Chapter 7: Protect
Billy and Rebecca were at a dead end in the Training Facility. They retraced their steps to certain rooms, seeing if anymore doors had opened. On the second floor past the huge, dead centipede, the knight door was open. It led them into a small working area with a huge telescope sticking through the ceiling. There were a large set of computers down beside it, with thick cables and wires. Rebecca felt nauseas near the telescope and computers, and knew that it must have been the electromagnetic field from all the jumbled wires and computers that was making her dizzy. The door on the other side of the telescope was locked, but they also noticed down by the computers there were empty slots where large emblems looked like they belonged. Rebecca read Umbrella's message below it, remembering the words from the intercom when they first arrived here.
They fell back, going back downstairs and into the kitchen area once more. They passed it and went to the boiler room, where the steam had died down enough for them to pass through. The hallway led them down into another dungeon once more. Rebecca immediately put her guard up, even though Billy took the lead. They came to an opening in the room, where there were six large animal statues surrounding a broken fountain.
"What kind of place is this?" Billy sighed.
The chamber was lit by torches on the walls and by ancient looking chandeliers up above. The dungeon smelled of dust, smoke, and death. Just as they were passing the large fountain, they heard a screech that brought bile up their throats. They spun around, the handcuffs catching their wrists sharply. Two large baboons blocked their way, baring long fangs and strong, nimble muscles. Their silver fur was bloody and torn in parts, but they showed no sign of injury as they moved hungrily for them. The baboons screamed again. Rebecca and Billy opened fire with their handguns. The bullets made the baboons go wild, and they rushed them.
Rebecca barely took down one of them. The other leaped, striking Billy hard and tackling him down to the ground. The force from the creature taking him down tore on the handcuffs, and before she knew it, Rebecca was taken down as well. She lost her gun in the fall, but looked over to see Billy fighting the baboon off with sheer strength. She couldn't waste any time, seeing as the infected monkey was trying to bite Billy with those long fangs, and Billy was getting scratched up bad. Rebecca moved her body over, putting all of her strength into her legs as she kicked the creature off of him.
The baboon screeched in anger and bloodlust. It flipped back onto its legs and rushed for them again. Just as it leaped onto Billy for the second time, Rebecca saw Billy pull out his knife. As the baboon landed on him, Billy shoved the knife into the creature's throat. Blood sprayed out all over him, but the baboon went limp and he was able to shove the thing off.
"Jesus!" Billy spat, wiping at his face with his free hand. He quickly glanced over at Rebecca. "Are you alright, Rebecca?"
"Am I alright? You almost got your face eaten by a baboon," sighed Rebecca. "That was incredible what you just did. You killed it with your knife."
Billy sat up, and Rebecca followed. They didn't get to their feet just yet. They wanted their adrenaline to subside first, and catch their breath. Rebecca recovered her handgun, and holstered it. Billy wiped at his face again, this time also spitting out of his mouth.
"Yeah, well…the Marines will do that to you," he heaved.
Rebecca got him some alcohol pads so he could clean his face from her medical pack. He took them with gratitude and used them to wipe the creature's blood off of him. Afterwards, Billy tossed the pads aside. He looked up at Rebecca, this quirky smile coming onto his handsome face.
"That was quite a kick."
"What? Oh, well, I didn't have my gun. I had to help you some way," Rebecca answered, slightly blushing.
Billy snickered. "Well thanks, doll face. Let's go."
She nodded. Billy held out his hand to her, the one that was connected to the cuffs. Rebecca smiled, taking his hand. He helped her to her feet. They brushed themselves off and continued along. At the end of the chamber, there were two doors. One was directly in front of them, the other to their right. They decided to head straight. On the other side, they found themselves standing at the top of these metal wire stairs that led down. The tunnel was made of limestone, and it smelled heavy of it along with rusty pipes. They could follow the pipes down the tunnel. They came to another door to their right.
