Note: I'm noticing a lot of people adding this story to their watch list, and that makes me very happy. Now, I hope those new readers jump in and review it. This chapter contains some documents taken from the game, and they'll be indicated in bold.

Chapter Thirteen: Night Flight

As you may have heard, Luis Sera has been disposed of by Lord Saddler. The "sample" is back where it belongs. I had hoped that the whole matter could be resolved without troubling the Lord. However, as long as the "sample" is safe we can all rejoice, for our time is nearly at hand. Now that the "sample" is back in our safe hands, it'll be a bit more difficult for that troublesome woman to get it. In light of all this, it's unfortunate that Sera had to go. Like us, he would have had a bright future if only he had shown more faith in our beliefs. As for the other two Americans, the Lord has left the matter in our hands. We must not disappoint the Lord. We shall capture Ashley and take her to the Lord… and dispose of the American agent.

Great. Fucking great. Yet another big circle. Yet another big waste of time.

Clearly frustrated, there as nothing he could do about it now. They had found themselves back almost where they began some time ago--at the main entrance hall of Salazar's castle, the exact spot where Leon and Ashley met the diminutive freak, flanked by his two monstrous, inhuman bodyguards. As it turned out, there was a small rail car that led from the central hall where Ashley was bound to another entrance into the main hall. This time, something was different. With Ashley following right behind the agent, Leon stepped out into the open space, re-familiarizing himself with the large, tall chamber.

Leon noticed that before, in their first meeting with Salazar, a wall had come up beneath the balcony from which he stood, blocking the two and beginning to lead them in this large circle, wasting precious time and causing Ashley to be trapped in the process. The wall was gone now, and the rest of the hall was opened up.

Finally. The direct route.

Without a word, Leon jogged toward the unexplored section of the entrance hall, Ashley following close behind. The wall had blocked off another large section of the hall that looked like the previous section, and straight ahead, the stone tiled floor gave way to purple carpeting, leading up a small staircase and to a set of double doors. To his right, a set of stairs led somewhere above, most likely to the balcony where Salazar stood. He probably came through here after barricading the way in their first encounter.

"Wait," he ordered, holding up a hand. Raising his handgun up near his face, he turned the handle and pressed against the entrance slowly. As he opened the double doors, he found himself back outside, the cool night air blowing a slight breeze. He was standing on a landing platform, and just a few feet ahead was another rail car. Having no alternative, he was hoping against hope that he'd actually progress. Where the car went, he didn't know, but what he did want was for the transport to have power.

"All clear," he said, and Ashley was on the platform in a second.

"Another one?"

"Yeah," Leon replied. "Maybe we'll get somewhere." He took several steps toward the car, then opened the small door.

"Ladies first," he said, gesturing for her to get in and sit down.

Ashley smiled and reciprocated, taking a seat on the comfy red leather. "Thanks." Leon followed and sat down opposite Ashley, closing the door. Next to the door was a small red button, just like the car they'd taken a couple minutes ago. He pushed it, and the car jerked to life, beginning its course along the railway. He didn't know how long it'd be, most likely a minute or two, so he fished out the small notebook he found on Luis' person. He was hoping that Luis left him some sort of clue or some snippet of information that would prove helpful. The first few pages contained a few drawn sketches of various microscopic biological organisms, with some quick scrawl as to what they were. They were identified as Dicrocoelium, Galactosomum, and Leucochloridium. Each of them were accompanied with descriptions, and from what Leon gleaned, these were various types of parasites.Following those first few pages, he came upon a block of written text; Leon was relieved to see that the writing was in English. Finding a translator here could be a little rough. The writing itself looked like it was hastily written, almost as if he was in a hurry. Maybe he was. So he read:

The first castellan buried the Las Plagas deep underground below the castle to hide their very existence. When the eighth castellan Salazar released the Las Plagas, no one thought he could bring them back to life…because when Salazar found them, they were all just fossilized remains. Everyone knew that the parasitic organisms could not survive without their hosts--that they couldn't sustain life on their own. However, when Salazar and his men excavated the remains, it almost appeared as if the Las Plagas were just waiting to be discovered so that they could resurrect. Several years later, unexplainable convulsions started occurring among the villagers who helped with the excavation of the Las Plagas. Then one day, all of a sudden, these villagers turned into violent savages.

