Author's Note:
Okay, I finally decided to keep Infinite Gambit under Game Crossovers and there it shall remain (Thanks for the input Lezard). That's where the story began and that's where it'll end. I got my first reviews and readers there as well, so my thanks goes out to you guys.
On another note, I've begun work on my second story, which is basically a Samurai Jack/Link crossover. I still haven't decided on a title yet but be on the lookout for it.
As far as this chapter goes, the fog behind the entire scheme should just about diminish and motives will become clear. This is a turning point in the story, so be forewarned.
- CHAPTER 10 -
Umbrella Research Facility
Mount Elbert
What had only moments ago been a peaceful and quiet environment, had erupted into a major panic. The hallways of the subterranean superstructure were crowded as scientists and soldiers alike made their way towards the nearest exit. The roof had begun to cave-in and the power had gone out. People were frantically rushing through the corridors, never realizing that they were trampling their own colleagues. To sum it all up, the facility had been thrust into utter chaos.
When the Metal Gear RAY invasion had begun, Lieutenant Palmer had sounded the alarm, and ordered his men to supervise the evacuation process to make sure that it went smoothly. However this was obviously not the case, as most of his men were either up on the runway with him, or running for their lives. There was absolutely no control in the underground silo.
"All personnel please proceed to the nearest evacuation facility. This is not a drill."
The female voice repeated this message every ten seconds over the P.A. system.
But no matter how horrible the situation was, no matter how many people were being killed just attempting to escape from that doomed place, nothing would even come close to the nightmare that was about to befall Dr. Connors and his team in laboratory eight.
"Can anyone hear me?" Dr. Connors was yelling into the lab's communication console. "This is Doctor Curtis Connors. My team and I are trapped in Lab 8. We need help! Hello!" But there was no reply.
He tried different channels, but they were either busy or unoccupied. "Bloody hell," he muttered.
Realizing he was getting nowhere, Dr. Connors made his way back to the door, where most of his team was gathered. The door hadn't been responding when the 'open' button was pressed, so they were trapped inside.
"Anything?" inquired Robert Ellis, another co-worker.
Connors shook his head. "Nobody answers the bloody radio. Some pretty big shyte must be going on upstairs." Looking past him, he noticed Dr. Berg had opened up the door's security console and was tampering with some wires. "How's it going there mate?"
Dr. Berg looked back at him. "This thing short circuited to security level Delta," he announced. "We're gonna be here for awhile but I think I can get it open." His tone then changed to grief. "How are Teri and Victor?"
Connors shook his head with remorse. "Gone."
Dr. Berg nodded understandingly. Two of their colleagues, Teri Gaines and Victor Myers had both been crushed when a section of the roof caved-in. Dr. Berg had been very close to Teri, and Connors could tell the death had afflicted him greatly.
"I'm sorry, Paul."
Dr. Berg sighed. "So am I," he replied, and returned to his work.
Dr. Connors let out his own sigh, sharing in the grief. "You gonna be alright there, mate?"
Dr. Berg nodded without looking at him, and Connors did not pursue the subject further. Over the next hour and a half, the remaining researchers split into groups. Dr. Connors sat next to Dr. Berg and chatted with him as he gnawed away at the security walls on the door's locking mechanism, while Dr. Ellis had taken the remaining two men into the specimen containment chamber to check up on things there.
"They've been gone awhile Curt," stated Dr. Berg, after getting through another level of security.
He was right, Ellis and the others had left nearly forty-five minutes ago and they still had not returned.
"You know how Ellis is, everything by the book," said Connors, referring to Robert's slow pace. "Either way, I'd better check up on them, you finish up here."
"It shouldn't be much longer," declared Dr. Berg.
Connors strode across the wrecked lab to the door marked 'Specimen Containment'. As he did, the radio crackled to life. Ignoring the room for a moment, he walked over to the communicator and tried to clear up some of the static. After a minute, the message came through, but in pieces.
"Curt...creatures...escaped...containment breach...others...dead...headed...your direction...outta there!"
At the same time the message concluded, an explosion from specimen containment rocked the lab.
Dr. Berg yelled from the other side of the room, "What the hell was that?"
"I don't bloody know, wait here!" Connors grabbed a flashlight from his desk drawer and approached the room. He had to manually slide the door open on account of the power outage. Switching on the light, he entered the room. He strided down the long passageway, aiming the light at the glass cages on either side. There was glass shattered across the metal floor, and Connors realized that many of the cages were broken. He continued down the hallway until he spotted blood and the floor.