Billy nodded, and they check it first. The tiny room they came into was an attachment to a sewer base. A waterfall spilled down from somewhere up above, and the stone floor hardly gave them anything. Rebecca heard this hissing sound, followed by a hollow rattle. To her it sounded very much like an agitated rattlesnake. They looked over. Down at the end of the small room were two large injects the size of dogs. By their appearance, Rebecca thought they looked almost like mosquitoes only with large pinschers and they were wingless. Their spiny legs moved like a hungry predator, and both insects turned around from their meal of a zombie to look at them. The huge red, blank, eyeballs were shining from the overhead light.
Rebecca shot out of there, Billy close behind. They slammed the door hard, and heard the two insects run into the metal frame. They screeched and hissed on the other side. They continued on, coming to a pair of double metal doors. They cautiously opened one door and slid inside into the next room. The limestone tunnel became a part of a metal and concrete room. There were stairs leading up to their right, and to their left was an open door way.
"This is confusing. How did they cope with this?" Rebecca asked, already turned around.
"I have no idea," Billy sighed.
The doorway to their left led them into a concrete maze that was blocked by metal bar doors. They fell back and went up the stairs. The little office upstairs had a computer system overlooking a window that showed the view above the concrete maze. There were guns all over the place, most were old and broken. Billy was mesmerized once more, but he grew annoyed once he realized that all the guns were ruined beyond repair. They scavenged the rest of the office, finding more bullets to each of their guns. Rebecca felt lucky to have found this much ammunition, and was thankful for it.
"Hey, check this out," Billy said, dragging her over to the levers and buttons on the system. He pushed a button, and noticed that the bar doors slid down to open the maze. He smiled over at her. "Shall we go into the maze of death?"
"That's not funny, Billy."
"Sorry."
They left the office and reentered the maze. They followed the small walkway through to the back, reaching another panel with some more buttons on it. She glared dully up at Billy. She was unimpressed with the useless panel they came up with. Billy pushed the biggest red button. Rebecca smacked his arm hard, but it was too late.
"You can't just press buttons! That can be dangerous!"
"Yes, but we are already in a deathtrap. What if the buttons open a door to an escape?" Billy asked, looking down at her. She was still glaring at him. "Fine, I will be a little more cautious next time."
"Thank you."
"Warning. B.O.W release initialized. Closing doors." came a soft, female voice above them on the intercom.
"What? What kind of a release?" Billy grunted.
His question was soon answered when they heard a shrieking hiss that sent icy daggers up their spines. It had to be the scariest sound Rebecca had heard so far. They noticed the large vents with bars blocking them on each corner of the maze. They got their weapons ready. Billy got the shotgun, and Rebecca got the carbine. Only they had a problem.
"I can't aim if you aim!" Rebecca barked, as Billy raised the barrel up to aim, the cuffs following him and cutting her arm length.
"We got a problem then," Billy growled. "How well can you shoot with one hand?"
"Considering my free hand is my left hand…not so well!"
A very large, very fast creature with green skin and scales crashed into the bars, roaring out. The bars were raised, releasing the creature out into the maze. It sprinted for them with talons that were almost a foot long. It was so fast; Billy didn't have anytime but to aim the shotgun against Rebecca's hand and fire. The shotgun blew it onto its back. The reptilian-like monster roared out, using its front arms to vault it back onto its legs. There was a gaping hole in the thing's chest, but it still rushed them with hunger.
"Billy!"
Billy fired a second shot. This time the blast took off the upper half of the creature. The monster crashed to the ground dead. Before the body could even touch the floor, another creature was flying around the corner. It leaped with amazing speed and height. Billy knew he had no time to aim the shotgun again. He grabbed Rebecca and shoved her forward. The fell forward together, missing the screeching monster by inches. It whirled around, its long arms almost touching the ground. Its talons raked across the concrete wall as it shot for them again.
