Chapter 3: Hell's Gates Open
I don't own anything. Resident Evil belongs to Capcom and Tomb Raider belongs to Core Design, Crystal Dynamics, and I think Square Enix. The only thing I own is the changes made to the stories of the Tomb Raider games/comics and Resident Evil games/comics/CG movies, the person that has taken over Kathrine Warren's life, and Rose Warren. This story also will be bloody, violent, and have cursing. It's rated T for Teen.
Country: America, State: Pennsylvania, City: Raccoon City, Place: Ennerdale Street, Area: Birkin Residence, Month: September, Day: Wednesday 23rd, Year: 1998, Time: 7:32 PM…
Kat finished putting a survival backpack together for Sherry. It had all the same things as Rose but Sherry's stuffy was a calico cat. She took some of the PowerBar's and fruit snacks from Rose's pack. Kat had checked Sherry's kitchen as the girls watched TV on a low volume. There really wasn't much Kat could make that didn't require water to cook it. So, she ended up throwing together a small quick meal of toasted PB and J Sandwiches. They ate as much as their stomachs could hold; knowing that the only things they would end up eating later would be the fruit snacks and energy bars. Kat knew some of the safe places she marked were restaurants so maybe then, they would eat something better, but she stressed to both Rose and Sherry that if they were thirsty to drink from their water bottles in their backpacks, and do not drink any tap water.
With Sherry's pack all together, Kat checked the time. It was getting dark, meaning it was time to move. She walked over to see the News was talking about the amount of people going to the hospitals and that there seemed to be a bad flu going around. Kat almost snorted at that. That was more than likely the lie Umbrella was feeding them. She walked over, turned off the TV, and handed Sherry her blue backpack.
"Time to go, girls. Ready?" Kat asked them both.
Sherry and Rose both nodded. Sherry hadn't changed from her school uniform, mainly because she could still move around quickly in it; it was a t-shirt and shorts. She however did change her shoes to a pair of old boots. Once they had their packs on, they all walked to the door. Kat unlocked it and peered through the window. No one was close by. Good. She opened the door and slipped out with Rose and Sherry. She kneeled down, keeping vigilant.
"Okay, Rose, do you want me to carry you again?" Kat asked as she looked around.
Rose nodded. "I'm too short to run fast."
Sherry nodded. "I can run."
"Okay, Rose, do what I told you before. You'll be Sherry's and my eyes behind us." Kat said. "Sherry, you stay as close to me as you can. If either of you see anyone who looks remotely sick or zombie like, let me know and stay away from them." Kat pulled out her map to double check the first safe location that was closest.
That location was the Police station, but Kat didn't want to head there yet. There was Jack's bar, but it was still up and running. That left her with the roof of the Apple Inn. After all, she had her weapons on and she more than likely wouldn't be allowed inside with them.
Country: America, State: Pennsylvania, City: Raccoon City, Place: Jack Street, Area: Apple Inn, Month: September, Day: Wednesday 23rd, Year: 1998, Time: 8:04 PM…
Once on the roof, Kat was genuinely shocked to find a typewriter and Item box. She opened the item box and pulled out the blankets for herself, Rose, and Sherry. Then she walked to the typewriter and wrote another entry.
September 23rd, 1998
We've got Sherry. She has her locket. The question is; is it a key or hold a dose of G? The Nemesis hasn't arrived yet for Jill. But that doesn't happen for a few days yet. Things are going well so far. I'm hoping that I'm not jinxing any luck the girls' and I have. Fingers crossed.
Kat nodded as she hit the slide (Seeing that her old one was there, never mind it was a different typewriter) and looked to Sherry and Rose. "Would you two like to write an Entry?"
Sherry smiled a bit, nodded, and walked over, typing her own. Then Rose did it after Sherry hit the slide.
So…I haven't done this before. So…I'm going to treat it like a letter.
Dear…Kat
I'm really scared. But not really for me. I mean yeah I'm scared for me, but I'm more scared for Daddy and Mommy. I haven't heard mommy sound so scared before and…She didn't tell me about what happened to Daddy or if he's okay.
