HAUNTING EVIL
Chapter Three

Leon leaned back in his cushioned seat and glanced out of the window, watching the clouds fly by for a moment, already in a private plane flying straight towards Italy. He had little time to prepare after talking to the chief. He then continued to re-read the files given to him. He had to memorize as much information from them as he could.

Agent Charles Dawson was assigned to be the team's leader. Born in England, his family moved to the US when he was young. His mother was British and his father was American, a military man. Naturally, he wanted to follow in his footsteps and signed up for the army shortly after graduating from high school. His career escalated from there over the years to the point when he became a government agent. Highly intelligent, he had a strong sense of duty and knew how to stay calm under any circumstances.

Second in command was Captain Nicholas Edmondson. He was the most experienced combat and weapons specialist amongst the five Spec Op soldiers and had been in charge of many missions before this one. Aged thirty six, he had an ebony crew-cut hairstyle and sharp hazel eyes. A sense of leadership could be seen in his expression that matched Charles'.

Adam Fitzgerald was the group's medic and field scientist. Having lost family members to the Raccoon outbreak, he dedicated his life to the fight against Bio-Organic Weapons (B.O.W.s). He specialised in studying them out on the battlefield and his findings would be sent to branches such as the government, the Federal Bioterrorism Commission (F.B.C.) and the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance (B.S.A.A.). This would be a useful asset if the target actually was Krauser. He was twenty nine and had auburn hair and brown eyes.

Garret Newman's responsibility was to be the group's technical support. This was decided to be a precaution because Krauser was known to use gadgets, reported by Leon himself after his last encounter with the former agent. His hair was dark brown, his skin had a light tan and his eyes were a deep shade of amber. He was twenty seven years old and was described as cocky yet good natured by his peers. He was also quite skilled with a knife.

Surveillance went to David Baxter. With little to no knowledge of the estate they were to investigate, they had to be prepared for any possible threats. He had been a part of missions that collaborated with the F.B.C. in the past. His green eyes had flecks of bronze which stood out under his brunette locks. He was thirty and a father of two.

Ben Tyler was the youngest of the group, aged twenty four and youthful facial features. His face was sprinkled with freckles and he had baby blue eyes along with chestnut locks. He was their communications expert and was to document as much as he could in their pursuit of the target. He was promoted to the Spec Ops Field Unit earlier that year and was proud of it, wanting to do his part to make the world a safer place.

Each member had their roles to play, taking this mission seriously whether the target was Jack Krauser or not. He was labelled as a traitor, shifting his allegiance to the last of the international pharmaceutical company Umbrella Inc. They were the ones who caused the Raccoon City Outbreak, creating viruses that turned people into literal zombies or monsters, known today as B.O.W.s. Hundreds of lives were lost because of them. Leon knew first hand, being trapped in that hellish nightmare when he was just a naive police officer.

When the government came to the conclusion that the city was beyond saving, they had to destroy it using missile nukes. It was nothing but a wasteland and a bad memory for everyone throughout world. Survivors were able to speak up, revealing the truth about Umbrella's involvement and the company was finally brought to justice after trials that lasted until 2003. Yet after the fallout of Umbrella's collapse, their B.O.W.s began to appear on the black market and in the hands of terrorists. Few of its followers who remained loyal to the company went into hiding, including one of its deadliest associates, Albert Wesker. And Krauser joined them. Leon couldn't understand why.

"Neutralise... A nice word for 'kill'," he thought bitterly to himself.

He honestly had no idea of what to think about Krauser being alive. He found it hard to believe, thinking back to the last time he saw him. One would never think that they used to be friends.

Three years ago in 2002, the Veronica Virus had been unleashed at a little village in South America. Leon and Krauser were partnered up to hunt down Javier Hidalgo, a drug lord that had pursued Umbrella. As they fought against the creatures to survive, they found his daughter, Manuela Hidalgo who ran away from him. It turned out that she contracted a fatal disease and Umbrella gave him a sample of the virus. To save her life and prevent her from transforming after injecting her with it, he had a number of girls around her age abducted and their organs transplanted regularly to keep the virus at bay.

