Disclaimer: I do not own Jonny Quest or Resident Evil.

A/N: For those of you reading this story that may know something of military style weapons I just want to say something about the last chapter. The merchant gave Race and Phil two M203 grenade launchers which they attached to their M4s. Now, M203s can and are attached to M4s all the time, however it is not as easy to as I made it seem; you need special tools and hand guards for it; however for the purposes of the story I left it as it was…for simplistic sakes. I hope it is not too big of a deal.

Also I noticed that I had quite a few spelling and grammar errors in the last chapter…please excuse that. I wrote it pretty late at night and I have been super busy at work that when I proofread it I missed them the errors…during both proof readings! I will attempt to rectify those mistakes in subsequent chapters.

Ok, last note…for now. I found out the other day that in a few weeks I have to go to Kuwait for approximately two weeks. (Its gonna suck…it's like a bazillion times hotter there then it is here in Iraq) I hope to have this story completed by then, but if not, please bear with me.

Thanks! Ok…on to the story.

A New Nightmare

Chapter 15

By: Sigokat

Dr. Quest followed Salazar and the silent mutant through the dark tunnels of the underground caverns. Strange noises crept out of the darkness and Benton found himself constantly looking over his shoulder. On more then one occasion he felt as if things were watching him from within the shadows; hungering for a taste of his blood. He did not doubt that some sort of inhuman and vile creatures did lurk just beyond his sight, but he actually took a small amount of comfort in the idea that Salazar's, and more likely, the mutant's presence was keeping them at bay.

After what seemed like an eternity the rough, jagged walls of the cavern began to turn smooth and the floor leveled out. Almost as if they had stepped from one location to another, Benton found himself walking through a musty hallway. The mutant extinguished the kerosene lamp it carried, due to the flickering florescent lights in the ceiling that let off an eerie green glow throughout the passage. Benton watched his steps as the floor was smeared with mud, dirty water, and God only knew what else. At one point he thought he recognized a solitary eyeball lying against the wall, but he turned his head quickly away, not wanting to be able to ascertain the color of the homeless eye. It made him think of when they had been outside the wall and Corbin had threatened to cut out their young captive's eye in order to gain entry into the castle's outer most defense. Benton shivered at the thought, sometimes wondering if the agent's actions were any better then those of Saddler's and his cults.

'No.' Benton thought to himself. 'I can't think like that. Agent Corbin is here trying to save us. He may be vulgar and a little on edge some times, but he's one of the good guys. I've known the man for years.'

Benton wondered if the stress of not only their current predicament, but also that caused by Umbrella's actions in Washington State were starting to get to him and cause him to think ill of his friends.

'That has to be it; just the stress.' Benton thought. Even though he knew, he did not want to admit even to himself, that a lot of it was also the fear and terror that he felt inside of him.

Benton's thoughts were interrupted when they reached the end of the hallway. Salazar opened the door and proceeded inside.

"You brought me all the way down here, just to take me back up?" Benton asked sarcastically.

"Silence, Doctor." Salazar squeaked. "Better to keep moving you anyways."

"Why?"

"In case your friends happen to make it this far." Salazar replied.

Benton thought about what the man said and wished he had left some sort of clue back in the cell just in case Race was to find it. He cursed himself inwardly and tried to think of what he could do to make it easier for the others to locate him. For now the best he could do was attempt to probe Salazar for more details; the little man did seem to have a tendency to talk a lot if for nothing more then to hear the sound of his own voice.

"What does Saddler want with us?" Benton asked as he followed Salazar up the stairs.

"He requires your assistance." The small man replied.

"How so? He seems to have done a bang up job of destroying innocent lives all on his own."

Salazar halted and turned on the Doctor, staring up at the man. "You are in no position to speak ill of Lord Saddler. I suggest you watch your tongue in the future, or else our friend here will tear it out."

Benton had to suppress a laugh; hearing the little man make threats was somewhat amusing, though he had no doubt that Salazar could deliver good on what he said. "Forgive me." Benton mocked.

Salazar titled his head as he studied Benton; then he turned and continued up the stairs. "You don't seem to be as great as everyone says you are."

"I'm a modest man." Benton replied.

