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. After some good advice (thanks Squirrel54!), I made a few subtle changes to the previous chapter that makes it read a little different. Thanks for being patient and coming back to read this. It's getting harder to dedicate enough time to this story, but it is getting closer to the end now so hopefully just a couple more weeks…. As always, I would appreciate any feedback (even if it's just to say if you liked or hated it).

Chapter 15 Bullet with butterflies wings

Leon opened his eyes. It was a few moments before they adjusted to the darkness. The only light that penetrated the gloom came from a small chink between the curtains that were hung haphazardly in front of the single window on the far side of the room. He realised he was lying in a bed, someone else's bed, as the mattress was much softer than his own. He suddenly became aware of a warm body hidden under the sheets next to him. Slowly he pushed himself up to a seated position and glanced at the sleeping figure that shifted slightly and let out a short, high pitched sigh. Carefully, Leon reached forwards and pushed the sheet back a few inches to reveal a full head of mid-length blonde hair that virtually covered the white pillow beneath. Leon closed his eyes and breathed in sharply.

A voice in his head scolded him. "Oh Christ Kennedy, what did you do this time?"

Delicately pushing back the sheet on his side of the bed, Leon tried not to awaken the sleeping shape next to him. He then realised he was completely naked. The cold air felt uncomfortable on his skin as he hurriedly searched the floor with his finger tips for the clothing that he had so carelessly discarded a few hours ago. He dressed quickly and scurried across to the door. He turned the handle slowly and poked his head out a few inches into the brightness of the corridor. Sure that it was deserted, he darted out of the foreign room and quickly made his way back to his own.

Leon closed the door to his room behind him and locked it. He turned and leant back against the heavy wood. He groaned as he slid to the floor, holding his head in his hands. He was certain that no one had seen him, but that didn't excuse his actions. He knew he'd been out of sorts these past few weeks – doing things and saying things he never normally would, always feeling short tempered - but he felt powerless to stop himself.

His body felt heavy as he pushed himself to his feet with an effort. He ran his fingers through his hair. It was slightly damp and lank – he realised suddenly that he had been sweating heavily. He walked across the room, straight past his meticulously made-up bed, towards the small en-suite bathroom on the far side. He turned on the shower, turning the temperature dial to its hottest setting. The room rapidly began to fill with steam as hot water poured out of the regular perforations in the stainless steel showerhead. In the corner of his eye, Leon caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror that was situated on the white tiled wall above a small ivory coloured wash basin. The droplets of condensation on the mirror slightly distorted his face. He turned to face the mirror and with one sweep, wiped away the beads of water.

He hastily pulled off his clothes and threw them to the floor in the corner of the bathroom and yanked open the plain white shower curtain. Just before he got into the shower cubicle, he heard a loud knock on the main door to his room. He stood still for a moment and listened. He could hear an exasperated intake of breath and feet shifting in the corridor. There was another knock, only this time it was louder and more persistent. Leon reached to his side and slammed the bathroom door shut.

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"What do you think?" Jill leaned forward in her chair whilst resting her elbows on her knees. "Chris – what do you think?" she repeated after there was no response.

Chris Redfield was sat on a chair behind the desk in his office. The main fluorescent strip light on the office ceiling was switched off. Instead, the room was lit by a soft white light that emanated from a free standing lamp in one corner. Jill noticed that the light softened Chris's features and seemed to erase some of the worry that had been emblazoned on his furrowed brow these past few weeks. He was scanning through pages of text on Jill's laptop screen in front of him, his eyes darting side to side. He then switched his attention to a pile of papers and photographs scattered across the desk.

"I know you hate to talk about this, but I had to show you what Claire and I uncovered. You know that we've been investigating the events from your Mexico mission in '02, and comparing it with data we recovered from the servers at the organisation's facilities. Particularly Alaska."

"I know Jill. They're linked." Chris didn't look up as he spoke. He continued to look through the scattered papers.

"If you knew they were linked, then why didn't you say something before?"

Chris shrugged. "It was just a hunch. I was hoping to be wrong, but I know you're right. Mexico was the start. I knew back then that there was something happening, something much worse than before. That was why I was approached by Keller."

