Disclaimer: I do not own Resident Evil.

I'm hoping I can make this chapter long enough to finish Raccoon City off!

tvrs01001: I'm glad you're able to keep up with the fic!

MOONLIGHT SHADOW HUNTRESS: You know the Redfield way! Stubborn as a bull!

Chapter 10: A City Of Ashes

How did everything get out of control so fast? No one could have predicted it would spread so fast… once they were exposed the small town never stood a chance. It got into their blood, burrowed into their brains. Countless lives altered in an instant. Evacuations started, the RPD was flooded with phone calls, squad cars rushing down every road, ambulances barreling through stoplights, firetrucks blaring through the night.

Claire was alone.

The neighborhood was empty and the smoke rolled in from the town, blanketing the street. Its gloom sent shivers down her spine. She huddled on the couch, watching the street like a hawk. She was going to wait for help to come, she knew it would. No phone calls, no sign of anyone yet but Claire knew help would come. She worried about her brother, he hadn't contacted her once since this started… that was two days ago. She was running low on food already, she didn't have much to begin with. The news said it was suicide to venture from home so Claire left it at that. She could fight but she couldn't fight a herd of them. Sometimes she closed her eyes as tight as she could, trying to resurrect memories that pulled her away from it all. Visions of her parents, although she had been young when they passed, flooded her thoughts. She smiled to herself in the perpetual darkness of the home, tears welling just under her closed eyelids. They managed to squeeze through when she thought about Wesker. The way he sometimes smiled at her when she wasn't looking, catching him at the last second. The way his calloused hands felt over her bare skin… all of these thoughts were fleeting, they only made her feel guilty. Claire found herself wondering if there was anything she could do to stop him but Wesker's corruption ran deep. He would be washing his hands clean for the rest of his life, Claire then realized he never could come clean. He died young, too young in fact. Thirty-six and his back against the wall when it came down to the end. Killed off by the single thing he tried to control. Yearning for his touch felt selfish, Claire wished she could tear her heart out. The grace of his fingers through her hair, his breath on the back of her neck… Claire physically pined for his touch again. She would never feel the same towards any man, Wesker held such a special place in her heart. She loved him so. Wishing he were here again, just to listen to those words come from her delicate lips. Knowing that those words were for him and him alone.

Her back was against the door and she clutched her gun tightly. There were more in the street now but only a few. They stumbled slowly through the smoke and dense gray of the coming night, groans emitting from their freshly bloodied mouths. Claire peered through the peephole in the door and watched as a child victim clambered down the road, she was dressed in a purple nightgown, her blonde hair was mused and tangled, bare feet scraping the asphalt. A choked sob broke from Claire's lips. There, was an innocent child played victim to a sick and twisted chain of events. She didn't deserve this, no one deserved this. Claire's city would soon be a boiling cesspool of disease and rot, she needed to figure out how she was going to fight through this. She had a full clip in her gun, a full box of bullets, and six more full magazines stacked on the coffee table. She found it all in Wesker's desk in the den, among other things. There were blacked out files in manila folders, seemingly top-secret documents with Umbrella's infamous logo stamped upon them. At first, she hesitated on opening them, dreading to see something that she would regret. The first file she opened was all about The Wesker Project, when it was founded, why it was founded, and why it failed. Pages upon pages about the "magnificent" scientific breakthrough it would cause. Files on all of the children. Finally, a single page with a large red stamp on it… "TERMINATED".

The other file she snooped on was about Wesker. It was only a few pages long but they were finely detailed. Most of them looked to be hand-written journal entries by a man named Patrick.

NAME: WESKER, ALBERT

MIDDLE INITIAL: W

DOB: MARCH 24 1978

PARENTAL INFORMATION:

FATHER: NICHOLAS WESKER

MOTHER: SANDRA FLORES-WESKER

RACE: CAUCASIAN

BLOOD TYPE: O

EYE COLOR: BLUE

HAIR COLOR: BLONDE

September 14th, 1988

Albert is the son of the founder of The Wesker Project and seemingly the perfect child for this project. He is a bright boy, very inquisitive, and very sharp. Unlike his father, Albert is a very well-tempered young man. Spencer has shown great interest in him. He seems to be followed by other children, a broad sign of leadership. Albert has been known to lean towards another young man in the project, William Birkin. William and Albert are very much alike, Spencer sees promise in both of them.

