Rock992: That was certainly my goal, not to just have HUNK tagging along in a remake of 3, but to change the story due to his presence, show the advantages and disadvantages of him being present and being the driving force so to speak of the heroes. Taking charge. His being present changed the group dynamic, the journey as well as the Nikolai factor, how Nikolai behaves and how determined he is to undermine them. In a way although HUNK protects them as best he can, he endangers Jill and Carlos even more than they would have been if they never met. Consequences were one of the important factors for me in this story, letting them play out realistically, depending on the choices I make for a story.
bakaultima: Thank you kindly, I'm glad you're enjoying the story and hope you continue to.
Arkham Knight: Two gifts of villains, Nemesis and Nikolai, very different types of villains, both equally scary and deadly for different reasons. An unrelenting pursuing monster and a sadistic human wildcard. I enjoy writing the Resident Evil villains as much as the heroes, possibly more so.
Magd305TLC: Not a problem, always like hearing from reviews, thoughts on the ongoing story. While Cersei's look is more my template for Bella, Rhaenerya certainly works too, has that sort of image and highborn presence, just change her silver hair gold and purple eyes green, and there you go lol. I think she's more Rhaenerya now that she's older than she was in that flashback. Not nearly as overtly cruel and power hungry a villain as Rhaeneyra or Cersei, though. That would indeed be quite a happy ending, and the ending HUNK and Jill deserve. Sadly it is not a happy universe, though. On the other hand it isn't a bleak and nihilistic one either. Always preferred bittersweet endings to a story myself. But you'll see in due time. The Countess's relationship with HUNK will be shown and expanded on in due time, rest assured. Her canonical fate is never stated in the games, she's one more of the many characters Capcom dropped, but I intend to expand on her, flesh her out the way I have all the other characters.
Alex: Hopefully you'll like the other story, it's really coming along, and I'm pleased with it. It's more concise than this one, less scope, but more focused as such. The protagonist of it is not a big infamous company hero like HUNK, but sort of a 'nobody'. A ghost ;). A refreshing change of pace, someone the opposite of HUNK, much as I love HUNK. Much less complicated. Jill is certainly the most human character of the story, along with Carlos of course, but Carlos is less experienced than her. Less the driving moral force. The soldier gave me another opportunity to show the kind of person she is, even under extreme circumstances, as well as HUNK and Carlos. The latter two prepared to gun down the other survivor to get him out of their way, while Jill took the time to try to save him. It's something HUNK silently admires about her... someone good, and able to remain so even when pushed and threatened and intimidate, in the middle of a warzone. Unlike himself. He finds the compassion a bit naive... not being the good hearted young man he once was, but sees it is genuine for her, who she is. Reminds him of what he could have been, just like Carlos does in other ways. And recognizing how far he's fallen. I do indeed put poor Jill through the meat grinder... all of them, really lol, part of wanting to add weight and struggle to the story, instead of them all breezing through the journey. Poor Jill will have many scars, physical and mental, more than she did in the games. Much appreciated, a scary Nemesis was another goal of mine ;). The less is more approach, instead of having it in every chapter. Not too difficult to make it scary, or HUNK badass for that matter. Comes naturally. Might be a little slow with completing that other story, but we're getting there. Thanks again.
evolution-500: I wanted to not only play with the concept from the original of Nikolai's alternate death, but the soldier's appearance to have meaning. Even if he was faceless and nameless and wasn't going to end up tagging along. And for him as a minor character to have an impact on the others, and flesh them out further, how they reacted to him. As well as giving the Nemesis more scary villain cred, of course lol. I hope you'll be satisfied with the ending, and what I have planned for Nikolai. Suffice it to say he won't be getting off lightly. Appreciated as ever.
Akira-Hayama: Three protagonists was plenty for me lol didn't feel like introducing another, especially this late in the story. But he served his purpose, between the system disc, heads up about the Rail Gun, emphasizing the horror and intelligence of the Nemesis, HUNK and Carlos's readiness to eliminate him and Jill's to try to save him. Even with red shirt characters I like to have some kind of effect on the story thanks to them, faceless, nameless or not. And making him both add's to Jill's feeling of guilt, never even got his name, can't tell anyone who he was, his family, can't do anything. A feeling of helplessness.
HUNK is having his humanity while it's still possible, away from Umbrella. Freedom, or at least a taste of it, despite all the conflict that has come with it. Able to drop his guard with Jill in a way he never fully does around his fellow Umbrella employees. The curse of HUNK's commanding presence on poor Carlos, he went from the deuteragonist to the tritagonist lol. HUNK overtook much of the story, which was unavoidable given who he is and his nature, commanding presence. Though I think Carlos prefers third wheel to not having Umbrella's James Bond leading the way.
Nikolai canonically escaped Raccoon City, but as usual Capcom kinda forgot about him. Figures. Like all the others he had a great deal more untapped potential I hope to tap into. I don't intent to squander villains and characters the way Capcom does, especially the Umbrella ones. Thanks again, glad you're enjoying it, we're getting to the endgame, slowly but surely.
