Notes:- Hello there! Lame Excuse For Not Updating No.32 – I started a new job! Sorry folks!
The Facility Endgame
Chapter Seven
Jill was the one who came to her senses first. She'd let out one last agonising sob, a final plea to be left alone before she'd collapsed onto the sand. Kevin had rushed to her side and lifted her into his arms, carefully carrying her across the sands until they reached the opposite door. With great difficulty, he'd managed to open the door and lay Jill down on the floor of what appeared to be a small observation room.
He was just about to hurry back to check on Carlos when Jill moaned softly, her eyelids fluttering.
"Carlos"?
"Sorry, it's his hotter, smarter and all round better alternative" Kevin replied, kneeling by her side.
"What happened"? Jill asked, trying to sit up. Kevin helped her, letting her lean against him.
"That giant scorpion attacked you" Kevin explained, feeling her forehead. She didn't seem to be hot or feverish. But then, he didn't really know much about medical matters. Claire had bought a first aid manual and he'd flicked through it hoping to find some gory pictures but that was about it. "It sprayed something in your face and then you started to freak out"
"Oh god…" Jill slumped against him, her hand over her mouth. Kevin grinned at her reassuringly.
"Don't worry, you didn't make that big an ass of yourself and nowhere near as big an ass as Oliviera," He teased. He expected Jill to laugh or at the very least tell him to shut up but she stayed silent. He looked down at her and was surprised to see tears in her eyes, the hand that was by her mouth beginning to tremble. He wrapped his arms around her. "What's wrong"?
"My baby…" She muttered, the tears breaking free and rolling down her cheeks. "The spray…"
"What the-"? Kevin frowned, baffled. "Jill, what are you talking about? You're not making sense…"
"My baby"! Jill cried, turning around in his grip and clinging on to the front of his t-shirt tightly. Her eyes were wide with worry and wet with tears. "I'm pregnant Kevin! What if that spray hurt my baby"?
"We need to move"! Ginny said urgently. She was holding Brad's hand, squeezing it tightly, her eyes wide with fear.
"Where"? Brad asked.
"What's the Beast"? Leon looked as Chris questioningly. The older man had finished attending to his wounds and had done a pretty admirable job at getting him fixed up. Chris had even offered Leon the black vest that he'd been wearing underneath his t-shirt. Even though it practically hung off him and he'd still be freezing cold, Leon accepted it gratefully, figuring that it was better than nothing.
"You don't wanna know" Chris answered.
"Which way should we go"? Brad asked Ginny who appeared to be deep in thought. She nibbled her bottom lip for a moment before answering.
"If we go out of this room and turn left in the corridor, we'll come to a lift that will take us back up to the executive levels"
"Right where we need to be," Brad replied with a grin. He turned to Chris, smiling smugly at him. "See? I told you it was a good idea to bring her along"
"Wow Bradley" Chris said sarcastically. "You've finally done something to help us" He shrugged dismissively. "Makes a change from flying away in a helicopter I guess"
Leon shook his head, flashed an apologetic look at Brad and moved back to Spencer's body. He picked up the gun from where Spencer had dropped it when he'd fallen. To his surprise, he recognised it right away. The Silver Ghost! He turned it over in his hands, grateful to be reunited with the weapon that had seen him through a lot of shit. He put it back into his holster and retrieved his knife from the dead man's shoulder, wiped it down, and slipped it back onto his belt.
"Guess psychos do like rooting around in body dumps" He muttered to himself.
"What"? Kevin gasped, unable to believe what he'd just heard. "You're pregnant? What? How?…I mean, shit Jill"!
"I know" She nodded tearfully before fiercely wiping her eyes. "I came as a shock to me too. We weren't trying. I wasn't even sure I wanted to be a mother. But now…oh god Kevin, what if that stuff harmed my baby"?
