Author's Note: Hi! This fanfic will be ending soon. Chapter 13 should be the "official" end (and it might end up being a little long). There will be a Chapter 14, but it will be a short epilogue told from the POV of two different characters. One of them should be obvious ^_^ Anyway, there will be absolutely no author's note in Chapter 13, to give you all a break from my pointless rambling. However, there will be one at the end of chapter 14.
'The bars are freezing,' I thought as I climbed up the ladder. I climbed onto the helipad and ran ahead of Claire. I turned to her as she rose to her feet.
"Come on, Claire! Finally we can get out of this insane place!" I said to her. She ran over to where I was standing. She glanced at the walkway then to me.
"Okay! Let's go!" she said. She took a few steps down the stairs before stopping. It was as if she were frozen. She didn't turn around. What was she so hesitant about?
"C'mon, let's go! What, are you scared?" I taunted, hoping to shake her out of her trance. I watched as she slowly backed up towards me. I glanced over her to see what her problem was. I heard the heavy footsteps on the walkway. Through the mist I saw the outline of a man. When it came closer, I saw that it was no man. It was bound and blindfolded, and its beating heart was exposed. To protect Claire, I shoved her behind me.
"Hey you! Move it!" I growled. I aimed the submachine guns at it. It was pathetic, my guns had little or no ammo in them. The monster paid no attention. Instead, several tentacle-like limbs sprouted from its back. It slammed one of its tentacle-limbs into my chest, right above my bandaged stomach. I was unable to withstand the blow and tumbled away from the monster and from Claire. The ground disappeared from under me and I let go of the submachine guns to grab onto something. I was in luck, I grabbed one of the pipes sticking out of the platform. It was freezing, if I let go I would die.
"No! Steve!" I heard Claire shout. She ran over to where I was and reached down to pull me up. I saw her turn her head and she gritted her teeth. The monster was after her now. She looked down at me.
"Hold on. I'll beat that monster and come back," she said.
"Claire...forget about me! Run!" I urged. However, she had already left to fight the monster. There was no way I could get her to stop now. My attempt to protect Claire had failed, and now she was risking her life one again. I hung my head, feeling depressed. It was hard to tell what was going on up there. I realized now how freezing cold it was. My fingers were frozen and my body was shaking.
'Don't think about it, you'll die if you do,' I warned myself.
"I've got you now..." I heard Claire say. There was a scream from the monster. I knew it was now dead. Claire appeared over the platform.
"Steve! Are you alright?" Claire asked. I looked up and saw her staring down at me.
"Claire...you're alive..." I said. She seemed to be unharmed too. She reached down for my hand and struggled to pull me up. Soon we were both sitting next to each other on the helipad. We were both tired and cold. I looked over at her.
"I'm sorry...I failed you," I said. She looked confused for a moment, then smiled.
"Don't worry about it! It was no problem," she said. She got up and patted me on the shoulder. I watched her walk away.
"I swear I'll protect you next time Claire," I said quietly. I got up and followed her. She raced down the stairs and turned to me as I came down.
"We did it! We're finally out!" She cried with excitement. She began laughing. I smiled and spotted a snow mobile. We'd be able to escape in that.
"Look! There's a snow mobile over there!" I said, pointing to it. Without hesitating, Claire dashed towards it with me following behind her. She claimed the driver's seat and I climbed into the passenger's side.
"Perfect! We'll be able to ride right over to the Australian base with this!" she said.
"Alright! Let's not waste time!" I said, feeling a lot better that we were going to escape. I'd finally be able to do normal stuff again. Stuff that I want to do, not what Umbrella's guards wanted me to do. Claire seemed more excited then I was and she hadn't even been a prisoner for that long.
"So, what are we going to do when we reach civilization?" I asked her.
"Well...I still need to find my brother," she said. She thought for a moment, then smiled.