Echo Five: Oh Batman and his allies would do what Batman does, I expect. Take them down like any other supervillain lol.
117: Where Bella is concerned, I can't elaborate on her and her thoughts much at this point in time. Too important a character. I can say she knows what she has made HUNK, the damage she has done to him because of her own selfishness and loneliness. Knows she saved his life by choosing him, and that she forged him into Umbrella's best agent... but she knows the heavy price it cost to him. She is a complicated, conflicted Anti Villain like him, in contrast to her card carrying Supervillain father. Before the circumstances that caused her to leave, she came to want better for HUNK, but knew she couldn't give that to him, be the one to. The damage she inflicted on him was done.
As for HUNK leaving the U.S.S. it will take special circumstances for HUNK to finally leave or defect from U.S.S. To use a great M quote to James Bond attempting to resign in the movie Licence To Kill: "We're not a country club, 007!" *Cue fellow agents surrounding Bond threateningly* Basically watch that scene with U.S.S. Command's leader as M and Bond as HUNK, talking about Jill instead of Felix Leiter. Isn't an organization you can just resign from and remain healthy. Especially not someone like HUNK, having been with them as long as he has been, done as many missions for them, is connected to the powerful elites of Umbrella, knows where all the bodies are buried, and either buried or put them in those graves himself. He's in the life of crime too deeply now to just walk away without consequences. That and he's been mentally conditioned since Bella to see Umbrella as his home. It's his prison and his home.
His fellow U.S.S. Agents, subordinates and co workers alike, would whisper about it behind his back among themselves, as they do other stories and rumors about him, though wouldn't dare say a damn thing with him present. They already talk about him and Lady Spencer, and him and Comtesse Henri, they will about him and Jill too. He has a spotlight shining on him at Umbrella, essentially, the price of company fame. Though he wouldn't display overt romantic affection to Jill in front of them if they were present, he would slip back into professional mode with his 'peers' watching him, force of habit and the chain of command. His discipline. Not showing weakness in front of others. The fact he is away from all them and U.S.S. Command is why he's able to behave as he does in this story, and go through such character development. He has to be someone else around his fellow employees and subordinates and superiors. Peer pressure never changes, doesn't only extend to school. He'd have to juggle what he feels for Jill, the enemy of Umbrella, and Umbrella's watchful eyes, looking for signs of treason to the company. Like the popular guy or girl falling for the unpopular guy or girl, the circle of peers judging it. Though I think Jill would understand how the company politics work, she already knows he would be killed or abandoned if he returned to Umbrella empty handed without the G-Virus.
Umbrella would indeed, there's no biological weapons avenue they wouldn't go down or explore. Same for all their competitors.
Vong: They won't know he's alive until the events of Code Veronica. Won't be happy, obviously. And they would know Wesker didn't bring down Umbrella out of humanitarian or noble reasons, he did it so he wouldn't have competition when he created something even worse than Umbrella. That or in my universe Wesker might revive Umbrella under his leadership, as 4 seemed to be implying before they dropped that plotline in RE5, and gave it to Carla Radames in 6. Carlos would get along just fine with all of them.
Spartan: S.T.A.R.S. and Carlos would be devastated of course, though Carlos would be in my version of RE5, would find out she was the woman under the mask with the others. Nikolai on the other hand would laugh his ass off, mostly because of the effect it would have on HUNK. But I don't think in my universe's Nikolai will be alive by the time RE5 takes place.
I think they would, in a big sister little sister sort of way. Ashley is a character I'd like to write, try my hand at, especially in a story involving HUNK and Leon. Her flirting with both, of course, good agent and bad agent, both of them exasperated. Think I could save her as a character, make her not useless like she was in the game. HUNK would get her in line, teach her to shoot Ganados and make herself more useful, not kidnapped as much. Basically if she dies HUNK's presidential pardon from her father goes out the window, and like Escape From New York I think he'd have been injected with something as an extra incentive to succeed, so it'd be rather tense between the two of them. "It's not just your life you're gambling with here, Princess. It's mine. Now fall in line." Ah. Practically writes itself.
Jinero: Suppose you'll just have to keep reading and see what happens, there ;).
Thank you all for the reviews, as ever. My other RE story I'm working on is coming along nicely, getting there, it's what's eating up my time a bit, but as a companion piece to this story and possible future ones, it is necessary. Anyways, the journey and struggle continues:
October 1st, 1998, 4:15AM
Treatment Room Passage, Incineration Disposal Plant P-12A, Northern Raccoon City
"This is turning out better than I expected, Death. I did not foresee the Nemesis arriving again... any more than I did her convincing you to remain out there. We have both had amazing strokes of good fortune through all this... but there is something more to it than that. The truth is we are at home here in Raccoon City, our natural habitat. And in our home we thrive. I have never enjoyed my work more than I do now. It no longer feels like work."