While his mental prospect is widening, a few of Spencer's researchers sense a darkness within him. As his personal overseer, I have had to approach Albert with this information. Although he is young, currently ten years of age, he assured me that he has no ill-will towards anybody, including himself. I suppose we'll just have to see how the regiment of testing affects him.

- Patrick Bergeron

January 2nd, 1989

It has been a while since I've made an entry regarding Albert. Through the past months, his sense of leadership and responsibility has grown. As he stated before and as I have observed, he has shown no signs of violence or intention of violence. He and William are now partners in crime, almost inseparable. The boys are very close yet Spencer fears that this closeness will damage Albert's state of mind. What state of mind that is, I have no idea. Albert is a kind boy and I would be quite surprised if he turned on his friend.

- Patrick Bergeron

April 19th, 1989

Lord Spencer has disposed of Albert's parents. Their attack will be forwarded to the police as a home invasion. Albert was undergoing a new testing regiment while it happened. I was obligated to tell him… he was heartbroken. He was closest with his mother, Nicholas constantly neglected him. However, Sandra idolized her son and cared for him deeply. It is a shame she has been taken away from him, I will dread to see how this affects the young man in the coming months.

-Patrick Bergeron

October 24th, 1989

Albert has changed. Everyone has changed. There are thirteen children left from the hundreds we started with. Most were given back to their families, unable to complete the testing. Others were harmed by the testing, their parents were heavily compensated for their cooperation and possible loss of their child. These thirteen are different, each and every one of them are unique. Albert… Albert has grown quiet and cold. He rarely shows any emotions other than anger. I have seen this boy go from genuine and kind to dark and irrational. I have seen William trying to assist him when he has an episode of anger, Albert seems only to respond and listen to his voice. They are young and yet, they have such a strong bond. William seems unafraid of Albert's outbursts for I believe he knows his friend can overcome them.

- Patrick Bergeron

This will be my final entry. The project has been shut down. All of the children but two are dead. William was cut loose just before the rest of them were killed… Alex. Alex could not have done anything more sinister than this. Now he's gone as well. All that is left now is Albert. His darkness has flourished, I can see it in his eyes. Albert is being sent to stay with his uncle in New York and hopefully he can fall back into normal life. As for William and Albert, I hope they are able to continue this friendship for I fear that someday, Albert will relapse into his violent state of anger. I will pray for that child until the day I die.

- Patrick Bergeron

After reading the entries about Wesker, Claire could feel her gut turn. He was a normal kid back in the day, no darkness, no corruption. His mother was loving however, his father was neglectful. She knew that his life would never once be the same for he had been tossed into a circus of viruses and laboratories. She then wondered what happened to his uncle and if the man was will alive. Claire managed to find nothing on Wesker's uncle while she was digging around in the files.

The house was cold, it was getting dark outside, and the streets were now empty. Every house on Harbor Run Avenue was dark, the curtains were drawn, and the families did not dare to venture out. She wondered if anyone was still alive, surly it couldn't have gotten that bad already… Claire digressed, this was something she had never seen before, like something out of a movie. It chilled her to the very core when she thought about who did this. Umbrella was at the peak of their performance these days and then they have the audacity to do something like this. She knew it was them, there was no doubt in her mind. After all, Wesker did say that he was creating viruses that could wipe out large human populations. Clutching her gun to tightener to her chest, Claire had to muster some kind of strength for if help didn't come by morning, she was going to set out on her own. She had a backpack ready to go and an outfit that was easy to move around in. The bag contained a few bottles of water, food, medical supplies, and the money that Wesker had left her. She had already searched the house top to bottom for other items that would come to some use but nothing really mattered but the bullets in her gun. Moving over to the window, she pulled the curtains back only inches to peer out into the darkness. There was no one in sight. No more walkers roamed, no people trying to get away. It seemed quiet but in the distance, she could hear sirens wailing and the occasional faint gunfire. Claire felt groggy as she closed the curtains again, she had been awake since early this morning, on the edge and unable to sleep. A part of her refused to, she wanted to stay alert just in case anything started to happen however, another part of her was exhausted beyond reason. Sitting down on the couch again, the television was showing the news anchor who looked frail and sleepless, muttering on about what was happening to the city. Claire shut it off, she already knew what was going to happen to this city. Lying down, she only needed a few hours of rest before she could be fully alert again.

Just a few.

XXXXX

"Have you seen the news?" Ada asked amusedly as she walked into the room. She sat across from wesker at the table.

He looked up from his documents. "No." He said. "Why?"

