I started re-writing this chapter but realized I actually liked it in its original form. I've extended some conversations and changed some descriptions but for the most part it is how I originally had it. Anyway, hope it is still an enjoyable read!
Chapter 2
July 1977
Seventeen-year-old Albert stepped out of the car that Ozwell Spencer had sent to pick him up and looked at the Umbrella Management Training Facility in awe. It was impressive, built a lot bigger than it needed to be for the few people that went through the program. Windows lined the facility with arms of ivy twisted around them and the columns that separated the windows. A high, spiked iron gate surrounded the entry way, an obvious warning to keep uninvited guests out.
Albert looked around the grounds and pulled the sunglasses Spencer had given him out of his pocket and slipped them on his face. He had worn them since Spencer gave them to him back in January and though they had taken getting used to, he grown comfortable having them on. He also enjoyed the unease that others displayed at being unable to see his eyes.
Standing in the large entryway was a thin, auburn haired man dressed in a dark suit carrying a folder under his arm. Albert knew it was Doctor James Marcus, the person he was assigned to train under. The older man was shifting his weight anxiously, as if he did not want to be standing there, then nodded slightly and approached Albert.
"Ah, you must be Albert Wesker," Marcus held out his hand. "I am James Marcus. It is a pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is all mine," Albert said as sincerely as he could manage. He was not used to sucking up to people but this man currently held his future in his hands. Albert could stand to kiss up until he was in charge of the lab. "Shall we begin?"
Marcus gave him a small smile. "We are waiting for one other trainee."
"A second trainee?" Albert had to work to keep the disappointment and surprise out of his voice. He hoped that he would be the only trainee that Marcus would personally watch over. Rumor had it that Marcus rarely took interest in any of his students and the fact that he wanted to personally watch over Albert filled the boy with an immense amount of pride. Now, however, that pride was taken down a notch.
"Ah, here he is now," Marcus said as another car drove up. Albert eyed the car warily, wanting to be able to size up his competition. When the car door opened, he blinked twice, not really believing what he was seeing.
Out of the car stepped a scrawny boy with ill-fitting clothes. His big blue eyes darted around excitedly from behind his sandy blond bangs, eager to take in his surroundings. A line of freckles swept across his face and round cheeks completed his youthful appearance. The boy looked no older than sixteen but the large, stupid grin on his face made him appear even younger.
Albert narrowed his eyes, hidden by his sunglasses, but kept the rest of his face emotionless. His competition was this child? He had thought that he would be the youngest researcher Umbrella had ever employed...apparently he was wrong.
"William Birkin," Marcus said with false warmth as the boy bounced over to the other two. They shook hands before Marcus motioned to Albert. "I would like you to meet your partner, Albert Wesker."
"Hello, Albert," William's voice was high; clearly he had not hit puberty yet. The younger boy enthusiastically held out his hand, that large toothy smile still on his face. Albert raised an eyebrow and gave him a curt nod, but did not offer his hand. After a moment William dropped his hand to his side, looking dejected.
Marcus shifted his weight again and cleared his throat, seemingly oblivious to Albert rebuffing William. "Boys, if you'll follow me, we can get you settled in." Marcus turned and began walking towards the building. Both Albert and William fell into step behind him.
The mansion's interior matched its impressive exterior. Thick Persian rugs lined the dark wooden floors of the entryway. Large chandeliers hung from the ceilings, lit low to cast eerie shadows over the décor.
"Wow," William whispered, blue eyes bulging out of his head in wonder. Albert wanted to mimic the younger boy's reaction but kept quiet. He wanted to make sure he looked professional in front of Marcus.
"Quite spectacular isn't it?" Marcus paused. "These walls hold many secrets beyond your wildest dreams. Follow me."
As they walked through the mansion, Marcus began pointing out the common areas; mess hall, labs, and classrooms.
Albert didn't pay very much attention to them because he was lost in his own thoughts. Obviously this child—he grimaced as he thought about it—had to be intelligent if Marcus was going to personally look after him, but how could Umbrella expect someone like him to survive working here? He seemed so young that even one little mistake would completely throw him off his game. And with his goofy smile and big clothes he looked more like a kid playing dress up then a serious scientist. Was it a joke of some sort to have him working alongside himself?
