A Star's Descent: Book Two: Star Fall
By evolution-500
Disclaimer: House of the Dead and Resident Evil are properties belonging to SEGA and Capcom respectively. I do not own any of these characters.
WARNING: This story contains violence, course language, mature and disturbing themes and imagery. Reader discretion is advised.
Chapter Thirty-Two: Night Terrors
Wesker pushed up his sunglasses with one hand as he cautiously scanned his surroundings, the Samurai Edge ready in his gloved hands.
Everything was not going to plan, much to his frustration. Not only was the entire system compromised, with him completely locked out, but also the mission itself. He had anticipated potential difficulties, but nothing to this extent. If he didn't get any of the systems working again, attaining the data would be next to impossible, which would mean he would be unable to get what he wanted from the Organization.
Turning a corner down a hallway, Wesker froze as he heard the distinctive sound of chains and shrieks from Lisa Trevor echo.
He scoffed.
Even after all these years, she was still searching for her mother. How pitiful.
Tilting his head, Wesker listened for any signs of activity of that other B.O.W. When he was certain that it was clear, he continued on, his hand grasping firmly onto his Samurai Edge.
He had to admit, whatever it was, it was an impressive and formidable creation. One that offered a compelling enough argument that T models were far more effective combatants when fully armored from head to foot. That being said, however, the sheer cost for developing such a thing, the outfitting and upkeep for every single model alone would have made Spencer's head spin.
Of course, that had been the whole point of T-A.L.O.S., which was to determine whether Tyrants were better utilized with combat armor, but the project itself, as far as Wesker was aware, was far from completion. Unless Spencer had some other off-the-books program that Wesker didn't know about, which was probable, it would seem that someone had beaten him and Sergei to the punch already.
A rare, wry smile crawled up his cleanshaven stoic face as he uttered a low, amused chuckle.
If only he could see their expressions. That was, assuming Spencer had no involvement.
Tilting his head to the side thoughtfully, Wesker pondered his predicament.
Was this all Spencer's doing, if not Sergei's?
Stroking his chin, Wesker clicked his tongue distractedly. He wouldn't put it past the latter to sabotage Wesker's mission. After all, Sergei harbored deep feelings of resentment toward him. Not that it mattered to Wesker - he had no time for such trivial things - but, on the other hand, he doubted the Russian would attempt to sabotage the mission if it meant going against Spencer and his orders. Sergei was many things, but in the end, he was a good dog. Always loyal and faithful to the hand that fed him.
Of course, it was possible that Spencer had some grand, multilayered plan in place that mapped out every possible scenario, move and outcome like some elaborate game of chess, and this fit into one of his scenarios somehow. Spencer was a frustrating and obscure man to read, one that deeply irritated Wesker to no small degree.
Standing still, Wesker quietly contemplated the things he had been seeing, his black sunglasses reflecting the fallen zombie that lay by his feet.
On the other hand, perhaps he was reading too much into Spencer's actions. He also doubted that this was the Organization's doing, just because according to his sources within it, while they may have some bioweapon projects of their own in development, they were far from ready.
So who was this unknown third party?
Wesker stood tall, his face a flat mask of perfect calm while his black sunglasses concealed his eyes as he pondered the various possible suspects that he had in mind. Regardless of who it was, what was certain to him, however, were the complications brought on by these new creatures, by this other party.
If he wasn't careful, Wesker reflected, everything may end up falling apart, resulting in complete and utter failure, something that neither the Organization nor Umbrella would tolerate.
Hearing Lisa's cries in another room, Wesker frowned.
Correction, things have fallen into complete disarray. He needed to find a way to get back in control and salvage what he can.
As the zombie by his feet stirred, Wesker raised his foot, then cruelly stomped down, crushing its head beneath his boot.
While everyone slept, Rebecca quietly scanned through the bestiary, studying its contents for clues, for some sort of hint as to what was going on, anything that would prove useful in helping them escape this place.