In the end, Javier allowed himself to become infected so he could annihilate the agents. The two, along with Manuela obtaining control of the virus she carried, were able to put an end to his tyranny. She was taken into the custody of the US government. At first she was scared but was compliant, willing to help them understand the virus within her if it meant it could save lives. Nowadays she was living comfortably under their care, though she still trying to cope the mental scars from the ordeal. As for Krauser, his arm was severely damaged after that mission. There was no chance of recovery and he was forced to retire early against his will. It was a huge blow for the soldier.

When Leon went to go and visit him in the hospital, he was in no mood for a friendly chat. Instead, he lashed out and they got into a heated argument. At the time, Leon thought he was just angry, venting and projecting his frustrations onto him. So he left him be, thinking he would need the space to cool down before they could talk another day. Only that didn't happen, as he was told Krauser died in a plane crash some time afterwards. Leon felt awful when he found out, regretting not talking to him sooner.

What no one knew until 2004 was that Krauser had actually faked his death.

During the Los Illuminados event, Leon discovered he was alive and it was him who kidnapped Ashley Graham in order to gain the trust of the occult's head leader, Osmund Saddler. In the middle of a war zone filled with Ganados, Krauser staged an arena at a sand fortress in an attempt to kill him. It was then that he learned Krauser had given in to the temptation of Las Plagas and the power it could give. Somehow, he was able to avoid falling under its manipulative control like the leaders Bitores Mendez, Ramon Salazar and Saddler himself.

However, despite Krauser's efforts, it was Leon who managed to have the upper hand. He was the victor of their battle. There was no way Krauser could survive such injuries. His chest had a hole that reached to his heart due to the parasites crumbling inside of him.

Even so, Leon knew he had to accept the possibility. The horrors he had seen as both a rookie cop and a government agent made him aware of the capabilities done by man. A part of him didn't feel too keen about this mission. Perhaps it was because he was still annoyed at the fact that his supervisors never told him about the whole issue to begin with. Of course, he was concerned for the missing team, as everyone else was, and he was willing to find them.

"Excuse me, Mr. Kennedy..."

Leon blinked and glanced at the stewardess addressing him.

"We're about to land shortly," she said. "Please be sure to pack away your belongings and to put your seat belt back on."

"Oh, sure."

The stewardess smiled as he did as instructed and carried on past his seat.

After landing, Leon walked down the steps, thanking the pilot and got a surprise seeing none other than Ingrid Hunnigan waiting a few feet in front of him. Behind her were two men that fit the stereotype of a classic bodyguard, wearing black suits and shades.

"You know, you could have told me you'd be here instead of pulling a hocus-pocus act," Leon retorted lightly, shrugging his bag over his shoulder so it wouldn't fall.

Hunnigan adjusted her glasses, her behaviour as serious as ever.

"I apologise for not notifying you about my presence, Leon. As you can probably tell, I will be your communication officer again for this mission."


Not wasting any time, they headed off to their base to brief Leon with more details and went straight to business as soon as they arrived. Images and maps were displayed on a projection screen on the wall. Hunnigan held a red laser pointer in her hand.

"We marked a perimeter around the location." An image taken from a birds-eye view was expanded and moved to the centre of the screen. There was a circle marked and inside was a building surrounded by trees inside and out of a ring of mountains. "And these shots were taken by our men before they entered the premises."

They were close to the building. The walls were made of stone and reached up high with pointed rooftops.

"It looks like a castle," noted Leon. It reminded him of the Salazar Castle.

"Yes, it does. These ones were taken from the inside."

The photos shown next were of various rooms one would imagine in an old castle, each well-furnished, yet were dark and gloomy. Cobwebs and dirt covered everything.

"We don't know for sure exactly how many are residing there other than the target but we suspect they could be hostile."

