I do not own Jonny Quest, Resident Evil, or any of its affiliates. I am making absolutely zero money on this, it is just for fun.
WHEN NIGHTMARES WALK AMOUNGST US
CHAPTER 2
Quest Compound, Maine
Dr. Quest's knowledge of the Umbrella Corporation was limited to the company's public face. He had never actually done any type of contract work for the Corporation, however some of his colleagues had gone off to work for them, and a few that he had lost contact with as the years had passed. He had informed Race that he had wanted to arrive at the conference a few days earlier, in order to catch up with some people that he knew would be in attendance. However, Race had seemed to be stalling the issue. In fact, Dr. Quest had noticed that ever since the subject of the Umbrella conference had first come up, Race had not been acting like himself. Dr. Quest found him in the living room, reading the morning paper.
"Race?"
"Yes, Dr. Quest?" Race asked, looking up from the paper at the older man.
"Is everything ready? I know the kids are all packed and loaded up." He asked as he sat in the recliner across from Race.
"Uh, yes, the jet is ready, Doctor."
Dr. Quest peered at Race for a few moments. "So, when do you feel we can depart? I don't understand what the delay is."
"Well…" Race hesitated. It was his own fault, but he hadn't yet told the doctor that Corbin would be flying with them. Race hadn't heard from him since the day before yesterday and had been expecting him to arrive sometime last evening.
"Race, is something wrong? Your behavior as of late has been…odd…to say the least."
"No, doctor. I'm fine. I just found out two days ago that Philip Corbin would be accompanying us to Chicago." Race hated to lie, however he had been caught off guard and said the first thing that came to his mind. He sure hoped that Phil would back his story up if the doctor decided to ask him once he arrive at the mansion.
"That's strange." Dr. Quest pondered. "Why would he be coming with us? I mean I could see why Intelligence One would be interested in the Umbrella Corporation's work, however why doesn't he just fly himself?" It was more of a statement then a question, however the doctor was curious.
"Well, you know how Phil can be spontaneous at times. After all, I think I am due an evaluation soon and I'm sure he is just coming in order to oversee how I've been handling things. He does have a lot of agents to keep track of, so he can't be everywhere at once." Race hoped he sounded convincing, at least he thought he did to himself. "And besides, I know he's always had a special interest in your work, Benton. And I'm sure he would just like to see how things are going in general. Did you know that Phil is Jessie's godfather?" He had been running so smoothly that the last sentence came out before he even thought of it. Phil was not Jessie's godfather and Dr. Quest would more then likely inquire about it to Phil sometime on the trip.
"Really? I did not know that. I didn't realize that the two of you were so close."
Race shrugged. "Yeah, well it depends. Estella sometimes blames him for our divorce; said he was working me too much and always sending me away, however that was after Jessie was born. Of course, that wasn't the case at all, I usually volunteered for the assignments, however that's another story. I should call him and see when he will be here, I'm sure it will be any time now."
Dr. Quest stood and smiled, "Ok, Race. Just let me know when we're all ready to go. I'll be in the lab." He patted Race on the shoulder as he left the room.
"Ok, doctor." Race breathed a sigh of relief. Now he'd just have to get their stories straight.
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When Phil woke up the next morning, Jade was already gone. He sat up in the bed, his head pounding in resistance. 'I haven't been hung over like this in who knows how long' he thought to himself. As he got up and made his way to the bathroom, he noticed a slip of paper on the table; next to the empty bottle of whiskey.
"Damn" He muttered as he tossed the bottle into the trash can. He picked up the paper and read 'Here's my cell. Call me when you get to Chicago. I will meet you there with the rest of the information you will need. Remember, we can take down Umbrella; Krumlanski will lead us there. Jade' Phil ran a hand across his face, finally admitting for the first time that he really didn't have a plan as to what he was going to do; if what Jade said was true, maybe he would have to put his agenda aside. "Damn women. Why do they always have to complicate things?" Phil put the note in his wallet and headed to the bathroom to try and clean up and get rid of his headache that seemed to have grown ten times worse since reading Jade's note.
"I better get to the Quest place fast."
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Race looked up at the clock on the wall when he heard the front gate buzzer sound. "1:30! About damn time he got here." As he stood, he saw Jessie heading for the door to check who their visitor was.
