EYES OF THE BEHOLDER
CHAPTER SIX: THE WASTELANDS
My attention has been alerted to several confusing perspective switches in the last chapter. I still have to switch from time to time, due to the limited view FPV brings, but this time I attempted to make them somewhat clearer, and somewhat longer.
Chris-
Hope never dies:
I sat in the luxurious Hummer, my sister's head resting on my shoulder, tears streaming down her face. Poor girl, I thought. Shock of her life, seeing Steve alive…and much less becoming his captive…not to mention the infectious bastard had left Leon out in the middle of the scorching Arizona desert to die. And Jill…what about Jill? Where is she? Is she OK? Steve had been so tactfully cruel without even knowing it, placing her in one of the vehicles behind us. I guess it was now just wait and die…it seemed that we didn't have a chance in hell.
"Al, it's Steve. Oh, come on now, don't get so uptight. I don't care who calls you what, I'll call you what I want when I want to do it. Yes, I've got them all. Shot them out of the sky; it was one hell of a show, I might add. Uh-huh, yep. Oh yeah, I've already taken care of Leon Kennedy, and for some reason, Olivera didn't choose to accompany them. The little spick was nowhere to be found…"
The conversation continued, but I had to get Claire's attention. We still had a chance.
"We still got a chance, sis," I whispered softly. "Carlos was still on that plane…they never found him. Leon's out there too, and he won't be too far behind." I heard Burnside end the conversation; he slapped the cell phone shut, put it in his black jacket, and said something to the driver. The soldier nodded, and Steve turned his attention to us.
"So whatcha talkin' about back there?" he asked, a friendly mask over his voice, covering enough hate and malice to make the devil shake. "I want to hear."
Claire and I made a silent, but mutual decision not to pleasure the little worm by even dignifying him with an answer.
"Oh, come on," he laughed. "Nothing to say to an old friend? Hey, I got an idea: why don't you tell me how Leon's still alive, and he's going to follow us on foot, come in with guns blazing, and save the day? Hahaha, that'll be a nice party joke. What? No answer? I need something to brighten my day…oh wait, I do! I still get to kill you two!" He began to roar with laughter, and turned back around in the seat. This wasn't the same Steve Burnside that Claire had come to care about…he was a monster.
"Oh well, I guess sometimes a guy just can't have any fun," he said. "But that's something you two are going to learn in a hurry. 'Cause Big Al's on his way here, and he's ready to be rid of you little hemorrhoids. Get ready, because the party's just starting."
Leon-
Hot Pursuit:
Carlos kicked the forklift into low gear, and we began to track the Hummers across the sands of the Arizona desert. I stood on the left fork of the massive vehicle, magnum in hand, watching the tire tracks. The sun was blistering, even in the middle of January, and I felt beads of sweat pour down into my swollen left eye, which I had limited-to-no use of. My forehead, while no longer bleeding, was raging like fire from a piece of debris that struck me in the plane wreck, and I had to have several broken ribs on my right side, thanks to Steve's boots; however none of these seemed to phase me…the only pain I could comprehend was having the two most important…no, all of the important people in my life taken from me and knowing that their lives were in immediate danger.
"Hey, you all right?" I heard Carlos shout over the loud diesel engine. I looked at him, trying to shield my eyes from the dust.
"How about you ask me when we find my wife and son!" I shouted back. He nodded, and we continued. Everything remained silent for the next half hour, and finally Carlos stopped and killed the engine.
"We need to get our stuff ready," he said. "There's an old deserted storage facility the Army used near here. It's got a humongous prison fence all around it. I bet you NEO's moved in, and that's where they're headed." We checked the red duffel bag that we had packed all of our weaponry in: four MP5 assault rifles, two Remington shotguns(10ga. And 12ga.), and Seth's Python .45, with plenty of ammunition for both.
"There's a small access road just up ahead," he said, after we had sat for a few minutes. "I think we should keep going."
"Yeah," I answered. "They have close to an hour on us already." He climbed back behind the wheel and I stood on the fork, and we continued as fast as the bulky vehicle could go. About ten minutes later, we followed the tracks onto a paved road, where we found a small piece of evidence showing that we were headed in the right direction:
KEEP OUT
PRIVATE PROPERTY
TRESSPASSERS SHALL BE PROSECUTED
UMBRELLA-NEO PHARMECEUTICALS, INC.
