Disclaimer: Capcom owns Resident Evil.

Chapter 12 – Hunted

When she opened her eyes again, her vision was a lot clearer. The pounding headache simmered down to a dull throb enabling her to think better. Sitting up straight her eyes scanned the room and rested upon her partner.

He had his back against the wall, one knee propped up with his head leaning down and his eyes closed. He was sitting a couple of feet away from her and looked to be taking a nap.

She quietly stood up and placed his coat on the table. She tiptoed as she made her way to her clothes. Although not completely dry yet, they're not as cold and wet as before. She got dressed quickly and glanced at the window. The weather hasn't changed since she last saw it and doesn't look like it's going to any time soon. This is going to be a problem. She needs to take Jake to the rendezvous point at a certain time. If the weather doesn't let up and if things don't change her team may be forced to abandon her for the day and return until the weather clears up. She knows the urgency of the situation. A vaccine is needed right now and she needs to get Jake to her base as soon as possible.

"So any change in the weather?" a voice called out from the other side of the room.

She looked at the direction of her partner. "Unfortunately, no. I just wished it would stop so we can make our way to my team. The storm is getting pretty bad and who knows when it will die down."

"Huh. Couldn't see how it could get any worse than that," he replied waving a hand towards the window. Surely enough, he was right. The snow storm sent a massive flurry of snow outside, you can hardly see three feet in front of you. The wind howled making the wooden walls shudder against it.

She sighed. Looks like they are both stuck in the cabin for now.

The mercenary got up and made his way to the fireplace. It had died down a little which sent a slight chill inside. Using the fire poker, he arranged the burned wood around and added the remaining wood pieces left from the box. He used his lighter to create more fire. Once satisfied with it, he made his way to the table in the centre of the room, put on his coat and took a seat. Flicking the lid on his lighter, he stared at the snow dancing outside as he thought of the promise of monetary rewards. He would help his mother out. Money was something he has never had a lot of and the fifty would greatly help the both of them. He would buy her a nice house, one with two bedrooms, a nice intimate kitchen and a lounge room with a big window overlooking a beautiful garden. His mother always loved plants and gardening but with their limited apartment space, she never really got the chance to do her hobby. Well, all that's going to change soon.

As for himself, he would buy himself a nice new bike. One with a powerful engine, sleek new tyres and a smooth finish. Motorcycles are his thing. When he's not too occupied with mercenary work, he always wanted to have a nice ride around. It keeps his head clear and he enjoys the freedom it gives him. Away from gunfire, screams and death. Thinking about all these things made him want to get out of this hell. He glanced up as he saw his partner pacing past him.

He wondered what's in her mind. He never quite met a girl like Sherry before. First impressions led him to think she was uptight, all too serious with a stick up her ass all the time. He imagined her to be one of the goody two shoes responsible type of girls who probably spent all their time in the library with their noses buried behind a book. That type of girl doesn't usually run in his circle. However, recent events showed him that she's much more than what meets the eye. Very intelligent, precocious and caring she also possesses a strong will of determination to do the right thing and to help people. She has a spunky side to her that shows from time to time and it intrigued him. This girl can kick some ass which she displayed fighting Javo's and the big behemoth stalking them. She may look delicate and small but she with that kick of hers and that deadly stun rod, she can be formidable if needed. They butted heads from time to time but in the end, they always managed to work together. She reminded him of a kitten, soft and delicate on the outside but once trouble comes she has claws that could do damage. He likes the way she stands up to him, eyes meeting his to meet his challenge. He likes the way her eyes light on fire whenever an argument occurs between the two. She meets his verbal quips with her own and can display sass in certain situations.

She's probably itching to get the hell out of here, he thought as he watched her pace back and forth in front of him. After all the things they went through, she probably can't wait to get him analysed for his blood and be on her merry way in her life. Heck, she probably couldn't wait to get rid of him too. Being on protective detail must involve high levels of stress having the responsibility for keeping him alive as well as herself. The sooner she gets the job done, the sooner he's not her problem anymore.

