Resident Evil: Pandemic Malfeasances

by Lord of Ki

Viruses are deadly. They have the power to raise the dead, create monstrosities that are truly a terror to behold. But which is deadlier? The virus, or the greed of those who wish to profit from the pain the viruses can cause?

2. Chapter 2

Pandemic Malfeasances Chapter 2

Sorry for the loooong looong delay, but here is chap 2 FINALLY. By Tru Mel Meiko Mei Ling

OoO

The moment Chris and Sheva emerged from the plane, the pulse of the bustling city swiftly engulfed them. Before they had realized it, they were swept up in its current. Luckily, Chris had been to this particular branch of HQ several times and was familiar with the area. "Just stay close to me, Shev." he assured.

"Got it." Sheva agreed, making sure to stay as close to his side as possible. Her curious hazel eyes widened while taking in the vastly crowded surroundings. Sheva had only heard brief descriptions from Chris before they left Chicago about the active location and from the looks of things, he wasn't exaggerating in the slightest. Although Chicago had its wide share of skyscrapers and busy streets, the intensity of it seemed to triple in quantity in New York City. Biting her lip in slight anxiety, she glanced towards her partner. His dark eyes hardly moved, remaining focused on the direction of the headquarters; a clear contrast to her fleeting ones. Greedily, they drank in the extravagant area absorbing skyscrapers, devouring flashing lights and feasting on the blur of garish clothing as the people clad in them hurried about.

While her country was quite large and did tend to get a little crowded in certain places, it was never like this variety. Yet, any memories of the place that was once held dear to her as her homeland caused a twinge of discomfort within her whenever she conjured them. But being the strong woman she was, she was able to push the haunts aside. Although, he didn't give away any hints, Chris took notice of her behavior and let go of her hand. Immediately, her eyes shot to his face, but a faint smile was all he gave as he slipped his arm around her shoulders. He gave them a casual hug as if the two of them were bosom buddies or relatives.

"Chris...?" Sheva questioned from his sudden action, not that she was going to complain all that much, "What are you up to?"

His smile broadened a bit and his eyes twinkled with a dash of slyness. "Stop looking up."

She blinked.

He chuckled and gave her shoulders a squeeze. "Stop looking up. You're acting like a tourist."

"Well, I've never been here before. This takes a foreigner some getting used to Mr. American Man." Sheva replied slyly.

Looking ahead, Chris' expression softened as he contemplated her words for a moment, then his attention returned to her, a small grin on his face. "Weren't you in the States for school though?"

Sheva grimaced. "Princeton University, unfortunately."

Chris looked incredulous. "One of the top schools in the country is an 'unfortunately'?"

"You obviously haven't spent enough time in New Jersey."

He sighed, and scratched the back of his head. Seems like he just walked into that one.

" Anyway, I know you've researched many places, Sheva, and New York was one of them."

"Yes, so? Those were only pictures and elaborate descriptions that I researched. Not the actual location."

"So what?" Chris said and gave her a wink, "If I recall correctly you have a knack for learning at an impressive rate, don't you?"

Catching on, Sheva groaned and shook her head. And made sure to keep her eyes in front of her. "Just tell me when we get there, alright?"

Chris couldn't help but laugh a little. "Sure, partner, I will."

"Good." Sheva concluded crisply. However, her eyes still continued to wander, as did her thoughts. Sure, she and Chris were lovers, but they weren't in NY to sight-see. They were there for a mission. But in such a public, everyday place, surrounded by everyday people, Sheva couldn't help but feel a sense of longing. Her eyes drifted over the intimate forms of strolling couples before her, holding hands and linking arms. How many of them were agents in secret? How many were officers? How many of them had important duties and ties to protect their country? The very entity of reality that encircled them all cleverly locked its own evidence away. Only regular, normal people and normal couples passed over these beaten concrete paths. Normal people without titles or ranks. And for a moment, if only for that moment until discovered otherwise, did Sheva consider herself and Chris as a regular everyday couple.

And nothing more.

OoO

"Well, here we are." Chris stated, coming to a stop in front of a surprisingly humble-appearing establishment.

"Incredible..." Sheva muttered skeptically while taking in the small stature of the building. They had to swivel through a few back streets and alleyways to reach the place. And it could have easily been put off as a lackluster establishment nearing eviction if not for the expensive-looking decoration of the words: "B.S.S.A. NY BRANCH HEADQUARTERS" in bright florescent lights.

"I know this may be a stupid question, but are you sure this is it, Chris?"

"Yeah, I'm sure." Chris said, sounding equally unimpressed despite knowing what to have expected. "And the faster we get in here, the faster we can get started."

She half-smiled. "My aren't we excited?"

Chris shrugged.

"I'd rather tend to matters of a different importance..." he trailed off, turning towards her. A twinge of a smile laced her full lips and his breath nearly caught in his throat when she licked them.

"Hmm..." she wondered, preparing to part those luscious glistening lips in alluring shapes when Chris placed a finger to them.A shudder fluttered through him from their tender touch as he led the tip of his finger over them. They were soft as delicate rose petals. And thrice as sweet. Before they both realized their actions, Chris had pulled Sheva into an endearing embrace and her arms slithered enticingly around his waist. For that instance, they were the only two people in the world. But their ardent fantasies came to an abrupt end when the reality of business plagued their minds. Remembering their actual reason for being there, reluctantly, they pulled away from the other. With great self control and focus, they acknowledged their field personas as agents and headed up the stairs to the front double doors.

Despite the meager outer exterior, the interior was nothing to sneeze at. Wide rooms, polished wood floors and thick walls gave the impression of a well-kept establishment. Except for each agent's door, the place hardly even looked like an office of any sort. In fact its appearance resembled more of a 3 star hotel. Yet, everything was the same as Chris had remembered it. As they neared further into the building, a small ring emitted from Chris' pocket. Without missing a beat, he fished into his pocket and withdrew his cell and placed it to his ear.