Jill sat back and crossed her arms.

"The one piece of the puzzle I didn't understand was the diplomat."

Chris looked up. "You mean James Carter?"

"Yes. What do you know about him?"

A shadow seemed to pass over Chris's face as his mind was forcibly cast back to that fateful mission. "I found him hiding in the village. He was alive, but in a bad way, totally incoherent. He wasn't really hurt, but his mind was gone. Whatever he saw, it really scared him."

"But why was he left alive? In all the facilities we've been to in the last six months there were no survivors."

"I think Mexico was a demonstration."

"That's what I think too." Jill replied, nodding fervently. "I've been finding out more about him, but he's like a ghost. For someone who came from such a prestigious family, there's actually very little information about him out there."

"He was a senator's son. A rich kid. Grew up with a life of privilege, knowing that he was never going to have to struggle for anything." Chris scowled. "Some people are just born lucky."

"Well, he wasn't so lucky in the end, was he?" Jill dead-panned. "Anyway, Claire managed to access a few restricted military servers…"

Chris smiled. His sister was smart.

"…it turns out that he was working for the military and his diplomat position was just a front. He worked for the acquisitions department. Let's just say that he decided how to spend money on our country's more unethical activities."

Chris rolled his eyes. "So he was a bad guy?"

"Maybe. But this is the interesting part." Jill leaned forward towards Chris's desk and shuffled through the pile of photographs. She pulled out one of a smiling middle-aged man, immaculately dressed in a well-fitted dark grey suit. He was standing in what appeared to be an art gallery while holding a glass of champagne.

Chris looked at the photo and then at Jill. "This is his father, Senator Ephraim Carter. One of the country's richest men and a bit of an asshole if I'm not mistaken."

"Yes, that's him." Jill chuckled. From the accounts she had read, Ephraim Carter's massive arrogance was matched only by his wealth. "I decided to do a little bit of research on him too. It turns out that back in the seventies he was a very close friend of Oswald Spencer…"

Chris hutched himself forwards so that he was sitting on the edge of his seat. "Go on."

"They had a massive falling out, and they parted ways over twenty years ago. Spencer, as we know, went on to create Umbrella but Carter seemed to change direction. He went into politics and became a senator."

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?

Jill nodded. "I think he set up a rival organisation."

"Can we tie him to any of the labs?"

"Not directly, he's smart." She shook her head sadly. "We can't connect him to anything yet. But, there's one more thing. It turns out that he fancied himself as a bit if an oil magnate."

"What do you mean?"

"He's well known for being a bit of a philanthropist and he bought a small oil exploration outfit. They've had a rig out in the gulf since the seventies. It's pretty isolated because the big companies pulled out from the area a long time ago. It just wasn't economical. His well has barely produced a drop of crude oil in the last thirty years."

Chris smiled. "This is it, isn't it?"

Jill smiled broadly in response. "I think it's a good candidate. I think we've found their headquarters."

Chris stood up quickly. "We're going to bring them down."

The smile was suddenly erased from Jill's face. "There's one more thing. And this isn't good."

Chris's shoulders dropped. "What is it?"

"Look at this." Jill pulled out a folded black and white photograph from her pocket and handed it to Chris.

Chris unfolded the photograph. He sighed and squeezed his eyes closed. "Has anyone else seen this?"

"No. I wanted you to see it first. You have to decide what to do."

Chris opened his eyes and looked again at the photograph, hoping that what he saw the first time was a mistake. But no, the picture hadn't changed. It was a photograph of Senator Ephraim Carter shaking the hand of General Oscar Keller, his superior officer. Both men were wearing casual clothes and appeared to be at a party. Their relaxed stances suggested they knew each other and were comfortable in each other's company.

"The last person to see James Carter alive was Oscar Keller." Chris said slowly.

Jill gasped. "Do you think…"

"That Keller got to him?" Chris folded the photograph and put it in his pocket. "I hope not Jill. For all our sakes, I hope not."

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Leon was walking down the corridor towards the S.T.A.R.S conference room where he had been summoned by Chris half an hour before. He had no idea why. Chris gave him no explanation, so Leon decided he wouldn't rush to get there.