Contrary to his beliefs, the blonde agent's thoughts were directed just a few feet from her. She stared at the mercenary's reflection from the glass as she paced from it. She thought about her mission, about him. Her first assignment and already it's proving to be harder than she imagined. Although she knew that it wasn't going to be easy, she didn't quite imagined her partner to be a handful most of the time. He's brash, very sarcastic and runs his mouth a mile a minute. She's never work with anyone like that in her life. When he gets verbal she found herself quick to retort back. She doesn't know why but whenever he gets fiery, something inside her sparks the same fire and she found herself challenging what he says. Of course there are times when she wants to strangle the life out of him. He can be unpredictable, cocky and abrasive and it's grazing her nerves when all she wants to do is get them to safety. He's full of surprises that even she finds fascinating. His hand to hand skills are second to none and have gotten them out of a pinch in more situations than she can count. She's never seen a fighter with so much skill, precision and accuracy. His recent action surprised her a lot when he stayed with her when she got injured. Being a mercenary for so many years, she figured him out as heartless, only doing things for himself and saving his own skin. Humanity is an attribute mercenaries don't display often. Of course, he has that money payment as his motivation too. So when he stayed behind for her, it was totally unexpected. He even patched her up which never entered her mind that her partner would do. But then again, he needs her with him in order to get his money so that could be the reason too. In the end, he just wants to support his mother and she knows he deeply cares about her a lot. And she finds herself beginning to care what drives him.

She walked past him and their eyes met for a brief second. She folder her arms across her chest as she broke eye contact and continued to pace. Her partner gave a deep sigh and hopped off the table. Walking towards the window, he rested an arm by the window sill as he stared at the storm outside.

She casted a worried glance at his direction. It's getting late and she felt anxious just doing nothing in the cabin. Finally she couldn't take it any longer. "I'll go get help. It couldn't be too far from the rendezvous," she said as she made her way to the door.

"Whoa, whoa, wait!" cried the mercenary as he tried to stop her from opening the door but it was too late. As she opened the door, a huge blast of wind and snow hit them square in the face. He felt her thrown back a little by the strong wind and he put an arm around her waist to keep her from falling over. Grunting, he shut the door. What is she, crazy? He looked into her eyes and saw the look of despair in them. Almost too quickly, he let go of her waist and turned back towards the window. Silence filled the room. Glancing back towards her, he saw her sitting by the fireplace fingering her shoulder where her injury used to be. That really picked up his curiosity. He made his way next her and sat down by the wall.

"So. You've always been like that? The whole healing thing?"

She looked at him and spoke softly. "My dad was a scientist. He was working on B.O.W.s when I was exposed. Luckily, I was treated with the vaccine before it was too late. But the virus adapted and adjusted. It's been a part of me ever since."

"What happened to your father?"

"His research killed him. By the time they found him, his body had mutated so much he wasn't even recognisable," she replied as her voice broke a little remembering the terrible events in her childhood.

He closed his eyes in sympathy as she said those words. He couldn't help but feel her heartache losing a parent. Heck, he's only got one and the thought of losing his mother is devastating. He turned to her and casted an apologetic look as he spoke. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to -"

"That's alright. It's not like I didn't walk out if it with nothing."

He gave a soft chuckle as he glanced at her. "Yeah. You've got superpowers."

"That's not what I meant. The people who saved me, Leon and Claire, are the closest friends I've ever had," she replied shifting up to sit straighter.

"Claire is the BSAA guy's sister, right?" he asked.

She gave a nod. "They risked their lives for me back in Racoon City. I guess I'm still just living up to their example. Never giving up no matter the odds."

She stared at him as he looked at her face. They were so close together, she could see the tiny golden flecks on his irises that the fire emphasised as the glow from the fire washed over his face. They stared at each other for a moment and she felt herself drawn to him. It's almost as if he could understand her tragic childhood and relate to it. She searched his face and found him doing the same to her as if he's looking deep within her. Suddenly she saw him turn his head away as if listening for something. What he did next took her by surprise as she found herself knocked on the floor with him on top of her. They stared at each other's eyes like before but much more closer this time. Before she could say anything, gunfire erupted hitting the wall where they were sitting. She turned her head sideways to avoid bits of wood from hitting her face. She felt his cheek against hers as he ducked his head lower to avoid the bullets. Once the gunfire stopped, she found herself looking up at his eyes down at her.

"Speaking of odds..." he said as he got up and hurried towards the window. She followed him quickly and stood across from him.

"Looks like we've got some party crashers," he said as he pulled the safety from his pistol. He cocked his gun and continued, "This cabin's invitation only."