"I will take great pleasure in seeing you die."

"What makes you or Saddler for that matter, think that I would cooperate with this insane plot of yours?"

"You have no choice. If you do not cooperate you will die and I assure you it will be slow and painful. You will be begging for death in the end."

As they reached the top of the stairs, Benton decided to try a different line of questioning. "So what is your goal?"

"What do you think, Doctor?"

"Let me guess, world domination? That line is pretty worn out; perhaps you should try for something a little more attainable."

Salazar glanced over his shoulder as he led them down another dank, dirty hallway. "Where others have failed we will succeed."

"I've heard that one before as well. What makes you think that, Salazar?"

"We have the power of the Las Plagas."

Benton couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"In the end, Doctor, you will bear witness to our triumphs."

"Sorry, I think I'm already booked for that day."

Salazar snorted, "Make all the jokes you want, Doctor, but you cannot deny the power of what we possess. You've witnessed it for yourself."

Salazar turned a corner and a short distance off was another door, however this one was guarded by another mutant insect. A key card control panel was installed next to the metal doors. Salazar pulled a key card out of his jacket pocket, swiped it in the reader, and waited. After a few seconds it chimed and the doors slid open.

"This way, Doctor Quest; I hope your new accommodations are pleasant enough for you; however if they are not, then you will just have to suffer through it."

'Great. Where the hell are you, Race?' Benton thought as he followed Salazar into the labs.

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Estella and Jonny stepped into the room behind Race and Phil, who were both standing just inside the door, weapons lowered, staring into the vast chamber.

Estella saw what had stolen the men's gazes and turned her head in disgust. It took her many moments to build the courage to look again.

Corbin never considered himself a religious man, but he instinctually made the sign of the cross upon viewing the contents of the room.

No living creature occupied the room; however it was filled with corpses. In the center of the room, suspended by chains over a long wooden table, was what was left of a man. The body had been inverted and its arms and legs extended out by the chains. The corpse had been disemboweled and its intestines hung from the hole in its stomach, gravity doing its best to pull them to the floor. The head had been torn off its shoulders.

Race looked at the walls and found numerous corpses on each side; spaced evenly they hung on upside down crosses along the walls. The floor was litter with countless corpses and random body parts.

"What the hell is this place?" Estella asked as she followed Race into the room. Jonny hung closely behind his bodyguard as well.

"I have no idea." Race responded.

Corbin moved off to one of the walls, examining the corpses at a distance. He noticed the room was relatively free of any odors that one would expect from a room full of dead bodies. "Some sort of mass homicide I'd say."

"A ritual?" Jonny offered.

"I don't know." Race said. "This bastard Saddler is going to pay."

Corbin knelt down next to a cluster of bodies that were propped against the wall. "Look at this."

Race, Estella, and Jonny all moved over to where he knelt. "What is it? You find something?" Race asked.

Corbin shook his head, "No, but look at these bodies. Notice their torsos?"

"It looks like something burst out from inside of them." Estella said.

"Like in Aliens." Jonny added.

"The ribs are shattered." Corbin noted. He pulled a small flashlight off of his vest and examined the corpses closer.

"This is disgusting." Estella said, covering her mouth.

Corbin held his breath as he leaned closer to the corpse, his muscles knotted with tension; he half expected the body to leap at him. He shone the flashlight in the open cavity of the nearest corpse. "The inside…I can't be certain, but it appears that what's left of the organs have been…"

"Been what?" Race asked.

"Been chewed on." Corbin said as he looked back at the others.

"Las Plagas." Jonny said. "What the hell is this thing?"

Corbin stood and shone the flashlight around; trying to find some sort of clues as to the deaths. "They were victims, perhaps the Las Plagas rejected them as hosts and they were brought here, almost like a quarantine area."

"Why would Saddler leave his rejects in the castle?" Estella asked. "It would be smarter to get rid of them."

"The guy's insane. He probably wanted to study what happened when the parasite rejected the host." Corbin surmised.

Estella glanced around the room, "But all these people…"

"Don't forget the plethora of infected villagers we've already run across."

"It's just so hard to fathom that one man could be so evil." Estella glanced up at the inverted corpse in the center of the room. "And him? What is that all about? And the upside down crosses?"