A few metres in the distance, he noted two S.T.A.R.S members in casual clothes walking towards him. The moment they spotted him, they looked at each other and quickened their pace. The taller of the two men said something inaudible to his colleague, who smirked in response. They fixed their gazes on Leon as they got closer and eventually passed him.

"If you have something to say, just say it!" Leon bellowed down the corridor.

The shorter man turned around to face Leon and looked like he was about to say something. However, his colleague grabbed him by the shoulder and moved his head side to side while quietly mouthing "No.".

"Yeah, that's right. RUN AWAY!" Leon shouted while dismissing them with a wave of his hand. "I don't know how you dare call yourselves S.T.A.R.S!"

The shorter man turned and started to walk back along the corridor towards Leon, although again, his friend grabbed his shoulder and held him back.

"Come on then!" Leon said with a swagger while hold his arms out by his side.

It was the other man's turn to dismiss Leon as he pulled himself from his colleagues grip and walked away while muttering under his breath. Although Leon couldn't hear everything, he was sure he heard the word 'freak'. This was the third time this week he'd had a problem, and he was beginning to get tired of it. Snide comments, rude stares and gestures – but no one would say anything to his face.

He tried to push the latest incident to the back of his mind when he finally reached the door for the conference room. He reached out for the handle and took a deep breath before turning it. The door clicked open. He walked in, slightly surprised to find Jill, Carlos, Claire, Rebecca and Elisabeth sitting around the large hard wood table. They were deep in discussion and didn't notice him enter.

"But I don't understand why this man would put his own son in danger." Carlos said, sounding slightly bemused. "It doesn't make sense."

"He doesn't sound like the nicest guy in the world." Rebecca added. "Did you ever read about how he managed to get those charges against that petrochemical company that polluted that river cleared? Apparently a lot of the local population ended up getting sick…"

"It doesn't matter." Jill replied. "All that matters now is that we've found the organisation's headquar…"

"Nice of you to join us Leon."

Leon looked across the room to see Chris standing on the far side, half in shadow, his arms crossed defensively in front of him. Leon was unaccustomed to Chris's slightly sarcastic tone. He shrugged and sat down on the nearest seat between Carlos and Elisabeth. In the corner of his eye, he noticed Claire glaring in his direction. He turned his head to face her, and she immediately shifted her focus towards her brother.

Chris leaned forwards on the table, his outstretched arms taking a large portion of his weight. In turn, he looked each one of his colleagues directly in the eyes. "I know things have been difficult recently. We've had to make some tough decisions. But you have got to trust me, because if you don't, you might as well walk out of that door right now."

There was silence as everyone listened intently to Chris's words.

"We've got a chance now to end this. If this really is their HQ, we can gather all the evidence we need before we blow it to hell."

"Well, you can count me in!" Carlos broke the silence.

"Wait. Before you make your decision, there's something else you need to know."

"What?" Carlos replied impatiently.

"We have to do this alone. No one outside of this room will know where we are going. No one. So if we fail…"

"But why? Everyone here in this building can be trusted."

Chris ignored Carlos's response. "We need to hit with a small team, and fast. Leon…"

Leon jerked his head in Chris's direction. "Yeah?"

"I want you to come. You too Jill. I want you both back on the team for this mission."

Leon smiled, but his smile quickly disappeared. "Why now? Why this mission?"

"Do you want to come back on the team or don't you?"

"Yes." Leon and Jill replied in unison.

"Right. We go tonight. I wanted everyone ready by 20:00 hours."

"There's something I have to say." Leon stood up slowly and cleared his throat. He felt every pair of eyes in the room burning into him. "This mission…will be my last a member of the S.T.A.R.S. I'm leaving." He spoke quickly, almost as though he wanted to say the words before he had chance to change his mind. He glanced towards Chris, waiting for his response.

"But why? We need you here Leon." Rebecca said.

Claire remained silent.

"Come on Rebecca, surely you've noticed the way people have been behaving around me. Because I certainly have. They're scared of me. No one here wants to work with me."

"That's not true."

"Anyway, I work better alone. After all…" he smiled at Rebecca. "…once you've destroyed this place, I don't think the organisation will ever recover."

