"This is the craziest shit I have ever had to deal with!"

Jake's voice was almost drowned out by the grinding and crashing of the spinning platforms. By some miracle they'd managed to slow one of them using a crane situated at the top of the shaft, but if the juddering and sparking air around them was anything to go by it wasn't going to hold out for long.

"Brace yourself!" Jake cried out, grabbing hold of Sherry and throwing her down as the crane gave way and sent them thundering downward in slow, painful jumps. It took all their strength to hold on and not be thrown into the fire below, until with a high-pitched whine the gears gave way and they found themselves being lurched sideways.

Sherry was torn from Jake's arms as they rolled. Their hands scrambling for something, anything, to hold onto as they each tumbled over the edge of the platform.

"Jake?" Sherry called out breathlessly. She could no longer see him and she didn't dare look down in case-

"I'm not dead yet!" Jake called back, "Come on, we gotta move!"

Something overhead drew Sherry's attention and her heart dropped. The platform above them was also making its descent and if they didn't get out of its way quickly they would end up crushed beneath it.

Sherry had always hated the gym work she'd undergone as part of her training. She was naturally stronger and faster than most people thanks to the side-effects of the G-Virus but her instructor had always pushed her for more, forcing her beyond her limits physically and mentally. But right at that moment she was grateful for the hundreds of pull-ups she had done. Sherry grit her teeth as she hoisted herself upward.

Hands gripped her tightly and helped her with the final pull until both Jake and Sherry were on their knees, panting heavily as they stared at one another until yet another shuddering whine brought them back to their senses.

"Go!" Jake cried out.

There was only enough room to crawl by the time they made it halfway across the platform. Sherry's entire body ached as she urged her muscles to keep moving, her boots digging in the rivets of the metal to push her forward.

"You okay?" Jake called from somewhere just behind her.

"I will be as soon as we're off this damn thing!" she grunted back, although she doubted he could hear her.

It felt like an age had passed when the doorway came into sight, the blinking light of the elevator beckoning them on. There was just enough of a gap at the edge of the two platforms for Sherry to pull herself to her feet before she knelt down to offer Jake a helping hand, her eyes widening as she spotted the shape behind him reach out and grab a hold of his ankle before she had time to yell a warning.

Jake slid back, his fingers brushing past Sherry's as the creature shrieked in delight.

"You stupid fuck, we'll both be crushed!" Jake snarled, knowing the thing didn't have the intelligence to care either way.

Sherry pulled her gun from its holster but the shot wasn't clear. She couldn't risk injuring Jake as he kicked at the monster, yet it seemed to just hold on tighter.

"Sherry, jump! Now!" Jake demanded.

"Not happening!"

Debris rained down around them, forcing Sherry to duck and shield herself as metal clanged around her. She reached out and grabbed a jagged bar that had landed by her foot, it was about the length of her forearm and sharp where it had been broken in two.

"Here!" Sherry stretched out as far as she could, offering Jake the weapon as he continued to kick out with his free foot. Jake wrapped his hands around the piece of metal with a feral grin before thrusting it down, directly into the head of the BOW that had opened its drooling mouth in a scream.

Black gunk erupted from the wound as Jake pulled the bar back and forced it down again with a grunt. The creature shrivelled, throwing itself back as Jake hoisted himself toward the gap where Sherry was waiting with trembling hands.

They didn't have time to exchange words. Jake grabbed Sherry by the arm and the two of them were in the air seconds before the platforms finally crashed together and began to fall uncontrollably. Their landing was heavy and lacking any sort of grace or skill, knocking the air from their lungs as they rolled, heads and limbs banging against each other and the metal floor.

When they finally came to a stop the air around them remained still and silent as each forced breath back into their sore lungs. Jake couldn't help the chuckle that rose from his chest. Sherry, lying next to him on the ground as she cautiously stretched out her limbs to check for damage, shot him an alarmed look.

"Do you have a concussion?" she asked worriedly as Jake threw an arm over his eyes. There wasn't a single part of him that wasn't in pain, yet the absurdity of their continued survival regardless of everything they'd been through left him dizzyingly grateful for his still beating heart.

"Jake?" Sherry questioned more forcefully this time, sitting up and placing a gentle hand on the arm covering his face.

He peered out from beneath the torn material of his shirt and grinned.

"You saved me," he told her.

Sherry frowned, "We've been saving each other this whole time in case you hadn't been paying attention. Now, can you stand?"

Jake nodded and reluctantly pulled himself into a sitting position. He wiped at the grime on his face but found his hands too filthy to make much of a difference.

"Please," he groaned, "tell me that damn elevator's working."