"Wait until I introduce you to him," she said, "I'm sure he'll like you. We'll do some fun stuff together. I'm sure you haven't had any fun in a while, have you?" she asked. I shook my head, being a prisoner wasn't a whole lot of fun.
"And of course, after we're reunited, we'll put a stop to Umbrella," she said, "they've gone way too far."
"Yeah, they have," I agreed. I wanted to help stop Umbrella too. I wanted revenge for all the grief they've caused me. I was then reminded of something.
"Claire, what happened with you and Umbrella anyway?" I asked.
"Uh...well, you see, I was in Raccoon City when-" she stopped when the ground rumbled. I checked the side-view mirror to see what had happened. I saw something that kind of looked like a snake or tentacle moving through the snow. It was coming at us.
"What is that?!" I shouted. Claire whipped her head around.
"What's going on?!" she asked in a panicked voice. We were suddenly lifted off the ground and the sides of the vehicle were being crushed in. Claire screamed and fell on top of me, landing right on my bandaged side. I cried out in pain as we both struggled inside the snow mobile. We were being tossed around by that freaky tentacle thing. I reached out for Claire. All I managed to do was grab her hand before we were thrown again. As the vehicle smashed into the ground, I slammed into something and fell unconscious.
"Aww, now isn't this precious," I heard a feminine voice say. I slowly opened my eyes and notice a blonde-haired woman hovering over me. I was still lying in the snow. The snow mobile was in flames behind us. Our only way of escaping was trashed. I saw that I still had a hold of Claire's hand. She was unconscious. She was crumpled next to me, her expression was twisted into a look of pain. I focused on the blonde-haired woman. My mind was spinning, I knew who she was.
'But Alfred is dead! And so is the real Alexia!" my mind screamed. I shifted and found out that nothing was broken. I heard the woman gasp as I rose.
"So you are alive!" she hissed. I ignored her and moved over to Claire. I lifted her out of the snow and into my arms.
"Claire? Are you okay? C'mon, wake up," I urged. She didn't move.
"Don't ignore me!" she growled. I glanced over my shoulder at her. A bitter smile appeared of my face.
"What? Is there an Alfred under there too?" I asked sarcastically.
"Humpf! You're not worthy enough to even speak his name," she snarled. I squinted at the mysterious blonde woman. This really was Alexia? I didn't really care about her now. Claire was my only concern. I checked her pulse, it was still beating.
"Foolish boy! Do you know who stands before you?" the woman said.
"Leave us alone," I said, "I don't care about you, so just go away." Her anger was apparent.
"How dare you speak to someone who will soon be your queen!" she looked at Claire, then smiled.
"I see. How about we play a little game that involves just the three of us?" she asked. The woman than reached down to stroke Claire's face. I pulled her away from the blonde-haired woman, Alexia, whoever it was.
"Stay away from her. I'm in no mood for your stupid games," I growled. She looked surprised, then she smiled again.
"Well, you see, you really don't have a choice," she said, and before I could react, she brought her hand down and struck me. There was a rush of pain before my world went black.
I woke up with a large headache. My head throbbed painfully as I sat up. I looked around me and realized I wasn't sitting in the snow anymore. Instead, I was sitting in the middle of a beautiful mansion. It was dimly lit, but it was very warm. I was sitting on a red carpet that was spread out on the marble floor and stairs. I suddenly realized that Claire wasn't with me.
"Claire?!" I called out, hoping she could hear me. The mansion remained eerily silent. I stood up and scanned the mansion, maybe she was lying nearby.
"Claire?!" I tried again. I felt worried. If that Alexia woman had done anything to her...
"Steve?" a voice answered. It was quiet and weak. I could barely hear it.
"Claire! Is that you?! Answer me!" I ran back and forth, trying to find the source of the sound.
"Steve, help..." It had to be Claire.
"Where are you?" I asked. I looked around and spotted a shotgun on the ground. I was surprised to see that it was loaded. I picked it up just in case I needed it.
