Cora Merandez felt groggy, but the pain in her limbs had ceased and
the clouds fogging her memory were cleared. She groaned softly.
"You're awake." William Birkin bent over her, for the moment double.
"Where the hell is she?" Cora snarled. "Alexia! Where is she?!"
"She left." Birkin calmly began to loosen the straps. Cora sat up gingerly, rubbing her wrists. She swung herself off the table with a newfound agility. Then she stopped half way.
A putrid smell had invaded her nostrils.
"You stink!" she blurted in surprise, rubbing at her nose. Birkin's eyebrows rose a fraction. Everything stank. The entire room did. That foul stench seemed to spread everywhere, clouding her head and turning her stomach.
She bent over a waste can in the corner and vomited, but it did not chase the smell away.
"I'm assuming that your acute sense of olfation is a side-effect." Birkin said, as calmly as saying that he was assuming that she was Mexican or that the weather was fine today.
"Acute?" Cora asked faintly, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand and straightening. "No. I can't smell anything except for ... for this." She hesitated before adding. "And it's coming from you and me the most."
A light of excitement began to shine in Birkin's pale eyes. "You can smell out B.O.Ws!"
"Why would I want to do that?" Cora said irritably. Then her eyes widened as she looked down on herself. "You're... No. I can't be a B.O.W.! I'm just Cora Merandez! Not ... Not a monster!"
"Well, you are. You might as well deal with it." Birkin said.
Cora looked sadly on Amelia's corpse, charred and twisted out in the hall. Her childish face was twisted forever into a look of fear and agony. Then she looked on Cassandra. The Spencer girl's chest rose and fell slowly, and her brown hair had a dark patch of blood where Alexia had hit her.
Merandez began to whimper, bottom lip trembling and tears welling up.
"This is all my fault." she said shakily. Her breathing quickend, tears started to roll down her cheeks. "This is my fault!" Her breathing quickened even more, and she let out a low sob. Another sob followed this one, higher in pitch.
Birkin awkwardly patted her on the shoulder.
"Um. There, there." he offered. She stared at him wildly for a moment, then seized his lapel.
"I killed her." she was hyperventilating, and still crying, making her almost unintelligable. "I killed her with my pride. I could have sent her home. I could have givn her to Mother. And ... and now she's dead because of me. I didn't want her dead. I just ..."
Birkin took care of the hysterical girl the only way he knew how, but slapping her full on. Her head snapped to the side, an angry red mark appearing on her cheek almost instantly. She turned to him, eyes wide and still full of tears. Her breathing was slowed now, and she had stopped crying.
"You *slapped* me!"
"Get Spencer to her sister, now." ordered Birkin calmly.
Cora sulkily obeyed.
*
Claire and Chris had both pulled out guns in a heart beat, leaving the Umbrella employees in a predicament.
"Now, look." Salven said in a reasonable tone. "I have a wife. Plus, I have commitments. Like ... being your guide!"
"Guide? You don't even know your way to the city."
"Well, no, but does that really matter in the grand scheme of things?" Salven with a small smile that was stopped by a harsh look from Chris. Catherine seemed to remember that she had a gun for the first time, so she drew it as well.
"Catherine, you're not going to shoot them are you?" Hojo asked worridely.
"They seem to have no problems with shooting us!" Catherine responded.
Salven merely sighed. But before anyone could fire, a shout from down the hall silenced them.
"Catherine!"
Catherine lowered her gun and turned to face Cora Merandez, running down the hall. She was awkwardly carrying Cassandra, making the run more of an jerky lurch.
"What happened, Phoenix?" Catherine's eyes never left her sister.
"Alexia happened." Cora responded grimly. "Get her some help."
Catherine nodded, and Cora helped her sling one of Cassandra's arms over her shoulder. It wasn't a good arrangement, but it would do. Cora turned to Salven and Hojo.
"Hojo, go help her. Salven, stick with me."
"Who the hell are you to be giving orders?" Salven asked. "My plan is to go and attempt to find an alive female around here. Then, seduce her with my..."
"Salven, fuck up. My team leader is in a cave somewhere, and yours is dead. You're an idiot, so I'm leading."
He blinked at her agressive words.
*
Chris Redfield and Claire Redfield quietly conferred further down the hall.
Chris Redfield was of the opinion to kill the Umbrella people and get out of here the usual way - self -destruct, then get transportation. Claire was of the opinion that even if that did work, there was still the rest of Uranium City to go through, and the more guns they had the more chance they had to stay alive.