Sherry twisted from where she was sat and examined the screen. The orange glow was now a luminous green and the words "battery one hundred percent" stood out boldly.

"We did it," she breathed.

"Piece of cake," Jake responded as he pulled himself to his feet. He offered Sherry an outstretched hand as she moved to do the same. Sherry took it without a second thought, her fingers intertwining with his as if it were the most natural thing in the world. She stumbled slightly, her legs shaking as the adrenaline surge from being almost crushed to death began to wore off. Her hand came out to rest against Jake's chest as his own gripped her elbow.

They stood in what was undeniably something of an awkward embrace and Jake found himself wondering if they were in some kind of unspoken stand-off waiting to see what the other would do, who would pull away first, or...

The ground beneath their feet shook as the sound of an explosion filled the air. They turned toward the door they'd leapt through just as an enormous fireball erupted upward. Without another thought they each ran toward the elevator, slamming their hands down on the button to activate it. The door closed agonisingly slowly as flames licked their way toward them. It took all of Jake's will-power not to collapse against the wall as it finally shut, extinguishing the line of fire just as it stretched toward them.

The whirring of the elevator was like music to his ears and he found himself praying silently that it would lead them straight to the exit.

Of course he shouldn't have been surprised when it once again opened to more empty rooms and tunnels. Their luck had been running thin from the start so why would the universe give them a break now.

The walls ran with foul smelling water and the air was damp and humid. Jake's boots felt unsteady beneath him, the floor coated in a thin layer of grime he didn't want to examine too closely.

"I suppose we try and find a way up," Sherry said, her voice bouncing back along the walls.

They picked up the pace as they exited the tunnel, their footsteps echoing as they entered another stairless shaft. Jake tensed when he heard the unmistakable sound of at least two other sets of heavy footsteps headed right toward them.

More BOWs? Their captors coming to detain them?

Perhaps some back-up, finally.

His teeth clenched as the figures stepped into the dull light.

"Fucking perfect," he muttered under his breath as Sherry called out to Redfield and his buddy with more delight than Jake liked.

"Was that you who freed us?" Sherry asked.

Chris nodded as Jake came to a stop beside Sherry, his gaze sweeping over the pair lazily as he ignored the glare from the younger of the two.

"Looks like you saved the day again," Jake quipped as he wandered toward the edge of the walkway to gaze into the abyss below. Darkness stared back at him. His eyes rose slowly, taking in the room as he tried to ignore the men behind him. Above them swayed a large, shadowed shape and Jake tensed. For now, whatever the thing was, it appeared to be immobile.

"You know, you didn't need to flip us off like you did." Said the petulant voice of Redfield's lapdog.

Sherry felt heat creep into her face as she remembered her gesture at the security camera in the room with them.

"Sorry about that, I didn't know who was watching. I guess I got carried away..."

"Yes, well..." Chris cleared his throat a little uncomfortably and Jake couldn't help but smirk as he wondered just what else the pair had seen on the camera. "You should follow us, we have a team headed to this location but it'll be safer to wait on the surface levels."

"Thank god," Sherry sighed. "I can't wait to get out of this place and into a hot shower."

"You and me both, super girl." Jake affirmed as he turned away from the looming creature overhead and made to head in the direction Chris had appeared from.

A hand pressed against his chest and Jake felt his entire body react. His fingers twitched as he glared at Chris's conflicted expression and it took every ounce of his control not to pull the hand from where it lay and break each of its fingers. Instead his lip pulled back in a soundless, warning snarl.

"Wait," Chris began calmly. Jake could sense the others moving closer but his eyes were locked onto Chris's.

"What? You expecting a hug or some shit for saving us? We don't have time-"

The hand dropped from Jake's chest but it did little to ease the building urge to throw a punch.

"You know... I can see your father in you."

Jake heard Sherry's sharp gasp from behind him as he froze, his heated blood running cold.

A moment of silence passed before Sherry took a wary step between them. "H-how did you know where-"

With a raised hand Jake cut Sherry off.

"What the hell did you just say?" he hissed.

Jake tried to keep his hands, and his voice, steady. From the corner of his eye he saw the other guy, Nivans according to badge stitched to his uniform, unconsciously grip the weapon in his hand tighter.

"Your father. He and I... we go way back. And..."

Chris hesitated before drawing himself up, as if bracing himself for something. Sherry shifted uncomfortably as she stared between the three men, her heart thudding in her ears. Chris had no idea how volatile Jake could be and she prayed he wasn't about to say something stupid.

"I'm the one that killed him."

The words hung heavy in the air as no one moved. Finally Jake snapped his head to look at Sherry, his eyes accusatory as she dropped her gaze, unable to hold his.