A loud explosion rang out and one side of the wooden wall caved in exposing them to the bitter wind and cold. Several Javo's entered the cabin with weapons drawn. They moved in towards the pair.

Giving a swift and effective kick to the Javo nearest to her, Sherry took out her pistol and aimed towards their enemies. "We're surrounded!"

The Javo stumbled and her partner took this opportunity to grab its head under his arm and swung his body around slamming it to the floor in an impressive DDT. To her shock, it started to mutate. Once where its head belonged now grew a deformed looking head with two horns sticking out at the side. She stared at it for a moment, disbelief washing over her. The effects of the C-virus are getting stronger by the minute. She didn't get time to stare much longer because another Javo swung the butt of his rifle towards her. She rolled to the side but not before the butt catching her on her shoulder making her yelp from the impact. Lying on the ground, she aimed her pistol and fired a couple of shots to its head. Getting up quickly she ran towards it and slammed its head against the wall making the wood splintered against the blow.

"Sherry, you alright?" the mercenary called to her hearing her cry out in pain before. He was in the other side the room fighting three Javo's at once.

"I'm ok! There's too many of them here. We'll need to get away soon," she called back as she spun around to face two Javo's.

The mercenary grunted as he evaded a Javo who swung a combat knife towards him. This led him to get closer to the mutated Javo with horns making him resemble a horned beetle. He threw a leg out as he dropped on the ground and spun his body around catching a Javo on the shins tripping him on the floor. Raising a foot high in the air, he brought it down hard on the Javo's side crushing his ribs. He felt them crack underneath his foot making the Javo cry out in pain. He kicked another Javo behind its knees sending it kneeling on the ground. He quickly moved behind it and grabbing its head in his hands, he gave it a savage twist breaking its neck and severing it from the spinal cord. He let it go and it dropped on the ground. He barely had enough time to catch his breath when he suddenly felt a pressure against his torso. Looking down, he realized the mutated Javo had trapped him between its horns and is beginning to squeeze the life out of him. He felt his feet leave the ground as it lifted him up the air increasing the pressure on his waist. He groaned in pain and threw a hard punch at one is its horns. It cried in pain a little but it seemed to anger it more.

"Let him go!"

He looked up just in time to see his partner deliver a flying kick on its back making it release him. He dropped on his ass on the ground and rolled out of the way when the Javo tried to stab him with the sharp ends of his horns. The Javo ended up having it stuck on the ground. It made an angry sound as it tried to pry itself. His partner raised her pistol and rammed the butt of it on its head cracking the outer shell. He got up and delivered a palm strike on its face making the crack bigger as it roared in pain. Taking his gun, he aimed and fired a couple of shots shattering its head completely. Blood and flesh matter oozed out of the cracked skull making a pool around the dead body.

Another loud explosion erupted and another side of the wall shattered. More Javos emerged, guns drawn and ready to kill. Raising their rifles they fired a series of shots towards the pair. Kicking the wooden table in the middle, the mercenary hid behind it as shots punctured the wood barely missing him.

"Jake, let's go!" his partner yelled.

He got to his feet and jumped over the splintered table. Making a quick dash outside, he rammed his shoulder against a Javo that sent it sprawling on the ground. He felt the ground beneath him shake and a deafening sound erupted above him. He tried to steady himself and he felt the ground move. He felt bits of snow hit him against his neck and face.

Up ahead, he saw his partner get on a snow mobile. "It's an avalanche! Let's get out of here!"

He didn't need to be told twice. He ran beside her and got on the other snow mobile. "I told them to keep the noise down!" he muttered. Turning on the engine and lights, he took a quick glance behind him to see a huge wave of snow crashing nearly upon them burying the shack. "Punch it! Before we get buried alive!"

Sherry got in front of him as he drove behind her. Slamming his foot down on the accelerator as hard as he could, he tried to focus ahead and get away from the cabin as fast as possible. Another loud rumble erupted and to his dread, the path ahead of them began to crack and snow continued to rain down from the rocks above. "The whole mountain's coming down! God must really hate us today!"

His partner held on the handle of her snow mobile as tight as she could. It's almost as if she's afraid she might slip to her snowy grave. "Keep going! Anyway, I don't hate you!"

