Disclaimer: I do not own the Resident Evil series or the characters, I am just a fan who likes to write the kind of stories I like to read. As always, any constructive comments or criticism is much appreciated. Prepare yourselves for some angst!!!

Chapter 13 Passive

''I did everything I could in the chopper Jill. Sixty minutes. It was too long. Even if he'd made it, and I'd managed to bring him back...'' Rebecca Chambers shook her head sadly and swallowed hard. Her normally young, pretty face seemed to look old and tired. ''...it was just too long. There would have been too much damage.'' She bit her bottom lip to try and stop the tears that were forming in her eyes. She looked at the ground and released a barely audible sob.

''I know you did everything you could.'' Jill tried her best to smile warmly, but the news of Leon's death had hit her hard. This felt almost like a dream - a terrible, vivid dream where all she could do was watch, powerless, as the tragic events unfolded in front of her. She had been on that ship, but her memories had returned to her too late. ''This was nobody's fault Rebecca.''

Rebecca wiped away a stray tear. She looked up at Jill. ''It was his.''

Jill looked at Rebecca, puzzled.

''Albert Wesker. We all knew there was something strange happening before we went in. Well...'' she smirked sarcastically. ''…stranger than normal anyway. It was just too quiet. We shouldn't have gone in without more information.''

''Do you think it was a set-up?''

''Yes, absolutely. But maybe not for us.''

''I don't understand. If not for you, then who?''

''Wesker was after the bioweapon - the young girl that attacked Chris and Elisabeth.''

''From what I understand, it killed everyone on the ship. The scientists, the security staff - the captain and crew. By releasing it, Joseph Barnes condemned everyone on board to death - including himself. I can't believe a man could be so stupid. But I still don't understand Wesker's role in all of this. I mean, he had a perfect opportunity to kill Chris and Claire but he didn't.''

''Exactly.'' Rebecca replied. ''I don't think the S.T.A.R.S were the targets. Apparently he said something about 'their parts not being finished' although I can't remember exactly what Claire said. Maybe he thought it was too dangerous to go in and get the bioweapon by himself.''

''So Wesker wanted you to capture or subdue the creature before he got there. It makes sense.''

''But then we were attacked by Keller's men...''

''Did you identify yourselves?''

Rebecca looked at Jill bemused.

''I'm sorry Rebecca; I know you would have done, I shouldn't have asked that. I just don't understand why that chopper fired on you guys.''

''They knew we were there Jill, they must have. They weren't supposed to come in until we gave the all clear, until we'd secured the ship. No one gave any signal. It was like they wanted to kill everything on and around that ship, including us. Someone was covering their tracks.''

Jill nodded in agreement. ''The ship was destroyed.''

''Destroyed?''

''Yes. I received confirmation about twenty minutes ago. They blew a hole in the bough. The Methuselah's gone. They'll struggle to get anything useful now. We're right back where we started. No evidence, no arrests...and we've needlessly lost probably one of the best agents we'll ever have.''

''Chris is going to be...''

''Furious. Yes, I know. I tried to talk to him when you returned but he...well, he was in no mood to talk with me. He went to his office to talk to Keller I think. I just hope he doesn't say something he'll regret.''

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Chris slammed his office door behind him, the noise reverberating along the corridor. For just a moment, he stood there, breathing hard, clenching his fists. He couldn't let anyone see him like this. He was their leader, the one who had to maintain calm order during the most trying situations. Well, that was easier said than done. Fury coursed through his body to the extent that he could barely focus on his surroundings. A thousand images of the Methuselah mission shot through his mind; the B.O.W, Wesker, Elisabeth, Leon...all of them disturbing. What did he do wrong? What could he have done differently?

He sat down at his desk. Taking a deep breath, he opened his laptop. A blank window opened on the screen. Moments later, the screen was filled with the image of General Oscar Keller. He looked tired, like he hadn't slept for days. His aging face was more creviced than usual, his eyes were almost lost in black hollows.

''Chris. Good to see you made it back safe.'' Keller's voice was hoarse.

''General.''

''I know what you are going to say Chris. I was following the best course of action.''