She flicked to the next image which disturbed Leon. It was of a woman with lavender hair and inhumanly pale skin. She was wearing an emerald dress and had an apron tied around her slim waist. She must have been a maid. A large shard of glass was pierced through her chest between her breasts and pinned her to the ground in a standing position, her back arching as her arms hung out-wide. Blood poured down her body, the glass and along the ground past other segments of glass. The thing that made the photo most disturbing was that the dead woman had tears of blood on her face... and she was smiling, grinning from ear to ear.

"I want you to be careful out there, Leon," Hunnigan added. "It is clearly dangerous in there. One of our men had a camera on him and thanks to that, we are aware that the manor is infested with death traps. You have experience in handling those, so I trust you'll be able to evade them."

"Great...!" Leon thought sarcastically.

"Obviously, we also suspect that the residents could be held accountable for the disappearance of the team. So please do proceed with caution."

"A hidden castle in the middle of nowhere filled with traps... sounds like a big 'Keep Out' sign," Leon commented dryly.

Hunnigan nodded in agreement. "Apparently so."

"How do I get there, then?"

To answer his question, she typed in a few buttons on a keyboard connected to the projector and the screen returned to the image above the castle. After typing in a few more, the circle was removed and the screen zoomed out further.

"Agent Dawson informed us of an enclosed town called Versante up north to the manor," she said, pointing the laser to it, then down to the castle.

"There is a path leading to a trail through the forest that will take you there. You will be escorted close to Versante but from there, you'll have to make your way on foot using that path. You mustn't let your presence become known once you reach the estate, at least not so soon. Do you think you can handle it?"

Yeah," Leon replied.

"Good. We have another group stationed close to the south of the estate monitoring and updating whatever we can get. I will be positioned there when you begin your mission. You have all of your equipment including your firearm and radio prepared, so be sure to report as much as you can. A back-up team is also set should anything go wrong. Call them right away if you deem it necessary. We have no clue on what these people can do, especially if Krauser really is involved in this."

"Got it."

Later that day, as the afternoon became the evening, Leon was dropped off at Versante as scheduled.

The little town was peaceful and quiet. Trees with their green leaves that faded and became dry due to the changing of seasons were tall and right up close to the rural town's edges, making it feel secluded and private. In the distance, more trees were spotted on the mountains. The townsfolk were living their daily lives, not paying any mind to him even though he stood out like a sore thumb. Some were heading to their destinations, shopkeepers at the market called out to potential customers. As Leon strolled by a few children playing soccer, he smiled, almost feeling envious of the simple lifestyle everyone there was fortunate to have.

Using a GPS that was installed into his radio, he followed directions to the far end of Versante. The further Leon got, the fewer the amount of people could be seen. He saw an open pathway that thinned down to the trail into the forest that Hunnigan spoke of. A long split-rail fence stretched far and wide across the path. He walked towards it and the people around noticed this with shock in their eyes, whispering to each other.

"Cosa sta facendo lui?"

"Non può entrare lì dentro lui!"

Leon was now aware of the people staring at him. His muscle memory almost itched for his handgun, reminded of the village in Spain infected with the parasites that suddenly attacked him out of nowhere. One man with black hair and a light stubble felt compelled to speak up to the passing visitor, unlike the others who were too afraid to take a step close to the path.

"Scusi," he called out, which succeeded for Leon stopped and turned to him.

"Hai un desiderio di morte?"

"Pardon me?" asked Leon who looked confused.

"Ah, you... speak English?" he asked in return, picking up on the American's accent.

"Yeah, I do," he answered, relieved of not having an awkward conversation between two languages. "Sorry, I only know a few Italian words."

"It's fine but... you must be new here. Otherwise you would know better about the road you stand on."

"What do you mean?"

"No one dares to enter the Caos Foresta. Many years ago, people were known to vanish there, especially women. Even now, rumours still stir within Versante."