"Does Carlos know"? Kevin asked. He felt like he needed a lie down himself. He wanted to reassure Jill, calm her down and tell her that no, there was no way that the spray harmed her baby but he couldn't. Selfishly, he felt a rush of anxiety for his own unborn child and hoped that Claire was being well looked after at Barry's cabin.
"No" Jill answered, her hand rubbing her stomach. She looked away from Kevin's gaze. "I didn't want to tell him…we've never talked about children and I was worried he wouldn't want the baby…"
"Is that why you've been acting so weird with him"? Jesus women were complicated! He'd always figured that pregnancy was up there alongside weddings with the things woman liked to gush and get all sentimental about.
"Kevin"? Jill looked around with a frown. "Where IS Carlos"?
"In the middle of a street fight I think" Kevin answered. Jill looked at him as if he'd gone mad. "Will you be alright here if I go and get him"? She nodded and he set off dutifully. He'd just reached the door when her voice stopped him.
"You won't tell him will you"? She couldn't quite meet his eyes. "I don't want him to find out this way"
Kevin nodded and stepped back out into the desert, his gun drawn. He dodged around the sand dunes keeping an eye out for any more giant scorpions. He found Carlos lying on his back in the sand, a few metres away from the door. Kevin approached him gingerly although it seemed like he was no longer in the mood for starting street fights.
"Yo Oliviera, you alright"? He asked. It was when he got closer that he noticed the puddle of vomit beside the older man. "So you went for the continental breakfast huh"? He added, nodding towards the puddle.
"Fuck off" Carlos spat, sounding out of breath as if he'd just run for miles without stopping. He forced himself into a sitting position, his eyes widening when he saw that Kevin was alone. "Where's Jill"? He demanded, hurrying to his feet. The swift movement proved to be too much for him and he almost collapsed to the floor. Kevin rushed to his side and held him up.
"She's fine Oliviera, she's just through that door" Kevin answered, steering Carlos in the right direction. He'd never really been a particular fan of Carlos but he was beginning to feel bad, knowing that he was keeping something very private and very life changing from him. He sincerely hoped that Jill would find the guts to tell him and soon. "So" He said, eager to distract himself from his guilty feelings. "Why did you suddenly go all Rocky V back there"?
"What"? Carlos frowned and pulled away from Kevin, now seemingly able to stand and walk without assistance.
"You know, the end of Rocky V? That big street fight he has with Tommy Gunn? You were acting like you wanted to kick the young punk's ass" Kevin explained.
"I don't know what happened…" Carlos replied. "One minute I was freaking out because of that scorpion and the next I was back in my home town and fighting with a rival gang"
"Wow" Kevin said with a mocking tone. "I guess once a Jet, you're a Jet for life huh"?
"Bastardo" Carlos spat. "You're more annoying that Chris, you know that"?
"Carlos" Kevin replied seriously as they reached the door. "Nobody on god's earth is as annoying as Chris Redfield"
"Bradley. Nobody on god's earth is as annoying as you are. Do you know that"? Chris said as he, Leon, Brad and Ginny left Spencer's makeshift lab and entered the corridor. As far as Chris was concerned, ever since Ginny had told them which way to go to get back to the upper levels, Brad was being a smug bastard.
"This way" Ginny whispered, nodding towards the left hand side of the corridor. They could hear the distant roars of The Beast accompanied by the sound of metal scraping, almost as if it was dragging something as it moved along the corridors. With every step they took, Ginny in the lead, it was getting closer.
Leon moved down the corridor, bringing up the rear with Chris, who seemed reluctant to let him out of his sight. The older man's large hand kept brushing against his hip as if he was reassuring himself that Leon was still there and not some figment of his imagination. Leon was trying his hardest to walk normally, though the pain in his thigh made it difficult. It felt good to be reunited with the Silver Ghost though. Just gripping it in his hand made him feel a hell of a lot safer.
The heavy footsteps became rumbles as they reached the lift. Ginny pressed the call button with shaking fingers as Leon and Chris turned to face the corridor, guns raised.
