Disclaimer: just because I like to repeat myself, please see chapter 1! Thanks to you that reviewed. Keep them coming!
Chapter 4
Alice's eyes searched the darkness beneath them. Something felt extremely out of place, her skin crawled. She managed to pull at Kmart's pant leg and motioned for her to stop.
The silence below was deafening. Alice immediately had a rush of familiarity. This Hive reminded her of one she'd encountered many years before, one that had taught her the real meaning of lose. The one before the whole world died! "They're all dead" was her first thought. Her second thought was "Shit!" A loud scream could be heard below, and Kmart instantly kicked at Alice below to get her attention. Alice looked up to see Kmart mouthing the words "What was that?"
Alice motioned them to continue. Kmart nodded and passed the message on up the chain to Claire and Bette.
It felt like forever gripping onto the cable, even Alice was beginning to feel the pull through her shoulders. Kmart could barely keep her eyes open from the pain in her arms.
Alice was the first to hit the bottom of the cable, it was a small drop to the roof of the elevator below. Letting go, her feet echoed as they hit the solid surface.
Claire looked down past Kmart "Smooth Alice." Kmart snickered at Claire's comment.
Alice looked up and shrugged her shoulders "Opps." She motioned for Kmart to let go, catching the smaller framed blonde as she hit the elevator. And held her as she checked to make sure the younger woman was okay.
Kmart instantly felt the hands around her waist, and ducked away so Alice wouldn't see the blush creeping up her cheeks. "Get a grip Kmart" she tried to mentally kick herself out of it.
Alice made sure Kmart was safe before letting go and helping her out of the way. "I swear that girl needs to calm those hormones" Alice thought. Her ridiculously super senses currently working in overdrive due to their circumstances, had a way of not only sensing danger. She motioned for Claire to follow suit.
Once she firmly had the red head in her arms Alice's keen senses narrowed. Claire always had a way of making the whole world disappear around them.
Held tight, with Alice's grasp around her waist, Claire smiled and gently brushed the lose strand of Alice's hair behind her ear. Her fingers lingering on the soft skin of Alice's jaw line. Their eyes never leaving the others. Kmart slightly embarrassed for watching, turned her attention to her boots.
"Hmm, I need new shoe laces!" Kmart forced her thoughts away from the pair in front of her.
"Arrrhhh." There was a deafening scream, followed by a loud thud, instantly made everyone jump.
Kmart jumped back against the wall of the elevator shaft. At her feet lay a flattened zombie. It seemed the undead were still coming after them. Alice quickly let go of Claire and caught Bette as she fell from the cable. Placing Bette down, Alice quickly ripped the hatch open to the elevator. The four women quickly lowered themselves inside. Alice quickly replaced the hatch however it no longer had a latch to keep it shut since in her hast, she had clean ripped it off.
It was eerily quiet in the elevator. The doors were jammed open by debris which littered the offices that lay before them. Whatever had gone on down here was disturbing. Bodies lay strewn around. Some impaled in weird posses, others in pieces thrown randomly around the rooms. The smell took only a second to hit them, and they all instantly knew that whatever had caused this were going to be big and most likely ugly. Alice had encountered things capable of this before. Nemesis, Lickers, and the new strains of zombies were more than capable. The silence soon disappeared as another loud thud hit the elevator above them, leaving an indentation in the roof.
"Come on." The four made their way slowly through the office. Alice had one hand gripped on the shaft of one of her blades sheathed at the small of her back, ready to draw at the slightest suggestion of trouble. Kmart gripped her shotgun that tight, her knuckles began to turn white. Bette and Claire both had their .45's drawn.
It was as they made their way through the offices, and bodies of Umbrella employees they came to the laboratories. Empty vials that Alice instantly recognised were either empty or smashed on the floor.
Suddenly something caught Kmart's eye. A shadow moved only slightly and she instantly cocked her shotgun drawing everyone's attention. Claire instantly pulled her attention to where Kmart had her gun pointed and slowly made her way over, careful of every step, every movement so she wouldn't make a sound. As she neared the area from where the shadow had originated she pulled up short at the desk in front of her. She took one deep breath before she jumped over it. What she saw nearly made her eyes fall out of her head. Her pistol shook in her hand, she immediately flashed a glance to Alice over her shoulder and then back to the form laying on the ground and then back to Alice. Kmart quickly made her way to Claire's side. She almost dropped her weapon at the site that lay before them. Claire and Kmart just stared at each other and then back at Alice.
"What the hell is it?" Bette couldn't take the guessing game any longer, and made her way over the other women. "Holy shit!" Bette covered her mouth, and then just like Kmart and Claire had done before her, she turned to stare at Alice.
Alice still standing where she had been the whole time blades drawn suddenly felt like she had grown an extra head under their stares. Suddenly concerned that maybe she had grown another body part because of the virus she looked down and around checking herself over, seeing nothing different she stared back at the others "What?"
