Chapter Nine

After we made it back from the cemetery, we reentered the park. In one of the files Jill had read, she discovered that another extraction point was located at an old factory by the park. I assumed there would be a chopper ready for Nicholai to escape in, but we were determined to beat him to it. We paced quickly, trying to avoid as many of the zombies as possible. They were slow, and we had already dealt with much stronger and faster enemies, so they seemed to be no real threat any longer. As we headed down a dirt path, I noticed another dead mercenary. I checked his wounds and they looked like bite marks.

"Carlos! Watch out!" Jill cried as I stood. A dog, like the one from before, was growling and slowly making its way toward me. The sounds coming from its open mouth were low and deep. I equipped my pistol and fired 5 bullets into the beast before it got much closer. It whimpered and toppled on its side. I caught up with Jill, and we exited the area. On the other side of the gate we went through, there was an old bridge going across the river below. Directly across from us was the factory. It looked desolate and in complete disrepair, definitely abandoned, or meant to look that way. I smiled at Jill, knowing that this nightmare was approaching its end. All we had to do was get out before Nicholai arrived, and I had a feeling he was nowhere nearby yet, but we would need to hurry.

Just as these thoughts came to my mind, a familiar sound echoed around us.

"S.T.A.R.S.! GROOOOOAR!"

"No.." Jill mumbled under her breath. I grabbed her by the arm and began sprinting across the bridge. There was no telling how close the monster was, and I was taking no chances. Suddenly, a tentacle protruded through from under the bridge, I stopped short and waited for it to slither back down. Once it had, I made it the rest of the way and spun around to see the thing leap onto the bridge between Jill and the last few steps it would take her to get to the factory. The monster flung its tentacle at her, but she ducked just in time and threw herself at the creature. It was surprised by the attack, and stumbled too close to the edge. It toppled off the bridge and landed in the water with a splash. Jill ran to me, laughing in disbelief at what she had just done. I grabbed her hand and we entered the dead factory together.

The inside of the building was just as dilapidated as the outside. Rust caked the walls and pieces of the ceiling had fallen off, collecting in piles upon the floor. There seemed to be only two doors, and the shutter was firmly closed on one, requiring a key card to get it open. I led the way to the only other option we had, and the door creaked open when I pushed against it. There was an elevator leading into the basement level of the facility in one corner. A grenade launcher was propped against yet another communications device. I smirked at the luck we seemed to be having. I nodded to the weapon, offering it to Jill.

"You take that. I have this." She said, pulling out a magnum revolver from her side pack and aiming it directly at me.

"Whoa, there." I laughed. "Bug gun for a little lady." She rolled her eyes and secured the gun back into place, switching it for her pistol for the time being. Her smile faded and the mood was serious once more. I picked up the launcher, noticing it already had 6 rounds in it. I hooked it over my shoulder and stretched. With no warning, the communications device blared static and then an automated message cut through the harsh sound.

"Missile attack confirmed. All personnel evacuate immediately. Repeat: missile attack confirmed. All personnel evacuate immediately."

My heart sank and I turned to Jill. She gulped, her eyes wide with panic.

"We have to move, and quickly." I said as calmly as I could muster. She nodded and ran for the elevator, not hesitating to press the button to enter the lower level of the factory. I gazed at her as she disappeared below. Once she was gone, I began searching the room for something to get the shutter open. I knocked a folder off the nearby table and bent to pick it up. A paper had slipped out. It was a notice to the supervisors. I read it carefully, breaking out in a cold sweat as I did.

1. Obtain and secure sample of all the information pertaining to this case. Observe and record combat data on the UBCS.

2. Destroy all the evidence including the medical facility that has the medical treatment data.

3. Check the guinea pigs' ability to accomplish the mission.

Once your mission is complete, evacuate the area. Remember that you must not help anyone who is not a supervisor, nor bring anything back that might be traced to where it belongs.

