Disclaimer: see part 1 for disclaimer.

The More Things Change…

By Random1377

Part 2 – Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here

Rebecca Chambers sighed.  "Would you stop pacing around?" she murmured, "You're making me dizzy."

"Deal with it," came the gruff response, "They're late – we should try calling them!"

"You know that would give away our position," Chris said calmly, tipping his chair up and leaning it against the small room's back wall, "and theirs.  We wait."

Leon Kennedy, the pacer, threw himself down in one of the other chairs situated around the table in the center of the room and rested his elbows on its rough, wooden surface.  "It's been too long," he said plaintively, "we should just do the mission like we planned at first – get it done!"

"Easy kid," Barry Burton's voice rumbled from the doorway, "Billy says he can see them coming down the driveway."  He tilted his head to the side, pressing the walkie-talkie's earpiece further into his ear.  "Looks like they weren't followed, either."

Leon's shoulders slumped with relief.  "Thank God…"

I doubt God had much to do with it, Rebecca thought cynically, maybe that monster car Billy 'acquired,' but not God – no, he hates us… or he wouldn't have made it so we're the only ones that care.

Chris let his chair rock forward, the feet hitting the dirt floor with a muffled thump.  "We need Jill," he said firmly, "we need this plan.  We need to get along, and we need to make sure no one screws up."  He met Leon's eyes.  "We will succeed, alright?  One way or another, we will make sure this mission happens our way."

Leon opened his mouth to reply, but before he could speak, Barry stepped to the side, giving a brief nod of greeting to the four people coming into the hideout.  "About damn time!"

Claire gave him a blank stare.  "I'd say something about getting caught in traffic," she said flatly, "but I don't want to be cliché, so I'll just stick with 'up yours.'"

Rebecca shook her head, pretending she could not see the sparks flying between the two, and instead turned to the newcomers.  "Jill," she said neutrally, still unsure of how the other S.T.A.R.S. woman felt about the current situation.  "I'm glad to see you."

Jill, she decided, looked a little relieved herself.  "Rebecca," she said softly, eyeing Claire and Leon as they continued to stare each other down, "I'm glad to see you too."

"Let's get all the 'missed yous' out of the way, shall we?" Chris said calmly, "most of us here know each other, but just so everyone's clear, let's have introductions."

"Jill Valentine," Jill said immediately, "Ex-S.T.A.R.S."

The man at her side raised a hand. "Carlos Olivera, Ex-U.B.C.S."

This introduction earned him several sharp looks, but everyone seemed to be willing to let it go.

For the time being, anyway.

"Barry Burton," Barry broke the uncomfortable silence that had fallen, "S.T.A.R.S.  Yeah, I know S.T.A.R.S. is out of business… but I'll be a star until I die."

"Chris Redfield.  Same."

"Rebecca Chambers… guess it goes for me too."

"Leon Kennedy," Leon muttered, finally breaking eye contact with Claire, "RCPD."

"Claire Redfield," Chris's sister whispered, "Umbrella killer."

"Billy Cohen," the heavily tattooed man said easily, "Rebecca Chambers' lover."

"Former," Rebecca corrected levelly, "former lover, former soldier, former convict, former-"

"Ok," Chris cut in, "we're getting off track."  He glanced around the room, meeting everyone's eyes to ensure that he had their attention.  "Alright," he said finally, "we all have bad pasts, we're all very tired, and each of us has a reason to dislike at least one of the others… but I brought you all here because we have something we need to take care of."  He gestured to the center of the room.  "Leon?"

Wearily, the former police officer stepped forward, still avoiding Claire's eyes.  "We've found a rather large underground lab in Wyoming," he said slowly, "it's dedicated to the study of the T, G, T-Veronica viruses."  He waited for the sharp hisses of shock to fade away before concluding, "We don't have any backing… we don't have any support… we're low on funds… and, if you all agree, this is our entire team – but we plan to shut it down.  Permanently."

"So we're killing ourselves," Jill said after a moment of quiet, "yeah, I think I'll pass."

"Before you decide," Chris said smoothly, "I want to make you an offer."