Billy fired two more rounds of the shotgun. The first blast hit the arm directly, spraying the rest of the round into the creature's chest and head. The second round blew a cavity through its abdomen and knocked it onto its back dead. The maze became silent once more. The two of them were frozen in horror. The baboons now seemed like poodles compared to whatever these things were. They stared down at the ugly, aggressive creatures, blood pooling the floor.
"Threat terminated. The doors are now open."
"No thanks to you!" Billy growled, glaring up at the intercom. They heard the doors reopen up ahead.
"What the hell are these things?" Rebecca grunted, looking them over.
"It looks like it is half gorilla half lizard…Gorilizard!"
"Billy! I'm serious!"
"I'm serious too! Let's get the hell out of here before more try to come and eat us!" he barked, passing her. Rebecca was jerked forward to follow. She gave one last look over her shoulders at the dead monsters.
Once they were out of the maze, Billy took a moment to reload the shotgun. Rebecca stuck to his left, since the handcuffs were on her right hand; she was stuck at his left side until they got out of them.
"No more button pushing for you," Rebecca sighed, shaking her head slightly.
Billy gave her a wry smile. "I totally agree, doll face."
***
"Damn, they have some lucky juju or something," sighed William. He watched them the entire time, hoping his beloved Hunters would finally kill the two handcuffed intruders. He stuffed some more popcorn into his mouth, wishing they had more butter on them. "All well, I guess next time they will die."
The door behind him opened. He immediately grabbed his gun off of the panel, and spun around in his rolling chair, mouth still full of popcorn and aimed it. It wasn't an enemy, but it wasn't somebody he would have expected either. It was not Annette, and it was definitely not Wesker.
"William? What are you doing?" Ada Wong asked, wearing black heels, black dress pants, and a dark blue blouse. She had a gun in one hand, letting him know she had been wondering around.
"Nawthinhg," he mumbled, popcorn spilling out of his mouth.
She glared at him. "Where's Albert?"
William swallowed hard, thinking for a moment. He decided he was going to be a smartass with her. "He is not here at the moment, please leave a message after the beep…Beep!"
Ada walked over to him, looking over the cameras. A smirk came onto her beautiful face, and she glared down at him, crossing her arms. "Are you spying on poor defenseless souls trying to survive this place?"
"Yes. But only while I am waiting for the computer to finish the system check."
"Is that going to be awhile?"
"It is a really, really old computer."
Ada sighed again, shaking her head. "So, is there a reason why Albert isn't answering my calls?"
"Yes. He is trying to kill his S.T.A.R.S team at the Spencer estate right now. Did he not tell you last poker game?"
The look she gave him was a definite no. William smiled sheepishly up at her, not wanting to get her annoyed too much. As much as the two of them were friends, she still had her moments to be cruel. "I'm sure it just slipped his mind. I mean we have a lot on our plates! Blowing this place to hell, killing off S.T.A.R.S, killing off Spencer, and blowing the Spencer estate up, stuff like that."
"Ah-huh, and are we all supposed to regroup in your lab under Raccoon City?"
"Correcto mundo! Just make sure you remember your lines if a different scenario plays out. Make sure you sound like a damsel looking for her dear, sweet boyfriend."
Ada rolled her eyes. "You are starting to sound like Albert."
"Really? Damn, he must have rubbed off on me," William chuckled. "Is that the only reason you endangered your life coming here? To see Wesker?"
She death glared him. William slumped back in his rolling chair. Ada grabbed some popcorn and put it in her mouth. "No, I came to get some certain data and documents. I already got them, so I can head out now."
"Don't tell me Annette sent you," William groaned.
"Relax, Will. I'm here for Wesker," Ada chuckled.
"Wait, what? You knew he was gone? Stop playing with me! He sent you down here to make sure I got my job done, didn't he? What a bastard!"
Ada looked entirely amused. "No. Different documents. Different data. You are okay for now, William. And no, I am not going to be your body guard."
"Good. I didn't want you to be."