"Some sort of sacrifice. Perhaps Saddler thought that he could appease the creatures by offering sacrifices to them." Race guessed.

"That's crazy." Estella shouted.

"Saddler's crazy, Estella." Race said.

"This whole fucking place is crazy." Corbin added.

While the adults argued amongst themselves, Jonny slowly stepped away. The thought of the Las Plagas bursting out of his stomach or his head made him sick, more so then the corpses strewn about the room. He wanted it out of him, but part of him fought against that idea. Part of him wanted to become as powerful as Saddler and the Las Plagas could do that for him. He wandered among the corpses, no longer feeling sorry for the people that they once were. Jonny passed a group of dead bodies, women and children among them and stopped; a sliver of light catching his eye. He reached down and plucked the object off the floor. It was a key; an old skeleton key with a heart shaped end.

"Hey, look what I found." Jonny called to the others.

"What is it, Jonny?" Race said as he strolled over to the boy.

"My God, children too." Estella said as she saw the group of bodies behind Jonny.

"It's a key. What it opens is anyone's guess." Jonny said as he held the key out for Race to examine.

"It could come in handy, it's an old skeleton key, and maybe it opens more then one thing." Race said.

"Can we get out of here, please? This place is making me ill." Estella said.

Race nodded, he did not fault his ex-wife for her feelings because he felt the same way, however he was better at concealing his emotions then she was. "I don't think we can learn anything mo…"

Race was cut short by the sound of doors being opened at the far end of the room.

"Quick, hide." Corbin said as his eyes darted for someplace to conceal them. The room offered little concealment, so they opted for squatting down behind a medium sized hutch that stood against the wall by the door they had entered. The overall darkness of the room helped to their advantage, being able to hide within the shadows of the corner.

Race held a finger up to his mouth, instructing Estella and Jessie to be silent. He tapped Phil, who was squatting a little in front of Race, on the shoulder and used hand signals to communicate.

See anything? Race asked with his hands.

Corbin shook his head and answered with a gesture of his own. But keep your eyes and ears open.

At the far end of the room, two black robed cultists entered, holding a naked, struggling man between them. Behind them strode one of the higher cult members. He wore a red and gold robe and had a similar goat head mask as the man on the wall of the castle.

Race pointed at the goat head man and made an L and a T with his fingers, indicating that he believed the man was a lieutenant in Saddler's cult.

Corbin nodded in agreement.

The two cultists dragged the man to the center of the table and then forcefully threw him on top. The man struggled but the cultists held on to his arms; then each one pulled out a small dagger from inside of their cloaks, raised them in the air and slammed them down into the man's hands, pinning him to the table.

Blood poured from the man's wounds and he screamed in pain and terror. The two black clad cultists stepped back from the table, allowing their leader to move next to the man. The goat head man raised his arms above his head and began to chant. The two followers began to sway back and forth in an eerie rhythmic fashion. The man on the table was screaming and babbling incoherently. Estella strained to listen; she could tell the man was speaking Spanish, but it was nothing more then crazy gibberish.

"What the hell?" Race whispered.

Corbin shrugged as he continued to watch. As the red robed priest continued his chant a pale yellow orange glow appeared high in the rafters of the ceiling, directly above the inverted corpse. The man on the table continued to scream and kick, trying to free himself, but to no avail. The group continued to watch the bizarre ritual and Race pointed to the inverted corpse. Corbin peered through the scope of his rifle and saw what appeared to be thousands of spiders begin to crawl out of the dead man's open cavity. Corbin turned his hand palm down and wiggled his fingers, trying to convey the message of spiders. Soon the entire corpse was covered with the swirling black mass of the arachnids.

Jonny watched the ceremony in amazement and soon he felt an incredible urge to join the priest and his two followers. Jonny stood and stepped forward. Race, catching the boy's motion out of the corner of his eye, grabbed Jonny and held him down. Jonny tried to protest, but Race clamped his hand over the boy's mouth. Jonny struggled under Race's grasp, transfixed by the priest's chanting.

"Resist it, Jonny." Race whispered into the boy's ear.