"Upstairs, hurry..." I didn't waste anymore time. I dashed up the stairs as fast as I could and ran towards the door.
'Hold on, Claire. I'm coming,' I thought as I opened the door.
'The bars are freezing,' I thought as I climbed up the ladder. I climbed onto the helipad and ran ahead of Claire. I turned to her as she rose to her feet.
"Come on, Claire! Finally we can get out of this insane place!" I said to her. She ran over to where I was standing. She glanced at the walkway then to me.
"Okay! Let's go!" she said. She took a few steps down the stairs before stopping. It was as if she were frozen. She didn't turn around. What was she so hesitant about?
"C'mon, let's go! What, are you scared?" I taunted, hoping to shake her out of her trance. I watched as she slowly backed up towards me. I glanced over her to see what her problem was. I heard the heavy footsteps on the walkway. Through the mist I saw the outline of a man. When it came closer, I saw that it was no man. It was bound and blindfolded, and its beating heart was exposed. To protect Claire, I shoved her behind me.
"Hey you! Move it!" I growled. I aimed the submachine guns at it. It was pathetic, my guns had little or no ammo in them. The monster paid no attention. Instead, several tentacle-like limbs sprouted from its back. It slammed one of its tentacle-limbs into my chest, right above my bandaged stomach. I was unable to withstand the blow and tumbled away from the monster and from Claire. The ground disappeared from under me and I let go of the submachine guns to grab onto something. I was in luck, I grabbed one of the pipes sticking out of the platform. It was freezing, if I let go I would die.
"No! Steve!" I heard Claire shout. She ran over to where I was and reached down to pull me up. I saw her turn her head and she gritted her teeth. The monster was after her now. She looked down at me.
"Hold on. I'll beat that monster and come back," she said.
"Claire...forget about me! Run!" I urged. However, she had already left to fight the monster. There was no way I could get her to stop now. My attempt to protect Claire had failed, and now she was risking her life one again. I hung my head, feeling depressed. It was hard to tell what was going on up there. I realized now how freezing cold it was. My fingers were frozen and my body was shaking.
'Don't think about it, you'll die if you do,' I warned myself.
"I've got you now..." I heard Claire say. There was a scream from the monster. I knew it was now dead. Claire appeared over the platform.
"Steve! Are you alright?" Claire asked. I looked up and saw her staring down at me.
"Claire...you're alive..." I said. She seemed to be unharmed too. She reached down for my hand and struggled to pull me up. Soon we were both sitting next to each other on the helipad. We were both tired and cold. I looked over at her.
"I'm sorry...I failed you," I said. She looked confused for a moment, then smiled.
"Don't worry about it! It was no problem," she said. She got up and patted me on the shoulder. I watched her walk away.
"I swear I'll protect you next time Claire," I said quietly. I got up and followed her. She raced down the stairs and turned to me as I came down.
"We did it! We're finally out!" She cried with excitement. She began laughing. I smiled and spotted a snow mobile. We'd be able to escape in that.
"Look! There's a snow mobile over there!" I said, pointing to it. Without hesitating, Claire dashed towards it with me following behind her. She claimed the driver's seat and I climbed into the passenger's side.
"Perfect! We'll be able to ride right over to the Australian base with this!" she said.
"Alright! Let's not waste time!" I said, feeling a lot better that we were going to escape. I'd finally be able to do normal stuff again. Stuff that I want to do, not what Umbrella's guards wanted me to do. Claire seemed more excited then I was and she hadn't even been a prisoner for that long.
"So, what are we going to do when we reach civilization?" I asked her.
"Well...I still need to find my brother," she said. She thought for a moment, then smiled.
"Wait until I introduce you to him," she said, "I'm sure he'll like you. We'll do some fun stuff together. I'm sure you haven't had any fun in a while, have you?" she asked. I shook my head, being a prisoner wasn't a whole lot of fun.