Ada backed off, looking like she was going to head out of the room. She stopped, turning around to smile down at him as he gawked at her.
"You better chill or I will tell Annette that you lied to her about helping Wesker assassinate Marcus all those years ago."
It was William's turn to glare coldly at her, eyes squinting and eyebrows furrowing. "You wouldn't. Oh yeah? Well, I will tell John that you had an affair with Wesker! Hah!"
Ada folded her arms, not in the least bit worried. "John's a zombie, William. Good luck getting it through his head."
"Dammit, that's right," Will sighed, scratching his head. He then waved her off. "Well, I have work to do. You better get out of here before I blow this place to hell."
He looked back onto the screen, realizing that Billy and Rebecca had just found the spare key to the blue water door that would lead them into his hideout. He could tell they recognized it by the way they were talking on screen. William yelped, leaping up to his feet.
"I gotta get outta here! They are on their way!"
"Who? Those two handcuffed people?" Ada asked, looking out the window into the night. The forest was dark and eerie, and she could feel the cool breeze filtering through the glass of the window.
"Yes!" he growled, and then noticed that the test was done. He clicked Finish on the screen and then grinned. "Yay! I can get out of here now!" He turned back to Ada, who was peering at him curiously. "Can you please walk with me through the courtyard and help me fend off a gigantic bat?"
Ada heaved a long, tired sigh. "I guess I better. I wouldn't hear the end of it from Albert if I let you die."
William's face fell and he glared at her some more. "Thanks a lot. Glad to know that both of you care so much. Let's go before they find this room."
"I'm just walking with you over to the next section. And then I am out of here," Ada told him.
"Fine!"
***
The water emblazoned door was unlocked by the key they found in one of the Gorilizard cages. The weird thing to Rebecca however, was that in the dim lit, dirty art room where the door had been, there had been no creatures in the hallway outside. Now there was a dead zombie, who looked to have been a researcher with a bullet hole through its skull. The nametag on the lab coat said Bob Diller. Billy and Rebecca exchanged glances, knowing this wasn't their work. Somebody else was definitely here wandering around. That would explain not only this, but some other dead creatures they didn't kill and some of the doors unlocking.
They went through the blue door into a hallway. The hallway was tiny and cold, with three doors along its way. They checked out the first one on their right. It led them into a small security room. The large screen above the computer panel showed cameras from all over the Training facility, some at different angles. A message on the computer was still present, and there was also a bowl of popcorn sitting on the panel. Rebecca immediately got the chills.
Billy, clenching his teeth in agitation, felt the rolling chair. It was still warm from somebody sitting in it. He cursed out loud, shaking his head.
"I knew we were being watched. This isn't good, Rebecca."
"I know," Rebecca whispered, suddenly paranoid. "You can tell they have been here for awhile too."
She found a file next to the bowl of popcorn. It held a few pages showing pictures and information on the creatures they had come to face. The baboons were called Eliminators. The insect hybrid monsters were called Plague Crawlers, and the green reptilian creatures were called Hunters.
"Well, here's some info on our lovely monsters. I guess your Gorilizards are called Hunters. The name fits perfectly."
"It does. I wonder why," Billy snorted, being a complete smartass.
She glared up at him. "We need to stay focused."
"We need to keep our guard up. Let's go."
Rebecca nodded, following Billy out of the security camera room. They went down to the next door, getting their weapons ready. Billy pushed open the red door and then flew in, guns up. It was a nice little diner bar with no one in it. There were only a few tables and chairs, but the bar was full with leftover drinks and food. Stools lined the bar from one end to the other. The menu was still up on the back wall, and Billy and Rebecca could see a refrigerator, a stove, and an open door that led back into the food storage area. Pretty scenery paintings were hanging along the wall, some in between the dark curtains of windows.
Rebecca saw a piano in the corner, and she grinned. She pulled Billy over to it. The grand piano was old and dusty, but definitely still playable. She tested out a few keys, smiling even more. She hadn't played the piano in years. Her mother used to make her take lessons with her grandmother as a kid. Rebecca liked playing the piano, and the time spent learning it with her grandmother was something she would never forget.