They later found out it was caused by the Las Plagas. Although they appeared fossilized, they were able to survive the long years by lying in a dormant state at the cellular level, remaining in a spore-like form. Apparently during the excavation, the villagers inhaled the spores and within their bodies the parasites became active again. This is how the Las Plagas were resurrected. Even as I'm writing, the excavation of the Las Plagas continues. God only knows how many of these Plagas have been resurrected, not to mention the countless number of Ganados that have been created. Their inhumane activity must be put to an end. If they are not stopped, people around the world could turn into victims of this crazy cult organization.

Fascinated and very much interested in the material, he didn't see that the car was gliding back into the interior of the castle, and almost didn't hear Ashley's voice breaking the train of thought, telling him that they were approaching a stop. Looking behind him, he confirmed it--another landing was coming into view as the car made a final turn to the left. Slowing down, he put the small notebook back in one of his pockets and prepared to disembark.

That means that there's a mine, a cave, or some sort of underground excavation site near here. Along with that, there was probably some sort of scientific laboratory as well. Somehow, I don't think Umbrella had a hand here--they're not one to utilize cults and religions…no, they're much more tactical and not so crude…but god only knows if they did get their hands on one of these Plagas…

The car finally came to a stop, and without a word, Leon opened the door to let Ashley out, and then he followed suit. The landing itself had a touch of class to it, unlike what he'd seen a couple minutes ago. First of all, it was very brightly lit--candelabras lined the shined, polished walls, possibly made of marble. Marbled stonework lined the walls in certain places, giving it an air of elegance. Two painted portraits of people hung on opposite ends of the wall. It looked exquisite. Perhaps the two were standing at some sort of royal sanctuary, an area only frequented by the upper class of the Salazar family. From Luis' writings, this place definitely had some history.

As the two opened the door and stepped inside, they found themselves standing inside the annex of the castle, lit by candles and lanterns coming out from the walls, casting a warm glow on the walls and intricately patterned carpeting that lined the floor here.

"Wow…" Ashley whispered to herself, her eyes gazing from wall to wall upon a sight she hadn't seen. Not even the White House looked quite as decorated. Paintings of mostly people took up most of the wall space in this chamber. They were of all shapes and sizes, and all of them looked like some sort of nobility judging by their manner of dress. Some were faded from time, and most likely the men, women, and children displayed were all part of the Salazar line at some point in history, generations upon generations. The only sound was silence.

Talk about a large family…leave it to the only surviving boy to access the family jewels.

While Ashley took in the scene, Leon took a look around for his next course of action. To his right, a hall led to a small gathering area some distance away. To his immediate left was a door, and straight ahead was some sort of path that quickly turned to the right. However, he noticed that there was a line of red carpet that began where they stood and followed the course straight ahead.

Bit obvious. Let's see where the royal chambers lead. Hopefully I don't get a red carpet treatment.

He walked ahead, and after a few seconds of following the rug, the two came upon a massive clearing, a long expanse of the annex that was easily a couple hundred feet across. It was massive. Along the right, four tall windows stretched high and wide, starting from a couple feet off the ground and nearly touching the ceiling. Burgundy colored curtains draped the sides of each window. Each window was open wide, allowing the cool night breeze to filter in, causing the curtains to billow and sway. In addition to the several candelabras lining the room, the light of the bright moon shined in, mixing in with the soft glow of candlelight. Along the left, four giant stone statues were firmly in place, each one looking as if they were staring out the window and out to the mountains beyond that were silhouetted in night. At the opposite end of the annex, a tall set of double doors stood.

Working quickly, Leon and Ashley jogged across the long chamber, trying to make up for lost time. Leon knew that he could ill afford another long detour, despite taking the medication given to him by Luis. Ashley too had also taken some of the medication on the rail car back to the main hall of the castle. He didn't know how long the medication was good for, but he couldn't waste the extra time given to him. He opened the door at the end of the room, and quickly found himself in another hallway. This time, it didn't look quite as royal and elegant as the annex they just came from.

What the hell happened here?