"Jessie, I got it." Race said, just as she was reaching for the buzzer to ask who it was.
"Do you know who's here?"
"Yeah, it's Phil Corbin. Go ahead and buzz him in." Race told his daughter.
Jessie gave a puzzled look as she hit the button that would open the gates. "Is something wrong? Does he know that we are leaving today?"
"Yes, Jess. Actually, he's coming with us."
"Really?"
"Yep. One of those surprise evaluations that he's required to perform. Remember he is still my boss." Race said smiling.
Jessie had always like Corbin. He seemed like a genuinely good person and one of the few people that the Quest team could trust and rely on in a tight situation. She knew that he and her dad had known each other for a long time. "That's cool."
"Now that he is here we will be leaving soon. Go tell Jonny and Hadji to get ready to go." Jessie turned to run off. "And, Jessie."
"Yeah, dad?"
"Mr. Corbin has been going through some rough times lately, so you guys try and go easy on him, ok? Don't be hounding him with a zillion questions like you guys love to do to anyone who accompanies us anywhere!"
Jessie smiled, "No problem, dad." She ran off to find the boys.
Race stepped outside just as Phil was pulling to a stop. Race walked up to the car as the other agent stepped out and looked around. "I've forgotten how nice this place is. Makes me wonder if I gave you too plush of an assignment. Hell, I don't even live this nice."
Race laughed as the two men shook hands, "Good to see you too, Phil." Up close Race saw that his boss and friend didn't look too good. He had bags under his eyes and Race thought that he could smell a faint trace of alcohol on his breath. "Geez, Phil. You look like you just got hit by a truck."
"Yeah, well you don't look so sexy yourself." Phil smirked.
"Hey, are you sure you're alright? You know me, Phil, I'm not going to judge, but have you been drinking? It's only 1:30."
Phil eyed Race, "Hmm, well let's just say that I needed something to keep my mind off of things. Hey, I know its wrong, but don't worry I'll be fine, so don't go call Dr. Quest and the morality police on me, alright."
Race grinned, "Yeah, ok. So any fresh news?"
"Actually, yes there is. I don't want to put it all out in the open, so once we are airborne, I'll need to fill you in."
"Well, let's get going then." Race turned to help with Phil's luggage when Phil grabbed him by the arm and stopped him.
"Race, I realize that I've kind of thrown you into this and that was wrong of me. If you don't want any part of this, tell me now before we leave for Chicago. I know that you have grown pretty close to the Quests and I'm not going to lie when I say this could be dangerous, especially with what I know now."
Race stared at Phil for a good minute before responding, long enough for Phil to light up a cigarette. "Hey, when did you start smoking again?"
"Last night. So, what do you say?"
Race didn't hesitate. "Phil, you know I'm in because I know you would do the same for me or any of the other guys, no matter what. I appreciate your concern, shows you're a true friend, but don't worry, I've got your back."
Phil took a drag off the cigarette as he glanced around, his nervousness showing. He made no mention of Jade's visit to him last night, this wasn't the time to upset Race, but he turned back towards the white haired man and looked him dead in the eyes, "Before we go in, what do you know of the Umbrella Corporation, or more importantly, of White Umbrella?"
"White Umbrella? I've never heard of it." Race responded somewhat dumbfounded by Phil's sudden change.
"I wish I could say the same. And when this is all over we'll both be wishing we've never heard of them."
Race saw the seriousness on Phil's face and wondered just what the hell was going on. He knew he would be filled in when they had some more time and privacy, so he trusted Phil and left it at that. He grabbed one of his friend's bags and nodded to him, "Ok. Oh and by the way, you are now Jessie's godfather."
"What?" Phil exclaimed, shocked by Race's statement.
Race just grinned and laughed, "Sorry, man. It just slipped out as I was trying to give Dr. Quest a reason why we were waiting on you."
"Um, ok, sure. Whatever you say." Phil rolled his eyes, put out his smoke, grabbed the rest of his stuff, and followed Race to the door.
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Phil sat in the hold of the Dragonfly with the kids. He didn't mind being with them for now, they're questions actually took his mind off of everything else.
"So, Mr. Corbin, we haven't seen you in awhile." Jonny said, "Anything new and exciting going on in the world of espionage?"