Leon looked at him sceptically, wondering if those words had any connections to the missing Spec Ops unit or if he was just trying to mess with him. It sounded like one of those cliché warnings in a scary story. He nodded his head, not wanting to be rude regardless.

"I appreciate it, but I've got no choice. I'm searching for a group that may have come through here. Maybe you or someone else might have seen them?"

The man gave a raised eyebrow of his own. "Are you some kind of police officer or a detective?"

Leon chuckled as he reached into his pocket. "Not exactly..."

He took out six photographs and presented them to the man. The other people kept their distance as they continued to watch warily. The man flicked through each one, not recognising any of them until he saw the last photo.

"Now that's a face I never thought I'd see again," he spoke in awe.

"Which one?"

Leon tilted his head and realised that it was Charles' picture. The man gave the photos back to him.

"We hardly ever get any visitors. He came here about twenty years ago. I was just a boy, then. He was asking around, claiming to be looking for his sister. I heard my father tell him that he saw her going with someone into Caos Foresta."

"Did he find her?" Leon inquired.

The man shrugged. "I'm not sure. He went into the forest and I never again saw him after that."

"I see."

The agent glanced back at the forest in thought, making a mental note to relay the information with Hunnigan later. He had no idea that Charles came all the way to a town like this for such a reason. Yet he knew he couldn't afford to lose time whilst on the job.

"Well, thank you for your cooperation. I gotta get going."

The men tensed at first but soon his shoulders dropped. "I guess I cannot change your mind... You're really going in there alone?"

"I've been through worse. Trust me on that one..."

"Then... I wish you luck. But now I think you're crazy."

Leon smirked to his humour and waved goodbye before walking towards the fence and hoist himself over it. The townsfolk kept their sight on him for a couple of seconds before heading back into the village, feeling disheartened for him. He was surprised they didn't say or do anything to stop him.

"Don't say I didn't warn you!" the man yelled out as he entered the forest.

He truly did wish the newcomer a safe journey, uncomfortable with letting him wonder off to a place that haunted Versante for centuries...


The forest had to be much bigger than the birds-eye image implied. It was going on forever. He must have been travelling for what felt like a few hours. During that time, he let Hunnigan know about the man and what he had told him and she promised that she would dig more into Versante's history. The sun was beginning to set, casting an orange glow over the land. His feet were tired as he climbed up the grounds that kept on growing. He relied on the GPS to show him the way, leaning against a tree to take a breather and a drink from a water flask he had on him. After resting for a minute, enjoying the view and sounds of nature, he carried on, looking down the cliffs he walked close to.

Leon soon came across a mark on another tree. He brushed his fingers along the trunk. It appeared to have been damaged by a gunshot. Behind it, he saw stone walls in the distance through the other trees that were cramped together.

He brought out his binoculars to get a closer look, zooming in. He was certain it was the castle. He saw red windows but it was too thick to see inside. Directly ahead was a wide area with mirrored stairs leading up to lampposts and pillars in front of large double doors. To stay safe, he switched to his gun and made his way forward, using the trees and bushes for cover. He remained low and crept down a hill, almost slipping over a couple of damp leaves. After maintaining his balance once he reached the bottom, he was more careful not to cause any forms of disturbance to trigger any traps or to alert anyone there.

As he got closer, he thought he could hear something, like an animal whining. He hid behind a hedge and peeked over it. There was a white German Shepherd dog scrapping his paw against one of the double doors. His fur was filthy and wrapped around one of his back legs was an old bandage. It resembled a dog of the same breed Leon saved from a bear trap when he was on his last mission. Now that he thought about it, the bandage was on the same leg the other had its leg caught in.

"This can't be the same dog, could it?"

The space between him and the dog was too far apart so he didn't think he should risk going over. Close by was a sign post that read 'Chaos Forest'.

"No one dares to enter the Caos Foresta."