The royal touch of elegance that permeated the area before gave way to a bit of decay, a section that time forgot, much like a good part of the castle so far. The intricate designs on the carpet looked dirty, evidently stained. The stone walls along the hall were cracked and broken in spots. Up fifty feet or so ahead, Leon noticed that the hall led to an opening of sorts, and as they walked through the hall, they came upon an area that was littered in broken glass. Three windows on the right side were completely broken, and all that was standing was some remnants of metal work that was used to hold the window panes in. Some of the metal itself was gnarled and bent, looking as if someone or something tried to break in or out.

Judging by the looks of it, someone tried to break into the hall here, judging by all the glass on the floor. Best to be careful.

"Be careful, Ashley," Leon said, not liking the looks of things. "Stay very close."

"Uh huh," she replied, getting as close to him as she could without walking over him. After the recent events, she did not want to fall into another trap. She'd stick to him like glue if she could. Slowly, they walked toward the open area, the broken glass crunching under their feet as they went. Crossing the threshold into the open area--

--and Leon stared in wide-eyed surprise as something new and sickening greeted his eyes, thoroughly shocked. A second later, Ashley saw it and audibly let out a groan of pure disgust. They came into a massive circular room with a tall dome ceiling with stained glass panes circling the perimeter, which was broken in several places. In fact, several chunks of the ceiling were gone, creating holes where the moonlit sky could be visible. The floor itself was mostly gone--quite literally gone, as in, missing. In its place was black nothingness, a bottomless abyss. What cohesive sections of the floor remained formed a path that crossed the diameter of this once used ballroom or entertainment area, and also led to a single door that was ninety degrees clockwise from where Leon and Ashley stood. Regardless, it wasn't the completely ruined area, the missing chunks of floor, or the other ravages of time that fell upon this once proud place.

It was the massive hive that hung down from the ceiling; a huge, sickly throbbing mass of slick matter that was almost as tall as the entire ballroom. Easily twenty or so feet around, this gross aberration stretched almost to the floor, just stopping seven or eight feet from the ground. Staring at this hive, Leon saw that it was pulsating, throbbing and breathing as if it were very much alive. It definitely sounded like it was, the way the membranous skin glistened, bulged, and emitted sick, sloppy noises as some horrible monstrosity of an insect was getting ready to break free of the towering cocoon-like thing.

Better get out of here before something hatches.

Breaking out into a jog, Leon ran in the middle of the narrow section of floor, with Ashley running in tandem. On the wall behind him, high up on the domed ceiling, a creature was looking down, and noticed the two figures running toward the hive unaware of its presence. It blended seamlessly into the background, the result of much research, genetic experiments and mutation. Lying in silence, the creature waited for a second, then it spread its long insect-like wings, and finally threw itself off the glass, hurtling itself with incredible speed toward the duo. It readied its long, segmented limbs as if to grab something. It emitted a loud, piercing shriek as it closed in, catching the two of them off guard. Leon saw it before she did, and suddenly, Ashley felt this tremendous force slam into her back, then saw tough, scaly limbs wrap themselves around her before she could hit the floor.

NO!

All this happened in a split second, and almost instantly, Ashley was taken soaring into the air, high above Leon and screaming at the top of her lungs. Leon aimed and fired several bullets quickly at the escaping creature, but it was to no avail.

"Damn it! Ashley!"

A second later, the flying monster flew through a hole in the dome, and Ashley was out of sight, screaming helplessly into the night. Once again, she'd been captured--this time, through no fault of her own, but through one of Saddler's flying freaks.

SADDLER!

Before the angered American could even attempt pursuit, he could hear the excited chattering of the winged aberrations coming up from below him, and rising up into view were three of the Novistadors, the very same creatures Leon encountered in the underground prisons. Once again, they were ready to give him hell.

Great. More of them.

The three flew towards Leon, their eyes bright with anticipation, and exuding a clear, viscous drool from where their mouths should be. A fourth one was on its way up from the abyss, but the three present were blocking his path. Leon holstered the handgun and grabbed the shotgun, cocking it. The first one flew at him, raising one of its sharp claws, ready to slice. Feeling rage boil up inside him, he put his finger on the trigger. Without another word, he ran into the fray and opened fire.

