Summary: It should have just been a regular morning for Chris Redfield. He should have been just heading out for his usual every day job. So why did he wake up to find a certain puppy eared male in his bed?

Pairing: Nivanfield

Author's note: Sorry for the long wait. DX Been having some medical issues so it's actually been slowing me down on a lot of things. DX This chapter does have some pretty brutal moments, just to let you all know. x.x

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My Pet Peeve 18

They rushed forward towards the two Semi standing guard. Chris grunted not anticipating the outcome. Semi were more or less made to fight. Their bodies could endure more pain than a human's and could dish out a lot more damage as well. He'd never had the opportunity to spar with Piers but from what he'd heard from Alpha Team in the short time they could train before Chris and Piers were put on house arrest, it was an eye opening experience.

Wesker was the first to come into contact with the Semi taking on the bigger one, both his arms coming up to block the well-aimed kick to his head. Whatever else happened after that Chris didn't know as the second Semi rushed at him punching and kicking in rapid succession leaving Chris only able to defend himself with blocks forcing him to back up. The Semi was way too fast, punches and kicks flying his way as the Semi tried to take him out. The only thing stopping him was Leon running up and tackling the Semi to the ground struggling to pin him down as he yelled to Chris.

"Go!" Leon yelled out grunting when the feline Semi scratched him, blood running down his arms. "We'll handle things here! There's a gun behind my back! Take it and go!"

"Leon-"

"Go!" Leon yelled it as he roughly pushed the Semi down, the Semi's face distorted in a snarl looking more beast than human. Time wasn't on his side. Even though he didn't want to leave Leon behind, he knew they didn't have much time left to get to Piers. It was only a temporary hesitation before Chris rushed forward grabbing the gun under Leon's shirt.

"I'll come back as soon as I get Piers!"

"Go get your crazy pup!" Leon's words made him smile as he nodded his head and turned running to the door leaving the two to battle on without him. Chris didn't slow down as he burst through the door, gun held at the ready. The hallway he entered was dark except for the strange glow coming from the glass containers lining either side of the path. The sound of bubbly water reached his ears coming from the big containers housing the forms of naked Semi inside of them. They all had collars around their necks, their mouths covered with a mask feeding them oxygen. All of them were alive but none moved as Chris walked past searching each face looking for Piers.

So Umbrella really was doing experiments on the Semi. He wished he had his camera to take pictures for evidence. The Semi looked as skinny as Piers had looked when he'd first seen him, the markings around their wrists and ankles proof they'd been in captivity a while. It made him ask more questions as he thought about how fresh Piers's bruises had looked. He'd been under Umbrella's control for a while, right? So why did they still need to keep him in captivity? Did Dehumanization not work on him well?

He stayed quiet as he reached the end of the hall carefully pushing the door open leading another hall filled with containers holding Semi inside. Just how many of these things did Umbrella have? He wondered about whether he'd find Piers in one these things. Wesker said that Piers would be going through the Dehumanization process as well. But he'd also said that Piers was unique. So…did it mean that Piers wasn't here?

He moved as fast as he could in the quiet of the hallway before he suddenly went still hearing the sound of glass shattering and water spilling out on the floor. He glanced back, eyes focusing in on the Semi lying on the floor from where he'd fallen out of the broken container. He started to go check on the Semi but something inside told him to stop. Chris stared frozen in place catching sight of the body twitching as it started to slowly stand to his feet, a long reptilian tail switching around behind him. The body swayed on its feet before the head lifted, eyes staring at Chris through the barely lit hall, jagged teeth gleaming enough to show just how dangerous this Semi was.

Feeling the killing intent behind that gaze, Chris kicked his body into moving turning just as he saw the Semi take a step in his direction. He didn't even hesitate to take off running picking up the sound of quickening steps as the Semi regained control of his legs running after him, bare feet patting on the concrete floor beneath him. Panic rushed through Chris as he heard more glass breaking behind him, more feet joining the ones already pursuing him. He didn't dare glance back rushing forward as he reached a hand behind him aiming the gun and firing it. He couldn't tell if he hit any of the Semi following him, the sounds of feet pounding in his ears like rushing rapids.

