Author's Note:
Hello, guys. This will be a remake of my first story, "Only Room For One". This will have the exact same premise, but in my opinion will be greatly improved. The pacing will also be much slower. Enjoy!
In just merely seventy six days, life changed dramatically for hundreds of people. Hundreds of people suffered from pain, grievance, and terror. There was one young man responsible for all of this; Xavier Reddick of the Karrob Universe, who resided in the city of Jucana.
Just seventy six days prior to his arrest and conviction, Xavier lived a relatively normal life. He had just graduated from the police academy, gotten more serious with his girlfriend, and saved enough money for an apartment. Things were going well, until one day, an unfortunate incident had occurred.
It was only his first day on the job, and Xavier was already forced to kill a drug addict in self-defense. For quite a while, the traumatizing incident was all he could think about. The dark thoughts consistently loomed throughout his mind and the weight of the guilt felt extremely unbearable. However, much like an exercise, his conscious felt sore and hurt from all the pain the memories brought him at first. Then after a while, his mind slowly eased into it and his feelings of regret and remorse eventually converted to satisfaction.
Of course, his satisfaction wouldn't last very long. Instead, his hunger for more grew, and his hunger wasn't ignorable. He craved for more. He needed more.
Over the course of two weeks, Xavier preyed on four unsuspecting homeless men, all during midnight. He relished in the slaughter and the slayings released a good amount of dopamine.
The murders were like a rolling snowball.
First it was homeless men.
Then it was drug addicts.
Then it was regular civilians.
Then it was athletes.
And even his former colleagues in the police force and the mayor's child.
The snowball transformed into something huge, larger than the planet he was on. After numerous amounts of murders, he ultimately discovered that with every life that he would take, he would absorb their energy.
Killing the drug addicts intensified his needs.
Killing teachers, professors, scientists, and scholars made him smarter.
Killing athletes and police officers made him faster, stronger, and more durable.
His body count steadily increased into the hundreds, and at that point he was practically superhuman. Soon after, an elite bounty hunter apprehended him, putting an end to a short, yet "sweet" killing spree. Almost immediately, he was sentenced to life in another prison universe.
Only Room for One
"Nine hundred and ninety eight..."
Xavier sharply grunted as he powered through his last remaining pushups.
"Nine hundred and ninety nine..."
Xavier winced as he slowly lowered his body to the ground.
"One thousand."
Xavier released a deep breath of exhaustion and slowly rose to his feet. Xavier was shirtless and his body shined with sweat. He placed his hands on his hips and lowered his head. After yet another deep breath, he lifted his head up and paced around the prison cell. It was dark, empty, and cold. On top of that, the so-called "meals" were all the same nasty mush, with a texture even softer than baby food.
Xavier knew however that he wouldn't have to endure much of this any longer, because fortunately for him, it was finally time. He would be transported out of the Karrob Universe and into the Rikers Universe, where he was expected to live the rest of his days with the worst of the worst. Murders, sex offenders, and human traffickers. Rikers Universe had a reputation of being a mean and gritty prison environment, with prison riots constantly breaking out and corruption running rampant throughout the staff and government. The prisoners were truly left to fend for themselves.
Often times in boredom, Xavier entertained the idea of being inside of the prison and dominating the universe. He envisioned a massacre, dominance, and complete control over the people. The thought of it was enough to make him laugh. It indeed sounded silly, but at the same time very possible. After all, he was blessed with such a great gift.
Xavier's pacing around the cell ceased when the sound of distant footsteps grabbed his attention. He smirked and approached the reinforced steel cell door and patiently waited for the window to open. The sound of the footsteps gradually grew louder and louder, prompting Xavier to take a couple steps back.
The window on the door opened momentarily before being shut abruptly. Almost immediately after, the whole cell door opened, and a several flashlights beamed upon Xavier's face. He covered his eyes and released a groan.
"What the-?"
"Reddick! Today's the big day." A deep, intimidating voice called out.
Two men in heavily armored uniforms marched over and grabbed Xavier by his arms and forcefully dragged him out of the cell.
Now into the light, Xavier was finally able to look around. He noticed the hallway was filled with guards armed to the teeth.
"You need all these guys just for me? Why, I'm flattered." Xavier said sarcastically and followed it up with a chuckle. The guards proceeded to handcuff him with his hands behind his back.
"Shut your mouth!" The voice turned out to be the Mayor of Jucana, Victor Faustin. The 6'5" mayor angrily approached and towered over Xavier, who was only around 5'7". The height difference wasn't nearly enough to make Xavier cower, of course.
"My old friend Faustin. How are you? Burying your son must've been quite the bond between you two." Xavier looked up at Faustin with a cheeky smirk. Faustin reciprocated with a fierce right hook to the jaw. Xavier stumbled backwards into the men and acted dazed.