Knowing she had to stay one step ahead of the game, she also knew she had to remain close to Leon's location at all times. Mostly, it was for the sake of her mission and sole objective--to get back the Plaga sample from Saddler. Leon, poor boy, had to remain as the higher priority diversion here…Ada's shield, if you will. No doubt that Saddler and company were aware of her presence now. They were stupid, but they weren't that stupid. When they realized Luis had the sample, they knew another party was involved. No matter--she would just continue and try to provide hidden support for Leon. She couldn't deny the human connection any longer--she had to keep Leon alive, not just for the sake of the objective…but for her as well. Why fight the old feelings? Now that she'd come to grips with it, it would no longer weigh heavily on her mind. Seeing what had happened to Luis and the fate he met, she was determined not to let him meet the same unfortunate end that the Spaniard experienced.

Collateral damage, she thought, an unfortunate circumstance of such a mission. Lives are going to be sacrificed to accomplish the goal. While she manipulated Luis to play out his own part, she did have to admit that his sudden death did set her back a little bit. After all, she lost the man who knew this area well, who worked with and for Saddler--the inside man, if you will. However, she'd manage. Wesker provided her with all the information she needed to know, but he too was a prick. Wesker had his own selfish goals and aspirations, the intent on reviving the hopeless cause that was Umbrella. How Leon's demise fit into his grand scheme she wasn't completely sure, but tough shit. She had to--no, needed to--keep him alive.

She'd been standing atop the clock tower watching the goings on below when she heard the shrill scream coming from somewhere in the night. Using her binoculars, she'd looked off in the direction of the sound, and noticed that one of Saddler's flying insect creatures was on its way toward the bridge, holding the limp, fainted body of the President's daughter.

Hmm…looks like they got her again. That means Leon's coming through here soon…

There was an influx of the robed cultists coming from the bridge leading to what appeared to be an entrance hall. Most likely, Salazar was in there, knowing that Leon was due to come through here, especially now that the girl was re-captured. Salazar probably knew this and was sending some more of his lemmings to try to fend off the agent. Some of them were even armed--Ada could spot a few carrying crossbows and flails. A small commotion was going on as the Novistador was coming in to land, being careful not to crush the girl. A few of the black robed acolytes were gathering around the girl, muttering excitedly to themselves as they managed to waken her and get her on her feet. Through her binoculars, she could see that Ashley was definitely drained of energy, her eyes bloodshot and her face drenched from panicked tears. Quickly, one of them took her arms and placed them behind her while another handed him some rope to bind her wrists together. The buzzing creature, no longer needed, flew away from the landing and back off into the night.

Her observations were interrupted when her communications device beeped.

Of course.

She grabbed the device and powered it on, and once again, the emotionless face of Wesker came into view, his black-gloved hands folded in front of his face.

"You again?" she began.

"Report, Ada," he replied firmly.

"I found Luis," she began again. "Unfortunately, I was a bit too late."

"Did you retrieve the sample?

"No. Saddler has it." Wesker leaned back in his chair, his face showing no change of emotion.

"There will be another opportunity soon enough," he said after a few seconds. "Have you had a chance to eliminate Leon?"

You wish. "Not yet."

"If that's the case, then maybe we can capitalize on his little lucky streak and take advantage of the distraction he's causing for Saddler and his followers." He leaned forward again, and he moved his hands away from his mouth. "Retrieve the sample."

Before Ada could acknowledge, the transmission ended, and just like that, she was alone once again. She sighed, passing him off as just a nuisance and an interruption. Raising her binoculars once again, she fixed her gaze back on the bridge from the clock tower to Salazar's hall, and noticed that the little man himself was walking across it, flanked on both sides by his monster bodyguards, each holding a sharp, pointy spear. She knew full well what they were--and they certainly weren't human.

Verdugos…

Slaves to Salazar and the Plagas, they lived to serve the Los Illuminados. Powerful, hulking beings, they were very capable of dispatching anyone and anything at Salazar's command. Clearly, they were not to be reckoned with.

