Chapter 37: Trinity Arrives
I don't own anything. Resident Evil belongs to Capcom and Tomb Raider belongs to Core Design, Crystal Dynamics, and I think Square Enix. The only thing I own is the changes made to the stories of the Tomb Raider games/comics and Resident Evil games/comics/CG movies, the Government branch S.P.E.L.L., the person that has taken over Kathrine Warren's life, and Rose Warren. This story also will be bloody, violent, and have cursing. It's rated T for Teen.
Country: Russia, State: Siberia, City: Siberian Wilderness, Place: Near Kitezh, Area: Geothermal Valley, Month: November, Day: Wednesday 29th, Year: 2000, Time: 15:13 KRAT…
Another horn sounded as Leon and Kat reached Lara. "Did you hear the horn?"
Leon and Kat nodded but frowned at what Lara was tucking away in her backpack. It looked like a black and yellow drone.
"What is that?" Kat asked.
Lara smiled. "Present for Sherry. Trinity's been sending Drones to map the valley, trying to take the people's advantage. Anyway, we need to find where that horn came from."
"They will likely come from the air." They heard Sofia say as they rounded a corner. "Jacob is assembling fighters in the upper village to draw their attention there." She continued as they reached the group. "The children and those too old to fight will be safely hidden in the Acropolis catacombs. I will go there once things are in hand here."
"You said they were heavily armed. How can we expect to beat them?" Asked one of the men in the gathered crowd.
"The fight will not be in open combat." Sofia informed. "They will hit us hard and fast, and we will take losses. They hope to crush us in their initial assault, but we will turn their eagerness into our advantage." She informed. "This will be a long engagement. If we hope to survive, we must wear them down slowly, strategically. We will bleed them from a hundred cuts, until they have nothing left. Only then will we be victorious." She looked around at the gathered, seeing her words were encouraging them. "For now, we light the fires, warn the others in the valley. Today, we win by surviving. Gather as much ammunition and supplies as you can. Hide them in the caves and ruins." She said as her eyes slowly landed on the three, she nodded at them slowly. "When you've completed your duties, rendezvous in the upper village. Understood?"
"Yes!" Called a few.
"Understood!" Called others.
"Good. Go now. The Prophet be with you." Sofia blessed.
Leon, Kat, and Lara climbed the steps to speak with Sofia. She turned to them as the crowd dispersed to get to work on the last of the preparations.
"Something I can do for you three?" Sofia asked.
"We know you're busy—" Lara started.
"Trinity's going to be here soon." Sofia informed as she walked down the steps passed the three. "There is much to do." With that she left them behind her and spoke with some people who were working on making more arrows.
"Okay…so if she doesn't have something for us—" Leon started as their radios beeped.
"Speak of the devil…" Lara shook her head.
"Lara, Kathrine, Leon!" Jacob called to them, getting them all to pull their radios. "I could use your help. Our people are spread thin across the valley. If you light the signal tower, they'll know that the danger is imminent."
"We'll do what we can..." Kat told him.
"Once the fire is lit, they'll know what to do." Jacob told them.
Country: Russia, State: Siberia, City: Siberian Wilderness, Place: Near Kitezh, Area: Geothermal Valley, Month: November, Day: Wednesday 29th, Year: 2000, Time: 15:43 KRAT…
The three stood at the bottom of the town and by the wide-open crevasse. On the other side was the signal tower. The thing looked very old, made of wood and stone. But the wood looked unstable.
"That's not gonna hold us up. Well, not all at once." Lara said.
"I'm too heavy." Leon admitted.
Kat sighed as she started taking her gear off. "I'm smallest and lightest."
"Are you sure?" Lara asked as Leon pulled his bow and a rope arrow.
"Yeah. You've done a bit of solving. My turn to take a solo climb." Kat voiced.
Leon aimed and loosed the arrow. It hit the rope pole, but as he tugged on it pulled free. "Okay, did I not draw back enough?"