''The best course of action?'' Chris tried hard to steady his voice. ''You're men shot at us!''

''We received a transmission giving us the all-clear…''

''Well, it certainly didn't come from me!''

''We couldn't have known that. They presumed that anyone moving on the surface was the enemy.''

''Did they use the code word?''

''Yes, of course.''

''Then either you're covering something up or…''

''Are you calling me a liar Chris? Because if you are…'' There was an ominous warning tone to Keller's response.

''Someone betrayed us.'' the younger man interrupted. ''Someone gave up the codeword.''

''You don't trust your team?''

''I trust my team implicitly General. It's your team I don't trust.''

''Then I will investigate. Look Chris, in many ways, the mission was a success. You are to be commended.''

''A success?'' The pitch of Chris's voice increased. ''How exactly can this mission be judged a success? One of our men was killed!''

''Leon Kennedy's death is most regrettable. He was a capable soldier.''

''You do remember Leon Kennedy, right? The man who, on your orders, not only rescued President Graham's daughter from a fanatical cult, but probably eliminated the most serious threat to national security since Raccoon City, all on his own? I think his death is more than regrettable General.''

''Of course I remember Leon. I recruited him. He was one of the best I have ever seen. However, what is really important here is the fact that we've ended another illegal operation. The lab has been decommissioned.''

Chris shook his head in disbelief at his superior's callous attitude. Leon's death was much more than regrettable.

''Chris, you're soldiers. Soldiers die in the line of duty. You accepted that many years ago when you signed on the line to serve your country. If you can't live by that anymore, then perhaps you should step down…''

''That's never going to happen, and you know it.''

''Then you will have to accept that what's done is done. I hear you have another lead on a lab in Alaska. I want you to investigate as soon as you are ready.''

''But what about Wesker? He's got away again, and now he has another B.O.W.''

''I told you not to go after Wesker. That was not the point of this mission.''

''But…''

''I will not discuss this Chris. Yes, Wesker is a dangerous man, but we have other priorities right now. You saw him, yes?''

Chris nodded.

''And what happened?''

Chris didn't respond. He didn't feel like re-telling his encounter below the decks of the Methuselah.

''You couldn't stop him, right?''

Chris's shoulders slumped and he exhaled sharply. The General was right, he couldn't stop him.

''You of all people should know that you can't stop him with sheer force alone Chris. We need special tactics.''

''Isn't that what your created the S.T.A.R.S for?''

''For now, I want you to concentrate on this lab in Alaska. Ignore Wesker. His time will come.''

''I can't do that General. I can't prove it, or explain it right now, but I know that everything that's happened recently is somehow connected to him. Something big is going on here. It's like a game of chess – he's arranging all of his pieces for...''

''Maybe so, but I don't want you to lose any more of your team. You will follow my orders or I will find someone else who will.''

Chris shook his head with a mixture of anger and disbelief. He had heard more than enough. How could Keller be so blind? Wesker should have been their priority! He picked up the laptop and threw it against the wall where it shattered into a number of pieces. However, this did nothing to quench his anger. He leant forward over his desk, his head in his hands.

There was a quiet tap on his door. Before he could respond, the door opened a few inches.

''Chris, can I come in?''

He looked up to see Rebecca's solemn face. She spotted the shards of Chris's laptop scattered across the floor and presumed that his conversation with General Keller hadn't gone well.

''Yes.'' he replied as he sat upright while clearing his throat.

''I think you're going to have to talk to Claire. She won't leave Leon. I feel terrible saying this but…'' she bit her bottom lip. ''…there are things I need to do.''

Chris raised his eyebrows. He didn't understand.

''You know, with the body. I have to do an autopsy within twelve hours. Standard procedure. I have to check for potential infection.''

''Leon wasn't infected.''

''I know, but it's standard procedure.''

''Of course. I'll go talk to her.''

''She hasn't said a word. I'm worried about her.''

''Me too Rebecca. Me too.''

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Claire Redfield was sat on the edge of a simple wooden chair, her arms hanging at her side. Her face was blank, her huge blue eyes focussing on nothing. The chair was situated next to a metal framed single bed. On the bed, a thick, heavy white sheet completely covered the figure of a man.