"Oh great! That helps!" yelled the mercenary sarcastically. He took a quick glance behind him and saw the high waves of snow rolling towards them. He turned back to his partner. "Keep your speed up! I don't want to be buried alive here!"

She pressed down on the accelerator as hard as she could. The wall of rocks beside them started caving in and snow rained down upon them. She felt large bits of pieces of ice hitting her bare face causing an icy sting against her skin. "Oh no! Go right!"

The pair turned their snow mobiles towards the right hoping to avoid being buried by ice. Deafening sounds continued to blast behind them as the ground continued to crack and break. Sherry winced as bits of snow continued to pelt down her face stinging her eyes. She couldn't slow down because that would mean a horrible icy death. She pressed her lips together in concentration as she followed the path showed by the light from her vehicle.

"This is not a good idea!" the mercenary called as snow pelted down his face and body.

"Too late now!"

They entered a cavern and she gave out a cry as she tried to avoid being stabbed by the sharp icicles falling from the ceiling. "Watch out above you!"

Jake gritted his teeth as he swerved around a heavy icicle that fell just a foot away from him. "Yeah, I can see that! Not only are we gonna be buried alive, we're gonna end up being human pin cushions too!" he yelled. This shit just keeps getting worse. Powering his snow mobile, he continued to go on. After avoiding a few more icicles the night sky reappeared. He felt glad they were out of there. However he didn't get to appreciate that feeling much longer because as they continued forward, he saw the ground end. Below is an endless ravine swallowed in darkness. We're fucked, he thought to himself. As their vehicles slid on near the edge of the ledge he yelled, "Jump!"

Quick as a flash, Sherry put her feet on the seat of her vehicle and using this momentum, she forced her legs to jump as high as she could. She held her breath as she flew through the air. The cold wind blew past her ruffling her hair. She let out a groan as she landed on the ground, stumbling a little as the momentum from the speed of the snow mobile made her trip on her feet and fall on the ground. She heard another groan near her and saw her partner landing on the snow beside her rolling to his feet. Catching her breath she looked at him. "That was close."

Wiping a hand against his brow he looked back at the ravine where their snow mobiles fell. "Shit, rollercoasters could not compare to that."

Looking around their surroundings, Sherry took in an endless sea of snow. There were high walls of jagged rocks several feet away from them. She wondered where on earth they could be. Taking her smart phone out of her pocket, she activated her map. To her relief she found out their position is close to the base of her team. "Good news! We're not too far from the rendezvous meeting. I can probably radio my team in and pick us up from here."

"After everything we've been through, I couldn't wait to get the fuck out of here," he muttered. Standing up, he dusted off the snow clinging to his pants and coat. He looked at their surroundings hoping not to run into anymore Javo's. "I hope they'll get here fast. Before we turn into a human popsicle."

Sherry made the call to her team and told them their location. All they had to do is wait. She crossed her arms across her chest hoping to conserve some heat. Her coat is once again wet making it harder to keep warm. She silently prayed her team would get here soon.

"Come on, let's take shelter against that wall of rocks. It might give us some shield from the wind and snow," her partner suggested as he pointed towards the direction of them. He started making his way towards it.

Sherry forced her legs to walk but with knee deep in snow and rising, it's proving to be a little challenge for her. She watched her partner walk ahead of her with more ease. He had the height advantage between the two and she envied it.

Glancing behind her, he saw that she had fallen behind a couple of feet. He stopped and waited for her to reach his side. A huge blast of wind slammed into them making her stumble. He reached out and grabbed her arm preventing her from toppling over. Shielding a hand over his eyes from the snow, he put an arm around her waist as he guided her towards the wall of rocks. They both collapsed against it from exhaustion. He leaned his head against his arm as he tried to catch his breath.

"Thank you."

He strained his ears to hear her. She spoke so softly he barely heard what she said. He frowned in confusion. "For what?"

"Back in the cabin. For patching me up. For staying," she said softly, eyes looking at him with a genuine expression.

He shrugged in return. "Well looks like I don't have to worry much about you, super girl. I gotta say, you know how to kick ass and you can heal fast. Took me by surprise and I never expected that from you but I'm not complaining."

She felt herself smiling at him. "Is that a compliment?"

He gave her a half smile. "Call it what you want. Just don't get used to it."