Approaching the spot with caution, he followed the trail of blood with the light. It led him to the mutilated corpse of Robert Ellis, sprawled on the ground. Where his digestive system had once been, was now replaced by a gaping hole. Connors was horrified, and had to look away. By doing this, he spotted the other two men's bodies in a similar fashion. That was when it hit him. Judging by the way the bodies were dismembered, the cause of death became clear to him. A sharp howl from above confirmed his fears. Aiming the light upwards, he was able to identify Dr. Ellis' killer, a Flood Combat Form up on the rafters, which was now glaring at Connors, snarling maniacally. Around it, Infection Forms began crawling down the wall towards him. He was frozen in place, and scared stiff. It wasn't until the creature roared again that he was able to muster up enough courage to move.
Running back towards the lab, he slid the door closed in a frenzy. From behind him, he heard the lab door open.
"I got it!" exclaimed Dr. Berg.
"We have to leave now," Connors remarked, walking quickly towards him.
Dr. Berg gave him a puzzled look. "Where are the others?"
Connors approached the door, and realized it had only barely risen. "That's it?"
"It won't go up any further," he answered.
Connors got on his knees and looked under the door. "Can we fit through there?" he asked, sounding troubled.
"I think so, yeah. Curt, what's wrong?"
Connors looked up at him. "The Flood have escaped, Ellis is dead."
"Oh my God."
Connors began crawling under the door. "They'll be bursting through that door any minute now."
Dr. Berg waited as Connors fit himself through the tight space. As Dr. Berg began to make his way under, the specimen containment door flew off its hinges behind him. A moment later, something pulled him from under the door.
"Paul!" cried Dr. Connors. But his friend was gone. A minute later, so was he.
One floor above, Albert Wesker was preparing his departure from the compound. He had recovered the Flood virus sample from the vault shortly before the battle upstairs had begun. The three vials now rested in a reinforced suitcase on Wesker's chair.
Since the power had gone out, Wesker was forced to upload all of his personal files to his laptop, which he then sent in an email to his associates. When he was finished, he closed the laptop, picked it up, and smashed it against the wall. Then he walked over to his desk and extracted two weapons. The first was a silenced pistol, which he placed in his chest holster under his jacket. The second was his laser equipped 'Killer7' .45 magnum, which he kept in his right hand. He checked it to make sure it was loaded, scooped up his suitcase, took one last look to make sure he wasn't forgetting anything, and exited.
He strode down through the facility at a quickened pace, ignoring the ranks of men and women rushing past him. Dust fell from the roof, and as the battle upstairs intensified, the ceiling began to collapse. Dead bodies were littered throughout the complex, but none of these things seemed to matter to Wesker. Turning the corner of the next corridor, he noticed that this next passageway was empty. Ignoring the elevators, he continued down the hall. His destination was Lab 3N, which was where he would make his escape. Inside the lab was a hidden passageway that paralleled the runway to its end. It led to a cargo elevator, which would take him up to an abandoned hangar. That was where his chopper would be waiting.
Realizing he was in no real hurry, he slowed his pace. It was then that he understood he was not alone.
"Hello Wesker," spoke a voice from behind him. The female voice was one Wesker had not heard in over six years. He always knew he would see her again, but never expected that time to be now.
"Ada," replied Wesker, acknowledging her presence.
From behind him, the voice of Ada Wong spoke again. "It's been awhile."
"Yes, it has." Wesker gripped his Killer7 a little tighter.
Noticing this smallest of movements, Ada warned, "Don't even think about it."
Wesker smiled to himself and allowed the weapon to drop to the dusty floor. Turning around he responded, "Still as perceptive as ever Ada." He was looking into her eyes, and into the barrel of her handgun. His smile was gone.
"Still wearing the glasses huh?" she asked.
Wesker chuckled. "What is that? You're favorite dress?"
Ada laughed. "You still got a knack for disappearing when things get rough too. You haven't changed a bit."
Wesker frowned. "Don't act so surprised. I know you've been keeping tabs on me ever since you left me for Outer Heaven."
The comment stunned Ada.
"What, did you really think I'd let you slip through my fingers so easily Ada? I knew you were in contact with them months before you betrayed me."
She raised her eyebrow. "Really? Then why did you continue to trust me?" She felt a small vibration, and dust rained down from the roof. "I think someone's just a sore loser."
Wesker ignored her and held up the suitcase. "You're here for this?"
Her eyes locked onto the metallic case. "Depends on what's inside."
"I think you already know."
Ada gripped her weapon with both hands and spoke again. "Put it down and turn around."
Wesker stared at her for a moment, then placed the case down and took a step back.
"I said turn around."
Wesker didn't move. "Are you going to shoot me, Ada?"
Her weapon fired and a bullet whizzed by inches from his ear. Wesker remained motionless.
"You wanna try that again?" she asked, grinning.