When the gun clicked empty Chris cursed dropping it as he ran at full force towards the door at the end of the hall. He opened it hurrying in before forcing it shut and turning the lock. As he stepped back he heard banging on the door staring at it unsure about how long it would last against the Semi's strength. The banging slowly receded until nothing else was heard, the light shining underneath the bottom of the door a clear indication that the Semi had left.

Then, as if remembering he was in a new location, Chris turned around quickly. He swallowed to catch his breath as he looked around the room. Without the glow of blue lights like the hallway, shapes were vaguely seen in the darkness. He found it almost unbearable to move, afraid of stirring up the peace and calm he temporarily had. He didn't know where he was or even what was inside the room with him. But he knew he couldn't just stand there forever. He was worried about Wesker and Leon, especially with so many of the Semi on the loose. They'd never survive the attack.

Knowing that he didn't have much time made him take a step forward as he started walking through the dark space wishing and at the same time not wishing he had his flashlight. Aside from the sounds of bubbling water or the hum of electricity, he didn't see anything. There was the faint sound of what he thought was breathing, but otherwise no movements at all. He wondered if anything inside the room was alive and had to force himself to swallow that fear as he kept moving. Chris's fingers glided along the walls following the set path until they brushed up against a light switch. He hesitated listening to the darkness still, listening to that weird sound far too similar to someone breathing hard. Without any weapons to defend himself he was going to have to hope that hands and feet would be enough to defend himself.

Taking a deep breath Chris flipped the switch, the lights overhead buzzing and flickering before light shined down on him blinding him into rubbing his eyes before he started looking around squinting slightly against the brightness. When his eyes found the source of the breathing they widened as he took off running over to the body and reaching down shaking it roughly.

"Piers!"

Piers didn't respond, his body flat on the table and as naked as the Semi Chris had seen earlier. His wrist and ankles were restrained to the table by chains, Chris swallowing as he followed the lines of tubes injected in Piers's body, weird liquids going into Piers's body. A mask covered over Piers's mouth and nose. It turned out to be the source of the strange breathing Chris had heard as oxygen was forced into Piers's body. His eyes flickered rapidly, a pained look fixed on his face. He had a collar around his neck, the numbers PN001 on the nametag attached to it making Piers look like nothing more than a chained up dog being punished. There was a little light flashing red occasionally on the collar. It was like looking at something out of a horror movie where humans get tested on by mad scientists. He needed to get Piers out of this mad house.

"I see you've found my special prize." The sudden sound of a voice in the quiet room surprised him as he turned around quickly looking at the door. He hadn't even heard it open. A man was there sitting in an electric wheelchair staring at him with mild interest, the naked Semi behind him like a pack of hunting dogs waiting for their master to say attack, noses sniffing up at the air. "I assume Wesker must have had a hand in it. Stubborn boy." Chris didn't say anything as he watched him warily from his defensive position in front of Piers's body.

"Speaking of stubborn, PN001 has become fairly tenacious on fighting the effects of the Dehumanization process. I should not have to go through so much trouble to remove such useless things as emotions and morals from him." As he started to move his wheelchair Chris tensed up watching the old man stuck between keeping an eye on him or the Semi staring at him from the door like they were waiting for dinner to be served. He swallowed at that. It wouldn't take them but a few seconds to just kill him off.

"…What do you want with him?" He needed to stall. If they could wait on BSAA, wait on backup, maybe they'd have a chance to make it out of here alive. But would backup be able to make it to them at all? The Umbrella territory was a pretty tough place to penetrate. He only made it here himself because Piers was guiding him. "Who are you? What are you planning to do to him?"