Crouching lower, she adjusted herself from her vantage point to avoid detection; however, with control back in Salazar's possession, his attention was squarely focused on the girl that landed back in his hands. When he got to the clock tower side, he began having some words with the small group of cultists who had assembled, most likely giving orders in Spanish. Not well versed in the language, Ada couldn't understand what he was saying, but she was sure that it definitely had to do with Ashley, and most likely with Leon as well. At times, Ashley tried to resist her captivity, but it was to no avail. She was surrounded.

The assassin watched the scene for a couple minutes more, and it had appeared that their conversations were at an end. With a gesture, the cultists left to get ready to attack the approaching American. The black-robed Verdugo prodded Ashley forward with a tap from its spear, leading her forward, back toward the diminutive Salazar's hall. The castellan followed, and in the rear, the red-robed Verdugo protected the group. They walked in single file back toward the hall.

Better get a move on soon--things are going to get real ugly around here.

Scanning the area once more, she panned over to her right, expecting to see Leon come outside any minute.

And she was rewarded. He'd shut the door behind him, and then stopped and leaned against the door, his back facing her, breathing heavily. A sly smile began to form on her face as she looked him over through her binoculars.

Nice ass, Leon…

Not aware that someone was admiring his body, he took another few seconds to breathe as the adrenaline was draining away. Luckily, the Novistadors weren't as much of a problem in well-lit areas as they were in darkness, where their ability to camouflage themselves didn't do much good if Leon visibly saw it. All he did was blast away the one directly in his path and kept running, not wishing to waste any more ammunition. As it stood, he had about ten shotgun shells left and was hoping to find more. His break was interrupted by his communications device beeping, and he had a very good idea who was on the other end. Not waiting for it to continue beeping, he accepted the call, and sure enough, Salazar was on the other end, beaming.

"I wonder if you can see me, Mr. Kennedy," Salazar began.

"If you scratch her, I'll break your bones!" Leon shot back, clearly angry. He fought off the urge to slam the phone to the ground. It wasn't the phone he wanted to pulverize.

"First, we'll see if you can make it this far," Salazar calmly replied, his voice mocking, goading, urging Leon on.

"Damn you and your stupid games, asshole!" the agent yelled. He grabbed his binoculars from his belt and looked out toward the clock tower in front of him. Seeing nothing, he turned his gaze quickly to the tower's right--just in time to see Salazar and his company walking into another section of the castle grounds, with Ashley at the head. Behind her was one of his bodyguards, then the asshole himself followed by another of his pals.

"Shit!"

The visage of Salazar kept grinning on the video phone, knowing he was dangling the carrot in front of his American adversary.

"I'll be waiting," were his last words before the screen went black.

She heard the entire brief chat from her vantage point. Really, it was a pity. She knew full well that he was about to get caught up in another melee, and she couldn't do anything to help. Not that she wanted to take a bullet for him, but she was on a mission. The more she could do to help expedite things, the quicker this could all end. Getting ahead and dispatching enemies for him was certainly a help for both of them.

Sorry, Leon…I can't be seen with you.

The woman knew that these things had to be done delicately, all with precision and smoothness. She liked that approach of manipulation and deception much better than the other ass Wesker hired for this mission, Jack Krauser. Krauser was probably shooting shit somewhere for the hell of it. His methods involved brute force and nothing else. He'd much rather solve anything by ripping it apart...his methods are sloppy.

Jack Krauser has been the subject of extensive study and research by the organization.

His skills and personality have been tested both on and off the battlefield .If he were the best, he would become a liability that would jeopardize the rest of us. My conclusion? He's a great soldier...no more, no less. Motivated by greed and power, the scum…as long as he's well compensated, he shouldn't cause any problems for us. If he does start to get restless...I can take care of him. I've studied his combat style and can deal with that arm of his, if necessary.

Krauser answers directly to Wesker, and it was Wesker who decided that Krauser should be sent to spy on the cult. He also decided to sent me along…I wonder if it wasn't to keep an eye on Krauser. No doubt Krauser has already fallen to the temptation of Las Plagas, and the power they represent. This could have dire consequences for the organization. On some level however, this may be a necessary development, as his role is to disrupt this farce of a play. That said, the stage in this play will ultimately come crashing down in the end...bad luck for him. However, he'll play the patsy in the end and take the fall for all of us. That's why I need to make sure things keep going exactly as they are...

END OF CHAPTER. Keep the reviews coming!