Slowly, Wesker obeyed her command and turned around. Immediately he felt her approaching him. He could smell the faint odor of her rare perfume. It was the same type she had worn six years ago.
"So whatever happened to my Plagas sample?" inquired Wesker suddenly.
"Your sample? That's funny."
At that moment, he could feel her directly behind him. In one swift motion, he whirled around, grabbed her wrists as they were locked around her firearm, and held them over her head.
"Is it?" he asked, his voice suddenly taking on a much darker tone.
Before Ada could even realize that the tables had turned, Wesker drove his knee hard into her stomach. She let out a cry of pain as she fell on her hands and knees, and her gun clattered to the floor. Wesker bent down next to her and grabbed her by the hair, pulling on it tight. He forced her face next to his.
"How about now? You find this funny too you double-crossing bitch?" Wesker was seething. "How about when you screwed me over and stole my sample? That's right my sample. The one I should have had a long time ago before you betrayed me."
Ada had never felt so scared before in her entire life. She had forgotten who she had been dealing with, and had let her guard down. She tried to look into Wesker's eyes, but his glasses prevented her. Although he clearly sounded angry, his face was empty of emotion. It was as expressionless as the last time she had seen him, and it was right then and there that she realized this man was no longer human, not anymore. She had promised herself that she would never find herself in this position, and yet here she was at the mercy of Albert Wesker, the man who held her responsible for ruining his plot six years ago, and there wasn't a damn thing she could do.
"I really hope Outer Heaven was worth it, at least for your sake. He must of known this would happen, sending you to deal with me personally."
Wesker stood up, keeping his grasp on her hair tighter than ever. The pain on her neck was horrible. If he pulled any harder, he would rip her head off. She wasn't too doubtful about that either. He stared at her with disgust and contempt for a few seconds more, and then thrust her to the dirty floor. Then he picked up his Killer7 and checked his watch. I've got time, he told himself.
Wesker pointed the gun at her face and spoke what he thought would be his last words to Ada. "For the record Ada, I am a sore loser."
Before he could ever pull the trigger, a shot rang out from behind him, and a bullet caught him in his lower back. If it wasn't for his body armor, he'd probably be severely injured. Nevertheless, it was the second time in less than five minutes that he had been taken by surprise, and he was beginning to get aggravated.
Wesker turned to fire upon his attacker, but whoever that person was got to him first. His assailant kicked Wesker's Killer7 out of his hands and stuck him in the face. Wesker barely felt it, and quickly ascertained the situation. With his right leg, he performed a leg sweep, and took his enemy down. Wesker heard the man grunt, but it was too dark to see his face. The man recovered just as Wesker got to his feet, and tackled Wesker, pinning his back against the wall. Wesker closed his hands into a ball and smashed them down on his opponent's back. He then kicked the man in the chest and sent him flying into the opposite wall. Wesker clenched his fist and delivered one of the hardest punches he had ever thrown at the man's head. The man dodged at the last second, and Wesker punched through the wall.
His enemy took this opportunity to deliver a few punches of his own into Wesker's stomach. Wesker absorbed most of the blows, and his armor did the rest. Ferociously, he pulled his arm out of the wall, taking a chunk of it with him. He stopped his opponent's next two blows by grabbing the man's hands, and headbutting him. The man staggered back, and Wesker took advantage of it. He grabbed the man by his jacket, smashed him against the wall, and then hurled him across the hallway. He heard movement from behind him and noticed Ada retrieving her weapon. He walked over to her, grabbed her by the throat, and hurled her across the hall in a similar fashion.
From behind him, his opponent placed him in a chokehold, but this lasted only about ten seconds as Wesker flipped the man over his back and onto the floor. Spinning around with a surprising amount of agility, the man leg swept Wesker, taking him by surprise. Wesker was getting fed up with this and pulled out his silenced pistol. Rising to his feet he turned to aim the gun at his adversary, but instead found himself staring into the eyes of Leon Kennedy and the barrel of his Blacktail handgun.
Not even Wesker had been prepared for this, and he let his shock show. By the look on Leon's face Wesker could tell he wasn't the only one.
Wesker spoke first. "Well now, this is certainly an interesting turn of events."
Leon's face turned from surprise to anger. "Wesker? You're behind this?"
Wesker smiled. "That was you on the train. Wild Dog told me we had intruders but I never would have imagined running into you. At least not here, and certainly not now."
Leon kept a stern face. "I should have known from the moment I boarded that train that you had something to do with this. This whole thing has Umbrella written all over it."
"Yeah well I'm not the only one, at least not this time."
Leon gave him a questioning look. "What do you mean?"
Wesker pointed past him towards Ada. "Ask her."
Neither of them lowered their weapons and they never took their eyes off each other.
"It's her boss that started all this. Those are his Metal Gears up there."