"I doubt I'll care that much," Jill countered, "but go ahead… I'm still thinking of where to go and what to change my name to."

"I've been keeping track of your career," Chris said slowly, "and I've noticed… that almost all of the jobs you take involve either stealing something that's already been stolen, or stealing something from former Umbrella employees."

"We all have our preferences," Jill said dryly, "I watched a lot of Saint Tail as a kid."

"Very funny," Chris countered, "but I want to make sure you know the payoff for doing this j-"

"It's not about money," Jill cut in, turning for the door, "come on Carlos, let's get out of here."

As she started to walk away, Claire's voice cut through the silence.  "They took something away from us," she whispered, "something that can never be replaced."  There was another moment of silence.  "Her name is Sherry – and I want her back."

**

Jill came up short.

"She's important to us all," Leon said quietly, still avoiding Claire's accusing stare, "can you help us, Miss Valentine?"

After what seemed like an eternity, Jill said, "Sherry… Birkin?"

"You know her?" Chris asked curiously.

"I saw the name on an expense report signed by Chief Irons," Jill murmured, "she was supposed to be treated like a celebrity – big money changed hands to make sure she was given the very best if she ever came to visit her daddy's apartment in Raccoon – but I never knew anything about her."

"She'd be about sixteen now," Claire said, taking a step towards Jill and shooting Leon a withering glance, "and I want her back."

From her expression, it was clear to Rebecca that Jill did not quite understand all the undercurrents in the room – especially the one between Claire and Leon… but things had changed.

Now an innocent's life was at stake.

"How do you know she's there?" Jill asked slowly, "And how do you know the lab exists at all?  I doubt Umbrella has signs saying 'hey, immoral research going on here' lying around the countryside."

"That's where it get complicated," Barry spoke up, "it seems… that it's not an Umbrella installation at all – it's owned by a company named HCF."

"Umbrella's main competition in biotech," Jill mused, "and I'm guessing they're just a bad as Umbrella?"

"Worse," Chris said seriously, "and… Wesker works for them now."  He gave this a moment to sink in before adding, "We got the tip about the base's location from a crossover employee – former Umbrella, now HCF… but really S.T.A.R.S.  He's been undercover for the past 4 years."

"Anyone I know?" Jill asked coolly, "Or rather – anyone I'd trust?"

"The man's name is Nick Ambrose," Chris said, "he's-"

"He was one of my teachers when I was in training," Rebecca piped up suddenly, "you could have mentioned that before – I'm definitely in now."

Jill gave her a bemused look.  "I thought you'd be all over this."

"Hey," Rebecca countered, "I have a life now too, you know… and I'm not all that keen on dying – but I promised to hear Chris out, and if Nick's in, I'm in."

"So that just leaves you," Chris observed, nodding to Jill, "and your companion."

"Hey," Carlos shrugged, grinning broadly, "I'm just a wheelman now… whatever the boss says goes."

Rebecca assessed the man, taking in his thickly muscled chest and arms, replete with a number of small scars, and his smiling, but attentive eyes.  Oh you're not just a driver, she thought confidently, Raccoon may have gone down five years ago, but you've been keeping yourself busy, I'd think.

From the expressions on the other's faces, she could tell that they were all thinking the same.  "So," she said abruptly, "like I said, I'll do it… how about you, Jill?  One last time… the last of the old team… fighting the good fight?"  She held out her hand.  "What do you say?"

Jill considered the outstretched hand for a long minute.  "Sixteen, huh?" she whispered, slowly reaching out and taking Rebecca's hand.  "Yeah… I'll do it – but if I find out this is all a sham to get me to-"

"Jill," Chris cut in quietly, "you know me better than that."

"I used to know you, Chris," Jill said softly, "but I'll tell you honestly… your little crusade to rid the world of evil has changed you – for the better in some ways, but still, you're not the man you used to be."

"Guess I can live with that," Chris mused, "but this is all on the up and up, Jill – I wouldn't have called you in if it wasn't.  I need you.  You're our in."

Jill frowned.  "Why am I not liking the sound of this?"

Barry folded his arms.  "The base is going to be locked down pretty tight," he said seriously, "we need you to get us in."