"You got to see this!" was all Claire could muster. Her gun still firmly pointed at the form below.
Alice quickly jumped the desk, she almost lost her footing at the site before her. On the ground lay a naked exact look alike of herself, gasping for air. Alice dropped to her knees and shook the shoulders of the 'Alice Clone' "Hey" she shook her again. "Are you alright."
The clone gasping for air, her mouth moving in an attempt to communicate, her eyes flattered only slightly before closing and exhaling the last breathe before dying in Alice's arms.
Claire and Kmart stepped back. Bette went as far as backing across the whole expense of the office. Alice looked as though she would explode with anger. She rocked the 'Alice Clone' in her arms. "No, no, no." She kept repeating.
There was a loud computer static sound, before a computer imaged young girl appeared from out of nowhere at Alice's side. "Alice?"
"What?" Alice spat the words out snarling.
"We have a bit of a problem."
"You sound like your sister. She was a homicidal bitch!"
"My sister was one of the first designs. Since her, there have been improvements."
"What, just like in the new virus!"
"Not quite, more like new additions."
Alice raised an eyebrow "What new additions."
Kmart was absolutely blown away, she had never seen a holographic image before she never thought they actually existed, she always believed it to be one of those optical illusions, but not only did they exist, Alice was having a full blown argument with one.
"When Umbrella discovered your blood bonded with the T virus on a genetic level, they began to clone you trying to formulate a cure. Unfortunately results have been shall we say unstable."
"Unstable! Un fucking Stable!" Alice placed her clone gently on the floor. And took off her jacket to cover the clone's naked form. Rising slowly she turned to face the holograph. "You have yet to see unstable."
Claire watched as the person she had known to show so much control was losing it just as she had the first day they met, which ended in a fight between the pair. Claire instantly knew this wasn't going to end well. "What happened down here?"
"Dr. Isaac returned in an infected state. The new serum used was derived from Alice's blood. However the effects caused massive mutation. I have him secured in the basement, but it won't hold forever. Alice you must destroy him."
Kmart was getting frustrated with the holographic young girl and took a swing, her arms gliding straight through the image "You bitch. You can't make her do this." Alice quickly wrapped a reassuring arm around the young blonde.
"I got this. You three need to search for survivors. Stay clear of the basement till I get back."
Kmart shrugged off Alice's arm in anger. "You're just going to go down there?"
Claire finally approached Alice. Bette still observing from the safety of the furthers part of the office. The whole situation not making the slightest bit of sense to her. Claire reached out her fingers gliding around the back of Alice's neck. Pulling Alice's lips hard against her own, the tears falling freely down her cheeks. "Don't you die on me." Claire choked out.
Alice kissed her back, this time more softly then before "I promise Claire." Wiping the red heads tears away with her thumb. Claire let go Alice's arm and grabbed Kmart and pulled her in the opposite direction. Gathering Bette as they headed down one of the many hallways, only glancing back to see Alice walk off toward the basement.
Alice turned to the holographic image. "Show me."
The holographic girl just nodded.
Claire, Bette and Kmart were only a few rooms into their search when they stumbled upon an expansive room. What they found was unbelievable none of them could have imagined it. Kmart's jaw hit the floor her mind spinning over all the possibilities of what this meant. Claire couldn't help but hide the smallest of grins.
The only sound Bette made was hitting the fall as she fainted.
Kmart finally picking her jaw up off the floor grinned and nudged Claire in the arm. Her teenage mentality kicked in "All your dreams coming true Claire?" Her cheeky grin nearly reaching her ears. Her eyes sparkling deviously.
Claire glanced down at Kmart glaring only slightly before her hand reached up and slapped Kmart up the back of the head "Seriously Kmart!" she warned. Although now her mind was unable not to think of the possibilities Kmart had insinuated. "Alice is going to freak."
There filling the large room were rows upon rows of clones. All identical to Alice.
Kmart rubbed the sore spot at the back of her head. "What the fuck was that for?"
"You really have to get your mind out of the gutter babe."
Kmart laughed "Good a place as any for it to be." She looked down to the limp body on the floor. "What's with Bette anyways?"
Claire looked down at the unconscious Bette. "Guess one Alice is hard enough for her to handle, let alone all of them."
"I wouldn't mind handling all..." Kmart instantly felt the same pain in the back of the head "Fuck Claire! I was only joking."
Claire growled "I'm warning you. Now help me pick her up."
They moved Bette into a sitting position against a desk and were about to make their way to what appeared to be a control centre computer when simultaneously they both felt a cold calmly hand on their shoulders, suddenly they were spun around coming face to face with the barrel of a gun.
Who they were met by was not who they expected. Alice returning? The Undead? Even Dr. Isaac? It wasn't. Claire stood there facing a tall dark haired woman with a fierce look on her unclean features, matching Claire's glare perfectly.
Kmart now stood looking into the eyes of a shorter young woman with long wavy hair pointing a gun in her face.