Before they could continue the conversation any longer, the end of the hallway exploded, leaving a large hole in the ground. From it sprang out a swarm of Flood Infection Forms, followed a group of at least a dozen Combat Forms.
"Great," muttered Wesker, looking back at the creatures. Turning around he said, "These things don't play nice, so if you're expecting to escape with your lives, I suggest you do it now."
And with that he ducked into a nearby office leaving Leon alone with Ada. The combat forms were extremely agile and were quickly gaining on the pair.
Running up to Ada, Leon helped her to her feet. "C'mon, we gotta move!"
Ada staggered to her feet and picked up her weapon.
"I always said you should use knives, Ada. You okay to run?"
She nodded. "Yeah."
"Good," stated Leon. "Let's go."
As they sprinted down the hall, Ada looked back searching for the suitcase, but it was gone.
"Cortana, I'm on the third floor, where are the others?"
Cortana's voice crackled over his radio. "We're near the armory. The Flood have us pinned down."
"Yeah I know, I've got a few of them behind me now. I'm close to your location, wait up for me."
As they turned into the next corridor, an infection form lunged at them. Leon fired at it, and the creature exploded mid-air.
Making sure the coast was clear, Leon continued down the hallway cautiously.
"What are those things?" asked Ada from behind him.
"What, like you don't know?"
Ada kept her pace behind him. "As a matter of fact I don't, but by the looks of it, I'm guessing you do."
Leon replied, "I'm well informed."
Ada smirked. "I'll bet."
The following hallway was blocked off by a large pile of rocks that had caved-in.
"Shit," remarked Leon. They were trapped.
At the same time, the army of Flood behind them had just rounded the corner.
Together, Leon and Ada fired at the creatures, picking off the infection forms easily. The combat forms were a different story.
"We can't hold these things off much longer!" exclaimed Ada, reloading her weapon.
"The hell we can't!" he replied, unclipping an incendiary grenade from his belt. He tossed the explosive at the horde of creatures that were pouring into the passageway. "Go!"
The two of them dashed towards the creatures, just as the grenade exploded, and dove through the flames. They ducked into the next hallway and encountered no more Flood. After another minute or so, they heard gunfire from the next hallway. Leon noticed a sign on the wall that read 'Armory', with an arrow pointing down that same hallway.
He turned the corner and spotted Master Chief unloaded shotgun shells into a mob of Flood.
"We're almost there Ada," said Leon. When he received no reply, he turned around. Ada was gone.
He searched the hallway, but there was no sign of her.
Ada, what is going on around here?, thought Leon. Realizing that the Chief needed help, he let it go and rushed to the Chief's side.
"Cortana, I need you to locate someone for me," stated Leon.
"Name?"
Leon reached the Chief and helped him dispatch any Flood that got close. "Albert Wesker."
Albert Wesker stood motionless in the darkness of the underground elevator shaft, as the lift rose to the surface. Reaching into his jacket pocket, he pulled out his communicator and established a connection.
"HUNK, its me. How far are you?"
The voice at the other end replied, "We're heading to your position now, ETA ten minutes max."
"I'm reaching the surface now, don't keep me waiting."
"Yes sir. Any complications?"
Wesker looked towards the top of the shaft and could just barely make out sunlight. "I'd rather tell you in person."
He switched the device off and returned it to his pocket. After a few more seconds, the lift reached the top. The gate slid open, and he stepped out. He scanned the area to make sure it was clear, then proceeded into the interior of the hangar.
The building had not been used in years, and it showed. Two decaying war planes inhabited the center of the area, plus a demolished tank in the rear. The roof was somewhat destroyed, and the hangar doors lie tattered on the ground. Decrepit storage containers were lined along the interior of the hangar.
Wesker took a moment to breath in the cold air. He had not felt a breeze in nearly two weeks. After a few minutes, a jeep arrived, and Wild Dog stepped out.
"I got your message, I take it we're leaving this place for dead?"
Wesker nodded. "Its served its purpose, and I've got no more use for it. " He glanced at Wild Dog's arm and noticed that it was badly damaged. "How bad is it?"
Wild Dog turned back towards the runway, then at his mechanical arm. "We barely took down two of them, and as for this I can have it repaired in no time." He tapped on it a few times. "You've got us a chopper?"
"Should be arriving shortly," Wesker answered, staring up at the clouds.
Wild Dog approved. "This place was beginning to bore me anyways." He began to walk towards Wesker, when suddenly, a knife whizzed by and landed on the ground in front of them.
Wesker craned his neck upwards and spotted someone leaping across the catwalks at breakneck speed. Whoever this person was, they moved more like an animal than human.