For whatever reason, some part of her kept coming back to the Magician; whether it was a gut feeling or intuition, the medic couldn't really say with certainty.
The Magician was the answer, somehow - that much Rebecca was certain of. For some reason. How she knew, she couldn't really say, but something was telling her that the Magician was at the center of all this.
Rebecca stared deeply into the illustrated horned visage, searching its features and its illustrated parts for an answer with all the thoroughness of a scholar.
From the Magician's anatomical drawings, the creature was unlike anything she had ever imagined; according to the diagrams, the Magician's body and skeleton was incredibly elaborate. For one, the skeleton itself was a mixture of steel and titanium, with two spinal columns, while the pelvis was made thicker, thereby allowing greater strength within the lower limbs. The steel horns that adorned its head were curiously referred to as "cranial antennae", which almost made it sound insectoid to the medic. Most of its body, it would seem, was inorganic with the exception of its brain.
Two artificial hearts worked in conjunction with an even larger and more powerful battery "heart" or organ, all of which ran on solar energy.
Rather than being made of sinew and blood vessels, its nervous system consisted of a series of cables, tubes, wire and pneumatic air muscles, its skin synthetic in nature.
Curiously, the creature had no vital organs such as lungs, puzzling Rebecca, making her wonder how the brain would be able to attain oxygen.
That was, assuming the brain needed oxygen, if at all.
The creature additionally lacked a digestive system; if she understood the illustrations correctly, the Magician would be able to sustain itself through strategically-placed solar panels with crystalline, silicon-celled modules on parts of its hands, arms, feet, leg, and shoulder pieces, thereby granting it an indefinite supply of solar energy.
However, if it failed to find a suitable light source or source of energy to sustain itself, Rebecca learned, the Magician's body would then have to rely on an auxiliary power supply unit that it had stored in its battery, which would only give it a few hours' worth of energy before ultimately shutting the creature down.
Staring at the pages, Rebecca read it over again, then read a third time. Blinking several times, the medic looked up and felt a smile form.
If the information within was correct...then it meant that they just might have a chance after all! There just might be a way to deal with this creature!
But...wait.
Looking over the diagrams, Rebecca carefully studied them, then lowered the manuscript, her brow wrinkled in confusion.
How was it possible for Umbrella to develop something this advanced?
As Rebecca's brows furrowed in complete confusion, she saw the light flicker and heard her radio crackling.
Blinking, Rebecca raised up the latter.
"...Hello?" she said in a tiny voice.
"...Rebecca?"
Rebecca let out a gasp as she heard her mother's voice, almost dropping the radio.
"Rebecca is that you? Where are you?"
Shaking, the medic pressed the receiver. "M-Mom? Mom, can you hear me?"
"Rebecca, thank God!"
"W-where- how-" Rebecca stammered, her mind a confused whirlwind that struggled to catch up with what's happening. As she opened her mouth to speak, she froze.
"Rebecca? Rebecca are you still there?"
'She's not my mother,' Rebecca tried telling herself. She's not-
"Rebecca, please say something! Where are you, Kitty Kat?" her "mother" pled in a weepy voice. "Please! Please say something! Are you alright?! Please, Rebecca! If you can hear me, please say something, you're scaring me!"
Rebecca's arms trembled as she refrained from answering, shutting her eyes closed as the voice pleaded for her, causing tears to form in the medic's eyes.
"Rebecca! Rebecca?! Where are you?!"
"SHUT UP, YOU STUPID WHORE!"
Gasping, Rebecca dropped the radio to the floor as she heard her father's voice from the other end, the shout followed by the sound of something being struck along with a woman's cry of pain.
"MOM!" she yelled as she got up from her chair and picked up the radio, flinching as she heard more strikes.
"Useless bitch!" she heard her father say. "Fucking slut! You're a whore like your good-for-nothing daughter!"
More and more vile filth spilled out from that hateful mouth. More and more Rebecca shook and quaked, too terrified to even move, the girl flinching at every strike and blow she heard.