"Nothing much," the man said rolling his way over to a large computer terminal against the wall that Chris hadn't even noticed before with his attention being on Piers. He tapping on a few keys, a couple of Semi staying close to him like guard dogs. "My name is Oswell E. Spencer. I am the president of the Umbrella Corporation and my plans for this boy…are for me to have his perfect body to myself." He glanced over laughing at the disgusted look on Chris's face. "Not in the way that you're thinking, boy." He looked down at himself, at his old skin hanging off his bony fingers. "This weary body of mine will not last much longer. However, that boy's body is compatible to me. Not only that but he has a unique structure to him that makes it where he can live young possibly indefinitely."

"What do you mean indefinitely? Are you trying to say that Piers is immortal?"

"I wouldn't say he's immortal as he could still die if I stab him through his heart," the man said not sounding the least bit chilled by the prospect. "However, we have tested him since the age of 18 and he has since then stopped growing. No, I wouldn't say he stopped growing…but that he doesn't age anymore. His blood, his DNA, his internal cells, his bones, his skin, his body. None of it changes. It's as if he's frozen in time. He is…the missing link we have been looking for."

Chris stared at him in shock. He wanted to turn around, to look down at Piers's young face and see for himself but he stopped himself, remembering he was at the enemy's mercy right now. Besides, the man couldn't be telling the truth. There's no way that Piers was immortal, that he could actually live forever. Sure he knew that Semi aged a lot slower than humans, but what made Spencer so sure this was true? But it wasn't like he could have asked Piers himself, the Semi not having a memory of his life before. Was that because of Umbrella's testing as well?

"Dehumanization process is complete." What? No…that wasn't possible. Completely disregarding his earlier thoughts of turning his back on the enemy, Chris turned quickly looking down at Piers seeing the prone figure still lying on the bed.

"Piers…Piers!" He reached down grabbing Piers's shoulders shaking them. "Piers, wake up!"

"He'll awaken," Spencer said not even stopping what he was doing as he pushed more buttons on the control panel. "But you may not be happy with the results." Chris jumped in surprised staring down into the darkened hazel eyes as he saw the Semi's eyes open. The light on Piers's collar changed to a solid green like a toy being turned on and ready for use.

"Piers!" When the other didn't respond, he reached down patting the other's cheeks trying to make him focus. "Piers, look at me!" The eyes flickered over to him glazed over with a lack of recognition. Chris's heart dropped down into his stomach as he stared into those empty eyes that used to be filled with so much life. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening! "What the hell did you do to him?!" He turned quickly, the rage seeping out of his skin with how hot he felt, his angry eyes locked onto Spencer who didn't seem the least bit bothered by the reaction.

"Fixing what that fool Wesker messed up." He pressed one more button then stopped typing as he lowered his arms into his lap staring up at the large screen in front of him. "This. This is what we have strived for." Chris looked up as the screen came to live showing a group of children standing out in the woods.

Semi. They were all Semi looking to be from the age of 5 to 10. It almost seemed like they were at some kind of weird boot camp even though the only thing they wore were large white shirts that, for the smaller children, seemed almost like PJs. There were about fifty of them, all of them males noticeably. Whoever was holding the camera must have been the same age, either that or sitting down considering the height. An older man was talking to the group of them. He realized that this was a very young version of Spencer, back in his prime. Just how old was this man? He looked like he was in his thirties in the video but here right now he had to be well into his nineties. Hell, he might even be a hundred years old or older by now. Why wasn't he dead yet?

"Ok children, today we are going to play another little game," Spencer said letting his eyes pass over each of the children. "The rules are simple. Return to the mansion in ten minutes. If you don't make it by that time…you die. If you slack off…you die. If you are spotted by the hunters chasing you or you run into a trap…you die."

One little feline type Semi started crying, tears running down his face. His ears were flat on his head as the others looked at him. "I want to go home!" It was evident on their faces that they felt the same urge as well to shed tears, eyes wide with fear and shining wetly. "I don't want to stay here! I want my mommy!"