A loud whirring sound came above them and a private jet appeared before them. Its spot light searched the ground for the pair.

"Come on, let's go!" she said as she hurried towards the light to be spotted. The mercenary followed her. As she reached the light, she waved her hands signalling for the aircraft to land close by. It landed several feet away from them and opened the hatch. The two ran as fast as they could inside, never been happier to finally get out of the place.

"Yes, he's here with me. He's safe. We're on our way back to the United States," Sherry said as she spoke on her cell phone. A flight attendant came up to her and handed her a warm cup of tea which she gratefully accepted.

The mercenary who's standing by a few feet away looking out of the private jet's window glanced at his partner. He raised his eyebrows as their eyes met.

"Once we get his blood tested and develop a vaccine, he needs to be in strict protective custody. A lot of organisations are after him and we can't afford them to get their hands on him," she continued. She nodded a few times as she listened to her boss on the other side of the line. "Understood. Oh, there's something I need run with you. Mr Muller is asking for compensation for his cooperation. Yes, that's right," she paused as she listened at the other end of the line. "Fifty million dollars. Alright. I'll let him know." She pressed the end call button from her phone and tucked it in her pocket. Reaching for her cup, she took a long sip enjoying the warm liquid going down her throat.

Her partner walked to the elegant cushioned seat and sat down. "So? Do we have a deal?"

"Yes, we have a deal," she answered.

He let out a whoop as he clapped his hands. "Well, that was easy." He noticed his mercenary faction's insignia on his shoulder. "Oh," he said and then proceeded to rip it off and toss it aside. He no longer works for them so he couldn't see why he should hold any loyalty for them either. "So how long before we get there?"

She looked at her watch. "Edonia's pretty far from the US. I would say around twelve to thirteen hours."

"Well at least we have this nice private jet to kick back and relax on the way. Pretty flashy so can't complain. Never been in one of these things," he said as he stretched a leg out on the long couch and leaned back in the soft warm leather. "Heh, maybe I should get me one of these once I'm rich."

"All in due time. First thing's first. We need to analyse your blood and genome patterns before deciding which the best way to develop a treatment is."

He gave a wave of his hand. "Yeah, yeah. I have to do all that shit first before getting paid. All I gotta say is, this better be worth it for my fifty."

A loud crashing sound erupted from the side of the plane. The pair was on their feet in a second, alert and ready. They stood back to back as they searched the jet for anything suspicious.

"What was that?" she asked as dread began to rise up her chest.

"I've got a bad feeling about this. And here it comes," he replied as he felt his body tensed up.

Another loud screech erupted as they heard metal bending and being ripped off. A deafening sound came after and before they knew it, there was a huge hole where the tail of the jet used to be. Cold harsh wind and snow pelted their bare skin like bullets. At the end of plane stood a huge figure nearly filling up the hole.

"Oh my God, he's back!" she cried in alarm. She gripped her pistol and aimed it towards the monster.

"God damn it! This fucker just can't give us a break!" he yelled as he also aimed his gun towards it.

The pair started firing towards. The monster growled angrily then disappeared from view. Both looked around, body alert and tensed for danger. Cups, cushions, plate, eating utensils and papers flew out of the hole. Metal screeched above them and to their horror, the monster ripped a chunk out of the roof with his metal claw. Roaring, it extended it wrapping it around Sherry's waist as it tried to pull her out of the jet.

Using her hands to grab on the edge of the roof, she held on as tightly as she could. The monster is strong and she could feel her grip loosening. She won't be able to hold on for much longer. "Jake, help!"

She heard his footsteps as he hurried towards her. He balled his hand into a tight fist and rammed it down the monster's arm causing it to let his partner go. She landed on her bottom on the flush carpet. "Don't worry. He doesn't want you!"

It gave another angry roar and disappeared from view. The jet groaned under the heavy weight of the monster. They felt a huge dip in the air as it tried to hold it in the air in the middle of a snow storm.

"What the hell is going on? What happened?" cried the pilot over the jet's speakers.

The stewardess rushed into the room and gaped in shock and horror at the sight before her. The jet is practically split into two. She held on the back of the large seats. "Oh my God!"