"This is pathetic." Chris muttered.
/Of all the messes I could have gotten into.../
Suddenly the pretty Latino girl gave a shout, reaching for her holster with one hand and a knife slipping into the other from up her sleeves.
"Wesker!"
"What?" Chris turned to stare at her. There was no sign of him. But he was proven wrong as a blur of black suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Chris had no idea how the girl knew that he was coming, but he was welcome for the warning.
He watched in amazement as she turned to face him bravely, snarling.
"I will not be a victim." She told Wesker. Wesker only seemed to have a fraction of his attention on her, his eyes were on the Redfields. The Latino girl struggled with herself before shouting over her shoulder a warning.
"Run, you idiots! I don't know who you are - but run!" Then with a mutter that sounded suspiciously like "I'm *not* a bad person. I'm not!", she lunged towards Wesker.
Her boot took him in the stomach, and she smoothly turned like a dancer to catch him with her other foot in the face. Her fluidity did not seem human, and it was odd how her nose was wrinkled as if she smelt something bad, but Chris was thankful for any distraction. She was about to launch another attack, when like a striking viper, Wesker seized her by the throat.
"While I am not displeased that you are here, Miss Merandez, I have more important matters to take care of."
And with that, he tossed her aside like a rag doll. Chris watched, horrified, as she hit the wall with a dulled thud and hit the floor, sprawled out weakly on the ground. He turned back to Chris.
Chris had never believed that Wesker was dead, and he had never believed that he could escape without one of them dead. He just did not want it to happen today. He wasn't ready, and Wesker was. Plus, Wesker had his viral powers. Only a miracle could save him from injury or worse now, but Chris Redfield would go down fighting.
"Claire." he told her. "Run."
"No." she said, standing steadfast. "If you think that I'm leaving, then you can just fuck off."
"Claire, I said run!"
"And I said fuck off!"
Wesker watched this little exchange with a small smile. Wesker knew Chris was afraid for Claire. He had just given Wesker a glaring weak spot.
/If that miracle's coming, I need it NOW./
As if on cue, William Birkin appeared from around a corner. And for the first time, Wesker showed surprise - a flicker of an eyebrow, a slight twitch of the corner of his mouth, but still an emotion.
"William."
"Albert. You look well." Birkin gave his former colleague a small smile. Was this a miracle, or something even worse?
"You're awake." William Birkin bent over her, for the moment double.
"Where the hell is she?" Cora snarled. "Alexia! Where is she?!"
"She left." Birkin calmly began to loosen the straps. Cora sat up gingerly, rubbing her wrists. She swung herself off the table with a newfound agility. Then she stopped half way.
A putrid smell had invaded her nostrils.
"You stink!" she blurted in surprise, rubbing at her nose. Birkin's eyebrows rose a fraction. Everything stank. The entire room did. That foul stench seemed to spread everywhere, clouding her head and turning her stomach.
She bent over a waste can in the corner and vomited, but it did not chase the smell away.
"I'm assuming that your acute sense of olfation is a side-effect." Birkin said, as calmly as saying that he was assuming that she was Mexican or that the weather was fine today.
"Acute?" Cora asked faintly, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand and straightening. "No. I can't smell anything except for ... for this." She hesitated before adding. "And it's coming from you and me the most."
A light of excitement began to shine in Birkin's pale eyes. "You can smell out B.O.Ws!"
"Why would I want to do that?" Cora said irritably. Then her eyes widened as she looked down on herself. "You're... No. I can't be a B.O.W.! I'm just Cora Merandez! Not ... Not a monster!"
"Well, you are. You might as well deal with it." Birkin said.
Cora looked sadly on Amelia's corpse, charred and twisted out in the hall. Her childish face was twisted forever into a look of fear and agony. Then she looked on Cassandra. The Spencer girl's chest rose and fell slowly, and her brown hair had a dark patch of blood where Alexia had hit her.
Merandez began to whimper, bottom lip trembling and tears welling up.
"This is all my fault." she said shakily. Her breathing quickend, tears started to roll down her cheeks. "This is my fault!" Her breathing quickened even more, and she let out a low sob. Another sob followed this one, higher in pitch.
Birkin awkwardly patted her on the shoulder.
"Um. There, there." he offered. She stared at him wildly for a moment, then seized his lapel.
"I killed her." she was hyperventilating, and still crying, making her almost unintelligable. "I killed her with my pride. I could have sent her home. I could have givn her to Mother. And ... and now she's dead because of me. I didn't want her dead. I just ..."