Just as I finished the last line, the door to the room opened slowly. I turned, startled, to see Nicholai. He gasped angrily and took off back down the hall. I let the notice slip from my sweaty hand and it slowly sank back to the floor, landing gracefully among the rest of the papers. I grabbed for my pistol and sprinted after Nicholai. I saw that he had opened the shutter and was running down the narrow hall that it led into. I went to catch up to him, making it to the end of the hall before I heard Jill call my name. I hesitated, but lingered long enough for her to catch up before continuing after Nicholai. We followed him through another door and found ourselves in a large room. There were two ways to go, and I wasn't sure which route Nicholai had taken.

"I'll go this way." Jill said, nodding to the left. I patted her on the shoulder before running to the right and crashing through the next door. Narrow stairs led up to a room with shattered windows. In the center of the floor was a hatch leading presumably outside. Another communications center was against one of the walls.

"Missile attack confirmed. All personnel evacuate immediately."

I approached it, hearing another sound much louder than the blaring message. From the window dead ahead, a helicopter hovered into sight. I sucked in my breath and waved my arms furiously at it. I stopped, cold and numb once I realized who was in control of the chopper. It was Nicholai. He flipped me the bird, laughing cruelly and yelling over the sound of the blades.

"Well, looks like you almost made it Oliveira. Very impressive for a mutt!" he shouted.

"You don't have to do this! We won't say anything if you help us get out of here!" I called back, ready to jump out of his way if he intended to fire at me.

"That woman is still alive? She'll be baking with the rest of this shithole soon enough." He said angrily.

"You're just one of Umbrella's slaves, you bastard!" I screamed back at him.

"No more time for chit-chat. Die, you pathetic waste!" he yelled as he prepared to fire. I grabbed the launcher from my back and took aim. Bullets whizzed by me as I fired a round into the chopper. It hit the side, spinning the rig momentarily. Nicholai quickly got it under control and began shooting again. I ducked, deliberating how I was going to get him before he killed me.

Jill burst into the door, distracting Nicholai completely for all of two seconds. I saw my chance, jumped up from hiding and fired another round. This time, it hit home. It went straight into the chopper's windshield and the 'copter spun furiously, sinking rapidly to the ground. I watched it crash against a stack of old vehicles. A few moments passed, and then it exploded, an orange glow spreading around the wreckage. I sighed and tossed the launcher to the floor. Jill came over to me, and took me into her arms. She was shaking badly and I knew she had encountered the mutant once again. I held her away from me and looked into her face. Blood ran from a nasty gash on her forehead.

"I think it's dead." She said, unsure if that were entirely the case.

"Missile attack confirmed. All personnel evacuate immediately." The device blared yet again. The missile was getting closer. The way to cover this whole incident up was to wipe out all the evidence, and that was exactly what Umbrella planned to do. I took Jill by the hand and walked to the hatch. I pried it open with weak arms and peered down the ladder. It led outside, just as I had thought. We climbed down, and watched the burning wreckage of the chopper. Embers rose from the flames and into the slowly brightening sky. I saw Nicholai crash. I knew he was dead, but still something made me uneasy.

We walked further out between the piles of smashed cars and Jill gasped suddenly. I turned to look and see what she had noticed. A helicopter was making its way toward us, preparing to land. We backed up and readied ourselves for another fight. No one came out. Slowly, we approached the chopper, weapons still ready. A burly man with a dark auburn beard turned to face us. Jill's arms fell to her sides and she ran to him.

"Barry!" she cried with delight as she ran and hopped into the chopper. I followed, smiling at the sound of her joy. Before the pleasantries had ensued, a loud angry cry echoed through the air.

Nicholai, a bleeding mess emerged from beyond the wrecked helicopter. His fatigues were blackened from the fire, and he was headed straight for us. The pilot lifted the chopper off of the ground, but it seemed to be taking forever. Nicholai was closer now, but as he stumbled forward, another menacing and garbled sound came from behind him. The creature that had been after Jill emerged more mutated that when I had last seen it. It oozed toward Nicholai, who had turned and merely stared as it came for him. Finally, he reached for his gun, but he was too late. The monster was upon him, knocking him on his back and covering him completely as it did God knows what to him. Our chopper had made it into the sky, and we began the flight out of the city. I could still hear Nicholai's cries as he was torn into by Umbrella's creation.