The cold, amused voice spoke again silkily from the intercom on the panel behind him, while he remained at the containment door, looking straight ahead through the window. His icy, mocking voice echoed through the corridor... for him alone to hear, while beyond a young woman and man struggled to survive. To escape. The seconds ticking down to a horrifically painful death. The count down timer on the panel's screen falling steadily. And there was nothing he could do about it but stand where he was and watch it play out. Hearing the dripping of the mutilated Delta Force operator's blood pattering against the metal floor behind him. Reminding him of what was playing out before his very eyes... the outcome of his profession for most. HUNK's hand tightened into a fist at his side... the other gripped her Samurai Edge tighter... but he willed himself to remain where he was. And not to answer the voice of the sociopath beyond the intercom. To give him more pleasure than he was already receiving from the scenario he had set up. He imagined the Russian sitting in the Control and Communications Tower, quite comfortably, watching the camera screens there. Wearing that familiar, mad smile.
"I can imagine your pain right now... the helplessness. All your strength, cunning and experience... all of it in vain. Useless. How terrible that must feel... even more so, for the one who is best at what he does. Was it the same way watching your team die, down in those sewers? Watching Birkin tear through them, one after another? All the horrors spawned from the NEST unleashed and swarming the city, dooming it by your hand. Or is it worse now... watching it happen to her alone?"
Beyond the window, Valentine opened up on it with Matilda. He watched the heavy rounds striking it... tearing open large, fresh wounds. But still they didn't really slow it. It had mutated... become taller, more muscular, thicker, durable... more vicious tendrils sprouting from it... even as it lost more of its mind. Though... kept enough to toss the Delta Force operator's head at her feet. Startling bouts of intelligence... maliciousness. It was unstoppable by now... he was almost certain of it. More and more his belief it could die was being worn away... became cheap, perfunctory words he tried to convince himself and the others of. What else could he say? Admit that the bastards at Umbrella Europe's Sixth Laboratory had managed to create the impossible? The perfect Tyrant? What Colonel Vladimir had been striving for all alone? Even when he had seen it at its most vulnerable... at his most certain it could die... it just came back. It was nothing like the Tyrants and B.O.W.'s he had been tested against on Rockfort Island. What the hell had the NE-α Type Parasite been made from? The Plaga had only served as an inspiration, a relative blueprint... but lacking a biological sample, Frankl would have had to make his own, or find an alternative. Another in a long list of questions he would have to ask the Director... if... when, he made it out of here. Whether those in the Treatment Room made it or not... he would survive... and take Nikolai's head with him back to Umbrella. Throw it at the Colonel's boots on the deck of the Leviathan, as his most lethal son had the soldier's head at Jill's boots. And then he would turn his attention to the Sixth Laboratory. Root out all the traitors.
"Tsk tsk. What will your pretty little Comtesse think when she finds out... if she has not already done so?"
The Monitor continued over the intercom with another low chuckle. Going on as though the agent had spoken something back. Unrelenting in his amusement of it all.
"She does not strike me as the kind to share... not after all the stops she pulled out to try and claim you as her own for years... after she came into her inheritance. After your beloved Lady Spencer abandoned you. Her personal guardian angel of Death... for the other European Executives to tremble before when she passes them by, with you following at her high heels. Do you not wonder what the rest of us say about you? Locked away in your gilded cage between missions, a castle... perhaps not. I am sure she keeps much from your ears... and filters what she does grant you. Did you choose to be with her, or were you commanded to by old man Spencer? To appease the equivalent of a petulant, spoiled granddaughter whining for her favorite toy?"
The U.S.S. Agent watched numbly, anger and frustration growing, as Jill ceased firing and ran over to the western side of the room, away from Oliveira... out of his field of view. The Tyrant pursued her down there, to resume their battle. He tried to see around the corner of the window, tried a new angle... but it didn't help. All he could see from the limiting window was the Corporal, frantically searching among the bodies of the chamber. Pushing them aside, digging through coat and pant pockets. Seconds ticking away as one after another the bodies revealed no keycards. All sounds within the room were muted to his ears thanks to the thick metal walls and containment door... he didn't know if that was a curse, or a blessing. The only thing he could hear, was that voice. Even as it made him want to deafen himself. Want to strangle the bastard to death... to react in some way... to do something, anything other than staying put and staying silent. Pretending he was in control. Heartbeat pounding against his bruised chest. His silent fury and the struggle to remain where he was worse than the pain itself. The exhaustion was gone, as the adrenaline surged... and the pain less so. He had more focus now... and he seized on to it. Purpose. Clarity... of what had to be done.