"Yes chief? ...Yeah, we're here. ... Yeah... Roger..." he concluded and put the device away.

"What did he want?" Sheva asked. Sighing, Chris turned to the young woman and shrugged slightly. "To not meet him in his office."

Confusion dappled her composed features and her brows knitted in question. "What? Then where does he want to meet us? Certainly we didn't get called out here for nothing..."

"I think I know where he is. Follow me."

Without a hint of delay, Sheva trailed after Chris down the hall they first embarked upon to a small room that looked like a tiny break room. The hum of the soda machine nearby was the only sound that greeted them in otherwise quiet area.

"Wait here." Chris noted softly and positioned himself between one side of the soda machine and the wall.

Utterly perplexed, Sheva placed her hands on her hips. "Chris, just what are you doing?"

"Looking for a hollow spot." he answered, rapping his knuckles against the plaster in various places.

Sheva half-frowned. "You're not planning on punching a hole in the wall are you? "

"No..." he chuckled a bit, "I know I look crazy doing this, but there is a reason."

He suddenly stopped.

"Alright. I found it." he continued and proceeded to leave a series of knocks in variants of three short, three long and three more short.

Sheva recognized the symbolism instantly. "SOS?"

"That's right." Chris answered and just as he did, the wall formed a slant like that of a hidden door.

"That's our cue. Come on." he urged, entering the door before her.

Following after him, Sheva shook her head.

"Are all American headquarters like this?" she whispered while they hurried down a flight of narrow stairs.

"Times like these? Everybody's become a little bit twitchier about security. Scumbags are starting to give us small scares in America as well."

"It just never ends." she spat.

"Well, that's what we're here for, Shev. To wipe out threats like that."

"I just can't wait until its over and all of this nonsense is stopped once and for all." she added as they reached the bottom floor.

"As do I, agent. Unfortunately, the most we may be able to do alone ourselves is stifle the terror." A sonorous voice spoke from amongst the shadows. "But in that respect, it may be our best option to buy us more time to locate the root of this horror."

Sheva instinctively whirled around, trying to find the source of the voice before Chris put a calming hand on her shoulder.

"Chief Monarch. It's been a while." he announced, stepping forward.

Sheva raised an inquiring brow at the quaint name; butterflies being the first thought in her mind. But in the presence of authority, her expression again became serious.

"Yes, it has." the voice returned, inching towards the wisps of light cast on the floor from the many monitors that littered the room. Dark brown leather shoes revealed themselves as the chief neared closer to the duo. The soft glow of the lights played about his blue slacks and white shirt, draped with a florescent blue tint. Lightly tanned skin enhanced the bright turquoise his eyes held while they playfully hid behind scattered messy brown locks. He appeared to be a bit younger than Chris but older than Sheva. His demeanor seemed mysterious, yet overall he still looked upright, not that that automatically entitled him to Sheva's trust. But given that Chris seemed familiar with him, that, for now, was enough reason for Sheva to be less wary for now. Courteously, she extended her hand to the man. "Sheva Alomar."

"Ah, formerly from the West African branch, correct? Welcome to America. Your transition is moving along smoothly."

"Thank you. It's quite a pleasure to meet you, Chief Monarch," she couldn't help but smirk.

"Aleck Dominique Monarch. But please, just call me Aleck."

"Yes sir." Sheva complied and took a step back towards Chris, who also shook the chief's hand.

"Thanks, but I'd rather call you Chief."

Aleck gave Chris an oddly smug look and nodded slightly. "Good. I meant that only the lady may call me by my given name."

With an amused snort, Sheva quickly rolled her eyes and glanced towards Chris. Catching her expression, Chris smirked faintly, but hid it behind a fist as he cleared his throat. Unwavering seriousness sparked in Chris' eyes as he then faced his superior, "The mission, sir."

Aleck silently agreed and turned to face his monitors. His light eyes skimmed over visual data that only he could easily decipher. Once he was satisfied that all entrances leading into this particular room were mechanically sealed, he began his message, "As you know, Chris, any information that is given to you is to remain within this room unless instructed otherwise."

"Understood."

"That also goes for your partner. Miss Alomar, was it?"

"Yes." she answered promptly.

Aleck paused as if he were contemplating something significant to only his knowledge. But, he continued on, "As I told Chris earlier in the week, you two are to pursue a bio-weapons dealer. He has been responsible for several raids of public downtrodden areas throughout the world. We believe he is a possible remnant of an Umbrella cell and has possible connections with the Uroburos project initiated our late friend Albert Wesker."

Uroburos?

A ripple of uncertainty licked at Chris' spine at the mere mention of the terrible virus that he and Sheva had only barely prevented from annihilating most of the world's population. Instinctively, he glanced to Sheva. She had experienced the brunt of Umbrella's actions at such a young age. He had already known of the embedded hatred that brewed within her at the sound and thought of the organization and expected to her an acidic outburst from her. But to much his surprise, the bold young woman appeared amazingly calm and attentive towards the information being given. That is, until his eyes lingered down to her hands to find them tautly curled into fists. Chris' discreet obsidian orbs traveled back up to her face and gingerly caressed its beauty before returning his focus back to the task at hand.

Uninhibited, Aleck continued on, "It's apparent his onslaughts will not come to cease anytime within the near future. Someone with that much freedom will continue until every life is taken before their own." he paused, turning to face the two. His eyes glanced to Chris, momentarily acknowledging his understanding of the situation, before traveling over to Sheva. On her, his eyes narrowed. Although she had done her best to suppress her emotions, her discomfort towards this upcoming mission and its culprit was clearly becoming more evident by the second.