"Should have guessed," Jill mused, "so am I going to go in Mission Impossible style and drop through the skylight at dusk?"

"We thought more like Shawshank Redemption style and send you through the sewers," Chris said.

Jill snorted and rolled her eyes.

"I'm serious."

"Look, here's the layout," Barry said quickly, seeing that Jill was decidedly unamused, "most of the base is belowground, except for these four entrances.  Now they have guards on duty twenty-four hours a day… but there's only two at a time, since they have a pretty sophisticated security system that triggers a set of steel doors should any of the guards – or security officers manning the cameras – sounds an alarm."

"Soooo I get in, shut down the alarm system, and you guys overpower the guards," Jill said tiredly.

"Bingo," Chris nodded, "simple enough plan, right?"

"For a movie," Jill said skeptically, "tell me again how a lone intruder is going to wallow through the sewers, get to the security office, and disable the security system – all without getting caught.  You think they don't check the sewers too?  I'll bet the designer of this place watched action movies too, Chris."

Chris gave her a lopsided grin.  "Always the practical one.  Show her the suit."

Rebecca moved to stand by Jill as Barry walked over to a small trunk in the corner and knelt by it, quickly dialing the combination on the padlock.  "Very high tech," she said lightly, trying to break the tension in the room.

"Sometimes the simple things are the best," Chris observed as Barry flipped the chest open, "no one would think of looking for this thing here, and even if they did, that would be the last place they'd check… plus there's a nasty surprise in the box that only Barry knows how to disarm."

"Clever," Jill agreed, "but what is it?  To get past the security you've described, I'd need a Vermillion Industries class-C sneaksuit."

Chris's smile became a huge grin as Barry rose to his feet.  "Hope black is ok."

Rebecca secretly took great pleasure in watching Jill's jaw drop open.  "N-no way!" the thief sputtered, staring in wide-eyed amazement at the bulky black bodysuit Barry held up for inspection.  "Only five of those exist – the prototype, and one for each branch of the military, for testing… they're more closely guarded than the atom bomb!"

"Actually," Billy spoke up, casually scratching his nose, "there's eight of them.  There were two other prototypes besides the final version – and it wasn't easy to get one."

Jill gave him a sideways look, asking – quite seriously, "How many people did you have to kill to get it?"

Billy coughed.  "I think it's your size," he said, tactfully dodging the question, "Redman over here gave me your measurements."

"Should be familiar enough with those," Jill sighed under her breath, barely loud enough for Rebecca to hear.  "They adjust to the wearer," she said loud enough to be heard by all, "it's one of the features that the government demanded.  They wanted to make sure anyone could use it."

"So," Chris said, taking the suit from Barry and offering it to Jill, "Can I count on you, my Valentine?"

"Don't call me that," Jill said sharply.

"Sorry."

Rebecca looked from one former teammate to the other, shaking her head sadly.  Is there anyone in here that has NOT had a messed up relationship?  Casting a look at Billy, she found him watching her closely, his dark eyes full of regret and disappointment.  Yeah, she thought tiredly, I guess we're all just a little screwed up, huh?

She shook her head a bit harder, focusing on Jill once more as the other woman took the suit and looked around for a place to change.

**

"So the sewer comes out here?" Jill said, tugging at the collar of the sneaksuit as she laid a finger on the map Barry had unrolled on the table.  "Our timing will have to be pretty good – I doubt we'll be able to talk by radio once I'm in."

"The suit has a watch built into the wrist," Chris pointed out, "we'll all synchronize to that, and we'll hit the door four hours after you go in."

"Four hours, huh?" Jill said thoughtfully, "I should be able to get it done in three."

"Then sit for an hour and do your nails before hitting the security center," Chris shrugged, "better to overestimate than under, I figure."

"And here I thought you were just a dumb marksman," Jill said teasingly, "alright, I'll go in at three P.M., follow this pipeline to the main treatment plant… god, this is a big lab to have its own treatment plant…" she trailed off, tapping the map thoughtfully for a moment before shaking her head.  "Anyway, I'll come out here, by the lockers, shower off really quick, and make my way to the security room here," she tilted her head to the side, "then taze taze, the guards go down, I shut down the grid, you're in, we get the goods, and we're out."  She raised her eyes, "Right?"