"Let me see your bow." Lara said taking it from him as he pulled the arrow back. Lara tested his bow and nodded. "It needs a tighter sting. This one's loosened up." She kneeled down and got to work on it.
Kat took the rope arrow and nocked it to her bow. She aimed and loosed. The arrow flew and sank into the wood. She pulled, nodded, and tied off the rope to the pole next to them. She pulled out her axe and looked at Leon and Lara. "I'll be back soon."
"Stay safe. The wood on that looks rickety." Leon pointed out.
Kat nodded and then jumped onto the line. She slid down the line and just as she reached three feet form the end, she unlopped her axe and let herself drop. She landed on the rock and wooden walkway. She hissed as she stumbled but thankfully didn't land wrong. Just felt tingles up her legs.
"I'm good!" She called out as she looked up at a wall.
She ran at the wall and kicked her feet at it, running up a bit then grabbing the top of it. She'd need to do more Parkour when she got back. Seems just as useful as rock climbing. She pulled herself up onto the wooden path. She walked to the other side and wasn't in Lara or Leon's sight. She saw the wooden planking to the right. They looked like they may had been stairs at one point, but they had fallen away. Kat sighed. They didn't look stable at all. She backed up then ran at them and jumped from the outcropping of rock and grabbed the edge of the wood.
The moment she grabbed it, the supports to the side of the tower's wall cracked and shook. Kat quickly pulled herself up and onto the small ledge of what may have been a stair landing, as it dipped a bit. Once on her feet, wood started cracking off and breaking. She ran and jumped from the end and onto the rusted pole that stuck out from the side of the tower. Behind her the wooden platform broke apart, leaving only wooden support beams.
She swung on the pole back and forth. She then threw herself with a grunt to the rock wall in front of her. She pulled and sank her axe into the wall when she hit.
"Kat!" She heard Leon shout.
"I'm good! Anchored!" She called out as she started climbing up.
Slowly, Kat moved to the right, rounding the curved corner and came into Leon and Lara's sights. They both relaxed a bit. Kat reached the front of the tower then looked around for more pebbled rock. Below her was the only path to the right. She took a breath, then she pulled her axe from the wall and dropped two feet to the next rock she could climb on. She sank her axe in quickly and grunted as she stopped her fall.
A few rocks fell making her eyes widened as a big chunk fell from the side. Leon was right about this tower. It was so unstable it wasn't funny. She moved to the right a bit but froze as she looked to the next rock wall. A thick bunch of vines would force her to jump the gap. But the vines also told her why this tower was falling apart. Nature was reclaiming the area. She rocked back and forth on the wall before pulling her axe and jumping from the wall to the next. She got anchored and moved to the right again.
Kat then jumped from the wall and to some wooden supports that were sticking out of the stonework. Strangely, they held stiffly to the wall. She sighed and put her axe to her belt before climbing the supports. Then she bounced on the wall before jumping and pushing on the wall to go up higher. She grabbed the top of the wall and pulled herself up and into a bush that was growing on the edge. She pushed through the bush and brushed off some leaves and twigs.
Looking at the path before her she saw another pole sticking out the right wall and a wooden stair platform. She backed up then ran at the pole. She grabbed it swung forward then released. Kat grabbed the wooden platform, but the sudden weight of her started a series of cracking and popping of the wood denigrating under her hands. She pulled herself up on it quickly then ran along it to the other side of it. She was again out of Leon and Lara's sight. She jumped from the platform as it completely broke apart behind her. She pushed up on the tower wall and grabbed a bit of wood sticking out about three feet over her head. It ran along the wall as if it was a floor edge sticking out of the tower. She guessed it might be some kind of support built into the tower, but she was no Architect.
Some of the stonework, where the wood jutted out, crumbled apart as she hung there for a moment. She started to shimmy to the right and turned a corner to the right side of the tower. She got to the end of the wood and looked to the right. She saw a rock wall she could sink her axe into. She bounced a bit then jumped to the rock wall and sank her axe into it. She climbed up it then pulled herself up onto the rock and wood platform and rolled to her back to take a little rest. Looking to her left, she could see Leon and Lara. She lifted her left hand and gave them a Thumbs Up signal, then held up 5 fingers so they knew she was taking a short break. Lying there she looked up at the clouds and smiled as she thought one of them looked like a bunny rabbit with really long ears. "Hey Bugs. What's up Doc?" She sighed and sat up and got to her feet. Play time was over.
