RE Armageddon: Part II- Hands of Fate

by striker

Finally united, the survivors must now battle their own inner demons while Chris must make a choice that will determine the fate of all. Please read and review.

10. New Start

Disclaimer: Resident Evil and everything associated are property of Capcom. This story and any new characters, places, or things are my property. Hey, at least I'm being honest.

Resident Evil: Armageddon

Part II- Hands of Fate

Chapter 10- New Start

Written by: Striker

Chris stepped out of his room, a smile plastered on his face. His hair was still damp from an early morning shower. He had decided to get one before the rush. He had on a red T-shirt and khaki pants. He had abandoned his usually outfit since, in his mind, he was starting over. Those clothes were something he used to wear. He had changed so much that those clothes reminded him of who he was. Another thing that had changed was his relationship with Jill. The events of last night still played in his mind. It had finally happened, they had sex. It had been incredible to say the least. It wasn't the fast and furious, hard and heavy kind of sex most people would of thought of. It was a more intimate and loving kind, the kind people who were really in love had. Besides, he and Jill didn't feel like waking everyone up and having to deal with everyone's probing questions. That was why Jill had gone back to her room. He sighed and when downstairs.

Claire and Leon were already up. They were across the table from each other, staring deeply into each other's eyes. They were both dressed in T-shirts and jeans. Ark sat at the end facing the hall in a T-shirt and boxers. He was hunched over with his hands in front of him. His bloodshot eyes were locked onto the cup of coffee sitting before him. Unlike his present company, he felt like shit. He definitely wasn't a morning person. He looked up to see Chris standing in the doorway. He let out a low groan.

"Morning to you too." Chris said. Immediately, Leon and Claire broke their glance. Leon began to look around the room. Claire just looked at the table. Chris laughed to himself before turning his attention back to Ark. "God, you look like someone yanked you out of your grave."

"I feel like it too." Ark replied groggily. "I would have gotten more sleep, but I think Carlos was having one of his fantasies. He kept mumbling stuff about women. And if that wasn't bad enough, I had to put up with their lovey-dovey shit for the last fifteen minutes."

"Really? And why is that, Claire?" Chris asked his sister in an accusing voice.

"Why should I tell you? It's none of your business." Claire responded harshly.

"Then I'll just ask Leon." Chris turned towards Leon, who had a half guilty-half scared look on his face. "What happened?"

"Now Chris, don't pester those two. It's not nice." Chris turned to see Jill. Her hair was wet from the shower she had just taken. She was wearing a blue short-sleeve shirt that cut off at the waist and a pair of jean shorts. "Whatever happened is between those two. Right Claire?" She gave Claire a wink.

Claire felt her blood boil. She so disparately wanted to hurt Jill. "Right."

Ark chuckled at the situation. Normally he wouldn't have found this funny, but he was so burned out from the day before he just didn't care. He was about to take a drink from his coffee when he caught a sparkle come from Jill's neck. He didn't believe what he saw. "Damn. What did you guys do last night; rob a jewelry store? Where did you get that thing?"

Jill put her hand over her necklace. "Chris got it for me."

"I wish someone would buy me something like that." Claire said.

"Why don't you ask Leon?" Ark said. Claire responded with a nasty glare. Chris just smiled to himself while he and Jill went to get some coffee.

Carlos staggered from his room in a pair of Hawaii style shorts. "Thank God the bathroom is right across from my room." He wiped the crust from his eyes and stretched, hearing his back crack. "All I need know is a nice cold shower." He had the best dream he had in a while. He was on the beach at a wild party. There were hot looking women in string bikinis dancing in the sand. He was in the middle of them all, having the time of his life. Then something strange happened. He found himself in a ballroom wearing a tuxedo. People were dancing to some slow music. He had heard someone call his name. He had turned to see Rebecca in a black silken evening gown approach him. She asked him if he wanted to dance. He said yes and they moved to the dance floor. They danced through the song that was playing, and when it was almost over, he leaned in towards face. He was about to kiss her when he woke up. Now, he stood at his door thinking about the dream. "What did it mean?" He asked himself. His train of thought was broken by Rebecca coming out of her room, wrapped in a yellow bathrobe.

"Hi Carlos. How are you doing this morning?" She asked cheerfully.

"Fine. Are you always this way in the morning?" Carlos was amazed at how lively she was. "I thought you would be like me."

"I guess I'm just a morning person. Anyway, I'm just happy about yesterday. Guess what Chris told me."

"What?"

"He said that I'm the most important member of this whole team. Isn't that great?"

