Valentine rubbed her arms, chilly in spite of the jacket she was wearing. The Alpha team was gathered in a loose circle, looking from one to the other but not talking. Wesker hadn't made an appearance yet. Typical of him to gather them all then make them wait.
None of them were in combat gear. Everything was sitting ready on steel shelves in the center of the room, prepared in case the Go order was given. Constant training had made this practice a habit.
"Ahem…well…" Burton raised an eyebrow. He was the oldest of the group, kind of a father figure to all of them. Especially to Redfield; if it weren't for Barry, then Chris wouldn't be with S.T.A.R.S. "Nothing like a nice dark basement to boost team morale."
Valentine smirked. Leave it to Burton to try to make a lame joke when none of them were sure what the hell was going on. It was his way of dealing with the unknown. She wondered if his secret weapon against any enemy would be making them roll their eyes so much they went blind. He was such a good-natured bear of a guy that she couldn't help but think he was hiding something. He was always just a little too…happy…for her taste. As if the man had never seen a bad day.
The door behind them slammed open, making all of them look around. Wesker came striding in, his sunglasses glinting in the harsh fluorescent lights overhead. He looked at each of them without saying a word, then went to the shelves, inspecting what had been placed there.
"Valentine, Redfield…" they both moved toward him, ready for their orders. "The rest of you listen up. This shit might be well and good for a picnic in the park, but I want a full combat arsenal setup ready to go."
"This is our full combat arsenal," Frost said softly. "For the kind of combat we're supposed to be…" his voice faded away when he became away that behind those mirrored lenses, Wesker was staring him down.
"Full combat. Except for you two," He nodded at Valentine and Redfield. "You two are appointed out machinist and our communications expert until further notice. You will travel light."
"Where exactly are we going?" Valentine wasn't intimidated by Wesker. Most of the time it seemed to her as if he were a boy playing war games. And she didn't trust anyone who constantly hid their eyes.
"That won't be answered until mission time," Wesker said gruffly. "Frost, you carry the pack." This brought a groan from the younger man. Frost was the Alpha team's vehicle man, which meant he'd usually stay in the vicinity of their transport. But if he was carrying the pack…
Frost glanced into the metal cage. The pack was the nickname they gave the large caliber machine gun that they sometimes used during practice missions. Carrying it and it's ammo around would be like slogging around an extra person. Then again…it would be his first time at ever getting to handle the big gun. He wondered why he was suddenly getting picked for the job now.
"Burton, how are we on weapons?"
Burton shrugged. "Same as always. Everyone has their own preference, and I've stocked them with ammo. Armor piercing, for the most part. Other than that…you didn't say you wanted to requisition anything from the PD."
"I don't," Wesker said dismissively. "Valentine, get the com gear together. Walkie's only. No ear buds." She gave him a skeptical frown, but moved to get the equipment. That was against their usual protocol. They never went anywhere without two ways to communicate to the rest of the team. And the damn walkie talkies were so bulky, they were more a nuisance than a lifesaver.
As she ran through them, checking the battery charges and the channels, she listened as Wesker barked out more orders. From the sounds of it, he was getting ready to go to war. But what kind of war would they be fighting with normal side arms and outdated coms? If this was some kind of test, she didn't get the point.
"Knives. For everyone," Wesker was saying to Redfield. This earned another strange look.
"Knives? You expecting some hand to hand?" Redfield made no move to get the asked for item. Wesker looked at him steadily. "Don't you think you should have given a little warning that this was going to be close quarters? Vickers and Frost haven't been fully trained in those areas." As Wesker's unofficial second in command, it was Redfield's place to question his requests.
"I do not know what I'm 'expecting'," The tone of his voice set off alarms in Valentine's head. He was lying. He had to know something. "But I do expect that my team will follow my orders and do as I say. Now…the knives."
Redfield muttered under his breath but went to a gray steel locker. Insider were combat knives, all hung neatly against the back wall. The shelves held belts. He handed out one of each item to the people in the room save Wesker. When everyone had their knives strapped on, he took one for himself.
"The time is now…" Wesker glanced at the watch that gleamed on his wrist. "1600 hours. At approximately Oh-9 this morning, the Raccoon City police dispatch picked up a faint signal. A distress call, placed from a CB radio on a police channel. Bravo team moved on the call. We traced the origin, and sent them to gather information on the area and the situation." Wesker's head moved, giving the impression that he was looking from one person to the next to make sure they were listening.
"Approximately half an hour ago, we lost contact with their radio man, Aiken."
"Not unusual…these mountains…" Vickers cleared his throat nervously. He was having a hard time accepting that this was the real thing.
Wesker rewarded him with a slight frown. "This is after losing com signals from all other members of the Bravo team." He tapped his watch. "The last signal from Aiken was garbled beyond understanding. We can only assume that they are in great danger."
"So you're sending us in with peashooters and pocket knives?" Redfield asked, incredulous.
"You are a trained combat soldier," Wesker said, his tone growing cold. "You of all people know that mobility is as important as armament." He again glanced around. "We don't know what Bravo team encountered, if they even encountered anything. Which is why we are going in light. If we need to, we will abandon the mission and return here to base to gather anything we deem necessary."
"So…you're saying we won't need it most likely?" Vickers asked hopefully.
Wesker nodded. "You're training as a combat specialist already puts each of you ahead of the Bravo team. Plus…our target is not the house they were investigating. We are merely going to post outside and observe for the time being. Perhaps it is a false alarm on our parts. If so, Valentine will confirm it when we're within range. Then we'll return here, and let Bravo handle their mission."
"Simple as that, huh?" Redfield asked suspiciously.
"It can be. We leave in exactly fifteen," Wesker said, ending any urge for further questions. Save one.
"Um.." Vickers again spoke up. "Bravo took the HumVee. How are we getting to wherever it is we're going?"
Wesker smiled coldly. "Helicopter. You'll be piloting. I'm sure you're happy to hear that." With that, he strode toward the door. "Meet up on the roof in ten." Without a backward glance, he was gone, slamming the door behind him.
Valentine looked at the walkie talkie in her hand. So much drama for a look-see. And the use of a PD helicopter? None of it rang true. The unease she felt was mirrored in the faces of her teammates as they silently gathered their things.