Chapter 2
Versailles Island
2330 hrs
The forest trees and bushes closed in tight around the assault team, their weapons clutched in tight to their sides as they stalked through the thick underbrush to the Island's northern edge. In the darkness, Chris Redfield adjusted his night-vision goggles, on load from the Hard Rain group, tightening it on his head. The dark silence was only momentarily broken, by strange far away sounds in the forest, and the occasional teams check in via radio. They were split into teams of two, and were to meet up at the Umbrella compound's southern walls. But first they had to survive the forest.
"Chris? Do you see anything yet?" Lean asked, her voice trembling slightly. Chris took a quick scan of the area around him, seeing nothing but tall European oaks, and bushes. Chris turned to Lean, his feet crunching the dry leaves at his feet.
"No, the area seems clear. Come on, we'd better not stop moving." Chris whispered back to her. Lean nodded slowly, her face covered by her ski mask and goggles. She couldn't help but feel as though they were being watched. Stalked, almost, by some unseen foe. Meanwhile, about a mile east of their position, Barry and Jean were feeling the same.
"Barry? I cannot help but feel as though we are being followed. Like I am hearing footsteps behind us." Jean said, as he carefully made his way through the thick bushes. Barry nodded slowly in agreement, clutching the grip on his Magnum tightly.
"You're right Jean. We're being hunted." Barry said quietly. Jean listened carefully to the air around them, hearing naught but the wind, flowing eerily through the tree branches above.
"What is it that hunts us, mon ami?" Jean asked, flipping the safety off on his MP5 sub-machine gun. Barry listened carefully; listening for noises his ear had become attuned to when he was fighting in the mansion.
"I can hear them now. They chirp, sort of like birds. Can you hear that? They're waiting for us to let our guard down." Barry whispered, turning towards the faint, almost inaudible, chirping noises.
"Yes. I can hear them now too. What are they? They sound distorted, like reptile croaks crossed with robins call." Jean said. Barry squinted through his night-vision goggles, looking to make the hunter the hunted.
"They have a name that fits them best. They're called Hunters, one of Umbrella's first intelligent mutations. They are born to hunt, and live to kill, but by the sounds of the chirping, there's only one, maybe two." Barry said, pointing his magnum at the cluster of bushes behind them, Jean following his example quickly. The chirping soon became louder the more the two men waited. It wasn't long after the bush the two were looking at began to rustle, and a large reptilian creature jumped forth. Jean froze in horror at the sight of this half alligator, half ape-like creature. Not Barry though. Two loud shots rang out in the forest darkness, one hitting the Hunter in the chest, stopping it in its tracks, and the second passing through it's skull, silencing it forever.
"Come on Jean! It won't be long, best we just leave it for the other things to feast!" Barry shouted, bringing Jean out of his trance. They ran from the small clearing where the Hunter fell, and soon, they heard chirping all around the area, followed by the far-off sounds of messy feasting. Barry and Jean ran north until they figured it safe, and stopped for a breather. Barry took a swig of water from his canteen, and turned on his radio.
"This is Burton, Jean and I just had an encounter with a Hunter. Chris, we're on the right island, that's for sure." Barry said into the radio. He waited a few seconds for the reply.
"Barry, a Hunter? Are you guys all right?" Chris asked him, Barry took a quick look around, then brought the radio back to his mouth.
"Yeah, Jean is a little shaken up by it, but he'll be ok. Guess he didn't expect something like that. I took it down, and some other Umbrella critters in the vicinity decided to have a snack, compliments of me and my little friend here." Barry said, chuckling softly.
"Ok, good Barry, so long as you guys are ok. We'll keep our eyes open for anything on our end. Claude and Xavier, how are things on your side?" Chris asked. A few seconds later the reply came.
"Tous va bien, Chris. On te vaira a la laboratoire." The reply came. Chris moaned in frustration. 'These guys don't know English?' Chris thought.
"Je m'excuse Chris. They understand English, but cannot speak it. They say that everything is fine and they will see us at the laboratory." Jean soon translated. Chris sighed and took a sip of water from his canteen.
"Ok, thanks Jean. It'd probably just be easier if you checked in with them then. This is Redfield, out." Chris let the button off his radio and re-holstered it. He nodded to Lean, and picked up his shotgun, the two heading back off into the dark forest. In the brief reprieve after the Hunter attack, Chris' thoughts once again shifted to his friends back in Racoon City, and the plight they faced there.
TO BE CONTINUED.
A/N: YAY! I got a review! A good one! The next chapter will, as you may have expected, focus on Jill and Jim in the city again. Peace out!
