Chapter XI

Fire and brimstone rained over where the factory used to be. Scarlet debris and ashes flew everywhere, appearing as though heaven itself was angry at man's insolence. Crackling fire and the echo of the explosion still rang the ears of those who stood in the vicinity watching a major downfall of Umbrella, and yet one scream rose above it all, haunting in its anger and pain.

"No!" Claire's scream rang out, filled with pain as she stared at the burning structure. She collapsed on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. Rebecca moved to comfort her, but Claire pushed her away blindly, her face contorted with grief. "Chris…" She wailed out again, her voice broken. Her sobs broke through the air. Rebecca looked hopelessly at Billy, who shrugged weakly. While he didn't know Chris carefully, he can sense the grief and pain felt by his companions, and all he could do was stand in silent support. Barry looked as though he was struck by lightning. He blinked several times, as though daring his eyes to admit that they were seeing wrong, that the building couldn't have exploded without his comrade, who was almost like a brother and son to him, getting out in time. He staggered off to one side, his back turned, but his heaving shoulders betrayed his tears. Carlos looked ashen. From the stories, he expected Chris Redfield to be damn near invincible, but now… He cursed at himself for giving his gun to Chris, for giving him an opportunity to fight again, but even more, to hurt Jill again, as he turned to look at the woman that he found himself caring deeply for. He trudged off to where she was standing.

"I'm sorry, Jill," he whispered. He felt almost ashamed to look at her. He failed her. By letting Chris go to fight Nemesis alone, he had failed her. He expected a tirade, tears, even another blow to his face, but he got none of those reactions. Lifting his head and looking at her fully for the first time since he carried her out of the factory, he was surprised to see that she wasn't acknowledging his apology.

In fact, she wasn't looking at him at all.

Instead, her eyes continually scoured the area, in the place where the factory used to stand. Her eyes were narrowed, her lips pursed, the way she always looks when she's concentrating. As Carlos watched her, she paused for a split second, and then she suddenly bolted.

"Jill!" He shouted after her, but she ignored him. Afraid of what Jill might do in her grief, he chased after her.

Jill was running before she realized it, her feet taking her unerringly where she wanted to go. She had spied that lone form, hunched, walking out of the destruction, and she immediately took off. There were no thoughts of zombies in her head, or of terrifying BOWs. All she knew was that she had to go and meet him. Smoke obscured her vision, but still she ran, and upon reaching that shadow, she threw her arms around him.

"Jill!" Chris gasped out, as Jill's slender form crashed into him.

It was only then that Jill's tears fell freely, and she sobbed in Chris's shredded shirt. "I knew you would make it out," she blubbered, "You promised."

"Jill, what the hell are you doing?" Carlos yelled out, coughing as he ran. Smoke and Carlos never really went well together. "Where are you… Oh."

"Oliveira," Chris acknowledged him with a weary nod. His voice was weak. "Thank you… For watching over her. Sorry, but I lost your gun."

"Like I said, it wasn't a duty. And don't worry about my gun, it was old, anyway," Carlos shrugged. It was almost impossible for someone to look so happy and yet so sad, and yet Carlos did, his mouth wearing a huge genuine grin but his eyes pained.

"Let's get you out of here," Jill said. She slung her uninjured arm over Chris's back and helped him walk. "Carlos, can you tell the others that… Chris has been found?" Carlos looked as though he was about to argue, but seeing their faces, he agreed, and jogged off. Jill and Chris followed, more slowly.

She was almost practically carrying her companion out to their campsite, but she realized she didn't mind. As they moved, Jill couldn't help but sneak glances at him, taking in every detail. His eyes were a little off-focus and bloodshot, his skin was filled with rashes and burning with fever even hotter than before, and there were large tears in his clothes and even his skin, but it was really Chris. Her Chris.

"What's wrong?" Chris asked her quizzically, noticing her stare. He tried to focus his eyes on her.

"No, nothing," To her embarrassment, her tears started flowing again, but she didn't make any attempts to wipe them off. She gave him a watery smile. "I'm just glad to see you again."

"Why are you crying?" Chris asked softly, puzzled, raising his free hand to wipe off one tear as though in wonder. "Hey, your left shoulder's a bit funny," he added, noticing the slump.

Jill looked at him again, and saw that his eyes were becoming more unfocused. "It's nothing," she shrugged it off, and moved a little faster. Chris's injuries might be more serious than she thought.

"Do you want me to fix that for you?" Chris was trying hard to pay attention, but for some reason, his mind was busy somewhere else. Like on the delicious smell of Jill's skin.

"I've had an arm dislocated before, Chris, I think I can handle that," Jill said, smiling softly. "Becca can fix this later. What's more important is that we get you out of here sa… Ow!"

For the second time that day, Chris felt someone slam into him. "Claire!" Chris exclaimed hoarsely, surprised to find his sister hugging him fiercely.

"Never, ever do that again!" Claire sobbed. "You promised that after Rockfort, you wouldn't leave me," she bawled, her grip tight on Chris's shirt.

Chris felt his own eyes moisten. With his free arm, he hugged his sister just as fiercely. "I'm sorry," he murmured over and over again. When they both finally let go, Claire got on his other side and assisted Jill in half-dragging, half-carrying her brother.

"Only a few more feet to go," she told Chris, smiling encouragingly at him through her tears. Before they were able to reach the campsite though, their companions had already run up to them, tears in their eyes and laughter in their voices.

"You're okay!" Rebecca exclaimed, laughing and crying at the same time.

"Glad to see you're okay, Chris," Barry solemnly said, but his wide grin and his shining eyes showed more than words how happy he was to see his teammate again.

"Hey Becca, Barry," Chris said, giving them a weak smile. His eyesight was becoming more blurry that he almost didn't recognize them, and he didn't see Billy at all.

Claire noticed, and she gave Rebecca and Barry a worried look. "Chris, I'm going to go and see if the chopper that's bringing us back is comfortable for you, alright?" She said, gently disengaging herself from Chris and giving Jill a speaking look.

"It's okay, I've got him," Jill told her reassuringly, and watched as Claire made her way to the helicopter, no doubt to get as many luxuries and as much comfort for her brother as possible. She continued to support Chris as they walked to the waiting helicopter, their movement slowing down even more because of Chris's worsening condition.

Chris's face had somehow managed to snuggle in the crook of Jill's neck. "Jill, you smell so nice," he murmured, nuzzling her. "Just a few more," she told Chris encouragingly, choosing to ignore what he said. In his fever, he probably wasn't conscious of what he was saying anymore, Jill reasoned. She pulled away a little from Chris.

"Yeah," Chris murmured, "You smell so good. Almost good enough to eat." And he lunged for her.

Boom! Do you think Chris actually has turned into a zombie? This chapter's become mushier than I planned, so I might change it if I feel the need to, but now. I have to finish the story first before tweaking with the minor details.:P Anyway, hope you liked it (even though it was a little sloppily written compared to the others), and that you're still continuing to read the story (please tell me you do!) R&R, as always.