Las Plagas: Resident Evil IV
Chapter Fifty Four: Getaway Car
Slam! Bullets just weren't working on this regenerating nightmare, leaving Leon with no choice other than to retreat back into the freezer, slamming the door in the monster's face just before it would have reached him. The door opened inward into the cold room, so the Agent had to keep his back against it with all his strength to keep the abomination from getting in. If it did, there was nowhere else for him to run, and… and well it was best to just keep the thing out. Unfortunately, this monster was a lot stronger than he was, and the floor was coated with frost, so it wasn't long before he lost this fight.
Suddenly sliding along with the door as it was forced open, the wind was knocked out of Leon when he found himself slammed between the door and the wall, but instead of coming right for him, the monster went right past as it stomped its way into the cold room, as if it didn't realize where he had gone. This was literally his only chance for survival, so the Agent scrambled his way around the door, hearing the monster growl as it spotted him, but cutting off the sound by slamming the door in its face once again as soon as he was out.
Falling onto his hands and knees and scrambling away, Leon thought that it would come after him again, but instead the monster simply banged on the door from the other side, as if it couldn't figure out that it was supposed to pull it open. The Agent couldn't help but laugh a little when he realized that his life had been saved by a door-hinge, but he didn't want to wait around for it to figure it out, so Leon pulled himself to his feet and had to lean on some of the medical machines as he headed toward the door.
Briefly considering picking up the rifle again, he realized there was no point since taking more ammo from another guard would mean he would simply get another rifle in the process, so Leon didn't stop until he was back through the metal door, and back into the main building where all of the lights had come on. It was a good thing that sunlight was coming in through the small windows, or any guards outside might have noticed the lights and come to investigate, but for the moment it looked like the building was all his.
There hadn't been a special release lever anywhere for Ashley's cell, at least not one that he saw, so hopefully the door would just be open now that power was restored. Moving past the junction, and down the corridor toward where he had faced the hammer man, the Agent couldn't help sighing with relief when the previously red light above the door was now glowing green. Oh good, he thought as he walked up to it, for once he was going to get a break… yes, the door clicked open when he pushed on it, allowing Leon to walk into… a store room?
All this security for a storage room? Maybe he could have understood it if the room was filled with weapons and ammo, but this one was stocked with more medical machines like the ones back in the lab, and… and that was about it. Some movement caught his eye, and then the Agent watched as a frightened Ashley Graham slowly came around from behind one of the storage shelves… her eyes widening, and a smile forming on her face just before she ran up to him.
"Oh Leon, I knew you would come back for me!" The young woman exclaimed, throwing her arms around him. "The guy who brought me here said you wouldn't, but I just knew you would!"
"Ow!" The Agent groaned when she squeezed him. "Ah… my ribs!"
The punishment that Leon had taken during the last nearly twenty four hours was rapidly catching up with him, and each time the adrenaline wore off from the latest attack, he was left feeling even weaker and more fatigued than the last time. Hell, except for a few random bouts of being knocked unconscious, the Agent hadn't gotten any sleep at all, and it was lucky that Ashley was there to help him sit down on one of the boxes, or else he might have simply collapsed onto the floor. The young woman left his side for a few seconds, long enough for him to start drifting off, but then he was startled away when she returned while putting something to his lips.
It was a bottle of water, which Leon eagerly accepted since the last time he had eaten or drank anything was back at the lake house when Tobias had given him that MRE. Ashley also had a little bit of food, which she explained that the guards had given her before locking the door. It was bland and probably well past its expiry date, but at this point he was ready to eat just about anything. The taste was God-awful, but after putting some food and water into his stomach, suddenly the Agent wasn't feeling quite so close to death… maybe most of his pain had been because of dehydration.
"Leon, you look terrible." Ashley said, putting her hand on his forehead. "You need to rest for a while."
"No, Ashley, we need to get out of here." Leon replied, trying and failing to stand up. "We have to go before… before someone comes to check on you."
She asked him how they were going to get anywhere with him like this, and it was a fair enough question, but the clock was ticking, and who even knew how much time there was left before the parasites in their bodies matured to the point where they could assert control? No, they had to get out of there, even if it meant him having to lean on her in order to be able to walk properly. Yeah, that was working… she was really small so his weight was difficult for her to support, but so far they were able to move, at least as far as the storage room door.
"We have to get back to the coast." He suggested after pulling the door open. "I've got a boat there, and we can use it to get back to the mainland."