"Please, continue." Sheva requested as professionally as possible without letting her anger slip through her grit teeth. She had always known that her duty came before any and all personal feelings. Yet, so far she had been displaying that knowledge badly. As much as Chris wanted to console her, he knew where his current priorities lied and sent Sheva a look that reminded her to be aware of the same. Aleck's steady eyes examined the two, taking mental note of their interactions and reactions, but remaining settled in his role, "Unfortunately, no one in this branch has seen this menace's face. However, we have received word from an individual who has been in close proximity of this cretin," Aleck continued to elaborate, pressing a few buttons on one of the terminal panels before him.

After a few short sounds of mechanical activation, a dark green-tinted image of an Asian male in his mid-late 20's appeared on-screen. His narrowed eyes, bored expression and sloped forehead matched the criminal image rather well. "This is Akki Koukatsu, age 27. Underground, he's known by the alias of 'Aitsu'."

"Aitsu, huh?" Chris repeated lowly, as if in brief thought. "Alright..."

"And where can we find Aitsu?" Sheva spoke up; an eagerness to pursue and crush these rising threats highly evident in her tone. A thoughtful smile flickered across Aleck's face but it quickly vanished. And Chris could tell that as much as the Chief may have admired her valor and determination, there was always more to a mission than just tracking down one problem and that being the end of it. One issue always led to another. Especially in this line of work. Casually, he nodded towards Sheva, "Why in the land of the rising sun of course, Ms Alomar. I shall contact you both tomorrow morning with the rest of the location details. But for now, I advise the both of you to get some much needed rest," Aleck assured courteously, his expression brightening a bit, "Sheva, my dear. If you are not busy some other time, perhaps I can interest you in a moonlit dinner for two?"

At the offer, Sheva bit her lip to hold back the sudden urge to laugh. She glanced to Chris who looked on in stark surprise, then pretended to clear his throat. "Uh, chief...I don't think that's such a good idea to mix business with pleasure-"

"Sure, I'm interested." Sheva smiled politely to mask the bubbling laugh that settled in her throat. And to further implicate her point, she promptly shook Aleck's hand.

Chris' jaw was on its way to hitting the floor before Sheva quickly added.

"But only if you're planning the dinner is for Chris and myself." she concluded. Needless to say, Aleck felt the brunt of her words and clutched his stomach to show it. "Such a subtle way to tell me that the two of you are together. What was that about not mixing business with pleasure, Redfield?"

"Well, what I meant was..."

"You didn't ask." Sheva replied coolly, with her hands atop her hips.

Aleck sighed. "No, I did not. I apologize. At any rate, the two of you are free to go. I shall send you both the remainder of the details in the morning..." he trailed off, then lowered his voice, "or should I deliver it tomorrow afternoon?"

"Tomorrow morning is fine, sir." Sheva decided.

After shaking his hand once more, she and Chris took their leave. Halfway up the stairs, Chris sighed as he glanced towards Sheva. "We can't go anywhere without someone getting friendly with you."

Sheva half-smiled. "Oh please! Being the jealous type is sweet, but it doesn't suit you Chris. You can have me all to yourself later!"

"Hmph. You mean that?"

"Yes. But that chief Monarch... He was rather...eccentric. Very direct with business."

"Yeah. Even when that business happens to be someone else's personal business..."

"Oh stop!" she snickered, giving him a slight push. "By the way, what kind of name is Chief Monarch anyway?"

Chris only shrugged. "Just be glad his first name wasn't Dean."

Back on the briefing floor, Aleck steadily watched the monitors until he observed Sheva and Chris leave the facility. Sighing, he shook his head, "We're all counting on you two."

OoO

A swift hour melted through time. The dauntless couple had promptly dispersed from the HQ and soon found comfort within one of the cities' more accommodate hotels complete with 1 time complimentary room service. Once they stepped foot in their room for the night, Sheva made a beeline for the bed and plopped down onto the mattress. "Finally!" she announced in a breathy exclamation, lolling her head back. "I can't wait to get into the shower"

Chris raised a slight brow at her behavior, but decided not to over-think her actions. Instead he nonchalantly wheeled in the cart of fruit and bread the bellhop had delivered to their door.

"This trip to the city bothering you that much?"

"Not really. But now that you mention it, I never imagined getting this room on such short notice would be such a nightmare...!"

"We're not paying by the hour, so don't complain," Chris insisted in a light scold while he watched her unbuckle her boots and kick them off. The worn leather barely made a sound as it dropped to the plush carpet, followed by her heavy belt and other utensils. Perplexed, his watchful eyes trailed up her clothed legs, and lingered on her waist momentarily before settling on her face. Seeing her move so sporadically caused his thoughts to reel back to her behavior at HQ. The anger she wore previously was still etched freshly in his mind. In the streets on their way to the hotel, she seemed tense, yet focused on something while keeping very close to him. But now, she wasn't showing any of those emotions. In their place, she almost seemed nervous, restless and in need of relief and tranquility. But instead of coming right out and questioning her, he decided to try a gentler approach, "Can't wait to slip under the covers after your shower?" Chris mused, closing the door and locking it. Sheva merely glanced up at him as she continued to relieve herself of her gun, bracelets and arm bands. In a mild blur of soft colors and silk, her top, pants and bra were flung to the carpet.

"Actually that isn't it," she replied as if drifting off into sudden deep thought, "I think I'm more so energized to pursue these bastards and put an end to all this before it blows up into something much worse and we'd really have a global issue on our hands. I can't wait until we get our location coordinates tomorrow morning." she explained and reached up to remove her earrings when Chris' sudden touch stopped her. Concern and understanding wavered in his eyes as he slid his hand down the length of both of hers and cupped her cheek. Sparkling honey-brown quickly became submerged with the depths of his endearing gaze and Sheva immediately froze in her actions. Wordlessly, Chris dipped low to press his lips softly to hers. It was more than an embrace. It was an understanding.

And Sheva was always grateful to have chosen a man that could figure her out so well in such a short amount of time. More than lust, she needed comfort and Chris was more than willing to give her just that. "Chris..." she murmured, slowly reaching for her earrings again when he kissed her more deeply and grasped both her hands in one of his.