Slowly, she stood up and reached for the white covering. She held the thick white cloth so tight that her knuckles went white. She then realised that her hands were shaking. She clenched her fists even tighter to try and calm herself, but this resulted in her entire body shaking uncontrollably as she struggled to breathe - it was as though the air had become dense and poisoned. Slowly, she pulled back the sheet and stifled a sob as Leon's face was revealed. Claire was annoyed at the cliché, but in death he looked peaceful, like he was in a deep sleep. The smooth contours of his face were so beautiful now. His lips were white and parted slightly as though he was about to speak. She wanted to hear his voice. She wanted him to murmur in his sleep.

Claire continued to pull the sheet down, eventually revealing Leon's bare chest. Barely visible on his muscular, contoured torso were a number of pale pink and silvery blemishes that were the remnants of old injuries - stab wounds, gunshots, burns - injuries sustained for a cause that most people would never know about. Leon's deeds would never be publicly acknowledged or remembered by anyone outside of their small group. A true hero in every sense she thought.

She stared at an intense patch of bruising on his upper chest. The bruises were the only evidence of Rebecca's futile struggle to bring him back to life. In that hour, Claire had never felt so helpless as she was forced to watch the man she loved slip away forever. For nearly two years now she had fought against her feelings for Leon, knowing that if anything were to happen between them, it could jeopardise their ability to do their job and it could de-stabilise the group. The S.T.A.R.S spent nearly every waking moment together. Things were far from perfect and there were personality clashes, but overall the S.T.A.R.S worked. They all shared a common bond – that their lives had been touched by Umbrella – and they all wanted to destroy the last few remnants of Umbrella and all those like them who were willing to step into their place. There was no time for romance. They had given up themselves for their cause. In many ways, Claire didn't even know who she was anymore. She couldn't remember what music she liked to listen to, what books she liked to read, what food was her favourite. It was like she had been living on autopilot the last ten years of her life, only existing from mission to mission. It was only the time she had spent alone with Leon that she realised she was an individual, that there could be life outside of the S.T.A.R.S, that when this was all over, she wouldn't be left alone with nothing. But she had never known Leon. She had left it too late. It was only now that she realised that even if they had been together, there was no way she could feel any worse than the way she was feeling right now.

Claire went to rest her face on Leon's chest but flinched and pulled away sharply. He was ice cold. She reached out again and laid her palm on his chest in the area just above where his heart should be, hoping to feel a small flutter. There was nothing. All that was laying in front of her now was a shell of slowly decaying flesh and bone. Claire looked again at his face and then concentrated on removing a few stray strands of his sandy blond hair that were messily stuck to his cheeks and forehead. She didn't hear the footsteps approaching her from behind.

''Claire…'' a masculine voice spoke softly behind her. Claire felt a hand touch her shoulder. ''You have to leave him now.''

She barely acknowledged the presence of her brother as she continued to rearrange the stray strands.

''Claire.'' Chris repeated, squeezing her shoulder more firmly.

''Get away from me!'' she spat, as she pushed Chris's hand away from her shoulder.

''Claire!''

''I said get away from me!'' she repeated, while clumsily wiping tears away from her face. ''This is your fault. THIS IS YOUR FAULT!'' she wailed, turning to face him.

Chris couldn't speak. He just shook his head slowly and looked at his sister who was now inconsolable. He reached towards her and tried to take her hands, but she stepped backwards out of his reach.

''I said GET AWAY FROM ME!'' she screamed.

''I'm…I'm so sorry Claire.'' Chris whispered while slowly shaking his head. ''I never wanted this to happen. I…''

''This is where your obsession with Wesker has got us.'' she interrupted, pointing a finger at him accusingly.

He opened his mouth to respond, but there was no sound. Claire's words hurt. He knew it was the pain talking, but he was sure she was speaking the truth.

''If you weren't so preoccupied with getting him, then Leon would be…he would be…''

''Alive? It was an accident Claire. It could have happened to any one of us, any time.'' he pleaded.