I know none of you got along, but they're my parents. I can't not be worried about them.
Sherry.
Sep, 23.
Mommy and I are with Sherry. I'm glad we're all together. But why are people…No. Mommy told me. Something that Umbrella did. It made people turn into monsters. It's like seeing the horror movie Sherry and I sneakily watched when Mommy didn't know we were awake still. It had zombies in it. But these are real. They smell awful, they are loud, and they are very hungry.
I know they are. They sound hungry. And they looked dead and hungry. It makes me NOT hungry…
Once they were done, Kat bundled Rose and Sherry in their thick blankets and settled down to keep watch.
Country: America, State: Pennsylvania, City: Raccoon City, Place: Jack Street, Area: Apple Inn, Month: September, Day: Thursday 24th, Year: 1998, Time: 6:19 PM…
Kat finished tucking the blankets into the Item box and then she and the girls left the roof of the Apple Inn. They stuck to Rooftops as much as posable as they moved to Jack's Bar. The roof of the place would be safe for a few hours at least. Sherry and Rose enjoyed how Kat was getting them there. A rope arrow and then having both girls hold on to her as she used her climbing axe to zip line down to the roof.
The darkness around them and their small group's mostly dark clothing helping to keep them hidden. Kat however overestimated when the Zombies would hit Jack's Bar. No more than four minutes after getting ready to camp out again, Sherry yelped from her spot at the edge of the roof. Kat rushed over; Bow drawn with a ready arrow. Below surrounding the bar and grill was a small horde. They were trying to get in and the smell was all too familiar to Kat. She could hear yells and running from inside. Hell, Kat could hear the shouts and screams from it seemed the entire city.
"We have to go. Now!" Kat said switching to a rope arrow and taking aim at the fire escape across the street.
"Okay!" Sherry and Rose nodded; both had started shaking looking at the undead below them in horror and shock.
They were nothing like the movies. They moaned and groaned with the pain of hunger, frustration, and maybe even the pain of rotting as they moved. The smell was like fifty bodies of roadkill and fruit tossed into a blender and then left out in the sun at the height of summer. They looked like people, but they had missing skin, hair, fingers, had blood staining their hands and faces. Kat loosed her arrow, and it sank into the brick wall on the other side. She then tied off the rope on a fence to prevent accidental falls. She snapped her bow to her quiver then pulled out her axe. Just as she got it on her rope line and her girls moved to grab her arms, the door to the roof behind them burst open.
Kat's eyes widened as she thought for a moment that it was the zombies, but instead it was a waitress from the bar, a cop, two security guards, a railway employee, a reporter, a college student, and a plumber. Kat relaxed a bit, as they, all grouped together and shoved the door closed. That is when Kat recognized the cop. Officer Kevin Ryman with the RPD, applicant for S.T.A.R.S.. When he saw her his eyes widened. They knew each other because he asked Kat out once. They didn't click but they became acquaintances, the kind that can go to each other for advice. The most recent of the advice visits had been Kat convincing him to pay off his bar tab for a better look on his record for his application for S.T.A.R.S.
"Kat?" He asked as he approached her at the edge of the roof. He had never seen her geared up like she was. She looked like someone out of an Action Movie. And was that a gun strapped to her leg?
"Kevin…" Kat nodded then looked at her rope line, before backing up and putting her axe back. If Kevin and his group had gotten up there, they had to have barred the way behind them properly. They had time for a short chat. "Hell opened up, eh?" She joked.
"Yeah. It sure did." He smiled then looked to his group, seeing Mark with Bob off to the side. "What are you doing here? It's too dangerous for kids." He added nodding to Sherry and Rose, both of whom had ducked behind Kat nervous and scared of the zombies below.
"Daddy dearest abandoned Rose and I at the station. I didn't want to leave Sherry alone, so we went and got her. We're taking the long way back." Kat informed as she looked to her rope line. "It's not safe here anymore so we're going to get going. Sticking to roof tops and side alleys as much as possible."
"No, what you should do is what we'll be doing. Getting the hell out of this freak show." Kevin stated.
