Two Weeks Prior to the Lock Down in Springfield
Only a week had passed since she had escaped the facility, and they were headed back east. It was Alice who wanted to see first hand exactly what remained of Raccoon City, though it was on all their minds as well. It probably wasn't the smartest move, but Alice could not help but to stare in wonder, at the ruins that laid behind the still present walls.
"It seems like it was just yesterday," Alice said finally. "Everything's so vivid."
"Well, maybe for you," Carlos started. "But not us. The crash sight was this way."
After hiding the car, the group made their way into the forest, along an invisible path that only her companions seemed to know. They were at the top of a waterfall, looking down onto rock and water, which quickly disappeared into the trees.
"Right there," Carlos pointed the exact spot where the remains of the helicopter had been. "After we got you out of the wreck, we searched the area around the sight, for nearly half an hour."
"There was no sign of her," Alice added. Carlos fell silent, looking down the cliff with remorse.
"No, there wasn't. If that door would have shut," Jill said. "Then she wouldn't have been thrown from the cabin. But it didn't. It was stuck open."
Alice surveyed the whole area, lips pressed together in a straight line.
"Let's go."
"Alice-"
"I said lets go," her tone was firm this time, as she headed back in the direction of the road. Her companions followed her, as they quickly returned to the Trail Blazer. Alice's hand was on the door, when she paused, looking up.
For the past week she had felt like someone was surveying her every move, tracking her, not letting her out of their sight. She wasn't sure who, or even what it was, but she knew it was more than just paranoia.
"Where to?" L.J asked, as he climbed behind the wheel. It was silent for a moment.
"Where's the closest Umbrella facility?" Alice asked, out of curiosity.
The other occupants of the car seem to tense at the question.
"Detroit, why?"
Alice looked out the window as they turned around, heading away from the ruins.
"Can we go there?"
Whatever was following her, she had a feeling Umbrella was involved. And there was only one way to get to the center of it.
She would have to infiltrate the research facility. It was nearly an hour and a half before they reached the city. L.J stopped at a small gas station on the outskirts of the town to fill up. Alice climbed out of the back seat, shutting the door behind her.
"I want you all to get out of here," she said quietly to L.J, as she crossed to the other side of the vehicle to stand next to him.
"Hold up, what?"
"You heard me. I need to figure out more about what they did to me. It'll be a lot easier, if I don't have to worry about all of you while doing it."
"Alice-"
"No," the blonde said firmly, pinning him with a sharp look. L.J froze. "You need to get out of here. All of you. I'll be fine, I'll catch up with you later. You trust me right?"
The man was shaking his head.
"Damn girl, you better know I trust you by now. But that's whack, even for you."
"L.J."
"Okay... I got it."
Alice let out a small breath of relief, knowing that the others would not be so easy to convince. She made her way back around the car, to the passenger side where Jill had the window down, and was leaning on the door easily.
"Take care of everyone, okay?"
Half comprehending the question, the brunette grunted.
"What?"
"I said, take care of them. I have something to do here."
Jill sat up straight, giving her an incredulous look.
"You mean to say-"
"I'm not leaving Detroit. Not right yet, at least," Alice said. "But you all are. You need to stay safe."
"What are you going to do?"
Jill's voice was more of a hiss, trying not to rouse Angie, who was sound asleep in the back seat.
"I have to get some information."
"Are you shitting me?"
Alice slowly shook her head.
"I have to. I'll be fine. More fine if I know you all are far away from here, cause then I won't spend the whole time worrying."
She looked into the back seat. Carlos was also dozing, having driven all of the previous night.
"Jill," the blonde started. The brunette cut her off sharply though.
"Alright, okay. I get it," the cop's irritation was obvious. "Just don't get yourself killed, alright? We went through a lot of trouble to bust you out back in Springfield."
"Thank you, for that," Alice added, figuring now was as good a time as any. L.J was sliding behind the wheel again, as he started the engine. His brown eyes met Alice's, and the woman gave him a single nod.
"Be careful," she warned.
"Us? Be careful? Worry about yourself, huh?" Jill said, eyes narrowed as she studied the other woman. Alice simply nodded.
"I'll see you guys again. Don't worry."
Jill's snort was more of disbelief, as she closed the window, effectively shutting out the blonde. Alice watched as the black SUV pulled away from the gas station, speeding back in the direction they had come from.
When they were finally out of sight, she turned to face the city.
"Well, Alice," she muttered to herself, as she started towards the mass of buildings. "Let's see what you got."
Present Time
Darkness was the only thing that registered in Rain's mind. Darkness and abandonment. She was on some sort of hardly cushioned table, covered with a white sheet. It took only a few seconds for her eyes to adjust to the room's dimness. Some sort of tank was in the corner of the room, faintly illuminated - the only thing of light in this otherwise hole of nothing, tubes and wires lay in disuse as traces of water littered the floor around it. It was only the dampness of her own hair that made her want to look more closely at it.