Birkin took care of the hysterical girl the only way he knew how, but slapping her full on. Her head snapped to the side, an angry red mark appearing on her cheek almost instantly. She turned to him, eyes wide and still full of tears. Her breathing was slowed now, and she had stopped crying.
"You *slapped* me!"
"Get Spencer to her sister, now." ordered Birkin calmly.
Cora sulkily obeyed.
*
Claire and Chris had both pulled out guns in a heart beat, leaving the Umbrella employees in a predicament.
"Now, look." Salven said in a reasonable tone. "I have a wife. Plus, I have commitments. Like ... being your guide!"
"Guide? You don't even know your way to the city."
"Well, no, but does that really matter in the grand scheme of things?" Salven with a small smile that was stopped by a harsh look from Chris. Catherine seemed to remember that she had a gun for the first time, so she drew it as well.
"Catherine, you're not going to shoot them are you?" Hojo asked worridely.
"They seem to have no problems with shooting us!" Catherine responded.
Salven merely sighed. But before anyone could fire, a shout from down the hall silenced them.
"Catherine!"
Catherine lowered her gun and turned to face Cora Merandez, running down the hall. She was awkwardly carrying Cassandra, making the run more of an jerky lurch.
"What happened, Phoenix?" Catherine's eyes never left her sister.
"Alexia happened." Cora responded grimly. "Get her some help."
Catherine nodded, and Cora helped her sling one of Cassandra's arms over her shoulder. It wasn't a good arrangement, but it would do. Cora turned to Salven and Hojo.
"Hojo, go help her. Salven, stick with me."
"Who the hell are you to be giving orders?" Salven asked. "My plan is to go and attempt to find an alive female around here. Then, seduce her with my..."
"Salven, fuck up. My team leader is in a cave somewhere, and yours is dead. You're an idiot, so I'm leading."
He blinked at her agressive words.
*
Chris Redfield and Claire Redfield quietly conferred further down the hall.
Chris Redfield was of the opinion to kill the Umbrella people and get out of here the usual way - self -destruct, then get transportation. Claire was of the opinion that even if that did work, there was still the rest of Uranium City to go through, and the more guns they had the more chance they had to stay alive.
"This is pathetic." Chris muttered.
/Of all the messes I could have gotten into.../
Suddenly the pretty Latino girl gave a shout, reaching for her holster with one hand and a knife slipping into the other from up her sleeves.
"Wesker!"
"What?" Chris turned to stare at her. There was no sign of him. But he was proven wrong as a blur of black suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Chris had no idea how the girl knew that he was coming, but he was welcome for the warning.
He watched in amazement as she turned to face him bravely, snarling.
"I will not be a victim." She told Wesker. Wesker only seemed to have a fraction of his attention on her, his eyes were on the Redfields. The Latino girl struggled with herself before shouting over her shoulder a warning.
"Run, you idiots! I don't know who you are - but run!" Then with a mutter that sounded suspiciously like "I'm *not* a bad person. I'm not!", she lunged towards Wesker.
Her boot took him in the stomach, and she smoothly turned like a dancer to catch him with her other foot in the face. Her fluidity did not seem human, and it was odd how her nose was wrinkled as if she smelt something bad, but Chris was thankful for any distraction. She was about to launch another attack, when like a striking viper, Wesker seized her by the throat.
"While I am not displeased that you are here, Miss Merandez, I have more important matters to take care of."
And with that, he tossed her aside like a rag doll. Chris watched, horrified, as she hit the wall with a dulled thud and hit the floor, sprawled out weakly on the ground. He turned back to Chris.
Chris had never believed that Wesker was dead, and he had never believed that he could escape without one of them dead. He just did not want it to happen today. He wasn't ready, and Wesker was. Plus, Wesker had his viral powers. Only a miracle could save him from injury or worse now, but Chris Redfield would go down fighting.
"Claire." he told her. "Run."
"No." she said, standing steadfast. "If you think that I'm leaving, then you can just fuck off."
"Claire, I said run!"
"And I said fuck off!"
Wesker watched this little exchange with a small smile. Wesker knew Chris was afraid for Claire. He had just given Wesker a glaring weak spot.
/If that miracle's coming, I need it NOW./
As if on cue, William Birkin appeared from around a corner. And for the first time, Wesker showed surprise - a flicker of an eyebrow, a slight twitch of the corner of his mouth, but still an emotion.
"William."
"Albert. You look well." Birkin gave his former colleague a small smile. Was this a miracle, or something even worse?