"So what happened to all of the staff here"? Brad asked gently, as they waited for the lift.
Brad didn't get his answer, in a cacophony of noise, and a shower of twisted metal and glass, a huge black blur burst through the door of Spencer's room. Ginny shrieked, Brad gasped and, reflexively, Leon and Chris opened fire.
It was like nothing they'd ever seen before. So tall that it had to stoop to fit within the confines of the corridor, it's thick, muscular shoulders almost scraping the sides. It froze before them, almost as if it was sizing them up. It was almost as wide as it was tall, with massive muscles pulsating over stretched, pallid grey skin. Its wide face was covered by a ragged black hood with one eye hole cut into it and its tree trunk like arms were peppered with abrasions that had scabbed over, the scabs thick and black. It was dragging a large piece of a metal girder that looked like it had been torn from a support structure.
"Wow, pretty accurate drawing"! Chris shouted to Ginny over the sound of their fire. The Beast was merely batting away the bullets as though they were minor annoyances. The ones that did manage to hit simply bounced off its leathery, dead-looking skin.
There was a ding as the lift arrived and the group backed into it. The Beast let out a horrible roar and began to charge as the lift doors slid shut.
"Oh, so that's The Beast" Leon remarked as the carriage started to move upwards. The whole lift shook as The Beast crashed into the lift shaft below them.
"I could've had him" Chris shrugged confidently. "Could've punched him straight in the jaw…"
"Oh Maverick! I was so scared" Ginny said breathlessly, clinging onto Brad who was holding her close in an effort to comfort her.
"It's ok Ginny" Brad replied soothingly. "It charged straight into the lift shaft's walls. It probably knocked itself out"
"Oh yeah"! Chris said as if he'd just come to an obvious realisation. "I forgot that you're the expert on Umbrella's monsters! I suppose you get a chance to have a good look at them whilst running in the opposite direction," He teased. "Although I will give you your due Bradley. You managed to stay with us just then"
Brad looked as though he was going to say something but obviously thought better of it. He simply shook his head and rolled his eyes. Chris grinned at Leon smugly. Leon leant against the wall of the lift, trying his best to ignore the throbbing in his thigh. In an instant, Chris' arms wrapped around his waist, taking care to avoid the cuts running the length of his side.
"We were supposed to be married by now," Chris said with a small sigh, leaning in close so that Leon felt as if they were alone in the lift.
"C'mon, you know our life wouldn't be complete without being chased by Umbrella's leftovers" Leon replied with a hint of a smile. He was only partly joking. Chris seemed to sense it too as he leant in further, laying his head on Leon's shoulder, his lips brushing the sensitive skin of his neck as he spoke.
"At least we know Wesker's dead"
"It'll be ok" Leon said reassuringly, reaching up to stroke Chris' stubbled cheek. It was so much easier to ignore the pain when Chris was standing so close. "As soon as we get back to the others we can get the hell out of here"
Chris looked up and smiled at the younger man. Gripping Leon's chin gently, he kissed him tenderly on the lips.
"Oh"! Ginny squeaked.
Her voice made Leon realise that they weren't alone. He broke away from the kiss causing Chris to utter a growl of frustration and lust. He looked over at Ginny who was staring at them openly, her eyes as round as saucers, her cheeks slightly pink.
"What's your issue"? Chris snapped.
"Chris"! Leon warned.
"Nothing"! Ginny said nervously. "I just…it's…just…I didn't know…that men could kiss…" She broke eye contact and seemed to find a sudden interest in the floor of the lift carriage. Leon opened his mouth, presumably to reassure her, but Chris got there first.
"Of course we can kiss you silly girl! I happen to love this guy more than anything and we'll do whatever the hell we like"
"Give her a break Chris" Brad shot back, giving Ginny's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "She's never seen anything outside of this facility. She's only had access to whatever they've allowed her to have"
"You've got a lot to learn about the outside world then" Chris said huffily as he leant against the wall beside Leon. Ginny stuttered a nervous apology and sat down against the opposite wall, as far away from Chris as she could manage in the small space.