"Sorry. I can't leave. Last time I talked to Claire she said she was on her way here from New York." Kat told him. "Until she gets to the station, the three of us aren't leaving. I survived Yamatai. I can keep them safe." She assured him as she rested a hand on each of the girls lightly.
Kevin moved to speak when a gunshot went off, making Sherry and Rose scream. Kat pulled her revolver and took aim, only to see that Bob had shot himself. Kat spun and pulled Rose and Sherry close, making sure they didn't look. As many of the horrors as the two would see, a suicide was one Kat wanted to shield them from. They heard the sound of the door to the bar rattle as Mark yelled his friend's name.
Kevin drew his pistol and looked to his group. "We have to get moving. We can't stay here. The Inn is just a few blocks away." He looked to Kat as she stood and put her axe to her line. "Kat, you sure you don't want to come with us?" He offered.
"Yeah, Kevin. I am." She paused as Sherry and Rose grabbed a hold of her. "And careful at the Inn. I heard the boiler isn't stable."
He nodded. "Thanks for the warning. Good luck." As he turned, he got a look at her eyes in the fading light and there was something there that sent a chill down his spine. God help anyone that got to close to her or those girls. The look was one of a calm resolve to do whatever it takes.
"You too. We're all gonna need it." Kat said, frowning at how that seemed to become her general response.
She then jumped off the roof, slid down the line to the fire escape, and turned around. She smiled as Kevin untied the rope and let her pull it back to conserve the resource.
Country: America, State: Pennsylvania, City: Raccoon City, Place: Fisson Street, Area: Warehouse Office, Month: September, Day: Friday 25th, Year: 1998, Time: 9:52 PM…
September 25th, 1998
I remember when I played or watched play through of the games, vaguely. What I do remember is that you just had to click start and it would be when Jill was in leaving her apartment or in it. Click start and you were Leon in the city or Claire at Emmy's or both at the Gas Station. Makes me kinda wish I had a skip button to just pass the hard-long days and nights.
But at the same time…I'm glad it's going slow. I can keep track of what's going on and when. But we're getting there. Just have to be careful around the Station. I don't know when or where Irons is.
Dear Kat
I'm not sure what to write. Not much has happened. Just a few close calls. But…I'm not sure if waiting for Claire and this Leon guy is a good idea. I understand that Claire is like a sister to you. But what if something happens before they get here? And how do you know we can trust this Leon you keep mentioning? Do you know him? Are you two together? Who is he and how can we trust him if he's a stranger? You said he's a cop, but you don't trust Irons.
I'm sorry about how worried I am. I don't want to sound like I'm complaining.
Sherry.
Sep 25.
I know that we'll get out of this bad dream on 30…But it's taking so long for that day or night to get here. Can't we just, what was it that guy did on TV, with the car and wires? Can't we just do that and drive out? I…I wanna sleep in a bed with lots of blankets. I never thought I'd say this, but I want to eat something other than sweets and drink something other than water. I want hot coco and meatballs.
Kat listened to the small radio and heard about how bad things were getting as Rose hit the slide on the typewriter. The whole thing was being called a flu crisis with riots in the streets. The US had sent a few choppers for evac, but a lot were going down due to passengers turning on them. She sighed as she pulled out her phone and tried to call Claire. Nothing. It wouldn't go through. She tried to call Lara and got the same result. So that meant all outside communication was cut off unless you had military grade gear and was cleared by the government or Umbrella. She dialed Jill as Rose and Sherry settled in their blankets for the day.
The call connected. "Jill?"
"Kathrine, are you okay?" Jill asked sounding worried.
"For now." Kat assured. "I've got Sherry. She, Rose and I are taking the long way to the Police Station." She looked to the girls then the door they had blocked. "And we're bunkering down for the day."
"God…I would tell you to get over to my place…" Jill began but let it hang.
"Nemesis will be after you on the 28th. We could stay there until the 27th." Kat said thinking about it.
Jill sighed with relief. "Good. Yes! Get over here as soon as you can. I don't have much food but you three have to want something other then what you've been eating."
