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55. Leon

All the holiday cheer vanished after the sudden attack at the DSO Christmas Party. Everyone was too busy to worry about celebrations when the organization was in chaos. Many agents had died during the attack, and the sudden loss had crippled the DSO in too many ways.

The BSAA was assisting as much as they could. However, the organization was having its share of problems. Since the attack, several more incidents had occurred, and the BSAA was busy trying to keep them under control.

Given the situation, Claire's safety became a priority. She got stationed at her laboratory, under the watchful eye of Leon and Helena.

Leon didn't think that Claire was bothered by that. In fact, she seemed to be happy with the arrangement. The more hours Claire spent in the lab, the more work she could get done; or at least, that was what the woman said. But Leon had the impression that she was trying to distract herself.

"How is she doing?" Helena whispered to Leon. The two agents stood in front of the large glass window that connected the hallway with the laboratory.

Claire was talking to Rebecca while they reviewed something on her tablet. The vaccine wasn't stable yet, but Rebecca was positive with the results so far.

Claire's help was making the process a lot smoother.

"She's having trouble sleeping," Leon sighed. "She's tired, but she can't get the rest she needs."

Leon and Claire had been sleeping together since the Christmas incident. Somehow, each other's presence seemed to make sleeping a little easier. Claire still had nightmares, and pretty bad ones, in Leon's opinion, but with Leon nearby, it seemed like she coped with it a little better.

"Her nightmares keep getting worse. I think it is because of those memories coming back."

"Has she remembered anything else?"

"Only scattered memories, for what she tells me," Leon answered. His blue gaze followed Claire's movement within the room. "She still can't put a context to all of them, and that's frustrating her."

"Scattered random memories do that to her. What will happen when she relives it all," Helena sighed.

"The regression therapy thing?" Leon said, "I don't know. "

Claire had come with the proposition without leaving a chance to argue. Chris didn't like the plan, but with things as bad as it was now, they had no other choices. Claire was their closest lead to Mobius.

"I don't know much about those things, but I read that they can have ugly after-effects. Is it really okay to do it?"

"No, I don't think it is okay..." Leon sighed, "but I doubt she will listen if I told her."

Helena gave him a concerned look but didn't get a chance to speak up as the sliding door behind them opened. When Leon and Helena turned around, they came face to face with a tired-looking Chris. His forehead had some fresh stitches, and a nasty bruise darkened his jaw.

"Hey," the eldest Redfield greeted them. " How are things around here?"

"Quiet," Leon answered, "What about you?"

"Two more incidents in less than 48 hours," Chris sighed with a tired voice. "Claire was right. The attacks are growing, and the monsters are getting stronger and vicious, to. The DSO is working on stronger weapons and ammo. The bullets that Claire designed are effective, but we need something with a higher damage rate."

Leon nodded. If the monsters were growing strong, the bullets alone would not be enough to keep up.

"Marie will handle that, don't worry," Helena said.

"Yeah, she and Claire managed to develop those bullets, so I am sure she will come up with something," Leon said, and Chris nodded.

The three stood in silence, and then, the echo of footsteps filled up the corridor. Claire walked out of the lab, looking through her tablet with a frown.

"Claire," Leon called before the woman turned and crashed against him.

"Uh? Leon?" Claire said, looking up in surprise. Her face was pale, and the bags under her eyes were a clear sign of her lack of sleep. "Chris!"

"Hey, I came to see how you were doing," Chris smiled.

Claire was about to return his smile when she saw the injuries on his face, and her expression turned grim.

"What happened to you?"

Claire rushed to her brother and checked on his injuries carefully.

"A bad meeting with nasties," Chris replied. "Don't worry. They ended up worse than I did."

"That's not..." Claire began, but she stopped and took a deep breath before letting out a sigh. " I need to hurry and get those damn memories back. You guys can't keep fending them off for long, we need to find the source and shut it down once and for all."

"That's our job," Chris said, rubbing his sister's back. "What news do you have for us?"

"Rebecca is working on the antiviral, but the effect isn't stable enough to give it the thumbs up. It's on a good path, though."

"Great news," Chris sighed. "That has to help a little..."

Claire sighed and looked at her brother apologetically.

"On the other hand, Saya is ready for the regression session."

Leon's clear eyes locked with Claire's. So soon? Leon wasn't sure about the whole thing, and the rush of it made him even more hesitant.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Chris asked. "You don't have to go through that. I am sure we can figure something else."

The tone of concern in Chris's voice was genuine. The oldest Redfield had gotten hardened by life, but Leon had come to learn that all that harshness and bravado would fade away whenever he was near his sister.

"Whether we do this or not, those memories will come back. I rather they come sooner so that it comes in handy than later," Claire answered in a pacifying tone. "Don't worry. Saya is a professional."

Even with Claire's reassurance, it was hard not to worry. The tension was evident in the air, and it affected everyone around Claire. Barry and Jill came in to witness the procedure, and Leon suspected that they were also there to restrain Chris if it was necessary.

The regression session would take place in one of Claire's lab's unused isolation rooms. According to Dhriti's explanation, the rooms had never been used until now.

"Is this really necessary?" Jill asked as Dhriti tied Claire's hands and feet to the chair.

"Hypnosis will put me in a trance. My mind will get lost on whatever I am reliving in the process," Claire replied calmly, "if the memories turn out to be violent, I might get violent, too. It's a safety precaution."

"It can't be that fucking drastic," Barry said with a frown.