"I'm sure it is." Carlos said. "And I'm sure if Chris said so, it must be true."

Rebecca looked at the carpet. "Yeah, he's a great guy. He's kind of like a brother to me. Believe it or not, I had a crush on him while we were still in Raccoon. I'm kind of disappointed that he's with Jill, but then again, it wouldn't have worked out."

"I had a crush on Jill." Carlos said. "But I guess it wasn't meant to be."

Rebecca nodded. "Hey, are you using the bathroom?"

"No, go ahead. I'll wait till you're out."

"Thanks." Rebecca opened the door. "By the way, nice boxers." She giggled and quickly when inside.

Carlos just laughed. He didn't know what it was, but the first time he had seen her, something just clicked. During the last couple of days, that feeling had grown. 'Face it amigo, you're falling for her. You're falling for her bad.' He thought to himself.

After a few hours, everyone was up. Barry was the last to rise. He came trudging down the steps around nine-thirty dressed in torn jeans and a worn flannel shirt. He went for his daily cup of coffee, passing Chris who was leaning against the refrigerator.

"You sure sleep in late. I thought you would be the first one up." Chris said.

"I decided to sleep in. That and the fact that there were strange noises coming from your room last night." Barry gave Chris a sly look.

"You probably heard Carlos. From what Ark told me, he was having one hell of a dream."

"Sound doesn't travel that far. I feel insulted that you would try to hide your little foray with Jill."

Chris' eyes widened. "What do you mean? Nothing happened last night."

Barry gave a gruff laugh. "I'm a light sleeper, I heard you guys. In any case, what you two do is your business. Oh, don't worry, I won't tell anyone. The last thing I need is for everyone to make a circus out of this."

"Whatever you say." Chris said. "So what did you have planned?"

"Figure out what we're going to do about Nicholai for starters. I don't relish the idea that he knows we're still here. I still don't know how to break the bad news."

"I was thinking about that too. I thought that we could get a little more prepared for our next mission. I was thinking of making a shooting range out of that wood we cut up. I was also planning on teaching Jill how to fly the copter. Seeing as how Ark, Carlos, you, and myself are the only ones who know how, I thought it might be a good idea to train the others on how to fly."

"Either that, or another excuse to be alone with Jill." Barry said, nudging Chris. "I'll go get the others."

Barry called for everyone to meet out in front of the house. Carlos had changed into his combat fatigues. Rebecca had on a yellow shirt, green vest, and her blue windbreakers. Ark had put on a pair of black jeans. Claire had put on her red jacket while Leon had donned his leather jacket. Rott wore a blue T-shirt and shorts. Lily had the same kind of shirt, but had on a pair of baggy pants. Sherry had on a black T-shirt and a pair of hiking shorts. Combined with her jacket, she looked like a younger version of Claire. Barry explained what he and Chris planned to do. Some of them had their own ideas. After a short discussion, everyone went on to his or her tasks.

Chris and Jill were in the helicopter's cockpit. Chris showed her how to start the copter, going over the whole procedure. Jill followed Chris closely. She had an idea that someday she might have to start the copter herself. Chris was pleased that Jill was learning so quickly. Her intelligence was one thing he loved about her.

Barry had enlisted Leon and Carlos to help him build the shooting range. Barry had chosen the back yard for the range. The main problem now was finding the right pieces of wood. Despite Leon and Carlos' bickering, the three men had gotten the wood they needed. The rest of the job went quickly. In a few hours, they had put together eight targets.

Ark had decided to teach Rott how to shoot. Ark showed Rott how to load, cock, and fire one of Barry's hunting rifles. Rott had learned quickly, making Ark proud.

Rebecca was teaching Claire a little about first aid. Sherry and Lily were happy to help by pretending to be injured. Claire grasped the concepts quickly. She knew the importance of having two medics on the team instead of one. After the lesson was over, the four girls started to play a game of football, using a roll of gauze as the ball.

Chris watched the game. "Just think, someday we won't have to worry about Umbrella. We can just live out our days without looking over our shoulders."

"I hope so." Jill said. "I guess this is one more reason to bring those bastards down."

Chris turned to Jill to give her a kiss. He was interrupted by Barry's booming voice declaring that the shooting range was open for business. "We better go. We don't want anyone jumping to conclusions, do we?" Together, he and Jill left the copter and headed for the house.

"All right, pick a gun and start shooting." Barry had all the weapons set up on the kitchen table. Everyone grabbed a gun except Chris. "What's the matter?"

Chris looked at his friend. "I was wondering, do you have anything stronger around here?"