"Leave them on..." he whispered huskily, slipping his hand down her wrists, tickling down the nape of her neck and gliding over the firm curve of her breasts; his kiss leading her body backwards towards the mattress. A whispering gasp escaped her that quickly changed into a soft hiss as his fingers traveled away from her chest and smoothed over the warm fabric of cloth between her legs. Instinctively, her thighs spread for him and her hips rose to rub against his. The plans she had towards that shower rapidly began to shrink in its importance from just Chris' touch alone. She didn't expect him to come onto her so soon, but she was more than glad that he did. Her mind had been teeming with anxiety and uncertainty the moment they learned of their target. And her inner turmoil had only worsened when they went out into the amassed streets and got the next to the last available room in the hotel. But in the midst starting another dangerous mission, the very least she could ask for was tranquility. Tenderly, her arms slid up his; her slender fingers smoothing over his large muscles, which he flexed for her, and grasped his shoulders securely. Her legs skillfully looped around his waist and gave his body an assuring squeeze.

"Chris..." she trailed off, gazing directly into his acutely alluring eyes. She wanted to keep her focus on the mission; to be prepared for it, conquer it and be done with it. But as always, he was always so deliciously distracting. Faint wisps of stray hair had fallen near his eyes, enhancing their luminous invitation within their engaging beckon. He didn't have to say a word; he didn't need to voice anything. He leaned over her, and pressed his lips to her forehead, "Shh, Shev..." he whispered, his breathy words teasing the locks of hair in her face. " You don't have to worry, alright? We can handle this."

She knew she shouldn't be so anxious, but she couldn't help but be concerned and determined. It was just a part of who and what she was. A protest formed on her tongue, but she swallowed its bitterness and warm smile graced her features instead, "I know..." she agreed, reliving herself of her troubles and alleviating the invisible weight they held atop her shoulders with a sigh. Calmly, she closed her eyes and hugged him close. The solid feel of his body against hers was more than comfortable. It was perfect. "...Chris..." she whispered, enticed by the brush of his lips against hers.

"Shhh" he breathed and tenderly claimed her mouth. Slowly, he embraced her, touched her and pleased her. Faint lazy moans drifted from Sheva as her eyes shut. She felt the cool thin fabric of her panties gliding down her shapely legs, tickling her skin lightly. A low sound escaped her from the sudden moist softness of Chris' tongue tracing over her navel and heading lower. Her craving folds ached with anticipation as his mouth neared closer to its fullness. "Yes...yes..." she murmured, causing her hips to slightly rise, encouraging his venture. The moment she felt the telltale brush of stubble against the petals of her nether lips, her arms slipped from his broad shoulders and dropped to the bedsheets where she clutched them strongly.

"Patience..." he whispered; his husky tone like a mist of feathers against her sensitive flesh.

"Damn the patience, Chris. You're teasing me..."

"Don't I always?" he smirked, nudging the tip of his nose against her. She gasped sharply and squirmed a bit on the bed from the sensation. Deliciously occupied enough to not be able to hear the food cart behind Chris creak. "Chris," she smiled, still writhing, "You're making me laugh. Stop tickling me."

"If I feel like it," he mused, his voice sounding as if he had something in his mouth. And since it wasn't her, Sheva opened her eyes and began to sit up to investigate when a delectably sensuous thrill sparked through her, ripping a throaty moan right from her. Finding his little test to be a success, Chris chuckled to himself and glanced up to his lover. No doubt, she was staring directly at him, panting. With a smirk, Chris kept his eyes on her as he rubbed a stem of ripened grapes against her sensitive nub and gave her creamed folds a long lick up towards a few of the grapes. There, he snagged the pieces of fruit with his tongue and brought them into his mouth. Witnessing such a scene caused Sheva to grasp the bedsheets even tighter, but the action that sent her over the edge was the sensation of his stubble dragging against her as he chewed. And with each chew, he drove his mouth deeper into her twin folds, devouring the fruit as well as her milky honey.

Sheva inhaled deeply from the wave of her first orgasm that night. She shut her eyes and chanted expressive exclamations in Swahili as well as her lover's name as her ultimate deluged her. Grinning, Chris ate the rest of the grapes and tossed the stems aside to undress. Sheva opened one eye to watch him the moment she heard the ruffling of cloth while he rid himself of his pants. The second Chris lifted his BSAA shirt over his head, he felt a sudden squeeze beneath his midsection. Staggering, he quickly regained his balance and looked down in a gape. Slender fingers of caramel curled enticingly around his growing length, bringing it near the soft full lips that hovered over it. Before Chris could utter her name, Sheva took him into her mouth and experienced his taste for the first time.

A garbled sound of surprise and a lusty growl escaped from Chris as his eyes instinctively shut. He never expected her to make such a bold move. He knew she had been curious, but he had expected to go through these new notions at a slow pace with her. A light smile dressed across his features and his eyes opened into alluringly captivated slits. 'Impatience should be her middle name...' he chuckled inwardly to himself. And as if she could decipher the very thoughts going through his head, Sheva smirked while bobbing her head along his size and pleasantly flipped him the bird. At this, Chris did laugh but allowed another moan to slip before moving her away from his pulsing flesh and easily scooped her up with one arm.

With a playful shriek, Sheva was thrown onto the bed more towards its center and Chris eagerly pounced on top of her. But she anticipated this and expertly flipped him over on his back. A devilish smile touched her lips while she straddled him and playfully rolled her hips atop him, eagerly enjoying the thickening bulge she felt beneath her, "Point goes to me." Sheva smirked triumphantly.