What had happened? Where was she? How did she get here?
The tiled floor was cold beneath her feet, and her muscles protested from the sudden use, tight from weeks of recovery. Stiffly she made her way across the room, ignoring her state of undress as she fell to her knees at what seemed to be a doorway - one of the tank's walls that had been lowered.
She spent several minutes, studying the different assortment of tubes and wires, but eventually she clambered back to her feet, wrapping herself in the sheet before making her way slowly out of the room.
The halls were as dark as the rest of the place, and empty. A chill went up Rain's spine as she took in her surroundings.
There was absolutely nothing in the vicinity, and that put her more on edge than anything else could have. With hesitating strides, she carried herself out the front door. It was almost like reliving Raccoon City all over again - the streets were empty, cars abandoned at random. She heard a low moaning in the distance, something she was sure would haunt her for the rest of her life.
The Umbrella compound seemed to be closed off from the rest of the city, the newly added walls keeping all infected out. That gave Rain just a bit of reassurance, as she looked at the several buildings in the area. One of them had to have clothes and weapons that she could pilfer, surely. Most of their posts had been, or were in the process, of converting to joint military bases, she remembered very well from just before the incident in the Hive. Rain moved away from the medical lab, down the stairs, not seeming to care about being barefooted.
With a roll of her eyes, she realized just how easy it would be to navigate the facility - each of the buildings were clearly named for their purpose. Shaking a head, she first headed towards one just across the street from the medical facility. The sign told her it was a dual commissary/post exchange, which solidified her belief of being on one of the upgraded umbrella compounds. The doors were thankfully still unlocked, and she entered the dark store. To the immediate right was a small clothing area, which was where she started her search.
Still holding the sheet tightly around her, she stopped at an aisle of pants and jackets, first grabbing a pair of pants - though a solid shade of black, the material felt similar to that of an army uniform, she immediately recognized. Tucking the pants under her arms, she moved on, grabbing under ware before she let the sheet drop, and quickly got changed. Still bare footed, she made her way to the small boot display, quickly deciding on a pair of simple, black leather combat boots. There was a wall of bags next to the boots, and she quickly grabbed a large backpack.
With purpose, she quickly filled several sets of underclothes, and tank tops, into the backpack, as well as another set of the pants, before she put on a pair of socks and the boots, lacing them easily.
Finished she started towards the back of the store. She stared at the shelves of non-perishable/canned foods for a moment in loss, wondering just how she would transport enough food to last for more than just a day. Even using another bag, it would be inconveniently heavy for her to carry.
Running her tongue along her teeth, she finally decided to put enough into her bag to last for a few days, and quickly set about her task, moving down the isle as she halfway attempted to give herself a variety. Her foot caught on the edge of a display of mineral water, sending it crashing to the ground with a loud shatter of several of the bottles. Rain grimaced, internally cursing whoever had poorly aligned the shelved unit with the isles.
A rustle to the back corner made her freeze, before carefully putting down the bag, turning fully towards the small electronics display, ears tuned for any sound of movement.
There. How could she have missed it, she wasn't sure, but it was the distinct sound of poorly concealed, shuffling feet. Rain grabbed one of the pieces of broken glass, figuring it was the best she would be able to do at the moment, before silently making her way towards the noise with practiced ease. Getting right up to the corner, she crouched, peeking around without exposing herself.
She saw a kid, perhaps ten or so, sitting on the bottom shelf of the display, hugging his knees to his chest. His alert eyes, and ragged breathing lead Rain to believe that he was currently uninfected, but...it would never hurt to use precaution. Straightening, she stepped around the corner, glass shard hidden behind out of view, but still ready for use. At the sight of her, the boy seemed to be attempting to become a part of the display, whimpering as he closed his eyes, turning his head into the wall.
"Have you been bitten?"
No response, he almost didn't seem to hear her. Hoping she wouldn't regret it later, she slowly stepped closer, crouching once again in front of the boy.
"Hey kid. Have you been bitten, or scratched, or did anyone give you a shot?"
Peaking just slightly at her, he studied her warily for a moment, before slowly shaking his head.
"Why are you here?"
Silence, and Rain pursed her lips. She was never the patient type to begin with, but adding children into the mix made it that much more obvious.
"Can you talk?"
A bit harsher than intended, but the boy didn't flinch, instead gracing her with a small nod.
"They took my dad."
Rain blinked.
"Who did?"
"The Umbrella men. Dad was ordering the supply room, when everything shut down. Then they came in and took him away."
"Why didn't they take you, too?"
"He told me to hide in the back," the boy answered simply, slowly coming around to her presence as he relaxed, facing her fully. "I waited and waited, but no one came again."
Rain silently cursed her luck again. Well, she couldn't very well leave the poor kid, could she? And the knowledge of that made everything more complicated.
"What's your name? How old are you?"