Chris nodded, setting a tazer and a nine-millimeter on the table.  "Best laid plans," he said softly, sliding both weapons closer to the woman.  "The suit has two ankle holsters – one for the gun, one for a knife.  The tazer should fit in one of the belt pouches."

"Samurai Edge," Jill chuckled softly, her eyes hazy as she looked down at the gun, "were you trying to be funny, or something?"

"I know it brings back memories," Chris admitted, "but it really is the best."  He scratched the back of his head.  "It's… mine, actually… I figure it's good luck, since it's managed to keep me alive this long."

"Or bad luck," Jill pointed out, "since you keep getting into trouble."  She glanced around, taking in the faces gathered around the table.  "Carlos," she said quietly, "last chance… if you don't-"

"Aww give it a rest, chica," Carlos cut her off, yawning expansively, "I said I'm in, so I'm in… besides, it's not like I got anything better going on."

Jill nodded, tugging again at the suit's collar.  "Damn thing," she muttered, "you can tell it's a prototype – it's too damn tight."

"That's not a problem from where I'm sitting," Carlos winked.

"Keep it in your pants," Jill grumbled disgustedly.

"So how does it work?" Rebecca asked curiously, trying not to be upset as she caught Billy giving Jill a quick, approving once-over.  "I must be the only one that's never heard of this thing."

Jill smiled.  "Like this."

She stepped away from the table, pulling a hood from a small pouch on the back of the suit's neck and drawing it down over her face.  Then, with a small nod… she disappeared.

"I, umm… wow," Rebecca breathed, "it's an invisibility suit?"

"Not quite," Billy grinned, leaning down and scooping up a handful of dirt, "'cause, if it gets anything on it, you can see it – it works by bending light, so if something's stuck to it…"

He flung the dirt at the spot Jill had vanished from, but it sailed through the air, completely unhindered.

"What the hell?"

Rebecca stifled a giggle as Jill appeared right next to Billy, smiling wolfishly as she said, "First rule of thievery – don't get caught."  Her smile faded, though, as she admitted, "He's right… anything besides air and water will show up on the suit's surface – so I'm going to have to hotfoot it over to the locker room and shower as soon as I get out of the sewer."

"I would think you'd want to anyway," Billy muttered, his pride clearly still stinging from being caught off guard.

"Let's get packed up," Chris said after a moment of quiet, "it's a long drive, and I want to get this mission going as soon as we can… we've waited too long for this as it is."

Barry nodded, planting his hands on the table and looking each person in the eye before announcing, "From this point until the mission is complete, nothing else matters but your teammates, and your job.  Regardless of what you used to be, you are all S.T.A.R.S. now – and you will be expected to pull your weight every step of the way.  Are there any questions?"  Since there were none, Barry nodded.  "Alright… I was never good a naming operations, so we'll just call it the mission – but as far as I'm concerned, this is our last chance to settle things with Umbrella, so…" he took a deep breath and rose to his full height.  "With all of our hearts, minds, and souls, we dedicate ourselves to saving Sherry Birkin – no matter the cost.  So swears S.T.A.R.S. Team Omega."

He thrust his fist out into the center of the table, and one by one, the other members of the newly christened Omega team followed suit, until eight fists were united over the map of their ultimate objective.

We're really doing this, Rebecca thought, feeling the familiar tingle of excitement in her stomach, and this time – we'll make sure it ends!

Continued…

Author's notes:  Sorry if this chapter was a little slow, but I figured it would be best to take a few minutes to introduce all the players that would be taking the field.  I hope I'm getting the characters right, but I wanted to make a special note on Claire's behavior, as some might be questioning why she's so bitter.  Just bear with me, and I'll make sure it all becomes clear in the next few chapters… but believe me, she has reason to be. :P

Pre-read on this chapter was again courtesy of Adiabatik, who really, really wants a Wesker doll  O_O Thanks, darlin' …and I'll see what I can do :D

Feedback is always welcome at random1377@yahoo.com or any site this story is posted on that has the ability to accept reviews.