Claire's rage seemed to dissipate suddenly and she looked at the floor, regretting everything she had just said to her brother. Of course it wasn't his fault, but she couldn't take those words back now. She had wanted to hurt someone, maybe to see if it would alleviate some of the pain she was feeling. Not only had her words hurt her brother, but they had done nothing to make her feel better, they had made her feel ashamed. She was the one who had left Leon. She was the one who had run off into the trees without telling anyone where she was going. She was the one who had broken mission protocol. If anyone was to blame, it was her.

''I need to be alone Chris. Just leave me alone.'' she said, looking directly into her brother's eyes.

Chris took a tentative step towards her.

''Please!'' she begged as she closed her eyes and looked back towards the floor.

Chris nodded sadly, turned and left the room. He walked out into the bright white corridors of the medical wing. He felt a twinge in his chest. Grimacing as he rubbed the tender area, he felt sure that his encounter with Wesker had given him a few bruised ribs. Wesker had beaten him, emasculated him. He could have killed him if he wanted to. The only reason he was alive was because Wesker had allowed it. He felt humiliated. Still, relative to Leon, he was lucky.

''Chris...'' Elisabeth's voice spoke softly as she appeared next to him in the corridor. ''I'm sure she doesn't mean it.''

Chris stopped and turned to face her. ''Were you listening in on our conversation?''

''No…yes…I didn't mean to. You could hear it from the other side of the medical wing. The door was wide open.''

Chris brushed her off and resumed his fast pace down the white tiled corridor. Elisabeth struggled to keep up with him.

''I guess she and Leon must have been close. Look, she's just upset. She's hurting, but she will need you. Just let her get this out of her system.''

''You don't anything about us Dr Badley. I've told you before.''

''I know how much Leon meant to your sister, to you, to all of you. He was an important member of the S.T.A.R.S.''

''He was no more important that anyone else here. We've lost a lot of good people. Yes he'll be missed…'' Chris's voice cracked, betraying his true emotion. ''…but he can be replaced.''

Elisabeth was unconvinced by Chris's attempt at nonchalance. She knew that Leon was an invaluable member of the S.T.A.R.S. Practically a genius, he was easily Chris's equal with exceptional abilities that had saved his and many other lives. Elisabeth also knew that over the last few years, Chris and Leon's initial respect for each other had metamorphosed into a close friendship. She could understand why. Leon seemed like a nice guy. For a brief moment on the quayside, as she had held onto his hands and tried to prevent him being taken by the sea, she had looked into his eyes. She had seen that he wasn't ready to die, but he wasn't prepared to hold onto her, to risk her life, in order to save his. How could he have done that, knowing what she was and what she had done?

''He was a good man Chris. He didn't deserve to go that way.''

''We can't change anything Elisabeth. We just have to accept the hand we're dealt and do the best we can.''

''Some things can be undone.''

''Like death? I don't think so.''

''It's only been a few hours. There's still some cell activity...''

''If you're saying what I think you're saying…''

''Lazarus.''

Chris stopped and stirred at her. ''No.'' he said firmly.

''But it can work, I'm sure of it.''

''He's dead. His brain is dead. There's nothing left of Leon in that room now.''

''I can bring him back. I've spent my whole professional life working on this. I can do it Chris. At least you can let me try.''

''I've seen what happens when the dead are brought back to life. They're not people anymore. They're mindless shells with no traces of humanity. I won't let that happen to Leon.''

''Lazarus is nothing like the T-virus, the G-virus, or anything else designed by Umbrella. It can repair his brain cells. I can bring him back whole.''

''No.'' Chris said decisively.

''Could you face your sister, day after day, knowing that there was something you could have done, that there was a chance that he could have been brought back?''

Chris stopped walking again. He grabbed Elisabeth's shoulders and pushed her hard against the wall, making her wince. He thrust his face less than an inch in front of hers. ''We are not going to talk about this again, and you are not going to mention this to Claire. Do you understand?'' he voice was quiet but menacing.

''Look at Jill. She's completely fine. No side affects.''