"Shark bites and PB PowerBar's." Kat told her. "We'll see you tomorrow."
Country: America, State: Pennsylvania, City: Raccoon City, Place: Uptown, Area: Jill's Apartment, Month: September, Day: Friday 26th, Year: 1998, Time: 7:52 PM…
At the knocking on her window, Jill frowned until she got to it and gapped. There hanging on a rope line with one hand and an embedded climbing axe in the brick around the window with the other, was Kat. Hanging onto her neck was Sherry and Rose. Jill was quick to open her window and helped the girls in first then Kat.
"You are insane!" Jill told her as she closed the window.
"Hey, I told you we're trying to stick to roof tops." Kat shrugged then hugged Jill. "How are you doing?"
Jill sighed hugging the younger adult. "Okay. It's getting crazier out there."
"Have you done any supply runs?" Kat asked her as they pulled apart.
"No, I've stayed in my apartment mostly." Jill said then looked to Sherry and Rose. "Are you two hungry?"
Both nodded.
"Okay, I don't have much, but let's take a look." Jill smiled as they walked to her small kitchen.
Kat was quick to tell Jill that if anything needed water to cook, they shouldn't make it since the tap water was where T was. Jill nodded and they settled to making cheese, turkey, and lettuce sandwiches. Jill had a large bottle of Root Beer for them all to drink. Kat laughed a bit as they worked, and Jill gave her a look that said, 'I get it but please don't laugh'. After eating and tucking Rose and Sherry into Jill's bed, Jill and Kat stood by Jill's wall of investigation.
"So, you've got proof of Irons and your father's dealings with Umbrella?" Jill asked quietly.
Kat nodded as she glared at a picture of Irons. "Yeah. Turns out most of the money that funded the expedition for Yamatai was from Umbrella bribes, not the typical politician shit." She took a breath. "I don't know how much of the house, things in it or my college education was paid for with blood money." She shook her head. "But I've got a thicker file on Irons." She looked to Jill. "If he hurts anyone close to me physically, touches anyone in my group, or comes after me, he's dead, Jill." Jill turned to her opening her mouth but was stopped as Kat continued. "Chris already tried to talk me out of it, Jill. But as the time got closer, as the evidence kept mounting, and then all this started…" Kat looked down her face softening. "Things are starting to play out like one of the timelines I know. He takes Sherry from Claire. He hit Claire and then terrorized Sherry in that timeline." She looked to the image again. "Jill, I can't stand it."
Jill sighed. "I'm not telling you to not hurt him." She began. "But maybe incapacitate him. You said he's deranged now, don't fall to his level." She put a hand on Kat's shoulder getting her to look at her. "Please, Kat, once you kill someone you hate, you feel worse."
Kat looked down. "Jill…I told you what I did on Yamatai…"
"This is different. Irons is alive and crazy. Himiko was an angry spirit." Jill reminded her. "Don't kill him, unless you truly don't have a choice."
Kat took a breath and let it out. "Only as a last resort." She agreed. "Death would be too good for him." She muttered softly.
Jill nodded, but something in Kat's eyes said that Kat did not truly believe her own words. There was something about the look of Kat, her posture, or just that she was fiercely protective of her girls, but she looked like a Warrior about to go to battle. "When did you sleep last?" She asked, changing the subject.
Kat closed her eyes looking more tried then before. "You could say I'm so paranoid about the timelines that I haven't gotten much." She admitted. "I'm getting maybe two or three hours of sleep."
Jill shook her head. She was about to tell her she needed more than that but then remembered how little she was sleeping. That Kat had not gotten much sleep on Yamatai from what she had described. Kat was more than likely used to the uneven sleep schedule. Nevertheless, it was not healthy. "Today then, you get a full eight hours. I'll keep watch for you. Just tell me who to keep an eye out for."
Kat looked to Jill. "I can't ask you to do that, Jill. U.S.S. Delta Team wasn't after you in the timelines." She paused remembering for the first time who Wolfpack was after. "They will be after, Claire, Leon, and Sherry. That means they'll be after Rose and I too."
Jill frowned. "Who's U.S.S.?"