"One of our rescued kids knocked out two nurses once in a session," Hiwamura said, putting some sensor on Claire's forehead. "Usually we test relaxation physically, but due to the circumstances, we will rely on brain activity."

"All sensors are working nicely over here," Wallace said from the computer room outside the observation glass.

"Okay, we are ready," Saya nodded, "You can watch from the computer room. The less interference we get, the better."

Leon nor Chris seemed excited about leaving the room, but Claire gave them a calming smile, and the group, except for Dhriti, walked out, closing the door behind them.

"Well, I guess this is it," Jill said, crossing her arms. "I am not sure what to expect."

"I don't think anyone does," Chris answered, "Is this really safe?"

Leon looked at Chris and then at Wallace, who was typing into his laptop.

"We do it all the time," he answered. "Saya is a professional.

"What do you mean you do it all the time?" Helena asked.

"Do you have any idea of how many broken people we receive as refugees in Terra Save?" Wallace asked. "We try to help, but drugging them to fix it is not always the best way. Some of them do well with hypnosis therapy, so it's become routinary."

"So, it will be fine, right?" Chris asked.

"Every case is different. You can't predict how a session will go, but Saya knows what she's doing. If things seem to be getting out of control, she'll end it."

Leon sighed and turned to watch Claire again. Wallace turned up the speakers and allowed Hiwamura's voice to sound in the control room.

"December 28th, 2016. First Regression Session. Patient Claire Redfield, assisting Sanaya Dhriti," Hiwamura said, "Are you ready, Claire?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"Alright then. I'll need you to close your eyes and relax. Take a deep breath, and let it out slowly. Match the rhythm to my voice..." Hiwamura said softly. Leon noticed the change in her voice; it had become softer and melodic. "In...and out...In...and out...that's right. You feel the muscles in your body relax. Tune out everything and focus on my voice..."

Claire's breathing was stable. Leon could see her chest moving up and down from where he stood.

"Brain activity is going down," Wallace whispered.

"How do you know?" Jill asked, looking at the screen.

"Her brain waves are switching, see? They are becoming a little flatter. Those are alpha waves. Saya works between alpha and theta waves."

"How is it looking?" Chris asked.

"So far, she's had no trouble drifting in. That's mostly good," Wallace answered. "This is a regression, though. So things could have an unexpected turn if we are not careful."

Chris nodded. Leon crossed his arms and turned back to the scene inside the room.

"It's March 19th, 2016," Hiwamura whispered. "Do you know that date?"

Claire didn't answer immediately. Leon knew too well that date. It was the most painful date he'd ever lived. That day, he and the rest of BSAA's elite team had returned to the US, mourning for the friend and sister that had died to save them.

"I do..." Claire whispered back. "It's the day I died..."

That answer sent a shudder down Leon's spine, and the blonde knew he wasn't the only one. Chris had suddenly tensed up.

"How did it happen?"

"Fire," Claire answered. "I died, but I came back."

"Came back? What do you mean?"

"They brought me back..." Claire answered. "The virus brought me back..."

"Virus? Did they infect you with something?"

"I was infected..."

Leon clenched his fists. He had suspected it at the time, but since Claire had been more or less normal, except for her headache, he had not pressed the matter. Mobius had already infected her when they were in Germany.

"Then...they took me away..."

"Who took you away?"

"The doctors," Claire answered. "I was two weeks under their experiments, and when I woke up, I wasn't sure what was real or what was a lie."

"Did they tell you something?"

"They told me my family and friends were dead, killed in a terrorist attack, and I was sick."

"Sick? Sick of what?"

"My mind," Claire answered. "They locked me up and made me take drugs and shots. It was alright at first, but it got worse..."

"How?"

"They would lock us down there...force us to fight and kill each other to survive..."

A deep fury filled up Leon's chest as he heard Claire's words.

"I knew we had to escape," Claire continued, "but how do you escape an island?"

"It was challenging, I bet," Hiwamura replied. "Were you on an island?"

"Yes, far in the north. The winds were cold and acrid, but I could hear the sound of waves against the cliffs and the sound of puffins and sea birds."

"Puffins?"

Claire whispered a soft yes, but suddenly she seemed to freeze, and unexpectedly, she seemed to become distraught.

"Claire?"

"They dragged us down. I didn't want to, but I had to..." Claire began whimpering. "They all died...over and over...blood everywhere, so dark... I couldn't stop it...they kept dying..."

Hiwamura face frowned. The woman looked at Wallace, and the engineer shook his head in a slight panic. Leon looked at the computer screen and noticed that the graphics were starting to jump like crazy.

"What's going on?" Chris asked.

"Her brain waves are spiking..." Wallace said. "That's not good."

"What do you mean that's not good?"

Claire seemed about to hyperventilate.

"Over and over...stop it... dead...kill...survive..."

Claire began struggling on her seat. The binds, pressing painfully against her skin and leaving red prints on her pale skin.

"Claire...Claire...listen to me," Hiwamura whispered, "When I count to three... you will wake up. One... two..."

Claire trashed violently, and Leon and Chris were ready to break into the room.

"Three..."

Suddenly, Claire's body went limp, and she fell against the chair. There was a silent pause while everyone expected Claire to move.

"Claire?" Hiwamura whispered. "Can you hear me?

Claire's shoulders moved as she breathed. A minute passed before Claire lifted her head. Blood was dripping from her nose, and she was gasping for air.

"Are you alright?" Dhriti asked, rushing to unfast Claire's binds.

"Yes, I am alright," she answered. "And now I know where those assholes are..."