Just as quickly as the crying had started it stopped when a shot went off from the smoking gun held in Spencer's hand, the small body toppling over backwards as Chris flinched closing his eyes from the sight at the sudden attack. This man was sick, both mind and body. No one in their right mind could kill an innocent child like that and keep looking on indifferently except for a devil.

"Anyone else?" he asked looking around again. He got nothing in return but fearful stares and a few whimpers before he smiled putting the gun away. "Good. Your ten minutes start…now." The children dispersed quickly, all heading in different directions. The camera man followed after a small group of children panting hard, the camera rocking unsteadily. Chris watched on in horror seeing one of the Semi children falling into a pit that opened up underneath him hitting the ground with a hard thud that was easily heard even for Chris.

Still the cameraman kept running sounding more panicked as his breath came out faster. All around him, more Semi kept dropping like flies either from being shot by those hunting them or from the many traps lining the forest floors. There was the sound of bullets whizzing past the camera man's ear, letting Chris know he was in danger as well and making him realize that this was being recorded by one of the Semi children. How was he able to hold on to the camera with all of this happening around him? The others found nothing but bad luck around them. He heard screams from other children that were quickly cut off at their deaths.

As the mansion came into view, the camera boy rushed into the house collapsing to his knees as his small hands came into view. So young. The hands had to belong to a small five or six year old. That was when Chris realized that there was no camera, at least not one being physically held. The child swallowed glancing around, the sight of more survivors coming into view in a similar state. One hurled up everything he had inside of him but no one could really fault him for it. They'd come a thin thread away from being killed in that forest.

As they sat waiting for time to past, most of the younger ones probably not even knowing how long ten minutes was, the sounds of terrified screams and gunfire seemed to grow less and less constant until nothing but silence could be heard coming from outside. Of the 50 children they had started out with, only about 28 of them had survived the homicidal attack. The children left in the room huddled together for warmth, their small Semi bodies having a hard time of conducting heat themselves as extra appendages seemed to tremble with cold and fear. Bodies tensed when the door to the mansion opened as Spencer came inside. Older Semi followed him inside as well, eyes cold with lack of emotions as they held machine guns in their hands ready for when they needed them.

"Good. It seems we have more lucky ones than I had expected." He snapped his fingers and the children automatically assembled lining up side by side, their eyes averted. They seemed trained to react to the snap as if this hadn't been their first trial. What had these poor kids been through before? Had more kids been killed before them?

Spencer went down the line speaking to each child in turn. The one that the camera had been following this whole time looked straight ahead as Spencer stopped in front of him. He seemed to fidget, the camera dipping a little. "Look at me." There was no hesitation as he tilted his head back looking up at the full grown adult standing in front of him. From this angle he looked like a menacing giant, the light hitting his eyes in just the perfect way to make them shine like some demon right out of hell. "Good boy." He said it while reaching down and patting a hand on top of the child's head like he was some kind of pet. "Your name?"

"…P…Piers…Piers N-Nivans…" The voice was light to Chris's ears, much more different than the manly voice he had now. He couldn't stop staring at the screen, staring at the way Spencer seemed to leer down at him as his mind tried to process the fact that he was looking at something through Piers's eyes.

"Names are of no use to you now," Spencer said holding up the metal collar as he reached forward before Chris heard a click at the sound of the collar being strapped around Piers's neck. "From now on, you will only be known as PN001. The use of your former name is now forbidden." He stepped back looking down the line of Semi. "You are all nothing more than mere objects for our goals. Tools do not need things such as names." He moved starting to walk down the line slowly, his hands behind his back as he kept his eyes focused on the line of Semi boys. "You are disposable units. If I find you are no longer of any use to me, you will be discarded. After all…broken dolls should be thrown away."

