Resident Evil Recall: Operation Arklay

Episode Five: Task Force Arklay

Part Three

Press Conference Room, RPD, 8:00 AM…

"The invitation is always open, Proske." Liquid said as he walked back through the door and toward the podium. "Okay, everyone, back to it… now, where were we?"

By the way they had been talking, obviously something happened in the hallway before Proske attacked him, and as much as she wanted to ask what it was, Ashwood decided against it. Just as quickly as Liquid had become focused and professional, the change back to his usual self happened just as fast, so maybe what everyone really needed was some time to cool off. This time was granted as Lopez announced that the hotdogs were done, and everyone was eager to enjoy them.

"Here, we made one for you, too." Chambers said as he offered her one. "An army marches on its stomach, right?"

Normally her diet consisted of salads and protein shakes, healthy things like that except for on her naughty day, which she had used up last night at the Grill 13. Still, he had gone through so much trouble to make them, and had even gotten buns for them from somewhere, so it would have been rude not to take one. So she did so with a smile, but she was hesitant to try it even as the men proceeded to chow down. Ashwood was going to have to run, like, three extra miles at some point to burn this off, but she took a bite anyway, and the most surprising thing about it was that they were pretty good.

"I'm really glad you're with us, Lopez." Liquid said as everyone finished. "Anyway, what I was saying before we were interrupted, was that we need to keep a low profile in some way or another. I've already gone over the uniform and equipment situation, and we also will not be referring to each other by rank, but this doesn't mean that we don't have a chain of command. I am the field commander of Operation Arklay, and in my absence, McGee will be in charge. If we had a couple more people, we could form separate teams like S.T.A.R.S., but that just wasn't in the cards."

"But how will we actually be operating?" McGee asked. "From what I've heard, the details of this operation are supposed to be top secret, and, well, this room is nice, but it doesn't appear to be completely secure."

"Hey, and what happened to your girlfriend?" Lopez added. "Isn't she a pilot or something?"

"To answer your questions, this is not our base of operations." Liquid answered. "I needed this room for our first meeting only, and once we're done here, we're going to move to our real base, and you'll get a full briefing along the way. Don't worry, you'll love the place… and as for Detective Carver… she's sleeping off the effects of last night, but Irons didn't want her with us, so no big deal. Now if there aren't any more questions, I want you all to go and get changed and then meet me in the parking garage. We're going on a little trip, kids, and I promise you that everything will make sense soon enough. Dismissed."

Ashwood didn't need to be told twice about leaving the room, and for once she was glad about being the only woman, since now she would have at least a few minutes to herself as she made a bee-line for the women's locker room. Once inside, she just shook her head as she walked over to her locker. As always, she had taken a shower after her morning run, so another wasn't needed, but as she got out of her uniform, more horrible thoughts entered her mind. They had been a team for less than twenty-four hours, and already there had been fist-fights, coffee maker hotdogs, and doubts about their leader's sanity.

"Damn, Ashwood." A female voice said behind her. "I bet you have to work out every day to keep that figure, huh?

She quickly turned around, but sighed with relief when she saw that it was Carver, not that she had a reason to expect anyone else. The redhead Detective was coming out of the showers with a towel wrapped around her body and another around her hair. The woman was a knockout in her own way, so Ashwood wasn't sure what reason there would be for her to be envious of her figure, but maybe she was just making conversation. Of course, it was better than listening to what was happening in the men's locker room through the air vent that connected them.

"Hey, Chambers." Lopez's voice said. "Do me a favor, and tell me if this hurts."

The next thing she heard was a snap, followed by Chambers crying out in both surprise and pain just before it was drowned out by laughter from whoever else was in there. Ashwood was disappointed that no one of higher maturity could be found for the Task Force, but then she remembered that McGee was going with them, too, and if anyone could keep a level and professional head, it was him. Liquid might've been nuts, but McGee was sure to keep them from doing anything stupid.

"You bunch of amateurs." McGee's voice joined in once the laughter faded. "You have to wet the tip of the towel first… like this."