Ada rolled her eyes and turned around, nodding to the small television on the other side of the room. The volume was low but Wesker could instantly recognize where the news was broadcasting from.

"So it went to hell after all." Wesker said lowly.

"Just like you wanted." Ada shrugged.

Wesker clenched his jaw. "It is not what I wanted. It was what needed to be done."

"You think she'll get out of there alive?" Ada asked him.

Wesker did not look at her. "What I believe is personal."

The woman scoffed. "Glad to see you have faith in her."

Wesker slammed his fist on the table and his eyes burned furiously. "You do not get to question what or whom I have faith in, Miss Wong. I do, however, have the utmost faith in Claire so if that is what you wanted to hear, please leave me to my work."

Ada said nothing as she rose from her spot, a smirk on her face.

XXXXX

It was early when a frantic knocking was at Claire's door, waking her from her sleep. She fumbled for her gun and turned the safety off before she proceeded to head for the door. The clock on the wall read 6:23 pm. Peering out of the peephole, she saw William standing in the foggy dawn, back turned to the door. Claire quickly twisted the locks and swung open the door, William jolted around and a sigh of relief came from him.

"You're alive…" Claire muttered.

William nodded. "I'm glad to say the same."

Claire stepped aside, signaling for him to come inside. She shut and locked the door behind him.

"I sent my wife and daughter off today." He said softly. "I put them on the next plane to New York."

Claire bit her lip, she had completely forgotten that William had a family. "Are they safe?" She asked.

"Anywhere is safer than here."

Claire swallowed the lump in her throat. "I didn't think anyone was coming. I haven't been able to get ahold of anyone."

William flashed her a boyish smile. "I promised Albert I would look out for you so I'm here."

"Thank you, Will. You don't know how much that means to me." Claire became silent then, wishing her brother were here. "I'm just worried about Chris."

"I'm sure he's fine, Claire but right now we have to get going."

She looked up at him. "Where? How?"

"We have to get out of the city as fast as we can."

"We'll never make it on foot." Claire said. "There's no way."

"We're taking my car, it should get us far enough. Once we get out of Raccoon, we're heading east to New York."

"What about my brother?" Claire asked with a quake in her voice.

"If you can get ahold of him, we can meet him somewhere but I won't leave this city without you. I can't, I promised Albert that I would watch your back."

Claire felt her gut twist. What if Chris was already dead? She couldn't call anyone, all of the lines were either busy or down. The only way Claire could think of was to get down to the police station and see if he was still there. Claire didn't want to leave him behind but she wouldn't put William in harms way by doing so. She did, however, believe that anywhere was safer than here.

"Ok, let me get a few more things together." Claire turned her back and headed upstairs. She rummaged around in her bedroom for a few minutes and pulled out the box from under the bed. She grabbed the rest of the money and then opened the drawer on the side-table. Claire pulled out Wesker's neatly written letter and slid it carefully into the bag. She was heading for the door when she felt the worst sadness pull her to a halt… she would probably never see this place again. She had made so many memories here, so many amazing moments shared with someone she cared so deeply for. Claire forced back her tears as her eyes scanned over the cold and dark room. This was the place she called home and now she had to leave it behind.

"Claire are you ready?" William called from the bottom of the stairs.

Dragging her from her thoughts, Claire backed out and shut the door, her hand on the doorknob tightly. "Yeah." She muttered. "Just saying goodbye…"

The drive was quiet, the radio was off and the noises outside seemed to drown away. Claire knew they had to drive straight through the heart of the city to get onto the highway. They had no idea what was waiting for them in there but William had a pretty good idea as to how this happened.

"Albert always hated this place." He spoke up suddenly. "He said it reminded him of his hometown. Small and secluded." William smiled a little. "But I never thought he would try and get rid of it… but I guess it was just apart of his grand scheme."

Claire's brows knitted together in confusion. "His grand scheme?"

William nodded. "He thought he was gonna turn to the shadows after the mansion and hide, taking Umbrella down in the dark. He wanted to fake his death but… but I don't think he had the Tyrant in mind." William chuckled then. "But I wouldn't be surprised if he turns up in a couple months, he always had some tricks up his sleeves."

"What do you mean?" Claire asked frantically.

William shrugged. "It went awry, his grand scheme, but I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if he had a backup plan, something to catch him on the way down if his first plan failed. I'm not sayin' that he does, but I couldn't see him without one."