Versailles Island
2330 hrs
The forest trees and bushes closed in tight around the assault team, their weapons clutched in tight to their sides as they stalked through the thick underbrush to the Island's northern edge. In the darkness, Chris Redfield adjusted his night-vision goggles, on load from the Hard Rain group, tightening it on his head. The dark silence was only momentarily broken, by strange far away sounds in the forest, and the occasional teams check in via radio. They were split into teams of two, and were to meet up at the Umbrella compound's southern walls. But first they had to survive the forest.
"Chris? Do you see anything yet?" Lean asked, her voice trembling slightly. Chris took a quick scan of the area around him, seeing nothing but tall European oaks, and bushes. Chris turned to Lean, his feet crunching the dry leaves at his feet.
"No, the area seems clear. Come on, we'd better not stop moving." Chris whispered back to her. Lean nodded slowly, her face covered by her ski mask and goggles. She couldn't help but feel as though they were being watched. Stalked, almost, by some unseen foe. Meanwhile, about a mile east of their position, Barry and Jean were feeling the same.
"Barry? I cannot help but feel as though we are being followed. Like I am hearing footsteps behind us." Jean said, as he carefully made his way through the thick bushes. Barry nodded slowly in agreement, clutching the grip on his Magnum tightly.
"You're right Jean. We're being hunted." Barry said quietly. Jean listened carefully to the air around them, hearing naught but the wind, flowing eerily through the tree branches above.
"What is it that hunts us, mon ami?" Jean asked, flipping the safety off on his MP5 sub-machine gun. Barry listened carefully; listening for noises his ear had become attuned to when he was fighting in the mansion.
"I can hear them now. They chirp, sort of like birds. Can you hear that? They're waiting for us to let our guard down." Barry whispered, turning towards the faint, almost inaudible, chirping noises.
"Yes. I can hear them now too. What are they? They sound distorted, like reptile croaks crossed with robins call." Jean said. Barry squinted through his night-vision goggles, looking to make the hunter the hunted.
"They have a name that fits them best. They're called Hunters, one of Umbrella's first intelligent mutations. They are born to hunt, and live to kill, but by the sounds of the chirping, there's only one, maybe two." Barry said, pointing his magnum at the cluster of bushes behind them, Jean following his example quickly. The chirping soon became louder the more the two men waited. It wasn't long after the bush the two were looking at began to rustle, and a large reptilian creature jumped forth. Jean froze in horror at the sight of this half alligator, half ape-like creature. Not Barry though. Two loud shots rang out in the forest darkness, one hitting the Hunter in the chest, stopping it in its tracks, and the second passing through it's skull, silencing it forever.
"Come on Jean! It won't be long, best we just leave it for the other things to feast!" Barry shouted, bringing Jean out of his trance. They ran from the small clearing where the Hunter fell, and soon, they heard chirping all around the area, followed by the far-off sounds of messy feasting. Barry and Jean ran north until they figured it safe, and stopped for a breather. Barry took a swig of water from his canteen, and turned on his radio.
"This is Burton, Jean and I just had an encounter with a Hunter. Chris, we're on the right island, that's for sure." Barry said into the radio. He waited a few seconds for the reply.
"Barry, a Hunter? Are you guys all right?" Chris asked him, Barry took a quick look around, then brought the radio back to his mouth.
"Yeah, Jean is a little shaken up by it, but he'll be ok. Guess he didn't expect something like that. I took it down, and some other Umbrella critters in the vicinity decided to have a snack, compliments of me and my little friend here." Barry said, chuckling softly.
"Ok, good Barry, so long as you guys are ok. We'll keep our eyes open for anything on our end. Claude and Xavier, how are things on your side?" Chris asked. A few seconds later the reply came.
"Tous va bien, Chris. On te vaira a la laboratoire." The reply came. Chris moaned in frustration. 'These guys don't know English?' Chris thought.
"Je m'excuse Chris. They understand English, but cannot speak it. They say that everything is fine and they will see us at the laboratory." Jean soon translated. Chris sighed and took a sip of water from his canteen.
"Ok, thanks Jean. It'd probably just be easier if you checked in with them then. This is Redfield, out." Chris let the button off his radio and re-holstered it. He nodded to Lean, and picked up his shotgun, the two heading back off into the dark forest. In the brief reprieve after the Hunter attack, Chris' thoughts once again shifted to his friends back in Racoon City, and the plight they faced there.
TO BE CONTINUED.
A/N: YAY! I got a review! A good one! The next chapter will, as you may have expected, focus on Jill and Jim in the city again. Peace out!