"I made sure no one saw me leave," declared Wild Dog in a hushed voice. He extracted his Mauser and began surveying the intruder's movements.
Wesker pulled the knife out of the ground and examined it. "Standard model USMC KA-BAR knife," stated Wesker. "You weren't followed, he was already here."
Wild Dog wasn't fully sure what he was talking about, and instead kept his focus on the enemy. He ran over to one of the wrecked aircrafts, and jumped on top of it.
"You wanna play games!" cried Wild Dog, and fired savagely upon the intruder. His shots never even came close.
Wesker watched the entire ordeal from afar. "He's reading your muscle movements you crazy fool!"
But Wild Dog was too caught up in the action to listen to him. Wesker stayed perfectly still, and waited for the right moment. More knives came flying down at Wild Dog, and he barely dodged them, tripping and falling off of the plane. Bursting out from the pile of rubble, Wild Dog was steaming. He transformed his arm into its rocket launcher mode, and unleashed a barrage of rockets. All he accomplished by this was destroying more of the hangar. The intruder just leaped out of the way each time, and tossed more knives at Wild Dog. Eventually, one of them pierced his shoulder.
Wild Dog took cover behind the aircraft and pulled out the blade, suppressing the agony it was causing him. "You piece of shit!" bellowed Wild Dog furiously. He grabbed a grenade from his belt, and pulled the clip. But before he could ever throw it, a knife landed on the floor to his right, and Wild Dog was frozen in place.
"What the-?" Wild Dog was stunned. "I...can't move."
Behind him, the intruder landed, pulled out another knife, and held it to Wild Dog's throat. "I think you've made enough of a mess," spoke the foreign voice. It was cold and deep. "Let me take this off your hands."
He took the grenade from Wild Dog's palm, and tossed it across the hangar. It exploded, but nothing was damaged.
"What the hell are you?" asked an angered Wild Dog. He was red with fury.
His attacker sniffed the side of his neck, and Wild Dog could have sworn he was savoring every moment of it.
"You are so easy to predict," he taunted.
The man stepped into Wild Dog's line of site, giving him his first good look at his enemy.
He was wearing an olive-green trench coat with a high collar, and black combat pants. His chest was exposed and Wild Dog noticed that there were deep cuts across it. He had long black hair, and a black mustache goatee. What startled Wild Dog the most was the fangs protruding from the man's mouth.
The vampire was smiling at Wild Dog's uncomfortableness, and he seemed to be enjoying himself. It seemed as if he would have pounced upon Wild Dog, but he never found out because a moment later, Wesker's Killer7 discharged, and the vampire was hit in the side of his abdominal area. He let out a cry of pain, and turned to face Wesker who was standing several feet away.
"Didn't see that coming, did you?"
The vampire grew enraged and thrust three knives at Wesker. Wesker lifted up his suitcase, and blocked the blades. They didn't even scratch the metallic case.
The man burst out into a full sprint, heading towards Wesker, who fired three more times at him, but the man began spinning around in some sort of dance style, and deflected the bullets with ease, while still closing the gap between them. When he was nearly in Wesker's face, he lashed out with two blades in a rapid flurry of slashes. Wesker dodged each and every attack, found an opening, and delivered his signature 'Thrust Punch' right into the man's chest, sending him hurling over fifteen feet backwards. The man rose to his feet with a look of annoyance on his face. With yet another burst of agility, he threw another blade at Wesker's feet, the same type that he had used to freeze Wild Dog. A second before it struck the ground, Wesker took a step back into the shadows. The knife hit its mark, but nothing happened.
"That won't work on me, not in the darkness."
The vampire cried out in anger. Just as he was about to continue his attack, something crashed through the roof of the hangar. Dust and smoke surged from the impacted area, temporarily blinding the three of them. When it finally cleared, Wesker was standing less than thirty feet away from a Metal Gear RAY unit.
Wild Dog, now released from the vampire's hold, returned to Wesker's side, just as the top hatch of the giant robot opened up, and someone appeared from it.
"He got you good with that last one, Vamp. Let it go," stated the new arrival. His voice held a British accent.
Wesker had to squint in order to see the man. He immediately realized that his voice did not match what he looked like. In fact, it sounded much younger. The man was old, probably in his late sixties, had long white hair, which he wore freely, and a large white mustache. He had on eye glasses, fingerless gloves, brown leather boots, khaki trousers, a matching color longsleeve shirt, and a black labcoat over that.
The man stood tall on top of the RAY unit as he surveyed the inhabitants. Eventually, his eyes locked onto Wesker's.
"So this is the infamous Albert Wesker. You know you're better than I thought."
Wesker had been looking forward to this. "I don't take kindly to flattery." He turned and focused on the warfare taking place outside. "Those are your Metal Gears out there. Then you must be the leader of Outer Heaven."