Claire felt a stint of hope spark in the back of her mind. What if he was alive? What if he was just hiding from Umbrella until they backed down or fell off the map? However, Claire didn't want to get her hopes up just because Williams faith in his friend was strong.

Suddenly, the car skidded to a violent halt, making Claire's body jerk forward.

"Damn…" William muttered. "They're everywhere."

Claire's eyes scanned to every direction as the streets were nearly filled with the undead clambering about. They were about thirty yards ahead and hadn't noticed the car yet. The road they were on was the only way out of the city.

"We can't cut through any alleys?" Claire asked.

William shook his head. "No way the car will fit between the buildings, we'll have to make it out of here on foot." There was a quake in his voice, Claire knew that William was not the zombie slaying type but with her by his side, he had a better chance of making it out alive.

"Ok here's the plan." Claire started. She pointed to a pair of buildings that created a tight alleyway. "We can get through there and that should spit us out on Boyd Street, two blocks from Main. Once we make it to Main street, we have to find another car before we get swarmed." She checked her watch. "It's 7:45 and it's getting dark. We need to get the hell out of here before night falls and we're stuck with those flesh eating freaks."

William nodded and took a deep breath. "I can't shoot a gun… I feel kind of useless because Albert asked me to protect you, not for you to protect me." He admitted lowly.

Claire dismissed him. "It's ok, I don't have time to teach you so you're just gonna have to stay close."

William smiled to himself, he could see the pure fight in Claire and he knew that was one of the many reasons Wesker preferred her over, least to say, any woman he could have. He just had to have Claire. Smart, beautiful, strong, and full of enough wit to take anyone down. Claire was unique and she was so unlike Wesker that William found it humorous. Claire counted the rounds in her gun and slapped the clip back in.

"Are you ready?" She asked sternly.

William nodded and tightened his grip on the handle of the door. "Let's go."

As they opened their doors, time seemed to slow, eyes wandered from left to right, caution seeping into working veins. Each step was a step closer to freedom, a chance to leave this entire city behind them. They held their breath, jaws clenched in focus, every move was crucial. A false step would render them vulnerable, an open and swallowing world that now shrouded this once peaceful place. Claire's hands were gripped tightly around the gun, arms stiff, and reflexes ready. William followed close behind her, his eyes flicking to every direction every second. As they slipped through an alley, Claire halted, poking her head around the corner.

"It looks clear." She said quietly. Moving away from the wall, they walked through an empty street. Cars were abandoned, storefronts were destroyed, and small fires dotted the road. Bodies were littering the ground just as often as trash and Claire couldn't help but turn her head away from them.

The two of them walked passed a few cars that looked too damaged to use, some of them had corpses in the front seat, heads leaned against the steering wheel. As she walked, Claire could hear something shuffling around in the area and she stopped in her tracks.

"What?" William asked.

Claire said nothing as she slowly rounded the front of a van. Suddenly, a fresh walker burst from around the corner and surprised Claire as she fell backwards, dropping the gun. It landed on top of her and she dug her hands into its shoulders, keeping it at bay.

"Claire!" William yelled.

As she struggled, William was frozen in fear. He watched her use every ounce of strength to keep the snapping jaws of the biter away from her neck.

"Will!" Claire shouted. "Will my gun!"

William's body would not respond to Claire's desperate cries. He was rooted to his spot against the van when he saw two other walkers coming towards them. William closed his eyes and could not muster even a breath to calm his nerves. He felt like running but he knew it would get Claire killed.

"William!" Claire barked at him and it sounded so very like Wesker it made the man flinch. He could hear the other biters just feet away. Visions of his family flashed in front of him… he wouldn't get to them without Claire. He wouldn't stand a chance out here without that woman. Without looking, William lunged forward and kicked the gun over to Claire and as she fired a shot into the head of her attacker, its body collapsed on top of her. Pushing it aside, she scrambled to her feet and shoved the gun into its holster. Her eyes flicked to the other hostiles and she pulled her knife from its sheath. Coming up to the first, Claire kicked it hard in the chest, sending it to the ground she was on it in an instant, plunging the blade into its soft skull. The other walker was clambering towards her and she shuffled behind it, grabbing its hair, she shoved the knife into the back of its head, the blade protruding from its mouth.

Claire huffed and slowly checked her body for any scratches. She looked to William who was slouched against the van.

"I'm sorry…" He muttered. "I don't know what came over me."

Claire shook her head. "It's ok. It's not easy for everyone."