An uncomfortable silence settled over the small group as the lift continued to make its slow journey to the upper levels. Suddenly, the carriage began to shake accompanied by a low rumbling sound. Ginny leapt to her feet, immediately grabbing hold of Brad's hand. Wordlessly, Brad, Chris and Leon reached for their guns. The rumbling grew louder and louder and was followed by harsh, heavy rasps.
"The Beast" Brad said grimly.
The heavy breathing grew louder and louder, the shaking of the carriage more and more violent. The Beast was obviously climbing up the lift shaft. They could hear the scraping of its huge girder as it climbed up towards the small carriage.
"What are we going to do"? Brad asked.
"We'll have to get out of here," Leon answered. He couldn't help but smile at Chris despite the sudden urgency of the situation. "As much as you think you may be able to punch it in the jaw, you'll probably just die" He looked up. "There"! He pointed upwards. "There's a maintenance flap on the ceiling. If we can get that open, we can climb into the lift shaft. At least having the lift carriage between us and that thing will buy us a bit more time"
"What about the lift"? Brad pointed out. "We can't climb faster than it can move. We'll have to stop it"
"Well duh" Chris rolled his eyes. "Obviously we'll have to…erm…" He floundered. He looked hopefully at Leon who grinned and continued to explain his plan.
"When we open the flap, the lift should stop automatically" He smiled at Ginny to show her that there were no hard feelings over what she'd said. "You could help us. You're the lightest. Can you get up on Brad's shoulders and open the flap"?
"Sure" Ginny nodded bravely just as The Beast let out another fearsome roar. She leapt up onto Brad's back and he supported her as she slowly managed to get a foothold on his shoulders. She almost fell when The Beast thumped the underside of the lift carriage, causing it to judder dangerously on its cables. Leon steadied her and she twisted the catch on the flap. With one hard push, it opened and the lift suddenly stopped. She wobbled and fell, letting out a squeak of relief when Leon deftly caught her and helped her back to her feet. She blushed violently and smiled at him shyly.
"Right, let's get the fuck out of here"! Chris said. The growling of The Beast was even louder now and it was obvious that the only thing between them and it was the floor of the lift carriage, which it was banging on insistently.
"Off you go Ginny" Brad nodded up at the open flap. She nodded and clambered back onto his shoulders. With a small grunt of effort, she hauled herself up and through the hole.
"Give me a boost"? Brad asked, looking at Leon.
"Happy to" Leon laced his fingers together and Brad stepped up into them. Within seconds, he too had disappeared through the hole. Leon remained in position, looking at Chris and nodding at his joined hands. "You're next"
"No fucking way" Chris shook his head as The Beast pounded away at the floor of the carriage. "That thing is gonna bust through any minute and there's no way I'm gonna risk it finding you first" He knelt down and laced his own hands together. "Hurry up"!
"Chris…"
A huge dent suddenly appeared in the floor of the lift. The Beast roared in triumph. Chris cursed loudly.
"Get the fuck through that hole now"! He ordered. The Beast rammed the floor again, causing the whole carriage to shake. They heard Ginny's cry of terror followed by Brad's calm, reassuring words. "You either go up or I throw you up" Chris insisted. "You know I'm strong enough and I'm telling you I'm mad enough so come the fuck on"!
Leon grabbed hold of Chris and crushed their lips together in a heated kiss. For the briefest of moments, they both forgot where they were. When Leon broke away, Chris felt like he needed a few moments to come back to earth.
"Love you" Leon said simply, stepping into Chris' hands.
"Get up there Kennedy" Chris replied with a fond smile, giving Leon the boost he needed to reach the open hatch. As soon as he saw Leon's boots disappear, Chris leapt for the edge of the hatch himself.