"Looks we're in the right place," I observed as we pulled away from the sign. Shortly after, we found a security guard sitting on a four-wheeler. He was too deep into an adult magazine, therefore he never even saw us coming.
However, he heard the forklift's engine, but he wouldn't even look up.
"Show Clearance passes, please," he stuttered, drooling over a bare-chested woman. He finally looked up when I stuck my Desert Eagle to his temple and pulled the trigger.
"A-clearance, you kidnapping bastard," I fumed.
"Little much, don't you think?" Carlos asked as I pushed the cadaver off of the four wheeler, taking the Remington 10ga. Out of the bag along with a couple boxes of ammo. I closed the bag and put it on the back of the vehicle, and I picked up the guard's blood-splattered clipboard, searching the security log for anything of interest. Finally, near the bottom of the page, something caught my eye:
O'DONOVAN, SHANNON w/ RAID T.PORT GROUP 3-A
TRANSPORTING NINE PRISONERS, AS FOLLOWS:
-REDFIELD, C. A-30 G-M
-KENNEDY, C. A-24 G-F
-KENNEDY, M. A-18mos. G-M
-THOMPSON, A. A-28 G-M
-MASON, B. A-34 G-M
-CHAMBERS, R. A-22 G-F
-VALENTINE, J. A-29 G-F
-BIRKIN-KENNEDY, S. A-16 G-F
-PRIORITY: TC-63841-MO-8412-GNWB-GENESIS(TRANSFER TO LAB COMPLEX
A UPON ARRIVAL)
AUTHORIZATION CODE: PRIME
O'Donovan was with Steve? I couldn't remember seeing anyone else with him. Anyway, I was too disgusted with the insistence of NEO to refer to Seth as Genesis, like he was some kind of animal, instead of a human. However, we now knew that they were here. I signaled for Carlos to go ahead of me and we sped off towards the gates in the distance.
Chris-
When the Trumpet Sounds:
We arrived in the facility, where Seth was immediately separated from the rest of us. It was a show to watch…it took six guards to get him to cooperate, after he had seriously injured the previous four. They finally shot him up with a tranquilizer, and he continued to struggle, until he had no more energy. Claire put up a similar fight as they wrenched her son from her arms, and the two it took to get Martin Scott Kennedy away from his mother followed the crew responsible for the lumbering Seth Hartford. As for the rest of us, we were herded into a large cell in the bottom basement level of the facility…a dirty, dank chamber that was eerily reminiscent of most of the Rockfort Island facilities.
"The prez will be here in the morning," Steve gleefully stated as the security guard locked the door. "Then the real fun will begin. See you soon, guys." Just as he turned away, the other uniformed guard stopped him at the concrete stairs.
"Mr. O'Donovan, you have a phone call in your office, sir," he stated. Steve waved the soldier off, and he trekked up the stairs. The security guard returned to his desk as his accomplice sat in a chair near the cell, and my jaw hung to the floor. The guard had addressed Steve as "O'Donovan." Was it possible that…then I realized it was. I turned around, and saw Claire sitting on the hard iron bench in the room; I decided she needed a little comforting, so I sat down beside her and put an arm around her shoulders.
"You got to give Leon a little credit," I told her. "If he could stop that truck like that last week, then he's not going to let this scrawny, self-absorbed traitorous little prick get the best of him." She shook her head, and looked at me.
"But what about Martin?" she asked. I could only wonder what the sick sons of bitches had in store for my beautiful baby nephew.
"Just remember, they got Seth in there with him," I assured her. "That tranquilizer will have to wear off sometime, and even if it doesn't, he'd die before he'd let anything happen to that child." I gave her a quick hug, and walked over to where Jill stood alone.
"You OK?" I asked her.
"Yeah, I guess," she quietly answered. I put my arms around her waist and drew her close to me. I lifted one of my arms and smoothed back her soft brown hair.
"We're going to get out of this," I told her. "We've still got two guys on the outside, and even if we didn't, they'd have to kill me before I'd let them anywhere near you." She nodded, and laid her head on my chest and closed her eyes. Everything remained quiet for a minute, so I lowered my head and started to whisper in her ear.
"Jill, I…" I began.