The man smirked. "Very perceptive."
"I'm a little confused though. Is it Ocelot...?" Now it was Wesker's turn to smirk. "...Or is it Liquid?"
The man's smile widened. "I see you've been doing your homework," he replied, a smug look on his face. "Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am neither Revolver Ocelot nor Liquid Snake, but a new being entirely, Liquid Ocelot!"
"So the stories are true then?" inquired Wesker, reverting back to a serious tone. "You are living on in Ocelot's body through that right arm. I am curious as to how you achieved this."
Liquid obliged him. "It was no coincidence that my arm was used as a replacement for the one Ocelot lost. I chose him because of the genes he inherited from his father."
"The Sorrow," responded Wesker.
Liquid nodded. "Yes, it would not have been possible otherwise. The Patriots have informed you well."
"I ask the right questions that's all," answered Wesker smoothly.
"Did they provide you with this facility as well?"
"No, it was left over from the Umbrella days, I just got it up and running recently."
"Ah, I see."
From where he was standing, Wild Dog was having a hard time piecing together the conversation, but he did not dare to interrupt.
Liquid continued his interrogation. "So exactly when did the Patriots contact you?"
"Six years ago," said Wesker. "During the Plagas operation. It was your involvement in it that spurred them."
Liquid raised his eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Somehow they had learned that you were planning on taking Saddler's sample and that you had turned Ada Wong against me. They reached me told me everything. When Jack Krauser kidnapped Ashley Graham, they already knew I was somehow involved. So they purposely assigned agent Leon Kennedy with the task of rescuing her. They knew that he would prevail. Not only did he eliminate Osmund Saddler, but he rescued Ms. Graham and secured the sample. Ada was supposed to take over from there."
"Yes, they have a knack for using pawns to kill two birds with one stone," Liquid replied. "As for Ms. Wong, I heard you two had a little run in earlier. I hope you didn't rough her her too much."
"It went quite well actually, thanks for asking."
From across the hangar came another voice. "I guess that's a perspective thing."
Rounding the corner of one of the disused containers, Ada Wong entered the scene.
Liquid beamed. "Speak of the Devil and he shall appear. 'She' in this case."
Ada glared at Wesker as she made her way towards Liquid's RAY.
Wesker spoke as if she wasn't there. "However, although I knew she had been in contact with you, I merely thought she was just leaking information to you." For the first time since she had arrived, Wesker looked at Ada. "Clearly I was wrong."
When Ada spoke, her voice carried a challenging tone. "That's a risk you shouldn't have taken."
Wesker just stared at her. From behind him he heard Vamp snicker.
Liquid broke the silence. "After I acquired the sample, you became an extremely hard man to follow, Wesker."
Wesker never stopped looking at Ada. "But not hard enough." His gaze remained on her for a moment more, before it finally returned to Liquid. "Let me guess, you found out about this operation from my computer at OmniCorp?"
Liquid shook his head. "That was what I intended, but no. I sent Ada to recover any information she could about your current whereabouts and what you were up to, but someone got to them before us."
Wesker was confused. "Losing your touch I see. Who?"
Liquid took a moment to reply. "Solid Snake."
"Your brother?"
Liquid nodded. "If there's one thing I share with him its that we both want the Patriots eliminated. He had been tracking them for almost a year now, and he discovered that they had been in contact with you. He stole the files from your computer and learned everything he needed to know about you." Liquid turned towards the elevator's entrance. "Isn't that right Snake!"
All of them, including Wesker turned to the area that Liquid had just addressed. The space was empty. From Wesker's left, Vamp thrust two of his throwing knives at the area in question. They collided with the wall, and exploded. Five feet in front, sparks appeared in the seemingly empty area, and the form of Solid Snake became visible. He was equipped with an M4A1 carbine assault rifle, which was now aiming at Vamp's head.
Liquid Ocelot was the only one in the room not surprised by Snake's appearance. "Brother! Did you really think you could hide from me forever? You know as well as I that we can sense each other's presence. Why the subtlety?"
Snake lowered his weapon and faced his brother. "I didn't wanna ruin this little party you've got going here."
All eyes were on Snake now.
"Solid Snake," said Wesker.
Snake glared at him. "Yeah, I know who you are too."
Wesker sneered. "Learn a lot from those files did you?"
"You keep a pretty descriptive diary."
"I'm glad you enjoyed it." He turned back towards Liquid. "The Twin Snakes are reunited again, and I'm in the middle of it. I never would have imagined it."
Snake ignored him and returned his focus to Liquid. "Liquid, is it true? Have you really resurrected Outer Heaven?"
"That's right Snake, with the Patriots' own RAY's." Liquid pointed at Wesker. "This man has allied himself with them, and you lead me right to him."
