A Fateful Encounter
By evolution-500
Genres: Horror/Mystery
Feedback: Always welcome
WARNING: This story contains violence, coarse language, mature themes and disturbing imagery. Reader discretion is advised.
Disclaimer: "Resident Evil" is a property belonging to Capcom. I do not own this series nor its characters.
"The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed." - Carl Jung
Romania, 1961
Pale feet squelched on the cold wet grass. As she happily plunged into another shallow puddle, eight year old Lisa Trevor lightly and playfully laughed in delight as she splashed, sending up water into the air and soaking her white and blue dress, relishing the warmth of the spring sun. She was glad that her Mommy and Daddy decided to come here, even if it was because Daddy had business to do here for Mother Miranda and Lady D. Now that winter was finally over, Lisa was now able to go outside and roam around more, for she was eager to see more of this place, of these people.
The people around here were all very nice and friendly, especially Mother Miranda.
The girl smiled as she thought of her.
Mother Miranda was one of Daddy's oldest friends and customers, a very important person in these parts of Romania. While Lisa wasn't certain of how the two of them knew each other, let alone how they met, from what she was able to gather, Mother Miranda and Daddy had a close working relationship; according to her, she had hired him on several other occasions throughout the years for the benefit of the village. What those jobs involved, Lisa had no idea, but regardless of what they were, Mother Miranda and Daddy had always kept in touch, although her Mommy doesn't seem to approve of the friendship, for some reason.
Lisa didn't know why, though, just because she had always thought of Mother Miranda as so warm and kind, so welcoming.
She also liked the other three Lords as well, especially Lady Donna and her doll Angie.
Lisa giggled at the memory of that funny doll and its jokes.
Maybe once she's finished looking around outside she can ask Lady Donna if she could play with Angie again. Besides, other than wait for Daddy to finish making adjustments to Lady Dimetr...Lady Dimetr...Lady D's castle, there wasn't much to do around here. So far, anyway.
As Lisa continued splashing around from puddle to puddle, her curiosity continued to grow the more she explored and visited the various parts of the village, going deeper and deeper into the woods.
This place was like something she had read about in her fairy tales - so old, so mysterious. It was that sense of mystery and adventure that made her want to see and experience more, to see what else this strange and mystical place had in store.
Lisa leapt into another puddle, then another, then another, until she came upon a small shallow stream. Tilting her head at different angles inquisitively, the tiny girl cautiously approached, then dipped her sandal-clad feet in. Her features lighting up, she jumped into the shallow water then hopped back out again with a lighthearted giggle. Looking in both directions, the girl curiously regarded the stream, wondering where it lead to.
According to Mother Miranda, certain places around here were prohi- prohibid- certain places were off bounds from her and her family. She said something about wild animals, which made the girl even more curious.
Was this one of those places?
Lisa scrunched up her brows, her young mind trying to remember. Uncertain, the girl glanced back to the stream, then back to where she came. Turning toward the stream, she stared long and hard.
Could this lead to where the wild animals are?
What kind of animals wandered around here?
Biting her lip, Lisa glanced thoughtfully back from where she came, then shrugged.
What Mommy and Daddy don't know won't hurt them.
Turning ahead, Lisa skipped and hopped along happily, urged on by her growing curiosity.
Humming to herself, the girl glanced around at the looming trees, her eyes wandering. She couldn't help being reminded of Little Red Riding Hood, recalling how the girl in that story encountered the Big Bad Wolf.
Were there wolves here?
A rustle in some bushes followed by a growl made Lisa give pause. Looking in the direction from where it came, Lisa looked around, scanning the trees and shrubs, listening and looking. She waited a minute, then two.
What was that?
She kept still, waiting for whatever it was to come out and identify itself. A minute later, the girl shrugged, then looked away, continuing on in her path.
A little while later, Lisa came upon a river.
Glancing around, she suddenly paused as she noticed a disturbance in the water.
Curious, she ducked down beside some long grass, watching as the disturbance approached the shore, heading toward her.
Rising out from the water was a man. At least, she thinks it's a man. Hunched-back and squamous, his hands had strange webbing between the fingers, reminding her of a frog's. His back, however, was covered with a series of horrifying, angry, swollen, reddish orange pustules, blisters and tumorous growths that made her feel sick from just looking at them. On certain parts of the shoulders and back, she could make out what looked distinctively like...eyes. Large, googly fish-like eyes that stared blankly around.
As the man turned, she saw the rest of his features - thin wisps of hair clung to the sides of a squat, almost Bachtracian head. His eyes were dull and dim-witted sunken pits, his nose unusually short and thick, with wide gaping nostrils. The man, or creature, barely had any sort of chin at all, with a sort of bulbous sack resting underneath it that was all lumpy and awful to look at.