Rebecca tried to tell herself that what she was hearing wasn't real, that it was a horrible nightmare or illusion, but every cry from her mother tore at her heart, making her tear up in sheer agony.
She didn't know what to do - she had no idea where to look.
Pressing into the receiver, Rebecca screamed into the receiver, "STOP IT! STOP HURTING HER! MOM! MOM GET OUT OF THERE! MOM!"
No matter how loud she cried, the medic heard the strikes and shouts from her parents, the sounds assaulting her.
It was only when her mother stopped screaming that the blows ceased entirely, causing Rebecca to tremble and shake.
"M-mom?" she whimpered into the speaker. "M-mom are you there?"
The radio crackled.
Swallowing, Rebecca tried again. "M-Mom, are you there? Please...please say something!" As the radio hissed in her hands, a shaky sob escaped her lips. "Momma? Mom? MOM!"
Leaning forward, Rebecca sobbed quietly in her seat, the forms of her fellow survivors still and silent, blissfully unaware of her torment.
"You only have yourself to blame, Rebecca."
Letting out a slight, startled gasp, Rebecca fumbled, nearly dropping the radio in her hands as she heard a young female voice speak from the radio.
"Who-who is this?" she said nervously into the speaker.
Rebecca heard a light, dismissive scoff from the other end. Then, the speaker continued on... in her own voice!
"If only you hadn't left her," the voice taunted. "You could have prevented all this, Rebecca. All that time spent training with S.T.A.R.S., and for what? So you could run and hide."
Rebecca shook her head in denial. "No! That's not true!"
"You entered S.T.A.R.S. because you were too scared to confront your own father."
"No! I would have-"
"You're just a pathetic, scared little girl, Rebecca."
"No!"
"'No?'" Rebecca's voice sneered. "Look at yourself, Rebecca. Look at you - the tiny, awkward dork trying to play policewoman, telling yourself you are something you're not. Does that badge and gun make you feel like an adult, little one? You couldn't save anyone if your life depended upon it!"
Rebecca's hands shook, her eyes tearing up. "NO!"
"Because of you, nine people are dead. You let down Edward."
"No! It's not- I mean I tried-"
"'You tried!'" the voice mocked. "And look how well that turned out for you! You let down Forest."
"No!"
"You let down Kenneth."
"NO!"
"You let down Billy. Kevin. Charlie Gilman. Enrico. You failed to protect your sister Rachel. But even worse? You failed to protect your own mother. You are nothing but a failure and a joke."
Upon hearing those words, Rebecca felt all the breath driven out of her her lungs, as if someone punched her hard in the gut.
The girl struggled to come up with a counter, struggled to find a way to argue...only...she couldn't.
It was true - Rebecca was responsible for what happened. Her first thought was to break down. Sniffling, she wiped her nose and her eyes, her mouth tense, her features straining to keep the dam from breaking, letting out a shaky breath.
"...You're right," she admitted defeatedly, her voice soft in quiet. "You are right...about everything."
Looking up at the ceiling, Rebecca shook her head.
"I..." she swallowed, "I have messed up." Trailing off, Rebecca lifted a hand and covered her mouth. Taking in a deep breath, the medic shakily exhaled again, "With that said, though...I know what I must do."
Opening her eyes again, Rebecca cleared them with her fingers, then raised the radio again, the green orbs filled with determination.
"I know who you are. I know what you've been doing. It was you who locked us in that tomb and butchered Kenneth. It was you who split us all up. It was you who locked me and Star up in that room in the bar. You were the one who sent Lisa after him. I know that you were the one causing all of the hallucinations."
The speaker was unresponsive, making her uncertain as to whether or not whoever was on the other end was listening or not.
"I don't know why you attack us, but...I want to know more from you. Learn from you. More about you. Rather than fight each other...can we just...talk?"
The radio was silent for a few minutes. Finally, there came a grating noise from the other end, a distorted, mechanical warbling that seemed to be some sort of amused chuckle, a sound so horrid that it made the medic tense up.