"The dormitories are this way."
Marcus led them up a side stairwell, up to the top floor of the mansion. The rooms were situated off of an ornately decorated hall that had multiple paintings and avant-garde chandeliers. The dorm hallway looked as if it was completely devoid of any human life with how clean and silent it was. Above each of the doors was a large number with the occupants' names engraved on a plaque below it.
"This will be your room," Marcus motioned to the room numbered twelve. He handed each boy a set of keys and a folder. "This is just some of the information you'll need for working here as well as your ID Badges. You have the rest of the day to yourselves. Now, I have work to do and I will see you early tomorrow morning. Good day." With that, Marcus walked briskly back to the stairs and then disappeared from view.
Albert looked at the keys in his hands, brass with a number twelve on them that matched the one on the door. After looking over them for a moment he realized that William was staring at him expectantly. "What?"
William started as if Albert shocked him. He fumbled with his key for a moment and pushed it into the lock. "This is some facility, huh?" The latch clicked and the door swung open. "I really can't wait to start the research. I have been looking up a lot of information on the Ebola virus found in Africa just this year. Have you had a chance to read up on it?"
"No," Albert said shortly, stepping past William to get into the room. It was a comfortable size with two identical sets of desks, chairs, bookcases, dressers, and beds. A door on one end of the room opened to reveal a toilet, two sinks, and a shower
"Did Mr. Spencer approach you for the job as well?"
"Yes," Albert said, taking his bags and tossing them onto the bed on the right side of the room.
"Did you want to work here before he contacted you?"
"No." He started unpacking his clothes in the hopes that William would notice he was extremely uninterested in any sort of conversation.
"Why are you still wearing your sunglasses?"
Albert suppressed a groan. Did all his new roommate do was ask questions? "Because."
"Because…?"
"Do you always ask so many questions?" Albert snapped, slamming his dresser drawer shut.
"Sorry," William said, sounding irritated.
Albert rolled his eyes and continued unpacking. He could hear William moving about the room behind him, sighing periodically. He wondered if the boy was trying to get his attention or if he naturally was this loud. After about five minutes of this, Albert turned around. "Do you require assistance?"
William gave him a look that reminded Albert of a kicked puppy, and he cringed inwardly. He didn't do well with people who were upset, and the look William was giving him made him feel uncomfortable. He tried again, this time keeping the irritation out of his voice. "Can I help you?"
William only scowled. He gave Albert a dirty look before turning his back to finish emptying his suitcase. Albert rolled his eyes and was about to continue his own task when William spoke again.
"If we are going to live together, we might as well try to get along."
He faced William, who was glaring at him with his arms folded over his chest. Albert thought he looked kind of like a pouty child, but the darkness in his eyes seemed to reach further than his sour mood. There was an angry fire in them, almost as if he would reach across the room and attack Albert if he got pissed off enough.
"Fine," Albert replied. "My name is Albert Wesker. How do you do?"
"Wonderful," William replied, his tone heavily sarcastic. He gave him a quick look up and down, a small frown spreading across his face. "How old are you?"
Albert frowned at the question. "Seventeen. Why?"
"I would have thought that someone close to my age would at least treat me with a certain degree of respect...or are you threatened by me like everyone else?"
Albert grunted in response. It wasn't that he felt threatened per say, more so irritated. Up until now, he had always been the best, as well as the youngest, at everything he did. He was top of all his classes at Princeton and the favorite of all his professors there. At Umbrella, Albert was now second youngest and that didn't sit well with him. He would have to work hard to make sure that he could top William. When Albert didn't respond, William went back to fixing his things, an uncomfortable silence falling between them.
Once Albert was finished unpacking he grabbed the folder Marcus had given him and started toward the door. He wanted to get away from the awkwardness that filled the room.
"Where are you going?" William asked when he noticed that Albert was leaving.