Chris jerked her shoulders and pushed her back against the wall, harder than before. ''Can't you hear what I'm saying to you? The answer is no! The S.T.A.R.S are not your test subjects.''

''I'm just trying to help you Chris. This is what I do, this is what I'm good at.''

''You can help us by doing nothing. At least, as far as Leon's concerned.'' He released her and sighed heavily as a twinge of regret over the way he had just lost his temper washed over him. ''But there is something I need from you.'' he continued, almost whispering.

''Yeah? What would that be?'' she was slightly taken aback by the sudden change in his tone of voice.

''I need you to help me find a way to get to Wesker.''

Elisabeth brushed past him and straightened up her shirt. ''I can do that.'' she smiled. ''I have something to show you.''

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Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Rebecca Chambers, Carlos Oliveira and Elisabeth Badley were sat around the large round table in the conference room. Elisabeth threw a small plastic sample bag into the middle of the table.

''What's that?'' Carlos asked.

''That is D.N.A.'' Elisabeth replied, almost smugly.

Carlos looked at her confused.

''I pulled this from Wesker's head.''

''A memento?'' Carlos sniggered. ''We've got better things to do than look at your collection of mission keep-sakes.''

''You can't get to Wesker. He's practically indestructible due to Birkin's experimental virus. He's stronger than you, faster than you and…'' she looked at Chris. ''…he's smarter than you. We have to bring him back down to our level. That's the only way you can fight him.''

''Are you saying what I think you're saying?'' Rebecca interjected.

''What exactly are you talking about?'' Chris asked, looking at Elisabeth and then Rebecca.

Elisabeth stood up and leaned forward on the table with both of her hands. ''I can analyse his D.N.A, find out what make's him 'work'. I can find out exactly what Birkin's virus did to him, and how. And then I can find a way to reverse it.''

''But we don't know if that's even possible. The virus has probably mutated many times since it was introduced to him. It will most certainly have a failsafe, it may mutate again if attacked.''

''Then we attack it with a virus that mutates.'' Elisabeth replied. ''I know Birkin's mind. I've studied his work.''

''How? He was a virtual recluse. He died a long time ago. And it's not like Umbrella published their work, what with most of it being illegal!'' Carlos slammed his hand on the table while looking towards Chris and Rebecca for support.

''He was one of my PhD supervisors.'' Elisabeth continued. ''You have to remember that back in the 90's, umbrella worked very closely with the government.''

''Are you sure you can do this?'' Chris asked quietly.

''Absolutely. You have a well equipped lab. All I need is free access to it.''

''How long?''

''Conservative estimate? Maybe three, four weeks.''

''We can't do this Chris. This is wrong.'' Carlos implored.

''I understand your misgivings Carlos, but…''

''If we do this, if we genetically engineer a virus to manipulate someone, to change them…then that makes us no different from Umbrella. You can't mess with nature and expect there to be no consequences. We've seen the consequences. We see them every day. Thousands and thousands of people have lost their lives – and worse – because of Umbrella's disregard of nature.''

Chris looked at Elisabeth while rubbing his chin. He tried to drown out Carlos's words. Carlos was right of course, but they were running out of options. They had to get Wesker, and soon. Chris knew his adversary's mind; he knew he was planning something. They couldn't get Wesker using conventional means, so maybe stooping to his level was the only option available to them now. It went against everything Chris believed in, everything he had fought long and hard against. But maybe this was the only way?

''Do it.''

Elisabeth smiled while Carlos looked on, disbelieving. He stood up quickly, knocking over his chair. He looked at the faces around the room, unable to put into words what he was thinking. He muttered something in Spanish under his breath and strode to the door. As he reached for the handle, he looked over his shoulder.

''There will be consequences for this Chris.'' Carlos warned. ''I hope you're prepared to accept the responsibility of what you're about to create.''

Carlos didn't give Chris the opportunity to respond as he left the room. There was an awkward, protracted silence.

''I'll start right away.'' Elisabeth said before standing and following Carlos out of the room.

''Rebecca…''

''Yes Chris.''

''Keep an eye on her. Make sure she sticks to the plan. I don't want any surprises.''