Jonny continued to struggle, but Race could not tell if he was struggling against the Las Plagas or against Race holding him back.

"Don't let it take you, Jonny." Race hissed to him.

Soon the yellow orange light in the rafters grew stronger and began to pulse. The spiders on the corpse began jumping down onto the captured man's body; he screamed in terror. The priest began to chant louder, his arms still raised towards the heavens and the two followers began to chant as well, continuing their swaying motion. As the light pulsed two creatures emerged from high above.

Estella covered her mouth with her hand, not wanting to let any sounds escape.

Two giant, grotesquely deformed spiders descended from the rafters, their silky webs carrying them down. When they reached the inverted body, they clung to the chains that held the dead man's legs in place leaving a wet trail of silk and slim in their path. The giant spiders were about the size of a large dog, their insect eyes staring at the man on the table. Huge fangs protruded from their gaping maws, a sickly green saliva dripping from between their fangs. They hissed and screeched at one another and then at the man. The priest chanted even louder, apparently addressing the two spiders that had emerged.

The pinned man's eyes grew wide with pain and terror and his stomach began to expand, beating up and down. The spiders continued to shriek and after a few moments one scurried down the dead body and leapt onto the man. It hissed and sank its fangs into the man's abdomen. His body began flailing from side to side and he kicked at the large spider, however it was apparent what the spider had done, it has poisoned the man. The spider lifted its head and the man's stomach began to expand again, and soon it burst wide open. Blood and flesh flew everywhere, pelting the spider that sat atop the body. From inside the man's opened cavity a hideous creature emerged. It resembled a lobster in some aspects, having a hard segmented body and it was about the same size, but that was where the resemblance ended. The thing was covered in the man's blood, but it appeared to be a dark bluish-black color. It swung its little head back and forth and when its gaze, if it had one for it appeared to not have any eyes, fell upon the spider it shrieked at the gigantic beast and started to crawl out of the man's body. The spider hissed and seized the creature with its front legs and then bit down into its body. The second spider watched, its mouth salivating more then ever, and ran down to join its companion. It lunged at the other spider, which hissed and swatted at the new arrival. Soon they began to fight over the Las Plagas creature and they both scurried back up the inverted corpse and disappeared up the chains.

The priest, lowered his arms, and lowered his chanting, until it was a little more then a whisper. Soon he stopped all together. He turned away from his followers and stood off to the side. The two lower men removed the ceremonial daggers from the now dead man's hands and began to haul the body off the table. Without care or concern they tossed to body onto a pile of other corpses.

Jonny's struggles began to subside as the goat headed priest finished his chants. Race felt the boy's body relax beneath his grip, but he continued to hold on. He looked at Corbin, who appeared to be as ill as the rest of them from what they had just witnessed, and nodded towards the three Los Illuminados men. Corbin nodded and leaned backwards. He braced his back against the wall and brought his legs up at a ninety degree angle. He raised his rifle and took aim on the red robed leader.

Race tapped him on the shoulder and then on his leg. Corbin nodded, Race wanted the man alive.

Corbin took aim, steadied himself and fired. The bullet ripped through the man's robe and he fell with a gasp of shock and pain. The two followers spun around and quickly saw the group in the corner. They growled and rushed towards them. Jonny broke free from Race's grasp, raised his revolver and fired. The boom of the large caliber weapon echoed throughout the hall. Jonny felt like his arms would be ripped out of their sockets each time he fired, but he continued. After three shots, one of the men collapsed. Phil and Race were already firing at the last man and he too fell beneath a hail of 5.56 rounds.

The goat headed priest was squirming on the ground, trying to claw his way to safety. Race stood and went over to the man and planted a foot into his back. Estella and Jonny walked over to Race, followed by Phil who stopped at each of the dead cultists and retrieved the ceremonial daggers from their lifeless bodies.

"Let's see who you are." Race said as he flipped the man onto his back and knelt down to remove the mask. He pulled it off and tossed to goat head to the side. The man beneath the mask was no one in particular; just another bald shaven, tattooed cult member. He appeared to be in his mid to late thirties. The only distinguishing feature, or lack thereof for that matter, was the absence of any of the Las Plagas symptoms. No deeply colored, protruding veins, no bloodshot eyes, no cracked or dried skin.