"If that's your decision Leon, I respect that." Chris said. Leon looked confused at Chris's short, curt response. "Okay, I want you all to go over the mission plan. I want no mistakes out there. Rebecca, Elisabeth – I want to meet you in the lab in ten minutes."

The two women nodded.

"I'll see the rest of you later." Chris said over his shoulder as he hurried out of the room. Carlos, Elisabeth, Jill and Rebecca quickly followed him.

Claire and Leon were left in the conference room alone. Leon shuffled uncomfortably towards the door when he realised this, but Claire quickened her step and overtook him.

"Leon, stop. I want to talk to you." she said firmly.

"I think I've said all I need to say, just let it go." Leon said, casually waving her away.

Claire stood in the doorway blocking his exit. "Well I haven't said what I wanted to say, so you're going to stay here and listen to me."

Leon relented, taking a step backwards. "Okay. But I've made my decision Claire. Please don't try to talk me out of it."

"I want to know what's going on."

Leon just looked at her and shook his head slowly. "I don't know what…"

"Between me and you." she interrupted, her tone unrelenting.

"There is no me and you Claire. There never was." His voice sounded emotionless, like he was reading words from a script.

"Before…" Claire bit her bottom lip and clenched her fists, trying to calm a swell of anger that had been gestating in her stomach ever since Leon had declared his intention to leave. "…before the Methuselah mission, you said you wanted me."

Leon shrugged his shoulders. "I guess things have changed."

Claire snapped. "The only thing that's changed here is your attitude. And I'm sick of it! I've tried to give you time and space, but I don't know what else I can do. I don't even know what I've done wrong because you won't talk to me!" Her voice was raised now. Any resolve she had made to remain calm was long gone.

"You don't understand Claire." Leon's voice was barely audible.

"I'm trying to understand Leon, I really am. But you just won't talk to me!" She took a deep breathe. "Tell me what's going on in there."

"Do you really want to know?"

"Yes!" Claire struggled to regain control of her voice. "Talk to me. Please." she said, more calm now.

Leon turned slowly and walked back towards the centre of the room. He perched against the edge of the conference room table, his shoulders slouched and head bowed so that his blond hair fell forwards, hiding the brilliant blue of his eyes. He spoke gently, half whispering.

"The last thing I remember from the mission is being under water." He paused, and hopped up onto the table. "It felt like my lungs were being crushed, they were on fire. I struggled, I could feel the rope tightening around my ankle, but no matter how hard I pulled, I couldn't get free. I have never felt scared in my whole life Claire. Never. I've always known that no matter what happens, I can take care of myself. But back there, I just knew that I was going to die, and there was nothing I could do about it. Do you know how that feels?"

Claire walked across to the table and sat down next to him. "No. I don't."

"But suddenly I felt okay. Calm almost. It was dark and I couldn't move, but I could hear your voice. Chris's too You were shouting at me to come back, you sounded upset, but I couldn't do anything. I just didn't fight it. The next thing I remember is Chris pointing a gun at me…ready to kill me. I didn't know why."

"But why haven't you said this to me before? Why have you been behaving like such an ass? I know what you did Leon. Last night. I saw you sneaking out of her room, and you thought no one saw you. Were you trying to hurt me?"

Leon's head snapped up. He turned his head to look directly at Claire. "I don't know what I was trying to do. It just hap…"

"Because you have Leon." she interrupted. "You've hurt me a lot. I don't understand why you hate me so much."

"I'm not sure why I did it." Leon pushed himself off the table and began to pace up and down the room. "When I look in the mirror, I don't recognise the man who I see looking back at me. No, no, that's not what I mean. I know it's me, but…something's different. I don't want you to be around me."

"Oh. So you did it for my own good? You were trying to drive me away?" Claire laughed sarcastically. "Wow. I've never heard that one before. In fact, that's probably the most gutless thing I've ever heard. And it surprises me, to hear it coming from you."