This was definitely the most logical plan, but it was pretty dangerous as well, since the Agent hadn't exactly dealt with all of the guards at the checkpoint. Aw man, those guards were still there, as were the ones patrolling around the island's different areas, and somehow Leon didn't think it would be easy to sneak Ashley through their checkpoint… or even himself for that matter, even if he was able to infiltrate another patrol. No, in his current condition there had to be another way to get out… not that they could leave before finding Luis's machine… God damn it, there was always something!
"There's not a lot of time, Ashley." Leon continued as they stepped out into the corridor. "We have to find the lab that Luis was working out of… that's where his machine is… but I don't know where to look, and there's no time for a blind search."
"When I was brought in, it looked like all the buildings were labeled." The young woman explained. "If we can find a map, or just get close to each building, then I can read the signs so you don't have to search through each one."
This was… actually a good idea, but the problem was still somehow sneaking Ashley around, since all of the guards would be looking for her… not that it was hard to spot a blonde girl in a land full of brunettes. Well, before anything else, the first thing they had to do was get out of this building before that regenerating monster figured out how to pull open a door, so the two of them headed back the way the Agent had originally come, heading back down the stairs into the abandoned lobby where he took a look out the door's small window.
Daylight was in full effect now, with the morning sun shining brightly down on the island, and more importantly the whole area where the two of them needed to sneak through. Another patrol of three armed guards passed by, walking along the edge of the road that passed in front of the building, just as they had done when Leon was following them, and he was trying to figure out how to best get through undetected, when it happened… the muffled sound of a vehicle reached his ears just as a large transport truck came into view. Not only did it come into view, but it got closer until coming to a stop right in front of the door, where the engine cut off, and the Agent gasped when a couple guards jumped out.
"Quick!" He whispered urgently, pulling Ashley toward the abandoned desk. "Down! Down!"
Working together, the two of them managed to duck down behind the desk just before the door was opened, allowing four armed guards to enter the building. The Agent put a finger to his lips for her to be quiet, and the young woman nodded, but thankfully the guards paid no attention to the first floor as they made their way up the stairs, probably to check on Ashley. It was only a matter of time before they found the hammer man's body, so motioning for her to get up as soon as the guards were out of sight, Leon was forced to make his move.
Bang! Drawing his revolver as soon as the door was pushed open, the .45 round had no trouble going right through the truck's windshield and hitting the driver, who thankfully wasn't wearing a helmet, right in the face. Now they really had to hurry, since there was no way that no one heard that shot, so Leon opened the door and pulled the stunned driver out of his seat, grabbing his rifle and ammo before climbing into the truck. So much for stealth, the Agent thought as an alarm started to go off while Ashley was getting into the passenger seat, and he stomped on the gas just as the other guards were running out to investigate.
Bullets could be heard ricocheting off the old truck's metal frame as they started down the road, quickly leaving the running guards behind, allowing him to drive unobstructed… at least until the young woman next to him gasped in surprise. She didn't say anything, instead just looking wide-eyed while pointing at the side view mirror, where Leon was able to see the truck that was now chasing them. More bullets bounced off the truck's frame, including one that punched through the back window, making Ashley scream as they ducked down.
"Can you drive a stick?" The Agent asked as more gunfire made them duck again. "If you can, switch places!"
It was a good thing that the young woman was so small built, making it easy for her to slide right across Leon's lap into the driver's seat, keeping the vehicle moving while he picked up the rifle. Kakka-kakka! Kakka-kakka! Twisting around and shooting through the partially broken back window, the Agent only had time to fire a few bullets, and not very accurately before having to duck back down to avoid the returned fire from their pursuers. He was trying to hit the driver through the windshield like he had done to get this truck, but most of his shots hit the truck's metal frame.
"Hold on, we're turning!" Ashley yelled. "Hold onto something!"
Suddenly she pulled the parking brake handle, causing their truck's tires to squeal as the whole vehicle gracefully slid around a ninety-degree turn to avoid another checkpoint where more armed guards were shooting at them. Once around the corner, the young woman released the brake, and downshifted to give them a better start with getting back up to speed, but the truck chasing them wasn't so lucky. While trying to turn, they ended up sliding straight forward into the checkpoint, running over some of the guards, and giving Leon a moment to rest.
"Ashley, that was amazing!" He exclaimed as they put more distance between them and their pursuers. "You just… you just drifted in a damn transport truck!"
"I dated a stock-car racer for a while during Freshman Year." She replied, both of them looking back to see if the truck was still coming. "He thought it was… oh, shit!"
Looking forward to see what was going on, Leon could only gasp as another truck came charging down the road toward them, accelerating at full speed… and there was nowhere to go to avoid it.