She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted over to Leon and Lara. "More collapsed!" Kat told them. "Might have to dive for the water once I get up there!"
"Be careful!" Leon and Lara called in unison.
"Wishing I went instead." Lara told Leon as Kat jumped to the next wooden platform and it buckled a bit.
"Same." Leon nodded cringing as his eyes followed the falling wood bits. "I mean as in I wishing it was me over there. But she was right. She's lightest. If I went on it, or you…"
Lara swallowed. "Think Kat knew that?" She asked as Kat shimmied around as the flat top had broken from the framing.
"Probably…Shit." He shook his head.
"What?" Lara asked as Kat vanished from their sight again.
"I forgot to ask her about something." He told her as Kat appeared in the window near the top of the tower.
"Made it!" Kat called down to them.
"Nice work!" Lara called back.
"And look at what I found!" Kat waved somethings in the air. "Fire arrows!"
"Great!" Leon cheered with a thumbs up. "When you get back down, I've gotta ask you something!"
Kat tipped her head then nodded. "Okay!" She called back throwing up the ok symbol.
Kat put the new arrows away and walked to an open window. She walked slowly on the wooden beam that had veered off the side of the tower. She got to the end and jumped to the wooden beam above her. It likely had been like all the other outcroppings, what was left of the stairs after years of deterioration. She pulled herself up and stood on it. She turned slowly back toward the tower. She got up to the wall and jumped up.
She grabbed the wood that stuck out quickly. It took her a bit of kicking to get her feet on the wall properly. She huffed and waited for a moment. She looked to the left, took a breath before jumping to the rock wall and sinking her axe into the wall. She climbed around the left curve and looked up. She bounced before jumping to the wood above her. She put her axe to her belt before turning to the right.
A hanging crane lift was there. looking up at where it was attached to the tower, she saw it looked more secure than some of the planks and bits of beams she had been using. She bounced a bit then jumped for it. Kat found the thing didn't swing as much as she thought it would. She slowly shimmied around the edges of the lift. Just as she got to the side where the opening to it was, she heard a cracking sound and felt the whole thing jerk.
It fell a little as she pulled herself up onto the lift. She gasped as the lift stopped rocking.
"Are you okay!?" Leon called.
"Yep!" Kat sighed. "Not dead or hurt!"
"Alive is good!" Lara called.
Kat looked up as the lift started swinging back and forth. She pulled her bow and after dipping her fire arrow in the oil flask. She notched the arrow, lit it, and drew back. Aiming for the signal pyre. She loosed. The fire arrow flew at the pyre and hit. Within seconds, the pyre was a blaze. Leon let out a few cheers as Lara waved at Kat. Kat looked out and saw that the other signal fires that hadn't been lit, began glowing orange showing they were now.
"Thank you. All of you." Jacob said through their radios. "Now all of our people have been warned…that should give them time to evacuate." He said as the three watched the fires glow like little stars on earth. "Meet me in the upper village, I'm gathering our forces here."
"All right." Lara voiced into her radio.
Kat dropped to hang on the edge of the lift. She then sung herself to the window part of the tower. She dropped down to the stone floor and looked through the windows. She pulled her radio and pointed to the old ruins.
"Meet me there. It's the only anchor point I can see." Kat told them.
Leon and Lara followed Kat's pointing. They saw the ruins.
"Okay. We'll meet you there." Lara said.
Country: Russia, State: Siberia, City: Siberian Wilderness, Place: Near Kitezh, Area: Geothermal Valley, Month: November, Day: Wednesday 29th, Year: 2000, Time: 15:49 KRAT…
They reached the top of the ruins and saw them. The helicopters from Trinity.