Suddenly there was an even louder snap, and then Lopez screamed in agony as the laughter resumed, and Ashwood couldn't take it anymore, so she reached up and shut the vent. That might gradually make it a bit warmer in the locker room, but it was better than listening to what those heathens were doing across the vent. So for now their voices were gone, but soon she would be back with them, on a trip to wherever Liquid was taking them.

"Oh, God." She said as she sat on the bench. "What have I gotten myself into?"

"Relax, Ashwood." Carver replied as she sat on the bench across from her. "Boys will be boys, and they stay that way no matter how old they get; they can just lift heavier things and their toys get more expensive. The point is that if you don't go with them today, who knows what they might do or what kind of trouble they will get into without a woman to keep them in line?"

She had a point. With the way the four of them had been behaving before she arrived, and even after she had, there was no way they could be left alone to do this mission without her. Ashwood didn't want to be the voice of reason in this group, but she could see it all now: The men would be searching around the mountains and the trees would get too thick to see through, so one of them would suggest burning the forest down to both clear the area and give them light to search with after the sun set. Of course the others would think that was just a smashing plan, and then they would pour some diesel on the ground, and that would be the end of Task Force Arklay.

"You're right, Carver, I have to go with them." Ashwood replied. "But Carver… I don't want to be rude, but I have to say something: You're so pretty, and you've got a good head on your shoulders, so why… why on Earth would you want to be with someone like Liquid?"

"Because I like him." Carver answered. "He's an interesting person, he's funny, he's a great Detective, and, well… quite honestly, I've never met a man who does The Hoover Maneuver like Tobias can."

She was about to ask what this Hoover Maneuver thing was, but decided to just let it go. Personally she thought that Carver could do a lot better, but if he was what she wanted, then he was what she wanted. Taking this pause in their conversation as an excuse to finish getting changed, Ashwood reached back into her locker and started putting on her field clothes. This consisted of hiking boots and a set of tight-fitting black clothes, allowing the most freedom of movement while also preventing her from getting snagged on anything, since they were going into the forest, after all.

"So why haven't you and Murphy Proske hooked up yet?" Carver asked. "I mean, he must've noticed you by now. Not to boost your ego or anything, but if all cops at the RPD looked like you do, then the criminals would arrest themselves just to get here."

Ashwood smiled at this compliment, but she was pretty sure that the answer was Proske just wasn't interested. He just didn't seem the type to fraternize with co-workers, unlike some people that she knew, but then again, she had also heard that he had a thing for Officer Valentine. That was probably just a rumor, but it still didn't make her feel any better even if it was. Was she silly for having feelings for him? It was nothing more than a crush at this point, so maybe just forgetting about it was a better idea.

"Ashwood, men are stupid." Carver continued after seeing her mood change. "I mean, really, really stupid. I know you want to think they're complicated like we are, but they're not; their stupid and amazingly simple. That means that if you want a man to know you're interested in him, then you have to walk up to him and say exactly that, because again, they're too stupid to get the hint."

She didn't really have a reply for this argument, not that she disagreed with her, but she wanted to think that there were at least a few men out there who actually had a brain. And she didn't just mean being intelligent; after all, Liquid was highly intelligent, but that didn't mean that she thought he actually had a brain. Well, literally he did, they all had to since they were alive, but now her thoughts were rambling on, and the others were probably already waiting for her in the parking garage.

"I see what you're saying." Ashwood replied as she closed her locker. "Thanks for the talk, but I have to run. See you later, okay?"

Carver kind of waved goodbye to her as she rushed out of the locker room, and now as Ashwood made her way back down the hall, she tried to maintain her resolve. Everything was happening so fast around her that it was getting overwhelming. The mission, as well as the conflicts between everyone's personalities was making her stress out over what was probably nothing, and the last thing she wanted to do was appear weak or unable to handle things. So she stopped walking for a second, took a deep breath, and then continued on her way toward the parking garage.