"And of course, after we're reunited, we'll put a stop to Umbrella," she said, "they've gone way too far."
"Yeah, they have," I agreed. I wanted to help stop Umbrella too. I wanted revenge for all the grief they've caused me. I was then reminded of something.
"Claire, what happened with you and Umbrella anyway?" I asked.
"Uh...well, you see, I was in Raccoon City when-" she stopped when the ground rumbled. I checked the side-view mirror to see what had happened. I saw something that kind of looked like a snake or tentacle moving through the snow. It was coming at us.
"What is that?!" I shouted. Claire whipped her head around.
"What's going on?!" she asked in a panicked voice. We were suddenly lifted off the ground and the sides of the vehicle were being crushed in. Claire screamed and fell on top of me, landing right on my bandaged side. I cried out in pain as we both struggled inside the snow mobile. We were being tossed around by that freaky tentacle thing. I reached out for Claire. All I managed to do was grab her hand before we were thrown again. As the vehicle smashed into the ground, I slammed into something and fell unconscious.
"Aww, now isn't this precious," I heard a feminine voice say. I slowly opened my eyes and notice a blonde-haired woman hovering over me. I was still lying in the snow. The snow mobile was in flames behind us. Our only way of escaping was trashed. I saw that I still had a hold of Claire's hand. She was unconscious. She was crumpled next to me, her expression was twisted into a look of pain. I focused on the blonde-haired woman. My mind was spinning, I knew who she was.
'But Alfred is dead! And so is the real Alexia!" my mind screamed. I shifted and found out that nothing was broken. I heard the woman gasp as I rose.
"So you are alive!" she hissed. I ignored her and moved over to Claire. I lifted her out of the snow and into my arms.
"Claire? Are you okay? C'mon, wake up," I urged. She didn't move.
"Don't ignore me!" she growled. I glanced over my shoulder at her. A bitter smile appeared of my face.
"What? Is there an Alfred under there too?" I asked sarcastically.
"Humpf! You're not worthy enough to even speak his name," she snarled. I squinted at the mysterious blonde woman. This really was Alexia? I didn't really care about her now. Claire was my only concern. I checked her pulse, it was still beating.
"Foolish boy! Do you know who stands before you?" the woman said.
"Leave us alone," I said, "I don't care about you, so just go away." Her anger was apparent.
"How dare you speak to someone who will soon be your queen!" she looked at Claire, then smiled.
"I see. How about we play a little game that involves just the three of us?" she asked. The woman than reached down to stroke Claire's face. I pulled her away from the blonde-haired woman, Alexia, whoever it was.
"Stay away from her. I'm in no mood for your stupid games," I growled. She looked surprised, then she smiled again.
"Well, you see, you really don't have a choice," she said, and before I could react, she brought her hand down and struck me. There was a rush of pain before my world went black.
I woke up with a large headache. My head throbbed painfully as I sat up. I looked around me and realized I wasn't sitting in the snow anymore. Instead, I was sitting in the middle of a beautiful mansion. It was dimly lit, but it was very warm. I was sitting on a red carpet that was spread out on the marble floor and stairs. I suddenly realized that Claire wasn't with me.
"Claire?!" I called out, hoping she could hear me. The mansion remained eerily silent. I stood up and scanned the mansion, maybe she was lying nearby.
"Claire?!" I tried again. I felt worried. If that Alexia woman had done anything to her...
"Steve?" a voice answered. It was quiet and weak. I could barely hear it.
"Claire! Is that you?! Answer me!" I ran back and forth, trying to find the source of the sound.
"Steve, help..." It had to be Claire.
"Where are you?" I asked. I looked around and spotted a shotgun on the ground. I was surprised to see that it was loaded. I picked it up just in case I needed it.
"Upstairs, hurry..." I didn't waste anymore time. I dashed up the stairs as fast as I could and ran towards the door.
'Hold on, Claire. I'm coming,' I thought as I opened the door.