"I have touched a nerve... have I not? Several this past while... though none more... potent than this one with Valentine. You did not expect to fall for her... it surprises you still as much as it has me. Does a man of flesh and blood truly linger in the armor and beneath that mask? After all this time? Is it love, or is it a desire for something... someone... not of your world? The antithesis of it? She is not your usual type... not a powerful blonde blue blood within the company... a benefactor to shield you while you serve her, expand her power. She would sooner burn Umbrella to the ground for what it has done to her and so many others... and if she survived, she would do it. Perhaps you think her a way out of the hell of your own making? The purgatory you dwell within at the company? That she might yet save you? Is that why you have risked everything for her, including that Golgotha sample? I still wonder why she kept your secret with you. What she might see... in a man without a face. She does not know you as I do... and if she did know what you set into motion that evening in Marcus's lab... she would surely shoot you where you stand. Nobody is that forgiving."
The urge to shoot the control panel grew worse... but he needed it to remain active, in case they found the keycard. There was no telling what the damage might do. And as much as the bastard's ranting angered him... he could detect the growing irritation in Nikolai's voice, in there with the cold condescension. He wanted, needed a reaction from HUNK. Something to exploit, take advantage of. Something to confirm his accusations, something to feed off of. He would not give Nikolai the dignity of a response. At least... not yet. And not here.
"I feel your hatred for me from here... I have never seen you angrier, even as you hide it from your surface. Feign calm. Do not worry... all is not lost. You'll have your chance. Once they have failed, I shall unlock the door to the Control and Communications Tower, and descend to the helipad below. The matter between us has yet to be resolved. We will do that, you and I, before dawn. This mission was always going to come down to you and me standing on a rooftop helipad in front of the only means of escape. It was never about them... they have been mere play things for me. They never would have been so enjoyable, if not for you. When that is so, I will give you the opportunity of a choice once more. Though there is one particular outcome I am hoping for."
HUNK would kill the son of a bitch, he silently vowed. And he would die by inches, before the missile arrived. Then when he escaped the city with Valentine and Oliveira... he would do all in his power to bring down Sergei Vladimir and the Sixth Laboratory. And Nikolai's new employer... the man who had cheated death, and wanted him as well. Even as he knew the futility of most of his wishes, the thought of them kept him warm... the pain, fear and turmoil at bay. The best he would be able to manage would be the Monitor, he was certain. It would have to be enough. And in this moment... the prospect of watching Nikolai die was even more inviting than killing Vladimir himself.
"Until then... think over what I have said. In the meantime... let us enjoy the spectacle, Death. It has not yet reached its climax."
The U.S.S. Agent stared straight ahead through the window, as the cold voice on the intercom died away. He wanted to scream... but he had no mouth for it. No tongue. He wanted to pull on the door... break it open with his anger... but he had no arms... no strength. He had nothing. Was nothing. He was a statue... nothing more, for all he had accomplished in his career... he was more helpless than he'd ever been. Nikolai was right about that much. As loath as he was to admit him right about anything.
Instead he stood there as the countdown went on, watched what was happening in the chamber play out... and waited. But something else came to him, then. Slowly heartening him... even as the dread coiled through his insides. Jill's face in his mind's eye... as she had been facing the Nemesis in the courtyard of the clock tower. The strength and determination, even after she had been infected... had fought it knowing she was a dead woman either way. He thought of every time they had fought it... escaped its clutches... hurt it. How far the three of them had come together. The odds they had beaten.
And he felt her lips on his again, in that rain soaked courtyard... tasted her... felt her embrace... her passion and feelings for him. Genuine feelings. Unconditional. That was something he'd never had from another. Always there had been a condition, with those that came before her. A selfish motive. It was different with her... everything was. She was genuine, whole... and she was stronger than any of them. She would make it. Had to make it. He could not lose her... not here, like this. He knew he was going to lose her even if she emerged from the Treatment Room... but he would gladly endure the pain of that if it meant she could live. Walk away from this city. The world required her. There was no acceptable alternative. For a moment, his eyes flickered down to her Samurai Edge in his tightened grip again... the trust she had placed in his hands. And him into hers... her in there doing battle with his weapon.
In spite of it all... HUNK found that he still dared to hope.
"S.T.A.R.S.!"
The roar of the heavily modified machine pistol met the roar of the Tyrant, striking it in the head and cutting off its sounds. At first. It growled as its burnt flesh separated and the familiar purple fluid ran down its blood stained face. Over its jagged maw. Jill began to back away from her position in the middle of the chamber, and circling around to the western side, towards the pipes and nozzles along that wall. It started to pursue her again, but froze for an instant and looked between her and Carlos over at the bodies to the east, tendrils whipping more wildly in his direction. Seemingly deciding between them. But as it made its decision to target Carlos, she shot it again several times to draw its attention back to her, gaze hardening at its yellow, angered eye. Carlos needed every second he could get... it was bad enough he had to do it under the pressure he was under. The horrific, agonizing death that was awaiting them both below.