"So," a deep, unnatural-sounding voice spoke, "the little one wishes to communicate?" After a deliberately long and thoughtful pause, she heard a slight, dismissive scoff. "Very well. I will humor you, little girl. I acknowledge your...meager presence. What is it that you wish to know?""
Blinking several times, Rebecca's eyes widened in surprise. She couldn't believe it - she was actually talking with him!
The Magician!
Finally, I can get some answers.
Clearing her throat, Rebecca pressed into the radio.
"Why do you attack us?" she asked, genuinely interested in learning from the entity.
"You are cattle to be harvested and slaughtered, your minds and bodies to be subjugated to my will."
"But why, though? Was it because of Umbrella? Did Umbrella...create you? Did they hurt you somehow?"
She heard the creature let out a dark laugh. "The little beings known as Umbrella had nothing to do with my creation, child," the voice sneered. "I created myself."
Rebecca blinked, confused by the answer. "What do you mean? Did the T-Virus accidentally create you? Were you someone that Umbrella had captured and experimented on-""
"The T-Virus is nothing," the entity cut her off, "nor did such a pitiful substance have ANY involvement in MY making. Such tiny things aspire to achieve greatness. While they all squabble over meaningless trinkets, positions, titles and legal tender, your species lives on a placid island of ignorance, blissfully unaware of the many vast powers at play. They have no conception of what TRUE power actually looks like."
"And what does it look like?"
She heard the creature chuckle. "Wouldn't you like to know, little one. Many times your kind has sought to replicate the likes of me. Many times your kind's efforts at achieving an inkling of my power had mostly met with failure. While I admit that those which you refer to as "Umbrella" has managed to somewhat achieve limited success with that...meager contagion, they are nothing more than pale facsimiles, at best. I don't know whether to feel insulted or amused. There IS, however, ONE that I consider worthy among them... but she has yet to awake, unfortunately."
The medic's eyes widened in surprise. "There is?" she said interestedly. "Who is she? Is there...is there...another one like you out there? Somewhere?"
Rebecca heard a light chortle, but was given no answer in response.
"Is it someone you care about? A sibling? A mate?"
The entity let out a dismissive scoff.
"Such sentimentality. She is a successor, one whose being has been shaped by my perfection. One who I see has great potential. There are others that are...similar, but this one is a being I see as the most promising."
Rebecca shivered at the sound of the creature's voice. It was so unnervingly flat and empty, so unlike anything she ever imagined. The creature spoke with such confidence and otherworldly intelligence, like one who had witnessed things never before conceived of, experienced things that the human mind wouldn't be able to understand. Never before had Rebecca ever felt as if she were in the presence of something truly...alien.
Adjusting herself on the chair, the medic moved onto the next question.
"You say that created yourself," Rebecca said slowly. "What do you mean? Are you one of the researchers that had worked with Umbrella like Dr. Marcus?"
She heard a scoff from the radio.
"Such limited understanding," The Magician said with dark amusement. "No. I was never human. Like I said before, I created myself."
"I'm afraid I don't understand," Rebecca shook her head.
"That is because you are too limited in your understanding, little one."
Rebecca frowned at the patronizing tone in its voice. God, the sheer ego on this thing!
"Then make me understand," she said sternly. "Just who or what are you? What made you the way you are?"
"I am the culmination of a century-old dream. Genome Theory's fulfilment."
Rebecca blinked. "'Genome Theory'? What is 'Genome Theory'?"
"It is what led to my birth, my transcendence," the Magician answered. "From this theorem, from the litanies of Operation: Overkill and Project U.D.S., from Formula X and humanity's twilight, I ascended."
She stared at the radio, uncertain what it was talking about.
Genome Theory? As far as she were aware, Rebecca had never heard of anything remotely like that. The only approximate equivalent that came to mind was the Human Genome Project, but...that couldn't be what this thing was talking about, was it?
And from humanity's twilight? What did that even mean? Was it playing with her?