"Umbrella Security Service. They are sent in to get rid of evidence, get samples, or kill witnesses." Kat explained. "They are well trained and have tech that is out of science fiction."
"So…they won't be after me…" Jill asked letting her question hang.
"Umbrella sent the Nemesis after you. They have full faith in it." Kat told her. "But every cop is on their list. Claire is Chris's sister, so they want her dead. And then Sherry…" Kat stopped and looked down feeling a pain in her chest. "Sherry got infected with the G-virus and then cured with odd G side effects. They want her for her G antibodies." Kat looked up at the wall seeing an image of Annette. "They'll want me dead because of my closeness with different S.T.A.R.S. members or because I'd be a survivor…it'll be the same for Rose…or they'll want her as a test subject because of how young she is."
Jill looked horrified with this information. She looked to the two girls sleeping. The idea of children going through this and possibly going through what Kat had described was hard to think about. "Why do you think that Rose would be turned into an experiment?" She asked looking to Kat seeing her pained expression.
"That's what happened to the children of the orphanage." Kat said and was thrown back to when she was fifteen and pregnant. "That's what I was terrified of all throughout my pregnancy, through school. I was scared dad would one day just decide I couldn't care for Rose and take her there."
Jill sensed the emotional tone in Kat's voice, the quiver in her tone. She pulled Kat close as the young woman struggled to rain her emotions back in. "It's not gonna happen." Jill told her. "It won't." She assured firmly as Kat broke in Jill's arms. The fierceness she saw moments ago was gone and all that was here now was a mother that was scared for her baby.
Country: America, State: Pennsylvania, City: Raccoon City, Place: Uptown, Area: Jill's Apartment, Month: September, Day: Sunday 27th, Year: 1998, Time: 8:58 PM…
Jill jolted awake from yet another nightmare. This time it was her watching as Wesker killed Chris. She looked over to see Kat was already awake and packing up.
"How long have you been up?" Jill asked as she walked over from her desk.
"An hour." Kat told her. "The girls and I have to get moving."
Jill nodded. "I understand. Be careful and stay alive. All of you."
Kat nodded and put on a smile that did not quiet reach her eyes. "Hey, we'll all make it out. Maybe you'll see me working for the US Gov." She joked.
Jill smiled too. She could only hope Kat would make it out.
Country: America, State: Pennsylvania, City: Raccoon City, Place: Ennerdale Street, Area: Near the Raccoon Police Station, Month: September, Day: Sunday 27th, Year: 1998, Time: 9:29 PM…
Kat landed on the street between a pair of buildings. Sherry dropped from her shoulders and looked around nervously. By now, Sherry had a weapon of her own, a knife, but nothing else.
"Okay. We'll walk for a bit." Kat said looking around and spotted why she chose to walk.
A Licker had ducked into a building on the other side of the street. She swallowed. She had only run into and killed zombies for the moment. She had not run into any zombified animals so far or monsters made and sent by Umbrella. They just needed to find a building and wait for the night of the 29th. Kat spotted an alley and pointed at it.
"There's a door in the forked alley. If we get there, we can camp out for a day or two." Kat said as she looked to Rose and Sherry.
"Okay." Both nodded.
"Stay close to me." Kat told them as she drew her crossbow.
Sherry nodded and put Rose between herself and Kat. The three then moved to cross the street. Kat's blue eyes surveyed her surroundings, taking in the broken windows, cars, and litter. The sound of gunfire somewhere in the city was just dull background noise. The smell was just atmosphere. Then she heard it. Growling. She stopped and turned slowly. Three of the Cerberus zombie dogs came out from behind the cars.
"Shit…" Kat breathed as she pushed Sherry and Rose behind her. "Stay behind me." She ordered as she loaded a bolt into her crossbow.
Sherry was frozen, hugging Rose close to her as she shook. Rose whimpered at the sight of the half-rotted dogs. They had once been Dobermans, Rose's favorite dog after Huskies, but now some had ripped ears, exposed muscle and bone, open eye sockets, shiny blood on their mouths. Rose had seen the zombies, grown used to them, but the animals, the dogs…she was sad for them. Innocent animals did not deserve this.
