Resident Evil: The Recurring Nightmare of Hope

Chapter Twelve: Shattered Mirrors

Leon drops behind the metal container and slides another magazine into his empty handgun as Chris provides a little more suppressing fire, "If this is the new face of bioweapons, why in the hell is Umbrella peddling the G-Virus to the world?"

"We will worry about that well after they are all dead!" Jill squeezes the trigger and smiles as the infected drops from a headshot, only to find that joy decimated as it gets back up with that parasite for a head.

The last enemy brandishing a gun is killed and Chris walks toward the mutated infected, brandishing his knife between both hands. The blade is pulled back and he starts into a run, using his momentum to drive the knife through the bulbous matter of the parasite. Tentacles whip around frantically as a screech leaves the monstrosity, but that is quickly ended as Chris bends down, then uses the force of a jump to slice the parasitic head in half in a spray of blood.

"Could you have made that just a little bloodier?" Leon starts filling the empty magazine with fresh rounds as the two of them rejoin Chris.

Some part of this is going to have to draw Krauser out, eventually the brawn of the operation will face judgement, it's only a matter of how much time is it going to take? Leon finds his mind drifting towards Claire and Sherry with every bullet spent, knowing this is a terrible mindset to find himself in, but no longer able to fight it. He doesn't see how Chris and Jill manage it; being together and fighting this war, as he can't stand the thought of anything happening to Claire.

"Come back to reality, lover boy," Jill smacks him on the back of the head.

Chris doesn't say anything, nor does he even look Leon's way, apparently his mind is trying to avoid that particular detail. Both Jill and Leon return to keeping an eye on the sides as Chris keeps focused on threats in front of them. Jill tries to call out, but she isn't fast enough before a fist sends Chris through a door.

"About time I found you three…" the voice is deep, threatening, but with a hint of military training, this is Krauser.

Chris emerges from the room rubbing his jaw, "Where the fuck is my sister you piece of shit?"

Jill and Leon keep their guns trained on the man as Chris and he square off, "Oh? She was your sister? That is… Unfortunate…"

There is no more time for words as Chris pounces on the much larger man, driving his fist square between the eyes, shattering the man's nose, "You mother fucker!"

Jill steps toward the two, but a loud scream from behind draws her attention, "How in the hell does that thing fit in here!?"

It's the same blind monster they briefly encountered in the village and it is wasting no time using its claws to shred the hallway to pieces. Leon steps up next to her and reveals a handful of handgun rounds.

"Chris, take that fight into a room, we have our own problem here!" he takes a bullet and rockets it down the hall past the monster.

The shell bounces off a pipe a ways behind the monster, causing it to slowly spin around before charging at the spot the bullet hit, "It's like a game…"

"How do we kill it?" Jill raises her handgun to the monster as it quickly turns around, like it knows where the real threat is.

Leon's eyes have done nothing but scan the beast since they first saw it and he has an idea, "There's a growth on its back… Might be the same parasite that pops out of the soldiers here…"

"As good a guess as any," Jill slowly steps to the right as Leon fires on the monster before jumping to the left.

The blind infected roars and jumps at the spot Leon fired from, claws digging deep into the metal floor as Jill steps around him and opens fire almost point-blank into the mass resting along its spine. Blood fills the air as it quickly rises to its feet and begins to swing wildly, the metal claws becoming entangled and bent in the wires and metal around it. Soon the thrashing dies down and the two smile as they realize it has gotten itself stuck. Both of the agents rest the barrels of their guns against the parasitic growth and drain their clips, giving each other a high-five as it hangs dead, body slowly beginning to disintegrate.

"Guess we go save Chris now, right?" Jill steps toward the door the two embattled men entered and adjusts her beret before stepping in.

11

Chris feels a fire erupt within him as he trades blows with Krauser, imagining his sister in different states of despair with each punch taken, thus fueling his own punches. A flash in his peripheral and Chris crosses his arms, blocking the swing of the knife, then he raises his knee into Krauser's gut. This fight doesn't seem to be going how Chris imagined it would, something is off about his opponent.

"Do you have the Plaga inside you?" Krauser stops to register the question, apparently smiling at how quickly Chris figured it out.

Something changes in Krauser's form, small and unnoticeable, until a punch sends Chris into the air, the strength behind it no longer human, "Seems I underestimated the BSAA's Alpha Agent…"

"You are just," Chris swipes the blood from his lips as he regains his footing, "another mutated asshole who is trying to play god…"

Krauser pulls back and releases a punch that Chris stops by grabbing his arm in a grasp, "Good… I've been wanting to work out some stress…"

First it was Wesker, mortal man turned god-apparent by a virus, now it's a soldier blinded by power granted from this parasite. Just the kind of target that can take Chris's rage, a rare target indeed. Each attack thrown at the infected brawler is stronger than the last, Chris channeling into a darker side of the Redfield name he has kept from Claire. Serving the military has been a legacy for the Redfield's, even before they were called the Redfields, as when one enters the field of battle, his work is not done until it is red with blood.