There was an almighty crunching noise as The Beast, complete with his heavy iron girder, burst through the hole of crumpled metal that had once been the floor of the lift carriage. As Chris' grabbed hold of the hatch and started to lift himself up, he felt a stinging pain all the way down his spine coupled with a strange pressure of something heavy being dragged down it.
"FUCK"! He cried out, almost losing his grip on the hatch. Leon and Brad's hands were there in an instant, hauling him up so that he was now on top of the lift carriage with the others.
The skin on his back seemed to be burning. He heard Ginny's frightened gasp, Brad's sharp intake of breath and Leon's curses. He gingerly put his hand to his back and realised what the cause of the pain was. The Beast had somehow managed to drag the tip of its girder down the length of his back. He could a bad graze all the way down his spine and the beads of blood collecting on his skin.
"We'll deal with it later" Leon assured him. "We have to get moving" He looked up, quickly assessing the situation. "Erm…you" He said awkwardly, pointing at Ginny.
"Oh! Sorry. I didn't introduce myself. I'm Ginny" Ginny replied with a nod. "You must be Leon"
"Y'know. Now is really not the time" Chris cut in. "Let's save the meet and greet for after we've escaped the crazed Umbrella monster who's desperate for our flesh"
"Ginny" Leon took charge once more. "Start climbing up the lift cable. Brad, you follow. As soon as you see a set of lift doors Ginny, give us a shout and we'll try and get them open. We'll worry about being on the right floor later" Ginny nodded and took hold of the thick lift cable. She started to climb up carefully.
"How are we going to get rid of The Beast"? Brad asked. The Beast was thrashing wildly in the lift carriage, causing it to shake. From the loud clangs and bangs, it was obvious that it was trying to break out of the confining carriage.
"We'll worry about that later" Chris answered. "Just climb"! He allowed Leon to go up after Brad before he too took hold of the cable. The Beast's frantic movements were making the thick cable wobble and judder alarmingly. Chris hauled himself up the cable, trying his best to ignore the stinging grazed skin on his back and hoping to god that they could climb quicker than The Beast could break out of the lift carriage.
"Anyone mind if we take a break"? Kevin asked as he, Jill and Carlos found themselves in yet another one of the glass corridors. Jill and Carlos seemed perfectly fine from their encounter with the scorpion's spray although Kevin noticed that Jill kept stroking her stomach with a worried expression on her face. If Carlos noticed anything wrong with his girlfriend, he didn't say so. Kevin was thankful for that. He didn't know if his conscience would allow him to continue to pretend that Jill hadn't told him about her pregnancy.
"We need to keep going" Jill replied, now seemingly unable to meet his eye. "We still haven't found any survivors and Chris and Brad will be looking for us"
"Are you alright"? Carlos asked, reaching out for Jill's hand. "You look tired. Maybe we should rest for a while"
"I'm fine" Jill snapped. She sighed heavily and shook her head, as if she was chastising herself. "I'm sorry" She gave Carlos' hand a squeeze. "I just want all of this to be over"
"Don't we all"? Kevin replied, tapping on the glass wall beside him. The water outside looked dark and murky and he could just about make out some small shadows moving around.
"It'll all be over soon" Carlos said reassuringly. He stroked the soft skin of Jill's hand, relieved that she was actually starting to talk to him properly again. "Why don't we take that break? We've got our rations. We could probably all do with something to eat. It'd probably make it easier for the others to find us if we stopped moving"
"Never thought I'd say this Valentine but I'm with Oliviera" Kevin piped up, looking pleased. "I'm starved and my feet think it's high time my ass took over from them for a while" He added in an attempt to lighten the serious mood that had suddenly descended over them.