The man's warning... Once someone went in, they wouldn't come out, he practically said. Did it really have something to do with the manor? Before Leon could think about it anymore, he saw someone lying on the ground soaked in blood. He quickly rushed over and knelt down beside him. It was one of the missing men... Ben Tyler. There was a deep slash across his neck and a rotten smell coming from him which attracted insects indicated he had been dead for a while. Leon covered his nose and shifted back, grabbing his radio and spoke in a low voice when Hunnigan answered.

"Hunnigan, I'm outside the location and I've found Ben. He's dead... It looks like someone slit his throat."

Through the screen, he could see sympathy wash over her. She nodded despondently.

"I'll report this. You hurry and find the rest. They could still be alive."

"I will. Leon out."

They both hung up after that and he put the radio away. He was soon distracted when he heard something creep behind him. On instinct, he spun around in a flash with his dagger ready but blinked and lowered the weapon immediately seeing the white German Shepherd right in front of him. His chocolate brown eyes gave him an identical look of recognition.

"Hey there," Leon greeted softly.

He presented his hand to allow the dog to smell it, his wet nose brushing over his palm. The dog walked forward and sat on the spot next to him, looking at the corpse and back at him, whining sadly. Leon slowly rested his hand over the dog's back.

"I know, horrible."

Leon stared at the dog, wondering what he was doing out in the forest on his own. If this was the same dog, how did he get from Spain all the way over here?

"This dog's probably had one hell of an adventure...!"

The German Shepherd then got up on all fours and turned back towards the manor. Leon stood as he barked to him in a signal to follow.

"Something you wanna show me, boy?"

He didn't feel right about leaving Tyler the way he was. He always hated walking away from the bodies of innocent victims but he knew there was nothing he could do. Reluctantly, he tagged along the dog who did not return to the manor's entrance. Instead, they went past to the right beside the walls. He noticed his bandaged leg slightly stooped as he strode ahead of him but was stopping by any means.

They kept on going and found a black bar fence with a graveyard behind a smaller fence. Leon could see an incinerator within a narrow gap to the side. He hid against the little brick wall below the fence as he inspected the place. From the left corner were stairs leading up to a door. There were many uneven gravestones, some broken because of overgrowing branches from bushes.

Leon heard the dog bark again. The canine was pointing his head to a gap at the bottom of the wall, trying to dig at an already-made hole underneath the bricks. It was blocked on the other side by a crate. Leon's brows frowned. It was like someone was trying to prevent entry... Prevent this dog from coming in?

He held one bars to the fence in his hand and glanced up. There were no barb wires at the top. He could easily climb over it. Leaning down, he rubbed the dog's head between his ears in thanks, hoping he would be better off in the forest than the dangers of the castle. As he lifted himself over into the graveyard, his knees bending as he landed, the dog began to yap in protest, refusing to be left alone in the woods. Leon gazed at him, feeling bad as he listened to his howling pleas. So he pushed the crate out of the way and the dog instantly crawled through, shaking his fur once he was on the other side.

Leon moved to hide behind the stairs. Looking at the gravestones, he observed that they all read the name 'Aureolus Belli'. The earliest birth and death dates engraved dated back to the 1500s.

"Belli? Isn't that the same name as...?"

Leon shook his head to himself, taking the thought as a mere coincidence. There was another graveyard at the other side of a different fence but the gate to it was locked by a sturdy padlock. He figured he should start by going up the stairs. The dog remained close to him. Luckily for them, the door was unlocked. Still, he wasn't going to drop his guard for a second.

They stepped into a long corridor with dull red lights, the entire room engulfed by its colour. The floor had square tiles and there were several gate doors. It would be enough to slow anyone down. They went through each one and Leon closed them all behind him, making sure not to leave any changes to arouse suspicion if anyone was to come here. There were also broken vase pieces between the doors as well as an empty chair.

When he opened the final door, they found a U-shaped balcony over an entrance hall. It had to be the inside of the double doors from outside. Down below, another door opened and Leon quickly ducked against the wall. Someone came in, sighing as they closed that door. The dog's nose twitched and his ears perked up. He then began to bark out loud, alarming Leon.