"I'll kill you!" Faustin attempted to rush at Xavier but was ultimately held back by the guards. Tears filled his eyes and his face turned blood red. "You're gonna pay for what you've done! Do you hear me?!"
The constant cries and the continuous promises for blood only amused Xavier, and it was evident from his facial expression. It took only a minute for the guards to calm Faustin down. Though for Xavier, it was quite an enjoyable minute of entertainment.
"Let's get going! Transport in fifteen!" A lieutenant called out. The long line of armored men began to march forward.
Xavier shambled along within the group of guards with his head lowered. Faustin stepped over and violently grabbed Xavier by the back of the neck and whispered into his ear, "I'll be sure you die in Rikers!"
To everyone's surprise, the men were able to easily escort Xavier into the transportation room with almost no issue along the way, excluding the showdown between Faustin and Xavier. Upon entering the room, Xavier noticed that to his right, the wall was a giant mirror.
No doubt that it's see-through.
Xavier looked ahead of him and noticed a largely sized, heavily reinforced seat that was made out of the toughest minerals in the universe. The seat was inside of a wide bulletproof tube with a closed door in front of it. The seat was referred to as the "Transporter", a chair designed to prevent resisting inmates and was extremely durable. The Transporter was a fairly new invention, but was efficiently put to use for the past thirty years and hasn't had a single recorded incident of an inmate escaping from it.
Two men grasped onto Xavier's arms and walked him up the four large steps and onto the platform. A transportation officer rushed up the stairs and pulled out the key to the door. He inserted the key inside the door and unlocked it. The transportation officer opened the heavy door wide open and stepped aside for the guards to put him in.
"Face the chair." One of the guards said.
Xavier rolled his eyes and faced the chair. The other guard unlocked the handcuffs and took them off of him.
"Face me."
Xavier turned around and carried a bored look on his face.
"Now back up and sit in the Transporter...slowly." The guard put heavy emphasis on the last word and took a step back from Xavier.
"Listen-." Xavier took a step forward and the room gave several ear piercing sounds of weapons cocking. Before he knew it, the entire room outside and inside of the tube had their weapons trained on him.
"Get back, get back!" The guard screamed.
Xavier stopped moving and stood still. He scanned the room all around him and knew he couldn't take them head on.
"Goddammit, do as I say! Get in the Transporter, now!" The guard commanded.
Xavier complied and backed up slowly into the Transporter. As soon as he sat down, the metal cuffs tightly secured his wrists and ankles automatically. The whole chair felt cold and uncomfortable.
The guards stepped out of the tube and just as they were ready to close the door, Victor Faustin approached them.
"Give me just one minute...please."
The guards moved aside and allowed Faustin to enter the tube. Faustin eyed Xavier and battled through his tears.
"Before we transport you...please...can you answer this one question?"
"Go ahead." Xavier answered with a smile.
Faustin choked up and wiped away his tears before speaking.
"W-Why? W-Why did you kill all those people? The homeless, the police officers...m-my son...? Why?" Faustin sniveled.
Xavier opened his mouth to speak but nothing could come out. He momentarily lowered his head and gave it some thought. Finally, he rose his head and looked Faustin in the weak, grieving weary eyes and spoke with strong conviction.
"Because I needed to. I couldn't stop. I wouldn't stop. I don't know why, but there was something within me...Every single time that I took a life, it felt good. It's unexplainable. Each kill made me faster, stronger, smarter...better as a person. There's a certain drive inside of me that isn't natural for you, but it's very natural for me. It's like a gift. Plus, it's not even like I did anything wrong. All I did was wipe out the deplorables and the wasted energies and gave it to someone who could use it; me. This is your last chance, Faustin. Think of all the good I can do for this universe. I can continue to rid evil from this universe for many, many years to come. I'll be of great use to you, I promise."
Faustin angrily punched Xavier once again in the face and spat out an angry response.
"To hell with your promises!" Faustin connected yet another right hook to Xavier's face and gripped onto his face. Faustin lowered himself to eye level with Xavier and smirked. "Good luck." Faustin released Xavier and walked out of the tube. The guards proceeded to close and lock the door behind him.
Faustin spotted the transportation officer on the control panel and approached him.
"Everything ready to go?"
"Yes, sir. Everything looks good. I've gotten off the com with the other TO from Rikers and they're ready to take him in. Both Transporters are live and ready to go." He responded confidently.
"Very good." Faustin replied and walked into the center of the room and cleared his throat. He spoke with a booming voice, "Ladies and gentlemen, it is time. Xavier Reddick of the Karrob Universe has been found guilty on two hundred and twenty three counts of first-degree murder, forty two counts of attempted murder, and one count of voluntary manslaughter. Xavier Reddick will be sentenced to life in Rikers Universe and may never return to Karrob ever again. Today, September 29th, 1998 justice will be served. Xavier Reddick, do you have any last words?"
Xavier remained silent and lowered his head.
"Very well." Faustin gave the transportation officer a nod.