"There." William pointed ahead to an intersection. "Main Street is just passed this intersection."

Claire scanned the area as they moved slowly. "We have to find another ride." Claire holstered her gun as she jogged up to a few vehicles that were abandoned. She hopped into a newer Ford and busted open plastic under the steering column. Leaning down and craning her head, Claire fiddled with a few wires.

"Keep a lookout." She asked.

William nodded and turned away from the car. His frantic blue eyes moved from left to right, catching any slight movement. There were a few undead about ten yards down but they didn't seem to notice them. He turned around to face the other side of the street and his heart stopped as he saw two walkers stumbling towards the car.

"Claire!" He hissed.

Her head came up and she swore under her breath. "Get in." She demanded.

William opened the back door and quickly slid into the seat. "Can you get it?" He asked.

Claire bit her lip as she reached down for the wires. "I'm workin' on it. Not as easy as they make it out to be in the movies."

The two walkers were now at the window of the car, running their blood-covered hands on the glass.

"Claire they're right on us."

"I know." She said sternly. "I just need a few more minutes." As her fingers worked the wires, William was attempting to stay as still as possible.

Suddenly, the engine roared to life and the walkers hissed louder, dragging their bodies against the car.

"Got it!" Claire yelled. "Let's get the fuck out of here!"

Slamming the car into reverse, she skidded into the street and did a 180, putting the car in drive, Claire sped off through the intersection. She looked in her rearview mirror only to see a herd of walkers chasing after them slowly.

"Well that was fun…" Claire said sarcastically.

She watched as the buildings rushed by and smoke rose from most. Windows of storefronts were smashed, glass littering the sidewalks. Cars lined the streets, abandoned. As they drove passed the police station, Claire couldn't help but feel a pain in her gut. What if her brother was in there? She had to rid herself of those thoughts, she needed to get out of this city before it was too late. She reassured herself that Chris would make it, that he was a survivor just like her. The road before her was dark and the walking corpses staggered about aimlessly, looking for their next meal. The hissed and gurgled when the car sped by them, arms outstretched, teeth gnashing, blood oozing out of open wounds.

"We'll drive until we hit Nebraska." Claire said softly. "Hopefully we can get to New York from there. No questions asked."

William nodded. He was slouched in the back seat facing the window. His eyes were heavy and it seemed as if he was on the brink of tears.

"I didn't want to." He said lowly. "Please know that I didn't want to…"

Claire remained silent. She would not harbor any ill will towards William, he just didn't deserve it. He followed orders and that was that. He was not a man of war or anger, he was not a man of death or pestilence. Aside from his job, William was a simple man who wanted to make the world a better place. Not destroy it. And aside from Wesker, he and William were very different. They played the left and right hand of God and each of them mad their impressions on others differently. Although they were a team, they were a team with one of them having ulterior motives. William hid his resent for Wesker's true intentions but at the same time, he wanted to go down with his research. It was the center of his life, everything that he had worked so hard to achieve was blown to bits. He worked so hard just to have his friend make him drown his research.

"You are not a bad person, Will." Claire said in the dark of the car.

"Albert was my best friend… I would do anything for him. So I did this for him. And now he's dead."

Claire frowned and she looked in the mirror to see William wipe the tears from his eyes with the back of his hand like a child. She saw him broken and tarnished by person he thought he had become.

As they drove through the oncoming darkness, light had faded behind them just as light had faded for the city. Death blanketed it like a black sheet, swathing its corruption throughout the streets. Claire tried to detach herself from it, tried to rid herself of its influence. She had grown up in that city, made memories that were irreplaceable. Everything she had ever come to know was balled up and tossed away, burning down, and decaying. She wished she could close her eyes and feel the sunlight on her skin one more time or hear the laughter of her loved ones. Images clouded her head, perfect moments that would forever be stilled into her brain. The car sped along the road and she watched in her mirror as the city disappeared behind them. A few tears fell from her eyes and she wiped them away quickly. Behind her was home but ahead of her was the future. It could hold danger, it could hold promise. Whatever it was, Claire knew she wanted to be a part of that. She would not leave herself in that city, she would not let her soul cling to its walls and rotted ceilings. She would not let her feet be rooted to the ground, her touch ghosted on the sheets. She would not let it grip her and hold her down… she would only let it fade into her memories as everything else did. Gone but present.

She would not go gentle into this night.

A/N: Happy Holidays! Be close with the ones you love and enjoy the time you have with them and happy holidays from me to you with a new chapter!