"Ok, we'll stop for a while" Jill replied as they reached the end of the corridor. She hated walked down these creepy glass corridors. She kept expecting the horrible creature to burst through again. Her eyes flicked from side to side, trying to watch both of the glass walls for any sign of movement in the shadowy water. Her feet were hurting, her head was aching and the prospect of food sounded damn good. She was trying her best to ignore her worries about the baby. She longed to tell Carlos but how could she? Babies were never in their plan. She wasn't very maternal and he never cooed over the scans of Claire's baby that had been passed around at Barry's last birthday party. She knew she wouldn't be able to cope if he reacted badly.
She was vaguely aware of somebody talking to her but her mind refused to let her be distracted from its current train of thought. Did she even want the baby? Could she get rid of it? Would it be better to deal with it on her own and never let on to Carlos? It was his child too, he had a right to know…but how to tell him? She couldn't tell him now. They were in the middle of a mission! She never imagined having to tell him she was pregnant but if she had she knew she wouldn't have imagined telling him deep in the bowels of an Umbrella facility.
"Jill"? Carlos' concerned voice finally broke through her thoughts. "Jill? What do you think we should do"?
"Huh"? Jill blinked, back into herself. They were standing at the end of the glass corridor. A heavy metal shutter was down, blocking off the door. Carlos was standing back, looking at it thoughtfully, whilst Kevin was examining the door of a small control box, obviously trying to work out a way to get it open.
"Any ideas"? Kevin asked, nodding towards the blocked door. "That don't involve going back the way we came" He added after a moment's thought.
"Oh! Um…" Jill looked at the control box. "Is there any way to get that open"?
"Looks like it needs some sort of special key" Kevin replied. "I've got mine right here" He grinned, holding up his combat knife.
"I think we'll be better off if I handle this" Jill said, pushing Kevin aside. "There's less chance of injury that way" She nodded at the knife. Kevin pouted, feigning hurt. Carlos smiled at her proudly.
She examined the lock on the control box, relieved that she had something to concentrate on other than her problems. Kevin was right. It did require a specific type of key. It wasn't however, a very complicated lock. She fumbled in one of the pouches on her gun belt and pulled out her trusty lock pick set.
"Fancy a flutter"? Kevin muttered to Carlos as Jill fiddled about in front of the control box. He held up a dollar bill that he'd fished from the pockets of his combats. "Bet she gets that open in less than five minutes" He continued.
"How about two minutes"? Carlos grinned. "That is, if you're happy to just hand over your money. I mean, you do have a little nino on the way" He said teasingly.
"You're on Oliviera" Kevin replied, making a big show of revealing his watch and setting his stop clock.
Exactly one minute and fifty five seconds later, the door of the box swung open. Carlos grinned smugly. He took the dollar bill from a groaning Kevin just before Jill turned around.
"I'll take this from here" Kevin said confidently, striding forwards. He smirked when he saw a row of tools hung neatly on hooks on the inside of the door. He grabbed a pair of wire cutters and flexed his arm. "Umbrella, you have my thanks"! He kissed the tip of the cutters. Jill rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"You better hope those things aren't infected with something" Carlos said with a raised eyebrow as Kevin set to work.
"Um…do you know what you're doing"? Jill asked after a few moments of Kevin staring at the mass of wires, his brow knitted together in concentration.
"Yeah, yeah" Kevin waved his hand airily. He looked at Jill and Carlos who were watching him expectantly. He had a rudimentary knowledge of electronics but he wasn't entirely sure which wire he needed to cut in order to lift the shutter. Carlos had already won the bet and he wasn't about to lose face again. He turned back to the box and examined the colourful tangle in front of him. The most likely looking wire was a thick copper one, right in the middle. He figured that the biggest wire would most likely be the one supplying power to the shutter. He raised the wire cutters and began to cut through it.
"Kevin, do you think that's a good idea"? Jill approached him, looking over his shoulder as he tried to cut through the wire. "That copper wire looks thick-"
"Nearly…through…" Kevin replied through gritted teeth, squeezing the wire cutters together as hard as he could.
"Wait"! Carlos frowned, running forwards. "He's trying to cut through copper with the wire cutters? Kevin! Don't-"!