"Not impressed" Chris taunted, sitting up and grasping her bottom in his large hands. Grinning darkly, Sheva placed one hand against the side of his face, while leaving the other to roam over his broad chest., "But you had better be...!" she challenged breathlessly, lifting her hips and smoothly enveloping him and his senses with delicious dripping heat. Every muscle in his body tightened as the heavy wave of ecstasy crashed over him. Lost in his senses, his body moved of its own accord, pinning Sheva to the sheets and driving swiftly into her. Every moan and utter of his name heightened his pace and fed his bottomless hunger as he greedily took her, making her his over and over again. Her tightened walls dared to swallow him whole as her powerful release swept over him and warmly trickled down his thighs.

More. He had to give more. With a throaty grunt, he lifted both legs over his shoulders and gripped at the sheets nearly ripping them to shreds while he rapidly delved into her depths at what felt to him like a delectable eternity. Their hot, impassioned ecstasy remained nothing short of perfection.

It's grandeur sought no end-until she screamed his name-and coated his fervent flesh with a lustful blessing of rich nectar that seeped through the crevices that deemed to contain it-as Chris released his own.

An airy mantra of words spilled over Sheva's lips as her head rolled slightly back and forth on the bed. With each ripple of his weighty essence within her, a new sound left her throat raw. After delivering a few more light and slow thrusts, Chris let out a whoosh of air and laid on the bed next to her. His arms encircled around her and he brought her close; the two of them entwined as one. "Still restless?" he asked, catching his breath. A small smile laced Sheva's lips and she turned to him. "I am! Being young is to blame for that," she joked, but it was clear that her eyes were getting heavy. If Chris didn't know Sheva like he did, he would have taken offense to her statement. But he could decipher the lie in her gaze a mile away. With a snort, he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "And that's why your eyes are slowly starting to droop, right?"

"Mm. Right." she admitted, closing her eyes. "Goodnight, Chris." she stated wistfully and snuggled into his embrace. As she drifted off to sleep, Chris eyed the young woman in his arms. Secretly, his eyes studied her composed features and steady breathing. It would seem that he succeeded in easing her anxiety for the moment. Smiling faintly, Chris brushed his lips across the tip of her nose and pulled the sheets over them. He could only suspect what their un-promised tomorrow would bring them while on this mission.

Only the heavens knew at what cost

OoO

The next morning, Aleck contacted Sheva and Chris at 8 am to outline their itinerary and to return to the HQ to receive their flight tickets. Afterward, he instructed them to visit the "gun shop" within the building. It wasn't a place that sold guns to any of the officials, but the title seemed fitting enough to be used. Despite the early time of day, the HQ was rather quiet, yet obviously full of quite a few officials. Making their way through the long halls, Chris and Sheva finally happened upon the "gun shop". It was a little larger in width than Chris remembered it was from his last visit to this branch's HQ, but it still retained its solicitation-like look. A wide wooden counter hand crafted out of walnut was mounted atop an equally sturdy box-shaped stand. Columns atop rows of guns decorated the interior of the place in a neat and polished fashion.

"Are these really not for sale?" Sheva pondered aloud, taking in the metallic sights.

"From the way these guns were made and set out, I'd say they were. But besides that, something about the craftsmanship reminds me of someone..." Chris stated in a contemplative tone. And as if Chris' very words had conjured the being of his thoughts, the "gun shop" owner emerged. He was about a foot shorter than Chris with a good set of muscles for his middle age. Bristles of short hair lingered beneath his nose, indicating there was once a mustache there. The moment the man and Chris met eyes, a smug grin crept over both their faces and they cracked their knuckles. Utterly puzzled, Sheva watched the two in speechless silence as she watched them ready their fists as if they were going to punch the other. But a small sigh of relief escaped her when they just slapped their hands together and tightened their grips.

Neither let the other's hand go, both Chris and the older man's muscles flexed monstrously.

"Hey Barry. It's been a while." Chris smirked knowingly at his elder while gripping his hand tighter.

"And you've changed a lot." Barry mused, struggling to stay level against Chris' muscle while trying his best to maintain a non strained expression.

"Only on the outside."

Barry raised a brow. "Because of me of course. Finally my advice got through that thick skull and you hit the gym."

"In my spare time of course." Chris said, grinning, and leaned forward slightly, causing Barry to inch back in the opposite direction.

Barry made a face but quickly masked it with a smug grin. "With a grip like that, I would've believed you bulked up on steroids instead, son."

"You would think that..." Chris surmised.

Sheva continued to look on with the hunch that Chris was obviously going to be the victor when the two competitive males ceased their manly game and patted the other on the shoulder. "Ah. Still the winner, as always!" Barry confessed, clenching and releasing his hand.

"You actually expected I'd accept less than that? You're slacking there, old timer."

"Ahhh sorry." Barry stated mock apologetically.

"How are Kathy and the kids?"

"Great. We moved here to NY from Canada not that long ago. Seems like right before Raccoon was nuked. But I'm mainly here to help out this branch for as long as they need me, then I'm off to find another place that could use my handiwork. Or open my own gun-shop." he decided, a tiny glint of appeasement flickering in his eyes.

"TDY?" Chris inquired.

Barry shrugged. "Yeah. But I don't know for sure. I guess I'll find out sooner or later. Especially once I get the boot. Haha..."

Aimlessly, his eyes traveled over to Sheva and the remembrance of his duty to supply weaponry for the new mission came flooding back into his mind and his back straightened, "New partner, Chris?" he asked, nodding towards Sheva.

"Sheva Alomar. PCS." she spoke up promptly, giving Barry a courteous smile.

Barry looked to Chris, a sly grin on his face. "A military woman, goddamn it son we'll be making a decent man out of you yet!"

"Let's just say I have my ways of figuring things out." she smirked, glancing to Chris and loving the blatant dubious shock on his face.

"In any rate, I'm afraid Chris hasn't said much about you." she continued, returning her attention to the older man in front of her.

"Oh, I'm not surprised. I've never done much but supply weapons and help Chris and Jill out a bit now and then during our missions." Barry mentioned with a hint of sarcasm behind belittling his role to his friends. But from his next thought, his expression became like that of chiseled stone and his tone darkened. "Especially the one to that mansion. I'll never forget it." he continued, shaking his head at the old memory as if it had happened recently. Glancing towards her partner, Barry's expression formed concern. "How is Jill by the way, Chris?"