She knew, Jake realised. Of course she knew. Sherry knew more about his father than he ever would.

It was odd, the feelings that raged inside him. He should have been angry at Sherry for keeping such a secret, but realistically when would have been a good time to tell him? "By the way, see that guy over there, the one who just saved our lives? He killed your father."

Jake's hands balled into fists at his sides. His father was a monster and deserved whatever the hell he got, but still...

The gun was in the air between them before Jake even realised what he was doing. Somehow his hand remained steady as his entire body shook.

"It was you?"

Chris nodded once. Jake let out a humourless laugh before inhaling sharply.

Who the hell was this guy to come storming into his life dropping shit on him about his father, as if he didn't have enough to deal with. Jake was exhausted, his entire body ached and all he wanted was a decent meal and a bed to collapse into. Instead he was staring at the man who had killed his father.

"So were you just following orders?" Jake cocked his head to one side as he regarded Chris, who had so far made no attempt to move from where the gun was aimed directly at his head. "Or was it personal?"

He didn't know why it mattered, but Jake realised he wanted, needed, to know.

Chris's eyes grew thoughtful for a moment as he considered Jake's question, and Jake found it infuriating. Surely you would know if you killed someone in cold blood. He had. It wasn't a feeling that was easy to forget. But even worse was the slight flicker of regret that showed in the furrowing of his brow and the thinning of his lips before Chris replied.

"Both."

Jake took in another breath, this time focusing on the way it filled his lungs as he fought against the thrumming heat coiling from his chest to his arms and the finger pressing against the trigger of his gun.

Nivans called out to his captain, his voice questioning as Jake realised he too had a gun pointed at the side of his head. His lips quirked in a shadow of a smile. How ironic it would be if they all died here now, killing each other after everything they'd survived.

Chris finally moved, waving Nivans away as he declared that whatever was about to happen was between he and Jake alone.

Sherry cautiously stepped forward as she considered stepping directly between the pair, hoping Jake would see sense and lower his gun. But from the look on his face and the unwavering hatred in his eyes she wondered if he would even be able to see her over his thirst for... what? Revenge? That couldn't be what was fuelling Jake's anger. He hated his father, not just for the things he had done to the world but for abandoning him and leaving Jake tainted by a legacy he could never escape from. Sherry knew how that felt.

"Jake," she pleaded quietly, "please..."

It was as if he couldn't even hear her. Sherry jumped as Chris took a step closer and her hand went to her own weapon. If Chris had been moving to attack her instinct had been to protect Jake. And that left her shaken. Would she really have shot Chris, Claire's brother, for Jake?

"Go ahead. Shoot." Chris said calmly and Sherry felt tears well and her throat constrict as panic flooded through her. Claire's face swam in front of her eyes. How could Sherry ever explain this to the woman who had been like a sister, a mother.

"You have every right. Just promise me you'll survive, the world depends on it-"

Jake finally exploded, losing some of his composure as he thrust the gun forward.

"Who the hell are you to tell me what to do!"

"Captain!"

"Stop it!"

Sherry let go of all attempts to remain calm as she begged. Nivans had raised his gun again, his focus unwavering as his finger readied itself on the trigger. Jake didn't seem to care, if he even noticed. Perhaps this was it, the death-wish he'd carried with him all his life finally fulfilled by killing the man who had robbed Jake of his chance to kill his father himself.

It was with that realisation that Jake dropped his gun downward, vaguely aware of the sounds of voices shouting around him as his breathing came in short, heavy pants. His eyes locked with Chris's and for just a moment he felt something pass between them. An understanding of sorts as Chris regarded him with a sadness-

Chris's head snapped back as blood spurted from his lower lip. Jake's knuckles stung even through his gloves as Chris stumbled back and he realised his fist was still raised to strike again when Sherry wrapped her hands around his arm and tried to pull him away. Nivans was between them, his gun still raised as he shouted for instructions from Chris.

Sherry's attempts to move Jake away from the fray were only successful when Jake felt his body go slack. The anger subsided in him at the sight of Chris wiping blood across the back of his hand, looking satisfied at the sight.

"So," Jake thought darkly, "you hate yourself too."

"Are we done here?" Nivans spat. "'Cause I'd very much like to get the hell out of this place if we're all done trying to kill each other."

Chris placed his bloodstained hand on his subordinate's shoulder and moved him aside as he looked at Jake. He knew what the older man was asking. It was his call to leave this particular fight here... or finish it altogether.

Jake felt Sherry's fingers digging into his bicep, the pain bringing him to his senses enough to remember just what they were all doing trapped together in the first place. He took a slow breath before speaking, his voice carefully controlled and sombre.