"Wow, I haven't played in a long time," she sighed, mesmerized by a sense of love and nostalgia.
"Well, try it out," Billy chuckled.
"We might draw attention to ourselves," she stated.
Billy nodded to the piano. "Play."
Rebecca grinned, sitting down at the bench. She looked at the music sheet in front of her. It was a piece of Mozart. She popped her fingers, taking a deep breath and started playing. Billy extended his arm so she could play without pulling on the handcuffs. At first she started out okay, but as she progressed her fingers slipped from lack of practice. She grimaced at the sound that was coming from the piano, totally off key to the original work. Finally she gave up, pinning several keys to make a long drone before she got up from the bench.
She could tell that Billy was trying not to laugh, but it was all over his face. She glared playfully, even as he finally couldn't hold it any longer and chuckled out loud.
"Wow. That was horrible," he said.
"It's been years! What? Can you do better?" she challenged.
Billy slightly cocked his head, still grinning. "Maybe."
"Fine, then." She offered him the bench.
Billy sat down, popping his fingers like she did. He also rolled his shoulders, causing her to roll her eyes. She extended her arm for him so he could play freely. Billy started playing the keys. Rebecca was shocked. Billy hit every single key perfectly, not missing a note at all. He played the song with grace and ease, making her smile. Rebecca felt warm inside just by watching him. Billy seemed to let a secret part of himself out as he let the notes flow so beautifully, a part hidden away from a hard, struggling life.
Rebecca was sure Billy was not a murderer since they had been handcuffed together. But by how he played the piano, and how peaceful and gentle he looked, she definitely knew he wasn't a murderer. He didn't kill twenty-three people. Never have and never would.
Billy ended the piece as harmonizing as he did beginning it. His calloused fingers slid off the keys, and he peered up at her, cracking another handsome grin.
"How's that?"
"That was…amazing!" Rebecca laughed, blushing slightly again. Billy got up from the bench, joining her side.
Before anything else could be said between them, they heard gears turn on, and something heavy was sliding. They looked up in a hurry, jumping just about as they saw a part of the wall slide down to reveal a secret wine cellar. They exchanged startled glances, then cautiously made their way over to it.
"This is getting a bit too weird for me. The next thing will be putting a puzzle piece together and a door opening," Billy snorted.
"Somebody was a wine lover," Rebecca said, looking all over at the bottles of wine. There were so many bottles of red wine and white wine, all very fancy and old. Rebecca didn't know much about wine, but she knew that all these bottles were highly expensive and rare. She turned back to Billy and gawked at him. He had opened a bottle and was smelling the top, getting the stout aroma of red wine.
"What are you doing?" she asked.
"Nothing," he sighed. He pushed the cork back in it and put it back. "We should hurry in case this sliding panel wants to shut again."
"Oh, right," Rebecca stated. It was then she noticed something on the back wall. It was a large emblem made out of stone. She picked it up. The emblem was heavier than it looked. On the front was carved the word Obedience. She again was reminded of James Marcus's motto. Then she remembered the empty emblem slots by the telescope that said the motto below it. This emblem must have belonged there.
They left the little wine cellar. As soon as they were a few feet from it, the wall slid shut again. Billy pointed at the emblem. "What's that for?"
"The empty slots back in the telescope room. Maybe it will unlock another door," Rebecca answered.
"There were two others though. We might have to find them before any doors will open," Billy said, scratching his neck.
Billy had a point but there was just nothing else they could do. The Training Facility wasn't giving them any easy escapes. And now that they knew what Umbrella was up to, Rebecca understood why this place was a deathtrap, not just because of the B. they were making, but because of the traps and locks to prevent anyone from getting in or out.