Expecting the question, Chris took in a breath to answer when Sheva did the task for him. "She's fine. Chris and I helped free her from Wesker and Uroburos in Kijuju."

"Africa?" Barry questioned.

"Yes, my homeland."

Chris said nothing at first while he eyed Sheva keenly. He wasn't too thrilled she answered for him and was less thrilled by her curt answer. He had told her before not to be jealous of the other woman. The last thing he needed from her was relationship insecurity during a mission. Catching wind of his body language, Sheva could deduce what Chris was thinking and cast him an empty glance. Watching the two, Barry smiled faintly to himself. So Chris ventured into purgatory and brought himself back a woman. And another fighter at that.

"So..." Barry began, thoughtfully polishing his custom made .44 Magnum Colt Anaconda. The weapon always looked simple in its design but packed a perilous wallop piercing enough to take down an elephant. "Are the two of you here for weapons or what?"

Within the next few minutes, Barry supplied Chris and Sheva with some of the best custom made and expertly tuned-up guns he had ready for the taking. All of them polished to a high mirror shine. For Sheva, she received a Beretta while Chris was given an old friend, the Samurai Edge. Its outer design appeared like that of an ancient-looking antique to the untrained eye, but its inner functions, like its adjusted trigger pull and medium-weight slide had never let him down before. Expertly customized weapons were nothing short of a blessing. After a round of 'thank you's, Chris and Sheva parted their ways from Barry with hopes to see him again, and made their way towards Aleck's office. Since their informant was in Japan, Aleck recommended that they pick up information on the language itself. They took the good advice and soon left the HQ to board their flight.

OoO

Several hours through the ride, Chris had given up trying to make any sense of the odd words, that he spoke horribly, and phrases of the language and decided to 'take a break'. Seated beside the window, Sheva looked up from her reading, "Japanese for Dummies!" to gaze over at her muscular significant other. Slouched in his seat, half sitting and have reclining, Chris had two strong arms folded over his broad chest with a "Learn Japanese the Easy Way in 20 Minutes a Day!" soft cover book folded open atop his face with his nose used as an indirect bookmark. The distinct sound of snoring matched the even rhythm of every rise and fall of his chest as he snoozed. Sheva clicked her tongue in a 'tsk tsk' manner while shaking her head."Wake up!" she lightly ordered, pushing roughly on his arm

With a start, he sat up in his seat, snatched the book off his face and pretended to be in deep concentration towards the ink on the paper. If he had not been with Sheva for as long as he had, he would have gotten on the offensive. But around her, his body automatically reacted to her ways accordingly. "What? I was reading it!" he announced, attempting to sound believable, despite the glaring obviousness that he was asleep.

"Oh, stop lying, Chris! You were snoring so loudly I could barely hear myself think!"

"Am I supposed to believe that? You've probably read that book 3 times already and retained almost every word."

To this, Sheva returned her eyes back to her book and casually crossed her legs. "And what makes you say that?"

"It didn't take you that long to learn English, remember?"

"I do."

"So what makes you think you can't learn Japanese in a day?"

"In a day? More like in a few hours, Chris because that's all we've got! What I've learned so far may help, but I'm sorry. Even I can't learn a whole entire language in one day!" she replied, mocking his indirect way of speaking so highly of her and her abilities.

"Yeah? Then...what was one of those words I saw uh Oh hay yo?"

"Ohayou. Good Morning."

"And uh... nan...non... nan ee?"

"Nani, you mean?"

"Yeah! See you already corrected me, twice! Tell me what it means. I'm sure you can."

She blinked, "What?"

"The word. Nani. What does it mean?"

She shrugged. "What?"

"Nani, Shev. That's what."

Her eyes lit up as a smug smile graced her features. "Yes! That's what."

"Nani is yes?"

"What?"

Chris sighed. At first this all seemed cute, but now he was getting a bit annoyed.

Sheva could read him clearly, but had to secretly admit, she was having fun with this.

"What is nani, Shev? Are you going to explain it to me so I can understand it or are you just going to act like you didn't hear me?"

She couldn't help but laugh. "You just said what it meant already, Chris!"

He blinked, "What?"

"Yes, what?"

He double blinked, "What?"

"Yes there you did it again!"

"Huh?"

"Nani means 'What?', Chris!"

"Wh-What!"

She shook her head. "No, that's 'Nanda!'.

With a heavy sigh, that was well deserved, Chris rubbed his temples. "...Right... Of course."

"Oh, I'm sorry about all that nonsense Chris. You set yourself up for it so well!"

"Uh huh..." he grumbled.

"But still, it is impossible for me to learn a simple language in one day."

"Simple?" he echoed, looking at her in disbelief, "I think Japanese is a little bit beyond anything simple. But I still find it hard to believe the great Sheva can't pick up half of a language in a day," he smirked devilishly, lacing the tip of his tongue over his lips "Especially from all the different languages you speak when I'm teasing your..."

"Ahem!"

Chris gave her a curious look, then leaned close to whisper in her ear: "Feel like going someplace with a little more privacy?"

Remembering their little romp in one of the lavatories of their plane trip back to Kijuju, Sheva shuddered and playfully pushed him away. "No, Chris! You said it yourself that wasn't such a good idea!"

"Seems like an okay one now."

"No!" she smirked darkly, meaning what she said. "Anyway!" she began, changing the subject " Are you going to learn some Japanese or not?"

"I think I'll just look to you to do the talking."

"Cheater."

"The only time I'm willing to be guilty of it since grade school." he stated proudly, and went back to his book. Even if he would count on Sheva to do the most speaking in Japanese, it would be best if he attempted to learn some of it.