"INTRUDER ALERT! TWO MEN AT WEST GATE C! ALL AVAILIABLE SECURITY PERSONNEL PLEASE REPORT IMMEDIATELY! REPEATING…"
"If that's who I think it is," Ark began.
"Then we'd best pack our shit," Bruce finished. "'Cause we're on our way out!"
Leon-
Reckless Drive:
When the smoke and sand cleared, five NEO guards were dead, and the menacing gate was crumpled like tinfoil, thanks to Carlos' forklift. Sirens were blaring around the facility like no tomorrow, and although we had defeated the first wave of security, there would be more following. I shuffled the weapons bag on my shoulder as I hopped off of the black ATV, and turned to Carlos.
"Let's head on in, before we get another little visit," I advised. He agreed, and we entered the front door of the facility. It was a similar sight: the layout was unmistakably the same as most of the other Umbrella facilities I had ever ventured into. Which I wasn't complaining…it would only make it easier to find the others. We followed the main hall straight, and we came upon a deserted computer terminal. Carlos set the shotgun on the desk and set to work on the terminal.
"Try and bring up the security logs," I recommended.
"That was the plan, mano," he answered. His fingers flew over the keyboards as he bypassed passwords, security checkpoints, and other electronic deterrents as he finally found the incarceration log.
"They've separated them," he said, scanning the screen. "Seth and Martin have been carted off to Lab Complex A, just down this hall. Everyone else is in the lower basement level in the holding complex. Take the elevator behind me."
"OK, we'll head down to the basement first, get everyone a gun, and go after Seth and Martin." Carlos looked at me, and shook his head.
"I want to sit and get as much of this stuff on disk as I can," he said, finding a box of disks in the desk. "This kind of stuff will work great in a court."
"All right, I'll be coming back for you," I told him as I ran to the elevator.
"Be ready to go." The large silver doors opened, and I stepped inside. I hit a blue button that had the label 'B-2', and felt it jerk to life and begin to lower. The doors slid open to reveal a large set of stone steps that lead into the detention compound. I hurried down the steps into a large brick room, where two surprised guards leapt up from their seats and made a sad attempt at defense, but I quickly gunned them down with the magnum. I felt everyone's eyes on me as I pulled the keys off of one of the guards, along with a Glock 17. I laid the duffel bag next to the deceased guard, and walked over to the door of the large cell. After a couple of minutes of twisting, turning, and all-out beating the rusty lock, the door finally opened and my wife flew into my arms.
"I thought I'd lost you," she whispered.
"You ought to know that I'm not so easy to beat," I replied. Everyone else crowded around me, obviously concerned with my beaten and bruised condition.
"I'm fine," I answered everyone's question. "But we still have my son and Seth to worry about. Carlos found out where they took them, so let's put the reunion off to the side and take care of some business." I opened the weapons bag and began distribution" our MP5s to Claire, Chris, Jill, and Ark; our other shotgun to Bruce; the .45 Python to Becky. Finally, I handed the 9mm that I had pulled off of the guard to Sherry.
"Just remember what I taught you," I told her. "Now, let's go and kick some ass."
We came back up into the main hall, to see four guards firing at Carlos, who was underneath the desk with the bolt-action .303. Ark, Chris, and I began to return fire as the others got fresh ammunition loaded. Two went down, but our little volley had distracted them long enough to allow Carlos to pop up and finish another off, before crouching down beneath the desk again. The last one looked too confused…he didn't know whether to go after us or the scrawny South American…but he seemed to like the one-on-one odds better as he headed for the back of the desk; however, little Sherry ended the attempt by blowing his assault rifle out of his hand.
"Aw, hell!" he shouted. "This fuckin' hurts!" Carols revealed himself again and put the guard out of his misery. We hurried over to where Carlos was standing.
"Wow, thanks for the save," he said, patting Sherry's shoulder. "None of us could've done that good if we wanted to."
"I just didn't want to kill anyone," she timidly answered. I bent my knees where I could look her in the eye, and put a strong hand on her shoulder.
"You did the right thing," I told her. "If you wouldn't have shot him, then he would have killed Carlos. It's them or us, Sherry. And I'm going to make sure that it's not us." She nodded as I stood up, and although I could still see sadness in her countenance, we were pressed for time, and we carried on towards the door to the lab complex. We began hearing strange sounds as we grew closer, such as things being knocked down and people screaming.