"Hey, it's not like we were together!" Leon spat, driving forwards into Claire's face, his fists clenched. Claire could see his chest heaving up and down as his heart raced and his cheeks became flushed. She quickly leaned back and away from Leon, shocked at his sudden change in temperament. Leon immediately noticed the look on Claire's face and stepped back. He looked away, ashamed. "I'm sorry. It's just that you'd let me in a little bit and then push me away. How am I supposed to know how you really feel about me when the signals change from one minute to the next?"

"That was because I was worried." Claire slammed her fists on the hard wooden table.

"About what?"

"Something like this happening. Because I knew that once we crossed that line, there was no going back. Not just for us, but for the whole team."

"So what changed?"

"It was only when I lost you that I realised how I really felt about you."

"So now you're telling me that you can't live without me?" There was now a subtle hint of sarcasm in Leon's voice.

"No, that's not what I'm saying at all. I can live without you Leon, I just don't want to. I did what I did because I didn't want you to die. It wasn't a choice that I made; I didn't have to think about it. It was instinct."

"But after everything we've seen…we've seen what happens when people play God. It never ends well. Look, I have to go Claire, sooner or later. If I stay, I'm putting you all in danger."

"In danger from what?"

"From me! Don't you get it? I'm not me anymore. I saw what happened to Jimmy. He tried to fight it, but he couldn't and I had to kill him. I saw an intelligent man…my friend… turn into a killer. He knew what he was doing, but he had no control over his actions."

"That's not going to happen to you Leon. All of the test results turned up negative – there's nothing wrong with you."

Leon shook his head. He stepped towards Claire and reached for the knife that was sheathed on her chest.

"What are you do…" Claire stammered.

"Watch."

He held out his left hand in front of Claire, his palm facing upwards. Holding her knife with his right hand, he gritted his teeth as he pushed down and dragged the serrated blade deep into the fleshy palm of his left hand, the path of the knife recorded by a bright red line. Within a few moments, rivulets of blood were pouring along his wrist onto the floor. Claire looked away while squeezing her eyes shut.

"I said watch!" Leon ordered.

Claire opened her eyes and looked back at Leon. She gasped. Her eyes widened as she covered her mouth with her hands.

"Oh my God." she whispered.

She moved herself closer to Leon and inspected his hand. She saw that the sliced flesh was rippling almost rhythmically. The bright blood that covered his hand a few moments ago had already begun to clot and turn a dull shade of brown. The distinct line made by the knife across his palm was beginning to fade.

Claire picked up a glass of water from the table and splashed it across Leon's hand, washing it clean. She then grabbed his hand and inspected it carefully. There was now no evidence of the self-inflected wound. Still holding his hand, she looked up at his face. She opened her mouth to speak, but her throat was dry and no words came out.

"I don't know how long I have left, but…"

"We can fight it Leon. I know we can. We have the antivirus; Elisabeth said it inhibits the gene."

"I've been taking antivirus injections for the last four weeks. It obviously hasn't worked."

"But there's got to be something we can do."

"There is something you can do."

"Anything."

"I don't want you to tell anyone about this. For the moment at least, this is my problem and the S.T.A.R.S have bigger things to worry about right now. We're going to get through this mission. And then I have to go."

"Where are you going to go?" she asked softly.

"I can't tell you that. Not yet." Leon put his hand gently on her shoulder and squeezed. "But now I know you'll understand when the time comes. You do understand, don't you?"

Claire just looked up at him. She didn't know what to say. A thousand thoughts raced through her mind. Why wasn't the antivirus working on Leon when it worked on Jill? Was he really going to change? Where was he going to go? What was he going to do? Was he a danger? Was Chris right after all?

Claire bit her bottom lip and nodded.

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Chris was staring at a bubbling glass beaker full of red fluid that was sat over the hot blue flame of a bunsen burner. The resultant vapour floated upwards into another glass vessel where it condensed into a clear, water-like fluid that dripped down a narrow glass pipe, through a funnel and into a second beaker.

"I want a progress report." Chris said without taking his eyes off the experiment on the lab bench in front of him.

Elisabeth glanced quickly at Rebecca before replying. "As you know, I've genetically engineered a serum - an antivirus if you like – that spontaneously reverses the effects of Wesker's mutation."

"So it makes him human again? We can kill him?"

"Yes." Her voice wavered. "But not for long."