But almost as soon as his eyes hit the pages, his brows knitted together in conflict. The words had seemed to be even more difficult than before he fell asleep. Snickering slightly, Sheva reached over to grasp the edge of the paperback and flip it right-side up for him. "That should ease your struggling a bit, Chris."

Instead of commenting, a sigh was all he gave. And went back to mincing the dialect and butchering his pronunciation with struggling "finesse".

OoO

20 hours later, the two agents finally touched down in Tokyo, Japan. The garish lights and crowded streets almost strongly rivaled the same of New York. But this particular area was in a league of its own. With the help of Sheva's quick learning of Japanese, the two of them were able to maneuver through the city quite briskly and approached the informant's quarters with very little trouble. "There it is." Sheva pointed out, gesturing towards a rather festive looking bar that was sandwiched in between other variously sized buildings. Neon flashing lights announced the name of the establishment, causing a static buzz sound with each second the words lit up. Most of the natives merely passed by the place, which said a lot about its usual customers to Chris and Sheva. It was foreign designed bar in Roppongi with American style.

"Well, let's go get this done with." Chris uttered, patting the part of his clothing where he hid his gun, making sure it was still securely in his possession. With a casual air, the two pushed open the bar's doors and stepped in. A wave of wandering eyes zeroed in on them immediately; studying them. Murmurs of "gaijin" rippled throughout the bar as many of the onlookers positioned their attention elsewhere.

"Where's Aitsu?" Chris asked low enough for Sheva's ears to pick up while scanning the room for anyone obviously suspicious To his dismay, almost everyone there had drunken enough to look rather untrustworthy.

Speaking the native dialect as effectively as Chris knew she would, Sheva began to shout at the crowd, "Your attention please!" Sheva quickly and fluently barked, "My partner and I are looking for someone and we will need your assistance!"

Odd stares and awkward glances were all she received.

"Well, this seems to be helping..." she groused sarcastically. "Listen!" she tried again in Japanese, raising her voice a bit louder, "Did you hear me?"

"Stop complaining!" One of the regulars shouted in his native tongue, sticking a pinky into his ear. Some of the others ignored him, staying true to their nature of hating conflict and loving to avoid it at all costs. Others paid their bill and left the vicinity quickly. Seeing this, Chris couldn't help but speak up. "Alright, listen up! For those of you that can understand me. We're here from the BSAA!" he announced, taking out his badge and holding it above his head. "We're looking for a man going by the name Aitsu!"

Jokingly, a group of the younger males sat chuckling to themselves while waving to get Chris' attention. "Hey! Hey! I know Aitsu!" one of them shouted, in choppy Engrish.

"Now we're talking." Chris uttered, moving towards them. Sheva frowned a bit, wondering if her Japanese was off. But she shrugged the thought away and followed suit after Chris. He stopped directly in front of their table, his height and body weight nearly towing over the natives like a giant, "You three know Aitsu?" he asked in a professional tone. The 3 males exchanged amused glances and banter until one of them nodded to Chris.

"Yeah. We know Aitsu."

Intent on hearing more, Chris leaned forward, pressing his hands on the table. "Where is he?"

Snickering, one of the guys pointed to the friend sitting next to him. "Aitsu." he grinned, as the one he pointed to did the same to the one he was sitting next to. Obviously baffled, Chris stared at the males in disbelief, then looked over to Sheva. Peering towards Chris out the corner of her eye, she clarified: " Aside being the preferred name of our informant, the word 'Aitsu' means 'that guy.' "

Chris' face nearly blanched for a second before turning a mild shade of an aggravated red, "You talk to them." he stated curtly, pushing himself roughly away from the table. The 3 guys shared a good laugh, having a great time fooling an American. Too bad Sheva was getting fed up with such nonsense really quick. Before anyone could blink, she pulled her gun from its holster on her hip and pointed it at the men. At this moment, the quiet customers near the guys' table got up and ran for the door.

"Gun! She's got a gun!"

A minor riot broke out as people dashed for their lives away from the crazy "American" woman with the gun. The bartender had attempted to calm some of the people down, but soon gave up when he realized most of them had left their pay before making a mad-dash for the door.

"BSAA!" Sheva shouted, flashing her badge and cocking the gun.

"Now, I've asked you before, and I'm going to ask you one more time..." she started calmly in Japanese, only to point her gun upwards and let a round off into the ceiling, scattering what remaining customers who hadn't realized the bar was now closed.

"Where is Akki Koukatsu ?" Sheva snapped, pointing the gun back towards the seething group before them.

Who do you think you are?" One of the guys snapped as the one in the middle stood up and readied his arm as if he was going to smack the gun out of Sheva's hand. "You dog! I'm gonna beat the crap out of you!" he snapped, throwing a punch that Chris easily intercepted with his own hand. Keeping a firm grasp on the smaller man's knuckles, Chris gave him a steely glare. "Settle down friend."

Chris' victim let out a few snarly responses, but ultimately became helpless. Another did the smart thing and got up and left the table in a hurry while the one that remained got a nice slab of cold hard steel against his forehead.

"I should have known things would turn out like this!" Sheva commented under her breath.

"Wouldn't be a usual day's work without it happening..." Chris retorted back, "Though you have to admit swinging that thing around so soon wasn't gonna help much."

Sheva smiled slyly, "The bad girl act gets results every now and-"

"Enough." a new voice rang out throughout the virtually bar.

Slightly dropping their guard, Chris and Sheva brought their attention over to the location of the bartender. One of the 3 males stood visually frightened next to the barkeep as the older man took a step forward from behind his bar, "You two looking for Akki?"

Astonished by how well the man spoke English, Sheva winced and gave him her full attention.

"Yes! Is he here? My partner and I were told to meet him here."

"Yeah, I heard. BSAA, right? He's in the back checking his 'inventory'."

"If what you say is true," Chris began, shoving the young punk away from him, "why didn't you mention anything about this earlier?"