"I'm sorry. We didn't mean to put your lives in danger," Sherry apologized. She felt bad that other people had to experience this nightmare. They have to get rid of it fast. A loud explosion rang out from the cockpit. Fire erupted and smoke started filling the air. The stewardess screamed. The jet has blown up into flames. Oxygen masks fell overhead. Grabbing a parachute, the stewardess put it on.

"This is getting crazy! Even for me," called the mercenary as he continued to fire towards the monster. He stopped to reload his pistol. "I should have read the fine print before signing up for this!"

The jet took a nose dive in the air. Clinging on to an arm rest, the stewardess grabbed another parachute and tossed it to Sherry. "That's the only one left! I can't find the others. They must have fallen out of the jet" she cried as she frantically looked for more around her. Loud metal shrieked as the jet ripped apart. The stewardess lost her grip and fell into the dark sky, her scream lost in the howling wind. Sherry cried out as she tried to reach out for her but it was too late. The monster appeared again at the tail of the jet. Glaring at the monster she took out an explosive grenade and threw it towards it landing on the floor close by.

"Shoot it!"

Jake aimed his gun towards the monster and fired which sent an explosion. The monster howled in pain as it lost its grip from the edge of the jet and fell from the sky. The pair couldn't celebrate because suddenly a loud alarm came blaring throughout the whole jet. "Shit, we're gonna crash!" he cried out.

The jet lurched forward and the two were thrown on the floor and slid to the edge of the jet into the open air. They managed to get their grips on time before it was too late. In the process of tumbling to their doom and trying to catch her grip, Sherry dropped the parachute she was clutching before. It lay at the other end of the cabin. "Damn it! The parachute!"

The jet gave another dangerous lurch and the alarm went louder by the minute. It won't last much longer. The parachute rolled closer to them as the jet fell in an angle tipping its contents towards the hole. The mercenary grunted as he reached out and snatched it before it fell. Letting go of the jet, he tugged his partner's arm off it and both fell fast as the wind and snow pelted against them. Strong wind slammed against him and he squinted his eyes to avoid the cold sting. Putting the parachute on quickly, he kept his hand onto her arm as he pulled her to his body. He felt her arms go around his waist tightly. He pulled the cord of the parachute and felt his body go up as the wind pulled them up and slowed down their fall. A loud explosion erupted above them and he knew their jet is destroyed. Bits and pieces of their aircraft rained down around them. He felt something hit one side of their parachute and heard a ripping sound. A large piece from the jet managed to hit it and ripped a hole.

"Hold on tight!" he warned his partner as he felt their fall increase its speed. He braced for the impact as the ground came to meet them.

He opened his eyes slowly and waited for his vision to clear. Blinking a few times he found himself staring at a nozzle of an assault rifle. He tried to sit up but felt a weight lying on top of him. Looking down, he found his partner lying on top of him, the side of her face buried against his chest. He looked at her face underneath her ruffled blonde hair and realized she was knocked out. Raising a hand, he gave her shoulder a shake. She gave a moan, much his relief to know she's still alive. She raised her head and looked at his face then saw the rifle pointed towards them.

"Hello, Ms Birkin and Mr Muller. Good to see you're still alive. We'll be taking you now," a female voice said near them.

The pair quickly got to their feet to find themselves facing the same lady from before. Sherry shot the woman a glare. "We're not going anywhere with you!"

"Hmm. That is not for you to decide, agent. We have lots of plans for the both of you," she continued as she crossed her arms. She arched an eyebrow at the pair with an expression 'I can't be bothered playing games with you' on her face. She gestured with her head, "Take them."

Several Javos closed in on them. The mercenary put an arm out in front of his partner and gave them a sneer. "The hell you will."

Before he could say anything else, three of them jumped at him grabbing his arms. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw two restraining his partner. She gave a cry as they harshly pulled her arms behind her to cuff them and roughly shove her forward. "Hey, hands off!"

He punched a Javo holding his arm and thrusted a palm to the face of another. He raised a knee and hit another on the stomach making it grunt and roll on the ground. He felt someone grab him from behind restraining his arms. As soon as he brought down a Javo, two more replaced them. He felt his arms being held back as a black cloth was pulled over his head. "Get the fuck off me!"

He struggled to get free but so many hands are on him restricting his movements. He could hear his partner struggling several feet away. The last thing he heard was a cry of pain from her as he felt something stick on his neck. "Damn it…" he muttered before losing consciousness.