This rage is what Chris dug into after Rockfort, when he truly realized what Wesker has become, "You think yourself a God with all this power… Think it gives you the right to spit on those lower than you…"

Something breaks within Krauser's body, Chris's vision too red to notice what he broke as he continues the onslaught. He remembers every single person he has seen die, every death that night in Arklay, remembering the fear in little Rebecca's eyes as she tried to save Richard from that snake bite. All of this just adds to the power in his muscles, that is until Chris is sent to the ground from a single punch to the head by Krauser.

"I used to be just like you, Chris…" the mutated soldier slowly walks up to the injured BSAA agent and drops down to a squat, "Until I tasted the power… I wanted it, the power to make real change in the world… Once all of humanity has tasted the master's blessing, true change will be upon us…"

A gunshot rings out, the bullet tearing through the flesh of Krauser's left shoulder, "You can have this round…"

With a quick spin and a kick, both Jill and Leon are cleared from his path before the soldier disappears somewhere within the ship, "God damn it all…"

Jill attempts to help Chris to his feet, but her partner just screams in rage and throws the nearest item, "FUCKER!"

11

Krauser kicks open the door to Claire's chamber, resetting the broken right arm as he steps in, "Just ran into your brother…"

"Chris is here!?" that tone is what he's looking for.

A chuckle reverberates around the room as he drops the BSAA badge he swiped from his enemy during their fight, the object coated in a lot of blood, "He was…"

"Who else!? Who else was with him!?" Claire thrashes about as he watches the rage build up.

Krauser drops into the same chair he has occupied the past couple of days, smiling wide as he unsheathes his knife and cleans Chris's blood from under his nails, "Some bitch and a boy who looked like a lost puppy, don't really remember… It ended so quick and all…"

Before the redhead can say anything or do something drastic, he jumps up and grabs her by the neck, staring furiously into her eyes, "All hope of a rescue is dead… All hope of getting out of here alive is dead, unless you accept the gift the master is trying to give you."

"You have taken any reason from me to do anything, know that… My friends and family are dead, I have nothing to live for…" a tear builds up in her right eye, which he draws onto a fingertip before flicking it away.

He smiles wide and replies, "Good, you are ready… Bring in the next sample!"

Krauser relishes in the fear in her eyes as the case is wheeled in, "Las Plagas will provide you with a reason to live…"

11

"KRAUSER!" Chris punches through the head of an infected, ripping out what he can grasp of the parasite before it can mutate him.

Jill and Leon scramble to keep up with him, but are having issues as the bodies are piling up faster than they are disappearing, "Hold on, Chris!"

She watches in horror at the amount of rage pouring from his body as he rounds another corner before sliding down the set of stairs, "God damn it all… We need to calm him down before he loses himself, Leon…"

"Yeah," Leon stops at the first step and gazes back, "but how do you stop what he's feeling?"

A sigh leaves her lips as she quickly follows suit down the stairs, marking off in her mind that this is the third level they have cleared, shouldn't be much longer before they find Claire and Sherry. Even as she watches Chris kill relentlessly with the rage she's never seen before, she can't help but wonder if she should calm him down. No one else was there after Antarctica, seeing the dread in Chris's eyes as he worked out relentlessly, trying to become strong enough to stop what Wesker has become. Soon that dread turned to focus though and it wasn't until now that she realizes he tapped into that anger to become stronger.

"Chris! STOP!" there doesn't seem to be any real stopping him though as he kicks open a door and ducks around the wall as gunfire erupts from within.

The handgun is raised as Chris spins back into the doorway, firing a single round before continuing on, "This might not work, he's like a wild animal now…"

"What is it going to take to get him back to reality?" Leon tries his best to keep up with Chris, but after a while the two slam into his back.

Chris has kicked in another door, but he doesn't enter, nor start shooting, "Sherry?"

11

Blonde hair flips into the air as Sherry suddenly spins toward the noise as her door is kicked in, the male frame in the doorway being one she doesn't recognize, but it doesn't look like one of Krauser's men, "Sherry?"

"What the hell?" that voice is familiar!

Sherry jumps up at a voice she hasn't forgotten in the years she has been kept captive, "LEON!?"

The arms that wrap around her shoulders are warm and inviting, "It's been so damn long, kid… Anything we need to make them pay for besides kidnapping you?"

"Nothing too major, Leon. Where's Claire?" her eyes scan the other two people stepping in to the room, but doesn't recognize them.

"Oh," Leon spots the look in her eyes, "that's Jill, and the big man is Chris Redfield, Claire's brother."