At this, the bartender grinned darkly. "I was having too much fun watching."

"What?" Sheva exclaimed, not finding any of this amusing in the least.

"Hey, it's not everyday foreigners like yourselves show up here and cause such a scene. You realize how much popular it's going to make this place? And not only that, but Akki needs someone to slap him around and knock some sense into him. I've been waiting for a day like this to come! So leave these push-overs alone already. I'll show you where he is."

Utterly astonished, Chris and Sheva exchanged inquiring gazes, but withheld their commentary for another time. Dutifully, they recomposed themselves and followed the bartender through a hidden door behind the bar.

OoO

The entire establishment itself may have looked small on the outside but within its hidden bowels laid a rather large and spacious vicinity. It almost appeared to be of another building entirely, but it wasn't. "This place is huge" Sheva commented, looking around "And it makes me uncomfortable."

"You're not the only one." Chris agreed.

The bartender only chuckled, then pointed to a corner of the wide hall. "He's down there. He doesn't speak English very well and he's a prick."

"Our favorite kind of informant..." Chris stated sarcastically.

"If he gives you any trouble, just holler. I'll just call the cops on him. Again." he chuckled. Apparently, he was enjoying this type of 'revenge' a bit too enthusiastically.

"Well, that's it. Oh. And be sure to have your guns out when you go back to see him." he added with a wink. With that, the barkeep turned on his heels and made his way back to his business. Once alone, Chris and Sheva looked at one another with puzzled expressions.

"What was that all about?"

"Until proven otherwise, it's irrelevant to this mission." Chris sighed, taking out his Samurai Edge. "Come on, let's go."

Wordlessly, Sheva watched him pass her. With a heavy sigh of her own, she wielded her gun and headed after him. "Right behind you."

Moments later, the two stealthily moved in front of a large entrance that was decorated with red and gold beaded tassels. Keeping any commentary towards the bizarre display, Chris and Sheva positioned themselves on either side of the entryway. They silently counted to 3 before bounding through the tassels, guns ready, and shouted: "FREEZE!"

A frenzied yelp shot into the air and echoed around the room as a lanky Japanese man dressed in black threw his hands up, dropping a few packages in white in the process.

"Shit!The cops! I don't know nothin'!" he griped and spun to face the "intruders".

His eyes glanced quickly between Sheva and Chris, sizing them up within seconds. He recognized the BSAA emblem on their attire immediately. With a cocky snort, he lowered his arms to his sides and addressed them haughtily, "Oh. It are you. You heard towards my background, yes?"

Blinking, Sheva looked to Chris who simply shook his head and put his gun away, "BSAA HQ in New York informed us to meet you here. Said you knew of a guy we're looking for."

The informant sucked his teeth and casually knelt to pick up his goods. "I do not understand."

"The Bio-Arms dealer." Sheva stated. And almost immediately, Akki stood to his feet and faced her. "Bio-Arms?" he repeated heavily in his native tongue.

" Yes." Sheva nodded, taking a step forward, "We were told that you were part of this dealer's inner circle and quite a few other nasty little things."

Aitsu merely stared at Sheva at first. Then a crooked grin slithered across his lips. "Ah, yes. A good friend of mine, he is. I've no intention of ratting him out directly to you. So I'll give you two a hint as to where he is."

"What did he say?" Chris questioned with slight impatience in his voice. Being left out of any kind of important conversation that dealt with him and Sheva left him feeling extremely disturbed and rather irritated.

"He said he'll give us a hint to where the Bio-Arms dealer is." Sheva surmised.

"...Sounds like a going on a wild goose chase to me..." Chris groaned. A flicker of mischief passed by Sheva's eyes as she glanced to him. "All in a day's work, right?" she jeered with immense sarcasm. Chris sighed and crossed his arms. "Whatever. Just tell him to give us this clue so we can get out of here."

Although Aitsu couldn't understand fully what Chris was saying, he certainly didn't like his tone one bit. But realizing the built American couldn't speak nor understand Japanese too well, Aitsu smiled lightly at Chris. "You really piss me off."

Expectantly, Chris looked to Sheva, who shot a nasty-sounding remark back to the Japanese man on Chris' behalf. But instead of being threatened, Aitsu only scoffed and tossed his shoulder-length hair back, "Threaten me all you wish. But unknown to the likes of you, I may still have rather strong ties to this dealer you're looking for. And, as fate may have it, I just may have access to a Bio-weapon of my own."

Sheva's eyes widened at this and she swiftly aimed her weapon at him. "What did you say? Are you saying you have some kind of monster stashed away in here?"

Aitsu smirked. "And I may be willing to sell you one of these excellent weapons. At the right price, of course."

"What did he say?" Chris urged, getting a bad feeling about all this.

"Shh," Sheva pressed, nearing closer to the taunting underworld dealer. "Explain yourself. What do you have?"

At this, Aitsu appeared rather pleased. A dark, almost crazed smile formed across his face, what he said next, he said in perfect English "A new Tyrant."

Chris' brows shot up instantly and he stepped in front of Sheva, demanding answers. "What tyrant? What are you hiding, Aitsu?"

"Chris, wait!" Sheva called as Aitsu began laughing. But his eerie cackles were stifled abruptly. A loud shot rang out. Echoing through the halls and within the room, ricocheting off the walls. One bullet was all it took to meet its target and split it into pieces. And Aitsu's head was that target. Grotesque substances that Chris and Sheva didn't even want to think about identifying splattered across their bodies. Aitsu, however, was not so lucky. With a moistened thud, his body feel to its knees, then collapsed. Half of his head was blown clean off. Bits and pieces of grayish brain matter spilled across the floor ; speckling it and walls with its entity mixed with blood. However, their situation only heightened in its intensity when more gunshots rang out, pelting nearly everything in its line of fire.

"Get down!" Chris shouted, grabbing hold of Sheva around her shoulders and tackling her to the floor.

OoO

-Mel