Rebecca nodded as stood up to make for the exit. ''I will.''

Chris and Jill were left alone in the conference room.

''Jill – do you think I've made a mistake? Do you think I'm making the right decision, letting Elisabeth do this?''

Jill looked straight at him. ''I don't know Chris. I couldn't have made that decision, but that's why you're in charge.''

''Carlos was right. I'm no better than Umbrella. If this is what I'm prepared to do to get him…maybe I'm not fit to be in the S.T.A.R.S anymore. Maybe Keller was right, that I put my own agenda first, putting other people at risk.''

''Don't you ever say that Chris. You're in charge because you're the only one that can do it. You are the one that has to make those decisions that most of us can't. We know why we're here, what our job is, what we have to do.''

''But…''

''But nothing. You put yourself on the line too, and you're prepared to take the consequences for your actions. I've seen you take the consequences.'' Jill shuddered as she remembered the day she was taken, and she remembered the sight of Chris's inert, bleeding body on the quayside. ''Look, if this is what we have to do to get Wesker, then this is what we have to do. The longer he is out there, the more people will die.''

''Jill.'' Chris interrupted.

''What?''

''Thank you.''

Jill smiled as Chris reached forwards and squeezed her hand. He opened his mouth to say something else when there was a muffled bang.

Chris's eyes opened wide. ''That was a gunshot!''

They both stood up quickly and ran out into the corridor.

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''Rebecca?'' Claire called out softly as she walked slowly through Rebecca's laboratory situated at far end of the medical wing. ''Rebecca?'' she repeated, but Rebecca was nowhere to be seen. The lights were dim and the room was silent except for the constant hum of a large glass unit on one wall and the bubbling sound of fluids that were being gently heated by bunsen burners on the lab bench in the centre of the room.

Claire wandered towards the glass cupboard. Stacked inside were vials of blue fluid that she instantly recognised as the Lazarus anti-virus. Rebecca and Elisabeth had synthesised some more in order to make sure Jill was completely free of the infection. Her eyes were then drawn to a second shelf of vials filled with red fluid. Through the glass, she could the shelf was labelled 'Lazarus virus'. They must have synthesised this from the master samples Elisabeth retrieved. Claire pulled on the stainless steel door handle but it was locked. That made sense. Even in S.T.A.R.S headquarters, they had to keep something as potentially dangerous as this safe. But then, it wasn't that dangerous Claire reasoned. Elisabeth had said that side effects were minimal if the virus was kept at the right temperature. Well, it had been kept at the right temperature in this unit, surely.

Earlier, Claire was about to go after Chris to apologise for the awful way she had spoken to him but instead she had overheard Chris and Elisabeth talking in the corridor. Elisabeth had said that she could bring Leon back, that as long as there was still some cell activity, Lazarus could work. She pulled her handgun from the holster and aimed at the small locking mechanism by the handle. She cocked the trigger and looked away to protect her eyes.

Bang.

She knew she had to be quick as the gunshot would certainly have attracted someone's attention. She pulled on the handle and the door swung open. She snatched one of the red vials. She turned and ran from the lab towards Leon's room, stopping on the way at a supply cupboard for a large syringe. She could hear pounding footsteps in the distance. They were coming.

Seconds later, Claire was standing over Leon, the syringe in her hand. She pressed the needle into the vial of red fluid, filling the cylindrical plastic compartment. She pressed her cheek against his and closed her eyes.

''I have to do this Leon.'' she whispered. ''Please forgive me.''

Her hand shaking, she held the large syringe of red fluid in the air. She knew that in order to penetrate the bone, muscle and cartilage that protected his heart, she would have to plunge the needle in with great force. She took a deep breath and thrust the syringe down with all of her strength and then she pushed the plunger, discharging its blood-red contents. She pulled out the now empty syringe and waited.

''Claire?''

Her brother's voice startled her. She turned to face him, at which point he noticed the empty syringe in her hand.

''Oh my God Claire, what have you done?''

She couldn't answer. She just starred hopelessly at her brother.

Chris ran across to her and grasped her shoulders. ''What have you done?''