"Get…off…of…ME!"
"Wonder who's made the mistake of trying to tie Seth down now?" Chris asked and, which seemed inappropriate in the situation, drew laughter from us all. Ark and Chris put their shoulders into the locked door, and we saw the massive man comforting my crying son as he stepped through what seemed to be little better than a trash heap of equipment and scientists.
"Hey, look," he cooed to the baby. "It's your mom and dad." Martin raised his tear-streaked face from Seth's chest and saw us. He wriggled down from Seth's arms and jumped into Claire's.
"I hate to interrupt such a touching moment," we heard from behind us. We turned around, and there stood Steve, eerily dressed like Wesker in a black three-piece, holding a handgun. "But I've got to kill you now."
"Burnside," I growled.
"Or is it O'Donovan now?" Chris asked, matching my animosity.
"Yep," he answered. "Steve Burnside is legally dead…how could a dead man be in my position?"
"Man?" I asked. "Try parasite."
"And you're the O'Donovan behind all of this huh?" Ark fumed.
"Every bit," he laughed. "Me and Wesker, we planned it all, hoping it would make you all show up sooner or later. Kinda looks like it worked, and now, I'm going to become a hero. 'Cause I'm going to single-handedly kill all of you terrorists." He raised the gun, and pointed it first at my wife.
"Sorry, Claire," he said. "I could've loved you, but you just had to leave me to die. Time to repay the favor."
WHAM!
We watched Steve fall to the linoleum floor, and saw a grinning Carlos standing behind him, holding the .303 by the barrel.
"Knocked him in that big head of his," he elated. "Eat that, fucker."
"Why the hell didn't you shoot him?" Chris asked.
"Ammo's spent, man," he answered. "Now look, we got ten minutes, and this place is going up!" Not even bothering to ask how he planned we leave the god-forsaken desert, we rushed through the empty halls and out the door towards the gate. Finally, after assuring we were a safe distance from the facility, we turned and watched it explode. It was a spectacular sight, sending a large ball of flame high into the air. We stood in the road for several minutes, and finally it struck Chris that we had no place to go.
"Where to now, fearless leader?" he asked me. "We're in the middle of nowhere, and we have no way out."
"We're only about an hour north of a little town, I think," Carlos advised. "Might take a little longer, but we really don't have much of a choice." Although we all were tired, nobody seemed to have a complaint, so we began making our way down the road. We all remained quiet as we traveled, until Seth heard a noise far in the distance.
"Hold up," he said, trying to listen. "Helicopter. Big one. North of us, headed our way." None of us could make out the noise, but due to Seth's persistence, we decided to wait. A couple of moments later, we noticed a green speck coming from the still smoldering NEO facility, and it began to descend on our position.
"Is it NEO?" Claire asked, gripping tightly to our son as the large transport chopper lowered itself in front of us.
"Nope," Chris answered thankfully after noticing a tell-tale sign of the good guys: the red, white, and blue near the rear rotor. Not to mention Barry Burton behind the yoke, and Mick Stevens hanging out the rear door, motioning for us to enter as the chopper landed on the asphalt. We had to shield our eyes from the monstrous dust cloud the helicopter was kicking up as we rushed to meet Stevens in the chopper.
"They just don't know when to quit, do they?" he asked as I hopped aboard. "Good to see you again, Leon."
"Small talk later," I ordered as everyone else climbed in the helicopter. "Just get us the hell out of here."
Damage Control:
"It's worse than I thought, Leon," the Federal Marshal told Barry, Chris, Ark, and me in his makeshift office in the Phoenix FBI branch office. "They've already established several US shipping offices, and they're applying for a new chemical distribution license. I've sent crew after crew of inspectors, but they can't seem to turn anything up."
"Look," I replied. "They shot down a three-hundred thousand dollar aircraft, they kidnapped all but two of us, and they endangered all of our lives. Not to mention their little stunts in Valin Heights."
"And that memo that Steve gave the guys in the truck," Chris added. "Burnside's alive, admitted that he was O'Donovan and that he and Wesker were after us. And there's nothing you can do? You've got to be shitting me!"
"Look, the administration is actually supporting NEO's stateside return," Mick dryly said.