Kat swallowed as she backed up and saw how close the door was to them. "Sherry, take Rose and get to the door. Get inside and lock it. Don't open it for anyone but me."
Sherry startled and looked to Kat. Kat had settled into a fighter's stances, ready for if she needed to move. It was clear to Sherry that if Kat were to fight these dogs, she would have to not worry about her daughter and Sherry. Sherry nodded and looked to the door. As sacred as she was, she knew that Kat had to be more so if she wanted them safe.
"Go. Now." Kat hissed taking aim as one of the dogs as its legs tightened, signaling an attack being primed. Kat tensed as her lips twitched just a bit at the corner in a grim smile of battle about to happen.
"Rose, run to the door!" Sherry yelled and pushed Rose toward the door.
The moment the two started to run, the dog leapt. Kat also pulled the trigger, her aim true. The bolt sank into its head, dropping it as the second ran at her. Rose and Sherry got to the door as Kat shuffle stepped just the right amount to get lined up for the next shot, her body all grace and smooth movement, her reflexes sharp and narrowed to a fine point so she was seeing half a second ahead in time. She ducked the second dog as it leapt and pulled the trigger of a bolt, killing the third that was running at the open door from her crouched position. The body drooped with a whimper as it slid and the door shut, separating Sherry and Rose from danger and Kat.
Kat spun around to duck the remaining dog once again, going to one knee in a kneeling shooters stance. She loaded another bolt and took aim as it landed where she had been. "Say 'ah'." She muttered as she pulled the trigger.
The bolt fired and sank into the mouth of the dog, making it choke before it dropped onto its side, whimpering then falling still. Kat stood from her crouched position whispering softly "Fara sendiferð." She looked at all three dogs sad at what had been done to them. She walked to the door, ignoring the slow zombies and the three bolts left in the dogs. She knocked on the door.
"It's me, girls." She said.
The door opened and Kat quickly slipped in and closed it, grabbing at the Item Box and pushing it in front of the door. She sighed and turned to Rose and Sherry.
"Are you two okay?" She asked them, kneeling to their height.
Sherry nodded. "Yeah. They didn't-didn't get us."
Rose nodded as tears rolled down her cheeks and threw herself around her mom's shoulders. Kat closed her eyes as she hugged her daughter, rubbing her back as she put her crossbow down.
'Gods, why didn't I send Rose to a summer camp out of state? Somewhere far away?' Kat thought, wishing she had tried to think of a way to get her daughter out of the city.
After an hour, Rose passed out from crying and Kat bundled her in a blanket before turning to Sherry.
"Are you sure you're okay?" She asked her.
Sherry nodded. "Ye-yeah…I'm fine." She looked to Rose as Kat started to bundle her up. "Kat…Do you know what happened to my dad?"
Kat bit her lip and nodded slowly. "I do. He's not dead." She assured. "But he's not human anymore either."
Sherry stiffened at that information. "He's not…not a zombie...right?"
Kat shook her head. "No. Not a zombie. He's…gods this is hard to explain…" Kat took a breath as she gripped the side of Sherry's pink blanket. "Your mom and dad work for Umbrella…they make viruses, sweetie. Sometimes cures for them but they make viruses. Your dad was badly hurt and used one of them on himself. It's turned him into a monster." She told her feeling awful that she was telling Sherry this.
Sherry shook. "So…my daddy isn't my dad anymore?"
Kat nodded sadly. She did not like the two doctors, how they neglected Sherry, how Annette had given Sherry something dangerous, but she cared for the girl and hated that this would hurt her to know. "He won't be himself if we run into him."
Sherry felt herself starting to cry and was pulled into Kat's arms. She gently rubbed her back, feeling her hick up as she cried softly. She just held her as she had held Rose. Sherry just had to let it out the worry, stress, terror, and fatigue. After a few minutes, she stopped, and Kat gently guided her to the floor by Rose and covered her up. They both were soon fast asleep. Kat then camped herself between them with her green blanket over her legs, and her rifle in hand.