"Like what?"

"Like a shotgun. I'm not saying the one I have is bad, it's just that I want something with a little more kick."

"Say no more." Barry led Chris to the den. He opened the large cabinet that sat next to the computer desk. He pulled out a double-barrel shotgun. "Is this to your liking?"

"Hell yeah." Chris took the gun, looking it over. The barrel was two feet long and the handle was made of oak. "Do you have something I can use to cut the barrel?"

"Out in the tool shed. Somehow I just knew you would want to saw that off. You always liked big guns."

"When you have to take some big fucker out, nothing else will do." Chris said, heading for the front door.

The air was filled with the sounds of gunfire. While everyone had pretty much picked a handgun, only Carlos chose the MP5. One by one, each person took aim and fired off a round. Suddenly, everyone was stopped by a loud blast. They all turned to see Chris holding his shotgun, a foot cut off the barrel.

"Oh boy. Looks like Chris has a new toy." Ark called out.

Chris just smiled. He then moved next to his sister. "Hey Claire, now that I got your attention, I just wanted to talk about this morning. I shouldn't have tried to pry into your personal life."

"It's no big deal Chris. I know you were just being a brother. Besides, I knew you were joking."

"Yeah, well, you're a big girl now. If you want to have a relationship with Leon, I don't care. Hey, it's not like you've slept with the guy." Chris said as he turned to his target. Claire became silent and hung her head. Chris turned back to her. "You didn't sleep with him, right?" Claire looked at her brother with a guilty look. Chris then stared at Leon, who had a deer in the headlights look. "Did you?"

"Ye, yes." He managed to get out.

Carlos moved next to Rebecca. "This doesn't look good." He whispered to her.

"I don't believe this." Chris said, slapping his left hand to his forehead.

"Don't act so innocent." Claire snapped. "It's not like you didn't do the same thing with Jill last night."

"CLAIRE!" Jill yelled,

Rebecca leaned towards Carlos. "This is getting interesting." She whispered.

"Just remember," Carlos replied, "Chris has a gun."

Chris kept switching his view between Leon and his sister. His hands were gripping his gun so tightly that his knuckles were white. Finally he thrust the gun at Jill. "Take this. Leon, come with me, now." He pointed at Leon, then at the house. "We have to have a talk."

Chris began towards the house. Leon looked meekly at Claire and Jill. Swallowing hard, he started for the house, dreading what Chris was going to do to him. Hell, why should he be surprised? He'd be pissed to if he were in Chris' position.

"Nice knowing you buddy." Ark called out.

Leon didn't bother to answer. He marched to the door where Chris was waiting. Chris motioned for him to follow. The two men went upstairs, with Chris stopping in front of Leon's room. 'Great,' Leon thought, 'No witnesses. I'm going to get it now.' Chris opened the door, nodding for Leon to enter first. He did, walking to his bed and sitting on it. He kept his eyes on Chris, getting ready for whatever was coming.

Chris stepped inside and closed the door. He then looked Leon dead in the eye. "I only have one question, do you love her?"

"What?" Leon was stunned. He assumed that Chris was going to pound him. This was unexpected.

"Yes or no question Leon. Do you love her or not? I have to know."

"Yes I do. Is that all you wanted to know? Why couldn't you ask me that outside?"

"Because, I think we need to have a private talk. I don't believe that a person's private life should be public knowledge." Chris walked up to Leon. "Now I don't know you that well. From what I've seen and heard, I believe you're a good guy. Also, you seem to care very much about others, especially Claire. Did she tell you anything about Steve?"

"She did. I know what happened. Like I told you before, I lost someone too. I know what Claire was going through. She needed someone to be there for her."

"And this just happened. You two just fell in love in a few days."

"No Chris, it's not like that." Leon sprang off the bed, getting in Chris' face. "I had feelings for her ever since Raccoon. You had regrets about leaving your friends, right? Well I had regrets about letting Claire go after you alone. I was worried to death that something happened to her. After I got that E-mail, I knew I had to get a hold of you. When you sent that E-mail telling me that you two escaped, I felt like I had a weight lifted off my shoulders. You don't know how long I thought about what I would say to her when I saw her again. Don't tell me that Claire hasn't done the same thing."

A smile spread across Chris' face. "I'll tell you this, you got guts. Not a lot of people would think about getting in my face. I like that. And yes, I think Claire has thought about you. Whenever she would talk about you, I knew she had something for you. I could hear it in her voice. Also, when we sent that E-mail, she waited half the night for you to reply. I had a feeling that you two would get together, I just didn't expect you guys to move so quickly."