Lara pulled her radio quickly. "Jacob, helicopters are headed your way!"
"Get here as fast as you can." Jacob yelled as they took off down the hill and toward the upper village. "Get behind the barricade! Move, move!"
As they ran, one of the men in the helicopter got on the loudspeaker. "Surrender at once. Resistance will be met with deadly force."
"Look out!" Jacob shouted over the radio as the three waded through a swamp. "Stay under cover!"
"Lay down your weapons, or you will be shot!" The guy in the helicopter yelled.
"Pull back!" Jacob ordered as Kat, Lara, and Leon sank into the swamp water and had to swim through an old sunken house. "Stay together!"
They heard the sound of gunfire and a few explosions. Trinity was either attacking or delivering warnings. If it was the latter, it wouldn't be long before they started really hurting and killing people. If the former, then people were getting hurt and dying already. They had to hurry and try to help.
"If you do not cease fire, we will kill you all." Helicopter guy warned once more as the group saw fire near their exit. "You have 30 seconds."
"Have to hurry." Leon hissed as they exited the sunken house.
"I know." Kat agreed as they got out of the water and slipped into the bushes just outside the upper village.
They crouched down and peered out of the bushes. A few of Jacob's people and him were on their knees with hands behind their heads. One of Trinity's men was pacing back and forth. A guard likely. Jacob saw the three and that Lara was moving to attack. He quickly shook his head. It was clear enough for Leon, Lara, and Kat to see but subtle enough to be hidden from the Trinity guy. Just as he was about to signal where the three should go, the man got impatient and jabbed the barrel of his shotgun to the temple of the man to Jacob's far right.
"Where is the Divine Source!?" He yelled, sounding like a guy that was trying too hard to be intimidating.
He was too impatient for an answer. Because he pulled the trigger, killing the man and splattering blood and brains. He then turned his gun to the next person.
"Tell me!" He ordered and Kat realized he was desperate.
She remembered then, the man that Konstantine had jammed the eyes of, and that bonus she'd heard about. So, this guy clearly wanted it and was scared of their boss. Jacob could see this man couldn't be reasoned with at all.
"Stop!" He yelled at the men. "Don't hurt anyone else!"
The man was angry because he turned to Jacob and cracked him on the back of his head with his shotgun. Leon, Lara, and Kat rushed from the bushes to the pile of barrels and ducked down behind them. They were now closer. They'd be able to help if need be.
The man grabbed Jacob by the collar and pulled him upright again, pointing his gun at his neck. Thing was, he looked unbalanced. The gun swayed a bit in his hand. It was a shotgun, and he was trying to hold it one handed.
"Where is it?" He demanded.
The villager, seeing Jacob could die, got the man's attention. "Wait…wait!" He begged. "There's a map…" He said making the man look at him then at Jacob quickly, as if paranoid. "The Atlas! It will show you the way!"
Hearing that, the man threw Jacob to the ground and turned to the villager. "Okay. Tell me about this Atlas!" He hissed as he pointed the shotgun at him.
Jacob looked up at the group and nodded at them. They all nodded and pulled weapons to give Jacob cover. Jacob moved carefully and quickly. He jumped the man, taking him by surprise. He grabbed the man's shotgun in his surprise and turned it on his face. A quick finger movement, and the man was on his back, dead in the grass, blood lit up by the fires around them. The three ran out of cover and Jacob tossed the shotgun to them.
Leon caught it and checked it over. "Good. Now I've got a boomstick." He joked.
Kat nodded. "Why do I picture you with clay pigeons if you became an old rich dude?"
Leon laughed and shook his head. "Hell no! That seems boring and a waste of bullets."
They turned and found more of Trinty's people came running at the shotgun sounds and were shocked frozen for a moment. Leon fired two shots before reloading the shotgun. Two men were down as Kat and Lara joined with their own weapons.
"Weapons free!" Shouted a Trinity woman. "Kill everything that moves!"
Leon led the way into one of the houses. He was covered by Lara with her dual pistols and Kat with her rifle.