''I…I can't lose him Chris. Not Leon too.'' she whimpered.

''No no no. Please tell me you haven't…..''. He pushed her out of the way and stared at Leon's corpse, pulling his handgun from the holster at his hip. He fixed his weapon on Leon and slowly edged forward.

''It didn't work.'' Claire said sadly. ''It didn't work.''

Suddenly there was a long, drawn out throaty groan and Leon sat bolt upright, coughing and wheezing. Chris jumped back with fright, nearly dropping his gun.

''Chris?'' Leon said with a throaty, dry voice. He looked down at his bare chest and mud-stained trousers. He glanced around the room and realised that he was in the medical wing. ''I was drowning……...''

Chris quickly gathered himself and cocked his handgun, ready to fire at his friend. He swallowed hard as his eyes began to water and his hands shook violently. Claire, realising what he was about to do, pushed past her brother and stood in front of Leon, shielding him.

''Claire.'' Chris said, his voice unsteady. ''Get out of the way.''

''No.'' she replied defiantly. ''You are not going to kill him.''

''Claire.'' he repeated. ''Move.''

''Then you're going to have to kill us both.'' She turned her head to face Leon. Colour was gradually returning to his face - his skin no longer appeared waxy and translucent and his white lips were now a pale pink. He looked almost normal, apart from the reddish tinge that discoloured his formerly brilliant blue eyes.

''Claire?'' There was a look of terror on Leon's face. ''What's happening?''

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General Oscar Keller was walking slowly along an unlit corridor. The rhythmic click of his shoes echoed into the darkness. He stopped at a metal door. He reached for the handle but it was locked. He pulled out a small bunch of keys from his pocket. Selecting a square key from the bunch, he unlocked the door and entered a small, dimly lit warehouse. In the warehouse, cardboard and wooden boxes were stacked from the floor to the ceiling. Slowly, he walked into the centre of the room, struggling to avoid the boxes in the dim light.

''I've done what you asked.'' the General's quivering voice spoke into the darkness. ''The mission was a failure. The Methuselah is now sitting under fifty feet of water, in pieces.''

''Yes General, and you will be well compensated.'' a disembodied voice replied from the darkness.

''I don't want money. You know what I want.''

''Then you are the first man I have met that doesn't have a price.''

''Do you think I would betray my own team, my own men, for money?''

''You already have, General.'' The voice appeared closer.

Suddenly, a tall figure stepped out of the shadows only a few metres in front of him. The General's shoulders stiffened. He stood upright, trying not to show his fear.

''I've done everything that you asked Wesker, now where are they?''

''Yes, you have done your job exceptionally well so far. You have been a real asset, and you will be rewarded General.''

''I don't want anything from you.''

Wesker smiled cruelly. ''Of course you don't. But you know, I am loathe to let go someone as effective and loyal as yourself. You should rejoice as you are to be the hero General. You can go to Washington and declare that you have brought down an organisation engaged in illegal genetic activities.''

''But there's no evidence. You wanted the Methuselah to be destroyed.''

''You will get all the evidence you seek in Alaska.''

''I'm not doing this anymore.'' he said defiantly. ''You can do this yourself. Why do you need me?''

''While I admire your spirit general, I tire of repeating myself. You are to send Chris Redfield and his motley crew to Alaska. There is something there that I want.''

''No. I'm not going to risk anyone else's life…''

''Even your wife's?''

''How do I know you're not lying to me? How do I know you have her?''

Wesker threw a small object at General Keller. The general caught it in his right gloved hand. It was a ring, a solid gold wedding band, although the wedding band was still attached to the owner's ring finger. He dropped it in shock.

''You can read the inscription if you don't believe me.''

His hand shaking, Keller bent down and retrieved the finger, gently removing the gold ring. He read the inscription on the inside. ''You're a monster.'' Keller said through gritted teeth.

''Yes, I do believe I am.'' Wesker smiled. But the smile quickly disappeared to be replaced by a stony cold stare. ''You will do everything I tell you to do; otherwise I will return your wife, piece by piece. She will pray for death.''

A lump formed in Keller's throat.

''What do you want me to do?''