"Neither did I. We were in my room talking, then kissing, and then boom, just like that."

"I just need to know one other thing." Chris put a hand on Leon's shoulder. "I need to know if you are in this for good. I need to know if you're serious, or if this is just temporary. If this is just a fling, then stop while you're ahead. However, if this is full-blown, give till it hurt then give some more, in for life kind of love you have for her, then I won't stand between you. So, what is it?"

"I'd do anything for her Chris. If I had to die for her, I wouldn't think twice. I'm in this relationship till the day I die."

"Then do just one thing for me, be there for her. No matter what happens, no matter what you go through, never give up on her. Cause if you do, if you break her heart, you'll have to deal with me." Chris turned towards the door. He was about to open it when he turned to Leon. "Oh, one other thing. Try not to piss her off. She can be just like me." He winked and left the room.

"I will." Leon said. Letting out a sigh, he started for the door.

Barry was standing by the woodpile, thinking about what he could do with it. "Maybe we can have a bonfire, I'm sure the kids would get a kick out of that." He looked up at the sky. It was starting to get cloudy, the sun struggling to poke through. "On second thought, it looks like ran. I just hope we don't get another downpour. All I need is another tree coming down."

"Hey Barry, can I talk to you about something?"

Barry turned to see Rebecca walking towards him. "Yeah, but make it quick. I think another rainstorms coming."

Rebecca dug at the ground with her foot. "How do you know if someone likes you?"

Barry smiled. First Chris and Jill, now Rebecca. At least he would know what to say when his daughters asked him that question. "Well, one way is the way he acts around you. Another would be the way he talks to you. I think the best way is just to ask him. At least you'll know how he feels about you. By the way, who's the guy?"

"No one. I just wanted to know in case I meet some cute boy. Thanks Barry, you're a real pal." Rebecca ran back to the others, who had been talking about what they thought Chris was doing to Leon.

"Any time." Barry said. 'Just like Chris.' He thought to himself. He took one last look at the sky. "Better get the others inside." He walked up to the others. "I think we may get some more rain. We better get inside now. Hey, where'd Chris and Leon go?"

"All I heard was something about Claire sleeping with Leon, then something about Chris sleeping with Jill. Next thing you know, Chris ordered Leon to follow him. They've been gone ever since." Ark said, trying to keep a straight face.

"I'm sure Chris has become more rational than he used to be." Barry said. "I'm sure he isn't strangling Leon right now and thinking about where to bury the body."

Claire had gone white. "You really know how to make someone feel better." She quickly walked towards the house.

"I'll go with you Claire, you may need help prying your brother of your boyfriend." Jill said, following her.

The two women ran into the house, dreading the worse. They found Leon at the base of the stairs. "Hey ladies." He said.

"I thought you'd be dead by now." Claire gasped. "You didn't beat up my brother, did you?"

"No. We had the equivalent of the father-boyfriend talk. He basically asked me what my intentions with you were, and if I was in for the long haul."

"What did you say?" Claire asked.

"Same thing I told you last night." Leon cradled Claire's face. "That I would do anything for you."

"Where is he now?" Jill asked.

Leon pointed at the front door. "He went outside. I think he went for a walk or something."

"I better go get him." Jill said. "Barry said that it looks like rain." Jill walked up to the door. She opened it to see Chris standing at the spot he had stood at a few days ago. She walked up next to him, standing to his left. She studied his face, which seemed to be deep in thought. "What's on your mind?"

He looked at her. "Something that I've been thinking about ever since yesterday."

"What is it?"

"A question. Something my father once asked me a long time ago. The same thing I'm going to ask you now. Do you believe in fate?"

Jill was caught off guard by the question. "Do you mean fate in the sense that our lives are predetermined, that we have no say in our future. If that's what you mean, then no."

"That's not what my father believed. He believed that fate just points us along. We all have a destiny, the place were our lives would eventually end at. However, our destiny isn't set in stone, it can be changed based on what we do. Fate is there to help us reach our destiny. If you think of life as a road, with our destiny at the end, fate will push us back on if we swerve too far off. It also throws roadblocks at us, to test us, to see if we truly deserve that destiny we're heading for. If we pass, we smash right through it and go on. If not, we veer off and our destiny is changed. What should happen won't be. I also think the road forks. At some times in our life, we have two choices. We go left, or right. I think fate is there to stop you from making a big mistake, and to point you to the correct choice. You understand this?"