If she was going to die... it would be fighting the thing. As she nearly had before. She wouldn't allow it the satisfaction of killing either of them. It roared over the warning sirens again and thankfully forgot about Carlos, incensed by the barrage of rounds. It began its pursuit after her towards the west once, giant boots crushing the limbs and parts of the corpses it trod upon, bursting the skull of one, and bending scrap metal under its sheer weight. Its blood stained razor teeth gnashed together as it advanced, shrugging off the bullets as she kept backing up. Jill saw only the giant thing, it and the piles of debris and corpses blocking her view of Carlos. She focused on it... tried to ignore the sirens, her impending doom... but something else called out to her, then... reminding her. Taunting her. Trying to distract her.
"Three minutes!", Called Nikolai mockingly with a laugh over the sirens through the intercom. "Three minutes to death! Perhaps sooner... it doesn't look very happy with you, does it?"
Nikolai... that bastard. There was another camera in the room after all. She imagined his smirking, cold face watching them from a monitor again. He wanted a show? She would give him one and then some. No... it didn't look happy. And it wasn't liable to look much happier soon. She had just the thing for it. A sample of what was below the Treatment Room. Jill ran down to the end of the western room, to the final pipe running down that wall... watching it move faster to catch her. Her heart raced in her chest... all it would take was one wrong move... and it was over. But then... she knew that, had known that for a long time.
And death was approaching either way... from its pursuit in front of her... or awaiting down below. As it moved, it drew back its bulky arm enveloped in tendrils... and as it closed the distance, it swung out at her. She acted on instinct, rolling off to the side away from it, pain slamming through her leg, hands and back... everywhere, really. But the pain meant she was alive. Still in a crouched position she looked up in time to see its swing go wild and strike the activation switch, along with breaking the pipe... the green fluid within bursting out at it, spraying, making contact with its chest, face and back. The moment it did, it began to smoke and burn... growling... the torrent of acid in the pipe dying down quickly, but visibly affecting it. Jill watched its flesh opening, pealing away, sloughing away in layers... the foaming fluid running down its massive body. And something else happened... one of its tendrils smoked and melted off, its burnt remains falling down to the floor at its melted and further melting boots. Its ragged pants, what was left of them, steadily starting to smoke.
Heartened by the development, she circled around it... and it tracked her quickly, even through the agony. Turning to face her. Even as it burned, it kept walking after her... raising Matilda, still slowly backing away, keeping a distance from each pipe she aimed at... she fired at each of the others periodically. The armor piercing rounds tore through them, spraying another thick flow of the acid within, coating the Tyrant with more of it. Showering it. By now the acids had begun to burn away what was left of its pants and its boots... and Jill kept firing at the pipes, covering it in more... burning away more of its mass of tentacles. All of the tendrils wrapped around its right arm, save one, were burned off, falling like leeches to the metal floor. It was hurting it... she could tell that... slowing it down, burning it. Giving it at least a measure of the pain it had given to others. Suffering. She took pleasure from that, as she never had before. The agony she gave out. It began to wildly swing, at her, even with the distance between them... one of the swings breaking another pipe and rewarding it with another fresh spray of acid. The absurd sight of it made her laugh, in spite of herself, seizing on to the good feeling like a life preserver.
"Yeah. That's it. Feel the pain. Feel what we feel."
It bellowed back at her hard voice in rage through disintegrating razor teeth and melting flesh, its face burning and melting, twisting in an even more hideous fashion. Washing over its eye and melting it away. And as its concentration was broken by the burning of the acid... most of the tendrils burned away and the rest in agony... she slipped away Matilda and drew her twelve gauge sawed off double barrel shotgun from her sling in one fluent motion. Then she moved towards it with a cold calm of clarity... doing what she wished she could have done before. She would not let the opportunity pass by, now that she had it. This was the end. One way, or another. Ignoring the repugnant scent of not only the Treatment Room, but the burning thing staggering in front of her, she stuck the barrels where its nose should have been, and looked back into what was left of its monstrous, malignant eye. Pressing them harder against its burnt, smoking flesh, twisting them. Nodding at it, feeling a cold, satisfied smile touch her lips as her heart pounded in her ears.
"S.T.A.R.S.!"
"Got something on your face."
With a simple squeeze of her finger, she fed it both barrels. The shotgun erupted at point blank range, the boom of the two twelve gauge shells more deafening than the sirens... blowing its massive head apart into wet, pulpy pieces in an instant. Spraying around the floor of the Treatment Room. Her ears ringing. The recoil helping push Jill back a bit... grimacing as it hurt her arms. She stepped backwards quickly at once... needing a moment from the shock to realize what she had accomplished... before her sore face breaking out into a triumphant smile... watching the mighty, titanic being remain standing still for a moment like a statue. Waiting for its body to realize it was dead, and to collapse. But it did no such thing. The triumph she felt in her heart was so brief, she wondered if it had been real. She heard a sickening sound from within it... like gurgling... muffled snapping... and its great body began to twitch and ripple. Convulse. Something emerged from its neck... bursting forth, spraying a geyser of the Tyrant's fluids... another long, stained, purple tendril... but this one was different from the others.