"What do you mean, not for long? How long do we have?"

"Three minutes, four minutes maximum from its introduction to the blood stream. Unfortunately Wesker's mutation has a kind of genetic fail safe that I wasn't expecting. It can react to, and neutralise, just about any biological threat."

"Then we'll have to make do this time."

"Do you really think Wesker will be there? I didn't think he had anything to do with this organisation?" Rebecca asked.

"Oh, he's going to be there." Chris muttered in reply.

"How do you know?"

"I just do."

There was a moment's silence punctuated only by the bubbling sound on the bench.

"I've managed to infuse the serum into a hard gel that can be introduced into standard shells." Elisabeth then handed Chris a small bullet-shaped object. Chris took it from her and held it up to the light, inspecting it closely. "You can put this in you handgun." she added.

"Have they been tested?"

"Preliminary stages only, but the gel explodes on impact." Elisabeth noted the sceptical look on Chris's face. "It works Chris, trust me."

"It looks I don't have much choice." he responded dryly. Chris put the hardened gel bullet down on the bench.

"So…" he said, turning to Elisabeth. "What can you tell me about Carter?"

"Ephraim Carter?" Elisabeth's voice sounded surprised at the question.

"Don't be coy. You used to work for him remember?"

"I never knew who the head of the organisation was. None of us did. In fact, back there in the conference room was the first time I've ever heard anyone link him to the organisation."

"And the rig?"

Elisabeth shrugged her shoulders.

"I always get the feeling you're not telling me everything."

Elisabeth groaned. "I've done nothing but help you since I've been here. I've told you everything I know about the organisation. You wouldn't have been able to infiltrate those facilities without me. And Leon…" Chris's head snapped up at the mention of Leon's name. "Well, Leon would still be dead and Jill would still be locked up in a basement somewhere. Or worse."

She took a deep breath before continuing. "Look, if I knew anything about this man, or this rig, I'd tell you. I'm in more danger out there than any of you. Remember that."

Chris looked at her. She was impossible to read. Her body language gave away no hints of an ulterior motive. There were no involuntary twitches, no messing of the hair, no flickering of the eyes. Just absolute control.

He turned to leave the room.

"20:00 hours. Be ready." he said over his shoulder before he disappeared through the door and into the corridor.

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Jill Valentine was in her room in the S.T.A.R.S accommodation block. She had changed into her black combat trousers and fitted t-shirt in readiness for the upcoming mission. It was the first time she had worn them in many months and even though she knew the mission was going to be dangerous, she felt strangely happy. She was a soldier, and soldiers don't sit in front of a computer screen doing research while their comrades are out in the field risking their lives. She wanted, needed, to be out there with them.

She knelt down to tie her boot laces. The tough black leather felt strangely restrictive as she had gotten used to wearing soft trainers while confined to S.T.A.R.S headquarters. She chided herself for not breaking them in before now, but Chris's decision to bring her along on the mission had caught her by surprise. It seemed to catch everyone else by surprise too.

While kneeling down, she noted her handgun, a spare magazine and knife were sat on her bed. She made a few minor adjustments to her bootlaces and stood up quickly while simultaneously reaching for her weapons. She suddenly felt dizzy as blood seemed to rush to her head. She leaned forward on the bed for support and closed her eyes while breathing slowly and deeply, desperately trying to steady herself. The air seemed to turn stale and putrid. She could just discern the smell of diesel. With her eyes still closed, she felt her body slide onto the bed. Then she was aware of the soft cotton sheets pressing against her cheek.

Jill was lying on a hard, metal floor. She was staring upwards, not at the sky but at a dark metal ceiling along which ran a series of pipes. She was cold, and her hair felt wet. She tried to move, but her muscles wouldn't respond. She couldn't even blink. She realised she was dying.

Two formless shapes materialised over her.

''She's dead.''

''No, she's not. Not yet.''

The voices were distant, distorted. She couldn't even determine whether they were male or female.

''She will be soon though. Look at that wound on her head...''

''She is not going to die because we're going to use Lazarus.''

''Lazarus? But doesn't that...'

''Don't question me! Just get her to the lab.''

''But she'll know...''

''She won't remember a thing.''