"Outside." Albert said and shut the door before William could say anything else.
He marched up the staircase to the common areas of the facility, not passing anyone on the way there. It was Sunday afternoon, so he guessed that the other trainees were out for the weekend. He tried to explore the various rooms of the training facility but most of the rooms were locked, requiring a key or crest or some other sort of nicknack to open them. After not finding anything of interest in the common areas, he left the facility to take a stroll around the grounds.
Outside the warm summer air caressed his skin. He was dressed in a black button up and black pants that quickly retained the warmth from the sun's rays, so he quickly found a spot to sit under a large tree as a cool escape from the sun. He leaned against the tree and sunk to the ground, deciding it would be a nice place to read.
Training Facility Mission:
This training facility will raise a new generation of model employees to serve the future of Umbrella Corp. Applying the strictest and most rigorous training standards, this facility will, without regard of gender, race or creed, produce only the best candidates to be global future leaders of Umbrella Corporation. We look forward to the development of your leadership qualities.
Training facility Guidelines:
Discipline, Obedience, Unity.
These three words are the basic principles which govern Umbrella Corporation employees, and are to be considered the Law of this facility. Keep these words in mind at all times. Dedicate yourselves to the training, and bring honor to yourself and the corporation.
James Marcus,
Director,
Umbrella Corporation,
Management Training Facility
Beneath the text of the letter was a list of rules, detailing curfew and restrictions meant to keep all the trainees in line. It also included a list of classes that were meant to make all the trainees "well-rounded" for when they took up their actual positions in Umbrella. With this schedule, there wasn't much room for experimentation, which slightly irritated Albert. He knew the point of going to the training facility was to make them become responsible scientists, but it still seemed like a waste of time.
The final piece in the folder was his Umbrella identification card. The card's gold lettering glistened in the sunlight and he held it up to inspect it. Since accepting the position at Umbrella he had looked forward to the day when he would control all of the company. But with William here, he could see this dream of his slipping from his grasp. He knew he must not dwell on being second best; he had to adapt and move on. That was the only way to survive in a company as cut-throat as Umbrella.
Albert rubbed his temples. If William Birkin was more intelligent than him, it might be wise to form some sort of alliance with him. From what he had learned about Umbrella since Spencer first approached him, he knew everyone employed at the company was highly competitive and willing to do almost anything to reach the top. Having someone on his side, even if it was someone like William, could prove useful later on.
He leaned back against the tree and looked out across the grass. The emptiness of everything reminded him of his home in Martha's Vineyard. He vaguely wondered if he would ever see Alex here considering her relationship with Mr. Spencer. He snorted at the idea. He might actually see his adoptive guardian more here then he would the previous fourteen years of his life.
The afternoon wore on and slowly people began returning to the facility's grounds from the Ecliptic Express station. Albert watched them from a distance, observing his new classmates with interest. Some of them were older then he had expected, some were women, and some looked to be fresh out of college. None of them seemed to be anywhere near as young as he and William but he knew he shouldn't underestimate them.
With these thoughts in mind, Albert headed back to the mansion. By the time he got back, the dining hall and lounge were filled with all the other trainees. Small cliques were scattered around the room, each group talking together excitedly. Albert looked around at each group in turn and wondered whether he would eventually fall into one of them. He quickly dismissed this thought, reminding himself that even at Harvard he never had a circle of friends.
Slowly it seemed that the other trainees started to notice his presence and started to look at him in curiosity. Feeling uncomfortable under their looks, he glanced around the room to see if William had shown up. Eventually he had caught sight of the younger boy, looking painfully out of place as he stood by himself in the corner of the room. With new resolve to make an alliance with William, Albert took off his sunglasses and approached him.
William was standing with his back against the wall, eyes looking around at all the other trainees around them. He looked lost and Albert almost felt pity for the sad expression on his face.
"William."
"Albert," William said, looking up. Though he tried to hide it, Albert had seen the look of relief that flashed across the younger boy's face.