"Who are you?" Race said.

"Los Illuminados." The man replied.

"No, who are you and what the hell is going on here?"

"The Queens must be appeased."

"Where's Saddler?" Race asked as he hauled the man to his feet.

"Lord Saddler mustn't be distributed."

"I'll keep that in mind, but where is he?" Race asked.

"You are the Americans he spoke of. You will all die."

"Yeah, we've heard that one already." Corbin said.

"Where's Saddler?" Race asked again, "I'm starting to get impatient."

The priest said nothing.

"You cultists nutcases are starting to get on my nerves." Race said.

"The Queens would delight to feast upon you." The priest answered.

"The Queens can feast on this." Race replied as he pulled his pistol and stuck the barrel under the man's chin, "Right after you're done."

The priest's eyes widen and Race was satisfied, the man obviously did not want to die. "No." The priest said.

"Then tell us what we want to know."

"He'll kill me for sure." The priest said, fear now in his voice.

"Not if we kill you first. Where can we find him?"

The priest hesitated, but after a few moments continued, "Lord Saddler's master chamber is on the fourth floor, two above us. If you go through the far door," The priest pointed to where he and his followers had entered from, "you will find a secret staircase beyond the portrait at the end of the hall. It will take you there."

"Thank you. Was that so hard?" Race mocked.

"So, you'll let me live?" The priest asked.

Race pushed the man into Phil's arms, who held the priest tight. "One last question," Phil said, "Where's the antidote?"

"What antidote?" The priest asked.

"For the Las Plagas." Corbin said.

"I know of no such thing." The priest answered, "But if there is one it would be in the labs."

"No such thing?" Jonny asked, hopelessness seeping into his voice.

"I have never heard of an antidote." The priest repeated. "Now, let me go, I've told you all I know."

Corbin looked past the man at Race who nodded. "Alright let's go." Race said.

Estella and Jonny gathered up next to Race and they headed in the direction the priest had indicated.

"What are you doing?" The priest asked Phil as he stayed in place.

"Appeasing the Queens." Phil answered. With one quick motioned he flipped the man onto the table.

"No, no, please don't do this." The priest said.

"Is that what your last victim said as well?" Corbin asked. Holding the man down by the throat he pulled out one of the daggers he had taken off the dead cultists and drove it into the man's hand. Then he did the same with the other.

The priest hollowed in pain. "No…" he muttered, "No, please don't. I told you what you wanted to know. You said you wouldn't kill me."

"I never said that." Corbin responded as he tore a piece of tape off of his roll. "Besides consider this justice for your crimes."

The priest tried to object, but he was quickly silenced by the tape being placed over his mouth. Corbin looked at the man, smiled, patted him on the cheek and then trotted off to join the others at the door.

"Well?" Race said.

Corbin only shrugged; refusing to meet Estella's or Jonny's questionable stares. Only Race truly understood that sometimes when you're dealing with monsters you must act like monsters as well.

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Jessie reluctantly took the dress and, changing out of her clothes, put it on. It was too big and like she said before, it was rather ugly. The white satin of the dress was old and stained yellow. She looked at herself in the full length mirror next to the dresser and scoffed in disgust.

"This is horrible." She said aloud.

Turning back to the bed, she gathered up her other clothes and quickly decided a plan. Figuring Saddler would dispose of her clothes, she tore off a small piece of fabric from her shirt and with a pen she found in the Bible drawer, she wrote the letters JB on the fabric. Knowing that if her father found this room he would do a quick search, she stuck the fabric in the Bible partly protruding one end so that it would be noticeable when looked at. She hoped her father would find her before Saddler returned, for she did not want to be seen in Saddler's dress; she wouldn't have even put it on, but the threat in Saddler's voice had been real and terrifying.

Jessie fished the gold chain that Corbin had given her out of her pants pocket. The dress did not have any pockets and she would feel weird actually wearing it, but she did not want to leave it behind either. She quickly wrapped it around her wrist, wearing it like a bracelet.

Within moments, Jessie heard footsteps approaching.

"Great, here he comes." Jessie mumbled she went to the far side of the room and waited.

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To be continued…