Snake was puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"The hotel in New Jersey Snake. I had Ada here bug your car. From there we just listened as your partner spilled the beans."
Snake cursed himself fro making such a rookie mistake. He glanced at Ada, who looked at him sharply.
"It seems I've gotten the best of you once again Snake."
Snake ignored his brother's insults. "What are you planning Liquid?"
"Well now, in order to explain that to you, we would first have to know Mr. Wesker's scheme."
Before he could go on, another jeep burst into the hangar. Climbing down from the vehicle were Leon, Alan, Wesley, and the Master Chief, guns blaring.
"What is this a reunion?" remarked Wesker, seemingly annoyed.
The new group surveyed the room, obviously confused. Everyone exchanged glances with everyone else.
Leon looked over at Snake. "Thanks for the call, I almost missed this little get together."
"For a second, I thought you weren't gonna show," responded Snake, smiling for the first time since he'd been here.
When Leon had ordered Cortana to run a search on Albert Wesker, she accidentally crossed frequencies with Snake's codec while he was in mid-transmission with Otacon. Snake had explained everything that was going on, and told Leon that he had seen Wesker escaping through a hidden passage. From the armory, the path to this passage was blocked, so Leon couldn't get there. Instead, when Wesker got on board the cargo elevator, Snake snuck on beneath it, and rode it to the top. He then relayed his location to Leon, and informed him that Wesker was preparing to escape.
"Anyone wanna explain to me what the hell's going on around here?"
"Leon, you're just in time. Everything's coming to the light." It was Wesker who spoke.
Leon frowned. "Please, don't allow me to interrupt." He then turned to look at Ada.
Liquid spoke before he could. "The Patriot's puppet is here too? Well now, this just keeps getting better and better. I thought Ada would have taken care of you by now."
"She can't," said Wesker abruptly. "They're too close."
Liquid looked down at Ada. "I see. Is this true Ada?"
She was staring at Leon. "No, its just that he's had his uses in the past, and I've used them to gain what I needed that's all."
Leon was hurt. He didn't let it show, but he was. He tried to get her attention, but she avoided looking in his direction.
From behind him, the Chief addressed Wesker. "You unleashed the Flood, do you have any idea what you've started?"
Wesker stared at him. "You're the one they found onboard the ship? What do you think of Earth?"
Master Chief stepped forward. "I've been here before. If you think that I'm from another planet, you're dead wrong."
The Chief had caught everyone's attention.
Wesker looked confused. "What do you mean?"
Master Chief hesitated. He knew this would be coming sooner or later. "I'm from the future, the year 2552 to be exact."
Liquid chimed in. "Wait a minute, this was your plan Wesker? Taking control of technology from beyond our own time? I'm impressed."
Wesker paid him no mind. "This is a startling revelation, but would you mind elaborating on these creatures?"
And so the Chief explained everything. The Covenant/Human War, his arrival on Halo, the discovery of the Flood, and his escape from and the destruction of Halo. Everyone was left in awe.
"So you see, if these Halo installations, which were created to harbor the Flood, were designed with the power to completely annihilate all living beings, it was to ensure the Flood would never survive." He stared back at the elevator. "And now they're running around in packs down there because of your little science project."
Liquid applauded. "Bravo, that was an inspiring story," he turned to look at Wesker. "And it shows you exactly how unprepared you were for this operation Wesker."
Wesker scowled. "There was no way we could have seen this coming."
Master Chief pointed at Wesker and spoke. "You wanna end this, then hand over that sample and walk away."
Wesker smiled menacingly. "Don't get me wrong, the fact that I'm talking to someone from five hundred years in the future is something I'll never forget. But with the power I now wield, I can virtually take over this planet. I lost one sample already, I'm not about to make that mistake again."
From above them, Liquid re-entered the conversation. "And what exactly are we talking about here?"
Wesker grinned again, and held up the suitcase. "In here lies the future of Umbrella." He turned around to show off the case. "By weaponizing this virus, I can take control of the Flood, and Umbrella will once again flourish."
"And you think the Patriots aren't going to want in?" yelled Snake. "They basically control you at this point."
Wesker gave him a cold stare. "I can't be stopped."
Liquid seemed amused. "I'm afraid that's where you're wrong. Like I said, I'm going to bury the Patriots, and you're no exception Wesker. You may think you have the upper hand and that you know everything you need to know, but I assure you, you are sadly mistaken. You see, I too have done my research on you." He called over to Leon. "Did you know that Wesker here is not even fully human anymore?"
"What are you talking about?" inquired a confused Leon.
"After a little run in with one of his experiments, Wesker lost a part of himself. He is like me, a superior being. He hides it with his glasses, for his eyes glow an eerie red."