As Carlos cried out his warning, Kevin finally managed to cut through the wire. It snapped it half with an audible snap. The larger half snapped backwards, striking Kevin across the left side of his face. His hands flew to his face and he reeled backwards, crying out in pain as blood spurted down his face. He slammed into the back wall and slid down it slowly, his whimpers of pain drowned out by the whirring of the shutter as it rose upwards.
"I can see it! I can see the doors"! Ginny's excited cries echoed down the lift shaft. "I'm almost there"!
"Keep going Ginny" Brad called back encouragingly. "Stop when you reach the doors. You're doing great"!
"Enough to make you sick isn't it"? Chris muttered to Leon. Leon looked down at the older man and smiled.
"Behave"! He replied. He looked down past Chris to see the lift carriage a few feet below, still shaking and jerking around, The Beast's cries of rage bouncing off the metallic walls of the lift shaft. They were lucky so far that the Beast hadn't yet managed to bust through the carriage but Leon knew it was only a matter of time. His hands and arms ached from hauling himself up the thick cable and his leg was throbbing painfully. Judging by the expression on Chris' face, his back was bothering him.
"I'm at the doors"! Ginny called out triumphantly. Leon heard her struggling. "But I can't get them to open"! She let out a scream as the lift cable suddenly swayed dangerously, causing them to nearly smash into the wall.
There was an almighty roar and Leon looked down to see the rusty steel girder explode through the roof of the lift carriage. It withdrew just as quickly and seconds later burst through again, making another jagged metal hole in the carriage.
"Looks like our friend's getting restless" Chris commented as though he was merely discussing a wayward toddler.
"Are those doors open yet"? Leon called up. He almost let go of the cable in shock when he felt something press into his left butt cheek. He looked down to see that Chris had climbed further up the cable and was resting his head against it as though it were a comfortable pillow. Leon sighed heavily. Had he really agreed to marry that?
"They won't open"! Ginny sounded desperate now. The cable shuddered above as Brad started to climb up to her. Below, The Beast was continuing to perforate the roof of the lift carriage in a frenzied attempt to reach them and Leon still had Chris using him as a human pillow.
"Do you really have to do that right now"? Leon asked, irritated.
"Yep" Chris replied adamantly, if slightly muffled. "It's important"
"She's right" Brad shouted down to them. "The door's won't open. I'm going to have to find another way. I can reach the maintenance control box so I should be able to tinker with that and get the doors open that way but its gonna be a few minutes"
Leon was about to call back and tell Brad to go ahead as it was their best and, probably, their only option but, unfortunately, Chris got their first.
"Don't bother with that crap Bradley! I'll get us out of this"!
Leon distinctly heard Brad mutter something along the lines of 'I'll do it anyway' and the cable jerked again as he climbed up to reach the control box. Below him, Leon could hear Chris muttering to himself, obviously trying to come up with an alternative plan.
"Do you have to be better than Brad at everything"? He hissed.
"I don't have to be" Chris replied, affronted. "I just am"
The cable swayed as The Beast jabbed another hole in the carriage's roof. Leon looked down and saw that the roof was now nothing more than a hunk of twisted metal. He could see that the only things attaching the mangled roof to the lift cable were fragile looking webs of metal where the girder had missed. With every inch of The Beast's movement, the carriage rocked dangerously, the strained metal creaking and whining in distress.
"Guys…the lift is gonna-"
Leon didn't get the chance to finish his warning. With a triumphant roar, The Beast jabbed at one of the supporting webs of metal. There was a sickening crunch followed by the ominous creak of metal about to give way. Leon felt Chris' arms tighten around his knees as the carriage crashed down the lift shaft. Leon couldn't tell whether the accompanying screeching sound came from the carriage or The Beast as it plummeted downwards. The lift cable shook and swayed violently. He could vaguely hear Ginny's screams, Brad's shouted reassurances to keep holding on. Leon gripped so tight that the thick cable cut uncomfortable grooves into his hands.