The taller woman pushing the barrel of her gun closer to Claire's forehead. "Who are you people?"
Kmart snarled at the young woman in front of her. Her shotgun still in her hand but pointed away. If only she'd been quicker to draw it.
"Don't even think about it." Came a sharp English accent from the other girl. Kmart instantly sized the other girl up. They were about the same height but Kmart was sure she had an inch on the other girl. She also appeared to be roughly around the same age.
Claire eyed the pair closely, their clothes tattered and definitely worn. They looked like they were underweight, and were covered in bruises and scars, however from what Claire could see from her vantage point neither of them looked as though they had been bitten. Claire felt the rage inside her overpowering. Not only had they come this far. She'd left her convoy Alice was now probably being eaten alive, and Kmart was leering at her girlfriend clones and Bette was unconcious! But now all she could think was "fucking punk arsed bitch pulled a gun on me. This far, and some wirery looking thing pulls a gun on me." Claire had had enough, with reflexes of a cat Claire's arm snapped forward and snatched the gun out of the taller woman's hands, as her other arm swung around to knock the other woman onto her knees. Claire satisfied the older woman wasn't going anywhere she now had the gun squarely pointed at the younger woman who was still pointing her gun at Kmart.
"Drop it." Claire demanded, she waited for the other girl to do as she was told. "NOW!" she yelled in the other girls face. Kmart reached out and grabbed the gun pointed in her face. Throwing it to the other side of the room she brought her shotgun up to the other young girls face
"How does that feel huh?" Kmart shoved the barrel at the other girl. "Huh?" The other girl didn't flinch. Kmart raised the butt of her gun about to bring it down in the other girls face.
Claire pulled Kmart back, warning her to calm down. "Tell us who you are."
The taller woman gripped the spot where Claire had hit her. A small amount of blood trickling through her fingers, finally looking up to Claire she replied "Jill. Jill Valentine. This is Angie."
Kmart breathed heavily, the anger welling up inside her till all of a sudden the pieces fell into place and it hit her "Angie? Not the Jill and Angie that saved Alice?"
Jill's eyes shot to Kmart "You know Alice? She's alive?"
Claire immediately felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. An uneasy feeling settled in the pit of her stomach, and her hands rolled into tight balls. She didn't like the story when she first heard it about Jill saving Alice then being captured by Umbrella after Alice left them. All she could think was "The whole thing could be a trap, and now, like perfect timing she shows up here". Even though the convoy had searched for them time and time again at Carlos's pleading, Claire realised one thing, that although this could be a trap it was the fact that after meeting Alice, falling for her, being in love with her, she now for some reason felt she might have competition. Jealously really is a curse.
There was a small groan behind them. Bette stood to her feet rubbing the back of her neck. Her eyes finally taking in the scene around her. Kmart holding a young woman at gun point and Claire snarling at an older woman on her knees. Bette should have been surprised, however she'd learned that she didn't find anything as shocking as rows and rows of Alice clones! Exhausted and feeling the onset of a severe headache Bette turned to Claire "Great. This is just fucking great." She threw her arms in the stranger's direction. "And who the fuck are these two?" she paced back and forth beginning to rant in her usual fashion. Kmart watched out the corner of her eye while still keeping her gun pointed at the other girl. For some reason Kmart found Bette's ranting completely amusing, the corner of her mouth rising only slightly into a smile.
Angie watched Bette as she moved her arms around dramatically, as she continued to yell about the situation they had gotten themselves into and how this was all Alice's fault. Angie's brows slowly creeping together in confusion, she looked to Kmart who had a half smile playing at the corner of her lips as she watched Bette and without thinking Angie leaned over and asked "Is she infected."
Kmart frowned at the other girl, bringing her gun barrel back up to rest at Angie's temple. She hadn't expected her to speak let alone to her, giving the benefit of the doubt she replied "Nope, she's just crazy." Kmart smiled proudly of her 'crazy friend'. Angie just nodded and turned her attention back to Bette, watching closely.
Before Claire could interrupt, Alice suddenly burst through the doors, "I killed him, I killed Dr. Isa..." the smile instantly falling from her features at the site before her. The rows and rows of clones were the first thing she saw she dropped to her knees. Claire dropped her gun and was instantly by her side.
"It's okay Alice." Claire pulled her into her arms. The bruising around Alice's neck brought tears to her eyes.
Alice looked up at Claire, then Kmart, then Bette, and then... Angie? And Jill? Overwhelmed, Alice's eyes began to roll back, Claire gently tapped the side of her face "Alice? Alice come back to me." Alice's body went limp in her arms. Claire panicked and checked Alice over for bite marks, not finding any she felt Alice's chest rise in shallows breaths. She had clearly passed out.
Bette sighed and slumped down in the nearest chair. "Great, just great! Should have stayed on the fucking helicopter!"
Jill slowly turned to Bette "I know where there's another one!"