"Excuse me," came a voice from behind Albert. Albert turned around to face a man who looked to be about in his mid-twenties. He had dark red hair that stuck out at odd angles, almost like a cartoon character. He dressed well, probably in the hopes of impressing the superiors. He could see from the way the man carried himself, his chest jutting out as he stood, that the man was full of himself. "I don't believe we've met. I'm George Harris, top of this year's graduating class."
"Albert Wesker," Albert replied, wishing he could have some kind of anecdote to follow his name.
"Ah," Harris said, shaking Albert's hand. "Where were you recruited from?"
"Harvard," Albert replied, hoping to impress this man with his Ivy League school.
"Good man," Harris said. "I myself graduated from Yale when I was recruited. Glad to see myself amongst good company." He then turned his attention to William. "Are you lost or something? Did you lose your high school field trip group?"
"No," William said, looking somewhat irritated by the suggestion that he didn't belong. "I'm William Birkin, another new trainee."
Harris laughed out loud until he realized that William was not kidding. "Really? This is what Umbrella has sunk to? Small kids?"
"I'm not a kid," William insisted.
"Do you really think you can handle this?" Harris asked William, tone dripping with distain for the younger boy. He crouched down slightly so that he would be eye level with the younger scientist, almost like one would do a small child. "The information they gave us is really complex, not something for children to be playing around with."
"Thank you for your concern Harris, but I assure it is highly unnecessary," William said, rolling his eyes.
"The hours are quite long," Harris continued, waving his hand as if to push William's comment aside. "Someone your age should not be subjected to the amount of stress that Umbrella puts on people."
"Until I crack under the pressure or completely freeze up in the labs, I think it would be best for you to keep your doubts to yourself," William snapped, the dark fire flaring in his eyes again.
Albert was once again caught off guard at the darkness inside William and then smirked. He was glad to know that the kid had some backbone.
Harris frowned deeply at William and turned away from him, going off to talk to some of the other employees. William sighed heavily and looked disappointed. From the way he handled it, Albert was almost sure that he had been a victim of this kind of treatment before and had hoped to avoid it here.
"You handled that well," Albert said to William, the smirk still on his face.
"Well, it's something I got used to," William said, regarding him warily. "A lot of people feel upset when they find out that someone younger then them is better at something."
Albert knew the last bit was supposed to be a jab at him but he ignored it. Perhaps, if he attempted to relate to William on this aspect, he'd be able to gain the boy's trust. It was the only thing that would separate him from being just another big bully. "I know what you mean."
A scoff followed that remark. "So what, you decided to be friendly now?"
"I am merely saying that you and I are quite similar. We have both faced similar stigmas because of our age and I think we can use that to our advantage."
"Really?" William crossed his arms over his chest.
"Yes," Albert said. "I was the youngest in my major at Harvard and most of the older students would either avoid me or try to sabotage my work. I just learned to adapt around them."
"Sounds about right," William said, still a little on guard. "What advantage are you talking about?"
"I wanted to discuss a proposition," Albert said conversationally. "I believe it would be beneficial for us to form some sort of partnership...an alliance, if you will."
"An alliance?" William said, cocking his head to the side. He squinted his eyes. "Why on earth would I want to be in an alliance with you?"
"I think it would work out for the both of us," Albert leaned closer to him, half smiling. "You and I are obviously years younger then everyone else here and are thus the most brilliant. If we work together, perhaps, in a few years, we can own the company."
"Attention!" A voice over the loud speaker called. Everyone in the room stilled and came to attention. "Attention! This is Doctor Marcus. Please be silent as we reflect on our company motto. Obedience breeds discipline. Discipline breeds unity. Unity breeds power. Power is life. Dinner is now ready in the common dining hall. You may proceed there."
As soon as the last bits of Dr. Marcus's speech disappeared, the rest of the trainees began to empty the lounge, heading toward the mess hall for dinner. Albert shifted so that he stood in such a way that he blocked William from leaving.
"So what do you say?" Albert said, holding out his hand. "It's you and me?"
"You and me," William nodded his head, reaching out and taking Albert's hand.
Again, Reviews are appreciated! :)