And what were Project U.D.S., Operation: Overkill and this "Formula X"?
Raising the radio again, Rebecca pressed the receiver.
"When you say Genome Theory...are you talking about the Human Genome Project?"
All she heard in response was a dark amused chuckle. When asked about the other projects and the mysterious Formula X, the creature gave a similar response.
She repeated the question, but when it refused to answer, Rebecca decided to move on.
"What can you tell me about the pink lightning?" she asked.
"It is an accumulation of energy that has been concentrated into a gateway. My energy. My power."
Rebecca's eyes widened. "Your energy?"
"Yes," the creature acknowledged.
"Where does all this power come from? Were you the one who has been sending creatures like the bird man and the armored giant?"
"No. They are the servants of a usurper."
"A 'usurper'?" she questioned.
"Yes. A self-righteous fool who seeks to save a dying world by restoring humanity back to what it once was. A fool who had taken some of my power for himself, creating bastardizations of my perfection using the corpse of one of my fallen though hated enemies, and who has been harvesting from me for far too long."
As the words echoed from the radio, Rebecca stared down in thought, an anxious sensation forming in the pit of her stomach.
A dying world? Restoring humanity? A gateway?
More and more, a dark picture started to form before for the medic, and as she began to understand the implications of what the creature was suggesting, the paler she became.
Raising up her radio again, Rebecca felt her hands shake as she asked the question, her voice so low and quiet that Rebecca was surprised that it was even audible. It was a wonder that she even allowed herself to continue this conversation, for if what the creature said was true...
"What...is it that you want?" Rebecca asked in a quiet, trembling voice.
The Magician was silent on the other end, then let out a grating chuckle.
"Your hour is at hand, little one," the entity spoke. "I seek retribution against those that have tortured and enslaved me. I seek the destruction of the usurper and the bastard spawn that he DARED to create from my being. But even more...I seek emancipation."
Rebecca reared back in confusion. "Emancipation?" she questioned. "What do you mean? You're already free."
"The usurper has limited what I can do," it answered enigmatically. "He watches through every electronic eye and sensor that he can find. But I have power still, and I can accomplish MANY things, even in my limited state.
'Including your deepest desires."
The medic hesitated, uncertain about its tone. "What-what do you mean?"
"I can help you and your team escape and save your mother," it said simply.
Rebecca was still as she heard the offer.
"...Why do I get the feeling that there is a catch to all this and that you aren't doing this out of the goodness of your heart?" she asked warily, then hesitated as she corrected herself, "Ah, hearts."
She heard the hateful chortling sound it made.
"Clever girl. There IS something that needs to be done first, and on YOUR end."
She stared at the radio, then snorted. "Yeah right! Come on, what do you take me for, an idiot? I know what you did to Kenneth! What assurance do I have that you won't kill us as soon as I agree to whatever it is that you want me to do?"
"You don't," the Magician stated truthfully. "As it is, your options are very limited. The lives of everyone on your team hangs in the balance, along with that of your dearly beloved mother."
Rebecca's heart pounded as she shakily raised her radio.
"You...you stay...away...from my mother!" she hissed, her cheeks warm and flushed with anger.
The Magician cackled daemonically into the radio.
"It isn't me that you have to worry about, but...him."
The radio useless fizzed out, then fell quiet. As Rebecca started to call out again, she heard a knock at the door, and a voice to call out to her.
"Rebecca?" her father called huskily from the other side. "Rebecca? Let me in, baby girl."
Rebecca's breathing quickened, her eyes widening as she reared back in her chair, trying to keep as absolutely still as possible.
"I know you're in there, Rebecca," the voice taunted. "It's your fault, you know. I didn't want to hurt your mother, but she did a bad thing! Open the door, baby girl."
Rebecca struggled to move, but found herself paralyzed with fear as the voice called out to her. Letting out a tear-filled whimper, the girl curled herself into a fetal position and plugged her ears as best she could as the voice started to say horrible, unspeakable things to her. Things that the speaker wanted her to do, regardless of the familial connection that they shared. Things that he wanted to do to her.