They both knew they needed to get going, but both were compelled to just sit on the piano bench and rest for a moment. Rebecca thought about something to say, but no words came to mind when she sat next to him. She then remembered the piano, and smiled gently up at him.
"How did you get so good at the piano?" she giggled.
Billy slightly smiled. "My mother forced me to take classes when I was younger. It was simply horrible for me."
"Aw, sorry to hear that. You play very beautifully."
"Thanks. And what about you, Miss Young Prodigy? Why aren't you like Mozart?"
"I haven't played for years. My grandmother taught me. I always loved playing it, but I just didn't have time when I was in college, and definitely no time to play when I was training for S.T.A.R.S. Captain Wesker and Captain Enrico are strict when it comes to training," she sighed.
"Well, that's fine. You amused me nonetheless," Billy said, grinning.
She smacked him in the arm. "Yeah, I bet I did. I guess I need to start practicing again."
"Let's wait until we get out of the hellhole of monsters and traps before you start that," Billy added.
"Agreed," Rebecca retorted, laughing.
The two of them got to their feet. Rebecca still held onto the stone emblem, wondering what they were going to get themselves into next. So far they had been lucky, especially since they were locked at the wrist. But what if they have yet to see the half of it? The huge spiders, the deadly Hunters, the virus, the experiments…what if those weren't a fourth of what Umbrella has up their sleeves? They were stuck not only in the middle of a deathtrap, but a conspiracy full of lies, manipulation, and greed.
Her walky-talky beeped at her on her hip. Rebecca was surprised. She completely forgot about it. She heard Enrico's voice come on the gadget.
"Rebecca, are you there? It's Enrico, over."
She grabbed it, bringing the talker to her mouth. "I'm here. Are you alright, over?"
"I'm fine. Have you managed to locate Billy Coen yet?"
She saw Billy's eyes flash as he stood in front of her. Her heart skipped a beat. She knew she should tell Enrico the truth, but she couldn't give Billy up, not with her believing him to be innocent. She heaved a sigh before continuing to speak to the Bravo Captain.
"No, I haven't yet, sir. I will keep looking, over."
"Alright, watch your back. Coen isn't the only thing we have to worry about. I have no idea what the hell is going on, but be careful, Rebecca. Bravo Team has found a large mansion in the forest northwest of the railroad tracks. What's your location, over?"
"Another large building just south of you, sir. Over."
"Try and rendezvous with us. If Coen isn't found within this proximity, then he is as good as dead. Please be careful, Rebecca. Over."
"I will…over."
She strapped the walky-talky back onto her hip. She felt so disappointed and guilty. How could she forget about her teammates? She hoped everyone was safe, remembering poor Edward once more.
As if sensing her trepidation, Billy turned to face her directly. "Why did you lie to him?"
Rebecca looked up at him. His eyes seemed to search her very soul. She knew it had been wrong to lie to Enrico, but to her it was right. She just didn't know why it was right. She slightly shook her head. "I…don't know. I guess…I guess I'm just trying to protect you."
Billy smiled weakly at her, his lips barely twitching. "Thanks, doll face. That really means a lot to me."
Rebecca lowered her eyes. "Thank you for…protecting me, Billy."
She felt his warm hand come up under her chin. He lifted her chin just barely, and she looked back into his eyes. His eyes were soft and gentle, his smile genuine. He rubbed her chin slightly. "You are welcome…Rebecca."
A/N: Sorry for the long wait, lol. I'm having to play through the game and change many things as I write. They don't really find one of the stone emblems in the wine cellar, but a battery which I will not drabble on about lol. I forgot what music they played on the piano, so I just put in that it was Mozart! Anyways, a long chapter here, which I am happy for. Don't worry, this was the only time we are going to see Ada, lol. We will see William just a little more, but not as much as we have been. Umm, I hope I explained all the tunnels and battles well. I didn't want to feel like I was pushing it. So, I loved the piano part, and I am glad I was able to put that in there. Hope all of you enjoyed this chapter! Thanks for reading and reviewing! XD