When the last words slipped from his lips he looked back at Piers, his eyes showing a bit of interest that didn't sit well with Chris. But he instead of doing anything as Chris had suspected he instead continued walking, boots sounding on the marble floor as he spoke. "You will follow these two Semi to your holding cells," he said stopping between the two grown Semi. "They have permission to kill if anyone tries to escape. So eat and sleep to prepare yourselves for tomorrow's test." Those were the words he left on as he walked out into the hallway, the words enough to stay with the children all night as they followed the two scary Semi.

"Old memories extracted straight from his brain," the present day Spencer said his electric chair humming as he wheeled his way over to the other side of Piers. "But these are not the ones I am looking for." He pulled a syringe out grabbing Piers's hand, the needle close to sliding into Piers's wrist.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Chris jumped at him before he was quickly subdued by the guarding Semi grabbing his arms, sharp nails making him wince as they dug into his skin, a trail of blood sliding down his arms. One bent him back, the sharp fangs grazing over his neck starting to sink in.

"Don't kill him," Spencer commanded casually not the least bit bothered by the outburst. "Just keep him restrained for now." The needle was already pushed into Piers's wrist as the old man pushed the injector down forcing the unknown drug into Piers's system. "He has ties with that traitor Wesker. I'd like to find out why that man deems him important before I kill him." Spencer looked over Piers's body at Chris making him wonder if he really was a demon from the way he looked at him. When Chris glared at him baring his teeth at him angrily, he only lifted his lips up into a slight smug smirk before he turned his chair around to look at the screen. Piers's eyes were closed, flickering rapidly as new images appeared on the screen. So everything before had been seen through Piers's eyes from his memories. And this man was exploiting it like a free movie. It was surprising he wasn't eating some popcorn while he was at it.

"PN001. What does that stand for?" That was Wesker's voice though it was a bit younger than Chris was used to making him wonder if Wesker had been working for Umbrella even longer than he'd expected. He hovered over Piers slightly, his blue eyes reading the tag attached to Piers's collar. Was this a recap of when they'd first met?

"You don't need to worry about that." Piers turned his head to look towards the other voice at an older Spencer crouched over the computer console as he typed away. Considering the change in heighted view coming from Piers's eyes, he must have been a lot older than the last time. "Research has shown that this boy might be the one. It's been five years since he supposedly turned 18 and yet not a thing has changed. Further testing has shown that his molecular cells haven't changed either as if they were frozen in time." Spencer got up holding a stack of papers in his hands as he walked over to Wesker handing them to him. "He's become immune to the Plaga."

Plaga? What the hell was that?

"In case you're wondering," the present day Spencer said looking back at Chris. "Plaga is the name of the substance we inject into their bodies when they're first brought here. It is a parasite that we use to control their minds and therefore their bodies. There are three types. Type A is a weaker strain and is used on humans. Type B is stronger and used on Semi. Both types can cause mutations or death if the host body is incompatible with the parasite. Type C however…" He let it trail off there as his eyes returned to the screen seeming to ignore how hard Chris glared into the back of his head wishing he had the strength to fight off the two Semi restraining him.

"I take it you want me to look into it more," Wesker said as he looked down at the papers flipping through them, his facial expression blank.

"Before his awareness can fully come to the surface, otherwise he may turn into a problem." Spencer turned to look at Piers. "You are to follow Wesker's orders. This is only temporary until we can find out what to do with you. Understood?"

"Yes sir." It was an automatic response void of any emotion as Piers turned to face Wesker fully, looking up at him. "I will follow your orders, sir."

"…That's a little annoying. You will call me Wesker."

"Yes…Wesker, sir."

Wesker scowled looking back at Spencer catching the smirk on his face. "You do realize I am not fond of this little game."

"My toys, my rules," Spencer said reaching out and rubbing one of Piers's ears between his fingers though the Semi did not respond to the touch. "Besides, if you reward him for being good, you might find that he delivers some…pretty amazing gifts."

