Chapter 2

"You son of a BITCH!" Chris screamed in fury as he ran towards his former captain. Wesker just smiled and stood his ground, but right at the last second, he stepped aside and with superhuman reflexes grabbed Chris' head and slammed it into the wall next to the small bathroom.

"Maybe you should hear what the man has to say, before you try to kill me, Chris," Wesker said. "Not that I like the arrangement any more than you do. Trust me." As Chris was getting up, Wesker walked to sit down. At the same time, as if on cue, Barry Burton and Leon stood up to restrain Chris. From the stories that Chris had told after returning from the Antarctic Facility, the new and improved Albert Wesker could break all of them in half without even breaking a sweat.

"What the HELL are you doing, Trent?" Chris was gasping for breath, furious beyond compare. "Trusting this weasel…this…this traitorous asshole!" Chris was screaming in rage and frustration. He had been betrayed by Wesker once before, at the Spencer Estate. And just in the past few days, he had almost been killed by whatever Wesker had become. Trent was making his way to where Barry and Leon were struggling with Chris.

"Chris, if you'll let me explain." That damn smile again, how Chris was beginning to hate that smile. He stopped struggling and after a moment's hesitation, Barry and Leon let go of Chris' arms. Walking back to their seats, Barry was muttering under his breath, "This better be damn good." After everyone was back in their seats, Trent continued. "I understand your reservations, all of you. Wesker betrayed you all, in some form or another. But it was I who saved him from the burning wreckage of the mansion. The Tyrant nearly killed him, and he would have been dead if I had not acted when I did." Jill said something under her breath that sounded something like, "would have been better off anyway." Trent continued as if he heard nothing. "I used Umbrella's…resources, to help him recover. Even used my pull in Washington to get him hired on at Biotech, Umbrella's biggest competitor. You see, Umbrella betrayed Wesker as much as he did the S.T.A.R.S., that is why I needed to use him. He was a very powerful ally in the fight against Umbrella's tyranny." Chris was starting to stand up, Barry and Leon tensed, expecting another brawl.

"But how did he survive? The mansion exploded, we saw it…hell, we were almost IN it!" Trent turned to Wesker and nodded.

Wesker stood up and faced Chris. His face tightened at the obvious pain it took to address his enemy in a civil tone. "The Tyrant nearly killed me, the initial blast would have finished the job if I had not been covered by rubble from the pre-explosion tremors. I blacked out, for how long, I do not know. Trent, recovered my broken body from the ashes and the rubble of the mansion. He used the T-Virus to heal me and Ada." More shocked gasps from everyone. Wesker smiled, "Hard to believe that a virus that can do so much damage, was originally used for such noble purposes, isn't it? As Trent said, he got me a job at Biotech, because of my unique experience with Umbrella. They gave me some…upgrades to assist my new position and sent me on my way.

"And what exactly did you do for Biotech, anyway?" Jill asked, with obvious disgust. Wesker

turned and smiled again. Jill had to choke back bile.

"Well, that dear girl, should be obvious," Wesker, answered. "To put Umbrella out of business. By obtaining a sample of the T-Veronica virus, they could succeed where Umbrella failed. By creating an all powerful, super human being, such as Alexia.

"But," Trent added, "Biotech is just as ruthless as Umbrella. Their executives as psychopathic as Umbrella's. They will stop at nothing to lead the Bio-weapons industry into a new era."

"Which is where I come in," Wesker interjected. "I have insider knowledge of the inner workings of both Umbrella and Biotech. And seeing as how the generous Mr. Trent is paying me double what Biotech was offering, I am willing to add my unique talents and knowledge to your pathetic little fight for justice and…"

"And bring both companies down simultaneously." Trent finished. "And return the T-Virus to its rightful owner and it's original purpose."

Jill raised her hand and spoke, "So Wesker, you're just a slimy sell out? In it only for the money and damn anyone you have to step on to get to the top?" Wesker frowned.

"Such foul language coming from such a pretty mouth, Ms. Valentine." Wesker chuckled at his own humor. Jill answered by raising her guns, two .357 Magnums that Barry had picked up, and pointed them at Wesker's face. Her fingers trembled on the triggers, itching for just one sudden move.

"Shut the hell up, asshole." Wesker continued to smile, unflinching.

"Such a do-gooder little bitch, aren't you, Jill?"

"Don't push me, Wesker." Jill tightened her grip on the magnums. Neither Jill nor Wesker blinked. Trent broke the tension with a yell. No one had yet to see the always cool, calm and collected Mr. Trent lose his temper.

"Please! I will have none of this foolishness! Whatever Mr. Wesker's reasons for helping are, the point is that Umbrella and Biotech need to be stopped. We now have two rival companies with the means and the will to do what happened in Raccoon City on a much grander scale. The people behind the companies are nothing short of psychotic and will attempt to achieve their goals by any means necessary." Trent was so angry, he was losing his breath and his face was turning a bright red.

John Andrews and David Trapp, who had been silent throughout the meeting thus far, finally put in their opinions.

"Jill, Trent is right." David said, "As much as I don't agree with all of his actions, that is beyond the point." He looked at John.

"I have to agree with David here Jill. I understand Wesker has screwed all of you, but he does know quite a bit about Biotech where we pretty much know dick. He's willing to help, and although his motives are totally screwed up, he is willing to help." John and David looked apologetically at Jill, their faces drawn into frowns.

"Well, I don't trust him," Claire piped in. "If he's willing to sell out the S.T.A.R.S., Umbrella and Biotech, what's to say that he won't sell us out if one of them makes a better offer?"

Rebecca chose that moment to jump into the conversation. "Yeah, he might as well have killed all of Bravo team, sending them into that mansion, fully knowing what they were going to encounter. They were my friends, damnit! And if he's in, then I'm out!"

"Me too," Claire said and Barry agreed. Everyone else said nothing, except Chris.

"Wesker's right," he said sadly. Jill, Claire, Barry and Rebecca looked at him in horror.

"What the hell, man? He tried to kill you! Have you gone totally crazy?" Carlos seemed to snap out of a daze. He got up walked over to Barry and took him by the shoulders.

"He's right, Barry." Barry turned to yell and scream at the newcomer.

"What the hell do you know? You got here, what last week? You have no clue as to what Wesker is capable of!" Carlos saw he was fighting a losing battle, but he had to try.

"No? But you know what I do know? We are screwed without him. We might as well just pack up and leave!"

He's right, Barry. Carlos is right. We don't know shit about Biotech." Chris walked over to Wesker, "I don't know what you've got planned, but if you can get us in there…then whatever. But if you screw over this team again…upgrades or no upgrades, I will take you down." Chris walked away, looking bleaker than ever, Claire noted. She didn't really blame him; I mean his whole world was caving in.

Wesker had been watching this display with a wide and evil grin on his face. "Don't get all mushy on me, Redfield. I'm not doing this for you." Without answering, Chris turned to Barry.

"We're going to need guns, lots of 'em." And to Leon, "You're in charge of transportation. The rest of you, get with Trent. We need a layout of buildings, entrances, exits, everything. And get ready to pack up, we move tomorrow night." Chris walked out the door and into the cold winter air. He didn't know what he just did, but it sure felt like he just made a deal with the devil. And the devil just happened to wear dark sunglasses.