FANDOM: FAKE & Resident Evil: Zero
PAIRING: Billy Coen/Rebecca Chambers, Dee Laytner/Ryo McLane
WARNINGS: Yaoi, Het, Violence, Angst, Strong Language
DISCLAIMER: Still don't own 'em. They still owe me rent. The loveliness that is FAKE belongs to the talented Sanami Matoh. Rebecca Chambers and Billy Coen are property of Capcom.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Many thanks to Trunks-Maniac for his wonderful review. Here's Chapter Two. Enjoy!

CHAPTER 02 - Once More Into the Breach
by C. Ravenlocke

Rebecca had never sworn so often or so loudly as she did as she did running down the stairs toward the hospital's basement level. She wasn't sure exactly what she was swearing at. Was it both her and Billy's lack of foresight to count on Umbrella coming to take care of things? No, that's not it, she decided. We just didn't expect them to be here so goddamned soon!

So intent on her thoughts was she, Rebecca almost ran smack into the door that led into the basement level. Skidding to a stop and composing herself, not wanting to arouse suspicion should she be observed, she opened the door and stepped quietly into the room beyond. The lights were just as harshly bright here as everywhere else in the hospital. Unlike the upper levels, however, this room was mostly empty, save for a set of elevator doors and a second door, which presumably led to another stairwell. Rebecca frowned when she noted the door was padlocked. Since such stairwells were usually used as alternate routes in the case of a fire, she knew it should have been unlocked.

As if that wasn't cause enough for concern, the eerie silence only served to make Rebecca even more uneasy. While the basement levels were, as a rule, where the morgue and incinerators were kept, and thus less populated than the other levels of the hospital, the quiet shouldn't have been so absolute. As Rebecca crossed the room to examine the elevator, her footsteps echoed dully on the concrete floor. A quick examination of the elevator revealed it to be in working condition. When she pressed the call button, she was more than a little surprised when she found that the car had to come up for her. Someone's on the lower level...maybe Umbrella's clean up crew?

She hoped not, but if that was the case, then Rebecca had no choice but to head down after them. That thought in mind, she sighed softly and when the doors slid open, she stepped into the elevator car. As the doors slid shut with a soft sound, and she reached under the lab coat, drawing her Barretta. She hefted the familiar weight and flicked the safety off as the elevator began its descent.

As Billy reached the door to the room he and Rebecca had left only a few minutes before, he paused near the slightly ajar door, flattening himself against the wall. He slouched against it to give the illusion of simply waiting for the other men to leave before he entered himself. However careless he appeared, however, he trained an ear on the conversation being held within. Even as intently as he was listening, it was difficult to make out what was being said. So he remained outside the room, growing increasingly uneasy as time wore on and the two Umbrella agents didn't emerge. When fifteen minutes passed and the two agents still hadn't come out of the room, Billy debated stepping inside to see what was going on. The debate ended abruptly when the sound of a scuffle made itself known, and Billy slipped silently into the room.

One of the agents was pinning Dee down, the other trying to press a cloth over the detective's mouth and nose. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what was going on, and Billy's reaction was immediate. He reached out, grabbing the shoulder of the agent nearest him. As the man spun around to see who'd touched him, Billy landed a solid punch to his jaw, dropping his target like a stone. The other agent shoved Dee hard at Billy, darting toward the door. Using the few awkward moments as Billy caught the stumbling detective and helped him regain his balance, the suited man disappeared down the hallway. As soon as they were untangled, Billy took off after the agent, Dee right on his heels. "He'll head straight for a phone," Billy said quickly. "Where's the closest one?"

Dee was silent for just a moment, before turning down a hallway. "This way!"

As the hallway opened up into a reception area, Billy saw the Umbrella Agent first. The man had stopped running, presumably under the impression that he wasn't being pursued any longer. As Billy watched, the Agent pulled a radio from his belt and started speaking into it. When he saw Billy and Dee, his eyes widened and he took off running again. Dee started to take off after him, but Billy caught him by the arm. "Hold up a second, Slick."

Dee tried to jerk his arm out of Billy's grip, but it was almost impossible. "Let go of me, dammit! He's getting away!"

Billy shook his head, hauling Dee back down the hallway and into a mostly empty waiting room. "Won't do us any good. We don't know how many Umbrella agents are in this hospital, and we can't outrun a radio." Billy saw Dee about to argue and frowned. "You're a cop, you know I'm right. Besides, we're lucky no one's called security yet. Now c'mon, let's see if our Sleeping Beauty upstairs knows anything before we cause a bigger scene than we already have."

Dee sagged a little; he knew Billy was right, even if he really didn't want to admit it. As the adrenaline wore off a fraction, and Billy's words sank in, he suddenly remembered the agent in Ryo's room and the conversation that had led to the scuffle. "Oh shit! Ryo!"

When the elevator doors opened again, Rebecca wasn't entirely surprised when she was greeted by silence. Keeping her Barretta just out of sight, Rebecca stepped into the corridor beyond. As she did, she swallowed hard; the lights were out. Images of the Umbrella Training Facility flashed through her mind. Too many of those corridors had been so dim, or dark like this. It was so easy to let your imagination run away, seeing monsters in every shadow...

What is it Billy always says? Be where you are? Yeah, that's it. Be where you are Rebecca.

Steeling herself, Rebecca was still as the elevator doors closed again, plunging her into darkness. She backed up against the wall until she could feel the control panel for the elevator. Once she was sure she could find the button to open the doors quickly, she stilled herself and listened. At first, she could hear nothing but the sound of her own heartbeat. Seconds passed, bleeding into minutes, and as they did, other sounds slowly began to make themselves known. The first that caught her attention was the sound of footsteps. Shuffling footsteps, the kind made by people who were drunk or wounded.

Or zombies...

As if summoned by her thoughts, a moan reached her ears, the sound low and hungry. The smell of rot made it's way to her nose, and she started breathing shallowly through her mouth, trying not to vomit. The sounds, the smell, it all brought with it four years of events Rebecca didn't want to remember. She decided, in that moment, that it was time to get out of the basement, find Billy, and see what he wanted to do. She pressed the button to open the elevator's doors, her hand tightening around her gun. The doors slowly began to slide open and she heard the footsteps getting closer.

Then she couldn't hear anything but the sound of her own scream.