For one thing... it was thicker... and towards the end it shaped into a more bulbous, yellowed form... not unlike an exposed, grotesquely hued diseased brain cavity. One that had a grinning, jagged maw of razor teeth, as the head had... and a pair of deep, slit-like sickly yellow eyes... narrowed and watching her. Taut purple veins visible all over it, pulsating... the head of the snake... with snakes for hair, absurdly reminding her of Medusa. Perhaps a dozen smaller but long tendrils protruded from the back of it and beneath it, and rose around it, moving about as an octopus's arms might stream behind it as it swim through the ocean. The tendrils and head kept shifting about, never staying still, jaws snapping... and the Pursuer's monolith of a body beneath it kept twitching... turning around in her direction to face her again. Still seeing her, without its head. She saw the Nemesis Parasite itself... the thing that had been wearing the Tyrant all along... and it hissed and gnashed its teeth, bile fluids flowing from its opening maw, exposing the tongue within it. Still seeing her... recognizing her... through intelligent... evil eyes. Hate. It hated her more than something or someone could hate. It only existed now to hate her. It had been made to... and she had helped it along the journey. Taught it. As it had shown her to hate it more than she ever had anything else. More than Umbrella. Jill felt her jaw drop, her grip tightening on the double barrel... its own jaw opening as well, copying her. When it spoke to her, it did not speak any longer with a low, dead rumble like before... but a rasping, venomous hiss, salivating as it did so.
"S.T.A.R.S.!"
"Holy fuck..."
"Two minutes left! Face to face at last! Not what you were expecting? The Nemesis Alpha Parasite is not nearly as handsome a face of death as your precious Grim Reaper!"
Nikolai's icy voice did the opposite of what it intended... it brought her back from her shock, instead of distracting her. The thing began to bear down on her again, its titanic, bare feet thundering over the metal floor. In a flurry she reloaded the double barrel and unloaded on it again. The great twin blasts caught it in the midsection, knocking it back a few steps. Enough for her to reload and aim at the coiling, thick parasite... or part of it at least, protruding through the hole where the head had been. It snapped back out of sight into the neck cavity as she fired, along with its smaller tendrils... missing it... its titanic form going still... before the parasite peeked out again, continuing to move towards her. Swearing, she slung the double barrel and drew Matilda again, trying to hit the Nemesis Parasite... but it kept weaving around her shots, or slipping back out of sight, or raising the Tyrant's massive arms and giant clawed hand in front of itself as a mobile shield, the rounds not making it through to the other side. Fresh, purple fluids spilling freely down its limbs. She was able to slow it that way... but couldn't do anything else about it. She alternated between shooting its husk of a body, and at the parasite... but it wasn't enough. There was nothing left that would be, time was running out and even a decapitation had not made it relent.
"One minute left! Parting is such sweet sorrow... but all good things must come to an end. Dosvidanya, Officer Valentine. Corporal."
He was right... it was over. It had to be. One minute to her death. There was so much she knew she wanted... needed... to say, or do... but she couldn't. There wasn't enough time left. Maybe there never had been for any of it already. Everything and everyone she had known would be lost to her, and her to them. Everything she could have and should have done impossible, now... all the faces returning to her. Reminding her of her guilt. All she could do was look over to him in the window of the door... watching her die... helpless to save her. All she could do was activate her radio... and speak to him between gunshots at the Nemesis. In a defeated voice she'd never imagined would be her own. Feeling a swelling in her throat... burning insides... grief. Tears were forming again. And a pain beyond any of the others. Hollowness. Fear.
"HUNK... I... I'm sorry... just leave. Don't watch this happen... don't listen to it. Or to him. This isn't your fault. Remember me in that courtyard... not like this. Please... tell my father I'm sorry. I shouldn't have held a grudge for so long... should have visited him. Now turn around and get out of here. Live. You need to... I l-..."
Jill broke off painfully, then, unable to help herself, and didn't hear him speak... or Nikolai. She considered the six explosive darts on her bandolier... the impulse came to her to use them. To set one off and blow the Nemesis up with her in the chain reaction of all six going off. So she wouldn't have to feel the acids washing over her flesh, when she tumbled down below. Her trembling hand reached for one on the belt, ready to activate it... breathing rapidly... but before she could use one, set them all off and take the thing with her, she heard a whooping laugh of triumph and excitement, then, from across the chamber. Echoing over the blaring sirens and sounds of the Nemesis Parasite. Cutting her off from the suicidal action... and restoring her hope in an instantaneous rush.
"I'VE GOT THE KEYCARD JILL! LET'S GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!"