Jessie elbowed Jonny, "You are such an idiot, Jonny Quest."
Phil smiled, "Nope nothing more then what you hear on the news."
"Yeah right. You just can't say."
Phil shrugged, "Maybe."
"How's the President doing?" Jonny asked again.
"I'm sure he's fine, Jonny. I don't see him that much."
"You work for him though. I've always wanted to see the oval office. Is it really like it looks in the movies?"
"Yes. Jessie, how's your mother doing these days?"
"She's fine. She's off in Brazil right now on another archeological dig. I got a letter from her last week. No internet out there, have to do it the old fashion way."
"Sometimes it's better that way. Makes it more personal." Phil stood up and reached for his laptop on the rack above the seats. Jonny nudged Jessie and motioned towards the now exposed pistol that was concealed under Phil's suit jacket. Jessie shook her head at Jonny, knowing what he was going to ask. Phil sat back down and began to remove the computer from the case.
"What's the gun for?" Jonny asked, immediately receiving a much harder elbow to the ribs from Jessie.
"What?" Phil asked.
"Race doesn't carry a gun with him all the time." Jonny stated.
"Race doesn't have to deal with the types that I do all the time either." Phil responded. "With the exception of Race and a few others with special assignments, all my agents carry weapons at all times. Don't underestimate Race either, just because you don't see something does not mean it isn't there. Does it bother you or something?"
"No. I don't mind guns. I don't think Hadji likes them, though." Jonny smiled at his friend, who had been sitting silently, looking at his own laptop.
Hadji just looked back, rolled his eyes, mumbled something under his breath, and returned to the screen.
"Can I see it?" Jonny asked.
"No." Phil stated, turning his attention to his own laptop.
"Come on, Mr. Corbin, I know how to handle a weapon. I won't tell Race or my dad."
"No. Sorry, Jonny. Do me a favor and don't ask again. Unless you have any more intelligent questions, I have some work to do myself."
"Sorry I asked." Jonny grumbled.
"Jonny, you can be pretty stupid at times, you know that." Jessie chastised. "My dad said not to hound him with idiotic questions."
Phil raised his eyes from the screen. "What was that, Jessie?"
"Oh nothing, Mr. Corbin. My dad just said that you were, uummm, well; going through some rough times or something and that we shouldn't bother you. That's all. Jonny just doesn't know how to listen."
"What else did he say about me?" Phil inquired, probably coming off a bit too suspicious, because even Hadji stopped what he had been doing and glanced back and for from the man to Jonny and Jessie.
"Nothing, that's all." Jessie shrugged also picking up on Corbin's change in attitude. Not even Jonny's lame question about his gun had caused the man to react like this.
Phil closed his laptop and put it back in the bag. He knew he shouldn't get upset at the kids, they were just being kids after all and he was sure Race wouldn't say anything about his wife or Krumlanski. He stood up, glanced out the window, saw only clouds, and turned back towards the kids. "Yes, of course. If you'll excuse me I need to talk to Race for a bit." With that he turned and walked towards the cockpit.
"Nice one, Jonny." Jessie said.
"What? Sorry. How was I supposed to know he'd get all upset?" Jonny stammered.
"Why don't both of you just leave the man alone and try and prepare for this conference. The Umbrella Corporation is quite an interesting company." Hadji interjected.
"Hadji's right." Jessie said as she got up and moved next to him to see what he was reading.
"I always am." Hadji smiled.
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Race was at the controls of the plane, monitoring the flight's progress since he had it on autopilot. Dr. Quest sat in the copilot chair, not really doing much when Phil walked in. "Umm, excuse me, Dr. Quest. Do you mind if I speak to Race alone for a few minutes?"
"No, not at all, Phil." Dr. Quest said as he rose.
"Thank you, doctor. Just some evaluation notes that I have to review with him. My preliminary report has to be sent in today."
Dr. Quest nodded as he left the cockpit, seemingly content with what Phil had said. Once he was gone Phil said down in the empty copilot chair. "I don't see how you deal with those kids all the time! It must be tough."
"You get used to it. Got to have some to really understand."
"Huh?"