"And so they're going to put the lives of their citizens on the line just for a couple million in taxes?" Ark shot. "That's not the kind of government I worked for. Somebody up there's got their heads fucked or something, and it's going to lead to nothing but catastrophe."
"Don't you think I realize that?!" Mick shouted. "Damn it, I've been trying everything I know to stop this! It's not working! They've probably got so many people on the inside keeping all of this neat and clean. I don't know what else I can do!"
"Well, we've got to come up with something!" I shouted. "We can't just let these people get away with this!" Mick went to say something, but Barry raised a hand.
"Two things, Marshal," he said. "Number one: Wesker is going to have to go through a court to get that permit, right?"
"Yes," Stevens answered. "In a month, to be exact."
"Then you need to figure out how you can testify at this hearing, and present all of this. And I mean everything. Number two, if…let's say…the S.T.A.R.S. chose to open their own investigation of the matter, would you or anyone else up the ladder attempt to stop me?"
"Only your own superiors," Mick replied, starting to catch on to Barry's idea. "S.T.A.R.S. is an independently funded government agency. The call would come from your HQ." My contingency stood with me to leave, and Mick called back to us from his desk.
"I'm still in New York city," he told us. "Keep me informed. 'Cause I'm going to need all the help I can get."
Rededication:
Bruce had joined Ark, Chris, Barry, and I in one of the hotel rooms that Stevens had rented for us in Phoenix.
"I understand," Barry began speaking to us. "That you guys, minus Chris, are dedicated to Valin Heights and the S.R.U. But if we want to get this done right, then you guys should come back to Billings with me and take jobs in my office."
"What do you have in mind," I asked, genuinely intrigued.
"Well, I'm going to put you as my Associate Director of Agent Operations," he said. "And Chris, I've got a position ready for you as my A.D. of Intelligence. You two would be the ones assigned to the investigation, but in all sense, I guess we'd still be answering to Leon."
"Hey, you're the big director," I replied. "So why me?"
"You've brought us all this far," he told me. "So we're going to keep you in charge. I'll just be the guy reviewing the reports and signing the checks. Now, Ark, we've got an open position for an Alpha commander in the city's unit, and if Bruce will join us, there's a Bravo command position open as well."
"Sounds interesting," Chris mulled.
"Paperwork will be a bitch," Ark laughed. "But I guess I can do it."
"Sherry and the baby," I reminded Barry. "What about them?"
"Amy still lives around there, right?" Chris asked. "Why not leave them with her and Sam?" I thought for a minute…my twenty year old sister and her husband would probably care for them, understanding the circumstances.
"If Claire will go for it," I said. "Then so will I."
"How we going to get our stuff up here though?" Ark asked.
"My guess is Carlos will be flying the kids back to Illinois, so he could always get clothes and stuff for everyone. We've got plenty of room for everyone at the ranch: three empty bedrooms and a guest house," Barry offered. "I guess clothes is all anyone would need."
"Well, I'd love to help you all put a boot in Wesker's ass," Bruce began. "But my wife isn't going to want to move and all, especially putting you all in a bind."
"Not a problem," Barry said. "If you don't want to go, then you don't have to. And if you do go, then once we're done with Umbrella, then nobody's going to make you stay. So who's in?"
"Me," Chris said.
"Count me in," Ark added.
"I'll do it," I told Barry.
Bruce was hesitant. He stood up, scratched the back of his muscular neck, and turned back towards us.
"As long as Ellen's OK with it," he said. "Then I'd be a fool to say no to a chance like this."
It was after eleven when I finally made it back to the room Claire and I were sharing. She was still awake when I walked in, flipping through cable channels. Martin was probably asleep with Sherry in their room next door, leaving the two of us alone.
"What're you still doing up?" I asked as I walked in and locked the door.
"Waiting for you," she answered, putting the remote on the nightstand as I laid down next to her, kicking off my shoes.
"I've got some news," I told her as she rolled over to face me.
"And that is…" she inquired.
"How does Montana sound to you?" I replied. She sat up and mulled over it.
"You're joining the S.T.A.R.S.?" she asked, putting two and two together.
"Assistant Director, West-Midwestern agent operations," I replied. "Barry wants me to run the investigation he's going to open up against NEO."
"Sherry's still in school," she informed. "I don't want to move her halfway through the year."