Jill's head snapped over to him, to find him standing over a rotting corpse of a researcher in a lab coat. He held the red keycard high over his head victoriously, glinting in the light, and burst with all he had across the chamber and to the containment door HUNK stood behind. He swiped the card over the panel, and it was recognized at once. Jill watched as the red light over the door turned green, beeped, and began to unlock and unseal. Perhaps not... perhaps not yet. Not an end... but near it. The seconds on the panel ticked away, the better part of the minute elapsed. At the same time, Carlos brought his assault rifle to his shoulder and took aim past her and to the pursuing, headless, flailing Tyrant. Opening fire on it, a barrage of rounds striking it... tearing open its acid burned flesh, opening wounds all over its great body, the purple fluid pouring freely. He emptied the entire magazine into the Pursuer, and then he reached for a familiar blue tinted grenade shell with a small device attached to it within his backpack, withdrew it and slid open the under barrel of his grenade launcher. While he loaded the grenade, the door finally opened automatically, revealing a familiar tall, blood and grime stained dark figure and glinting, reflective red lenses, one cracked and the other intact. A dark gloved hand rising and beckoning to her. That voice she had fallen for shouting to her.
"Move it Valentine! Now! Get clear!"
"S.T.A.R.S.!"
Jill raced away from the Tyrant and towards him with all she had, towards the door... and while she did, Carlos locked and loaded the grenade and took aim again. He squeezed down on the trigger of the grenade launcher, the round thumping out the end of the barrel as it flew past her. It struck the Tyrant just behind her... but there was no explosion... she heard a breaking sound and a hissing of gas... and felt a coldness at her back, filling the air behind her, and nearing the door she looked back to the Tyrant while Carlos retrieved a second blue shell and fired it at the Tyrant. A thick cryogenic coolant, a glowing blue sludge had coated its giant legs, a cool mist rising from them, freezing them solid, ice overtaking them while it slowed down, still trying to move. Slowly taking another step, and locking into place, its maw hissing with rage.
A familiar red laser sight flashed into existence, aiming at one of its knees... and she heard the muffled rapport of her Samurai Edge. The round tore through its frozen leg, shattering it off the rest of the bulk... breaking it to pieces... the red laser sight moved to the other frozen knee and the Samurai Edge's silencer fired again... the Nemesis collapsed to the floor just behind her. The weight and momentum of the collapse broke off the other frozen leg at the knee, the limb shattering to pieces when it struck the metal floor... but the headless, legless, tendril covered torso reacted at once. Digging its claw into the metal floor, sparks flying as metal scraped, it pulled itself along after her... after them at the doorway. Pulling itself faster than something like it... in its condition, had any right to. It still saw them through the protruding parasite... smelled them determinedly. Its remaining tendrils dug into the floor and debris as well, helping pull it forward... crawling limply like a spider with several severed legs. Its yellow eyes gleaming and maw of teeth gnashing ravenously, salivating with hunger and fury.
If she still had her tongue, the sight would make her scream...another image to take to her nightmares.
As one of its back tendrils rose in the air like a snake and looked to her... it lunged forward at her again. Before she could dodge it, she felt his arm fasten around her smaller body and pull her out of the chamber, back into the passageway. With a deep grunt of exertion, Carlos slammed the heavy metal door shut with both hands against its tendril the second she was through, severing it in the doorway, as the door automatically locked and sealed up again. HUNK aimed her silenced Samurai Edge at the squirming, writhing, oozing tendril the size of a large snake and opened fire on it... putting an most of a magazine into it... reducing the purple thing to organic paste on the bullet ridden floor, sparks flying. In the end it stopped squirming, laying in a puddle of putrid purple ooze... and HUNK lowered the smoking silenced gun. The timer on the panel hit zero, and the process within the Treatment Room commenced. The three of them looked through the window, watching the two doors in the floor separate... and the piles of metal and corpses beginning to slide down a ramp out of sight into the pit far below.
She caught sight of the Nemesis once more... sliding down with the corpses as well, tendrils still whipping about... helpless... for everything else it had done. Could do. It tried to snare on to something, anything, to remain where it was... but the floor beneath it was sleek, and it slipped. The Nemesis Parasite burrowed back away deep within what was left of the Tyrant host's body... and its body vanished beyond her view... and she imagined it dropping down into the Treatment Pool below... the acids dissolving it steadily, turning the acid liquid murky and purple. It was an image she held on to. One she felt hope for. But... it was another thing entirely she held on to for comfort. Looking back over she met his red lenses again... and dared to breath... seeing her exhausted, bruised, pale face... and somehow she smiled at him. She was alive... they were alive. Still holding Matilda, she wrapped both her arms around his body and drew in against him. Holding him as tight as she could, breathing into him... feeling his arms encircle her again... one hand rubbing her back with more gentleness than one could expect from him. Though a gentleness she was becoming familiar with. Strong... and gentle. The best of both worlds.
"It's ok, Jill.", His muffled, low tone murmured comfortingly in her ear, holding her closer. "I knew you could do it."
"That makes... one of us... at least..."
"We're almost there. It's almost over. We will get out of here. I promised you that."
"And I still believe you."