Wesker made a face at that turning away. "I'd rather not hear about your bedroom exploits, old man." Cursing under his breath, Wesker looked back at the blank look on Piers's face before he started walking off. "Come along. Let's get this out of the way while I'm still willing."

"A shame he didn't follow my plans completely. With the drug in his system, he should have become a partner to me in my plans. And yet…something changed him." Spencer looked back at Chris, his eyes narrowed slightly. "I wonder what it was." Chris only glared back mad at the thought that not only had Spencer used Piers, but that he'd probably manipulated Wesker as well.

"Piers." Wesker's voice again.

"Yes?" Piers looked up at him. It was another scene drawing Chris's eyes back to the screen. It looked like they were sitting inside a lab, Wesker filling a syringe with something that looked a pure green color. He looked up at Piers as he took the syringe pressing it into Piers's wrist.

"This will affect your memories." Wesker pressed down on the syringe, the thick green liquid being injected into Piers's veins. "You may not remember anything about this place. In fact you will eventually forget completely about me. The only thing you need to remember is Chris Redfield." Chris tensed hearing his name, staring up at the screen more intensely. He didn't even realize that Spencer was doing the same thing.

"Chris…Redfield." Piers shifted stumbling forward before Wesker reached out holding him steady.

"That's right." Wesker leaned closer, his usually blue eyes having a red tint to them that Chris hadn't ever seen before. "Chris Redfield. He works for BSAA. I've told you about where he lives and everything I know about him. He'll keep you save from Umbrella until I need you again. You're the only link we have to-" The screen went blank surprising Chris and apparently Spencer too by the grunt he gave out.

"So the rest of his memories have been wiped clean. It seems that Wesker was a lot smarter than I thought." He frowned turning his chair around to look at Piers. "However, there should have been memories left of his time with you, his more…current memories." His eyes turned to look up at Chris suddenly. "…What could your memories hold for me?" Chris stared back at him in defiance clenching his lips shut as he gave Spencer nothing more than a hard stare.

"PN001." At the labeled named, Piers's eyes opened as he sat up in response. He looked over at Spencer, his face lacking in emotion as he stared at him.

"Yes sir." It was good to hear his voice again, but then again it was hard hearing it when he was being controlled.

"Prepare Mr. Redfield here for a Memory Dip."

"Yes sir." Piers stood up, the tubes connected to his body pulling taunt before popping out of him leaving blood running down his skin. Chris stared, shocked and frozen to see the Semi following Spencer's orders as he grabbed Chris's shoulders moving him with brute strength as he picked him up and slung him down on the table roughly, Chris yelling out as it jarred a spot in his back.

"Carefully," Spencer said looking up at Piers smiling sadistically. "We wouldn't want to hurt our special merchandise."

"Nngh…Piers." Chris panted looking up at the other frowning when he didn't get a response. "Piers, snap out of it! Piers!" He tried to get up but the group Semi came over holding him down by arms and legs. As Piers looked down at him, Chris froze up at the lack of recognition coming from those hazel eyes he used to love staring into.

"Come, PN001." Spencer started wheeling his chair out, Piers turning and following behind him. "The rest of you, make sure he's subdued and record his memories. I'll come back later to check on the results."

"Piers!" The Semi stopped at the door, but it was enough to give Chris some small ray of hope that Piers was still there. "Piers…Piers listen to me. I…I need you. You have to come back to me. Don't let Spencer control you!"

"PN001, come." At the sound of Spencer's voice, Piers turned continuing out the door closing it behind him.

"Piers! PIERS!" Chris struggled again trying to push the hands off of him as the tubes were shoved into his body painfully making his body go taunt. Whatever drug was in the tube started to flow into his body making his vision slowly fade to black as his consciousness was stolen from him. The last image he saw was the group of Semi all around him staring down at him with those blank, eyes.

TBC…