The transportation officer pressed several buttons on the control panel.
The system loudly stated, "Initiating transportation sequence. Destination, Rikers Universe. Five, four, three, two-." The system suddenly stopped counting down.
"The hell's going on?" Faustin eyed the officer. "What the hell's going on?!"
"I-I..." the officer stammered and was cut off by a loud beeping sound.
The system then spoke again, "Initiating transportation sequence. New destination, Venix Universe. Five, four-."
"No, no, no!" Faustin rushed over to the control panel. "Goddammit, cancel it! Cancel it!"
"It's not working!" The officer panicked and breathed heavily as he mashed the cancel button over and over again.
"Three, two-."
"No!" Faustin attempted to run up the stairs but was held back by the guards. "Let me go! Let me go!"
Xavier smiled at Faustin and mouthed, "Bye."
"One."
A huge, tall beam of white light entered and filled the tube. Xavier released blood curdling screams of agony as his body was being eradicated out of the universe. His body quickly turned to a big cloud of dust and he was soon sucked through the tube. The white light disappeared shortly after.
"Fuck!" Faustin elbowed and shoved the guards off of him and ran over to the officer. He grabbed him by the neck and interrogated him violently. "What did you do?! What the fuck did you do, you bastard?!" Three men came over and held Faustin back.
"I don't know!"
"Check the coordinates! We have to get him!" Faustin yelled while resisting the grasp of the men.
The transportation officer opened the control panel and checked the system. "It's been overridden. S-Someone hacked into our network and changed the destination...I-I don't know wh-."
"Fuck who did it! Tell me where the coordinates are!" Faustin scolded him.
"O-Okay, let's see..." After swiping through the control panel, he looked up at Faustin and said, "H-He went to Venix Universe...According to the coordinates he went to a location called...Raccoon City?"
"Raccoon City?! Then let's get him!"
"Sir, it's Venix Universe. They're one of the least advanced universes, so traveling back won't be easy...I-I'm sorry, sir." He choked out.
"Fuck..." Faustin dropped to his knees and buried his face into his hands and sobbed helplessly.
Behind the see-through mirror, hundreds of people are also grieving in pain and disbelief. A small and petite young Caucasian woman sat in the crowd with her arms crossed and a smile formed on her face slowly.
September 29th, 1998
Raccoon City
Venix Universe
Xavier opened his eyes one by one and saw nothing but a heavy blur. He felt like his mind was spinning in a washing machine and his body had gone through a meat grinder. He rolled over on his back and made efforts to get up, but his body felt too paralyzed.
He laid in the grass for around half an hour before finally his vision cleared up and he regained his senses. Xavier stood up and toddled around like a young child. It wasn't long until he dropped back down to his knees. He required yet another fifteen minutes to recover and made another effort to move around. This time, it was much easier.
He walked through the tall grass, bushes, and trees and about ten minutes in, he took another break and collapsed to the ground. After attempting to get back on his feet, he vomited a small amount. Xavier released a tired groan and wiped his mouth with his bare arm and stumbled around the dark woods again.
Ahead of him were lights and the sound of engines passing by. He limped over past the trees and noticed there was a somewhat empty highway. A big light came towards him on the left, and he carelessly stepped into the road. It turned out to be a vehicle, and it stopped abruptly. The driver honked furiously several times. He rolled down the window and scolded Xavier.
"What the hell's your problem, buddy? Watch where you're going!"
The driver released longer and more intense honks at Xavier. He turned around the faced the driver and shambled towards the driver side of the car. He lowered himself and said, "Where am I?"
"Are you high on drugs or something? Get outta here!" The driver rolled up his window and started to drive off. Out of frustration, Xavier decided to kick in the taillight of the car as it went away. He turned around and walked away.
"What the hell?!" The driver yelled and put his foot down on the brake hard. He flung open his car and walked to the back of his car and examined the damages. The light was completely broken and the left side of the car was severely damaged.
"You're gonna pay for that shit, c'mere! This car wasn't cheap!" The man fast walked towards him.
"Come here, I said!" The man placed his hand on Xavier's shoulder, and at that moment, the entire world was in slow motion. Xavier turned around and connected multiple punches to the mid-section in a sonic-like fury. He followed it up with a fierce side kick. The world around Xavier went back into normal motion and the man was sent flying across the highway and skidded along the ground.
He suffered from broken ribs, burns, and internal bleeding in just two seconds. Xavier in a literal blink of an eye sped over to the man and stood over him with an evil grin on his face. The man gargled through his own blood for a while before Xavier decided to end his life with a single stomp to the head.
Xavier leisurely strolled over to the man's vehicle and noticed the key was still in the ignition. He closed the car door behind him and put his foot on the pedal. Xavier ran over the man's dead body along the way and fiddled with the radio. He looked up and saw a big sign on the road stating, "Welcome to Raccoon City!"