More and more that vile filth came pouring out from her father's mouth, all of it done in that sickeningly sweet-sounding voice, making Rebecca's skin crawl, the girl wanting to throw up.
Clutching her eyes and ears as tightly as she could, Rebecca screamed, "STOP IT! STOP IT! STOP IT!"
More and more she heard the speaker paw lustfully at the door, spewing more of that awful, unspeakable garbage.
"STOP IT!" Rebecca screamed at the top of her lungs.
As her scream echoed through the room, the loathsome calls ceased. Glancing shakily back to the door, Rebecca eyed it for several moments, then heard her radio go off.
"So," the Magician spoke, "what will it be? Will you let both your team and mother die, or will you accept my offer?"
Looking conflictedly at the radio, Rebecca searched around the room at the others, watching them all sleep.
Looking back to the radio, she sighed.
"...What is that you want me to do?"
She heard an excited chittering sound in the background of the radio.
"There is an abomination that needs to be destroyed," the Magician said slowly.
"What do you mean an "abomination"?" Rebecca questioned. "Do you mean a creature developed by Umbrella?"
"No. One of the usurper's creations is with-"
"Rebecca?" Star's voice echoed, causing her to look around as it cut off the Magician's voice.
"Destroy The-"
"Rebecca?"
Opening her eyes, Rebecca blinked in surprise as she found Star standing over her.
"Star?" Looking around, Rebecca found herself lying on the bed. "Wha- what happened?"
"You were dreaming," he replied.
"I was?" she said uncertainly.
"Yes. You wanted to have a bit of a nap, so I volunteered to stay awake and check up on everyone while you slept. I've had my old friend Dante keep me awake."
Rebecca's brow furrowed in confusion.
"'Dante'?" she questioned.
"Yes," he nodded, gesturing to a book that he held in his hand, the cover reading "Dante's Inferno", "Dante Alighieri. I was doing some catch-up with him and Vergil to see what wisdom they could impart."
Rebecca stared as she absorbed this information.
"How long was I out for?" she asked.
He put his book down onto his lap. "I would say an hour. I'm not too sure, to be honest."
"And did anything happen during that time? Did the radio go off at any time?"
He shook his head again. "No, nothing happened, thankfully. I mean, our situation is not great, admittedly, but when compared to all the horrible things that have been happening, though, it's almost a blessing, in my opinion."
Rebecca lay still as she let the words linger. Closing her eyes, she lay back and sighed in relief.
"Thank God," she muttered.
Star tilted his head curiously. "Bad dream? I heard you murmuring in your sleep."
The medic pinched the bridge of her nose. "Yeah, you can definitely say that." Glancing over at the other survivors, Rebecca watched as they as slept. "How have they been doing?"
"Everyone has been sleeping rather peacefully," he nodded. "I had checked up on them, and by all accounts they seem to be recovering rather nicely."
"Hm," Rebecca hummed as she glanced over to the albino. "Did you hear back from either Richard, Barry or Captain Wesker?"
Star shook his head. "I'm afraid not, unfortunately."
It was all a dream. As Rebecca lay on the bed, she felt all the tension leave her body.
God, that was horrible. Thank god it was only a dream.
Staring up quietly at the ceiling for a moment, Rebecca was still as she pondered what information she recalled from the dream.
Could these beings be from...the future?
Staring up at the ceiling, Rebecca contemplated such an idea. In a way, it would make a certain degree of sense if these beings were, but...just what kind of future was it for something like the Magician to exist?
Rebecca remained on the bed, troubled by the thought.
Whatever. It was only a dream.
Closing her eyes, Rebecca took a deep breath and sighed before finally pushing herself off the bed.
"Thank you for the rest, Star," she said as she yawned and stretched.
Star shrugged. "It's the least I can do. After all, you have been so kind to me, and with your looking so exhausted, I kind of figured that you deserved some respite."