"Hewie...?" a feminine voice called, soft and elegant.

The dog barked again in response.

"Hewie!"

The person dashed across the room past a marble statue and through a second door. The dog continued to bark and took off before Leon could do anything.

"Hey!"

He followed the dog who ran into an old laboratory with an unusual machine. Leon's footsteps slowed as he looked at it in puzzlement, spotting a face at the top of it. The dog was desperately scratching at another door with a window and he opened it for him, baffled by the canine's eager behaviour. He watched the dog rush across a smaller corridor and down some stairs at a corner to the person from the hall who caught up with him.

"Hewie! You're alive!"

Leon hid at the corner and peered around it carefully. The person was a young woman with platinum blonde hair wearing a long yellow dress. She was on her knees hugging the white German Shepherd tightly, crying into his neck. The dog was just as overjoyed to see her. He couldn't stop licking her and his tail was wagging wildly with excitement.

"Guess he must be her dog." thought Leon. "Who is she?"

He was sure he had seen her somewhere before. The woman leaned back and at that moment, she caught him spying on her and gasped. She got up and ran away, calling the confused dog who left with her.

"Damn it!" Leon went after her. "Wait!"

He had to catch up to her. If she was one of the residents that was a part of the team's disappearance, she could alert others about him. She was fast, even in the dress that was restraining her movement. He pushed himself so he wouldn't lose sight of her. Leon chased her down a semi-circular path with pillars and saw them running through a grey door next to a set of drawers and a wardrobe. When he ran in, he found them at the other side.

"Debilitas, no!" the woman yelled.

As soon as Leon entered the hall, a huge disfigured hunchback of a man came charging towards him with a loud roar and rammed a massive fist across his face. He cried out to the painful contact and was sent flying to the ground.

Groaning with agony, he rolled onto his back. His head was ringing and dizziness swirled like a tornado. White dots danced before his eyes as he tried to open them. Although his sight was blurry and doubled, he could see his attacker stomp towards him. The hunchback grunted heavily with distrust. Without any warning, he raised his hands together to crush the agent's skull. Leon's chest tightened, unable to move away.

"Stop!" the woman protested as the dog at her side snapped angrily.

The hunchback froze upon hearing her demand. He stared at her and his hands slowly sunk before snarling back at Leon who was still struggling to recover. The woman held her breath as she waited to see what he would do next. To her relief, he stood upright and bowed to her as though she was royalty. And just like that, he simply left. She sighed heavily and then gaped at the stranger lying on the floor. His head was on top of a patch of dry blood stained into the carpet. Lifting a hand above her bosom, she cautiously approached him.

Leon saw her now standing over him through his hazy vision. "Who... are you?"

A door abruptly burst open, startling the young woman. Two men stormed in and the dog growled at them. One was big and muscular, the target. He grabbed her arm and dragged her away with ease. Leon heard the dog bark and run after them. The second was dressed in something entirely brown with a hood over his head. He walked up to the government agent and glared down at him.

Leon's sight was fading to black and gradually, he fell unconscious with the mysterious woman lingering in his mind...


AUTHOR'S NOTES

Versante is a fictional location of my own creation as well as Agent Charles Dawson and the Spec Ops unit. Honestly, I don't speak Italian and I don't know anybody who does. I looked around a number of translation websites, not wanting to rely on Google Translate alone, and more or less got the same result with each one. I also did reverse translations to make sure they came out either correctly or close enough. I apologise if there are any errors for those it may bother.

Translations...
"Cosa sta facendo lui?" = "What is he doing?"
"Non può entrare lì dentro lui!" = "He can't go in there!"
"Scusi," = "Excuse me,"
"Hai un desiderio di morte?" = "Do you have a death wish?"

Review Responses:

evolution-500 - Thank you very much. I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter ^-^