"I think." Jill said. What Chris said seemed to make sense to her. "In other words, fate is like your conscience, it tells you when you're about to mess up."

"Right. My dad said that fate has its ways of reminding us what destiny it has planned for each of us. Sometimes it's subtle, like a guilty feeling. Other times it's more obvious, like a big tree blocking your path." Chris pointed to himself. "That's what it did with me. It stopped me from making the biggest mistake of my life. My father also believed that nothing happens by chance. He told me that everything happens for certain reasons; it's just that we don't know why until later in life. After looking back at what's happened, I think I now know the reasons why."

"Why what?" Jill asked. "What do you mean? I'm sorry, but you lost me."

Chris looked into Jill's eyes. "The reason why all of us had to suffer so much. Why all the bad shit that's happened to us did. Why we all had to loose our homes, our friends, and for some of us, our families. All those events were tests. Fate was preparing us for this. Through all the hardship and pain we got stronger. Now we have to use what we learned from those experiences to pass our finally test, to take out Umbrella. With that said, I'll ask you one more time. Do you believe in fate?"

"Yes, yes I do. And whatever tests fate has up its sleeve, bring it on." Jill said. "We'll pass it together."

"Then count us in." Chris and Jill turned to see Leon, Claire, and Sherry standing next to them. Claire was in the middle, with Leon to her left and Sherry to her right. She and Leon had their arm around each other's waist, while Sherry held on to her right arm. "Whatever happens, we'll face it like a family."

"That's right." Leon said, smirking. "The way things are going we will be."

"First things first," Chris said, taking Jill's hand in his, "We take Umbrella down for good."

At that moment, the sky let open with a warm, gentle rain. Chris and his friends looked at the sky as the sun's beams shot through the clouds.

Carlos and the others were standing on the porch, watching them. He looked over at Rebecca and decided to make his move. "They sure look happy, don't they?"

"They sure do. I'm so glad they got together. I just love happy endings." Rebecca moved next Carlos. "I hope that one day, I have my own."

"Don't worry, I'm sure you will." He slowly put his left arm around her. "Someday we both will." Rebecca just smiled.

Barry looked at Carlos and Rebecca, then to his friends standing outside. "I think I should call my wife and kids." He said to Ark.

Ark got the message. "Come on kids, let's watch some TV." They left, leaving Carlos and Rebecca alone on the porch.

Chris and the others were still standing outside, enjoying the warm rain. Sherry spoke up. "This reminds me of something mom used to tell me." She said.

"What honey?" Claire asked.

"She told me when it rains like this, the angels are crying."

"Why are they crying?" Jill asked.

"Because they're happy for us." Sherry replied.

Chris just smiled and looked up to the heavens. "I guess you're right."

We all stood in the rain for a while, knowing that whatever trials we would face, we would face them together. Sometimes when I remember those few days, I still find it hard to believe that we had all changed so much. In my opinion, the battle I fought inside my own heart was the most important battle of my life. If I had lost, and if not for fate, we all would have lost the war. My father was right after all; fate did have big plans for me. I guess I needed a little reminder to see it. My friends managed to defeat their demons as well. That led to two old friendships becoming much more, and another relationship to begin. Also, we had all grown closer together. Claire had no idea how right she was. We would face Umbrella as more than a team. We would face Umbrella as the one thing they could never destroy, no matter how much they tried. We would face them as a family.

Author's Comments: How was that for an ending? With that said and done, Part II is concluded. We are now one step away from the final battle. One part removed from Armageddon. Now, with the team back on its feet and more unified, the action will pick up. New foes and allies await our heroes, and the teams' greatest test is about to begin. A few notes first. I decided to pair up Carlos and Becky because they have something in common. Rebecca had a crush on Chris, and Carlos had a crush on Jill. Don't you just love irony? Besides, the pairing works out nicely. Now the only one who is single is Ark. Don't worry, he'll find someone. I'll let your imagination run wild on that. Also, with all the stories I've read, I've never seen Chris give Leon "the business". Basically, Chris has never had a talk with Leon concerning his relationship with Claire. Either Chris doesn't approve it, approves it, or just doesn't care. I guess this is just my way of being bold and different. On a final note, remember who taught whom what. Like everything else, that will play into the next part. So let's wrap this thing up.

In Part III, the action finally picks up. Two teams will collide, hidden feelings revealed, and dark agendas exposed. But first, a monumental event will take place. An old name will be resurrected and an old unit reborn. With this reformation, Umbrella's time will be running out, because the time for games is over. Witness it in RE Armageddon: Part III, Chapter 1- Regroup and Reform.