Race rolled his eyes and cursed himself for making such an ignorant comment. "Sorry, Phil. You know what I meant. I mean, well, damn. Sorry."
Phil looked at him and smiled, "Don't worry, Race. It's ok."
"I'm sorry." Race said again.
"I said its ok. If it had been someone else, yeah then maybe I'd take offense. Besides, I don't want to upset the pilot."
Race smiled, "Yeah. So what the hell is going on? What is this White Umbrella stuff?"
"I didn't want Dr. Quest to hear this because I don't think that it is something to concern him with as of right now." Race nodded and Phil proceeded to fill him in on everything he knew about Krumlanski, the Umbrella Corporation, the mysterious White Umbrella, and the experiments that were supposedly happening at the secret labs. He left out that he got most of the information from Jade, again not wanting to upset his friend. Things may have been over between Race and Jade, however Phil still felt guilty about it, not to mention he was pretty intoxicated at the time and that by itself was a bit of personal shame for him.
Race took in all the information, waiting until Phil was done before speaking. "So you think this is for real? You really think that this could be happening?"
Phil leaned back in his chair, "I don't know for sure. I pray to God that it is all false, but part of me thinks there may be some truth to it. You remember hearing about the nuclear reactor meltdown in Raccoon City?"
"Vaguely. I remember a lot of people died and the whole city had to be quarantined."
"Raccoon City was the one of The Umbrella Corporation's North American headquarters. What if it wasn't a reactor meltdown? What if something went wrong there? I remember there were rumors about it, nothing was proven though."
"A cover-up? I don't know, Phil. That kind of thing only happens in the movies."
"Unless someone had something to gain or maybe even lose from it. I mean, think about it, Umbrella is a multibillion dollar Corporation. I'm sure they can line the pockets of some pretty important people in Washington."
"Still…Zombies? The walking dead?"
"Some say there are worse things then that."
"Let's get down to the first issue at hand. What about Krumlanski? What do you want to do about him?"
Phil was silent for some time, staring out the window. "I honestly don't know anymore. 'The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few'."
Race grinned, "Wasn't that in Star Trek?"
Phil chuckled, "Yeah I think so."
"I always knew you were a trekkie, Phil."
Phil laughed. "Yeah, I guess so. Sarah got me into it."
Race glanced at this friend, seeing the pain on his face. Deciding to kill another man, even one as evil and sadistic as Krumlanski, is never an easy thing to deal with, especially for someone like Phil. Both Race and Phil had been in situations where they ended up having to kill, but this was different. This could be seen as murder. Phil knew that in his heart and it did not come easy for him, no matter what he had been through in the past. However, the prospect of letting the man who killed his wife go free, in order to stop a possible crime against humanity was another tough decision and Race could tell it was weighing heavily on his superior's mind.
"I guess we should reevaluate the situation once we get to Chicago. If this information turns out to be true then I want to stop these people." Phil turned towards Race, "Are you still with me?"
"Shit, you know I am. I'm not going to let these people get away with what they are doing and not do everything in my power to stop them."
"I'll just kill Krumlanski at his lab." Phil mumbled.
Race glanced across to Phil, but said nothing.
"What kind of contacts do you have in Chicago?" Phil asked.
Caught a little off guard Race stammered, "Umm, a handful, as long as they aren't dead or in prison."
"Good, I know of one guy we need to go see then. We need to get some heavier firepower if we are going to follow this Frankenstein psycho back to his liar and we won't have time to go through the 'official' channels."
"Yeah, no kidding. Especially if what these informants say is true"
"Race, if this is the way it turns out, I would suggest either sending Quest and the kids back to Maine or leaving them in Chicago after the conference. Hell, I don't even know the location of this lab yet."
"That'll be a tough sell, but I think I can manage."
"Good." Phil leaned back and closed his eyes, content that he knew Race would have his back. A short while later the radar blipped on and the sound of radio traffic pulled Phil from his sleep. They were getting ready to land in Chicago. Time to get ready for the inevitable.
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To be continued…
Sorry that there hasn't been more of Jonny, Jessie, and Hadji so far. They will appear much more in the future chapters, starting with the next one. I've just been trying to set up the storyline so far and there hasn't been too much for them yet. But, believe me, they will show up quite a bit more.
All comments and suggestions are welcome.