena dropped to the floor just as he felt a fist land on his cheek.
It wasn't his cheek that hurt as he slammed into the wall and crumpled to the ground, the force was intense enough he blacked out for a few breaths. Helena fired a couple bullets as the monster turned on her once again. The angry man simply leaned left and right as he approached before back handing the gun aside and pinning her to the wall with the full expanse of his body. A long exhale came from between his clenched teeth before his hands were wandering her body. The brunette's eyes flew wide as she was openly groped before struggling as hard as she could.
Split. Multiply. Reproduce. It repeated like a mantra in Wesker's skull as his hand reached up and crushed the bones in the fidgeting woman's left forearm. He heard her cry but he thought nothing of it as he tore at her clothes blocking him from her skin. She fought less now that pain had been introduced but the woman continued to struggle. They ended up on the floor and Helena was sure she would be raped,"Leon!" She nearly sobbed. The crumpled agent stirred from unconsciousness in time to see the freakish male mounting his partner.
Horror was plain on his face but he moved into action the second he could feel his legs, tackling the solid body off his partner. She pushed away on her back with both legs and tried to make herself decent while Leon jumped away from Wesker. Quick thinker he was, Leon spotted a lab door behind Helena and he hit the wall as he slapped the button for the door to open. "What are-?"
"Get in!" He snapped, grabbing Helena by the good arm and throwing her into the decontamination chamber. The door slid shut before he could join her and he cursed as it locked down, making it impossible to follow for the time being. Wesker slammed his fist into the wall next to Leon's head as he grabbed the agent's shoulder. "You shouldn't have done that." His accented voice scathed. Leon trembled under the grip on his shoulder but he'd resigned himself to this, Helena didn't deserve this.
This is very G-virusy I know but after a near death experience I assume the desire to pass on it's genes would become goal number one for any virus infected individual. Next chapter sees Leon's life changed forever, seeya normalcy.(Yeah, 'cause in the life of a Resident Evil agent there's a bunch've that! lol)
'Til next chapter. :)