She looked up into his lenses again, and couldn't hide her smile... he nodded in kind. She looked over to find Carlos leaned over against the wall, breathing heavily... closing his eyes, the rifle down at his side limply. Trying to recover from what had transpired. His eyes opened again once he had relaxed, looking back between the two of them. Somehow, he flashed them a thumbs up, and an exhausted but satisfied smile. He looked down at his rifle, ejecting the spent magazine and producing another one, slapping it into place and securing it. But didn't say a word. None of them did, for a long moment. What could be said? About any of it? What the three of them had just seen? Endured? Somehow, in spite of it all... it was a peaceful silence... until someone else had to break it. Clapping... emanating from the intercom on the panel drew their attention its way.
"Congratulations, lady and gentleman... I hadn't expected that performance. Well done.", Nikolai laughed coldly over his slow, sarcastic applause. There was something like amusement and anger mixed together in his voice, despite what he said. And she knew he was disappointed, in spite of his false praise. "And they didn't even have you, Death. Maybe they never needed you all along to survive this far. More likely, they would have been better off without you. I might have left them alone."
"We're coming up there to get you, asshole.", Jill heard her hollow, calm voice inform him... her jaw tightening, with her gloved hand on HUNK's armor. She didn't really feel the stinging of her burned hand... not then, in the steady fire she felt in her heart and mind. The anger. "I hope you're ready."
"More prepared than you, Officer Valentine. How did it feel to glimpse your true foe's face? Preferred it the other way? Not knowing what lie within? Certainly makes me appear the lesser of two evils now, does it not?"
"No. It doesn't. You're as bad as it. Unlike you... that thing was always more honest about what it was. And it was made to kill me. You're trying to kill us for your own sick amusement."
"Are you certain? It looked pretty amused to me, with that grin. And I have my reasons... the amusement is merely a welcome bonus. Alas, I just wish we had more time... but it is very nearly the end. Still, no reason we can't have a little more fun before morning. Come to the Control and Communications Tower, then, and we shall resume this conversation there. Don't go keeping me waiting, now. I have been waiting for this moment, since first-..."
A sudden roar of a rifle cut him off, making Jill recoil back a bit against HUNK. They watched on as Carlos fired a couple bursts into the door panel, destroying the intercom in a small explosion of sparks and metal. Smoke pouring off the broken machine as he lowered his rifle again. Both Jill and HUNK looked over to the satisfied expression on the Corporal's face, and he merely shrugged, quite unapologetic.
"What? Learned it from you, Jill. You both wanted to do that too. No sense denying it. Had it with his Bond villain monologues."
"Likewise.", The U.S.S. Agent answered at last... voice dry through the mask. Drawing a low, muffled breath. "Imagine he has a few more prepared for us."
"Come on... let's go get that son of a bitch, then. Shut him the hell up already. For good. Wish we could give him the cleansing spa treatment like that giant bastard... but we'll come up with something. Plenty of him to go around for the three of us. Then we get the fuck out of here. End of the road, people. It's in sight. Unless a few more pleasant surprises are waiting. Always seem to be."
"Don't jinx us, Carlos. Last thing we need."
"Heh. Looked at us lately, Supercop? Figure we were already jinxed a long time ago, by now."
Carlos looked between them with a weary, wry expression and nod, and strolled past them, away from the panel and containment door, back into the passageway. He made his way around the soldier's still dripping remains above on the ceiling, glancing at them grimly... and continued on down to the far door. Jill and HUNK paused for a moment, looking to each other... but nothing needed to be said. They knew what must come next... and what needed to be done. Keeping her arm around him, helping support each other, they left the containment door and panel as well, following after Carlos. Jill paused for a moment at the remains of the soldier... breathing quietly. Silently thanking him. One more person the city had claimed. One more name. A name she'd never even gotten to know. Still... he had mattered. His life had had meaning. And if he hadn't given them the system disc... hadn't stood down... their advance could not be possible. She would remember him... it was all she could do. Looking back to HUNK, she held him tighter, and felt his own grip in return. Together, they moved around the puddle of blood, shell casings and severed arm... and she willed herself not to look back.
At last, passing over the corpses along the way, the cables strewn on the floor, they left the passageway and Treatment Room behind. Physically... if not mentally. Just as she wouldn't forget the soldier... she knew would never forget what had happened in both rooms. In her mind's eye... all she saw was that grinning blood stained face in the air duct... and the grinning intelligent parasite emerging from its living husk of a Tyrant. She wondered where the Nemesis Parasite began... and the Tyrant ended. Two beings in one... or one and the same? She also didn't want to know. And in spite of the warmth from HUNK's touch, the comfort... the prospect of escape on the horizon... she felt a chill settle over her insides. Somehow she wasn't numb yet... even after all she'd endured. It all came back... the pain of the physical and the mental. Still... he supported her... and she supported him. While Carlos covered them. It was enough to keep her going, when she wanted to do nothing more than sit down and curl up in a ball. To try to forget everything. But there was no time for that now. Not yet. There was a chance... a helicopter... freedom. And one more obstacle between them and it.
The seemingly unending night was not yet over.
No, not yet... but getting there ;). Stick around.