"Austin. I'm thirteen."
"I'm Rain," she said curtly. "Did your dad only work here?"
The boy shook his head.
"He doesn't work in the store very often, but someone was sick today, so they made him come here."
Rain didn't need to consider what kind of illness the missing employee could have gotten.
"What does he usually do?"
"Just supply stuff."
Rain gave him a calculating look.
"You know your way around this place?"
Austin nodded.
"You know where we can get some weapons?"
More slowly, he nodded again.
"There's a weapon room, in the basement of the supply office. They have everything there."
The brunette did a quick calculation. Having been in such a high position in the corporation, she knew quite a bit about what to expect. While her knowledge was no where near par with Alice's, who knew the inner workings of Umbrella to a 'T', Rain knew more about their protocol and operation procedures than the blonde could ever had thought. Umbrella liked to track their gear and equipment - electronics mainly, but they put some sort of tracking device on almost everything. Weapons were one thing they left undisturbed. Vehicles on the other hand.
Not only were they tracked, but many of them were rigged with over control units that they could activate at any given time. Neither possibility appealed to her, but how else could she be expected to evade whatever was waiting outside the walls, loaded with weapons, food, and now a young child?
"Did your dad drive you here?"
Austin nodded, his short, dirty blonde hair bobbing with his head.
"He usually takes the bus, but today we rode in the truck. He said cause of me."
"Did he have his keys with him when they took him?"
Austin shook his head.
"They're in his jacket pocket. It's still in the backroom."
"Okay, listen to me alright? We're going to get the truck," Rain informed the boy. "Come back here for as much food as possible, and then go get some weapons, okay?"
Austin didn't respond at first.
"But what about my dad?"
Rain shook her head.
"Listen, kid. I don't know where they took him, but I doubt that he's still on the post. We can't even start to look for him if we don't have a way to go to him, right?"
She almost felt bad, for giving the kid false hope that his father could still possibly be alive, but she shook it off when she realized it was probably the only way for Austin to agree. It was too dark for Rain to determine the exact color of the boy's eyes, but they were light - possibly blue or green. She studied them as they went from thoughtful, to considerate, and then finally agreement.
"I guess not."
"Okay. So let's go. Can you lead the way?"
Austin nodded, hesitating once again before getting to his feet, leading his way past Rain, and through the swinging door to the back storage room. A small staff room was there, with a simple brown coat hanging on the back of one chair. Austin reached into the pocket, pulling out a single key ring, with only two keys on it. One looked to be a house or apartment key, and the second was unmistakably for a car.
"He parked out back. They don't usually let normal cars through the gates, but no one stopped him today," Austin explained, handing her the keys. Rain accepted the ring, before following the boy out of the door again. The back door, a garage one where delivery trucks could back up to, was wide open. An old, orange pickup was parked to the side, and Rain took a second to admire the clear work that had been done on it.
Austin seemed to sense her curiosity.
"Yeah, dad just finished fixing it up last month. He did the whole engine and all the body work and everything," it was clear the kid was a big car fan, and for just a moment Rain could appreciate his enthusiasm. "He worked on it for a long time though. Sometimes he'd even let me help him."
It was a rather large, heavy duty, single cab Chevy, with a equally large all-terrain tires, and a metal toolbox that took up nearly a third of the truck bed.
"Are there any tools in there," Rain asked, nodding to the box as they continued to make their way. Austin was shaking his head.
"Not too many, just some things in case we got a flat or anything, and some more flexible tools, in case he needed to make a quick fix."
Rain nodded in approval. It would be a good place to store cans of food, and ammunition. Knowing that the undead were not smart enough to figure out how to unlatch it, not that Rain ever planned on letting them get that close to it if she was in it, anything put in it would be secured without worry. Austin followed her as she did a slow circle of the truck, surveying it's entirety. There was a metal cage over the headlights and grill of the the engine, with an extra set of flood lights. That aside, the truck seemed to be largely unchanged from it's original design. Done with her inspection, she opened the door, settling behind the wheel on the single bench seat. Austin let himself into the other side, pushing a backpack onto the floor of the truck on his side. After a quick once over of the gauges, and the new radio.
Sliding the key into the ignition, Rain let a small grin at how smoothly it started.
Maybe having the kid around wouldn't be a total setback.
So, in Apocalypse, the movie ends with it zooming out from America, from a city that's clearly in Illinois (or perhaps a boarding, south-western state). At the beginning of Extinction, the map suggests that Raccoon City was located either in southern Michigan, or northern Ohio/Indiana. Alice left the group in Detroit (as we find out later in Extinction). So obviously at some point, at least Alice, or possibly everyone, was in Detroit, or they just messed up with the geography of the movie. I'm have no idea, but it's not so easy to work with (considering there's only a couple weeks time frame to work with, before the virus had spread all over the US).
Damn. I did try, though.
- Shannon Riley