Lisa stared in awe of the frog man as he sat down on the shore, turning to face the river, his shoulders sagging gloomily as he stared down into the water, seemingly lost in thought.
As Lisa got up to approach the strange figure, hoping to comfort him, the man suddenly vomited onto the ground, making the girl recoil and hide back down behind the long grass.
"Oh Mother," the frog man said in a low garbled voice, "why does it hurt so much? Why couldn't I be beautiful like you?"
Lisa watched as the frog man started to groan and double over in pain, holding onto his sides. She watched as one of the pustules on his back burst as a long, flailing cord-like tendril tore free, sending fish-like scales onto the ground. As the figure started to cry out louder, more tendrils started to sprout up, each of them flailing in the air as if they were all waving.
"Oh! Oh God! I...I can't control it..." he groaned as he stumbled, losing his balance. As he fell onto his side, the frog man let out a loud yell as he started to cry and writhe around. "I- I need to get out of here before Mother or someone sees me!"
Lisa watched as the frog man frantically dived back into the water, disappearing into the waves.
"Wait! Mr. Frog Man! Mr. Frog Man!" Lisa waved as she ran out from her hiding place.
Looking around, the girl called out again, but all she saw and heard were the cold dark waves of the river. She scanned carefully for any sign of the frog man, watching and waiting for him to break surface. When he didn't show, the girl exhaled in disappointment, then looked away.
Just as she was about to go back, something glinted on the rocky and sandy shore, drawing her attention. Looking to the spot, Lisa curiously approached the gleaming fish scales that lay on the ground.
Tilting her head from side to side, the girl marveled at the crusted green jewel-like appearance of it. Reaching out with her tiny hand, her fingers brushed against the scales.
"Ewwww," she murmured as she felt the viscous slime-like substance on them.
"LISA!"
Lifting her head up with a startled gasp, Lisa winced as the scales cut into her index finger. "Ow!"
Lifting the finger up for inspection, she saw blood trickle free, then stuck it into her mouth, making a face at the metallic taste on her tongue.
"LISA? LISA!"
Turning to the direction where she heard her mother's voice, Lisa pulled her finger out from her mouth.
"I'M COMING, MOMMY!"
Looking back to the river, Lisa searched for any sign of the mysterious frog man.
He seemed so sad. So lonely.
Maybe next time she should offer him some food - he might like that.
"I hope I see you again, Mr. Frog Man," she spoke to the calm water.
"LISA? LISA!"
Turning back from where she came, the young girl happily darted back.
She couldn't wait to tell her Mom what she saw today!
As Lisa ran back to her mother, unbeknownst to the girl, the fish-like scales started to twitch and pulsate, sprouting tendrils. For three minutes, the Cadou mold parasite wriggled around on the rocky and sandy shore like worms underneath the hot sun, looking around for a viable host. After three minutes of ineffectual struggling and searching, the scales and tendrils stilled their movements, hardening into rock and crumbling into dust, the wind scattering its remains as it picked up, leaving no evidence of its existence.
As Lisa ran back to her mother, the young girl paused in her step. Looking down at the cut on her finger, Lisa rubbed a thumb against it.
"LISA! COME HERE THIS INSTANT!"
Looking up from her finger, Lisa continued back from where she came, leaving behind the dark river and its lonely occupant, continuing on to the spiraling road ahead.
Author's Notes: So, the inspiration for this came from Salvatore Moreau's design. When I saw it, I couldn't help but be struck by the similarities it had with Lisa Trevor's from "REmake". Both were hunchbacked characters that had eyes on parts of their backs and shoulders. Both had tendrils sprouting from those same areas and had similar proportions, with thinning hair. It was then that the idea occurred to me - what if Lisa had been infected with Moreau's Cadou? For a while now, it had been assumed that it was the Nemesis parasite that had been sprouting up from her flesh and what gave Lisa some measure of intelligence. What if Lisa had been unknowingly infected by the mold or by the Cadou without her realizing? There is evidence which suggests that her father George Trevor had worked at Lady Dimetrescu's castle since it has hidden passages and a book written by him called "A Historical look into the Architecture of Eastern European Castles and Keeps" is found on one of her shelves. Granted, it's possible this is just an Easter Egg for RE fans, BUT, by the same token, though, the possibility of Lisa being infected with Cadou/mold in itself has the potential of making Miranda's impact on the RE series as a whole far more consequential and farther-reaching than what it is already.
Of course, these are just fan theories/thoughts.
I hope you like this, everyone.
I want to thank SugarGlazed, BelaDimestrecus, The Goddess Iusaaset and SerendipityAEY for both their kindness and encouragement, and highly recommend that you check out their stories - they are wonderful writers who deserve more readers and attention.
Take care, everyone, and stay safe and healthy. :)