Jill waves quickly before aiming her handgun at the doorway, "Pack her up quick, I hear them coming…"

Leon spins Sherry away from where her chains are bolted to the floor as Chris quickly drops a round into it, freeing her from the bonds Krauser put on her, "Okay, off we go…"

Sherry finds herself smiling as Leon guides her through the lower levels of the freighter. Being surrounded by people so close to Claire has her feeling even more hope than she has been able to feel in a long time. She stays close to Leon as Jill and Chris keep a constant eye on their pathway for potential threats. A fear creeps over her about Krauser, the girl wondering if they will even be able to stop this man and save Claire.

Of course they will, Sherry, we are the good guys… there are a few gunshots that bring her back to reality, her eyes focusing on Jill and Chris looting the bodies as they disintegrate.

"Another clip of nine millimeter!" the clip is tossed toward Jill who slides it into the pouch at her hip.

Granted that Claire was kidnapped while trying to rescue her, these three are very well armed and ready, "One more floor cleared, Chris."

"Right, we can't have too many more floors to sweep through before we find Claire…"

"There are only two more floors… And I doubt they have her on the last one as that is the engine floor…" Sherry keeps her voice low, but can't fight off the hopefulness that is filling her mind as she walks amongst gods.

It's not much longer before Sherry finds a small handgun hanging in front of her face, Jill's left hand holding it for her to take, "You might need this…"

11

"What the hell are you doing!? You are ready to accept the gift! Why fight it any longer!?" Krauser finds a long-lost rage fill his body as Claire destroys yet another sample.

A fire burns fierce in her eyes, "I was looking for a new way to get under your skin, you asshole… My parents are dead, yes… They've been dead for almost two decades… My friends are my family, and they will destroy you, your master, and everything you stand for… Shove as many of those parasites in my face as you want, I'll keep breaking them…"

"Shut off the lights, seal the room, and drain all the air…" Krauser quickly exits the room, not finding this game funny anymore.

Claire smiles as she is left alone, enjoying the return of the Redfield fighting spirit she so thought she lost, "Bye, beautiful…"

The door is slammed shut with a rage that makes her smile even more, but the fun is gone as she hears the vacuum pick up and finds it getting harder to breathe. This brings back another thought from her early days with Leon and Chris in the BSAA.

"If you find it getting hard to breathe, never panic, never lose your cool, Claire. If you limit your breathing, you'll soon fall asleep, then pass out… If you can hold off passing out for a bit, once the air is returned to the room, you'll almost immediately wake up…"

Calm breaths, slowed breathing, and lowered heartbeat, all of this helps with fighting off the incoming panic. As the room is finally drained of all oxygen, she swears she hears a commotion outside. Several gunshots, a loud and screaming voice she can't actually be hearing right now. Keep the breathing shallow, wait it out… Sounds are getting fainter now, but she knows this new sound is the lock on the door being opened.

As soon as her closing eyes see the door pop open, breath returns to her lungs and she finds herself gulping it down quickly, "Claire!?"

Tears stream down her face quickly as Leon, Chris, Jill, and Sherry enter the room, "I knew you guys would make it here in time! Get me down!"

She catches Leon diverting his eyes, then realizes she's still naked, "Um, Jill?"

As Chris cuts her down, Jill tosses her jacket at the redhead, smiling at how Leon is doing his best to not stare at the woman who holds his heart, "Leon, how about giving her your jacket to wear around her waist?"

Sherry steps in front of her friend and holds up a smattering of cloth, "They shredded your shirt and jacket, but it seems your jeans are still good to wear…"

As Claire steps toward Chris with her clothes on, he gives her a giant hug and chuckles, "I'm so glad you're safe, Claire… What all did that bastard do to you so I can repay him in kind?"

"Chris, I'm fine. I just want to sink this entire ship to the bottom of the lagoon we're in and just go home…" she rubs her arms, still trying to find all the feeling in them as Leon steps up to her.

He attempts to say something, but she just finds the strength to jump into his arms and plant her lips on his, the emotions rolling through her mind ever since she woke up on this freighter coming forth the moment she saw him. They have been through too much together to be anything other than together. They have saved each other so many times physically, Claire and Leon now need to save each other mentally, finding their bond stronger than anything else on the planet.

Chris, Jill, and Sherry step out of the room as the two continue their embrace, Claire finally breaking it with a single sob of, "I knew you'd be here…"

"I will always be here for you… But only if you'll let me, Claire… We are stronger together now than we ever were apart before Umbrella crushed our innocence…" she smiles and rests her head on his shoulder, their moment only interrupted by her brother's reminder that they are on a tight schedule.

"Let's finish this, Redfield," he raises the spare handgun, which she takes eagerly.

She checks the weapon to make sure it's fully loaded before slapping the clip back into the gun, "On your mark, Kennedy…"

END