"There are more important things at stake than you and me."

He holstered his gun and glanced at Sherry, his face set and unreadable as she examined him with wide eyes. There were certainly several conversations that needed to be had once they were all topside.

Just at that moment, as if to remind them all of their dire predicament, the room began to shake. Dust and rubble fell from above them as all eyes lifted to the now shuddering shape hanging in the centre of the room.

"Can we go back the way you came?" Sherry asked at exactly the moment the tunnel from which Chris had appeared caved in, filling with debris.

"I'm gonna have to say no." Chris replied flatly, "But this looks like some sort of lift."

"I guess the only way is up," Nivans agreed before an ear-splitting alarm began to sound.

A nearby-screen lit up with a red flashing light as Sherry moved to examine it closer.

"HAOS release simulation... infection rate twenty percent... sixty percent... one hundred percent." Sherry eyed the creature above them with fear. "What is this?"

"The end of the world," came Nivans' flat retort.

"Bit dramatic don't you think." Jake snapped back.

Nivans pointed at the screen which displayed an image of the planet's surface slowly being overtaken by a red wave.

"So-" interrupted Sherry before the two could start bickering, "-if that giant cocoon hatches..."

"We're in trouble." Chris finished for her.

Jake sighed tiredly as the sound of wet ripping filled the air and a gargled cry echoed around them.

"So what you're saying is that we're not going anywhere until that thing is taken care of."

Chris shook his head.

"You two need to get to safety. Piers and I will take care of... that. Sherry, you'll need to tell HQ-"

"I'm not leaving you alone to fight that thing!" Sherry declared as if Chris had gone mad.

Jake tried not to groan out loud. Of course Sherry wanted to stay and fight.

"You two have bigger problems to deal with," Chris told her, his voice now filled with unarguable authority. Sherry shrank back slightly as she looked to Jake for back-up. He shook his head at her.

"We got a world to save, remember."

"Yes, but-"

"Sherry."

Jake tore his eyes from Sherry to Chris and fixed him with a hard look.

"You and I are not done talking yet, so make sure you get your ass outta here so I can get some answers."

"If we manage to stop the world going to hell I'll tell you anything you want to know. Now, go!"

The cocoon finally exploded in a wave of thick, clear goo. Jake grabbed Sherry's hand and pulled her toward the lift, rising into the air and toward their exit as the creature fell below them. Gunfire exploded as Sherry stared down to where Chris and his partner were drawing the BOWs attention. She prayed that they would survive. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if she had to tell Claire that she had ran and left Chris to his fate.

"This is wrong," Sherry exclaimed as Jake pulled her through the door which slammed shut behind them. "We should go back and help-"

"We are Not. Going. Back." Jake breathed, advancing on her until Sherry took a shaken step back and struck the door with her back. He froze mid-step, the scowl on his face softening at the broken look in Sherry's eyes.

"We have a job to do," he reminded her gently, "and so do they."

"But they're going to get killed." Sherry protested weakly.

Jake dropped his head, his shoulders felt heavy before he spoke. "That's their choice," he told her, "and we can't stop them. Not if they think its worth dying for."

It brought him no satisfaction to say it. In fact Jake felt a small tug of regret as Sherry let out a broken gasp. Against his will Jake actually felt a spark of respect for Redfield and his companion, for the sacrifice they were willing to ensure the world would never be exposed to whatever that nightmare was they were now locked up with.

Jake moved closer to where Sherry was trying not to sink against the door. It had hurt to see her flinch away from him, but he couldn't blame her. He'd almost lost control of himself, had been so close to murdering a man in front of her for reasons he didn't have time to explore at that moment. All he knew was that they still had a chance to make things right. To save lives.

"Sherry," he began gently, reaching out an open palm for her. "There are people counting on us, we have to go. I..."

Jake felt the words burning in his throat and on his tongue.

"I'm not my father, and I want to make damn sure it stays that way. But do you know why that is? You. The world needs you super girl. I need you."

Jake hated the silence that followed. It seemed to stretch on forever until Sherry pushed herself off the door and stood almost toe-to-toe with him.

"I thought you were mad with me? Because of Chris."

Jake rolled his shoulders as he thought about the fact that Sherry had kept that particularly piece of information to herself.

"Things are... complicated. Don't get me wrong," he added hastily, "I've got plenty of questions. But for now let's just get the hell out of here."

Sherry's smile didn't meet her eyes but she nodded in agreement. They had to move, to keep going forward.

They set out side by side and Sherry felt a sudden pressure against her palm as Jake wound his hand into hers and squeezed lightly. It was almost over. It had to be.