If this was bothering Wesker in any way, he wasn't showing it. Ada had suspected this all along and she and Leon shared a quick glance at each other.
Alan stepped up next to the Chief. "What do you mean, not fully human?"
Without warning, Liquid whipped out a revolver and fired five shots at Wesker. Wesker dodged each and every one. From behind him, Vamp lashed out at him, running faster than before. Wesker dropped the suitcase, pulled out his silenced pistol, and shot twice at Vamp. Vamp easily dodged by jumping up, but Wesker had already expected as much, and with the Killer7 still in his other hand, he fired at the spot before Vamp even got there. Vamp hit the ground with a trickle of blood running from his stomach. He stood up and brushed himself off.
"That's exactly what I mean," said Liquid from above.
The entire room was left speechless.
"This man could probably take you all on and prevail," Liquid continued. The he pulled out a large trigger and held it high in the air. "Which is why I am resorting to this."
Snake shuddered at the sight of the trigger. "What are you up to Liquid?"
Liquid laughed. "Snake, you and I both know that an army of RAY's alone isn't enough to stop the Patriots, so I was forced to take drastic measures. In the end, I was quite successful. Through Outer Heaven I was able to gain control of a space based Metal Gear that the Patriots had lying in wait. As I speak, this Metal Gear is orbiting over our exact location."
Everyone was astonished, including Wesker.
"A Metal Gear...in space?" Snake could barely believe it.
"That's right," answered Liquid. "Its called...the Artemis Platform!"
Wesker spoke under his breath, "So it does exist."
"Snake, it resembles Arsenal Gear, but vastly larger."
Leon was tired of this. "What's the point of all this?"
Liquid smirked. "I hold here in my hand the control to the Artemis Platform's primary weapon, the Hyperion Cannon."
Wesley whispered to Alan, "I don't like where this is going man."
Alan turned towards Wild Dog. "I don't think he does either."
Liquid continued his explanation. "The Hyperion Cannon fires a massive particle energy beam with a radius of about three eight hundred feet. Anything within its range is incinerated. You've already seen its first stage back on the train Wild Dog."
Wild Dog was startled by his being addressed. "I don't remember that."
Liquid elaborated. "Didn't you think it was a bit odd that all your electronic equipment just suddenly died?"
Leon put the pieces together and finished. "The cannon's first stage is an EMP blast?"
Liquid nodded. "Correct. It occurs exactly one minute before firing to immobilize any moving targets. Throughout that minute, the cannon charges up."
Master Chief spoke next. "Are you sure this cannon of yours works properly? Because a lot of things happened on that train, and being blown to bits wasn't one of them."
"That's because he never fired the cannon, only the EMP blast," answered Wesker.
"Exactly. I got second thoughts only moments before it fired, and I sent a RAY unit after you instead. I wanted to make sure there was nothing of value aboard the train." He turned to the Chief. "Lucky for you I was right."
Leon shuddered. The thought of being in the scopes of something as powerful as the Hyperion Cannon was a terrible one.
"So what now?" asked Snake.
Liquid smiled again for the umpteenth time. "Now..." He pressed the trigger and tossed it away. "...The party begins."
Leon gasped. "Are you mad!"
Ignoring him, Liquid continued. "In exactly ten minutes, this place will be hit by an EMP blast. One minute after that everything and everyone still in this base will be completely obliterated. For a time, not even bacteria will exist." He looked down at Ada. "I'm sorry dear, but I'm afraid you're no longer needed." With that he jumped inside RAY.
"Liquid!" Snake bellowed.
The machine started up, and took a giant step forward. A moment later, Liquid Ocelot's voice came bursting through its transmitter. "Now Wesker, since I know you're not going to give up that sample without a fight, I'll oblige you. Vamp, return to the battle, I can handle this."
Without a second thought, Vamp leapt all the way to the roof, and disappeared.
"Snake, you and your little friends are free to join us! Just remember what happened the last time I piloted a Metal Gear against you!"
Immediately, RAY lifted its leg up and attempted to stomp on Wesker and Wild Dog. The two jumped out of the way in seperate directions.
"Spread out! All of you!" screamed Snake.
Master Chief made his way towards Snake. Behind them, RAY had begun its assault on Wesker.
"They're going after Wild Dog," declared the Chief. "I can help you take care of Liquid."
Snake considered it. "You sure you're up for this?"
"I've faced bigger things than that pile of junk."
Snake nodded. "Good enough for me. I'll make my way up the catwalks while you circle around on ground level. If you get close to Wesker try to take him out, but don't do it at the cost of your own cover."
"I got you."
Snake patted him twice on the shoulder. "Master Chief, I'm Solid Snake, now show me what you can do."