They heard the carriage hit the bottom of the shaft with a crunch, like a car being dropped on its end in a scrap yard. The lift cable jerked suddenly and its movement stopped.
"Emergency override"! Brad called out. "It stops the cable moving in the event of the lift carriage becoming detached"
"Since when did you become the authority on lifts"? Chris shouted up at him. "That another one of your choice magazines? Lifts and lifting? How about you shut your hole and get those doors open"?
"I'm working on it"! Brad shouted back down.
"Forget it" Chris muttered. "I've got a better idea"!
"Chris, what's this better idea"? Leon looked down at his lover who was wearing his best mischievous grin. He saw him reaching for one of the grenades that was hanging from his gun belt. "Chris no"!
"Doors open"! Brad shouted over Ginny's cheer. "Leaving the shaft now"!
"Shit" Chris said, sounding crestfallen.
"Shit what"? Leon asked, starting to climb up the cable. There was a chink of light just up ahead of them where the lights of the hallway had spilled through the open doors.
"Well, I already pulled the pin" Chris replied sheepishly. Leon looked down. As if to illustrate his point, he showed Leon the live grenade, complete with its lack of pin.
"Shit"! Leon cursed, he started to scramble up the cable as quickly as he could. "Throw it down the shaft"!
Above them, Brad's head appeared through the open doors.
"Are you guys alright down there"?
"Fine" Leon spat. "Chris is just trying to get me killed but he's been doing that since Spain" He added, still climbing as fast as he could, trying to ignore the burning pain in his thigh.
"Hey"! Chris argued. He sounded like he was hot on Leon's heels. "If you remember rightly, I think I saved your ass when Wesker shot you"?
"You got us attacked by that monster when we first visited that place"! Leon shot back. "If YOU remember rightly, I think you'll find that it got me a lovely gash on my side"?
"What are you? Marvo the Memory Man"? Chris sounded exasperated. "Honestly, you do one thing wrong-"
Leon had just about reached the doors when a loud explosion cut off Chris' words and Brad's concerned shouts. The force of the blast swung the cable, causing Leon to crash against the wall of the shaft nearly winding him. He looked up to see Brad mouthing something but he couldn't hear a word he was saying. The only sound he could hear was the reverberating lift shaft and a loud ringing in his ears. He reached up for Brad's hand and the former S.T.A.R.S member pulled him up and through the doorway.
Chris followed a few moments afterwards, a bewildered expression on his face as if he hadn't expected the live grenade to explode. Leon was aware that Chris was saying something to him but against the ringing it sounded muffled, like they were underwater.
"YOU'VE DEFEANED US BOTH YOU INCORRIGABLE OAF"! Leon bellowed for all he was worth, hoping that Chris would be able to hear.
"IT'S ONLY TEMPORARY" Chris was obviously shouting back, but to Leon it sounded dull and muffled. "DIDN'T YOU EVER GO TO ROCK CONCERTS"?
Leon shook his head, wondering what was going to drive him mad first. Would it be the relentless loud ringing or would it be Chris? He sighed heavily as Brad smirked at the pair of them. Chris was sticking his finger in his ear and wiggling it around in a pathetic attempt to clear his hearing. Leon saw Brad saying something to Chris but couldn't make out what was being said.
"NO YOU CANNOT LOOK AT MY CRACK"! Chris shouted incredulously, as Brad tried to turn him around.
"NOT YOUR CRACK, YOUR BACK"! Brad yelled back. Leon hurried over to help him lift up Chris' t-shirt. The girder had left a nasty graze down the length of Chris' spine which, apart from a bit of cleaning, wouldn't require too much medical attention. It made Leon sick to look at it, knowing that it could've been a lot worse. Chris however, didn't seem fazed in the slightest.
"HOW'D YA LIKE MY SEXY WAR WOUND"? He asked, giving Leon his best sleazy wink.
Leon pretended not to hear.