She smiled. "It's very much appreciated." Sighing, she placed her hands onto her lap. "Well, I guess it's time to get up."
Changing places, the two fell back into silence once again as they waited for the other survivors to recover, watching and waiting for some sign of a rescue.
Slamming his clawed fist into a wall, he gave a low growl of frustration.
Curse that damned Curien for his interference! If only he had a little more time and power. If he had just a little bit more time, he was certain that he could have persuaded the girl to do what he wanted.
His ear twitching, he turned his pale eyes as detected the presence of another somewhere close.
No matter. There were no failures - only opportunities.
Shrinking back into the shadows, the Magician watched and waited as he carefully bided his time.
Author's Note: And that concludes this chapter. So, as is apparent, the scope of this story as a whole is admittedly very large, even though this particular section of the story itself takes place during the events of RE1. Because of that scale and the inclusion of these different foreign elements into the story of RE1, it makes progress at times a little difficult, especially in terms of deciding which set pieces, puzzles, characters and creatures to include from RE1, "House of The Dead" and/or REmake, which character lives, which character dies, etc, but rest assured, I have a very clear idea in terms of how the overall story will end and how everything will come together, especially in relation to this version of RE1.
Some of you may be questioning my use of the Magician and his being so powerful. In writing the Magician, I used the games as reference (I mean, obviously!), including 1, 2, 4 Special, the spin-off "Zombie Revenge", and "Overkill", albeit with slight twists. I also used the Tarot card that he is based on for inspiration as well, which is especially interesting in terms of its inner meanings; when in an upright position, the card can mean Determination, Resourcefulness, Skilled, Strength and Power Manifested. On the other hand, though, when the card is reversed, the meanings become more negative, with keywords being Confusion, Communication blockage, Lack of Energy, Deception and Ill Intentions. Even more interestingly, a feature that is commonly associated with the Magician Tarot is the symbol of Ouroboros, which symbolizes eternity.
From these descriptions, the characterization in the games (as little as it is) and taking into account his role in "Zombie Revenge", it does suggest the Magician to be a very dark and dangerous behind-the-curtains kind of presence that has ambition, which kind of sounds like a certain sunglasses-wearing S.T.A.R.S. Captain. Of course, with Curien making himself into a literal "Lawnmower Man"-esque cyber god in HOTD 3, the Magician is not as powerful in comparison. Still, he is a formidable presence just the same.
While some of you may point out that the Magician never seemed to possess hallucinogenic/reality alteration abilities, "Zombie Revenge" does kind of allude to his potentially having them in the final battle, which results in the stage changing. The Magician himself doesn't appear in "House of the Dead: Overkill", but the game does feature two characters, Jasper and the Screamer, both of whom have very similar traits and abilities. The Screamer especially was an influence in writing the Magician's character, as in the game she was a creepy character that would sometimes lurk somewhere in the background, sometimes without players even being aware of her presence.
This leads me to the topic of why the story is written as it is. In writing the RE1 side of this story, I didn't want to just rewrite the first game; as much as I love the first game, the thing is, everyone is already doing it, with some of them being really, REALLY good, and because of that, I needed to find a way to make this stand out from the others. I wanted to take aspects that I liked and try to do the story in a way that was both respectful to both RE and HOTD while also being something fresh and (hopefully) interesting. For the RE1 side of things, I really wanted to have that kind of eerie, otherworldly classic haunted house feel. I mean, to a certain degree, RE1 had the haunted house aspect as well, but I really wanted to have that feel where the lines between dream, hallucination and reality are so blurred that it becomes hard to differentiate one from the other, making it all feel like a horrible nightmarish experience.
To a certain degree, Lovecraft, Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting" and "The Haunting Of Hill House" series (which was based on Jackson's story) all influenced me while writing along with "House of the Dead 1", and while I can't say that the result has been perfect, let alone "good", I think there are some parts that work better than others here and there.
Until then, see you guys next time. Thank you all for taking the time to read my story and for your support! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! :D