"I've called Amy," I said. "She's agreed to take the kids until we get this over with, and you've already got Sam basically running the store. Once we get this under control, we'll send for them or we'll go back to Illinois. Whatever you decide. If you don't want to, then we won't."
"If this will help get this over with, then let's do it," she said. We rested there in silence for awhile, until I decided to say something.
"With what happened today…" I began. "Steve, and all. Are you OK?"
"I…guess," she stammered.
"I know that had to have been a shock," I told her. "And I can see it's bothering you. But just remember, he's not the same; don't forget that. Wesker's brainwashed him, and if Steve survived that blast, then we're going to have to deal with him sooner or later." She nodded, and crawled underneath the comforter.
"I love you, Claire," I said as I nodded off to sleep. "And please, don't forget that."
Chris-
Not-so-lonely Dreamer:
I closed and locked the door to the hotel room, and saw Jill quietly sleeping. I took off my shirt and jeans, slipped into a pair of shorts, and crawled into bed next to her.
"Little late, aren't you?" she asked.
"I didn't wake you up, did I?" I responded. She smiled as she turned to face me.
"I just laid down," she said. "I tried to wait up for you, but I figured you and Barry had some important stuff to discuss."
"Well, it was," I answered. "I'm going back into S.T.A.R.S.," I added. "Barry's AD of Intel."
"So you're going to Montana, huh?" she inquired.
"Well…" I faltered. "Only if you'll go with me." She looked at me for a moment.
"I'd go anywhere with you, Chris," she told me. "After today, I can't let you get away from me that easily."
"I love you Jill," I said, finally finding the right words without being interrupted. "I've always known it, and it feels good to finally say it." She looked at me, and I felt her soft lips touch mine. Ad as I felt her soft, slender fingers run across my back, I was thanking God that I remembered to lock the door.
Leon-
Turning Westward…or Northward:
"You guys behave for Amy," Claire told Sherry and Martin as she strapped the younger into the medium-sized, single engine Cessna Carlos was using to shuttle them to Illinois, and our stuff to Montana.
"I will, Claire," she replied, before going deep into thought. "I mean…Mom." Claire looked at the young girl with a surprised face, and then tightly embraced her.
"I love you guys," I added, speaking through an open window. "We'll come after you as soon as we get this matter settled."
"Just take care of yourself, Dad," Sherry answered. I felt a smile come to my face, and I turned to Carlos in the pilot's seat.
"Amy and Sam are going to meet you at the airport," I said. "They'll have all of our stuff. The only trip you'll have to make is after Bruce's wife and their stuff. Then haul back to Billings, 'cause we're working on something for you to do."
"Will do, cap," he said, but before he could start the engines, Seth walked up to give his sister a goodbye.
"Guess it's goodbye again," he mournfully said.
"Yeah," she replied, a little more upbeat. "But we'll see each other soon, just as soon as you drive Umbrella into the ground."
"I'll keep in touch, kid," he said.
"I love you, Seth," she told him. "Please be careful." It was unusual to see Seth Hartford, his biological father William Birkin's failed attempt at a bio-weapon, fighting back tears.
"I love you too, Sherry," he told his sister. "Now keep out of trouble, and tell that Keith guy that I'm going to have to meet him one of these days. You can even throw in the whole 'killing people with my hands' gig. I think he'd like to see my picture, too." Sherry got a shocked and horrified look on her face, and that brought laughter from Seth.
"I'm just kidding, sis," he laughed. "Now just take it easy, and don't worry about us. We'll be back before you know it." He walked back over to the others, but Claire and I remained and watched Carlos start the plane, taxi it down the runway, and take off. We watched until it was nothing but a little red-and-white speck, and then until it was nothing it all. Ark walked over to us, and drew our attention.
"You guys ready?" he asked. "Chris has the plane ready, and we really need to go." The three of us walked to our own aircraft, a high-dollar Learjet that Stevens had miraculously supplied. As we strapped in, I thought of what Sherry had done for Claire and me. Just two simple words, mom and dad, had raised our spirits, and I realized that we were doing the right thing. We were making the world a better place for our children, as well as everyone else.
Our heroes have rededicated themselves of ridding the world of Wesker and Umbrella-NEO. But what awaits them as they begin this new journey? And is Steve still alive? All these questions answered plus more in the next chapter of Eyes of the Beholder.